Redundant? Nah!

As if adding in a new face for my Macbook(Gemini) wasn't enough! Let's decorate my iPhone 5 with some Tony Stark!!! Redundant? Don't think so! I think it's freaking cool!!!!!!

Marvel Legends: War Machine

I'm not entirely the type of person to go in depth blog about a Marvel Legend figure unless I REALLY like it. I guess with this gesture it's me stating that I do like this Toybiz adaptation of War Machine.

The case itself is something a lot of collectors remember Toybiz for! Transparent plastic and shoplifter deterrent! This durable case is indeed friendly for Collectors who never take their decor out of their protection, which again, I will redundantly say that I used to be one, now I am in it for the sake of getting them posed and action oriented. That and BAFs are only justified if out of the case(Apocalypse is the instigator for my BAF hunger!). And so the with that said, the back of the case DOES show Galactus(*hint*).

A rather common thread with the Iron Man related toys back in Toybiz was that the 'face plate' of the helmet usually comes off to reveal the said wearer inside(this case it's Rhodes, all the rest is Stark, obviously). This face is no Don Cheadle or Terrance Howard(don't know if I spelled that right) and truth to be told, I don't even think if this is remotely resembles all of the Rhodey aberrations with the myriad of artists that have drawn this character... guess as long as he is black it's okay. Ha! So along with the removable mask, War Machine comes with a good amount of accessories! Mostly a whole lot of firepower affect and the classic Toybiz articulated stand(only found out recently that its articulated; feel rather stupid for that). This is something that Hasbro still hasn't updated by the way! Stands and affects are a must and some imports like Revoltech are doing their customers justice by adding BOTH firepower and interchangeable hands. Still on the fence about interchangeable or articulated hands... I'm digressing.

The affects and stand does add a lot of possibilities for poses. There is a lot of things someone can really focus on in regards to what s/he wants War Machine to do! In these two pictures could just really point out possibilities with the affects and the stand. Flying and firing in plastic still made easy with this guy and admittedly, it's probably one of the few affects I find rather aesthetic in all of my brigade of toys so far.

Detail wise he is pretty sharp; well sharp as one can be with the way the 'armor' look was with Iron Man and War Machine way back in the 90's. While certain parts do look like Armor, the leggings and the armor still kind of resembled too much 'tights' rather than metal platings. That and the arms.

While I appreciated the details on the guns, the nice shine to the paint, and the affect of the firepower and all that, the scale of his arms in regards to the rest of him is a bit out of proportion. Basically, his arms are a bit TOO long and not a whole lot of angles can really hide that little mistake. The legs could've used a bit more length to him as well as the torso; that could've evened things out.

Articulation is in good standings in my opinion. There's an extensive amount of them so it doesn't lack in that department, though the way the figure is molded makes certain bends and swivels a bit too awkward. Which is of course the comparison I have with Toybiz and Hasbro(now). Toybiz was articulation pleasers and the majority of their toys looked damn good and they have always been THE Marvel Legend ' makers for a lot of people. But some of their figure suffered a lot on aesthetics and proportions solely because of 'too much bend'. Hasbro now eased of in some of the articulation(the fingers! Godamnit! The fingers!!!!) but the majority of their molds and faces looks decent(speaking of females). It's a conundrum at times, though toss in Toybiz better BAFs, the stands, and the effects it gave War Machine and a lot of their characters... well Hasbro may still seem to be inferior compared to. Speaking of comparison .... let's look at things now...

Hasbro made a lot of Iron Man one armors for the sake of milking the 'hall of armor' idea. Well, this one came out of the wood work. A good beginning since this is the 'first' War Machine I came across from Hasbro(not counting the Ultimate War Machine from the Ares series). Skinny and .... skinny.

I like this War Machine armor. It was his Civil War/post Civil War armor and during his stage that he was 'Cyborg Rhodey'. It may lack in details here and there but I like the way it looks. Still a bit smaller than the original ToyBiz War Machine though.

The movie War Machine! This is still my favorite War Machine toy. Interchangeable hands, great details, articulation isn't as abundant as Toybiz's version but adequate, and it's very movie accurate. Just add in the effects accessories and we have a pretty good toy on the table. Honestly, these two are my favorite War Machine toys.

Come to think of it, War Machine doesn't have the variants as much as Stark does; then again, Iron Man isn't one to stick to one version of him. War Machine has had minor upgrades left and right but nothing TOO big to notice; that and it was on the artist's whim half the time. Oh well. For the sake of an Iron Man/War Machine fan, pick up this classic! Got a good deal on him but he averages between $40 - $60. He is also a part of Galactus, just to hint that out there.

Hot Toys: Iron Man Mark V

The Wait: "The Coming", Day 1, Day 8, Day 15, Day 22

I have had my eyes set on a Hot Toy for a long time now. For the price they ask for, it's no wonder that it took me a couple of years to actually have one in my possession. The very first one I saw was the Ada Wong Hot Toy, way back when. I was intrigued but then I saw the price and thought to myself that this toy line was out of my league. Life happens, stuff happens, and the means became more than just a possibility, it became a reality. So the time comes to choose one and of course I'd have to go toward Iron Man since he is my favorite Marvel character as of late(has been since Civil War and the first Iron Man movie). That on its own is a few options to choose from since Stark is a man of many armors for various situations. The Hot Toys line only goes for the movie adaptations of his armor so in that case my choice is limited(to an extent). While a classic red and gold armor(Mark VI is what I had my eye on) would probably be fitting, I have always been enamored with Mark V's look(not its function and practicality). so with that, It's Mark V indeed that is my first Hot Toy to enter my Game Room!

The "Brief Case Armor" and once erroneously known as the "Silver Centurion", Mark V is Stark's portable armor that he used to do battle with "Whiplash" for the first time. While more advance and far more useful than Stark's Mark I, it isn't exactly the pinnacle of his weaponry so suffice to say, it isn't the one armor he should take to do battle against another wave of Chitauri. So a battle armor, not so much TOO useful, but as a Hot Toy, hell yes.

Again, this is my first Hot Toy so my only knowledge of the line is through reviews and web browsing. I had a general image in my head of what the box will look like but to actually have it in my hands and for me to open, well, I'll have to say, the feeling is awesome. The work they put into the box is on its own right amazing. Slipping the 'cover' off, the owner is met with a window case box that will allow him/her to view the said toy inside. It actually reminds me of a playarts' way of boxing their merchandise. Gives the owner an obvious road to keep the toy in the box, but that would be an asinine path to take.

If you must ask why, this bad boy is all about the detail. This line of 'toy' takes great pride in the details for sure. Everything about it is the detail and how every single ridge and crack in the metal is trying to impress beyond belief.

Details. Details. It is exuberant in that notion and I can't exactly fully exude just how impressed I am with how detailed and accurate it is when replicating the armor that came from the brief case. The 'fold' of the metal really accentuates the 'skin tight' armor feel of it. The separation of each piece REALLY gives the authentic look of the movie in this piece.

Another pretty stunning part of the detail is how the red and the silver really ties in with each other. The red has a really shiny metallic gloss to it and the silver adheres to that as well; the same paint job running along the face, back, the front, and the legs matching really well with the red; and even if some parts doesn't have the shine like the moveable part in the chest or the inside of the elbow bend(made out of rubbery material to allow the arm to bend), it still has a good enough shade of grey(no 'bondage' pun for that one) to compliment the color scheme.

Now I own a couple of toys that have the feature of light up Arc rays like the Revoltech MK III. While that said toy does have the proper glow for a small figure, Hot Toys' features on Iron Man movie armors with the VERY bright Arc Ray along with Repulsors' and eyes light up features, well, let me tell you, it's just damn cool.

All of which are in their own separate set of batteries and switch. Makes certain 'action pose' very feasible, suffice it to say. Speaking of 'action poses', what are those without the options of interchangeable limbs, hands, and then of course certain authentic movie battle damage?

Comes with a pair of fists and a pair of finger articulated hands that are meant for repulsor ready hands. The trademark briefcase also comes with it and handcuffs(for the briefcase and nothing else). Which of course insinuates that one has to purchase a Tony Stark Hot Toy to really get a good pair for the brief case. Cha CHING!

A complete interchangeable left arm to really get a full 'battle damage' replica from the fight against 'Whiplash' that comes with another non finger articulated repulsor hand(fingers aren't articulated). The chest pieces again accentuates the idea of armor damage. 

With this battle flawed option, the owner can really get some good shots photo shoots in! The great thing about this is again the details that goes along with it. If one remembers or had watched Iron Man 2 enough(probably my favorite of the trilogy), one can remember just how much damage he took wearing that armor. The swapping option had pretty much captured the amount of damage he took on his upper half(though the legs remains unscathed, funny enough). And I'm not just talking about the details of his armor being distorted from getting hit or scathing the ground. They went as far as making sure that his blue race suit can be seen through the cracks of his armor in the left arm. All this interchangeability doesn't hinder the light up feature in the chest, eyes, and in his hands. Though in the movie, his left arm's repulsors stopped working because it was hit. Glad this 'toy' didn't adhere with that authenticity.

It really replicates the notion that he had gone through some serious abuse. 

But again, the lights aren't deterred by the switching of body parts. Again the blue race attire can easily be seen with his other arm's flaws. Neat detail, more or less.

The other paraphernalia this bad boy comes with are the stands. Two of them to be exact. One is just a simple stand that comes with a 'groin' holder to keep the figure stable enough, and on the bottom has the Iron Man 2 insignia and then the name of the said Mark. Didn't use that stand often nor am I using it now. The other is more 'movie' accurate to how his armors stand dormant in his 'hall of armor' in his workshop.

Whoa.

Although keeping him in a good 'action pose' would be a whole hell of a lot more enticing, he is the most expensive and probably the most fragile toy I have so having him in a safer stand is probably more prudent. That and not only is this stand "movie authentic" it also comes packing with the 'light up' feature that Mark V comes with.

Scintillate the figure with such stand at a dark mood room, or simply add in another set of lights   and the display works. From the picture on the left it does show just how 'bright' the lights on the stands can be so no problem there.

"I am Iron Man" standard repulsor pose.

Mark V Hot Toys stands to about 11 to 12 inches. How does he stand up to the norm Marvel figures roaming about in your normal retail?

Next to the 12 inches Iron Man official movie figure, or the "Repulsor Power" Iron Man toy. Both have light up feature but obviously one can tell who is more detailed and more prestige. Basically, one can tell who is cheaper.

Mark 42

The Hasbro Legends for the IM3 movie comparison. Mark 42 is your standard 6 inch figures. Dwarfed to say the least.

Revoltech: Mark V

Here he is to his mini counterpart. Mini indeed. Yeah, the size difference is apparent.

BAF: Iron Monger

Iron Monger isn't the tallest BAF I do own, but I just thought I'd show that contrast since it is one of the biggest Iron Man toy around in regards to Marvel Legends.

BAF: Apocalypse

And here we have the gargantuan BAF of Toybiz's day which is Apocalypse. So yes, it still makes Mark V look small. In fact this picture just makes it seem like we are dealing with the 'norm' sizes of toys.

Overall, I'm am very elated to say that I have this in my possession. To have a Hot Toy Iron Man in my shelf is one of those feeling that can't be duplicated unless I buy another Hot Toy. Which of course brings me to the downside of things. And yes, despite it being a fantastic toy, there is a downside to this. Just like any great toy, it isn't on the genre of infallible. I have gone over the good points that it has in regards to great aesthetics, photogenic, great light up perks, the stands, the authentic movie imitation through the interchangeable parts, the height, so forth and so forth. But now let's scrutinize it for the things that could deter a collector.

CONS: 

My very first Hot Toy. I had a myriad of things to expect and a few things to be caught by surprise. First and foremost!

Durability: It is FRAGILE! Yes I should've known better but to my disdain, the right shoulder pad isn't entirely 100% what it was. The darn thing came off after I moved it 'too fast'(wasn't fast at all) and I had to spend a grueling hour just to fix it. I was bummed out for a few hours, but fixing it and having its arm articulation not hindered, well, I pretty much took solace that it could be worse.

Articulation: There is 36 points of articulation according to the Hot Toys website. They aren't lying, but it's not the BEST posing articulation. I think they probably counted the finger articulations! So yeah, you can have him do a lot of hand signs or probably even the bird, but believe it or not his Repulsor blast action ISN'T what I would like it to be since the wrist doesn't bend up as far as it should. While it is still adequate, it still doesn't concur with how spoiled I am with the 6 inch toys' ability to recapture Iron Man's trademark move. But I digress.

Price: I shouldn't be mentioning about this particular 'downside' since everyone who is into collecting is aware of Hot Toys' price. If someone asked me if it was worth the price, I'd answer with mediocre exuberance that it is worth the money. As a collector, again, it's a good step towards the pinnacle of collecting to have this bad boy in my set(again, people have different levels of 'satisfaction' or 'completion' when collecting but, having a Hot Toy is one of mine). It's a pricey piece of toy and it's not one of those I can buy every month or even EVERY year. But again, it's well worth it, I just can't justify having more than one a year.

With all of that said and just to go on redundancy, it's a GREAT addition to my Iron Man shelf. This might not be the last photo shoot I have with this bad boy, but hey, I'm glad to get this guy at the time that I DiD! To many more years with this and to the growing Game Room! 

Oh and one more thing I haven't done before....

A Stark Sign?

He came on this day. Until they make a 'Rescue' Hot Toy, this will be the closest thing in my mind to the 'Lady in Red' in regards to aesthetics. Well now...

There will be more of this coming up when I have the adequate time. I'm just highly elated that it *is* on this day. Perhaps. =) Suffice it to say, BOO YAH!

Hot... Mark V... and Silver Centurion?!

Day 22. How much longer?!

And wait, wait, wait....

Toyark Post

IS THAT SERIOUSLY A SILVER CENTURION IM3 HOT TOYS(which lasted only a mere 2 min in the movie. It's dejecting, honestly)?! I NEEDTHAT!!!!!!!!! Christmas, maybe?!

Hot.Mark.... V....

Day 15.

It's one of those that keeps haunting me. I hate it as much as I love looking at the pictures. Damn it! Hurry up!

Hot... Mark... V...

Day 8.

Wishing you were here now to abate the things that revolve around me. Waiting patiently like I always do.

Hot. Toy. Mark. V. Coming.

Without any other word to say about this....

...Hot... Mark V... "SOON"

You are so beautiful. To me.

"Day 1"

Soon. 

Revoltech: Iron Man Mark V

"Someone Was Nice This Year"

The Mark V. The 'Silver Centurion' of the movieverse of Marvel. Tony Stark's briefcase armor. I've had this bad boy since Christmas and it was one that made it into my greedy hands after listing him off in my Holiday bonanza. Right off the bat, the distinction in his box was prominent because he was missing the 'cover' of the previous Marks have. Suffice to say, he still looked rather aesthetic in his box, but as always, a figure with this much articulation and potential for action scenes is of course deserving owning a 'life' outside the confines of his default box. I had a plethora of plans to how this said Revoltech will be coming around in regards to posing and such. I was rather elated to get him out (for the LONGEST time) and do away with what collectors like me would do with something as malleable as these brand of toys.

Again, the box itself shows off some of the great scenes it can capture!

And of course the paraphernalia that comes with revoltechs are also unique to the said model. For example, this one has the trademark 'briefcase' that the armor derives from in the movie. A couple of spare hands and a stand (one that I did not put in the picture; hey I'm still getting the groove of putting these alternative items in the picture okay!) Despite it not being in abundance in alternates as my previous Revoltech review, one can still gain quite a few action scenes just with these, right? I mean, articulation in play, a few mix and match deals with the hands, a stand that will make standing up easier... this thing is bound for great aesthetics, entertainment in posing, and so forth. Sadly, I was mistaken. And for the first time I might actually have more disdain for a toy than an actually show of enthusiasm.

How is that so, one might inquire? Well, truth to be told, while it does offer a whole hell of a lot of options to make it look action ready or what not, Mark V isn't compliant in regards to staying in that said posture. There were so many opportunities for some really astounding and rather 'familiar' postures if only he would stand on his own accord ALL the time. Just acquiring that posture on the right caused a lot of mercurial things within me since it elated me to have finally get him out of his box, but then all of a sudden he would collapse so easily! As if he wasn't meant to stand or comply with my ideas or what not. Now I know what you are thinking, the stand, right? There is that transparent stand that can make things a whole hell of a lot easier, right? Well that is hilariously not the case since it's nothing but an abysmally defected piece of plastic. Perhaps I got a distorted one that doesn't want to comply with Mark V's supposed holes for the damn stand since it would never stay on as intended to be!

Believe me just getting that posture on the picture above was strenuous and a fight that I lost more than once. And to think, it was suppose to be damn helpful! Instead the damn stand was just a joke! I have tried countless of times to get him to comply with very little pictures to show for it, however the times I CAN get a decent pose is when this kind of gesture is applied:

On his knees brings stability it would seem.

 

I'm not going to deny the fact that these pictures are rather cool and it can capture quite a few action/emotion. But it can only do so much. The ideas are finite and it can't elicit a far more awe inspiring pictures when I am limited to Tony Stark on his 'brief case/Silver Centurion' Armor being on his knees and/or crouching down. The most appalling thing too is that having him just stand in a monotone posture is even a task! I tried, trust me, but it ends up a failure.

Wow the stand worked!

That never gets old though. A stark posing.

Again, having this one part of my collection isn't something to FULLY disdain. I am scrutinizing it to the tee perhaps since I do collect fervently. I'm glad to have him join ranks since I am rather enamored by this armor; just my first revoltech that has some mediocre result for something I have been craving to open for some time.

So Revoltech Mark III(Iron Man Mark III) and Mark V turns out to be the disappointment. Though I will say that Mark III's disappointment does not compare to Mark V. Iron Man's trademark armor in Iron Man 2(Iron Man Mark VI) is still the best Iron Man revoltech I own. Still, consider me blessed to even have these said toys in my collection since, well, not a lot can say that they have an exuberant game room like I! Well, Mark VIII or Not? Hm....