Hey, Mr. Postman!

Gosh I sure love gettin' toys in the mail  :D  My postman is actually slender blonde beauty with sunny personality, but since I work 9 to 5 with the new job, I never see her anymore. Bummer. Well, at least she brought me these last week...

I told myself I wasn't gonna buy these from MattyCollector, and I didn't the first time around. When they recently re-released them all together, the bulk shipping was easier to swallow. Some of the first toys posted on the Super-DuperToyBox when I started 21 months ago were these Retro-Action DC Superheroes, which are so much like my childhood Mego World's Greatest Superheroes.

The Green Lantern franchise hot after Geoff Johns' Blackest Night saga, just before the Green Lantern motion picture premiere last summer, Mattel was all things Green Lantern so we got these. I've waited a long time! I have Hal Jordan and the classic Sinestro already, making a good portion of my Retro-Action collection GL Corps... What can I say? I'm a big Green Lantern fan! I love that Mattel gave John Stewart an Afro and Guy Gardner the bowl cut. I've read a couple Kyle Rayner books recently, too, along with the first six GL New Guardian issues released with DCs New 52 relaunch- I'm a big fan of Tyler Kirkham's pencilling! I love how these are packed old-school, no twisty ties, a simple backing card- just like when I was a kid!

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Hasbro Wal-Mart Exclusive Avengers Recap

I know this makes the fifth post on the Hasbro Wal-Mart Exclusive Avengers, but kinda hot right now, and I had to give a group shot. And being taken to the movie by a couple pals for my birthday was so much fun! At $15.96 each, they're an okay value considering the great sculpts and articulation, but that adds up quick  :D  As stated before, I had not intended getting the whole set, but they were too cool to pass up.

Hawkeye and Captain America:  Cap was the only one I was going to hunt down originally, but Hawkeye may have trumped him with his amazing Jeremy Renner likeness and cool outfit...

Thor and Loki:  they both look very much like their movie likeness, but Hasbro went all out with Loki's layered outfit and removable helmet...

Hulk and Iron Man: Hasbro got even more mileage out of this Iron Man sculpt than most of us care to think about, but in their defense, he's a great looking action figure with good articulation. And the new battle damaged deco is great, but could have been more prevalent throughout the figure. The Hulk is so much fun due to his size- I love a big action figure! Yes, the Marvel Select Avengers Hulk beat this one on paint apps and size, but he worth getting too...

This is a fun set of action figures! Makes me wish I'd picked up those Nick Fury and Black Widow figures they released last year, too. I appreciate the included interlocking bases and their functionality. And Hasbro did a great job making the characters look like their movie counterparts. While Mattel's DC Universe Classics feel more solid to me in construction, they don't seem to have the individuality in sculpt that the Hasbro Legends figures do.

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Hasbro Avengers Hulk & Iron Man

The final two Hasbro Wal-Mart Exclusive 6" Avengers figures we'll be looking at are Iron Man & the Hulk. Like Thor and Loki, I'd not planned to buy these, but was impressed with them enough firsthand, that I changed my mind.

This is the same as the Iron Man Mark VI from the "Avengers Assemble"/Iron Man line, without the extra hands. Some Marvel Legends fans might feel ripped off by this, but I'm glad I didn't pick that one up because this one has a little battle damage. I've bought and sold off some Iron Man movie figures, but this one seemed special, and the articulation was more serviceable than the Marvel Select Mark VI I used to own.

My personal opinion is that Hasbro should have gone further with the damage on Iron Man's armor, especially considering the damage it recieved in The Avengers. The did an otherwise great job with the paint apps, making it look like the metal was burnt but also scraped, accomplished with silver drybrushing over the blackened areas. It's as though Tony got blasted, then went skidding across the concrete- very realistic! A little more across the face, legs, and back would have been more convincing.

Like I said, this figure has already been released, twice in the last couple years I believe, so the articulation is nothing new. That said, Iron Man can do a lot; he has a a ball/hinge combo neck with a decent range of motion, & double-jointed knees & elbows, and hinged/swivel wrists, so what else could you want? And he looks great- yes, we've seen A LOT of Iron Man toys clogging up the pegs in the last many years, and that's probably why it's easy to forget how good an action figure this is.

Hasbro Avengers Iron Man with Legends Series Stealth Strike Mark IV Iron Man. These are the same sculpt, save the upper torso...

Yes, I already reviewed the Marvel Select Avengers Hulk, but can you have too many Hulks?  :D  There were plenty of unique characteristics to warrant buying this guy, and I was impressed with the surface texture in the sculpt, abundant with minutiae best appreciated firsthand.

The torn pants at the knees come off better than the Marvel Select Avengers Hulk, Hasbro wisely leaving both knees exposed to make the transition from pants to skin smoother. the double-hinged elbows interupt the sculpt quite a bit more than the Marvel Select, and may be somewhat unnecessary, but I like that they left one of the hands open, and hinged the wrists to actually make that useful. Hasbro didn't give Hulk a hinged neck, but the ball-joint is pretty expressive and he's got those sweet new rocker joint ankles.

Hulk's face and green drybrushing in his black hair reminds me of my old Mego Hulk from childhood- this is a fun toy! He's very poseable and does a lot- I've been playing with him on my desk more than all the other Avengers!

The obvious first comparison with the Hasbro Avengers Hulk would be the Marvel Select Avengers Hulk (upper left), who's quite a bit larger. The both have a lot going for them in the sculpt and articulation department, and while it's a tough choice the Select Hulk has better paint apps. His size is great too- the bigger the Hulk, the better. Essentially a Legends figure, comparison with my ToyBiz First Appearance Hulk (upper right) is also in order, one of my favorite action figures. There's articulation in the hands and a swivel waist in addition to the abdominal joint on the ToyBiz, as well as a hinge/ball combo on the neck, but he doesn't have double-jointed elbows. The toyBiz also has better paint apps throughout the body that the Hasbro, who has none really. I've said it before- the ToyBiz Hulk is hard to beat. But hey- there's always room in my collection for another Hulk, one of my childhood favorites! Below: Hasbro Avengers Hulk with the Marvel Select Avengers Hulk, ToyBiz Legends First Appearance Hulk, and 3 3/4" Marvel Universe Classic Avengers Hulk...

It seems the elemental and distrusting Hulk has tangled with all his Avenger teammates at one time or another, including Iron Man...



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Hasbro Avengers Thor & Loki

Continuing from my last post on the new Hasbro Avengers Hawkeye & Capt. America, we'll now take a look at Thor & Loki, two that surprised me with their great sculpts and likeness to their movie counterparts. The included figure bases are really working for me with their interlocking edges- very cool!

Just for laughs, let's start with Thor's evil step-brother and God of Lies & Mischief, Loki. There's a lot to like about this action figure, including but not limited to his incredible detail, removable helmet, and stunning likeness to actor Tom Hiddleston, who skillfully portrayed the character in The Avengers.

First off, the layering of Loki's outfit is  masterfully done, the coat and cape both removeable, detailing in the fabric consistently sculpted down to the base layer.

The Celtic pattern sculpted in back of Loki's longcoat is tight, as is the piping in front which has been carefully painted to match his gold arm guards. Just... wow...

Hasbro topped it off with a removeable helmet that even features a paint app of a different shade of gold on the horns. Loki's sceptre (which should be a staff) is my only sore spot here, painfully out of scale with the figure. It's a shame too, as the sculpt is as good as any accessories I've seen with an action figure, and paint apps using two colors.  This figure is brilliant, but Hasbro missed the boat right here at the end. That said, this action figure is a work of art!

The obvious first comparison would be with my Comic Series Loki from the Hasbro 6" Thor line, a figure I liked in spite of the great deal of criticism he garnered from the Marvel Legends community. He's much larger than the Hiddleston Loki in height and girth, but it seemed like the Marvel movie action figures are smaller across the board, including a lot of the 3 3/4" scale figures.

And now for the first round of BIGTOY/littletoy on this post, Hasbro Avengers Loki with 3 3/4" Secret Strike Loki. Both of these really looked like Hiddleston and are exceptional action figures...

As with Loki, I hadn't planned on getting Thor, but seeing him on the pegs really changed my mind. He's magnificent! The headsculpt looks a lot like actor Chris Hemsworth, and also reminds me of Brad Pitt a little. I thought Hemsworth played Thor's role perfectly in Thor and The Avengers, and I loved the costume update for the God of Thunder's recent debut into live-action movies. The exqisitely detailed sculpt on this action figure is as great as the 3 3/4" movie figures, which totally surprised me with their artful execution. The hair has a perfect wash in yellow oxide, lying inside the painstakingly sculpted strands, and his eyes may be the most realistic I've seen on a Legends figure, rivaling a DC Direct. While Thor's mystical Mjolnir is missing it's inscription, the impossibly tiny Celtic patterns sculpted in the hammer's ends take on a hyperrealistic appearance under the dark gray wash settled into it's detailing. Really great!

The floor-length cape restricts Thor's poseability to a degree, but looks cool. While it isn't removable like my other Hasbro Thor figures, Thor really needs a cape. I mean, he's Thor. While this figure doesn't have hinged wrists or rocker-joint ankles like some of the new Marvel Legends figures, he does have great articulation the line is known for, including double-jointed elbows & knees, and a pretty expressive hinge/ball combo at the neck.

This is basically the same figure as the 6" Thor movie figure released last year, much to the chagrin of many a Marvel Legends fan who bought that helmeted version, and for good reason- the helmet was inexplicably dull grey, unlike the bright chromed helmet seen in the movie for about  two seconds. Glad I didn't buy that. I prefer my Thor with a helmet, but the headsculpt on this figure is killer!

Hasbro Avengers Thor with my Lord of Asgard Thor- as with Loki, the comic series Thor is much larger than the Hemsworth Thor who sports more realistic physique proportions. I like both of these equally for what their unique features.

And now for the second round of BIGTOY/littletoy, Hasbro Avengers Thor with 3 3/4" Hammer Smash Thor. Both of these are a good likeness of Hemsworth and are great action figures, amazingly consistent in there sculpt from one scale to the next...

Now if you don't think that's fun, I can't help you!  :D

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