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At one point, the Fantastic Four were the premier characters at Marvel.  They’re the whole reason for the modern Marvel universe’s existence, and were a central piece of said universe for almost 50 years.  That’s changed in recent years, and they’ve become substantially less marketable than they once were.  Perhaps their fortunes might finally be changing?  Time will tell.  The team crops up every so often in Marvel Minimates.  Since their uniforms don’t change all that much, there’s not as much call for updates, but the certainly make for some of the better assortments, including 2013’s Wave 48, from which today’s focus figures hail!

The Packaging

Wave 48 made use of the same Marvel styling of packaging we’ve gotten used to.  Like Wave 47, it keeps a green base color, which might not be the most natural choice for an FF-themed wave, but it works well enough.  For pictures of these two sets in box, head on over to their Minimate Database entries!

The Figures

Force Field Invisible Woman

Sue was the heavier-packed regular release to Alicia’s short-packed variant release.  She, like the rest of the team in this series, is based on her appearance during John Byrne’s lengthy run on the title in the ‘80s, which just so happens to be my favorite set of costumes for the team (in no small part due to the presence of the designs in the ‘90s cartoon, which served as my main introduction to the characters.) 

She’s built on the standard body, with an add-on piece for her hair.  It’s a new piece, and it does a reasonable enough job of capturing Sue’s standard look, from early in Byrne’s run and any time an artist other than Byrne depicted this design.  Seems odd that they sculpted an all-new piece, since there were several that probably would have worked fine, but I’m not complaining.  She also has an alternate hairpiece, based on the mullet she was sporting for while during Byrne’s run.  Not my preferred look for her, but it was a look she had for a good long while in the costume, so it’s good DST didn’t leave it out. 

The paint on Sue is about what you’d expect from a modern ‘mate.  The details are nice and clean, and the colors are a pretty decent match for the comics.  If we’re getting picky, the shadows should be black, not dark blue, since Byrne has stated many times that the costumes weren’t actually blue.  However, it’s dark enough that it’s still passable. 

Sue is packed with two sets of arms and legs: solid colors and partially transparent, simulating her powers.  She also includes a stand made up to look like the beginnings of an invisible shield, which is a really fun piece, as well as a basic clear stand.

There are other Invisible Woman ‘mates, but this one’s my favorite.  The costume choice is great, and the extras are, well, they’re just fantastic.  Which is very appropriate, is it not?

MMC Score — 9 out of 10

Alicia Masters

This was Alicia’s first venture into the world of action figures, though that’s not a huge surprise, given that she’s a fairly average looking person in a world full of super heroes.  She’s true to form here, being depicted here in a pink sweater and a slightly darker pink skirt.  I’m honestly not sure if this is based on a specific look for Alicia, but it seems to suit the character. 

Alicia has a newly sculpted hair piece, and a reused skirt piece.  The hair looks fine, and sits well, and the skirt is a well worked piece of reuse. 

The rest of the detailing is handled via paint.  The line work is all well-handled, with the edges and wrinkles of her clothes all handled with care.  I do wish the sleeve detail on her arm went all the way around, but it isn’t terrible.  I do like the unevenness of the bottom of the sweater, as it adds a nice touch of reality to her look.  The face looks appropriate for Alicia, and I like the way her eyes have been handled to denote her blindness. 

Alicia includes a clear stand and a clay bust of her boyfriend.  The bust is really cool, and has a nice faint face detail, which matches up with the Transforming Thing from TRU Wave 15.

I enjoy this figure a lot more than your might expect, given the relative low-keyness of the character.  However, things like Alicia’s awesome Thing sculpture are a great example of how Diamond can take a figure that could be boring and make it one of the stars of the wave.

MMC Score — 8 out of 10

Moloid 

The Moloids were the army builder of the wave, and a rendition Mole Man’s faithful underground-dwelling minions.  They aren’t totally new to the action figure world like Alicia, but are still something of a rarity, typically being relegated to an unarticulated pack-in with Mole Man.

The Moloids got a unique sculpted head to show off their big, pointy ears, and a pair of slipper-style short feet to aid in their diminutive stature.  The slipper feet had been used before, but this release was notable for adding the holes in the bottom to allow them to be plugged onto the stands.  There’s also got a sculpted loin-cloth add-on, which is new to the figure, and accurately depicts the typical wear of the Moloids. 

The paintwork is fairly straight forward stuff.  There’s basic detailing for the musculature and faces, done on a completely painted pale yellow body, which is actually quite nice looking.

The Moloid’s only accessory is a clear display stand, but that puts them above prior assortments.

After a string slightly less exciting army builders, the Moloids followed the SHIELD Agents and the Brood, being a very fun addition to their line.  These guys are simple, but still a lot of fun.

MMC Score — 8 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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