Let’s talk about a time before there was Revoltech Iron Man Mk I to pontificate upon. It’s hard to imagine it now, but in 2008, Iron Man was a big risk for the then-fledging Marvel Studios. They didn’t have the rights to Spider-Man, X-Men, and Fantastic Four. In other words, they couldn’t use their tentpole characters. They were owned by Sony and Fox, respectively. The gossip rags doubted their ability to make a “B-list” character such as Iron Man a success.
Then Robert Downey Jr. happened.
RDJ managed to take 60 years of stories and mix it with his own swagger to create the perfect Tony Stark.
Fast forward a decade and we now have a Marvel Cinematic Universe that, as of this writing, can seemingly do no wrong. Sure, there have been misfires but overall, it’s hard for me to imagine another Intellectual Property beside Star Wars that has such a huge and diverse fan base. It is because of this excitement, that when I first returned to collecting figures, I was excited to see the Revoltech Iron Man MK I. I didn’t understand scales, I didn’t know what a Revoltech, Figuarts, Mafex, Mezco, etc, even were. I was just googling things I was looking for… “Best Action Figure Iron Man Movie Version” or something similar, I am sure. The Revoltech Iron Man MK I came up (I think its #45, I am assuming it is the 45th figure Revoltech released? No clue). I didn’t know what a Revoltech joint system was or why it mattered. I just knew I wanted that figure. The rest, as they say, is history. What did I get when I ordered it? Great question.
What’s in the Revoltech Iron Man MK I Box?
You get the man with the plan himself, two sets of hands, a flamethrower flame effect and a tiny rocket that you’ll lose if you’re not careful. Finally, you get a little orange box in which to place the items. Yet, the flame doesn’t fit in the box. Pinterest fail! Let us visit our eyes upon thy grandeur, Revoltech Iron Man MK I.
What doesn’t work with the Revoltech Iron Man MK I?
Look, this figure is what it is. The articulation scheme doesn’t have a lot of give to it. If you’re thinking you’ll be doing crazy stuff, you may want to rethink your game plan. However, if I play devils advocate for a moment, the armor in the movie itself wasn’t very flexible.
Like every other Revoltech, the limbs fall out. Specifically the arms. Likewise, the tiny missile can be removed. That doesn’t make sense to me. If you made it tethered it could still retract back into the arm. It feels like an unnecessary problem waiting to happen for the collector.
The flame effect is nice looking, but there’s not really a way to secure it to the arm. It sort of clips under the arm but it falls off as often as it doesn’t. I also use this effect for my Figuarts Jango Fett. It was during one of these super interesting jaunts that I dropped the effect. It barely fell and it snapped apart. I’ve glued it but it seems delicate to me.
Finally, the left hand is kind of a pain to swap in and out. The design of the arms/hands also slide back and forth for various reasons on the bottom. As you’re swapping hands you also need to hold the slidey part still. He’s bulky and a little tall for other import 1:12 lines.
What works with the Revoltech Iron Man MK I?
The details on the Revoltech Iron Man MK I are amazing. It really is a gorgeous piece. I like this figure 100x more than all of my other Revoltechs. For my needs, it’s like I’m holding a still frame of the movie armor in my hand. This also seems silly, but he has a good center of gravity. He’s easy to stand and get the poses his articulation is capable of grabbing.
Should you pick up the Revoltech Iron Man MK I?
I have many a Figuarts Iron Man, but among those, this Revoltech Iron Man MK I remains one of my favorites.
To be honest, I only was going to take a few pictures of this guy. In my head, I have this idea where I slowly work my way through my collection until I have done an article on each one. (Editors note – this will never, ever happen) Yet when I put him in front of the lens, it was like I was seeing him again for the first time. Seeing the detail on a figure up close usually brings out the flaws. But every pic I took, I found more details than I realized were initially there when I started. I couldn’t stop taking pictures of him. At least once a week I answer a question about the MK I on the many Facebook figure groups I’m a member of, so I thought a decent article might be in order.
Figuarts has been teasing us with a MK I for a while now and if their recent reveals are any indication we could see one soon. This Revoltech Iron Man MK I is good enough that I have no plans to purchase the Figuarts. Truth be told, the solicits for the Bandai IM make him look too clean to me. This Revoltech is incredibly detailed and expertly weathered.
For me, it transcends the term action figure and lands squarely in the realm of “adult collectible.” Not to be confused with adult toys. That’s right, I can write classy but I’m still street.
I’m not going to say I won’t get the Figuarts, but they’d have to come strong for me to consider it. A unique RDJ sculpt would sell me. Extra parts for another IM I already own. Never say never (I learned that with my new Figuarts Vader), but as of now, I don’t feel like there is a vacuum where the MK I should be.
He’s been out for a while, so that may factor into whether you get him or not. Prices have gone up since I bought him, but in my opinion, he’s an excellent figure. If you’re looking for him, you can pick him up here:
Let’s take this home with some pics.
