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At the Mezco ToyzFair virtual event back in February it was revealed that a new One:12 Collective Wolverine was in the works from Mezco in his iconic yellow tiger stripe X-Men uniform. As we reach the end of March, the new Wolverine has gone up for pre-order as a Deluxe One:12 Collective release. The Steel Box Edition will feature a staggering 8 head options for Logan including two to recreate his first appearance look, with four more masked, and a further two unmasked with a rolled down mask to fit with them around the neck of the figure. Wolverine of course also comes with numerous hand options. We have three pairs without the claws, and three pairs with - including two with Adamantium claws and one with the original Bone claws. The set is rounded off with five different slash FX pieces for dynamic posing, an alternative belt and swap out belt buckle. The usual circular logo base and display stand is included, but you also get a large diorama base of a defeated Sentinel on which to pose Wolverine. This Sentinel base features light-up features including the eyes, with one of the eyes removable from the socket. This level of content comes with a price, with a US RRP of $155. Pre-orders via Mezco are open now, with global preorders available via your Mezco stockist of choice. The new Wolverine will ship sometime between October and December 2021. SNIKT! Wolverine claws his way to the top of the One:12 Collective. The One:12 Collective Wolverine – Deluxe Steel Boxed Set is brimming with accessories, including a defeated light-up Sentinel that Wolverine can stand atop. Originally created to save humanity from mutants, this pile of scrap metal never stood a chance. The Sentinel’s eye is removable and can be held in Wolverine’s hand. Recreate distinct looks from different eras! The iconic hero wears an X-Men issued suit with shoulder armor and includes two removable belts, one with interchangeable buckles. Wolverine features eight head portraits including two unmasked portraits and a battle-damaged portrait, as well as a range of interchangeable hands including both metal and bone clawed hands. Multiple slash FX are included and can be attached to all claw hands. A mutant with an unstoppable healing power and adamantium metal claws, Wolverine’s no-nonsense attitude makes him one of the most ferocious heroes in the universe. Checkout our blog page for more action figure news, reviews and store reports 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... action figure, news, toys, reviews, action, figure, blog, checklist, collectors,

Storm Collectibles have unveiled an Evil Ryu figure for their Street Fighter 6-inch action figure line. The Evil Ryu features a new body with the hole burned into his chest and 3 head sculpt options. There will be 4 pairs of hands for various fighting poses and a "Hadoken" special move FX piece. There are also 5 different 'Evil' FX pieces that attach to the body. Evil Ryu is scheduled for a Quarter 3 2021 release. Evil Ryu is an alternate form of Ryu of heartless, mad, uncontrollable and nothing more but a demon, Evil Ryu enjoys absolute power and obsesses with fighting and will defeat any fighters standing in front of him with no empathy or respect. In Street Fighter IV he takes on a much more menacing and powerful appearance, with a gaping hole burned into his chest and his back that bears a glowing "Heaven"(天) Kanji. Features: Newly developed authentic Evil Ryu Body 3 x Interchanging Head-Sculpts 4 x Interchanging pair of Hands 1 x Hadoken 5 x Evil Effect Estimated Release date: Q3 2021 Checkout our blog page for more action figure news, reviews and store reports 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... action figure, news, toys, reviews, action, figure, blog, checklist, collectors,

The Loyal Subjects have shared some new images of their BST AXN 5-inch action figure of Angel (David Boreanaz) from their upcoming releases which will also include the corresponding Buffy (Sarah Michelle Geller). Angel will feature two head options - one normal and one vampire - and he is armed with an axe and a sword. Two sets of hands will be included. The figure will come window boxed. He is a mid-April 2021 release. The BST AXN line is selected key characters from across a variety of popular culture. Other releases include figures from Lord of the Rings, Big Trouble in Little China, and music icons such as KISS. The figures are Target exclusives in the US. They are turning up at B&M Stores here in the UK. Checkout our blog page for more action figure news, reviews and store reports 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... action figure, news, toys, reviews, action, figure, blog, checklist, collectors,

It seems NECA's plans for the American Werewolf in London license goes deeper than the David Kessler Werewolf figure unveiled a few weeks ago. This week NECA showed off a new set of images of the Nightmare Demons in their uniforms as seen in a nightmare sequence of the movie. The figure will be an Ultimate release and will include all four Nightmare Demon head options so you can army build the set to recreate the promo images of all four Demons. The set then includes three automatic weapons, two knives, a flaming torch and a set of alternative hands. Checkout our blog page for more action figure news, reviews and store reports 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... action figure, news, toys, reviews, action, figure, blog, checklist, collectors,

The Deluxe category within the Star Wars Black Series allows Hasbro to bring us larger characters in the 6-inch scale, but also to enhance standard characters with a wider range of accessories, weapons, or effects than the normal packaging allows. Boba Fett from Return of the Jedi is a prime example of this released in March 2021 and inclusive of a number of weapons and accessories as well as his iconic jet pack. The Deluxe series figures remain part of the overall Galaxy Collection, and Boba Fett is number 6 in the green accented Return of the Jedi Collection, following on from Han Solo (Endor). "With his customized Mandalorian armor, deadly weaponry, and silent demeanor, Boba Fett was one of the most feared bounty hunters in the galaxy" While Boba Fett has been part of the Black Series since 2013, this is not the same figure as originally released or repacked a number of times since - it is a brand new figure replicating his Return of the Jedi appearance but also taking on some improvements in the line in terms of articulation, sculpting and paint apps. One of those recent changes is to cast helmeted figure heads as both a head and then a helmet, glueing the helmet over the head unless it is designed to be removed. This does mean that Boba Fett arrives in nearly all cases with a misshapen helmet. This is usually where the cheeks have been sucked in when they attached the helmet to the head - as you can see in the images below. Thankfully the shape of the helmet is retained in the plastic 'memory', so putting the head in hot water for about 45 seconds will bring the helmet back to the correct, fuller shape. The paint and sculpt improvements vs the original figure are striking when the figures are compared side by side. The green on the ROTJ Boba is crisper but with more damage and weathering. The undersuit remains the same grey, and could probably do with a weathering wash, while the gauntlets change from green to red. The various decals are applied to the chest left pauldron,and helmet and the dent in said helmet is now less pronounced. The whole posture and proportions of Boba look better on the new figure, the old one being a little bow-legged thanks to the hip joints. The soft-goods cape has been lost and replaced with a better shaped and smaller green soft plastic option. The first of Boba's add-ons is his jetpack which connects to the back of the body by way of three sockets - one central and two above corresponding into the sculpted straps. The fit on this is pretty poor as the chest piece has a rubber overcoat that means the holes don't quite line up - similar to what we saw with Mando and his slung rifle. Even when you do get the sockets lined up and engaged the jetpack is not a secure fit and will drop off too easily for my liking. There has been some discussion over the colouring of the Jet Pack which is quite bright with blue and yellow tones. The actual colour of Fett's Jet Pack in Return of the Jedi is very much a point of opinion, depending on the shot and the lighting. This Hasbro figure has gone a little too bright on the blue and the yellow should be closer to the orange used on the pauldrons. A neat addition to the Jet Pack this time round is the rocket which is an individual piece that slots in at the top of the pack. You also get two FX jet flame pieces that slot into the thrusters to simulate flight options. These are a little bit snug in their fit and with the thrusters themselves articulation and sitting on a relatively slim arm connecting to the main body of the pack you do need to be careful when inserting these. Boba Fett looks great when added to an aftermarket flight stand, with and without the thruster effects. Another flame FX piece is the flame thrower that is cast and shaped to slot on his left arm flame thrower barrell. The fit is well engineered and the piece has been sized appropriately so that Fett can hold it up when posed and that it isn't so big as to pull the figure over as we saw with some poses of the Incinerator Trooper. Another wrist device is the grappling hook on the right arm. The early promo art showed this coming out of the wrist gauntlet itself. This has been dumbed down for the actual figure and is executed by way of a circular clip that goes over the wrist. This then leaves the soft goods rope loose trailing out of the back of the piece. The only real option for display would be to connect the rope piece to a figure that Boba is capturing such as Luke, but in this instance, the rope is too short to be of any use. I'd have preferred the original option, even if that was a static plastic piece to recreate the moment it has was shot. Boba comes with two versions of his EE-13 Blaster Rifle. The first of these is the full blaster which is one of the best weapons I've seen in the Black Series in terms of both the detail in the sculpt, but also the paint finish. You are then provided with a second version that has been severed across the barrel by Luke's lightsaber. The two pieces do connect to a full weapon with some yellow paint around the cut to reflect the superheated metal. Boba has a total articulation count of 22 points of articulation, including the dual joint neck and butterfly shoulders. It also has a new elbow combination that I have not noticed before with a single joint elbow that rotates, and a second shaped rotation just above to keep the arm cut more natural when you do bend the elbow. You even get an articulated range finder on the helmet. Boba Fett's movement is wide-ranging and only restricted in a couple of places by his armour, most notably the shoulder armour. All the joints are secure and tight, and Boba Fett is easy to pose and articulate including some of his more iconic posing from Jabba's Palace and the Sail Barge battle. An update to such an iconic Star Wars character as Boba Fett was long overdue, and to bring us the Return of the Jedi version was a no-brainer for Hasbro. The figure itself has very few flaws once you know how to resolve the warped helmet. There Jet Pack presents a few issues in the paint colour choice and how secure it is to the back of the figure - the engineering here could have been much better. We then get into a question of value and if there is enough in the box to warrant the Deluxe price tag of circa £30 here in the UK. Had we got a standard ROTJ Boba with Jet Pack and Blaster Rifle, then I'd have been happy. The FX pieces added are OK, but not something I will likely use or display especially considering the way the grappling piece has been released. The gun could have been a single inclusion with the lightsaber cut effect, and the missile. I think the only thing the set is missing for me is a flight stand like the one included with the Marvel Legends Black Widow - that would have finished off the set nicely for me. For more News, Reviews and a Checklist of Releases - visit our Black Series Database 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... action figures, reviews, review, articulation, star wars, black series, boba fett, return of the jedi, galaxy collection, bounty hunter, deluxe

When Hasbro released the first Marvel Legends figures from Avengers : Infinity War in 2017, a number of the earlier figures were based on concept art and early designs. That led figures like Proxima Midnight and the BAF Cull Obsidian to be quite a bit different in figure form than what actually turned up on screen in Infinity War. In 2020 Hasbro announced their intention to right a few of these figures with a new exclusive set called The Children of Thanos. The set, exclusive to Amazon, would include screen accurate figures of Cull Obsidian and Proxima Midnight as well as tweaked figures of Ebony Maw and Corvus Glaive and a new variant of Thanos. When you consider that Thanos and Cull Obsidian are essentially Deluxe figures, the packaging for this set was always going to be enormous - but it is still quite a surprise as to how expansive it actually is. The set uses a rectangular window box format with a black base colour and gold highlight colours as per the Infinity War movie logo. The figure window is shaped and bordered in the gold with the Legends logo top right and Infinity War logo base and centre. Underneath this is a gold flash with the set name "Children of Thanos", and this goes on to be repeated in a number of other languages. The figures themsevels are arranged with Thanos in the centre and two either side with accessories slotted into the space around each figure. The side of the box are headed with the Legends logo again and then a checklist of characters Both sides include Thanos at the top. The right hand (as we look) then shows illustrations of Cull Obsidian and Corvus Glaive. The left features Proxima Midnight and Ebony Maw. The back of the box has a large colour illustration of Thanos, surrounded by his children with Proxima's spear protruding from the illustration to the black border underneath. To the side of this is the background text we see on all Legends releases "The Children of Thanos, powerful and vicious warriors, will stop at nothing to harness the power of the Infinity Stones" The package opens via the top or bottom flap, and the figures are set into a plastic tray, there are no ties to hold the figures. The tray is then sat into a cardboard inner tray that has also been providing the figure backdrop. With the figures removed, you can see this carries a design of an exploding Avengers "A". For Corvus, be careful when removing him from the inner tray. He has been packed with his cloak through a slit in the plastic and has it sitting round the back. The slit is very tight and other than cutting the tray you have to ease out the cape through the slit to avoid any rubbing or scratching of the gold decor robes. 4.0 Corvus was a fantastic looking figure when he was released last year in the 2-pack with Loki, and this Children of Thanos version tweaks this slightly to give us an even better figure. The head is a gorgeous sculpt full of expression with the narrowed eyes and menacing grin. It has a more purple hue to the skin tone this time round with golden sculpted markings on the forehead, chin and cheeks. Corvus is tall and slim and wearing a variety of ornate robes. The base body is cast in black with gloss black panels added to create variation alongside more gold trim. Over this is a robe which includes the hood section, a shoulder wrap that resembles a rib-cage, and then flowing cape and loin cloth section. These are all realised in a rubbery plastic, cast in the base dark grey colour and then enhanced with more intricate golden designs and symbols. The head and body are unchanged physically vs the 2019 version, but the paint is certainly adjusted in terms of the skin tone in the head and a crisper clarity to the golden markings around the robes and body by actually taking away some of the gold so there are cleaner definitions between the gold symbols and the robes. 5.0 Corvus is armed with the same dual blade staff/spear as 2019. The shape of the weapon is well defined and cast with a textured grip detail on the silver central shaft and intricate blades. The blades themselves are a base gold colour, but not metallic and the silver central piece does upstage the blades a little which would have looked awesome if they'd been picked out in the same deep gold used on the outfit. If you compare this new weapon with the 2019 version there is a minimal difference in the colours which were darker on the 2019 version and arguably a nicer finish to the blades. The blade fits into either hand, but is more securely gripped in the left. The right can then be used to hold the blade and pose it into two handed weapon fighting poses. 3.5 Corvus has 19 points of articulation and has a wide range of movement and motion, albeit slightly restricted around the legs and upper arms by the shape cloak. The right arm is more expressive than the left with only the shoulder sat behind the robes, while the left is covered down to the elbow and essentially locked into place. Head : ball joint neck and pivot Body : T-Joint ratchet torso, swivel waist Arms : ball joint shoulder, bicep swivel, double joint elbow, wrist pivot Legs : ball joint hips, thigh swivel, double joint knee, ankle rockers The posing with the weapon is not overly dynamic, but the figure can hold the weapon in some offensive stances including two handed posing, although that looks quite flat with the inability to raise either arm up in a more dynamic pose. The legs are fully mobile, but with the hard cape and front skirt section there is little opportunity to move the legs in any fashion other than some wider stances. 3.0 The Children of Thanos set is essentially a vehicle to bring collectors the correct version of Cull Obsidian and an extensively repainted Proxima Midnight. Corvus Glaive was a brilliant figure to start with when he was realised just last year and the set has given it a very minor makeover adding clarity to the gold of the robes and a tone change in the face. Aside from these the figure is unchanged and certainly feels like a purchase I didn't need having been perfectly happy with the original release. If you don't have Corvus Glaive or the other Children of Thanos then this boxset and the Corvus figure are spot on for new collectors with the articulation being the only issue as such having been sacrificed a little to execute the robes they way they have. If Corvus is already in your collection, then this version does improve on him slightly in my opinion (others may disagree) but its still a figure you already have that you are buying to most likely deliver the Cull Obsidian. I score the Children of Thanos Corvus Glaive 3.5 For more News, Reviews and a Checklist of Releases - visit our Marvel Legends Database 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... action figures, reviews, review, articulation, marvel. legends, hasbro, avengers, infinity war, thanos, children of thanos, the black order, cull obsidian, proxima midnight, ebony maw, corvus glaive.

When Hasbro released the first Marvel Legends figures from Avengers : Infinity War in 2017, a number of the earlier figures were based on concept art and early designs. That led figures like Proxima Midnight and the BAF Cull Obsidian to be quite a bit different in figure form than what actually turned up on screen in Infinity War. In 2020 Hasbro announced their intention to right a few of these figures with a new exclusive set called The Children of Thanos. The set, exclusive to Amazon, would include screen accurate figures of Cull Obsidian and Proxima Midnight as well as tweaked figures of Ebony Maw and Corvus Glaive and a new variant of Thanos. When you consider that Thanos and Cull Obsidian are essentially Deluxe figures, the packaging for this set was always going to be enormous - but it is still quite a surprise as to how expansive it actually is. The set uses a rectangular window box format with a black base colour and gold highlight colours as per the Infinity War movie logo. The figure window is shaped and bordered in the gold with the Legends logo top right and Infinity War logo base and centre. Underneath this is a gold flash with the set name "Children of Thanos", and this goes on to be repeated in a number of other languages. The figures themsevels are arranged with Thanos in the centre and two either side with accessories slotted into the space around each figure. The side of the box are headed with the Legends logo again and then a checklist of characters Both sides include Thanos at the top. The right hand (as we look) then shows illustrations of Cull Obsidian and Corvus Glaive. The left features Proxima Midnight and Ebony Maw. The back of the box has a large colour illustration of Thanos, surrounded by his children with Proxima's spear protruding from the illustration to the black border underneath. To the side of this is the background text we see on all Legends releases "The Children of Thanos, powerful and vicious warriors, will stop at nothing to harness the power of the Infinity Stones" The package opens via the top or bottom flap, and the figures are set into a plastic tray, there are no ties to hold the figures. The tray is then sat into a cardboard inner tray that has also been providing the figure backdrop. With the figures removed, you can see this carries a design of an exploding Avengers "A". 4.0 Ebony Maw is essentially the same figure sculpt as the original released in 2019 with one crucial update. This new Children of Thanos release has seen the back of his head and hair re-sculpted which does wonders for the overall look of the character and brings him much more screen accurate to his Infinity War appearance. With the shape of the head corrected, the skin tone is taken to a grey colour with deep set dark eyes and a frowning mouth. The costume is made up of a textured base suit with overlaid panels in grey and trimmed in bright gold. The robes are much darker then the original 2019 release, which gives Ebony Maw a more sinister look and again matches more closely with the character we see on screen. The paint application across the figure is good, with clean lines on the various grey panels and a defined and crisp application of the gold trims. When you compare the 2019 version to this 2020 version you can see the enormous difference the hair piece makes to the look of the head and the overall figure. It takes a disappointing figure to a really great looking one and why on earth Hasbro couldn't have brought us this version originally considering this figure was released well after Infinity War and therefore the usual issue of concept art / early designs would not apply. 4.5 As per his role on screen, Ebony Maw is not packed with any accessories. He did not use any weapons on screen that could have been included, but considering that he levitates around quite a bit in Infinity War - a flight stand would have been a welcome inclusion. The other potential inclusion, as I mentioned in the review of the 2019 figure, would have been an alternative hand with the finger raised in the shushing motion that the character displays in the movie in such a sinister fashion. Maw, for such a tall figure, is really well articulated with 18 points of articulation in total. These are all unrestricted as such with full motion. Head - ball joint with pivot Body - torso ball joint Arms - ball joint shoulders, bicep swivel, double jointed elbows, pivot wrist Legs - ball joint hips, thigh swivel, single joint knee, ankle rocker The arms, long and slim as they are, allow for some expressive poses including being able to touch his own head. The head moves on the neck joint with good rotation and with the ability to tilt for further expressions. The torso joint adds a little motion to the upper body, but Maw stands so incredibly upright that using it ends up throwing the look of the figure. Legs are fully mobile, with the rubberised skirt moving with the legs to some extent. Maw stands well enough with what sounds like a robust ratchet on the ankle rockers. 4.0 I must admit that when I first looked at the Children of Thanos set I saw very little change in Ebony Maw from the promo shots, and was more looking forward to the update to Cull Obsidian and the Proxima Midnight repaint over any of the other figures. It is therefore a pleasant surprise to see that Hasbro have accepted there were issues with the first Maw release and have used the set as an opportunity to correct. The addition of the hair at the back of the head does wonders for the figure and he looks fantastic now compared to the older figure which was a little lacklustre and was relegated to the very back of my shelf. The Children of Thanos exclusive set is very much the definitive versions of the Black Order and while Ebony Maw has much less extensive updates than Cull Obsidian or Proxima Midnight, the work done does improve the figure ten fold and he is a real surprise star of the set for me. I score the Children of Thanos Ebony Maw a total of 4.5 For more News, Reviews and a Checklist of Releases - visit our Marvel Legends Database 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... action figures, reviews, review, articulation, marvel. legends, hasbro, avengers, infinity war, thanos, children of thanos, the black order, cull obsidian, proxima midnight, ebony maw, corvus glaive.

When Hasbro released the first Marvel Legends figures from Avengers : Infinity War in 2017, a number of the earlier figures were based on concept art and early designs. That led figures like Proxima Midnight and the BAF Cull Obsidian to be quite a bit different in figure form than what actually turned up on screen in Infinity War. In 2020 Hasbro announced their intention to right a few of these figures with a new exclusive set called The Children of Thanos. The set, exclusive to Amazon, would include screen accurate figures of Cull Obsidian and Proxima Midnight as well as tweaked figures of Ebony Maw and Corvus Glaive and a new variant of Thanos. When you consider that Thanos and Cull Obsidian are essentially Deluxe figures, the packaging for this set was always going to be enormous - but it is still quite a surprise as to how expansive it actually is. The set uses a rectangular window box format with a black base colour and gold highlight colours as per the Infinity War movie logo. The figure window is shaped and bordered in the gold with the Legends logo top right and Infinity War logo base and centre. Underneath this is a gold flash with the set name "Children of Thanos", and this goes on to be repeated in a number of other languages. The figures themsevels are arranged with Thanos in the centre and two either side with accessories slotted into the space around each figure. The side of the box are headed with the Legends logo again and then a checklist of characters Both sides include Thanos at the top. The right hand (as we look) then shows illustrations of Cull Obsidian and Corvus Glaive. The left features Proxima Midnight and Ebony Maw. The back of the box has a large colour illustration of Thanos, surrounded by his children with Proxima's spear protruding from the illustration to the black border underneath. To the side of this is the background text we see on all Legends releases "The Children of Thanos, powerful and vicious warriors, will stop at nothing to harness the power of the Infinity Stones" The package opens via the top or bottom flap, and the figures are set into a plastic tray, there are no ties to hold the figures. The tray is then sat into a cardboard inner tray that has also been providing the figure backdrop. With the figures removed, you can see this carries a design of an exploding Avengers "A". 4.0 Cull Obsidian is now presented in his full armoured look as seen in Infinity War as he faced down Iron-Man and Doctor Strange and before he lost his hand and replaced it with the chain weapon. The head sculpt is very good with the overhanding brow, sunken eyes and reptilian skin tone all really well painted. The same reptilian sin texture is used on the neck and arms, coloured in a base brown with darker segments painted on the protruding scales sections. In contrast the armour is smooth with some curved line patterns across the chest - cast in grey and with red highlights. The pauldron on the right arm is strapped across the chest and then around the top of the arm and is in a variant shade of grey with some throwing blades of sorts tucked at one side. The upper shoulder armour includes a large gold section and a final top studded piece. The skirt section is similar to the concept Cull, but is now more ornate with an angular central silver segmented section and two golden clasps either side. From one of these hangs a sash in the Captain Marvel colours (never fully explored) and this is painted in red, gold and blue. The leg armour continues the same design as the chest with rounded lines and panels and all finished in grey - but with some silver trim around the shins and on the two knee panels. When you compare our new Cull Obsidian to the original Build-a-Figure from 2018, you can see the extent to which Hasbro have changed the figure for this new Children of Thanos release. The head is the same, although painted quite differently with a lighter tone on the face and teeth. The left arm is a direct re-use, while the right has been tweaked to remove the original forearm armoured panel. The rest of the body is therefore new, so a substantial update for the figure. 5.0 The original Cull came with a more traditional shaped hammer, another concept / preliminary design, while the new one is updated with his complex hammer come scythe. The piece is cast in a dark grey plastic with a real depth in the sculpt with varying pieces of connecting gears, links and riveted panels. The handle tapers out to a shaped end, while the blade extends out to either side with the larger end curving round with flat top piece. The weapon is crying out for some additional paint apps in terms of silver dry brushing or similar to really do that sculpt justice. Unfortunately the hands have not been reshaped for the new weapon (they didn't even hold the old one very well) and the hammer come axe is a little tricky to pose with Cull. It will fit in the right hand and can be cupped in the left hand under the blade - although this pose is quite loose. Cull actually holds the weapon more securely with his left hand, although this is not his dominant hand based on what we see on screen. 4.0 Cull Obsidian has a total articulation count of 19 points of articulation, comparable to a normal figure in the line. However, with his stature and musculature and with the addition now of armoured panels, you wont find Cull that easy to pose. Head : ball joint neck with pivot Body : torso ball joint, waist swivel Arms : ball joint shoulder, bicep swivel, single joint elbow, wrist pivot Legs : ball joint hips, thigh swivel, double joint knees, ankle rocker The head will rotate but as it turns sideways the shape of the neck forces it upwards which limits the positioning. The torso ball joint has a lot of backward movement but limited forward lean and the waist joint has to support the movement to either side to keep the lines of the armour in place. The arms are quite limited with a single elbow that does not go much beyond 45 degrees. The bicep swivel adds some side movement in the absence of any elbow rotation. The shoulders cant be raised up by much due to the armour on the right and the shape of the shoulder on the left. And like the arms, the legs are held in check with the armour - much more so than the older figure and its looser fitting waist armour piece. The knees are fully mobile but with motion above them at the hips and below at the ankle rocker limited there is not a large amount they can do other than wider stances. The ankle rockers are too held in place by the shin armour, but all secure and do well to hold up the sheer bulk of Cull Obsidian in a number of poses. 3.0 Cull Obsidian is one of a handful of MCU figures Hasbro based on concept / preliminary designs only for them to be changed by the time the movie released. The desire by Hasbro to go back and re-release these is commendable and they have done a great job of Cull Obsidian in terms of the look of the figure and the new weapon. The articulation was never going to be extensive for such a huge bulky character, but it is a shame that the hands have not been tweaked to hold the new bladed weapon a little more comfortably. While Cull Obsidian himself is a fantastic update, the fact he is packed in with such a large set and requires collectors to double-dip on the other characters, even with their minor paint updates. I wonder how financially viable it was / wasn't to release Cull on his own in a Deluxe release. That being said, the packaging while large is good looking and avoids the temptation of other multi pack exclusives to include sleeves or fold out panels and therefore shows off all five figures beautifully. I score the Children of Thanos Cull Obsidian a total of 4.0 For more News, Reviews and a Checklist of Releases - visit our Marvel Legends Database 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... action figures, reviews, review, articulation, marvel. legends, hasbro, avengers, infinity war, thanos, children of thanos, the black order, cull obsidian, proxima midnight, ebony maw, corvus glaive.

When Hasbro released the first Marvel Legends figures from Avengers : Infinity War in 2017, a number of the earlier figures were based on concept art and early designs. That led figures like Proxima Midnight and the BAF Cull Obsidian to be quite a bit different in figure form than what actually turned up on screen in Infinity War. In 2020 Hasbro announced their intention to right a few of these figures with a new exclusive set called The Children of Thanos. The set, exclusive to Amazon, would include screen accurate figures of Cull Obsidian and Proxima Midnight as well as tweaked figures of Ebony Maw and Corvus Glaive and a new variant of Thanos. When you consider that Thanos and Cull Obsidian are essentially Deluxe figures, the packaging for this set was always going to be enormous - but it is still quite a surprise as to how expansive it actually is. The set uses a rectangular window box format with a black base colour and gold highlight colours as per the Infinity War movie logo. The figure window is shaped and bordered in the gold with the Legends logo top right and Infinity War logo base and centre. Underneath this is a gold flash with the set name "Children of Thanos", and this goes on to be repeated in a number of other languages. The figures themsevels are arranged with Thanos in the centre and two either side with accessories slotted into the space around each figure. The side of the box are headed with the Legends logo again and then a checklist of characters Both sides include Thanos at the top. The right hand (as we look) then shows illustrations of Cull Obsidian and Corvus Glaive. The left features Proxima Midnight and Ebony Maw. The back of the box has a large colour illustration of Thanos, surrounded by his children with Proxima's spear protruding from the illustration to the black border underneath. To the side of this is the background text we see on all Legends releases "The Children of Thanos, powerful and vicious warriors, will stop at nothing to harness the power of the Infinity Stones" The package opens via the top or bottom flap, and the figures are set into a plastic tray, there are no ties to hold the figures. The tray is then sat into a cardboard inner tray that has also been providing the figure backdrop. With the figures removed, you can see this carries a design of an exploding Avengers "A". 4.0 The first figure of Proxima Midnight, like Cull Obsidian, was based heavily on early art and concepts for the character and while the sculpt was not far off accurate the colour pallet was very wrong. This new Children of Thanos version corrects this with a full repaint of the figure to a screen accurate look. The head has now been re-sculpted, or at the very least heavily retooled around the nose and mouth. The skin tone is toned back to a pale, sickly skin tone with visible scar on the right cheek and black stripe down the chin. The same black is used around the eyes which look out from beneath the ridged brow and those curved horns that stretch up and round into the hairline where the hair is dialled back to a dark blue/black finish. The costume is darker and more menacing, with the a body suit that is textured with swirling designs and lines throughout. The white segments from the old figure have been moved to a dark grey The costume is darker and more menacing, with the a body suit that is textured with swirling designs and lines throughout. The white segments from the old figure have been moved to a dark grey. The armoured sections from the left shoulder and right leg are now a steely metallic finish. The extent of Proxima's full décor makeover to align with her onscreen look is striking when you compare new and old side by side. The updated head takes the figure to another level and coupled with the repainted body, this is very much the definitive Proxima for your MCU display. 4.5 Proxima still includes her pronged spear weapon, and this has been updated too from the original inaccurate bronze to a sleek steel finish. The blades of each prong at both ends have been painted in an electric blue to reflect the energy blade seen on screen - although it is perhaps still too dull a tone to carry that off. The spear fits into the right hand of Proxima for posing and the left, while can be used for support for two handed poses. It might have been good to get a gripping hand extra on the left to help with the more dynamic spear poses. And the upgrades don't end there. Proxima is now also given her sword that she uses when they assault Wakanda at the end of Infinity War. This new sculpted piece includes a ridged handle in black and a silver blade. It too fits in the right hand and holds securely. 4.0 Proxima has a full range of articulation with a total of 18 points of articulation. As a larger female figure, there is sufficient plastic in the arms to afford her double joint elbows along with a bicep swivel and this helps with the weapon posing in particular. Head : ball joint neck with pivot Body : torso ball joint Arms : ball joint shoulder, bicep swivel, double jointed elbows, wrist pivot Legs : ball joint hips, thigh swivel, double jointed knees, ankle rocker With no cumbersome armour, the arms have nearly full motion with just a little bit of sticking point on the left shoulder where the armour sits across the joint. The torso joint does not add a great deal of movement but allows for some rotation and to bend and angle the upper torso as though looming over an opponent. The legs are fully mobile and Proxima can sit, kneel and crouch in various positions. There is a little bit of looseness in the hips which may become problematic in the future - but other than this all the other joints are secure and tight and there are no standing issues on this Proxima, something that plagued the first version. 4.5 I remember giving my first Proxima figure a 4 out of 5 score when I reviewed it, and of course this was before Infinity War had been released. Just two years later, this new version is a huge improvement on that original and it is great to see Hasbro have updated the head as well as the paint to make this the Proxima Midnight we see on screen. The whole goal of the Children of Thanos set seems to be a correction of previous issues, and Proxima is certainly a success in that regard and with the addition of the sword we can now recreate her Scotland and Wakanda scenes. My only build on the figure would have been the inclusion of an alternative left hand for the weaponry. Everything else works really well, although I suspect the articulation may become problematic over time. I score the Children of Thanos Proxima Midnight a total of 4.5 For more News, Reviews and a Checklist of Releases - visit our Marvel Legend Database 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... action figures, reviews, review, articulation, marvel. legends, hasbro, avengers, infinity war, thanos, children of thanos, the black order, cull obsidian, proxima midnight, ebony maw, corvus glaive.

When Hasbro released the first Marvel Legends figures from Avengers : Infinity War in 2017, a number of the earlier figures were based on concept art and early designs. That led figures like Proxima Midnight and the BAF Cull Obsidian to be quite a bit different in figure form than what actually turned up on screen in Infinity War. In 2020 Hasbro announced their intention to right a few of these figures with a new exclusive set called The Children of Thanos. The set, exclusive to Amazon, would include screen accurate figures of Cull Obsidian and Proxima Midnight as well as tweaked figures of Ebony Maw and Corvus Glaive and a new variant of Thanos. When you consider that Thanos and Cull Obsidian are essentially Deluxe figures, the packaging for this set was always going to be enormous - but it is still quite a surprise as to how expansive it actually is. The set uses a rectangular window box format with a black base colour and gold highlight colours as per the Infinity War movie logo. The figure window is shaped and bordered in the gold with the Legends logo top right and Infinity War logo base and centre. Underneath this is a gold flash with the set name "Children of Thanos", and this goes on to be repeated in a number of other languages. The figures themsevels are arranged with Thanos in the centre and two either side with accessories slotted into the space around each figure. The side of the box are headed with the Legends logo again and then a checklist of characters Both sides include Thanos at the top. The right hand (as we look) then shows illustrations of Cull Obsidian and Corvus Glaive. The left features Proxima Midnight and Ebony Maw. The back of the box has a large colour illustration of Thanos, surrounded by his children with Proxima's spear protruding from the illustration to the black border underneath. To the side of this is the background text we see on all Legends releases "The Children of Thanos, powerful and vicious warriors, will stop at nothing to harness the power of the Infinity Stones" The package opens via the top or bottom flap, and the figures are set into a plastic tray, there are no ties to hold the figures. The tray is then sat into a cardboard inner tray that has also been providing the figure backdrop. With the figures removed, you can see this carries a design of an exploding Avengers "A". 4.0 Thanos from this set is the third version of the Tyrant in the Marvel Legends MCU line in just 2-years. While the first BAF version had significant issues with the decor, the First Ten Years Thanos corrected the mistakes. While Hasbro could have repacked Thanos with no real update, there has been a concerted effort to give us another look for Thanos this time round and that has been achieved firstly by the adjustment to the Infinity Gauntlet into the finger snapping pose from the end of the movie. This one change has given us a very iconic Thanos look and the execution of the Gauntlet is also spot on with the bronze colouring and the individual Infinity Stones painted into place. The head sculpt is a re-use, but captures the look of the Josh Brolin Thanos with the ridged chin, deep set eyes and bald head. Face print tech looks to be in use now with shading around the face and realistic eyes. The costume is the one he wears for most of Infinity War after abandoning his armour. It includes a blue textured shirt with gold trim and belt. A pair of plain brown trousers with boots in the same colour, with gold trim and gold knee pads. The colours are all applied flatly with no weathering or washes, with everything neat and tidy and with no obvious flaws. The smiling head fitted with the figure is the original BAF head, recoloured to the more accurate skin tone. The body has a brighter blue vs the original two figures and there is more definition in the gold, including the pattern on the two sections at the top of the chest piece 4.0 Thanos does include a second look too, with an alternative head and arm included with the burnt and scarred decor as seen after he has used the stones. The burnt version of the head has been taken from the First Ten Years re-release and then repainted with the burned segments on the left hand side. There is no sculptural detail here, just painted effects. In contrast the arm has had the scaring and burns sculpted in and then painted with a darker raw skin tone you see on screen. The Infinity Gauntlet is warped and broken to finish off the damage caused by the "snap" and is washed in black to give it a worn look - although the stones remain painted and in place? The arm swaps easy enough, a bonus of the original figure being a Build-a-Figure. The head is much tougher both in terms of how tight the fit is, but also that the neck peg likes to squirm away to the back as you try to slot the head into place. 4.0 Like the two prior releases of this body, this Thanos has 19 points of articulation and is pretty nimble in his posing considering he stands nearly 8.5 inches tall. Head : ball joint neck with pivot Body : T-joint torso, waist swivel Arms : ball joint shoulder, bicep swivel, single jointed elbow, wrist pivot Legs : ball joint hips, thigh swivel, double joint knees, ankle rocker The head is jointed on a ball and socket with a further pivot to let the head look up and down. Thanos has a T-Joint ratchet chest joint as well as rotating waist to allow the upper body to rotate as well as rotating. The arms are ball jointed at the shoulder too with a bicep swivel and then a single elbow. Each wrist is pivoted even on the Gauntlet hand. The single elbow joint does restrict movement and when you are going for the "snap" pose the arm perhaps does not come far enough up and in vs what we see on screen. The chunky legs have ball jointed hips, thigh swivel, double jointed knees and ankle rockers. This lets Thanos crouch and even kneel, although Thanos does not kneel for anyone. Being so big and stocky Thanos stands perfectly well. 4.0 This is the 4th MCU Thanos we have been given in the past 2-years, and while the first BAF did need correcting the replacement from the First Ten Years went most of the way to giving us a definitive Mad Tyrant for our Infinity War display - with the armoured version released for Endgame providing an alternative look. Hasbro have therefore taken this exclusive box-set release opportunity to tweak Thanos with two looks we have not had before in figure scale. The first is to give us a Gauntlet poses in that iconic "snap" pose, something neither previous version has done and that alone does wonders for the display options for Thanos. The more extensive burns are perhaps something we may not have considered needing but this "after snap" version does work pretty well - although the head would have been better with the sculpted damage like the arm and not just a paint application. I scored the First Ten Years Thanos a 4.0 when it was released, and this Children of Thanos version gets the same overall score. It delivers the same in terms of décor, sculpt and articulation but is different enough for collectors who fork out for the set so not to feel out done. Of course the main reasons for the set are the updates to Proxima Midnight and Cull Obsidian and the less obvious (but brilliant) tweak to Ebony Maw. I do wonder then if Thanos is crucial to the set or if the pack could have been a less expensive 4-pack? For more News, Reviews and a Checklist of Releases - visit our Marvel Legends Database 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... action figures, reviews, review, articulation, marvel. legends, hasbro, avengers, infinity war, thanos, children of thanos, the black order, cull obsidian, proxima midnight, ebony maw, corvus glaive.

The NECA 40th Anniversary Series of Alien figures were announced originally as 3 waves of 3 figures, and have since been extended with a 4th wave of figures. The Anniversary line re-released and tweaked older Alien figures from NECA as well as filled a few key gaps such as Brett and Parker in Series 2. Series 3 added a further new figure in the shape of Ash, as well as revisiting Kane - now with the likeness rights for the John Hurt head. Series 3 was originally planned for 2020, but was pushed back into February 2021. The Alien line from NECA has predominantly been packed in clamshell packaging to date, with a few recent Ultimate items then boxed. The 40th Anniversary line changes direction from both of these with a window box based on the original Kenner packaging from their 1979 Alien release. This uses a blue background with a black trim and the same logo from the Kenner box with a Big Chap on a red shaped background above a white text ALIEN logo. The figure window is bordered on three sides and wraps the top flap of the box. The Alien log cuts into the base of the window and below this is the character name and the NECA logo, and this too is inspired by the Kenner logo. The right hand spine carries the 40th Anniversary logo and character name, while the left hand has an image of the figure topped by the Kenner Alien logo and with another 40th Anniversary logo beneath the image. There is a further figure image on the back along with some generic background text for the movie - rather than the figure. "IN SPACE, NO-ONE CAN HEAR YOU SCREAM" "IN A REMOTE REGION OF THE GALAXY, THE UNITED STATES SPACE TUG, NOSTROMO, CARRYING A CARGO OF MINERAL ORE, MAKES ITS RETURN JOURNEY TO EARTH. THE SHIP'S CREW - FIVE MEN, TWO WOMEN AND A CAT - ARE AWAKENED FROM THEIR HYPERSLEEP CHAMBERS WHEN MOTHER, THE ON BOARD COMPUTER, MONITORS A STRANGE TRANSMISSION. ACCORDING TO COMPANY LAW, THE CREW MUST INVESTIGATE ANY SIGNAL INDICATING POSSIBLE INTELLIGENT LIFE. WHAT STARTS AS A ROUTINE SEARCH MISSION QUICKLY ESCALATES INTO A NIGHTMARE OF UNIMAGINABLE TERROR WHEN THE CREW DISCOVERS AND BRINGS ABOARD AN EXTRATERRESTRIAL LIFEFORM." Under this background text sits a checklist of the other 8 figures in the 40th Anniversary series. These are shown as head shots of each figure but are not shown in a Wave order. The figure sits against the red inner colour of the box, there is no cardboard insert. The tray slides out by means of the top flap and the figure is held into place with a variety of twist ties which will take some time to unravel. The accessories, which are plentiful for Ash, are covered by a second plastic tray piece and are taped into place. 4.0 The likeness to Ian Holm as the Ash figure was initially revealed and then teased in promo shots was certainly excellent, but as is often the case the mass production version looses some of that magic and what we get is a slightly dialled back likeness to Ash. The head itself is perhaps a touch too wide and rounded and the features are less defined as those we saw on the promo artwork. The paint job doesn't help either with very dark rings painted around both eyes - although the skin tone and the shade variations around the chin and mouth are excellent. Ash is presented as seen in much of the movie wearing his blue uniform with red pinstripes and a white undershirt. The colouration of the uniform is perhaps a little darker than what we see on screen - although lighting in different scenes does adjust the colour of the suit considerably across the movie. The suit is sculpted with various folds and creases and with pockets and badges. The main body is cast in the blue base plastic with the other elements such as red piping and gold lapel badges painted on top. There is no wash or weathering to enhance the uniform or bring out the details of the sculpt. While I appreciate Ash was always clean and well presented vs the worn and weathered look of the crew, he does come across too clean and sterile alongside the other NECA figures. The uniform is finished with a Nostromo badge on the right shoulder. Ash is wearing a pair of trainer type boots which come with sculpted laces and ridges around the soles. There is what appears to be a very light wash on these to weather them slightly, although the factory was very overhanded on the left boot of my Ash figure with a large unsightly splodge. 3.0 Ash is packed with a number of accessories, including the laser scalpel and medical clamps and instruments he uses to try and remove the face-hugger from Kane. There is also the rolled up paper he uses to attack Ripley and a glass of white liquid - presumed to be milk in the movie, but most likely some fluid to replenish the android. All of these are accessories are intricately detailed, but herein is the issue as to get this level of detail they also come with a fragility due to the slim and hard plastic involved in getting them so detailed. The white clamp broke immediately out of the pack and I didn't really risk many of the others in a lot of posing - I think I will put them away until I find a desktop or similar to lay them out upon. The alternative hands included in the set give you a total of three right hand options and two left hands. They swap in and out relatively easily and the pins are more robust than some of the older NECA figures which reduces the risk of damage. The hands themselves are designed with a varying width of grip from finger tips for the medical instruments to a wider grip for the rolled up paper piece. The hands are all very stiff with practically no flexibility in finger. Don't try and force them or the fingers will break, or at least heat them up first. The glass is one that I struggled to get Ash to hold. The other accessory for Ash is the severed head covered in the white android internal fluid from the scenes after he is incapacitated by what is left of the crew. The head sculpt on this severed piece is different to the one on the figure with a slimmer nose and slight differences in the hair line. Although it is covered in android blood, it is for me a better likeness than the included head. The head android blood running is a 3D effect within the sculpt of the head, but not perhaps as pronounced as we saw on the original revel figure at Toy Fair 2020, although that was a larger size prototype that has been reduced in size to the 7 inch scale for production. The paint job of the android blood has gone from a natural flow on the prototype, and promo shots as used on the box, to horizontal white lines that are a little too unnatural and look patterned. 3.5 Ash has a total articulation count of just 15 points of articulation, this is just under standard for the Alien figures from NECA. Head : ball joint neck Body : nil Arms : ball joint shoulder, bicep swivel, double joint elbow, wrist pivot Legs : ball joint hips, single joint rotating knee, ankle pivot The main missing joint on Ash is the waist/torso joint which means there is no movement across any of the main trunk of the figure. In actual fact, the waist joint is present from what I can feel. But it is rendered static by the way the figure has been designed with a rubbery over coat making up the chest and hips of the uniform. The other joints do not fare too well in terms of mobility. The double joint arms may as well be single jointed as the upper half of the joint is hidden and blocked behind the sleeve of the uniform so the bend is just past 90 degrees but no further. I did think initially there was no bicep swivel to help rotate the arms, but upon a hot water bath I found it is also tucked away up the sleeve and will rotate the arm as required. Disappointingly, the white paint around the arm joints is already flaking after just a handful of arm movements - it will not stand up to much more. The legs are not viable for anything other than upright stances. The knees are single joint only so there is no sitting or kneeling poses, and the use of the crotch rubber sleeve means that while looks are preserved - upper leg motion is also held in check. The leg joints are all very tight and audibly squeak in protest when moved. The figure is difficult to stand as the cut of the ankle rockers is not far back enough to get both feet flat to the floor. With no waist or torso joint able to offset this, the figure is prone to falling backwards from most poses. 2.5 Ash is certainly a figure hugely anticipated in the long running NECA Alien line and signifies the fact all the main crew members from the 1979 classic now exist within the NECA line in either their flight suits or space suits. Sadly, Ash is not quite as visually impressive as the promotional images and the likeness to Ian Holm has been lost, particularly thanks to the over heavy lining of black paint around the eyes which is distracting. You cannot knock NECA for the quantity and accuracy of their accessories and Ash comes with a good amount of options. The issue is that with full accuracy comes the use of brittle plastic and smaller components and again this is a NECA figure with parts that break right out of the box. I also cant seem to figure out what hands correspond to which pieces, and the hands themselves are so stiff that there is little flexibility in holding any of the items. The Ash head is a however a thing of beauty and a better likeness to Ian Holm than the one that comes attached to the body. I never expect huge articulation from NECA figures, and Ash himself doesn't need to do anything dramatic in posing. I do however expect the joints to work, and sadly even after a hot water bath the joints on Ash do resist massively and squeak when posed and are tight enough to rub paint on the arms with just the first movement. The ability to stand is another expectation, and the ankle rockers do work against that with Ash prone to falling backwards - particularly as the body cant be adjusted at the waist ball joint to lean into the pose. I am pleased to add Ash to the Alien crew, and cant wait till all of them are presented in their on-board flight suits. But considering the NECA prices in the UK has now exceeded £30 and pushing £35 at some retailers - there are some value for money questions to be asked. I score the NECA Alien 40th Anniversary figure of Ash a just above average 3.0 For more News, Reviews and a Checklist of Releases - visit our NECA Database 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... action figures, reviews, review, articulation, neca, alien, 40th anniversary, ash, android, xenomorph, face hugger, nostromo

In the main, with just a few exceptions, the usual release of MCU figures in the Marvel Legends line is as part of a wider wave alongside comic book counterparts. Hasbro have then established a format each year of a repeat wave called 'The Best of MCU' where MCU figures and an MCU build-a-figure are bundled together and distributed usually to the European and/or Far East markets. Notable examples being the Hulkbuster BAF wave from Age of Ultron, or the Gladiator Hulk BAF wave that included figures from Ragnarok and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol2. In 2020 the 'Best of the MCU' wave was put together with figures from Avengers Endgame released in 2019 and repacked the BAF of Armoured Thanos. The wave only hit the Far East and has only been available to collectors elsewhere via import either through a global shipping option on sites like Amazon Japan, or by taking a punt on Aliexpress. The wave uses the usual packaging with the Endgame logo and a backdrop of the figure which includes the Avengers 'A' against a blurry starred backdrop. The side and rear box art is illustrated and shows Black Widow against the same backdrop. The back of the card also gives us a few details by way of a short piece of background text that is more of a character overview and not related at all to the Endgame plot. It reads; "An agent of espionage and expert in hand-to-hand combat, Black Widow is trained to take out any enemy of justice" Beneath this is the BAF checklist which shows the other figures in the wave, These are all repacked figures, and include Mk85 Iron-Man, Captain America (Power & Glory), Thor (Infinity War), Black Panther, Rescue and Iron-Spider. The Thanos BAF is the same as released in 2019. The packaging overall is designed for the western market as usual with all text in English. An oversticker exists for the Far East Market which is not the easiest to remove. While the rest of the wave are repacks, albeit with potential minor paint variances, Black Widow is essentially a new figure. She is essentially a kitbash taking the original Infinity War Black Widow and removing the head and combat vest. The head is then taken from the Quantum Suit set is applied and voila, we now have Black Widow as she appeared in the middle of Endgame just prior to her demise on Vormir The likeness to Scarlet Johannson is very impressive and the hair colour down to the dyed end of her ponytail is more natural than the original Quantum Suit version. While the combat vest has been removed the body does not look out of proportion and everything is sculpted to a good standard including the straps and tailoring on the suit to the stingers on her wrists and the logo belt buckle. Paint apps are minium as the base is black, but where colouring is needed on the straps it is applied neatly in a dark grey finish. Black Widow comes with the same accessories as the original Infinity War release. The weapon is a pair of batons that are cast in black and then have alternating segments painted in silver. Like the original, these arrive warp and are not easy to straighten. The silver paint on this 2020 version is a little brighter than the original. The batons themselves are a little big and chunky but they do combine nicely into the staff which is more fitting for the figure. Sadly there is no option to stow the batons on the back of the figure as we see on screen. The other accessories are meant to be a pair of tasers, and these are also cast in black with very limited detailing. They fit into the holsters on Widow's waist, where the fit is quite loose and you will find these falling out far too often. The fit in the hands, but unlike a gun they offer no value or visuals when held? They are certainly an odd choice and a pair of sidearms would have been more preferable - or it might have been nice to add some colour to the taser ends, either silver or an electric blue? Widow is also provided with an alternative pair of hands, clenched fists, which allow for a number of hand to hand combat posing options. The posing is supported by an articulation count of 16 points of articulation including single joint elbows and a torso ball joint which allow for these fighting stances or to use the batons in either hand or in a staff mode. The legs include double joint knees which facilitate kneeling poses and a number of dynamic poses, with a wider range then available if a stand is brought into play. All the joints work well, are not loose nor too stiff and all move fully with little on the figure to cause obstructions. While this may be a combination of two existing figures, the execution and finished article is impressive and considering the scarcity of the Quantum Suit set, the inclusion in a 'Best of MCU' wave is a nice nod to fans to allow them to add Black Widow to an Endgame line up. All we need now is an updated Hawkeye to go with her and a spectral Red Skull to oversee their quest for the Soul Stone. If this review has identified this as a figure you want in your collection, then check out the Amazon Japan link. They will ship globally and very fast - I received mine in under 5-days. For more News, Reviews and a Checklist of Releases - visit our Marvel Legends Database 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... action figures, reviews, review, articulation, marvel, legends, avengers, endgame, best of, MCU, thanos, BAF, black widow