Marvel Legends X-Men Mystique, Beast, Nightcrawler

 I don't even remember how long I've been holding onto these Marvel Legends X-Men figures, but I got them as soon as they all dropped some time ago. I've been meaning to post some Marvel Legends dumps like this, and plow through some I still have boxed... Mystique, Beast, and Nightcrawler were on top of that list.

While underwhelmed with Mystique's weapons, including a humongous assault rifle she can barely grip, her head sculpt is perfect. The rest of her is a somewhat plain female buck, dressed up with her signature skull belt/loincloth. She serves her purpose fine visually, but is the least of these three figures. Mystique is a fan favorite though, and this Walgreens exclusive filled an important hole in the Marvel Legends X-Men lineup adequately.

Mystique came with a partially transformed Rogue head sculpt, and a Lilandra head sculpt as well, which fits nicely on the Marvel Legends Joe Fixit BAF Wave Jocasta... all I need now is a blue cape and a scepter.

Beast includes some great articulation for an oversized figure, including butterfly joints at the shoulders that were a debut feature at the time of his release. He came with plenty of hands, and while I love the head sculpt, a more neutral option would have been a nice inclusion. This is a fantastic release I preordered upon solicitation, determined not to miss out on.

Below, Beast with a couple other larger Marvel Legends figures, Thing and Hulk...

Nightcrawler may be the star of these three figures, with three head sculpts included, and amazing articulation. It's easy to be wowed by Beast, and rightly so, but Nightcrawler is a fantastic figure, obviously designed with care by the Marvel Legends team. Fantastic!

Nightcrawler shares the same saber as the Marvel Legends Pirate Deadpool I got last year-

Below, Marvel Legends Nightcrawler with my 9" ToyBiz Famous Covers Nightcrawler, and Marvel Legends Beast with my 10" ToyBiz Beast. I acquired both of these '90s ToyBiz figures early in my action figure collecting years as an adult, and still love them. 

My Marvel Legends X-Men Wolverine is finally in the company of two of his most classic teammates! I loved this "Tiger Stripe" Wolvie, and Hasbro has certainly got some mileage on his buck- I'm sure I have at least four different Wolverines that share it.

All three of these figures have become prized, sought after Marvel Legends since their release, and while Mystique may be slightly over-valued, Beast and Nightcrawler are amazing. Beast has been released again in the Marvel Legends Vintage line, repainted in gray with a neutral head, and I can't imagine Nightcrawler not seeing another release in the future- perhaps the X-Force or Age of Apocalypse versions.

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G I Joe Classified Gung Ho, Cobra Commander & Red Ninja

 This second Wave of G.I. Joe Classified arrived late last November, and I finally got to crack them open- for whatever, this line has trickled in, and the elusive Target exclusives kind of threw a wet blanket over my enthusiasm for it. That said, these are nice action figures, particularly the beautiful Cobra Commander from this wave. Check out the video:

The Red Ninjas from this wave were a big part of the attraction of this second wave of G.I. Joe Classified figures- they fit in good with my Marvel Legends figures, like the Venompool BAF I reviewed at the end of 2020. ..

While I have a couple more Classified figures aside from what's in the photo below, I'm unsure how much further I'll pursue this line. I've liked all of them, but the seemingly unattainable Target exclusive figures are a frustration, and I'm barely a casual G.I. Joe fan- I had several 3.75" Joes in the '80s, but not much beyond that. As an action figure fan however, I have to admire the nice deco, articulation, and accessories on these. It's been said that Hasbro has recently produced figures that sometimes rival import quality, Snake Eyes, Destro, and Cobra Commander are certainly examples of this. See my post on the first G.I. Joe Classified wave!

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Super 7 Skeletor & Hordak

 While I was awaiting BBTS to drop more MOTU Origins figures in my pile of loot, I picked up this  5.5" Skeletor and Hordak Super 7 released in 2018. The characters in this vintage line are styled after their portrayal in the classic Filmation animated show from the '80s. The articulation is as basic as the original MOTU figures, save a somewhat more useful hinged swivel hip joint as opposed to the earlier nylon banded legs.

In spite of their limited articulation, these two are particularly beautiful in their color and retro styling. Both included an insert card instead of a comic, the verso showing the evolution of each character from their original toy inception to their animated debut.

My love for this Super 7 Skeletor rivals the new Origins Skeletor, his aesthetic pushing all the nostalgia buttons, and different enough to enjoy as a variant of the character in my collection. Mattel scored a homerun with the updated articulation and modular design of the Origins line, but these Super 7 figures do their own thing.

In addition to his crossbow, Hordak came with an arm cannon accessory to slip over his fist, but the weapons that came with my Funko Primal Age Batcave complemented him so much more that I neglected to photograph him with it. He fits this playset so well!

I don't feel the need to pick up any more of these Super 7, with Mattel's incredible MOTU Origins series releasing so much cool stuff this year, but I do love these. Super 7 really caught the spirit of the '80s figures, updated slightly to emulate the Filmation material. At $20.00 each, there are more than the Origins figures, but a decent value. Recommended!

Read more about the original Masters of the Universe line at the Battle Ram Blog!

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Lanard Alien Warrior & Drone Xenomorphs & Hunter Predator

 I was thrilled to see images of Lanard Toys 7" Xenomorphs on Instagram recently, and pleasantly surprised to find Predator figures as well on the county-wide hunt that followed soon after. I liked the smaller 5" Xenomorphs Lanard sold with the 4" Colonial Marines last year, and held onto mine. These 7" Lanard figures have pretty basic paint and articulation, but are perfectly serviceable. 

This Hunter Predator was one of three available, and has a great ball jointed waist with good range, and a little ankle pivot as well. The box insert doubles as a pretty good diorama base for the figure, whose only accessory is an interchangeable shoulder cannon. He's simple, but the packaging is exciting, and a decent value for south of ten bucks. People are already customizing the paint deco on these figures, because the sculpt detail is there.

This would be an affordable stand-in character for your 6" Marvel Legends, G.I. Joe, or 7" DC figures. Below, my Marvel Legends 80th Anniversary Punisher gets the drop on Hunter Predator...

Like the Predator figure, the Lanard Xenomorph figures have a box insert that doubles as a display diorama, if a little less dynamic. I LOVE the box art on the Xenomorphs though- very splashy and colorful. I almost hated to open them. I love the art!

The Xenomorphs had more exciting accessories, the facehugger pod/egg included with the white Drone just like what came with one of my smaller 5" Xenomorph. It's great to have two of those, but I really like the lab canister that came with the blue Warrior Xenomorph.

The 7" Xenomorphs have more toned down colors compared with the 4" Xenomorphs, but I did like the wild colors those smaller figures were folded in. The construction/articulation on both is pretty much identical, save the delightful jaw hinge on the larger figures. Fun!

Like the Lanard Predator, these 7" Xenomorphs make great stand-in characters to compliment a variety of action figures that may be in your collection, like the Iron Man 3 Iron Monger in my Marvel Legends collection, or Beastman, Skeletor, and Panthor from my MOTU Origins collection...

Below, my 7" Predator and Xenomorphs with 10" Playmates Skull Island Kong, another figure I bought last year that isn't necessarily a collector grade figure, but fun nonetheless, that can compliment your other toys. Recommended! 

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Masters of the WWE Universe Jake the Snake Roberts

I started paying more attention to these Masters of the WWE Universe figures after discovering Mattel's MOTU Origins line, which share the same modular/interchangeable parts, allowing customization of your figures between lines. It was brilliant for Mattel to engineer these figures this way! I'm almost completely out of the loop regarding the characters of the WWE, but some of these fit so seamlessly into the Origins line, it's like having another MOTU figure. Like the origins figures, the WWE figures get a minicomic foldout cross-sell sheet showing other figures in the wave- really want the Mr. T!

Jake's removeable faceplate reveals his serpentine facial features, the MOTU callback being the Snake Face character from the '80s. He comes with a rubber snake, and his armor can be removed to expose a scaled chest- he'll be displayed in my collection like this!

Below, Skeletor with Panthor and Beastman welcoming The Snake into their Lair of Evil, 

the Funko Primal Age Batcave! While I can hardly wait for the MOTU Origins Castle Grayskull, the Funko Batcave has it's own charms, and fits my MOTU Origins figures perfectly. Seriously, if you don't have this playset, go buy it now- I predict they will increase in value because of the recent MOTU merchandise push.

Below, Jake the Snake with my Masters of the WWE Ultimate Warrior, 

another character from the line that fits seamlessly with my MOTU Origins figures...

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