Everyone knows I hated the Amazing Yamaguchi Magneto cape. With a passion. With the heat of a thousand suns. Some don’t share this opinion, and that’s okay, you can skip this little fix. But if you’re with me, come, let’s take a look at a wired softgoods cape to replace that abomination of joints and gaps.
Hyperbole aside, the original cape is quite dynamic and I can see how people can like it. It fits the aesthetic of the line. I just didn’t like the heft or the overall experience of having to double-pose to get Magneto into stances. It was like two figures attached at the back in an awkward orgy of joinery. A joinorgery.
This is where I had an overly long paragraph going into vivid detail describing the events of an awkward orgy but substituting action figure terms for sexual acts. I talked myself out of it. But now you’re picturing it, trying to figure out how far I might have gone with it. Mission accomplished.
Lots of people pointed out options when it came to cape replacements but I finally settled on GPSlot on eBay. I had previously purchased a Darth Maul robe from him and loved it so I went with what I knew. Creature of habit and all that. For $17 this is what I received.
Deceivingly simple looking, but the craftsmanship is excellent and the implementation of the wire is flawless. The color matched up nicely while the sheen differentiates it from the other purples on the figure.
From here I just had to plan my attack. How to attach it? First of all I had to rip the old cape off, including the back piece glued to the figure.
Easy peasy. I didn’t have to heat anything, just pried and it popped. I considered leaving the back and shoulder pieces and somehow put the new cape over it but it looked like the cape was eating his head from the chest up. No.
As far as how I attached the new cape, it’s easier to just watch the video. I know I sound like I’m sleepwalking after swallowing gravel but this was the day after Toy Fair and some flight trouble. But it’s easier to show than it is to type.
And the results are worth it.
Like I said, I know the original cape has it’s fans. That’s okay, I’m not knocking you at all. It just wasn’t my thing. Like the Amazing Yamaguchi Venom. I STILL get comments of “You’re dumb, Venom is awesome.” Again, that’s cool. Just not for me.
CAN’T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG.
