2019 was another year jam-packed with new Hasbro Marvel Legends MCU movie figures, with some amazing characters like Korg, the Collector, Luis and more getting their first-ever 6” action figures. But oddly enough, one of my absolute favorite ML movie figures of the year is of something that didn’t actually appear in a movie at all—the Marvel Legends Avengers Endgame War Machine figure! Even though this concept armor permutation wasn’t in Endgame, this toy is so good it seriously makes me wish that it had been…

Although James Rhodes hasn’t exactly had an amazing amount of character development and plot relevance across his many appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the character remains a popular one with both merchandisers and collectors.

So popular, in fact, that Hasbro went ahead with double-packing the Avengers Endgame Marvel Legends War Machine figure one the Hulk Build-A-Figure series—despite the fact that this armor literally does not appear in the movie at all!

It turns out that Marvel Studios opted for the ever-popular red, white and blue Iron Patriot colors for Rhodey in Endgame instead, leaving this as a non-canon/concept design in the lineup. But is this action figure worth picking up despite this shortcoming?

Honestly, when I saw this figure revealed, I was like “Meh”. And even when I received him in the spring, I was in no rush to bust him out of the plastic and play around with him. But for the sake of this review, I finally gave this Marvel Legends War Machine Mark VI figure a fair chance—and boy, was I missing out before!

We’ve had a plethora of War Machine figures over the years, but this one is substantially different from any that came before because of the bulky proportions of this suit. This particular armor permutation feels and looks like an absolute powerhouse, as opposed to the sleek Iron Man armors (besides Igor, Red Snapper, Peacemaker and Hulkbuster) that have come before.

For me, this girthy aesthetic seems totally natural and fitting for the War Machine armor, but I was concerned a toy of this suit would have little posing potential and be lame to play with. But I was ever so wrong! While this is no Pizza Spidey (and no one should expect it to be), there’s an impressive amount of built-in articulation:

• Ball Hinge Head and Shoulders
• Single Hinged Elbows
• Ball-Jointed Upper Torso and Hips
• Swivel Hinge Wrists
• Swivel Thighs and Shoulder Cannon
• Double Hinged Knees
• Hinged Feet with Rockers

The hip joints are sadly a little bit loose on mine, and I’ve heard quite a few collectors voice the same issue. Given how heavily built the legs are, I think the loose hips are just an unfortunate side effect of this armor permutation’s design. Poses are still workable and I absolutely love sticking him into them—it’s just a little frustrating having the hips slide a bit on their own when I mess with him.

Other than the hips, though, the joints on mine are all solid and stable. The design of the armor restricts the range of motions of some components like the feet and head, but there are still ample interesting interesting and imposing ways to pose the Endgame War Machine Legends figure.

The shoulder cannon is really only designed to be moved laterally, but you can tilt the joint upward to have it firing into the air. Meanwhile, the two large blaster rifles have pegs to attach beneath the forearms, with the capability for one to be held in the open left hand (War Machine’s sole right hand is a closed fist).

I get a real kick out of mixing things up and having one of the blasters be handheld, although having an extra gun included without the noticeable attached peg would have been nifty. Changing up the angles of the guns and the different parts of the arms gives War Machine a whole new flavor each time you pose him, making him a blast to play with.

The dark grey plastic used for the armor has a wonderful brushed metal appearance to it, and the silver, red and white highlights on mine all look cleanly applied. The reactor light on the chest is a sticker, but it’s high-quality enough that I can’t tell (or remember) when he’s not super-close to my face.

And speaking of faces: a lot of folks are irritated with the lack of a new Don Cheadle face here. While I agree that we’re due for one, I’m okay with the omission here since this is a concept armor that never appeared on screen and that Don Cheadle’s head was never seen in at all. Some day, though! Some day!

Overall: I’m sure I’ll catch some flak for giving such high marks to a non-canon MCU action figure, but whatever—this War Machine “Rox”! The bulky proportions and heavy armaments look killer, and I was surprised by the level of articulation and fun that was to be had posing Rhodey in this armor.

I would have liked some little improvements such as tighter hip joints, a handheld gun without the peg on top and (dare to dream) a Don Cheadle portrait. But even without those bonuses, I totally dig this action figure—it’s the most happy I’ve ever been playing with a 6” War Machine action figure. I’m looking forward to reviewing the new Endgame Iron Patriot in the very near future, but as far as War Machines go, this one is tops for me.

GRADE: A-