It’s been an incredible year for fans of Marvel Comics’ The Avengers.
Thanks to the blockbuster success of Avengers: Age of Ultron at the box office, Marvel’s premiere super-team has never had a higher profile. The team’s ubiquitous “A” symbol adorns all manner of product: be it bobble-heads and bath soaps or lunch boxes and lolly pop rings, the Avengers are there, and this is no more evident than in your local toy aisle. Hasbro has done a great job of filling out the team’s roster for action figure fans, but there remain some glaring omissions on our shelves. Without further ado, here are Twelve Avengers That Still Need Action Figures!
12. Moondragon – joined in Avengers #151
Love her or hate her, Moonie is an honest-to-goodness, dyed-in-the-wool Avenger, and that’s more than you or I can say. Hasbro’s new “curvy” female body is ideal for the bathing-suit-clad baldie. There’s no sculpting required as her costume looks painted on in the comics too! If you’re looking to complete your classic Avengers lineup, you’re going to have to chase the ‘Dragon.
11. Starfox – joined in Avengers #243
This levitating Lothario somehow scored an Avengers membership during the 1980s. I’m guessing it was the hair that did it — every group had to have one guy with weird hair back then. Considering collectors just received Thanos of Titan as a Build-a-Figure in the last series of Legends, can more Eternals be far behind?
10. Monica Rambeau Captain Marvel – joined in Avengers #231
Miss Rambeau has changed her nom de plume a few times since her first tenure on the team, but her iconic look is how most collectors want to see Captain Marvel. I know I have a soft spot for this era, and I think that Hasbro is finally up to the task of producing this iconic Avenger. Some energy effects and an unmasked head-swap would make her long absence all that much easier to forgive.
9. Swordsman – joined in Avengers #20
During his tenure with the Avengers, Hawkeye’s mentor died, came back, and died again, and honestly hasn’t done much since. Still, the Swordsman’s terminal state of necrosis shouldn’t exclude him from the action figure treatment. The character has a great swashbuckling design that would make for a sharp-looking toy. Hasbro has already proven they’re not shy about purple, so this guy is a new head and tunic overlay away. Oh, and headfins rule.
8. Mantis – joined in Giant Size Avengers #4
You can’t have Swordsman without Mantis, so here she is. While my shelves aren’t exactly crying out for a former-streetwalker-turned-Celestial Madonna, I respect the character’s place in Avenger’s history and concede she’d look great on the aforementioned “curvy” body. The aesthetics fit nicely, while the figure’s articulation allows mantis to perform some her trademark kung-fu.
7. Jack of Hearts – joined in Avengers vol. 3 #38
A fan-favorite, Jack sports a stylish, if divisive, costume. Fans have always loved the character’s design and asked to see more of him, so Marvel did the sensible thing and blew him up. In spite of his coffin club membership, Jack deserves a figure. He’s colorful, fun and would add a bit of pizzazz to our otherwise staid collections.
6. Mockingbird – West Coast Avengers #1
How in the world do we not have a Mockingbird figure? I’m serious — the best poor ol’ Bobbi Morse has been able to was get a Marvel Universe box-set exclusive. While Black Widow gets all of the espionage accolades, Mockingbird sits at home polishing her battle-staves and waiting to be called up to the big leagues. Whether Hawkeye’s sour-pussed spouse or swinging on her own, Mockingbird is a classic character who deserves her shot.
5. Jim Hammond Human Torch – Avengers West Coast #50
Did I lose you there? I know, ol’ Jim doesn’t exactly set the world on fire, at least when it comes to fan demand. But imagine if the figure was done well? Imagine if, for the first time, we were given a well-proportioned, nicely painted, and faithfully sculpted representation of the Human Torch? Not some gangly clear plastic crap from a movie nobody liked, not a reused Spider-Man body with some flames sculpted on as an after thought, but a brand-new non-Fantastic 4-based figure with swappable fiery hands, a “powered down” second head, and a focus on the line’s modern aesthetic. Want one now?
4. Stingray – joined in Avengers #319
Talk about cool costumes and this guy always comes up. The fact that Stingray has never undergone a significant costume change speaks volumes. Sometimes you just get it right the first time. Anyway, producing ‘Ray would be a walk in the park for Hasbro — they already have all the tooling, all the figure needs is his trademark cape — and a place to swim.
3. Crystal – joined in Avengers #343
We have Blackbolt and Medusa, now we need more Inhumans. It’s hard to go wrong with Crystal: she’s an iconic Lee-Kirby creation who can count membership among the Inhumans, the Fantastic Four, and the Avengers. She’s also an easy figure for Hasbro to pad a wave with. I’m not for repaints-for-repaint’s sake, but I’m down with getting new characters on the same base bodies as long as they have dedicated head sculpts, decent paint, and some rassa-frassin’ flat feet! My Allfather series Scarlet Witch has already taken more dives than Greg Louganis and I’ve had her for less than a week.
2. Jocasta – joined in Mighty Avengers #21
Ultron’s bride. Yeah, that’s right — his bride. Hey, I didn’t see you volunteering companionship, pal. Even homicidal robots need love and Hank Pym’s #1 son set out to make himself some. Like Ultron, Jocasta was made out of adamantium because otherwise she’s leaving the honeymoon suite in a box marked spare parts . Hey, that’s a great concept for a build-a-figure…
1. Edwin Jarvis
Jarvis is the Man. He’s seen the Avengers through thick and thin, serving the team in the best and worst of times. He and took a beating from Mister Hyde that Captain America would take a month to recover from. So where is our Jarvis figure? Make him an exclusive in a box set alongside classic iterations of the team or alone among some of the Avenger’s deadliest foes. Whatever you have to do, Hasbro — my Avengers shelf won’t be complete until Jarvis stands alongside the World’s Mightiest Heroes.
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