the Avengers: Skrull Soldier

Last summer's the Avengers movie was the summer blockbuster most of us fans were hoping that it be.  Of course Hasbro was going to try and cash in with their own series of action figures.  As with the previous two series of Iron Man figures & the Captain America series, the Avengers had figures based on both the movie designs as well as the comics.  I opted to stay away from the movie stuff only because I'm not made of money and just pick up the occasional comic figure.  Over the last handful of years I've grown to really like and appreciate what Marvel has done with their cosmic characters and the stories.  From Annihilation to Realm of Kings to War of Kings and eventually the whole Thanos stuff, the cosmic stuff has had me hooked.  All that said I was excited when I saw that a cool looking Skrull had made it in the Avengers series.

At first glance I loved the figure.  I could tell this Skrull looked like he ate more of his veggies as he seemed "thicker" than the previously released Skrull in the Marvel Universe line.  I wasn't sure what to make of his double-blade axe weapon, but I gave him a chance.

The Skrull Soldier was released in the 2nd wave (?) and most people were actively looking for the Scarlett Johansson Black Widow figure and to some lesser degree, Hawkeye.  At first this figure seemed plentiful, then the supplies started to dry up.  Were fans possibly troop building?

While the included axe weapon looks a little big in the Skrull's hands, it's not a horrible looking weapon.  Although when I think of Skrulls I don't think of them using melee weapons...Super Skrull aside.  The axe can also conveniently be stored on his back, a feature I love.

The blades from the axe can be removed and used for a more hand to hand style combat.  The center of the axe blade has a handle for a figure to grip.  I assume the axe handle can double as a spear type weapon.

I much prefer the new headsculpt over the Skrull that was first released in the Marvel Universe series.  While the blue and purple armor may not suit everyone, I still prefer it over the MU's costume.  It may not be comic accurate, but as I said in my intro the Avengers Skrull just looks beefier.

Do you like the MU Skrull better, but like the Avengers headsculpt?  No problem!  Thanks to the construction of these figures the head simply pops off exposing the ball joint underneath.  Switch the two heads and now you have a more traditional looking Skrull to take on the Fantastic Four or any other Marvel hero.

If you are a fan of Skrulls, cosmic characters or just a big Marvel fan in general then this is a great figure to own.  He blends in well with figures from any of the Marvel movies and with the Marvel Universe series.  Who knows, perhaps this figure's inclusion in the Avengers line of toys is a pre-cursor of what is to happen in Avengers 2?!

Marvel Universe: Scarlet Witch

Hasbro's Marvel Universe line of 3 3/4" figures has been hit and miss with me.  When the line first started several years ago I found myself buying all of the figures I could get my hands on.  The loose joints that plagued some of the early figures or the lack of accessories didn't really seem to bother me.  While the toys have vastly been improved, I started to loose interest in the line when I decided to cut out reading just about all monthly comics.  I would still stop and look at some of the new figures I'd find at retail, but I hadn't felt compelled to buy any of them...and then I saw the Scarlet Witch.  The first one I found suffered from horrible paint apps around the head and face.  Thankfully though I'd find another one several weeks later and decided to pull the trigger.

  

The packaging really hasn't changed much since the line's inception.  The pack in item started off as a S.H.I.E.L.D. ID card and dossier, then latter changed to H.A.M.M.E.R. card and dossier following the big story lines from the Marvel comics.  Eventually this was dropped in favor of figure stands and now what they call a collectible comic shot.

Yeah, I don't get the purpose of these small pieces of cardboard either.  At least the old ID cards were trading card size and featured larger artwork.

 

Scarlet Witch features the now standard female body sculpt.  For the most part I don't mind this mold.  It's super articulated - head, shoulders, elbows, wrists, torso, thighs, knees and ankles - all points of articulation.  Even the head sculpt is nicely done.  I like how her hair flows over her headpiece onto the side of her face.  Colors are pretty spot on too to how she appears in the comics.  I don't know about you, but I wouldn't mind seeing a figure of Wanda in her gypsy looking costume from the Heroes Return / George Perez days from the comic.

The cape is one large sculpted piece of soft plastic.  I didn't try, but I'm sure you can pop off her head to remove the cape.  Overall I think the cape looks great, but the only problem I have with it is that it's a tad long.  Even with Wanda's legs completely straightened out I found the cape kept her feet from firmly standing on the ground.

 

This long cape does help you pull off some "levitating" action shots however so perhaps this isn't such a bad thing after all.  Her lone accessory is this red blob that fits over her hand.  I'm guessing it's supposed to be a hex sphere...you tell me.  Overall I'm pleased with this figure and I'm glad I decided to pick her up.  She'll go nicely with my cast of other Marvel Universe Avengers characters.

Marvel Universe: She-Hulk

I'm a little removed from Marvel Comics and the associated toys after I decided to drop the majority of the comics I read on a monthly basis a few years ago.  That doesn't mean though that I can't spot a good figure.  The latest wave of Marvel Universe figures had a pretty good line up with a new version of the Punisher, Spider-Man in his Freedom Foundation uniform, bag head Spidey, Kang and Scarlet Witch.  I found most of these at retail a few weeks back, but I decided to just stick with one figure for the moment.  I'm happy with my choice.

Ever since I read Dan Slott's She-Hulk I have been hooked on the character.  Over the years I've owned some nice large Marvel Legends styled figures of Shulkie, but this is my first 3 3/4" figure of her.  Since I don't have a lot of MU figures anymore I'm not 100% sure if this is a new female build or not.  Either way the figure just looked too nice to turn down.

Speaking of Dan Slott this figure comes packaged with a small cardboard "comic shot".  I'm still trying to figure out the purpose these serve.  I'd rather have one of those nice black MU figure stands instead.

 

It's been awhile since I've bought a new MU figure let alone fiddle around with one.  She-Hulk has a lot of articulation.  Since I'm horrible at posing figures in dynamic poses I'll just point out the swivel biceps and thighs, hinge joins in the elbows, knees and ankles and the ball joints used on the fists and for the head.

See, I told you I'm horrible!

Pulling off a good female action figure has always been challenging, but in my opinion Hasbro has hit the ball out of the park w/ She-Hulk.  Whether the body is a new sculpt or not, the head sculpt is really nice.  Even the way her hair is sculpt looks great.  I chose She-Hulk over the Scarlet Witch for the head sculpt alone.  When those two gals are beside each other you can really tell how nice She-Hulk's sculpt looks.

It also really helps that the paint apps are not sloppy.  I remember that being a big problem early on with the Marvel Universe line.  Overall this is a great toy and a real gem in the series.  I don't know if it's horrible distribution or poor sales, but I've yet to see this figure in the wild (i.e. retail) since my purpose last month.  If you are a fan of the character and you come across her then do yourself a favor and buy the figure.

Marvel Universe: Scarlet Spider

QUICK INFO:  
Name: Scarlet Spider
Line: Marvel Universe (Hasbro)
MSRP: $7.99
Year: 2011

Cloned from the DNA of Peter Parker to battle Spider-Man, the Scarlet Spider gradually turned into one of the web-slinger's most trusted allies and greatest friends.  Battling alondside Spider-Man, he found himself becoming something more than a clone - the Scarlet Spider had finally become a hero in his own right.

The Marvel Universe line rolls on with Series 3 featuring such characters as Dr. Doom, Skaar, Doctor Strange, Falcon and Spider-Man's clone, the Scarlet Spider.

When the Marvel Universe line started I found myself buying just about every figure released.  Down the road I've found myself with both limited space and funds for such things and I have cut back.  When I heard there was going to be a Scarlet Spider toy I knew I had to buy it for several reasons:

1) I first got back into reading comics while in high school working at a local drug store.  We always had the various Spider-Man titles on the magazine rack and what was the major story line at the time?  None other than the controversial Clone Saga.

2) I like the character!  I'm not a long time Spider-Man reader like my brother is so I don't have the attachment to the character's history.  That said I enjoyed the story and thought having a figure to display side by side w/ Spider-Man would be cool.

3) The Scarlet Spider later joined the New Warriors.  I'm a huge New Warriors fan and have always dreamed of having the team members in toy form.  I got my wish (sort of) with Firestar from the Spider-Man 3 pack.  Now I have one more.  I know it's a pipe dream at best,but I'm still waiting for Hasbro to make a classic Speedball figure!

I noticed when I found this series at local retail that Marvel yet again changed the artist for the packaging.  I'm not sure who supplied this art, but I don't like it.  I could deal with Mike Deodato and Oliver Coipel from series 1 & 2, but I don't like this darker, grainy artwork.  Didn't stop me from buying the figure though!

I've seen all of the figures in this wave except for the Falcon.  Figures as he is the other one I want.  Dr. Doom looks nice.  Better than the one in the comic 2 pack released earlier...but I'm trying to stick to Spider-Man and Avengers characters/villains at the moment.

Scarlet Spider features the new figure build.  The added swivel joint in the thighs makes a huge difference.  The figure sports all of the normal points of articulation that we all have come to expect with this line.

I love the blue sweat shirt.  The colors are spot on.

 

While I generally like these new action figure stands, I don't care for the peg placement on Scarlet Spider's stand as it hinders certain poses.  You have to bend the legs at the knees and it just makes the figure look awkward.  Thankfully the figure is well proportioned and can stand on it's own without the need of the stand.

Outside of Constrictor that I bought at the big comic book convention this summer I haven't bought many Marvel Universe figures lately.  However Hasbro has come a LONG way since the first wave and the quality just keeps getting better and better.  This is a solid figure and a must have for any Spider-Man (or his clone) fan!

Marvel Universe: Apocalypse

QUICK INFO: 
Name: Apocalypse
Line: Marvel Universe (Hasbro)
MSRP: $7.99
Year: 2011


Born thousands of years ago, Apocalypse is the first mutant, and there is every likelihood that he will live to be the last.  His natural powers are vast, and are enhanced by the alien technology he has spent millennia bringing under his control.   No other villain has so shaped the course of the X-Men, as he has tested them again and again to ensure that only the strongest survive. 


I've got to give a shout out (do people still say that?) to the guys over @ Action Figure Blues for supplying this figure.  I won it in their contest from last month...a contest that I failed to realize I even entered!  Seriously though make sure to stop by their blog and register on their forums as there is a lot of cool stuff going on there.


If your local Target, Walmart and related stores have been anything like the stores in my area then finding new toys, specifically new Hasbro toys has been a chore.  New figures have been far and few between it seems.  Apocalypse here hails from series 3 of the 2011 Marvel Universe collection.  I don't think I even saw all the figures from series 2 locally.

This is a figure that I would've jumped on immediately in the past for several different reasons.  Hasbro has done a great job in the recent past with the bigger figures in this line (Juggernaut, World War Hulk, Thanos) and this figure is of no exception.  Trying to conserve funds I haven't given much attention to the Marvel Universe line of late so in a lot of ways this figure is totally new to me.  

I'm still unsure of who the artist is that is providing the packaging art this time around, but they have done a great job here.  For the most part the packaging hasn't changed much from past waves.  The only noticeable difference I saw was the new S.H.I.E.L.D. logo.  Sadly like previous waves the file and card have been replaced with a single black figure stand.


The back of the package features a little bio on the character.  Not having the most extensive knowledge of the X-Men and their villains it was interesting read.  I had no idea Apocalypse's powers have been augmented by alien technology (Shiar?).

Of course there are also the obligatory cross sells on the back.  After reading the current Annihilators mini-series I wouldn't mind finding that Gladiator figure.  Is that baby Hope strapped to Cable's chest?

Apocalypse is one hulking figure.  If the sheer size of the 3 3/4" figure doesn't impress you then the awesome figure sculpt and paint applications should.  The head sculpt is dead on when compared to most comic book artists' renditions.  The metallic blue on the chest, wrist gauntlets and boots looks fantastic, especially when meshed with the dark gray and black of the armor.  The silver on the shoulder harness, fists and belt have a really nice wash to give it a worn look.  Hasbro even managed to nail the eyes by painting them red.  Best part of this figure in my opinion is that the paint apps look fantastic overall.  I can't tell you how many times I've found a figure that I wanted to buy and ended up putting it back because of sloppy paint apps.

Like with many of the other larger figures in the Marvel Universe series Apocalypse features a good amount of articulation.  His head can rotate a full 360 degrees, but the shoulder harness' collar does hinder the range of motion just a little bit.  The same limitations can be said in the shoulder area.  The shoulders feature a large rounded ball joint that hides underneath the large shoulder pads.  Thankfully the plastic used for the harness is a little softer allow you to still pull off some good arm poses.  The arms swivel at the biceps and elbow areas.  The wrists also rotate a full 360 degrees.  While it may not appear at first glance Apocalypse does feature midsection articulation.  There isn't a lot of motion to be had here, but it's a nice touch.  I like the fact this this joint (if you can call it that) is practically hidden.  The top half of the figure does rotate a full 360.  The legs appear to be a ball and socket joint giving lots of motion.  You can reposition the thighs a little bit, but the sculpted muscles won't line up if you move them around too much.  Both the knees and ankles feature your standard articulation.

If there is one negative thing about this figure that I witness right off the back is he seems to want to hunch over a little bit.  This causes him to look as if he is staring at the floor as if Kitty Pryde was poking her head through the floor!  You really have to work that mid-section joint to keep the top half of the figure in the upright position.  I can see this joint wearing out over time.

On the back of the figure you can see the mid-section joint a lot better.  The various black hoses that are attached to the shoulder harness and arms are much more visible from the back.  I should mention that the harness and hoses are permanently attached.

 

If I wasn't so unorganized right now I would've pulled in Juggernaut or World War Hulk for the comparison photo, but all I had at my fingertips was the awesome Captain Marvel!  As much as I like the included black stands I love the fact that the larger figures can easily be displayed without them.

This is an awesome figure and I'm so fortunate to have won him as I think people will eat him up.  That and I simply don't trust Hasbro's recent distribution of their various action figures.  If you do run across this figure in the wild then jump on it!  Whether or not you are a X-Men fan this is another home run type figure and deserves to be on display in your Marvel Universe collection.

Marvel Universe: Luke Cage

QUICK INFO:

Name: Luke Cage

Line: Marvel Universe
Year: 2010

Price: $7.99

Bio:
It's been a long time since Luke Cage went by the name Power Man, and a lot has changed. He's gone from being an independent operator, making money with his powers, to a leadership role in the Avengers. There was a time when his bulletproof skin and super strength made him impulsive and short-tempered, but his recent responsibilities force him to think of others first before he acts.

Ah yes, a new Marvel Universe figure to add to the collection FINALLY! I'm not sure what is wrong with Hasbro's distribution of this line, but finding new figures is harder than finding a virgin in college. Today we'll take a look at the new leader of Marvel's Thunderbolts, Luke Cage.

I gotta hand it to Marvel's graphic design team as they have hit a home run with the packaging of this line. As much as I enjoyed Frank Cho's art on Series 1's packaging Mike Deodato's artwork is just fantastic. The switch over from S.H.I.E.L.D. to H.A.M.M.E.R. is a nice touch as well...even though in comics this switch is outdated. You may notice Luke's packaging has been tweaked a little as he was the runner up in the Fan's Choice contest Marvel held online.

On the back of the blister card you can immediately tell the other transition from Series 1 to Series 2. Replacing Frank Cho's Nick Fury is now Deodato's Tommy Lee Jones look alike Norman Osborn! The bio does a good job giving you a quick summarized history of the character. It is still prompting the buyer to go to Furyfiles.com to enter the code that is included inside the packaging, but upon entering my code it doesn't appear to unlock any new content. Not sure if Hasbro is planning on updating the website to reflect these new changes in Series 2 or not.

Here you have a good look at what is included inside the packaging. With Series 2 the figures now come with figure stands. This I like very much. In addition to Luke Cage himself you get a knit hat and his gold chain necklace I believe was made famous in his Marvel Comics MAX series. You also get a bent up girder he can wield. It's lame, but more on that later. The construction of the figure is really no different than with previous male characters in this line. My figure does seem really solid though with the joints holding most poses really well. There is a lot of articulation - head, shoulders, arms, elbows, wrists, waist, hips, knees and the feet to some degree. I like the washed look on the jeans, but the washed look was extended to the arms & head and it looks really odd. The brown plastic that is exposed in the center of the figure (neck area around the straps of his shirt) don't have this washed look and look so much better. There were only 2 figures in the store when I purchased mine and both had this same look. His shirt is simply painted onto the body which at first I thought looked somewhat odd, but after having the figure out of the packaging for a bit now it doesn't bother me at all. My only gripe with this figure is the stupid girder he comes with. I had a hard time fitting it into his hand so I can snap a few pictures first off. After I got the weapon in place it seemed to weaken the wrist joint since it's fairly long and somewhat heavy. Luke's other hand is a closed fist (which normally I hate), but seeing how Luke is a man from the streets of Harlem I guess it makes sense.

"All geared up"

I like the overall look of the figure, especially the head. The black sunglasses and the gotee are perfect. I remember in the first several issues of the comic New Avengers David Finch drew Cage wearing the knitted styled hat. I could personally do with both the hat and the necklace, but they are nice additions for those who may enjoy them.

I'm a sucker for trading cards so I love how Series 2 continued the inclusion of the Superhuman Registration Act cards. On the front side we get a full body shot of Deodato's artwork used on the front of the packaging.

The back side of the cards is very nicely laid out. You see his real name is Luke Cage, legally changed from Carl Lucas. In the bottom right corner you have a classification for each character, with Luke being a Enhanced Human.

Hair: Bald Eyes: Brown Height: 6'6" Weight: 425 lbs. Sex: M

Powers: Superhumanly strong, able to lift (press) 25 tons. Steel-hard skin, self-taught hand to hand combatant, and extensive street fighting experience.

As with Series 1 you still get a Top Secret case file only this time the "letters" are addressed to Norman Osborne.

Director Osborne,

You asked Contingencies Division to work on some options for taking down the renegade vigilante Luke Cage. As you know, his strength and impenetrable skin present serious difficulties. We believe explosives of sufficient strength could take him out, but obviously that would result in serious collateral damage.

However, I found a protocol prepared by my predecessor for sanctioning Wolverine. I think with a few modifications, it could be adapted to capturing Cage. It would require some heavy ordnance, and shackles made from Vibranium, which will incur significant costs.

I have secured a source for the Vibranium. If you will authorize the 7.1 million dollar expenditure, I will begin work on fabricating the shackles.

Sincerely,
Col. Paul Colburn

This is one of my favorite Marvel Universe figures to date. I was thrilled to find it at the local Heroes Convention a few weeks back, but I'm glad I resisted paying the inflated price and waited to find him at retail. The other figure in this wave I'm really looking forward to getting my hands on is Thor as he is massive - even when compared to the bulked up Cage. If you are a fan on this line of action figures or just a fan of Luke Cage then do yourself a favor and pick him up the first time you run across him. I don't believe you'll have any regrets.