Marvel Legends Magik Review

You believe yourselves immune to death? I bring you a gospel of oblivion.
I bring you the Soulsword. Taste it and cease to be.

We'd like to thank Marvel for making one of the rarest Marvel Legends figures - Magik - easier to attain. 

Though we're pretty sure that there are those out there who are seething that Magik's price range has dropped. Illayana Rasputin here used to be a 2015 SDCC exclusive that you could only get if you were able to purchase Marvel's Book of the Vishanti collection that includes: the Astral Plane version of Doctor Strange; Brother Voodoo, Hela and the great  Dormammu. Because it was an SDCC exclusive, we've seen Magik being sold alone - sans the Book of the Vishanti - for as high as US$275 (Roughly PhP 15,000). So when this was released? We had to have her - especially since Colossus and Shadowcat came out so beautifully.

MORE AFTER THE JUMP

Marvel Legends Colossus - Warlock Wave

 "Get up and I shall knock you down once more."

The Marvel Legend Colossus - Warlock Wave  - is a wonderfully sculpted modern rendition of the X-Men's strongman.

We're big fans of the Mighty Colossus. We're not really fond of how Marvel writes him, but we love the X-Men's Knight in literal shining armor.

We've been reading comic books since 1986 and we cannot recall Piotr sporting a beard. The closest was the 5 o'clock shadow that he sported when - after a trip through the Siege Perilious - Piotr was snogging a really hot looking Calisto and living as a rather successful artist in New York, and; following the events of AvX, but nothing as robust as this beard.

So our interest was piqued when Humberto Ramos (Impulse, The Amazing Spider-Man) created a bearded literal Russian Bear of a Colossus for the Extraordinary X-Men.

He's since gone back to his clean shaven look.

Marvel Legends Rogue

Marvel Legends X-Men Rogue

Presenting the X-Man Rogue from the Marvel Legends X-Men Juggernaut BAF series.

To the uninitiated, Anna Marie, the mutant also known as Rogue, is currently a member of Captain America's Avengers Unity Squad along with Deadpool.  A power thief, she currently has the powers and psyche of Simon Williams, Wonder-Man, making her nigh invulnerable, strong enough to take on Thor, and pretty much immortal.

But that's the current comic book Rogue.

This Rogue is based upon the 90s incarnation of Rogue as she was redesigned by Jim Lee when she rejoined the X-Men after being among the X-Men lost to the Siege Perilous (Though technically that may have been Carol Danver's - whose psyche resided in Rogue - doing, not Rogue's.)

In this guise, Rogue had the powers of the pre-Binary Carol Danvers, so: flight, invulnerability, super-strength and a "7th sense" which allowed her to predict the movements of her enemies (Allowing her to actually predict where a teleporter like Nightcrawler would next appear).

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Marvel Universe Colossus Action Figure

Marvel Universe Colossus Action Figure

Presenting the Marvel Universe Action figure of the X-Men's Mighty Colossus.

To the uninitiated, this is Piotr "Peter" Nikolaievitch Rasputin, AKA Colossus. Colossus has the mutant ability to transform his entire body - not just his skin  - into an Osmium-like organic steel. In the process he gains significant mass, growing from 6'6" in height to around 7'5" in height, and weighs t least double his normal weight.

With the armor comes an extremely high resistance to injury and superhuman strength and stamina - supposedly Colossus is in the Class 100 strength level following the realignment of his cells by Magneto due to an injury sustained during the Mutant Massacre. While armored, Colossus requires no food, water or oxygen and is naturally resistant to other forms of energy attacks including temperature extremes, electricity and even magic.

At one time, while in armored form, he was able to kiss Rogue.

Which Marvel constantly forgets.

Marvel Universe Colossus - Juggerlossus - Infinite Series

Presenting the Mighty Colossus - or Juggerlossus - from the Marvel Universe Infinite Series Toyline.

Piotr Nikolaievitch Rasputin, Colossus. We're Colossus fans. Always have been since we started reading the Uncanny X-Men waaaaay back in 1986 when, during the Mutant Massacre story-arc, Colossus was severely injured for being the "wall" behind which X-Men and Morlocks alike found protection from the vicious killing spree of the Marauders.

Magneto tried to heal him, resulting in Piotr's paralysis. He would return during the Fall of the Mutants story-line with enhanced strength thanks to Magneto's "healing" which involved strengthening his organic Osmium steel skin.

But we always thought that Piotr's powers were... weak.... when compared to the powers of his siblings: Mikhail: an Omega-Level energy manipulator, and; Illyana: a teleporter and Sorceress Supreme of Limbo. So we thought that once day Colossus would realize that he could bring in more mass from whatever dimension he gains the additional mass and armor whenever he transforms into Colossus - becoming a literal true Colossus.

We never thought he'd become the Juggernaut.

Marvel Select Colossus

By Denis del Callar Presenting Marvel Select: Colossus from Diamond Select Toys. Piotr Nikolaievitch Rasputin AKA Colossus, the stalwart unflinching giant with the heart of a painter that shields the X-Men from harm.

I was first introduced to Colossus all the way back in 1986 when I first picked up a copy of the Uncanny X-Men which was currently embroiled in the "Mutant Massacre" story-line. The first issue that I read with Colossus, was also the issue where Colossus was sidelined. His powers were straight forward and easy to understand - turns into steel and bashes things. But in that one issue Colossus showed how he differed from other heroes.

He was hurt.

He was hurt not because he went toe-to-toe with a villain but because in an effort to save as many Morlocks and X-Men as possible from the assault of the Marauders, Colossus stood as a wall bearing without complaint all the damage that the Morlocks could throw at him. In the end he realized that he would die if he changed back to human form but told no-one that he was - as Magneto put it - "bleeding energy through damage points. Magneto healed him, saving his life. but he was subsequently paralyzed. Colossus would return in time to save the X-Men in the "Fall of the Mutants" saga.

I'm Sexy and I know it

He would later kill himself by using the cure for the Legacy Virus, sacrificing himself to save millions of mutants around the world. But of course, no one stays dead forever in the Marvel Universe.

Unfortunately, today, he's the freakin Juggernaut - or a pale imitation of one. While I agree that Colossus is long over-due for a power-upgrade (His sister Magik, is a Demon-sorcerer who rules an alternate dimension, while his brother is an Omega class Energy Manipulator and all Colossus does is shunt mass from another dimension to give him height, mass, strength and a steel form?) but I really don't like what he is now. It's the anti-thesis of what Colossus is - and I blame Cyclops for that.