As the littlest-toyline-that-could gets swallowed up sometimes in the hustle and bustle of other, larger lines, I’m going to take a minute to focus some attention on two figures that represent two of the better MU figures to come along, one quite a bit older, one a bit more recent. One that was a great sign of things to come, another a great sign of the heights a 4 incher can achieve.
Dr. Strange
When big baddies like Dormammu or Nightmare start bugging the Marvel Universe, there’s only one guy the other heroes can depend on to swoop in, throw the devil horns and lay down some serious mystical mumbo-jumbo to send the interdimensional despots back where they came from: Dr. Strange. Well, the Doctor is finally in and he takes Marvel Universe figures in an exciting new direction.
Every so often, there’s a figure that comes along that makes every argument you hear about “4 inch figures are inferior to 6 inch figures” completely untrue. For a character not usually depicted as extraordinarily acrobatic, Dr. Strange could have been put out with only the basic amount of articulation points. But instead, he features 28 points of articulation! That is some serious articulating.
For the ever-increasing price of toys nowadays, I like mine to be fully functional and unrestricted. To be blunt, I want my toys to move. I’ve never been a fan of the argument that if some figure isn’t a ninja they don’t need this joint or that joint. Give me movement. I want these little guys to dance the forbidden dance, or at the least pull off every superheroic pose that they may be called on to wring out of their tiny bodies.
The one pose (mentioned previously) that is a trademark of the good Doctor is his signature extended pinkie-index-thumb gesture. Both of Strange’s hands are sculpted in that pose, and while ordinarily I like a nice fist on some of my figures, for Dr. Strange I’ll make an exception, because he comes well equipped with not only wrist swivels but hinges, which allows even more versatility to battle the hoary hosts of hoggoth, or the bearded ladies of Bismarck. Neither of which are fun at parties. And for Strange and Strange alone, two is definitely better than one.
Another bright spot in Strange’s articulation is his ankles. Ankle tilts! Yep, Strange can now spread his legs and keep both feet flat on the ground, adding an entirely new layer of stability to the MU figures. No more is the entire nuance of a particular pose ruined by the rickety nature of balancing on the side of a figure’s foot. I’m hoping this is one point that becomes standard, because I’m imagining a brand new Silver Surfer astride his board with this new articulation point in place and it’s a more than welcome image.
I could mention the great hips or the calf swivels that increase his playability even more, but let’s turn out attention elsewhere for a bit: the look.
Strange has a very unique look that can’t be slapped onto a basic body. He needs the puffy shirt and the puffy sleeves if he’s going to be Dr. Strange, and he’s fully equipped with both. His paints are clean: there was no slop or spillover on the symbol on my figure’s puffy shirt. He’s got a touch of grey in his hair for that distinguished look. His face evokes what Stephen Strange is to me: calm yet determined, with one eyebrow cocked. When he’s got that eyebrow cocked, you know he means business.
His cape has a nice flexibility to it and the size is just right—it doesn’t swallow him like previous attempts at the character. The edging has sculpted details with gold accents, and he’s got a great looking eye of Agamotto.
If anything about the figure could be improved, it would be the color the wrist joints were cast in. The gold paint has an unfortunate tendency to flake off, and the joints underneath are cast in blue. If they were cast in a yellowish color (if not gold) then it wouldn’t be as noticeable. But it’s a minor quibble on an otherwise great looking and functioning figure.
Juggernaut
Everyone has their favorite villain. Maybe you’re a Dr. Doom guy, or the Green Goblin ranks number one on your list. Maybe you’re the largest Paste Pot Pete fan in the world. (He does have the greatest name in all of marvel villainy, after all. Who could blame you?)
But for me, of all the villains, bad guys, no-goodniks and perpetrators of pernicious predicaments (if I may channel my inner Stan there for a minute), the Juggernaut stands alone.
I’ve always been a fan of characters whose main power is just sheer brute strength, and Juggernaut is unmatched in that department. Nothing stops the Juggernaut, after all. What use would such a tagline be if something actually stopped him, Right? Nothing can stop him, because he says so.
Let’s try not to think about all the times he’s actually been stopped, though. I know I don’t.
Since he’s my favorite villain, and therefore arrives saddled with such high expectations, could his Marvel Universe figure really stack up?
With complete certainty, I can say that I’m more pleased with this version of Juggernaut than I have been with any other. How can that be when there have been plenty of other versions of him made? It’s simple: this is my Juggernaut. He’s about as close as a toy can get to being the version Spidey attempted to stop from kidnapping Madame Web in Amazing Spider-man 229 and 230, one of my favorite treatments of the character, where he’s a force of nature and Spidey is just that: a meddlesome spider that somehow has to do the impossible. It’s one of my favorite stories featuring two of my favorite characters, and this toy reminds me of that depiction.
What is it about this toy that hit that button for me? A few features push him over the edge and make him just right.
Important Juggie feature #1: The Helmet. Ok, so I hate the overused story element of knocking off his helmet so some psychic can do the tango in his brain, and wham bam no thank you ma’am he’s out cold on the ground. Because of that, I don’t need a removable helmet. In my oh so sophisticated playtime, Juggernaut doesn’t lose his helmet every five seconds, so there’s no reason for the helmet to come off. Having a sculpted helmet means no conehead effect, or no constantly dropping the helmet. It’s the best option for me, and makes him look even closer to the vision of him that I have in my head. Perfectly shaped, with an evil grin centered in the mouthpiece, this helmeted head fits perfectly with how I think Juggernaut should look. Plus it turns, something that’s impossible (for the most part) with a separate helmet.
Important Juggie Feature #2: The size. I don’t need Juggernaut to be a ridiculously towering Hulkish behemoth. Somehow I think I can blame Rob Liefeld for that. If not, I’ll find a way. But it seems like Juggernaut kept growing in size ever since he was drawn hugenormous appearance in X-Force in the early 90’s. Strength isn’t dependent on size for me, and I like the height of this figure in relation to the heroes he’s most likely to come in contact with. He doesn’t dwarf Colossus or Thor, he’s just a tad bit bigger, which to me hits just right. That doesn’t mean he can’t punch them over a skyscraper and then stomp their faces into concrete.
Important Juggie feature #3: The limbs. No monkey arms. No swollen thighs. No biceps that bulge so much he can’t even bend his arm. While it may seem odd, I like sleek, strong, powerful proportions when I think of Juggernaut instead of steroid enhanced swollen muscles that make him look too thick and clumsy.
So while I’m beyond picky with the look of my favorite character, the fact that he not only meets but exceeds my expectations as to what a Juggernaut figure should be and outstrips any other Juggernaut figure while doing so speaks massive volumes.
At 24 points of articulation, Juggernaut is really able to hit those “bash ‘em smash ‘em” poses and is a huge amount of fun to mess around with, or pose mid-pummel with Colossus or whomever. I keep picking him up, fiddling with him, moving him around, and there’s rarely an articulation point I’m in great need of that he doesn’t already have. Plus he looks great just standing there, something that can’t be said for plenty of other toys. Utilizing these new style hip joints on the MU figures, there’s an overall sleeker look that balls or other types of joints don’t have. He’s (very) well-articulated, but it’s not screaming in your face.
I’m a harsh critic of Juggernaut figures, and this one’s a winner.
