I've been seeing the new 4-inch action figure from Hasbro, but as a Marvel Universe collector, the limited articulation and the higher price kept me away. I reconsidered after they were made available at discounted prices. I'm also tempted to buy the X-men '97 from this series but I wanted to try an actual toy from this line before I start collecting the team. This is how I reached my decision for the X-men team.
What I like:
- They are smaller than the Marvel Universe figures, so for other characters, the shorter figure seems more appropriate, like for Miles Morales. The size of Mantis seems okay with the old 4-inch figures.
- Clean paint details.
- Minimal plastic used in packaging is more environment-friendly.
- Widely available. No need to deal with scalpers. I HATE scalpers.
What I don't like:
- The limited articulation doesn't go well with acrobatic characters.
- The suggested retail price is not appealing. Spin Master has a similarly scaled and articulated superhero figures but they offer it at lower prices.
- With Spin Master and Mattel, moving their toy manufacturing plants out of China, this Hasbro toy line is still made in China.
Forecast:
I don't think this toy line will last long. There are other lines for collectors. Those who will start collecting this won't probably complete a whole team. If I try to collect the X-men, I'd be disappointed if I don't get Jubilee and Prof. X. Plus, some figures won't work with my older X-men collection.
Except for the Spider-verse series, I haven't been liking the new Marvel related movies. I'm kinda done with Marvel these days. I'm just triggered by the nostalgia for the upcoming X-men '97 series.
Conclusion:
I won't be collecting this toy line, but if an interesting stand alone character (that can fit in my existing Marvel Universe collection) comes up at a discounted price, I will cherry-pick. As for the the X-men '97, I might try customizing. Other collectors are disposing their Marvel Universe collection and I can buy them cheap to be customized.
