Another #Marvel_Legends! What a shock! But, yes, even if #2020 means #hasbro is down in appearance in my gallery that doesn't mean they're disappearing. That, and I'm into some Natasha Romanoff even if in all white. Let's get to the review then, shall we?
The box reveals it all. It's a deluxe Marvel Legends action figure, no #BAF, and full of other stuff to make it worth it for collectors. It's got the premium price to go along with that fancy box with all the nuts and bolts to give it that premium feel. Something that I will talk about if it makes it worth that price tag and that marketing. Clearly, this action figure came from the highly marketed Black Widow movie which didn't come yet thanks to the events of 2020. Definitely curious about this White Widow suit and why she chose this outfit rather than her sleek and black catsuit.
No hiding the facts! This one got the #figma feels to it. It's got accessories, a stand, and the only thing that it's missing is someone who knows how to pose this not-as-articulated action figure compared to Figmas and #SHFiguarts!
Blast effects of all colors, weapons, alternate hands... these are all recipes of imports! It's actually quite refreshing to see this much stuff from a Marvel Legends. Of course, details are missing but it's a step.
The action figure stand. This is something I haven't seen in ages from a Marvel Legends; this is something collectors have been asking for. It's definitely got some qualities to make it adequate but it's got some serious shortcomings. And look, #Hasbro definitely placed their mark on it.
Without the movie, I have no context as to why Natasha decided to forsake her name sake's color, "Black Widow". Regardless, that won't stop me from appreciating an action figure. Being out of the Marve Legends games for pretty much the entire year, it's nice to go back into it with refreshed vigor. Though it's a bit underwhelming that this body mold is still beating on the same drum, the same mishaps, the same shortcomings. Though before I get into that, I will say that the sculpt is good enough. It looks like a female body and she's definitely built to mirror the beautiful Scarlett Johanson... missing a few assets here and there. There are a ton of sculpts here and there to try and replicate the nooks and cranny of her White Widow attire. The belt, the wrist weapons, and the gun holsters are different pieces that are attached to the figure. A nice touch, for sure. Definitely plenty of things to appreciate.
Those peg holes are still undeniably too noticeable. And the joints are not exactly aesthetically pleasing on her elbows.
And, of course, the colors. Yes, something Hasbro has lacked for some time now. But I will say that they are achieving what they want through the price point that Hasbro is asking for. It's an all-white outfit and it's a good looking white, the black plastic is good, the skin tone is good, her hair is adequate. If I was to judge Marvel Legends in terms of improvement based on this action figure alone, I'd say they've come to a few steps forward since I last bought one.
The face, however, is where I'd say we are getting somewhere. The photorealistic 3D printing isn't by any means perfect but it is getting close. I can see more than enough resemblance to claim this as a Scarlett Johanson Black Widow figure. Though for many reasons, I think an alternate head would help for certain action shots.
As far as the accessories, they're not terrible. Starting with her scythe(?)-like batons, they're well sculpted enough. Of course, since this is a mass-retail action figure, there won't be paint details everywhere as one would hope but it's the price we pay, right? The same goes for her twin pistols; they're black plastic and very small. The nice thing is that they are not sculpted in her holsters. She can actually hold them, believe it or not! Also, her alternate hands allow Black Widow to hold them just fine. Something I really appreciate.
As far as her stand and her special effects, they're actually not too bad either. Far from being an import-standard gimmick, they do, however (for the most part), accomplish what they are set out to do! I was able to get some action shots with explosions behind her. I even managed to steal a picture for Phage who desperately needed some other ways to make his photoshoot more diverse. While the stand does have awkward areas and harder to get out of the shot (unless one puts some clever photo editing), I still had plenty of fun with this thing.
Alternate hands, blast effects, and an action figure stand, and the familiar quality definitely gets me to praise my return to Marvel Legends. Still, a few things missing and issues still not addressed, Hasbro still has some ways to go but with their price being on the 'affordable end', some of the mishaps can be forgiven. I adore this action figure. While she may not be holding a high spot on my 2020 list, I can at least say that she didn't tarnish my collecting endeavor. Definitely warms me up towards touching more Marvel Legends for next year.
Until Next Time!
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