Tin Soldier

Iron Man 2 toys are starting to hit retail! I spotted the whole first release line-up of 3 3/4" figures at Toys R Us the other day. They all look spectacular, and if I had the funds I would have bought them all on the spot. The first movie Mark I and Iron Monger looked especially nice in this scale with tons of detail and articulation, and the comic-book armors all look amazing as well.

I didn't buy them all (yet,) but fear not True Believers. My self control is only so strong. I had to have one in particular on the spot, simply named "Iron Man."

This Iron Man is clearly IM's 1st comic book appearance, as seen in Tales of Suspense #39.

I've wanted this version of Iron Man's armor for a looong time. I missed out on the Marvel Legends release, and although the movie Mark I is very cool and a nice "realistic" look at this armor, I must say this figure finally fills the void in my collection and does so perfectly.

In addition to his very comic book accurate sculpt, this figure also has great subtle paint apps. He's brushed to appear like real metal; both freshly scratched and rusted up a bit in places. Very nice details...until you turn him around...

Mine has none of the "rust" coloration on his flip side. I don't know if this is standard or just a flaw on mine, (why would they do the shiny scratches but not the rusty wash?) but it gives him a sort of sunburned effect depending on how you pose him, as if Stark fell asleep on the tanning bed. Either that or Stark stores this armor against the wall, and needs to look into the humidity of his armory.

Paint flaws aside, Hasbro is REALLY on the ball with this scale, and by allowing movie based figures to fit seamlessly into comic book based toylines, they are guaranteed to please kids, casual fans and life-long collectors alike.

Iron Man, like all the figures in this series, comes with a base and a file card with two overlays so you can see what mixed and matched armor components look like when you mix in more cards from the set. The card also has a code on it, but the website it lists (ironmancard.com) currently re-directs to marvel.com. I'm sure that'll change as we get closer to the movie's release.

Oh yeah, Iron Man comes with one more thing: His "Repulsor Blast" accessory, which looks more like a marital-aid and should be called a Repulsive Blast, especially when strategically placed (which I won't show you here but I guarantee you will try when you get this figure in your hands.)

"Oh Pepper? Come here...I've got something for you!"

The 3 3/4" Iron Man 2 figures are $7.99 at Toys R Us. This price is pretty standard nowadays for figures in this scale, so Mattel better wise up and start making their Infinite Heroes figures contenders in this competition. I love DC in general and DCIH as a toyline, but come on Mattel, next to this Iron Man your DCIH are all pretty bad and they aren't worth half what this guy costs. But Mattel insists on matching the price point while avoiding a match in quality. I hate to kill teh line, but let's face it, if I'm standing on a toy aisle with fresh cases of Iron Man 2 figures and DCIH figures, guess which toy company gets my money.

This Iron Man 2 movie line also has all the articulation Marvel Universe fans have come to expect. I'm not an articulazi, but I think Hasbro did an excellent job integrating all that articulation into this Iron Man figure without sacrificing aesthetic; none of it feels like it steals from the sculpt, and the bulkiness of the figure really feels like a guy in armor.

So until Mattel gets on the ball and/or until I have them all (Iron Man 2 figures that is,) make mine Marvel!