Marvel Legends Infinite Series - Scarlet Witch Review !!!

I purchased this Scarlet Witch figure from a local Walmart for around $ 19.99 . Hasbro has now finally caught up with Toybiz when it comes to the quality of these figures. Many times I hope for figures of characters that never had a figure before, however I think this version of the Scarlet Witch looks so much better than the Toybiz version . However she is not perfect, she has a flaw or two which I will get to in a moment . Plus she is in the stores just in time before the "Avengers Age of Ultron " movie makes its debut .

As you can see she is a chase figure, or in Hasbro's terminology , a "running change" figure. She shares the spotlight with Captain Marvel , both being referred to as " Maidens of Might " on the packaging among both figures coming with similar Build a Figure accessories . Now let's view the Scarlet Witch out of the packaging along with the accessories and and the Build a Figure ( BAF ) pieces she comes with .

As you can see Scarlet Witch comes with three pieces that belong to Odin , the Allfather . She comes with his cape, his head , and his staff . As for her own accessories , the pink items represent some kind of magical mystical energy she exerts from her hands when casting spells .
When you remove Scarlet Witch out of the packaging, you'll notice that she has the same balance problem when it comes to standing because of the high heels. Similar to the Black Cat figure released earlier in the Infinite Series . However unlike the Black Cat you can use Scarlet's cape to help balance her . Plus I'm not sure is it just my copy of this figure or them all , the right knee is kind of loose . As we all know loose knees can cause figures to stand with difficulty . The good news is that this problem can indeed be straightened out .

This is one of the best looking figures of this series, if not the best in my opinion . I love the bright vivid red and pink color scheme . I love the design of her greenish blue eyes and the details of her stands of hair . I love everything about the looks of this figure. The overall design , the bright vivid colors, one of the best head sculpts made, and I love her cape as it is very well detailed with wrinkles and shading . Now let's have a look at her displayed with the pink items .

I think she looks better with these items than she does without . Also if you'll notice , Scarlet Witch's hands are in a spell casting pose , they are not in a normal hand gesture . Therefore these pink items accompany her spell casting hands with excellent attention to detail . Also as you can see the items can fit around either her fingers or her wrists . Now for a comparison of this version of the Scarlet Witch and the old Toybiz one .

As you can see the differences outnumber the similarities . The Hasbro version is a full figured woman compared to the thin Toybiz version . Despite the same colors, the design of the overall outfit is different too . Even the pink and red colors seem to be more bright and vivid on the Hasbro version . The Toybiz version did not come with spell casting items like the Hasbro one , so below is a pic of the Toybiz Scarlet Witch displayed with Hasbro Scarlet Witch's pink magical items .

                                                         FINAL    THOUGHTS  
( 1 ) ARTICULATION - Nice all around articulation . The only thing that would make it better in my opinion is an ab crunch , which the figure does not have. The head movement is somewhat restricted by the hard hair, but not by much .

( 2 ) STANDING  ABILITY - The high heels along with a somewhat loose right knee gives her balance issues , however this problem can be corrected by balancing her with her cape, along with positioning the knees in a proper stance .

( 3 ) WHAT  I  LIKE  BEST  ABOUT  THIS  FIGURE ? - There is so much to like about this figure but here is what stands out the most in my opinion . The bright vivid colors, the head sculpt and her hair , the new body mold for Scarlet Witch and her spell casting hand gestures. I also like her accessories.

( 4 ) WHAT  I  LIKE  LEAST  ABOUT  THIS  FIGURE ? - Her loose right knee . My only complaint about this figure. Even though as I already mentioned that the high heels make standing her difficult a little, the problem can be corrected with proper positioning of the ankles . Also I feel that she is a little bit too tall for a female figure .

( 5 ) WHAT  COULD  HAVE  BEEN  DONE  TO  IMPROVE  THE  FIGURE ? Tighter knee caps and find a way to make female figures with high heels stand more easily, not just this one . Shorten her a little bit too as I already mentioned the height issue.

( 6 ) GRADING  SCALE - I'm giving her a 9.5, the minus is for the knee problem and being too tall .  I'm not sure if the issue with the knee is with my copy of the Scarlet Witch , or a lot of them if not all.

( 7 ) FINAL  ANALYSIS - There are not too many Hasbro Marvel Legends that I like better than a Toybiz Legend of the same character , however I like this version of Scarlet Witch a lot better than that old Toybiz one , for the reasons I mentioned above . I will be displaying this version with the rest of my Avenger Marvel Legends instead of the Toybiz version . However I still plan on keeping my Toybiz Scarlet Witch , I'm not selling her or giving her away because I am an action figure maniac . The Toybiz version is not bad but it pales in comparison to this one .

Marvel Legends Infinite Series - Avenging Allies - MACHINE MAN REVIEW !!!

I purchased this Machine Man figure at a local Walmart for around $ 19.99 . As we get closer to the debut of the upcoming Avengers - Age of Ultron film there are a lot of Avenger related characters hitting stores this year and this guy is one of them . Not to mention that Machine man is the only figure of this series to never had a Marvel Legend before . This is his first time in the Marvel Legends line . Even though Ms. Marvel has a new look , it is still the same character ,as so are the others . When you purchase Machine Man , he comes with build a figure parts of Odin , Thor and Loki's father , along with his extendable detachable limbs .

As you can see pics of different characters are featured on the sides of the packaging . The Sentry is on one end and Machine Man on the other . Also note that Odin's name is not even mentioned , instead he is referred to as " The Allfather " , which he is also referred to as in the comics . Now for a look at Machine Man out of the packaging , with side by side comparisons of him with and without the extendable limbs .

As you can see Machine Man is around six inches tall . When you remove him from the packaging, be careful when removing him . The reason I say this is because my copy of Machine Man his waist was kind of loose and bendy, although now he no longer has that problem . His torso is still somewhat loose, however this is only noticeable when displaying him with his regular hands. When displaying him with his arm extensions , you can pose the arms downward to balance his stance . Also I made the comparison pic so that you can decide which look on him is the best , regular hands or extended limbs .
Now let's have a look at the accessories this figure comes with .

As you can see he comes with both of Odin's arms, his extendable limbs , and regular hands. I assume the regular hands can be considered accessories also , even though they are attached to the figure when you purchase it .
Now let's look at Machine Man as a character for just a small moment instead of an action figure . When I first saw this guy the first thing I thought about him was that maybe he was a villain. The reason I thought this is because the figure appears to be frowning, since it is normal for villain action figures to display a frown . However , according to most Wikipedia writings, he started his career off as a hero , even joining the Avengers . This explains why the term " Avenging Allies " is displayed on the figure packaging . I've seen Machine Man before, but never knew much about the character until recently . Also for those of you who wish to learn more about the character , the following pic below is of his first comic book debut issue .

Now back to Machine Man as an action figure . I am pleased with how he turned out , with the exception of the loose joints, other than that he is perfect . He kind of reminds me of a Sentinel , with the purple and greyish/ silverish color scheme . Another good thing to point out is that the fists attached to his extendable limbs can rotate, plus they also have wrist pivots so that you can bend his fists. This feature is great because it allows multiple posing options .
Speaking of poses , it's up to you on how you want to display him . With both regular hands, both extendable limbs, one extendable and one regular, etc . , the options are definitely available . In the pics below , I measured his wingspan and a vertical measurement of his extended arm .

As you can see Machine man's wingspan is around ten inches . I had trouble getting his right arm to stay in a straight line , so it kept bending downward . Also as you can see his arm extended vertically is almost at ten inches . The extendable arms are great for display purposes, but they also help balance the figure when standing him , as the pic below indicates .

                                                        FINAL   THOUGHTS  
( 1 ) ARTICULATION - Excellent all around articulation . Perfect all around head movement and even on the extensions the fists can bend and rotate .

( 2 ) STANDING  ABILITY - Despite having a few loose joints, the figure stands nicely . With or without the arm extensions .

( 3 ) WHAT  I  LIKE  BEST  ABOUT  THIS  FIGURE ? - The arm extensions , and the shiny siverish grey and purple colors . His belt is cool too plus it's adjustable . You can move it up and down his waist .

( 4 ) WHAT  I  LIKE  LEAST  ABOUT  THIS  FIGURE ? - The loose joints. They need tightening .

( 5 ) WHAT  COULD  HAVE  BEEN  DONE  TO  IMPROVE  THIS  FIGURE ? - Strengthen the loose joints .

( 6 ) GRADING  SCALE  - There are two ways to grade this figure, with and without the arm attachments . With regular hands - a 9.5 . With the attachments - a PERFECT 10 . I think he is so much cooler with the attachments, plus the attachments erases the problems with the loose joints somewhat when posing him properly . The minus is for the loose joints .

( 7 ) FINAL  ANALYSIS  - Overall this is a great action figure now matter how you display him . Now it's up to you on how you want to display him , with or without the limbs, by himself or with some of the Avengers . I would have given Machine man a perfect ten with regular hands in the Grading Scale category if it was not for the loose joints. I think Hasbro needs to get back to the drawing board on tightening up the joints on these figures, other than that excellent job Hasbro . These Hasbro Marvel Legends seem to be getting better with quality as time moves on , Hasbro has finally caught up with Toybiz on the quality of these figures in my opinion . Also having this guy around made me think about characters and toys from other franchises that have extendable limbs , such as Inspector Gadget , Mekaneck and Extendar from Masters of the Universe .

Congratulations to Barbecue17 for winning the February 2015 Contest !!!

Congrats to Barbecue17 !!! Here are the answers to the February 2015 Trivia .

Micronauts and Count Cogliostro of Spawn are the correct answers. Here's a link to last month's contest http://actionfigureimagerytoyreviews.blogspot.com/2015/02/february-2015-contest-win-two-free.html

Good luck to everyone in this month's contest !!!

Masters of the Universe Classics - Snake Armor He-Man & Battle Armor King Hssss Review !!!

This two pack came along in the same package with Ninjor/ Ninja Warrior last month in February . I'm going to refer to King Hssss as King Hiss throughout this article / review , which is the original spelling of his name anyway .  I never liked the new spelling of his name and still does not like it . Since there are two figures in this review, I'm going to review them both individually . First I'll review over He-Man than King Hiss . Before moving on to the figures individually, let's have a look at all of the packaging and character bio notable tidbits of information .

The packaging alone itself is worth discussing . I love the above diorama insert , it makes a nice background piece not just for MOTUC figures but any action figures . As for notable information from the bios, first up is He-Man . It is noted that He-Man's snake armor is an upgrade over his original to battle the Snake Men . He-Man's description has also been changed from "the most powerful man in the universe " to the "most powerful snake hunter in the universe . Snake Man-At-arms is also mentioned as He-Man refuses to hurt his friend , and that Snake MAA weapon is powerful enough to disrupt the power of Grayskull itself . As for Hiss's bio , some interesting things mentioned are his battle with Zodak , the Second Ultimate Battleground, and the Spell of Seperation used by Orko to defeat the Snake Men . Now on to the figures themselves .

First up is He-Man . Even though He-Man appeared in this snake armor in episodes of the Mike Young Productions Masters of the Universe cartoon , the design is based off the original Snake Armor He-Man figure from the 200X series . Plus you can easily tell the Horsemen did not use the cartoon as reference for the MOTUC Snake Armor He-Man in the comparison pic below .

As you can see the hair is not the same , the right shoulder pad also has a different shape, and the cross logo is not centered on the cartoon like it is on the toy . So it is very obvious that the Horsemen used the original SA He-Man as reference when designing the MOTUC version . Plus it is mentioned in previous media that the head is based off of the design of the original toy .

Even though a shield is mentioned in He-Man's bio, one does not come for the He-Man figure . The accessories that He-Man comes with are his 200X version power sword and a pincher .The pincher easily fits into an insert on his right arm gauntlet piece . The armor itself is made out of a rubbery plastic instead of a hard plastic . I feel that if it were made of hard plastic, that the hard plastic might provide more of a shine to the armor than soft plastic . Also it is nice to have the 200X sword as it finally makes its first appearance in the MOTUC line . Plus the sword can fit into either hand . I also like how the armor itself is different shades of grey. Some parts are dark grey and other parts light grey . These mixtures of different shades of grey adds an impressive look to the figure in my opinion . It's also interesting to see that He-Man is wearing a different color for his boots, green instead of his normal red or reddish brown boots . This is definitely a completely different look for He-Man than his original attire .

It is also nice to know that if you do not wish to display He-Man holding the sword, it can easily be placed into the socket on the back of his armor . Now on to the King Hiss .

As you can see, unlike He-Man , the design for this particular King Hiss figure was indeed based on the Mike Young cartoon version , and not on the 200X Hssss figure . Just take a look at the comparison shot above. The 200X toy has a similar look, but the Mike Young cartoon company altered the looks just a little by making his skin green, and giving him red eyes with no pupils . King Hiss comes with the same staff and shield that the original MOTUC Hiss comes with , except the colors are different this time .

As for the pic above with the staffs , the green staff belongs to the original MOTUC Hiss and the yellowish brownish one comes with this current figure . In the above pic with the shields, the red shield belongs to the original Hiss figure and the reddish brown to the Snake Armor Hiss . Hopefully these comparison pics will give you an idea of which colors look the best for his weapons .
Now it's time for some comparison shots of the two King Hiss figures in the MOTUC line .

I love both designs by the way and can not make up my mind on which design I like the best. I do think however I prefer the head / face of the newer Hiss figure over the older one . The newer face looks more sinister and wicked in my opinion . Also worth noting is that this newer Hiss did not come with the snake body this time around. If you look at Pixel Dan's review of this two pack , it is stated that the missing snake body may be packaged with a future figure real soon . So be on the look out for it when it arrives .
Another luxury of having both MOTUC King Hiss figures is that you can intermingle his torso parts .  Below is a look at two mix and match pics of both figures .

In the two pics above , the first pic is original Hiss upper body attached to newer Hiss lower body . The second pic is the newer Hiss figure upper body attached to the original Hiss lower body . I like the look of the second pic the best. The first pic just does not look right because of the leg and body proportions and the colors not matching . I like the look of the second pic so much that I was considering displaying King Hiss this way . As the above pictures illustrate, mixing and matching parts is one of several luxuries of owning Masters of the Universe Classics figures .
                                                   FINAL    THOUGHTS  
( 1 ) ARTICULATION - Both figures have the same basic articulation as any other MOTUC figure .

( 2 ) STANDING  ABILITY  -  Once you get their knees in the proper stance , both figures stand well without any balance issues .

( 3 ) WHAT  I  LIKE  BEST  ABOUT  THESE  FIGURES ? - Snake Armor He-Man - the new head, the inclusion of the 200X power sword , the flexibility of the pincher  and the different shades of grey for the armor . Battle Armor King Hssss - the 200X cartoon head , and the ability to mix and match his parts with the older King Hiss figure .

( 4 ) WHAT  I  LIKE  LEAST  ABOUT  THESE  FIGURES ? - Snake Armor He-Man - There is nothing that I dislike about this figure, he is totally cool . King Hiss - I do not like the idea of a fighter wearing sandals . I feel like he should have regular boots just like the original. I understand the reason as Mattel at the time was trying to give this version of Hiss an Egyptian look of a pharaoh . It still looks cool no matter what it's just that the concept of going out on a battlefield in sandals is what gets me .

( 5 ) WHAT  COULD  HAVE  BEEN  DONE  TO  IMPROVE  THE  FIGURES ? - Snake Armor He-Man - a button that you could press to make the pincher open and close would have been nice. Similar to Clamp Champ's feature from the 1980s .Battle Armor Hssss - being able to display his human half over his snake half , like with the original King Hiss toy from the 1980s .

( 6 ) GRADING  SCALE  -  Snake Armor He-Man - A perfect 10 . I can not find any flaws with this figure . Ditto for Battle Armor King Hssss, despite me complaining about the sandals, both figures look very cool and well designed .

( 7 ) FINAL  ANALYSIS  -  I'm a big fan of collecting two packs but not a big fan of variants . I do not like having multiple action figures of the same character . Ten different He-Mans , ten different Skeletors, etc. is too much for me, I'd rather have brand new characters / figures over variants any day. However I'll take an exception in this case . These variants of He-Man and King Hiss are so cool you'll probably hardly notice that they are variants once you have them in your hands .