Released in 2021, the Infinity Saga range of Marvel Legends was a revisit of figures and characters from across the Marvel Cinematic Universe and its first three phases. It followed a similar ethos as the 2018 First Ten Years Sets and the 2019 sets for the 80th Anniversary, sitting outside the main Marvel Legends line with specific packaging and aesthetics.
The original Iron-Man movie from 2008 pre-dates the Marvel Legends line as we know it, and while some figures were produced they are now showing their age in terms of scale, sculpt, and overall design. Hasbro has used the Infinity Saga as an opportunity to return to the movie that started the MCU with the release of the Iron-Man Mk III suit - and also the Iron-Monger and Obadiah Stane set.
Iron-Man arrives in a single figure squared-off box with side art depicting characters from the Infinity Saga in a metallic sheen finish. This artwork is slightly different on each side, but it is the same on all the Infinity Saga releases - there is no extended montage of images as we saw with the First Ten Years sets. The Iron-Man logo sits top left with the Legends logo to the right-hand side. The Infinity Saga is the largest logo just under the window, with the character name beneath.
The back of the box carries an image of the original movie poster for the 2008 film and a short piece of text that reads
"Tony Stark takes on the world's worst villains in the Mark III suit: a technological wonder equipped with a variety of stunning enhancements and upgrades"
The figure is packed into the usual plastic tray that itself sits in a cardboard inner that also acts as the card back. Onto this almost white scheme are printed a number of Marvel circular logos such as The Avengers, Iron-Man, Black Widow, etc. acknowledging each of the major players during the Infinity Saga art. It's not as nice as the illustrations used on previous sets but is a nice touch all the same.
The Mk III is pretty much an all-new figure. I had expected some re-use from the 2018 MK 7 but that does not seem to be the case. It stands 6.75 inches tall, making it a more realistic scale and height for Tony Stark in one of his suits - but that does cause some scaling issues with older Iron-Man suits, particularly the Mk I which still uses the original 2008 sculpt, and earlier Legends releases like the Mk 42 and War Machine figures.
It is cast in a red plastic throughout that is not quite metallic, but does have a high gloss almost pearlescent finish to it that does get quite close to the on-screen suit without getting into the realms of the higher-end collectibles finish comparisons. The gold colouring is quite limited on the Mk III but is painted on neatly and without too many issues - although the coverage on the thigh armour doesn't extend over the top of the panel and the sections on the back of Iron-Man are a bit scuffed - that last one will be a factory issue and variant on each figure. The final deco application on the body is the Arc Reactor that looks to be a decal or a sticker with a white centre and a visible blue ring around the outside. There is then a hint of white paint added thinly around the reactor on the arm to create a glow effect.
On arrival, we have an unmasked Tony Stark head on the figure with arguably the best Robert Downey Jr. likeness to date in the Legends figures. While you can't see the full head, what is exposed is treated with the photo-real deco adding in a very impressive level of realism to the eyes and the facial hair which now looks like individual strands of hair and not just a solid painted piece.
Hasbro has not yet come up with a removable faceplate for Iron-Man so for the full helmet look you can swap this head out with a fully masked Iron-Man head. Like the armour this is cast in red with the faceplate painted in gold. The swapping out process is OK, but the masked head does feel tighter on the ball joint and is harder to engage.
There are other accessories included with the suit, most of which focus on the right forearm. On arrival, this is simply an exposed panel with a socket. You can clip three elements into this depending on your display wishes. There is a set of exposed wrist missiles, with the missiles themselves painted in gold with black tips. You can also insert the panel mid-opening with the various armoured sections part open with the workings picked out within in silver. The final option is simply for the covered panel to match the left arm.
Each of the parts is shaped to fit the right way and the fit is tight enough so that these will hold in place and are not at any immediate risk of dropping out and going missing.
You also get a pair of alternative hands, allowing you to exchange the clenched fists with a pair of open repulsor firing hands. These are cast in red with a white painted repulsor. Unlike other Iron-Man hands, there is no socket for the often-used effect part - and the blast effect is also not included.
On my first Iron-Man Mk III the alternative hands were cast poorly and did not engage into the wrist slot. This again is a specific factory issue, but something to watch out for. I was offered an exchange and the second version seen here is absolutely fine.
Articulation is excellent on the Mk III with 18 points of articulation overall. All the joints on the body are pinless so the overall look of the figure is sleeker and without any visible joints, with each point of articulation designed around the flow and layout of the Iron-Man suit itself.
Iron-Man can kneel, stand, pose to fire his various arm weaponry, and also get into flight posing with an appropriate after-market stand. Every joint is tight and secure and engineered so that nothing hinders the joints when moved including the shoulder armour which actually sits on a flexible rubberised hinge so it moves up and down with the arm movement.
The Infinity Sage release of the Mk III Iron-Man gives us this very important version of Tony Stark for the MCU to display with the Iron-Monger and Obadiah Stane. Like the Mk7 from a couple of years back, it fixes the older Iron-Man suit under-sizing issue and creates a very nice looking suit at the £25 price point that articulates well, and has a couple of posing options - including that unmasked Tony Stark head which is a brilliant likeness.
The suit also provides some future hope of a Mk II all silver variant and parts can then be utilised for more Hall of Armour models going forward. A recommended purchase.
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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...