ML Thanos BAF: Captain America (AoU)

The Age of Ultron craze keeps coming in! So with the last of the Cinematic figure from this wave is Captain America, played by Chris Evans once again! For those of you who are Captain America fans, Age of Ultron did not fall short of Captain America amazingness! As for the figure itself, well, let's review him shall we?

That shield looks huge!

Right off the get go, I immediately saw the repaint version of the Winter Soldier outfit from the Mandroid BAF. But I do have to say that the contrast of paint compared to the 'darker' stealth costume definitely almost makes it seem like a different figure altogether! Definitely mirrors Captain America's appearance in the movie and this mold was always a favorite of mine in terms of durability feel and just how much things are sculpted in him. The shield still still mars the potential fun factor of this figure(and the Stealth Suit Captain America that came before) since it's too big for him. That and I'm not a big fan of the way one has to do to put the shield in his arms. Still, a good looking figure aesthetically.

He does come with a mask-less variant head and pretty much the same alternate hands as the Stealth Suit Cap. Of course there goes the Thanos leg and the gargantuan vibranium shield. Not too much to look in here.

While he slightly resembles Chris Evans, it's still a good Steve Rogers head. I do like it better than the masked version so it's going to be pretty obvious that I preferred mask-less Cap. Besides, most of my Captain America figures have a mask/helmet on so this one is a change.

The articulation is nothing to get exuberant about because it's very familiar. It is the same mold as the Stealth Cap and Bucky Cap. He has all the proper articulation that everyone loves and wants. Suffice to say, this Cap can get into a bunch of pose that one can really expect. Again I'm not fond of that shield and I think it hinders a few great poses since it is so huge. And he doesn't use a gun in the movie, so it makes sense that he doesn't have one here. Though I would like it if he does have one.

Standing side by side with his First Avenger and Winter Soldier outfit, I have to say that it's quite a treat to see his costume changes. I don't have his Avenger uniform and I have to say, seeing his Age of Ultron suit, I don't think I can stand the mundane designs of that one. Though it could be considered 'classic' since it's his first cinematic appearance in a 'modern' costume with the rest of the crew.

If I was to pick one Captain America movie figure, I'd probably pick this one. He comes from an awesome set, and I happen to really like his outfit. All in all, I think this figure would be worth it. As a casual fan of Captain America, I hate the notion that my Caps are pushing the space to the limit... but hey, Captain America is probably the shining glory of Marvel. Can't have Marvel without this guy.

ML Mandroid: Captain Steve Rogers(Movie Captain America)

I honestly did not think that they would bring this very recent Captain America costume into mainstream for a while, or at all, but here we are with the Captain Steve Rogers with the new Winter Soldier Movie and of course with a main costume in the big screen, here we are with a Hasbro Marvel Legend of him! This one is another under dog, and I'll tell you why as soon as we go over the norm procedure.

Part of wave 2 for this BAF set. The only one that remains is going to be Black Widow and as always, she will be an elusive one, figures right?

I'm going to be honest, I wasn't' sure if I was going to like this costume on the main screen because, well I was never a big fan of a lot of Cap's alternate costumes. Heck, I was never that big of a fan of his classic outfit for obvious reasons. Regardless, I'm still going to say that this is my favorite costume of a Marvel hero, but I will say as an action figure, they did an immaculate job with the details. The sculpt of the wrinkles, the costume straps, the star on his chest, the pain choice and the paint details(still lacking some shading), and then of course I believe that this is a new mold. The shield is also new and I believe it's based of the Secret War(the recent one) shield that Captain America used; a stealth based shield more or less. A clandestine operation to assassinate Latveria's female leader wouldn't be done best with a flashing American flag.

Again, the shield is a bit more a darker color so that's a good change in all the Captain America based figures I have. Of course he has a Mandroid leg and a pair of alternate hands and a head. Pretty decent generosity in terms of alternates; still wish we were provided with a fire arm since the movie Captain America actually carries firearms.

Personally, I think he looks like Chris Evans with the no mask alternate but I've had more than enough voice their opinions that he doesn't. The helmet/mask version is better anyways so I'll be displaying him with that one more often than not. Though refute the fact that it's a good Chris Evans face or not, it is still a good candidate for a comic book Steve Rogers regardless.

He has great articulation and very tight joints as well! I'm more than convinced that this is a brand new body mold so for them to have another option for male figures and the articulation offers what we expect/want then we can say I am more than happy to have it! Though with every reward given there is always something to scrutinize, unfortunately.

Going back to details, the back of the shield isn't the norm 'snap on' wrist latch. This new shield(biggest shield in a Captain America figure up to date) also has a bit more detail that concurs with how a shield would be held with the leather straps or what not. However with that great detail also comes great downfall: in order for one to actually put the shield in his hand one must take out the hand, slip the shield through his arm and plug the hand back. Easy feat if we are talking about figmas, but with Hasbro's taut and not as seamless alternate swaps, it's a bit more of a task than I would want. That and this shield offers no way for Rogers to hold it behind him and as the picture shown above(collage picture), there isn't even a hole on his back to put ANY shield in; suffice to say, he wasn't meant to hold this shield behind him to begin with. Sucks, but again, I would've displayed him with the shield on his hand anyways.

With the minor qualms I have with this figure, it still makes it a much better version than his previous Captain Steve Rogers toy from the Terrax BAF. A better articulate figure, better mold, better face, and the color scheme brings a new breath of air. Though the comic version comes with two fire arms so… yeah.

As I mentioned, definitely another under dog figure from this wave. I didn't even expect to like this as much as I do but being surprised in a good way is always a plus. Is he a must have? For you movie going collectors, definitely. I for one wouldn't have thought he was this great of a figure if I didn't have the 'complete the set' mentality. If anything else, it gives a new mold for the future! 

ML Mandroid BAF: Captain America (Marvel NOW)

A Marvel Legend came to my stocking courtesy of Santa(Well, we know what happened but let's stick to the Fat Man stuffing my stocking with wonderful toys, shall we?)! I first heard about the new Marvel Legends of 2014 that is paying homage to the Winter Soldier movie way back when. There were only a couple of figures I was interested in, this guy wasn't one of them but here we are with him! So let's scrutinize this guy, shall we?

Right off the get go one can truly see the distinct new box of the Marvel Legends series. It's rather compact, got rid of wasted space, and it's very friendly to the collectors who want to open their action figure. From what I have seen through photos and videos, the Amazing Spider-Man 2(MUST HAVE) has the same box as well. One thing to point out with the box is that the Legends are called 'Infinite Series' which gets me to surmise that this is their new Movie concurring line perhaps? Guess I'll just have to wait when the Jubilee BAF comes out to see what that one is called as well.

As I said, I didn't think I was going to enjoy this Captain America as much as I am right now. To point out about the detail, let's just say that it is very well done. Being the "Marvel Now" Captain America costume(about time he got an update!), it does look identical to his comic book counterpart. Now not to delve TOO MUCH into comic books, the costume is highly influenced by the 2012 Avengers costume. Which I had no specific qualms with that suit or the First Avenger outfit at all. In fact to me it does bring a much more modern take on a costume that just doesn't suit the day and age(or even back then). So well done on Marvel for the redesign. Putting it into action figure taste doesn't look too bad as well! Wonderful sculpting with the ridges, his armor 'plating', the wrinkles in his suit, so on and so on. Though I did get a slight pain distortions here and there, but I can't complain.

Accessory wise he lacks. He has his shield as he should and the Mandroid BAF head piece(ambivalent about building him by the way). I want some interchangeable hands or maybe an unmasked head variant as some of the new legends seems to come with. Nothing much on this department though.

Articulation in these action figures are becoming more and more manageable for those who like to do dynamic poses. Though I had a bit of trouble with the stiff left shoulder joint; caused me to wrestle with it for a bit so the left bicep swivel is rather loose now, but with that minor debacle, it still turned out okay. Again, I won't and can't complain about articulation because as I stated, it's getting good and just getting better; now there is still much an eastern articulated toy can offer in terms of articulation(and details, paint, etc.) but for the price of norm retail action figures these guys ask for, it's something to hold worthy. Though pretty soon Hasbro will have to hand out much more zestful accessories like stands, dynamic stands, or perhaps do something much more innovative with articulation to keep up with the on going collector needs.

Again some dynamic special affect like bullets hitting his shield can't hurt! It'll add flavor to this figure which is only pretty much a standard type of display action figure.

My three Captain Americas that are out of the packaging. Again all Hasbro made and all pretty recent. Between the Bucky Cap, Captain Rogers, and this new Captain America, this one is my new favorite First Avenger action figure in my game room.

A very good Captain America action figure. I didn't have high expectations for him so he impressed me rather than met my standards. Fervent Cap fans will love this figure and those who are into BAF collecting, I think this series has something to offer. The BAF character may not be my favorite(movie version of Mandroid) but some of the characters in the series does help add more ammunition to one's Marvel themed collection! And if that's the theme, Captain America is always a must in the roster since he IS the Superman of Marvel.

"Drinking out of Cups"

Alright I can admit that in this day and age, coffee is a must for the majority of us working class people (students and just workers alike). Some of us indulge on popular franchises, some just make it at the convenience of their own home, some do both; the latter would be me.  So in the process of doing so, why not go in style, right? So the picture above me is my coffee cup, one that is made with love and so much dedication by my significant other. The theme? Well, comic book characters that are usually in my radar. Now since I became a fan of DC, Batman, Lanterns, Avengers, Spider-Man alike are now in this said cup! A myriad of combined greatness if I do say so myself!!!

So with much gratitude and love in return, thanks dearest for this nicely made cup that spells 'ME'. And if one haven't been able to discern, it's the same type of style she uses on my table/s. Clearly one had noticed through the various of pictures I have posted that the table my collection show usually sit on is at a Final Fantasy based one (and no, it's not taken at a comic book store. That is my game room, duh!)

Suffice to say, I'm drinking coffee out of it right now as we speak!