“Justice, Like Lightning…!” If those words don’t mean anything to you, then you’re probably in the majority of collectors who are scratching their heads at this release from the first wave of Avengers Legends 2010 figures. Whether you know him or not, you’ll need to buy the Marvel Legends Citizen V figure if you want his Armored Thanos Build-A-Figure piece—but is the original Thunderbolts leader a worthwhile figure in its own right?

Believe it or not, Hasbro has quietly been building the Thunderbolts in Marvel Legends form since the revival of the 6” line in 2012. Songbird was in last year’s Infinity War Legends series, and Moonstone/Meteorite was part of the modern Thunderbolts SDCC exclusive box set back in 2013.

And now, big daddy Baron Zemo himself is joining the team in his heroic do-gooder attire! Straight out of the 1997 Thunderbolts comic book by Kurt Busiek, it’s Citizen V!

I’m not gonna lie: I loved me some Thunderbolts back in the day. It was one of only two comic books I ever subscribed to via direct mail order with Marvel. So was I psyched to see Citizen V in this lineup? Uh, yes. Yes I was!

While Citizen V is relatively unknown among fans who weren’t readers in the 90s, I love the breadth and depth that Hasbro is giving us with the modern 6” Marvel Legends series. This figure won’t be for everyone, but for those who know the character, this is rockin’.

The Citizen V Marvel Legends figure looks straight-up awesome. The character design was always slim and athletic in the comic books, and this mold captures that absolutely perfectly. And the colors and paint job are just beautiful.

I love that Hasbro chose to go for a pearlescent paint deco for Citizen V’s shoulder pads and V for Vendetta-looking mask. The sheen on the paint really pops, and is a gorgeous contrast to the nice dark wash on the red portions of the costume.

The sculpting on the forearm wraps and boots looks great, and I love the detailing of the laces on the boots.

There’s good new and bad news about Zemo’s cape: it’s got a terrific dynamic flowing look to it—but it also somewhat restricts poseability just by virtue of the fact that it’s a sculpted cape. The cape is removable (but stays on tightly when you want it to)—and I don’t think there was any better way for Hasbro to do the cape—but I know capes that hinder posing get on many folks’ nerves.

About that articulation—! As is standard for the Marvel Legends Avengers series (and all 6” ML in general), Citizen V has a solid super-articulation scene. It consists of: Ball-Hinge Head and Shoulders; Swivel Waist/Thighs/Biceps/Boots; Ball-Jointed Hips; Double-Jointed Knees and Elbows; Swivel-Hinge Wrists and Upper Torso Ab Crunch.

If you remove the cape you can fully utilize all this articulation to do lots of fun things, but I actually prefer V at his maximum aesthetic with the cape on, even though it does limit what can be done with him.

This is a beautiful figure—but it’s not a perfect one. Along with the restrictions the cape causes, the blue plastic used on this figure is noticeably gummy. Although not nearly as bad as we’ve seen on some releases (primarily those utilizing black plastic), the gummy plastic that causes wobbliness and occasionally broken limbs always worries me.

In addition, I think it’s unfortunate that none of Citizen V’s sword has paint deco on it. The figure itself is so good-looking that it’s a shame the one accessory (besides the Thanos BAF piece) looks so plain and under-detailed.

Overall: I suspect this won’t be popular, but I have to give near-top marks to ML Citizen V. From the accurately proportioned body to the wonderful pearlescent look of the mask and shoulders of the cape to the dynamically flowing cape and the great-looking wash on the red parts of the costume, this is a gorgeous rendition of Citizen V that looks like it popped right out of the classic comics.

If Kurt Busiek’s Thunderbolts were your jam, you’re gonna love this figure. If you’ve never read a comic with Citizen V and don’t intend to, you’ll likely be less impressed. Either way, it’s a solid figure of a character I never thought Hasbro would consider doing. Thumbs up.

GRADE: A-