Thanos

You come for the king, you best not miss. The Mad Titan Thanos seizes control of the hallowed Infinity Gauntlet and wields near-omnipotent power. Who can stop this vicious new overlord? The last time Hasbro made a Thanos, it was a repaint of a modern armor, which isn't what anyone thinks of when they think of Thanos. If you wanted a classic Thanos, it was Marvel Select or nothing. That figure was good for its time, but its time was 15 years ago; now Hasbro is doing their own version. The sculpt is entirely new. He's wearing his older, simpler costume, but it's not painted onto one of Hasbro's usual bodies. Thanos is broader and thicker than most figures, proportioned almost like Juggernaut, though not as tall (a little over 7½"). Since this is the original cloth costume, there's no sculpt for armored plates or seams, just the stripe down the center of his shirt and the straps that hold his mantle on. The belt and lower edge of his shirt are a separate piece around the waist, and the codpiece has sculpted ridges. The boots and gloves look slightly baggy, and even have the elements made famous by the Infinity Gauntlet's regular appearances over the years: the rectangles by the upper edges and the lumps over the knuckles. The Walmart-exclusive Thanos included two heads, but this release doesn't duplicate either of them: rather than smiling or frowning, his mouth is open in a very "Ron Lim" way, presumably bellowing or gasping at some foe bold enough to challenege him. The skintone is lighter than those heads, finally getting the right shade for the character! But don't expect to swap the heads around among the various figures, because the blue here is just blue, not metallic. Man, that's a bummer. Not that the metallic blue was better (it made sense for that costume, but that doesn't make it better), but the sculpts are similar enough that those heads would have looked fine on this neck, and the big frown really is peak Thanos. The blue on this one is dark, but is broken up by a few lighter patches on the chest, upper arms, and thighs, and the gold is a nice warm shade. The articulation is on par for Marvel Legends: barbell-jointed head and neck, swivel/hinge shoulders, swivel biceps, swivel/hinge elbows and wrists, a hinged chest, swivel waist, balljointed hips, swivel thighs, double-hinged knees, and swivel/hinge ankles. Because the forearms can turn all the way around, just remember: the taller part of the glove goes on the outside, not the inside. The figure includes two alternate left hands, both sculpted with the Infinity Gems on the back of the glove. The first is the same gesturing hand the exclusive had three years ago, while the second is a new mold featuring him just about to snap his fingers. You know, the thing we repeatedly wanted for the movie Thanos figures? Well, that action came straight from the comics, so including it here is a great way to add some extra value. He'll snap ya! Snap ya for real! And speaking of which, there's one more accessory that really ups the desirability: an alternate head. Instead of just being a different expression, this one is technically a different character. The 2016 Thanos comic featured an arc titled "Thanos Wins," which lived up to its name by showing us the Thanos of a distant future, who'd defeated all his enemies - all his enemies. As in, there were only a handful of beings still alive in the entire universe, because that's what happens when you spend your life trying to impress Death. King Thanos was differentiated from his past self by the tall-spired crown and his long, braided goatee. The Final King wore a different costume than this (different than the exclusive toy, too, so don't expect to just use the head on that one), but the head is reference enough for now. "Thanos Wins" is the story that introduced Cosmic Ghost Rider and Thanos' mysterious foe, known only as The Fallen One. It's a pretty good story with a heck of an ending, so getting even a partially accurate toy of him is cool. Thanos is sold in one of the slightly large boxes, with portraits of his young self on the sides and the Infinity Gauntlet logo on the front. The back features an image of him wielding the Gems and being attended by Death, while the insert behind the figure's tray is a great scene of his monolithic throne floating in space. The more interesting art Hasbro puts behind these figures, the harder it is to put the packaging in the recycling bin. The toy retails for $30, given its unique mold and larger-than-average size. Being able to trade heads with our existing Thanoses would have been a fun feature, but the extra hands and the alternate King Thanos head definitely help defray the cost. -- 03/22/21

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