Hasbro's Marvel Legends line drops another Walgreens Exclusive, this time in the form of Quasar, the Protector of the Universe in all of his six-inch glory! I was super pumped to see him offered online and was able to get an order in quickly and received him in just about a week.
Wendell Vaughn graduated from the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy. Though his superiors considered him a highly capable agent, he is declared unfit for field work. Those same superiors felt that Vaughn lacked the necessary "killer instinct"— their term for the will to win at all costs.
His first assignment is guard duty at a Stark International research facility where a team of scientists were performing experiments on the Quantum Bands. William Wesley, one of the top techs was selected to wear the bands. Though he initially proves spectacularly adept at wielding them, he perishes when the energy output reaches a critical mass beyond his control. When the criminal scientists A.I.M. launch a full-scale assault on the facility, in an attempt to steal the Bands, Vaughn uses them in defense. Using the bands' power to generate solid energy constructs, he successfully repels the attack. When the energy buildup begins to overwhelm him as it did Wesley, Vaughn, unlike the tech, remains calm and chooses to relax and allow the power to wash over him. To his surprise, the buildup quickly dissipates. It's at that moment that Vaughn realizes the key to wielding the bands is to have a flexible will, rather than a hardline uncompromising demeanor. Ironically, the "missing" killer instinct which kept him from field work, made him a more suitable choice to wield the Quantum Bands. Wendell initially chose the name "Marvel Boy" before changing to "Marvel Man" and finally settling on "Quasar."
After my initial excitement subsided upon opening the shipping package, I immediately tore into the figure packaging to get a look at Quasar. The biggest question of course is... Does Quasar meet the criteria for our fabled Triple A rating?!? Let's dive in and take a closer look at the Quantum Band Wielding Protector of the Universe. As always, we will look at Accessories, Appearance, and Articulation before talking about price/value and finally giving our overall rating of the figure.
Quasar comes with two pairs of hands, one fisted, one flat/flight pose and two energy ball accessories that fit over the fisted hands. We've seen these energy effects before, my favorite version being the purple-colored bursts which came with the the Fallen Silver (or Obsidian) Surfer figure. These energy blasts are molded in a nice yellow/orange and fit quite well on his fists. I did have some issues with them falling off at first, but then remembered that they are molded specifically for each hand. I also discovered, quite by accident, that the Quantum Bands can come off, if one isn't careful when swapping hands. On the plus side, that will make for some interesting posing/storytelling and battles where Wendell has to reclaim the Bands... but I digress. I've come to expect minimalism with Marvel Legends accessory packaging but for Quasar, I don't think there's really much else one can expect him to have. I do like the energy blasts, and they are sharp on his hands. You know what, I'm going to give him an A for Accessories as he's packed with all that he needs at this point.
Leaping into our second A... appearance, I'm going to lead off with this... there is an interesting conversation on my Facebook page regarding this figure's appearance. My buddy, Mark G, is convinced that Quasar is, in fact, Robert Redford. On the other hand, my pal E-Rock Smith tells me we're looking at none other than "Johnny Lawrence of the Cobra Kai!" The trouble is... I can see BOTH!!! So, dear readers, please feel free to weigh in on this most intriguing discussion over on FB! Now, all of that being said, let's discuss this figure! First off... his hair is sensational. The sculpted detail not only looks lifelike, but the fact that Hasbro has also added a wash to the hair gives it depth and realism! I am really impressed with that attention to detail. His facial sculpt is also most excellently done. I believe this to be a new head sculpt as I've not seen this square jaw/cheekbone combination on any of my other Marvel Legends to date. The paint apps on his face and eyes are also very painstakingly applied and really do Wendell credit. The insignia on his chest piece is applied clean and evenly and the galaxy of stars on the inside of his cape is magnificent. The gold on the Quantum Bands looks really good over the blue and his arms and hands all match the facial flesh tones very well. My biggest complaint though is the fact that there are multiple little specks and scuffs on his legs and torso which are somewhat frustrating as they stand out very prominently against the dark blue and reds. I'm also not a huge fan of using paint alone to define the shape of a boot as they've done with this figure. There was so much attention paid to sculpting his head, would it have been that much harder to add a boot line on the outside of each leg, just to help differentiate better? The boot cut makes the paint look awkward, especially since the reds don't exactly match one another. If I'm being honest, I feel that the legs were lazily done, especially with such a great job on the upper body. Still though, I have to give him an A for appearance if for no other reason than his hair.
Quasar is definitely fun to pose around. He is a typical Marvel Legend, but there are some good and some bad to discuss on his articulation. His head can turn side to side easily and can look down well enough. Unfortunately, due to the singular molded piece of the cape and his hair sculpt, he is limited in how far back you can tilt his head. But otherwise, it works as it should. His shoulders are NOT on butterflys, so they will only rotate a full 360 and raise out to a decent "T" pose at his sides. Upper bicep swivel works easily and the double jointed, pinless elbows bend in very nicely. Both pairs of hands hinge and swivel. Quasar has the single hinged diaphragm joint which bends forward decently enough but is hindered on back bends by the cape. Sadly, the sculpt doesn't continue up under the hinge either, so you get that awkward shelf when bending him backward. His waist pivots and he can get some impressive splits. His legs kick forward far and back to a degree, but they tend to splay out to the side. Upper thigh cuts work nice, although my left leg was a bit loose. The knees are double jointed... with pins... kind of a head scratcher, but they'll bend in deep enough. He has a boot cut, as mentioned earlier which works nice and he's got amazing ankle hinge and pivot. Although, I did need to heat my right ankle up a bit to loosen it. Overall, this is definitely your typical Legend Articulation and I'm happy with it. Quasar gets an A for articulation.
Hasbro's Walgreens Exclusive Marvel Legend Quasar Action Figure is a welcome addition to my collection and I'm really happy I was able to land one. He retails at a price point of just under $23 and I'm sufficiently pleased with him to give Quasar a solid 3.75 toyboxes out of 5. The paint app issues from the waist down and the little bit of articulation obstacles dropped him from a 4 rating. As I mentioned he is an exclusive, but you can certainly find your other favorite Marvel Legends in local toy and hobby shops or online at stores like www.bigbadtoystore.com. Thanks for digging into the toybox and until next time... GEEK OUT!!!