McFarlane Toys Bloodshot

Unaware of the character or the forthcoming film starring actor Vin Diesel, I preordered this McFarlane Toys Bloodshot in January purely on it's merits as an action figure and attractive accessories package. First published by Valiant Comics in 1992, Bloodshot was created by Kevin VanHook with Don Perlin and Bob Layton. Angelo Mortalli was a super soldier, injected with nanites that give his extreme strength, durability, regeneration, and meta-morphing abilities that make him an unstoppable assassins and precious asset to his covert government creators.

I've never read any Valiant comics, but like McFarlane's Fortnite figures, he's such a cool action figure that it doesn't matter- he'd go well with any 7" McFarlane figures. I bought him to go with my McFarlane DC Comics figures. He's armed to the teeth with great weapons, all painted with washes and drybrushing to give them a realistic look. The entire figure has excellent paint apps for that matter, with a decent enough range of articulation for combat poses. And the facial portrait could not look more like actor Vin Diesel.

More range in the butterfly jointed shoulders could have helped this figure handle the assault rifle better, but it can be fudged for a photograph at the correct angle. The large pistols can be securely holstered when not in use- a strap or sheath for the knife would have been nice, but it's rare to get an action figure with an arsenal this good. Nice.

With his bald pate and big knife, this Bloodshot reminds me of Drax from Guardians of the Galaxy, played by actor Dave Bautista, a movie in which Vin Diesel voices the character Groot. Again, the accessories all look great, and belt, holster straps and leg armor have great paint apps! His hips and ankles are somewhat limited in range, but he does enough for me and is a unique character type to mix in with my other 7" action figures.

Bloodshot makes a great sparring partner with my McFarlane Toys Hellbat ...!

I am mildly interested in seeing this movie, but I'd recommend this Bloodshot to any 7" action figure collector for no other reason beyond it's cool-factor. Like a lot of the McFarlane Fortnite figures, he looks fantastic and will stand out among the others on your shelf.

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McFarlane Toys Hellbat

Batman's Hellbat suit was created by the entire Justice League to protect their only member without metahuman powers, first appearing in Batman & Robin (Vol.2) #33 in the summer of 2014. I was picking up single issue comics weekly during that period, my interest in DC Comic's was at least holding three years after their New 52 relaunch, the death and subsequent revival of Damian Wayne also of particular interest at the time. Bruce Wayne used this to fight Darkseid and reclaim his son's body from Apokolips. 

This was an interesting choice of character for McFarlane Toys to introduce right out of the gate with their newly acquired DC license, one the collector community seems unanimous in their enthusiasm for. This 7.5" figure has a 14" wingspan that is somewhat plain, but can fold up- an articulation point admittedly designed to pack the huge wings into it's package. While somewhat limited in articulation due to his girth, he's an aesthetically impressive action figure. And he does have a toe hinge, even if it's . An extra set of hands and/or unmasked Bruce Wayne portrait may have added options, but this huge hunk of action figure was priced at $20.00 like the smaller single-carded figures in this wave.

Like the other McFarlane DC figures, Hellbat has a collector card of thick stock...

Above, Hellbat with my McFarlane Batman from this first wave- I really enjoyed the McFarlane Bat-Family figures I bought this year. Below, Hellbat with my DC Direct Justice Series Armored Batman from 2007- we have been given Batman in black and red a few times, notable versions including Thrillkill Batman, Batman Beyond, and Flashpoint/Thomas Wayne Batman.

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McFarlane Toys Batgirl

I didn't keep up with DC Comics too far past the first year or two of the New 52 relaunch, so I'm unfamiliar with Batgirl in context with this Art of the Crime version, published in 2019. Regardless, I loved to this new outfit, drawing from classic Batgirl elements, updated to make her seem fresh. Like the McFarlane Batman, Batgirl has a very dynamically pronounced cape, which isn't the preference of all collectors, but I like it. The updated chest emblem, doubling as a harness for a backpack hidden behind her cape, and utility belt are fantastic. 

As I said in my last post on the recent McFarlane Batman & Nightwing, the action figure community is mixed on opinions regarding this first wave of DC figures, but I sincerely like the figures I have picked up. I loved the DCUC line by Mattel, but a lot of their recent figures just haven't interested me much. Aa a fan of the old DC Direct figures, the 7" scale didn't bother me, and the McFarlane figures have a little more depth in their sculpted detail and better articulation. And maybe a little more … well, style. I was also grateful for the return of the figure base- I hated when DC Collectibles and Mattel stopped including them.

Like the McFarlane Batman, Batgirl gets a grapple gun and batarang, but unique in design- McFarlane could have given them the same sculpt, but went the extra mile to give Barbara her own. Sure the grapple line is permanently affixed in a partially ejected state, but it would take little effort to customize that if one cared to. A sturdy collector card was also included with this figure, as well as one third of the "collect to build" Batmobile that Nightwing also came with. For the figures with these CNC parts, we are asked to pay an additional five bucks- as this holds little interest for me, I will sell mine on eBay to offset that extra cost.

Below. McFarlane Batgirl towers over my Mattel Legacy Edition Batgirl:

Below, McFarlane Batgirl with the McFarlane Nightwing and Batman from my last post:

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McFarlane Toys Batman & Nightwing

My initial skepticism regarding the announcement of McFarlane Toys taking over the DC license from Mattel was tempered by the collector community's unbridled enthusiasm of their recent Fortnite offerings, a property most adult collectors knew nothing about. Like many, I thought the DCUC line was fantastic, offering a staggering array of characters never seen before in an action figure series, which continued into the rebranding as the DC Multiverse line. Somewhere along the line, Mattel felt a little flat to me however, and maybe DC felt it was time for a fresh approach as well. McFarlane's upscaling into 7" bothered me less than a lot of collectors, and I was interested in additional points of articulation MacFarlane offered, so I bought a couple.

The collector community had a litany of complaints regarding this initial McFarlane Batman- while his portrait's resemblance to the Detective Comics #1000 Batman may be somewhat of a reach, I like him in person purely as a Batman figure. The ball-hinge joints at the wrists and ankles are not my favorite, but that's how McFarlane Toys designed them, and I like this figure enough to overlook that. I agree with the consensus that his abdominal joint may have been cut at the wrong spot, but it looks way better than my initial impression when these were first solicited. 

Batman's grapple gun is fantastic, but limited in possibility due to it's partially ejected mold. A modicum of ambition would suffice to customize this, but that holds little interest for me. The batarang included is thick as a brick. I feel less distracted by this than some, but it's too thick. That said, the figure grips it securely.

A cloth goods cape is preferred by some, but it's hard to deny the fantastic sculpt on Batman's. Like his trunks, it's made of a pliable rubber, and doesn't hinder articulation as much as you may think. I like the look of batman's cape draped over the shoulders, and I'm glade McFarlane went this direction. I really like the dark gray/blue on this figure, mistaking it for black in the solicitation photos back in December.

Below, McFarlane Batman with my DC Direct Arkham Asylum Batman ,a fantastic Batman figure that I've held onto for nearly nine years. Though I sold the bulk of my collection in the last couple years, I'm a big fan of the old DC Direct figures, and have even acquired a few recently.

I may like this McFarlane Nightwing even more than the Batman. He has all the nice armor line and fabric texture detailing throughout, and a sculpted chest insignia like Batman, and his abdominal cut is placed a little better. One of three collect-'n-connect pieces for a small Batmobile is included with this figure at a price-point five dollars more than the regular boxed figures like Batman. This holds little interest for me, and since I used Amazon card points to purchase these figures at a discount, I have little skin in the game.

Nightwing holds his escrima sticks securely, and can easily reach over his shoulders to grab them, where they clip onto his back for storage. They are molded in black, unlike his body, which is actually a very dark blue/gray- the straps on his forearms are painted black. McFarlane also sculpted the blue boot tops on this figure, and painted the knuckles on his gloves in the same blue, which adds a lot to this largely monochromatic figure. I like Nightwing's boot treads as well, and I have to say I'm surprised how much I like a toe hinge on these figures- it really adds dynamism to the poses.

Below, McFarlane Nightwing with my DCUC Nightwing and my Arkham City Legacy Edition Nighwing, both by Mattel. DC Collectibles has produced better Nightwing figures than these two older models, but I feel this McFarlane figure may be the best yet. His sculpt and paint details are fantastic, and his body proportions make him look like he jumped right out of the comics.

Both figures came with a collector card made of thick, durable stock, and more importantly, bases upon which to stand them. I really hated when DC Collectibles and Mattel stopped giving us figure bases, and hope McFarlane Toys continues this trend. I think these are outstanding action figures, in spite of what may or may not be perceived as their shortcomings, and I am looking forward to what McFarlane has planned for the rest of the year. Visit McFarlane.Com online to keep abreast of all that's developing!

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Marvel Legends Doctor Doom & She-Hulk

I picked up She-Hulk and Doctor Doom from the new Marvel Legends Fantastic Four/Super Skrull BAF Wave when I bout the entire Hobgoblin Wave featured in my last post. I didn't want to shell out for the updated Fantastic Four as I already have the Walgreens FF, but I couldn't pass on these two. We received a classic Doctor Doom from ToyBiz in the 2nd Series of Marvel Legends back in 2002, in the 2007 Walmart Exclusive Ronan Wave, and more recently in the 2012 Epic Heroes Series 3. I never picked up the Walgreens Infamous Iron Man Doctor Doom released last year, but had little incentive as I knew this Classic Doom was on the way.

This wasn't the version of Jen Walters I'd prefer, but rather the post Civil War II Hulk (or She-Hulk) that now turns into a wild, uncontrollable grey Hulk, a result of her trauma from fighting Thanos. I'm unfamiliar with the latest regarding Jen in the comics, but this sounds more Savage She-Hulk than Sensational. But with all the new, very character-specific tooling for this figure, I feel we will get a more conventional green version, perhaps in a retro wave, that may feature a new head sculpt. Still, this is a fantastic figure with some exacting attention to detail in the sculpt and paint.

Below, She-Hulk with another stunning female marvel Legends female in my collection, Angela, the classic Hulk from my 80th Anniversary Hulk/Wolverine 2-Pack, and Thundra from the 2015 Hulkbuster Wave...

Doom seems like next-level Marvel Legends, with near import-like quality, a triumph of the Marvel Legends line and action figures in general. The attention to detail in the sculpt- the rivets, painted armor clasps, the elaborate gold belt buckle, the subtle fabric texture of the cape and tunic, the chain mail texture under the armor... it's fantastic. The armor looks so good! Sure, the pistol is underwhelming in size and rubbery, but the rest of the accessories, including classic and modern portraits are perfect.

Hasbro put Doom's thrusters beneath his cape, which do have small holes at the openings. We didn't any jet fire accessories, but you know some customizer is going to make that. The peg on my onside of his cape doesn't really stay in the hole on Doom's back, but it's of little consequence for my purposes.

Doom's tunic and cape encumber his poseability to a degree, but he has great articulation. I'm glad they didn't break up the torso with an ab-crunch joint- the ball joint at the waist gives adequate tilt all around for this character- perfectly serviceable, and plenty good to battle the ever-lovin', blue-eyed Thing!

And finally, Doom with my Walgreens Exclusive Fantastic Four. While it's tempting to pick up the updated FF from Doom's wave and complete the Super Skrull BAF, I prefer this Walgreens FF. Sure, we get a transforming Human Torch w/Johnny Storm head, but I liked the more traditional uniforms of the Walgreens FF, and Thing's paint deco is better. Maybe if they go on clearance.

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