Another Marvel Legends Captain America review in 2023?! Am I unable to stick with one and move on with my life?! Anyways, this is a case where I wanted to explore what options are out there for a Captain America I'd actually want for my collection, as the Retro-carded version was more or less something I wasn't keen on keeping as the main version of the character. By contrast, Ultimate Cap is a figure I am happy to keep, especially since I wanted a bit of rep for the Ultimate Marvel universe in a collection filled with Earth-616 characters. But while I make a belated celebration for Legends' 20th anniversary, it makes sense to give Cap an enemy of his worth pitting, and who else but Baron Zemo to join the spotlight?
Here we have Captain America in-hand, seen here using a modified version of the 80th anniversary version of the character. Instead of the Alex Ross-inspired look, Cap is now depicted in a more traditionally brighter shade of blue. This figure also possesses an interesting method of shading, applying darker red paint on the gloves, boots, and stripes on this guy. I will admit that this guy looks very good in contrast to most Caps we've had in the past, with only the 80th version and Ultimate versions being equal in terms of the high level of aesthetics. But when people say that he looks like he leaped out of the comics, I want to say yes but I also feel he isn't quite as proportionate to the comics. I mean, he does have the physique for the most part, but it isn't exactly 1:1 due to the shoulders being smaller and the torso not being V-shaped. On the bright side, I love the chainmail texture on this figure's suit, giving Cap a whole new sense of dimension on a traditionally flat suit.
His head sculpt look looks great like with a lot of Marvel Legends of late, and it is an improvement from the 2019 80th anniversary version of Cap thanks to the sharper detailing in the eyes. The A on his forehead is also crisp, as are the winglets above his ears. There are very small paint mishaps where the skin goes over the blue plastic, but it is nothing too severe. His articulation is standard for the line, so let's instead talk about the shield. The size of it is good, and while I'm fine with it being either tampographed or slightly raised in relief, I do wish it wasn't always stuck with these holes meant for the effect parts. I'd appreciate it if there was an optional shield without holes.
Instead, we come with a handful of alternate effect pieces meant to give this figure various display options. Firstly, you have a lightning effect that surrounds the surface area of the shield, allowing fans to depict his shield absorbing some sort of attack from a foe in his defense or using said attack against them. He also comes with three uniquely sculpted bullet ricochet pieces, which are the best display options fitting for a Captain America.
Captain America also includes a slash effect piece meant for him to strike his foes down, or his fellow Avengers in the case of Iron Man who's posed awkwardly because he's somewhat cringing at how mediocre the ending to the Civil War movie was compared to the comic. Captain America even comes with an unmasked head representing his likeness to Steve Rogers as well as straps meant for his shield to go over the shoulders (which sort of hide how undersized the shoulders are) and a folded-away mask that reminds fans that the mask of Captain America is not a helmet. The face used for Steve is magnificent, and it fits a more no-nonsense Captain America who wasn't a pure asshole like in the Ultimate Comics nor a goody-twoshoe asshole as Chris Evans portrayed him as since the first Avengers movie. And I hope my brief commentary on how Cap should act doesn't get seen in the same light as all those whiny Superman discussions.
His backdrop includes one of his oldest comic books, as it says on the top. This is Captain America (1968) #109 and not Captain America Comics (1941) #1 from the days of WWII. It's more fitting to represent when he joined the Avengers and when he received his round shield. It was an entirely different look back in 1941 after all. Alternatively, you can display him with a WWII-era background while he was still in battle, probably moments before he would get frozen in time. An overall good set with minor issues that should be fixed so as not to drive people mad. The shoulders and maybe the torso shouldn't feel undersized, and the shield should have an alternate version of itself without holes. This figure has been as hard to get in the aftermarket as the Alex Ross version from 2019, but at least it's good to have a Cap that is comparable to a more traditional comic look. Plus, the lighter blue always suited him more anyhow compared to Spider-Man and Superman looking much better with darker shades of blue.
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
And up next, we have Helmut Baron Zemo, the successor to the original Heinrich Himself. While many casuals would see Baron Zemo as just a guy who had a long-as-hell dance in 2021 that still pales to Bully Maguire's dance, this guy is a generally faithful interpretation of the identity associated with the succeeding Zemo; I do appreciate that apart from having reused parts, we do have a bit of new sculptwork for the collar region to maintain consistency with the subtle sculptwork of the mask. On top of that, the lines are painted in so as to add an extra layer of completion that Hasbro would usually skimp out on. We also have some pieces representing cheetah pattern fur on the shoulders and boots, though they might be leopard fur given how aristocratic a villain like him may be. He also has a big belt that's just missing a WWE tampograph as the new heavyweight champion.
His head sculpt is the strongest aspect of a figure like him. While the body may be reused parts, the mask itself is marvelously done, even if the gold headband's paint doesn't match the bare gold plastic. The eyes are thankfully applied on properly, too. Articulation is the same as before, so we'll discuss how he comes with a pretty fancy sword, also appropriate for a character with this much wealth in him. But the sad thing it the sword, on top of not being as mighty as a pen to some, is the only thing he comes with. No guns, no alternate unmasked, however...
Overall, Baron Zemo is a generally good figure to own as a means of expanding your Marvel villain shelf, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's not 100% as it is. Obviously, no figure in this line is perfect, yet decisions like the way the hands were handled in place of proper accessories makes me wonder how budget-friendly Hasbro was trying to be. If we had two fisted hands instead of just the one, and no hands come with fingernails, then that'd be fine as it is. But certain decisions are not easy to understand with Hasbro Marvel Legends teams. There are slight proportion oddities, and then there are gloved hands with fingernails.
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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