The Buildable Hero Figures are an interesting idea. Unlike the Ben 10 sets, they rely on current pieces found in other themes. (Hero Factory in this case.) This is an excelent idea and allows for more uses of the new ball-joint system. However, these new Buildable Heroes tend to look even worst than the Ben 10 sets, or even some of the more streamline Hero Factory humanoids. As such, there are pros and cons to these models, but I feel that Captain America brings out the best of both worlds.

First of all, Capt. includes quite a bit of ball joint elements, including some of the ball joint extender pieces. He also has armor elements in red, blue, and gunmetal grey, which are always nice additions. He included a new armor extension piece in red, which fits onto his lower legs. The two unique pieces to this set are the head, which captures Captain America's face (with wings printed on the side), and the shield, which has some great printing on it and has a rod connection. For a parts pack, he's pretty decent.

Overall, the Capt. has a fairly standard humanoid build for Hero Factory elements. The cool thing with him is the shoulder armor; some ball joint connectors form a loop around his shoulders, and the added armor really fills in the gaps and beefs him up. Compared to the other Buildable Figures in the DC line, Captain America is very solid looking from the front, so I approve of the design of this shoulder armor. (Granted, he still looks fairly unarmored from behind, so he must be vulnerable to sneak attacks.) And since the shield piece is a new mold, and not just an old style disc with new printing, it fits nicely in his hand and allows for some great poses.

I should mention quite clearly that Buildable Capt is clearly a buildable figure. If you are into Hero Factory or Bionicle, then you would likely appreciate the model. If you are more into system and disregard these ball-joint systems, then the only really appealing piece here would be the shield, but it's probably not enough to get the full set.

If you are into the ball-joint system, I think Captain America is a sturdy build and looks better than many of the other Buildable-Heroes. He's a little pricy, as can be expected for Hero Factory models and licensed sets, so it might be better to wait to get him on sale. But he has a good piece count and good posability for role play, so I'm sure many young fans will appreciate him.

As my first ball-joint type set i am impressed with it.
+Nice quality material.
+Nice comic book like look= action figure.
+Tall
-from the back..as all ball joint sets...it looks empty
-has no hand weapon...just the shield





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