Review – Spider-Man Power Charge Rhino

This morning I decided to walk to Wal-Mart, and it was a good thing I did because I ran across this Spider-Man Power Charge Rhino action figure. And after getting over the shock of how great the toy looked in the package — the Dive Attack Spider-Man in this series made me quite unhappy (review here) — I grabbed Rhino. After all, how could I pass on a figure that looked like it would be a great fit with the Marvel Universe action figure series?

Packaging

More of the same, with your standard blister card that looks like every other release in this 3.75-inch scale Spider-Man series. My only complaint with the package is I can’t figure out what the “Power Charge” in Power Charge Rhino means. Is there some special action feature I’m missing, or did Hasbro just decide that “Power Charge” made the toy sound more exciting?

Articulation

Let’s start with the toy’s weakest features and then slide into what makes me happy with it. In terms of articulation, the Power Charge Rhino is a step above Dive Attack Spider-Man but it’s not as good as what we get in the Marvel Universe series. Ball-hinge shoulders, elbows, and hips, and a swivel-hinge neck is it. No ankle, elbow, waist, or wrist articulation at all. This makes the Rhino a bit of a brick, able to stand in menacing, ready-to-charge poses but not capable of turning to face an opponent or kneel down to smash anything. It’s frustrating, but the more I play with the toy the less I’m bothered by the limited articulation. I think the toy’s size and sculpt is blinding me to the weak articulation.

Accessories

Rhino comes with six pieces of removable armor: shoulder pads, fist guards, and knee pads. The photo above, left, shows the action figure with the armor removed. It looks great on the toy, but the armor doesn’t stay on securely and the more you play with him the more times you’ll be picking the armor up and snapping it back into place. And in addition to falling off a lot, the shoulder armor seriously restricts Rhino’s arm movement. I wish those armor pieces had been secured to the figure’s body, much like the various Marvel Universe Iron Man figures’ shoulder armor is attached.

Paint

Cast mainly in gray, the figure actually has very little in the way of paint apps. But what’s there is sharp and makes me happy, especially the coloring on the face. And the entire body has been hit with a light gray drybrush that really brings out the gorgeous sculpt. (Oops, getting ahead of myself there.) The paint is actually kinda average, not terrible but not absolutely amazing. That drybrush was a great touch, though, and makes the figure look a lot better than if it had just been sold with the basic gray plastic.

Sculpt

This is the Rhino’s strongest feature, as the photo of the toy’s back side (above) really shows. Tons of great details are sculpted into the body, and everything about this toy’s sculpt makes me happy, from the intimidating face to the skin-like texture of th arms, legs, and back. And look at those feet! This is one of those times I wish I knew the artist behind the sculpt, because this guy deserves to be recognized for a fantastic job. Man, I keep staring at the feet and hands and can’t get over how great the sculpt looks. Even if you don’t add a Rhino to your collection you should at least take a little time to appreciate the toy’s sculpt when you see him in the store.

Size

The last thing I wanna cover is the size and weight of the Rhino action figure. As you can see in the above pics, this is one massive 3.75-inch scale action figure. In fact, the Rhino may be just a little too big compared to the Marvel Universe series, but that’s probably nitpicking because he looks good with Spider-Man and looks like he could take on the Hulk. He’s bulky, heavy, and feels great . . . especially for the $7 price tag.

Closing Thoughts

I was planning to ignore the Spider-Man action figure series, but this Rhino — despite a few flaws — is generally an impressive piece of work and looks great with my Marvel Universe action figures. I’m not gonna say this is a must own toy, but if you’re collecting the Marvel Universe series you owe it to yourself to take a look at this guy in the store.

I may glue the armor pieces in place, especially if they keep falling off, and the included battle cards are headed straight to the trash, but I’m going to track down the toy’s sculptor so I can thank him for the beautiful work he did on sculpting this action figure. It’s the least I can do for someone who turned around my opinions on the line.

Philip Reed now needs to take another look at the 3.75-inch Spider-Man series. Maybe there are some other gems hiding in there.