It’s Monday and I got a short week at work and then I’ll be cruising into my second vacation in two months. Life is good. Even better, since I’m opening a brand new Marvel Legends figure. And while I’m chomping at the bit to get to the Black Panther-inspired wave, I’ve got to finish what’s on my plate first. What’s that? The Infinity War and Deadpool Waves are already hitting? OMG, I’M NEVER GOING TO GET CAUGHT UP!!! Anyway, I’ve already checked out the Netflix-inspired portion of this wave and now I’m starting to look at the pair of comic-based figures so I can assemble my Man-Thing.

Behold, it’s Blade! It says so right on the package in that awesome font! It seems like ages ago (maybe 2013?) that we were promised Blade as a running-change variant to The Punisher. We all know how that worked out. But some four years later, we’re actually getting a modern Blade in the modern Legends line. It’s not the same figure we were shown back then, but maybe that’s not a bad thing.

Because… damn! Check him out! I maybe biased because I was really looking forward to this figure, but in hand I’ve got to say Hasbro did him proud. The Daywalker comes wearing a tactical vest with some heavy texturing and silver painted clasps around the shoulders and sides. He has a fairly non-descript pair of pants with knee guards and high boots. His arms are sleeveless, but he does have fingerless gloves on his hands, which is not smart when you’re fighting vampires because it makes it just that little bit easier for them to bite your fingers off. Separately sculpted pieces include a strap on his left thigh with what look like silver stakes, and he has a bandoleer strap across his chest with good old fashioned wooden stakes. The paint is pretty subdued, but the silver apps give him a little well needed pop.

From the back we can see that the bandoleer also holds the scabbard for his katana sword, as well as even more stakes running down his back. The scabbard features some sculpted ties securing it to the strap and there’s no tip, so you can see the point of the sword peeking out at you. Oddly enough, the scabbard looked pretty straight when I got the figure out and I was worried that the curved sword blade wasn’t going to fit, but it goes in real easy and stays put. The sword hangs on his back a little low, but he can still grab the hilt to draw it out.

Blade includes two heads to choose from. One features a standard looking haircut, groovy pink shades, and a handlebar mustache. It’s also an absolutely amazing face sculpt. The definition in the details is superbly executed and the paint is damn near perfect. Also, unlike the new facial printing Hasbro has been using, this is not a paint job that suffers breaking down as you get in real close. Absolutely fantastic!

The alternate head features a bit of a crazier haircut, if you can call it that. Here, Blade is mostly bald and just has a pair of lightning bolts cut into his hair. I’m all for options, but I prefer the first one, which makes this head a bit of a waste for me. The expression and the glasses are identical, and I would have much rather got a second head showing some more emotion. Screaming or smirking or anything but just a different haircut. Of course, if you prefer this hairstyle, then you may likely feel the same way about the other head. It just seems like a wasted opportunity.

As for articulation, Blade has all the points he needs to get all rough and tumble with the nightstalkers of the Marvel Universe. The arms feature rotating hinges in the shoulders and wrists, double hinges in the elbows, and swivels in the biceps. The torso has a rotating waist, an ab crunch hinge just under the chest, and both a ball joint and hinge in the neck. The legs are ball jointed at the hips, have swivels in the thighs, double hinges in the knees, and the ankles have both hinges and rockers. The joints feel great on this guy, and he’s loads of fun to play with and pose.

Blade’s one accessory is… his blade! The katana sword includes a silver blade with a gold tsuba guard. The sculpted wrap on the hilt is painted black with some gold peeking through underneath it. The blade is pretty bendy, but mine doesn’t seem to have a problem staying straight. Blade’s hands are sculpted so that he can hold the sword in either one, and his articulation allows him to wield it with both hands, if that’s your preference.

In the end, this release really hits home for me. Not only am I a fan of the character and his comics, I’m a big fan of vampire comics in general, and I’ll confess I still enjoy the Blade movies a lot, even if they do seem hopelessly dated now. The character is also almost as old as I am, first appearing in Tomb of Dracula #10 in 1973, the year after I was born. And, oh man, would I love to get a Legends figure of him in his original costume, complete with that green jacket that was pure 70’s! Blade is simply one of Marvel’s most bad-ass heroes and while it was tough to wait this long to finally get him in Legends, I think the wait was well worth it. I’m much happier with this figure than the one that was previously shown off.