Aug 10 2019

Halloween (2018): Ultimate Laurie Strode by NECA

Earlier in the week I checked out NECA’s Ultimate Michael Myers figure, based on his appearance in the most recent film in the Halloween franchise. That release was quite special in its own way, as it marked the long overdue return of the Halloween license to NECA’s loving, and abundantly-skilled, hands. But today’s figure? Oh boy, this one is a release that was against all odds. It’s not only Laurie Strode, but it’s Laura “elderly, survivalist-wack-job, ass-kickin, and unbelievably amazing” Strode. Yeah, it’s a great time to be a horror action figure collector, my friends!

I don’t think it would be accurate to call Jamie Lee Curtis my very first celebrity crush, but she’s gotta rank in rather closely. I cut my teeth on the first two Halloween films at a shockingly young age and I’m not ashamed to admit that JLC sure made me feel all funny down there. Since then, I’ve always enjoyed her films. Fast forward to the 2018 Halloween, and her wonderful character arc just made her all the more appealing. Older, Grittier, and a total badass. One time hot Final Girl blossomed into I-Ain’t-Takin’-No-More-Shit-Granny and she has never been more awesome. We just talked about the Ultimate packaging a few days ago with my Michael Myers review, so I won’t spend any time on it here, other than to say how much I love the art on the front panel. That’s it… let’s just jump right into the figure.

Laurie comes sporting the latest offering from the Survival Chic catalog. I honestly couldn’t even remember much about what she wore in the film, but I’ll happily accept this as screen accurate because I know NECA does their homework and always has an eye for details. She’s got a pair of black trousers with stitch lines running down the sides, and partially tucked into her woodland boots. And I might add the sculpting on the laces and individually painted eyelets just shows you how much love NECA pours into these figures. Whenever I can admire details in an average, everyday costume like this, that’s how I know they are masters at their trade.

Working our way up, she’s got a thin brown belt with a knife sheath on her right hip, a dark blue t-shirt, and a jacket which makes use of the old trick of using sleeveless soft plastic and sculpting the sleeves onto the arms. Like the boots, the jacket sports all sorts of great details, from the sculpted pockets and wrinkles, to the stitch lines and carefully painted silver zipper tracks. She even has a tiny cross hanging from a chain around her neck, both of which are part of the body sculpt. The articulation here is basically the same as we saw with Myers, and yes that does include the double rotating hinges in the elbows. As some of you may know, Hasbro’s elbow articulation gender inequality in their Marvel Legends figures is a big sticking point for me, and it’s nice to see that Laurie here doesn’t take a hit just because she’s a woman.

But the gushing doesn’t stop there, because now we get to the portraits, and wow are these great. I think the likeness is instantly recognizable, although I will say I think it looks better from an angle than when viewed from dead on. If I were to nitpick, I might suggest that it could have used some more age lines, especially since these are very apparent in the art from the box. The film did not play down JLC’s age, and I really respected that about the film and the actress. But when the figure looks this good, why complain?

The secondary head looks more or less identical, with the one exception being the granny glasses. I’d argue that these are some of the best executed glasses I’ve seen in this scale. Now, did I really need a second head to display her with or without glasses? Nah, if the extra head weren’t in there, I wouldn’t have missed it. Did NECA throw it in anyway? You bet your ass they did! They cool like that. What other extras are in the box? Let’s have a look!

NECA bundled enough weapons in here to make their own Ultimate Sarah Connor jealous. She also comes with a right hand that is sculpted with a trigger finger to work with all the guns, and a left hand that is designed to cradle the long arms. The first of the guns is her Smith & Wesson Model 66. This is the one she was using for target practice in the yard. The sculpt is ridiculously well detailed for such a tiny weapon, and includes some really nice silver paint and brown paint on the grips.

Next up, we get one of my all-time favorite rifles, the Winchester Model 1873. This one really appeals to the Western lover in me, and it was great to see it make an appearance in the film and in this figure’s accessory list. Once again, you get some wonderful detail in the sculpt, and the paint includes an authentic finish to both the metal and the wood.

And finally, Laurie comes with her own boomstick, and another iconic beauty, the Mosberg 500 shotgun. This one is easily the simplest sculpt of the three firearms, but it’s still quite accurate and her left hand is sculpted to fit the pump action slider very well.

And just when you think we might be done, Laurie comes with one more weapon, and that’s this little survival knife. It fits into the sheath that hangs off the belt on her right hip and the sheath itself is a magnificent little piece of work. It features a retaining strap for the hilt, sculpted stitching, and teeny-tiny rivets, which are individually painted in silver. The kicker is that this entire thing is only visible if you peel back her jacket flap, which just goes to show you how much love NECA puts into these figures. The knife itself is very small, and Laurie comes with an extra right hand sculpted specifically to hold it with a tight grip. I dig the finish on the blade. It looks like it might be intended to be a Damascus blade.

What more can I say, other than, “HOLY HELL, WE GOT A LAURIE STRODE FIGURE!!!” What other company would take the risk of making a figure like this? I can’t think of many. And all I can say is I hope she sells well enough to justify it. NECA did a beautiful job with this one, and I consider an essential companion figure to the 2018 Michael Myers. What’s more, I’m so happy to see this license back in NECA’s hands and I’m eagerly looking forward to the classic Halloween II version of Myers that’s supposed to be shipping sometime this month. Keep them coming, NECA, and I promise to even buy versions of The Shape from the movies I hated.

Aug 8 2019

Halloween (2018): Ultimate Michael Myers by NECA

Since I’ve been back to semi-regular content, I’ve been trying to spread the love around to the offerings I collect from various toy companies that are piling up on the floor of my Toy Closet. I’ve also been trying to combine some reviews when possible to help me not be so far behind. This week, I thought a return to NECA was long overdue. I’ve got tons of new NECA figures to look at, so today let’s open up the Ultimate version of Michael Myersfrom the recent 2018 film. I had originally intended this to be a dual review of both Myers and Laurie Strode, but I found that I had a fair amount to say about each of these figures, so I’m breaking it up into two reviews, which will hopefully both post this week.

I’ve been a dedicated fan of NECA’s Ultimate line, so it should come as no surprise that I was beyond excited to get this figure. As always, these Ultimate releases come in what appear to be enclosed boxes, but actually have opening front flaps to show off the figure and accessories inside. The front panel looks fantastic, there are lots of pictures of the goodies inside, and the box is collector friendly. Yup, these are some of the few figures that I keep in their boxes, not only to keep all the accessories together, but also because NECA’s Ultimates look great lined up on bookshelves. And oooh, look at that sticker! There’s a flickering pumpkin inside!!! As for the film? I really enjoyed it. I don’t think it was mind-blowing, or in any way exceptional, but it was refreshing in its simplicity, especially when you consider what a shit-show the Halloween franchise had become. It’s been a long time since I cared about these movies, and I feel that the new one set things back on a positive track. So let’s get this box open and check out The Shape!

I have to imagine that even people who didn’t care for the movie, would still have to concede that Myers never looked better. And as usual, the same can be said of NECA’s version. Granted, from the neck down, this isn’t a terribly complex or flashy sculpt, it’s a just a dude in a boiler suit, but it’s still loaded with details. You get wrinkles and rumples, pockets, stitching, and all that jazz. Exciting? Maybe not, but it sure looks great, right down to the meticulously sculpted work boots.

The high collar of the suit gives way to the iconic mask and this portrait is fabulous. The expressionless visage of the Shatner mask has chiseled creases and wear making it look as frighting as ever. As time wore on, the mask began to take on more detail, which lends itself well to the HD age of film. I also really dig the way the shock of hair is swept back and the mask ends high enough so you can see Myers’ real neck protruding from it. And then you have what might be a sticking point for some classic Halloween fans, and that’s the eyes visible through the holes in the mask. There’s some wonderful depth here that really makes the mask feel like it was layered onto the head and there’s a face sculpt under there. And let’s not forget, this is Myers as he appears in the 2018 film. A film that dared show a glimpse of Myers unmasked.

But, let’s say you don’t like the visible eyes, and you just want a pair of vacant black pools where his peepers should be? That’s right, you get an alternate head to suit your preferences. It’s actually a completely different sculpt, with subtle changes in the mask itself, and the hair is a lot less unruly. And the eyes are actually still in there, they’ve just been painted over to make them harder to see. Normally, I would prefer the blacked out eyes, but to be honest, I think the first mask just looks loads better, and it’s probably the one I will go with for the display. It’s certainly the one I went with for a majority of the pictures in this review.

The articulation here is very good, and it even holds a few surprises in the elbows. NECA is usually content with giving their figures rotating hinges in the shoulders, but Myers here has double-rotating hinges! Yeah, they’ve done this before, and it’s nice to see them doing it again. It allows for a much tighter bend in the elbow, and overall better posing. As for the rest, the shoulders are rotating hinges, and the wrists are ball jointed… or so I thought! They’re actually pegs on tiny ball joints, similar to what we get with a lot of Sixth-Scale figures these days. Not bad! The legs have rotating hinges in the hips and knees, and the ankles have hinges and lateral rockers. I’m not sure what’s hiding under the rubber boiler suit in the torso, but it does feel like there’s some movement in there. Finally, he has a ball joint in the neck. Let’s move on to the accessories!

First off, Myers comes with a modest assortment of killing tools. These include a bloody hammer, a fireplace implement, and his rather iconic butcher knife. He also comes with extra hands to help him hold each of these. Actually, you get both a right and left accessory holding hand, so he can dual wield if you like. Extra weapons are always nice, but there’s only so much I can say about these. The very iconic butcher knife is my favorite. To me, it’s as much a part of Myers, as Jason Voorhees’ machete is to him, or Leatherface’s chainsaw is to that demented freak. As for the others, the poker is very thin and frail, and I probably won’t be pulling it out much just for fear of snapping it. The hammer is great, and I appreciate the bloody paint apps, but it’s still just a tiny hammer.

Myers also comes with a left hand with two of the fingers blown off. God bless ya, NECA. You really do think of everything!

Also included in the box is the severed head of the police officer from Laurie Strode’s protection detail that Myers decapitates. And wow is this a delightfully gruesome piece of work! I’d dare say that this is one of the most grizzly accessories I’ve seen included with a horror figure. I dig how it’s been hollowed out and carved up like a Jack-O-Lantern, complete with the eyes taken out. Yup, this is pure nightmare fuel cast into plastic and lovingly painted.

Next up is the grave-marker of Judith Myers, which is a nice addition to the little collection of headstones that NECA has been giving to us with some of their Ultimate horror figures. This one is very thin and lightweight, but it looks fine, and will make a nice addition to the display when off-set behind him on the shelf.

And finally, you get the accessory that’s so damn good, they had to call it out on the package with a sticker. At first, I assumed this would be the iconic Jack-O-Lantern from the credits, but in a really nice callback, it’s actually Vicky’s pumpkin with the heart-shaped eyes and nose. You know, the one that wound up in the fishtank! The lighting effect is activated by pushing down ont he top of the pumpkin and it really is superbly done.

Who doesn’t love Halloween in August, eh? Finally seeing Michael Myers done by NECA feels so right and this is yet another Ultimates release that they knocked right out of the park. The sculpt and articulation on the figure itself are both great, and the entire package is elevated by the wonderful accessories. There’s enough here for plenty of fun, as well as some great display options. And to think, when I pre-ordered this figure, I imagined it was going to be the only Myers that we get out of NECA because of licensing issues. Of course, they have since shown off the Halloween II version of The Shape, and that one has me very excited. But hell, even if they couldn’t swing that deal, I still would have been perfectly happy with this figure representing Myers on my Slasher Shelf! And what could possibly be cooler than this? How about a figure of Laurie Strode from the 2018 movie as well? Yup, we got that too, and I hope to be back by the weekend to have a look at that figure!

Aug 5 2019

Marvel Legends: Captain Marvel (Starforce) by Hasbro

Hey hey, it’s another Marvel Monday, and today’s review is going to be kind of, sort of, random. I couldn’t get into the main stack of unopened Legends because there’s so much backlog piling up in my Toy Closet, but I do have a bag of more recent acquisitions on top. So, I reached my paw into that sack and pulled out the Starforce version of Captain Marvel as Vers. Yeah, that’ll work. Today has also reminded me that I have to start cataloging which Legends I have waiting to be opened, or I’m going to start buying doubles by mistake. Yeah, I have a problem.

I want to say this is a Target Exclusive, because that’s the only place I’ve seen it, but there’s no sticker or anything to call it out as such. It’s also not officially part of the Captain Marvel-inspired Kree Sentry Wave. But this package makes up for lacking a BAF part by cramming a whole bunch of extra goodies, as well as the ability to change it into an entirely different character! The package does identify her as Captain Marvel, rather than Vers/Minn-Erva, but at least it states she’s in her Starforce costume. Let’s take a look!

As Vers, we’ve pretty much seen this figure before. It is indeed a straight repaint of the Captain Marvel we saw in the Kree Sentry Wave. And that’s not a bad thing, because I love the suit design, and I particularly love all the sculpted detail that Hasbro put into it. From the panel lines to the details of the belt, and the starburst in the center of her chest, everything looks great and matches that hyper-detailed style that the MCU loves so much. And since the bodies are identical, I’ll just refer you back to my original review of Captain Marvel for the particulars on articulation.

Obviously, the big change here is the coloring, which eschews the red and blue for the Starforce green and black motif. I think it looked pretty great on Yon-Rogg and it looks really nice here as well. The metallic green paint looks incredibly sharp and has a beautiful sheen to it. It pairs with the black and silver trim and makes for a figure that really pops on the shelf. The paint lines on my figure are all pretty crisp, without any notable flubs to speak of. It is worth mentioning that the silver lines coming away from the starburst are painted to look thinner than on the Captain Marvel costume, which does set the two suit designs slightly apart. I’ll assume this was done on purpose, but to be honest, I’ve only seen this movie once, so I can’t remember all the particulars of this costume.

Vers comes with two heads, and yes they are the same two that came with the original release. The hooded portrait has been repainted to match the suit, and still features that faint smirk, as well as the sculpted shock of hair that forms her mohawk. Like the suit, there’s some fantastic detail sculpted into the helmet. The alternate unmasked head looks as good as ever. I think this figure would have been a worthwhile pick up as things go so far, but I haven’t even gotten into the extras. Let’s check out Minn-Erva.

As Minn-Erva, the figure offers a new head sculpt, an ammo strap, and a rifle. You also get two extra hands to hold the weapon, and these are definitely intended for Minn-Erva because the fingers are painted blue. The bandoleer strap rests on her left shoulder, has what I presume are some kind of power cartridges for the rifle, and it looks like it has either a holster for a pistol or a pouch to carry more stuff in. The sash is sculpted to blow a bit back, behind her head and shoulders. I wouldn’t say that these pieces totally transform the figure, but they do offer enough distinction to make it work as another character wearing a similar uniform.

The head sculpt is great, but also a bit perplexing. It doesn’t really look like they were going for the MCU version of the character. Maybe they didn’t get likeness rights, but it comes across looking like a modern version of the comic character. With that having been said, it’s a damn fine sculpt, I like the styling of the hair and the exposed area on the left side of the scalp line. The paint looks good, although there’s quite a bit of slop along the top edge of my figure’s mask. It’s not something I really notice with the figure in hand, but it does stand out in the close up shots.

Her other accessory is her Kree rifle and I dig it a lot, both in design and execution. It’s got a very slender and almost organic profile to it. And while it’s cast in a silver plastic, it does have some metallic blue paint applications to give it some more detail. It also has a scope sculpted onto the top. Minn-Erva can hold the weapon comfortably in her right hand and the trigger finger threads easily through the guard. Her other hand allows her to cradle the barrel or steady it for precision shooting.

It would have been really easy for Hasbro to just slap a repaint of the Captain Marvel figure into a box and call it a day, so it’s nice to see they didn’t take the lazy route here. In fairness, I probably would have picked this figure up even had that been the case, but I’m very happy to have the extra options. Some might take issue with the Minn-Erva head sculpt, but it still works well enough for me. And who knows? If this one turns up at a good enough price, I may eventually buy a second so I can display both characters on the shelf.

Aug 2 2019

DC Gallery: Supergirl by Diamond Select

It does my heart good to be coming back with a third review this week. It makes me even happier to relive the old days with a DC Friday review! I’ve been trying to cut down on the number of Gallery statues I buy from DST, because they were getting out of hand, but this past month, they’ve released a bunch that I simply could not resist. Today, I’m opening up one of those, and it is indeed… Supergirl! In case you’re unfamiliar, these are roughly 9-inch scale, budget-priced PVC statues, and DST churns out a lot of them!

We’ve already seen Supergirl twice in the DC Gallery line, both of which were based off the animated Justice League Unlimited series, with one for regular release and one as an SDCC Exclusive. If you’ve been with me for the three dozen or so Gallery Statue reviews I’ve done here on FFZ, then you should be readily familiar with the packaging. These statues come in collector friendly window boxes, with windows on the front, top, and side panels. This particular box is a little larger than most of the Gallery statue boxes in order to incorporate the rather dynamic pose. The statue inside is nestled in a clear clamshell, letting you see what you’re getting from almost every angle. In this case, the box itself is nice and colorful, with some beautiful character art on the back (even if it doesn’t match the statue at all!) and her S-Shield printed on the back of the interior tray. All that is great because I am currently displaying these statues in their boxes. Let’s get Kara out of the box and check her out!

The statue comes out of the box all assembled and ready for display, and looking mighty fine! For the most part DST has been producing these statues with fairly static and reserved composition. That’s certainly not the case here, as Supergirl is seen bursting forth from a fiery explosion and ripping a chain in half. No doubt, an eeeevil chain! She has one leg drawn up at the knee with her other leg trailing down and touching the base. The pose shows off both her power and the grace of her curves beautifully. Straightaway, I’m going to say that this is one of my favorite poses this line has done, and it’s also one of the better poses I’ve seen on a Supergirl statue recently. It exhibits some great keneticism and excitement, and it just captures the character perfectly.

I’m also very fond of the costume style they chose here. She sports the blue long-sleeved crop-top and skirt, yellow belt, red boots, and the flowing red cape. As is routine for these statues, all of the details of the costume are incorporated into the sculpt, right down to some subtle wrinkles. This goes a long way to bring the costume to life and it often helps keep the paint in line too. And the coloring is also very much on point. The shades of red and blue go great together and include nice subtleties like a glossier finish on the boots and a matte finish on the cape. The S-Shields on both her chest and the back of her cape look nice and crisp. The skin tone is warm and even, but my one nit-pick would be that it’s a little too glossy for my taste. It’s not so bad under normal lighting, but my studio lights make her look like her skin is wet and glistening. Eh, maybe that’s not so bad.

I was a little unsure of this portrait from the initial solicitation shots, but I think it turned out quite good in person. Indeed, I like it even more than DC Collectibles’ Cover Girl version of Supergirl, and that one is no slouch either. The paint on the eyes and lips are sharp, and I like how her mouth is slightly parted to show that it took the tiniest bit of effort to rip apart that chain. The hair sculpt isn’t terribly dynamic, but it does kick off to the side a bit to offer a little windblown look. I’m not sure this portrait is based on any particular art, but she’s pretty and I think it’s an overall  good look for Kara.

Bases have not always been the best thing about DST’s Gallery statues. It’s not that a lot of them are bad, but they’re just kind of there. That’s sort of the case here. Supergirl’s base is serviceable and lends itself well to the action pose. I’m not one hundred percent sure what it’s supposed to be, but I’m assuming it’s just a ball of fire from an explosion. I suppose it could just as easily be a fiery comet or something. Not knowing what it is doesn’t really compliment the sculpt that much, but I’m willing to accept it as an abstract construct.

And before wrapping it up, I thought I’d toss in a shot of Gallery Supergirl alongside the previously mentioned Cover Girl Supergirl by DC Collectibles. Obviously, the costumes and styles are different, and this is a PVC statue as opposed to cold cast porcelain, but I think the Gallery statue holds up remarkably well against the competition. Plus, the PVC material is a lot more durable.

Once upon a time I used to call Kotobukiya’s Bishoujo line the best value in statue collecting. Well, two things have happened for me to revoke that praise. First, Koto has raised their prices a lot. Second, DST’s Gallery line has come along. And while the quality here isn’t on par with Koto’s, at around forty bucks, this is an extremely nice display piece for the money. A lot of thought went into the composition, the sculpt is excellent, and the paint only shows a few minor rough patches, which aren’t even worth it to me to complain about. As always, I would recommend buying these in person whenever possible, so you can scrutinize the paint you’re getting, but this one came to me in the mail, and I did just fine with what I got.

Jul 30 2019

Mythic Legions (Soul Spiller): Ice Troll by The Four Horsemen

[Edit] If you stopped by yesterday, then you were treated to a half-baked version of this review, because I expected to have it done by yesterday and completely forgot that it was scheduled to go live so early. Rather than pull it down, I did a quick edit and left it up, mainly because it forced me to knuckle down last night and finally finish the thing. I’ll admit it was all more than a bit unprofessional, but then when have I ever claimed to be anything but? Anywhoooo… with explanations out of the way, here’s the finished review… 

Some of you may remember, back before my great personal cataclysm, I was working my way through the Mythic Legions Advent of Decay series. I’ve still got plenty more of those figures to look at, but today I’m vaulting over Advent of Decay and headed straight for the newest assortment of Mythic Legions. Or at least the newest one to ship! Soul Spiller was a pretty small assortment and it came at a time when I was really strapped for cash, ironically a lot of that had to do with all the money I blew on Advent of Decay. Don’t get me wrong, I love all the enthusiasm that T4H is pumping into this line, but it’s squeezing my finances rather fiercely. It’s like having my financial nuts in a vice. In the end, I was only able to pick up two figures from Soul Spiller, and as you already know, one of them was another goddamn troll!

And here he is in the satisfyingly large window box! This is my third troll from Mythic Legions, although four have now been released (Forest, Stone, Arena, and now Ice). And yes, I will probably carry the bitterness of not getting the Forest Troll all the way to my grave. The box is nearly identical to the previous ones, with the main difference being the character art on the side panel. There are plenty of twisty-ties to deal with in order to get Frosty out, but if you are careful, the box is totally collector friendly, and I do indeed keep each of my Trolls in their respective boxes because I don’t currently have the space to display them. Anyway, let’s get this blizzardy bruiser out of his box and check him out!

The previous Trolls all shared the same body, and so here I was expecting another repaint from the neck down and that’s exactly what we got! This was no doubt an expensive piece of tooling for T4H and it’s only natural that they cash in and try to get as many gold pieces out of it as they can. And I understand that some collectors may not be as lenient toward reuse when buying a figure this expensive. I’d even concede that they maybe could have sculpted some parts separately to allow for some differences in sculpt. But in the end, I know what I’m getting into when I buy each of these, so I’m not going to complain about it.

Obviously, this big guy relies heavily on the coloring to make him pass for a frosty Troll, and I have to say the coloring here is quite nice. The skin is a very light blue with some white wash to give him a distinctive snow and ice flavor. As with the other Trolls, the wash helps bring out some of the beautiful details in this sculpt, from the sinews and veins in the arms to the glossy finger and toenails. I’m still suitably impressed by the detail on display, even after buying this body three times now. Granted, some aspects of the sculpt work better here than others. I think the jagged scales on the arms and legs work well for an Ice Troll, as do the crevices, which resemble cracked ice. while the stony plates on the shoulders and back, not so much. Maybe if this was the first Troll released, they wouldn’t stand out so much, but by now they really do look like bits of stone that are far better suited for his Forest and Stone cousins. Yeah, I’m kind of nit-picking here.

The sculpted belt and bracelets look as great as ever, thanks to the hammered finish in the sculpt and the tarnished coloring. I still love how the Troll’s belly is sculpted to hang down over the belt, partially obscuring it. Still, these are parts which maybe could have been sculpted separately to allow for new versions for each troll. For a line that is so masterful at mixing and matching parts to create new figures, I think this is the one real opportunity T4H missed with these guys. But those kind of changes may not be possible when rotoscoping.

Of course, all the new sculpting went into this big fella’s noggin, and I have to say, this is a glorious head sculpt. It’s part Troll, part Abominable Snowman, and part TaunTaun. There’s just enough similarities in those beady deep-set eyes to allow me to see the resemblance between him and the Stone Troll. And man, those eyes are creepy. The white peepers framed in bloody red sockets give him an Evil Dead Deadite kind of feel, and that ain’t a bad thing. The ears here are longer and and swept back, almost like an angry cat and the wrinkled forehead shows a deep battle scar running up from the right eye. The bushy white beard is framed by the two TaunTaun horns, one of which is cracked at the tip to further show that this guy has seen some action. I actually thought that was damage to my figure, before I looked more closely at it. Sadly, the jaw is not articulated, but it is partially open to show both sets of horrible looking teeth and the glossy paint inside makes his maw look suitably wet and realistic.

And yes, these guys are big. So big, I’d be remiss if I didn’t toss in a comparison shot to show just how much these Trolls tower over the regular Mythic Legions figures, so here’s a shot of him with fellow Soul Spiller release, Thallyn Frostbow. Yeah, I don’t usually include figures that I haven’t reviewed yet, but I’ll be getting to her shortly.

And with the same body comes the same articulation. These Trolls aren’t what I would call super-articulated, but there’s enough here to allow me to have plenty of fun. And because he uses the same body, the articulation here is identical to the previous Trolls. You get rotating hinges in the shoulders and elbows, as well as swivels in the hips, ankles and wrists. The neck also has a swivel, but because of the way he’s hunched over it allows the Ice Troll to tilt his head from side to side, rather than actually rotate it left and right. All in all, you aren’t getting a super articulated beast here, but the points of articulation are solid and useful, and strong ratchets in the shoulders mean that he can hold aloft his gigantic weapon, which in itself is no small feat. So let’s take a look at that weapon.

Besides the heads, the other unique feature of each Troll has been their massive weapons, and this time we get a real cool ice sword. This unique weapon features a heavy hilt with some chunky decorations and painted to look like it’s fashioned from ancient iron. The translucent ice blade protrudes from the hilt and swells near the tip. It’s far more sophisticated than the brutish weapons we’ve seen with the previous Trolls, but I still dig it a hell of a lot. The blade is a beautiful effect and it actually comes separate from the hilt.

The Ice Troll is undoubtedly the most colorful and most strikingly beautiful so far. Is it my favorite? Mmm… I think I have to grant that title to the Arena Troll. It’s nothing against Frosty here, but I just have a thing for giant Cyclops. But that’s not to take anything away from this guy. I love the coloring on him, and the head sculpt is absolutely fantastic, and for the most part I think the body sculpt still works fine for this flavor of troll. Toss in a super cool weapon (pun intended) and you’ve got another fantastic addition to the Mythic Legions line-up. I just adore these guys, and if T4H decide to churn out another on this body, I’ll probably be among the first jumping in on that pre-order.

Jul 29 2019

Marvel Legends (The First Avenger): Captain America and Peggy Carter by Hasbro

I know, I crapped out on delivering a second review last week, but finding time for FFZ continues to be a struggle. At least I’m here for Marvel Monday again, and I promise that I will have at least one more review for this week. Who knows, maybe even a third. But for now, I am once again saying “Piss off, Randomness!” and bumping a new Marvel Legends acquisition to the front of the line. Let’s check out Captain America: The First Avenger Cap and Peggy two pack!

The initial arc of Marvel movies may be over, but that’s not stopping Hasbro from going back and mining out all the missed opportunities from all those movies. Here we are revisiting the first Captain America movie with a new version of Steve Rogers and the first Peggy Carter figure. The packaging is similar to the First Ten Years presentation with the squared off box and some artwork to reflect Cap’s first movie. You get character shots on each side panel and some multi-lingual bio blurbs on the back. Everything here is collector friendly, and while I’m tempted to keep this box, it’s probably going to be consigned to the dustbin of history. Or at least the one in my kitchen. Let’s start with Cap!

Can you believe it? After all these years Hasbro is still finding new versions of MCU Cap to turn into figures! I have to admit, that this one got me pretty excited from the moment it was shown off. And as it turns out, it was well worth getting excited over. I mean, just check him out! Cap comes decked out in his full WWII gear with a bomber jacket over his costume top, a full array of web-gear, complete with sculpted pouches and a functional holster. His trousers include more sculpted pouches, detailed spats, and a functional sheath for his combat knife.

The web-gear is removable offering a better look at the jacket, and I think the figure displays quite well without it, although I’m sure I’ll be keeping it on him. I like the little touches, like the US sculpted into the flap of the holster, the sculpted bolts along the edges of the sheath, and the individually painted snaps on the pouches. Apart from those dabs of silver, the color palate here is mostly drab military, but the glimpse of blue and white from under his jacket makes for a nice contrast.

The figure comes with two head sculpts and I’ll confess I find them a bit confusing. They appear to be different sculpts, but I’m not sure what the difference is supposed to signify. One has a more pronounced part in the hair and the face looks a tad thinner and possibly younger. At first, I thought one was meant to work better with the helmet, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Both portraits are decent, but the eyes are rather lifeless, giving them something of a mannequin effect. The helmet is a beautiful piece in and of itself. It fits well, has the chin strap hanging off on the right side, and the goggles look so good, that for a moment, I thought they might be able to be lowered over the eyes, but they are actually permanently attached.

If all that isn’t enough, Cap comes with a bevy of accessories, including a knife, two guns, and two shields. First off, he comes with his M1911 service pistol, which is a beautiful little sculpt. I love the textured finish on the grips and there are lots of details on the slide. The pistol fits perfectly into his holster and can be held in either hand. The combat knife fits into the sheath, and while he can hold it fairly well in his right hand, it does fit rather loosely. I’d say an extra hand with a tighter grip would be in order, but this figure already comes with so much, it’s hard to ask for more.

Next up is his Thompson submachine-gun. This has always been a favorite of mine among WWII small arms and this little version captures its iconic profile quite well. The wooden stock and foregrip are both painted brown, while the rest of the gun is left a bare gray. Nice details include the groove in the magazine where it is supposed to slide in, and the sculpted fixtures for a carry strap.

Moving on to the two shields, first he comes with the original heater-type shield with some crisp and colorful red, white, and blue paint as well as some mud splatter to show that it’s been carried into battle. The reverse of the shield features two carry straps. These are a little tight going over the sculpted sleeves, but I’ve been able to get him to hold it pretty well.

Finally, he comes with the unpainted prototype version of his iconic shield. I suppose this is a cool addition, since I don’t think we’ve seen it as an accessory before. Unfortunately, it’s not all that exciting. The shield itself is just bare silver plastic, which doesn’t look as good as if they had painted it. It does have two straps on the back, and these work much better than the ones on the heater shield. All in all, the inventory of gear is very impressive, but as we’ll see in a moment, the distribution of accessories in this set is woefully lopsided… Let’s move on to Peggy Carter!

Here’s a figure I would have wagered we would never get, and I’m very pleased to be proven wrong. I do, however, have some mixed feelings about the end result. So, let’s talk about the good stuff first! The uniform is quite well done. The belted tunic looks great and I love the sculpting on those tiny lapel pins! The buttons and pins are all carefully painted with a touch of gold and they even painted the seams running up the backs of her stockings. A lovely touch, even if it isn’t terribly convincing. Round out the outfit with some meticulously sculpted stitch lines and you’ve got a fine effort.

The portrait here is good, but I don’t think it’s great. I think most of the resemblance comes from the hair and the outfit. Sure, to my eyes, there’s more than a glimmer of Haley Atwell in there, but I just don’t think this is one of the better MCU head sculpts. And that’s nothing to be ashamed of, because they have all been generally quite good.

So what’s the bad stuff? Well for starters, the plastic skirt renders a great deal of this figure’s articulation useless. You can position her legs and feet a bit to get her to stand, but that’s about it. Allowing for slits in the skirt may not have been accurate, but it would have made for a more fun figure. As it is, the posing here has to take place from the waist up, and that’s a shame, because Agent Carter wasn’t one to shy away from the action. But for me, the biggest downer is that she doesn’t come with any accessories, and that plain sucks. Sure, there’s plenty in the box to make it feel like a good value, but everything belongs to Cap. Why, Hasbro? Why not toss her a gun? The fact that her right hand is clearly sculpted to hold a gun is like rubbing slat in the wound. I would have also liked a clipboard or a file folder with HYDRA or TOP SECRET stamped on it. The fact poor Agent Carter comes with nothing just feels like a big slap in the face.

Despite some nitpicks, I really do love this set. Getting this version of Cap and any version of Agent Carter a major victories for my MCU Legends display. Both figures are solid efforts, but I think Cap came out the big winner in this box. Every aspect of this figure is on point, and while the purpose of the second head may be lost on me, I’m never going to complain about an extra noggin. And even Peggy Carter is by no means bad, but just go back and look how much of this review is about Cap and how much is about Carter. In the end, I just wish Hasbro had divvied up the accessories a bit more fairly. I would have happily given up the unpainted shield to give some goodies to Agent Carter.

Jul 22 2019

Marvel Legends (Kingpin Wave): Black Cat by Hasbro

Well, look at this! I’m on track with Marvel Monday for three weeks in a row! I feel like I’m finally getting back in the (web) swing of things. Once again I’m tossing randomness in the wind, as I have a hankering to finish me off a Kingpin Build-A-Figure. And I wouldn’t be surprised if this is the wave we’ll be looking at until I complete him. I’m also in a very catty mood as having just adopted a pair of kitties, so let’s check out Black Cat!

I first dipped my toe into this wave when I opened Silver Sable waaaaay back in February. Ah, February. It feels like ten years ago. Before everything in my life started breaking down. What a simpler time that was. Anyway… as already mentioned, today I’m opening up the other femme fatale of the wave, Black Cat, and also adding a Kingpin arm and cane to the mix. We last saw a nice classic version of Black Cat back in the 2014 Ultimate Green Goblin Wave. This time Hasbro is serving up Felicia in her more modern costume.

And, oh boy, I am not fond of this look for her. Felicia still dons a black bodysuit with furry fringe on the lower legs, forearms, and collar, but this time the fringe is left black and it just doesn’t have that same great pop as her classic look. This costume also adds a pair of yellow cat eyes above her chest, and to me these just look dopey. All I can say is the new and longer style of the fur fringe gives her an interesting silhouette, but I do prefer the curvier look of Classic Felicia.

The costume is rounded out by the gray whip, which is coiled around her waist as a belt and hangs down behind her like a kitty tail. I love the idea here, but I’m not a fan of the whip being just bare grey plastic. Now keep in mind, all of my criticisms here rest firmly in the suit design. As far as the figure itself goes, Hasbro did a nice job bringing it to plastic form. The sculpted fur fringe all looks good and the attention to detail shown in the tiny cat-head zipper is fantastic.

The head sculpt here is also worthy of kudos. Is it better than the previous Black Cat. Mmm… not really, but it is good. Here Felicia sports a big toothy grin as if she’s flaunting her latest stolen bauble. Her white hair is sculpted to be straighter and more form-fitting to her head. I also like that the domino mask is sculpted as well as painted. This portrait is definitely a solid piece of work, and easily my favorite thing about the whole figure.

Articulation is identical to Silver Sable, but since it’s been forever since I reviewed her, I’ll go ahead and do the rundown again. You get rotating hinges in the shoulders, elbows, and wrists. The legs have ball joints at the hips, swivels at the thighs, double-hinges in the knees, and both hinges and lateral rockers in the ankles. She has a ball joint under her chest and both a ball joint and hinge in the neck. It’s mostly the same old stuff, but I will say that this figure’s elbows have a better range of motion than the previous Black Cat.

Black Cat comes with one accessory, her whip, and once again I am not a fan. The segmented silver plastic makes it look more like one of Omega Red’s tendrils than it does a whip. It’s also sculpted in a fairly generic curvy pattern that doesn’t lend itself all that well to posing. And isn’t the whip and belt supposed to be the same? If that’s the case, why didn’t they make it so that it can be removed from her waist with a peg or something? It just looks silly with her wearing it and wielding it at the same time. Harrumph.

This is one of those instances where I have to come away with a resounding Meh. This figure is mostly well done, but it’s not my Black Cat. I just don’t like the costume at all and with that being the case it’s hard to really enjoy the figure. Indeed, if it weren’t for the BAF parts, I probably would have given this kitty a pass. And that’s really saying something, because y’all know how much I love cats.

Jul 18 2019

Star Wars Black (Rebels): Ezra and Chopper by Hasbro

No, I’m not back to my regular schedule yet, but I am happy to be back with a second update this week. Progress! And I decided to do two figures today to make up for the fewer updates. While I still have a pretty big backlog of Star Wars figures to open and review, today I’m going with a pair of more recent acquisitions. It’s no secret that I’ve been a huge fan of the 6-inch Black Series Rebels figures and with the release of Ezra and Chopper, we’re getting ever so close to having a full set of The Ghost crew! Let’s take a look!

It’s the same old packaging! It would have been cool if they did a little something fresh for the Rebels figures, but then I don’t keep these boxes anyway, so do I really care? Nah! They are, however, collector friendly, so if you are in a mind to keep being able to take them out and return them to the box, well there’s nothing stopping you. You get the usual black box with red inserts, monochrome character art on the front, and multi-lingual bio on the back. I had to go online for these since the stores in my area have had the same DJ and Solo figures clogging their pegs forever. Let’s go ahead and start with Ezra.

I’m not usually a big fan of what passes for fashion in the Star Wars universe. A lot of the casual attire comes off to me as boring and flat. That’s not the case with Ezra here. He wears what appears to be a flight jumpsuit, with the lower left leg torn away above the knee, revealing a brown pants leg and piece of knee armor. The right lower leg is covered with a piece of white armor. He lacks the usual control box and straps commonly found on the flight suits, but he does have a waist belt with a holster and pouch, each of which secure to his legs with thigh straps. The outfit is rounded out by a pair of green, fingerless gloves, and his familiar vest with short sleeves and logo on the back. I think Hasbro did a fine job recreating all the little details here, both in terms of sculpt and paintwork. The suit has sculpted rumples, stitch lines and pocket, while the texturing on the jacket looks great. The yellow fringe could have been sharper. Or maybe it was applied intentionally rough to give it a weathered look. At least the logo on the back is nice and crisp.

The holster on his right hip is really just a hook with a flat flap for his lightsaber to rest against. It was a little tough to get it looped in there the first few times, but I got it to work eventually.

Of course, these figures are more realistic takes on the very stylized character designs from the show, and I’m always intrigued to see how they are going to turn out. I was a little worried about Ezra since he always struck me as having one of the odder looks in the series. There was something about his nose that looked really bizarre to me. Nonetheless, the portrait that Hasbro came up with here looks really good. The finish on the skin is a bit too waxy, making him look like he’s sweating, but as for the face sculpt, they definitely managed to make him easily recognizable while casting off the stylized look. The hair is sculpted as a separate piece to give it some depth and it falls around the face in a very convincing manner. It also features some nice purple highlights.

Of course, Ezra comes with his trusty lightsaber-blaster combo, which fits comfortably into either of his hands. I was not a big fan of this weapon early on in the series, I thought it was gimmicky, but I’ve grown to dig it quite a bit. This version looks good for what is a pretty small accessory. It even has multiple paint apps. Obviously, the lightsaber blade is removable, but it was really hard to get out the first time I tried. I was afraid to twist it and have the peg twist off of the blade so I just had to keep pulling on it until it finally gave way.

He also comes with his Imperial cadet helmet. It’s a great looking piece, exhibiting that lovely McQuarrie flavor, and fits over the figure’s head perfectly.The black and red paint apps are overall pretty sharp and crisp.

The articulation here is pretty standard stuff for a 6-inch Black Series figure. Ezra’s arms have rotating hinges in the shoulders, elbows, and wrists. His legs are ball jointed at the hips, have swivels in the thighs, double-hinges in the knees, and the ankles have both hinges and lateral rockers. The torso has a ball joint under the chest, and the neck has both a hinge and a ball joint. Ezra is lots of fun to play around with and I am absolutely delighted with how he turned out. Let’s move on to Chopper!

Chopper would have been an easy figure to cheap-out on since he’s so small, but I’m happy to say that Hasbro went the opposite route and instead poured the love into this grumpy little rust-bucket. Indeed, the most surprising thing for me after getting Chopper out of the box is that he feels so substantial. A lot of that has to do with the crazy depth in some of the sculpted details. Besides the panel lining and bolts, you get some components that have been sculpted separately and inserted into the open compartments. I particularly love the yellow square plate that’s just bolted haphazardly on the front. Granted, there’s a lot more detail on the front of Chopper’s body than the back, but I think that’s more a characteristic of the droid’s design than it is a cop-out on Hasbro’s part. Even the tiny eyes and the radar dish are wonderfully realized. And the sculpt can’t take all the credit, because the paint features some nice rust-weathering, in addition to the orange and yellow bits.

Chopper includes a retractable third leg with the beefy little tire on it. There’s no gimmick connecting it to the head rotation, like we saw in the Black Series Astromechs. The column is just held in there by friction so you can rotate it as well as push it in and pull it out. Naturally the side legs rotate back to put him in an ambulatory position and he looks great doing it.

Chopper comes with a replacement left leg, which was a plot point in one of the episodes. It’s definitely a cool bonus and I haven’t decided which way I’m going to display him yet. I am leaning toward the different one because it gives Chopper even more of a junky asymmetrical look.

Of course, you can’t have Chopper without what I like to call his tantrum arms. These pull out from the sides of his head and are remarkably sturdy and easy to manipulate. He also has a utility arm that can fold out from the horizontal panel just under his head. These three appendages even feature some articulation at about the midpoints.

Chopper’s final surprise is a rocket jet, which can replace his third leg, and has a thrust effect part. And since he can’t stand with this piece in, Hasbro included a larger effect part that serves as a stand for when Chopper is in flight mode. Yup, Hasbro really went all out on this little guy. In many ways I think this figure is executed way better than their original Black Series R2-D2. He’s chunky and fun, and he has so many extras that I would have never expected. I think the best thing I can say about this little fella is that he feels like a decent value even at the regular twenty dollar price tag.

And so Hasbro continues to hit these Black Series Rebel figures out of the park. I’ve loved them all, and I think Ezra and Chopper may even be the best ones yet. Indeed, I think I’d be comfortable saying that I think these are some of the best Black Series figures, period! Surely, they can’t stop now and I’m hoping to see Zeb revealed in the next couple of days. He may be a little tougher to do in this realistic style, but I have faith that Hasbro will be able to pull it off. And hell, I’d also like to see them continue and give us some of the baddies from the series as well. And that’s a wrap for this week. Slowly but surely I’m trying to come back. I should be on track for Marvel Monday and then we’ll see how much time I have for the week’s content after that. Thanks for your patience!

Jul 15 2019

Marvel Legends (Caliban Wave): Blink by Hasbro

I’m here to try to get Marvel Mondays back on track and this makes two in a row, which is a nice start. I actually began writing this review weeks ago and the original intro is no longer relevant, so let’s just scrap it. Blink is a recent addition to my Marvel Legends pile of shame, and I didn’t feel like digging through the pile for the sake of randomness, so let’s just jump right in and check her out!

It’s an interesting time to be an X-Men fan. The movie rights are now solidified with the MCU. Marvel is shaking up the X-Men comics and it sounds like they’re handing the reigns to Jonathan Hickman. And the X-Men are rapidly catching up to Spider-Man as the new darlings of the Marvel Legends line. There have been more than a few great waves of Marvel’s Mutants hitting the pegs, offering up some great Triple-A classic characters, as well as some of the lower tier ones, like Blink here. I guess it didn’t hurt that Blink appeared in live action X-Men spin-off series, The Gifted, but I can’t say as I watched it.

And here she is out of the box and looking like she just rode cross-country on a Bison. Yeah, before even getting into the figure, I have to mention that Blink came off the tray with her legs warped all to hell. I knew this would be the case before I even opened her. It’s easy to tell by the way she’s packaged, and oh boy is this a pet peeve of mine. Why would you knowingly damage a figure by posing it a certain way in the box? I’m sure I will have some luck straightening out those gams, but I’m not going to do Hasbro the favor of fixing the figure before reviewing it. This shit is just adding more misery to my life. But setting aside her bow-legged-ness, Blink feels a lot like the recent release of Mystique. I don’t think the body is a total reuse, but it’s close enough and when you couple that with the sculpted belt and sash, and the similarities in painted costume, it’s hard to shake that flavor of sameness. I’m not complaining, the figure is definitely faithful to the character design and I appreciate the extra touches like the sculpting on the tops of her buccaneer boots and the studded choker that matches her belt. Plus, the sash on the belt is pretty convincing as the lower extension of her painted dress. Although I do find the way it’s pinched almost the same on the front and back to be a little odd looking. The coloring here is also fine. I like the mauve they used for her skin and the green for the dress, sleeves, and boots. The studs on the belt and choker are also neatly painted.

And I certainly have no complaints regarding the head sculpt. She’s definitely a Mutant hottie, with well defined features, her ears have points, and I love the way they sculpted her hair, giving the portrait a great sense of dimension and character.The markings on her face are sharp, and the thick eye-liner around her squinting yellow eyes looks great. Bravo on the portrait, Hasbro!

Blink comes with three effect parts, all showcasing her teleport capabilities. First up is this portal effect. It’s cast in semi-translucent hot pink plastic and it’s pretty fun to play around with. By now y’all should know that I’m never too enamored with effect parts, especially not the ones that Hasbro tends to churn out, but this one is easy to incorporate onto the shelf for display and I think it truly adds something to the figure.

Next up, you get two teleport spikes, for lack of a better word. She flings these at people and objects to teleport them. There isn’t a lot more to say about them, other than she can hold them in each of her hands.

As I’ve said many times over, Marvel Legends has been great for universe building, and that means getting characters like Blink right alongside heavier hitters like Beast, Jubilee, and Gambit. Maybe she wasn’t all that high up on my list, but she was definitely on it, and I’m happy to be able to cross her off of it. And from sculpt to paint, they did a fine job with her. No, I’m not happy about the warped legs, andI should be able to fix that with a little hot water or a blow dryer, but come on, Hasbro. You’ve been in this game long enough that you shouldn’t be making mistakes like that.

Jul 13 2019

Kitties!

Sorry, folks. I did have more content planned for this week. I was soooo close to completing a review for yesterday but, if you follow me on Twitter than you already know that I got caught up in adopting some kitties!

I went to the shelter on Thursday to turn in an application and meet with the cats. There were so many great kitties that needed homes, and I probably spent an hour and a half going into the Cat Pods and petting and playing with them. I narrowed it down to a handful and told the people at the shelter that I would be back on Friday to choose. I was aiming for a chill cat around 4 or 5 years old. But in the end, I came away with a two-year-old bonded brother and sister. Meet Jade and Lilly!

When I met these kitties I didn’t even know they were siblings, but Lilly was rubbing on my leg and Jade was rolling over in his bed soliciting belly rubs. When I found out that they were a bonded pair, I realized that I had to adopt them. Once I got them home, I knew I made the right choice. They explored a bit, ate their dinners, and then proceeded to stretch out on the floor and go to sleep like they had lived here their whole lives. I fell asleep on the sofa and when I woke up, they were both sleeping on top of me.

Yeah, they really do love each other. I can’t believe how sweet, gentle, and well-mannered they are, moreover how quickly I fell in love with them. Soooo… thank you for allowing me this indulgence. New content is coming. I have a Marvel Monday almost ready to go for next week and I’ve got another two reviews in the pipe for later in the week. Thanks for your patience!