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Introduction
Last week I covered the new 4" set of Spider-Man and the Vulture based on their look in the new Spider-Man: Homecoming film. It seems appropriate then to follow up with another pair of Spider-Man themed Marvel Legends, this time in the larger 6" scale, and this time based on the Ultimate Spider-Man look of both characters.
This pair is a Walmart exclusive, and will cost you about $40. They just started popping up last week, so now is the time to hit your local stores.
Click on the image below for a Life Size version
Packaging - ***1/2
The package has the usual Marvel Legends design, with the slightly curved top and sides. It proclaims its exclusivity loud and proud on the front,
and it shows off both the figures and accessories nicely. It's all collector friendly too, with no need to damage any of the packaging when removing
the contents.
Sculpting - Spider-Man ***1/2; Vulture ****
Do you need another Marvel Legends Spider-Man? Oh, c'mon, you know you do. This one is a good teen scale, coming in at 5 1/2" tall, but
there's almost no sculpt detail. The edges of the eyes are raised...and that's really about it. This is the same base body as the Morales Spidey, and it works great for a young version. But there's nothing here that's going to make you go 'wow'.
I felt quite differently about the Vulture. In the package, he left me a tad cold, but that's largely due to a situation with the paint that I'll discuss in the next section. Once I had the Vulture out and about, I fell in love with him. The head sculpts - both the normal and the helmet - are terrific. The costume is fairly straight forward, but the design of the pack and wings works fantastic. There's not a ton of small detail work or texturing on his costume, but that works to give it a more modern, mechanical, tech appearance. The one issue some people may have is the neck. It's an ugly neck. Both heads sit higher than normal, exposing more of the joint. I'm not going to complain about that though, because this space allows him to take really great flying poses, something most action figures cannot.
He's taller than Spidey of course, coming in at about 6 1/4". The heads swap easily, but Spider-Man's hands are a little trickier.
Paint - ***1/2
Both figures show off the improved paint work we've seen with more recent (last year or so) Marvel Legends releases. The white on Spider-Man's big
eyes is clean and consistent, the web lines and edges are neat, and the overall impression is great.
The Vulture has a few more blips along the edges of the costume, but the work on both heads is outstanding. I'm also loving the mechanical look of the wings, which is heavily influenced by the sharp paint work.
My one initial (notice how I say 'initial') complaint with his paint job involves the glossy look to the costume. In the package, it wasn't doing much for me, but again, when he was out and I was working with him, I was much happier with the overall appearance.
Articulation - ****
Marvel Legends and great articulation go together like PB&J. As I mentioned earlier, Spider-Man is sporting the smaller teen body, and there's
plenty of useful articulation. The neck doesn't tilt and lean quite as much as I'd like, but the rotating hinge shoulders, cut biceps, double pin
elbows, rotating hinge, ab crunch, cut waist, cut thighs, ball hips, double pin knees, cut calves, and the pin/rocker ankles work fantastic.
Vulture has the same great articulation (minus the calf cut), but because his head is so much higher on the neck, he can get plenty of tilt action, allowing him to actually look forward while flying. That's so rare, even with characters like Superman. I've included a flight pose to illustrate later in the review, and if you have a decent flying pose stand, this Vulture can take all sorts of excellent mid-air poses.
It's worth noting that the wings do NOT move. They remain in the pose you see, due to the way they are connected to the back.
Accessories - Spider-Man **1/2; Vulture ****
Spider-Man comes with an extra set of hands, splayed in a 'wall climbing' pose. They are a little tricky to swap, and you should take a little care
in the process, but it works. That's it for him, and that's a tad light to say the least.
The Vulture has that extra helmeted head, and I really like the look. Again, it sits very high on the neck, but that allows for actual flying poses. Swapping the two heads is quite simple.
He also has the terrific wings, and they are designed as extras. The pack is complete on his back, so you can pose him sans wings and it looks correct. Then you pop off the back of the pack, insert the wings on this back piece (they are keyed to only go on one way), and pop it back on. The wings look fantastic in place, and he has no trouble at all standing with them on.
Fun Factor - ****
Both of these figures are great fun, with tons of usable articulation and a great look. Kids and collectors will love them, and they are excellent
toys first, 'collectibles' second.
Value - **1/2
Twenty bucks a pop is the usual rate for a 1/12th scale Marvel Legends figure, so the $40 price tag isn't a surprise here. You're not getting a BAF
piece of course, but the extra head and great wings that come with the Vulture make up for it.
Things to Watch Out For -
Swapping hands on Spider-Man can be a little tricky, so some heat might be a good idea. Other than that you should be good to go.
Overall - Spider-Man ***1/2; Vulture ****
When I picked this set up, I wasn't all that excited. A whole lot of 'meh' went along with the purchase. But then I opened them up and
started working with them, and my opinion changed quite drastically.
Well...at least for Vulture. The Spider-Man is nice, and it's grate to get an Ultimate version on the teen body. But how many Spider-Men do you need? You can never have enough Batmen, but Spider-Man? Yea, I get the irony...especially since I would kill for a mass market Batman as poseable as this Spider-Man.
But the Vulture turned out terrific, and he is a lot of fun to pose and re-pose. There's tons of potential here, and he's a figure that has never gotten a lot of Marvel Legends love. I remember the Fearsome Foes version, who goes for big bucks these days, but he's been left out of the plastic fun for the most part. This release is a fantastic add to the line, and I'd recommend tracking him down at your local retailer.
Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***1/2
Sculpting - Spider-Man ***1/2; Vulture ****
Paint - ***1/2
Articulation - ****
Accessories - Spider-Man **1/22; Vulture ****
Fun Factor - ****
Value - **1/2
Overall - Spider-Man ***1/2; Vulture ****
Where to Buy
These guys are a Walmart exclusive, so that's the place to find them. Of course, you can search
ebay
for a deal.
Related Links -
I've covered a billion Marvel Legends figures over the years. The latest includes the 4" Spider-Man
and Vulture based on the new movie, and Spider-Man 2099, Spider-UK, Jackal, and Ms. Marvel from the Sandman wave.
You should also hit the Search Reviews page to find many, many more reviews of the line, and to find any other applicable reviews were done after this one was published.
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This product was purchased for the review by the reviewer. Photos and text by Michael Crawford.
