We’ve been monitoring this particular release for a while as each convention a little more has been revealed. At San Diego Comic Con, we got our first look at four of the action figures and the most impressive Kingpin Build-a-Figure. But with all unveils, it’s always subject to change, and the mix of what will wind up in what set can change (but with our order officially placed for this projected December / January release, we have the breakdown of what is going into the release!).
The original four unveiled in San Diego includes the Black Cat, Silver Sable, Red Goblin (a cross between the Green Goblin and Carnage symbiote!), and a Symbiote Spider-Man. Plus of course Kingpin as the Build-a-Figure. Since Paladin was previously released (see Deadpool Wave 1, available in our Shop), and he oftentimes works for Silver Sable, it’s nice to see a strong and prominent female character / leader get her own in the toy line, too (and since she hires Spider-Man from time to time, having her in a Spider-Man release is the perfect place for her!).
I know symbiotes are very hot right now, with the Venom movie, the Venom Wave 1 (available in our Shop!), plus additional symbiote figures like Lasher (also available in our Shop!) that have come before. Red Goblin looks pretty cool (though admittedly, he comes after my time collecting comics so I had to look him up to see who he was! How Normal Orsborne got ahold of Cletus Cassidy’s symbiote was probably a pretty compelling storyline!). The Symbiote Spider-Man figure though seems a little off to me. And again, perhaps somewhere in the comic multiverse this is who he looks, but back when Peter Parker first got the symbiote thinking it was the “costume designer” in the Secret Wars when Beyonder took a bunch of heroes and villains and put them on a newly constructed world, straight through until Peter learned that it was a symbiote and got rid of the costume under a giant bell in a church, he never had claws on his hands or toes or veins sticking through, and his eyes certainly didn’t look like that. I might love this figure when I see him for real, but the traditionalist in me was happy with Spidey in the black and white costume (though this one, I can already see for “playtime” with my daughter being added into the multiverse variations of Peter Parker and being part of the symbiotes that will be causing our heroes some difficulty!). But hey, I reserve final judgment until I actually see it. Who knows…. he might be insanely popular and both my daughter and other collectors and kids may love him. We’ll see.
I’m particularly interested in Kingpin, not just because Wilson Fisk is a strong and imposing character in the lives of the street heroes in his own right, but also because, as mentioned in the “All Things X” preview, the Professor Xavier figure will be coming with a Shadow King head that is interchangeable with the Kingpin (and as an X-Men fan, getting two Kingpin Build a Figures, one as Kingpin and one as the Shadow King, may be a necessity!). Here is the unveiled Kingpin, and, from the All Things X article, a comic look at the Shadow King.
The next figure to be announced was Night Thrasher at the New York Comic Con! Night Thrasher is the second member of the original New Warriors to make it into the Marvel Legends line recently (the first was Nova, who is currently sold out). I can’t help but think that this may be a sign that future members of the New Warriors may be on the way (Firestar! Marvel Boy! Namorita! Speedball! All would be welcome additions to the Marvel Legends line! Maybe even some of the other cast members who joined up, like Silhouette or Rage).
One of the great things about the New Warriors was that they were like some of the legendary heroes when they were just starting out. Think of Spider-Man when he first became Spider-Man. Or the original X-Men when first brought together by Professor Xavier. There’s a learning curve there, and the heroes didn’t always get everything right, even if their perseverance and determination and sense of justice saw them through to victory in the end. The New Warriors, in essence, were flawed. They were not the legends of the Avengers, but some younger background characters from around the Marvel universe who were brought together by Night Thrasher and formed a team of their own.
In addition to the comics, Night Thrasher is also one of the characters (along with Squirrel Girl, Mister Immortal, Speedball, Microbe, and Debrii) set to appear in the live action New Warriors television series that is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. So whether a comic fan or an upcoming television show fan, Night Thrasher should be a must have for your collection!
Usually a release has some mystery to it, and sometimes it even is ready to be ordered with comments of “character mix to be revealed at a later point,” or indicate that the character mix can change. The upcoming Captain Marvel release is a prime example (stay tuned for a future Previews about that one!). Marvel very much seeks to safeguard spoilers, so a lot of the releases coincide with the movies, so revealing the action figure line too soon could lead to spoilers for the movie. We wouldn’t want that! But the final two figures in Spider-Man Wave 11 were unveiled at the international convention Lucca Comics & Games 2018. They are Puma and Six-Armed Spider-Man (until I saw the picture, I was wondering whether this would be the Six-Armed Spider-Man way back in Amazing Spider-Man 100 – 102, or whether it would be Spider-Doppleganger, the Six-Armed creature created during the Infinity War – but seeing the pictures, it is indeed Peter Parker that we’re looking at!).
Puma is a worthy addition and very welcome to the Spider-Man line. The Six-Armed Spider-Man? I think I would have preferred the Spider-Doppleganger, but he’s definitely different!
Which figure in the Spider-Man Wave 11 release are you the most excited for? With previews such as this, we have ordered our copies for sale, but until they are officially announced for sale by Hasbro or we have our advanced copies in hand, we will not be able to list them in our shop. So check back to see when pre-orders can be accepted. The release is targeted for December 2018 / January 2019, so we should get the approval to get them up for sale soon!