Spider-Tracer: Spider-Man Classics – Series Two

Ahhh, sequels… Movie theaters are going to see a plethora of sequels this year, so why not your favorite Crawlspace? That’s right, gang, we’ll be taking a look at the second series of Spider-Man Classics from ToyBiz!

Classic Spider-Man

Classic Spider-Man, despite the name, isn’t really all that classic. I’m not sure what they were going for with the eyes, but they really don’t strike me as Steve Ditko-inspired. Also, the chest spider is modern, with four legs pointing up, and four legs pointing down, where as the classic spider chest symbol had all eight legs pointing down. Honestly, this was probably just an easy reuse of the Spidey body from the first series. The coloring on him looks good an accurate, however. He also comes with a rooftop display stand, complete with Daily Bugle billboard. The billboard is a little small in my opinion, but it still looks cool. Also included is a reprint of “Amazing Fantasy” #15. What’s interesting is that it’s the entire issue, not just the Spidey story. All in all, this was an okay release, but certainly nothing to write home about. If you’re looking for a better 1^st Appearance Spider-Man figure, I’d have to recommend Hasbro’s figure from last year’s Beyond Amazing Marvel Legends premium line, or even the figure from the Sentinel Build-a-Figure series (though that one is a little outdated in terms of articulation).

Battle Ravaged Spider-Man

While this Spider-Man also reused parts from the first series’ Spider-Man figure, it also featured some new sculpted pieces depicting the damage inflicted upon Spidey and his costume. I passed on this figure back in the day, but it’s honestly pretty cool, as we really don’t get figures depicting a hero like this anymore (typically, it would require too many new parts and too much paint deco). Spidey here also comes with a base that has a restrained Lizard. The base and Spidey figure are based on Todd McFarlane’s “Spider-Man” #5 cover, which is also included as a reprint.

Daredevil

What’s a good Spidey line without his heroic ally Daredevil? This Daredevil figure reuses the Black Costume Spider-Man body from the last series as a base with new hands, feet, and a head sculpt based seemingly on the art of Joe Quesada from the “Guardian Devil” storyline he did with Kevin Smith. He also comes with a set of white batons held together by a string and a holster for them on his left leg. The figure comes with a nice overspray to break up the monotony of the red plastic, and to highlight some of the sculpt’s details. Daredevil’s base is that of a church wall and window, and should you want to make it look like he’s leaping off, he comes with a clear plastic clip to hold him in place below the ledge. He also comes complete with a reprint of “Daredevil” #241. I’m not sure why they went with this issue, as they could have picked something the legendary Frank Miller worked on, or even something from the aforementioned storyline this figure is based on. Overall, this was a nice, super articulated Daredevil, and one I used as my main version of this character until 2015!

Daredevil (Chase Figure)

While ToyBiz had previously done variants of figures in the past, this chase figure, as it would later be called, was purposefully short-packed, thus making it one of the rarest figures in the entire line! In fact, it still commands a pretty hefty price today. The costume is based on Daredevil’s first costume, which was, believe it or not, primarily yellow until issue seven of his original comic! Daredevil first met Spidey while sporting this outfit in “The Amazing Spider-Man” Volume 1, #16. Yellow Daredevil comes with the same items as the regular Daredevil figure.

Rhino

Much like Venom and Man-Spider from the previous series, Rhino isn’t super articulated like the other figures, but he does have a killer sculpt! Rhino comes with his upgraded outfit featuring the studded wrist and ankle guards, as well as the shoulder armor. The figure’s paint job is also superb, giving it a sort of weathered look while highlighting the sculpt’s details nicely. Rhino has a neat damaged city base, and a reprint of “The Amazing Spider-Man” Volume 1, #41, which was also Rhino’s first appearance. While the issue doesn’t depict the exact costume this figure is sporting, it’s a very good read nonetheless.

And with that, Spider-Man Classics came to a close for a little while, before they spun off the still-popular Marvel Legends line and later returned with a refreshed look. Did you have any of these figures? Let me know if you did, and what you thought/think in the comments section below!