Marvel Legends Black Widow & Motorcycle

I may have had a harder time shelling out the retail price for this new Marvel Legends Black Widow & Motorcycle set, but after an Amazon Warehouse Deal discount and points earned on my Amazon card cut the price to under $18.00 shipped, I was in. Check out the video:

This newest Marvel Legends Black Widow was released on the heels of the very recent Legends Retro Series Black Widow, which reused the Mary Jane head from the Amazing Spider-Man 2pk. With this new motorcycle pack, we get a great traditional Black Widow head with longer hair, as well as a portrait straight out of the 2016 Black Widow comic, the first issue's cover also featuring the bike included. I just read this run of Black Widow on Marvel Unlimited, and thoroughly enjoyed it- recommended! Complaints regarding the painted belt haven't bothered myself as much as some collectors, but additional sculpting in this area could have made her seem less plain. The seam running down the neck into the chest bothers me more, but it's not obvious standing on a shelf from a distance. The face and eyes are tidily painted, so that's good.

Hasbro hasn't been putting many extras in these special box sets lately, continuing the trend by giving Natasha trigger fingers but no guns, so I armed her myself with a couple .45s I had. The cycle is nice, with easily rolling, rubber tires and rear suspension, Black Widow symbol emblazoned on the sides. The Ghost Rider and Motorcycle set  seems to be favored among the Marvel Legends community, and is probably a better value for the price,but I do admire the styling of the Widow cycle.

Below, Black Widow versus Scourge, a great Marvel Legends figure

with plentiful accessories that got me back into Legends last year...

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Marvel Legends 10.5" Wolverine

I almost couldn't believe what a cool figure Hasbro was dropping when I saw the announcements for this 10.5" Marvel Legends Series Wolverine. I'd been impressed with most of the previous 1:6 scale figures from this series, but this one really tapped so deeply into my '80s/'90s nostalgia that I preordered him on Big Bad Toy Store's site. Wolverine did not disappoint, check out the video:

The accessories really made this Wolverine worth the full retail price of fifty bucks, particularly the unmasked head and empty mask accessory that hangs over the figure's back from around the neck, a feature I loved about the recent Retro Series Wolverine. The berserker head is also really well painted and sculpted, with battle-distressed shoulder pads included to complement. Ferocious! I'd have preferred gripping hands and a katana to the alternate fists with claws retracted, since his claws can be individually removed anyway. And the articulation on this Wolverine is outstanding, the butterfly joints at the shoulders adding the kind of posing dynamics required of a character like Wolverine. 

Below, Wolverine with my other Marvel Legends 1:6 scale figures:

the SDCC Exclusive Daredevil, the massive 14.5" Hulk, and Iron Man...

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Marvel Legends 2018 Walmart Exclusive Thanos

I ran into a few of these Walmart Exclusive Thanos finally, surprised by news of this repackaged BAF from the 2015 Thanos Wave with Batroc, Hellcat and Spider-Woman. Threre was also another Captain America, Iron Man, and Hulk from the Age of Ultron movie. I had interest in Hellcat initially, having read Marvel NOW! She-Hulk relaunch in 2014, but had stopped collecting Legends for a few years there. The packaging on this looks great, as does the figure inside. At the price of a regular Legends figure on the pegs, getting this beefy 7.25" figure with extra head and Infinity Gauntlet accessories is a decent value.

The recoloring of the previous, more darkly painted Thanos in his classic colors looks great. Accentuated by silver panel lines throughout the limbs, the figure has an all-over metallic finish, the Infinity Stones individually colored on the gauntlet. The skin is darker than the previous version as well, one with the iconic evil grin, one close-lipped.

The articulation is pretty limited, due in large part to the bulk of the figure, but the hips are just poorly designed and nearly immobile. The abdominal hinge is also extremely limited, unfortunately, and the elbows aren't a great deal better. Still, he'll mostly stand on the shelf, Infinity Gauntlet outstretched in a menacing fashion. I'm mostly okay with that for now because this Thanos is just such a great looking action figure- a great value for that alone at twenty bucks, in spite of the limited articulation.

Below, Thanos with another shiny Marvel Legends BAF, the 2013 Iron Man 3 Wave Iron Monger. Like Thanos, Iron Monger has a lot of looks, but limited range of articulation...

Perhaps my favorite BAF was last year's Gladiator Hulk,

who by comparison had better articulation than Thanos in my opinion...

And finally, the Marvel Legends Thanos with my Marvel Select Thanos and smaller Marvel Universe Thanos, who were also styled after the classic look of the character. The Marvel Select is perhaps the best Diamond Select has ever released, and one of my favorite action figures. And while I've sold off most all of my 3.75" Marvel Universe figures, I've held onto this Thanos...

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SDTB Clearance Sale Continues: DC Direct Green Lantern Series Figures

More of my collection is up for auction at the Super-DuperToyBox eBay store! If you live in the Continental U.S., now is your chance to make a bid on lots of very cool DC Direct Green Lantern Series figures from my personal collection.  I loved the DC Direct line of action figures, this Green Lantern Series 3 Batman as Green Lantern from the halcyon days of their artistry! Keep an eye on my Instagram as I post images of items for sale in the future!

Another DC Direct figure for sale from my personal collection is this Blackest Night Series 3 Arisia Rrab from 2010. What a beauty! I loved Jeff Johns' 2009-2010 miniseries, and found new interest in his update of the Green Lantern mythos after reading it, even venturing further into the New 52 Green Lantern title in 2011.

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Marvel Legends Jessica Jones (2017)

Jessica Jones was not even on my radar until the 2017 Netflix series hit the internet, which I still haven't seen, but I loved the plain-clothed presentation of this Marvel Legends figure. The leather jacket is great! We are getting the new dot matrix tampo for the portrait, which resembles actress Krysten Ritter from the Netflix series well enough. Interestingly, it was pointed out by YouTuber AnthonysCustoms that the same printing method was utilized for the dry brushing affect on the jeans, likely for automation and consistency. 

Jessica has serviceable articulation, as far as the females get, with some particularly good range in the torso joint and the shoulders, in spite of the jacket. She can do about as much as any female figure from Hasbro, and she really looks great.

I'm not sure how Jessica would fare against Wolverine's claws, but she did survive an attack by Iron Man and Vision in Alias #26 according to Wikipedia, but only barely. Appearing first only seventeen years ago in the aforementioned series, Jessica Jones is often affiliated with Luke Cage, Carol Danvers, the New Avengers, and of course the Defenders. She does possess superhuman strength, flight, can block mind control, and is a skilled detective.

Jessica is but one of a recent, growing number of female Marvel Legends I've acquired in the last year. Click the links to see my posts on each, from Left to right, Captain Marvel & Ms. Marvel, Nakia & Okoye, Jessica Jones, Angela, Misty Knight, Thundra, Spider-Woman, and Shuri.

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Marvel Legends Thundra (Fearless Defenders 2015)

I picked up this Marvel Legends Thundra at half-price, though I'd admired her hanging on the pegs in 2015, and her variant, Valkyrie.Appearing first in Fantastic Four #129 (1972), Thundra originated from an alternate 23rd Century, where Earth is known as Femizonia, and ruled by a race of warrior women. More recently she's made a minor appearance in the short lived Fearless Defenders (2013), which I finally read this year after subscribing to Marvel Unlimited.

Misty Knight and Valkeryie are obvious choices for a Marvel Legends Fearless Defenders sub-series, but Dani Moonstar would have been a more relevant character choice than Thundra, having been a fleshed out character. Thundra was merely part of a larger group of heroines that came to the rescue in issue #6. That said, I appreciate the simplicity of this action figure, and her flashy outfit.

There are some neatly printed tampos throughout the figure, enabling Hasbro to reuse parts by simply repainting- they are consistent, so I'm fine with it. She has the same limited articulation that most female Marvel Legends have, the head particularly immobile due to the hair sculpt. The reverse swing position of her ball chain an be a challenge to pose, leaving me wishing Hasbro has put a wire through it. That said, I had fun posing her with it. I'd probably never paid full retail for this unless trying to complete the Hulkbuster BAF, but for half price she's fun.

Below, Thundra with fellow Fearless Defender, Misty Knight:

And finally, Thundra with Marvel Legends Ares, who appeared in Fearless Defenders

to battle his daughter Hippolyta for lordship over the Amazons...

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Marvel Legends Colossus- 2017 X-Men Series

While I've owned a couple Colossus figures, I realized while writing this I've never dedicated a post to the X-Men character. Russian mutant Piotr Nikolaievitch Rasputin is the heavyweight of the X-Men whose skin turns into organic steel, known for his strength and virtue. I was unfamiliar with this modern outfit, but stumbled upon a discounted price w/free shipping. At over 7" tall, this big figure will add variety to my burgeoning Legends collection, already diverse with different body types, sexes, alien life, etc. I've had the classic Marvel Select Colossus stowed away on card for awhile, but this 2017 X-Men Series has his own thing going on.

Aside from the Warlock BAF parts, which are currently up for auction on my eBay store, Colossus comes with a great alternate head! This bearded visage will be the one this figure wears among my displayed collection!

Below, Colossus with another Marvel Legends figure Hasbro produced recently that featured a bearded alternate head accessory, the 2018 Black Panther Wave Sub-Mariner:

The Iron Man Mark XLVII Sentry would make a good opponent for Colossus ...!

And finally, Colossus with fellow X-Man, my Retro Series Wolverine.

These two make a great pair!

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Marvel Legends 2017 Walmart Exclusive Black Panther

On the heels of my last post, I thought I'd share my third Black Panther action figure acquired in the last couple months. This was an update to the 2013 Rocket Raccoon Series Black Panther, receiving a cape, extra hands, necklace, and spear. I never got that 2013 Black Panther, so this is like a second chance. I've seen some of my Instagram friends find him on clearance, but I don't recall seeing him in the wild, eventually buying him for a pretty good price with free shipping from an eBay seller.

The cape was actually borrowed from the 2008 Red Hulk Wave's Adam Warlock, and the spear from the 2015 Rhino Wave's Kraven. Not sure where the necklace came from, but would be surprised if it wasn't a recycle of some sorts, the origin of which I cannot determine.

The elbows are a little rubbery on this guy, and the wrist posts are a little too slender- I could see the latter being a problem if changing the hands often, but mine probably got changed more photographing him than he'll get the rest of his time in my collection.

Another mild issue worth noting is the noticeable gap in the abdominal hinge. Built on the Bucky Cap body, I've heard speculation by some YouTube reviews that this six year old mold had worn with age. But I've seen reference photos at MarvelLegends.Net that show gappage, so I feel it's always been an issue with that buck, perhaps less pronounced on Black Panther due to his plain torso. All said, this is a pretty cool action figure! He has good accessories, even if recycled, which are suitable with this comic-inspired interpretation of the character.

Black Panther with Marvel Legends Shuri that came in a 2pk with Klaw I reviewed last week-

What a great pair!

Below, Marvel Legends 2017 Walmart Exclusive Black Panther with the new 2018 Walmart exclusive Vibranium Suit Black Panther, and 2018 movie Black Panther Series Black Panther:

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