If you are experienced with Marvel lore, you may be aware of two types of Ragnarok: the well-known but garbage Thor movie, and a Marvel Legends Thor that is unusually called Ragnarok. That is because before or during the Civil War comics, while the real Thor went MIA, Tony Stark decided to create a cybernetic clone of the real Thor, who later rebelled against everyone while thinking it was the actual Son of Odin. He would later be a member of the Dark Avengers with a bald head to distinguish himself from the real Thor. So why did I get this figure? Find out later in the review!
Here we have Ragnarok in-hand. This figure is a slightly altered repaint of the 80th anniversary Thor figure made back in 2019. We'll get to the differences in a moment, but the figure is generally as classic as you can get with Thor's iconic design. While the black torso with silver circles combined with the blue pants looks simplistic by today's standards, the Alex Ross-inspired look for the character design makes him look a lot less hokey. The subtle sculpt for the suit design makes the Asgardian outfit look less cheap for a Party City costume and more hand-made by wardrobe designers of the heavens. The muscular arms look correct on him, looking as organic as possible while also avoiding the doughy appearance that Hasbro and some companies make when designing figures with exposed skin. The wrist guards are thankfully separate pieces rather than painted-on or molded parts that would require paint. The boots are more brown than yellow, but they still maintain a bit of the iconic look while adding some realism. The T-belt buckle is not as goofy as it was before. The cape, molded in a rubbery material, emulates the appearance of a cape flowing somewhat while it integrates to his suit properly (meaning it isn't flimsily pegged on). There isn't any paint but it does have some fabric-like textures.
The head sculpt is seemingly normal for Thor at first glance; there is the shiny silver helmet with (slightly warped) wings (some unfortunate marbling included) and said wings appear to have a bit of a wash applied. The same goes for the blonde hair. His eyes, on the other hand, are noticeably red rather than normal, which goes back to the aforementioned explanation that this is Ragnarok rather than the actual Thor. I do wish he had the proper eyes, but oh well. His articulation consists of a slightly limited ball and neck hinge for the head thanks to the hair and cape clashing together, while the shoulders move front and back, in and out, swivel at the biceps, bend at two points for the elbows, and right hand meant for Mjolnir can hinge up and down while the other hand is able to hinge in and out. Strangely, he has a diaphragm joint at the upper body of the torso yet there is a waist swivel rather than an ab crunch. Maybe that's so the circles wouldn't be broken up. Hips move front and back, in and out, swivel at the thighs, bend at two points for the knee, and the feet hinge up and down as well as pivot side to side. Holding Mjolnir in his hand completes his look, even though it's not the real artifact. Since it was reused from the 80th-anniversary version, it reads “Whosoever holds this hammer, if they be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor.”; you might have him hold the lanyard attached to it so he can be posed flying.
His other accessories include a really awesome spinning Mjolnir effect that has him ready to throw his mighty hammer at any foe of his, with a blue swirl and 8 Mjolnir hammers embedded within said swirl to mimic the illusion of it being spun. And to further push this guy being a cyborg, he has a Two-Face-esque alternate head with an exposed metal face and a robotic left hand to give off that Terminator vibe. It's like Judgement Day took place in Civil War! I saw some in-box images and stock photos depicting an alternate right hand that has the metal skeleton of its structure slightly less exposed than the left hand. But it was only found in said sources with no in-hand reference or mention as far as I know.
This is the original 80th Anniversary Thor. The main differences include a darker shade of red for the cape, brighter coloring for the circles, belt, and boots, a normal-eyed head sculpt, and a left fist instead of a robot hand. Ironically, this Thor has slightly worse helmet wings, and a slightly less detailed Mjolnir. I wouldn't mind getting this guy so I can have a slightly more proper Thor, but hey, if someone is willing to teach me how to paint Ragnarok's eyes, I'll save money and make him Thor!
Overall, Ragnarok is a case where you can get a desired figure with some new things you'd definitely want even if there is a catch in the form of the toy having no proper Thor-eyed head. If you can stomach that, then you can probably find this guy at a discount. I amusingly bought him for $20 after he was sold out on Target.com. now that he and Captain America are covered, only one Avenger in this group photo of the Big Three remains...
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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