Toys / Comics to Toys / Marvel Legends

Kitty Pryde

By Hervé St-Louis
October 12, 2006 - 23:04

Kitty Pryde, also known as Shadowcat, Ariel and Sprite, first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #129, in 1980. She was the youngest recruit of Charles Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. Beginning a long-term friendship with Storm and Nightcrawler, she matured and fell in love with Colossus. After serving for years with the British super hero team Excalibur, she rejoined the X-Men. There she once again renewed her romance with Colossus who came back from the dead!

Likeness
 
The suit sported by Pryde is inspired by her new look in Astonishing X-Men. However, her body is a repaint of the Fantastic Four’s Invisible Woman. Details such as the red lining on top of her boots have been ignored on the action figure’s sculpt. Her belt is not tied carefully to her hips, like in the comic books. Instead it floats and hangs over the hips. Finally, her hair much longer than in the comics books, where they sit on her shoulders.

Sculpt

Kitty Pryde’s face is great looking. She reminds me of the Queen Elisabeth II of England, when she was younger! Her face is calm and serene. One can feel that she is a strong woman, and more mature than her teenaged days. To ruin the sculpt, Toy Biz gave her tiny arms, making her look anorexic. Her leggings and boots are sculpted, just like the Invisible Woman’s legs which are not comic book accurate.

Paint

The base plastic is yellow. Grey paint is applied all over the darker areas. There is no toning on these areas. However, there are highlights on Kitty Pryde’s hair. The yellow colour on her belt is off, compared with the yellow plastic of the figure.

Scale

Kitty Pryde is shorter than most Marvel Legends action figures. Other female characters are taller than her. As Kitty Pryde’s a petite woman this is acceptable.

Stability

Kitty Pryde is stable, but not for long. Her ankle articulations rotate in specific angles, none of which allows her feet to be parallel to the ground! Her hair piece is heavy forcing Kitty Pryde to fall on her back constantly. When posing her pet dragon Lockheed on her forearms, he unbalanced her body weight enough to make her fall. Of course, she has peg holes under her soles which can help stabilize the figure.

Articulation

Kitty Pryde has a V-shaped hip articulation improving the look of her sculpt. This “jock strap” articulation doesn’t allow her to move her legs backward. However, she can move them forward and sideways. Her ball joint neck doesn’t move freely easily, even sideways. Most of the articulations are hard to move because they are so thin and fragile looking. Kitty Pryde has 33 articulations in all.

Plastic

The plastic is thin and breakable. Although Marvel Legends’ toys are made for kids and adults, alike, I would not suggest it to parents. It won’t last long. A plate is glued on her torso to bulked up her breasts. I dare not bend her knees and elbows for fear of breaking them.

Props

Kitty Pryde comes with a copy of Astonishing X-Men #4 by Josh Whedon and John Cassaday. She also comes with her dragon like pet, Lockheed. Lockheed fits on a wrist guard fitting on Kitty Pryde’s. One can insert Lockheed on the pegs on the wrist guard. Although Lockheed’s limbs are glued on, they can’t move. Basic articulations at the shoulders and hips would have been ideal. Included in the package is the torso and head of the 13-inch Giant Man action figure.



Packaging

Kitty Pryde comes in a clamshell that can only be opened with scissors. She occupies much less place in her package than Giant Man’s torso!

Cost

Kitty Pryde costs from $7 to $15 in many stores. Walmart sells its action figures for less than smaller retailers.

Availability

Normally, a figure like Kitty Pryde would have been the peg warmer of the series. She’s a female character with a limited fan following. Because she is packed with the rare torso of Giant Man, Kitty Pryde is one of the key action figures of the Marvel Legends Giant Man series. This action figure is only available at Walmart stores in the United States. Outside of the United States, other stores sell this figure.

Stocks have been difficult to find in both the United States and the elsewhere. Although this series has been available for several weeks, by now. Outside of the United States, the action figures are distributed by Toy Biz Worldwide.

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12