Review of Ghost Rider and Flame Cycle
Marvel Legends Action Figure

Introduction

There aren't too many toy lines that survive not just the decades, but a change in the company producing them. Star Wars survived Kenner's assimilation into Hasbro, but it's Star Wars. Other licenses have jumped from company to company, but a specific in house brand? It's pretty unusual.

Marvel Legends is a unicorn in that way. It's the Marvel license of course, and lots and lots of people have done Marvel action figures. But it's the Legends style that has persevered, going from Toybiz to Hasbro while barely missing a beat.

I've been buying fewer and fewer though, as I burn out on the rehash of figures.  But when I came across the two new deluxe packs at a local Walmart, I simply couldn't resist - I had to have the Johnny Blaze Ghost Rider and his Flame Cycle. There's a Black Widow and motorcycle too, but that one didn't call to me quite the same way.

You can find these at major retailers for around $40 each, although I haven't seen them ship widely quite yet.

Packaging - ***1/2
Both the figure and the bike are nicely displayed, and the whole thing is completely collector friendly. That's always a big plus for a mass market toy, although it does embolden the jerks that figure swap or accessory steal.

Sculpting - ****
I kinda wished we'd gotten a comic Johnny Blaze portrait too, but that's probably asking for a bit much. This figure is pretty much a repaint of the Ghost Rider from the Rhino wave awhile back.

The flaming skull looks terrific, with a great texture to the bony countenance and a dynamic swirl to the flames on the head and neck. The costume is pretty basic comic book stuff, and there's not a ton of sculpted detail, but what's here - the buttons, belt, collar - are well defined, and the outfit has an appropriate texture.

This guy is 1/12 scale of course, and he's pretty tall thanks to the flames, coming in just over 6 3/4" tall fully upright.

The bike is properly scaled, and includes some nice flame details. These are removable - more on that in a minute - with one exception. The small flame on the back bumper is permanent, and of course, the orange colored tires remain.

The sculpted detailing on the bike itself isn't super defined. Areas like the engine block or handle bars are a little soft and toy-ish, but a nice custom paint job could do wonders to transform this into something a more realistic.

Paint - ***1/2
As I said, the bike could really use some additional paint work to highlight what sculpted details are there. Things are pretty basic, with single colors covering large areas, but there's a few details, like the speedometer in the center of the handlebars or the front lights.

If I were going off just the bike, this would be another half star lower. But the work on the figure pulls it up considerably. The bone color on the skull looks good, and the eyes and nose look great. The color transition within the flames works well, and their slight translucence adds to the appearance. The costume has about as many paint details as sculpt details, but again, what's here is very clean, including the blue striping. It's worth noting that while this guy is a repaint of an earlier figure, I like the work on the head and flames better this time around.

Articulation - ***1/2
This is a Marvel Legends figure, so there's no shortage of articulation.

The ball jointed neck works pretty well, but the flames on the back of the head and around the neck restrict some of the tilt and lean. I wanted some poses where the torso was farther forward and the head farther back, and I just couldn't quite get there.

The jaw is articulated, and it can go from completely closed to very wide. This adds a lot to the posing, creating a maniacal look to action stances.

The rotating hinge shoulders, cut biceps, double pin elbows, and rotating hinge wrists allow for any arm pose, and he can sit on the bike while holding the handlebars in a very natural way. The rotating hinge hips, cut thighs, double pin knees, and rotating hinge ankles (with lots of rocker movement) all work together to make positioning him on the bike easy, and allow for just about any standing pose as well.

Add in a great ab crunch and cut waist, and you have a pretty complete set of joints. I do wish the neck worked slightly better, but it's a minor nit with an otherwise excellent figure.

The bike is articulated too. The front fork turns, as do both wheels, and there's a kick stand that folds up and down underneath.

Accessories - ***
This is kind of a weird category. Is the bike an accessory? The figure? I decided that neither was an accessory, but rather like a two pack of figures, each was their own thing.

There's one accessory for Ghost Rider himself - a flaming chain. This can fit in either hand, and the transition from chain to fire looks great. As I said earlier, a second portrait might have been nice (Black Widow got one), but I'll live.

The bike also technically has its own accessories. The two flames on the back and the two around the front can be removed, as can the large skull 'shield' that covers the front fork and handle bars. I like the bike a lot better with them in place, and found that once I had cut the packaging (rubber bands) holding them, they tended to fall off too easily. I may just glue mine on for display purposes, but your mileage may vary.

Fun Factor - ****
This is a really fun figure and bike, and kids who are fans of the character will have a great time playing with him. The adults in the crowd will also enjoy the posability, and find plenty of ways to add him to their Marvel Legends display. Even if you have the older version, this repainted head and the addition of the bike make him worthwhile.

Value - **1/2
The average Marvel Legend figure is around $20 these days. Paying another $20 for the bike seems about right, so I'm going with an average value score here.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing. I did find that once I cut the rubber bands, keeping all the flames (especially around the front forks) in place was a little tricky, but it's not a major issue.

Overall - ***1/2
I almost went four stars here. Had the paint work on the bike been just a little better - maybe a simple wash on the engine - it would have tipped me over the edge.

Still, it's a fantastic figure all the way around, and both kids and adults should find it hits all the high marks for them. I picked it up thinking that maybe, just maybe, we'll get a One:12 Collective Ghost Rider, and this bike could always provide a reasonable stand in if they never produced one themselves. But now that I have him out and open, I'm thinking the figure might replace my Rhino wave version thanks to the look of the head.

I may end up picking up the Black Widow too, but while the figure looked fine in the package, it's really the bike that piqued my interest. Having another style ride in 1:12 scale could prove very useful over time.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***1/2
Sculpting - ****
Paint - ***1/2
Articulation - ***1/2
Accessories - ***
Fun Factor - ****
Value - **1/2
Overall - ***1/2

Where to Buy 
You can pick this guy up at many mass market retailers for around $40. Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth also has the single for $40, or a case of two Black Widows and one Ghost Rider for $120.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
As I mentioned earlier, this guy is a repaint of the earlier Rhino wave Ghost Rider. If you're looking for something a bit more high end, check out the Hot Toys version based on the old movie, or their newer release based on his look in the TV Show Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

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

Discussion:
Want to chat about this review?  Try out one of these terrific forums where I'll be discussing it!

Enjoyed this review? Be sure to head back to the main page to find thousands more just like it!