Netflix Marvel Legends Jessica Jones Figure Review

Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, it’s time to pick up the pace to make sure that every Hasbro Marvel Legends 2017 figure gets it’s rightful spotlight while it’s still, well… 2017. Moving along with the Marvel Knights Legends series reviews, we’ve got the star of the first-ever female-led Marvel TV series. Krysten Ritter herself has gone on TV talking about how much she loves her Marvel Legends Netflix Jessica Jones figure (which is on sale now for 17 bucks shipped). Is it as good as she thinks?

Marvel Legends Jessica Jones ReviewThe Right:

Way back in spring 2016, Krysten Ritter was on television saying that action figures of her as Jessica Jones would sell tons and she was going to make some calls and push for it. Now, said figures were almost certainly already in the pipeline, but hey, every little push helps, right?

And so, a year and a few months later (and after the release of Minimates and Funko POP Jessica Jones figures), Marvel Legends Jessica Jones arrived. Is she everything fans (and Krysten Ritter herself) hoped for? Let’s start the review…

Marvel Legends Jessica Jones Figure PackagedThis figure is one of the four MCU Netflix characters in the Marvel Legends Man-Thing Build-A-Figure series. It’s cool to see the Jessica Jones logo so proudly emblazoned on a mass market action figure, and this is the only figure doing so, since the other three Netflix characters are all from Daredevil.

Marvel Legends Netflix Jessica Jones Krysten Ritter LikenessI always say that the most important aspect of a live action-based toy is actor/actress likeness, and Hasbro hits a grand slam here as far as the Krysten Ritter Jessica Jones likeness goes. The hair, the eyes, the lips and shape of the face… this head sculpt is so good it’s almost scary. No matter what angle I look at the face from, it just looks so right. Stellar work here by Hasbro.

Review Marvel Legends Man-Thing Series Jessica JonesAnd while I’ve heard some people say the eyes aren’t painted quite right on theirs, the paintwork on the head of my figure is perfect.

Back of Netflix Jessica Jones Marvel Legends Action FigureThe “costume” (so to speak) of the figure is just as good as the work on the head. The soft plastic leather jacket (with sculpted zippers and buttons!) looks dead-on, the paint wash on Jessica’s jeans is extremely convincing, and her gloves and even the pockets on her buns are sculpted and not just painted on.

Side View of Jessica Jones Krysten Ritter Action Figure HasbroAnd about that paintwork: I’ve got zero complaints about the paint deco anywhere on this figure. All of the paint has been expertly applied and there’s not a spot anywhere that’s bothering me—quite a feat given my OCD tendencies.

Scale Comparison Marvel Legends Netflix Daredevil and Jessica Jones SizeThere’s not a lot to this character design—or to the look of this action figure—but it’s all just done so well that she’s a real winner visually. And for those concerned about scale–5’9″ Krysten Ritter’s figure is the slightest hair shorter than 5’10” Charlie Cox’s Daredevil figure, just the way she should be.

Netflix Legends Jessica Jones Articulation Karate Kicking DaredevilNetflix Legends Jessica Jones’ articulation isn’t perfect, but she does have a ball-jointed upper torso that works great, as well as hips with a huge range of motion of around 135 degrees! Jessica has better hip flexibility than a lot of Spider-Man and Deadpool figures out there!

Jessica Jones Marvel Legends Elbow ArticulationThe Wrong:

The Netflix Jessica Jones Marvel Legends figure is a total success on many levels—but there’s a few areas where she does fall short.

My main disappointment with the 6” Marvel Legends Jessica Jones figure has to do with the articulation scheme. While the hip articulation is fantastic and I always love ball-jointed upper torsos, there’s two places where the figure fails.

Marvel Legends female figures rarely ever have good arm articulation, but Jessica’s is particularly bad. As usual there are no biceps swivels, but in this instance Jessica’s elbow hinge doesn’t even have enough of a range-of-motion to make a right angle. Being able to only bend her elbow less than 90 degrees is ridiculous.

Raised Fist on Netflix Marvel Legends Jessica Jones FigureThe range of motion for Jessica’s head isn’t ideal either. While her hair is somewhat soft, it still pushes her head to funny tilted angles when you try to make the figure look left or right—basically any lateral direction besides straight forward. Frustrating.

Marvel Legends Netflix Jessica Jones with Man-Thing BAF TorsoAnd as far as accessories go, well… she’s got nothing besides the largest piece of the Man-Thing Build-A-Figure (the torso). To be fair, the Man-Thing BAF Torso is almost as big as a whole other figure, but that doesn’t mean I’m letting Hasbro off the hook for giving Jessica herself a big, fat nothing.

Back of Box Marvel Legends Knights Jessica JonesNow, Jessica may primarily fight with her fists, but at least some neutral or grabbing hands would have been nice so that there were a couple more display options. The bad arm articulation mixed with solely the fists really limits the poses ML Jessica Jones can pull off.

Review Marvel Legends Jessica Jones 6" FigureOverall: My head says that the Hasbro Jessica Jones action figure is a ‘B+’, but my heart says an ‘A-‘, so that’s what I’m going with. While the head and arm articulation are both pretty bad—and I’d really like some alternate hands or any accessories at all—this toy succeeds spectacularly on most other levels.

The Krysten Ritter portrait is among Hasbro’s very best likenesses ever, the paint and sculpting work on the figure are excellent, and the hip articulation is flat-out outstanding. If you’ve been waiting for a 6” Jessica Jones figure, I strongly doubt you’ll ever find one better than this.

GRADE: A-

Comments

Netflix Marvel Legends Jessica Jones Figure Review — 13 Comments

  1. There, I fixed it. Jessica uses Mandroid wave Black Widow hands, so extra non-punching options are available. Also, dollhouse booze bottles are just the right size. Thats the accessory she should have come with, but you know, “kids toy” and all.

    [img]https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/MXeib49TSwZyXFEPfuN6_ouNXnIucP8eFyq20EQgqVz64kjifql1wfILtybe_2qKovaHb8zRQlpa7NIL139V9_I01BtBHgUTimg909jemn32WXoCdHqBOsqAIv5gu9nDcowzmv6Hu2g=w353-h662-no[/img]

  2. Bingo. A-
    Her lack of interchangeable hands, elbow range, and accessories are the only things keeping Jessica Jones from being uncontestedly the best figure in this wave, and one of the best Marvel Legends figures of all time.
    Even WITH her shortcomings, I think she actually IS the best figure in this whole wave, but I can see how that could be debated.

    Let’s be real, we ALL know she should’ve come with extra hands, her scarf, a bottle of whiskey (girl after my own heart), and maybe an alternate hand with her cellphone. But of course a whiskey bottle for a toy is problematic, so we’ll let that one slide.
    Scarf, hands, cellphone, and better elbows would’ve made this an A++ figure.
    Whiskey bottle would’ve made it perfect.

    Dan Larson of Toy Galaxy told me he used a trimmed down head scarf from Black Series Jyn Erso to make a scarf for Jessica Jones. It looks fantastic.
    (Toy Galaxy is the best quality production of any YouTube channel I’ve ever seen, toy review or otherwise. You should all check that out.)

    • I used black widow hands, dollhouse bottles, and the top half of clearance Ego’s scarf. His scarf is two pieces barely glued to one another. its grey and scarfy but just a little loose on the shoulders. I looked at dollhouse 1:12 cellphones and laptops, but didn’t pull the trigger until I saw how happy I was with the bottle. Honestly, it was all she was missing besides hands.

  3. “the first-ever female-led Marvel TV series”

    Everyone always forgets Agent Carter! That show aired almost a year before JJ.

  4. I don’t usually buy MCU figures, unless they are comic accurate and theres is no other figure available (eg. War Machine). I’ve been having doubts for a while: should I pick this figure or the one from the Defenders box? I want a Jessica Jones figure for sure, and this one, besides being MCU, looks terrific. And, let’s be honest, Jessica always wear casual clothes on her comics, so it is faithful. On the other hand, the one from the Defenders box set is more comic accurate, but Jessica doesn’t wear her Jewel custom anymore. I also think that this figure with the Silk alternate unmasked head (which is same mold than Jewel’s from Defenders) could be cool.
    So, I ask you, collectors, what figure should I pick?

    • I actually really like the MJ/Elektra/JJ mold. The jacket and arms on this figure are just great on every point but bicep curl articulation. A point not mentioned in the article are the boot cuffs, which are great because they just fit and do their job so perfectly you barely notice. If you are preoccupied with comic accuracy, the comic look inevitably mirrors the film/television look these days, and Jessica is no different. The cover of Marvel NOW Jessica Jones issue #1 has her in this exact outfit with the addition of a white scarf. However, if you want a Luke Cage you’ll have to get the Amazon box or wait for Knights wave 2 and a possible Mike Coulter Cage.

      • Like I said earlier, I absolutely LOVE this Jessica Jones figure. She one of my favorite Marvel Legends DESPITE her little shortcomings.

        Personally, I think the Silk head looks all wrong for Jessica Jones, so the Jewel figure bothers me.
        I was actually considering doing the OPPOSITE, and getting an extra MCU JJ head, painting the hair magenta, and popping THAT on the Jewel body.

        The Silk head doesn’t look SUPER Asian, but in the Marvel Legends style it reads as just Asian enough that I can’t ignore it.
        The unmasked Silk head would make a fantastic Psylocke head, but Jessica Jones…..not so much.

        I’d be waaaaaaaaaaay more inclined to use the Moonstone head for Jessica Jones.

        .

        Also, regarding Luke Cage, I hate the Hyperion body mold on most figures (the anatomy is godawful, and figures that are too plain can’t hide it), Luke Cage included, so I was pondering using the Tombstone body or the Young Thor body to make a better Luke Cage, and just steal the head from the Defenders set Luke Cage figure.

        (For whatever reason, the Hyperion mold doesn’t bother me on Sentry, Captain Britain, Drax, or Gladiator.
        Something about how the paint patterns and capes break up the figures, I guess?
        Or maybe the fact that they’re all truly inhuman, insanely powerful characters, so the weird anatomy makes a kind of sense? I dunno….)

        • Thank you both! I think I will definitely grab the Kristen Ritter JJ. I would try to pick Luke Cage loose on eBay from the Defenders boxset, although i also hate that body mold. It looks so “Liefield”.

          Isn’t the Young Thor the same mold? I don’t have that figure, but seeing it on pictures I thought it was the Hyperion mold.

          • Young Thor is a similar mold, but the chest is a new resculpted piece that fits with all the other Hyperion mold parts. It gives an upper torso that’s just as wide without the odd proportions that stick out like a shelf. I’m surprised it didn’t get used for this re-issue of Luke honestly.

          • Yea, Young Thor and Tombstone are both replacements for the Hyperion torso that have much MUCH better anatomy.
            Same arms and legs, but the awful torso has been upgraded.
            Can’t fathom why Luke Cage had to suffer the Hyperion mold again. That’s just dumb.

            Maybe production of the Defenders set predates the Tombstone and Young Thor molds…. *shrug*
            I guess that’d be the only logical explanation.