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A big round of applause, theydies and gentlethems, for the benefits of doing the illegal things.
After surviving a near fatal bovine attack, a disfigured cafeteria chef (Wade Wilson) struggles to fulfill his dream of becoming
Mayberry's hottest bartender while also learning to cope with his lost sense of taste. Searching to regain his spice for life, as well as a flux capacitor, Wade must battle ninjas, the yakuza, and a pack of sexually aggressive canines, as he journeys around the world to discover the importance of family, friendship, and flavor - finding a new taste for adventure and earning the coveted coffee mug title of World's Best Lover.
"The illegal things" in this case doesn't refer to Deadpool murdering people (though he does do that; like, a lot) but rather to the illegal 2014 leak of the test footage that is the only reason we have any Deadpools at all. (There's a reason the main suspects are Ryan Reynolds himself, director Tim Miller, or writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick.) If someone hadn't made stolen property widely available, trusting in public reaction and public demand to cover their ass - an "it's easier to ask forgiveness than get permission" thing - the Deadpool movie would have continued to languish in development forever, and the world would have been poorer for it.
(And for that matter, "the illegal things" can also refer to a Fox movie setting its big finale on a SHIELD helicarrier, making Deadpool the first X-Men/MCU crossover without bothering to get any kind of official okay, but this set is based on Deadpool 2, so it's less direct a comparison.)
Well, theoretically it is? Deadpool's "big, red body condom" was redesigned between films, but they decided to stick with what had worked, so technically this toy could represent either version. Like we said in the Domino review, these suits are the most "MCU-friendly" costumes in the entire X-Franchise, looking as much like the comic as any given Avenger does - so Deadpool is wearing padded fabric rather than black leather. (Not that that would be inappropriate in every case.) The difference between 616 Wade and movie Wade is minimal, basically just the inclusion of kneepads and straps around the arms, so this is easily recognizable.
One difference between the two mediums is the mask. In the comics,
the dark patches around Deadpool's eyes are circular, while the ones in the movie are more diamond-shaped. Were they afraid people would confuse him with Spider-Man? We don't get an unmasked head, which is really helping cement the idea that Fox didn't include likeness rights in their contracts, and Hasbro would have to negotiate them now. Who wouldn't want an "angry avocado" Ryan Reynolds face to swap onto their Deadpool?
DP's got so many accessories. So many! We start with the hands, which let you make this a Deadpool 1 or Deadpool 2: Age of Ultron toy. One minor costume change that was made between movies? The pads on the back of his gloves went from black to silver. So we've got a pair of fists and a pair of splayed hands from the first film, and a pair designed to hold weapons from the second. Did Deadpool not use any weapons in his first movie? Not according to this toy, he didn't.
The toy does, though. There's a knife for his boot, two katanas on his back, a pair of IWI Desert Eagle Mark XIXs in his holsters, and a pair of generic tech pistols that don't fit anywhere, physically or conceptually.
Only the silver-backed hands are designed to hold any of it, though. The scabbards on his back are permanently attached, while the belt and shoulder strap are a single separate pieces. Finally, he has a small unicorn. Is it supposed to be a toy, or a hallucination? Doesn't matter, really, he'd interact with it the same way: sitting next to it on the couch at Blind Al's apartment while waiting for his parts to grow back. It's white with blue dot eyes and a golden horn.
Negasonic Teenage Warhead is a mutant with the
ability to detonate atomic bursts from her body. Though the atomic blasts are devastating, her quick wit is what leaves her enemies begging for mercy.
Ellie Phimister was the character that allowed Skrulls to appear in Captain Marvel - Fox wanted to change her powers, and traded Disney the rights to Skrulls in exchange for letting them. And then the changes they made were so popular, they were copied back into the comics! Originally a mopey goth girl with precognative nightmares, she died in Cassandra Nova's attack on Genosha; due to the popularity of the movie, she was resurrected as a snarky goth girl with extensive reality-warping powers. Everybody wins! Plus, the name makes a lot more sense for the reimagined version than it ever did for the original - she was a great examples of why kids should maybe not be allowed to pick their own supranyms (though for a different reason than Lord Murder Death Explosion is).
Whatever the status of the likeness rights for these figures are, Hasbro clearly got them for NTW. This definitely looks like Brianna Hildebrand. It's also definitely a Deadpool 2 version, because her shaved hair has grown out a bit. She's got a perfect scowl on her face, and her various piercings - a plus sign in the right ear, a cross and a safety pin in the left, and a small nosering.
It's possible there was room to pay for her
face because they were saving money on the body. The chest, hands, and upper arms are new molds, with all her costume details, but the majority of the body is one of Hasbro's standards. I don't think any of those have ever been used for movie figures before! Congrats, Bri: you have a superhero butt. Wheatus Teenage Dirtbag has graduated from trainee to full-fledged X-Man by the time of the sequel, so she's painted wearing her black-and-yellow costume. Her gloves are fingerless, and you get your choice of fists or open hands.
To suggest her powers, Negs comes with Scarlet Witch energy effects in a pale orangey yellow. Hey, the movie gave her Cannonball's powers - we're just lucky she has legs at all!
Deadpool would have sold well by himself, no question. But other than a two-pack, how were we ever going to get a Negasonic Teenage Warhead? Even the comics joked about how unlikely that was! The character would be a forgotten footnote today if not for Deadpool, so pairing them in a two-pack was a great move.
-- 12/18/20
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