Girl On Fire: The Dark Phoenix

One of the well-known X-men saga is The Dark Phoenix Saga. Jean Grey has evolved from being the Marvel Girl with no telepathic powers to becoming Professor X's student and eventually to being the avatar of the phoenix.

Phoenix Jean Grey has three variants: in green costume, in red, and in white (in order of the immensity of her power).

Girl On Fire

Product
Brand/Model: Pogo 219
Condition: Bought without box in a clear plastic bag

Character
Name: Jean Elaine Grey-Summers
AKA: Dark Phoenix
Comics: Marvel
Affiliation: X-men
Superpowers: telepathy, psychic blast, astral projection, telekinesis, cosmic pyrokinesis, resurrection

Dark Phoenix minifigure consists of 11 pieces – 1 head, 1 leg connector, 2 legs, 1 torso, 2 arms, 3 hands, with baseplate.

Deconstructed Dark Phoenix

While Dark Phoenix's face printings in the head are flawless, the hole used to attach to the stud or neck is quite loose. The hair piece is standard but quite soft - which felt like a hybrid of plastic and rubber. Minimal printings are required for this character due to the costume being simple. While being simple, the torso and leg printings are a bit misaligned, especially in the leg area where the printing is supposed to give the collector an illusion of thigh-high boots.

(Upper Left) Head with normal expression
(Upper Right) Red torso and yellow legs
(Lower Left) Back torso with minimal printings
(Lower Right) Alternate face print (angry version) + red hair piece
(Center) fierce Jean Grey on fire 

This one is for Jean Grey and X-men standard collectors. There are no extra parts or weapons, other than an extra yellow hand. I don't highly recommend this for people on budget (while this may be cheap, you can skip on this one); I would suggest to get the blue-and-gold version of Jean Grey if you're completing the X-men squad.

(Left) Angry Jean Grey in the dak
(Right) Calm Jean Grey in the light

I didn't think it will be complete without the fiery wing effect of the phoenix, hence I toyed with the mecha parts of one of the Ninjago dragons.

The Dark Phoenix Saga

Until the next post. :)

Gladiator Hulk

Marvel fans around the globe are already anticipating the third installment of the movie Thor. Entitled Thor Ragnarok, the trailer boasts of a newly-dressed cast, which to brick fans mean a whole set of collectible Marvel characters in new elements.

The movie is set to adapt the plot line of Planet Hulk, where Hulk crash landed to Sakaar when his allies banished him from earth; coincidentally, Thor was held captive in Sakaar without his mighty hammer Mjolnir, and has to face his "friend from work" head on.

Undoubtedly, Hulk's gladiator form is an exciting twist for brick fanatics. Being used to Hulk's bigfig in various colors (Red Hulk, Gray Hulk, Yellow Hulk, etc.) and in various pants, the character suffered from inflexibility and commonness. In this new form, all is not lost; it seems that creators have stretched their imagination in replicating the movie version of Hulk. Although the bigfig used the old mold, the left arm mold and face-torso printing are good signs of investment.

(L) Hulk from Planet Hulk 2010 movie and (R) Hulk bigfig from Thor Ragnarok

Product
Brand/Model: Xinh 654
Condition: Bought without box in a clear plastic bag

Character
Name: Hulk (version from Thor Ragnarok movie)
Comics: Marvel
Affiliation: Avengers (banished)
Superpowers: superhuman physical ability, berserker strength, agility, healing
Paraphernalia: hammer

(L) bird's-eye view
(R) overhead shot

Hulk bigfig consists of 28 pieces – 1 head, 1 torso, 2 arms, 2 hands, 1 standard baseplate, 1 helmet, 1 panache, 16 hammer parts, 1 head connector, and 2 arm connectors.

I'll give you an arm!

Gladiator Hulk bigfig features a bad ass left arm. The brown, layered form replicates the leather feel of the animated version, while the blue layers in the shoulder area are supposed to match the theme of the much-awaited film. Take this arm and give it a red and silver look, then you will get a bad ass Colossus bigfig arm.

(L) side view of the helmet
(R, T) front view
(R, B) back view

The common Roman helmet adapted for this bigfig looks so Gundam-y and Alphonse-y (the latter from Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood) to me, which is cool. It could be the head to shoulder attachment, without too much room for neck, that gave this illusion.

(L) weapon in upright position and facing front
(C) upright and lateral position
(R) inverted

Harley Quinn would actually love this lamp post-looking hammer. Its beauty lies in the slanted sides of the hammer, where a brick with three connectors holds the elements together.

(L) torso with tattoos of digital or alien writings and printings of  straps connecting the armor elements
(R) baldy Hulk's face with similar tattoos and angry face

Hulk bigfig's printings in the torso and face are thematically-aligned with Thor Ragnarok. No arm printings, no alternate face, no printings on pants, and no printings in the back.

Get ready to rumble!

In three to five years, this bigfig might get extinct, so do yourself a favor and get a set. It's definitely a must-have! ;)