Here is Apocalypse in-hand. While fans of the previously made BAF and some of ToyBiz's efforts of the character may make this deco jar, it is meant to represent how the character appeared in the 90s animated series. Why he's colored differently from the norm, I can't say, but this was set in the same universe where War Machine's color scheme was inconsistent between his X-Men cameos, his full appearance in the Iron Man series, and his guest appearance in Spider-Man. The purple and normal blue do contrast the two-tone blue and black/dark blue color scheme, resulting in a more toyetic design for the character. The figure also has tubes on the back of the forearms that connect to his waist, likely being used for his celestial armor as well as when he takes control of the four horsemen. It's something that will win fans over if they always wanted stuff that'd better match the 90s animated series, and while I do like the 90s animated series a lot, I have to admit that Apocalypse would probably benefit if his colors were darker and probably more metallic.
His head sculpt certainly stands out compared to the flat blue and purple on him. It is a well-detailed face with an appropriately used wash, but it looks so out of place if the rest of his body doesn't have the same level of paint work that went into the face, which I should mention has some really good detailing for the eyes. His articulation consists of a ball for the head and a neck hinge, shoulders that move front and back as well as in and out, bicep swivels, nearly 90 degree elbow bends, wrist swivels and hinges, an ab-crunch, a waist swivel, hips that move front and back as well as in and out, thigh swivels, double-jointed knees, ankle hinges as well as pivots.
As seen above, Apocalypse's head can be swapped for a face with his teeth gritted, but you can either swap his open hands with clenched fists or give him his arm cannon, which is also able to connect to his hoses. Apocalypse has an effect piece, but I am missing the smaller ones, sorry.
For a size comparison, Apocalypse is the height of an average BAF/Deluxe figure, an appropriate size for him. If you compare this mold to the original ToyBiz Legends, this guy has the better proportions one would want from a half-giant/half-intellect. ToyBiz's BAF, on the other hand, does beat this guy.
And for a size comparison with Rogue, who is recreating a certain pose and scene for all the perverts 90s animated series fans. And yes, it is spot-on to the show. So despite my gripes with the lack of synergy between Apocalypse's head and his body, this is still a good figure and is worth getting if you just want him only.
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
And here we have Psylocke. This is a 2018 release that was part of the Apocalypse BAF wave, which is sort of a bit of a 2-year late tie-in to the fact that X-Men Apocalypse was released. I mean, 2016's X-Men wave could be a bit of a way to celebrate the 10th anniversary of The Last Stand. But anyways, this figure uses the standard female buck that is mostly still around. It captures her sexy physique better than ToyBiz version, but the biggest issue with figures like this are that the costume details are tampographed. The leotard she wears along with her boots, bicep and thigh guards, could benefit from being slightly raised in relief rather than just having the paint apps do the job. It makes those parts that go on her skin stand out less without that extra dimension. I remember the Walgreens Namor had a bit of extra work put into his costume to make it look layered, and this figure needed that level of treatment. Her sash could also benefit from being glued in place rather than simply resting there loosely.
This is the purple hair variant of the figure, which replaces the black hair that was initially present. Some say that the likeness isn't Asian enough, and I can see that; it looks like an Americanized take of Misato Katsuragi in some ways. Nonetheless, I was lucky to get her purple hair variant. Her articulation is the same as with various female Legends in the past, including the diaphragm joint and the elbow-swivels. Her accessories, apart from a BAF part of Apocalypse that is missing (not that it hurts me because I already have an Apocalypse). She has her translucent pink arsenal in the form of a psychic sword, an effect piece for it, a psychic knife for her left hand, and a mask for her to represent her powers. Overall, Psylocke is probably the best version of the character we got in Legends form, but I know there is a bit more room for improvement if you ask me.
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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