Welcome to our review of the Marvel Legends Exclusive release of Captain Marvel in her green Starforce uniform. The figure is exclusive to Target in the US, but is available via specialists and independents around the Rest of the World. The figure includes "bonus" parts that allow the figure to be converted to another member of Starforce, Doctor Minerva.
Packaging 4/5
Captain Marvel arrives in the standard Legends shaped window box. The box remains a matt black with the Legends logo front and top. The Captain Marvel movie logo sits under the window with a gold strip into which the character name sits "Captain Marvel (Starforce)"
The two side spines carry the same image of the Captain in her helmet. There is no defined hue colour on these as we had seen on some 2018 releases, and instead the figure is sat against a bright blue backdrop of Earth, giving it a very different look to other Legends.
Another point of difference is the logo atop the box. This is a golden Captain Marvel star sat in a circle.
The rear of the box shows a full view of the Earth with shades of blue running across the illustration. On top of this backdrop is an image of an unmasked Captain Marvel and to the side of this is a very short bio, and thankfully nothing spoilery.
"Using her intensive training from her days in the Air Force, Carol Danvers boldly leads an intergalactic fleet as Captain Marvel"
The box opens via either of the side spines. And oddly for this release when you slide out the figure the whole window comes with it. You then lift off the window piece to access the figure in its tray underneath. As usual there are no ties or straps - each piece held in by the shape of the tray.
Behind the figure is the cardboard backdrop and with the figure removed you can now see this carries another Captain Marvel star icon.
Paint & Sculpt (Captain Marvel) 5/5
The figure arrives with the helmeted head in place, and it looks fantastic. The helmet is a glossy metallic green with the hair flaring out on top in a mohican style. The eyes are blank under a visor, and then the lower face is exposed and carries an ever so subtle smirk on Carol's face.
The same metallic green runs through the full costume and sits alongside the base black and silver trim and the silver star on her chest. Al the lines are neat with the exception of one on her right thigh which has bled ever so slightly onto the black.
Hasbro have struggled in the past with metallic colouring, and while this green is much improved on say some of the recent Iron-Man figures, there is still some blemishes in the colouring.
If the helmeted head is not to your liking, then there is a second unmasked Carol Danvers head. The face print here is absolutely on point and a fantastic likeness to Larson, complete with beauty spot. The eyes are very motive and the skin tone really well done with shading around the eyes.
The hair is also well sculpted and hangs naturally around the face. The paint apps are a little severe on this with brown washes over the base blonde colour. This has led to it being patchy in places, but nothing visible when the figure is on display.
Articulation 4/5
Carol has 16 points of articulation, consistent with other recent female figures like Gamora and Black Widow. Both heads sit on a ball joint and can rotate as well as look up and down - the helmet having a wider range of movement as it does not have the hair to hold it back around the neckline.
The arms are ball jointed shoulders and these raise fully to 90 degrees with a soft shoulder panel moving with the arm as its raised. The elbows are single jointed, not the double we'd get on a male character, but they still bend to 90 degrees and beyond. The wrists are pegged and are able to be rotated and to be bent on the pivot.
There is a chest joint in the centre of the torso. This is a ball joint and not the T-Joint we see on figures like Spider-Man. This joint allows the upper body to rotate and also adds some degree of lean to the torso. There is no waist joint.
Legs are ball jointed hips with a full range of movement. Following these are thigh swivels and double jointed knees. This allows kneeling and sitting poses if you wish. The ankle rockers are very mobile, but nice and tight and the Captain stands perfectly in a variety of poses.
While Captain Marvel may be a character with flight, there is no flight stand included. I'd recommend getting an aftermarket stand as Carol can hit some great flying poses too.
Accessories 4/5
Captain Marvel herself doesn't come with any accessories. But the set does have a big set of parts, and these are specifically to allow you to convert the figure from Carol Danvers to another member of Starforce, Minerva.
To achieve the transformation you will find a Minerva head along with a different pair of hands with appropriate blue skinned fingers. There is a short black scarf and a bandoleer of sorts with blue/silver capsules sling across the front.
We also have a futuristic weapon that is cast in a grey plastic and with metallic blue painted parts. This can only be wielded using the Minerva "blue fingered" gripping hands, so if you want the Captain to have the gun you will have to look past the finger colour.
Paint & Sculpt (Minerva) 3/5
The Minerva head sculpt was initially difficult to assess in that we haven't seen a great deal of her yet in the trailers - and I promised to revisit this after the movie...
For those who've seen the movie, we know that Minerva also sports at Starforce mask in combat like Captain Marvel. The alternative head appears to be based on the "masked" Minerva but it still not close to the on screen appearance.
The figure version is very stylised, and almost comic book based. The actual Minerva from the trailer has longer hair and the skin tone is more muted. I would assume this is another example of Hasbro having to work off earlier concept images and art.
While the head may have issues, the conversion of the body works really well with the scarf that slots over the head and the bandoleer down the front. It does change the look of the uniform and body and makes it a new character and one that may tempt fans to buy two of this exclusive.
Using the articulation we've seen, Minerva can wield her blaster with one or both hands and has a variety of firing poses available to her.
Like the head, the weapon doesn't quite match what we've seen so far in the trailers. Again this may be something we've not seen or a concept. The one we have seen on screen is more angular and a deep shade of green not the silver and blue.
Summary
In summing up we should appreciate that as an exclusive this figure carries a premium price outside the US and is sitting around £27 from most of the retailers carrying it. That is a good £7 above the current RRP of Marvel Legends from Hasbro UK and a fiver more than the usual imported versions.
That extra cost is offset by the additional Minerva parts, and while these are great they do feel more comic book based and not what we are seeing from the MCU Minerva in the Captain Marvel trailer.
The Captain herself looks awesome and the head sculpts are brilliant and another female likeness delivered by the face print technology. The articulation is enough but as a main character it might have been nice to see a step change with the female articulation - perhaps trying a double jointed elbow or trying that T-joint in the torso.
To sum up and score I'd say this is a brilliant Captain Marvel figure, with bonus parts to make another figure - but you have to accept that it looks like Minerva is more a concept sculpt and not what we will see on screen played by Gemma Chan.
The parts all work well in the various configurations, the paint in the main is good but we do have some defects on the lining, hair and some of the metallic parts.
So not perfect, but good enough to give a 4 out of 5 score too. We look forward to more Captain Marvel releases arriving soon...
