Captain America: Civil War is just around the corner, and it looks like, perhaps more than any other MCU movie thus far, it is revving up to be the biggest game changer for our heroes yet. Cap versus Iron Man! Friend becomes foe! Dogs and cat living together! As stoked as I am for the film, toys are alway the priority, so I am pleased that the first wave of supporting Marvel Legends is hitting now, and there is only one way to get the party started: with the titular character himself, Captain America.
If I am being completely honest, I think Captain America: Winter Soldier is probably the best all-around MCU movie yet. It certainly had the best plot, and I feel Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson gave their best Marvel performances to date in that one, so while it might not have been as “big” as the Avengers installments, I feel it is the most satisfying. So to say I am looking forward to this next one is a pretty serious understatement. I am going to bide my time with the Legends, though, and while I am over the moon with some first-time ML-entrants like Mockingbird (coming soon) and Whirlwind, this new take on the classic Cap has been my most anticipated figure.
If you think about it, we haven’t gotten a true crack at a classic, or at least iconic, Captain America since, well, ToyBiz Marvel Legends series one. I mean, we are talking the first ML ever pretty much, and while a few since then have come close and have been great figures in their own right (TB ML 2-pack, etc.), I don’t feel like I have gotten a genuine update in over a decade (!!!). So, as is the case with the movie, my anticipation and expectations have been high for this release, and while I do really like this figure, and will make it my new “default” Cap, it is still not perfect. So let’s take a look, shall we?
If you want to argue against Marvel Legends being the best thing Hasbro is putting out right now, you would be wrong. Sure, I love Star Wars Black as well, but ML is by far the most consistent in terms of great sculpts and useful articulation schemes. I know we can thank the dudes at Gentle Giant for most of that, but the ML team has most certainly shown that they are the best ever at making Legends at this point. Overall, I feel this new Cap is a reflection of that and while it makes me very happy, it also reminds me of how much I want new classic versions of characters that have already been done. After this Cap, Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, and Black Widow make it painfully obvious that most of the classic Avengers still need updates.
Anyway, this figure is mostly exactly what I was looking for in a Captain America update: he has a nice, strong build; his articulation is well-executed; and he has a great sculpt. He is mostly built on that new-ish Grim Reaper/Kraven body, which suits him well, at least for me, as I like my Cap to be built and more muscular than most of his teammates; he is a super soldier after all. His new classic gloves and boots are also well-sculpted, as is that standard belt, with the former offering a few display options. Cap has two standard hands, as well as two “moment specific” mitts, one left and one right. The standard hands are fine for neutral situations, and they are “grips,” which is useful, but, for some reason completely beyond me, the thumb is molded to the rest of the fingers, so the hands make an “O” grip, rather than a “C” grip. That is annoying because I like to be able to pose my Cap winging his shield discus-style if I wish, so I will admit that I took an X-Acto knife to them in a simple, yet effective alteration.
The other two hands are a saluting/slappy hand for the right, and a pointing hand for the left. The salute is, of course, very appropriate for the character, so it you can get some very iconic looks and poses with a simple swap. The pointing finger is something that has been fairly common with action figures, and it is usually a mark of leadership, as if to say, “Go get ’em, team!” So the “pointing finger of leadership” is appropriate for Avengers management, or if Cap wants to take up proctology after his superhero days.
The figure also includes not one but TWO new head sculpts, and I rather like both of them. The standard head makes for a VERY serious Cap, as in one that is ready to kick your butt just for bringing up the Superhero Registration. I am just happy to finally have a new Cap mask with actual wings (not just pained), but I do have a few issues with the final result. Like I said, I like the serious expression, and that is carried through with a very wide jaw, with nose to match. Now, the final production head might be just a *touch* too big, so I imagine there will be fans on both sides of that fence, but I am perfectly fine with it. The bugger is that Cap CLEARLY has sculpted eyebrows that sit just below the eye holes of his mask, but they are not correctly painted, so that I something I will have to fix myself because it is pretty noticeable.
The second head is the “Cap-Wolf” head of infamy, and while it is pretty hilarious, it is pretty unnecessary for me. If you didn’t know, the villain Nightshade once shot up Cap with some “wolf serum,” and the “Werewolf of SHIELD” was born. The sculpt and all is pretty perfect, and it is a fun novelty to have, but I don’t think I will ever have much use for it beyond for these pictures. However, if you have been waiting out this particular Cap variant, the world is now your oyster.
Cap also includes his trademark vibranium (see: plastic) shield, which is a reissue of the standard ML shield that we have seen a few times in the line. It is perfectly serviceable and it clips well to his wrist, but I can’t help but think that it is a bit small. Not by much, but this bigger Captain America build seems to highlight it more than usual. You also get two shoulder straps that you can slide on when you have Cap’s shield plugged into his back. They look really cool and fit well, but they slide off pretty easily, so just be on alert for that.
Finally, the requisite Build-a-Figure piece is included from the Red Skull-Onslaught thing, and in this instance, it is the back fin portion of the figure. I really have no idea what the Red Skull incarnation of Onslaught is, but the figure looks great, and with the upcoming Rogue figure coming with the more standard Magneto head, a LOT of X-Fans will be very pleased to finish this figure. The new Red Skull head looks perfect as well, so I am going to get to frankenstein a pretty convincing new Skull figure too.
Overall, I am very pleased with this figure, and as I said, he is my new default classic/iconic Captain America. He is not perfect, but for being the first classic Cap since TBML 1, I am very glad to have him. We have not been lacking in new Avengers figures as of late, but I hope that Cap is the herald of what is to come as far as getting new iconic versions of the big guns on the team. This first series is hitting now, but strap in, it looks like we will be seeing at least one, and maybe two more assortments in support of Civil War. Check back tomorrow — we will have a look at another figure in the assortment.
