Saturday, May 8, 2021

Action Figure Review: Firestar from Marvel Legends Series by Hasbro

 



      While most of the Marvel Legends Series figures I've been picking up lately are from the past couple years when I was sort of doing my best to ignore the line to focus on DC Comics stuff I have purchased a few 2021 figures recently. I looked at the Infinity Gauntlet inspired Thanos last month as he was one of the main reasons I got back into Marvel Legends and today I'm checking out Firestar. Angelica "Angel" Jones, AKA Firestar, was created for the 1981 Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends animated series. Over time she slowly made her way into the mainstream Marvel Universe and has been a member of many different teams including the Hellions, the X-Men, the New Warriors, and the Avengers. Why did I buy Firestar? Well, for one she's a really nice looking figure. For another, I wanted to display her with Spider-Man and Iceman. For a third my daughter has this really cool Marvel biography book that we've read through together a few times and Firestar is one of the featured heroes, so that was an influence. Firestar is a Hasbro Fan Channel exclusive meaning she has showed up at places like GameStop, fine e-tailers, and Hasbro Pulse. She's not part of a build-a-figure series but she does come with her doggie companion. Ms Lion! Let's take a look at Firestar after the break...


The Facts:

Heights: 6 1/8ths inches

Articulation: Swivel/hinge ankles, double hinged knees, swivel thighs, ball jointed hips, ball jointed mid-torso, swivel/hinge shoulders, swivel/hinge elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, hinged neck, and a ball jointed head.

Accessories: 2 interchangeable portraits, 4 interchangeable hands, 2 fire effects, and Ms. Lion.

Non-Scalper price: $20 dollars

The Positives:



* Firestar wouldn't have typically been on my radar as a figure I need but when I saw her I was really impressed. The sculpt and colors are just so awesome that I found her irresistible. The yellow and red look great and while her costume is pretty simple (it's mostly just painted on except for her higher collar) the color scheme and the flame details on the cuffs of her boots and gloves really make her stand out. The body is a standard slimmer female body that has probably been used multiple times in the line but it looks excellent and suits the character well.






* Firestar includes two portraits, the first of which I believe is a more comic inspired look for Angelica. There's a nice consistency with the comic inspired Marvel Legends figures and Firestar has a lovely face that should fit in with your Hasbro era collection. Her hair looks great flowing off to the side and her red mask is super cool. She's fire, baby!


* Firestar's second portrait looks more like it is inspired by her animated appearance. It also makes her look a bit younger, too, more like someone in their 20s. The hair is different (it's flowing down over her shoulders) and the mask is shaped a bit differently. She's also wearing lighter lipstick and has a smile on her face no doubt due to the wacky antics she's up to with Spidey and Iceman. 



* Firestar comes with two sets of hands that swap in and out easily. You get a pair of fists for punching and a pair of open palmed gesturing hands.









* The articulation on Marvel Legends is always good and Firestar is no exception. She has a great range of motion in most of her joints and looks fantastic in most poses. Being that she's a superhero she's a lot of fun to pose and play around with, especially since you can swap out her hands and use the fire effects. Speaking of fire effects...


* Firestar does indeed come with two fire effects that can wrap around her wrists. Her comic powers are based off of the manipulation of microwave radiation (which apparently gave her breast cancer in the comics at one point. Seriously.) but in the cartoon they seemed like standard fire powers. These are cool, translucent flame effects molded in a fairly pliable plastic. They look great wrapped around her wrists!





* Firestar also comes with her pet dog, Ms. Lion. this is the version from the comics where Ms. Lion is apparently a boy. Huh. OK. I guess that's like naming a cat doggie or a dog kitty. Some sort of a joke name. The sculpt is pretty cool, though, with a lot of detail. Ms. Lion also has a ball jointed head so he can look around for Willie Lumpkin so he can bark at him!
The Negatives:

* Why does Firestar have a hole in her back? This isn't a line like G.I. Joe where the characters can share backpacks and this doesn't seem to be intended for any sort of flight stand I'm aware of. Honestly, it's probably Hasbro reusing the mold from a previous figure who used the port. Still, it'd be nice if they had filled it in or something. 

   I'm really quite pleased with Firestar. She's a standard priced figure who ended up with lots of nice extras which I'd typically prefer over a build-a-figure. Her colors are excellent and both of her portraits are fantastic. Oh, and she comes with a dog. How fun is that? Firestar is a really nice Fan Channel exclusive and I'm easily feeling that she's worthy of a Great and a 1/2. The variety of characters Hasbro produces in this line is astounding and they all look so fantastic and colorful on the shelf. I'm excited to be back in the Marvel Legends game after being mostly out of the 


   This is the first figure of Firestar I've reviewed on the site. For more Marvel Legends Series figures check out the following:

Marvel Legends Series by Hasbro (2016)
Enchantress (Mystic Rivals)
Nico Minoru (Mystic Rivals) 
The Punisher

Marvel Legends Series: Avengers by Hasbro
Taskmaster

Marvel Legends Series: Black Panther by Hasbro (2017)
Black Panther 

Marvel Legends Series: Black Widow by Hasbro (2020)
Black Widow: Deadly Origin
 
Marvel Legends Series: Captain America by Hasbro (2016)
Black Panther
Demolition Man (Mercenaries of Mayhem)
Nick Fury 
Nuke 

Marvel Legends Series: Captain Marvel by Hasbro (2019)
Captain Marvel

Marvel Legends Series: Deadpool by Hasbro (2018)
Cable
Deadpool (Boxers)
Deadpool (X-Force)
Deathlok
Domino
Lady Deadpool 
X-23 (X-Force)

Marvel Legends Series: Fantastic Four (2017)
Mr. Fantastic
Thing 

Marvel Legends Series: Guardians of the Galaxy by Hasbro (2017)
Angela
Groot Evolution

Marvel Legends Series: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 by Hasbro (2017)
Drax
Gamora (Daughters of Thanos)
Nebula (Daughters of Thanos)
Rocket Raccoon & Groot
Star-Lord 

Marvel Legends Series: The Infinity Gauntlet (2021)

Marvel Legends Series: The Punisher (2019)
The Punisher 
Punisher: War Machine

Marvel Legends Series: Silver Surfer by Hasbro (2018)
Silver Surfer

Marvel Legends Series: The Unbelievable Gwenpool by Hasbro (2018)
Gwenpool

Marvel Legends Series: Typhoid Mary by Hasbro (2018)
Typhoid Mary

Marvel Legends Series: Venom by Hasbro (2018)
Carnage 

Marvel Legends Series: X-Men by Hasbro (2016)
Cable
Havok
Iceman
Juggernaut
Kitty Pryde
Magik
Phoenix 
Rogue 
Wolverine


























4 comments:

  1. Firestar is a really cool looking figure. I had considered getting her. The hole in the back is clearly due to them using an older mold, but it's still kind of silly that they don't bother filling it in.

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    Replies
    1. Yeah, with as much as Hasbro reuses their bodies you'd think they would figure something out to cover that.

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  2. Nice figure. Glad they finally released her.

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    Replies
    1. She really is very eye-catching. She just leaps off of the shelf!

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