Hot Toys Avengers: Infinity War Captain America figure review

Avengers: Infinity War played out like a modern day Empire Strikes Back to me and I’ve watched it a staggering number of times already. I hadn’t planned on going too deep with the Hot Toys figures, but I already see that’s a promise I won’t be able to keep with my wallet. Especially for characters that have such dramatic differences from their normal look like Captain America.

At this point Captain America has become one of my all-time favorite movie characters and I’m already nervous about his fate for Endgame. For now, let’s take at Cap’s very different outlaw look from Infinity War.

Packaging:  I really like Hot Toys’ Infinity War packaging. The portrait features Cap ready for business positioned in between an embossed A.

Hot Toys is mixing up the colors for the packaging and Cap gets a blue color scheme. The packaging is cut in unique way and I like the presentation. The inner package shows a clean look at the figure and accessories even before you open it up.

Likeness:  This is really where going the Hot Toys route pays off. Whether Hasbro, Marvel Select or SH Figuarts, no head sculpt has managed to effectively capture Chris Evans’ likeness for this film. Until Hot Toys.

Online, collectors seems to be leaning more toward this sculpt not doing any better than the smaller scale versions. I think it’s better from some angles and not as easy to spot in others. Some people say it looks more like Andrew Lincoln than Evans, but I’m happy with it. I think the one thing that’s throwing off people is the hair, which is a tad too brown than blonde.

Putting the figure next to the Age of Ultron headsculpt shows a bit more of the issue. It looks like the sculptor accounted for the helmet, which makes the nose look odd without the strap.

Scale:  Cap is taller than previous versions, which add a little height to the figure. Apparently being on the run for two years made Cap taller.

This means he’s closer in scale than he should be to the Infinity War Thor.

Paint:  As I mentioned earlier, the hair up top should really have a bit more blonde. In terms of a realistic skin tone, this is great and the usual high quality we’ve come to expect from Hot Toys.

Uniform:  This is a more elaborate outfit than we’ve seen from previous Captain America figures. Presumably this is the same attire as the Civil War uniform, but it’s seen some extended wear and tear over the years as reflected by the rips and peels around the star.

The uniform peels actually have depth and isn’t just a “rip” in the uniform. This shows a new level of detail as it reveals scaling similar to Cap’s comic book outfit.

There’s an overall dinginess to the outfit gives it a grounded, realistic look. I also like the rolled up sleeve visual as it makes this look like Cap getting his hands dirty in unimaginable situations.

Hot Toys warns you to be careful with the metal straps on the shoulders, which could snap if handled incorrectly.

Articulation:  With Captain America you’re gonna want to be able to be able to have him do some punches and the occasional kicks while leading the Avengers.

Hot Toys will never be mistaken for Marvel Legends in terms of articulation, but I was able to get most of the poses I wanted to try with Cap.

The double elbow really helps with the Wakandan war shields.

Avengers: Infinity War Captain America has:

• neck
• shoulders
• elbow (double-jointed)
• wrist
• wrist hinge
• torso
• hip
• knee (double-jointed)
• ankle
• feet

Accessories: Cap doesn’t fare as well as the Infinity War Thor who was loaded with a ton of accessories.

As usual we get a slew of swappable hands. There’s a pair of fists, relaxed hands, weapon holding hands, an open left hand and a gesturing right hand. The detail on the hands is impressive with all of the buckles, straps, knuckle holes and the overall leather appearance.

Cap also comes with Proxima Midnight’s spear. The spear is as tall as Cap — remember the Black Order stood significantly taller than the average human.

 

What really set this figure apart are the two Wakanda shields. They also have some great detailing and look like they’ve seen some use over the years. The trickiest thing is getting them to stay in the grooves once you put the clutching hand in it.

This proved to be very problematic for me with the handles coming up and the peg not connecting to the hands as tightly causing pop outs. Hot Toys also warned that the handles are fragile, which I believe after messing around with them.

There’s a deluxe version that features a slip over sheet for the stand. Corvus Glaive’s spear and an Outrider. I will resist army building those guys if Hot Toys ever decided to make them so I didn’t need a random half an Outrider.

Worth it?  Hot Toys has gotten a bit bolder with pricing lately charging more for figures while essentially sticking to the same — or in some cases — less accessories and features than previous figures. I’m a Cap fan, but I don’t love the $251 price tag, which seems about $30 higher than necessary. I definitely think the Infinity War Thor is priced better for just $16 more.

Rating: 9 out of 10

I really like this alternate look for Cap. This figure is the best take of this outfit available. I dinged him a little thanks to the accessory issues and I don’t love having to be so worried about pieces breaking off without very delicate care.

Where to get it?  Captain America is still in stock at sideshowcollectibles.com. I think once Endgame arrives more of these Infinity War outfits are going to be in higher demand. If you’re interested don’t wait too much longer.