Marvel Legends Retro Series Wasp, Vision, Hawkeye

I've had the Marvel Legends Retro Series Vision on card for a year, picking up Wasp and Hawkeye more recently to round out a classic Avengers team for my collection. We all know this variant of Wasp was teased as a variant in 2006, then not produced- while I have no personal connection to that unreleased figure, nor the obscure costume, I do like the way she fits into what I have going on. Check out the video:

Below: Wasp, Vision, and Hawkeye with Hulk from the 80th Anniversary Hulk/1st Appearance Wolverine 2-pack, and the 80th Anniversary Classic Capt. America, Thor, and Iron Man. While the Retro Series figures don't have quite the sheen the 80th Anniversary figures enjoy, they fit in well enough with them. As plain as Hawkeye's deco is, I was surprised by how much I liked him- his sculpted armor scaling goes well with Capt. America's. And I'd been waiting for the right moment to crack that Vision open- love that classic styling!

More Later- Make It FUN!

More of the Marvel Universe Avengers Box Set!

Just a little more fun playing with my Marvel Universe Classic Avengers Box Set- too good for only one post! Below, my reenactment of the classic Avengers #1 cover with Loki:

In the early Avengers stories, Wasp has a crush on Thor, and is always trying to get her brainy husband Dr. Heny Pym's attention by flirting with him or any hunky superhero within close proximity! Pretty hilarious  :D

My favorite from this set, the Hulk, was what intersed me most in this box set- his early 60's look, with the bowl-cut & Cro-Magnon looking brow. I like the purple Underoos that Hasbro put him in, predating the torn pants that came to be part of his look.

Iron Man in his short-lived Golden Avenger armor used to defeat Gargantus! At the suggestion of girlfriend Marion, who tells Tony that Iron Man look more like a "knight in shining armor" if The hero wore gold armor. "Then, when people see his golden armor, they won't panic! They'll know he has a heart of gold and an appearance to match his golden deeds!" "You know Marion, I wouldn't be surprised if Iron Man himself were to get the same idea!" replies Tony.

And I just had to throw in a shot with My Iron Man 2 Classic Proto-Armor Iron Man, seen more often in the first Avengers stories- I love the horned mask on this guy!

In Avengers issue #3, Sub-Mariner convinces a disillusioned Hulk to battle the team he was part of just one issue ago! Their mutual hatred for mankind unite these outsiders, who both battle the Avengers again a decade later as members of the anti-team, the Defenders, in the Avengers-Defenders War (Marvel, 1973).

Thanks for reading!

More Later- Make It FUN!

Marvel Universe: The Classic Avengers Box Set

I bought this at Wal-Mart for twenty bucks this summer, and seeing how I finally got around to talking about Marvel Masterworks: Avengers Vol. 1 in my last post, I knew it was time to open it up!  I know this set is old news now, but I wanted to tie it in with the literature for the full experience  :D   I really like these twenty dollar Marvel Universe box sets, and picked up a Fantastic Four & X-Force sets as well this summer.

Let's just start things off with the reason I was so hot for this box set- the Hulk:

This really captures the Green Goliath in his early 60's look, with the bowl-cut & Cro-Magnon looking brow. I like the shorts, too- yes, I like Hulk with torn pants, but I like him in his Underoos here too  :D  I like the paint, and his articulation is pretty great! He has cut joints in the thighs & biceps, double-hinged knees, and a balljoint neck. Here's a pic of him with myMarvel Legends First Appearance Hulk:

The big, goofy Iron Man included is a lot of fun, too- according to Slangards, he's modeled after his Golden Avenger armor from Tales of Suspense #40 (1963).  A 3 3/4" gray, rusty version by Hasbro was also released in the Iron Man toy line, though he didn't have the antenna. His elbow movement is restricted due to the bulk of his armor, but he's still fun with waffle-stomper feet. There's an orange wash over the gold armor that adds some nice dimension to his finish.

Included in this set were THE TINIEST "figures" of Ant-Man & Wasp, along with one of Ant-Man's flying ant friends. What else can you do with such diminutive heroes portrayed in this scale? Hasbro did a clean job on them for being so tiny. A small Ant-Man like this was released with Yellowjacket (another of Dr. Henry Pym's alter egos), and I've seen some pictures of an upcoming 3 3/4" Ant-Man by Hasbro. Being several superheroes brings some notoriety to a fella!

I was also really glad to add a classic Thor to my collection- the loud outfit says "comics" to me! I would've preferred they skipped the blue wash on his wings, but I think I'm okay with the wash over his skin.

Now that I had the extra hammers, I had to try Ewan's "hammer swing" pose... sorry Pal, I couldn't resist! Looks like Loki is gonna catch one on the lip  :D

Modern Thor, Avengers Thor, and Hammer Smash Thor...

What the hey- let's do a pic with Cap! He didn't join until issue #4, but it's just not the Avengers without him!

What a fun set at a good value- I think any Marvel fan would love this. Definitely buy one   :)
More Later- Make It FUN!

 I love reading these two fellow's posts on Marvel Universe figures:
*Slangard's review of this set at Joint Junkie!
*Ewan's review of this set at Chase Variant!