Review – Marvel Legends Ghost Rider

Today we’re going off of the Transforming Collections project (Kickstarter page) to take a look at one of the Marvel Legends action figures that was released earlier this year. I haven’t been buying many Marvel action figures lately (Iron Man statues and busts are a different story), but when I saw this blue-flamed Ghost Rider action figure I just couldn’t resist him. I had seen earlier reviews of the figure/sculpt (It’s All True, Jin Saotome, MTV Geek) and everything I saw said this is a cool figure.

Opening the package I found a toy that is neat . . . but it’s not perfect.

Packaging

Very nice. The newest rendition of the Marvel Legends (Amazon.com search*) packaging is attractively illustrated and does an excellent job of showing off the action figures. I especially love that Hasbro decided to go with artwork on the package — both the front and back of the card — and overall this is a package that you could just hang on the wall and have a nice display. But I think I’ll rip this open, toss the package, and take a close look at Ghost Rider.

Incredible Sculpt

Ghost Rider may be constructed out of an earlier toy (Jin Saotome’s review does a good job of giving you background on the basic body) but once Hasbro’s designers added the head, soft vinyl accessories, and new forearms and legs it became a completely new action figure. And just like on G.I. Joe action figures the soft vinyl accessories — coat, belt, and shoulder armor — add a lot of depth to the character and make it look far cooler than it would have been has Hasbro simply sculpted the bits directly onto the body. And the plastic feels great, so not only does the design look good but it also feels good when you’re holding it in your hands.

Articulation

Mostly excellent. A ball-jointed neck (I popped the head off and it almost fit perfectly on my Masters of the Universe Classics Skeletor), ball-hinge shoulders with bicep swivels (but the armor really restricts the shoulder movement), double-hinge elbows, and swivel wrists are all a great start. Unfortunately, the articulation of the rest of the body isn’t as good with an ab crunch, ball-hinge hips (which never work as well as I would like), swivel-hinge ankles, and double-hinge knees. Actually, I should be fair to the toy: the only joint I feel it really needs is a swivel waist. But I dislike ball-hinge hips so much that I’m gonna continue to stare at the Ghost Rider and wish his hips had better articulation. That’s silly of me, I know, but it’s what I’ll be doing for the next day or two.

Paint

Mostly good. Ghost Rider is made of a mix of black plastic and translucent blue plastic and then Hasbro went at him with an airbrush and some brush-painted details. The silver drybrush work on the armor is excellent — I wish the Masters of the Universe Classics series had armor painted like this — and the dark blue wash on the face is awesome. There are a few rough spots where paint is in the wrong spot (or scratched off), but in general this is a good as we should probably expect from mass market action figures. The drybrush work on the armor really is stunning; click on any of the images to enlarge them and take a close look at the armored pieces of the design.

Closing Thoughts

While this toy isn’t going to send me off collecting the entire Marvel Legends series (Amazon.com search*) it is cool enough that I’ll be keeping a closer eye on the line from now on. This Ghost Rider looks like he should spend a little time with Spawn, but with the translucent blue flame effect, amazing sculpt, and great drybrush work I wish I had a Spawn action figure that would look perfect next to this guy.

A very nice action figure. Not perfect, but a good buy and an excellent addition to anyone’s Ghost Rider collection.

Philip Reed now wants a motorcycle for this action figure. But are there any flaming blue cycles on the market that would make a perfect ride for this scary toy?