Duh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh! Duh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh! Duh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh! Nun-nuh! Yeah, you know the tune. You know it really, really, well.
X-Men: The Animated Series was a seminal cartoon that left a deep impression on a whole generation of Marvel fans. Arguably just as impacting as the concurrent comic run, I know many a fan who swear to this day that it is greatest cartoon ever. It is a healthy population, too – the series is currently available in its entirety on Disney+, and sequel with the original cast and talent will be debuting next year. It is certainly a good time to be an X-fan of a certain age, and I know a lot of new faithful are joining the ranks each day.
As I am sure you know, Hasbro has gotten in on the celebration of the series as well, and the tribute figures are beginning to roll-out, starting with Wolverine and Jubilee. Heck, they are even bringing back some of that original talent to work on the line, the show’s storyboard artist Dan Veesenmeyer is handling the (very rad) packaging duties for all of the figures. Storm, Jean Grey, Mr. Sinister, and fan-favorite Morph are available for order now, with more characters certainly on the way.
For the most part, these figures are repaints of previous figures, but with some new pieces here and there, and the important paint updates. These figures utilize the “cel-shading” deco to mimic the animation style of the cartoon. This technique was really brought to the fore by NECA via their TMNT (and other lines), but there are a lot of companies doing this now to varying levels of success. I think the style works well here, and it is much more subtle in its application than the aforementioned Turtles figures. In fact, if you wanted to cheat any of these into your main Marvel Legends display (I know that will be desired for Morph especially), you can get away with it without them standing out too much. So, it’s a nice balance.
The wide “fins” on Wolverine’s mask certainly help to recall the animation aesthetic, and I really like the Jubilee portrait with the glasses on her forehead as well. The point is that even if you have the previous versions of these characters, there is enough to distinguish these as unique, so they can stand in their own little group, but they can also blend in if you want them to within the confines of the large ML collection.
The accessories are fairly standard fare for Legends with alternate heads and hands leading the way, but Jubilee also gets her power effects (reused) as well a couple of different glasses options depending on your taste. Wolverine does have what I am already calling the accessory of the year with the framed pictures of Scott and Jean that has transcended any individual cartoon episode and dominated the meme space. It is hilarious for all the right reasons, I just wish we had a “flat” hand to pose Wolverine just right. Or at least a fist to punch Cyclops when we invariably arrives in this collection.
That said, the packaging for these figures is almost as good as the figures themselves. I really, REALLY love the old VHS style boxes with the specific character call-outs. As mentioned, Dan Veesenmeyer handled all the art, and you will probably want to retain these to integrate them into your display. That is what I am going to do, and even the spines work together seamlessly, so you can conserve space and still get the great effect. These are also “plastic free” packages, so there are no window, and the figures and accessories are stored in paper bags within the boxes.
Yes, there is certainly a gimmick aspect to these figures, but coming from a guy who isn’t quite the diehard fan of the show as some people, I really like these figures. When a style is executed well from the figures to the packaging, there is most certainly a heightened sense of appreciation from me, and these definitely deserve the praise. Fans of the show will likely be flocking to them, but even if you are not as into it, I think there is a ton to love here.
Both Wolverine and Jubilee are still available for purchase at Hasbro Pulse, so if you haven to gotten them yet, get goin’, bub.
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Source: Fwoosh
