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Monday, November 23, 2009

Perhaps some things are better kept Secret….

I’ve got nothing against the 3 3/4” Marvel Universe line. I’m a realist – the 6” Legends line is on it’s wobbly last legs, so if I want Marvel figures, this is the go-to point. In terms of the main Marvel Universe line, I’d like to see a bit less IronHulkSpidey and a few more new characters, but I’m happy with the overall quality of the figures in terms of articulation, sculpt and paintwork.

It’s a shame, then, that the same can’t be said for the Secret Wars 25th Anniversary 3 3/4” Two-Packs. This is a great idea, especially with the inclusion of some first-time-in-plastic characters like the Wrecking Crew, Klaw and the Enchantress. The execution, however, is all over the place, due to some paint and production issues. In the first set of two-packs Klaw and Thunderball seemed to suffer the most in terms of paint application and QC in the headsculpt area. I was lucky to find one of each that was fairly effective, but most I have seen around the traps have been shockers.

Most of the issues with these new two-packs: Hulk and Cyclops, Iron Man and Spiderwoman II, Magneto and Spiderman (Black Costume), are with paint, not sculpt. The main exception to this is Magneto, who for some reason looks a bit hunched over. I think this is due to the sculpt not taking the cape mechanism into account, causing him to look a bit neckless.

Cyclops and Spiderwoman have both had a wash used on them. Washes can add depth and complexity, or book a figure a ticket on the Ugly Train. I’ve seen a few Cyclops figures that have looked fairly average, however the wash pretty much works on the one I received, defining muscles, etc. The paintwork on Spiderwoman is an absolute shocker, mostly due to the fact that the Spider Bosoms are a lighter shade of blue than most of the rest of the figure. Unfortunate to say the least. On the flipside, Black Costume Spiderman hasn’t had a blue wash used on him, and looks all the better for it, making it a huge improvement over the Marvel Universe single.

Hulk and Iron Man are both Secret Wars twists on the well-used sculpts in this series, but nothing spectacular. The number of repeat figures in this line that are tied to a new figure is somewhat of an annoyance, but kudos to Hasbro for using a brighter colour scheme which is more representative of the comics of the time.

All up, this is a fun series, but the joy is definitely more in the nostalgia than the quality. We’re still waiting to find out what the last few figures are, but I am definitely hoping for Mohawk Storm and Wrecker, and then a wildcard for the third – Rogue or Nightcrawler would be great, but Thing is a likely candidate I think.

You can see more pics at Facebook, discuss this at the AFB Forum, and comment on this post to enter the November AFB Comment of the Month Contest.

Until next time!

8 comments:

Westy said...

Funny, I thought these were actually pretty well done (except cyclops looked attrocious).

Kyle said...

the upcoming Enchantress looks nice too.

fishmilkshake said...

Glad I abandoned ship when I did. I shall live vicariously through you Andy.

Warren Marshall said...

I am really enjoying this line (and figure size). Sure some of the paint work is spotty at time. I am hanging out for the Mr. Fantastic / Ultron pack!

Anonymous said...

She-Hulk & Volcana

Crusher Creel & Captain Marvel

Tom Freak said...

I'm not liking this line, the sculpts are good, but the over packed articulation in a very small toy makes them look poorly done. I really, really hate the abdominal articulation too.

fishmilkshake said...

Doesn't anyone want a Beyonder figure in that cool white suit?

SirDragonBane said...

Love this series, love this colour like you said. Size is great for large sequences and action displays.

Oh, and I'm all for more fenale figures. New sculpts for new characters is also a must.

So yay for enchantress, but please give us some Sh-Hulk, Volcana, Titania, and Storm! White costume Ms Marvel and Rogue also! ;)

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