Home News
Reviews The List
NYTS Links
Ramblin' Man Gallery
Modern Armor IM is approximsately 6" tall and is clad in the latest version of Stark's powered armor. This time the suit has a very insectoid look, with the suit covered in an endless array of over-lapping plates. The figure is painted in maroon and bronze.
The figure also comes with a stand which looks like a giant vault door that has been blasted open with a small army of Ultron 'droids scattered at the base of the door.
Meat and Potatoes; 4.8
Perks; 5.0
Homer Factor; 5.0
Very, very few action-figure lines can survive so many incarnations of a single character without looking really dumb. Gundam is one. The other is Iron Man. Over the almost 40 years of the title, ol' Shell-head has gone through a ton o' costumes changes in the comics. From the massive, Michelin-Man Gold suit to the Silver Centurion to the gun-metal gray War Machine. Iron Man is a marketing person's DREAM, and ToyBiz is riding the wave with the Marvel Legends figures. First came the classic Red and Yellow armor. Sure, it should be scarlet and gold... but let's be frank here, it was Red and Yellow. Sigh. Then came the repaints of black for the Stealth Armor and the red and bronze with the pointy helmet, and now the Silver Centurion. So we've had the little Iron Man fix. It ends... right? Oh heck no! ANOTHER figure has joined the army of Iron Dudes; the Modern Armor version. So how does it stack up against the rest of this Iron Army? Pretty dang well.
Meat and potatoes are waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay good, except for one small problem. Good news is the sculpting does NOT disappoint. This incarnation of Iron Man takes a very different take on the appearance of the armor. Often the suits are designed to look like bulked-up skin-diving suits. Yes, there are lots of details such as assorted panel lines, but the suits tend to be pretty sleek. Even something as bulky as the Silver Centurion has a streamlined look to it. That's all out the window with the Modern Armor. The suit is sculpted so the armor has layer upon layer upon layer of plates, like an insect or the EVAs from 'Neon Genesis Evangelion'. Yes, the armor looks THAT creepy. Although the suit is humanoid in configuration, you wonder what exactly is inside the dang suit. Personally, the look isn't my favorite. It's a bit too buggy-looking for me. Just the same, the piece is so well done, it's hard not to be impressed by the work. The paint scheme is also not the traditional yellow and red but a maroon and almost orange-yellow.
Ok, the problem. Technically this is a SUIT of armor. Unfortunately, the figure is pretty skinny, so it looks as if Stark is more of a cyborg, built INTO the armor rather then wearing it. With the original Red and Yellow armor, that skin-tight look isn't that big of a deal. However, considering this suit looks a lot beefier, ala the Silver Centurion, bulkier arms seem much more appropriate. Ah, but I'm nit-picking here.
Perks? Oh, sweeeeeeeeet! The figure comes with a VERY large stand that looks like a giant blast-door that's had it's guts blasted apart by laser fire. At the base of the door are the shattered hulks of what appear to be Ultron. A VERY nice look. In addition the stand can be mounted on a wall as well as placed on a shelf.
Homer factor? Come on! It's Iron Man, it's Marvel Legends! What more could you want?
Frankly, not much more. Ok, so this isn't my favorite 'look' for the armor. Just the same, this figure is an astounding piece of work that is worth having on your shelf. Oh, and more good news... War Machine and the Hulk Buster armor are coming out this year! Woohooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!