Swords and Spaceships

This is what you can build if you buy all five sets. I would have done so, because I really like Darktrooper action figures, but Wal-Mart (the chain these packs are exclusive to) decided to charge $17 a set for them, so it seems like I won't be doing that after all. I haven't been buying much from the Star Wars line in the last year or two, and things like this are why. It's just a bank-breaking chore to keep up, which begs the question- do I need to keep up? Hasbro really did everything I could have possibly wanted, and that was two years ago, so it's kind of been a strange relationship with this line since then. And now for something completely different: my vintage Star Wars collection.

I received my MOTUC Man-At-Arms this week. As impressed as I was by Hordak, MAA is even better. Of course, Duncan was always one of the better figures in any incarnation, due to the armor and the colors used on the toys. Like Mer-Man, the contrast is quite striking, and makes you pay more attention to the figure than you would otherwise, so you notice more things about the figure in turn. Like his finely detailed and well-painted armor, or the intricate detailing on the helmet on both heads. Yes, you get two heads with this figure, one clean-shaven to represent the original figure's appearance, and one with a 'stache, to represent either his Filmation or MYP/200x appearance. Duncan also features more accessories than any other figure thus far, befitting his status as Eternia's master of weapons- his classic mace, a small laser pistol, and two swords. One is a regular-issue Eternian sword, and the other is a new version of the sword He-Man carried in the 200x line, now retco...

unmitigated awesomeness Man, I'm over the moon with these new figures. This line is really taking off now. I'm a little worried that they're really running through their big names so soon, but you never know when the heat on this line may die off, and since this Matty thing is an unproven business model, this line could end in three releases from now. So I'm glad that Scare Glow is in November. Trap Jaw looks great too, but I'm pretty sure the 200x figure is still my favorite rendition. The rest, are neat, but I think Zodak or Adora will be the first figures I pass on.

My Joe collection continues to grow. It's more movie stuff than anything, but I did get a few Generation 3 items- the Resolute 5-pack, Cobra Diver, the Joe 5-pack (on clearance!), and the SHARC w/ Deep Six. The movie stuff I've acquired since the last post- Shipwreck, Boob Armor Scarlett, Destro, Desert Ambush Duke, Elite Viper, Ice Viper, TRU exclusive Firefly (beyond awesome), and the Pit Commando, who is also awesome. I had written this movie line off as bunk, but Hasbro really could reconquer the market with this line of GI Joes. Quite a few collectors like this line, but the real question is will kids dig it. It doesn't seem like kids ever got into the 25th/G3 line, and how could they with guys like me buying everything? But I just think back to the JvC days when Hasbro last tried to market to kids, and not doing so well. Maybe parents just don't want to buy war toys for their kids anymore. Especially at $8 a figure.

I only own four figures so far from the line- Storm Shadow, Snake Eyes, Baroness, and the Paris Pursuit Snake Eyes, but I have to admit- I'm very impressed by them. Whether or not you like what you've seen from the trailers about this movie, if you like great GI Joe toys, I'd suggest picking up a few of these. They're great, and they're in scale with the 25th Anniversary line you may or may not have been buying for the last couple of years. I humbly suggest either Snake Eyes figures, but if I had to choose one, it would be the Paris Pursuit version (pictured above). The trenchcoat is a new thing for Snake Eyes, and even if you don't like the movie line, it'll fit in well with your 25th collection. Your best bet right now is Target, since Wal-Mart and TRU seem to be waiting for the weekend even though Hasbro gave the OK to start selling them on the 6th.

Well, the man part is obvious. The bat part is obvious in the ears and the Horde symbols. The pig is less obvious. It's in the nose, and if you ever saw any of the She-Ra cartoon, you'd know that whoever Filmation cast to voice Hordak gave him this awful snort that sounded like a pig, so that's why I picked the title. Anyway, UPS dropped off my Hordak figure today. Apparently, since I don't live in what they consider a war zone anymore, they just leave it at the door. Works for me. I gleefully opened it when I got home from work, and there it was- the first new Hordak action figure I've owned since my fourth birthday in 1985 (which is also in June. Huzzah.) Hordak is a great action figure. All the things that made Hordak back then look so great are present, and there's a few added flairs- namely, the staff that the 200x incarnation carried. It's the best of both worlds. He also carries a meaner-looking crossbow and little bat dude that the vintage version ha...

So I bought this a week or two ago. I opened it tonight, and it's one of the few purchases that made me go "cool" as soon as I opened it. It's Soundwave from the Revenge of the Fallen toyline. I had a hell of a time finding it. No local retailer bothered stocking the preview toys until a week after the release of the regular line, so I was Soundwave-less for like three weeks, which in this internet age, is like a lifetime. Memes rise and fall in less time, for instance. Apparently, 'Wave is a satellite and a space cruiser in addition to his robot form. I really can't tell one from the other, so I'm just going to assume his true form is the satellite, since that keeps with Soundwave's function while still making him different from Frenzy in the first movie, who ostensibly was Soundwave in all but name. (Of course, had the producers used Soundwave's name for Frenzy, I would still be up in arms about it, but I'm an ornery fanboy who is prone to su...

Yes kids, the toys for the new Transformers flick are out. The first one I bought? One that probably isn't in the movie. But look at this dude. It's an antiquated vehicle that transforms into a freakin' robot! That's steampunk-y, and I like it. It reminds me of that story IDW published when they first got the TF comic license, called Hearts of Steel. The TFs were trains in that story, and I love the idea of the TFs coming here at a different era in history than whatever entertainment they're in says they arrvied in. I suppose Ransack here would have arrived during WWI. Which gets me going- what about a bunch of TFs from WWII? It's an idea ripe for the picking, but would probably only appeal to dorks like me. At least I got the WWI biplane. Ransack here is a Scout class TF, meaning he'll set you back $8-9 at retail. Not cool, when a mere year ago, you could get a Deluxe for $10 and a Scout for $6. Considering the money I've spent on this shit (and the f...

Picked up my Masters of the Universe Classics Zodac today. This is the only figure thus far that gave me pause- do I really want to spend $30 on a character that's a lame-o? I had Zodac as a kid, and never really found much use for him. Of course, he was 50 cents at a garage sale in 1986, and it was a He-Man toy, so I couldn't pass him up. But now it's 2009 and he costs $30. I went ahead and bought him anyway. I'm glad I did. Zodac Zur here is the first figure in the line that includes that other great MOTU staple, the laser gun. It's kind of small, but considering the guns in the vintage line were too big, I forgive it. His armor is much more detailed this time around, adding what looks like a jetpack on the back. His helmet and armor look almost exactly the same as they did in the 80s, just much more detailed now. It's not so obvious in pictures; it's much more so in person. The guy is called a 'cosmic enforcer' and is tasked with keeping things in...

Ejector- Decepticon toaster I reckon Hasbro is out to prove it can sell anything that has a Transformers name on it this summer.

It's a beaut. I'm shocked he's this early in the line. If Mattel finishes the Horde in the next year, they'll have updated almost entirely the toys I had back in the day. I would post a link, but that might be in bad taste at this point. If you can remember the email address for submissions to this site, I will let you see the image. (but that goes all the way back to 2005, so we'll see what happens...)

As I mentioned earlier, I'm in the process of moving. In this, I've found several Star Wars items I hadn't gotten around to opening. For instance, I found a pack of Pit Droids and Battle Droids on 2007 cards, and two more Biker Scouts, which brings my total numbers of Biker Scout action figures to 12. Which is great, since the Biker Scout is my favorite trooper from the saga. I also opened three Evolutions sets- Padme, Rebel Pilots II, and Sith Lords. I've left the Sith one boxed for damn near 18 months. I'm kind of disappointed it took so long, since I have a new favorite SW figure after opening it- Darth Nihilus . I also opened my Lucas Family set, which is a great boxed set of their background appearances in Revenge of the Sith. It's basically a set of background aliens and a Jedi Padawan and was a terrible seller when it was released, since it was overpriced. I got it for $10, and it's a steal for that. I still have yet to open a Death Star Briefing set ...

Long time no update. I am in the middle of moving, yet again. You never realize how much shit you have until you have to move it. I haven't bought much lately- I did finish up my collection of Star Trek 3.75" duders, for now. Then I bought Diamond Select's model of the original Kirk's Enterprise, from the 1960s TV series. It's tres nostalgic, if I knew what that meant. Friday sees the release of the MOTUC Zodac, as well as the Transformers: ROTF preview toys. I will probably buy neither, since I'm needing to watch the cash. I will probably spring for Zodac, though. I'm a dork like that. I boxed up my TFs from the first movie recently. I kept Prime out, for now. I think he'll be on display at my new place, since he's badass and I can't afford the new Leader Prime. Which reminds me, I still have all my higher-end collectibles to box. Fuck! I hate moving.

I have mentioned here that I'm getting pretty geeked for this new Star Trek movie. I picked this up recently, since I never did get the Transporter Playmates did for their TNG line in the 90s. I wanted this right away. I'm glad I got it. I haven't seen the movie at this point, so I can't tell if it's accurate, but who cares- it's fun. Want to know how it works? So would I. Here's what I can tell you: Take one of your 3.75" Trek figures and place it on the included blue base. You put the figure and base in the designated spot, put the transporter thingy over the figure. You press the delta shield, and lights and sounds, and your figure has disappered behind a mirrored piece of... something. Then you take the transporter thingy off the base, and place it wherever. Then, to make the figure reappear, you hold two buttons on the side of the thingy and press the delta shield again. You remove the thingy and your figure is standing there! It's like magic o...

At least that's what Mer-Man's eyes here say to me. Big, bulbous, soul-devouring eyes! Hideous. And such. I picked up my Masters of the Universe Classics Mer-Man from UPS on Friday. It's a great figure, and really indicative of what Mattel can do when they want to. Of course, this was a hard-won purchase. I battled for an hour on mattycollector.com, ended up with three orders which I had to cancel two of, and then I had to fight with UPS to arrange a Will Call to pick the figure up since they insist on delivering to my residence in the afternoon when I'm at work. As you can tell, Mer-Man's main feature is swappable heads. The Modern version is one of the Four Horsemen's interpretation of how the original cardback art looked. The Original version is how the original toy looked. Clearly, the modern version is more interesting to look at, but I'm glad to have to option to swap heads if I so chose instead of having to buy two figures. I will say the original ve...

Michael Bay Signs $50M Deal To Fuck Up 'ThunderCats'

I'm suffering from extreme hype build-up leading into the new Star Trek movie. I'm not quite as geeked as I was before any of the Star Wars movies, but I'm quite a bit older now. Anyway, I picked up Playmates' version of the redesigned Enterprise last night, and it's without a doubt the crown jewel of their roster of product. It's smaller than I expected. I thought, judging by the size of the box, that I'd have to put the nacelles and those arms onto the hull, but the ship came fully assembled, with every detail painted on, and no stickers. Which was great. It's substantially smaller than the Playmates ships from the 90s, but it does look pretty good with DST's ships. Hell, it's almost too big scale-wise for them, but if all these ships had a consistent scale from two companies across fifteen years, I'd be shocked. It looks great next to my DST Enterprise-E, so that's all I care about. I was a little annoyed that I forked over $30 for a m...

Clicky. It's awesome. Lots of death. Plenty of kick-ass to go around. I can see why Hasbro might have had cold feet about releasing this, though. It's pretty violent, though I do believe the audience that (currently) buys GI Joe stuff is my age anyway, but that probably won't be the case this summer when the (blech) live-action movie is released.

Y'know, I'm really becoming enamored with Hasbro's new lines of 3.75" Marvel figures. Even though they don't have the fit and nice finish that the Star Wars or GI Joe figures do, it's still pretty amazing that they manage to stick all that articulation into these little figures. I should also mention that these are much sturdier than any Toy Biz Superhero Showdown figures, which were terrible, terrible figures. I wish the Marvel Universe line was stocked better, though. I can understand that the Wolverine line has a bigger push, but dammit, I want a Captain America. I really missed collecting Marvel toys. After the dip in quality and higher price of Hasbro's first wave of 6" Legends, I quit, and it's great to buy these characters again, in a scale compatible to most of my collection. Plus I don't feel obligated to buy whole waves, which is a major selling point. (Damn BAFs.) If I were to recommend one figure, I'd suggest Modern Iron Man (pi...

GI Joe: Rise of Cobra Duke figure Seriously, does Channing Tatum NOT look like an assclown on the packaging? Granted, the guy could kick my ass nine ways to Super Bowl Sunday if he ever met me for saying that, but still- assclown. And here, Mr. Tatum practically admits the GI Joe movie is going to blow dogs for quarters. Clicky. After reading that, I hope this movie bombs so terribly that studios have no choice but to faithfully adapt classic cartoons for live-action movies, or, they call their movies by antoher name entirely. GI Joe could have been called something different entirely, and I'll gamble that would have helped them come August.