Feb 23 2016

Heroes of the Storm: Illidan Stormrage (Warcraft) by NECA

Last week, I started looking at NECA’s new Heroes of the Storm line with Nova Terra, a great looking figure that unfortunately suffered from fragile hip syndrome. Today, I’m opening up my second figure in the series and hoping he’s made of tougher stuff. Let’s check out Illidan Stormrage, aka. The Betrayer!

Here he is in package, which gives you a great look at the figure you’re getting. Heroes of the Storm eschews collector friendliness and goes for a sealed clam shell. I’m not going to complain because it gives me a perfectly good excuse to not keep the packaging. Also… plastic fumes. Gotta love the plastic fumes when you cut into one of these babies. I can’t tell you how long I’ve been hoping to get proper Warcraft action figures. So much so, that I nearly went for some of those DC Direct statues back when they were out. Needless to say, I’m damn excited to get this guy out…

And he does not disappoint! Illidan dons his blindfold to cover the vacancy left behind by having his eyes seared out. Or, if you prefer, it’s because he’s a Demon Hunter and they cover their eyes because the eyes cannot be trusted when hunting disguised demons and instead they hunt auras. Ooooor, if you prefer, it’s so they aren’t tempted by the evil they hunt. Maybe it can be all of those things. Or none of them. Warcraft lore is deep and complex. And to think I spent most of my 10,000 hours of playtime just trying to not get ganked. Where was I? Oh yeah… he wears a blindfold and it makes him look like a badass. And just to please the lady Blood Elves, he doesn’t wear much of anything else. Just a pair of brown fur-lined pants and a loin piece that screams out the familiar aesthetic of the World of Warcraft universe.

NECA invested just enough detail on this guy to keep the ‘toony look of the game while still delivering on their rep for quality sculpts. The fringe on the pants looks great, as does the stitching up the sides. I really dig the shade of purple plastic used for his skin and the sculpted muscles are a little on the chunky side to further mimic that great WoW style. The green tats on his upper body are sharp and crisp and look great and they are not only painted on, but also part of the figure’s sculpt.

The portrait here is damn solid. I’ve already mentioned his blindfold. He sports a crazy mane of sculpted hair, a massive pony tail that has to be pegged into the back of his head, and a glorious scowl on his pus. If I had to nitpick something, I’d say the teeth could have been a bit better realized, but I’d have to be really looking for something to complain about.

I might have started this Feature off with articulation, since it’s the first thing I checked when I got the figure out. Thankfully I found no stuck joints and no breakages. I can tell the hips are the same design as on Nova because when I move one leg, the other moves a little with it. It’s that same pin design and seeing as it’s perfectly fine on this figure, that gives me hope for trying my luck on another Nova. Anyway, Illidan’s arms feature rotating hinges in the shoulders and wrists, swivels in the biceps, and hinges in the elbows. The hips and ankles are rotating hinges and the knees are double hinged. There’s a ball joint in the torso and another in the neck. All in all, he’s a fun figure to mess around with.

In addition to his plug-in ponytail, Illidan comes with the Twin Blades of Azzinoth. AND OH, MY HELL YES!!! These are beautiful, big, and chunky weapons that come sealed in individual baggies to protect the paint. And what fabulous paint it is! The blades feature a sumptuous metallic green with black lines etched into the blades. The hilts are gold and red and have sculpted wrapped handles inside the guards. Once again, NECA has just done a beautiful job of translating that familiar WoW aesthetic to plastic form. These blades look magnifcent in Illidan’s hands.

Every now and then a figure comes along that doesn’t seem like it’s going to be a stand out piece, but it winds up just hitting that sweet spot. Illidan here is exactly that kind of figure for me. If Nova didn’t already capture my heart for Heroes of the Storm, well Illidan certainly would have done the job. Everything about this guy from the sculpt to the quality and colors of the paint, right down to the fun articulation makes him a treat. And, of course the fact that he didn’t come with any joint issues is a huge win too. Illidan The Betrayer indeed… Betrayer of my wallet! I’ve already got orders in for the next three figures available in this line, including the beefy Deluxe figure Stitches, which constitute a couple more Warcraft figures and my first from Diablo. And thankfully, NECA teased the roster for more Heroes of the Storm figures releasing later this year and you can bet that I’m on board.

Feb 22 2016

Marvel Legends: “Age of Ultron” Hawkeye (AoU 4-pack, Part 4) by Hasbro

And here we go with the last figure in the Marvel Legends Age of Ultron 4-pack. On a positive note, a Marvel Cinematic Universe Hawkeye in Legends scale was high on my want list. On the downside, I regret going from left to right in my coverage of this set because now I have to finish on a down note. AoU Hawkeye… you got some issues.

Yes, this is a repaint and partial re-sculpt of the Walmart Exclusive figure that came out alongside the first Avengers film. The biggest differences are a new head, a more muted shade of red paint on his tunic, and while the space for it is still there, the SHIELD emblem tampo is no longer present. Finally, the shoulder strap running across the chest of the Avengers figure has been removed. Granted, Hawkeye spend part of Age of Ultron wearing something very similar to his first Avenger’s costume, so the reuse here isn’t unwarranted, but it would have been nice to get him in the brand new costume. As it stands, the texture and detail on the costume is pretty solid, although those ball hips are pretty f’ugly.

With that having been said, right off the bat, something feels off about Clint and I’m going to say it’s the proportions. I can’t quite put my finger on it, because if I put him next to Dr. Banner, they’re almost the same height and their legs and torsos are pretty much even. And yet Hawkeye’s legs look really short and his torso looks really long. It seems to be an optical illusion, but every time I look at the figure I can’t un-see it.

The new portrait features Clint without his glasses. I like that. Including the glasses on the old figure seemed like a lazy way out. The new head features a passable likeness, that would probably be a lot better with some decent paint to bring it out. Unfortunately, my Clint’s peepers are a little wonky. Hawkeye? More like Walleye… amiright?

Hawkeye comes with two accessories: His bow and quiver and both are the same pieces that came with the WM Exclusive Avengers figure. Unfortunately, that means the quiver isn’t movie accurate, as he wore a rectangular one in AoU and not this drum-style quiver. Yeah, I get it, Hasbro was able to release this set by cutting some costs. I’m still going to mention it, though. The bow is on par with the last Legends Hawkeye figure that I got and I probably would have been a lot happier with it if I hadn’t just opened DC Icons Green Arrow a couple of weeks ago. That figure featured a real string on the bow and removable arrows in the quiver. After playing around with that ensemble of archery accessories, this one just leaves me flat.

The articulation here looks good on paper, but I do have a few issues with it in practice. Those hips are the terrible rotating hinges that make me work harder to get all the movement out of them. The hinges in the elbows are super mushy and one of the hinges on my figure’s right elbow doesn’t want to sit properly. I have to squeeze the two halves together every time I work the elbow to keep it from wanting to pop out. Otherwise here’s the run down: The arms have rotating hinges in the shoulders and wrists, bicep swivels, and double hinge elbows. The legs have rotating hinges in the hips, swivels in the thighs, double hinge knees, and both hinges and lateral rockers in the ankles. There’s a ball joint in the chest and ball joint and hinge in the neck.

I don’t think this is a terrible figure, but it did turn out to be the weakest one in the box for me. Although, granted the fact that I never got the Walmart Exclusive from the first Avengers film makes him a little more welcome. There’s some good stuff going on here, but the proportions still look off to me and a screen accurate quiver would have been nice. At the end of the day, I’m glad to have him to at least round out my Age of Ultron team. And thanks to Toy Fair we know we’re getting an MCU Scarlet Witch. Still no sign of Quicksilver, though. Next week, I’m going to take a break from Legends and we’ll check out the Hot Toys version of Age of Ultron Hawkeye.

Feb 19 2016

Batman (Classic TV Series): Batmobile by Mattel

Yes, it’s DC Friday and yes, the last four weeks have been all about DC Icons, but I’m taking a short break to catch up on some other DC related goodies before diving into the second wave of Icons. Today’s feature is long overdue as I picked up the 1966 Series Batmobile last year right around Christmas when Amazon was blowing it out at an irresistible price. This is one of the most iconic vehicles in my nostalgia addled brain, so I’m more than ready for this… Atomic engines to power… Turbines to speed…

Mattel has done a consistantly nice job with the packaging and presentation on their 1966 Batman line and the Batmobile is no different. You get a colorful window box that gives you a great look at the toy and a lot of vintage TV flavor. My only complaint here is that the side flaps are glued and not taped. Since I don’t have the shelf space to display this beast right now, it’ll go back in the box and I had to be very, very careful when opening it up.

The vehicle itself comes fully assembled. There are some clever little locks on the bottom that hold it into the tray. You just need to turn them, pull them out and unpeg the mounts from the bottom of the car. I was sure I was going to need a screwdriver, but that wasn’t the case.

Out of the box and this thing looks pretty fantastic. Although, it’s worth noting that for a vehicle this size, it is extremely light because it’s a totally hollow piece. The lack of heft may be disappointing to some, but it doesn’t effect the wow factor when displaying it, so I’m not bothered by it at all. While the bulk of the car’s body is cast in a lovely high gloss black plastic, there are some rubber pieces designed to comply with toy safety. The back fins, for example are rubber, although it does a pretty good job matching the rest of the finish.

The driver side fin on mine has a notable gap in the seam, which would bug me a lot more if this was a high end piece, or perhaps if I paid anywhere near the original retail. The exhaust pipes behind on the back are also very soft plastic, but they seem fairly straight and sturdy. Lastly, the lights on the top and the gold thing sticking up behind the hood (I have no idea what that is) are also soft plastic.

Overall, the paint is applied pretty well. There are a few fuzzy spots on the orange striping, but nothing specifically bad to call out. The bat symbol tampos on the doors are very sharp. The silver looks nice, particularly around the turbine on the back and the license plate is printed on. I love the fact that the parachute packs are also sculpted on the back. The silver wheels really pop and I dig the sculpted bat emblems.

As nice as everything looks, I think this Batmobile’s greatest feature is the detailed cabin. There’s all sorts of neat stuff in there like the batphone and the bat fire extinguisher. I suppose you can call those things the bat steering wheel, the bat seats, the bat gas and brake pedals. Everything is branded BAT! You also get two seat belts that tab into slots to hold the figures in place. The steering wheel turns, although it does not turn the wheels.

The figures, which are not included in this particular release but are included in the more recent one, fit into the seats quite well. The individual release Batman without the wires in the cape goes in better, but since there’s only one Robin and he has the wires, I keep that pair in the seats. The belts can be a little tricky to tighten, but they do come out the bottom so you can grab them and pull them through.

All in all, I think this Batmobile is a great piece and a perfect addition to the action figure line. It’s hard to articulate the nostalgia I get from it as it brings back strong memories of playing with my Mego Batmobile as a wee lad in the early 80’s. Not to mention my brother and I watching the TV show almost every afternoon. Of course, my opinion on this vehicle is colored by the fact that I got it for $22 shipped when the original retail was in the $50-60 range. At that price, I think it’s only fair to expect a heftier piece with a few more bells and whistles, but as things stand, I’m delighted with this purchase.

It’s possible that this will be the last addition to my Mattel 1966 Batman collection. I am still missing Batgirl, but individually she goes for way too much money. The three-pack (bundled with Batman and Robin) is more tempting, as the packaging is really nice and the going rate works out to less than $20 a figure, but I’m still in a holding pattern. That having been said, I liked this line a lot and I don’t think it deserves a lot of the flack it got from collectors. They may be closer to the toy end of action figures than collector end, but I would have absolutely killed to own everything you see in the picture above back when I was a kid.

Feb 18 2016

Transformers Cybertron: “Jungle Planet” Optimus Prime and Megatron by Hasbro

Yes, folks, this February Transformers Thursdays are all Unicron Trilogy all the time and to be honest, I have yet to venture outside the Cybertron line. Bear with me, there will be new Transformers coming in March, but for now, let’s travel back to 2006… yet again. It’s the 10th Anniversary of Beast Wars and Hasbro had a bizarre little homage for us in the form of two Cybertron Deluxes of Optimus Prime and Megatron in Jungle Planet versions that looked suspiciously like Optimus Primal and Megatron from the great Maximal and Predacon War.

And that’s because these molds were actually part of the Beast Wars 10th Anniversary revival and released in their proper Beast Wars colors in commemorative style window boxes. Why, Hasbro felt the need to repaint them and release them as part of the Cybertron series in the same damn year was always a puzzle to me. But I bought them anyway, mainly because I never found the Beast Wars versions at the TRU’s near me. Let’s start with Megatron and his alt mode…

Megsy is a totally bitchin’ techno T-Rex and I absolutely love this mold! It’s loaded with sculpted panel lines and crazy contours that make it look just a little bit H.R. Giger inspired. There’s also surprisingly little robot kibble to be seen, even if you flip him over and check out his undercarriage.

The deco consists of two green tones with some purple bits showing here and there and some black, brown, gold, and silver paint. Holy shit, Hasbro was not stingy on the paint hits back then! I’ll be honest, I would have preferred the more purple Beast Wars version over this Jungle Planet theme with all the green, but he’s still plenty cool.

Articulation here also makes for a very fun toy in beast mode. There are ball joints in the “hips” and “shoulders” and hinges in the “knees” and “ankles.” You also get a hinged jaw with a sculpted tongue in there. It’s hard to believe they could get this beast mode so right and so many of the Grimlocks that would follow so wrong. It’s also worth noting that while most Cybertron figures had CyberKey gimmicks in both robot and alt modes, this pair only have them in their robot modes. And speaking of robot modes… Megsy’s is gorgeous!

Ooooh, yeah! A big part of transforming Megsy here requires pulling off his tail. Maybe some would consider that a cheat, but if it’s any consolation, the tail becomes a weapon he can hold, and he is technically holding it while in beast mode. So, let’s let him slide on that. Besides, without the tail in his hand, his left arm looks really gimpy. Either way, this I’m totally down for this robot mode. The way the torso flips into place is cool as is the engineering on the left shoulder, which folds down and neatly into place. And that head sculpt… Yessssss!

Of course, he has the same dino-head right hand that Beast Wars Megsy had and as mentioned, the tail becomes a bludgeon he can hold in his left hand and inserting the CyberKey converts it into a missile launcher. This figure is both a great little homage to Beast Wars Megatron and a pretty fine original piece on its own. Unfortunately, this feature is going to start skidding hopelessly out of control as we see how Optimus made out…

Sweet Primus, what happened here? The fact that Optimus’ beast mode sucks so much quite frankly surprises me. I would have guessed the engineering from monkey to robot would have been easier to work with. I don’t hate this, but I don’t love it either… in fact, I don’t even think I like it. Prime’s beast mode seems to cling more to organics with sculpted fur, but there’s still some techno parts showing and the face looks particularly robotic. It’s an unsettling mix that kind of creeps me out.

That face! Oh no. No no no no no no… no! And while the articulation is overall good with ball joints all around, Prime’s monkey mode feels like it’s intended to just stand there on his feet and knuckles. Let’s see if his robot mode can sell me on this figure…

Better! Although, this is one of the most frustrating transformations I’ve dealt with on a Deluxe in a long while. Why is that? The Beast Wars toy wasn’t anywhere near this annoying. Halfway through I just had a pile of limbs, all interconnected on reciprocal hinges and a mess that looks like a gorilla had an accident in a teleporter. Fortunately, the end result is actually pretty good.

This is a lovely little re-imagined Deluxe version of Optimus Primal and finally a fun figure to play with. The sculpted chest with the silver and red paint looks great and the same articulation that felt rather wasted on the gorilla mode makes for a great robot mode. The head sculpt is a home-run too. Oh yeah, Prime comes with his hover board for his gorilla mode to ride on and… OH F’CK, I HAVE TO CHANGE HIM BACK??? God dammit… be right back…

There. You happy? There’s a god damn robot monkey riding a hoverboard… sideways… and it looks like crap. The board has pegs for Prime’s gorilla feet, but he just looks awkward trying to ride it. There’s also a CyberKey gimmick that deploys the side of the board, kind of like an outrigger and reveals the trigger for the hidden missile launcher in the nose.

Obviously I’m mixed on this pair. My love for Megatron needs no qualifications. He’s great in both modes and lots of fun to play with. Hasbro did a splendid job on him. Optimus, on the other hand, has a pretty piss poor beast mode and a needlessly complex transformation, but he has a robot mode that carries the day. It was a neat little experiment to work Beast Wars homages into the Cybertron line for the 10th Anniversary and thanks to the Jungle Planet in the fiction, this one sort of makes sense in the context of the series. It’s likely when the Unicron Trilogy purges of my collection are complete, these figures may survive it.

Feb 17 2016

Masters of the Universe Classics: Laser Power He-Man and Laser Light Skeletor by Mattel

Here we are in February and I’m still opening stuff from last year’s Club Eternia subscription. Well, this is the last box to open from the sub’s final month and it’s a two-pack to boot, so let’s dive right in and check out Laser Power He-Man and Laser Light Skeletor!

We’ve seen this box before. It’s the standard two-figure window box with the sloping sides and that great greyskull stone motif. It’s collector friendly if you’re careful, and since I kept the box for my last Skeletor and He-Man two-pack, I’ll likely keep this one too. Flip it over and drink in the goodness and sorrow that is the last of the MOTUC bios. Now, I’m no expert when it comes to Masters of the Universe, but as I understand it, these were two of the last figures to be released in the vintage line (in 1988), and even that needs qualifying because they were only circulated in Europe. Let’s start things off with He-Man and look at the base figure first…

Yeah, it’s another version of He-Man, but considering how long this line has run, I don’t think they’ve milked the variants too badly and they’ve all been pretty good, including this one. This guy is like a hybrid of traditional He-Man and Space He-Man. I’m pretty sure I said that about He-Ro II, but it’s true here as well. The chest harness calls back to his original, but it’s blue and has a futuristic flavor to it right down to the silver “H” in the middle. It rides a little high on the shoulders, but it’s got to be strong to hold the enormous piece of kit he’s going to strap to his back. The boots have the same sci-fi look about them and the paint on those silver gauntlets just look stunning, as does the belt. If you’ve complained in the past that He-Man’s fuzzy barbarian diaper leaves too much for the imagination, well you’re in luck because this new tiny blue steel speedo clamped around his junk does not. All in all, I really dig the look of this guy.

The portrait appears new, although I’ve lost count of all the He-Man noggins floating around in my Masters Accessories Tote. This is an impressive piece of sculpting, although it looks like it might have been pinched a bit in the final production. I think I can see a little bit of Dolph Lundgren in there, but maybe that’s just my wishful thinking. Of course, we’re really here to talk about that new Laser Power!

After a lifetime pitched in desperate struggle with his arch nemesis, Skeletor, He-Man has finally had enough and decides to strap a giant box, which I presume holds a series of daisy-chained car batteries, on his back to power his newest electric sword. Evil will die! Actually, screw the batteries, in my mind I’d like to think that this thing is gas powered and that Duncan has to pull a cord on the back a bunch of times to get it to start and when it’s running it’s louder than a hundred leaf blowers. The box clips onto the harness very securely and there’s room to store the sword on the side. He-Man also has to wear two bulky pieces of armor on his right hand, presumably to protect him from the horrific lethal radiation given off by the sword. Come to think of it that’s probably why he wears the steel speedo, to protect the Eternian jewels from getting irradiated.

All kidding aside, though, I like this thing a lot. Sure, it’s bulky and makes the figure rather back heavy. And with the sword in storage he looks like he’s ready to go bust some ghosts. But it’s a cool gimmick and it’s remarkable that it survived translation to the Classics line where gimmicks have been traditionally neutered. Yes, that backpack really is crammed full of electronics and batteries, and yes the sword really does light up. You can even get it to spazz out and flash like crazy. So good! Let’s move on to Laser Light Skeletor…

Right off the bat, there’s a lot of New Adventures Skeletor in here. Some of the arms and some of the legs are reused, the feet are repainted and reused, I think the belt might be the same, but there’s a lot of excellent new sculpting here as well, like the new lower legs that make use of some remarkable copper paint to make the grafted armor stand out from the blue skin. The same could be said for the gorgeous copper chest piece. As amazing as this figure looks, it would be cool to see a skilled customizer add some paint hits to the tech bits sculpted into the blue body.

I’m not all that fond of the portrait here, although I will concede that based on pictures I’ve seen it is a solid update to the vintage Laser Light Skeletor. Still, something just looks odd about the face. The hood is removable and sits rather strangely too. It’s hard for me to figure out if I have it in the intended position or not. I do like the added techno-bits sculpted into the back of the head. I’ll also note that while there are electronics in the head, I find it impressive that Matty was able to keep the neck articulation to a degree.

As with He-Man, Skeletor has an electronic box on his back, but unlike He-Man, Skeletor integrates all his electronic gimmickry right into the figure so the box is not removable. There’s some really nice sculpting and paint on it that was absent from He-Man’s backpack. The problem here is that the figure is still very back heavy and while He-Man was able to compensate with a decent pair of feet, the little clodhoppers that Skeletor has just isn’t up for the task. It’s really hard to get him to stand decently and it’s a shame that Matty couldn’t have engineered some lateral rockers into those ankles. They’ve done it on a fair number of Classics figures, and here’s one that really would have benefited from them.

Skeletor’s electronics feature glowing eyes and a light up right gauntlet that is supposed to light up his translucent red Havoc Staff. The gauntlet and eyes light beautifully but the light doesn’t travel very far up and down the staff. Don’t get me wrong, it still looks plenty cool. It is worth noting that in order to accommodate the electronics in the right arm, there is no elbow hinge or bicep swivel. There is, however, still a swivel at the top of the gauntlet.

A lot of other companies would have just phoned in the final two figures of a line, but Matty gave us something special here. We got two figures that most fans never saw in their vintage collections and we got them engineered with electronic gimmicks. That’s a first for the last, and that’s going above and beyond in my book and these are overall fun and solid (and perfectly appropriate) figures to end the line with. I feel like I should get all sappy and wax sentimental about Club Eternia. It delivered a fantastic series of action figures and sapped a shit ton of money out of my bank account. In other words, it was a great ride. But I still have older Classics figures and vehicles to open and look at (not to mention a giant castle) and I still have the Collector’s Choice figures ahead of me, so for now I’ll resist the urge. At some point down the line, I’ll eventually open my last Masters Classics toy or figure and I’ll save the reminiscing for then.

Feb 16 2016

Heroes of the Storm: Nova Terra (Starcraft) by NECA

Blizzard! It’s one of those video game companies that has made a huge impact on my life… just not so much lately. Warcraft, Starcraft, World of Warcraft, Diablo... if I were to add up all the hours (or days, even) that I spent playing these franchises, I would probably die of shock. And while I’m still down for a little Starcraft or Diablo now and again, I’ve mostly been able to kick the Blizzard monkey off my back. I relapsed twice before finally quitting WoW for good! That having been said, when NECA announced their Heroes of the Storm figures I was on board. Not because I’ve ever played the game, but because the game draws characters from all of these properties that I know and love. I’m kicking off my look at this line with Nova Terra from Starcraft.

I’ve been enjoying the collector friendly presentation of NECA’s “Ultimate” line, but lest we forget, NECA is also the king of hermetically sealed clam shells and that’s exactly what you get with Heroes of the Storm. I had to razor my way into this package and was instantly rewarded with a heady dose of lovely plastic fumes. Ahhh… contact high! The packaging is nothing much to write home about. The bubble shows off the figure, and you get a bubble insert with a rather nice character portrait. It’s serviceable and at least it doesn’t make me feel guilty about pitching it.

Here she is and she is absolutely gorgeous! But, before getting in too deep… We got breakage! Yeah, Nova’s right leg snapped off at the hip almost immediately after taking her out of the package. At first I thought it was just a ball joint popped out of the socket. That’s how easy and quickly it happened. Then I realized that there’s nothing holding that leg on but a tiny pin and some quick Internet research told me that the snapping right hip is a common occurrence on this figure. I write a lot of favorable reviews of NECA product, but paying $22 for a figure that breaks so easily and so commonly is really disappointing, especially when it’s this wide spread.

Aaaaand especially when the piece is as beautiful as this one. NECA did a wonderful job capturing the look of her Ghost Suit. From the smooth form-fitting midriff and thighs to the slightly bulkier armored pieces on her forearms, lower legs, chest and shoulders, everything about the hostile environment suit is recreated here in beautiful detail. The paint is also very well done. The metallic blue used for the armor pieces is brilliant and the panel lines are colored in black or light blue. There are a few smudges here and there, which are certainly not intended as weathering, but they’re less bothersome because they do make the suit look used.

The portrait here looks particularly good. It’s funny, but at the right angles I could swear I see a little Billie Piper in the likeness. Maybe it’s because I always have Doctor Who on the brain. Either way, the paint on the lips and eyes is sharp and the large ponytail (which comes separate from the figure has to be pegged in to the head) is certainly impressive.

And that brings us to articulation, which is where this figure runs into problems. Yes, obviously, I did some hip surgery. After two attempts to save the right hip articulation, I realized that my only hope was to fuse the leg in place with an ample dose of glue. Even now, because of the weird way the hip joints are constructed, the fused leg wants to move when I move the left hip and so I have to be extra careful when posing even her good leg. Beyond that, the legs include double hinged knees and ball joints in the ankles. The arms have rotating hinges in the shoulders, elbows, and wrists. There are generous ball joints in the neck and just under the chest. The rest of the jointing on the figure feels great, so it’s a real shame about the bum hip.

Nova comes with two accessories. First, you get an extra left hand that allows her to point with two fingers. I’ll likely go with this hand permanently since the articulation isn’t quite there to let her hold the huge gun across her chest and cradle it in the left hand. Besides, this hand works just as well for holding the gun in firing poses.

And speaking of huge guns… You also get her trusty AGR-14 rifle, which is almost as tall as she is. It’s a relatively simple sculpt, but looks good and does include some panel lines and a few paint apps. The grip includes a peg that pegs into Nova’s right hand to help her hold it. Guess what? That snapped off too. Ugh… today just hasn’t been my day. Fortunately, she’s capable of holding it without the peg assist.

Poor Nova… first your PS2 game gets cancelled (yes, I’m still bitter about that) and now this. This is an otherwise excellent figure taken down by either poor quality control, poor joint design, or maybe a little of both. Either way, I know NECA has a reputation for some delicate joints, but firsthand, I’ve had very few problems with their figures and I do own a lot of them. That having been said, this is one that I can join fellow collectors and have a cry over. I absolutely love the figure, and as much as I hate to do it, I’m seriously tempted to buy another and try again. But then with so many other reports of the same thing happening, I may be better off just sticking with my repaired figure rather than risk having another snap on me. If and when I do get another I’ll do a follow up feature. Either way, she still looks mighty nice standing on my shelf. Hopefully things will look up from here, and next week, I’ll revisit this line of figures again with a look at Illidan Stormage.

Feb 15 2016

Marvel Legends: “Age of Ultron” Bruce Banner (AoU 4-pack, Part 3) by Hasbro

It’s week three of my look at the Marvel Legends Age of Ultron boxed set and that means we’re moving into the final half. I know my maths! Continuing onward from left to right in the box, we come to Bruce Banner, a very welcome figure indeed as this is the first time we’re getting the character in the Legends scale. That may not sound to exciting to some, but Mark Ruffalo as Banner was one of the many high points of the Avengers films for me. As far as I’m concerned he deserved a Legends figure as much as any of them.

And yes… it’s a guy in a suit! Banner appears to be built off the same buck Hasbro used for Agent Coulson from the Agents of Shield 3-pack and the recent Chameleon figure. Other than a fresh coat of paint the biggest difference here is the shirt, which is sculpted with an open collar and no necktie. Of course, the shirt does reflect the MCU Banner’s predilection for purple shirts (instead of pants), which is cool because I enjoy that not so subtle comic nod.

There are just a few blemishes worth mentioning on this guy. Firstly, the coat on my figure is scuffed on the front making it look more like worn leather than cloth. On the back there are some extra glossy patches that look like it was touched by greasy fingers. I swear it wasn’t me! I can’t be sure whether that’s on all figures or I just got luck of the draw. Secondly, I’m not a fan of these feet. They look too long from the front and super weird from the back. They also make it hell to get him to stand. To make matters worse, the peg holes in the heels are so shallow, I don’t even know why they bothered.

The portrait here is a decent likeness. It maybe leans more toward charicature than realism, but I’m sure I could identify him if someone handed me the figure. If a skilled person were to have at this head with some paint, it could probably be so much more than it is.

The articulation here is a lot better than one might expect from a guy who spends his days in a lab doing science. The arms have rotating hinges in the shoulders and wrists. You get double hinges in the elbows and knees. There are swivel cuts in the biceps and thighs. The hips are ball jointed and the ankles have hinges and lateral rockers. There’s a swivel in the waist, an ab crunch hinge in the torso, and both a ball joint and hinge in the neck.
Sadly, Banner doesn’t come with any accessories. Some science stuff would have been cool. Maybe a laptop, a tablet, Loki’s sceptre, or anything. But hey, at least we got the figure.

If today’s feature seems a little abrupt, it’s because I honestly don’t have a lot to say about Dr. Banner here. Don’t take that to mean I don’t dig him, because I most certainly do. And while I’ve liked all three figures from this set that I’ve looked at so far, Banner and Thor each made buying it worthwhile because they’ve filled some painfully vacant holes on my MCU Legends shelves. And Black Widow was no slouch either. So yes, Banner makes this set so far three for three. With only one figure left, is this set going to go four for four? We’ll find out next Monday and see if Hawkeye hits the mark. That’s archery humor.

Feb 13 2016

Pop! Vinyl (Marvel Comics): Deadpool by Funko

It’s a geek overload weekend, between Toy Fair and the Deadpool movie opening to great box office takings. I’m probably going to go see Deadpool on Tuesday when the crowds die down and I’m not obsessing over Toy Fair coverage. So, while I’m chilling at home never far from my Twitter Feed and taking in all the new plastic news, I thought I’d grab another Pop! Vinyl off my stack and take a look. Deadpool seemed appropriate.

Granted, Funko have released well over a dozen different Deadpools in their addictive Pop! Vinyl format. The one I’m looking at is #20 in the Marvel Series and also their first release of the character. Although this particular figure was released in a whopping nine different variations, so if you’re a dedicated ‘Pool fan, then have fun tracking all of those down. This is Inception level character milking of the first degree that few companies other than Funko could pull off. Anyway, the box is standard fare for the Pop! series and it is naturally collector friendly. While I’m ashamed to say my Pop! collection has been growing rather quickly, I still keep them boxed. Hopefully I have the wherewithal to stop myself before I have a closet of Totes full of loose Pop!s.

As a Marvel licensed Pop!, Deadpool is an actual Bobblehead with a spring inside his giant noggin that makes it jiggle all over the place like a jonesing crack addict. I much prefer the regular fixed head Pop!s, but due to licensing issues with Hasbro, Funko is forced to make all their Star Wars and Marvel Pop!s in this manner. It’s not a big enough issue for me to get me to boycott them, but it does make me be extra choosy when deciding whether or not to buy a Star Wars or Marvel Pop!.

Deadpool dons his classic red and black outfit with plenty of pouches and wields a machine pistol and katana in his hands. It’s an instantly recognizable rendition and loaded with ‘Pool personality. The paint on mine is a little rough, though. There’s some fading on the brown belt across his strap where the red plastic is showing through and a spot of black paint on his left foot. On the other hand, the tampos on his giant face is crisp and they did a nice job painting his little belt buckle. These are mass produced items of the highest order, so unfortunately some paint flubs are inevitable.

I like the little sculpted tip of his hood that hangs off the back of his head. From the back you can also see lots more pouches on his belts and a little silver painted pistol in his holster. If I had one complaint it would be that both his scabbards are empty and yet he’s only holding one sword. Hey, Deadpool, where’d your other sword go? Yeah, I know, it wouldn’t have worked with the giant head. I’m still going to be picky about it.

If you want a little snapshot of Pop! Vinyl economics, despite being about three years old and the first release of the character in this format, this Deadpool is still readily available and not terribly expensive. Sure, even at $15 he’s going for one and a half times the original retail, but my point is if you’re hunting him, it won’t break the bank. Some of the variants, on the other hand, tend to get a lot pricier. I’m disappointed in myself enough already for picking picking up these Pop!s as impulse buys, if I ever catch myself paying a premium for one, I hope someone out there loves me enough to do an intervention.

Feb 12 2016

DC Icons: (#03) Green Arrow by DC Collectibles

It’s another DC Friday and I’m wrapping up my look at the first wave of DC Collectibles’ delectable DC Icons line. With Batman, Mister Miracle, and Deadman all under my belt, it’s time to check out Green Arrow, one of the figures that made me buckle and dive into this line head first.

The packaged shot should hold no surprises. You get a window box with that sexy angled corner and the character’s name running up the side. The deco is designed to match the character and also points out that this version of Ollie is culled from the 1987 series “The Longbow Hunters!” Yes, once again this line is drawing from all corners of the DC Universe and this first wave character selection does a nice job illustrating that. Sadly, I don’t have the room to keep these boxes, but it’s nice to know that they’re collector friendly if I had that option.

As the source material suggests, Ollie comes in a very classic looking outfit, which features a ton of original sculpting. Details include the cuffs and laces on the tops of his boots, the belt and shoulder strap, the tunic, which hangs down below his belt, and the v-neck collar, which forms his hood.
His sleeves bellow out a bit where they meet his gauntlets and the two-tone green used for the costume looks great. The only hiccup here is a little bit of gloss paint, or maybe glue dribbled on the inside of his tunic. I haven’t decided whether it bothers me enough to pick up a replacement.

The scabbard is permanently attached to the figure and can hold all of the arrows he comes with. It’s also worth noting that the shoulder strap securing it is a separate piece so as not to interfere with the torso articulation.

The head sculpt is pretty simple and serviceable. I like the way they sculpted the beard and mustache and the domino mask looks good. It’s also worth noting that everything on the head is fully sculpted and painted so you can pull the hood back and get a good look at everything. I don’t think this comes close to Green Arrow’s DCUC portrait, but granted it is a different scale. While the hood is sculpted as part of the tunic, there’s enough room in there to still turn the head.

Articulation is very much in line with what we’ve been seeing on the previous figures. The legs feature ball joints in the hips, double hinges in the knees, and both hinges and lateral rockers in the ankles. The tops of the boots feature swivel cuts, something that has been inconsistent in the line and I’d still rather see them up in the thighs (or both!). The arms have rotating hinges at the shoulders and wrists, double hinges in the elbows, and swivels in the biceps. You get an ab crunch hinge and a ball joint in the chest and the neck is also ball jointed.

Accessories include an extra pair of hands, a bow, two sets of double arrows, and two single arrows. The figure comes with fists on the figure, but I doubt I’ll use those a lot. The extra hands include one for holding the bow and the other for knocking arrows.

The bow is just a lovely piece of kit. It’s simple, but feels sized perfectly for the figure and includes a real string with enough elasticity to allow for drawn string poses. The double arrows are also a nice addition. I’m not sure if they’re intended to just help fill out the quiver, but I think they come in hand for posing Ollie about to perform a trick shot.

Damn, I love this figure! He’s possibly my favorite in the first wave, although I’m still very partial to Mister Miracle. I think Ollie’s big selling point is the beautiful way the articulation works with the accessories to provide an in hand experience that we haven’t seen with previous Green Arrow figures. He’s so much fun to play around with and further reinforces how great these figures feel in hand. I am seriously hooked on this line. That having been said, next week I’m going to jump into some other DC-related business before returning to DC Icons and starting my look at Wave 2.

Feb 11 2016

Transformers Cybertron: Red Alert and Cannonball by Hasbro

As ~~threatened~~ promised, Transformers Thursdays are going to be all about the Unicron Trilogy this February and today I’m going to stick with the Cybertron line. In fact, like last Thursday, I’m going to revisit the years 2005 and 2006 with an original mold and the subsequent repaint. Let’s check out Red Alert and Cannonball.

Red Alert was introduced into the Unicron Trilogy as a Super-Con (think Voyager sized toy with electronics) Emergency Rescue Vehicle in the Armada line. In Cybertron, he’s been reduced to a smaller, Deluxe Class version of his Armada alt mode. Was that before or after he became a huge missile carrier? I honestly can’t remember. For now, he’s basically a white SUV with blue striping, tinted red windows, and some lights on the roof. It’s a nice looking auto mode, but I always found it odd that he didn’t have any markings to denote him as a Rescue Vehicle.

He also has the unfortunate characteristic of having the top of his head exposed in vehicle mode. We’re not talking Energon level of bad here. I’m looking at you Energon Irohinde and Inferno! No, it could pass as part of the light bar if you don’t look too closely, but it’s still a noticeable piece of lazy design.

As a Cybertron figure, Red Alert features a CyberKey gimmick and this one is pretty cool. Insert the CyberKey into the back and the side panels pop open and a pair of guns flip out. When these gimmicks were good, they were really good. But what about the robot mode?

OK, so Red Alert’s transformation features some really interesting and original engineering. The front and back of the vehicle actually connect together to form the front and back halves of his legs. It’s inspired and unexpected. Unfortunately it results in a robot mode with some majorly overdeveloped lower legs. Indeed, Red Alert is just an overall stocky guy, so much so that it works against a lot of his articulation. Particularly with those big knee shields and shoulder armor plates, it’s just hard for this guy to function in regular poses. Otherwise, he actually retains some design elements from his larger Armada robot mode, which is kind of a neat throwback, right down to the gun in place of his left hand. I also like the slot in his chest. Yeah, it’s to tab something in during transformation, but it’s also evocative of the disc shooter that Armada Red Alert had in his chest.

The CyberKey gimmick is still available in the robot mode. You stick the key into his backpack and the guns deploy right above his shoulders. It’s neat, but the guns ride so low on his shoulders, they’re not very noticeable. It also pushes out the sides of the backpack, which gives the shoulder armor even less room to maneuver.

The head sculpt is pretty reminiscent of the Armada toy too. I always thought this guy looked a bit like Robocop… with light up ears. So, yeah Red Alert is kind of goofy, mostly due to his proportions, but I can’t help but have a soft spot for him. He looks like something that might have been released in the waning days of G1. Or to be more specific, I can practically see what the G1 package art of this robot mode would have looked like it and would have fit perfectly. Was he good enough to warrant buying a repaint? Nope. Did I do it anyway? You betcha. Let’s look at Cannonball…

Released the following year, Cannonball is a Decepticon pirate that transforms into a black SUV. Yes, I will allow that to sink in for a moment. Ready? OK, because according to his bio, he leads a crew of pirates who pray on starships and return to Cybertron to spend their loot on “Black Market Energon Stars and Pleasure Programs.” That’s the kid-friendly way of saying hookers and blow. I’m starting to remember why I bought him.

The vehicle mode here is a straight repaint, but oh what an interesting repaint it is. He’s black with silver trim. Oh, and he also has neon green skulls and skeletons painted on his roof and doors WHICH IS TOTALLY METAL! It looks like he once visited the Day of the Dead festival and really liked it so he got all tatted up. The lights and windshields are tinted purple and the top of his head is now as obvious as ever because it’s gold. And of course, the CyberKey gimmick is the same on this figure’s vehicle mode only Cannonball’s guns are gold… because pirates love their bling!

Likewise, the robot mode is a straight repaint. The silver paint picks out the detail a little nicer than Red Alert, although I’m not a fan of this gold plastic. I do, however, enjoy the fact that those bitchin’ skeletons now reside prominently on his shoulder armor. And, nope, you don’t even get a new head. Although I will say the new deco really makes it stand out from Red Alert’s noggin.

I kind of like this pair and I’m not sure exactly why. Sure, it’s partly the clever engineering in the legs, but in the end I think it just comes down to personality. These robots have it in spades. They’re chunky nature makes them not all that fun to play with, but they display nice. When I begin the final culling of the Cybertron tote, it’s possible these guys might survive the purge.

FigureFan Zero

Action Figure Reviews, Toys & Collectibles…

Category Uncategorized

Heroes of the Storm: Illidan Stormrage (Warcraft) by NECA

Marvel Legends: “Age of Ultron” Hawkeye (AoU 4-pack, Part 4) by Hasbro

Batman (Classic TV Series): Batmobile by Mattel

Transformers Cybertron: “Jungle Planet” Optimus Prime and Megatron by Hasbro

Masters of the Universe Classics: Laser Power He-Man and Laser Light Skeletor by Mattel

Heroes of the Storm: Nova Terra (Starcraft) by NECA

Marvel Legends: “Age of Ultron” Bruce Banner (AoU 4-pack, Part 3) by Hasbro

Pop! Vinyl (Marvel Comics): Deadpool by Funko

DC Icons: (#03) Green Arrow by DC Collectibles

Transformers Cybertron: Red Alert and Cannonball by Hasbro

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