This action figure set just took away Black Widow's motorcycle moment in the Avengers Age of Ultron

Remember the awesome scene in Avengers: Age of Ultron where Black Widow and her motorcycle are launched from the Avengers Quinjet? 

Well, now you can re-create that great movie moment with your very own action figure set. The Avengers Age of Ultron Cycle Blast Quinjet. There's just one small problem:

That's right, that's Captain America on the motorcycle, not Black Widow.

AFB gives this set, and the continued absence of Black Widow merchandise from the new film, a giant fail.

Pre Order Hot Toys Hawkeye!

Hot Toys has pulled off another stunning likeness and array of accessories that are going to make the Avengers Hawkeye figure a must-have!

Sideshow Collectibles now has Hawkeye up for pre-order - click here to secure yours now!

Hawkeye comes with a boatload of accessories, hands and of course his bow - which, from the promo shots, it seems he'll be able to pose with very well! I think I'm as excited for the Hot Toys as I am for the movie!

Don't miss out - pre-order your Hot Toys Hawkeye now to avoid Avenger-Assembling disappointment later!

Hot Toys teases Hawkeye!

Seeing as Clint Barton is a favourite character of mine, I'm very excited to see that Hot Toys is teasing Hawkeye as the next Avengers figure on the way! This image was posted on the Hot Toys Facebook page today:

Are you "in" for Hawkeye or any of the other Hot Toys Avengers series?

Tigra claws her way into the Bowen Full Size fold!

I tend to be leaning more towards full sized statues in my Bowen Designs purchases these days, which is probably for the best as their bust output has been low of late. A number of characters of whom I already own busts are getting the full sized treatment at the moment and I have decided to make the transition as well. The latest addition to this bunch, Tigra, is a character I’m quite fond of, and Bowen has produced a statue to match.

I first met Tigra when, as a fifteen year old, I inherited a big box of Marvel Comics from a friend who was joining the Navy. Amongst the huge lot of now classic Marvel tales was a swag of Avengers comics, including Avengers #211, when Tigra first joined the team. While that first tenure was short-lived, she became a founding member of the West Coast Avengers, a book I enjoyed immensely.

This statue was sculpted by Mike Cusanelli, who has been doing quite a bit of work for Bowen recently, including the Warriors Threeand Satanabusts, which I loved, and the Firestarbust, which was a bit of a Bowen low point. Thankfully, this sculpt is Cusanelli on song, and he has created a beautiful rendition of our favourite tiger-striped Avenger.

It’s a lovely sculpt - her head and hair are particularly well done. I like way that the flow of her hair has an animal-like quality to it. I have been a bit critical of a lack of power in some of Cusinelli’s poses, but this one works quite well, with Tigra raising a fist in her left hand while her claws are at the ready on her lowered right. It’s subtle, but by no means weak. There is a great amount of detail here, in what at first might seem a relatively simple sculpt. Her bikini is sculpted on, as are her totem and the teeth in her waist and armband.

The most impressive aspects of this sculpt, however, is that each and every one of Tigra’s stripes is sculpted, not just painted! This includes the stripes on her arms, legs, torso and tail! It would have been easy to leave all of this up to the painter, but Cusinelli has taken true control of this piece by deciding where every single stripe will be and what form it will take. It’s really a masterful piece of sculpting!

Of course, intricate sculpting detail like this could be completely undone by a less than stellar paint job. Thankfully Tigra’s paint job isn’t letting anyone down - it’s spot on. Stripes aside, the colour choices here are all perfect - the organges for Tigra’s skin and hair, the blue for her outfit (which, in Mrs Andy’s opinion, there should be much more of....) - it’s all brilliant.

I am always impressed by the mixing of different types of materials, so Tigra’s tail is a real treat. It’s made of a flexible material that allows for some bending. While I wouldn’t want to put it’s durability to any kind of serious test, there’s no risk of it being chipped off by bumping against something. It comes as a separate piece and as such it can actually be posed at more than one angle. I like it angling up and around her body - it looks most animal-like. A great touch!

The base on this statue is also quite lovely - and small, which always makes me happy in terms of display space! Bowen has taken to pegs on both feet in recent statues, but there’s only one here, and I miss the second one. She’s a little bit wobbly when being carried. I hope the two-peg trend continues!

I like the bit of symmetry in that Tigra’s full sized version came out just a bit after Yellowjacket’s. I met them both at the same time back in Avengers #211 - Hank was rejoining at the same time as Tigra became a first-time member. My classic Avengers collection slowly marches towards completion!

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

Until next time!

Yellowjacket buzzes in to the Bowen fold!

Bowen Designs’ statue output has been pretty impressive in recent times. Randy Bowen and his team are steadily working through the corners of the Marvel Universe which have yet to be covered by Bowen’s Marvel licence. Amongst the great range of characters being produced, founding Avenger Hank Pym has been getting some special attention. I’ve already reviewedBowen’s Ant-Man Full Sized Statue, and now it’s time to look at the Bowen Yellowjacket Full Sized Statue.

When I first “met” Hank Pym in the comics, he was in his Yellowjacket identity and costume and was rejoining the team in Avengers Vol 1 #211 for  a short tenure that would end badly. Yellowjacket has become synonymous with the troubled aspects of Hank’s life and personality. The Yellowjacket costume is also, in my humble opinion, one of the better superhero costumes around. One of the best Yellowjacket stories in my mind, apart from the Egghead epic back in that early run, is Avengers Forever, where a group of Avengers drawn together from different times includes both Hank as Yellowjacket in his most troubled times and an older, wiser Hank back in the Giant-Man identity.The juxtaposition of the two demonstrated how much Hank had evolved, and in some ways helped bring Hank full circle. A great story, and a fantastic Yellowjacket tale.

Yellowjacket may not have been able to stand tall amongst his peers, but thankfully this statue stands proud amongst my Avengers statue display. The sculpt is brilliant, not just in detail, but in the way that it manages to capture and communicate Yellowjacket’s “personality” and attitude through his stance and facial expression. The only thing I’m not 100% sold on here are his goggles, which are a little bigger and more joined together than his traditional comic book look. Definitely not a big detraction, but something that requires some getting used to.

My customising friends tell me that yellow is a difficult colour to work with, but there’s no issue with the paint work here. There is some very nice shading work with the yellow, and nice texture and depth created through the use of some different sheens. The base is also a winner - a smaller, space saving base which is always a welcome fit. This is certainly one statue where no detailed base is needed - it speaks for itself!

True Hank Pym fans will be pleased to know that Bowen has plans to address more of his costumed identities. The Giant-Man statue (a whopping 21”!) has been solicited, and the promo pics for this statue show other Giant-Man and Goliath versions (including the Clint Barton Goliath which I’d love to own!). These will all be complimented by at least two versions of Wasp that Bowen also has in the works.

If you’re a statue collector and an Avenger fan, times are good at the moment! Now we need Randy and team to get on to the last few key Avengers characters that haven’t been addressed in either bust or statue form: Mantis, Swordsman, Moondragon, Starfox and my most wanted, Captain Marvel II / Photon / Pulsar, the lovely Monica Rambeau – I’ve probably left your favourite off the list, but for me these are the “must-haves” still missing from my Avengers display.

While there are still some key characters to be covered, it’s a relatively small list in relation to the huge Avengers roster already covered.

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

Until next time!

Bowen's Firestar Flames Out

There have been quite a few characters that have started their fictional lives in animated superhero cartoons and then later been introduced into continuity in comic books. Most of those that come to mind are from the DC Universe. A notable exception to this is Marvel’s Firestar, who began her life in The Amazing Spider-Man and Friends cartoon in the early ‘80s. Firestar was created when the originally intended character, The Human Torch, was unavailable due to rights issues. Four years later, Firestar became an official part of the Marvel Universe when she was introduced in Uncanny X-Men #193, and went on to become a founding member of the New Warriors and ultimately a short but successful career as an Avenger.

After many requests from fans, Bowen Designs has released a mini-bust of Firestar sculpted by Mike Cusanelli. This bust is somewhat faithful to both her animated appearance and her first appearance in the comic book world. It has her trademark mask, which she abandoned for many years in favour of various goggles, although she has recently gone back to a form of them.

Between her associations with a classic cartoon, the X-Men, Avengers and more, Firestar is character that many fans were keen to add to their Bowen collection. Unfortunately, the excitement of this release has been dampened by two issues. The first is one of design, and the second is a paint QC issue.

Mike Cusanelli is a very talented sculptor, and females are his specialty. In addition to his work with Bowen, he produces resin kits which are generally beautifully designed females. It’s odd, then, that the pose chosen for Firestar really comes up lacking. The sculpting itself is beautiful – particularly Firestar’s lovely flowing hair, but there’s little energy in Firestar’s pose or facial expression – she looks more like she’s about to hail a taxi than use her considerable powers. The lack of energy coming from her face doesn’t assist.

Further, the painted flames on Firestar’s base just don’t stand up against the translucent flames on recent busts like Pyro and Daimon Hellstrom. At one stage it was stated that the flames would be produced as translucent in the final product, but this didn’t come to pass.

Finally, Firestar’s eyes are quite out of alignment, with the left eye being higher than the right. At first I thought this was a paint issue, but it seems that’s the way it was sculpted. It’s even evident in the promo shot on the Bowen site. It’s just off enough to be noticeable.

The real issue for me, however, is some of the worst paint slop I’ve seen on a statue, certainly on a Bowen piece. The flesh paint on her face bleeds well into the hairline on the right side of her face. This flaw doesn’t come out as dramatically in my photos as it appears in person. Often you notice these things and then after awhile you stop seeing them, however this piece has now been in my display for a few weeks and I still notice the misaligned eyes and paint slop each time I walk past. It’s a real disappointment from Bowen, considering that the QC on their pieces are usually very reliable.

I very much like the Firestar character, so until such time as she gets either a Full Size release or a Modern Age bust, this piece is going to stay in my display, but I have to declare it an unfortunate “miss” from my favourite statue and bust producer. Cusinelli has two female busts coming up from Bowen – Enchantress and the web exclusive Hela. They both look fantastic in their promo shots – let’s hope that translates to what we see on our shelves!

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

Also, don’t forget to check out the two contests we have going at the moment: the “That ‘70s Custom” Custom Contest and the third round of our first “Toy Lines!” Caption Contest!

Until next time!

Bowen's Ant-Man is a Giant in Stature and Style!

I mentioned in my post about the Bowen Exclusive Blob Mini-Bust that there is a network of collectors that help international fans collect the Bowen Designs web-exclusive products which are only available to the US. I’ve been taking advantage of this great support system, but only discovered it after the exclusive version of the Bowen Designs Ant-Man Full-Sized Statue, featuring Ant-Man in “shrink” mode (three sizes) had sold out. I decided against crazy eBay prices for the exclusive and went ahead with the standard statue, which I ultimately decided I preferred anyway. Since the statue is meant to be displayed as a part of my Avengers display and the space for it isn’t limitless , there’s actually enough happening visually without having the additional versions of Ant-Man present.

Upon opening and displaying my statue, I was totally satisfied with my decision to stick with the regular release. It’s impressive enough as it is without the extra pieces!

As much as I tend towards completism, I have never added the original Bowen Ant-Man bust to my Avengers bust collection. This isn’t just because the bust is one of the earlier, armless editions, but also because there’s always been something a little off about the head and helmet on that piece, to me at least. The antennae seem a bit too long and there’s a bit too much face visible underneath Bust-sized Ant-Man’s helmet. Thankfully this has all been rectified with the statue version – this is a truly classic Ant-Man sculpt from head to toe. The helmet is just perfect.

The paint is perfect on my statue, although for my tastes I would have liked a slightly lighter shade of red on Ant-Man’s outfit. Red can be a hard colour to show shading on, but I often find the darker reds or washes that are used to create shade make the red look a bit too murky. There is a nice use of different paints in place, with the black feature piece in Ant-man’s costume being painted in a glossy paint to contrast the matte of the blue and red and the metallic of the helmet.

One of my favourite things about this piece is the base. It’s designed to be a US 25 cent piece, also called a quarter, and the detail on it is fantastic. It’s on the bigger side as bases go, to accommodate the smaller figures in the exclusive version, but with a clever design like this I don’t mind the display space consumed.

There has been an ongoing discussion / debate amongst Bowen fans (and Randy himself) about a Wasp Statue, and whether or not it should be a full-sized statue or a smaller piece to best compliment an Avengers display. I’m glad that Ant-Man was made in the full-sized format and am very hopeful for a Wasp in the same mode. A smaller version might be a nice addition or separate piece, but I really wouldn’t be satisfied with this as the only way to have Wasp in the FS Avengers display. Hopefully I’ll be reviewing a FS Wasp (preferably a Buscema or Perez BA version) soon!

You discuss this at the AFB Forum and comment on this post to enter the April AFB Comment of the Month Contest!

Also, don’t forget to check out the two contests we have going at the moment: the “That ‘70s Custom” Custom Contest and the second round of our first “Toy Lines!” Caption Contest!

Until next time!

Bowen's Black Widow spins a beautiful web

As any reader of AFB would know, I am a very keen collector of busts and statues from Bowen Designs. I love how much Randy Bowen loves the Marvel Universe and how well his products generally capture the characters that I love too. I have quite a number of new statues and busts to review in the coming weeks, but I’ll try to space them out between other reviews so no one suffers Bowen overload (not that I would personally consider that a bad thing!).

Most Bowen sculpts are generally well received, but something that’s been getting the fans excited is Tim Miller’s design efforts with the recently released Black Widow full-sized statue. Right from the initial preview photos, collectors were excited to see Tim bringing his great skills, previously used for pieces like the Sideshow Rogue and Mystique comiquettes, to Bowen’s rendition of one of the Marvel Universe’s leading ladies.

With The Avengers being the main theme of my Bowen Collection (with X-Men being second, and Whatever Takes My Fancy third), I was delighted to see this version of Natasha Romanoff as it captures her in her earlier Avengers look – the Bronze Age Avengers era is my favourite! Black Widow is now sitting happily on a shelf with Beast, Vision and other heroes I associate with that era.

While this is quite a simple piece on the surface, it’s actually a rather skillful accomplishment for a number of reasons. What’s most impressive about Tim Miller’s work here, and I think one of the main reasons collectors have been clamouring for him to take on more Bowen pieces, is that he not only has a strong handle on sculpting the female form – he also crafts the female face quite beautifully. Black Widow is quite striking to look at, even on multiple viewings. Her hair is also beautifully sculpted.

I like the pose of this statue. It’s powerful, but not in an overt way. Black Widow is shown being in complete control, not needing to flaunt her power – just quietly confident. Her weapon is held in an almost careless manner, but it’s still there as a real threat as required.

Even the best sculpt can be let down by a lackluster paint job, and Bowen has been having some disconcerting paint issues lately. Thankfully that’s not the case here, with only a minor niggle. There are different levels of sheen used here, from the matte of her skin to the metallic gold elements, that create a rich picture despite the limited range of colours present. The black of her outfit catches the light nicely to provide much needed depth through light and shade. Miller’s excellent effort on Black Window’s face is supported by an excellent paint job. Her left eye is slightly to the left of center, however at the angle the statue is posed at it doesn't create an issue.

The base of this statue is worth commenting on, because it is quite a compact base that is rectangular in size. While many statues call for a more elaborate base, I quite like Black Widow’s as it really draws attention to the incredible piece itself. Being a rectangular shape as opposed to the usual round shape most Bowen bases have also makes it easy to place between other statues to fill out a display. I’d like to see a few more of the lower price statues come with this type of base to help make the most of the display real estate available!

I’m looking to more Tim Miller-sculpted Bowen goodness, like the Bowen Exclusive X-23 and a Scarlet Witch statue which has been teased. Mark Newman has great skills when it comes to Marvel’s Fantastic Females, but some competition in that department is never a bad thing!

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

Also, don’t forget to check out the two contests we have going at the moment: the “That ‘70s Custom” Custom Contest and our first “Toy Lines!” Caption Contest!

Until next time!