Hot Wheels: Spider-Man Maximum Venom, #4 - Custom Ford Mustang / Venomized Groot

Custom Ford Mustang

2020 Walmart exclusive series

Marvel Super Hero Mashers Micro: Groot vs Rocket Raccoon

I'll be honest with you, I didn't pay any attention to Hasbro's Mashers line of interchangeable action figures when they were on retail shelves. I only picked up these mini versions when I found them uber cheap on Walmart.com. I'm glad I purchased them and wish I had now paid them more attention as they are fun little toys to mess with.

The premise of the Micro sets are the same as the regular Mashers, just the character's body is much smaller and non-articulated. The interchangeable pieces however are compatible with the larger figures.

You can see some of the other two packs in this wave, such as Hulk, Star Lord, Hulk Buster Iron Man and Black Panther. I really wish I could've found either of those two sets.

The figures themselves stand at about 1 1/2 inches tall. The paint apps are minimal to down right missing. Groot got some green highlight all over where as Rocket's body is is sorely missing some paint to bring out the design in the mold. 

Rocket came with two weapons for him to wield while Groot came with an additional hand to switch out.

In my humble opinion, Groot is the clear standout winner in this two pack. I especially like this additional hand he came packaged with. I'm not sure why, but I do.

Part of the draw with all of the Masher figures is the ability to switch their parts create new characters so to speak. I used Rocket's body along with some Spider-Man, Dr. Octopus and Groot parts I had near by.

Overall I found these toys to be a lot of fun as-is, but the more Micro sets I opened and the more parts I had I started to see the interest in the part swapping. I really hate I missed out on these when I had the opportunity to readily pick them up, but I'm glad none the less to have the few sets that I do.

Marvel Legends Infinite Series: Guardians of the Galaxy - Groot (Build-A-Figure)

I had to admit. I did not see Groot stealing the show in this summer's blockbuster Guardians of the Galaxy movie. I figured Rocket would do well with audiences if he was handled as such as he is in the comics, but Groot? Nope, didn't see that coming at all.  I do have to say I loved the CGI for the character and Vin Diesel did a great job w/ the one line he had in the movie.

When it comes to the Marvel Legends figures, I'm sure the driving force behind a lot of the purchases was the inclusion of the Build-A-Figure (BAF) parts. Whether you bought a figure you really didn't want just to get the part, or just bought the part itself off eBay; Groot is worth owning.

Why is Groot worth owning?

   1) He's tall and stands out in any Marvel collection
   2) He's a talking tree! (even if he only says "I am Groot!")
   3) Very well sculpted
   4) Good articulation, even for a tree

I didn't build many of the Toy Biz era BAFs, but the Hasbro figures I've built have been nice. It seems though the last few have been smaller characters (Terrax, Arnim Zola, Hit Monkey, Rocket Raccoon) so it's refreshing to see a larger BAF again. The designers nailed his CGI movie likeness. The intricate tree like texture and use of light green on his chest, back and forehead help complete the organic look. Groot retains most of the same points of articulation that the rest of the figures have, which seems like a bonus given his size and the fact you have to snap all his parts together.

For most of the movie versions of the Guardians, I still prefer their more traditional/current comic versions of themselves, but do I like this Groot more than his comic self? I think I do.

For some reason this version of Groot reminds me a little of another Marvel creature, Man-Thing. I say that because the movie Groot looks more docile and innocent than the version that appears in the pages of Marvel comic books. Man-Thing has showed a "softer" side if you will before, but be warned if you attack him or his allies he'll show you no mercy. Groot seems this way as well.

When these toys were first solicited online I knew I wanted Nova. After I saw some of the figures in person at a local comic show this summer I started to feel the urge to go for Groot. After seeing the movie how could I pass up adding Groot to my Marvel collection? After all, I'm not sure I'll ever see a comic version of him get the Marvel Legends treatment anytime soon. With the Legends being up to $20 each I can't recommend someone buy all the figures if you just want Groot. I'd go the secondary market route and just look for the individual pieces. Either path you take to building Groot, I think in the end you'll find him well worth the trouble.