Handful of Heroes (Toyline)

The Marvel Handful of Heroes toyline was a rather odd sub-set of toys from the Marvel Universe Family. Handful of Heroes are cheaper, multi-packed groups of 2 inch tall solid plastic figurines in a pre-posed position and no paint. Each pack comes with eight figures and one extra "bonus" figure hidden behind a cardboard wall. Despite the advertisment, the bonus figure is just a random figure that can be obtained with the others, and in some cases, can be a figure already included in the pack. There are currently 60 unique sculpts in the line, but 240 different figures. In order to help sell the figures, a game is built in to the figures, and each pack contains a play mat that flips over to show a checklist of all the figures in the respective wave the pack is from. The rules are a little...unclear, but it seems to involve flicking figures at other figures like a little plastic super-hero bowling match.

For whatever reason, the Handful of Heroes is treated like the red-headed step-child of the Marvel Universe family. Unlike every other series, they have absolute zero representation at conventions and shows, and where most series have waves officially announced with press pictures and fanfare, new waves of Handful of Heroes just occasionally appear at stores- which can be incredibly frustrating due to new waves being mixed in with old waves and which wave being bought is unclear until the package is opened. Nevertheless, Handful of Heroes has managed to carve out a small but steady niche for itself in most toy aisles, insignifficant as it may appear.

Figure Types
While each wave boasts 120 different figures, there are only 40 different sculpts- each sculpt being available cast in three variants. The usual pattern is that each figure comes in a solid version, the mold simply cast in a single color and plain which shows the sculpt better and is easier for painting and photographing, as well as two "funner" versions-a translucent cast version, where the sculpt can be seen clear through and a glitter version, which is just a translucent figure covered in glitter. This strategy has made a lot of fans complain because it encourages the "collect them all" attitude with minimal effort on Hasbro's part. Figures that were re-issued in future waves are reissued in slightly changed colors, though it is often hard to tell the difference. The pattern is also occasionally broken by figures that choose to use a different color in substitute for one of the three variants.

There is one other major exception to the template- the Super-Rare figures. These are simply one of the major characters from each wave- characters like Captain America, Iron Man, Spider-Man and Wolverine, recast in a single stand-out color, often either silver or gold, which is only seen on the Super-Rare figure. While the exact ratio of how often a Super-Rare is packed is unknow, it's not incredibly likely, hence the title. It is also currently unknown if these Super-Rares take the place of one of the three variants, as this would push the number higher then 120 per wave- but some argue this helps contribute to their "legendary" status.

Wave 1

 * Cyclops
 * Nick Fury
 * Beast
 * Hawkeye
 * Doc Ock
 * Green Goblin
 * Dr. Doom
 * Mandarin
 * Black Panther
 * War Machine
 * Venom
 * Nightcrawler
 * Iron Man Mark 1
 * Wolverine
 * Thing
 * Sabretooth
 * Classic Hulk
 * Abomination
 * World War Hulk
 * Gladiator Hulk
 * Magneto
 * Colossus
 * Dead Pool
 * Angel
 * Iron Man
 * Spider-Man
 * Classic Iron Man
 * Spider-Man
 * Captain America
 * Spider-Man
 * Astonishing Wolverine
 * Classic Wolverine
 * Rhino
 * Absorbing Man
 * Iron Clad
 * Armageddon
 * Red Hulk
 * Juggernaut
 * Hulkbuster Iron Man
 * Ufoes X-Ray

Wave 2

 * Professor Hulk
 * Mindless Hulk
 * All Ages Hulk
 * Hulk
 * Iron Man Mark 1
 * Wolverine
 * Thing
 * Sabretooth
 * Black Panther
 * War Machine
 * Venom
 * Nightcrawler
 * Doc Ock
 * Green Goblin
 * Dr. Doom
 * Mandarin
 * World War Hulk
 * Dark Hulk
 * Hulk as War
 * Maestro
 * Bi-Beast
 * Onslaught
 * Zzzax
 * Madman
 * Iron Man
 * Spider-Man
 * Iron Man
 * Spider-Man
 * Captain America
 * Spider-Man
 * Astonishing Wolverine
 * Wolverine
 * Thor
 * Punisher
 * Colossus
 * Silver Surfer
 * Spider-Man
 * Spider-Man
 * Iron Man
 * Iron Man