Monthly Archives: November 2014

#0386: Grey Hulk – Transforming & Iron Man – MK29 Armor

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , ,

GREY HULK – TRANSFORMING & IRON MAN – MK29 ARMOR

MARVEL MINIMATES

So, one of the cool things about the Best Of sub-line of Marvel Minimates is that it’s a great way for Diamond to fix some issues with previously released figures. Figures that were almost there, but just the slightest bit off. They also can offer some much needed updates to important looks of popular characters. Both of these can be seen in today’s set, Grey Hulk and the Mark 29 Iron Man.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Hulk and Iron Man were released as a two-pack in Series 3 of the Best Of Marvel Minimates line. Like yesterday’s set, both characters featured here have had a previous figure in the Best Of line.

GREY HULK – TRANSFORMING

The story of Hulk’s skin color is kind of an interesting one. See, he was originally supposed to be grey (and he is in his first appearance), but the printing standards of 1960s comics weren’t up to the task of consistently printing the color, resulting in Hulk coloring changing a few times in his initial appearance. So, they decided the color had to change, and they went with green, as it was the accidental coloring they liked the best. And so, green became the Hulk’s distinctive color. It’s worth noting that Hulk’s change in palate was never mentioned in the comic itself, but it also came coupled with a slight change in the beast’s personality, which was used by writer Peter David to bring back the original look as a separate personality. As such, Grey Hulk has claimed a place as one of the key looks for the character. The last real Grey Hulk Minimate was released back in Series 7 of the main line (and even then, it was just a rerelease of an exclusive released at the same time as Series 1-4), so he was definitely in need of an update. The figure is a little over 2 ½ inches tall and he sports 12 points of articulation. He makes use of the standard issue Minimate body, with an assortment of “bulk-up” pieces. All of these pieces have seen use on previous Hulks. The torso, upper arms, upper legs, upper legs, and feet are from the series 41 Mega Rage Hulk; the hair is from the TRU exclusive World War Hulk; the torso extender is from Series 27’s Ultimate Hulk; the hands are from Series 45’s Movie Hulk. The torso cover is also a re-use piece, which has seen use on countless figures over the years. This is the best assortment of Hulk pieces available, so DST definitely chose well. The paint on Hulk is pretty great, but perhaps not as exceptional as some of the others in this series. There is a tiny bit of bleed over on the ends of his pants, and the black detail lines seem just the slightest bit muted. Underneath of the torso and waist covers, there are fully detailed pieces, which, with the addition of a spare set of hands and feet, as well as a new head and hair (courtesy of Tomb Raider’s Roth), allow Grey Hulk to be displayed as Bruce Banner, mid-transformation. It doesn’t work quite as well as the previous Series’ fully civilian Bruce, but it still looks pretty cool, and the angry face is a wonderful addition to the range of Banner emotions. In addition to the transformation pieces, Grey Hulk also comes packed with a clear display stand.

IRON MAN – MK29 ARMOR

Sometimes, Diamond, for all their efforts, doesn’t get a figure quite right on the first try. Such was the case with the original TRU release of this armor. The figure featured a unique set of upper legs, but the sockets for the hip joints were too shallow, giving the figure an odd look and making it virtually impossible to keep the legs on. Fortunately, Iron Man’s a popular enough character that a second release wasn’t unwarranted. This figure represents Iron Man’s Mark 29 armor, which is one of the iterations of his Extremis armor from the comics. Not one of my favorite looks, but he did sport this general style of armor for a while, and it’s not too far off from his movie look. The figure is about 2 ½ inches tall and he features 14 points of articulation. The figure makes use of the typical body, with character specific upper arms, as well as add-ons for his helmet, upper torso, belt, gloves and boots. The helmet, upper torso, belt, and boots are from the Iron Man in the 14th TRU exclusive series, and the upper arms and gloves from Series 45’s Iron Man Mark 7. These pieces all mesh very well together and present a nice amalgamation of the various Extremis designs. The only real issue is the feet, which are at just the slightest angle, making the figure fall backwards if he’s not posed correctly. The paint is another dividing factor from the previous release. Where the last one used metallic red and gold, this one goes for a more straight red and yellow. This is a bolder look, and it makes the figure pop a bit more. It also does a nicer job of showcasing the sculpted pieces. All of the paintwork is nice and clean, and the detail lines don’t suffer from the washed-out appearance of those on Hulk. Underneath of the helmet is a Tony Stark face. It’s clearly a modern Tony, and it has just the right amount of self-assuredness. Iron Man includes a spare hairpiece (first used on Series 27’s Ultimate Cap), a flight stand molded in clear orange, and a clear display stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like the other three sets in this series, I picked up Hulk and Iron Man from my local comicbook store, Cosmic Comix. My primary reason for picking up the set was Hulk; for whatever reason, I never picked up the original Grey Hulk. This figure provides an exceptional update to that figure, and brings Grey Hulk up to the same quality as the Green Hulk offered in the previous series. While this Hulk’s Banner look doesn’t excite me the same way as the earlier version, it’s still a fun extra look, and it adds extra value to an already awesome figure. While I’m not the biggest fan of this particular look for Iron Man, this is still a solid figure, and he offers some much needed fixes to the previous version. The third series of Best Of Marvel Minimates is a solid addition to the Minimates line-up.

#0385: Spider-Man – Spider Sense & Captain America – Marvel Now

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

SPIDER-MAN – SPIDER SENSE & CAPTAIN AMERICA – MARVEL NOW

MARVEL MINIMATES

The point of the Best Of Marvel Minimates line is to keep basic versions of Marvel’s heavy hitters in circulation. However, Marvel’s characters, more so than DC’s, have a tendency to change up their designs, leaving a few different options as to what is their “basic” look. So, Diamond Select Toys has decided to take advantage of this to have a few more A-List figures in the line. Today’s set, Spider-Man and Captain America, are a prime example of this.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

These two were released as a two-pack in the third series of the Best Of sub-set of Marvel Minimates. Both figures in this set are the second version of their respective characters in the Best Of line.

SPIDER-MAN – SPIDER SENSE

Spider-Man is arguably Marvel’s best known hero, so it’s not surprising to see him pop up again. One of the things about Spider-Man is that, while he’s pretty much had the same costume for most of his career, there’s been a fair number of minor tweaks and stylistic choices by different artists. The Spider-Man released in Best Of Series 1 was based on Spider-Man’s “classic” look, in the vein of artists such as John Buscema and John Romita Sr. This figure is decidedly more modern, taking its influence from Todd McFarlane’s version of the character. The figure is roughly 2 ½ inches tall and features 14 points of articulation. The figure uses the basic Minimate body, with one addition: his spider sense piece. The piece was previously seen on the Spider-Sense Spider-Man in the 13th TRU exclusive series. It’s a decent approximation of the effect used in the comic (though my girlfriend says it makes it look like his head’s on fire), and it’s fairly well sculpted. Unfortunately, once it’s removed, Spidey is left with a hole in the top of his head. Not too much of an issue for long term collectors with dozens of Spider-Man heads to choose from, but certainly an issue for someone who gets this as their first Spidey. Like so many Spider-Man Minimates, this figure is basically a “vanilla ‘mate,” so paint is key. Spidey’s paint is okay, but not quite as good as the rest of the series. The red is a little uneven in places, and the web patterns are out of place and bunched up in a few areas. Also, the web pattern abruptly stops on the sides and backs of the wrists, legs and belt, which, while obviously intentional, is a shame. Spider-Man includes an extra head and hair (first used on Series 51’s Nova), a webline, a jumping stand, and a clear display stand.

CAPTAIN AMERICA – MARVEL NOW

Captain America’s pretty consistently had the same look over the years, but in light of the success of the movies, he’s gotten a little bit of a redesign to bring him a bit more in line with that look. The result is the Marvel Now look, which has gotten a few toys recently. This is the second time this look has been seen in Minimate form, with the first being in the 16th TRU exclusive series. The figure is about 2 ½ inches in height and features 14 points of articulation. Cap uses the standard body, with additional pieces for his helmet, gloves, and belt. All of these pieces are re-used from the first Marvel Now Cap. They were pretty great pieces there, and they’re pretty great pieces here. If there’s one thing to be said about the new costume, it’s that it translates really well to the Minimate style. The figure’s paint is fantastic. Everything is clean and evenly applied. They’ve used a lighter blue than what was used on the TRU 16 figure, and it really helps the figure pop. The detail lines are all really nicely handled, and the design has been translated expertly. The face is interesting; I like it, and I think it’s a great Cap face, but the expression seems like something that would be at home on a more classic version of the character. Still, it’s nice to get a happy expression from time to time. Cap includes his mighty shield (From the Series 40 Cap), an extra non-shield holding hand, a spare hair piece (shared by TRU 16’s Cap and Hulk), and a clear display stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Spidey and Cap were picked up from Cosmic Comix, my local comicbook store. I hadn’t really planned on getting this set initially. I have plenty of Spider-Men, and I was perfectly content with the TRU 16 version of this Cap costume. However, seeing them in person, they called to me. A more modern Spider-Man’s not a bad thing to have, and the brighter palate on Cap further improves a figure I was already a pretty big fan of. Sure, these aren’t going to be for everyone, and I hope that the Best Of line doesn’t skew to modern, but this is a fun set.

Sometimes, things work out

Posted by Ethan Wilson in General

Carnage&BlackCat

This is a follow up to an earlier post of mine, titled “GAHHHHHHHHH!,” where I discussed two separate run-ins with my sitcom arch nemesis THE SCALPER!  That post was one of annoyance at what I consider to be one of the worst things in the action figure collecting community.  It was admittedly down-beat, and a bit angry.

Well, sometimes, believe it or not, life does give you a win.  In my case, that win was finding both of the figures that served as the scalped items in my second encounter.  Yes, I found both of them today, on sale for $4 off no less.  And that makes me feel a little bit better.  Suck it scalpers.

#0384: Hawkeye – Classic & Ant-Man – Lab Attack

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , ,

HAWKEYE – CLASSIC & ANT-MAN – LAB ATTACK

MARVEL MINIMATES

Marvel Minimates is quite a long-running line. With 60 main series, along with 19 Toys R Us exclusive series and countless boxed sets, spanning over 10 years, getting into the line can be a little bit intimidating for the new collector. Fortunately, Diamond Select Toys has come up with a solution: the Best Of Marvel Minimates. This sub-line offers updates of heavy hitter characters, and they are offered up for re-order on a near regular basis, allowing new collectors the chance to get their collection off to a good start with relative ease. What’s more, they are consistently high-quality, and they offer lots of new parts to entice older collectors. They truly are the Best Of. DST just released the third assortment of the line, and today I’ll be looking at Hawkeye and Ant-Man, two long-time Avengers.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

As noted in the intro, Hawkeye and Ant-Man were released as a two pack in the third series of the Best Of off-shoot of Marvel Minimates.

HAWKEYE – CLASSIC

Hawkeye is one of the quintessential Avengers, having stuck with the team for most of its tenure. Unfortunately, just as the Avengers started showing up in Marvel Minimates, he ended up dead for a little while. Fortunately, he recent Marvel Cinematic Universe has brought the character some new life, and he’s gotten his fair share of Minimates in the last few years. And now it seems he’s popular enough to warrant a Best Of release. Hawkeye is depicted here in his classic costume. It’s shown up twice before in the line, but previous figures were a little off, so another stab at it is nice. The figure is about 2 ½ inches tall and he has 12 points of articulation. He’s built on the standard body, with some additional pieces for his mask, collar/quiver, loincloth, arm and wrist bands, and boots. They were all previously used on the Disney Store exclusive Hawkeye, and before that the boots first showed up on the Invaders boxed set Captain America, the wrist bands are from DC’s Ocean Master, and the arm bands are from Series 25’s Iron Man. All of these pieces add up to a very nice classic Hawkeye. On the previous Hawkeye, the mask seemed too bulky, but it doesn’t seem so bad here, and all of the other pieces look great. The paint on Hawkeye is pretty solid work over all, aside from one small issue: the blue on the loincloth doesn’t quite match that on the rest of the figure. It’s not too bad, but it is a minor annoyance. Other than that, everything is excellent. In particular, I love the palate on this version. The purple and blue both feel like just the right shades. Hawkeye includes his trusty bow (from the Tomb Raider line), two pointed arrows (first seen way back in the BSG line), two rounded arrows (from the Disney Hawkeye), an alternate hairpiece (from Series 27’s Ultimate Cap), and a clear display stand. Hawkeye doesn’t really have an alternate look like some of the others in this series, but he comes very well armed, and all the sculpted parts that go into his look are really great.

ANT-MAN – LAB ATTACK

Ant-Man is one of the last two founding Avengers to “hit it big.” Hopefully, his upcoming 2015 movie will help to change that. I would imagine the buzz around that movie is what warrants his place in the Best Of line, so I’d say he’s moving up. This is the Hank Pym version of Ant-Man, and he’s had two previous Minimates. I liked the first one a lot, but it looks a bit dated by current standards, and the second one was just based on too specific a look. So, an update was much needed. Like Luke Cage, it’s not a strict update of a previous look, but rather a newer look that is close to the old ones. Hank’s look is taken from the Marvel Adventures line that Marvel was running a few years ago. It’s pretty much just a streamlined version of the classic costume, so that’s not too bad. The figure is roughly 2 ½ inches tall and he features 14 points of articulation. He makes use of the standard Minimate body, with the addition of his trademark helmet. The helmet is a re-use from the very first Ant-Man, which is reasonable. It’s still a good piece, and it’s a great translation of the comic look to three dimensions. The rest of his look is done with paint, and the paint work is really great. Everything is even and clean, and all the detail work is nice and sharp. Under the helmet is Hank giving a friendly smile that is just perfect for the character. About the only thing that could stand to be different is the shade of the blue, which seems a touch too dark. Ant-Man includes a spare hairpiece (first used on the Captain America: Through the Ages Armored Cap), a lab coat (first seen on the Ghostbusters Janosz) and a spare set of arms for a more scientific look, and a clear display stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like Luke and Iron Fist, I got these two from my local comicbook store Cosmic Comix. This is the set I was looking forward to the most form this series. Hawkeye and Ant-Man are two of my favorite Marvel characters, so I’m really happy to see them get updates. Hawkeye is easily the best version of the character to date, and is the version of the character I’ve been wanting since the line started. Ant-Man’s a really solid figure too, and while I still hope for an update to his classic design someday, this one is a great version of the character to have in the meantime.

#0383: Luke Cage – Power Man & Iron Fist – Dragon Attack

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , ,

LUKE CAGE – POWER MAN & IRON FIST – DRAGON ATTACK

MARVEL MINIMATES

So, I do really try to space out the Minimates reviews a little bit more. Really, I do. However, between my already enormous collection of them filtering into the backlog reviews and Diamond’s steady stream of new releases, they tend to be a rather frequent sub-set of reviews. Today, I’ll once again be dipping into the expansive Marvel Minimates line, with the ,most recent versions of Luke Cage and Iron Fist, Heroes for Hire. Both characters are slated to be getting their own mini-series through the Marvel/Netflix deal, and it’s been a little while since either one has seen a release, so this is a good idea for a set.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

These two were released as a two pack in the third series of the Best Of off-shoot of the main Marvel Minimates line.

LUKE CAGE – POWER MAN

Luke is the character in the set that’s most clearly in need of an update. Luke’s previously had two figures of very differing looks. They’re both from way back in the line, so they’re pretty dated (and one of them wasn’t particularly good even when he was released). Luke also marks a bit of a change for the Best Of series; he depicts the character in a look previously not seen in Minimates. Luke’s look is the one he sported while leading the Thunderbolts a few years ago. It’s probably my favorite of his recent looks, so no complaints there. The figure is about 2 ½ inches tall and he features 14 points of articulation. He’s built on the standard Minimate body, with additional pieces for the hands/gauntlets, the belt, and the tops of the boots. All of these pieces are re-use; the hands are from Series 47’s Colossus, the belt is from the X-Factor boxed set Iceman, and the boot pieces were first used on the two Iron Men is Series 25. The gauntlets sit a little too low on the arms, but other than that, these pieces off a pretty spot on take on this version of Luke. The paintwork on this figure is pretty topnotch. Everything is clean and even, the colors are nice and bold, and the detail work is nice and sharp. Under the sculpted belt, there’s a painted one, with a “CAGE” buckle, which looks really great. It’s little details like this that ca make or break a figure. Luke includes a spare set of arms and hands, an extra sunglass-wearing head, a knit cap (from the TRU exclusive Vigilante Spider-Man), a jacket (from Knight Rider’s Michael Knight), and a clear display stand. The extra pieces allow you to switch Cage into his early 2000s look. This is nice, because it was his main look for several years, and the previous ’mate was pretty bad.

IRON FIST – DRAGON ATTACK

Iron Fist isn’t quite as desperately in need of an update, but both of his prior ‘mates were just a slight bit off. Iron Fist is presented here in the look he sported when his comic was relaunched a few years ago. He’s had this look on and off for a little while, and it’s a nice update on his original costume. The figure is about 2 ½ inches in height and he sports 14 points of articulation. He’s built on the usual body, with add-ons for his mask and sash. The mask is from the Series 38 Iron fist and the sash is from the very first Toyfare exclusive Iron Fist. Both pieces are well done, and reusing them for this particular version is a smart move. Just like with Luke, Iron Fist’s paint is really superb. One of my issues with the previous Iron Fist was how washed out the colors were, and that’s certainly not an issue here. The colors are all very bold, and all of the detail work is nice and sharp. Iron Fist definitely one-ups Luke in the accessory department, and since Luke wasn’t lacking, that’s a pretty great! He includes a spare torso and arms to allow for a bare-chested look, bandaged wrapped hands (hailing from the Tomb Raider line), a pair of wrapped wrist pieces (which were previously seen on Street Fighter VS Tekken’s Heihachi), an extra hair piece (originally used on Terminator 2’s Kyle Reese), a pair of “iron fists” so to speak (first seen with Series 48’s Human Torch), a flame base (also from Human Torch), a jumping base, and a clear display stand. That’s quite a lot of extra pieces, and they allow for a huge selection of different looks. In particular, I’m happy to see the new bandaged hands included, as they are a big improvement over the pieces used on the last Iron Fist.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I got these two courtesy of my local comicbook store Cosmic Comix. The original Power Man and Iron Fist set was long one of my grails, after missing out on its initial release. I actually just acquired that set last year. While it certainly still has some sentimental value, it was definitely a set that showed its age. This set, while it doesn’t offer direct updates to those two, offers a very nice set of replacements. The sheer volume of extra pieces included with both figures is truly amazing, and I really hope this is a trend that Diamond continues. This is a really great set, and I’m very happy to have it.

#0382: Pretzel Girl

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with ,

PRETZEL GIRL

LEGO MINIFIGURES

There’s no doubt that LEGO is the king of construction toys. However, in the world of block and mini figures, they have a bit of competition. They seem to have found their niche, though, focusing on fun character archetypes, which can be used to populate many of their building sets. I don’t follow the line religiously, but I do pick up a pack every now and then. Today, I’ll be looking at “The Pretzel Girl.”

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The Pretzel Girl is figure #3 in Series 11 of LEGO Minifigures. She appears to be somewhat based on a German servant girl type of look, although pretzel’s aren’t what they’re most associated with serving. It seems they’ve tweaked her ever so slightly to make her more all-ages friendly, which is completely understandable. She’s about 2 inches tall and she’s got the usual 7 points of articulation. Like all the others in this line, she uses the basic LEGO body as a starting point, with a sculpted hairpiece and a cloth skirt added to complete the look. The hair is new to this figure, and it has the proper braided look. The skirt is handled in much the same way as capes are, just around her waist instead of her neck. Everything else on the figure is handled using painted details, which are all quite well done. Everything is nice and cleanly applied; all the detail lines are nice and sharp. Most of the detail work is on her face and torso, which are both great, but there is also some added color on her feet to represent shoes. Such things are traditionally not present on LEGOs, so it’s nice to see them here. The Pretzel Girl includes, unsurprisingly, a pretzel, as well as the usual minifigure display stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The Pretzel Girl was picked up at the same time as The Barbarian I reviewed last year. I picked up a decent selection of blind bag figures, and she happened to be in the set. I wouldn’t say she’s a figure I was dying to have, but she’s a solid minifigure. And, as an added bonus, she works really well as crowd filler for a large display of LEGOs!

#0381: Robin

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , ,

ROBIN

DC COMICS MULTIVERSE

Just when I thought I was out, they pulled me back in! Frequent readers of the blog will probably be aware of my less than stellar opinion of Mattel. For those of you who have only recently joined us, let me ‘splain….no it is too much, let me sum up: Mattel has a tendency to make bad decisions and when said bad decisions fail like they should, they like to place the fault on their fans. It’s not a particularly endearing quality. I am also not a huge fan of the current output of DC Comics. So, it would seem that Mattel holding the DC License would be a perfect partnership for me to ignore. However, I am stubborn, and in spite of my issues with Mattel and DC, I still like the DC characters and Mattel occasionally stumbles their way into a decent action figure. Such is the case with today’s figure, Mattel’s latest version of Batman’s faithful sidekick Robin.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Robin was released in the fourth assortment of Mattel’s DC Comics Multiverse line, which is their current “collector oriented” line of 3 ¾ scale figures. Robin is based on the character’s appearance in the upcoming Batman: Arkham Knight game, which seems to take fair bit of influence from the Damian Wayne Robin design. The figure clocks in at just about 3 ¾ inches tall and he features 18 points of articulation. Robin’s articulation scheme is the same as that seen on the Christopher Reeve Superman. It’s not bad, and it’s certainly better than what we saw on Zod, but he really would benefit from some ankle articulation, some sort of swivel in his upper arms, and maybe a mid-torso joint. As it is, the figure’s posing options are rather limited, which leaves him rather stiff looking. He’s good for a standing pose, but not much else. Robin appears to have a completely unique sculpt. Overall, it’s an okay sculpt, but it has some rather glaring faults. His head is a bit too small and his torso is too large, resulting in some serious pin-headedness. His torso is also rather flat, and his waist seems to sit too low, making the torso too long. All that being said, the sculpt does have some nice detail work, especially in the armor’s various engravings. The cape is not sculpted, but rather made of cloth. The material used for capes in this line seems to be inconsistent. They go back and forth between cloth and plastic with very little rhyme or reason. I personally prefer the sculpted capes, so the cloth isn’t a huge plus for me. This one’s not too bad, so there’s that. Robin’s paint is decently handled. It’s relatively straight-forward; there aren’t any washes or different finishes or anything. For the most part, it’s rather cleanly applied, but there are one or two areas, like the shoulders, where there is a bit of slop. Robin includes no accessories. His right hand looks as if it should hold a staff or something, so it would have been nice to get something, anything. As is, the figure feels light for the price.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I swore I was done with the DC Comics Multiverse line once I got Superman and Zod. So, why then did I end up with this guy? Call it nostalgia. I was visiting some family in mountains in North Carolina. We were picking up a few things at the nearby Walmart, and as I am prone to do, I wandered over to the toy section. I saw this figure and remembered something: on my very first trip to NC, back in 1998, my Dad bought me a Nightwing figure from the Animated Series line of the time. With this in mind, I was drawn to this Robin figure (for those of you confused as to what the two have to do with each other: Nightwing is an older Robin). So, here I sit in my family’s NC house with no internet connection or cellphone service writing this review and feeling nostalgic. This is certainly not a perfect offering, but I feel like it’s better than most of what Mattel and DC are putting out these days.

#0380: Shoulder Zombie

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

SHOULDER ZOMBIE

WALKING DEAD MINIMATES

ShoulderZombie1

When it comes to Minimates, Marvel Minimates is consistently the flagship line. Generally, there has always been at least one other line that takes the spot of “Strong second,” however exactly what line that is has changed over the years. Upon its introduction, The Walking Dead Minimates line took this spot. The line has cooled down a bit since its launch, but it’s still going pretty strong overall. Today, I’ll be taking a look at one of the line’s Zombies, dubbed the Shoulder Zombie.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

ShoulderZombie2The Shoulder Zombie was released in the fourth series of Walking Dead Minimates. He was included both with Alice and Prison Suit Lori, depending on which set you got. Every zombie in the line is based on a specific zombie from the comics. That being said, I’m not up enough on The Walking Dead to know exactly where this one comes from. The figure is about 2 ½ inches tall and features 14 points of articulation. The figure makes use of the standard Minimate body with a unique torso in place of the regular one. The new torso has been specially sculpted to show the gruesome shoulder wound from which the figure gets its name. It’s a pretty good piece, though it’s been noticeably toned down for the figure. This is understandable, but it’s a little bit gummy when compared to the (painted) extension of the wound present on the face. The rest of the figure is handled with paint, and it’s all done really nicely. There’s no real issues with bleed over or slop, and there’s some truly impressive detail work, especially on the face. I really love how they eyes are going two different directions. The Shoulder Zombie’s lone accessory is a clear display stand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

So, why, you might ask, do I have just the Shoulder Zombie and neither of the complimentary pack ‘mates? Here’s why: when I placed my order with Luke’s Toy Store for Series 57 of Marvel Minimates, I decided to take advantage of a rather cool thing the store offers. See, they have a pretty great selection of loose Minimates, which I’ve ordered from before. But, they also offer the chance to buy a “Mystery ‘mate”, which could conceivably be any Minimate in existence. I decided to take a chance, and this is the one I got. All said, it could have been much worse. It’s not a figure I would have tracked down on my own, but having it in hand, it’s fun enough that I don’t regret the purchase in the slightest.

Guest Review #0015: Manta Ray

Posted by Tim Marron in Guest Reviews and tagged with , ,

MANTA RAY

BEAST WARS (McDONALD’S)

MantaRay

I’m sure most people remember being a kid and asking their parents to go to McDonald’s, not for the food, but because that month there was a cool toy that came with a Happy Meal. When I was just a wee babby Tim, Beast Wars (an offshoot of the Transformers brand) was my jam, so you can imagine the incessant begging that went on when I found out it was that month’s theme. Today I’ll be looking at one of my favorite McDonald’s toys I ever had, Manta Ray. Let’s dive right in, shall we?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

First off, let me apologize for that pun, I’ve been informed that it was, in fact, terrible. Moving on, Manta Ray was released as part of McDonald’s 1996 Beast Wars promotion. She is based on, well, nothing really since she was effectively created to be a McDonald’s toy primarily. Despite her name, in Beast Mode, she is actually a mobula ray, those damn imposters. She stands about 3 inches tall fully transformed as a robot, although you can make her a little taller by leaving the beast head up. She has 6 points of articulation which is a little low for a Transformer, but it’s a McDonald’s toy, the bar can only be set so high. The sculpt is, again, what you’d expect from this kind of toy and nothing more. The legs look like legs, the arms look like arms. The head and torso are basically just blocks with some detailing, which is fine except that this is supposed to be a female character and the body does nothing to even suggest that maybe perhaps Manta Ray is not a dude. Although this may have something to do with how, in Japan, she is actually a he. Her face also looks like the front of a truck, but I guess she’s a robot so I’ll overlook that. The paint is sparse but acceptable with just a bit of bleed over on the gloves. Manta Ray comes with no accessories. It’s not a great figure by any stretch of the imagination, but you have to remember where it came from, and as a McDonald’s toy, it’s not bad at all.

 THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

As you’ve probably guessed, I got Manta Ray at a McDonald’s right alongside my chicken nuggets. I do recall being a little disappointed that I didn’t get the Rhinox toy, but retrospectively, I’m kind of glad I didn’t. Manta rays are clearly way cooler that rhinos. Besides, for a Beast Wars junkie kid, this figure easily met its fun quota which is all that really matters anyway.

#0379: Nebula & Sakaar Trooper

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

NEBULA & SAKAAR TROOPER

MARVEL MINIMATES

At long last, all of the Guardians of the Galaxy Minimates are here. And, as of today’s review, I’ll have reviewed all of them. I previously reviewed Yondu, one of the two characters from the movie who can only be found in this lineup. Today, I’ll be looking at the other character, Nebula, as well as her pack mate the Sakaar Trooper.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Nebula and the Sakaar Trooper were released in Series 57 of Marvel Minimates. This is one of the two exclusive sets from this series, though only Nebula is actually exclusive; the Sakaar Trooper was also available with Yondu in the TRU assortment.

NEBULA

Nebula is one of the movie’s key villains, but she’s absent from most of the tie-in material. It’s a shame, because Karen Gillan’s performance was definitely top-notch. This is Nebula’s debut appearance in the Minimates line, and it only missed being her debut toy by a couple of months. Nebula is about 2 ½ inches tall and she features 14 points of articulation. Nebula is built on the standard Minimate body, and she’s also a “vanilla ‘mate” meaning she has no other add-ons. Nebula has a very streamlined look in the movie, so this was the appropriate choice on DST’s part. Since she’s just a basic Minimate, a lot of importance is placed on the paintwork. Fortunately, she features some exceptional paintwork. Everything is very even, very vibrant, and very clean. Just like with Ronan, DST has gone out of their way to place the proper etched details of her clothing from the movies. Virtually every surface of the figure features some sort of detailing, resulting in a really sharp looking ‘mate. While the face is really buried under all the additional details, it’s a very good likeness of Karen Gillan. Nebula includes a clear display stand. That’s a bit lighter than the others in this series, but Nebula didn’t have any items of note that would make for good accessories, so it’s excusable.

SAKAAR TROOPER

If you feel like you’ve read my review of this figure before, that’s because you have. Aside from some very minor differences, this is the same as the Sakaar Trooper included with Yondu. If you’d like to see my opinion of the figure, go here.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like the preceding Guardians ‘mates, this set was purchased from Luke’s Toy Store, along with the rest of Series 57. While this set isn’t as strong a set as yesterday’s Gamora and Nova Corps Centurion, it’s still pretty good. I feel like most of the issue is that I’ve already seen half of this set before, and it didn’t really knock my socks of then either. Still, Nebula is a truly exceptional Minimate. It’s always really nice to see the occasional ‘mate which plays up the strengths of the base body. The Sakaar Trooper isn’t my favorite, but it’s not a bad Minimate, and it does look nice to have Ronan and Nebula flanked by two of these guys.