Iron Man Mk XXI Midas

Review by Prometheum5

Iron Man Mk XXI Midas was the first Hot Toys release for Iron Man 3, the most armoriest of all the Iron Man films.  The Midas suit is described in in The Art of Iron Man 3 as a ‘high altitude suit’, I assume as an expansion of the first film’s concept of the ‘gold titanium alloy from the Seraphim tactical satellite’ to prevent icing problems during high altitude flight.  In layman’s terms, Midas is a gold repaint of the Iron Man Mk VII suit seen in The Avengers.  Always the enterprising company, Hot Toys releases the Midas suit as a repaint of their Mk VII toy as a convention and Sideshow exclusive in 2013.  The mold is exactly the same as the Hot Toys Iron Man Mk VII that I reviewed previously, just with less accessories, so check that review first for more detail on the gimmicks and features.

The box for the Mk XXI follows more along the lines of the bold, flat graphic designs of Hot Toys’ Avengers boxes than the newer Iron Man 3 boxes we will get to in future reviews.  It’s bold and shiny with foil and sharp printing.  Inside the toy and display stand are stored in two plastic trays.

Iron Man Midas stands a bit over twelve inches tall in 1/6 scale, shown here with the included display stand.  The stand has a spot for the included flight rod, but has the light up features of previous releases of the stand removed.  The battery cover is still present on the bottom, but it has been glued in place and the screw hole filled with a cap.  Midas is a pretty lean package, and that extends even to the base, apparently.

The back shows off all those lovely flaps and mecha details.  The Mk VII design has more air brake flaps on the back than most suits due to the addition of the FAST packs, which are included for the Midas design.  The paint job is immaculate, with multiple tones of gold all smoothly shaded and lightly weathered with some chips and scuffs.  Some parts are a creamy, light gold, while others are closer to a bronze, combining for a sophisticated, nuanced look that moves past the standard ‘gold repaint’.

Articulation is still just alright.  The Mk VII mold has fairly limited movement at the ankles and hips, so it cannot do particularly wide stances and has balance issues when it does.  Still, in the right pose it’s a sleek and powerful design.  LEDs in the head, chest, and hands complete the look.

Midas can kneel, but he’s nowhere near flexible enough to do the poster pose.

The joints are all tight enough that, with a little finesse, Midas can balance in a pretty nice running pose.  Looks like he’s coming in for a landing with all brakes deployed.

The accessory count for Midas is pretty slim, but what is included is still nice.  The alternate shoulder FAST packs with open missile pods are included, but the open leg pods are not.  The missiles are crisply painted, but get a little lost among all the other metallic tones.

Also included are the swappable arm missile pods.  These pop on snugly and look great.

Other than that, it’s just hands.  Midas comes with fists, articulated hands, and the repulsor blasting hands with the bent wrists, along with the swappable wrist guards needed for repulsor poses.  Nothing too fancy, but all you need for some solid Iron Man action.

I couldn’t help myself from taking this shot of Mk XXI Midas next to the Mk II.  The shiny silver and shaded gold tones look so good together.

That’s pretty much it.  Iron Man Mk XXI Midas is a gorgeous, non-essential repaint for the most dedicated of collectors.  It was tough to get when it came out, available for only a short while on Sideshow for $299.99 before selling out.  The Iron Man Mk VII came out for $229.99 a year earlier and came with far more accessories.  There was definitely a hefty ‘exclusive tax’ for Midas, but as an Iron Man diehard, I had to have it.  Considering it sells for almost twice that now on ebay, I’m happy to have gotten it for what I did.  It’s a little thing, but I like being able to display Midas with all the FAST packs and extra armor, and then displaying my Mk VII in the more stripped down mode.  So, yeah, totally worth $300 for that.