Marvel Legends Baron Von Strucker review

Baron Von Strucker might have gotten the jobber treatment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but he’s been a fairly significant threat to Captain America over the years. The Hydra leader got a Marvel Legends figure in the iconic Face Off series from Toy Biz meaning he got one of the standout figures in the entire line.

Maybe the threat of competing with such a stellar figure had Hasbro shook for years as it’s taken them a decade to try their hand at him, but no we get a Hasbro version.

Let’s see if he’s a worthy successor to the Toy Biz figure or destined to be the runner up.

Packaging: Just a few more series before the return of plastic window packaging. This game of figure Russian Roulette is for the birds. Some of it is just from the uninspired presentation for the Marvel Legends.

GI Joe Classified Series makes the windowless packaging look cool with the Easer Egg front art. This is just basic with a photo of the figure and comic book art in the background.

It’s surprising that Hasbro went with the Jim Cheung style as it’s slightly more modern than what the figure represents, but it was done this century so that’s a plus. The back is also boring with another shot of the figure and a smaller window of all the included accessories.

Likeness:  I give Hasbro well-deserved grief when they completely botch a character’s appearance for the sake of taking some shortcuts. It feels like at times it’d be better for them to wait to have the budget to do a figure right than a budget-friendly take.

Fortunately, that’s not the case with Von Strucker. This figure is based on his most signature look with the scarf-like collar, medallion with ropes on his right side and the belt with the Hydra H button at the bottom center.

This is the classic looking appearance for him right down to him so I’m saluting Hasbro for going old school and not some recent costume he wore for all of two issues in 2020.

That means Hasbro gets a full pass from me for not matching the glorious hyper detailed Von Strucker figure from Toy Biz. There’s a ton of paneling, armor plating and lining and even spiked pads on the hands.

This was and still remains a masterfully complex figure, but that’s not something I’d expect from Hasbro. Ultimately that just means the TB Von Strucker remains on the Toy Biz Marvel Legends shelf.

I really like the work done on the head sculpt for the Hasbro version. The TB figure had a stern serious expression. That was fine, but this one is far more intense with gritted teeth and a People’s Eyebrow going to show his frustration.

I dig it and appreciate that Hasbro’s sculptors didn’t rely on paintwork for his scarred head as there’s some solid detail work in his forehead. The teeth are also well done as is Baron’s monocle earning extra points as it uses translucent plastic so you can see his eye behind it.

Baron is rocking the Satan Claw, the glove he wears to enhance his strength and fight capabilities. It’s fantastically detailed and looks really nice.

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Paint: Baron Von Strucker has enough detail especially using yellow that his paintwork could have been an issue, but Hasbro came through on that end as well.

This outfit is basically all spandex, so Hasbro didn’t cheap out and not sculpt the gloves and boots. That’s consistent with the comic art, though there needed to be some paint in the center of his jewel.

Baron’s head sculpt gets the most love with a deep red for the scars that shows up very nicely. His teeth do a good job of replicating the sheen of the enamel and working in a little of the gums. This is really nice work.

There are just a few minor issues with the paint. For this attire, the trunks should have a yellow lining coming framing his crotch with the belt. Not a huge deal, but it’s worth noting just for accuracy’s sake.

His green is a much different shade of green from the Hydra agents, but I’ve seen at least a few images that show him with a lighter green to stand out so it’s not necessarily inaccurate. The Satan Claw is a nice deep dark shade of red.

Scale: Baron Von Strucker gets the Spider-Man UK body (mostly), which is a good choice for a formidable dude capable of fighting, but not at a Thor/Sub-Mariner/Hercules power level.

This seems fine for him and he matches up well with Captain America and Nick Fury. Hasbro made a few adjustments to ditch the pins for the elbows and knees.

Articulation:  While he would tend to sit back and let his Hydra goons handle his dirty work, Baron Von Strucker isn’t afraid to mix it up directly with Cap or Fury.

The mold allows him to strike some fun dynamic pose as well as look good in commanding or action poses.

Baron Von Strucker has:

• neck
• ball-jointed shoulders
• elbow (double-jointed)
• wrist
• wrist hinge (up and down)
• torso
• waist
• hip
• thigh
• knee (double-jointed)
• shin
• ankle

Accessories: Baron Von Strucker doesn’t come with a lot of accessories. He has the translucent dark pink energy swirls we’ve seen with figures like Scarlet Witch.

It would have been cool if the Satan Claw was swappable with a standard hand as Von Strucker didn’t always wear it. Since the one glove didn’t have any special sculpting it doesn’t seem like that would break the bank.

Finally, he comes with the right leg of the Build-A-Figure Puff Adder.

Worth it?  Baron Von Strucker retails for $24.99. That’s the going rate for a Marvel Legends figure. He does have enough new elements that he’s not just a basic repaint although he does come up lacking in value compared to the Toy Biz figure.

Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Baron Von Strucker is a great figure with smooth articulation and a strong likeness to the comic book appearance.

Where to get it?  Baron Von Strucker is already vanished from retail, but you can still get him from Entertainment Earth.

As an Entertainment Earth affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.