I remember reading Captain Universe’s first appearance as a kid. And it was glorious. Long has Captain Universe been on my list of must-have Marvel Legends, and I can finally say he is a reality. One of my favorite concepts in the Marvel Universe now sits on my shelf.
Make a first appearance Star-Lord and I am golden. Yes, I have a foot in the ’70s comic books and Micronauts was one of my favorites. Partly due to the toys that were out then, and mainly due to the art and concept. Micheal Golden’s art still holds up as some of the best science fantasy stuff to grace the comic pages.
Captain Universe is a cool concept and sometimes a really well-written concept. Other times just confusing as hell, with recent reference to Hickman’s Avengers. Ray Coffin was the first documented case in the Marvel Universe of the Uni-Power and extension of the Microverse’s Enigma Force. Whoever is embodied with the power of Captain Universe changes based on when and where; in truth, any minute, hour, day, week, month, or year, someone might be endowed with the Uni-Power to fight for good.
The action figure in Marvel Legends is a good tribute to the character and one that I’m happy to have. Captain Universe uses the new base that has also been used for Spider UK (another cool action figure). The base is as tall as the Grim Reaper base but a bit thinner. This will make another great base for a cosmic character long overdue for an overhaul: Captain Mar-vell. The only issues I’ve encountered with he figure is that the shoulders don’t clear the lats, resulting in paint rub. And the wrinkles on the back of the legs prevent further range of motion at the knees. Really, the pants wrinkles weren’t needed.
Before I move on from the sculpt to the articulation, the size of the heads in proportion to the size of the figures is spot-on. No oversized heads here! And thank the lord! This figure comes with three heads: one a standard Captain Universe, one a Spider Man Captain Universe, and a third maskless bearded-up Peter Parker. Yes, Peter Parker has been Captain Universe, and in Spider-verse the Captain Universe version of Parker kicks some ass.
The articulation of the figure is near perfect, in that all the needed joints are there. But the ab joint’s ratchet seems off like it’s either set too forward or too back; the result is your never get a “perfect” placement of the chest. As mentioned, there is also paint rub on the shoulders and limited range of motion on the upper knee joint due to the cloth wrinkle.
The verdict is you want this action figure. It’s a beautiful figure and a must-have for your Cosmic collection of Marvel Legends. The base figure is new and shiny, and there are plenty of options with the three different heads. You can pick him today here:
