X-Men '97 turned out to be a huge ass success, even with the whole odd animation quirks and the way people got mad at Morph being non-binary (which apparently didn't even get acknowledged in the show). I still haven't seen it, but I might once I get someone to use their account for me. That being said, two more characters from the Marvel Legends line join the collection, so let's see if the non-cel-shaded Cyclops and Hasbro's second stab at Nightcrawler are worth getting!
Let's cover Cyclops first given he was someone I previously reviewed in an older buck. This version of the character uses the Vulcan base body, only now utilizing some new harness parts molded or glued onto the body so as to make it fit seamlessly. We also see the same applied for the straps on the thighs, gloves, and boots. While the figure's lacking any proper paint work to make the appearance less toyish, I do appreciate the crisp paintwork applied onto the X logos on the harness and belt. The Vulcan body is seen to some as a bit unfulfilling for Cyclops, mostly due to the shoulder size and possibly the torso width, but it fits Cyclops decently well compared to someone like Captain America.
His head sculpt is done well for the most part, especially with the fleshtones being molded separately from the rest of the headgear as well as the hair; speaking of, I wish the hair was a darker shade or was dry-brushed to make it look less plasticky. At least the red trim on the visor and the coloring on the lips look good. He has the standard articulation found on numerous Marvel Legends figures, including the commonly-done ab-crunch/waist swivel combo Hasbro tends to stick with a little too much. To their credit, the harness sculptwork isn't disrupted by the ab crunch. His alternate head allows fans to pose him doing an optic blast. Oh and he can have swappable fists.
As for how the accessories in question work, this head has his teeth gritted as he performs said optic blast, though the effect part comes removed from the visor for packaging reasons. I wish it had the option to depict him with a normal visor that you can remove, or at least similar to what the Astonishing version had with a smoky look to the visor.
Here is how he looks next to his Bucky Cap counterpart and the VHS version via a stock photo. I think this version looks the best in terms of physique, not having the crap shading, and having the uniform gear not fit on him loosely. Always appreciate it when Hasbro goes a step further with their tooling than they normally do with Legends, though it shouldn't be a thing done sparingly. I wish his hair was either darker or had shading to it.
Up next, we have Nightcrawler. This character is new to my collection, though his previous Hasbro release was way back in 2019's Wendigo wave. This version is slightly bigger and muscular than the one from that wave, which might be a common factor for Legends of late (at least for the former). The overall proportions fit Nightcrawler well, especially given how lean and athletic the character is known to be. I love the hands and feet befitting his mutant traits, with there only being two fingers and toes per hand while the thumbs remain and the heels are longer from the back. He also has his iconic tail, equally as specific to his character as the outfit he wears. That V-shape chest piece tapering down the torso goes well with the black spandex as well as the white gloves and boots.
His head sculpt is marvelous, between the shading for the hair and the much darker blue on the face to help add to facial detailing comparable to tattoos. The ears and hairdo are undoubtedly Nightcrawler, and his amusing butt chin is thankfully not the same as the ToyBiz version. With his slight smirk swapped with a neutral glare, he can be posed in almost animalistic poses that are further helped thanks to his tail articulation. He has fists but I wish he had a sword like the Wendigo BAF version.
And here he is with a few other X-Men most fans would normally get. The scale seems to be about right for the cast, but did you know Jean Grey isn't from the new wave? I might get her at some point, but it all boils down to when the time is right and if I see her at a cheap price. Same goes for Storm and Bishop since I didn't get those two yet I kind of want to. As for Cyclops and Nightcrawler, both are serviceable in their own ways and ultimately could use an extra accessory or two for each. Maybe an alternate visor piece for Cyclops's gritted teeth head and a sword for Nightcrawler. Still beats the stupid ass aftermarket prices the VHS Cyclops and Wendigo BAF Nightcrawler went for. The $24.99 price tags are still annoying for the carded releases.
Final ranking (for both): ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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