Damn Subzro, your comment fits perfectly into what I wanted to address in this thread, my unadulterated love of everything IM/WM, repaints that are superior to originals and the love/hate that had been the talk of the Mk. XLVII.
Firstly, agreed on Retro Sneaky x10000 and Milk/SE WM (though I do love the diecast re-release), Mk. XLII was absolutely my “Rescue” suit as soon as the first aftermarket Potts helmeted headsculpt was released (and subsequently swapped out for the minor upgrade that came with the Potts/Mk. IX bundle) plus I prefer Retro Bones over OG Bones, Gamma>Striker, Tank>Heartbreaker (I know I’m probably the only person who prefers Tank) and while I wouldn’t say that Mk. VII SZ is actually superior to all the other Mk. VII’s, it is one of my favorite variants.
Now onto the love/hate of the Mk. XLVII... When the figure was announced there seemed to be 2 major camps: 1. People loved it mainly because it reminded them of the Ultimate Armor or just liked the color scheme. 2. People who hated it because it was just a repaint, or an “unfinished armor” or the cash grab or the Marvel laziness excuse.
What’s made me want to comment on this is the seemingly 180° turn a bunch of people took when seeing the final product, movie or reviews. I’ve heard and read comments where people think it’s superior to the Mk. XLVI, comments about the clean headsculpt being a huge selling point and even more so the empty helmet (which hasn’t been on an IM figure since the Mk. II AU). I’m not trying to start anything here, I just wanted to voice my praise for the HT IM line. It’s my addiction; I buy them all (excluding the Power Pose and the plastic re-releases). And honestly, I’m a fan of both 46 & 47 but having my 47 posed with the open helmet with all the nice silver/gunmetal pieces, it’s just striking In my opinion.