Avengers vs X-Men Minimates

A few months ago, Diamond Select Toys asked you to vote on the next exclusive box set of Marvel Minimates for Toys “R” Us, based on the blockbuster Avengers vs. X-Men crossover event. The poll pitted three Avengers against three members of the Phoenix Five, with dominance of the box set hanging in the balance. Well, now the results are in!

The Avengers were the clear winners, with Phoenix Buster Iron Man, the Scarlet Witch and Protector taking three of the four spots in the set, with the remaining slot filled by Phoenix Five leader Cyclops! Plus, Iron Man’s armor will open up to reveal a more bare-bones Iron Man Minimate inside! Phoenix Five Emma Frost and Colossus may not have made the cut this time around, but don’t count them out yet –they’ve both cheated death more than once.

Check out the figures below, and look for the set in Toys “R” Us stores (and at toysrus.com) this holiday season!

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Captain America 1/4th Scale Figure from the Avengers Movie!

ONLY 7,500 FIGURES AVAILABLE WORLDWIDE

We are pleased to announce an amazing addition to our 1/4 scale figure product line: the acquisition of the Marvel comics license for both comic book & feature films!

NECA’s  inaugural offering will be Captain America as seen in this years #1 film, The Avengers.

The figure stands 18″ tall and features loads of detail and articulation.

Over 25 points of articulation including neck, shoulders, torso, elbows, hips, knees, wrists, and more. Includes Cap’s signature shield with straps and interchangeable hands.

Stay tuned for more 1/4 scale figures coming soon!

Follow NECA on Twitter @NECA_TOYS

Madame Tussaud Presents Marvel Superheroes 4D

By Edward Gambichler

 

     These days, you cannot see a movie without the major theatre chains offering the alternate “3D Experience” ( albeit with the additional ticket price increase needed to justify the eye candy ). Not many media outlets, tho, offer the truly visionary innovation that is the “4D Experience” and at a reasonable price of forty dollars. The New York franchise of Madame Tussaud’s wax figure museum, however, has risen to the challenge. And not only that……..it showcases ( in both film and wax ) the Marvel Comic’s legendary lineup of superheroes. Unfortunately, in trying to rise to the challenge…………the good Madame misses the mark completely and plummets to the ground in flames.

     After paying the admittance fee, I took the elevator to the beginning of the tour. When I stepped off the elevator on to the ninth floor, I immediately was thrust into a celebrity filled A-list Holywood industry party. However, I wasn’t there to rub elbows with the self absorbed wax glitterati ( no offense to Brad, Angelina, George, Julia, and Morgan ), but with thunder gods and super-soldiers. As I made my way down to the eighth floor and through the historical figure exhibit of the museum ( almost running over Dr. Martin Luther King in the process ), I finally made it to the seventh floor and the Marvel exhibit. I expected the same grandeur that met me when I started the tour. What I got was what I can only be describe as a less than impressive display, hastily cobbled together to take advantage of the media blitz surrounding the release of the new Marvel film, “The Avengers”.

     First off, only four wax figures were on display, in the lobby of the theater wing of the museum. The wax figure lineup was comprised of Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, and the Hulk. Unfortunately, with the exception of Iron Man, the wax figures embodied the previous Marvel film incarnations of the characters. Instead of the modern Avengers Captain America, I was greeted with the WW2 First Avenger Captain. And the Incredible Hulk was more in line with Ang Lee’s version of the green goliath than with the new Joss Whedon version. Iron Man and Thor, however, retain a uniform look in both movies so it was hard to pick out the flaws with their figures. And Nick Fury, Black Widow, and Hawkeye could not be found anywhere. It was as if the museum director had just used wax figures that were laying around instead of requisitioning new ones made up. I was tempted to run back up to the ninth floor A-list party and make a grab for Sam Jackson to flesh out the display. The exhibit did not reflect the new movie’s lineup. That left the animated short film in the theater to salvage whatever hopes I had for a truly unique 4D experience.

     The movie begins with Captain America and Spiderman walking up to Buckingham Palace to accept an award from the Queen. Unfortunately, Dr. Doom shows up to throw a wrench in the proceedings. Pretty soon, Iron Man, Wolverine, and the Incredible Hulk show up to lend a much needed hand against the evil tyrant. The CGI animation ( although not on par with Pixar’s standard of excellence ) is shot to take advantage of the 3D. The 4D, however, left much to be desired. Whenever a character is thrown into a fountain, for example, a mist of  water is sprayed on the audience. And whenever Iron Man and Dr. Doom go at it with an array of power blasts, the side of the theater would pulsate with sequenced light fixtures. I think I’ll wait  May 4th to get my fix of The Avengers…in regular ole Digital IMAX………3D and 4D be damned!

Follow Ed on Twitter @EFG72

Review: Avengers Vs. X-Men # 1

By Edward Gambichler  (Follow Ed on Twitter @EFG72)

 

As we come to the end of March and the beginning of April, we close the door on Winter and open the door to Spring. And although April showers bring May flowers, it also brings with it this season’s most highly anticipated comic book events: “Avengers Vs. X-Men”. The plot centers around the return to Earth of one of the most powerful and destructive forces in the Marvel Universe, the Phoenix Force. This alien entity, which holds both the power of Death and Rebirth, cuts a swath of devastation through entire worlds and galaxies until it finds a host it feels a kinship with. One of its former hosts was the late Jean Grey, a former member of the mutant superhero team X-Men and the wife of its leader Scott Summers, Codename: Cyclops.

 

When issue # 1 opens, most of the X-Men have settled on the remains of the mutant Magneto’s former base of operations, Asteroid M. This island, off the coast of San Francisco and rechristened by Cyclops as “Utopia”, serves as a haven for the mutant population. As a result of the fallout from the House of M ( specifically the actions of the mutant Scarlet Witch ), the majority of the mutant species have been stripped of their powers. Among the remaining “one percent” is Hope, a mutant with the ability to mimic and manipulate the X-Factor gene responsible for mutation. There are some, like Cyclops, who believe that Hope is a “mutant Messiah” ( since she was the first mutant born after the decimation ) and may have the potential to save the mutant race. There are , however, those who doubt this prophecy and see her as a potential threat. She has also, in the past, shown signs of having manifested the Phoenix force. With the imminent arrival of the Phoenix entity, this makes Hope it’s targeted host. This possibility doesn’t escape the Avengers, in particular Captain America, and they fly to Utopia with the intention of taking Hope into protective custody. Cyclops, however, has been training Hope in order for her to be able to harness the Phoenix entity and wield its power (in the hopes of restoring the depowered mutant population to its former glory ). Sensing Captain America will not leave without Hope, Cyclops hits him with an optic blast from his visor, thereby firing the opening salvo in the two teams inevitable conflict.

 

First off, the artwork. You cannot ask for a better penciller than John Romita Jr. There are few artists that can fill a panel with as much information and not let their pencil lines overpower and confuse the action for the reader. As much as I am impressed by Jim Lee’s draftsmanship, there are times where I would like to just take in the art without having to unconsciously have my eyes focused on every button on a suit or every rivet on a ship or a weapon. Sometimes less IS more and it is the better for it. In this issue, Romita is inked by Scott Hanna instead of longtime collaborator Klaus Janson. And tho Hanna’s inking style is well suited for Romita’s pencil, I would have liked to see Hanna experiment with a different style of inking such as cross-hatching or feathering.

 

The one thing I have against the start of this series is that I expected to be more conflicted on whose agenda I would agree with. As hard as I tried I could not understand Cyclop’s reasoning behind his stance. This is a man who has a history with the Phoenix entity and it has been responsible for a great deal of the tragedy that has defined his Life. How he can think the Phoenix force can be harnessed and used for good is beyond me. The only thing that would make sense to me is that he’s become unhinged due to the decimation of most of the mutant population. Also on the cover, I see Namor fighting on the X-Men’s side. Although Namor is the first mutant in the Marvel Universe, he has always been defined as a loner and only had allegiance towards his city of Atlantis. As far as I’m concerned, that’s what made him such an interesting character. True, Utopia was intended to be a half mutant/ half Atlantean retreat…..how he can’t see through the folly that is Cyclop’s agenda for the Phoenix is a mystery. This applies as well to Magneto and the rest of the X-Men who are fully aware of the threat of the Phoenix force. How the writers can have them blindly follow Scott Summers on this path is an insult to the intelligence of the characters as well as the reader’s who have to buy this scenario. Hopefully the next issues will rectify the plausibility of the storyline.