Review of Marvel Select's The Avengers Hulk figure!

The Basics:Price: $24.99
Scale: 10"

Character Bio:

When a scientific experiment involving the U.S. government's super-soldier serum went wrong, scientist Bruce Banner was doused with Gamma Radiation, triggering an uncontrollable transformation whenever he became stressed or angry. Growing in size and stature he became The Hulk, a green-skinned behemoth who would lash out at whatever stood in his way. After years on the run from the U.S. military, learning to control his emotions and avoid stressful situations, Banner was tracked down and recruited to the Avengers Initiative. Now he's their blunt instrument in the war to save mankind, as long as he can maintain his own humanity in the heat of combat.

Sculpt and Paint:



Wow,  this figure has a hell of a sculpt! His muscles and overall physical appearance look fantastic and very movie accurate. He was buff but not too buff, and this represents that better, I think, than the Hasbro one, but I'm basing that solely on pictures as their is no walmart by my house....but I digress. The face though, my God, the face. It looks so much like Mark Ruffalo...its eerie honestly. Amazing, but eerie. His feet look awesome (never thought I'd say that). They even painted his tootsies. Speaking of paint its great, the purple-ish brown pants are done with no clop, the paint on the face and body are great as well. Just check the teeth and eyes. Some have the gum paint dripping onto his teeth and some had cross eyed problems.

Accessories and Articulation:

Accessories: Bupkis, guess most of the plastic for the budget went to the figure. For once. I'm not complaining about that.

Articulation is amazing for a Marvel Select. Ball jointed head, swivel-hinge shoulders, swivel biceps, hinge elbows, swivel wrists, ball jointed abs, H-Joint hips, or DCUC style hips, swivel quadriceps, hinge knees, and finally swivel-hinge/ankle pivot, ankles. WOW!!

OVERALL:

This figure is great but there is one key thing that keeps it from achieving a perfect score. The leg articulation is good but there is a problem. When you move the leg out to the side, when you want to bring it in, make sure to tightly hold down the upper part of the joint. If you don't it starts to come out and feels like it will break. That said this is not designed for kids under 13 years or so so I am going to have to bring down the overall score. It's a shame too. It has everything going for it.

8 out of 10!!!!



I couldn't resist



Review of Avengers Minimates Disney Store Exclusive Box-Sets PART 2!

Box-Set #2: The Avengers Vs. The Grim Reaper


Iron Man:

Iron Man is a pretty good minimate. For an Iron Man he has a great mix of sculpted and painted detail, both of which are awesome, unlike some of the more recent ones i've seen where everything is sculpted. The armor choice is alright but it's not my favorite armor. He has a ball joint at the head, shoulders and hips, hinges at the knees and elbows, and swivels at the wrists, feet, and waist. His helmet can be removed to show a Tony Stark face. The rest of the armor can be removed but there isn't much under the pieces. His accessory is a flight stand. It would have been cool to see him have a "repulsor firing" hand but its still good. Especially considering the accessories that the other two Avengers of the set get. Overall hes a solid Iron Man minimate and a good addition to your minimate hall of armor.

Thor:

Ok, so I'm a big Thor fan but never liked his classic costume, but for some reason....I love it on this minimate. To me, he is the star of the set, tied only with the Avenger's resident archer. He has the same articulation as Iron Man, and his paintwork is fantastic. His accessories are an alternate head (without beard), alternate hair-piece) and the coolest one, the hand piece that simulates him swinging the hammer!!! IT'S SO FRIGGIN EPIC!!!!!!!!! It's worth mentioning he cant have the long hair sans helmet while wearing the cape. It doesn't fit. Not a total buzzkill. Wierdly enough I think the way he looks in the last pic above looks better than with helmet and cape. Overall this is a must have Thor. Trult amazing.

Hawkeye:

Hawkeye is definitely my second favorite of the set. He has a great mix of paint and sculpt, and his accessories ar etop notch. He comes with an alternate hairpiece, 5 arrows, a bow,and finally,  a removable quiver. The arrows can be storedin the quiver and one can be clipped onto the bow as seen above. This guy is awesome and features the same articulation as the others. Overall an awesome Hawkeye.

The Grim Reaper:





The Grim Reaper is exactly what I love from minimates. Minimal sculpt with painted on detail. Just like the classics. He has really nice painted on detail and I love the scythe hand he has. His accessory is a clear base and he features standard minimate articulation. Overall a little known character gets a great minimate.

OVERALL:
As a set, this is great all the minimates have great things going for them and really compliments the other set. Get it before its too late!!
9 OUT OF 10!!

Review of Avengers Minimates Disney Store Exclusive Box-Sets Part 1!

The Basics:
Price: $19.99
Scale: 2"
Exclusivity: Disney Store

Box-Set #1, The Avengers Vs. Kang


Captain America:

Steve Rogers here is, in my opinion, the star of this set. Mainly because he is a perfect representation of Cap in minimate form. Now I have been out of the loop as far as minimates go for a while so I can't say if this is a repack or not so for ME, this is the star of the set. Like all Minimates he has a balljointed head, balljointed shoulders, hinge elbows, swivel wrists, swivel waist, balljointed hips, hinge knees, and usually swivel feet but thats hindered by his boots. In terms of sculptued detail, there isn't much but where there is (hair, mask, shield, boots and gloves and harness) its great. His paint apps, which is really what makes up a minimate figure, are solid. The shield's paint is a bit off center but not too bad. His accessories are his alternate hairpiece, removable shield harness, and te shield itself. Overall, a great Cap minmate with fun posing options.
Smart Hulk:

Smart Hulk isn't bad but he's also not great. My main flaw is all of the add-on pieces to simulate his bulk. It makes moving his joints hard because they tend  to slide out of place or fall off. The paint is good, as is the sculpt and articulation is the exact same as Cap. For accessories he comes with two pieces of rock. No idea why. They don't fit in his hands. He can just stand on them..........cool? Overall a good minimate but not the best.

Antman/Giantman:

Antman is probably the second star of the set for me. He is what (like Cap) a good minimate should be, mostly paintwork with not too much sculpted detail and alot of accessories. The paint is clean and the articulation is the same as Cap. As for accessories he has a ton. He has his Antman helmet and Giantman helmet, his belt, 3 pairs of feet, one that looks like a pair of elevator shoes for when he is Giant Man, regular for when he is normal height, and one that looks like slippers for Antman height.  Another accessory that helps the height change is a silver wiast extension under his belt. Finally he has an alternate hairpiece and a glowing purple thing to show him increasing from small to normal height. (Sorry for last pic, I originally had no clue what the purple piece was for so I took that pic last minute for the review.) Overall a solid minimate!

Kang:

Kang is also a good minimate but not my favorite. He has a nice mix of sculpted detail and paint apps, both of which are great and he has, again, the same articulation as Cap. His accessories are two guns. The purple thing is for Antman but I did not know that and I thouoght it was for him...looks kinda cool though. Overall Kang is a great minimate to add to any collection.

OVERALL:
So looking at the set as a whole I can reccomend it strongly. Cap and Antman are absolutely amazing minimates and Smart Hulk is good. Kang, the villain of the set is better than Hulk but not up to par with the other two, at least in my opinion. That said I can't think of a reason not to get this set.

8 out of 10!!