9" Origins Wolverine by Hasbro

Hasbro did a good job on their 9" line of dolls- I have a few, and I really like them. I already had a Famous Covers Wolverine from 1999, but I grabbed this Spiderman Origins Signature Series Edition by Hasbro (2006) on E-Bay as soon as I saw it for $19.99 (price included shipping) because I NEVER see it priced that low.

Marketed both to appeal to us children of the 70's and cash in on the Spiderman movie franchise, the dolls aren't the most detailed nor loaded with accessories- they tap into the nostalgia of the demographic that played with the old Mego World's Greatest Superhero line, buying toys for their children or themselves. There were ten or more in this Spiderman Series as best I can tell, all characters tied to WebHead in one way or another, friend or foe. Spidey has gotten in Wolvie's way more than twice in the past, once resulting in a pretty serious scrap detailed in Marvel's Spiderman Vs. Wolverine, 1987 (I read this again quite recently from my old comics stash- exciting!). I don't remember them getting along famously in the Secret Wars series either, so Spiderman and Wolverine are sometimes at odds.

This is a FUN toy! Some people prefer Hasbro's 9' figures to the ToyBiz line from the 90's, and I understand why- ToyBiz was all over the place in their designs of the different characters, a lot of them had somewhat cumbersome rubber gloves or mittens that hindered their ability to hold anything, and they had comically exaggerated features. Hasbro's figures look comparatively slimmed down, both in physique and styling, and their hands were always molded in the same color of plastic as their outfits, ridding the need for a separate glove and allowing the nifty hinge featured in their hands to grip (a nice detail). Personally, I like both the lines- I have seventeen of the Famous Covers, and seven 9" Hasbro figures!  I like their real fabric outfits and capes. Simple and somewhat clunky next to the super-sculpted 1:12 scale and hyper-realistic 1:6 scale action figures prevalent today, I actually enjoy the economy of design in these "throwback" dolls. They are FUN, like a good toy should be!

ToyBiz Famous Covers Wolverine next to Hasbro's Signature Series Wolverine...

In closing, I wanted to share a thought that's been running through my head as I've been buying all these toys the last couple of months...  Artist Brian Ashmore was recently admiring my willingness to open these toys, witnessing through this blog all my unbridled mirth in setting them free from their packaging, while lamenting all the unopened toys he has (I'd like to see THOSE).  So Brian: go ahead and open some of those toys, Buddy- life is too short to worry about "mint in box". You can't take them with you when you go, and if I got hit by a bus tomorrow I'd hate to think about all those fun TOYS I never got to hold in my hands.
G'Night, Sleep Tight!