Doctor Octopus in his movie form has been a primary demand from Marvel Legends collectors for years now, and two years after Spider-Man No Way Home hit theaters, the MCU Hasbro Marvel Legends Doc Ock 6” figure arrived. Rather than being a pack-in Build-A-Figure as many fans pipedreamed of, the Marvel Legends Doctor Octopus movie figure is a $38 deluxe standalone release . Is this unique-sculpted Spider-Man 2 villain worthy of a pair of Andrew Jacksons and a spot on your shelf? Here’s my review… Although Hasbro is phasing out the fiercely debated plastic-free Marvel Legends packaging, Doc Ock releases at the tail end of that initiative and thus comes in a windowless cardboard box. The box features photos of both the movie character and also the toy itself, but it’s really hard for many casual collectors to decide to buy a ~$40 action figure off the shelf they can’t even see the paint or details on until after purchasing. The box back shows off the Otto Octavius figure and the additional accessories, but it can still be a little difficult to comprehend precisely how many tentacle ‘hands’ (I’ll call them claws for the remainder of this review) are included. Doc Ock himself comes in one paper bag, with two extra human hands and four claws in another bag. The tentacles have no claws attached in the package. Maybe it’s because I’m half-blind, but I legitimately almost shoved all the packaging in my recycling bin before inspecting further and discovering the two articulated claws in a surprise little bag taped to the top of the cardboard tray. Those nearly went straight to recycling. Whoops! I wonder if many other collectors almost did the same? Doctor Octopus himself comes with interchangeable fists and open hands, whereas there are three sets of the pincer-like claws: “grabbing”, articulated and “splayed” (fully opened). The articulated ones are my favorites since they add so much flavor and diversity to a display, and I honestly wish Hasbro had foregone the two unarticulated gripping claws entirely in favor of packing in four of these. The splayed claws are meant for the lower tentacles, as they allow Doctor Octopus to—unbelievably—easily stand up on his tentacles, with Doc Ock himself suspended in the air. I was highly skeptical this would work, but Doc Ock stood menacingly for me near-instantly and has stayed so consistently for days since. I am absolutely amazed by how well this works. It’s not all sunshine and roses with the tentacles, though—they come out of the box insanely stiff and rigid, and they were shockingly difficult for me to pose for photos. Once you get them into place, they stay in place, though, that’s for sure! While I haven’t had any issues myself, I have heard reports of other fans’ tentacles breaking shortly after opening the figure, so be sure to go slow with posing and use heat as necessary. I’ve been avoiding touching this movie Doc Ock Legends figure after taking photos for fear of breakage, which doesn’t feel particularly good. The whole figure is a 100% unique sculpt, with the tentacles being a huge highlight (as you’d expect) with their ridged sculpted texture and ability to pose in almost any position (sometimes with a lot of patience and force). The jacket is smooth for the most part and not especially compelling, although the rips in the back from where the arms emerged are a notable high point. The painted zipper and buttons are also a nice touch. Ock’s legs are sadly very restricted by the coat, unfortunately. He still can stand up stably on them, though. Let’s talk about the Alfred Molina portrait for a second: It’s… fine. It’s far from the singular best likeness I’ve ever seen or anything, but I can definitely tell it’s movie Doctor Octopus, and the neutral expression absolutely feels correct for this character. If anything, I like the head sculpt here somehow better than the creepy portrait on the $300 Hot Toys 1/6 version of Doc Ock. Excellent work, Hasbro. I would expect a newly-sculpted figure at this price-point to have modern pin-free articulation, and thankfully, it does. Doctor Octopus doesn’t need to take on extreme poses with butterfly swivel shoulders or drop-down hips or anything like that, and as such, those “extra” feeling articulation points aren’t present here—and I’m totally okay with that. All the POA that I care about are here. There’s not an epic amount of paint deco on this 6” figure, but all the paint apps that are here are well-applied and look good. A bit of a wash on the tentacles may have enhanced them, but they still look nice as-is because of all the texturing. Overall: If this were a basic $25 Marvel Legends figure, it would be easier to assign this Doc Ock figure a solid ‘A’. As a $40-ish toy, that requires a few more mental gymnastics. Ultimately, as much as I like this figure as a whole, I’ve got to ding the rating a tiny bit because of just how stiff the robot arms are—it’s hard to fully enjoy an action figure you’re afraid to break by posing it too much. The swap-out claws, Alfred Molina portrait, coat and textured tentacles are all great looking stuff—and make no mistake, having Ock stand up on his tentacles is a sight to behold—but it’s tough to get fully past just how stiff and intractable those robotic arms can be.
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