In Soviet Russia – toys own YOU!
Actually, even if you are not native to Russia, you don’t have to expatriate there just for your toys to own you – you just have to be a Marvel Legends collector. For the love of Lenin we have been getting a LOT of Legends lately, you guys. I am not going to act all fiscally responsible all of the sudden and pretend that I don’t absolutely love it, but dang! With so much coming out, and with such diversity that there is something for everyone, it is hard to pick a favorite execution, but he 80th Anniversary line might just be it for me.
Let’s see, I have gotten two of my favorite Marvel Cinematic Universe character in Grandmaster and Korg in one 80th set, and I have gotten (probably as close to) definitive versions of some of Marvel’s heaviest hitters in Hulk, Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America, and now I am getting the version of my favorite X-Person of all time that I have been AGES waiting for in the 80th execution as well. Yes, friends – Marvel Legends truly does own me because I have to have it ALL.
Sure, we have gotten lots of the Thors, and Caps, and Iron Mans in Legends before, but it is kind of insane that this is really only the second time Colossus has hit the market in ML under Hasbro’s banner. Trust me, as a lifelong Fantastic Four and X-Men fan, no one is happier to see those corners coming home than me, and we have some serious lost time to make up at this point. The good news, for me anyway, that anything that comes after this is just icing on the plastic cake because this is figure of Colossus I have always wanted.
Yes, the Thing is my all-time favorite Marvel character (and one of my favorite overall fictional characters), but Colossus (and Kitty) has been my X-Man numero uno for as far back as I can remember. His look, powers, and overall personality have always appealed to me, and some of his most pivotal stories throughout the years have been some of my favorite comic reads ever. Since the first time I read the original GSX storyline as a kid (LOOOOOOONG after it was originally released), all the way through his reappearance in the Wedon/Cassaday Astonishing X-Men Colossus has always been my dude, and I love celebrating my favorites via plastic.
Some figures in the 80th line have gotten all (or mostly all) new tooling for parts as needed for the particular character. This Colossus vs Juggernaut set really did not require all of that new work, but that is not to say that everything wasn’t accounted for in terms of need here, because it totally was. I know I mentioned that this is only Colossus’s second real spin in Hasbro ML, and while his first figure featured a very different costume, there is some reuse here, and it makes sense. Really though, it is not much as far as I can tell, it is mostly the arms and hands, which is perfectly appropriate. Also, believe the head is carried over from the Warlock Series figure, too, but with an obviously new paint deco. This is actually hard to tell though, so might be wrong because some of the details and angles look a bit softer here. Either way, this is what a classic Piotr looks like, so I am good.
As a colossal Colossus fan, I think I could drone on and on about costume specifications and accuracies, and MAYBE even nitpick about the pursuit of the perfection still being a race that needs to be run. HOWEVER, after years of doing this whole collecting thing, I recognize that I am one who looks for iconography in what I collect. One of my most wanted Legends for years has been an update to an ICONIC Colossus, and this figure absolutely delivers in that aspect. Sure, if I wanted a straight line Giant Size Colossus, or a Jim Lee Colossus, I could mention some things like gauntlets and the belt, but for me, this figure works perfectly for my purposes for BOTH of those teams. I get it, that is strictly preferential, but if I am scanning my Legends collection, I can say that, without hesitation, that this is an iconic Colossus, and I love him.
I do want to mention a point that I have not had to deal with for my other 80th figures is that this particular Colossus does have some paint slop issues. Nothing on this one is too egregious, but the belt has some slop lines in the gold, and there is a smack of silver right on the left cheek of Colossus’s brightly clad ass, so it can be noticeable. I have heard tell that there have been some joint quality issues with this figure as well, I don’t have that here, but it is something to be mindful of as well. Like I said, nothing major here, and it is nothing that alters my love for this figure, but you know, just be on the lookout.
Now, I was expecting that I would love the Colossus figure, but Juggernaut was the surprise of this set for me. After seeing the figure at Toy Fair back in February, I knew that this would like be an upgrade over the original Juggernaut build-a-figure from a couple of years ago for me. The lack of belt and non-textured helmet were already speaking to my aesthetic preferences, but in midst of everything else that was revealed, I kind of passed over him as a modest upgrade to a figure that I already had and, for the most part, liked.
However, when this figure arrived a few days ago, it was instantly apparent that all of the small changes amounted to a big payoff in terms of what I personally consider to be “improvements.” I use quotes because those are purely preferential to my tastes, but you might feel the same way, too, if we are getting back to that whole iconography discussion again. To me, this feels much more like the Juggernaut I know in terms of his colors and design, and I’ll be damned if I don’t like the whited out eyes better, too.
To start, I like the brighter and more reddish browns used in the costume. I like my comic figures looking like bright comic panels, and this scheme, compared to the more muted palette of the BAF is much more to my tastes. Second, the unneeded belt is gone, too. Sure, that is dumb to call out because I simply did not put the belt on the BAF, but Juggs never needs a means to keep up his trousers for me, so that omission is actually plus in a weird way.
The biggest improvement though is in the helmet, both in its lack of pock marks, as well as the shape. I always found the texturing on the previous release’s helmet and arm/hand bands weird, if I am being honest. So, while those remain in the bracers (but are oddly less noticeable), the helmet is free and clear and it looks much, much better. The big surprise was something hiding in plain sight, though, and that is the shape of the helmet, too. Man, what a MAJOR improvement! This wider dome looks more like a traditional Juggy helmet and it flows better with the costume, too.
All that said, we have not even gotten to the fact that figure also comes with two new open hands for grabby-grabby action, as well as a destroyed helmet that fits over an unmasked and severely beaten portrait head. The hands are not a huge deal to me because I need my Juggs to have fists, but it is still a nice inclusion, however, getting this new head is awesome and it looks GREAT! I will likely not be displaying Juggs this way, but it works really nicely for action scenes and photographs, so good on Hasbro to plus up Cain a bit for this release.
This is the set I was looking forward to the most in terms of the 80th Anniversary line, and for me, it does not disappoint. A few paint splatters aside, this is a really solid release that gets me the Colossus I have always wanted, and a Juggernaut that is a serious improvement over the prior release. This set is hitting now, so I would definitely recommend picking it up as soon as you see it, it’s the goods!
