Welcome to our review of the Marvel Legends Infinity War 3-pack of Thor, Rocket and Groot. We are breaking down each figure in the set and look at the pro's and cons as well as giving them our usual overall rating out of 5. In this part of the review we look at Groot .
If you have arrived here after reading one of the other reviews from this 3-Pack then skip the first section on packaging which is repeated
Pros : There is some good sculpted parts in the figure
Cons : Paint is totally lacking which means the sculpt is not realised at all. Sloppy green highlights only. Tablet accessory is not needed.
One of the best "team-up" within Infinity War was the unlikely trio that saw a bruised and battered Thor team up with Rocket and the teenage Groot as they sought out a weapon to take down Thanos. Rather than include this trio in single carded Avengers waves, Hasbro went down the multi-pack route. The set includes Thor as seen in the first half of the movie with his eye patch and black outfit. Rocket who is essentially the figure released in 2017 in the Guardians of the Galaxy wave. And a brand new figure of Teenage Groot.
The set comes in a large scooped side Marvel Legend window box that uses the same design colouring as the other Avengers figures. The side panels have Thor at one side and Rocket and Groot on the other. The set was originally planned as a Toys R Us exclusive and is marked up with the silver embossed Toys R Us exclusive sticker.
The rear of the box is dominated by an image of the three figures posed in an action stance. To the side is a very short synopsis that talks about the journey of a "blaster-toting raccoon, a teenage tree and an Asgardian god".
All three figures are slotted into the inner plastic try without the need for any twisty ties or bands. The accessories are interspersed between each figure and are taped into place. The inner tray sits in a cardboard tray that is an explosion design with a large Avengers "A" symbol in the centre.
While we have had previous Groot and Baby Groot figures, this is the first Legends representation of Teenage Groot. The sculpt does capture that sulky look that Groot wears for most of the film. It also includes a sculpted grain effect but very little paint other than the green highlights and foliage on top of his head. The eyes are also a little disturbing being quite large with a huge gold eyeball.
I suspect we may end up getting more versions of this figure, and the angry battle head from Wakanda would certainly give the figure a better look for action poses. As it stands, this one just seems to look like it should be posed sulking in a corner.
Like the head, the body is well sculpted with tree like grain that work down to the large root like feet. Again, paint is sparse with the odd bit of green. How the figure is screaming out for a darker brown wash to really make it pop - but I guess with that new gun for Rocket and the sparkly lightning effects for Thor, the budget was up by the time they hit Groot.
Groot comes with his "tablet" on which he plays games for most of the first half of the movie. This is cast in a translucent blue plastic with rounded edges. Onto this is printed some purple circles to represent the game Groot is playing. The piece is quite soft and while it does fit in Groot's elongated hands it is not a tight fit.
I would think Hasbro based the tablet design on the one Groot is playing in the credits scene from Guardians 2. The one used in Infinity War is smaller and not translucent. In terms of the pack I could have forgone this and used the money for a dark wash over the figure.
While this is Teenage Groot's debut in the Legends line, it is not the first Teenage Groot figure from Hasbro. They released a basic version a couple of months back with a Rocket figure and side by side there is not a lot of difference in looks - which says more about the Legends version than the cheaper release.
Groot has a basic set of joints, 14 in total. The head is a ball joint and rotates, and there is a small joint within the neck allowing Groot's head to lean back or forward. The shoulders move fully on a ball joint, but the elbows are only a single rotating joint and they don't quite bend to a right angle. The wrists are pivoted pegs and these move pretty well.
A torso ball joint sits part way down the trunk of Groot and this rotates and pivots forward and back. While the range of movement is good, moving the joint does leave a wider gap in the chest which throws off the overall look.
The legs start with ugly looking hips with quite a large gap visible around the groin, These move fully so Groot can sit down, if you wish. The knees are also a single joint and this rotates - but doing so will throw out the look of the legs. The large root like feet are on rockers. The joints on Groot are all quite tight and he stands pretty well in most poses thanks to those giant feet.
All three figures look good together - but Groot does stand out a little in terms of paint finish. Groot does look a little short against Thor, but as always Thor is oversized as are all Asgardians from Hasbro.
Teenage Groot is one of many crucial characters in Infinity War, it is a shame that he has been a little rushed and lacks some key paint application in his first appearance. I suspect we will see a future release of this figure, and I also think we will see some impressive custom painted version that show how good the sculpt is. The articulation is OK considering the slim arms & legs. The tablet accessory would have been an easy pass.
I score Teenage Groot a low 2 out of 5.
Taking this set as a combined entity, I am glad that the RRP on this didn't come in at around £60 for the three figures. The set is sensibly priced at around £45 and I think this is fair considering the size of Rocket and the articulation and limited paint job on Groot. Had we been looking at £60 for these three figures, then the scoring for the box as a whole would have dropped considerably in terms of value for money.
As it stands the set for me has a stand out figure in Thor, that was then taken too far with that bizarre decor. Rocket, even with the paint variations, is essentially a repack and for me Groot is half finished and is missing a whole other paint application at least. The accessories all feel cheap with basic paint and very rubbery misshapen plastic. While the price is amicable, the contents still don't really make me feel "wow" what a great set - and I score the Thor, Rocket & Groot 3-Pack a mediocre 3 out of 5.
