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This article is about the action figure line of Marvel characters. For the upcoming video game formerly titled "Marvel Legends", see . Marvel Legends is an action figure line based on the characters of Marvel Comics, initially produced by Toy Biz then by Hasbro. This line is in the 6" scale and is remarkable for the ample amount of points of articulation per figure as well as including a related comic book (or, in some cases, a poster book) with each figure. Figures in series 8, 11, and 13 also include a card for use in the Marvel VS Trading Card game. History The Marvel Legends line is a spin-off of the Spider-Man Classics line also produced by Toy Biz. At its inception in 2002, the Marvel Legends line took over the clamshell packaging and included comic book that had shipped with the Spider-Man Classics line until its demise. The first Marvel Legends series included representations of the Hulk, Captain America, Iron Man and the Toad. Marvel recently announced that beginning January 1st, 2007 Hasbro will be the new license holder of the rights to produce toys and games based upon the Marvel Universe while Toy Biz will be renamed Marvel Toys. In addition to a Marvel Universe Mr. Potato Head toy line, Hasbro has released photos of the new Marvel Legends toy line for 2007. Chase Figures From the beginning, the Marvel Legends line has used the "chase" concept to introduce less popular figures, or variations of current figures. Chase figures are figures which are more rare in an assortment, thus causing collectors to chase after them. Eventually, the chase concept was limited to variations (such as an alternate head or a different color scheme) of a figure released in the same series. These chase figures would be released within the set, yet would not have as many figures on the shelf as any of the other figures. These figures became high in demand by collectors due to their rare nature, and became the most actively sought after and valuable toys in each of the series. Build-A-Figure In 2005, Toy Biz introduced the "Build-A-Figure" (referred to as a "BAF" in the collector community) to the Marvel Legends line. Each individual figure in the series was packaged with a piece of a larger figure, in this case Galactus. If one were to buy each figure in the assortment, he or she would then be able to assemble a unique character, unavailable in individual packaging. Standing 16" tall, the Galactus BAF also retained much of the articulation that the Marvel Legends were famous for. Attracting even more "full series" collectors to the line, the idea turned out to be a very successful marketing decision for Toy Biz. The concept was then employed in the 10th series, where each figure was packaged with a piece of a mutant-hunting robot known as a Sentinel. Additional BAFs now include Apocalypse, Onslaught, Giant Man, Mojo, and the forthcoming MODOK, Annihilus, and Blob. With the release of the Giant Man BAF, Toy Biz packaged smaller parts with each character, requiring a full 10 regular figures to be purchased to create the BAF (as opposed to 6 or 7). The first 9 pieces were packaged with the regular figures while the 10th piece was included with the Weapon X variant. This marked the 1st time in any series that a variant figure included a different BAF piece than the normal version, forcing anyone who wishes to complete the Giant Man BAF to purchase both versions of the figure (The Sentry variant includes the same piece as his normal figure). Starting with Onslaught and continuing with Mojo and the forthcoming MODOK BAF's, Toy Biz returns to the six-piece formula. However, the BAF characters are significantly smaller than their predecessors - both to keep them in an appropriate scale and to reduce costs in the face of rising oil prices. Toy Biz One Two Three Four Five Six Seven Eight NOTE: The early shipments of ML8 had a paint error on the Captain America figures. The Ultimate Captain America was supposed to have grey paint on his pants, while the Classic Captain America was not. When the toys were first released, these paint apps were reversed. A running change later corrected the error. Nine (Galactus Series) Ten (Sentinel Series) Eleven (Legendary Riders) NOTE: There was some confusion over the rarity of The Scarlet Witch. Prior to the series being released, Toybiz had announced that they were unhappy with the final product, and as a result, had pulled the figure from the line, despite the inclusion of the character on the packaging. However, as the wave began to appear at retail, many findings of the figure were reported, with the actual product varying considerably from the prototype presented on the packaging. Twelve (Apocalypse Series) NOTE: there is some confusion over which version of X-23 is the variant, and which is normal. Though the back of the packaging shows the black-suited version as the standard figure, many cases had the purple costume packed in heavier numbers. It seems that which version was rare depended on where one shopped. For example, in the United States and Australia, the Purple-suited X-23 was the standard figure and the Black-suited X-23 figure was the variant. In Canada and the UK, it was the exact opposite. However, there were many reports that the case assortments were evenly packed for all the variants. Thirteen (Onslaught Series) Fourteen (Mojo Series) Fifteen (M.O.D.O.K. Series) Wave 1 (Annihilus Series) Wave 2 (Blob Series) Wave 3 Hasbro has not yet indicated which other figures will be in wave 3, but a list of characters confirmed to be in either wave 1, 2, or 3 was shown on message boards. After series' 1 and 2 were confirmed, these characters were left: Wal*Mart Exclusive 2005 - Fantastic Four Box Set Wal*Mart Exclusive 2006 - Giant Man Series NOTE: A running change resulted in a repaint of both Sentry and the Sentry variant being released which replaces the original gold/tan paint from the original shipment with a corrected, lighter yellow. Urban Legends X-Men Legends Fantastic Four Fantastic Four (variant set) Spider-Man & The Sinister Six Spider-Man: Fearsome Foes Young Avengers Marvel Monsters House of M Face Off Two-Packs The "Face-Off" series was first released in mid 2006. Each set includes two 6" scale figures, a base with background, and a reprint comic. Series 1 Series 2 Prototypes Because of its status among tech-savvy collectors, leaked information and rumors play a significant role in the Marvel Legends line. Early in October of 2005, pre-production promotional material for the 13th series, "Bring on the Bad Guys," was leaked to the web. These materials depicted a seventh figure, Crimson Dynamo, and also advertised that each figure in the series would come with a secondary generic "henchman" figure. Shortly after the leak, however, Jesse Falcon, from product development at Toy Biz, stated that neither Crimson Dynamo nor the "henchman" pack-ins were still slated as part of "Bring on the Bad Guys." In addition, a pack-in of Wild Child, slated for release with the Age of Apocalypse Sabretooth in the Wal Similar pre-production materials surfaced for the 14th series, stating it would feature non-articulated, one inch X-Babies pack-ins. Series 15 initially included the characters Quicksilver (Quicksilver has since been confirmed for Hasbro's series 2 "Blob" series) and Mandarin (Mandarin has since been confirmed for the second series of the "Face Off" two-packs). According to Jesse Falcon, early cost analysis was also run to explore the possibility of a "Build-a-Vehicle" Quinjet. All of these figures and features were cancelled before production. At the San Diego Comic Convention in July 2006 a Thunder Frog (Thor turned into a frog by Loki) and Forbush Man (Marvel's unofficial mascot, a character from the What The--?! humor book) were displayed by Toy Biz indicating additional figures that may never see the light of day. Henchmen X-Babies Mitey Vengers Related Lines Toy Biz has several lines of toys which are related to Marvel Legends in that the toys are Marvel characters, often exhibit comparable articulation, and are similar in scale. With the exception of Spider-Man Classics, which actually pre-date Marvel Legends, these lines do not include comic books and do not ship in the same clamshell packaging. The figures in these related lines also usually include some sort of "action feature," sometimes limiting their articulation and ostensibly intended to make the toys more appealing to children. Several popular characters (usually villains) that have not appeared under the Marvel Legends brand have made appearances in these lines, and thus are usually the most desired among collectors. These include most of Spider-Man's rogues gallery (including the Beetle, the Hobgoblin, the Scorpion, Sandman, Mysterio, Man-Wolf, Shocker, Jack O'Lantern, and Morbius), as well as some of the Hulk's (Absorbing Man), Fantastic Four (Super Skrull, Kang, and Dragon Man), and X-Men (Avalanche). Though not Marvel characters, Toy Biz's Lord of the Rings and TNA line of toys also included some super poseable figures much in the same style. | |||||||
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