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Suncoast/FYE Exclusive - Hobgoblin and Scarlet Spider


The Marvel line struggled for a bit in 2007, the movie Ghost Rider wave cancellation not helping the cause. With the traditional waves looking a bit shaky, it was nice to see that there were still exclusives coming out to bolster the line. One such exclusive caught many by surprise, giving us Hobgoblin and Scarlet Spider courtesy of Suncoast/FYE in December 2007.

Packaging

The box is the larger one as seen on the Marvel waves 14 to 22. I get that this style of packaging can be hung on pegs as it has a J-hook and is therefore more retailer-friendly but I personally feel it's an awkward size and much prefer the old Marvel boxes. This pack does have the mini-bio's on the back, giving the purchaser an insight into who the characters are, although I think something like the mystery of who the Hobgoblin is, or a description of the Clone Saga, might need more than a couple of lines to explain fully.





The Figures

Hobgoblin

The first Minimate in this set is Roderick Kingsley, a fashion designer and head of a business empire, who found the lair of the original Green Goblin and used the technology to become the Hobgoblin.

Rather than the cartoonish grin of the Green Goblin, the Hobgoblin has a very sinister, demonic visage, more like the Ultimate Green Goblin. The detailing on this villainous face is superb, with the craggy effect around the red eyes, and the toothy, unhinged smile that totally screams "I'm not all there!". The hood is removable and is a very nicely sculpted piece. Since it's not attached to the cloak a la Doctor Doom, it means Hobgoblin has full side-to-side head movement.

The rest of the Minimate has similar high-quality detailing. Check out the chainmail effect on the arms and legs - flawlessly done. The detailing extends all the way around the Minimate, the same for the belt decoration. The cloak is a new piece but the pumpkin bomb hand is re-used from the original Goblin.

For accessories, Hobgoblin comes with the satchel originally seen with the Green Goblin. As this Minimate has a cloak, however, you have to remove it to put the satchel on because there's not enough room for both. A shame, but understandable given the limitations of the 2" scale.

In conclusion, this figure is another solid entry to Spidey's ever-growing rogues gallery. As usual, the lack of a glider is it's only real flaw, and that was always a licencing issue rather than negligence by DST.

MMC Score - 7 out of 10

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Scarlet Spider

The Scarlet Spider is Ben Reilly, a clone of Peter Parker. In wave 10 we had a Minimate of Ben Reilly but that was in his Spider-Man outfit when he'd replaced Peter. The Scarlet Spider was Ben's initial hero alias, when Peter Parker's Spider-Man was still around, which is why it's so different.

The face/mask is very simple, just red with the obligatory large, white Spider-eyes on it, lined in black. The look is similar to the Ultimate version of Spidey. However the black outline is segmented with straight lines rather than being properly curved, and it looks horrible.

Ben Reilly wears a makeshift costume, and it shows. The chest piece is a blue hoodie with the Spider symbols on the front and back. Visually the detailing on the block is very clean and clear, with lines showing the back of the hood on the reverse of the block. The arms and legs have almost no detail on them, this is source accurate but makes for a dull look. The wrist-mounted web shooters are painted on rather than being separate wrist pieces as on the Ben Reilly Minimate, a sign of cost-cutting that does seem to affect this Minimate a lot more than it's pack-in partner Hobgoblin.

Scarlet Spider comes with the accessory often seen with Spidey Minimates - a grey webline. Not had one for ages though and they do add some playability so they are always welcome.

In conclusion, a generally OK Minimate with some niggles that knock the score down a bit.

MMC Score - 6 out of 10

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Review and pictures by Danny Mills


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