Morph

Year of release: 1994
Figure Number: 49361
Accessories: 4 removable heads: Normal head Morph, Crazy head Morph, Cyclops and Wolverine
Action Feature: Mutant Shape Shifter (Interchangeable heads)

Comments: Another landmark figure. Morph was the only figure never to have appeared in the X-Men comics prior to his appearance as an action figure. However, Morph did feature prominently on several episodes of Fox's animated X-Men series. Although there were past indications that Toy Biz was trying to capitalize on the animated series' popularity, this was the most blatant example of such pandering.

The figure itself is actually very intriguing. The rubber heads interchange very nicely and each head seemed to be carefully chosen to fit the body of the figure. For example, the Wolverine head, when placed on the Morph body, very closely resembles an anemic version of the Wolverine III figure. Similarly, the Cyclops head approximates the actual Cyclops II figure reasonably well. I'm afraid that the same kudos cannot be given to the other notable Toy Biz head swapping figure, the Chameleon, from the Spiderman line. The heads for that figure do not translate well with the body. One can only surmise that J. Jonah Jameson would be mortified to be represented in the Chameleon's costume (although J.J.J. may be harboring some fetishes that we have yet to see, but that's another issue entirely).

One last note about this figure. I have found that this is an extremely useful figure in the making of many customized action figures (especially X-Men figures). The body itself has few extraneous details and is of medium build. The head-swap feature makes it ideal for altering the heads (either one of the included heads or from an entirely different figure). The standard X-Uniform is also a bonus. My only regret with this figure is that no weapon was included even though the right hand is molded for holding a weapon or other accessory. Fortunately, many other figures come with an excess weapon or a weapon that makes little sense or is of little use. Even with this small complaint, Morph adds up to be a very multidimensional figure