SDCC was a few weeks ago but for fans of Hasbro’s properties who weren’t at the show, their chance to pick up some SDCC exclusives is right around the corner. On August 13th, HasbroToyShop is set to have their online sale and I thought it would be a good time to take a look at some of the exclusives I picked up at the show and a few that Hasbro sent over. This time we’re looking at the Marvel Studio’s 10th anniversary item which combines a Marvel Legends Red Skull and a role play Tesseract (which I’m sure I’ll call the Cosmic Cube all through this review) right our of Captain America: The First Avenger. Full disclosure, this is the SDCC exclusive that I was most excited about and it’s fantastic and the rest of this review will be glowing. Just like the Cosmic Cube!
The package looks like a Hydra container, complete with a cracked display port covering a Hydra logo. As the flaps unfold, the interior of the package show numerous ‘historical news clippings’ featuring Cap and Red Skull and a number of Hydra blue prints. Prominently displayed in the center of the package is the Red Skull figure and the Tesseract. The packaging is fantastic and what we’ve come to expect for a SDCC item. However, this isn’t one you’ll leave in the box.
I’m a fan of the Marvel Legends roleplay items produced so far and I knew that I had to have the Tesseract and it meets all my expectations. The cube is just under 3.5″, which makes it perfect for the palm of your hand. The cube also glows and pulses with the energy of an Infinity Gem. This is accomplished via an LED glow ball inside the cube. To get to it, you split the cube open (and see all sorts of facets on the interior – it helps give it that sparkly look), grab the orb – pop some batteries in and turn it on. Put the whole thing back together and you have a glowing, pulsing Cosmic Cube. It’s perfection. The set also includes a clear plastic cube to store your cube in.
And yes, briefly Hank the pug had the power of the Cosmic Cube.
As if the Cosmi….Tesseract wasn’t enough – the set also includes a 6″ Marvel Legends Red Skull figure. Sporting his long jacket, the Hydra leader is ready to rule with his own scale version of the Tesseract that fits perfectly in his hand. Of course we did get a comic inspired Red Skull figure around the time of Captain America: The Winter Soldier but this is a Red Skull right out of The First Avenger. The coat does limit some of the articulation in the legs, but beyond that Red Skull is has the level of articulation that we’ve become accumstom to with Marvel Legends. The sculpt and deco are quite good. The hand that holds the Cosmic Cube holds it perfectly – sure the hand looks a little funny empty…but if you had the Cosmic Cube, wouldn’t you always hold it? The only quibble I have with this figure is the mismatched red colors between Red Skull’s head and his neck. I have to assume the neck is molded in black plastic and this is the closest color match the red molded head. But it does stand out a bit.
This set is great. One of SDCC’s best this year. If you weren’t at the show and it tickles your fancy, be sure to pick on up from HasbroToyShop. Many thanks to Hasbro for providing this set and letting me not worry about missing it at SDCC.
