Monster Masters of the Universe Classics Make-Up!

I said earlier in the month that I was a bit behind in my reviews, and there's no better testament to that than the fact that I'm covering two months of MOTUC releases at once.

Mattel is pulling out one of the bad guy big guns by issuing Evil-Lyn as the April subscription figure. The "Classics" line being primarly a homage to the original toy line and Filmation series, Evil-Lyn is presented in her Crayola Yellow skin colour - at least on the outside. For some reason her head is cast in blue and the yellow is painted on, an extremely odd decision considering that her headdress appears to be a separate piece. Like the original figures, this is primarily a repainted Teela figure, and it all works, although the colour does seem to have been made unnecessarily garish in order to stay faithful to the original series. Definitely a fun figure for the display, but I do hope we get a repainted / restyled version down the road.

Wun-dar is a bit of a He-Man in-joke that I don't quite understand, but he's the bonus figure for subscribers, so I've got him regardless and since I tend to be a completist he'll be displayed alongside the rest. Not "getting" the character aside, this is a nice repaint with what has to be the greatest loaf of bread accessory ever made in the 6" scale. Which is so significant. And yeah, that's Wun-dar.

A bit earlier in the piece was the return of one of my favourite MOTU characters from the days of old - Moss Man. My memories of my meagre childhood collection are somewhat vague (I'm quite sure I remember having more figures than I actually did) but I know for certain I had the vintage Mossy - I remember his flocked skin slowly falling off and I remember his smell, which was a different kind of pine fresh than the new scent, and I sure don't remember it being as strong as Moss Man v2. The new and improved pine scent sure lasted awhile!

This new Moss Man is one of my favourite figures in the line - I prefer the packed-in second head, as the one he's packed with makes him look a little bit too much like a balding middle aged fuzzy green guy. Like most of the males, he has weak ankles which make posing a little more difficult than it should be. I'm impressed by how unrestricted the rest of his articulation is by the flocking. His club / staff is a nice accessory - something different from all the swords and staffs that seem to abound.

I also picked up the Stratos re-issue, further cutting down the number of figures I missed in the early days of the line. He's okay from a nostalgia aspect, but nothing special, and definitely isn't going to end up in my Top Ten favourites of the line. Still, he looks pretty good on a flight stand!

Phew! With Tytus on his way (oh, and some guy with an eye for his head), I knew I needed to catch up on my MOTUC posts, so thanks for bearing with that one. I'm hoping to have Tytus in a week or so, and I'll make sure there's not such a long gap before I review the Big Guy himself.

You can see more pics at Facebook, discuss this at the AFB Forum, and comment on this post to enter the May AFB Comment of the Month Contest!

Until next time!

DC Direct busts out a great Batgirl!

Oh, will the "bust" puns never end??

The latest installment of the Amanda Conner wave of the Women of the DC Universe Mini-Bust Series is out, and it's the lovely Barbara Gordon in her Batgirl days.

While the Hughes and Dodson series of this line are probably going to come up trumps for me against this current wave, this is a character choice that works to Conner's strengths, and the fun that Conner has imbued in her design of Babs (I do love how they include the artists' sketch on the boxes of these pieces) is more or less carried over into the sculpt. It's ultimately let down by the smallest of things, which is the way Babs' lips have been painted. It's just enough to take away from the playful smirk she's designed to have. Bummer.

Great fun is still to be had, though, as she's doing the Batusi, which for some reason is called the "Watusi" on the box. Hello? DCD isn't ashamed of Adam West and crew, is it? I daresay it's just as likely the copy on the packaging was written by some whippersnapper who isn't old enough to have been raised on the correct doses of BIFF! BAM! and POW! Damn whippersnappers! Get off my lawn!

Apart from the lack of smirk and the whole "w" instead of "b" issue, this is a nice bust to have. Putting the lips aside, which is poor paint design, not application, the paint on this bust is excellent. The gargoyle base is well done, but a contrasting coloured base, as opposed to the grey which is quite similar to the base of Batgirl's outfit, might have been a better choice.

I like the larger size of the Dodson and Conner series as opposed to the smaller Hughes series, some of which look pretty diminutive in comparison to the newer models. It's a bit of a shame, though, that the different series aren't all complementary scale-wise. All up - this is very fun to have, but what could have become one of my absolute favourites in the whole line is taken down quite a few pegs by the loss of the subtle humour in the transfer from sketch to final product.

You can see more pics at Facebook, discuss this at the AFB Forum, and comment on this post to enter the May AFB Comment Contest!

Until next time!

Is Mattel about to reveal a Green Lantern Classic Line?

Action Figure Pics is reporting that members of the Fwoosh have found preorder pages for a Green Lantern Classics Series 1 from Mattel.

AFP'S link to the Fwoosh topic isn't working, but at Big Bad Toy Store it's listed with an October 2010 release date and options for a case of 6 or 8. Enchanted Toy Chest has "Mystery Figures" in the same configuration.

This move would make a great deal of sense, since the Green Lantern world is where the DC Universe has really been thriving in the last few years, and will soon become more well-known through the upcoming movie starring Ryan Reynolds. The "Classics" in the title would seem to imply that this is a comic-based line, so it will be interesting to see, with most of the GL big guns already released or about to be released in the Wal-Mart Exclusive 5-pack, how many repaints or re-issues fill this line, and just how far Mattel mines the vast Green Lantern Universe.

This is obviously all unconfirmed news until the line is actually announced, but it certainly gives us something to speculate about in the meantime. The best news at present is that it looks like whatever is being offered here isn't a retailer exclusive. Hooray for that!

You can discuss this at the AFB Forum and comment on this post to enter the May AFB Comment of the Month Contest!

Until next time!

R.I.P. Frank Frazetta - Conan the Barbarian Artist

Very sad to hear of the passing of legendary Conan the Barbarian Artist Frank Frazetta (1928 - 2010) today. Comics Beat has the news.

While his name not be familar to some, I dare say many would recognise his art. Well known for his own art, which included many famous movie posters, Frazetta is beloved to comic fans for his iconic work on everyone's favourite Barbarian (with apologies to Hagar, Thundarr and their kin).

In recent years it's been sad to see his legacy threatened by in-fighting amongst his children over his estate. In the light of Frank's passing, I hope they can finally put that behind them so that his work can be treasured for the gift that it was.

Farewell Frank, and thank you.

You can discuss this at the AFB Forum, and comment on this post to enter the May AFB Comment of the Month Contest.

JSA Wave Two: Cyclone Stands Out (and Up!), but it's Hourman by a Nose

My blog post output has been slowed down recently as a result of nothing more sinister than the very busy start of a new school term and the rescue and adoption of a beautiful new kitten to add to the AFB animal menagerie, so, there's a bit of a backlog of toys and statues waiting for a look-in. I generally to look at things in the order of purchase, but I picked up the DC Direct Alex Ross Justice Society of America Wave Two figures last week, and I felt they needed some urgent attention.

I could take or leave many of the newer members of the JSA, and as it looks like DC Direct hasn't committed to this series beyond Wave Two, I'm glad we've not had to suffer too many of them. Stargirl and Cyclone are the youngest members of the team, but also some of the more interesting, so they both definitely warrant a figure. Stargirl is already a seasoned veteran in many ways, and Cyclone, as well as being a legacy character that goes straight back to the early JSA, has such groovy powers, especially the way she can grow SO tall.... what?

Yeah, no. While I wouldn't put it past Alex Ross to retcon or reshape any character, this has to be a boo-boo of the kind that only DC Direct seems to manage. Yes, Cyclone is Giant Girl in Raggedy Ann stockings, and it's not due to her wispy hairstyle. She's just plain huge. In fact, she's taller than Superman and Hourman, without factoring in the hair. It's a shame, because this is an utterly beautiful figure. I'm going to get around this in my display by putting Cyclone on a flight stand (and putting another figure in front of her to hide the lack of articulated ankles).

Stargirl is a really lovely piece. I'm not totally wild about her face - it looks a little bit old, but then this is a Ross-styled line. Her outfit is very well done,a and in fact paint on all of the figures is excellent. The biggest niggle with Stargirl is articulation. The DCD standard issue fixed ankles means lots of fiddling with other joints to make sure she's stable.

You'd think that Giant Cyclone Girl would be the most disconcerting thing in this wave, but wait until you see Hourman's nose, which shouldn't be hard. Just try Google Earth for Canberra, Australia. My lawn needs mowing, but I doubt you'll even see it. Good Lord, that's a big schnozz! It looks like the sculptor forgot to include a nose, so they had to be applied later. Shame, because the body is a great improvement over the Total-Justice style Hourman body from the previous JSA series. Awful, awful, awful.

Kingdom Come Superman is here too. He and Hourman are the clear pegwarmers of the wave, most likely because they've both either been done or re-released recently. Oh, and because Hourman is horrible.

While I'd rather have a non-artist specific JSA from DC Direct, I accepted the Alex Ross series because it seemed the only way to get figures of these great characters. Wave One was passable, but the Cyclone and Hourman hiccups here are potential line-killers. There's several great characters in the JSA world that really deserve their time in plastic, so here's hoping DCD gets it's act together or, more likely, Mattel shows the Modern Age JSA some more love in DC Universe Classics.

You can see more pics at Facebook, discuss this at the AFB Forum, and comment on this post to enter the May AFB Comment of the Month Contest.

Until next time!

It's a Month of Wonder! - The AFB May Comment Contest!

First off, apologies for the delay in getting this month's contest up - lots of "real life" things have been in the way! Thanks to everyone who commented on last month’s blog posts. Congratulations to "pedro" for being our randomly selected winner! Pedro - your Blogger profile is not public - please get in touch with me – probably easiest to do so through the AFB Forum – just log in and message me (“Andy”). Once we hear from Pedro, his choice of either the Negative Man or Blue Devil figure from DCUC Wave 13 will be on the way when available from Mike’s Comics N’ Stuff.

Now to May’s Contest: on offer are two great prizes, either the Black Lantern Wonder Woman from DC Direct's Blackest Night Wave 4, or the Donna Troy figure from DC Universe Classics Wave 13!.It's a Wonder-ful Month indeed!

A few bits and pieces:

• every genuine comment on a post from the calendar month will be eligible for receiving the prize. I’m going to stick to my own time zone and call it at 23:59:59 Australian Eastern Standard Time – best to comment often and comment early!

  if my super scientific randomizer comment selector system chooses an Anonymous comment, I’ll skip it and go again – you need to leave a name, a link, your AFB Forum username or email addy so that I can contact you if you are the winner. Blogger comments allows you to do this, as long as your profile is not set to private – check your settings.


• you will be given a choice of one of the two figures on offer from the month’s contest – figures will be in their original packaging.
  
• figures will be sent by first class mail within the US (Mike is sending them, remember) and first class international to any overseas winner. An overseas winner can elect to chip in for Priority Mail or Insurance, but otherwise we can’t take any responsibility for a parcel that doesn’t arrive – after all this is coming out of AFB’s not dreadfully deep pockets!

Once again, thanks to Mike for making this all possible for us, and here’s to another happy month of commenting!

Until next time!

Select Indeed!

Perhaps it's just withdrawal from what was once a steady flow of Marvel Legends, but I am really getting into enjoying Marvel Select and its' offerings. I've gone from picking up the occasional release to pretty much buying everything Marvel Select is producing in recent times. I've collected a few lately without reviewing them, so here is a catch-up which includes the Marvel Select Hulk (recently re-issued), Daredevil and Spider-Man.

Hulk was part of a "Best of" release in recent times, and I was pleased to have a second chance to pick him up. This is an absolutely massive figure, and a great centrepiece for a Marvel Select collection. With the massive shoulders in the way, there's not a lot of room for movement of the head, but the head is surprisingly loose. My one quibble would be the way that the black wash that's been used to define his muscles has worked on the roughish green paint. It doesn't bear for a very close inspection. Still, this giant sized Hulk is great fun, and it's inspired me to give up my futile quest for the Marvel Legends Red Hulk BAF and go for the Marvel Select Rulk instead as a companion to this big fella.

I really can't say I've ever seen a brilliant Daredevil figure, and while I don't think this is it, it's a very workable Matt Murdoch for the Select line. It seems that giving Daredevil's mono-colour mask definition in action figure form is difficult, and that's the case here as well. Daredevil also suffers from a the same kind of unsubtle wash that Hulk has. Oddly, he comes with numchucks instead of his signature billy club. Daredevil has the odd sort of shape that plagued the Bucky Captain America figure - the ball jointed hips (which really don't belong on any action figure) make him look a bit, well, hippy. That seems like a lot of negatives! This is a good figure, but one more worth having for the Marvel Select collection than for the figure itself.

Finally, there's Spider-Man. The first thing you notice about everybody's favourite webslinger is that his head is a slightly odd, oversized shape. His white eyes are slightly oversized and run quite a distance up the sides of his head. It's a shame, because otherwise this is a great figure. The body sculpt is excellent, without the strange proportions that bring some of the male Select figures down, and the detailing on his costume is excellent. He is a bit more poseable than some of the Select figures. A winner overall, but I have to wonder if the strangeish head was design or a production issue.

One of the features of the Marvel Select figures is a detailed base, and this is the case with all three of these figures. Hulk, being a much bigger figure, has a more perfunctory metallic looking base, while the other two figures have a more substantial inclusion. Daredevil has a church spire to hang from, and Spidey has a smashed car to stand astride. For collectors who have the display space to use these bases, they are great touches, but for me, they end up in storage, and in some cases I'd much prefer a pack of two figures than a detailed base for the price.

Ball-jointed hips and potentially over-priced bases aside, one of the concerns I've had with committing to the Select line is the hodgepodge nature of previous releases, and concerns with scale, etc, but in recent times, Marvel's "big guns" have been being released in very short order and they look great together. With more on the way like the upcoming Thing, Deadpool, Cyclops and Magneto releases, a sense of a developing Select-scale Marvel Universe doesn't seem far away.

You can see more pics (including in-package shots) at Facebook, discuss this at the AFB Forum, and comment on this post to enter the April AFB Comment of the Month Contest!

Until next time!

DC Dynamics Aquaman - King of the Seas, King of the Statues

The original DC Direct Tim Bruckner Aquaman statue is one of my collecting holy grails, and I dare say will remain so, unless something dramatic happens to the secondary market prices for that great piece. While the new Bruckner-sculpted Aquaman Statue from DC Direct's DC Dynamics Statue line isn't going to fill that void, it's the first full-sized Aquaman statue in quite some time, and it's very good looking to boot.

The idea of the DC Dynamics line is the visual provided by the detailed, colourful base which envelops the legs of the character. Unsurprisingly, Aquaman's base is a water spout, complete with foamy edges. It's a tall and thin statue but is remarkably stable. Quite often with DCD Statues and Busts the end product is a little bit less than the sketch or solicit photo, but this is one statue that actually looks better than the pictures - the paintwork on the detail of the face in the profile shot on the box doesn't hold a candle to the real thing - it's a much better job. The styling choice for Aquaman is very classic - interestingly no scales on the orange of his shirt. The sculpting here is quite beautiful, with wrinkles that match the twist in his torso.

The recent Heroes of the DC Universe Aquaman Mini- Bust had a trident that was the same as what often comes with a 6" figure, but the DC Dynamics Statue gets an upgraded version. It's still flexible, but has wider and more detailed edges and prongs. While the statue looks great from a number of angles, the length of the trident does limit the options in my display.

The only downside to this excellent statue is the cost. While the price point is on par with a full sized Bowen Statue, in DC Direct terms I think these are a bit pricey. A full sized 10 - 11" Cover Girls of the DCU Statue runs at nearly half the price of this, and a massive two-character statue like the recent Batman vs. Killer Croc is the same price as the DC Dynamics, so it's a bit hard to reconcile what could basically be a well-done mini-bust on a really fancy and tall base being priced where it is, As such, the value for money will probably keep me from picking up any of the others in the series, although the Green Lantern and Batman pieces definitely appeal visually, and I love the Silver Aged Goodness of the Supergirl Statue.

While this is likely to be my one and only full-priced DC Dynamics purchase (one never says never when it come to sales!) , it's certainly a vital part of my Aquaman collection, and I keep returning to my display to appreciate just how good looking it is. With Arthur's return at the end of BLACKEST NIGHT, it's a good time to be an Aquaman fan. Let's hope DC Direct keeps the Aquaman love coming!

You can see more pics at Facebook, discuss this at the AFB Forum, and comment on this post for a chance to win the April AFB Comment of the Month Contest!

Until next time!

Mattel's MOTUC and DC SDCC Exclusives Revealed

After a false start last week, Mattel's SDCC Exclusives for the Masters of the Universe, DC Universe Classics and DC Infinite Heroes lines have been revealed on Attack of the Show. Here's the official video!

Game Reviews - E3 2010 - AOTS Exclusive

Most of the reveals have been teased or expected in some way, but we now have visuals and more detail.

The exclusives revealed and shown are:

MOTUC Mo-Larr and Skeletor Two-Pack - complete with Skeletor's Missing Tooth!

MOTUC Orko with Prince Adam "accessory". The SDCC Exclusive version of Orko turns transparent when dipped in water and has a spell book that reveals a SDCC logo when wet.

DC Universe Classics Plastic Man: deluxe figure with swappable limbs and a SDCC exclusive Plas-as-suitcase body.

DC Infinite Heroes Starro & The Justice League Set - HUGE Starro with five Silver Age JLA figures (including Aquaman!!) and a small Starro for each of their faces.

Also shown - Mego Style Ghostbusters!

This is very impressive set of exclusives, and best of all there's nothing Gleek-ish in the SDCC - only versions that is going to worry many collectors who have to buy to the web versions after the con!

Attack of the Show will have more reveals next week!

You can discuss this at the AFB Forum, and comment on this post to enter the April AFB Comment of the Month Contest!

Until next time!

Amazon Leaks DCUC Wave 15?

It might be another Amazon Glitch, but the world's biggest bookstore currently has listings up for seven DC Universe Classics Figures that haven't been released or announced yet, most of which have been rumoured for DCUC Wave 15. They're listed as "Out of Stock", with no photos as yet.

These are: (follow the links to the Amazon listings:)

Martian Manhunter (according to the listing, will have an alien head variant)

Jemm

OMAC

Raven

Batman Sinestrro Corps

Starman (according to the listing, a 50 / 50 classic / modern split)

Golden Pharaoh

Is this the real Wave 15? Will Amazon get in trouble for jumping the gun? Time will tell!

You can discuss all this and more in the AFB Forum DCUC Wave 15 Speculation Thread.

Lastest and Greatest Bronze Age Legion Customs!

Quite some time ago now, the rather amazing customiser and my good friend Dr Terrific and I started on a journey to create a complete line of Bronze Age Legion of Superheroes Customs. It began as a gift of a Wildfire custom, then a Dawnstar to go with Wildfire, and then somehow turned into a quest to complete the whole gang. Alongside Wildfire and Dawnstar, I received the first "wave" of the three Legion founders at the end of last year, and from now on Dr T will be completing the heroes in waves of four in the order of joining.

That means that the next "wave" is Duo Damsel (formerly Triplicate Girl), Phantom Girl, Superboy and Chameleon Boy. The gang arrived a week ago and to say I'm rapt is a major understatement. I'm WAY rapt!

If there was one figure in the whole Bronze Age Legion project that had to work to make the whole thing work, it's Phantom Girl. For some reason I really can't explain, Phantom Girl has always been my favourite member of my favourite super team, and her iconic white bell bottoms and pigtails look very much sums up the Bronze Age Legion style. I was very confident in Dr T to deliver, especially since he knew how important she was to me, but I am totally blown away by the result. The base is a JLA Vixen with swapped hands, and there's major sculpting work in those bell bottoms! All white could look horrible in the hands of the wrong painter, but not so here - the shiny spraypaint-work of Dr T comes through here in a big way. I am in absolute love with this figure.

Superboy might look like a simple JLA Superman repaint, but looks can be deceptive! Dr T went to great lengths through sculpting, sanding and paint to cut down the size and muscle definition of the base figure to make sure this looks like the teenage Clark and not the beefed up adult version. The "S" symbol is also redone, and the hairstyle modified to reflect Superboy's 70's "do". A great piece!

Duo Damsel had an interesting look in the Bronze Age, and Dr T worked very hard with us to find source pics and nail the colours and the hair to transform a Watchmen Silk Spectre I into this futuristic beauty. Chameleon Boy started his life as a JLA Black Lightning, but turned out 100% Durlan. The colours are spot-on, and the sculpted vest, ears and antennae make this custom work fantastically.

So once again, I am in great debt to Dr Terrific and his amazing skills. While I'm obviously helping out with costs and Dr T's time, I know this is also a labour of love for him and I am incredibly grateful. The next "wave" Colossal Boy, Star Boy, Brainiac 5 and Invisible Kid is already taking shape and progress shots can be seen on the AFB Forum. Can't wait!

You can see more pics at Facebook, discuss this at the AFB Forum (the discussion thread is here, the whole BA Legion Customs in progress thread is here) and comment on this post to enter the April AFB Comment of the Month Contest.

Until next time!

The AFB Comment of the Month Contest - April 2010!

First off, thanks to everyone who commented on last month’s blog posts. Congratulations to AFB Forum Member Westy and AFB Facebook Fan Renny Roccon for being our winners in this two prize month! Winners - please get in touch with me – probably easiest to do so through the AFB Forum – just log in and message me (“Andy”). Once we hear from these gents their choices of either the DC Direct Blackest Night Larfleeze or the Marvel Select Thing will be on the way when available from Mike’s Comics N’ Stuff.

Now to April’s Contest: on offer are two great prizes, either the Negative Man (regular) or Blue Devil figure from DC Universe Classics Wave 13!.

A few bits and pieces:

every genuine comment on a post from the calendar month will be eligible for receiving the prize. I’m going to stick to my own time zone and call it at 23:59:59 Australian Eastern Standard Time – best to comment often and comment early!

• if my super scientific randomizer comment selector system chooses an Anonymous comment, I’ll skip it and go again – you need to leave a name, a link, your AFB Forum username or email addy so that I can contact you if you are the winner. Blogger comments allows you to do this, as long as your profile is not set to private – check your settings.

• you will be given a choice of one of the two figures on offer from the month’s contest – figures will be in their original packaging.
• figures will be sent by first class mail within the US (Mike is sending them, remember) and first class international to any overseas winner. An overseas winner can elect to chip in for Priority Mail or Insurance, but otherwise we can’t take any responsibility for a parcel that doesn’t arrive – after all this is coming out of AFB’s not dreadfully deep pockets!

Once again, thanks to Mike for making this all possible for us, and here’s to another happy month of commenting!

Until next time!

These Tiny Little Metal Dudes Make-A Me So Happy!

One great thing Hasbro has been doing with its Marvel Movie tie-ins in the throwing the collectors a bone or two in the form of a comic-based line that goes alongside the movie time. This worked very well with the Wolverine: Origins product, and thankfully has been carried on with the toys for the upcoming Iron Man 2 film. There are Movie, Comic and Concept Series in the 3 3/4" figure line, and they have now hit retail in Australia. I was killing some time while waiting for the youngest AFB-ette to get fully hyped up on sugar and slippery dips at a birthday party at one of those shopping centre play-gyms / parent torture centres last weekend and came across them at a Toys R Us adjacent to the centre, so I had to pick up a few.

The big surprise of the whole gang is the greatly improved Classic Iron Man himself. I hadn't planned on buying this one, seeing as I already own the Marvel Universe and Secret Wars versions, but this one is a stand-out. The colours are more vibrant, the articulation more sturdy, and he "works" in a way that previous versions haven't. He comes with a power blast attachment which works very well, and a stand which is meant to be the blast from his feet, which has problems. He's pictured standing on this on the package with his feet right together, which is actually impossible, since there is only one peg and it's in the middle. He can only stand on this with one foot on the peg and one hanging off. Still works, but it's a but wonky. This doesn't take away from the fantastic figure. He may be a re-issue, but he's also a must have.

Despite the greatly improved Classic Shellhead, Crimson Dynamo steals the series for me, and not just because it's the Soviet Super-Soldier's plastic premiere. He's not just a first-timer - he's extremely well done. In addition to being the perfect shade of... well, crimson, his armor is so well sculpted. He comes with an optic blast attachment that rests on his head a bit like a wreath, or a crown of purple plastic thorns. The only niggle here is that his feet are a bit oddly articulated which made him a bit hard to pose, but we got there in the end. Very happy to own this one!

Comic Series War Machine is a fine piece with some interesting inclusions. A great feature here is his shoulder-mounted gun / blasty things, which have 360 degree rotation. The included plastic attachments show is that one is for zapping things, and the other is for.... popping popcorn? The only other drawback to War Machine's design is that his shoulder pads limit his arm movement somewhat. And did I mention his right hand blasty thing looks like popcorn? Pop!

There's meant to be an Iron Monger in the Comic Series, but I picked up the Movie Series version while I was at it, because he looked cool. If the Comic Series version does appear, this one will get the boot, but he's a fun stand-in for the moment.

Interestingly, Hasbro also appears to be doing a 6" line for this movie which will be exclusive to Wal-Mart. In light of the great job done with Crimson Dynamo in the smaller scale, I'd love to see a 6" version to go alongside that some of my other figures from that lil' ol Marvel toy line Hasbro seems to be slowly driving into the ground.... oh, what was it called?? Well, a guy can dream...

You can see more pics at Facebook, discuss this at the AFB Forum, and comment on this post to enter the March AFB Comment of the Month Contest! ** Remember - this month only there's also a prize for one AFB Facebook Fan, so become one while there's still time!

Crossing a Collecting Boundary: via Cable

I had a long hiatus from comics, from the time I left home in 1988 to around 2004, during which time I kept a sporadic eye on my first love, the Legion, but wasn't aware of anything else happening in the comicverse. When I "came back", I had a lot of catching up to do: not only did I miss out on an extreme number of shoulder pads, costumes with pouches and foil embossed variant covers, but the introduction of a lot of new key players, particularly in the X-Verse. Some I came to quickly love, some I came to quickly detest and some I just couldn't relate to. I'd put Cable in that third category. He'd been rescued from Liefeld-esque hideousness by the time I met him, but having missed his introduction I'd always struggled to understand his place in the X-Men World until the recent Messiah War storyline.

It was a big surprise, then, when I happened upon the full-sized Cable (Modern) Statue from Bowen Designs, that I liked it so much that I just couldn't get it out of my mind. I passed it on two separate occasions, but on a third viewing I found myself taking it home. I love Bowen Mini-Busts but have stayed away from the Statues to try and avoid that particular slippery slope, but had recently decided that the Modern Emma Frost Statue would be my first. Much to my surprise, Cable has beaten her to the punch!

Plainly put, this is just an extremely impressive looking statue. I really like Cable's stance, the colours used, and his very cool guns. This is a beautifully designed and painted piece. His techno-virused left arm is well done - nice and shiny, which is set off nicely by the use of mostly matte paints on the rest of his costume. It's a tall statue - 16" to the top of his raised gun.

There is some assembly required. Cable's guns are separate pieces which include his hands, which slot in at the wrists and are cleverly held in place with the use of magnets. The guns are impressive looking pieces with a bit of a worn look - they've clearly seen some action! The base is also a separate piece, with just one attachment, a long peg from the left leg which goes into the base, while the right foot rests atop the raised section of the base. A peg in the right foot wouldn't have gone astray - I was surprised to find the statue is a tad wobbly. Nothing drastic, but surprising for the price point.

So, my personal ban on FS Bowen Statues has been broken early than I planned. Sadly I've had to re-box Cable momentarily as he's too tall to fit on any of my shelves in their current configuration. Ah well, it was time for a refit anyway!

You can see more pics at Facebook, discuss this on the AFB Forum, and comment on this post to enter the March AFB Comment of the Month Contest! ** This month only, an AFB Facebook Fan will win an additional prize - become a fan now!

Until next time!

Battle Cat Blasts In!

I have a distinct memory from early teenagerhood of being in a toy shop and having a choice between the original Masters of the Universe Battle Cat and something superhero-y which has long passed my memory. I never had a huge MOTUC collection, and superheroes always would have won out, but I have often looked back and regretted not grabbing poor old Cringer's more amazing alter ego, not that I managed to hold on to any of my now-vintage MOTUC toys. All up, however, it made an enough of an impression that when the chance to own Battle Cat again came around, I was very keen to have it, and in fact did the very silly middle aged collector thing (detailed here) to procure it.

Once I'd sailed my bizarre journey on the Digital River, I then had a postage and shipping drama to endure, which I won't bore you with. The happy end to the tale is that a pair of Battle Cats - one for me, one for a friend, arrived safely in the end. Good thing too - this is an extremely fun creature!

On one level this fella doesn't look that different from the vintage toy that I held in my hand as a young(ish) tacker, at least my memory of it, but the thought that's been put into the redesign of this piece is amazing. As an owner of many cats over the years, it really struck me how much the articulation of this modern Battle Cat makes his movement like an actual cat. He's so articulated that it took some time to find poses that work and keep He-Man balanced. Plenty of options here for different poses and display choices.

The harness and saddle are very nicely detailed, although He-Man doesn't really sit on it much better than what I remember of the original (I did get to play with my friend's Battle Cat, even though I never scored my own). The only niggle is that either his neck is a bit loose, or his headdress is a bit too heavy for his head, because his head droops slightly. Not enough to take any of the shine off of such a fun piece!

Now that I have Battle Cat, it's definitely time that my Masters of the Universe figures get their own shelf in my display, instead of hanging out on top of the shelves. Would've loved to have grabbed some of those surprisingly elusive display stands to add to the display, but I missed out on those. Better that than having missed out on Battle Cat!

I don't think I have the energy to deal with the tension of many more Mattycollector sales, so I personally would be happy to sign up for an all-in subscription that includes the quarterly figures as well. I'd rather have the problem of selling off ones I mightn't want than having to get up in the middle of the night and scramble for the ones I do. Let's hope Mattel makes that happen for the 2011 sub!

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DCUC Wave 5 is Coming Back on May 17th!

Mattycollector.com has some great news for fans of DC Universe Classics who missed out on the Wal-Mart Exclusive Wave 5 - it's being reissued as a boxed set of 5 individually carded figures which include the Metallo Collect & Connect Pieces.

Here's the news as reported by "Matty" himself:

"Back in 2008, we released Wave 5, which was an instant success and subsequently pretty hard to find. If you missed your chance, mark May 17th on your calendar, because Wave 5 is coming back!

This release is identical to the one in 2008 − same package, same decos, not a single change to the figures. Like all our boxed sets, these are individually carded figures packed into a single box. The set has the five figures you need to build a 9” Collect and Connect™ Metallo figure. Take a look inside and you’ll find these classic characters ready to rock your collection:

• Eradicator
• Black Lightning
• Amazo
• The Riddler
• The Atom

Don’t want to miss your shot at this fan-favorite? If you’re not registered yet for emails, click here and I’ll send you a reminder. You can also follow me on Twitter where I post reminders.
−Matty"

This is good news, and a good show of faith from Mattel to try to assist collectors to complete the line. I look forward to watching eBay prices for the original Wave 5 figures plummet accordingly!
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The Marvel Universe expands - somewhat....

Hasbro continues to pump out the figures in its Marvel Universe line, and amongst the latest half dozen IronSpideyrene variants, there are a couple of new characters and a relevant new version of one that's already been done: Luke Cage, Black Widow and Thor (Modern).

Thor is the pick of the bunch. Great amount of detail in the modern costume, which I quite like. The face isn't a huge improvement over the Secret Wars version - the nose is a tad too big, but this is a good looking figure for the scale. Only small issue here is that one of Thor's helmet wing thingies is slightly askew, but only noticeable on close inspection.

Black Widow is one of the better female figures in the line. The head and face are still a bit lacking in detail for what can be done at this scale but par for the course on what Hasbro is producing across it's various lines. Her eyes aren't painted as level as they could be. She's got a great rifle accessory and her belt and bracelets are nice touches. Next to Thor and Cage she looks puny, but they are the bigger males in the line. A nice addition, but I am definitely looking forward to the 6" version which is coming out later in the year.

I'm not a huge fan of the Modern Age Luke Cage, although realistically I wouldn't expect him to be wearing the tiara anymore. Still, I much prefer the plain black tank top and jeans to the funky cap and hideous oversized necklace thingy, but displaying him without them has its own issues, especially on his back, where the top is barely painted on, quite a mess really. His arms and legs are also strangely mottled, and it's not clear if that's for effect or a production problem. A needed figure for the New Avengers display, but I'm glad he's tall, so he can be stood at the back.

It's nice that they've started to include stands with the newer waves of these figures, but they're a bit big, and annoyingly branded with the character name which makes it harder for us OCD sufferers to swap them around and use them for the characters that need it the most.

All up, while I'd prefer to be collecting my Marvel U figures in 6", I am enjoying collecting this line, and look forward to more new characters to come!

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Mattel Public Enemies: Enemies Indeed

It's been a long time coming, but thanks to various trades, eBay purchases and the kindness of forum friends, I've managed to assemble Waves 1 and 2 of Mattel's Target Exclusive Public Enemies Series, mostly to put together the Brimstone Collect and Connect figure. I'll get to the Brimmy shortly, but let's look at the regular figures first.

I'm less hostile towards these DVD tie-in figures than I was when they were first shown, because if nothing else they are very faithful to the representations of the characters in the Superman / Batman: Public Enemies animated film. Still, the decision, if it was a conscious one, to make these figures in a slightly larger scale to the DC Universe Classics line is really perplexing, and makes most of them pretty useless in terms of cross-display with the DCUC figures.

Silver Banshee and Major Force are the only two figures that have much of a chance of making it into my display, but each has some detracting issues. Banshee may be a tad taller than her DCUC counterparts, but she's still got those horribly skinny upper arms, and also has loose ankles so she tends to fall over on her face alot. Major Force's main issues are colour scheme (accurate to the DVD but not his most common appearance in the comics), a very exaggerated animated face and being a tad tall to pair with archenemy Captain Atom. I'll deal with this last one with flight stands and keep my hopes up for proper DCUC versions of both of these worthy characters.

Black Lightning is pretty pointless as he's been done better and more comic accurate, and Icicle... well, my dog needs a new toy. He might be a dead ringer for the animated version, but the animated version's crap. Mega lost opportunity to do something better with this one.

As for Brimstone? He's certainly not going to the top of the list of my favourite Collect & Connect figures anytime soon, but he's adequate. Unlike most of the DCUC C&Cs, his head is not a separate piece, but joined with the torso, and the figure suffers from the lack of detail in the headsculpt. The slightly translucent material in his limbs is a fun addition. Overall - happy to have him in the back of the collection, but he could have been done better.

So that's the rundown on what I hope is a one-off experiment from Mattel, unless they can find a way to produce figures that make collectors happy, or at least don't tease us with unwanted versions of characters that have yet to be made in the DCUC line.

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Vote on the New Marvel Universe Exclusive

..and then when you get one, send one to me, please!!

After last year's "successful" Nick Fury Marvel Universe Exclusive (so successful in fact that I still don't have one, and am not inclined to sell one of my kidneys to get one on ePay), Marvel and Hasbro are offering us a chance to vote on which figure people will be able to scalp - um.. receive as an exclusive for Marvel Digital Comics Unlimited Subscribers.

The choices are: Archangel (X-Force Uniform), Ms Marvel (Karla Sofen version) and Norman Osborn in H.A.M.M.E.R. gear. As someone who is a big fan of X-Force and not so much of Dark Reign, Archangel is my pick for sure. We'll see what the poll has to say. I couldn't find any indication of whether or not the exclusive will be available to non-U.S. suscribers, so that's a wait and see as well.

Here's the link to the poll. Remember: Vote early, vote often and vote Archangel!

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DCUC Wave 14 - Up Close

Mattel has released up close pics of DC Universe Classics Wave 14 at Facebook. This is the Wal-Mart *sob* Exclusive *sob* for 2010.

A few thoughts:

I'm really excited about Alan Scott and Obsidian appearing in this line, but not sold on the open-mouthed headsculpts - must be a father and son thing. It's a personal preference thing, and while it's good to see The Horsemen experimenting with doing something different, I just think it looks weird. Still the overall figures look great - Obsidian in particular is smashing and I hope him appearing in his classic form opens the door for more Infinity Inc. members down the road.

I've read comments about the decision to paint the inside of Hourman's cowl yellow instead of the black we might have expected. Well and good if Mattel checked on what the colour is supposed to be, but it's almost always been drawn either as black or with a shadow, so it looks weird. I suspect this will be an oft-repeated custom change for those that want it to look right. Still, it's Rex Tyler, and it's great to see the GA JSA getting so much love.

As for the other figures: Gold's face doesn't look quite right to me - a bit small or something, but the metallic finish and snap-on attachments look fantastic. Kamandi looks a little more like Kamandi here, but without a truly Kirby-esque headsculpt he still looks a bit more like a generic shirtless construction worker than the Last Boy on Earth. Zatanna's hat is a separate piece - hoorah! She looks great, but I'm still not sold on the yellow vest thingy. Tyr looks great, and while I know he's there for Super Powers nostalgia, he's a Legion villain and that's how I'm counting him.

Ultra-Humanite can only be described as Ultra-Badass. I'd love to see him in scale with the other figures, but regardless he looks amazing, and I can't wait to have him. Which, of course, will be all the more challenging by the nature of my geography, but I was very fortunate to have some great US based help in getting Wave 10, and if the distribution is on the same level I should be able to be looked after by the same great friends again. I sure hope so - despite the nit-picky points above this is a wave I'm greatly looking forward to!

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