[Acquisitions] Iron Man: The Armored Avenger Mark V

 

I'm back with another 1:18 acquisition and this time I have something from last weekend's Hasbro Toy Fair. It's an Iron Man: The Armored Avenger Mark V figure and depending on your tolerance, it may be something that, in your opinion, doesn't really warrant a purchase. We already got a 1:18 Mark V fig from the Iron Man 2 toyline and to be honest, I don't like the idea of buying two figures with very minor paint differences between them. I passed up on this fig when I first spotted it at retail last March but the fig's now down to 60% of its original price and so, I decided to give it a try.

At first, I thought the difference between these two Mark V figs lie only on the paint apps on the armor panels at the chest area of the figures but upon closer inspection, there are actually a ton of differences between the two. To begin with, the figs use different heads. The IM:TAA Mark V's head features seams on the faceplate while the IM2 Mark V's head doesn't, the seams are not actually movie-accurate but they send the point across.

 

 

Paint app differences between the figs can be found at the chest, inguinal region, upper arms, elbows, lower arms, hands, thighs, back, and spine. The shades of silver used are also different with the IM2 Mark V getting the brighter (and better) shade. I'm not sure which figure is really better between the two as both of them deviated a lot from the movie design but I think I like the IM2 Mark V more. The IM:TAA version has the better head but the IM2 version's more realistic color scheme is simply too good to ignore.

For accessories, the IM:TAA Mark V comes with the Mark V briefcase and an extra left hand. The briefcase is a very nice accessory but for it to be useful, a 1:18 Tony Stark in civies will be needed.

To me, the IM:TAA Mark V is nothing but a filler figure. With the exception of the head, the figure doesn't really offer a lot other than the opportunity to expand one's armory by one figure. There's another Mark V fig with a different red and silver paint scheme available in one of the Iron Man 2 boxed sets but I'm not sure if I'm willing to spend my hard-earned dough on that one too. Right now, the last thing I want to buy is another 1:18 Mark V fig.