Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends

 Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends

Hasbro Marvel Legends

Took ‘em long enough!  The now defunct 3.75 in Marvel Universe figures teased me with a set like this way back when Toys R Us still lived and breathed.  2009, I think...a decade and some change?!  And we got two different versions of Dazzler before Firestar?!  Travesty!

Well, she’s here now, and she’s spectacular!  Bright colors?  Check.  High collar?  Check.  Flame effects?  Check.  And she has an extra head!  Granted, I’m not as excited by this one as the neutral head...the exposed forehead and “wings” on the mask don’t do it for me...but it’s still a bonus.

She has alternate hands for fire-casting, or closed fists for knuckle-dusting.  I need to look into the current-gen clear stands for characters like her.  I’m sure there are also many third party fire effects that would compliment this figure.  

I’m just as excited by the special, pack-in character:  Ms Lion!  Aunt May’s annoying cartoon dog has jumped into the third dimension with a more realistic look.  Mostly static, there is a ball joint on the head. It’s not like she needs articulated legs or anything.  An “ears up/growling” alternate head would have been nice, unless...unless they are saving that for the pack-in with an Aunt May figure!  

C’mon, Hasbro, Aunt May is way overdue.  Just check the stats on that Marvel Universe Card:  984 pies baked!  If that doesn’t put her in the heavy-hitter category, I don’t know what else will.  Maybe double-pack her with a wedding tux Doctor Octopus to make sure she sells?

Aunt May would complete the colorful camp that is Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends.  I threw in a couple of new baddie pick-ups:  Doctor Doom and the Green Goblin.  They both appear in the show credits, along with full episodes here and there.  I also have a new, default Spider-Man, if you hadn’t already noticed.

Just the right shade of classic red/blue.  He’s also got this more narrow-eyed alternate head that looks like he jumped right off the pages of the John Romita books.

Doom is a repaint from the recent Fantastic Four wave.  Classic colors, he sports a brighter, truer green.  He only has the “classic” head sculpt, which is fine by me...true Jack Kirby inspired awesomeness!  

He’s repacked with some textbooks (used by gray Beast, the Hellfire Club), green mystical energy effects, and some yellow booster jets.  The only new part is a cloth tunic piece that sits under the cape.  I like it more in-hand than I did in initial pictures, but it can be removed to suit one’s preference.  I wish he had an unmasked, burned headsculpt, or even a Doombot alternate head...but I’ll take Doom any way he’s offered.

Green Goblin does have an unmasked, Norman Osborn head.  This should fit fine on any on the many suit bodies in the Legends line if you want to go full civilian.  Like Doom, we get some brighter colors than previous releases.  

I believe the Goblin Glider is a new sculpt, but I could be wrong.  The only thing lacking here is maybe a pointed finger with energy shot.  Oh, I almost forgot to mention the eyes...I repainted them.  The original pupils were way too big.  Like, Mr. Burns’ “alien” too big.  I also gave him a black outline around the eyes to stand out better.

These figures should still be relatively easy to find, at least online.  Doom and Gobby should be must-haves for comic fans.  Firestar may not be a necessity for most but, aside from the obscure cartoon, who doesn’t need another X-Man (and to a lesser extent, New Warrior) on the roster?  I hope to see her in Legends again soon...this time, in a more modern costume.  Bring on a “Maximum Carnage” sub-line!  Spiderman sells, and it would be a window to get other missing characters like Shriek and Carrion in the mix!

The Fantastic Four Returns

More Fantastic Four

Marvel Legends - Hasbro

Modern costumes...meh.  However, not as bad as sans-external-undies Superman and Batman, and they come with new headsculpts and accessories!  

Oh, and weird, cleated feet so the villains won't know whether Johnny is going to "flame on" or Pele kick them in the head.  It's great to have a standard Johnny head that ports to the Torch body.  Also great to have a Johnny that can ride in the Fantasticar without burning up the seats.

The bearded look suits Mr. Fantastic.  And I'm sure the creepy, elongated fingers suit Sue...eww.  Kind of an odd choice for powers demonstration, but at least it's new and different.

Speaking of Sue, she's rockin' a new windswept hairstyle.  She also includes an inviso-shield power accessory. 

Thing has the classic brow we all wish had been on the Walgreen's release.  It can be exchanged, but Hasbro decided to paint the oranges different.  Wah-wah!  Guess we'll have to wait for the inevitable third release in the full leotard to be able to mix and match to perfection?  I won't mind if they throw in the scarred look and helmeted head!

The big draw in getting me to rebuy the Fantastic Four was for the baddies and part-time member:  Dr. Doom, Super Skrull, and She-Hulk.

Another one I didn't get to...the Savage Gray Hulk is worth it for that new mug!

She-Hulk is an all-new female sculpt and it is fantastic.  I like that this is a modern take, giving her the best of both worlds in hulking out both green and gray.  The paint is just superb, and that may be some of the best sculpted tattered clothing ever.  We're still waiting for the perfect classic She-Hulk, but this one is a beyond great placeholder.  It is strange, though, that they didn't save this one for a Hulk or Avengers wave and instead put her in the Fantastic Four duds.





























Like the new She-Hulk, this Dr. Doom knocks all previous Marvel Legends figures off the shelf.  He's perfect.  Just check out the sculpted chain mail in the joints!  Plus, you get a classic, Jack Kirby-looking head as a bonus!

The unmasked head from the Walgreen's exclusive Infamous Iron Man fits this new body just right.  I only wish they had included a scarred up head with a removed mask.  Sorry to Hasbro's previous Doom (who was great, save for lack of paint apps)...your head was needed for the cause!  This took some dremeling of course, but nothing a novice customizer couldn't handle.

Never got around to reviewing this one...multiples make excellent Doombots!

While the "Hyperion" body buck is tired, it suits Super Skrull okay.  He's got powered up and regular interchangeable arms and two head options.  You can always use the extra as another Skrull grunt or superhero impostor.  He's much cleaner looking than the Toy Biz version, but nothing to go out of your way for if you already have the predecessor.   And even if you do, can one have too many Skrulls in the army?





























While it may be easy to pass on the modern costumes, the other three are "can't miss."  Buy the full wave to get Super Skrull, and be happy to be getting Fantastic Four at all!  Here's to more waves down the road before the Marvel Cinematic Universe botches the deal...I need a new Annihilus figure!  And where are the classic Doombots?

Previous reviews:
The Fantastic Four, Galactus, and Fantasticar
The Thing and Silver Surfer

Squirrel Girl

Squirrel Girl

Marvel Legends - Legendary Riders

Hasbro

I know there is a cult following for Squirrel Girl, but is this the scraping of the bottom of the barrel for Marvel Legends?  I have no problem with strange and goofy character gimmicks, but did this have to be a deluxe figure with an inflated price tag?  Answers:  "Maybe" and "No."

I may be starting off a bit harsh, but I do like this figure and the essence of the character.  The sculpt brings her modern look into the third dimension pretty spot on.  While in most cases I would prefer "classic" figures, I would still take this one over her nightmarish, "Overly-Attached Girlfriend" first appearance if I had to choose only one.

Two gripes...the first is the tail.  While you do get your money's worth in plastic, it is solid, weighty, and makes the figure hard to stand in neutral poses.  It also makes her sit a bit awkwardly on her scooter.  It cannot be removed or rotated that I can tell.  A ball-jointed base with at least one segment swivel cut may have been too much to ask for, but I would have taken it over the scooter if it came down to cost.

The scooter is the same sculpt as the previous Deadpool Legendary Rider, except in blue and outfitted with a large "wooden" basket to haul squirrel buddies.  It has a kickstand that, so far, seems to help with balancing the weight of the figure and accessories.  Overall, it looks nice, but was this necessary?  "Legendary Riders" was already stretching the premise with Professor X in his flying wheelchair.  (A bit offensive..being legendarily disabled?)  I have no idea if the scooter is a staple of modern Squirrel Girl comics or shows or anything.  I guess it's fine having another six-inch scale vehicle that can work with any figures in my collection.  At least it's not plastered with Deadpool stickers...

Also, the horn tends to fall off easily.

Squirrel buddies!  Of course she needed these to demonstrate her power gimmick.  I think one shares a base sculpt with Squirrelpool (ugh), but the other two are all-new.  They didn't come with names, but Tippy-Toe is always depicted with a pink bow.  I guess you can create new squirrel personas for the others, or choose to name them after any of her former, deceased woodland pals.  I would have taken more squirrels in place of the scooter.  C'mon, Hasbro...two or three more squirrels, plus a slightly more articulated tail, minus the scooter would have been a win for everybody.  Oh, I forgot to throw in some more hands...she only comes with the one set.  Does she not punch anyone?  Or do the tree-rats do all the dirty work?

"Confound these wretched rodents! For every one I fling away, a dozen more vex me!"

This figure was a must-have, if only because my Legends Dr. Doom needed to be taken down a peg or two by being menaced by tiny rodents.  The scooter may be excessive to get to the $40 value, but the figure itself is great.  If Squirrel Girl does indicate the bottom of the barrel in character selection,  I hope Stilt-Man, Armadillo, and Swarm aren't far behind!  C'mon again, Hasbro...you just released the White Rabbit?  Where is my Nazi skeleton covered in bees?!

Howard the Duck and SP//dr

Howard the Duck and SP//dr

Funko Pop and Hasbro

I'm not typing that weird Spider-bot's name again.  I wouldn't even have bothered with him if I had not liked "Into the Spider-verse" so much.  I certainly didn't bother with the Marvel Legends build-a-figure version...at least this version is cute!  And he comes with a tiny Peni Parker figure!  I decided to pair them with another tiny dude in a big robot.  Wait...Howard the Duck has a robot suit now?!

Yup!  At least in some sort of fighting video game.  Funko made a deluxe Pop with Howard bobblehead.  Gross...but had some custom potential for my old Toy Biz Howard.  TB Howard was feeling a bit shafted after Hasbro gave his pack-in buddy, the Silver Surfer, an upgrade.  After ripping the bobblehead out, some pretty heavy dremeling, some smoke, and some melted plastic, Howard can finally stand toe-to-toe with the other Marvel heroes and villains.  

The mech suit is a pretty solid hunk of plastic.  I might chop off the arms and add some sort of swivel joint, but for now, I'm glad Howard fits decently in the cockpit.  I guess he made a background appearance in Endgame...he should have had this awesome mech suit.

I wish I were able to hollow out a place for Peni Parker to actually fit inside the Spider-mech, but the plastic is hollow and might shatter or chip with cutting.  Oh well, she looks fine riding on top of him in a crouched, ape-like stance.  They are meant for the "kiddie/non-Marvel Legends" line so you don't get much articulation (swivels at shoulders, mid-arm, wrist, upper legs), but you do get a web-missile action feature! Peni has a ball jointed head and swivel arms. 

It's a decent enough figure, again, if you liked Spider-verse.  I got mine on clearance from Hasbro on Ebay for $11 shipped...not too shabby!  The deluxe Howard the Duck Pop was about $12, and worth that even if all I could mod was ripping a bobble-head out of it's seat for a display piece.  Rock!

Avengers: Endgame

Avengers:  Endgame

Hasbro Marvel Legends

So, is anyone else going to admit that they are going to Endgame out of obligation?  For seeing something you’ve invested hours, years into for better or worse?  Is the sum of the whole truly greater than the parts?  MEH.  I just saw a “live-action” Mr. Mind...get the @$%& out of the way, Thanos!  And take ScarJo and lamewad Hawkeye with you!  Maybe the fact that this wave is a more balanced mix of comic book and MCU variations means that it’s all cooling down and even Hasbro is looking to wrap things up?

Let’s get the MCU figures out of the way...starting with Ebony Maw.  He’s a great figure which,
thankfully isn't too far of an interpretation from his comic look.  You get a completely new and unique sculpt with this guy.   His articulation is pretty good...able to move his tall, lanky frame into lots of poses.  He’s way more detailed and solid feeling than Proxima Midnight from the Infinity War wave. They are keepers solely because Thanos needs some minions.  Sadly, the Black Order ends with those two on my shelf.  The Infinity War wave 2 had too many MCU characters for me to care about assembling Cull Obsidian, and they’ve making you buy another movie Loki to get Corvus Glaive.  Lame.

The next MCU figure is Ronin...ugh Hawkeye.  I can’t believe I bought a movie Hawkeye figure.  Luckily, I got to these fast enough to be able to put him on EBay and get some money back on the Thanos part investment!  So long, sucker!

Finally we come to Quantum Suit Captain America.  He didn’t come with a BAF part, so I left him at the store.  Psych!  

Now let’s get to the comic goodness!  Nighthawk is one that I’m not all that familiar with.  Sorry, I don’t think he even had a Marvel Universe trading card.  I know that he’s a reformed bad guy and that he later becomes a Defenders mainstay, so that’s gotta count for something (double to discredit that Netflix garbage.)  I dig the costume, even if it makes him look a little more “DC.”  Must be the cape...and something about a “Hawk” making his debut a year earlier...hmm...

The Living Laser may not be in his classic costume (it is a little doofy, tbh), be we have another Mandarin Minion to beat on Iron Man!  His simple, translucent body works for his gimmick.  He comes with some white “electricity” effects that Hasbro is getting some mileage out of (Storm, Magneto, Laser so far.). Man, sorry for complaining about the overuse of the circular, bubbly magic/power effect that you pulled on us in every color of the rainbow!

Citizen V was the one I looked forward to the most here.  More Thunderbolts, please!  Good to see some more Baron Zemo love.  It’s too bad the MCU made him just “some mundane looking guy” and killed him off at the end of Civil War...guess the the Thunderbolts concept (bad guys masquerading as good) would take too much time to pull off anyway.  Ah, well...I wonder if his saber will be reused with a new Nightcrawler figure in the future?

Hercules is the surprise winner of the wave.  I was never a big fan of him in the comics (his inclusion in the world of modern superheroes was a little confusing to me), but I do have some issues of the short-lived “Champions” comics.  I’ve got Angel, Iceman, Black Widow, Ghost Rider, and now Herc...just need a Swarm figure, Hasbro, and I can die happy.  Herc has a unique sculp (I believe), two awesome weapons that can be sheathed on his back, and alternate punching hands.  The cheesy smile on the figures face fits its existence to a T.  It’s not his most classic look (some forum members are complaining too much about the pants), but the color shame is true.  Everything here works, and he sure is fun to pose and play with.

The bonus, Build-a-Figure for this wave is armored Thanos.  Yes....the one we asked for since he was teased onscreen waaay back in phase one.  Only, it’s not that armored figure...instead of true blue and gold, we get a rather dull looking bronze and gold.  WTF?!  I definitely foresee a greedy Hasbro double-dipped re-release/exclusive of the one we wanted all along somewhere in the near future.  I gave him a dark blue paint wash to bring out some line detail and tarnish him up a bit.














He has also been criticized for some size discrepancies compared to his earlier, non-armored self.  He should at least be bulkier in the torso and shoulders if wearing another layer of clothes, not smaller.  Unless, of course, he used the Gauntlet to slim down a bit between movies.  He also lacks a waist swivel and upper arm swivel, which is pretty common on most Legends.  This, partnered with the color scheme, makes the whole figure look and feel a bit cheap unfortunately.

Ah well, I did pry the helmet part off the nogging so I could do a head swap/unmasked display option with the Infinity Wars figure.  Fun, even if the purple skins don't match! And it’s not all that bad considering this is Hasbro’s first baf within a baf.  Or should I say bav...Thanos Copter Build-a-Vehicle!  Yes, you get one set of copter blades with this figure.  Like most MCU adaptations, it looks like the vehicle will have a more realistic look to...wait a minute...you say that it’s NOT copter blades, but some sort of double-bladed weapon for Thanos?!  SINCE WHEN DOES THANOS NEED A WEAPON OTHER THAN THE INFINITY GAUNTLET?!?!    Especially after the filmmakers dismissed his need for armor the first time round because he had the god-power weapon?!  Gah...I am so ready for the MCU to close shop.  Wishful thinking?  If only...*SNAP!*