Review of The Thing, Human Torch, Super Skrull action figures
Fantastic Four Marvel Legends

Introduction

Time to finish up my look at the current wave of Marvel Legends based on the Fantastic Four, also known as the Super Skrull wave.  He's the BAF, don't you know, and the rest of the series consists of the Thing, the Human Torch, the Invisible Woman, Mr. Fantastic, Doctor Doom, and She-Hulk.

Tonight I'm covering the Thing and Johnny, along with the Skrull BAF. Check my links at the end of the review to find my discussion of the rest of the wave.  These guys will run you around $20, and are hitting stores right now along with the Demogoblin wave.

Packaging - ***1/2
More of the usual stuff, with a fairly collector friendly approach to a mass market package. There's some nice character personalization too, and there's the key on the back showing which BAF piece comes with which figure. This time around you need to pick up the whole wave to complete him.

Sculpting - Human Torch ***1/2; Thing, Skrull ****
I'm really digging the work on both of these, but in particular the Thing.

Johnny Storm has a nice portrait, with a detailed sculpt that fits the general comic book design. The hair looks great, and his smirk is appropriate. He stands about 6 1/2" tall, like most Marvel Legends figures.  But from the neck down, he's a really plain dude. While the musculature looks great, it's also a very standard ML body that we've seen time and time again.

Super Skrull does better here because while the base body is pretty standard, there are the two sculpted additional arms as well as two different portraits.  They have great expressions, allowing you to accommodate just about any pose with one or the other.  He also stands about 6 1/2" tall.

Then there's my favorite of the trio, the Thing. Ben has all the rocky grit you expect, and the detailing and sharpness of the design is quite impressive. This one is not anything new - he was a Walgreen's exclusive awhile back that I never picked up - but he's new to me, and I'm loving it.  He stands almost 7 1/2" tall.

Paint - ***1/2
The paint work on all three exhibits the improved quality we've seen from Hasbro with this line.

Eyes are straight, colors are consistent, and there's almost no slop at the edges. There's a blip here and there, and neither Skrull or Torch have a ton of detail work on their bodies, but what's here is good.

My only real complaint is with the variation across the chest and head on the Thing. I'm sure they did this to differentiate him from the earlier release, but it looks a bit too toy-ish and heavy handed here.

Articulation - ****
These are Marvel Legends, which almost always equals great articulation, and none of these have any particular restriction on their very articulated bodies.

That's not really a surprise with Super Skrull and Human Torch. While these bodies might not be uber exciting when it comes to sculpting and paint, they do have a lot of terrific articulation with little encumbrance. You should have no trouble getting great poses with either one, and the joints are tight and well made. You know my two favorite joints are the neck and ankles, and on both of these guys, they allow for plenty of movement.  The ab-crunch and cut waist let you break up those straight torso poses too, always a big plus.

But it's the Thing that really impresses me. His thick rocky exterior could have made it impossible to engineer useful articulation, but Hasbro found a way. While the rotating hinge elbows aren't quite as good as the double pin elbow/cut bicep combo of the other two, it still works surprisingly well. And the neck, torso, and ankles once again provide a ton of mobility.

Accessories - The Thing **1/2; Human Torch ***; Super Skrull ***1/2
Remember, the Super Skrull is an accessory himself, and if a figure comes with only the BAF pieces, they get a **1/2 here. Such is the case with the Thing, who comes with the two Skrull heads.

The Human Torch does a bit better. Along with the BAF pieces, he has two alternate 'flame on' hands, as well as some swirling flame effects you can use on his wrists.

When a BAF gets extras, that's extremely special. Skrull has two heads, as I mentioned earlier, but he also gets two extra arms and a fire effect!  While both these extra arms don't come with these two figures, I did include them in the shot below because they are technically accessories for Super Skrull.

Fun Factor - ****
These make for terrific toys and collectibles, not just one or the other. Fans of the characters will love the sculpts and paint work, while kids will go nuts with the articulation and accessories. Posing them is fun, with no frustration from weak joints or poor design.

Value - **1/2
At $20 each, these guys are running the normal market price for 1/12 mass market figures.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing!  The hands swapped easily on Johnny, the heads and arms swap cleanly on Super Skrull, and the Thing is just an all around well made figure!

Overall - ***1/2
Overall, this is a terrific wave. The Doctor Doom is one of the best figures they've done this year, and getting the whole team at one time is a nice change of pace.

Of course, you can argue that the Thing is just a rehash, but he does have his new shorts and belt, and getting re-released to a wider market doesn't make him any less cool. For those of us that missed him the first time around, he's a welcome addition.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***1/2
Sculpting - Human Torch ***1/2; Thing, Skrull ****
Paint - ***1/2
Articulation - ****
Accessories - The Thing **1/2; Super Skrull, Human Torch ***
Fun Factor - ****
Value - **1/2
Overall - ***1/2

Where to Buy 
These are popping up at Target and Meijer stores right now. Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth has the set for $166 with free shipping.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
I already checked out the rest of this wave - here's Invisible Woman and Human Torch, and here's She-Hulk and Doctor Doom. Before that we had the Molten Man wave - Molten Man, Scorpion, Stealth Suit Spider-Man, Spider-Woman, Hydroman, Doppelganger Spider-Man, and Mysterio. I've covered many, many more ML's which you can find in the Search Reviews section.

You should also hit the Search Reviews page, in case any other applicable reviews were done after this one was published.

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