With the original X-Men box set now officially official, it’s time to look ahead to the exciting prospect of more box sets. Hopefully every toy collector out there will do their civic duty and buy at least one X-Men box set because that’s the only way we’ll get more. I know, I know, you have issues with the set. We all have issues with things, but don’t let that stand in your way. Buy! Buy! Do you want to be the one that let the rest of us down? Of course not.
Box sets are that rare gem that, if done well, allow you to construct that all-powerful anal-retentive Holy Grail-slash-Ark of the Covenant called the “complete team.” We all want that complete team. Some of us wake up covered in sweat at the prospect of never finishing this team or that team. That’s why the OG X-Men box set is such a coup: it’s a complete team. That is some spicy mustard. But what other teams out there can be finished off or at least reasonably finished in one nice and tidy box set that would garner the same amount of shelf-appeal?
There has to be a balance with box sets with a mixture of name recognition, comic appeal, and status. That means a Great Lakes Avengers set probably won’t work. I’m as sad about that as anybody. And while I’d love an Alpha Flight set or Masters of Evil or Runaways, I don’t think they have a chance either. So with a certain level of commercial viability in mind, here are five sets that probably would work.
Giant Sized X-men
One of the most popular versions of the X-Men that didn’t show up in a cartoon, the Giant Sized team is screaming for a box set. If the Original X-Men set is a success (and we all want it to be a success) then they might want to draw from the mutie well again. There’s already a beautiful precedent in place for this box set from way back in the ’90s.
I know it will be hard for Hasbro to not include a Wolverine in this set, so unfortunately Thunderbird might suffer, just as he suffered in the original. If they wanted to trust that a set like this doesn’t need Wolverine to survive, then all the better, so let’s just assume they decide against it. So that leaves:
Cyclops in his blue spandex (still his best look)
That long-denied FA Storm — that will receive a much better figure than that previous prototype picture that made the rounds.
A nice lean Colossus that comes in at 7 feet tall (yes, the Select is nice, but way too big).
A brand new Nightcrawler without the horrible torso that the ToyBiz one had.
Thunderbird who they might stick on the Hyperion body, which would be a bit too large and would work better on that body they need to make that rests between Bucky and Hyperion.
Sunfire on the Superior Spider-Man-styled body. Sure, he could use the a scaly texture, but I won’t quibble.
A 6-figure set is pushing our luck, but can you just imagine the shelf presence and awesomeness of something like that? Of course, it won’t be the cheapest set to come out, but still… any X-fan would have to be nuts not to sell enough blood to get one.
Classic Avengers
The Avengers are white hot nowadays. They’ve had that little movie a while ago with another one on the way, they’ve got a hot bunch of comics — they’re on the tip of a lot of tongues. Even better, every classic figure is due for an update. Even Iron Man, who I know was just released, but this would be the opportunity to do him right for a change.
A good Avengers team starts with the three big guns:
Captain America needs to be on this hypothetical larger body that’s bigger than Bucky but smaller than Hyperion. This would be a good blank body good for Silver Surfer, Gladiator, classic Drax, and on and on.
Thor is more popular than ever now, so the time is right for his a long-overdue brand new classic version. Put him on the Hyperion body to get rid of these ridiculously oversized Thors.
Any Iron Man in the future should have the proportions of the Bleeding Edge body.
There’s a variant Hawkeye with his classic costume detailing still in limbo out there. Release it in the classic purples and he would make a great addition.
For the fifth we need a female. I’m torn. Wasp makes sense, as she’s been a core Avenger member for the longest of any female, but then we also need a brand new Scarlet Witch that isn’t referred to with dude names. This may be the only shot at the Wasp, so I’m going to put her in here, with a tiny Wasp figure as a pack-in.
Fantastic Four
I’m tired of buying or seeing or ignoring the existence of sub-par Fantastic Four figures. You may say you have all the Fantastic Four that you need. I’ve seen that sentiment. But the fact is that even with movie figures and all, you don’t have a good set. I know you don’t because I’ve seen what’s out there, and they all suck. They’ve come out separately, they’ve come in 2-packs, they’ve come in box sets, and they all suck. We desperately need a definitive classic version of the Fantastic Four. That means no short-sleeved versions or white and black or whatever other variation there is. Blue with black accents — that is what is needed. No stretched-out Reed. No clear Sue. No oversized Thing — he should be 6 inches of rock hard power. Giggidy. No half-flamed Johnny — the lamest idea ever. He’s the Human Torch. Flame on. Fully. I want him on fire.
Modern (Uncanny) Avengers
Regardless of my feelings on the content (and, truthfully, I need to give it a shot in the format it’s more suited to, which is trades), the Avengers are more popular than ever, and anything is better than the Bendis years. Uncanny Avengers mixes Mutants and Avengers for one of those. The good news is that this is where we can get that brand new Scarlet Witch figure. There have been a few adjusted rosters in this title, so my pick would be:
Captain America — Sure, he just came out, but this set will need an A-list anchor, and he’s got a great-looking figure (from what I’ve seen) and he’s Captain America.
Wonder Man — We desperately need a new Wonder Man, and his new costume is a decent synthesis of his better looks. It’s no Safari jacket (his best look), but as a runner up it’s not bad.
Rogue — Her figure got pooped on in a previous assortment, so this would be a good avenue for it getting to the masses. I went with her over Scarlet Witch due to that fact alone. But my personal choice would be the Witch. But in her classic uniform. Decisions decisions.
Havok — An extremely simple costume whose simplicity Hasbro will hurt themselves trying to get out
Sunfire — I had him listed in the Giant Sized X-Men set, but let’s assume that’s a pipe dream. This would be a good place for him. Any way he comes out is fine with me, just get that costume out there.
And finally, there’s one set that needs to happen. It will require open minds and dedication and a willingness to learn from a vast majority of collectors, but it would boggle the mind if it made it out, even if it was SDCC.
Inhumans
Now, there’s no way there would ever be a Lockjaw in this set, which already makes me a sad little animal thing. But taking that into consideration, that which remains would still make an excellent set.
Black Bolt on the Panther body. No more of that other useless nonsense. This set is worth it for a new Blackagar Boltagon figure. I know! His name is awesome.
Medusa with some form of articulated hair. Go nuts with that.
Karnak, who kicked off this whole Inhumanity thing in comics recently.
Gorgon, the big dude whose figure would inspire awe around the globe.
Triton. Fish dude, with scales. Come one Hasbro. You know he’d look awesome.
If they wanted to press it to 6 figures, then Crystal would be a nice basic companion to the set. But even without her, the set is still a winner.
There we have it. Five box sets that are relatively low-fuss but would be instant purchase from me, and I would hope a vast amount of you out there. It’s only a dream now, but it can be a reality if we show Hasbro that we’re willing to throw money at them.