Spider-Man Classics 6'' figure review

The last Spider-Man we took a look at was quite good, yet I preferred having more alternate parts and a bit of a shinier deco than what the Retro Tribute version had. Also, I'm a sucker for the McFarlane design of the character, so I was hoping to buy a version of the character that was more fulfilling than what the previous Spidey I reviewed had. Also, this one was made by Toy Biz, the original company that did Marvel toys before Hasbro took over. People still praise Toy Biz highly despite most of their figures either aging or not fitting in with their modern collection. Perhaps that won't be the case with the Spider-Man Classics figures, right? Let's find out in my review of Wave 1's Spider-Man!

Here we have Spider-Man in-hand, and I have to say, I feel mixed so far. The sculpt work looks quite good, and I do appreciate some of the paint added on the figure to represent the web lines and the creases of the fabric. That's sadly let down by how the figure feels in terms of quality. He's joints feel loose at the waist and ankles, which you can tell in the second pic as he has a bit of a hard time standing up. He also looks like he's always leaning on one side because his diaphragm joint can't be strengthened. Instead of using joints that feel like they ratchet softly, they used smoother joints for the poses. Sure may seem like it's better if you want more fluid movement, but the materials made for the figure aren't quite as strong as ABS for those joints. As for the diaphragm joint, it's not on a ball joint to my knowledge, as it's on somewhat of a spring-loaded joint. It does stay in a pose, but it's not quite able to remain straight. And the neck looks a bit wonky when seen front and center. Also, the right leg looks like it's bent at a weird angle, and it can't be fixed due to the legs not having any real way of being removed like you could with a Hasbro Marvel Legend.

The face sculpt does look like the McFarlane mask, though one of the lenses does have a tiny paint mistake. Still, it's my favorite part of this toy.

Spider-Man's articulation was groundbreaking when the Classics line first came out. After the simple 7-9 points of articulation, this toy has 30 points! The head can swivel on two joints at the neck, though the swivel works better. The shoulders can move front and back and in and out, but they curiously can be pulled slightly. Why that is, I have no idea! There are double-jointed elbows, and both hands can swivel at the forearm, they can hinge in and out, and the middle & ring fingers can bend to go from a karate chop hand to a web-shooting hand. The torso has a diaphragm joint that's hard to keep in place at times, and the waist can swivel. The hips can move front and back, in and out; there are thighs swivel, there are double-jointed knees, and the feet hinge front and back, but instead of ankle pivots, there are toe joints. Articulation's amazing for an early 2000s toy, but the joints feeling loose despite being mint on card 19 years later baffles me.

The toy comes with a display base that resembles a brick wall with what looks like either the Spider-Signal or a spider-web with giant lenses added to mimmick the mask. On the bottom is a camera that's held by the webbing. Early Spider-Man Classics figures came with these display bases, and it looks simple but effective in my opinion.

You can either display it as if it was a normal stand, or you can use the clamp and have it held by a nail on a wall so you Spidey can look like he's sticking on the wall!

Want to know my biggest issue with this toy? The head pops off too much! No, it's not meant for swapping heads, but as a toy that was NEVER opened out of the packaging, this was really annoying to deal with. Sure, it comes back on, but I know that much like how weak the joints are, I know it won't be able to remain on the peg as it should. This pic below sadly represents how I feel with this figure.

Hasbro's Marvel Legends figures may not have the same nostalgia value that Toy Biz's lines did, nor are they worth 20 dollars compared to what the older Legends went for back then, but at least they felt a bit better in hand with the tighter joints. I know there are some weaker Legends figures out there from Hasbro, and as much as I like the sculpts Toy Biz put out for their molds, I prefer what Hasbro's done compared to Toy Biz, as the sculpts feel nicer and the paint nowhere near as smeary as before. Are they perfect? No, but while they've done some meh figures, they've also done a tremendous job with a lot of their characters. Toy Biz deserves its flaws to be mentioned than for it to be seen as the only good company to have made Legends figures. So if you can't tell by the rant, I don't really recommend getting this figure unless you want to have every Spider-Man toy ever made. Also, if you do open it, you better get one with the comic because some releases will have a mini-poster that feels like a bit of a tease.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐