Phase 1 of the MCU is undoubtedly my favorite part of the series, no doubt due to the better tone, less shite writing, and less of a made-by-committee feel that the series tends to be in recent memory. See, it was less about quantity and more about quality. I miss when it was about those days because everything tends to be pretty lackluster when it gets all bloated and whatnot. Remember those days? I love it when those were the times we had. Now then, let's be real here: Iron Man is one of the strongest movies we've gotten in the overall series, as it felt like a proper movie instead of a genuine movie. I'm serious when I say that, but at least I won't get annoyingly ratio'd by some punkass bird app accounts with irritating comments. Anyways, here's my review on Marvel Legends Infinity Saga Iron Man Mark III!
Here we have Iron Man Mark III in-hand, and I have to say that as far as accurately capturing the look of the figure is concerned, they did a great job in terms of the details and proportions that Iron Man is known for. Mark III is a design I particularly like, especially since it's one that I've seen frequently in the movie overall. While this armor may not have the same amount of color variety or sculpted details that future suits have, it at least looks easier on the eyes without it being too overly elaborate or weirdly smooth. It's the perfect balance between complexity and simplicity, and inb4 you tell me to say the same with the Beewun aesthetics, know that those cling onto G1 while MCU Iron Man is an adaptation of the character instead of being a super faithful sculpted muscles suit. As far as deco is concerned, it's consistent overall outside of a few mistakes, but the most interesting aspect is the spray effect on the arc reactor; at first I wasn't sure if I'd like it but it's nicely subtle when applied on the core, and it ends up being the best ways to paint the core reactor on an Iron Man figure. And while not 100% perfect on the application of paint, at least the red plastic and the plastic that's painted red are consistent!
Helmet sculpt is spot-on to how it should look in the movie, and while some may wish the eyes would be more prominent, they at least don't look too big on the face as one would normally expect if they saw other attempts back in 2008. I do wish that the black paint for the mouth was slightly better applied. The articulation for this guy is on par with what we previously received with other Legends Iron Men; the neck is on two ball joints, and the shoulders can move front and back and in and out with the shoulder pads integrated. There is a bicep swivel, a double-jointed elbow, and both hands can swivel on their peg as well as hinge in and out. The torso has a limited diaphragm joint, which can function the same as the waist swivel and ab crunch. The hips can move front and back as well as in and out. There are thigh swivels, double-jointed knees, and the feet hinge front and back as well as pivot side to side somewhat. If the first pose isn't Iron Man-y enough for you, you have the first option of replacing his fists with repulser blasting hands. While you lack the ability to add repulser blast effect pieces, the cores are at least painted nicely to make the palms look less underdone. Still wish he'd use those ports but he doesn't come with any effect pieces. Weirdly, the left gand is looser than the right hand socket; must be a molding error but it otherwise stays in place.
The right forearm has 3 alternate pieces apart from the stock one, so you can have him displayed either with the forearm missiles best remembered from when he fired at an enemy tank before walking away from the explosion. The missiles are nicely painted, as is the alternate forearm piece that may be for when he's doing repairs or if it's being attached onto him. I need to rewatch the movie to better understand, but he also has a half-unmasked head. The paint apps are nicely applied but it looks about as much as Robert Downey Jr as it does a skinny, younger Dr. Phil. I've seen worse likenesses but this one isn't their best (then again only his face is partially exposed.
For an armor comparison, here he is with the only other Iron Man figure I own, that being the Mark VII from The First Ten Years line of MCU Legends. I still like that figure, and the design is good in its own way, but I always found the gray thighs and the weird twists on the boots to be unusual. I also have to give credit to the more accurate eyes and the arc reactor to be better done on the Mark III than on the Mark VII. That being said, while they can fight each other on who would be the more definitive Iron Man, they're both good in their own right on an objective level; on a subjective level, I just prefer Mark III.
You can switch the heads of the two molds, but keep in mind that the alternate head will sit up higher on the neck due to it adhering to the proportions of Mark III. Not awful but you know what I mean. And here is my favorite Iron Man suit next to my favorite War Machine design. Once again, a great way to contrast the two without having War Machine be a slightly different design from Iron Man; both are similar yet manage to look distinct in terms of proportions and design traits. I know some would prefer the more recent armors but at this point I kinda prefer the older designs. That and their CGI looked way better than the new films.
And that sums up my review on Iron Man Mark III. He fills a gap from my childhood the same way MPM-4 Optimus does; I had a mainline Mark III made by a less experienced Hasbro back when the movie came out, and it was okay yet not 100% perfect because of the shoulder pads popping off, the paint rubbing off, and the awkward hip articulation; Hasbro learned a lot from their mistakes with their new Legends; I'm not going to act like a bootlicker of theirs because they do have duds in their waves at times, but they manage to win overall with a figure like this. I don't think I need another Iron Man apart from the classic one for the 50th or 80th anniversary. We'll see! But this won't be the only time we'll see this guy on the review table...you'll see what's to come in the future...
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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