If you’ve taken a stroll down the toy aisle lately, you’d see that there’s an uptick in the Marvel Legends that have been hitting the pegs. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen this many figures hitting at once. Depending on the retailer you frequent, you can still find multiple waves. Eternals figures have been warming pegs and hitting clearance shelves. Still not low enough to make me a buyer, unfortunately. The Disney Plus wave has popped up for a restock. The What If?… wave has been moving pretty steady. We’re also starting to see the latest wave from Age of Apocalypse and the upcoming Spider-Man: No Way Home movie. Add to that some Infinity Saga and deluxe figures in The Vulture and Compound Hulk and you can see that we’re in a bit of a Legends boom. I’ve grabbed three of my recent additions to share with you all.
What If? Build a Figure The Watcher
One of the strongest waves top to bottom this year has to be the What If?… wave. Sculpted in the style of the animated series, we get T’Challa Star Lord, Heist Nebula, Captain Carter, Zombie Captain America and Zombie Hunter Spidey (both highlighted in previous Figure Friday columns) and Doctor Strange Supreme. They also give us a live action Sylvie figure (she wasn’t included in the original Disney Plus wave) to round out the lineup. Collecting them all will reward you with the series Build a Figure, The Watcher. To call The Watcher an action figure is a bit misleading. While his design is exceptional, it leaves much to be desired from a posing standpoint. You want stoic? You’ve got it in spades. If you’re looking for something more dynamic, you’ll have to wait for the inevitable Battle Armored deluxe release. He’s a great figure that adds some nice variety to your display. He’s the cherry on top for one of the strongest lineups in recent memory. I’m usually not a fan of repaints, but this would look great in a translucent purple or black with a starfield or cosmos paint effect similar to how he appears in some of the promotional art.
Spider-Man: Homecoming The Vulture
Michael Keaton’s Vulture has also been popping up on Target shelves in recent weeks. The original release of this figure took the Build a Figure premise and opted for the Build the Flight Gear approach. The Disney Plus Captain America wings were also given a similar treatment recently. Featuring an impressive bulky set of wings, this figure retails for $41.99 which is a bit steep. While the figure looks great, once he’s connected to those wings, he becomes nearly impossible to pose with the added weight. Hasbro was kind enough to pack in a small stand to help support the wings, but it doesn’t allow you to get the figure into many poses. Even attempting to use one of Hasbro’s own flight stands is useless due to the weight of the flight gear. Given the figure’s limitations and its premium price point, it would have been nice to get an unmasked Michael Keaton head sculpt as an accessory. As it is, try to grab this guy on sale or play the long game to get him on clearance.
Spider-Man: No Way Home Doctor Strange
For years, I’ve been chasing a good Doctor Strange figure for my MCU display. The problem was, the only one I felt was a solid offering was part of a 3 Pack released for The First 10 Years of the MCU set. They’re not up for sale often and when they are, they’re a bit more than what I want to spend. Fortunately, Hasbro has an opportunity to bring Benedict Cumberbatch back into the Legends line with his upcoming appearance in No Way Home. This is the figure I’ve been waiting for. Featuring a nearly perfect interpretation of Cumberbatch, a pair of hands with some high-quality magic effects and one of the most detailed figure sculpts this year. Doctor Strange is a Figure of the Year contender. The Cloak of Levitation. The Eye of Agamoto. It’s all here and it’s all damn near perfect. If there is one gripe it’s that you can’t get him into a meditating pose due to the long tunic. Even if you already have an MCU Doctor Strange in your collection, this one is worth the cost to upgrade.
