The actor playing the next villain is no longer rumor though, having been announced as Thomas Haden Church, hot off his critically acclaimed gig in Sideways. Just who he'll play is still up in the air a bit, although the odds makers have it as Sandman. Some have conjectured that it could be Venom, but the likelihood of that is pretty small.

And why does this matter in the world of toys? Because once this villain hits the big screen, we'll get more action figures of him - especially if it does turn out to be someone like Sandman - than we ever did before. Case in point, Doctor Octopus.

While he was always an A-list Spidey villain, it wasn't until his appearance in the second film that he really went mainstream. The chubby little guy has practically reached Joker status in the minds of the casual fan, and kids who never might have known his name now consider him a real threat to world peace.

Diamond Select has just released a Marvel Select version of Doctor Octopus and Spider-man. These are hitting comic shops and specialy retailers, and are retailing for around $20.

If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, you can always reach me at mwc@mwctoys.com. If you enjoy this review, take a minute to check out my other site at Michael's Review of the Week, and let me know what you think. Now on to the review!

"Marvel Select Spider-man/Doctor Octopus"

The Marvel Select line of figures was an opportunity to get some unique and more collector-centric Marvel heroes and villains. They've been doing the line for a few years now - starting with Spider-man back in 2002 - and they are generally based on the Ultimates comic book series.

That's not the case this time around, and these are actually based on a run in the Spidey books called "Negative Exposure". This is quite a new look for the good doctor, and slaps some cool on the old villain.

I've included a shot of the two from a panel in the comic, just in case there's some debate. I snagged this off a another site, and it was the best representation I could find of both of them in one shot.

Packaging - **1/2
The packaging is designed like a big book, with a wide cardboard edge on one side, just right to fit on the book shelf. I've never been a huge fan though, because these packages are giant, taking up at least twice as much space as they really have to. MOCers will have a tough time storing them, but openers can get the toy out pretty quick, with a minimum of twisties. They are definitely not collector friendly though, as I've always defined the term.

Sculpting - ***1/2
Marvel Select figures tend to do well in the sculpting area, and this set was no exception. Both figures look very close to the source material, and Ock's outfit finally manages to make him look cool. The jacket has a nice flow to it that implies movement without being exaggerated, and the detail work on the boots and head sculpt is extremely nice. The softer rubber used for the tentacles allows them to be bendy, but does mean the sculpt there is softer and less defined than the rest of the figure.

Spidey has a svelte but well defined body structure, with detailed webbing and an embossed symbol on his chest. The design is just different enough for him to stand out slightly next to other Spider-man figures, yet not so much that he looks odd or out of character. The head is elongated, as is the body, rather than the rounder look from other current lines, and I really like the way he looks on the shelf.

The scale will be an issue for some though. Both of these figures are much larger than either Marvel Legends or the previous Spider-man figures. They fit in nicely with the other Marvel Select stuff though, and if you want to mix them in with larger lines like Movie Maniacs, Sin City or Hellboy, they'll get along great.

Paint - ***
While the general paint ops on both are solid, they aren't quite as good as some specialty market figures.

Spider-man has the usual color scheme, but they've used a wash over the blue. Unfortunately, they went a tad overboard with it, and really dirtied up the costume. It's more than I like to see, although your mileage may vary. The webbing is also a little erractic, sometimes quite well done and other times very wobbly. If you pick this up at a store where several are present, pay extra attention to getting the best paint job on Spider-man.

Doc Ock is pretty monochromatic in his wardrobe, although they've gone with another darker wash to bring out the highlights of his clothing. This wash works better, probably because the jacket is so dark to begin with.

His head and face is where the best paint work is, especially his funky red eyes. The small detail work is very clean, as is the hair line, something that can be tough in this scale. There's a little gloppiness to the hands, but they match the face in tone.

Articulation - Doc Ock **; Spidey ***
Neither figure is super articulated, but Spidey fairs quite a bit better than Doc Ock, with the exception of his tentacles.

The doctor has neck, cut shoulders and a T crotch. These joints only give you some basic posing, especially since the funky coat tends to restrict his movement. However, he has those wonderful bendy tentacles, each one able to do quite a bit of posing.

They are soft rubber though, which means you will have a tough time getting them to hold him - or anyone else - in the air. It's doable, but it's not a 5 second job.

Spider-man has quite a bit more articulation, including a ball jointed neck and shoulders, pin elbows, knees and ankles, and cut joints at the waist and forearms. He can't hold a candle to the SMC styled Spider-mans we've gotten in recent years, but he still looks good on the shelf and has enough articulation to be fun.

Accessories - Bupkis
Neither figure has any accessories. I was fairly surprised by this, but it's probably understandable considering the price point remained the same for two figures. Still, it's a bummer that neither has a single thing.

Fun Factor - ***1/2
While designed for collectors, this pair is also a great idea for kids. They don't quite have the articulation that some might like though, so it will depend on how much of an joint junkie they are. The bendy arms make Ock a lot of fun, and the pair together can make for some good old fashioned toy violence.

Value - **1/2
No one has ever claimed that Marvel Select figures are cheap, but you should be able to find these as low as $16 if you look around. The usual price is closer to $20 though, and that's what I'm grading on.

Most of the time you get a figure and a display for your green, but this time you're getting two figures. Even though there aren't any accessories, and the cost of making two figures versus a figure and a display is probably comparable, getting two figures seems like a better deal on an emotional level.

Things to Watch Out For
I didn't have any issues or problems, although if you have a chance to look over several sets, I'd pay special attention to the paint on Spider-man.

Overall - ***
It seems like I've said this every time I've reviewed a Marvel Select set, but they get better every release. At twenty bucks, they still aren't the end all, but they are nice versions of particular characters that we might not otherwise see. If you're looking for Marvel characters in a slightly larger scale than Marvel Legends, or you just can't get enough of that wild man Doc Ock, this is the set for you.

It's also worth mentioning that there's another Marvel Select set on the pegs right now that you might want to check out. It's a fiery version of Phoenix, and it's definitely the most eye catching version of her I've ever seen.

Where to Buy -
Comic shops and specialty retailers, like Sam Goody or Media Play, should have these in. Online options include:

- Circle Red has this set for $17, and a bunch of the earlier sets as cheap as $15.

- Alter Ego Comics.com has the pair for just $16.

- Killer Toys has the pair for $18.

- CornerStoreComics has this pair for $18, along with just about every previous MS release, plus pre-orders for the upcoming figures.

- Krypton Collectibles has many of the other Marvel Select for $18 each, but don't have this set listed right now...they do allow you to order either the 'human' or 'fiery' version of the Phoenix though, which is pretty unusual.

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Related Links -
This is a new section for the reviews, where I cover various links that were included in the review, or extra stuff that's still related to the subject. For today:

- I've reviewed a number of past Marvel Select characters, such as Venom, Iron Man, Black Cat (mrroeww!), Wolverine, and Spider-Man.

- a guest reviewer also covered the Punisher awhile back.

- there's also been plenty of other Doctor Octopus reviews, including the 12" rotocast version, the very popular version from Marvel Legends series 8, and the original 6" movie version