Marvel Comics and horror go together like chocolate and peanut butter, but our toy shelves sadly fall short of this Reese’s-like perfection. To combat this alarming lack of the monstrous in our collections, the Anthill is proud to present this list of ten horror-themed characters that need to be Marvel Legends. Grab your silver bullets, some wooden stakes, and a big ol’ bottle of Visine — we’re off to bag some monsters.
10. Blade (unreleased version)
Marvel Legends tackled Blade once before, producing a figure based on the popular series of movies. While the likeness was impressive and the abundance of accessories appreciated, the Toy Biz Blade hasn’t aged well and just doesn’t work for fans looking for a comic-accurate representation of the character. That said, I’ll be honest with you: I have no idea how canon this look is for ol’ Bitey. All I know is that Blade is a badass vampire hunter, and this is the sort of thing a badass vampire hunter might wear, so it works for me. I’m not thrilled to see this particular body mold rear its ugly head again, but it at least makes sense here. Besides, we’re going to need our tooling dollars for some of the weirder characters on this list.
9. Damian Hellstrom
Okay, so you’re the Son of Satan. That’s all well and good, I get that — but you would think that running around shirtless you would occasionally get, oh, I don’t know… cold? Yes, your dad lives in Hell, but that fire is localized. Its benefits should not extend to you. I guess you could cast a spell to keep yourself warm, but that seems like squandering your powers when you could just as easily put a sweater on. At any rate, Hellstrom is another easy one. Most of the tooling already exists in the form of the Bucky Cap figure, with only new ankles, banded wrists, cape, and head needed to manifest him. The figure is so basic it would actually make a great swap for classic Namor; Damian’s newly-tooled wrist-bling and trident even match Subby’s! Besides, Satana needs someone “dark” to talk to on the shelf.
8. Master Pandemonium
In a perfect world, Master Pandemonium has already had six or seven action figures to go along with his blockbuster movie, #1-selling video game, and chain of family restaurants. Sadly, this world is far from perfect and my Master P action figure remains a blissful wish. Its a missed opportunity, I tells ya. If a villain were ever created to be a toy, it’s this dude. While the above picture shows his arms in the form of the Scarlet Witch’s mystically spawned “children,” their actual forms are even more toyetic.
That’s three sets of interchangeable arms right there. You bet little Billy would put down his Tamagochi to play with this guy. The concept is just too cool to resist. Can that chain of family restaurants be far behind?
7. Lilith
Hel-lo, nurse! Marvel Legends collectors have had a Dracula in their displays since 2007, but daughter Lilith has yet to rise. With the appearance of Satana to the 2013 ML SDCC box set, it became clear Marvel’s “R-rated” characters were within the realm of possibility. Granted, Satana was part of an exclusive set, but if that’s the way to get fans figures of the more obscure Marvel characters, then I say go for it. Lilith would require very little new tooling, but would add a lot to our vamp-deficient toy shelves. Just issue her with flat feet, Hasbro — those heeled boots you’ve been using on your female figures have caused more fear and loathing than any character on this list.
6. The Orb
Holy crud but there’s a lot of black and red so far. It’s visual shorthand for horror, and, in spite of its ubiquity, we can’t help but respond to it. The Orb puts the ooky in the spooky by going flat-out Residents on us, replacing his head with an eyeball. Great googly-moogly! Its an unforgettable look, owing as much to the old Errie Pub covers as Evel Knievel. Even better, underneath the helmet the Orb looks like this:
That’s like getting two toys in one, folks! Or, to put it another way, “The eyes have it!”
5. The Scarecrow
Marvel tossed its pitchfork into the ring in 1975 with its own take on the sinister strawman. Unlike their Distinguished Competition, Marvel’s Scarecrow was actually a supernatural being created to protect the world from the dark influence of the Cult of Kalumai. Unable to communicate except through macabre laughter and sentenced to spend its off-hours as a painting, the Scarecrow was a concept that never really clicked with readers, and, like many of Marvel’s horror titles, was soon forgotten. Aside from an occasional appearance alongside Doctor Strange, the Scarecrow has kept a fairly low profile, but has a visual flair that would make for an excellent action figure.
4. Hellcow
Can you imagine the fan reaction if Hasbro produced Hellcow before Lockjaw? The Marvel board would be closed for a week cleaning up after the head-splosions. Those of us who were left would honor your sacrifice by placing our Hellcow figures front and center in our displays. Never Forget. First appearing in the now-legendary Giant-Sized Man-Thing #5 and later guest-starring alongside the ‘Merc with a Mouth in Deadpool Team-Up # 885, Hellcow is poised to be Marvel’s next breakout star. She’d make a great BaF in the inevitable Deadpool Legends line and would be an instant conversation piece wherever she landed.
3. Classic Morbius
I remember my disappointment the first time I saw the Spider-Man Classic’s Morbius figure. As amazing as it was for the Living Vampire to get his own action figure, the ’90s-inspired costume and goofy action feature killed any enthusiasm I might had for him. I still bought one, of course. Back then action figures were around eight bucks, so I just bought everything and griped about it later. Anyway, it’s been almost a decade, more than enough time for Hasbro to take another crack at Marvel’s “non-supernatural” bloodsucker. Just make sure he’s appropriately bony and has that iconic upturned Gil Kane bat-nose and we’re good.
2. Dormammu
Doctor Strange has had a hard time finding representation in the world of action figures. There were a few back in the old Spider-Man: The Animated Series line, and one in the early days Marvel Legends, but nothing much since. That’s too bad, as Doc has one of the more colorful Rogue’s Galleries this side of Batman. Check out Dormammu here. Red, purple, and yellow do in fact go together if you top it off with a burning matchstick for a head. How is this guy not an action figure yet? Enough with the Captain America repaints, lets get creative when it comes to reuse and building the line.
1. Baron Blood
Unlike the other illustrated examples on this list, I used this photograph of the Bowen Baron Blood statue because it provides the perfect source material for Hasbro. Do this exactly in 6-inch form. The bulk of the tooling already exists in the form of the newest Spider-Man body, freeing up production capital to provide a kick-ass sculpt of the Baron’s unique mask and wings. This guy is one of Marvel’s oldest and deadliest super-villains, and its high time he was immortalized in plastic. To do anything less would be simply monstrous.
Jason R Mink is the Man in the Anthill!
