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Name: "Superheroes/Super Heroes/Super Heroes Collection" Figure Packs
Distributor: Block Tech
Model: N/A
Pcs: N/A
Recently, we got another entry in the Avengers film series and the Marvel Movie Universe as a whole, with Avengers: Infinity War! ...And I'm not going to see it. I'm just not into superhero movies or most other media. I feel like I'm watching the same thing over and over again every time a new movie or TV show comes out: Guy either starts down on his luck or is knocked down a few pegs to that level, s/he's granted powers or decides to develop powers in the wake of a tragedy, there's a villain or several that's somehow close to the hero's life that declares war on the hero and their personal life after they've proven to be too much of a nuisance, and there's a big battle where the villain is utterly destroyed. ...Admittedly, that's not the pattern EVERY movie follows, but it's the most common I've noticed, and the one that scares me off. I'm so sick of this pattern, that anything that threatens to follow anything RESEMBLING it instantly turns me off. ...I know it's a short-sighted reason for not liking superhero movies, but the similar attitudes of these movies, and the oversaturation in the last decade, only manage to make me exclaim "AGAIN?!"
I'm much more into comic book-based movies that AREN'T so Marvel/DC universe-oriented. Watchmen, Constantine, R.E.D., Men in Black, The Mask, Sin City, Asterix, Tin Tin, Persepolis, heck, even RIPD. I'm also following The Walking Dead TV show(though the show after the introduction of Neegan hasn't exactly been as good...) All of these, I find much more engaging than yet another "guy/group in a mask" movie.
...But that's just the guy I am. If you're into the more traditional superhero movies, that's fine. More power to you! The fandoms thank you!
Marvel and DC's bank accounts thank you too!
Still, I am into the comicverse of many popular heroes, and my love for Lego and the like knows no exceptions. I'll gladly still collect sets based on any of the dozens of superhero movies and media they've released! It doesn't matter if I don't know or care about the franchise. They're superheroes and supervillains, they come with awesome giant robots and other vehicles, and they can be put together and displayed on my shelf or used in a video. What's not to love?!
Also, Lego superheros are awesome, so I'll still watch Lego superhero movies. Especially since The Lego Batman Movie is AWESOME! ...But then again, with Lego movies, EVERYTHING is awesome!
However, as we all know, if something's popular, little things like rights issues won't stop other companies from attempting to profit from it. We've already had an example on this blog with the KAZI "Super Man Spider" sets a while ago, which KAZI VERY obviously had no rights to produce. ...Or any idea what they were basing these characters off of...
But today, we're going to be looking at some knockoff superhero figures that are a little more local and a little less blatant with what they're ripping off. I say "Local", because you can probably walk into your local Big Lots and find these on the shelves, without the hassle of browsing sketchy Chinese shopping sites and waiting several weeks for the sets to arrive(if they arrive at all.) I say "Less Blatant", because they're not clearly bootlegging specific characters for their sets, which many other third-party building brick companies wouldn't hesitate to do. And I say "little", because... Well, you'll see in a second.
These "Super Hero" sets come to us from the British-based budget toy line Block Tech.
I've already gone over Block Tech, Grafix, and RMS International in my review of their Fast & Furious sets, and nothing's really changed in the meantime, so head over to that review for a more in-depth explanation of what this brick line is about.
However, I did promise more about Block Tech figures in a later review, so that day has come! ...I know. You were all chewing through the walls, you were so impatient for this day to come...
Sets of brick figures are nothing new. Most brick companies sell some variant of minifigure-only set, usually for collectors who just want to collect figures. Lego, Mega Construx, BricTek, OYO Sports, Best Lock, Kre-O etc. all have blind bags or display boxes usually containing between 1-8 figures, which you can pick up mostly anywhere that also carries building brick sets.
However, Block Tech is a company absolutely INSANE with their brick figure sets! They'll package and market DOZENS of different figures in DOZENS of different package variations in DOZENS of different toy stores! Just in this small group here, I have 2, 3, 5, and 8-figure packages, ranging from boxes that double as display cases, to store rack-hanging cardboard-backed packaging, all found from a diverse number of stores that sell toys(Walmart, K-Mart, Family Dollar, Dollar General, Big Lots, etc.)! They're simply inescapable!
Heck, I don't even own their largest collections, as some sets contain 20 or even 40 different figures! If you told me that these were tiny Autons, and Block Tech was a shell company controlled by the Nestene Consciousness, and they've invaded the shelves of toy stores around the world all waiting for their signal to attack! ...Well, that would be an exciting theory, but I still wouldn't believe you.
Superhero knockoffs are also not something Block Tech is unfamiliar with. Besides churning out figure packs since at least 2015, in the last few years, they've gone full-time into superhero building sets with "Heroes on Earth." These mostly contain recolored and repurposed elements and models from other sets(most notably a dinosaur from one of their many Jurassic Park cash-ins), but they DO come with original superhero figures! ...Sort of...
As with what I'm about to show, they're very clearly taken from actual superhero properties, just with slightly different features and name changes. So that's not Spider-Man! That's Arachni! Totally different character!
...But considering some other heroes go under totally original and imaginative names like "Nightwing" and "Raven", I don't think they're trying that hard to hide their "inspiration"...
And, as you've guessed, being a Block Tech line, they've ALSO gotten a 40 pack of figures! Something I ABSOLUTELY have to own!
...But, considering they're apparently a UK-exclusive line, it's probably going to take a while to save up for ANY of these sets, as well as pay several figures in shipping... ...I'm guessing Block Tech isn't that confident in marketing their "original" superhero lineup in the country where most rights owners to popular superheroes reside...
Why else would they take the added precaution of not including their name on the box? This isn't Block Tech. It's "Brick by Brick"! ...Which makes and distributes very Block Tech-ish figures and sets!
...They're Block Tech... Stevie Wonder wearing oven mitts could tell you that...
Since I finally have an opportunity, and the rest of the look shouldn't take too long, let's talk about the figures. ...And, since I don't want to open the boxes just yet, we'll use this guy I luckily found loose in a bag of various brick figures. A guy we'll be seeing again very soon.
For starters, they're noticeably taller than regular Lego minifigs, by about another Lego minifig head. They're roughly the same width, but all the features are stretched height-wise, most noticeably the abdomen area.
And I do mean EVERY feature. Here's a shot of both figures without headgear to hopefully show you how much more "conehead"-ish the Block Tech figure is. ...Get some food, man! You're making Angelina Jolie look like John Goodman!
Block Tech heads also have much more pronounced facial features than Lego minifigures. ...Scratch that, they HAVE facial features. You can clearly see ears on the sides and a small, pointy nose on the front, as well as paint lines that shape cheeks. It's actually quite impressive how defined the head is, and how much more "realistic" it looks than the standard Lego minifigure noggin! It's something that sets Block Tech apart from most other brick companies, at least!
The downside is that the actual faces don't have that much detail. These are two other superheroes, and there are only slight differences in their expressions. The one on the right has a bit of a smirk and slightly raised eyebrows, while the one on the left has angrier eyes and what appear to be smiling lips. They all share white eyes and cheekbones, with very little else to differentiate them besides coloring and drawn-on facial accessories.
They're not much more detailed on other figures, either. You'll notice that the two on the left have the exact same face, just with one having a headset, and the one on the right is a quick two dots for eyes, a mustache and small beard, and a smirk. They're aesthetics that Block Tech like to reuse for most of their figures. Mostly the same facial features, but simplified to make it easy to make slight alterations.
There's not much point in harping on this, since not all Lego figures have the most pronounced or unique of faces either. ...But Lego seems to revel in the simplicity of its minifigures. To them, slight tweaks are an art form. Bigger eyes, differently colored eyebrows, lip colors, eye and mouth expressions, all can change a face into a completely different character! ...Block Tech seems to simply use it as a cop out, slightly tweaking their faces so you don't feel like you're buying the same figure from them with a wardrobe change. So while the faces on both are simplistic, Lego figures at least have more personality behind them. ...But, since Block Tech sells 8 of their figures for $5, while Lego can't be bothered to sell ONE of their minifigures for that much, I guess unique faces for each figure isn't in the budget.
Like the Lite Brix figures featured a while ago, these figures also have holes in their heads. However, they're much deeper and hollow than Lite Brix, meaning that the headwear has to have a peg in order to fit snugly.
Since the hole is roughly the same size as the circumference of a Lego stud, headwear and other Lego bricks are still compatible with these figures, but they don't fit tightly and will most likely fall off if the figure is jostled. ...Though, due to the peg in the hats and hair, Lego has a bit more of a compatibility problem with Block Tech.
Luckily, they've given us an easy fix for using Lego accessories with Block Tech figures. Simply insert one of these studs in the top of the head(which they gave figures that don't have hair or headwear)!
So now that wizard hat fits snugly on this Iceman ripoff! ...Why he's wearing a wizard's hat is another mystery, I'm afraid.
Another thing about Block Tech figures is that they're all RIPPED! All modern Block Tech figures are built with a torso that includes rock-hard pectoral muscles, a skinny waist, and a six-pack!
It's not just superheroes. Medical practitioners also have to have a body ready to bench-press an elephant at a moment's notice!
Even their line of "cute girl" figures features characters I'm pretty sure could beat Wonder Woman in arm wrestling! Without breaking a sweat!
So if there's one thing Block Tech figures can teach kids, it's that you can't put a price on the benefit of regular exercise!
Either that, or steroids are your friend...
And while they do put a good amount of detail into the middle portions of the figure
It unfortunately doesn't carry over to the back and sides. Way to dollar-store-it-up, guys... ...Oh, wait.
Block Tech legs are a bit more knobbly and curved than Lego's, and are strangely molded in three segments with obvious sprue holes on the knees. ...I really don't know where they're from to think legs are shaped like this...
The backs of the legs are actually very similar to BricTek figures. They're mostly hollow, with no ankles, but there's just enough molding to keep them from sliding off the bricks when they sit down.
However, unlike BricTek, Block Tech figures actually fit in seats designed for Lego figures! ...It's a bit more of a pain to get them to fit, since the plastic is much more rigid, and they of course can't fit in cockpits designed for Lego height, but it's impressive that the length of the legs is EXACTLY the right size to still fit in that space!
Unfortunately, it's another custom mold for the legs, meaning they're not interchangeable with Lego. So if you've ever wanted a taller Lego figure, you're out of luck. ...Unless you find one of those Toy Story Woody Lego figures, or bootleg "tall" Minecraft figures, but I digress.
Finally, there's the figure's arm area. Unlike Lego figures, whose arms are slightly curved with an "elbow", Block Tech figures' are completely straight.
Making holding things a little awkward. ...Seriously, try holding something with your arm outstretched like this, and see how long you last...
I've literally JUST noticed that the shoulder area has this odd pattern on it, like it's where the rest of the shirt cuts off. I can't tell if it's supposed to signify that the shirts are supposed to be sleeveless, or if it's a lapel or something, but either way, it doesn't make sense where it's molded, since the sleeve clearly continues.
It makes even less sense with figures that aren't supposed to be wearing a shirt, like Hulk wannabe here. If you have one of these on your shoulder, get medical help immediately...
Instead of wrist articulation, like most brick figures, these figures have "elbow articulation", so the entire forearm twists along with what it's holding. It's not that different from the regular wrist movement, but all I can say is "Ouch!"
The forearms are attached by ball joints, so that also means you can move that section slightly in all directions. Too slight to really do anything, but it's an interesting, though likely unintentional, feature nonetheless. ...Though I wouldn't recommend trying to bend your elbow beneath your shoulder like this...
Unlike most other figures' "claw hands", Block Tech figures' hands are molded to more resemble hands, with finger separation and the shape more like it's grasping something. Again, it's something unique that sets Block Tech figures apart from most other sets.
Unfortunately, the design of the hands makes it more difficult to hold things. Things that slide into the hand via a pole work just fine, but flat surfaces barely fit in the hand, and things that you need to "click" into the hand can be troublesome to force into the gap between the fingers, as well as cause stress and even breakage on the plastic if it's big enough. Points for cosmetics. Minus points for having less functionality than Lego hands...
In fact, I really quickly(too late!) want to show you an older Block Tech figure. I picked this up as recently as 2015, and it has a very different design in some places. The face and headpiece are the same, but the chest is missing the abs, making it look like this guy has a layer of fat around his waist*, and the feet are molded more squarely and similarly to Lego, except they gave him kneecaps. However, the most noticeable difference is that this version has clawed hands similar to that of a Lego minifig, giving him mostly the same functionality as a standard minifigure. ...I'm truly wondering why they went from this design to what they have now. I can't find any documents suggesting Lego was ready to sue, so I'm wondering if they were neurotic and changed the design to avoid possible future situations, or if they just wanted a style all their own. ...Either way, they succeeded. I just wish they rethought the rethought hand design...
*Hey, I can relate...
*phew* That was a bit more of an introduction than I was planning to give, but I think I've covered the generals so I don't have to reiterate them in future reviews. You're now familiar with the functionality of these figures, so let's go over the various designs of the Block Tech Super Hero line!
We're going to do this chronologically, starting with what I believe are the first figures, released back in October 2015(which they helpfully print on the bottom of the box.) They're both 5-packs, packaged in smaller boxes than most other Block Tech figure collections, but still giving you a windowed look to what you're getting.
...Though they clearly designed the front of the box before they considered where the figures will sit inside...
I actually got these in a lot with "City Heroes" and "Combat Heroes", both released around the same time and in similar packaging. But, since this review is focused around Super Heroes, we'll save a look at these for another time. ...Probably when I don't feel like reviewing much, considering they're not that interesting compared to today's sets...
And yeah, I WISH I paid that much for these...
Interestingly, these early sets spell "Superheroes" as one word. Keep this in mind, because I'll bring it up later.
In a pretty nice move, the figures are packaged in the same order as the artwork on the front, the lineup matching left-to-right. It's not a major thing to heap praise on, but, considering the seemingly frequent lack of communication between designers with cheap brick sets, it's impressive that there was enough sync between artist and packer to keep the figures in the intended order. And when you're talking about budget bricks, you take what you can get.
Though the standard discrepancies between art and figure still exist. Besides the decals on the figures having a bit more color and shine to them than the art, the colors are different on the flame guy's outfit and flames, the white is much more pronounced on the ice guy's body
The blond guy has a sneer on the cover instead of smirking lips on the figure, the brunette woman has color to her lips on the box, and, most glaring of all, the actual red robotic figure's outfit contains no orange at all. ...But, besides that, total 1:1 paint job!
The backs are pretty plain, simply repeating the art on the front, with a gradient generic brick figure-patterned background.
"Multiple Figures. COLLECT THEM!" ...I think I already did... Especially since you're not giving me any information on what other figures I'm supposed to collect...
However, get ready for this, they DID include a lineup of the figures on the back, WITH individual character names! ...Though not in the order they were packaged... You came THIS close, guys...
So, one quick amateur editing job later, we have, from left-to-right: Shadow Cloak, The Flame, White Eagle, Winter Knight, and Mercury Girl
While the other box contains Lightning Bolt, Revenge, Falconman, Metalman, and Smasher. And wow, if that lineup doesn't sound like a 5th-grader's DeviantArt collection of "totally original" superheroes...
The other sides of the boxes are mostly featureless, save for the repeated title and artwork, as well as the mandatory company and legal information, so nothing to point out.
Still, there's the standard "6+" recommendation
And while there's no "0-3" symbol, text on the bottom does state "Not suitable for children under 36 months..." If only there existed a smaller unit for time measurement they could use...
Anyone between those ages is clobbered by... Whichever superhero gets to him first. Seriously, with the hundreds of super-powered individuals running loose throughout comics, it's a wonder that crime even exists...*
*Which reminds me of a great gag in an issue of Cracked Magazine back in 2000, where a gang of heroes rush a guy solely for littering, featured in a parody strip called "The Bunisher." Unfortunately, I can't find a scan of the magazine(which also featured "Pukemon" cards), so you'll just have to use your imagination what it looked like. ...Unless you have a copy, of course.
Let's start things off with Shadow Cloak. Admittedly, this is one of the more subtle of the first batch of knockoffs(or at least one they put the most effort into trying to hide), with a purple-and-black shirt, gray pants, and a motorcycle helmet. However, the name, the utility belt, and the fact he has an eye mask greatly suggest he's a knockoff of DC's Nightwing, aka ex-Robin Dick Grayson. ...Except in this alternate universe, he took some fashion advice from Speed Racer when he was inspired to go out on his own. ...So when are we going to be seeing the Bat Mach 5?
And, despite what it might look like, no. Other Lego helmets are incompatible with this guy. His helmet, though a clear and obvious ripoff of the Lego accessory, is made of a much softer, almost rubbery plastic, which allows it to fit over his head(and even then, it's a bit of a struggle to get it on/off.) I guess you COULD theoretically fit one of these helmets over his face, but I don't want to break one of these pieces to find out. Unless I come across an actually broken helmet, anyway. Get Benny from The Lego Movie on the phone!
Next up is The Flame, a super-obvious ripoff of Marvel's The Human Torch. I mean, he's a guy with an orange head and a body that's clearly on fire. What else could he be? ...Besides a super-devoted fan of the Cincinnati Bengals?
As I pointed out, the box art version of him is much more orange, instead of nearly his entire body being red with a fire decal on the front. In fact, as is, it looks like a new Iron Man costume: the Too Hot to Handle armor! ...Which, considering Tony Stark's propensity for alcohol and women, I wouldn't put it past him...
Speaking of Iron Man, next up is what's also most likely a tech-based superhero knockoff: White Eagle. ...And I have no idea who this guy is copying.
My closest guess is he's based on the Iron Man: Armored Adventures variant of Ghost, with his white costume, the eye mask, and the symbol on his left side. ...But that would involve someone having actually WATCHED that show, so it's a sketchy assumption at best...
Next is Winter Knight, a straight-up knockoff of Marvel's former-main X-Men(X-Man?) character Iceman. ...Seriously, they didn't even try to hide this one. From his solid-blue body, to the icy highlighting, to the fact his name is related to winter, they couldn't be more blatant if they called him "Ice Guy" or "Frozen Man". Heck, why not just call him "Ice-T"?
Sorry, the only way they could redeem this character and give him an identity is if it turned out he was the US's answer to the Winter Soldier. ...Or if he WAS the Winter Soldier! Hey, that might change my mind about not seeing comic book movies! ...Maybe...
Next is another superhero I can't quite place the original of: Mercury Girl. ...I legitimately have no idea who this character might be. She looks like the original version of Dazzler, if she was black and stood as a symbol for breast cancer awareness. ...Hey, why not? She'd be a better PSA-spokesperson than Captain Citrus(yes, that actually exists)!
The only other hero that comes to mind is a super-obscure heroine named Miranda Mercury, of the critically-acclaimed graphic novel The Many Adventures of Miranda Mercury. ...A comic I absolutely despise, especially since the gimmick is that it STARTS its numbering in the #200s, giving it the excuse to bring in plot elements from out of nowhere and say "Yeah, these guys are a thing! They just appeared in an earlier comic! ...That we didn't write!" It's a weak and frustrating gimmick to say the least. But I digress.
Also, despite the character already having large mammary glands, I'm wondering if at one point, she was a little more.. Voluptuous? There's clearly a thick coat of pink paint over this area(pretty cheap enamel paint at that) that I could almost scratch with my fingernails. ...I'm wondering if she had an overly deep neckline at first, but someone high in the company objected, so they had to quickly change the artwork and drag some pink paint over the section before they shipped them out. ...Or maybe they were worried she'd look too much like a Star Sapphire, and a black lady as a symbol of love just seemed too far fetched to them. ...If so, that's racist, but either of the answers or some other reason could be the case. You never know with budget brick companies...
Our next feature(and the start of the other box of Superheroes) is Lightning Bolt, a somewhat-less obvious knockoff of Marvel's Thor. It took me a while to place him, but the name, the hair, and the somewhat-Nordic clothing tipped me off that they're copying Chris Hemsworth. ...As long as it's not Ghostbusters-reboot Chris Hemsworth, I'm cool with that.
My guess is that his powers revolve around him throwing water balloons at people whilst shouting his name. ...Hey, that would cause ME to retreat!
Also, poor guy. He left in such a hurry, he forgot to paint the rest of his shirt on. If Loki notices, he'll never hear the end of it...
Next, we have Revenge, obviously based on Natasha Romanoff/The Black Widow. ...One of only two female superheroes in this first line, and the only one who's clearly based on another hero. We appear to have a bit of a boy's club over at Block Tech. Maybe that's why Mercury Girl was only last-minute censored...
The pink undershirt and tool belt don't help to lend any dignity to who's supposed to be based on a dangerous spy and assassin. I mean, who's she seeking revenge on? That guy at the laundry who left a red sock in the machine she was washing her whites?
And considering how she and Lightning Bolt share the same head... This just opens up so many questions I don't actually want an answer to...
Moving quickly away from the last figure, we now have the Marvel's Captain America knockoff Falconman. ...And that is possibly the most on-the-nose name of the entire line!
For those more familiar with the Chris Evans cinematic universe version, there was a recent time in comics where longtime African-American superhero The Falcon took the place of Captain America! It's since been reversed, with the characters returned to their status quo, but that's who Captain America was at the time these figures were made.
And considering this Captain America is also black, and bears a falcon symbol above his red, white, and blue colors, that shows a remarkable knowledge of then-current comic canon! Especially for a company that likely didn't spend that much time with the design stage of their product! It's also interesting that they went with the comic version of the character instead of the more mainstream movie variant. So kudos, Block Tech. You have successfully surprised and amazed me with this design choice!
...But I'm still obligated to make fun of this figure, so here he is wearing a Chinese farmer hat. Doesn't he look ridiculous? I thought so. Ok. Obligation fulfilled.
Next is Metalman, the super-lazily-named knockoff of Marvel's Iron Man. ...And with possibly the laziest paint job of the lot. Their design choice for this figure seems to be "draw a few lines that look roughly like shapes, but not actually tie them in with the superhero's shtick." It looks nothing like metal. The closest it looks is like he took some scrap metal and superglued it to his abs! ...I'd hate to be around when someone decides to rip it off...
And geez! Here I was making fun of The Flame for looking like a rabid football fan, when this guy really DOES look like he spray-painted his face to show his loyalty to the Arizona Cardinals! ...Were they just out of yellow paint the day they ran these, and didn't care that the character looked like he had a bad experience with a waffle iron without it?
You can even see flaws in the paint for the decal! If this guy really is made out of metal, he's currently rusting...
So, terrible Iron Man stand-in figure. ...But not too inaccurate a figure to promote The Asylum's mockbuster of the same name... Hidden merchandise tie-in, perhaps?
And finally, we have possibly the most blatantly obvious knockoff of them all! A copy of Marvel's The Hulk: the Smasher. ...What else can I really say about this character? He's green, he's ripped, he has black hair and wears one-size-fits-all blue jeans. He's copyright-infringingly The Hulk.
Still, if Block Tech decides to go cinematic and give the Smasher his own film, it will automatically be the most watchable out of The Hulk's movies...
Our next stop is a quick one, since this is one of the two-figure packs, and only one of them is a new figure(or at least enough of a variant to be noteworthy.)
I have no idea where these are sold, as I bought them on Walmart.com as a lot with 5 other two-packs. I usually prefer to buy these sets separately, but, hey, future reviews!
From this box onward, the figures are known as "Super Heroes", with two words. I was about to point out that, not only is this change pointless, but it's copyright-infringing, since Marvel/DC have joint-ownership of the two-word term. But, according to this article, "superhero", no matter what the spelling, is owned by the two names for all things relating to costumed vigilantes. So, given also that Block Tech is an actual established company with a legal presence, this entire line is one big lawsuit waiting to happen...
Unlike the first boxes, we don't have names for these figures. Though they did remember to remind us that they have multiple figures to collect! ...Which I think I already did.
However, there was apparently a disconnect between artist and manufacturer(or they didn't feel like drawing a new character and just palette-swapped Smasher), because that's not the hairstyle on the included figure...
The first figure is simply Falconman, only in a much lighter shade of blue, gray gloves and pants, and oddly-lowered facial features. ...Also not much quality control, since the limbs are INCREDIBLY loose, to the point I'm amazed I got him standing...
The other guy, whom I'm calling Red Beast, since that's what future sets seem to refer to similar figures as, is an obvious repaint of Smasher, but with a little more distinction between figures. He's red, he has slightly lighter pants, his muscles are much more toned, and he has shaggy red hair as opposed to a black bowl-cut.
Once again, this is most likely based on a recent event in comics, where General Ross, longtime enemy of The Hulk, actually became a Red Hulk, able to grow hotter in addition to growing stronger!
And with that in mind, I eagerly await Block Tech's entry into the world of advertising movies with Block Tech Super Heroes: Smasher vs. Red Beast. Whoever wins, Brick Miser suffers...
Now if you're ready for an actual shock, from this point onward, (most of)these figures are actually molded with a head stud, like Lego minifigures!
This allows for much better cross-property compatibility, as these headpieces can fit with other company figure variations, and vice versa! ...Also, it keeps the Block Tech figures from looking like botched lobotomy patients when the stud/headgear is taken off.
Moving on, we have our first 8-pack of figures! Yes, EIGHT different ways to demonstrate how little creativity budget brick companies have!
This set came from Big Lots, which is where at least half of all Block Tech sets I own came from. And hey, $5 for 8 figures? SOLD!
The background for this box is a lot more detailed than the first few boxes. ...Despite me not being able to tell what it is. Most of it is obscured by the character portraits, window, and title, and what's left looks like if Picasso designed Minecraft. ...Inspiring?
And because there are 8 figures, and they arranged 4 on the side, that leaves a very asymmetrical lineup at the bottom... They obviously needed to redraw the figures, so they didn't have to use this pose from the first iteration if they didn't have enough! If a pattern doesn't work, don't use the pattern! Kindergarten art class, here...
Also, despite the figures being molded with head studs, these are clearly drawn with removable studs like the first design. ...How hard is it for one department to memo another in this age of communication? Or to quickly paint over the obvious seam on the character heads?
As with the first boxes, the back of the box includes a lineup of the heroes and their names, as well as their catchphrase "Multiple Characters! Collect Them!" And, in this case, they ARE arranged in the order they're packaged!
So for this set, we have Lightning Striker, Blue Thunder, Black Dahlia, Red Beast, White Eagle, Winter Knight, Shadow Cloak, and Inferno. ...Yes, over half the box is full of repeats.
Most of the figures are what we've already seen, just remolded in the new style and with slightly different paint jobs and features. Shadow Cloak now has a (very ill-fitting)visor for his helmet, White Eagle's eye mask is orange instead of brown, Winter Knight is slightly lighter, and The Flame(whom they renamed Inferno) actually looks like his box artwork, with the addition of gold paint for his flames!
But they did give Red Beast a mask, AND they renamed Revenge to Black Dahlia and made her look more like a female assassin(with a better-colored belt and lipstick and more feminine hairstyle.) ...So there's that.
That leaves us with Lightning Striker and Blue Thunder as the only original figures. ...And once again, we have two figures with no obvious connection to real heroes. The one on the left is clearly still based on Captain America, just with less of a costume and a lightning pattern instead of the flag, while the one on the right is... Black Lightning? Not a clue...
Namewise, they remind me of the sometimes hero/sometimes villain duo Thunder and Lightning, both of which also wore minimalist costumes(save for the Teen Titans animated variants.) I could believe this is their version of that duo, especially given how "obscure" and "with the times" this company seems to be with comic book characters. ...But I'm just going to assume they're based on other heroes and they have "Lightning" and "Thunder" in their names since those are just cool names for heroes to have. ...Hey. I'm willing to be proven wrong. Get Block Tech on the phone and find someone who hasn't been sworn to secrecy!
Since I don't have anything else to add about the last batch, let's move on to another set! This time, they're going under the name "Super Heroes Collection." ...With the last bit italicized in case we didn't get that this was, indeed, a collection of figures. ...Intelligence insulting!
Once again, we have more of a background for this box. Only this time, it looks more like a superhero element! ...Sort of. I can tell there's a city in the background, but besides the figure portraits obscuring the view, most of the background is comprised of... Whatever these yellow planks are. Windows? Spotlights? The Flash zooming by with 2-mile long yellow streamers? ...Why have a background if you're so ashamed to show anything relevant?
And while the figures on the side are fine, not only do they use the same asymmetrical pattern for the bottom figures, but there's a clear(or rather, "blurry") picture quality problem here... It looks like they tried to artificially enlarge a GIF, with how jagged and pixelly these look. ...Still, props for remembering that these figures are molded with a stud on their head this time! Only took about a year...
Unfortunately, although they tell us to "Meet the Heroes", they don't include names for this set, simply giving us the character portraits. I guess this isn't too bad a thing, since there are only three new heroes in this set, but I was starting to enjoy their dollar-bin comic titles... I'll just have to name the new guys when I get to them.
There's much less of a difference with these figures(on the right) from the last batch(on the left.) The only major changes I can detect between most of the figures is that White Eagle's eyepiece is now yellow, and this version of Inferno is a slightly darker orange and wears yellow gloves. Maybe the red on Lightning Striker's lightning symbols is slightly lighter and more pronounced, but that could also be a printing error.
The only major difference with a figure that I can see is with this version of Revenge/Black Dahlia, where her hair is black and a slightly different style, she doesn't wear lipstick, and her cleavage is much less obvious. Maybe they decided that Black Widow was passe by this point, so she's now a knockoff Jessica Jones?
Anyway, the new figures. First up is this obvious knockoff of Marvel's Iron Fist(the comic book variant, NOT the Netflix show), whom I shall call Steel Knuckle. ...Of course, I'm only getting the connection from the eyes on the mask and the symbol on his chest. Most of Iron Fist's costume is usually green, save for his mask, whereas this guy could easily also be known as Mustard Dragon Man. ...The Scaly Banana? ...The Oriental Warning Light?
I like the dragon symbol on his chest, though. It looks like if the Chicago Bulls were transferred to Beijing.
The costume confusion only gets stranger with this next guy, who shall be known as Sun Man. Despite having a Spider-Man-esque mask(which is the only one besides White Eagle's to fully cover the head), the colors are actually much more accurate to Iron Fist's traditional costume, and the rising sun, usually associated with Asian culture, could be a reference to his proficiency in mystical martial arts.
In fact, reading even unnecessarily deeper into this, considering that Iron Fist's BFF is Luke Cage/Power Man, who WAS the one who wore a lot of yellow in his costume, could this be Block Tech's answer to Power Man and Iron Fist? Well, if so, you can check out the monthly adventures of Sun Man & Steel Knuckle on... Some desperate guy's DeviantArt page somewhere.
And with a quick headswap, we have... Wow. The Iron Fist resemblance is uncanny... Maybe this is why Block Tech needed this design to be two different figures.
The other original figure in the set is another yellow-suited hero, who sports Black Dahlia's head and gloves, but wears a cheetah-pattern outfit. Because of this, her name is Leopard.
This is a different kind of figure in terms of who these figures have been based off of. Instead of a hero, we likely have a ripoff of a VILLAIN. Namely Cheetah, longtime archenemy of Wonder Woman. I was about to say that this inclusion is likely because she's confirmed as the main villain in the upcoming Wonder Woman sequel, but seeing as how that was just announced, and these are at least a year old, it's likely she was just included because Block Tech was running out of designs for popular heroes and Cheetah is a relatively popular villain(hence her inclusion in the Wonder Woman sequel.)
...Though you never know. Maybe Block Tech HAS actually earned enough from their budget brick sets to invest into the research and development of precognition? ...I don't suppose they need test subjects? Particularly those who will give their products perfect 5/5 ratings if some of that was dumped into his brain*? ...I'll just be here, eagerly checking my email for a response...
*Obviously, I'm not going to give perfect scores to a company, even if they DID give me precognition. My journalistic integrity isn't that shaky! ...Now, telekinesis, on the other hand...
Finally, we've come to our last set of Block Tech Super Heroes. ...And a bit of a surprise addition, as I literally didn't know it existed until I found it on eBay while I was looking for "Heroes on Earth" pictures and sets for this review. Heck, it was so last minute, that I'm surprised it arrived in time for me to feature it! Hooray for First-Class Shipping!
According to the bottom of the box, these figures were manufactured in December of last year, so, as far as I can tell, this is the most current of the line. ...I hope, because I want THIS to be the review where I actually tackle something current and not years out of date! ...And won't this statement look good a year from now, when I'm tackling Block Tech's three NEW Superhero figure sets...?
This box represents yet another change to the size of Block Tech's packaging. It's roughly only half the size of the previous two Superhero boxes, and even a bit smaller than the Block Tech figure boxes I got from Toys R Us/Dollar General! Either this is new packaging for a different distributor, or Block Tech finally realized that bigger boxes aren't an indication of higher quality*. ...The cardboard they were using probably took up half their budget, as well...
*I'm not kidding about Block Tech using enormous boxes for their sets, either. I'll show you when we finally get to some Block Tech sets I bought back in 2015.
Heck, the box is so small, they can't even fit all the figures on the front! I guess they just picked the first five Superheroes who showed up to work, leaving the other three without anything to back up their resume. So much for getting that Japanese noodle commercial gig...
The design is the exact same as the previous box, simply with a blue filter over the background instead of purple, and the image slightly shrunken to accommodate for the smaller box size. No points for creativity, but at least they're consistent!
Once again, most of the set is comprised of repeats from the past lineups, with the only major cosmetic difference that they changed Blue Thunder's sleeves from black to blue. Besides that, the new set has a slightly "washed-out" look to it, with all the figures' colors at least a shade lighter than the previous ones(save for Blue Thunder, who actually has a DARKER shade than his counterpart.) Even superheroes aren't immune to the dangers of bleach-heavy detergents...
However, these figures have an obvious design change to them, as instead of the heads being molded with studs, it's back to the removable head studs we saw in the first iteration. ...Why? Did they lose the revised molds, or did they send the wrong molds to whoever was manufacturing their bricks that week? ...Either way, this is a weird way to end up coming full circle with these sets.
Also, old-new-style Inferno is missing the gold paint on his flames... But at least his eyebrows are back to being orange!
Once again, three new figures. Starting off, we have an obvious ripoff of Marvel's Wolverine, in his "classic" getup. He shall heretofore be known as Ferret.
This has possibly my favorite color scheme out of the figures. Not just because of how blatant it is, but because they do bother to add small bits of linework and varying colors to his costume, hidden among the blue and yellow. Somebody was REALLY proud of lifting Wolverine's textures, and wanted to make sure his theft stood out among all the others. Well, congratulations, whoever you are! I'm sure the judge and Marvel's lawyers will be equally as impressed with your work!
Actually, with the mouthless mask design, it sort of looks like Deadpool dressed up as Wolverine, doesn't it?
Well, congratulations, Block Tech! You just made a legion of DeadpoolxWolverine shippers drool!
Next is this guy, who appears to be a less-obvious takeoff of DC's Robin(or possibly Red Robin.) Therefore, his name is Cardynal. Spelled with a "Y", because "Poor Literacy is KEWL!"
This guy has possibly the most outdated outfit of all the heroes we've seen so far! It's a plain red shirt, save for a small light badge, and white gloves and pants! He doesn't look like a modern-day superhero, he looks like one of those heroes invented in the 70s when disco was king! I would legitimately believe it if he was created as Dazzler's boyfriend! ...Who, in his modern incarnation, would then be dumped, become an alcoholic and crackhead, use his powers to mess up Dazzler's life, reform and rehabilitate, then be brutally murdered on the sidelines of an event comic, with a black lesbian woman then taking up the mantle, who has no character outside of being a black lesbian woman. ...On second thought, a 70s comic based on this guy doesn't sound so bad...
Last, but (hopefully)not least, we have this character, who shares Shadow Cloak's helmet and mask design. It took me a short while to determine what character this most reminded me of, but after examining the clothes and colors for a while, I'm come to the conclusion that it's Block Tech's version of DC's Green Lantern. Likely the Hal Jordan variation. Thus, his persona is named Emerald Knight Light!
Don't tell me that this ISN'T a Green Lantern! His mask is green, his gloves are green, his pants are green, and he's ready to fly! In fact, in keeping with the displaced product-of-his-time look of the last figure, it sort of looks like if Green Lantern was invented in the 70s/80s and was inspired by the "bad boy" type.. The jacket-wearing, motorcycle-driving, slicked-back-hair counterculturist who rebels against authority and gets all the girls as a result!
And now I'm anxiously awaiting the Elseworlds tale of Hal Jordan: Motorcycle Daredevil!
"In brightest day, in darkest night, no babe shall escape my sweet bike's light!"
And that's (currently[to my knowledge]) the entire lineup of Block Tech Super Hero figures! When I first started collecting these, I thought this was just going to be a one-off thing for Block Tech, and the first two boxes were all I'd need to grab. It's only when I decided to feature them that I learned about all the different variants, and now my collection is bursting at the seams with these characters! I love bootlegs, I love superheroes, and I love bootlegs of superheroes, so the fact that these exist, and Block Tech is still producing them, couldn't make me happier to be a collector!
So before we go, let's take one last look at all 36 characters!
...Yep. It's official. Block Tech has created a Justice League of their own! ...Hmmm... A superhero baseball movie...
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Quality: The plastic quality is mostly the same as previous Block Tech sets featured. Not as high as Lego, or even Mega Bloks, but still smooth and sturdy, able to stand a decent amount of wear. The paint and decals for most of the figures are really nicely done, and I can't casually scratch them off with my fingernails, so, as long as they're not treated roughly, the cosmetics will stay around for a good, long time. Even the hairpieces and headgear are molded a little better than normal, being much easier to put on and take off, and fit around the tiny ears and nose on the heads. However, I'm not a fan of the standard budget/bootleg toy practice of leaving the back portions completely undetailed, especially with figures who are clearly barechested or wearing shirts, as the patterns don't continue all the way around... Also, there are some obvious build defects, with the limbs on a lot of these figures either very loose or very tight-fitting, and it not taking much to accidentally detach them at the forearm, shoulder, or leg. Oddly, the figures molded with the stud on the head are of inferior quality in this regard to the ones WITHOUT a molded stud. Still, they hold together relatively fine, as long as you don't knock into them, and for figures going 8 for $5, they're pretty much what you'd expect.
Design: They're all built like standard modern Block Tech figures, with straight arms, huge pecs, a slightly realistic head, and legs with larger feet than most other brick figures. It's a little interesting to learn that there are TWO different head molds for Block Tech figures, one with a hollow head that you can insert a peg into, and one that's molded WITH a stud. Obviously, I prefer the latter, but I appreciate that they give us a way either way to keep cross-brand compatibility, unlike Lite Brix or C3 figures. I'm also not a fan of the design of the hands and how difficult it is to get them to hold something, especially with the slight discrepancies with their mold quality that makes how wide each hand can open a bit of a crapshoot. Overall, even though the figures aren't as functional as Lego minifigures, they still break away from the conventional Lego-esque mold and have a style all their own.
Creativity: Normally, I say that directly ripping something off counts AGAINST creativity, but in this case, I'd say the gall and imagination they employed in shamelessly knocking off established superheroes actually INCREASES this line's creativity and desirability! It was a BLAST going through each figure, trying to determine which character they were copying and how they managed to interpret each as a Block Tech figure(while keeping the cost as low as possible.) I didn't really get that with their Fast & Furious line, but here, it was fun identifying which heroes they put a little bit of thought into hiding, and which ones they're only tempting fate with... I guess my major complaint is all the recycling. Paintwise, most of them use the same 3-4 sneering facial expressions, save for minor details like lipstick, or they just wear a mask. Most of the male characters have the same muscle highlights and six-pack abs, even if the figure is in costume, while it's more random for the female heroes, especially with how the early figures had exaggerated mammary glands, while the later heroines didn't have that feature at all(and there were no female characters in the latest batch.) And, of course, most of the heroes are used over and over again in each line, with only 2-3 new characters out of 8. That last one is understandable, since the previous sets are retired and they're giving buyers another chance to purchase older figures, but with the wide variety of Marvel and DC superheroes, there's no shortage of heroes for them to copy from! So while the obvious knockoff designs aren't "creative" on their own, it's the very idea and how brave they were in copying copyrighted cosmetics onto their own figures that make these a treat to look through!
Readability: No instructions. ...I mean, they're figures...
Packaging: The boxes REALLY want you to know they contain figures. Besides the window that takes up nearly the entire front, profiles of the characters are also strewn across what's left of the space on the front, and most of the back and sides. What's left are basically just a mesh of colors that sort-of match the superhero aesthetic, as well as some VERY blurry artwork that's impossible to make out. I hate to say it, but the Fast and Furious boxes looked better than these, as they at least put the characters in action poses and had some flavor text. However, it sort of evens out thanks to the first few sets also having the hero names printed on the backs, and they're hilariously lazy. Even the placeholder names in Mark Millar's Wanted comic have more thought put into them, and they're mostly made of obscenities! Sadly, they're lost on the later releases, leaving us with patterns that could be used with the packaging for most other toys for boys. This is another example of packaging that does its job. ...And that's it.
Compatibility: They're actually pretty compatible with other figures and bricks! They retain most standard minifigure movement(legs, arms, head), and connect basically the same way as well. In fact, these figures have slightly more movement than regular minifigures, given their forearm ball-joints, allowing a little more posability! Some of these figures have studs molded onto their heads, and the ones that don't can easily have a stud slid into the hole for the same effect. The only major problem is with the shape of the hands. They're going for a more realistic style with them, but it doesn't work in terms of functionality. The only pieces that naturally seem to fit are rods(and even then, they might have a tough time fitting depending on the quality of the manufacturer), and trying to force other tools and bricks into their hand requires a lot of pressure and threatens to snap the plastic. Plus, since they're not shaped like a brick stud, you can't stack bricks on their hands. Still, if you're not worried about them actually holding anything, these figures work just fine with most other brick sets. ...As long as they're also not trying to drive/pilot something meant for smaller figures...
Overall:
These are a lot of fun, if just for the blatant infringement and obvious cash-in status of this line. The quality's good, they're compatible with most other elements, and it's a figure design that's completely different than all other brick figures, yet still works! But the best part by far is that it's a line dedicated completely to knockoff superheroes, most of which they didn't even bother to "mask." If you're not going to get it because it works with your other brick sets, or you need a cheap set of figures to work with, then get it for the absolute hilarity of a company trying to pass off obvious stolen designs as their own, and doing simultaneously the best and worst job of hiding the fact! I love these figures, and I eagerly await if they're going to make another set sometime in the near future. ...I also eagerly await the Block Tech cinematic universe. Brought to us by Video Brinquedo!
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