Greetings! We’re back, working our way through the last couple of months of stuff. Today we’re taking in the Strong Guy BAF wave, a grouping that includes some long overdue characters and some unexpected additions. Let’s get to it.
Sunspot: Sunspot has been due for a long, long time, and here’s hoping that we get a Bobby in his New Mutants costume in the near future. This outfit came from the Greg Capullo era of X-Force, and there are some great, colorful teams designs from it (Boom-Boom, for example, has already been represented). First off, Sunspot is officially on the list of “I’m just happy this exists” figures. It’s hard to believe that this is the character’s first Legends entry. Overall this is a tight sculpt. The mask detail is great and I’m glad that they chose to include a blackened version of the familiar energy crackle. Nicely done, and it’s about time.
Warpath: Warpath’s outfit is drawn from the same era as Sunspot’s, giving me some hope that we’ll see Siryn and Rictor sometime soon. Warpath is appropriately big, drawn more in line with his look in the early to mid 90s than when he was first introduced (when he first showed up as a Hellion in The New Mutants, he was downright trim). The shoulder pad details are of the time and I think that they did a nice job on the hair. He’s a fitting figure for the assortment, given its composition, and I was glad to see it make the cut. Again, nice solid job.
Maverick: A first-time Legend, Maverick was represented (like Sunspot before him) in the old 90s Toy Biz wave. It’s good to see him get an update, and it’s frankly a banger. This is a really nice-looking figure, with great detail and color applications. Maverick is an admittedly minor X-Universe character, but the figure is great and demonstrates once again that the Hasbro team puts a lot of effort into even lower-tier characters. The rifle accessories are well done, and representative of the weapons he carried when he showed up during Jim Lee’s run of X-Men. I really dig this one.
Black Tom Cassidy: Another “about time” guy, and certainly in the version that I wanted to see. Black Tom is a long-time X-Foe, and with Juggernaut getting two swings in recent years, it makes sense for his partner to get the Legend treatment. The old Toy Biz version was the character’s hybrid look, but this is his original classic depiction, and it’s great. I really like the shillelagh accessory, and the face sculpt is appropriately smarmy. He looks a bit like Bruce Campbell to me, which is just fine. I’m never going to complain about new X-foes making the cut.
Shiklah: Easily the most obscure Legend in a while, Shiklah is a Queen of the Underworld that first appeared in 2014’s Deadpool: The Gauntlet Infinite Comic #3. She was even Mrs. Deadpool for a while before leaving him for Dracula (it’s complicated). They definitely got the horror vibe of the character right, and did a fine job realizing costume details. I appreciate that the necklace is a separate piece. As a personal quirk, it’s cool to see purple show up in the palette (there just aren’t a lot of purple figures, when you think about it). I took a shot of the severe heels on the boot sculpt; they make the figure a little harder to stand, but it still looks good. Shiklah comes with Jeff the Land Shark who is, quite frankly, cute (and a fun little addition).
Deadpool (Blue X-Team Suit): Not much to say about this one. If you really wanted this version of DP, you got him. It’s a good solid figure and sculpt, but really made for the hardcore Deadpool fans or someone that wants an exacting team line-up.
Pirate Deadpool: Honestly, this is hilarious. I can’t believe that this exists. I find it fairly funny that Hasbro picked it, and I’m kind of glad it got made because it’s just so weird. Thumbs up for doing the completely unexpected.
Strong Guy: We’ve been missing Guido for years, so FINALLY, it’s great to see Strong Guy in the Legends line. This is a top-notch BAF, fully using the capability of a BAF to embrace and over-sized character. The proportions are dead-on in terms of the character’s comic book look, and that face sculpt is perfect. This is a tremendous figure, and I’m really, really glad that he finally made it into the line. Honestly, it’s worth picking up those two Deadpools, even if you’re not a huge fan, just to fill this one out. Great work.
What do you think, readers? You dig this wave and BAF? We’ll be back soon with more recent releases. Thanks for reading!
