I am not a quarter-scale figure collector. With the sheer number of toys and collectibles I buy each year, I discovered that if I buy a lot of 1/4 scale figures, I quickly begin to run out of space. But there are exceptions to every rule, and I’m about to have to make one. If there’s one Iron Man armor permutation I have a serious soft spot for, it’s the derpy Mark XLII armor from Iron Man 3. And now, it’s coming to quarter-scale in high-end figure form: the Hot Toys 1/4 Iron Man Mark 42 figure goes up for order today!

While I still indulge in more quarter-scale statues than I probably should, I simply do not have the storage or display space to deal with having 1:4 figures as well. As such, I honestly can’t even remember what the last quarter-scale figure I purchased even was. But after this week, I’ll definitely know the answer to that question, and it’ll be “Iron Man Mark XLII”!

As quietly revealed at an overseas event during the winter, the main armor from the divisive “Iron Man 3” move is getting the massively large (and massively detailed) Hot Toys quarter-scale figure treatment this year!

This will be the first time that the Mark 42 armor is released by Hot Toys in plastic form, as the original Mark 42 sixth scale figure from Hot Toys was released as a die-cast figure only.

 
As much as I love die-cast, I’m okay with this Hot Toys 1/4 Iron Man Mark 42 forgoing it. Using die-cast metal would likely add $150-$200 to the cost of this figure, and I don’t know that I need a super-heavy, super-expensive 20″ Iron Man figure standing on my shelf. 

The articulation on this 1/4th Mark XLII will be up to the usual top-notch Hot Toys standards, with the armor able to do the iconic “crouching and punching the ground” pose–and looking quite stylish while doing it, if I do say so myself!

In addition to the usual LED light-up repulsors, eyes and Arc reactor we’ve come to expect on the sixth scale Iron Man armors, this Mark 42 quarter scale version will add extra lights peaking out from various places throughout the body. Cool!

And the icing on the cake is a removable faceplate–which is amazingly well-detailed on the interior–that can be taken off or flipped up to reveal Tony Stark underneath!

Hot Toys has had plenty of practice working on Robert Downey Jr. portraits over the years, and now that they can work with the larger 1/4 scale, they have totally nailed it. I can’t imagine anyone is going to complain about this excellent likeness. 

And for that extra level of fun, this figure will also include a quarter-scale Road Warrior battery booster for the Mark XLII to get charged up and ready for battle on, just like in the movie!

There’s also a deluxe version of this figure being released, which I believe will be exclusive to Sideshow Collectibles in the United States. This version adds one accessory to the figure: an Arc-reactor themed light-up base with removable gantry arms.

I think a lot of folks will consider this “deluxe” base to be unnecessary, but seeing as how I’m an “Iron Man 3” fanboy, the base with light-up “3” in the middle is definitely the version I’m opting for.

The Hot Toys Iron Man Mark 42 Quarter-Scale figure goes up for order later today in both regular and deluxe version forms. We won’t know the official U.S. pricing and release date until Sideshow Collectibles places Mark XLII up for sale, so I’ll update with those details later on.

What do you think of the biggest and most expensive figure ever of the least dependable Iron Man armor, Marvel collectors? Will you be adding the quarter-scale version of Tony Stark’s lovable loser armor to your collection this year?