Finally, let’s bring on the Marvels.
It’s hard to remember now, since so much happened so quickly, but there was a time when Marvel getting in on the One:12 Collective style was somewhat unlikely, even if it was possible. I remember writing about it in a hypothetical sense, and then being told by some esteemed commenters that I was an idiot, it was never going to happen, and nobody would buy them if it did, because Marvel Legends is your God now.
Oh, ho. Ho. It seems I may be smarter then I look, yes?
Anyway, Captain America is a logical jumping-on point, even if the guy has been anything but hurting for action figures the last few years. And, yes, Legends has turned in some of its finest work on behalf of Cap, so when asking how necessary another, albeit high-end, Captain America figure is, it’s understandable that some would conclude that they didn’t need one.
After putting my money down, and waiting a buncha months, I can now attest that it won’t be the last Cap I ever buy, I don’t think, but it could be the beginning of the end for the other I have owned.
Being another convention exclusive, there were some efforts made to make this Cap further distinctive from the standard version heading our way this fall. The biggest is this interesting Danish cookie tin packaging, depicting Cap’s shield on the lid, and inside showing a lenticular image of Cap’s transformation via the Super Soldier serum. It IS neat, it holds everything very nicely, and it is definitely very distinctive, but completely unnecessary to me. Sorry. I’d rather the regular box, and especially the standard price point, because near as I can tell, that’s the only really “deluxe” feature here. I’ll get into that a little more near the end.
The other effort to distinguish this Cap from the regular releases is his deco. Cap is rendered in a neo-classic costume, with traditional colors and the iconic cowl wings combined with more modern boots, gloves and belt. I realize that for some the preference would be for the flared gloves and boot cuffs, but this is a good look, and it is consistent with a lot of Cap’s appearances. Of particular note is just how nicely realized the chain mail and white star are on his chest and shoulders — the vinyl-like material that makes up the individual plates is soft enough not to catch or remove easily, but might be the best waancy I’ve ever seen the effect done outside of just regular sculpting. The star is actually attached to his chest directly, which helps anchor the suit in place as well as add interesting depth and texture to a detail that is often relegated to a paint application.
His accessories and features are all very well done, if not ground-breaking. He includes the usual assortment of hands, but with some job-specific ones like the salute, thumbs up, pointing, and shield-holding hands that really add a lot of character. His alternate head sculpt doesn’t really shine in pictures, but in person it really conveys a classic, focused Steve Rogers and vies for preference against his already very impressive masked head.
The shield is a fairly standard plastic version with a single handle on the inside, though it includes a decent magnet to help it attack to Cap’s gloves or the included shoulder harness. While I like the idea in theory, I found the shield magnet to be a bit weaker than the ones used on Judge Dredd, and while the feature does work pretty well, I found I did need the handle for more poses than I expected. There is also an alternate belt pouch that can be used instead of his canteen, a fighting knife that sheathes perfectly in his boot, and a pair of baseball-style grenades.
Articulation is overall a solid improvement over Dredd and a nice medium between it and the larger Batman body. Cap does have the butterfly joint the other figures sport, but his is a little more limited, presumably by the chest sculpt. It is better ranged than the Mutant Leader, but slightly less than Batman’s. His elbows are much better ranged, and the hips are completely unhindered, making him able to break a near perfect split. In fact, only the ankle joint on the boots is disappointing. The joint is exceptionally tight out of the box, and though they may flex more over time, it allows for less movement than Dredd’s which I found to be less them stellar themselves. However, everything else the uniform covers moves extremely well, with even the armored shoulders not being hindered by the cloth very much — it’s more a matter of moving them naturally so the seams stay in place.
So, with a lot done right, and only a few minor things keeping him just under a perfect score, there’s really only one thing that hampers me from recommending him outright — the pricing. In order to get this first release, classic colors Captain America, you are going to need to pay for that convention exclusivity, which I do understand to some extent, and an elaborate packaging. And some curious shipping costs, if ordered directly. At the standard $75-80 range of One:12 Collective, I would say no problem at all.
But where the additional $20-$30 doesn’t really add anything to the figure itself, I would say this is based on preference of costume more than anything else. While the uniform appears to be a significant change from the standard, in colors and materials, the figure itself is unchanged. And that extra money is a little much for a different head and suit.
Unless it’s the version you have to have. And I certainly can’t fault that, nor can I really fault the figure itself. Because while there is a little that makes me slightly less than glowing, this is a fantastic figure, an excellent first Marvel, and easily one of the best Mezco has attempted so far. So … I cautiously recommend, but only because I suspect the standard version will be equally as a fantastic figure, without the cookie tin and higher price.
