I open a toy & post it here... VOL 2!

[Team Jetfire]

654-2
Hasbro- Star Wars Black Series: First Order StormTrooper.



Ready the floodgates because this is the first in many, many, many different versions of the Storm Trooper that are up stream of this review. Some will be from the OG trilogy, some, like the First Order, will be from the sequels and there will even be some Clones. It seems as though Hasbro figured out that a quick helmet or accessory change makes enough difference for collectors to bite and given that they are classified as Army Builders, some bite real hard. I for one am good with one of each and generally draw the line at re-paints, but find the idea of multiple different colored garrisons on display very alluring. Also, kudos to those with massive army builder displays, they really are incredible looking.

Pros: Overall the First Order Strom Trooper figure is simply a great representation of the movie design: Great sculpt, popping colors (or lack thereof), two separate blasters and enough articulation to support a number of decent poses without interference from the armor.

Cons: While I like both weapons and this may not be Hasbro’s fault, I feel it’s a bit of a cheap move to design without a holster relying instead on a small peg to hold the blaster in place.

[Team Jetfire]

655-2
Hasbro- Marvel Legends: Jean Grey



So this might be a hot take: I do not like Sophie Turner as Jean Grey in the most recent X-Men movies and while there were other substantial problems with both Age of Apocalypse and Dark Phoenix and one performance should not ruin a movie, it is really difficult to overlook how miscast she really was. Which is odd considering how good of a job they did casting everyone else. And it is difficult to put my finger on why she just didn’t work for the role. Yes there is her overall look, as I picture Jean Grey as having darker auburn hair, whereas Sophie Turner had a very fair complexion with almost strawberry blonde hair, but also her overall persona. Jean Grey is a kind and caring person who, like the professor, wants to help; almost like the prom or beauty queen who is actually really nice to everyone. However in the recent movies, she was portrayed as a bookish nerd who was an outsider from the start and had a really stuck up, snotty attitude. Like we are supposed to connect with a girl who’s first scene involved making fun of what was in Cyclopes’ mind? Also doesn’t help that, once again, her Dark Phoenix storyline was completely rushed in favor of the already dead and show horned Raven/Mystique story line, but that is an issue for a different review.

Pros: I’ve actually already reviewed this version of Jean Grey from the Dark Phoenix/Cyclops 2 pack and it comes with some nice accessories that are quite literally missing from this pack given that she is very light in the value department. That said, Still a solid sculpt, great head sculpt and nice little belt to round out the look.

Cons: As mentioned before, she’s a bit light on accessories; some power effects would have gone a long way and not have broken the bank. Also, my version has a bit of a bowlegged look likely caused by her being cooped up in her plastic prison for so long.

[Team Jetfire]

656-2
McFarlane Toys- DC Multiverse: Animated Series Batman.



The second of the McFarlane “animated” figures and I’m here for it. Hell, I’d love more JL animated figures if they wanted to produce them, but I’m not sure that it is the cards right now given that we haven’t seen much on the horizon that is not tied to the live action universe (Justice League and Suicide Squad) or Batman 66. I suppose this is the real issue with McFarlane toys: They have some big, huge, amazing swings and when they connect it’s a home run, however a few singles or doubles and they are out of the game. (Hey, Todd is a Baseball fan; the analogy works). For example: The Star Trek toys were great, but were cut way short after only 2 figures. Harry Potter was cut after 4 figures and I’m sure there are other lines that have just failed to materialize over time. Now I understand that McFarlane is unable to dictate demand, but they have also shown their ability to be taste-makers- that is: if they produce it collectors will come (Boom; Another Baseball reference!)

Pros: Like Animated Green Lantern before, Batman shares the same definitive “Animated” shape that the Timm-verse is known for. The figure has a surprising amount of articulated range and makes for a number of cool poses. Throw in a Batarang and grapple gun and you got yourself a great figure.

Cons: Minor issue, given the other Timm-verse line up, this design should have been based on The New Batman Adventures look without the yellow bat shield.

[Team Jetfire]

657-2
Hasbro- Transformers Siege: Optimus Prime.



***unpopular opinion warning***

I’m tired of Peter Cullen, or Peter Cullen soundalikes voicing Optimus Prime. Don’t get me wrong, the voice is iconic however I see it as just yet another nostalgic holdover of a series that refuses to evolve. Consider this, Beast Wars and to a much lesser extent Beast Machines would have never been made in today's day given that it was such a massive swing to what we all knew and loved, but sometimes that is ok, sometimes something new and different is fun and reinvigorates the things that we loved. The other thing my brother noticed and now bugs the hell out of me while recently watching the Bay-Verse movies and some past episodes of Siege on Netflix was that Optimus Prime, the Leader of the Autobots, the literal heart and soul of the group speaks like Lieutenant Commander Data from Star Trek The Next Generation without using contractions. Example: I am going to rip off your face vs I’m going to rip your face off. I get that they are robots, but all the other characters use them, why not Prime? I also could be the minority here, but since the new movies hit, I’ve felt a much lesser connection to the Prime character and I wonder if it's because he speaks like a giant, soulless, murderbot?

Pros: What can I say? I've always been a fan of an updated Optimus Prime and this figure certainly delivers. Solid Cybertron/futuristic vehicle mode, a fun/challenging transformation and a robot mode that is really enjoyable to pose and fiddle with. Glad I caved on yet another Transformer.

Cons: Has some unfortunate “arm kibble” that can interfere with some poses and the top bulkheads in vehicle mode are an interesting choice.

[Team Jetfire]

[Team Jetfire]

657-2
Bandai- Mobile Suit Gundam Universe : RX-78-2



It’s honestly crazy to me that Gundam, in its various forms, has never really hit with North American audiences. I mean sure, they tried with Gundam Wing and G Gundam in the late 90’s/ early 2000’s and it made a big impact on many people, myself included, but that’s it. Yes, there are some current iterations on Netflix and a few action figures and models on speciality store shelves but that is far from the impact that it has in Asian countries and I feel like we, in the general sense, are missing out on a massive franchise with huge potential. Just think how great a live action movie, made for North American and Asian audiences alike, could be. And while I recognize that live action movies are not the be-all and end-all of acceptable media, it seems like it’s the only way a comic or cartoon is taken seriously.

Pros: Admittedly I have some sizable gaps in my Gundam knowledge however to my credit, I’ve tried to get myself up to speed anyway that I can. That said, I still have not watched the original series that started it all, but know a classic when I see it. And while the newer Gundam designs are extremely flashy, there is something very cool with the original RX design. Overall great sculpt, solid articulation without any limiting points and all the key accessories that one would want.

Cons: Nothing; one of the best Gundam figures to date.

[Team Jetfire]

[Team Jetfire]

659-2
McFarlane Toys- Mortal Kombat: SubZero Blood Edition.



Not sure if you are following along at home, but way back in review 562-2 I covered the Mortal Kombat Raiden figure and shared my absolute delight with McFarlane Toys when they sent SubZero as a replacement figure when my new Raiden had a seized knee joint. And while I was disappointed that my Raiden was faulty, I was extremely happy to have received a SubZero, a mould that I did not yet have, non-gratis. Kudos to McFarlane for making use of a brilliant re-paint strategy in featuring the fighters in the blood splatter effect. I suppose the downside is that the costumes are not the standard colour scheme, but that is not entirely unheard of either in the game. Regardless, probably my last true MK figure unless an interesting one catches my eye, which is quite likely given how great these figures are.

Pros: I was a fan of the original Mortal Kombat game, but never gravitated to SubZero given my inability to unlock his “freezing power” consistently, however I’m kind of mad that I passed on the original release given how great this figure really is: amazingly detailed sculpt, solid articulation for loads of poses, two ice axes and even a skull w/spine accessory to replay all those fun fatality moments!

Cons: Overall the figure is solid. I would have rather had the original colour scheme, but the blood soaked teal works well enough. Also some freeze effects would have been a nice touch.

[Team Jetfire]

660-2
ToyBiz- The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King: Haradrim Archer.



No need to check your calendars kids, it’s not really 2003; how great would it be if it was though? No, this is the start of a nostalgic trip of sorts that started when I came upon a fellowship of old Toybiz LOTR figures at my amazing local comic book story for $15 each. Apparently they were cleaning out the basement and happened upon a few old cases and I just got lucky and further bolstered the ranks with some additional local and eBay pickups. See, I was a massive fan of the ToyBiz Lord of the Rings figures and still remember when I first picked up the Fellowship Frodo set. Due to some changes in my personal life (my kids were just born) collecting had to be scaled back and I limited my LOTR purchases to the Green carded Fellowship series, but that left out some of the best characters of the entire trilogy, including random bad guys like the Archer here. Thankfully the collecting market being what it is has provided ample supply of MISB figures that never really kept their value which is ideal for a cheap collector for me. I’m still missing a lot and have conceded that I’ll never have a full set, but I have a lot of cool stuff coming down the pike that will be a blast from the past for most LOTR fans.

Pros: In many ways the ToyBiz LOTR line was ahead of its time in the toy collecting world and McFarlane gets a lot of praise, mostly by me, for their achievements in toy development in the late 90’s. ToyBiz took those achievements and improved it with actual playability. The Haradrim Archer has a great amount of detail, some solid accessories including a bow, some arrows, and a sword and has a decent amount of articulation for a number of fun poses.

Cons: I’m going to level with you here: I really need to set appropriate expectations for these figures as the designs and features are 20 years old at this point. With that said, a lot of the articulation choices are… interesting and certainly not what I’m used to. That said, I had no issue getting a solid pose out of him so there’s that.

[Team Jetfire]

656-2
Hasbro- Marvel Legends: Dazzler



I’ve been very hard on the most recent X-Men: Dark Phoenix movie, rightly so, because it sucks, however there were some decent parts including a mutant party in the woods outside of the X-Mansion that included the only (?) live action version of Dazzler that I can recall. And if I’m being honest she’s a bit of an interesting character given that I think she was developed to cash in on the disco crazy of the 70’s and was able to sidestep the fall of disco to a more 80’s/90’s look that was featured in the only other piece of culture that I know her from: the AMAZING 90’s X-Men Arcade game.

Pros: While I don’t really care much for the character, I really love unique marvel legends and Disco Dazzler fits that bill. I mean, I don’t recall too many other action figures that come with roller skates. In fact, aside from maybe the arms, I think that this figure is a completely unique mould. Couple that with a microphone and energy blast accessorily and you got yourself a great figure!

Cons: Unfortunately my copy had some warped legs due to how she was packaged. Also, while I LOVE the roller-skates, they make some poses very difficult.