Much has been made on this site and elsewhere about the potential of the X-Men in Marvel Legends. Thanks to the generosity of the folks at Hasbro, X-Men Legends are once again a reality. But what would action figure reality be without action figure fantasy? Below you’ll find a list of the X-Men villains in most desperate need of a redo. You will not find Sauron on this list. While he has had an action figure, it isn’t a Marvel Legend toy, nor one that falls under the Legends umbrella (X-Men Legends, Spider-Man Classics, etc.).
This list came to fruition based on several factors, like the age, availability, and quality of the character’s original (or most recent) Marvel Legends figure; their hatred for the X-Men; and my perception of the community’s desire for the character. This list is going to be in order of need to make a controversial list (to the Marvel toy collecting community, anyway) even more controversial. Let’s get into it:
Honorable mention: Omega Red
Everyone’s favorite Cold War-inspired Wolverine villain rounds out the bottom of our list. As lame as some of Marvel’s villains are, I actually like Omega Red. I think he’s campy in all the right ways, and unlike most, he’s actually a threat to Wolverine on his best days.
- Toad
Toad absolutely needs a redo for his Marvel Legends series 1 atrocity, but I don’t think he’s all that deserving of a spot in an upcoming X-Men wave. As much of a threat as Omega Red is, Toad is not. Those of you who don’t follow modern comics may get a laugh out of the fact that he was recently a janitor in the X-mansion.
- Sabretooth
The always-relevant Sabretooth has had a number of great action figures. Inarguably his best was the Face-Off series 2 figure, which is perhaps the best figure from the entire ToyBiz era. Although the figure holds up today, it came out nine years ago and is quite pricey on the secondary market. For those who at one time purged their action figure collection (like myself), it’s time for Hasbro to give Sabretooth another go. I doubt they can top ToyBiz’s masterpiece, but a Jim Lee version on the Hyperion body will work. On the subject of the Hyperion body, Sabretooth has had a figure on that body recently, but the costume is mysteriously bland. He may be the least distinctive action figure that I own, and that is not a compliment.
- Mr. Sinister
Mr. Sinister’s heyday has come and gone, but he remains one of the more well-known X-Men villains, and he deserves another shot. ToyBiz’s version was strangely proportioned and more in scale with Marvel Select than Marvel Legends. Admittedly I’m not too familiar with the character, but his design is interesting and he has already cemented his place in the X-Men lore.
- Quicksilver
Whether you consider Quicksilver to be an Avenger or a member of the Brotherhood is irrelevant; Pietro Maximoff needs a new Marvel Legend. Of all the characters on this list, I think he’s the most likely to get one soon, though I’d wager he finds himself in an Avengers assortment rather than the upcoming X-Men wave. He’s an easy repaint of the Pizza Spider-Man body, and with some added notoriety after screen time in Avengers: Age of Ultron, X-Men: Days of Future Past, as well as Rick Remender’s Uncanny Avengers, I think we could see Pietro soon. 2016 soon.
- Emma Frost
It’s probably worth mentioning that I have a top 10 list of X-Men hero redos coming next week. Did I slide Emma Frost into the #6 slot to avoid pulling someone from the ultra competitive X-Men list? Yeah, probably. In any case, Emma has never had a good figure, and she’s only become more important in the X-Men universe ever since Joss Whedon and Grant Morrison began toying with her as a hero. Hellfire Club costume, Astonishing X-Men costume, Bachalo black costume — I don’t care, just make her. I think the Storm body makes a lot of sense here.
- Juggernaut
Many people are happy with Marvel Legends series 6 Gangly-Ape-Arm Juggernaut, but I’m not. I own the Marvel Select figure, and although I don’t concern myself with scale as much when it comes to large, powerhouse characters, I do think Marvel Select Juggernaut is still too big for the Legends line. Unfortunately, he would have to be a Build-A-Figure in today’s Marvel Legends, but that’s worth it to update one of Marvel’s most iconic villains.
- Phoenix
Like Emma Frost, did I slide Phoenix into the #4 slot to avoid pulling someone from the ultra competitive X-Men list? Yeah, probably. Incidentally, Phoenix is my favorite Jean Grey costume, and we’re in desperate need of a replacement. I do think it’s worth mentioning that Marvel Legends series 6 Phoenix may be ToyBiz’s best female figure ever, but it simply does not hold up today. It is my opinion that every female Marvel Legends figure produced before 2013 should be remade, and even some created in 2013 need redos. Hasbro has done its best work on female figures in the last few years, and I think every female figure deserves that treatment.
- Mystique
The last Mystique came out in 2012. You know what that means. Classic costume, please.
- Apocalypse
This is the 10th character on this list, and somehow it may be the first one that the majority of you agree with me on. It seems that the action figure community is in agreement when it comes to getting a new Apocalypse. If we were ranking these figures in order of the most likely to come out in 2016, I think Apocalypse probably finishes second to Quicksilver. It may take a Build-A-Figure spot to get him, but it’s time, and Hasbro knows it too.
- Magneto
The best villains are the heroes of their own stories, and I think Magneto meets that requirement more than any other Marvel character. That said, he did name his faction “the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants.” Many of you are probably sad to see Magneto on this list when his last figure came out in August of 2014, but that figure was nearly unattainable, and it was also awful. The Grim Reaper body is here to alleviate all of our Magneto-related woes. Of course, I want him on the red and purple costume, but at this point, I really don’t care. Make him the Bachalo black and white costume, or even give him the NECA 1989 Video Game Batman color scheme. Just get him out, and get him out soon.
Although countless factors came into question here, this list, like all lists, is arbitrary. I desperately wanted to get Pyro, Lady Deathstrike, and Avalanche on this list, but it didn’t happen. Let me know what you think in the comments, and discuss all things X-Men on the forums. Come back next week to see my list of the top 10 X-Men redos.