Friday, June 2, 2023

Action Figure Review: Groot/ Cosmo/ Rocket from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Epic Heroes by Hasbro

 

   *Warning- Some movie spoilers here!*

   My family went to see Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 on opening weekend and while both my wife and I were very impressed by it, our daughter... well, I don't think she's going to get over the tragic scene with Rocket's friends anytime soon. She's seen every MCU film except Eternals and most of the shows but, man, that was unexpectedly dark. Guardians of the Galaxy 3 was a great movie, probably the best since Spider-Man: No Way Home, but that was a pretty rough movie for a younger Marvel fan. Usually you get some drama, sure, and some comic book violence and mild expletives, but Guardians pushes the PG-13 rating, particularly with some disturbing animal abuse. I've certainly teared up during a Marvel film, sure, but my daughter was full on sobbing. Seeing some helpless animals get blasted was definitely not something I think any of us were hoping for. Now that being said, I really loved the film. Second only to the tentpole films of the Infinity Saga, Guardians of the Galaxy has been my favorite part of the MCU and the third movie was filled with some really solid payoffs and fitting endings for the cast. I also absolutely adore Cosmo the Spacedog. Cosmo has been hanging around since the original film but I really began to love her after her appearance in The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. This film cements her as one of the stars of the MCU. Voiced by Maria Bakalova, Cosmo the Spacedog absolutely steals the show. And, for the record, let me state that Cosmo is absolutely a good dog. The best dog in the MCU!

   It's because of Cosmo that I bought this set, but it also comes with Groot and a minifigure of Baby Rocket. My main Marvel Legends collecting focus is on comic based figures, not MCU figures, and I didn't really want to pick up the GOTGV3 Legends figures just to build Cosmo. She's really expensive on her own, too, and when I discovered this set I figured she'd make a nice stand in. While this set is mainly branded for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol, it's part of Hasbro's Epic Heroes line of 4-inch scaled figures intended for kids. Doesn't it seem like Hasbro keeps jumping to new scales and styles every year or so to try to engage kids, all the while releasing mostly the same characters over and over again? Will Epic Heroes prevail? Honestly, I have no skin in the game. I just wanted Cosmo. Let's check her, Groot, and Baby Rocket out after the break...



The Facts: Groot

Height: 4 1/4ths inches

Articulation: Swivel/ hinge knees, swivel/ hinge hips, swivel/ hinge shoulders, swivel/ hinge elbows, and a balljointed head.

Accessories: Wings, 2-piece vines, and 2 pistols.












The Facts: Cosmo

Height: 2 1/8ths inches

Articulation: Swivel hips (x 4), swivel tail, and swivel neck.

Accessories: None













The Facts: Baby Rocket

Height: 5/8ths of an inch

Articulation: None

Accessories: None

Non-Scalper Price: $23 dollars

The Positives:


* Let's start out with Groot as he's the main draw of the set. Groot seems to be built articulation-wise like the rest of the Epic Heroes figures although he's a bit taller. In Vol. 3 Groot is really pretty thick, though not as tall as his original incarnation from the first film. Well, not at first, anyway. The sculpt isn't bad and there's some nice detail in Groot's bark that looks like a mixture of regular tree bark and organic musculature. There's a bit of green sprayed on, too, to break things up. This guy certainly isn't up to Marvel Legends standards or anything but he looks pretty good for a toy that's more equivalent to something like Imaginext.


* The portrait is actually really good, though. It's clearly the younger Groot from this film. The paint work is quite nice, especially on the eyes. What's this version of Groot called, anyway? I've heard him referred to as Teen Groot, but I thought that was the thin, lanky Groot from Infinity War and Thor: Love and Thunder. Of course, it's also been revealed by James Gunn that this isn't the same Groot from the first film, but his son, right? So Baby Groot was also Groot's baby, or something.


* Groot is a solid toy with decent articulation; definitely enough for you or some kid who picks this set up to have fun messing around with him. He's not super articulated but he does have swivel/hinge joints at the hips, shoulders, knees, and elbows, so it's a decent setup. He's pretty durable feeling, too. It's more articulation than my Marvel figures had as a kid. 


* Groot's massive wings were a big surprise in the movie, assuming that you didn't see the Marvel Legends figure before you saw the film. They easily pop on to Groot's back, allowing him to soar through the air. he kind of glides with them rather than really flying with them, I think, but I guess you can do whatever you want if you buy the set. Have Groot fly. Live your best life now, Groot!




* Groot comes with two pistols. The first one looks like it has a triple barrel.


* The second one has a long barrel, a scope on top, and maybe some aiming device on the bottom. They look like they'd fit a standard Marvel Legend Rocket Raccoon pretty well if you wanted to use them for that purpose. 


* Groot can hold the pistols in his hands, sure, but he can also put wield them in his vines like he does in the movie. This is a pretty cool feature, though it'd be cooler if he had more guns: Two for his hands and two for the vines. The vines are made of two pieces and just snap around Groot's torso. 


* Next up, let's check out Cosmo the Spacedog, AKA the reason I bought this set. Cosmo isn't huge and might be a bit undersized, but I don't think she's terribly out of scale. From what I've seen, it looks like the Legends Cosmo BAF might actually too large. She's a cute pup and a good dog, all decked out in her Soviet space suit. No helmet here, but she doesn't wear it much these days now that she's free of the Collector's collection. I love the tail poking out of the space suit!





* Look at that face! Cosmo is a Golden Retriever- Labrador Retriever mix and she's fairly recognizable, though a bit more caricatured here for sure. 










* Cosmo has simple articulation but it works for a pretty simple toy. She stands, can paw at things, she sits pretty well, and she can hop up on the counter and search for treats and other goodies. 




* Last up is Baby Rocket. He's just a simple minifigure but he sure is cute. Small, though, but the paint details on his face aren't bad at all.

The Negatives:


* My only complaint is that I really wish Cosmo had some more paint applications on her Space Suit. There's a decent amount of sculpted detail but it's just left unpainted. 

   This is a cool little set that has neat versions of three characters you might want to add to your collection. If you're looking at this compared to the other Marvel Epic Heroes, Groot seems to be a slightly more deluxe figure than the standard releases while Cosmo is definitely a companion figure and Baby Rocket is more like an accessory. It might be a bit too high for what you're getting, but these are some fun figures. Cosmo and Baby Rocket work just fine in a Legends collection and Groot is fun, though out of scale. Unless you pretend he's like... kindergarten Groot, maybe? This is a Great set and I've had plenty of fun having Cosmo complain about being called a bad dog and pleading for Kraglin to "Take it back!" Cosmo is a great dog, and we all know it, don't we girl?



If you're looking for more Rocket Raccoon figures, I've also checked out the Disney Infinity Rocket Raccoon and the Marvel Legends GOTGV2 Rocket Raccoon and the Rocket from the Guardians of the Galaxy 5-Pack.

If you're looking for more of Groot I've reviewed the Disney Infinity Groot and the Marvel Legends Groot Evolution figure, the Toddler Groot that came with Rocket Raccoon, and Groot from the Guardians of the Galaxy 5-Pack.

This is the first toy of Cosmo the Spacedog I've reviewed on the site.










4 comments:

  1. Cool set. I need to watch this film, preferably at the theater. I am just finishing Ant Man, Quantumania.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's definitely worth watching. Definitely a top tier Marvel film.

      Delete
  2. I'd have to pull mine out to check, but I'm almost positive that second pistol was used with the Vol2 Rocket Legends figure.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They're definitely the same two pistol designs as that figure but looking at the pictures, I think they're actually different sculpts.

      Delete

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