Soapbox Sunday: Marvel and Fox Need to Reconcile… For the Sake of the Toys

Deadpool, X-Men, and Fantastic Four - Marvel characters licensed by Fox

Imagine this – it’s the Avengers versus the X-Men and Fantastic Four. At first, Spider-Man is with Wolverine and Reed Richards, but at a pivotal moment, he switches sides and joins Captain America and Iron Man. Is this the plot for next big comic book crossover event? No, it’s another case of life imitating art – it’s what’s really happening today with the movie licensing business at Marvel.

Marvel has been trying to regain control of the characters it licensed out years ago to other movie studios, before they had their own movie business. Earlier this year, Marvel Studios and Sony penned a peace treaty that gives Marvel some say over what Sony will do with Spider-Man. But with Fox, who continues to own the rights to the X-Men and Fantastic Four, the not-too-subtle war has no end in sight. And we’re suffering for it.

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Weekend Toy Run: Marvel Legends Iron Man, Star Lord, and Spider-Man on Sale at Target

Marvel Legends Guardians of the Galaxy Iron Man, Star Lord, and Superior Spider-Man on sale at Target

If you’re looking to fill out your Marvel Legends collection with figures from previous waves, Target might be able to help. They’ve got several figures from the Guardians of the Galaxy, Spidey, and Captain America waves on sale online. Here’s the best of the deals:

If your purchase is over $25, Target will give you free shipping. If you’ve got the Target REDcard, you get free shipping plus 5% off for any online purchase. Happy shopping!

Weekend Toy Run: Spider-Man Marvel Legends Hobgoblin Wave at Amazon

SDCC 2014 Hasbro Marvel Legends Spider-Man 2015

The latest wave of Marvel Legends, featuring a Spider-Man theme with a Hobgoblin build-a-figure, is now available to pre-order at Amazon. Each of the figures is available individually for $21.99 with a March 25 release date, and can qualify for free 2-day Prime shipping.

You can also pre-order a case of the Hobgoblin wave at Entertainment Earth for the best per figure price, but that will leave you with an extra Spider-Man and Anti-Venom. Or you can pre-order a set at BigBadToyStore – no leftovers, but it’s a higher per figure price than Amazon and you pay shipping on top of that.

See more of Spidey Legends (aka The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Marvel Legends Infinite Series) in our Marvel Legends report and Marvel Legends video fly-bys from Toy Fair. And thanks to our good friend Paul for once again giving us the heads-up. Happy shopping!

Toy Fair 2015: Square Enix Launches Play Arts Kai Marvel Variants Line

Toy Fair 2015 Square Enix Play Arts Kai Marvel Variants (1 of 7)

Square Enix has broadened their non-video game licenses to include the Marvel Universe, by virtue of their Play Arts Kai Variants line. Variants reimagine characters with hyper-stylized designs. With their DC, Square Enix used Variants to extend their DC lines beyond the movie and Arkham lines they already had in place. Marvel Variants, in contrast, allows Square Enix to skirt the edges of existing comic book or movie licenses that may belong to other licensees.

The Marvel Variants line begins with Spider-Man, Iron Man, and Thor, and Square Enix also teased an upcoming Venom in silhouette. With prices creeping up, the DC Variants are now in the $95 and up range from $60 – 70 a couple of years ago. If Marvel comes in at these prices, what’s your interest in the new line?

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Toy Fair 2015: Hasbro Marvel Legends Video Fly-Bys

Toy Fair 2015 Hasbro Marvel Legends Thanos (2 of 14)

You may have noticed in some of our Toy Fair 2015 coverage a new feature we’re trying out – the AFP fly-by video. I’ve said before that I’m not that big of a fan of video reviews, so the Fly-By doesn’t follow the standard video review approach. No over-the-top voiceovers, no intro theme music, and no frills – just the action figures.

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