18.05
“The evil android Ultron has taken over Earth from his home in the distant future, and Iron Man, Nick Fury and the rest of Earth’s heroes must travel through time to defeat him. But their history-changing mission also affects the fabric of reality and a Heavenly warrior named Angela is pulled into their universe!”
Before it was an Avengers sequel, “Age of Ultron” was a comics event that ran in 2013. It’s ultimately not terribly memorable, but it did have a catchy name, I suppose. It also got a whole boxed set of Minimates (and a TRU-exclusive two-pack) based on it, which is probably the best that can be said of it. Hey, let’s look at that set today!
The Packaging
The packaging is the fairly standard layout for four packs by this point, but it did at least try to stick with something vaguely story-centered. We get a nice shot of Ultron’s control art at the top, and the logo from the event is front and center. The color scheme’s not the most thrilling thing, but it could certainly be worse. For pictures, head on over to the Database entry.
The Figures
Conqueror Ultron
Obviously, it’s a little hard to do a set based on an event called “Age of Ultron” without including an Ultron in it, so this set makes a point to do that. Interestingly, the Ultron included here is not actually based on a look from the series itself, but rather from one of the variant covers to the series. It’s a decent design, so I have no issues with them deciding to use it here.
Ultron is built on the basic body, but thanks to a new set of lower legs and a few other add-ons, he stands roughly 3 inches tall and features 24 points of articulation (The 6 arms really help him there). Ultron has a buttload of sculpted pieces: head, upper arms, 3 different hand sculpts, torso, upper legs, and lower legs. The upper arms and one of the sets of hands are shared with the Marvel Now! Iron Man that was released in the 16th Toys R Us wave, but everything else is brand-new to Ultron. The amount of new pieces present is impressive.
Due to the quantity of sculpted pieces, you might assume that Ultron would be a bit more lax on the painted details. This is definitely not the case. He’s got a detailed face, both on the Ultron head, and on the translucent red standard head underneath it. Plus, he’s got full detailing on the torso under the sculpted piece, allowing you to display Ultron in a more classic two-armed state if you so desire.
Ultron’s only accessory is a display stand, which he can’t use due to the new foot sculpt. I’m willing to be a bit forgiving on that front, given how many add-ons he features.
Ultron is, without a doubt, the star of this set. He may not be a strictly classic design for the character, but he’s a strong design nonetheless and a fun and somewhat experimental ‘mate.
MMC Score — 9 out of 10
Nick Fury
The “Age of Ultron” event was one of classic Nick Fury’s last hurrahs before being replaced by his son (who just so happened to look a lot more like the version of Nick that was appearing in the movies and on TV). He hadn’t actually gotten a proper ‘mate since all the way back in Wave 12, and this finally gave him an update to go with all those nifty updated SHIELD Agents we got. This is the look Fury was sporting during the crossover. It looks to be a “business casual” style SHIELD uniform, with a polo shirt, combat boots and a tactical vest. I still prefer the basic SHIELD uniform, but this doesn’t look to terrible, and I suppose it does add some variety to the SHIELD line-up.
Fury features 6 sculpted pieces: hair, vest, gloves, belt, and a holster. The hair and holster are definitely reused, with the hair hailing from the Tomb Raider line’s Roth, and the holster first appearing on the Avengers movie Maria Hill, Fury and Widow figures. The belt and gloves might be reused, but I can’t say for sure. The vest is a brand new piece, and it looks really cool, and has the jetpack previously seen on Hope Summers and the Heavy SHIELD Agent attached to it. Apparently, the jetpack was supposed to be a removable piece, but a mix up at the factory led to it being glued to the vest. It’s too bad it can’t be removed, but it doesn’t ruin the figure.
The painted detailing is alright, but not without some issues. All of the detail lines are nice and sharp, though he does have a fair bit of noticeable slop, particularly around the sleeves and on the hands. The logos all look great, and he even has a fully detailed shirt under the vest.
Fury includes a large gun, a hand gun, a blast base for his jetpack, and a clear display stand.
Fury isn’t quite as good as Ultron, which is due mostly to the sloppy paint that plagues him. Still, he’s a nice update on the classic Nick Fury, who had been in dire need of an update for a while at the point that this one hit.
MMC Score — 8 out of 10
Iron Man
The set’s resident heavy hitter, Iron Man, is depicted here in his slimmed down armor from the event, which was also the armor he was sporting towards the end of Matt Fraction’s run on Iron Man. It had just been replaced at the time of this figure’s release, but it was distinct enough to make sense for inclusion here.
Iron Man is the most basic of the set, with only a single sculpted piece: his helmet. It’s a reuse from the Marvel Now Iron Man from TRU Wave 16, which is a decent enough match for the source material.
Since he’s only got one sculpted piece, the figure mostly relies on paint. Fortunately, the figure delivers on this front. All of the paint work is nice and sharp, with none of the slop that was seen on Fury. There’s a full Tony face under the helmet, which is appropriately disheveled.
Iron Man’s only accessory is a clear display stand, which feels really light given how few parts he uses in general.
Iron Man’s actually not too bad. I enjoy him more than I thought I would, and he really is pretty decently put together. But, at the end of the day, he’s just another Iron Man variant that is gonna get tossed in a box.
MMC Score — 7 out of 10
Angela
It’s Angela. Angela! The big, highly kept secret from the end of the series! Remember when that was a thing? Yeah, like the rest of the series, it seems to have faded a bit into the background. She’s actually getting another ‘mate later this year, but this one was kind of a big deal at the time.
Angela’s got 5 sculpted add-ons: hair, one shoulder pad (because kids dig asymmetry!), two separate hand sculpts, and a belt with a sheath. Near as I can tell, all of these are new pieces. From a purely technical standpoint, all of its well-handled, with some pretty decent detailing.
The paint on the figure is neither the best nor the worst in the set, which is fine. It does what it’s supposed to alright, and isn’t overly messy, but it’s not quite as crisp as Iron Man or Ultron. It’s really just there.
Angela includes a sword and a clear display stand. Given the other new parts included, this feels like a reasonable selection
Angela is Angela. I’ve never much cared for the character. This set has in no way swayed me on the character. I’m happy for those who wanted her, I guess, but she’s just not for me. She’s an okay ‘mate at least.
MMC Score — 7 out of 10
Agree? Disagree? Why not vote for yourself below, or comment further over at the Minimate Multiverse MMC Review Forum.
Review and pictures by Glantern.
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