Sunday, November 12, 2023

Action Figure Review: Blade from Marvel Legends Series: Marvel Knights by Hasbro

 

   Looking back through my 2023 Marvel Legends Reviews, only 1/10th of the figures I reviewed were not X-Men characters. I stuck to my resolution to focus my Marvel Legends collection on X-Men based characters pretty well, didn't I? Today I'm looking at one of the newest figures I've picked up and possibly my last Marvel Legends Series review of the year (barring a good sale on the X-Men '97 releases): Blade! I do remember Blade from Spider-Man: The Animated Series but it was the 1998 Wesley Snipes film Blade that cemented my love for the character. Still, it's the three films in that series that pretty much informs everything I know about Blade, the dhampir and Daywalker with incredible fashion sense. All of their strengths and none of their weaknesses, baby. Other than seeing a few minutes of Howard the Duck, Blade was the first Marvel movie I ever saw. My dad took me to it and I remember being 100% blown away. I loved movies about vampire and monster hunters when I was a young teen and From Dusk till Dawn, Blade, Army of Darkness, and John Carpenter's Vampires were absolutely my jam. I have the previous Marvel Legends Blade (from the Man-Thing Build-a-Figure series) but this one definitely evoke the feel of Wesley Snipes' Blade more, so I absolutely wanted it. I stumbled upon Blade at GameStop last week and was thrilled. Ready to check him out and keep your Morbius figure in line? Then join me after the break...







The Facts:

Height: 6 1/4ths inches

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

Accessories: Katana, two stakes, two glaives, 4 swappable hands, and the head and eyebeam for the Mindless One build-a-figure. 

Non-Scalper Price: $25 dollars





The Positives:

*  Blade is sporting the classic trench coat with crimson lining and the body armor on his chest (the body armor is reused from the previous Blade figure). The trench coat is a separate piece and, with some work, you can take it off. It... well, it doesn't look bad, really. Blade's sleeves are rolled up which wouldn't have been my ideal look (although I typically roll the sleeves up on most jackets when wearing then unless it's really, really cold) but they look OK. I guess he's getting ready to get down. He's sporting cargo pockets, combat boots, and a sweet tactical belt, all with nice, crisp details. There isn't much paintwork on the figure itself but it does look really cool regardless. 







* This version of Blade reminds me of a mixture of Wesley Snipes' look and a more classic comic book version. When you look at this version of Blade you'll definitely think of Wesley Snipes, but you'll also see some comic styling. I love the open mouth and the pronounced fangs. An alternate head with a more just standing around "looking cool" expression would have been nice, but I'm pretty happy with what we have here. 


* The arms on Blade are reused from the X-Factor Havok and they're just not the best. I'll get to those in a minute, though. For now, I'm glad to say that I'm happy with all of the articulation here except for the shoulders. The pinless combat pants wearing legs are great and everything else moves just fine, too. He's a super sturdy toy and definitely is pretty cool looking. 









* Does Blade come with a katana? Yes, he does. Does the Katan have a secret feature where blade pop out of the hilt and slice off your fingers if you steal it from him and fail to activate the build-in security feature? Blade's not telling!










* The katana slides smoothly into the sheath on the back of Blade's coat. It's not a removable sheath and it seems to be glued to the back of the coat, but it works quite nicely. 



* Blade comes with a pair of fists and a pair of standard gripping hands. I wish he had come with a pair of trigger fingers too (I'd love to give him some firearms loaded with silver bullets), but I'm sure I have some around. It doesn't mean he didn't need them, though. 





* Blade also comes with two cool glaives, similar to what he uses in the films. They're pretty nice and match the colors of the katana. 





* Last up for Blade are two stakes. They're traditional wood stakes and they're pretty simple, but they look good and get the job done. 



* Since Blade is part of a build-a-figure series he comes with the head and an eyebeam of some sort for the Mindless One. I'm not planning to build him but at least I can trade it or sell it to someone to recoup some of the cost of the figure. 

The Negatives:


* Blade's shoulders really have a poor range of movement. The arms are reused from the X-Factor Havok and they look too big for Blade's hands. They also but up against his trench coat, making the shoulders really stiff. It's a shame Hasbro didn't just create new arms or use something better. 

   Blade is just a really cool figure and seems like he's probably the most popular figure in this series (though I'll admit that both GameStops I've been to who have had these figures did not have Clea and Lady Bullseye in stock, though GameStop gets broken up cases). He looks great and has some killer accessories. It's just a shame that the shoulders are so wonky. You're not supposed  to have any weaknesses, Blade! He's still a pretty Great figure, though, and one of the few non X-Men characters I picked up this year. Someday I'd love to see Hasbro release a true Wesley Snipes version of Blade but, for now, this is a nice stand  in. 


This is the first figure of Blade/ Eric Brooks/ Frank Blade that I've reviewed. For more Marvel Legends Series reviews check out the following:
Marvel Legends Series by Hasbro (2016)

Marvel Legends Series: Avengers by Hasbro
Taskmaster
Yelena Belova

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: Doctor Strange

Marvel Legends Series: Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) 
 
Marvel Legends Series: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021)
Baron Zemo

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

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

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 
Yondu 

Marvel Legends Series: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 by Hasbro (2023)
Mantis
 
Marvel Legends Series: The Infinity Gauntlet by Hasbro (2021)
 
Marvel Legends Series: The Infninity Saga by Hasbro
Captain Marvel & Rescue Armor

Marvel Legends Series: Inhumans by Hasbro (2017)
 
Marvel Legends Series: Ironheart by Hasbro (2021)
 
Marvel Legends Series: Iron Man by Hasbro  
Vault Guardsman

Marvel Legends Series: Marvel Knights (2023)
Blade

Marvel Legends Series: The Punisher by Hasbro (2019)
The Punisher (Walgreens Exclusive)
 
Marvel Legends Series: She-Hulk by Hasbro
She-Hulk 

Marvel Legends Series: Silk by Hasbro
Silk and Doc Ock

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

Marvel Legends Series: Spider-Man by Hasbro
King in Black: Knull and Venom

Marvel Legends Series: Super Villains by Hasbro (2021)
Xemnu

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

Marvel Legends Series: Thor by Hasbro
Gorr
Ragnarok

Marvel Legends Series: Thor: Love and Thunder by Hasbro (2022)
Mighty Thor

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

Marvel Legends Series: Venom by Hasbro (2018)
Carnage  
 
Marvel Legends Series: WandaVision by Hasbro (2021)
 
Marvel Legends Series: What If? by Hasbro (2021)




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4 comments:

  1. AnonymousNovember 12, 2023 at 2:55 PM

    Only the one head? The shouty head should generally be the alternate. Or else every single pic you take makes him look like he's overreacting to every situation. :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Barbecue17November 15, 2023 at 8:54 AM

      Blade definitely has no chill. He's just screaming all the time!

      Delete
  2. KooshmeisterNovember 17, 2023 at 7:27 AM

    I want to like this figure, but the one super-specific head sculpt with one super-specific expression means that even if I end up getting it, I not only won't like it as much as I think I should, but I'll replace it with a different Blade figure that has a more neutral expression the second he becomes available. Maybe. I mean, I had the same problem with the Beast figure from a while back, with his one snarling/roaring expression, but I got him anyway and have yet to get the subsequent one(s) with more neutral facial expression(s), so who knows...?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Barbecue17November 19, 2023 at 1:24 AM

      A second head would definitely have been very welcome. If/ when the MCU movie happens, I'm sure we'll see both movie versions of Blade and a new comic version or two. Blade definitely sells.

      Delete

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