Chase Pics: Justice League Unlimted Display! (and other updates. ;] )

5 long years after the last episode aired, I've finally gotten off my lazy ass and opened up all the JLU figures that I have.  The reason I took so long was partly laziness, partly because I'd discovered DC Universe and Marvel Universe figures were more poseable (and up my alley), and mostly because I've never had the space to display 'em all.

Well, after getting married and moving into our own place, I finally have a whole room I can devote to displaying stuff!  Even then, I realized that packaging was taking up a lot of space.  And I mean a LOT.  That also meant that I was buying more stuff than I had time to open.  (Weird, right?  Ok, maybe not...)

I guess I had the lofty ambition of reviewing every toy I bought, thinking that I could do it because I'm a self-professed cherry-picker and proud of it.  But boy was I wrong.  There ain't no way I can review toys faster than I buy them.  The verdict?  I get a brand new JLU display!

I needs me Justice Lords Wonder Woman!!!

Read on for more updates! ;)


Yes, I realized after setting this up, that I need more bad guys!  Even my Justice Lords aren't actually the real thing--you see, I'd picked up the J-Lords Superman, Batman, and Hawkgirl 3-pack over the Supes, Bats, and Wonder Woman pack because the former was harder to find.  I intended to then try and get WW loose somehow.  The only other difference between the two 3-pks was that Supes and Bats had thes weird circuitry markings on their shoulders.  I couldn't recall any moment when that had appeared in the JLU series, so I shrugged it off.

Then while re-watching the entire 4 seasons with Melissa, I finally spotted the circuitry versions of the J-Lords--they were Braniac clones in one of the season finales!  I'd been cheated!  By myself, no less, but still cheated!

Haha, na, it isnt that bad.  I'm still happy that I got those Justice Lords clone because I really love that episode/story arc.  It just means I have to go back and get them, this time hopefully with Wonder Woman!

Besides the JLU, I also cracked open some sealed DCUC figures to round out my JLA Magnificent Seven and "Reserves" display.

I love this display--I may yet get to reviewing some of these guys, especially the ones involved in Brightest Day!

And I also beefed up my Masters of the Universe Classics shelf!

Still have Evil-Lyn and He-Ro I need to open. I'm such a slacker!

Geekcreek's Top 10 Guest List!

No, this isn't a list of who I've invited to swim in creek...of geeks.  It's a Top 10 List from Chase Variant's first ever guest writer, Geekcreek.  He's a toy geek (like most of us) whose also a globe-trotter (unlike most of us), who takes some of the most beautiful one-shots of GI Joes against real life landscapes.  If you don't know of him, check out his site, simply entitled Greek Creek!

But the guy s not just a one-trick pony, oh no.  He also does lists! If you haven't read those, check this one over at Poe Ghostal's Points of Articulation.

Yeah, he sure loves his Joes! (As do lots of us!)

So without further ado, I give you Chase Variant's first ever Top 10 List by Geekcreek!


Geekcreek:

Just as the Western media heralded the arrival of the new decade in January 2010 despite the fact that it did not begin until January 2011, the action figure scale I am discussing today is no longer technically three-and-three-fourths inches, but something closer to four inches. Still, we call it three-and-three-fourths inches, right? Huzzah for consensus reality!

As a geek who moves from country to country every couple-few years, I have recently grown to love small-scale action figures for their portability—Star Wars toys and G.I. Joes and Marvel Universe figures take up considerably less luggage space and cost less to ship than do their larger counterparts in such series as Masters of the Universe Classics and Marvel Legends.

But there is a special quality to toys in this scale that goes beyond mere convenience. Something intangible, but satisfying—so much so, indeed, that I find myself wishing that all my favorite properties were to scale with my G.I. Joes.

And so it is that I invade Chase Variant to bring you...

Ten Toylines That Should Be Produced in the 3.75-Inch Scale

Before we get to the list proper, there are two properties that warrant an Honorable Mention:

First, the world needs WWE wrestlers in the 3.75-inch scale… again. Seriously, Mattel, bring back Build n’ Brawl, already!

Secondly, the DC Universe needs to join the ranks of Star Wars and Marvel Universe… for real this time; Mattel’s efforts with the DC Universe in this scale thus far have been embarrassing where both sculpts and articulation are concerned.

And now for the ten: 

10. Transformers

One could make the case that the Transformers series just needs a scale in general—pick a scale, Hasbro, any scale, and stick with it consistently! Fighter jets should not be the same size as firetrucks and racecars! We geeks are a fragile, delicate lot, and these issues are upsetting to us!

But while we’re wishing, let us get specific: Transformers toys in a 3.75-inch scale would be transcendent. Understand, I am not suggesting that the Transformers should be four inches tall—I want them to be to scale with figures that are four inches tall. I want a series of G.I. Joe-scale vehicles that transform into robots that tower over their human counterparts.

The San Diego Comic-Con will feature a compromise of sorts in its exclusive G.I. Joe Sky Striker jet, repainted to resemble Starscream’s alt-mode. This jet won’t transform into the robotic sycophant we all know and love, but it’s a start.

09. Spawn Classics

I suspect that few geeks are mourning the loss of Spawn in the toy aisle. I admit that I don’t particularly miss Spawn, either. I looked back at the early Spawn comic books recently, and the HBO animated series and live-action film, too, and none of it holds up or is in any way essential, and while McFarlane Toys has earned its place in action figure history, and while its Spawn toys deserve much of the credit for the company’s success and notoriety over the years, the nearly complete lack of articulation in series after series of Spawn toys showed how out of touch with the collector market McFarlane Toys had grown. Spawn is essentially a dead license today, where toys are concerned.

I am convinced it needn’t stay that way.

The Tenth Anniversary Spawn figure and the recent HALO series prove that McFarlane Toys can imbue a figure with first-class articulation without sacrificing the breathtaking sculpts that brought them to the dance. If McFarlane Toys dared to release a new series of Spawn action figures that are compatible, size-wise, with Star Wars and Marvel Universe figures, featuring the beautiful sculpts for which they’re known and the articulation collectors tend to forget they can produce, Spawn could be a contender again.

The name would have to dictate the content of the series: Spawn Classics. The first wave would feature Spawn, Clown, Overtkill, Tremor and Violator, replicating the lineup of the first-ever wave of Spawn toys back in the mid-1990s. (Lacking only Medieval Spawn, whose fate is tied up in courtrooms due to a complicated series of lawsuits between Neil Gaiman and Todd McFarlane.)

For fun, each figure’s accessories could include a miniature replica of its laughably outdated (if stunning at the time) Series 1 counterpart… and Spawn could inexplicably come with a board with a nail in it, just as he did at the start.

08. Movie Maniacs

I’m not the McFarlane Toys fan this list might be making me out to be, and I’ll say here what I said above: this series would need to adhere to modern standards of articulation in order to succeed.

Beyond that, this entry is little more than an excuse to request G.I. Joe-sized action figures of Robocop, The Fly, and Jason Vorhees.

Is that wrong?

07. Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel

There have already been two action figure series devoted to Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. Unfortunately, each series boasted inconsistent sculpts and mostly uninspired articulation.

Meanwhile, Joss Whedon fans are a crazed bunch whose obsessive thirst for all things Whedon cannot be quenched. As such, any toy company willing to take a chance on a series of attractive, articulated, readily available at retail, affordable, Star Wars-sized Buffy and Angel toys would be rewarded with absurd amounts of money.

Buffy and Xander and Illyria and Lorne deserve a toy aisle resurrection... and so do characters from another Joss Whedon property…

06. Firefly/Serenity

Realistically, the TV series Firefly never set the world afire, financially speaking. Serenity’s success was fairly modest, too. But I predict that a G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra-style series of Firefly/Serenity action figures would be a wild success for one simple reason: its fate needn’t rest exclusively in the hands of Firefly fans. When that Star Wars collector gets sick of troopbuilding Clone Troopers and that G.I. Joe nerd decides to take a break after buying his 500th Snake Eyes figure, a Han Solo-like Captain Mal and his motley crew of space ruffians would seem mighty appealing as an alternative and a supplement; the aesthetic of Firefly was so real-world and gritty and understated that a proper series of action figures faithfully reproducing that aesthetic could blend in to practically any other series of toys.

05. ThunderCats

Bandai would have been wise to have adhered to Mattel’s Masters of the Universe Classics scale with its upcoming ThunderCats series, as there is a lot of fan crossover between the two properties, and many a disappointed geek who would have enjoyed displaying his Lion-O and He-man alongside one another may just skip ThunderCats 2.0 altogether out of spite.

The 3.75-inch scale is nowhere near as natural or intuitive for ThunderCats as the MOTUC scale, but I recommend it anyway. Why? Because fans of this scale will buy damn near anything produced in this scale.

Imagine Storm Shadow wielding Panthro’s nunchucks, or Cobra Commander with the Sword of Omens in his hands… Make it happen, Bandai!

04. Pulp Adventure All-Stars! 

Alright, yeah, so I made this series up completely. But can you blame me? Why is it that in 2011 we still don’t have proper action figures of Sherlock Holmes, The Shadow, The Spider, Long John Silver, Ned Land, and Allan Quatermain?

And while I’m dreaming, why not make them Star Wars-sized?

…oh hell with it, I’m such a charitable guy that I’ll also let Hot Toys produce twelve-inch versions.

03. Centurions

For proof of the viability of a Centurions resurrection, look no further than Sigma 6, which in its first series especially seemed to be clearly inspired by The Centurions.

Wait, I forgot—collectors hated Sigma 6. Alright, bad example…

Still, one suspects that Joe-sized updates of Ace, Max and Jake—and Doc Terror and Hacker!—would get the toy bloggers talking.

02. TMNT Classics

Again I force the word Classics into an entry. And why not, it seems to be working nicely for Mattel.

The name “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Classics” would open the door to figures based on the original Mirage comic book designs, figures in the style of the Jim Henson suits from the first live-action Turtles film, figures inspired by the vintage animated series and even figures based on whatever new direction Nickelodeon decides on for the Ninja Turtles property.

And the 3.75-inch scale would mean that the Turtles—and Leatherhead and Casey Jones and the Rat King and others—could finally chill out with your Yoda and Reed Richards figures. ‘Cause that’s what you’ve been clamoring for, no doubt.

01. MOTU 

This is as good a place as any to copout with the concession that I don’t necessarily want these properties to abandon their existing scales. It would be financial suicide for Mattel to abandon its MOTUC scale for its Masters of the Universe figures, for example.

On the other hand, that series sells with sufficient briskness that the property could probably sustain a secondary series of 3.75-inch figures, as well. A smaller scale would also make new playsets such as Castle Greyskull and Snake Mountain more likely.

And at the risk of alienating ninety-percent of my toygeek colleagues, I’ll lay down the gauntlet:

This series must feature 2002 reboot-style sculpting, ‘cause not everyone is content with MOTUC’s fawning rehashes of squat, interchangeable toys from the mid-1980s.

…but yeah, I’ll take the MOTUC articulation, thanks.

Take those asskickingly awesome sculpts from the failed MOTU relaunch of a decade ago and update the articulation and make them to scale with Sith badasses and Cobra assassins and the Avengers, and it’d be the event of the year for myself and thousands like me who have no life.

Masters of the Universe Classics Eternian Palace Guards

No namers.  Minions.  Collateral damage!  D-listers.  Calefare (meaning bit part actor--and hence expendable--in the Chinese dialect of Cantonese...)

But we love them all, whether they are Stormtroopers, Rebel Commandos, Iron Man 2 Assault Drones, or COBRA Troopers!  Without them, the Empire would be an empty place, Justin Hammer wouldn't know what to do with his time, and GI Joes would have no one to warm up on before laying the smack down COBRA Commander.

Without the Eternian Palace Guards, who would Prince Adam get to do his bidding?  Who would go to the Burger King drive thru for King Randor?  Who would Man-at-Arms get to boss around?

But that's not why we love them so.  We love them to bits because they lack star power.  The toymakers, feeling bad for these poor fops, make up for their lack of charisma with...tons of accessories!  (And lots of new tooling.  Ok, maybe not the Stormtroopers but ya get what I mean. ;])  Just check out GI Joe's Pit Commando.  Or the tooling on Iron Man 2's Ground Assault Drones.  Heck, the Eternian Palace Guards are no different!

In fact, they might even be better, lots better...more after the jump!

Like: The accessories!  1 halberd, 1 spear, 1 mace, 1 axe, 2 shields, 2 full suits of armor with 4 interchangeable chest pieces, and 2 helmet mouth-guards.  And as if that weren't enough (it never is!) 4 interchangeable heads!  Talk about value for money! 

Like: That they didn't just give them accessories, they also gave them action features.  The mouth guards are removable (and fit on nice and tight on the helmets), the chest pieces are interchangeable a la Battle Armor He-Man, the heads all fit very nicely, while every piece of armor can also be taken off.

Also, the back of the guards' armor, like Man-At-Arms, have two clips where you can snap on their weapons--this means these guys can do what all excellent action figures can do: have their stuff as well as carry it all!

Like: That the accessories (along with the figures themselves, of course) are highly detailed.  Chest pieces, weapons? shields? Armor for sure, and heads!  Oh, the beautiful heads!

Dislike:  The clipping mechanism for the shields.  They're hard to clip on snugly without bending the ends of the forearm armor.  Also, the clips on the shields have been painted silver, which comes off onto their wrists wherever you clip it on.  Both these guys had quite a bit of silver paint flake off from the shields onto his hands that I had to gently scratch off with an exacto knife.  Even then, they've left stains which can be seen if you look carefully.

The thing I dislike the most about the shields from this line it's their bearing mechanism.  They would have been better off with the more elegant solution they used for the 200X line: handles.  Handles instead of clips.  The figure can then hold onto his shield the same way he holds any sort of weapons.  Clipping just causes paint scratching and chipping, especially after doing it a number of times.  Holding stuff is way better because even if there's paint wear, it's on the inside of your figure's hand where it's much harder to spot.

Dislike: That I'll need two more bodies for the other two heads.  But if I get another 2-pack, I'll need another four bodies for the extra heads.  It's a crazy, I tell you! ;P

Like: I know it's odd, but I also like the fact I have an extra two heads.

Hereabouts in this part of the world, we tend to be able to find loose figures from Mattel that are quality control rejects but have somehow found their way onto the secondary market.  DC Universe figures are a the most abundant and you can find loose Aquamen (both orange and gold), tall Thaal Sinestro (I just got one), and most any of the figures that have been released so far.  Of course, the older ones are harder to find now and the newer ones sometimes beat their packaged versions onto the street, but all can be found for as cheap as $12 (US$10).

Now, MOTUC figures have been surfacing as well for about half the retail price here.  If I can find myself a couple of cheap bodies, I'd jump all over them.  The only catch is that they're likely to be missing their weapons, which I can deal with.  But if they come without armor or have some severely stuck joints, then it's a problem.  Yes, it's confounding--but still fun nonetheless! :P

Like: That the heads have 4 very distinct looks.

A flunky looking pale head (sorry Scott Neitlich, Mattel's Associate Brand Manager), a dark-skinned head, who might be the rookie Clamp Champ, a Catman head, and a Snake head.  This gives the Eternian Guards diverse looks without sacrificing the army feel or looking too heroic all on his own.  We can't have any of these guys upstaging Man-At-Arms, much less He-Man now, can we?

Like: Got love that MOTUC articulation!  This line has the best articulation to aesthetic ratio for a 6" figure.  Even if you take the articulation on its own, these guys beat out DCUC and Marvel legends for the quality of the joints (He-Man boot ankles notwithstanding.  But they've corrected those with Vikor...)

When you compare whether the joints break up the overall look of the figure or not, MOTUC comes out on top for having the least breakages of sculpt. (This was always my problem with lots of Marvel Legends figures.)  The leg/hip joints come to mind most for MOTUC, because they're so small, yet so flexible and almost invisible!

Like:  That the paint is excellent!--shield clip chipping issues aside.  Great face and eyes, with a sharp job done on all the heads.  And this is consistent over both the sets I opened for this review.  So a shout out to and huge thanks to the Rangerlord, who was more than happy to loan me one of his two 2-packs for the benefit of greater toy reviewing!  Thanks bro! ;D

"Let's go Clubbing, boys!"

Dislike:  That I missed out on Man-At-Arms both when he was initially released and also when he was re-released!  And there's no sign on the horizon that they might re-re-release him.  The agony!  Is anyone else in the same boat of painful Man-At-Arms-less-ness?  Who will will led my Palace Guard now?  Please don't say Prince Adam!...

RATINGS

Aesthetics: 9/10 - This is an awesome looking set of two figures.  They've both got highly detailed armor with great orange pint and superb skin tones on each of the four faces.

The blue paint on belt is a very striking blue, which pops nicely against the darker smooth tone of the matte green.  The eyes are especially painted well, with only Scott's paint slightly looking up.  The heads are crisp overall (especially after you pop 'em in the oven for a quick bake.  I kid, I kid...)  The armor's orange is also rendered beautifully-- it's hard to do a good orange without looking gaudy.

Poseability: 9/10 - As if being a standardly articulated MOTUC figure wasn't enough, these guys get tons of accessories to pose with.  They have so many things to hold and swing and wear that they might as well be called the Eternian Palace Supermodels.  If there's an issue at all, it that the armor gets in the way of them striking those poses.  Then again, armor always does that, whether it's in real life or in the 6" fantasy sci-fi world of Eternia!

Fun: 10/10 - Army builders are always fun but those aren't as good as army builders with tons of accessories.  But those aren't as good as army builders with tons of stuff that have great play value.  That's where these guys fall--from the heads to the masks, to the armor to the interchangeable chest plates, these guys got it all!

Value: 10/10 - Yes, they cost twice what you'd normally pay for a single carded figure but you'd never get that much accessories with one single guy.  Also, I appreciate that there's a line like this where collectors can pay a little more for better overall quality than say, your average off the shelf retail action figure.

Overall: 9.5/10 - I just love these guys!  They're like Eternia's best buddy cops and remind be of all those TV cop shows and movies where there are cops and they are like...er...buddies--like Will Farrell and Mark Wahlberg in The Other Guys.  They won't ever be top notch characters and will never out-hero the hero but by gosh, they'll get it done, much like this Eternian Palace Guards 2-pack gets it done for MOTUC!

Chase Pics: Battle Cat - The Alternative Mode of Transportation

I just love Battle Cat!  I'm sure those of you who picked him up while you could also do.  I reviewed him yesterday and if you haven't seen it yet, I took a whole bunch of pics because he looks simply astounding, especially with He-Man.

In fact, he looks so awesome with He-Man that I wanted to put other guys on him and shoot the photos.  But that would've made the review a lot longer and I didn't want to have to try and squeeze all the pics in.

So naturally, I took more pictures of him, this time with different riders.  Here they are! (After the jump. ;])

Battle Armor + Battle Cat = Win (Unless your name is Skeletor, then it's FAILZ)

Travellin' back in time to let 'em ride Old School.  If only King Grayskull didn't look so bored!

He still looks bored!

King Hulk too!  Maybe it's the burden of kingship...

Remember how I said different riders?  I lied... Battle claw scratch!

Ya didn't think I'd leave ya without a funny, did 'jya?