While we’ve gotten a plethora of 6” Marvel Legends Wolverine Figures over the years, fans who’ve started collecting Marvel Legends figures over the last decade may be surprised that there hasn’t been an iconic version of Sabertooth released in all that time. In fact, it’s been 15 years since the Jim Lee Sabertooth had a new action figure released! But those waiting for an upgrade to the old Toybiz Sabertooth need not wait any longer—the X-Men Marvel Legends Sabertooth figure is now available!

The last time Hasbro tackled Victor Creed, it was with the modern Wolverine Legends Puck Series Sabertooth figure back in 2013. That wasn’t a “bad” figure by any means, but it was a modern costume for Wolverine’s greatest foe that many fans just weren’t all that into or familiar with.

But after a 15-year wait, this summer Hasbro was finally ready to try to one-up the Toybiz Marvel Legends Sabertooth with a 90s-style Victor Creed of their own! Has Hasbro succeeded in dethroning the previous king? Let’s take a look…

The first thing that’s going to pop out to many collectors is that this is a figure made almost entirely out of old tooling. The not-quite-universally-loved Hyperion body mold from 2013 reappears here again for the bulk of this action figure’s parts.

Something about the proportions on this body mold really bother me this time out in a way that I wasn’t as bothered by other recent uses of the mold (such as for Venom). Saberooth’s proportions (particularly on the lower body) just seen a little bit thick and awkward to me.

Personally, I don’t think this lower body is as suitable for a character like Sabertooth who does a lot of leaping and crouching as it is for a powerhouse like Hyperion who’s mostly standing upright.

There are only two new pieces of tooling on this figure that are apparent to me: the head sculpt and the furry boa on Sabertooth’s back and shoulders. Luckily, I think those are actually the two most outstanding parts of this action figure.

I’ve always thought that the Toybiz Sabertooth Legends portrait was rather definitive, but when I actually busted him out of one of my old figure bins I was surprised to see that his facial sculpt is too chubby and just not quite at the same level of authenticity as this new Hasbro Sabertooth. Thumbs up, Hasbro!

The snarling Sabertooth portrait on this figure looks like it popped right out of a 1990s X-Men comic book. It’s got a vicious, open-mouthed feral look to it that’s downright awesome. I’m not sure that Hasbro can ever top this incredible head sculpt for a future Sabertooth!

Now, the fur on Sabertooth’s back might not seem like a big deal, but those who have the Wolverine Legends version from 2013 can attest that Sabes actually looks really weird without that iconic back and shoulder fur.

While the fur is an add-on piece, it’s plugged in tight and is at zero risk of falling out or sliding out of place unless you force it to. The actual sculpting on this fur piece is absolutely gorgeous, with incredible texturing and the best paint wash on the whole ML Sabertooth figure. This add-on really elevates the overall aesthetic of this figure!

The paint on the rest of the X-Men Legends Sabertooth figure is neatly-applied and looks fine. It’s nothing special, but it does the job adequately. A slight paint wash on the costume would’ve been nice, though.

As far as accessories go, there’s nada besides the Apocalypse Build-A-Figure left arm. Ordinarily I’d complain we could at least use some alternate non-clawing hands or something, but it’s not like Sabertooth is gonna get into a fistfight with Logan. Base figure and Apocalypse BAF part is fine here, especially if the lack of other accessories facilitated the fur boa looking so good.

Articulation-wise, Sabertooth has basically exactly what we’ve come to expect from the Hyperion mold: hinges ankles with rockers, double-hinge knees and elbows, swivel waist/biceps/thighs/boots, ball hips, ball-hinge shoulders and head, swivel-hinge wrists and upper torso ab crunch. His lower body doesn’t always look quite right when using it, but the super-articulation is there.

Overall: While my mind isn’t melting from how astonishing this Marvel Legends X-Men Sabertooth figure is it anything, I do think it’s a solid figure that’s “good” all-around. The fur add-on and head sculpt are both highlights, and he pairs perfectly for some fun poses with the new Tiger Stripe Wolverine.

I don’t think the proportions of the lower body sculpt are absolutely perfect for the character, but I don’t think they ruin him either. Overall, this is a mostly well-executed action figure of a character design I doubt we’ll see revisited again for at least another half-decade.

GRADE: B

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