The Avengers: Original Avengers 3.75" 4-Pack! (Concept Series)

As a result of a massive backlog of reviews I want to take on, I realize that not only do I have tons of unopened toys, I have tons of them in boxes.  Which ones, you ask?  Well, I have too many to name, so let's just call 'em a surprise for now.  (Yeah, ok.  I don't know myself.  Lol.)  For now, I'm determined to rid my collection of needless cardboard, so I'm hereby declaring October The Month of the Box right here on Chase Variant!  (I'm sure you wouldn't mind if the occasional carded or loose figure review slips in.  Right?  Or am I right?  Right, I'm wasting time...)

So to kick it all off, I'm gonna start with my newest boxed acquisition: The Avengers: Original Avengers 3.75" Toys R Us Exclusive 4-Pack!

I walked into one of my local TRUs last Sunday and I see this very set that I'd never seen, heard or read about it before.  So it was a very pleasant surprise when I find one of them, face down amid some non-movie Marvel Universe figure 4-packs.  Then the wife points out that that's not the only one there, because right above us on the shelf are about six or seven of them.  You can imagine my amazement when I had a good look at Loki--I'd never thought I'd see them re-use the Thor movie sculpt again!

Then I saw Iron Man--a brand new figure!--or at least a new armour.  I couldn't tell right off if it was made from older parts but it looked like a new sculpt and I dig bulky armour, so I was at least 50% in.

As for Captain America and Thor, I already have these very sculpts when they were originally released.  Both are great figures from their respective lines, so I didn't mind taking home some repaints...for now.

Yes, they look great in the box, but I hear you ask if they're just as good outside.  Well, let's find out! ;)

Thor The Mighty Avenger 3.75" Secret Strike Loki

I'd like to begin with a standing ovation, a standing ovation and three cheers for fella who plays Loki in Thor and of course, The Avengers.  That's right, Tom Hiddlestone.  There was only one of you and yet you more than held your own against the Mighty Avengers ensemble.  Aw heck, in fact Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansen, Sam L. Jackson, Jeremy Renner--all of you deserve a long, long round of applause.

What can I say? It's been 9 days since I first caught the movie, and 5 days since I saw it a second time and I'm still buzzing.  And as I write this, I'm plotting a 3rd and possibly a 4th viewing. (One of these schemes involves sneaking in on free tickets to What to expect When You Are Expecting and then peeling away to catch The Avengers.  Heheh.)

He's no coward all right-he called the Hulk a "Dull Creature."

So why review this older Thor figure when there are other, newer figures from the Avengers line?  Well, because most of the 3.75 range is under articulated (See Ultimate Thor, Gamma Punch Hulk) and because Joss Whedon is a god in the movie heaven that is Hollywood.

He's made me wanna go back and review every single Marvel Universe, Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America and and Marvel action figure I haven't put in front of the camera and blabbered about.  And I just might.  So who better to start with than with Loki, the ultimate deceiver, played by a man who just steals the scene when he's in it?

When Secret Strike Loki was originally released a year back, there were already pictures of a King Loki to come, so I held back, thinking that I'd be able to easily pick this figure up on clearance.  And it's turned out to be true!  I got Loki here for S$10!--only for the price to be slashed to almost half that a week later. -__-

But here's no regrets, because after all the lack of PoAs from the Avengers line, this Thor movie figure has turned out to be quite a gem!