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Hyperion convinces Doctor Spectrum and the Squadron Supreme to use their vast superpowers to solve Other-Earth's problems by remaking it into a utopia by any means necessary.
Yes, that's very nice, but it does not refer to these figures. There have been numerous versions of the Squadron over the years, from the original villains to the alternate-universe heroes, to the 2000s "Ultimate"-style reboot (and a few reboots of that one, itself, including an actual
crossover with the Ultimate universe), to a group who were all from different destroyed realities after the 2015 Secret Wars, plus a whole bunch of other minor ones besides. And in 2021, a new version was introduced in Heroes Reborn #1. On Earth-21798, all the usual Marvel characters exist, but their lives never led them to becoming heroes, leaving only The Squadron Supreme of America to protect the world... but America first.
This Hyperion is, like every Hyperion, an expy of Superman; unlike other Hyperions, since he was existing in what was (up to a point) the regular Marvel universe, his home planet was destroyed not by some random disaster, but rather was eaten by Galactus. His Mr. Mxyzptlk is the Beyonder, his Metallo is Ultron, his Zod is Annihilus, his Bizarro is the Hulk, and his Legion of Superheroes is the Shi'ar Imperial Guard. Okay, that one's not any different. But the newspaper photographer who weird things keep happening to? It's not Jimmy Olsen, it's Peter Parker!
Although Hasbro's first Hyperion was the introduction for an entire size of body, this one doesn't use it; this is a new mold (with Hercules' arms and legs), meaning he's the first Hyperion to have his yellow metal underwear appropriately bolted to his stomach. Sal Buscema, what were you thinking with that one! So he can still move around decently, his chest is a balljoint, though it's better at tilting every which way than at turning even slightly. His cape is sculpted mid-billow, so it looks decent in a variety of poses.
This new Squadron Supreme was most often drawn by Ed McGuinness, who we guess can't keep pace with a monthly book, but is great for special arcs and back-up stories. The toy's head does a wonderful job of duplicating his art style, with the distinctive chunky jaw and tiny eyes. Like the original (villainous) Hyperion, this new one wears a little red mask over his eyes, but his cape attaches over both shoulders, not just one.
Before they appeared on Earth-21798, though, all the members of this Squadron Supreme already existed on Earth-616. It's kind of an "Age of Apocalypse" situtation - you know, where reality gets rewritten, then is given its own world designation once things go back to normal. According to 2019's Avengers #18, Col. Joseph Ledger was an astronaut who found a strangely colored prism while on a space walk, and hasn't needed to wear a space suit since. Obviously, he's the stand-in for Green Lantern.
In the 616 universe, all we really saw of Doctor Spectrum was that he (like the rest of the team) was being brainwashed by [someone undergoing one of the worst non-Geoff-Johns-related character assassinations of all time]. In the 21798 universe, he was violently paranoid, jingoistic to the point of stupidity, and happy to abuse his power... and yet people say there are no Republican superheroes! But hey, there's no indication he has a thing for 13-year-olds, so there's at least one area where he's not totally as bad as Hal Jordan. And priests, police, and school sports authority figures.
No surprise, Doctor Spectrum uses the most standard body there is. But they've given him newer pinless arms, which don't fit properly: the shoulders don't stick as far into the torso as they should,
leaving a larger-than-average gap between the arm and the body. This is what happens when everything is designed digitally and not checked physically. His costume is basically the same as the one introduced in 1969, with large, solid sections of blue, red, yellow, and green, though the blue boots are a more modern conceit. Unfortunately, the interiors of the shoulder joints are just molded in blue, so if you lift his arms at all, he's got blue stripes in his armpits. Not cool!
We can't really say that this head looks like McGuinness' art, since the head is a mold from a few years ago. They did try their best, by painting his eyes really teeny tiny. They're solid white, matching the diamond shape in the center of his chest. On the original design, that central shape matched the lines separating the blocks of color, like they were all overlapping and forming a spot of white light - a way better choice than just making it a random shape sitting there unrelated to anything around it.
Both figures include alternate hands (fists or open, but not the ones shown on the back of the box), but Doctor Spectrum also gets
some useful accessories. There are two translucent spiky energy flares: one pink and green, the other blue and yellow. Matching all his colors! He's also got his rainbow rock Power Prism, a big honkin' diamond molded from clear plastic and tinted pink and yellow on one side. In the comic, it tended to just float in front of him, but that's not doable on a toy like this, so he'll just have to hold it.
Hasbro's announced another Squadron Supreme two-pack to go with this one, and shown off the fifth member of the team as well. Heroes Reborn was a pretty good comic, and these new Squaddies are an intriguing take on the old classics, so we're looking forward to finishing the set.
Doctor Spectrum | Nighthawk | Hyperion | Power Princess | Blur
-- 09/11/23
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