The undeniable greatness of getting several figures at once is a thrill that never truly dies. Whether it’s an entire team, a random hodgepodge of different characters, or a thematically linked duo, more than one is better than one all the time, every time.
Marvel Legends have put out several two-packs recently that have done a great job at filling in much-needed holes in our collections. My favorite among them has to be the Cyclops/Dark Phoenix set, packed with multiple heads and my personal favorite Cyclops figure. The upcoming Ant-man/Wasp two pack will give us two unique toys, and, for the MCU fans, the Vision and Scarlet Witch pack will finally check off the Vision from fan wishlists everywhere.
Despite Toys “R” Us shutting down, closing off an avenue of getting these packs, I hope multi-packs continue to find an outlet. With that in mind, the following are five two-packs that I would love to see at some point.
Hoverchair Professor X/classic Magneto
I know putting a Professor X in the Ultimate Riders line is an obvious choice, and despite how “on the nose” it would be for a man in a flying chair. I think getting these two opposing flavors in a single two-pack would be a better alternative. The eternal struggle between the closed hand and the open fist just demands to be given their own two-pack. I’m in the camp of wanting a jumpsuit Professor to go with the hoverchair, but even if he’s in a suit, the packaging practically designs itself. Have the figures posed facing each other, with Magneto’s hand outstretched, and the Professor’s up to his temple. No Ultimate Rider slot used up, and no X-men wave slot used on yet another Magneto.
Classic Thor/Loki
So many Thors of both comic or movie pedigree have been released, and yet there is still no updated classic version for Thor. And Loki has never had a classic version at all. Even Lady Loki has had a figure! I think they’re finally at a point where both of these figures can be pulled off with the available body choices and some newly sculpted additions. The duo of Thor and Loki is pop-culture iconography now, and this would be a great way to pay tribute to that.
Mar-vell/classic Thanos
Every self-respecting top five has to have a low-odds selection, and this one is it. With the upcoming Captain Marvel movie, It would be cool if they did a little connected cross-marketing like they did with the Shuri/Klaw pack. Granted, The Black Panther movie had a version of both Shuri and Klaw in it, and Captain Mar-vell and Thanos probably won’t figure into the Captain marvel movie, but I can’t really end this sentence without saying “just go with this.” Getting a new Klaw and a Shuri-as-Panther only had one shot, and that was in a two-pack with some vague cinematic connections. Frankly, the ToyBiz Captain Mar-vell needs an updating, and this could be an opportunity to finally make a Classic Thanos. Like I said, this is the least likely duo on the list, but you can’t have a wishlist without throwing on an improbable-but-damn-I’d-be-ecstatic candidate.
Classic Iron Man/Ultron
Sure, in the comics Iron Man had nothing to do with Ultron’s creation, but the movies told a different story. Putting a classic Iron Man in a two-pack would free up the wave slots for all the modern/MCU armors they want to throw out there. And Ultron? Well, I’m kind of at the point where I doubt a good version that actually looks like the comic version will ever get made, but maybe piggy-backing off the Iron Man brand could make it more likely. I could throw any number of true Iron Man villains in here, but I dig the vibe of an Iron Man vs. Ultron two-pack. Really, I’m just desperate. Desperation can do some crazy things to a man.
And finally,
Hellfire Club goons
An army-builder set seems like a sure-fire seller. Just like Patton probably never said, the best way to build an army is two at a time. The Hydra two-pack enabled many to build their ranks with bad guys for the heroes to stomp on, and it’s a fact that our mutants–and our Wolverineseses in particular–need a group of nameless, faceless bodies to rip, stab, slash, optic blast, electrocute and pummel the bejeebers out of. Pack them out with different weapons to intensify the attempts at mutie-killing and I’d be in for multiple sets. “You’ve taken yer best shot, now it’s my turn”…and so forth.
So that’s my picks, with an honorable mentions to an updated classic Power man and Iron Fist set that will never happen, and a Longshot/ blue leotard Dazzler. Have some of your own? Leave a comment and let us know!
