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Marvel Legends VIII
Iceman and Storm

Coheteboy hits us up with another Marvel Legends review, prepping for the new wave 9 figures to start hitting!  Tonight he checks in with Iceman and Storm from series 8...take it away, CB!

Toy Biz's popular line of comic-book heroes and villains has begun to really hit hard with one of the biggest series yet. Marvel Legends continues to be one of the best toy lines in the retail market today. In Series 8 is Storm (and variant), Iceman, Ultimate Captain America (and variant), Black Widow (and variant), Doc Ock, and Man-Thing. 

Since each figure is so great, I thought I take a look at the X-Men characters of Storm and Iceman first.  







Packaging - ***1/2
The Clamshell packaging is still the flavor of the day for these Marvel Legends, and that's a good thing. These strong bubbles do pretty well to keep the toys in good shape, but I've beginning to see more and more wear & tear on these as well. Despite that, it's a good way to see the toy inside, but expect to use scissors to break these heroes open. 

Sculpting - Storm *** 1/2; Iceman ***
I'm generally quite impressed with the sculpts of Toy Biz's Marvel Legends, and they don't disappoint with these figures. But in my own opinion, there is still room for improvement.

Storm's outfit is the more modern version which is perfectly fine with me. I really like the sculpt they went with on Storm's face but I kinda wish that the hair was a little more versatile. Perhaps if they used a softer plastic, it would be a lot easier to move her head around. It's definitely better than previous figures with big hair, and there's more room around the neck to bob around but still needs some work. 

The cape on Storm can serve as an accessory but since I don't recommend taking it on and off, I'll talk about it here. It's made with a very soft plastic and sculpted rather well. It adds a nice touch to Storm.

Iceman is decent but is in my opinion, the worst of series 8 when it comes to sculpt. I don't know whether it's the thin physique or the weird grimace, but something about ol Bobby Drake is just way off. It's not horrible but yah... not quite what I have in mind.

Paint - Storm *** 1/2; Iceman ***
Storm's paint job is actually quite nice. Sure she's dressed up in black but everything is crisp and clean on mine. 
Iceman is one of those figures that are a little more difficult to grade. It all comes down to opinion, and I think I could have done without the blue tint and shading. I would have preferred a more subtle ice effect. There's also something awkward about his mouth and the black outlining. 

Articulation - ***1/2
Articulation is exactly what you expect from Marvel Legends figures. Storm is a little low on the receiving end with 27 points of articulation, but I really couldn't tell she was that limited from looking at the toy. Though her articulation count is so low compared to the rest of the line, she really has quite enough joints to make it a great toy anyway. Storm has the double joints on all elbows and knees, as well as the extra joints in the shoulder. 

What's missing in Storm, I suppose, are very minor joints such as the swivel wrists (they're still articulated though) and articulated toes. Stuff like that do add up to make it appear like she has less than she really does.

Iceman has 40 points of articulation, which is incredibly impressive. There are extra joints in his shoulder area that allows for even more range so that he can reach further upwards or forwards. This extra few joints makes it possible for Iceman to put his hands together to simulate an ice-blast if you wish.

The rest of Iceman's articulation is the standard of what to expect from Marvel Legends, but there is an extra cut joint right below his pecs. This is really "icing" on the articulation cake because he's able to do a lot more extreme poses without looking like he threw his waist out. 

Accessories - ***
Each legend comes with a base and comic book, and I'm a bit disappointed with the two offerings here. Storm's base is in the shape of a fart cloud that comes in two pieces. I don't know if this is just a problem I had with mine, but Storm has to stand on it at a very sharp angle, making it very difficult for her to stay up. 

Iceman's base comes in three pieces but it looks pretty bad in my opinion. Not quite the ice bridge I wanted it to be and it really SHOULD be the same colors as Iceman, otherwise it'll look tacky... and it does. 

Fun Factor - ****
Well sculpted versions of your super heroes with tons of articulation and accessories? Marvel Legends are here to save the day. That means they're fun. 

Value - ****
Highly detailed figures with accessories for $6.99 to $8.99? That's an amazing value, and Storm and Iceman just happen to be the easiest Legends to find in this wave!

Overall - ***1/2
Overall, these are great figures regardless of the disappointment I found with the bases and minor bits about Iceman's sculpt. I still recommend these figures for any Marvel fan.

Score Recap -
Packaging - ***½
Sculpting - Storm *** 1/2; Iceman ***
Paint - Storm *** 1/2; Iceman ***
Articulation - *** 1/2
Accessories - ***
Fun Factor - ****
Value - ****
Overall - ***1/2

Where to Buy - 
Toys'R'Us, Wal-Mart and KB Toys are your best bet at retail... 

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Figure from the collection of Coheteboy.

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