Background
Captain Action was originally released in 1966 as Ideal Toy Company’s answer to Hasbro’s G.I. Joe. Kids and collectors were able to dress him up in costumes of some of the most popular superheroes of the day. After 30 years off the market, Captain Action returned briefly in the late 1990’s. Then, a few years ago, Captain Action Enterprises announced a new sixth scale series.
The sixth scale Captain Action comes with the ability to change into a number of Marvel superheroes. With the outfits sold separately, Captain Action can become Captain America, Hawkeye, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Thor, and Wolverine. For this review, we are taking a closer look at the Captain Action figure as well as the Marvel Wave 3 costumes: Iron Man and Wolverine.
The Facts
Captain Action
Series: Marvel Wave 3
Manufacturer: Captain Action Enterprises and Round 2 Corp.
Material: Plastic articulated figure
Dimensions: One-Sixth Scale
Points of Articulation: 25+ points
Captain Action Outfit and Accessories: Blue and black bodysuit with Captain Action logo on chest; Black boots with silver lightning bolt; Silver and red belt with yellow lightning bolt; Captain Action blue peaked hat
Iron Man Outfit and Accessories: Two piece Iron Man mask; Red and yellow bodysuit; Red belt; Red gloves and boots; Two piece red chest plate with yellow unibeam; Hawkeye’s wrist and
Wolverine Outfit and Accessories: Wolverine’s mask with sculpted face; Yellow, blue and black bodysuit with blue shoulder pads; Blue and black boots; Red belt with X-Men symbol; Blue gloves with silver Wolverine claws; Hawkeye’s face mask
Pricing: $19.99 each MSRP
Packaging
Captain Action comes packaged in a black, retro-looking box. There’s a partial window on the front, so you can either display or (more importantly) see what you’re getting. They’ve also highlighted the Marvel superheroes on the front border. Obviously, this is a big selling point, so it makes sense to draw your attention to them.
The costume packaging echoes the look of the Captain Action box. They chose to go with old school action illustrations of the characters on the front. And the outfits are displayed in a similar fashion to what they’ll look like on your Captain Action figure.
Our Opinion
It’s not often that we come across a sixth scale figure that is affordable and, thusly, able to be played with. Captain Action was made just for that. This is a toy that begs to be played with. Think of it as the boys’ equivalent to what girls have with Barbie.
While the Captain Action character is a fun blast from the past, it’s really the ability to swap out costumes that makes the figure a must have. This is especially true if you’re a collector/fan of Marvel superheroes.
I like that they went with the classic appearance of Wolverine and Iron Man. There are plenty of high-end sixth scale companies doing toys based on Marvel film licenses, so this gives you a great complement to show off the characters’ roots.
The Iron Man uniform and equipment set features (from what I can tell) Tony Stark’s Iron Man Armor MK V. It’s the classic red and gold color combination with a flat, noseless mask. That mask comes in two pieces, with the yellow faceplate snapping around Captain Action’s head into the red helmet.
The red portion of Iron Man’s uniform is a vinyl-like material. They’ve also put in some fake abs, in the form of clear plastic attached to the suit, since Captain Action is apparently not toned enough to pull off the look.
For Wolverine, they went with a vinyl mask that slides over Captain Action’s head. It’s very well done. And the head still looks to scale, even with the additional layer. While I’m sure some folks might not like Wolverine’s face sculpt, I’m a fan. The angry expression and wrinkled chin fit in perfectly with his comic book personality.
As far as things to look out for…I did notice that Captain Action’s knees became a little loose as I changed his outfits. He still stands, but I’m not sure how he will hold up to repeated changing/playing.
Picking up Captain Action and one his various Marvel superhero costumes will run you less than $50.00. In the sixth scale world, that's a pretty good deal. It's obvious that CAE and Round 2 aren't shooting for a high-end collectible...they're looking to make a fun toy. Mission accomplished.
You can pick one up at the following:
BigBadToyStore.com: $19.99 each (outfits and figure)
PastGenerationToys.com: $29.99 (figure)
