“Wild and crazy” as descriptors of what happened to Psylocke in the last years of Chris Claremont’s legendary run on Uncanny X-Men. After being reborn, mind wiped, ethnically changed and soul swapped, Betsy briefly became the Mandarin’s assassin, Lady Mandarin. (I swear it reads better than it summarizes.) As Lady Mandarin, Psylocke battled Wolverine (in his “ninja” attire), until Logan defeated Psylocke and restored her free will. And now, thanks to Hasbro, fans will be able to recreate this landmark battle: the Marvel Legends Lady Mandarin Psylocke & Ninja Wolverine figures two-pack is now up for order!

Truth be told, I never particularly even wanted one Marvel Legends Ninja Wolverine figure, much less two. But if you’re going to do a twin-pack with Psylocke as Lady Mandarin as part of the Wolverine 60th Anniversary Series of sets, you kind of have to include this particular Logan as part of it (what with it being the costume worn by Wolverine when he actually battled Lady Mandarin). And so, 5 years after he appeared single-carded in the X-Men Vintage/Retro Series, Wolverine in his black ninja attire is -back- as an updated figure in a prominent set.

Although we did get a pretty good figure of Wolverine in this costume from Hasbro back in 2019, this release of him is on the much-improved modern mold for Wolverine, now with pin-less arms and legs. He gets an alternate scowling face and hands with and without claws, which are really the only accessories you’d need for this particular version of the character. This is almost certainly the weakest singular selection in the entire 50th Anniversary Wolverine series, but I don’t really see how this battle could be represented without this Logan variation.

Lady Psylocke is the much more interesting figure, with her armored body complemented by malevolent smiling head, hands with the Mandarin’s 10 rings, affects pieces for said rings, alternate neutral head and psychic knife. She also features the modern double pin-less knees and elbows.

The armor on this figure really goes a long way in setting it apart from every previous Hasbro Psylocke action figure.

This is an incredibly story-specific duo (based on Uncanny X-Men 256-258 from 1989-1990), but it celebrates a cover (if not a battle) that remains memorable almost three and a half decades later. I appreciate that the box back credits and commemorates those iconic classic covers (although having read these X-Men comics as a kid definitely makes me feel old as dirt).

I know a lot of fans were hoping for the Outback Psylocke costume in toy form, but I’m sure we’ll get that iteration of Betsy soon enough. For a Wolverine anniversary series, I think this pairing is reasonable and makes sense. It’s an interesting enough offering that I’ll be happy to add it to my collection this year.

The Marvel Legends Wolverine & Psylocke figures two-pack is now up for order and will be arriving this spring. It’s retailing for the same $49.99 MSRP as the previous two packs, which is the average price-point of $25 per figure these days. Are you planning to pick this up for your shelf, X-Men fans?