With Marvel and DC pretty much taking over entertainment for the past decade or so, plenty of kids are clamoring for superhero action figures for the holidays. But what I think is even cooler than Chris Evans in miniature (not that I’d complain if I had the full-size version, ahem) is a new company that lets you customize your own superhero action figure, right down to the sex, skin tone, name, and superpowers.
Started by a husband-wife team, Hero Me Lab is a small company I discovered when they reached out to send me an action figure to check out and…wow. Color me super impressed.
(Get it?)
Kids get online, enter “the lab,” choose their hero’s face, then get to work customizing one leg and one arm, giving their hero powers from cheetah speed to bionic power to tank strength.
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There’s even an amphibian leg option, which bestows the skills of super jumping, super swimming, and perhaps the ability to stay in the pool a good 10 minutes after his parents yell for him to get out and dry off and put on some more sunscreen, please. That’s for your creative kid to decide.
The result, as you can see, is impressive. Even more so than I had expected. You get a really sturdy, generously sized action figure with plenty of points of articulation. It comes well-packaged in a reusable rocket ship with a handbook that my daughter raced to fill out. Extra special touch: A card addressed just to her (you add your child’s name on the customize page) introducing her to the superhero by the name that she had chosen. So great!
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Now, there aren’t unlimited customizing possibilities; don’t expect that you’ll get one that looks just like your kid, with glasses or freckles or red curly hair. But you do get enough options that kids will definitely feel like they’ve made one all their very own.
And I kind of love that none of the combinations allow you achieve 100% strength across all four skill categories because hey, no one’s perfect. Not even our own new member of the family, Cheetah Woman.
Obviously this is one amazing gift for kids. But because the customizing process itself is so fun for them, it might be nice to give a child a gift certificate so they can create their own from scratch; though, you can just create an action figure you know your kid will like, all for under $40.
Or, if you want to splurge, check out the ultimate hero bundle, which comes with all the basics, a poster and t-shirt, plus a pair of capes: One for your kid’s little hero, and one for your little hero. Just don’t expect the latter to fit in the rocket ship box.
Create your own custom superhero action figure online at Hero Me Lab. Thanks to the company for sending one to CMP for consideration.
