It always strikes me as weird that "Choose Your Own Adventure" is like, a trademarked brand, since I remember reading a bunch of...well, I guess they'd be knock-offs, then. Although, some were with licensed characters: I know there were a couple Star Trek ones I'm sorry aren't in my collection now. In comics, I know they had a Lower Decks: Warp Your Own Way recently, but I'm surprised Marvel didn't go to this well more often: from 1994, What If? #63, "What If War Machine had Not Destroyed the Living Laser?" Written by Dan Slott, pencils by Manny Galan, "ink battalion" Jim Amash, Kata Kane, and Mark Stegbauer.

This tied into one of my favorite Iron Man runs, the all-too-brief second Jim Rhodes term, which would lead to him taking the mantle War Machine. Tony Stark was believed dead but actually cryogenically frozen, which was known only to a few scientists; and he had left Rhodey in charge of Stark International and Iron Man. Still, inexplicably Tony Stark kept appearing around the facility; but that was really the Living Laser! All of this came to a head in Iron Man #289 but is largely the B-plot: after it was resolved, the real Tony was revived, but furious that Tony had lied to him, Rhodey quits. (Despite my usual tag for Tony, I don't think his dickery was intentional that time: Tony thought the cryo thing was a longshot, and he would probably not ever be revived.)

The Laser had intended revenge on Stark, but with him 'dead,' Rhodey instead offers the Laser a job: he was a brilliant scientist, after all. That was just a ruse, though, for Rhodey to lure him into a trap and beam the Laser to the Andromeda galaxy; which the Laser thought was a bit much. This issue, we see three other ways this could've gone down: instead, Rhodey relents, and actually does put the Laser to work. While undeniably great in his field, the Laser has trouble working within business confines, his fellow employees aren't comfortable around him, and he knows Iron Man doesn't completely trust him, either. Overhearing a message asking for Rhodey, the Laser holographically takes his form to answer the call, and is shown the frozen Tony Stark! In shock, he reverts back to his Laser form, and Rhodey arrives as Iron Man, equally surprised. How will it play out? 

Three different endings are offered: surprisingly for this title, not a one of them is "and everybody died!" I'm thinking of a recent issue, which was largely 'what if Cyclops was a stand-up guy' that of course ends with the earth exploding. I don't know why I expected anything else there...

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You shouldn't use the title "Fin Fang Doom!" unless Fin gets a metal mask!

From 2013, AAFES 15th Edition [Iron Man] #15, "Fin Fang Doom!" Written by William Harms, pencils by Tom Grummett, inks by Cory Hamscher.

This is the third AAFES/U.S. military promo comic we've seen here: Grummett had also done art for the Thor issue, and we saw Captain America's a couple months back. (Again, I got these all from the same shop's dollar bins, although not at the same time!) An illegal drilling operation from Roxxon wakes up Godzilla Fin Fang Foom, who then starts tearing up Seattle. (Fin's arm is distinctly different than Godzilla's!) Iron Man--in the slick but not often seen black-and-gold armor--tries a trick that worked before, dusting Fin with "isaria cirada," although I'm not sure where he pulled that out of. It also doesn't work, so Tony asks Pepper to research why; while he and Rhodey--in the Iron Patriot armor, which I kind of hate, although I think you're supposed to--keep Fin busy.

Pepper discovers, Fin had built up a resistance to the herb, and it would take a massive dose to stop him. A pressurized deployment device is prepared, but three soldiers have to ride in with it to activate it, which also involves fixing it midstream. Fin gets gassed, and Tony has him taken back to his underwater trench.

A fun little one-shot: I liked the Cap one better, but still good. 

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While I often pick up random issues of Marvel Comics Presents to blog later; this one I picked up because it had an interesting cover. One of them, anyway: the Vengeance/War Machine cover is almost interchangeable with the next issue's cover! I wasn't expecting the stories within to be...kind of grotty? From 1994, Marvel Comics Presents #167.

Strangely enough, once again we blogged the next issue some time back, but I didn't even scan a page of the conclusion to the Spider-Woman serial? This issue is the second of three parts, and I think it wraps up pretty quickly in the next one, but this chapter is deeply creepy, as Julia Carpenter drives to pick up her daughter, while her stalker makes the same drive to kill her, shooting her in front of her daughter. She doesn't seem to have a secret identity anymore, so this happens immediately? Julia also has a completely human reaction to a gun in her face; that a guy super-hero would never ever have in a comic; and I think the stalker's face isn't shown the whole serial, to make the point that it could be anyone, but seems like its making him more than he was...I don't like this one. "The Great American Mall Shoot-Out, part 2 of 3," written by Nel Yomtov, pencils by John Czop, inks by Tim Dzon.

I don't know if he did any other comic work, but Paul Johnson did the cover I liked, and art for a Man-Thing serial: "Behold, the Man, conclusion" Written by Simon Jowlett, art by Paul Johnson. The Man-Thing rampages through the characters of a blocked writer, a writer named...Ted Sallis? Ted seemingly breaks through the illusion, returning to the reality of being a mindless swamp monster. Pyrrhic victory there.

"Old-Time Religion" sets up a War Machine vs. Vengeance fight, as a televangelist stirs up bad feelings, and gangs based on War Machine and Vengeance tear up Los Angeles. The "Revengers" are described as "wanting vengeance for the riots that swept L.A." which makes me think they might be kinda racist? Vengeance tries to talk them down, which fails miserably; although I'm not sure a Ghost Rider-type like that ever even tried talking things through before, but of course War Machine isn't interested in listening, either. (Written by Chris Cooper, breakdowns by Reggie Jones, finishes by Fred Harper.)

Lastly, the conclusion of a Turbo two-parter, guest-starring the Pantheon: they wanted to see if whoever wearing the Turbo-suit could be trusted with it, and while they don't think the guy Mike could, they're more impressed with the girl, Mickey. She was so much better at it, and still improving; while I think Mike would later be revealed to be a Dire Wraith or something. ("Cutting Class," written by Evan Skolnick, pencils by Guy Dorian, inks by John Stokes.) Read more!

"Laundry day. Nothing clean."

Would Tony even recognize a laundromat? No jokes here, since Tony's got a broken neck, and that's still like the least of his worries! From 2021, Iron Man #6/631, "Dreams of Deicide" Written by Christopher Cantwell, art by Cafu, color art by Frank D'Armata.

Damn, I think I slept on this run until it was all but over: I maybe got the Iron Man/Hellcat annual; but this one's much earlier in their latest storyline together: a resurrected Korvac has just trashed Tony and Patsy, and had a solid crew of lackeys: long-time Iron Man foes the Unicorn, Blizzard, the Controller, and...the Guardsman? I don't know why he was Team Korvac here, but he seems like a true believer, volunteering to stay behind to deal with the escaping James Rhodes; while Korvac led his assault on Galactus's worldship, a stepping-stone in his quest for ultimate cosmic power. It's also like the best that suit has looked in years!

Patsy didn't seem to be in great shape either, but she gets Iron Man...to a mechanic? That might be what it takes to hold him together at this point, as the mutant Halcyon and Misty Knight work on him. Tony's also on a lot of drugs, which he knows is going to be a problem later, but right now he couldn't even take off his suit until he was ready for surgery, and no time for that. Also, no time to wait for another injured member of his crew, the Gargoyle, who was hurt badly saving the others from an explosion. (Tony also had Frog-Man and Scarlet Spider on his team; the rationale being these were guys that wouldn't be on Korvac's radar.) Tony then has a conversation with Patsy, who might have been seeing visions from Korvac, of the perfect universe he promised. Tony doesn't buy it, claiming he could probably create a better universe than him...ah, how hard could it be?

Rhodey arrives, in full War Machine gear, and tells Tony he'll take it from there. That goes over great; but Guardsman then arrives...and immediately realizes he's bitten off way more than he could chew. Tony clocks him, smashing a bunch of cars, and puts Rhodey on pilot duty: get a ship. 

I'm going to have to find this run in trade; I dug this one!

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We mentioned this one a couple months back, with the return of Killmonger, which retconned today's book into a fakeout: from 1982, Iron Man Annual #5, "War and Remembrance!" Written by Peter Gillis, co-plotted by Ralph Macchio, pencils by Jerry Bingham, inks by Dan Green.

Although I recognized the cover, I'm not sure I read this issue until just recently; and I had thought it was from Rhodey's first stint as Iron Man. Nope! Still Tony, before his second bout with alcoholism; and Rhodey's here as his pilot. They're off to Wakanda to help the Black Panther with terrorism attacks and contaminated vibranium, and have a plan. A plan that seems to go south on multiple levels: Rhodey is knocked out and captured by Madam Slay, while the Panther is murdered, shot down in a fight against armed gunmen!

Killmonger is more than a little disappointed in the Panther for dying, but at his funeral takes his cape and resolves to avenge their king, by killing every foreign devil in Wakanda! (Which, I wouldn't think would be very many; it was never known for its tourism...) Killmonger's little rebellion is out in the open now, though; which was the Panther and Iron Man's plan all along! The 'dead' Panther was a Life Model Decoy; IM mentions in passing the Beast programmed its agility. While Killmonger gathers the Panther's "hated western art" for torching, Madam Slay tells his new troops how she found his body after being thrown off a cliff (in Jungle Action #17, which I swear I've read and can't be as exciting as that cover) but it disappeared one night and he was reborn. I'm not sure why the Panther had all that art--investments, perhaps? But he ends up fighting Killmonger over it. Iron Man is surprised Killmonger is able to stand up to him, but he has another surprise: a ring that Tony recognizes, but then he has to take off to rescue Rhodey.

Iron Man finds Rhodey on the vibranium mound, uncharitably referring to him as "our maiden in distress." The deathtrap was a little more far-reaching than most: heavy particle beams focused on the vibranium could change it to the other variation of that metal, Antarctic vibranium, or anti-metal; that could destroy all metal in the entire hemisphere, maybe further! Tony has to dig deep and overload his armor to defeat it; while the Panther thrashes Killmonger, revealing him to be merely an animated corpse, as that ring disappears, returning to the Mandarin! Who was showing a lot of skin back then, but maybe he wanted to show off his ink. Still, it would be fourteen years (!) until Killmonger's next appearance, where they try to play this one off as a "ploy" cooked up by Kill and the Mandarin to see what might happen. About what you would expect to happen, honestly.

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I think Ozymandias has appeared on this blog more than Black Bolt...

Maybe it should have its own tag. From 1994, Marvel Comics Presents #168, featuring "History Lesson" Written by Reggie Jones, art by Jeff Moore; "Sweet Revenge" Written by Nel Yomtov, pencils by John Czop, inks by Tim Dzon; "Ghost vs. the Machine" Written by Chris Cooper, breakdowns by Reggie Jones, finishes by Fred Harper; and "Freedom" Written by Mariano Nicieza, art by Pino Rinaldi.

After Percy Shelley's poem, the rest of Black Bolt's story is pretty straightforward: after catching a TV interview with an archeologist that may have discovered the former site of Attilan in the Himalayas, Black Bolt has to speak up and destroy the site before anything is discovered that shouldn't be. I'm not sure why they care...the archeologist mentions maybe being able to find out where these mysterious people came from, or went; and both those questions seem unlikely to be answered by digging. Next was the conclusion of a three-parter featuring Spider-Woman, who wraps up a gunman-stalker.

War Machine guest-stars with Vengeance, who was pretty much the lead for the series since around MCP #144 or so until the end. (And we'll see the end sometime.) This ties into continuity that is just on the tip of my tongue, but I can't quite place: previously, Rhodey had imitators in the form of a gang calling themselves the War Machines. Here, Vengeance seems to have his own fans, the Revengers; and while they're supposed to be causing havoc and killing other gangs, they look like really earnest cosplayers with cardboard masks and lots of spikes. There may be more to their masks than first glanced, though. I know very little about Vengeance, and looking it up it appears the mantle has been passed, kind of the same way Venom changed hands a few times. I like the idea of him as Player-2 Ghost Rider, not unlike War Machine, come to think of it.

Lastly, even though the cover promises a Stingray story, this issue has Valkyrie instead. (Stingray may have been bumped to #173 and no cover billing there!) She wrecks up what I thought was going to be a deeply obscure Fantastic Four villain, but instead it's a "big-eared, petty little tyrant" who found Diablo's old talismans from Fantastic Four #232, John Byrne's first issue. Although Val looks like her old self, the captioning and footnote mention, "In her latest earthly incarnation, she shares the body of a black English woman, Genevieve Cross," since Doctor Strange #4. (Or a Dr. Strange #4; he's had more than a few...) I don't know how long that was the case; Valkyrie's continuity got pretty messy for a while. I think there were several fixes that didn't take into account the previous fixes...
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Maybe it should've been a symbiote, those were trendy then...and maybe now.

This issue is probably best remembered, if at all, as the prime offender of the Ron Frenz Rule of Costume Design, but how is it? Let's see! From 1995, War Machine #19, "Here Be Dragons" Written by Dan Abnett, pencils by Fred Haynes, inks by Johnny Greene. Cover by Jim Calafiore, which actually makes it look more ornate than it does inside!

Jim Rhodes tests out his new, alien armor against the "dragon" mentioned, an alien called a Lictor. (I wonder if maybe they shouldn't have gone with a recognized Marvel alien race, like the Sidri or something; just for a point of reference.) A mysterious, probably alien girl gave him the suit, and apologizes for the Lictor; she thought they'd send something easier. She offers to tell him about it on their drive, after they part ways with Hawkeye, who was on his way to New York for "the Crossing," a not-particularly well remembered Avengers event. Meanwhile, Jim's friend Sheva Joseph goes back in time 25 years unexpectedly; an after-effect of their time-travel trip where Jim lost the old War Machine suit.

The Ron Frenz rule was to the effect that if a costume was over-designed to the point it didn't look right when Frenz drew it, it probably wasn't a great costume. You could probably say the same for any outfit that doesn't translate well to an animated style, too. I don't even know if the "Eidolon Warwear" was the problem, but I don't remember if it was seeded earlier or just out of the blue. I suspect someone, probably in editorial, maybe thought War Machine in that armor was diluting the Iron Man brand or something, but didn't want to just cancel Jim's book outright. This armor would only last six issues, then if I recall Jim would sacrifice it in a nonsense bit in Tales of the Marvel Universe #1, a book best known for an early Thunderbolts appearance.
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I was confusing her with another character, but still wrong.

Got this little trade for a buck-fifty: from 2013, Iron Man: Armored Vengeance, reprinting Iron Man #258.1 to #258.4, script by Bob Layton and David Michelinie, pencils by Dave Ross, inks by Layton. Why #258.1 on? Because the numbering for Iron Man wasn't already a nightmare...actually, as the introduction points out, while Michelinie and Layton were the creative team for the original Armor Wars storyline, John Byrne and John Romita Jr. did the follow-up, Armor Wars II, in the original Iron Man #258. This series was Michelinie and Layton's own spin on a sequel...

There are a couple good points for it: it does tie in to a point from their run when Rhodey was nearly killed and a bit gun-shy about suiting back up, and gets him back on track. There's also some classic IM foes, the Dreadnoughts and the Mandroids. Unfortunately, I don't consider Justin Hammer a classic, even if here he's the aged industrialist and not the hip douchebag of the films. Hammer used nanites on Stark, which combined with the biochip in his spine to form the Entity, an online consciousness out to destroy any that might stop it. (EDIT: The biochip and the Entity weren't still in Stark's spine, that might've raised the stakes some!)

A couple supporting characters are killed by the Entity, namely Stark's personal physician Dr. Sondheim, and his girlfriend Rae LaCoste. But that doesn't fit, continuity-wise: LaCoste dated Rhodey in the War Machine book. That makes this a "What If?" kind of story; I wish I had the original Armor Wars II handy to compare it to. I was misremembering and confusing Rae with the much, much cooler Bethany Cabe, and I was going to be pissed if she was killed off.
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I stacked these on top of my scanner, so no scans today.

Well, they weren't going to fit in my scanner anyway. And, I have yet to start reading any of these. But, Hastings had their used graphic novels for $2.99, and I picked up this little pile. Spider-Man: Am I an Avenger? is probably, oddly, the one I'm most looking forward to reading. I had the 1990's John Byrne/Paul Ryan issues, but haven't read them in a dog's age. Same for some chunks of Avengers: Legion of the Unliving, although it's fun to try and figure out who was or wasn't dead at the time. The 90's Iron Man/War Machine/Force Works crossover Hands of the Mandarin; I know I read the Iron Man issues at the time, maybe picked the Force Works issues out of the quarter bins later, but never read it all in one sitting.

Indestructible Hulk: Gods and Monster is from Mark Waid's all-too-brief Marvel Now run; so this is like three versions ago. (Some of the post-Waid stuff was rough, then the Doc Green stuff, Secret Wars nonsense, and most recently the Amadeus Cho Hulk.) Still, this little hardback has Walt Simonson art for a Thor guest-spot! And Daredevil guest-stars...which I think was reprinted in a DD trade I just bought, but whatever. Nick Fury vs. S.H.I.E.L.D. features the first fall of the spy organization, and perfectly fine Paul Neary art--but goes with a Bill Sienkiewicz cover instead of a Steranko one! I love the Sienkiewicz one, but that almost seems sacrilegious.

Lastly, we have one of Marvel's many, many attempts at making the Inhumans happen: again from the 90's, the Fantastic Four crossover Atlantis Rising. All I know about this one is that there was a "Collector's Preview for the crossover, which even at the time seemed mighty optimistic: FF was not doing well at the time, Namor's book would be cancelled during the crossover with issue #62, and I don't think Fantastic Force has ever sold decent numbers, although Marvel keeps trying. List price was $39.99 for that one, which also seems optimistic.

I'm almost done with my Christmas shopping to boot, although that probably just means I'll buy more stuff between now and then. We'll see...
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"Pfeffernüsse."

We saw Iron Man completely go off on ex-Thor for losing his hammer some time back, but I honestly think Tony would have a hard time accepting any changes in Thor: he's known the Asgardian for years, and Thor has to seem more constant, more stable, than Tony ever could be. Their occasional falling-outs aside, Thor has always been a rock for Tony, a given he could count on. That and Tony changes his armor more often than most blogs update; while Thor may have worn the same outfit since the middle ages or so.

Tony doesn't seem to care for Dr. Strange's new look--or new axe--either. Real Marvel fans, of course, recall that Strange used to have the Eye of Yaphet Kotto--no, wait, the Eye of Agamotto. If Strange doesn't have the Axe of Agamotto, something is seriously wrong. (The "Eye of Yaphet Kotto" gag is from a Fabian Nicieza/Mark Badger Dr. Strange serial in Marvel Comics Presents #19-20.) Cibo Matto is a band; they're pretty good. Of course, Strange has the Dread Axe of Darkness from Poe Ghostal and Spy Monkey Creations!

Pfeffernüsse are some kind of German cookie...which I'm not sure I knew before. It's just a funny-sounding word.

MWC Toys reviewed the new Mezco Mortal Kombat Raiden the other day, and he is pretty swell. Good accessories, nice sculpt, reasonable articulation. Crawford mentions he's in a 6" scale; without the size creep common in other lines, like Marvel Legends. Still, I thought he fit in just fine. Got a case of the latest, the Hulkbuster series, from Hasbro Toy Shop, with a nice coupon and free shipping! So far my favorite has to be that Hulkbuster, but we'll check him out later.
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The other day, over at CBR's Comics Should Be Good, they took a look at the early art of Gabriel Hardman with 1994's War Machine #5. (Written by Scott Benson and Len Kaminski.)

There's a panel where the bad guy Deathtoll, strolling away from his latest crime scene, cheerfully sings: "And I think about the dirt/that I'll be wearin' for a shirt/and I hope that I get old before I die." It rang a bell, but I couldn't quite place it. For some reason, I had "The Lord Loves a Hangin'" from Ren & Stimpy stuck in mind, but that wasn't it.

Of course, it's a They Might Be Giants song: "I Hope That I Get Old Before I Die," from their first album from 1986. After I looked that up, I realized I only had it on tape, and wasn't sure if I had it on my computer.

Sunday morning, checking my email, there was an update from TMBG: their first album, played live, as a free download! Get it yourself, it's free! I do love it when something random like that comes together, and replacing music I had on tape or CD without paying money for it for the third or fourth time. (Seriously, I have spent so much on Prince, only to have it lost or stolen...)

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"The End" Week: Avengers West Coast #102!

You may remember where this one goes if you've read old "The End" posts, but figured I should get a non-Batman one in: from 1994, Avengers West Coast #102, "The Avengers West Coast are Finished!" Written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, pencils by Dave Ross, inks by Tim Dzon.

The Vision shouts out the title on the splash page, since he's called a review of the branch, which the East Coast team seems to view as somewhat of an embarrassment of late. Although Hawkeye was out after the recent death of a Skrull Mockingbird; Wonder Man and Iron Man haven't shown up yet, leaving Spider-Woman, Scarlet Witch, USAgent, and War Machine to be chewed out. Vision suggests placing them all on reservist status, but Hank Pym--a former WCA member--wonders if maybe they couldn't compromise, perhaps with "a committee of long-serving members to administrate both teams." A perfectly workable answer that won't work in a superhero book, yeah: Scarlet Witch immediately protests that she's served longer than the Vision, when Iron Man arrives. Before Hercules and USAgent can come to blows, Jarvis announces lunch is served.

Jarvis is torn between his loyalties to Tony, and the team; and Tony assures him his place is there with the mansion. Rhodey, however, has had enough of Tony and "endless spandex politics!" and flies off in a huff. Although Tony tells Cap it was personal, Cap tries to tell him to talk it out with him. Before Tony can protest he did, USAgent gets in Cap's face, and Tony has to keep things from becoming physical. Tony asks for a vote, and gets it, with Cap, the Black Widow, Black Knight, Hercules, the Vision...and Iron Man voting for disbanding the Avengers West Coast! Tony tells Cap the team couldn't function with their "resentment and lack of support." Cap suggests absorbing the members on a reservist basis, but the Scarlet Witch immediately quits. Iron Man follows suit: his vote to disband was to create a clean break between them. USAgent follows, as does Spider-Woman, who notes if they won't have the Witch or Iron Man, there's probably no room for her there. Hank is left to lament that really went well...

Outside the mansion, Iron Man asks Spider-Woman and the Scarlet Witch to meet him later, in regards to creating their own team. USAgent, on the ferry to the Statue of Liberty, heaves his shield and uniform into the drink. Later, Wonder Man shows up at the Avengers West Coast compound, only to be told by Iron Man that team doesn't exist anymore...setting up the new book Force Works, which as we saw before, wouldn't quite last two years.

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"Resets."

Hmm. I know I used a binary translator for Ultron's dialog in the sixth panel, but can't remember what he says...

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The best "leg" plans of mice and men...

A timeline:

10-30-2008 I bought the Target exclusive Marvel Legends Union Jack. Part of the Red Hulk Build-a-figure wave, UJ runs me $9.99 plus tax. He comes with the torso piece, but I have no intention of building the Red Hulk.

12-28-2008 Marked down to clearance, I pick up Adam Warlock and Spiral for $6.98 each. That gets me a leg and a head.

12-30-2008 Possibly from the same Target location, I get Black Costume Spider-Man and Black Costume Wolverine. Also $6.98 each. Why didn't I pick them up two days ago? I could not say. Why didn't I pick up Silver Savage, the last figure I needed to complete the Red Hulk? I don't recall--it may not have been in stock, or I may have thought it would be there later. I put together the pieces of the Red Hulk that I had, minus the last leg. You can just see it, under the bumper of the Mach 5, on the third annual Year in Toys post.

05-2010 The Red Hulk's identity and origin is finally revealed in Hulk #22-23. Spoiler alert: he's General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross!

06-24-12 The Red Hulk appears on the 35th episode of Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, "Nightmare in Red."

09-23-12 Red Hulk returns in "Code Red," ironically, as a pawn of the Red Skull.

10-07-12 "The Deadliest Man Alive" culminates the Red Hulk's A:EMH appearances; as he attempts to replace the Hulk on the Avengers. His plot and identity are revealed, and the disgraced General Ross is arrested.

02-02-13 I finally get the final Red Hulk piece, the right leg that came with the Silver Savage, finally completing the Build-a-Figure.

Today: I realize, to the best of my knowledge, I have to date never actually read a comic with Red Hulk in it.

About 51 months from the first figure to completion, which I think is the slowest Build-a-Figure completion yet! For comparison, the first series DCUC Metamorpho and the recent Hasbro Marvel Legends Terrax took me 20 days start to finish. Trigon took me about a year and a month, Grodd and Ronan the Accuser over two years.

Recently, I sold some Ares BAF pieces--the head, torso, and a leg--from the Walmart exclusive wave of 2008, right about the same time as the Target exclusive Red Hulk wave. Initially, the Red Hulk figures were $15 each, but they were "corrected" to $9.99 pretty quickly, and I think clearanced out before 2009. The completed Ares figure, however, is crazy expensive. Part of that may be because it was more figures, and stronger characters: Crossbones, Kang, Guardian, Vision, Ultimate War Machine, Heroes Reborn Iron Man, Scarlet Spider, and the Human Torch. Kang was a reissue of an impossible to find Fantastic Four figure, and he and Crossbones were both pretty great.

I may consider looking at more Build-a-Figure, Collect-and-Connect figures later. None of which took this long...
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