Let's go over Logan first, because while I have covered a few DP&W figures, there is no plan to cover the second wave beyond maybe X-23 Blade after this point. That said, this Wolverine is way better than the yellow suit version; for starters, the proportions are much closer to Hugh Jackman's than the previous version ever could. The hips don't slightly stick out while the upper body is at least more ripped than the cosplay ass torso of the other suit. In addition, the shoulders are not undersized compared to the rest of him, and the plastic used is not see-through like the yellow suit was. It's not 100% perfect, given the yellow seen here could be better (and don't get me started on those knees looking bad compared to how they look on-screen), but this is the way we should make figures for the line, let alone versions of Hugh Jackman's Wolverine. The suit's textures are that of the usual MCUfication, though executed even better here than before; maybe it's because this one at least fits Hugh Jackman's Wolverine more than the yellow suit, at least in terms of not being flashy like the suits he wore in the Fox movies; it may even loosely resemble the suit that they teased in The Wolverine, which I don't mind given this works better in live action whereas I prefer the Tiger Stripe costume in the comics and any similar media. Even the lines don't stick out too much because at least the costume is not a case where they have to make it realistic or overly tactile. I do wonder how the suit would look without some of the lines...
Head sculpt is slightly better than the one we got with the yellow suit version, though we still have that fuzzy basketball texture on the yellow area that looks a bit distracting. The articulation consists of a double-ball neck, shoulder rotation, outward arm movement, rotary joints rather than butterfly joints a la McFarlane, bicep rotation, double-jointed elbows, wrist rotation, inward wrist hinges, a diaphragm joint, a waist swivel, ball-jointed hips, thigh rotation, double-jointed knees, and ankles that hinge as well as pivot.
The figure comes with alternate hands with claws retracted: a right fist and a left trigger finger hand. No idea what they couldn't make pairs of both, or replace the trigger fingers with relaxed hands. We also get an alternate neck piece with his bare skin exposed as well as a cowl piece folded away. You might be telling me "hey Quantum Surge, you forgot to put the unmasked head on!", but what if I told you Hasbro cheapened out and NOT GIVE US THE FUCKING HEAD SCULPT! We already have two figures from the DP&W waves with Hugh's unmasked head from the 2020s; what's stopping them from wanting to reuse it again??? Furthermore, since when did this version of Wolverine put his mask on during the montage? Did Hasbro look at that one fan edit where the mask was added in and thought, "phew, that can save us some likeness rights trouble"??? And it sucks too because the Brown Suit version of Wolverine otherwise shits all over the awful yellow suit version, both in terms of articulation and overall proportions. Do Hasbro designers have specific costume preferences and make one worse than the other, knowing their consumer fanbase will eat it up regardless?
Overall, Brown Suit Wolverine is one you should stick with at all times if you want to get a version of the dude in a superhero suit; the lack of an alternate head sucks, especially given how easy it could be to reuse the already existing Logan head and add it here. It's one of those things I'm starting to hate with Hasbro including or excluding specific accessories for figures not everyone may have; we saw this with the Lightning Collection Cogs coming with Zeo Blue's Tonfas 2 years after that figure came out, or Studio Series Optimus Primal coming with the axe meant for ROTB Optimus Prime despite, at the time, being a Target exclusive before it was sold at mass retail less than 2 years later. Here, we have this and the retooled yellow suit Wolverine coming with alternate necks and folded-up cowls but no alternate heads, and they expect people to have a Logan head despite the first version having been impossible to get at most stores in 2024? Even this wave is repeating a similar issue where the Cassandra Nova figure comes with an accessory where she can phase her head through Mr Paradox, but there's no figure for that "quirky English accent guy" in sight (unless you just use the body of a generic suit). Then again, that figure would probably warm pegs longer than this Wolverine could. Again, not perfect, but more deserving of your shelf space than most figures from the movie.
As for Stan Lee, we've seen similar versions of this suited body for so long, and we know about the articulation he comes with, but I want to give some special attention to the likeness: I think this is their best real-world accurate head sculpt of all time; Stan Lee has a very specific look that's hard to mess up compared to the usual actors we've seen in the past and present, and I'd argue their face scan technology did one of Marvel's creators proper respect. I like the elderly smile under his mustache, the rose-tinted glasses, his receding yet still recognizable hairdo; it's almost like I could hear him come to life and talk about the history of the Marvel lore he created or helped create. His accessories mostly consist of a reused MCU Captain America shield with his signature stamped on it and a briefcase that rests in his arms. I wish he had a few more character-specific accessories to fit on this buck as nods to his Marvel resume; some Iron Man or Hulk hands would be great, Mjolnir should fit in his hand without issue (unless you want to display him drunk and failing to lift Thor's hammer), or why not have some Thing feet to slip over his shoes to add some Fantastic Four nods if you want to do more than just Avengers stuff. Also, did you know this figure was intended to be a Build-a-Figure for a pair of MCU 2-packs? One featured Ross and Killmonger, the other Falcon & Winter Soldier (not the show); my only guess as to why the figure was scrapped as a BAF before we got a normal release stems from either any sexual allegations against him or the elder abuse he unfortunately experienced in his last few months alive. Perhaps it was only months after his death that Hasbro felt comfortable releasing the figure on its own to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Marvel as a company.
Here he is with Renew Your Vows Spider-Man, who is inaccurately taller than his creator depending on the version of the character we're talking about. These two tend to be paired up when it comes to showcasing how important Stan Lee's history with Marvel is, especially when they "met" in the 90s Animated series. Also, if you remember SDCC 2007, we had a special version of the webhead who can turn into Stan Lee by putting his clothes over the suit and swapping either the masked head or Peter Parker's with his very own. I tried something similar by swapping the head on the RYV figure, and while it isn't a perfect fit and sits too high, it at least lets me recreate the Civil War scene where Spider-Man steals Captain America's shield. Hate that movie, mixed on the Underoos nickname, love that scene. Honestly, I'm surprised Stan Lee's figure isn't as expensive as I anticipated, and I can only assume it's due to the figure not being that new as a BAF or just how readily available it was when it first came out. Given most listings on eBay range between $20-40, you shouldn't have a problem picking him up. Honestly, it's kind of weird to own action figures of real people rather than live-action actors playing a fictional character; I know we joke about kids begging their parents to buy them a Jack Black action figure for that Minecraft movie because it's a middle-aged fatso, but owning figures of comic creators like Stan or Todd has a different vibe from just getting figures of their creations. Maybe it's because of the context going on; you know there's a line between getting the Jack Black figure for how ridiculous it looks versus getting figures of Todd and Stan because of their legacy for comic book fans. Either way, rest in peace, Stan Lee. It's about to be a whole decade since you left us to reunite with your wife in the heavens above...excelsior...
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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