X-Men and Spider-Man are likely the best-known Marvel animated shows of the 1990s, but they weren’t the only ones. A decade before live-action Marvel movies would become commonplace, all the major characters came to animation, and toys along with that. One of these was Iron Man, and it’s safe to say that cartoon paved the way for the movie later by increasing awareness of just who Tony Stark was, where his powers came from, and what his very human frailties were. Actor Robert Downey Jr., whose frailties were on full display in the ’90s, became favored by fans for the live-action role precisely because of his combination of talent and addiction.
Host in the Shell
The cartoon is best known for its innovative toy line. Like other Marvel action figures at the time, the tie-in toys were made by Toy Biz. Uniquely, they included interchangeable armor features, with shiny, vac-metalized armor bits that could mix and match shoulder pads, boots, gauntlets, and more. Hasbro isn’t including that feature in their new revival of cartoon-styled card backs, but they are bringing back characters from that series with modern sculpting and articulation. While some figures have already been released on similar cards, this past weekend at WonderCon saw the reveal of a whole Marvel Legends wave:
Like the original line, though, this wave will be heavy on Iron Man figures in styles seen on the show. These include Model 9, Model 20, and Model 1, a gold repaint with a new skirt piece. Rounding out the group are Count Nefaria, a comic-styled Whiplash (When will we get a Mickey Rourke movie version, if ever?), and a smiling She-Hulk who’s more on-model to her familiar comic look than the previous Marvel Legends comic version.
Preorders for this wave will begin sometime this upcoming week, at your favorite online toy retailers. Here’s hoping they’ll do Tony Stark with removable armor eventually.
