Review – Iron Man 2 Mark V Stealth Armor

Line: Marvel * Manufacturer: Hasbro * Year: 2010 * Ages: 4+

As I already mentioned yesterday (post and photos here) I got lucky and found a batch of new Iron Man 2 action figures at Target. After looking at the various designs I grabbed four of the action figures, the first of which — the Mark V Stealth Armor — has some flaws that make it one of the weaker toys in the entire line.

A Mark V Repaint

Surprisingly, this is the first time that I’ve bought the Iron Man 2 Mark V design. The initial release colors — the movie-accurate design — just didn’t grab me so I passed it by. But this Mark V Stealth Armor Iron Man colorway has an incredible concept; the black and gold design really spoke to me and it wasn’t too tough to settle on this as one of the four figures to grab. For a look at the original version see this review at It’s All True.

And a Poor Repaint It Is

Not the choice of color or the design — seriously, those are great — but rather the execution is poor. Look closely at the various photos here and you’ll see that the gold is splotchy and all over the place. And if you look at the head you’ll see a patch of black where the gold doesn’t cover everything as well as it should.

Unfortunately, the problem appears to be across the entire line. See these photos at marvelousnews.com and you’ll see that the Iron Man Mark V Stealth Armor action figure shown there has the same bad paint as mine does. Hasbro needs to either slow things down in their factory or they need a better QC system; the paint apps on this toy take what should have been one of the cooler toys in the entire series and make it just okay.

Stealth Operations Should Be Blue, Right?

The black and gold is a great idea, but it makes this Iron Man quite different from the other 3.75-inch scale Iron Man action figures that have been classified as “stealth” armor versions of the suit. The Marvel Universe Stealth Ops Iron Man (review here) and the Iron Man 2 Stealth Operations Iron Man (review here) are both blue so this one really stands out. And now when I look at it next to those earlier action figures I keep wondering how this would have looked if the black had been a dark blue. Keep the gold, though! Maybe a customizer out there with an extra Mark V will try the blue and gold idea and post pics for us all to enjoy . . . or maybe Hasbro will partner with someone and bring us that color design as an exclusive.

Closing Thoughts

I was very excited to find completely new Iron Man action figures in the store — around Austin we’ve been seeing the same toys for months now — but now I’m finding myself hoping that this is the worst of the four new figures that I bought. I knew going in that I didn’t like the suitcase missile launcher (which is why I didn’t snap pics of it or complain about it), but I do wish that the paint had been a lot cleaner.

It looks like I need to get another one of these opened soon. Wish me luck that the next Iron Man 2 action figure that I open is superior to this one. And if you are into this series I suggest visiting your local Target; maybe you’ll get lucky and find some of the newer action figures sitting there waiting for you.

Philip Reed will now try to decide which of the three other new Iron Man action figures he should open and review. Does he go for the one he is most excited about, or should he save that one for last?