Marvel Universe Iron Man 2 3.75" Figures:
Concept Series: Hypervelocity Iron Man
Comic Series: Iron Man with Snap-On Repulsor, Blast-Off Iron Man, and War Machine
Movie Series: Iron Monger and Mark II
Comic Series: Iron Man with Snap-On Repulsor, Blast-Off Iron Man, and War Machine
Movie Series: Iron Monger and Mark II
For those of you who aren't comic readers, from left to right: "Repulsor Blast" Iron Man (a.k.a.: Mark I), Mark II, "Blast-Off" Iron Man (a.k.a.: Mark III), War Machine, and Hypervelocity Iron Man. Iron Monger appears below.
I've never been a huge fan of Iron Man. I don't dislike Iron Man - in fact, there are very few superheroes I don't at least like a little - but I'm more a DC reader than a Marvel one, and, typically, when I do read Marvel, it's for the X-Men or Spiderman. Also, as a rule of thumb, I tend to lean away from from tech heroes, though I like having them exist in comic universes, if that makes sense.
 Iron Monger (Movie Series)
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Anyway, being somewhat ambivalent on Tony Stark didn't stop me from getting bowled over by the movie. But that had more to do with the production than the character. Also, it didn't hurt that it introduced the existence of a combined, expansive comic universe to film. At any rate, while I did, in fact, love the movie, I didn't rush out and buy toys. I've got a few Iron Man toys lying around: some Superhero Squad figures, a beaten-up 80's toy that came in a lot with some toys I actually wanted, and the Marvel Universe figure, but I certainly don't have much of an Iron Man collection. Well, like every other geek on the planet, I've been eagerly awaiting Iron Man 2. I might not be a huge Stark fan, but it's pretty obvious that movie is going to be incredible. Of course, with a huge movie coming out, Hasbro's been pumping out some new toys, mainly in the 3.75" scale. Well, I'm really not a fan of that scale. I prefer the six and seven inch figures, especially now that the smaller ones are getting expensive. |
So, as you can imagine, there was no way I was going to pick these up. Well. Until I saw them. Then, things changed. You see, I don't love Iron Man, but that doesn't mean I'm not intrigued by the idea of having a miniature Hall of Armor. And, frankly, these are some gorgeous designs.
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In my defense, I did hold off until they went on sale. Then I just bought two. Only two. That was it. For about a day. Then I bought two more. And two after that. But I'm done now. Really. Truly done. For a while. Usually, in situations like these, I review toys one or two at a time, but if I do that, I won't get these done before the movie comes out. Besides, at this point I've got a massive backlog of toys to review. Hell, I've got toys I bought last summer I haven't gotten to. So I'm just going to do these all at once. These are broken up into three series: Concept, Movie, and Comic, and I've got representations of each. From the Comic Series, I'll be looking at the Mark I (packaged as Iron Man with Snap-On Repulsor Blast), "Blast-Off" Iron Man, and War Machine. From the movie series, I picked up the Mark II and Iron Monger, and from the Concept series I bought Hypervelocity Iron Man. |
 Hypervelosity Iron Man (Concept Series)
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Appearance and Construction:
 War Machine (Comic Series)
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War Machine: 10/10
Hypervelocity, Mark II, and Iron Monger: 9/10 Blast-Off: 8/10 Repulsor: 7/10 There are really two tiers in this category, and they're pretty obvious. Three of these figures are just shy of a ten. Honestly, they're really close. There's no single flaw that holds them back: in every case, it's a a series of minor imperfections that stack up. For Hypervelocity Iron Man, it's a combination of a hole in his back (possibly intended for his gun - I'm a little unclear), the batch number stamped on his leg, and the absence of more painted detail work. While the armor isn't from the movie or (as far as I know) based directly on the comic, it captures the essence of Iron Man perfectly. I wanted a "modern" suit for my collection, and this blew away the versions trying to duplicate what appeared onscreen. |
Iron Monger could use some paint on his guns, hands, and feet, but he's otherwise just about perfect. Hasbro did a great job adapting the monstrous hulk of metal for this toy. He looks awesome, and towers over the other figures. Also, the designers managed to make the most of the joints, incorporating them into the sculpted servos and motors.
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The Mark II is pretty nice, as well, though the heavy black lines used to break up the armor are resemble the comic more than the movie. I don't mind this - after all, this collection works because there's not a huge difference between the different designs. Unfortunately, the lines are a bit crooked, and there's a chip missing from his left wrist (more on this later). Add to that some molding issues, and I can't quite go to a ten. Originally, I was going to say the same about War Machine. But, in the end, I just couldn't find a reason to hold him back. Sure, he's got a few minor issues - a stamped number on his leg, some minor molding issues on the back of his legs, etc. - but these ultimately seem trivial. The weathering detail is nothing short of astounding, and the impressive painted detail is evenly applied. The last two figures, while still good, just aren't on the same level. The design on the Mark I just doesn't work. Honestly, I wish I'd held off until I found a movie Mark I, which look a lot better, but I wasn't thinking when I bought him. As for the "Blast-Off" Iron Man, he's a good toy - better than the Mark I - but he has some paint issues that hold him back. |
 Iron Man with Snap-on Repulsor Blast (Comic Series)
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I should mention, though, that he's being judged a lot harsher than the Marvel Universe Iron Man I looked at last fall. At the time, I gave that an eight, but I had lower expectations back then. These figures are greatly improved, with far more realistic torsos and more consistent paint. I like the earlier toy's color scheme better than the one on Blast-Off Iron Man, but there's no question "Blast-Off" is a better toy.
Packaging and Extras:
War Machine, Blast-Off: +1
Hypervelocity, Mark II, Repulsor, and Blast-Off: ----
Hypervelocity, Mark II, Repulsor, and Blast-Off: ----
The packaging is more or less the same you've seen in earlier Marvel Universe lines. It looks fine, but isn't anything all that special. The back shows off a few of the figures available, if you care.
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I'm not crazy about some of the names they've slapped on these guys: Blast Off? Repulsor? Whatever. All that matters is the toy inside.
Well, that and the accessories. All of these figures come with stands and three cards, which are advertised on the front. The "cards," contrary to what you'd expect, are actually kind of neat. Two of the cards are translucent; the third serves as the backing. All three slide into the stands in separate slots. This creates a sort of holographic effect. Not as good as an actual hologram, but still not too shabby. |
The stands are kind of cheap looking. The bridge between the character platform and the card holders has some simple, stylized wiring sculpted in. This would be cool, had Hasbro put some paint on these.
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The stands are all identical, and, with one exception, they all hold up the figure. That exception is, of course, Iron Monger, who's simply too big to fit on his stand. He can have one foot on it, if you want, but that's it. Fortunately, it's a moot point, as Iron Monger can stand fine on his own. Iron Monger is also the only of the figures who comes without any additional accessories beyond the stand and cards. This isn't a big deal, though, because he doesn't really need anything else. Besides, his sheer size protects him from a penalty here. If Hasbro had been feeling generous, though, they could have given us some extras akin to those that came with War Machine. Rather than stick us with ridiculously over-sized guns and firing pegs, they took the high road and gave us a couple things a collector might actually use: comic-styled snap-on firing display missiles and a translucent explosive connector for his machine gun. |
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These demonstrate how a couple understated extras can improve a figure's value. These aren't complicated, but they're very effective and quite appreciated. Iron Monger's fine as is, but I'd have gladly handed over the same bonus if he had a few similar pieces for his wrist guns.
 Iron Monger (Movie) Vs. Blast-Off Iron Man (Comic Series)
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In terms of concept, I also like the thought behind "Blast-Off" Iron Man's extra base, a fiery explosion meant to suggest he's taking off. Unfortunately, while great in theory, in practice it's a less impressive. The stand is too small to give you many options for posing, and it has a tendency of tipping over. "Blast-Off" Iron Man also comes with a red repulsor blast. It's fine, though it doesn't really mesh with my mental image of a repulsor blast. More like a jello mold, I'd say. Even so, the fact he comes with two accessories on top of the standard base and cards, along with the fact the "blast" is still kind of cool, warrants a bonus point. It's a less enthusiastic bonus point than the one I gave War Machine, though. |
The Mark I Iron Man's packaging claims he comes with a "Repulsor Blast" (in fact, it's part of his name), but that's not actually the case. I'm not sure if Hasbro thought advertising a burst of flame would be a tad too violent, but that's what he's got. Considering the suit's origin, a flame-thrower is a bit more appropriate, anyway.
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Both the Mark II and the Hypervelosity suit come with an over sized gun and shooting missile. These snap on the toys' wrists and look better than you'd think, but not good enough to make you care. In addition, the shoulder pieces can snap on and off of the Mark II. I'm not sure whether this was an intended or a side effect of production, but it works well enough regardless. I can't imagine wanting to display him without the shoulders, but the option's there if you want to. This seems to be the only of these figures with this feature. If these toys were cheaper, I might have been able to justify higher bonuses here, but given what these are going for, the accessories are kind of required. |
 Mark II Iron Man (Movie Series)
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Play and Display: +1
Once again, don't compare this to the score I gave the last Iron Man I bought six months ago: that +2 was a tad generous in hindsight. That said, there are a few joints where that Iron Man exceeded these, mainly in the head, which had a far greater range of motion (at the expense of the sculpt, of course).
Overall, these are a little less articulated and a little more stable, a trade-off I'm happy to make. The articulation is fairly evident from the photos, but here's a quick rundown for everyone except Iron Monger: You've got ball jointed heads, shoulders, hips, abdomen, elbows, and ankles (though you'll be lucky to much articulation at all out of the ankles), double pins in the knees, and cut wrists. That said, these figures vary greatly in how well those joints work. On one end of the spectrum, you've got the Mark II, who has good range with almost all of his joints. On the other extreme, there's War Machine, whose joints are mostly stuck. The only reason I'm not withholding a bonus point for War Machine is that his shoulder-mounted guns pivot and can flip down on his back.
Iron Monger has some similar joints, but there's quite a bit different, as well. You've got the same basic idea on the head, shoulders, and hips, but the rest is a little different. The elbow is a pin instead of ball, and they add an extra cut in the upper arm to compensate. The wrist is actually a double-pin here, which give you some phenomenal options for how he's pointing those guns on his wrists. The knees only include one pin, though there's another in the ankle, which actually works (unlike the ball joints on the other figures). Instead of a ball joint in the abs, you get a cut.
Overall, these are a little less articulated and a little more stable, a trade-off I'm happy to make. The articulation is fairly evident from the photos, but here's a quick rundown for everyone except Iron Monger: You've got ball jointed heads, shoulders, hips, abdomen, elbows, and ankles (though you'll be lucky to much articulation at all out of the ankles), double pins in the knees, and cut wrists. That said, these figures vary greatly in how well those joints work. On one end of the spectrum, you've got the Mark II, who has good range with almost all of his joints. On the other extreme, there's War Machine, whose joints are mostly stuck. The only reason I'm not withholding a bonus point for War Machine is that his shoulder-mounted guns pivot and can flip down on his back.
Iron Monger has some similar joints, but there's quite a bit different, as well. You've got the same basic idea on the head, shoulders, and hips, but the rest is a little different. The elbow is a pin instead of ball, and they add an extra cut in the upper arm to compensate. The wrist is actually a double-pin here, which give you some phenomenal options for how he's pointing those guns on his wrists. The knees only include one pin, though there's another in the ankle, which actually works (unlike the ball joints on the other figures). Instead of a ball joint in the abs, you get a cut.
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Be aware that the ball-jointed hips on all of these are good for splits, but not for stepping. You can get some dynamic poses from these guys, but there are definitely limitations. The figures can hold their accessories well enough, and the bases perform their function. The guns that come with Hypervelocity and Mark II snap on their wrists. There's also a hole on their back which, oddly enough, seems to match up with the size of the triggering mechanisms on the tops of their guns. I've tried to see if these can plug in, but - not surprisingly - the mechanism tends to gets pressed. I'm not sure what's going on here, but, if I had to guess, I'd say the factory that produced these got confused by the sculpt and thought they were jet packs. |
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I considered giving some of these a bonus point, withholding it for others, and I even toyed with two for Iron Monger and the Mark II. In the end, I decided these were all so close, it made more sense just to give them all a point and call it a day.
Special Deduction: Mark II: -1
Remember when I said there my Mark II had a broken wrist? Well, it's a little worse. Turns out, that wrist is what keeps his hand from dropping off.
To be fair, it doesn't do this on its own: you usually need to tug on it a bit, though it sometimes pops out during normal use. Fortunately, it goes right back in again, so there's no need for three or four point deduction.
This is a small issue, but one caused by using brittle plastic around the wrists and, it seems, the ankles. I haven't had any problems on mine there, but I suspect other have. Take an extra minute in the store to make sure there are no visible problems with the one you're buying.
To be fair, it doesn't do this on its own: you usually need to tug on it a bit, though it sometimes pops out during normal use. Fortunately, it goes right back in again, so there's no need for three or four point deduction.
This is a small issue, but one caused by using brittle plastic around the wrists and, it seems, the ankles. I haven't had any problems on mine there, but I suspect other have. Take an extra minute in the store to make sure there are no visible problems with the one you're buying.
Price Tag and Final Analysis:
War Machine: 10+/10
Hypervelocity, Blast-Off, and Iron Monger: 10/10
Mark II: 9/10
Repulsor: 8/10
These weren't cheap. I got mine at Toys R Us, where they were on sale for 2 for $10.99. I'm normally uncomfortable paying more than four or five bucks for a figure in this scale, but, like I said, I was impressed with these.
When these aren't on sale, you're actually looking at eight bucks or more for one of these. Ouch. I remember when I refused to buy Marvel Legends at that price point, because I thought they were too expensive.
That said, given your options and other toys available, these aren't an awful deal. Well, some of them are: I can't really recommend Iron Man with Repulsor Blast or Blast-Off Iron Man at eight bucks: those are pushing it at five. But Iron Monger has some mass, and he's a great toy. I wouldn't pay eight dollars for one, but I don't think he's a total rip-off. Same with War Machine, who's an incredibly well designed toy.
That said, I'm not saying you should rush out and buy these at any price. Be smart about it, and I'm sure Toys R Us will mark these down again. Some of these may even land on clearance if you wait long enough, but I wanted a Hall of Armor and wasn't willing to risk these selling out.
Hypervelocity, Blast-Off, and Iron Monger: 10/10
Mark II: 9/10
Repulsor: 8/10
These weren't cheap. I got mine at Toys R Us, where they were on sale for 2 for $10.99. I'm normally uncomfortable paying more than four or five bucks for a figure in this scale, but, like I said, I was impressed with these.
When these aren't on sale, you're actually looking at eight bucks or more for one of these. Ouch. I remember when I refused to buy Marvel Legends at that price point, because I thought they were too expensive.
That said, given your options and other toys available, these aren't an awful deal. Well, some of them are: I can't really recommend Iron Man with Repulsor Blast or Blast-Off Iron Man at eight bucks: those are pushing it at five. But Iron Monger has some mass, and he's a great toy. I wouldn't pay eight dollars for one, but I don't think he's a total rip-off. Same with War Machine, who's an incredibly well designed toy.
That said, I'm not saying you should rush out and buy these at any price. Be smart about it, and I'm sure Toys R Us will mark these down again. Some of these may even land on clearance if you wait long enough, but I wanted a Hall of Armor and wasn't willing to risk these selling out.
Looking for more to read. Check out my blog, for movie reviews and the like. Or, if you'd rather some fiction, I can accommodate that request, too. In fact, if short stories aren't enough, you could always pick up my self-published novel, on sale through Amazon.com.
Anyway, shameless self-promotion aside, I've got far more photos than I was able to incorporate into the above review, so keep scrolling if you're interested.
Anyway, shameless self-promotion aside, I've got far more photos than I was able to incorporate into the above review, so keep scrolling if you're interested.
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New Blast-Off Iron Man (left) compared with Marvel Universe Iron Man (right)
