"I'm still that skinny kid from Brooklyn, now just in a big metal suit."
The first figures from Marvel’s What If? were released in 2021. These featured a full wave of standard figures, including a build-a-figure of The Watcher, and this Deluxe release of the Hydra Stomper. The Stomper was packed into a larger version of the scooped-sided Marvel Legends packaging with a large front window to display the figure and artwork to the sides and rear depicting the Hydra Stomper in action. The figure started to land ahead of the show airing and the rear text did include some spoilers as it details that this is Steve Rogers's suit, created for him by Howard Stark.
In hand, the Hydra Stomper is a solidly built figure that stands 24cm tall, just shy of 9.5 inches. This is comparable with similar oversized Stark Tech in the line such as the MCU Hulkbuster and the newer Iron Monger release. The Stomper is almost entirely made up of army green parts with varying sculpted detail to reflect the construction and makeup of the suit seen on screen. Detailing is added around the front reactor as an ice blue panel, with decals applied on either side - a five-pointed US Army star to one side and a C-15 designation to the other. Up close there are a few panels in grey to create some differentiation including on the chest, around the waist, and at the feet.
The helmet is non-removable and features the same green base and blue-painted eyes. It also includes a grey variation in the paneling - mainly around the back. The Stomper is completed by a huge jet pack that slots onto the rear of the figure by way of a single central socket. Despite the size and weight, the socket fit is tight and secure. The jet pack is again the same base green colour with a few grey vents down either side of each of the two jet thrusters. The end of each thruster is painted with black paint to reflect scorching which is the only weathering or damage added to the entirety of the figure.
The Hydra Stomper features two different sets of hands, allowing you to display it with either clenched fists, open hands, or a combination of the two. The other accessories are a pair of oversized Stark-style effect pieces in translucent yellow that slot into the jet pack to create a firing look. While the cannon built into the right-hand looks to also incorporate an effects piece these larger yellow ones are too big to fit. The fact that one of the plentiful Iron Man repulsor blast effects sits in this perfectly it seems that maybe a smaller firing version had been intended at some point and was then dropped.
Blue Repulsor Blast Not Included
While everything has been reasonably positive so far, there is a huge issue with the Hydra Stomper and that is the articulation and ultimately the balance of the figure. These larger mech suits are usually easy to stand with their wide feet and substantial weight - but for some reason, our Hydra Stomper has been given slightly rounded soles to his feet which immediately offset the enormous weight above them and cause the Stomper to rock either backward or forwards and ultimately off balance.
The articulation itself is ok considering the bulk of the figure and the Stomper has 18 points overall. This allows a decent range of movement in the arms with clever hinged shoulder armour moving in sync with the shoulder joints. The lower we go the more limited the movement, with the torso armour feeling really springy and ultimately limited to a rotation only with no forward or backward motion. The legs are restricted from full movement by their design and of course, any posing is heavily impacted by the feet design.
It is worth noting that the jetpack also features two additional points of articulation with each thruster able to fold in and out. This doesn’t add any real value and I don't recall it being a huge focus point during the Hydra Stomper episodes. The Stomper was also sold on the fact that it could be used as a vehicle for the Captain Peggy Carter figure released at the same time. In the show, she hitches a ride from Steve by holding on to the rear of the jetpack and flying into action. While the Stomper was shown to support this during initial promotions, the reality is much more difficult. While a hand grip is provided for Peggy, her own grip hand is too large to hold this securely. There is also no disguised foothold or footpeg on which to stand - the two ‘sockets' to either side are foot-shaped but not a good or secure fit for the feet of a figure. Therefore the entirety of the posing is reliant on getting Peggy balanced just right with her feet wedged as best you can into the two plates provided - a task in itself.
While the Hydra Stomper cuts an imposing figure, out of the box the piece is frustrating to display particularly through the stability problems but also through the limited articulation. While the jet pack effects work okay, more benefits would have been gained through front-mounted weapon effects, as we saw with Iron Monger. The figure had a chance to integrate with the Captain Carter figure and for the two of them to become more than the sum of their parts - and yet this too has not been engineered well enough to work for display. If you are adding Hydra Stomper to your What If? collection then invest in a quality stand that wraps around the figure's waist - or its upper legs.
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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...
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