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I've been flipping through my old X-Men comics and they're exactly how I remembered them; convoluted and overwrought. They are by far the hardest series to get into. Don't believe me? Pick up a random issue and try to tell me what it's about. I believe the only reason the franchise is successful is because they force you to read ten books a month to figure out what the hell is going on.
But the few times the series has been accessible, it's been exceptional. Claremont and Byrne's run are some of the best comics of the 80's. Joss Whedon is doing a hell of a job on Astonishing X-Men. And Grant Morrison took the characters seriously and made them grow up.
Grant’s New X-Men run is where these two <b.DST figures are from. Emma Frost is from Grant’s entire run, while Phoenix is based on her appearance in “Here Comes Tomorrow;” the alternate future Grant created with Marc Silvestri. Both have realistic proportions (thankfully) and are miles above any version we’ve seen of the characters.
But first, the boxes. Oh, the boxes. Marvel Select could keep a recycling plant busy for a month with all the wasted plastic on these packages. Why every figure needs to float in its own sensory depravation tank is beyond me. Marvel Select has made some huge figures (Thanos, Watcher) with some huge accessories (Mephisto) but I’ve never seen them need as much space as they are given. It’s bulky, unnecessary and downright annoying. Please stop it.
These are both fantastic sculpts. Phoenix looks like a Marc Silvestri drawing. Notice the tight eyes and mouth that scream Image Founder. Even Legendary Comic Book Heroes CyberForce figures don’t nail Silvestri’s style this well.
She’s made from translucent plastic which adds an unearthly glow to her body. It also highlights the articulation in her shoulders and neck, always a problem with clear figures. She has a great range of movement in her shoulders, elbows and wrists, but no knee articulation at all. In her sculpted pose, it is impossible to stand her up. She comes included with a gargantuan Phoenix base to prop her up, so if you’re going to display Jean, clear off some shelf space.
Emma has a hard look to her face, like a woman that’s had a little too much plastic surgery. That’s perfect for the character. She captures Greg Horn’s cover style more than Frank Quitely, Phil Ramirez or John Cassaday’s interior artwork. Emma does have knee articulation as well as a mid torso joint, putting her above Phoenix. She also has ball joint shoulders, but the cape hinders even a cut joint range of movement. The ball joint head works much better, even with the long blond hair.
Emma looks like she has a heavy blue wash on her costume. It’s actually a heavy white wash on blue plastic. So anyone who thinks it’s too blue needs to break out the Testors. Mine has a big glop on the hair but I doubt many have this issue. She comes with a gigantic mantle. My wife says the framed pinups are downright pornographic, but the entire base is perfect for an X Mansion display.
I wish these were Marvel Legends scale. Yes, Marvel Select, you can give me all the reasons you want about how this is a separate line with a different focus and blahbiddy blah, but when you’ve got 30 figures that don’t go with 200 more, it’s your problem. Taken on their own, these are beautiful sculpts, but these aren’t characters meant to stand on their own.
Marvel Select hasn’t made any other characters from Grant Morrison’s New X-Men. Besides an Ultimate and Origin Wolverine, they haven’t made any other X-Men so who are these supposed to go with? Since these are reissues let’s hope future figures are like the Brood and Skrull and less like these in scale. But let’s also hope the sculpts are this good.
Review and Photos By Jon Clarke
Review Samples Courtesy of Diamond Select Toys