#MarvelCollectorCorps Review: October 2016

Our (once again) late arrival of Marvel Collector Corps' DOCTOR STRANGE box shows the sub's best and worst faces.

Review by Matt Cummings

Funko's Marvel Collector Corps was once the top of the heap of sub boxes. But with the disastrous Marvel Stupor Box and August's less-than-awesome Spider-man, we're beginning to look elsewhere. This month's Doctor Strange box is no different, at once displaying Funko's best and worst faces as we consider our future investment.

The Promise

Before we begin, let's look at the original deal and MCC's current offering: promising a value of $50, regular boxes would keep the "fluff" (their words) to a minimum with Funko partnering each time to deliver an exclusive figure. Regardless if you joined at the Founders level or took on a per-box delivery, the Year One box was offered for an additional cost of $135 after tax. That's approximately the price of 4 regular boxes. Founders (like myself) were offered first crack at purchasing these, which were billed as "bigger and better than anything that's come before" in their PR materials.

With Year One Founders already receiving a golden (and somewhat disappointing) chintzy Captain America statue for their one-year commitment, it's clear that such a 'reward' was not exactly what fans had in mind. Based on previous situations, one could see MCC's team learning from their mistake, vowing to never do it again. And yet, the problems continue with Doctor Strange, although the real problem doesn't present itself until the bottom, displaying a lack of quality and diversity with other boxes.

The Delivery
As always, we use QUALITY and TIMING to base our reviews, so let's see exactly what happened. As always, we'll end our review with some additional thoughts after the unboxing:

The Guts
The Doctor Strange movie was one of the most anticipated of 2016, and it certainly didn't disappoint, as you can read from my review HERE. Considering the response fans shared with Benedict Cumberbatch, MCC made great timing with this box. But as with Spider-man, we clearly see chinks in Funko's armor, basically giving us at-once amazing gear and then a few duds in between.

Pin/Patch
A usually solid anchor set, the usually reliable pin/patch - which gives us Strange and The Eye of Agamotto - is uneven to say the least. Simply put, Strange looks awful, not at all reflecting Cumberbatch's facial features. The pin is awesome, so call this one a PUSH.

The Comic
I really liked the variant cover for Doctor Strange and The Sorcerers Supreme (2016) #1. Although I've read much of Strange thanks to Marvel Unlimited, I haven't caught up to 2016 yet. This cover is excellent though and it's one of my favorite from the year. WIN.

The Wearable
Another fantastic element of this month's box is the always reliable t-shirt, again featuring Strange in a wicked wizard pose. Sadly, this would have been a great opportunity to highlight the various villains that attack the Sanctum Santorum, including Baron Mordo, Nightmare, and Dormammu. But this one will do just fine. WIN

Gorgeous (But Predictable) Funko Pop
And here's where things become a bit muddied. The figure is excellent, as evidenced by my photos (which are not excellent). I don't have a Strange, and the yellow really jumps (or POPs) out of the box. It's a nice sculpt and I'm very happy with the result. The bottom of the box, showing off The Eye of Agamotto, is also a nice touch. WIN.

Here We Go Again...Again
If you've heard my rants about Funko's odd decision-making regarding its 'mugs' - which are mugs in name only - then you won't be shocked at how disappointed I am to get another one here. The sculpt is terrible, giving us only the face and it's not drinkable. The head looks more like Tony Stark's than Steven Strange's. I can't tell you how much I hate filler, and it's clear that the mugs are Funko's answer to that. FAIL.

The Bottom Line

With October's Marvel Collector Corps box nearly three weeks late, it's clear that Funko shipping model has also fallen on hard times. Luckily, nothing was broken, but the contents are all over the place in terms of quality. Subscribers were recently asked to participate in a survey that showed the company wants to continue monetizing, but they were also concerned about too many Funko products being repeated year after year. It's clear they desire a refresh for 2017, but will that look like? We need less Stupor Box and more Cosmic Splendor, a bold movement towards new and innovative, something MCC did right out of the gate. Now, it just feels predictable and even disappointing when they get something(s) wrong.

Want to read our other sub box reviews? We've got them all listed below: MARVEL COLLECTOR CORPS
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October

SMUGGLER'S BOUNTY
January
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June

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