Marvel Universe – Thanos – 034

Thanos. The name alone to any casual fan of the Marvel Universe of comics brings up memories and stories of a being who wants to attain absolute power of life and death in the universe. Why you might ask? For his own greed, self worth, and ruling of the universe? No, much like many a man who seeks great power, he is doing simply for the love of another being, and for him that being is the living female embodiment of Death herself. Yes, Thanos is in love with Death, and wants to give her all of the Universe dead and on a platter. So how does Hasbro squeeze all that evil in a mere 4 inch scaled figure? Pretty well I have to say.

First off, the design of Thanos himself is not all that complicated. Sure, he has a purple face with some vertical wrinkles on the chin, but his body design, while massive, is pretty standard. Add to that some large gold gloves and boots big enough to fit his stature and you have a great looking simple design. With gold and blue being the primary colors, along with that hint of purple that makes his mug stand out more, Thanos looks like he should, imposing and evil, right down to his upside down smile.

Second, the articulation packed into this figure is where he falls short I think. Thanos has double jointed knees and even his large upper legs have a swivel built in, but that’s where the great articulation ends sadly. I know it might be too much to ask for on the 4 inch scale, but I really want double jointed elbows and swivel on the arms of a figure with these larger proportions, is that too much to ask? Plus the mid-torso joint here is almost too wobbly at times, and I think a scaled down version of the Mattel He-Man and DCUC torsos would work well here. And sadly, while the neck actually has great articulation and movement, you can’t utilize it to the fullest with the soft rubber gold piece of armor around his neck. Thanos can look left and right really easily, but looking up or down is a bit of a challenge.

Lastly, but to this collectors enjoyment, are the accessories. Coming with Thanos are his figure stand with his name on it, the “Top Secret” files that Marvel Universe figures were getting til only recently, and of course and extra left hand glove. But not just any glove…this glove is the Infinity Gauntlet. Sculpted in a slightly open grasp, this whole hand can be popped on and off the left arm. This gives Thanos the one piece of power he nearly took over the whole universe with in the first story I ever remember reading with Thanos in it, the mini-series “The Infinity Gauntlet.” With all 6 gems attached, this glove wields a power that no one should have. Now it’s been scaled down to a mere more than an inch in size, and sits greatly on his hand. My only complaint about the Gauntlet is that it has a small hole big enough only for the peg on Thanos arm to fit in, and not other figures to ‘wear’ the Gauntlet for themselves. Sorry Cobra Commander…

Bottom Line

I won’t lie to you, this figure is a great figure. Aside from the articulation issues, it is one amazing looking figure and stands out among even taller figures on your shelf. Being as popular as Thanos is in the Marvel Universe, this figure is definitely one of the harder ones to find, but is shipping in some replacement cases through springtime 2011 in stores. I suggest if you see one on a shelf, grab it now or he may just be gone next time you go in. And watch out for that Infinity Gauntlet, it can be troublesome if your Megatron, Darth Vader, Skeletor, or Care Bears get a hold of it…

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