By Loran
Sometimes sublines just get a bad reputation. Let’s take Power Core Combiners for instance. The line wasn’t well-received by most fans, but you can’t deny that there were some spectacular figures in it, especially towards the end. The Deluxe Marvel Movie figures have a similar reputation, mostly started by the Iron Man 2 figures. They had all sorts of cool gear, but they weren’t well-received because the figures themselves were ugly and overly simplified, and frankly not worth the money. Thankfully, it seems as though Hasbro learned their lesson, and the Captain America and Thor Deluxe figures are repaints and new molds. But are they still worth it? Let’s take a look…
I picked up a couple of Frost Giants a few weeks ago because I’m seriously short on Marvel Universe baddies and I don’t have any figures from the new Thor movie, so I figured it was a good opportunity. The Frost Giant mold certainly lives up to his name—he’s pretty tall, standing about two heads taller than the average figure at this scale. They even have some good height on the Marvel Universe Modern Thor, making them a decent adversary for any incarnation of the character at this scale.
The sculpting on his body is quite nice, namely in the face with its very subtle wrinkles. I like it when a “cannonfodder” figure manages to have some character. He even has sculpted toenails! I’m pretty sure my 25th Anniversary Quick Kick from G.I. Joe didn’t have those. His uh… loincloth is made out of soft, rubbery plastic like the capes tend to be, and is non-removable… and no, there isn’t anything under there. 😉
My favorite part about this figure is the color scheme. The deep blue with light blue highlights looks VERY striking. While the regular release’s light blue might look more “ice-y”, this one just looks… cool. Pun not intended. The colors all complement each other really well and make for a pretty menacing bad guy.
His articulation is standard for a Hasbro 3 ¾” figure, with no hindrances. One flaw I have on both of mine is with his torso joint: it’s really floppy. It’s not too bad when it’s just the figure, but once you start to load his accessories on, it makes it hard for him to stand up. I’m also not too fond of his left hand. I would’ve much preferred if he had two “holding stuff” hands, since it wouldn’t negatively effect any of his accessories.
The Frost Giant’s accessories are all, unsurprisingly, made of ice! Well, except for the handles on the mace and axe. The helmet, ice arm, and mace are all included with the standard release of the figure and are pretty cool, but nothing too special. The axe is exclusive to this set and is pretty neat. It’s also the least rubbery out of all the weapons.
The “deluxe” part of this figure comes from his pair of “ice launchers” which are… really lame, even as far as spring-loaded weapons go. They don’t have triggers, and they’re also not pressure launchers. You have to press the end of the missile to the side to make them fire. It’s… quite weird, and I think they’re going to end up in the parts bin with all my other spring-loaded launchers.
Overall, the Deluxe Frost Giant is a pretty cool figure, but not worth buying over the standard one unless you really like the color scheme or want the axe. He’s good, but the silly missile launchers don’t add anything. I’d suggest army building the regular one, and maybe getting this guy as the “team leader”. If you wanna do that, come down to FPNYC and get one for yourself!
