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<\/a>I\u2019ve wanted to do some Avengers reviews, but there\u2019s been one big problem. Finding them. I\u2019ve been to Walmarts hours from here and have very little to show for it. I did manage to snag a leftover Thor on one run, but his photo shoot didn\u2019t exactly go as planned. Snap<\/strong>. <\/p>\nNow, I\u2019ve only seen Avengers<\/em> twice, but I\u2019m going to look into the future and tell you that I\u2019ll be watching it like a million<\/em> times when it finally comes to cable. I know this because that\u2019s what I do for movies that I really, really like. 2009\u2019s Star Trek<\/em> is a good example. I only saw that in the theatre once, I own the DVD, and yet I watched it on FX twice just this weekend<\/em>. Sure, like Avengers<\/em>, there are one or two changes I\u2019d like to make as an \u201carmchair quarterback\u201d, but I\u2019m going to shoot for some hyperbole here and say that I find both those movies pretty much flawless. I can watch the new Trek<\/em> over and over again and still be grief-stricken by the first ten minutes and ready to jump out of my chair for the last ten. <\/p>\n I have little doubt that Avengers will be the same. Heck, I already watch Iron Man whenever I catch it on and I guarantee I\u2019ll be doing the same for all the Marvel movies that led up to Avengers in the coming years. It\u2019s fantastic work. The artistic chaps and businessmen came together to make an excellent product and, as they should, they\u2019ve all been able to cash in. Now, filmmaking still does their strategic accounting \u2013 \u201cif we expect to make \u201cx\u201d profits, then we can invest \u201cy\u201d dollars”, but it\u2019s nice to see the paradigm of quality paving the way to profit actually working now and again. Kinda makes you wish a big domestic toy company would try it. <\/p>\n That\u2019s not to say there aren\u2019t some quality toys out there. We are getting some really nice figures lately. MOTU figures are likely at their pinnacle. We\u2019ve got sprawling DC & Marvel 6\u201d collections. G.I. Joe & Transformers are forging ahead, but have amassed some fantastic anniversary product honoring the toys of our youth. There are some amazing high-end pieces being made. And plenty of smaller companies producing some of the best toys out there. Things are good. But wouldn\u2019t it be cooler if the Avengers figures were as good figures as the movie was a movie? <\/p>\n Hasbro has to do the accounting \u2013 if they only think they can sell \u201cx\u201d units, they can only invest \u201cy\u201d dollars, but I\u2019m just not as thrilled with this first batch of Avengers figures as I was with the movie. I think Hasbro could’ve done a little more (at the very least, I’m still hoping they will). <\/p>\n The first hurdle is more the fault of Wal-Mart than Hasbro, of course. The entire assortment is a Wal-Mart exclusive. Now, that shouldn\u2019t be a problem \u2013 I\u2019m 45 minutes from Walmart HQ. There are a dozen Walmarts within a half hour of my house. It jumps to nearly three dozen if I expand that into an hour. But here\u2019s the thing, I\u2019ve been to nearly two dozen of them in the past three weeks. And only three, two of them being that full hour away (and the third isn’t all that close), have pegs for these figures. That slays me. I imagine that\u2019s something many of us are dealing with \u2013 and that\u2019s just those of us fortunate enough to live where there are easily accessible Walmarts. <\/p>\n But after I’ve find them, or find a couple of them rather, I\u2019ve been a bit disappointed. I\u2019m still anxious to find Hulk & Hawkeye, so I\u2019m not knocking this line as a whole yet, but I haven\u2019t been able to pick up a Cap due to bad paint and I skipped the cheesy battle-damage Iron Man (opting to snag an IM2 figure that was still hanging out at TRU). Of the two I picked up, I was really impressed with Loki, but he is decidedly out of scale \u2013 someone at Hasbro must not have known or cared that Tom Hiddleston is 6\u2019 2\u201d. He\u2019s a great figure, but he’s an inch too short. <\/p>\n This brings me to Thor. I was happy to pick up Thor. He\u2019s the same figure as was released last year, but with a new and much improved head sculpt. As Loki is a little too small, Thor is probably a little too big, but my biggest problem with this figure was when his leg broke off during the photo shoot.<\/em> Were you thinking this review started off a little melancholy? Well, now you know why… Continue to Page 2…<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n A broken figure isn\u2019t the worst thing in the world, but boy does it suck. I\u2019m not going to launch into a foaming rage about Hasbro\u2019s quality control standards (though I\u2019m not so hot on the rubbery knee caps) because this would appear to be an isolated incident. I\u2019ve checked the boards on the popular toy forums and seen few, if any, reports of breakage. So, for now, I’d have to just say I’m unlucky. If breakage appears more prevalent as more of us actually find this figure, I’ll amend this paragraph. <\/p>\n I will say that I didn\u2019t put my Thor under any undue stress though and the joint wasn’t frozen – I’d moved it prior. The hip peg just wasn’t long for this world. So, yeah, it seems I drew the short straw. If I\u2019m fortunate enough to run across a second, I\u2019ll pick it up and return this one in its stead. Still, this is getting a Quality Control Spotlight. Stupid broken figure.<\/em> <\/p>\n If you\u2019re like most folks finding these and end up with a Thor that\u2019s not broken, you\u2019re in for a decent figure. Yes, everything below the neck is a rehash of the 2011 figure, but it\u2019s still a very nice detailed sculpt. Plus, the new head sculpt is light-years better. It’s a bit hard to say that because I don’t think it looks all that much like Chris Hemsworth, but I really hated that helmeted figure’s head sculpt last year. I think it might look a little more like him if the sculpt showed some emotion. A wry smile or or a more angered approach, maybe? But, like Loki, the expression on the face is rather flat. <\/p>\n As for the body re-use, I\u2019m still holding out hope we\u2019ll see the \u201ccasual\u201d Thor<\/a> displayed at NYCC, but I\u2019m not sure what Hasbro has planned \u2013 we never did get that unmasked Chris Evans Cap<\/a> shown at last year\u2019s Toy Fair. <\/p>\n The paintwork is a little rough around the edges as you can tell from the close-ups, but still good considering the level of difficulty on the tunic. I might like to see the figure be a little shinier on the metal areas, but these duller colors work, particularly when contrasted with the bright red cape. <\/p>\n Articulation is pretty good, though noticeably not as nice as Loki\u2019s who sports some newer innovations like the ball-jointed ankle with the peg in the foot. The head is removable, but on a two-piece neck for a greater range and there\u2019s also ball-joints at the shoulders, hips, and ankles, swivels at the biceps, wrists, and thighs, double-hinged knees and elbows, and the mid-torso joint. It allows Thor some great range, but I\u2019d still like to see a waist swivel and something more on the wrists. <\/p>\n I\u2019m still not a fan of the hip pegs plugging up into the torso (even when they don\u2019t break), but what I really didn’t like is the rubbery middle parts in the double-joints. I don\u2019t know if that\u2019s a safety standard or what, but I hate it when Mattel does it and I\u2019m not a fan here either. Before his leg was broken, it was already warped from the package because of that soft plastic piece’s inability to withstand the time it spent in the tray.<\/p>\n Thor included the must have pack-in, Mjolnir. As a Thor fan, I\u2019ve got a ton of Mjolnirs all over the place, but I still like the detail work here and I love that the strap is big enough to be held or even slipped completely over the hand and looped around his wrist. All Mjolnir\u2019s should be that way (and, sadly, most haven’t been). <\/p>\n Also included is an Avengers stand. Now, this may look a little funky at first, but I love it. I have to applaud Hasbro for the ingenuity. These stands are based on Heroscape terrain with pegs added for the figure\u2019s feet. Like the terrain pieces from the game, they are interlockable and stackable. As you can see in the pre-legbreak pic above, just stacking two stands can already look pretty snazzy. If you pick up all the Avengers (as I plan to, save the Iron Man) you should be able to get a nice multi-tiered display going (and you can go beyond that, I actually picked up some extra Heroscape terrain pieces off of eBay last night to build up an even more impressive group stand. <\/p>\n In all, Hasbro cobbled together a decent Thor figure. I\u2019m still hoping we get the one we saw at NYCC and I\u2019d like to see something a little newer with improved articulation, but the new head and Thor \u201cbuck\u201d pull the weight here. I know I started the review with a bland eye towards the figures and it does suck that mine is broken, but my intention to return it and get another should make it clear that this is far from a bad figure. <\/p>\n That said, I want Hasbro to do better on Avengers. Right now, the movie is playing a large part in my feeling compelled to buy these figures. Maybe I\u2019ll be more impressed by Hulk & Hawkeye, but Whedon, Hemsworth, and Hiddleston are why I\u2019ve bought what I bought so far, more so than anyone at Hasbro. They need to up their game for future assortments. <\/p>\n And, on that note, we\u2019re getting more Avengers figures, right? We do still need that \u201ccasual\u201d Thor. An unmasked Captain America would be pretty cool. A Mark VII Iron Man wouldn’t hurt. A movie-accurate Fury would be fantastic. A Colbie Smulders Maria Hill should be easy enough to do. And, oh yeah, there\u2019s that little matter of Hasbro making only the male members of the team. They can\u2019t really be planning on only giving us five-sixths of the Avengers can they? There has to be a Black Widow, right? Right? <\/p>\n![](\"reviews\/mlimages\/2012\/athor01.JPG\")
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