What marvel figure series to start buying for my 5 year old son?
 

Hi everyone! My son is really getting into the marvel characters, and I'm now looking at a toy set/series to get him.

Im wanting something that has decent paintwork, precise sizing(hulk can't be the same size as iron man for example), and nothing to delicate as its for role play.

I appreciate its like finding a golfen egg but I'm finding it tough.

The Titan Hero series looked good, and affordable, but they're a bit too big really and they all seem to be the same size. I'm looking at marvel select as well, that's a possibity but I'm unsure if it's for play.

My son is quite delicate with his toys, so I'm not worried about damage, but anything that is fragile is going to be a no no.

Any advice from you guys would be great!

The Superhero Squad stuff was a lot of fun and come in multipacks. There's also some sizing between characters in that line.

The basic 6 inch figures that usually come out with each new movie probably wouldn't be a bad start. They seem durable for play with some articulation but I'm not sure about individual character scaling.

I'll echo the basic 6" figures. The scaling is pretty decent for them - Hulk and Thanos are larger than the average figures, though the size difference isn't as extreme as, say, Legends. They're durable, and have serviceable articulation, while sporting decent paint and pretty well-sculpted faces (a lot of people here have even used the heads for custom Legends jobs). Plus, they're relatively inexpensive, and often have some gimmicks for added play value.

I'll echo what Boy Blunder and Snake said. The basic 6" stuff is great for the kids. I have a nephew who loves the line. As far as I know they are durable. He is one who will smash his stuff together. He's a little younger than your son, but as I said, they seem like the perfect fit for him.
There's also a wide range of characters. When Disney XD was airing their Marvel cartoons, there were characters from each cartoon. So it's not just the core movie cast that's out there.

Thanks everyone for the replies! I definately think the 6 inch series is the way to go, so thanks for that!

So I'm looking at getting a few or the legend series figures as well as the movie released toys. In part because some of the figures are hard to come by(iron man for example I can't find a reasonably priced movie figure) and 2, well they're so pretty and even the box is attractive to me haha. Are they quite robust? Suitable for gentle play? Im reasonably concerned with the exchangeable pieces being loose and lost, are they quite solid and not loose?

Im also having trouble finding decent sized hulk, hulk buster, thanos, and groot if anyone has any recommendations. Somewhere in the region of 7 or 8 inches would be best at a guess.

The only recent Hulk toys in that size that I can think of (that aren't expensive imports) are the Marvel Legends 80th anniversary Hulk which is only available in a two pack with Wolverine, unless you check ebay, and the Legends build-a-figure professor Hulk but he's not even sold directly and his expressions aren't classic Hulk.

Despite being the featured villain two years in a row Thanos didn't really get much in the way of toys. There are pricey imports but ignoring those the only options in the rough size range given are the Hasbro build-a-figures or the Infinity War BAF repaint which was part of a three pack that seems to have gotten pricey online since it left stores.

The only recent Groot figure I can think of is a comic one Diamond Select did but I never got it so I can't speak to its playability.

I'm sure there are other options I'm unaware of.

There was a Guardians Build-a-figure groot a few years ago. It's decent. Diamond Select Groot is like all other Diamond figures. Weird articulation, and easily sheered softer plastic. Honestly, for a 5 year old, the Build-a-figure is probably best, but most expensive.

Me? I'd just go to the park and find a big stick and put googly eyes on it and call it a day.

I have the BAF but that's five years old now and as you said expensive online. Of course the only redos of the BAF they ever did were exclusives so at this point I'm sure they're also overpriced online.

There should be a Marvel Legends Grey Hulk coming out soon. It originally showed up on Amazon Mexico and is rumored to be an Amazon or Fan Channel exclusive here in the USA. The Grey Hulk uses the same body as the 2 pack Hulk but with a different head. The figure is about 8.5" tall though.

If you want a shorter Hulk, you may want to look at the Toy Biz movie Hulk figures from 2003. There was a super posable Leaping Hulk figure that was supposed to be pretty good at the time. You might be able to find one for around $20 on eBay.

So I've let the collector in me come out and I think I'm going for the marvel Legends series, they just seem worth paying a little bit more for compared to the movie series figures.

Can anyone confirm how delicate they are? I'm mainly concerned with the additional pieces meaning they may be a loose fit and for display purposes, I wouldn't want pieces to just go missing all the time.

Do any of you guys own any SHF figures? They seem to have a good selection.

In general I'd say Legends aren't delicate at all but there are sometimes exceptions. The most recurring problem I've hit, although it is still overall uncommon, is when the figures have gummy plastic in the elbows and/or knees which feels like it can tear if stressed too much. Broadly speaking Hasbro does a good job of balancing looks and playability but it is still useful to seek out information and reviews on a figure by figure basis to see if any are having widespread problems. As for loose accessories or interchangeable parts I would just recommend a dedicated container (baggy, tin, box, etc.) to store unused parts and in my experience once a part is attached there aren't any issues.

A 5 year old would be ok with Legends figures. I wouldn't do Figuarts for kids. Hell, I don't recommend them for adults who have to have something in their hands to fiddle with. They are just for display and posing. Way too fragile for typical children's play. I have a few, some reviews on my blog, but not something I'd go crazy for as a collector. Worst part of Figuarts: They like to start lines but never finish them, and villains are few and far between.