{"id":28154,"date":"2014-06-05T22:51:02","date_gmt":"2014-06-06T03:51:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=28154"},"modified":"2014-07-01T00:43:48","modified_gmt":"2014-07-01T05:43:48","slug":"hot-toys-mms-198-iron-man-3-war-machine-review-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=28154","title":{"rendered":"Hot Toys Iron Man 3
War Machine Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nOne problem that I often face in reviews is taking a look at repaints. A toy review is a only few hundred words, but when you\u2019ve already reviewed the toy when it was blue… well, the tendency to just say \u201cgo read this, and substitute the word \u201cred\u201d for blue\u201d is pretty high. I feel like I\u2019ve even done that recently. I’ll probably give in and do it before we get to the end here. Oops. <\/p>\n

That said, you want to review the repaints, particularly if they\u2019re cool. And this one is. It doesn’t look like it anymore, but I try not to buy too many Hot Toys. One, cause they\u2019re expensive and two, they take up *some* space. This year, I’ve failed miserably at not buying “too” many. My original intention to only buy figures from my all-time favorite movies crumbled under how much I enjoy the Marvel Cinematic Universe. One Iron Man armor led to another, to a Tony, to Cap, to Hulk. Doh. Yeah, it’s safe to say that my “Hot Toys Protocols” pretty much imploded.<\/p>\n

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This War Machine may be the greatest example of that. He\u2019s technically not even in the movie! No real spoilers here, but surely you\u2019ve seen Iron Patriot (both in last week\u2019s review<\/a> and all over the movie\u2019s marketing). Iron Patriot is a Stark suit of armor given an upgrade and a spiffy new paint job by SPOILER<\/em>. In theory then, is this period between the creation and the upgrade; what the suit must have looked like originally. That\u2019s what this figure represents. This would be what Rhodey was wearing during the Avengers timeframe. If you bought the Iron Man 3 prequel comic, you saw Rhodey in this suit walking in on the Avengers shawarma scene. It also appears in a Lego set where they fight the film\u2019s villain fleeing in a speedboat (which didn\u2019t exactly happen).<\/p>\n

So why buy this War Machine? A mostly-repaint that didn\u2019t appear in the film for $285? No, I\u2019m not crazy \u2013 I just really love War Machine.<\/p>\n

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As a geek and a toy collector, I have that weird propensity to like something unique. Well, actually I love a lot of things that are unique, but for some reason \u2013 I love black & white versions of iconic costumes. I tell you with no uncertainty, that Spidey’s Symbiote Costume is still the single greatest costume in all of comics. I think Batman looks best dressed in black. Captain America is a cooler character, but US Agent dresses cooler. Heck, here’s a blast from the past – there\u2019s this random issue of Justice League from right before Doomsday first appeared \u2013 it takes place in an alternate world and the Flash wears a black version of his costume. It looked so awesome, that it\u2019s stuck with me for twenty years and two reboots. I just love desaturated superhero costumes. So, seeing as War Machine is a black & white Iron Man? Yeah, bye, bye money.<\/p>\n

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It also helps that Rhodey is a kick ass character. He does get maligned a lot in the comics \u2013 supporting characters often do, but I love him. And I loved both Terrence Howard and Don Cheadle\u2019s performances in the trilogy. Btw, I\u2019m ready for a War Machine spin-off!).<\/p>\n

So this Hot Toy was a no-brainer for me. I\u2019m still kicking myself for not buying the first one from IM2, but I was safely under my wallet-saving protocols back then. And it\u2019s simply too expensive to go back and get now. So I bought this one. Heck, I was going to buy this and skip Iron Patriot but then some jackwagon showed HT Iron Patriot holding the HT Cap\u2019s shield and… I\u2019m weak. Ok? At least it’s to my readers benefit.<\/p>\n

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While War Machine and Iron Patriot are very similar, this is still Hot Toys, so the figures do have the unique torsos as needed. There are also a few subtle differences like the button on the figure\u2019s lower back, or lack thereof on War Machine. Iron Patriot\u2019s hips swing out at the press of the button for deeper poses. War Machine can do the same, but no button. They swing out easily enough when needed, but I\u2019m guessing that feature will last longer and be nicer on the Patriot over time due to the specific release trigger. The upper torsos are similar, but are different pieces so that War Machine could forego the star that\u2019s sculpted into Iron Patriot\u2019s chest.<\/p>\n

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My favorite thing about War Machine, as you\u2019d expect, is the deco. But it\u2019s more than just the colors. While Patriot is finished & glossy with light battle damage, War Machine is very much the opposite. His matte finish makes him seem more rugged & tougher than a publicity stunt (maybe I\u2019m projecting here) and he\u2019s also factory fresh \u2013 no battle damage or scuff marks to be found. He just looks amazing. I rarely can complement a figure’s finish, but here we are. Continue to Page 2…<\/a><\/p>\n

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For articulation, I am actually going to do that thing I said earlier. I\u2019m terrible. I\u2019ll refer you back to the Iron Patriot review<\/a>. The two are identical enough that they function the same and fantastic poses are capable with either one. The only concern for Machine is that the same thing I love \u2013 no battle damage. If I ding up Iron Patriot a bit, it kinda blends in. If I do it to War Machine, my heart will stop. This in mainly a concern on the areas where the sculpt interferes with the artic a bit: the shoulder pads most notably and the panels on the hips (while ingenious, I\u2019m going to break one sooner or later, we need extras, HT!). While we\u2019re referencing the other review, War Machine features the same four light-up areas as Iron Patriot: head, reactor, and repulsors. All work well once you install the tiny batteries with the tiny screwdriver.<\/p>\n

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Accessories differ slightly between the two and Iron Patriot comes out ahead sadly. The rear-mounted shoulder cannon is the same as is the right-arm panel with pop-up missile launcher too. The seven hands \u2013 articulated, fists, open, and the saluting hand, again, all the same.* But Iron Patriot, by virtue of being $30 more, got what I most wanted for War Machine. An alternate Rhodey head.<\/p>\n

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I\u2019m not kidding. War Machine is numbered after Iron Patriot on a Hot Toys Checklist, but he did come out first and while I love Iron Patriot with the shield so much that I bought an extra shield to give him, if I\u2019d gotten a Cheadle head with War Machine? I might not have bought Patriot. Patriot wasn\u2019t a $300 impulse buy, but I wanted Cheadle\u2019s likeness. Did I mention I love Don Cheadle? “So unless we intend to do this job in Reno, we’re in Barney. Barney Rubble. Trouble!”). In fact, even with Patriot, I\u2019m still kinda sad I don\u2019t have it for War Machine. Speaking of, I\u2019d prolly still buy a Cheadle in his Air Force Dress Blues… it\u2019d be a big, awesome G.I. Joe, really.<\/p>\n

* – If Patriot was ordered through Sideshow, a small holographic replica of War Machine was available. I got hosed on that! When I bought War Machine the exclusive was waitlisted, and then after it shipped, the extra with the exclusive became available to order. I don\u2019t need the little green guy, but I felt a little screwed!<\/em>.<\/p>\n

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Even without the Cheadle head or that green freebie, I still love this guy. I\u2019m still not completely accustomed to buying Hot Toys, particularly outright (no FlexPay here!), so $285 did seem like a lot. That’s because it is, but there was one added benefit that I forgot to mention: die-cast. I love my Midas Armor Iron Man, but I won\u2019t lie \u2013 when I opened him and he was so… light. I dare say he felt cheap. I mean, he\u2019s not, he meticulously well-done, but there was a disconnect between his cost and his weight, as dumb as that sounds. War Machine and I met oppositely. He was cheaper, as Midas was an exclusive, but when I pulled the inner tray from the box \u2013 he was delightfully heavy. I still get a kick out of picking him up now.<\/p>\n

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Overall, War Machine was, so far, my most wavering Hot Toys purchases. If I’d done the FlexPay, I probably wouldn’t even notice, but he was a lot of dough for a figure with not a lot of extras. I do love the die-cast. The heft when I opened him combined with the production finish and his great articulation on top of those die-cast pieces made him really sing to me. But as the price of Hot Toys slowly climbs and value is fleeting, I start to shy away. While it feels like we may be at a tipping point, I can still say that War Machine feels worth it. And I like being able to say that about an expensive figure.<\/p>\n

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\n

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For Even More Reviews, check out our Review Index<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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