Super Mario K'Nex wave 5

Maybe it's because I've started collecting Amiibos, or maybe it's because the whole wave is variants of already released figures, but when I saw the new wave of K'Nex Mario figures I realized I did not want a single one.

And I had a gift card, so I wouldn't have even needed to spend real money.

Gorn

Found this dude at the Dollar Tree. I've been hovering around these Kre-o Star Trek single figures in the past but never felt that it was worth $3. But for $1? Sure.

The Gorn never appeared in the Star Trek movies, so I'm assuming this design is based on the horrible cgi version from the Entrrprise tv show.

I like the uniqueness of their legs and the ball jointed hips. Otherwise.... Meh. The tail piece prevents the torso from staying steady on its peg and the head looks nothing like the dinosaur lizard from the classic tv series.

Pikachu

Ionix Pokemon figures are out. These are pretty much just Tenkai Knights transformable bricks except they turn into Pokemon (or Ash Ketchum) instead of generic warriors.

Pikachu doesn't transform from a regular brick but rather from a round ball thing that unfolds into hemi-spheres which you can attack Pikachu parts to. Kinda disappointing for $6.

But I'm a sucker for Nintendo licensed brick figures... As my continuing purchases of Mario K'nex can attest to. 

Waluigi and Bowser Jr.

Man, I hate Bowser Jr. His existence seems to erase the Koopa Kids from SMB3 and Super Mario World. But other than that I don't care about him. Still... Original character in this line with completely new tooling, so that makes

me want it. I still would have preferred one of the Kooplings. Roy, Iggy, Wendy, Ludwig, Lemmy, any of them.

Meanwhile I love Waluigi because of how blatantly ridiculous he is. Evil Mario is popular? Let's introduce Evil Luigi! Evil Mario is named Wario because "W" is "M" upside down? So Evil Luigi should be Tuigi or Puigi, right? No! Waluigi, so he's forever associated with Wario. And no, they're not brothers. What the hell is going on? And why the hell are both of these guys so hard to find? 

They're packaged like one per box. And the codes on the back are deceptive. Waluigi isn't denoted by an line under one of the 7 numbers on the back, but rather a double line under a number which is already used to denote another figure if it has a single line under it. They've done that in the past when there were 8 figures in a wave, but this time there are only 7 figures. Each one could get its own number! But no, instead you can easily mistake Waluigi's code for Mario's code.

Boo blind bagged anything!

Princess Peach Birthday Girl Cart

Many years ago when I was really into the Mario Kart K'nex sets, I bemoaned the lack of variety in the car designs. Most of them were just recoloring a few basic cars, with no cars really capturing the spirit of the personal cars from the games. Then they released 4 of the personalized cars and I realized that for the price they wanted I couldn't be bothered.

Of course now they're on clearance and hard to find, but I picked up this Princess Peach set when I could. It's another Princess Peach figure for me to put aside, another banana peel, and a pretty neat looking K'Nex car. Oh sure, the motor is one of those "pull back and let go" engines but it's designed to be swapped out with a battery powered one so, yes, this baby will go on the Mario Kart tracks! And the body is one solid piece, with very few actual building block elements to any of the car, so it should be a pretty solid racer. Weirdly the crown emblem on the front of the car is a sticker you have to apply yourself, so I guess the idea is you could have gotten one of these and put the Donkey Kong sticker on it if you wanted to?

Meanwhile, who wants to discuss how problematic it is from a social and feminist standpoint that they made sure that Princess Peach's vehicle was the pink one associated with parties and cake? Or is that a discssion for another day?

Clearance Blast

Hey, the Toys R Us Clearance Blast is now at the stage where everything in the blast is at least 80% off. So a lot of things are under $2, which is a magic price where I realize it's cheaper than me buying a hamburger so why not. The downside is that what's leftover isn't very good. But here's some stuff I picked up this weekend.

Heroclix from those app games which also come with figures. Final price: $0.60. I pretty much just wanted these for the X-Men HeroClix, especially 90's Cyclops. Hell, I don't even play HeroClix, I just like them as tiny vinyl statues.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. K'Nex figure. I feel like I knew they made Nascar K'Nex, but they never appealed to me. But the chance to get a minifigure for under $0.50 was too strong a pull. I have no idea if this actually looks like Dale, but I doubt it. Meanwhile this minifigure sucks. The Pac-Man, Super Mario, and Angry Birds K'Nex figures are much better. I guess they need a video game license to make a good minifigure.

A $0.40 pez dispenser? Sure! That's how much 3 columns of Pex normally cost. So I'm basically getting a free Pez Dispenser. And it's a Muppet. Even better!

$0.80 for minimates? I already have two of this set, and I'm totally going to get it. That's like $0.80 for a Cardassian army builder. Score.

Hey, BattleBeast minimates! Better known as the minimate property that made me realize I don't need every minimate property because the more intricate with unique pieces the figure gets, the less like a minimate it looks like and the less I want it. But for under $2 I wouldn't mind seeing how they do a four legged minimate.

I've been thinking of getting this Kre-O Cityville set for a while, and now that it's under $1 I have no reason to not get it. I'm really impressed by the mechanics of the claw. I'm also really impressed by how well this building set works. I'd totally be up for buying more mechs in this scale, but they don't make them.

It's a World of Warcraft Pandarian on a mount. The Pandarians are a race in the game who have a mystical Far East kung-fu society which is why this post is getting a Toys Depicting Asian tag. I'm actually pretty impressed by the mount, especially since it's a giant turtle and you can take the shell off and put other bricks in its place. It's like a hermit crab, but with a horned turtle instead of a crab.

Oh, and I also picked up some Muppet Whatnot kits because at 80% off they're now $13. Well, the blue ones are. They're keeping the other colors the same price, and I think I know why. They're re-releasing them but with new accessories and new UPC codes. I saw one of the new one, instead of a black goatee you get a brown Magnum PI mustache. Instead of the black wig and green wig you get a white wig and rainbow wig. Stuff like that. Weirdly, based on the cost of individual eye and hair parts ala carte, it's still a better bargain to get the new set rather than the individual parts separately (parts that are near impossible to find online since FAO Schwartz doesn't like selling Whatnot stuff unless you buy a $100 custom made job from their New York Whatnot shop) since you get a free body with them.

Trypticon

Trypticon was originally a robot dinosaur that transformed into a city. They've since made some versions where he's just a robot who transforms into a dinosaur, which is lame, but considering people mostly remember him as a robot dinosaur, it makes sense. Sadly the Kre-O Trypticon Kreon minifigure doesn't transform into a city, just a robot, but I'm slightly okay with that because tiny robot dinosaur.

The Kreons that have been released in anticipation of the Transformers 4 movie, what with the dinobots and such, have been pretty interesting. They actually get new sculpted parts to help in the transformation, and some of them actually look vaguely like the animals they're supposed to transform into. And even cooler, some of them actually use all the same pieces so the figures actually are transforming, not just putting on a new costume and being pushed onto their sides.

Lady Jaye

I swear I always thought her name was Lady Jaye until the internet corrected me about a decade ago. So anyway, I picked up this figure because 1) it was on sale and 2) I was wondering how Kre-O would handle a female Kreon. And now I have my answer: NOT WELL.

Whereas other block figures usually heavily emphasize painted curves or try to feminize the face, Kre-O has instead decided to pull back and apply those more subtlety, which is a problem on a tiny block figure. With no long hair piece (or any hair piece at all, which means Kre-o's Lady Jaye is meant to be rocking a bald head) this figure very much looks like "guy with really red lips."

Also, this is the first time I noticed the expanded ends of the arms to allow for the insertion of the hand pegs. It makes it look like the figure has flesh colored wrist bands... or a swollen wrist that really should be looked at by a medical professional.

Also: Why the hell do I keep getting Kreons? They're never satisfactory.

Traffic Cone Zombie

I've only been able to find these figures at Toys R Us for $3.99 and that seemed way too much for what you get, but I gotta admit, the number of joints that this guy has almost makes it worth the price.

Almost.

As in, no, it's not worth $4. GET IT? I DID NOT THINK I GOT MY MONEY'S WORTH.

That said, I do like the extra articulation. The heads are ball joints, which makes them semi-unique for building brick minifigures. And I'm digging the 70's style for the zombie. The traffic cone's a little difficult to keep on his head, but it's a nice interpretation of a sci-fi traffic cone. (Unless traffic cones have antennas now and I just haven't noticed. RC Traffic cones? The future is so bright that I have to wear tinted prescription glasses.)

I might get other figures from the set if there's one of those "buy one get 1 half off" sales that Toys R Us likes to do.

Inky, Blinky, Clyde or whatever they call the ghosts from Pacman now.

K'nex Pacman blind figures were on Clearance so I decided to get all the ghost characters because I love the generic army builders they come packed with, and I'm a fan of the old school bedsheet design for ghosts.

K'nex super mario minifigure blindpacks, wave 3

Let the hunt begin!

WWE Stackdown Wrestling Ring

A building brick wrestling ring? I've wanted this ever since the WWE Stackdown sets were announced. Of course it's ridiculously expensive.

So first things first, this is C3, which is the Art Asylum building bricks that they created to make vehicles the first time they tried their hand at DC Comics minimates. Then as now, the bricks didn't feel as solid or strong as Lego bricks, but that's a complaint that can be leveled at almost all brick building sets.

In this particular instance though, it's a real problem. You see, the larger plates have a tendency to warp a little, so trying to stack a plate on top of another plate results in frustration as one corner keeps popping up, no matter how hard you try to flatten it or make it stick to the plate underneath. Which wouldn't normally be a problem except that this ring build requires you to place four plates on top of four other plates and the end result was I just removed an entire layer of plates from the build to get the bricks to stay attached to one another. So the base isn't as solid as it should be.

Actually, nothing sticks to the plates very well. Those steps keep feeling like they're about to pop off on their own.

And that's my main problem with this set. The bricks don't feel solid once you connect them. They feel flimsy, like they'll break apart if you just leave them there. The final build doesn't feel strong. This could also be an issue with how the build is constructed, the placement of bricks doesn't feel like they're forming a strong foundation to build off of.

On the bright side, once it's all put together, it looks nice, even if I have ignored using the provided cardboard bunting for the ring. It's just too branded for my tastes.

The minifigures are very basic. They lack the iconic look of Lego minifigures, or the Lego feeling of solid plastic. They're more like Mega Blok figures, but with a surprising amount of articulation. Even so, I've ignored most of these in favor of using minimates. (The first waves of DC Minimates came with C3 sets, so their feet were designed to plug into building bricks. Since that time all minimates have what are called "C3 feet" which means they can be plugged into any traditionally designed building brick.)

Jokey Smurf

From the Mega Bloks blind packed Smurf figures. I wanted one ever since I saw these guys on the All Things Fett blog. At about $2 a pop they're overpriced but at market value. I went with Jokey because I liked the character when I was a kid since his gimmick was exploding presents. Everyone knew the prank but they still fell for it, proving that Smurfs are stupid. I think there was a great episode where Jokey was cursed by magic so all his gifts were exactly what the person wanted and that made Jokey depressed.

Which kinda means Jokey is a dick. And they made a minifigure of him before Handy, Hefty, or Baker. Good for him.

Like all the blind packed Smurfs he comes with a character specific accessory, in this case an exploding present. Good call. It also makes him pretty easy to find using the squeeze and feel method.

Family Guy K'Nex and Mickey hulk

Saw these at Toys R Us recently. Can we just agree that these look grotesque?

Okay, the Meg/Brian figures look decent, but the rest look horrifying.

Meanwhile, this is a thing of beauty.

They couldn't just produce a green Mickey Mouse, they had to use a regular plush doll with new hands/feet and give it a green body stocking. 

The Mystery Machine

The Character Building Mystery Machine. Normally $35, it was on sale recently for $20.

I can't recommend this set. Do not buy it. Do not buy anything from Character Building if it has decals on it.

Character Building sets always have this one issue that I can't get past, they want you to put stickers over the brick seams. This means that once you've put a set together you can never take it apart. And some stickers are meant to cover 3 or 4 bricks. It feels cheap and unstable. Maybe I might feel different if they used plastic clings as the decals instead of paper stickers, but I feel like adding the stickers makes the build permanent and that removes some of the fun that is inherit in brick construction sets. Why go for a clunky model if you plan on removing the rebuilding aspect? And why remove the rebuilding aspect if on the box you point out that you can use the bricks to build a completely different model? Well, no I can't. Not if I've put the stickers on, because now those bricks can't be taken apart without destroying the stickers and then I can never build the mystery machine again.

GODDAMNIT!

Meanwhile the only good part of Character Building, the minifigures, are great.

Stargate SG-1

Y'know what, I don't care what they really call it. Ever since they announced the Best-Lock Stargate brick sets the only thing I ever really wanted was a brick built Stargate. Of course the big costs more than I'm prepared to pay, so isn't it nice that at Target in their Stocking Stuffer section they have a smaller set with a smaller Stargate and control device.

Also, worst likeness of Macgyver ever.

Shit wait, is this the size of all the Stargates in all the sets? If so, that sucks. I was hoping for one that was fricking massive. Still, not bad.

It's a knock off Lego brand so the bricks aren't as solid as they could be and some of the connections are a bit loose. The Stargate is solid, but it's a loose connection. The plate is so flimsy that bricks won't stay attached to it. 

Also, all the Stargate symbols are printed on it, not a sticker. The control panel's a sticker, but not the Stargate. Neat!

Shy Guy

I've bought 4 of these guys. Any time I see a sale I pick one up. I get why I might buy one or two but four?

They can't hold anything, they barely have articulation, but I love them so much...

And I don't know why.

Never has the name of this blog been so accurate.

Buyer's remorse, This weekend In buying toys edition

Spent way too much on costume accessories this week at Target, but that's a blog I gave up a while ago. But toys...

 

Picked up a Hot Wheels car of a rocket powered school bus, which is an odd way to power a school bus, and speaks to a growing trend toward fantasy that I'm not entirely comfortable with for Hot Wheels, but I suppose that's what they use the Matchbox line for. Meanwhile, I wanted a Hot Wheels school bus.

Also picked up a Walking Dead minimate pack because it has a good minimate zombie and a comicbook version of the Governor with bonus eyepatch head. Mostly for the minimate zombie.

Then theres a TMNT lego polybag set which I only picked up for the minifigure with a krang image printed on the torso, simulating the awesome giant alien brain in a robot body torso idea.

 

Also got a Daphne minifigure because some asshole opened all the blind bags so I could look inside them and find the ones I wanted. Kinda mixed feelings on this. On the one hand I got what I wanted, on the other hand this is just a huge dick move. If I saw whoever did this I wonder if I would have yelled at the person doing it, adult or kid. I told a store clerk... And they just walked away and I later saw them working an empty cash register. (The box holding the blind packs had been moved to another part of the store too, so they weren't even near the other Scooby Doo building sets.)

 I also picked up the Voodoo Man becuase he's actually the Freak of Crystal Cove from the recent Mystery Inc. series. In that continuity he's actually Fred Jones' father and town mayor who in realitty kidnapped an infant Fred Jones from his real mystery solving parents in order to extort them into staying away from his criminal plans. In an ironic twist, Fred Jones sr learns to love his adopted son and when Fred'ss real parents return The Freak is also revealed to be a better parent and more loving than Fred's real family who are now corrupt adventurers. Man that was a good show. Anyway, they made a figure of the Freak... And then gave him a new name which makes absolutely no sense.

Of course if you check the Character Building website you realize that in the UK, where CB is located, they do things differently there. Like have all 5 members of the Mystery Inc. gang available through the blind packs. It also turns out that 7 of the monsters aren't part of the Scooby Doo line in the UK. For the US Scooby Doo Character Building release CB folded in minifigures from their Monsters vs. Zombie line, possibly to fill out the Scooby line but more likely because it was the only way to get those figures into US stores. 

Scooby Doo minifigures

Character Building, the guys who do the Doctor  Who minifigures, are making Scooby Doo building sets and figures. You can only get Velma and Daphne through blind packs and Shaggy, Scooby and Fred are only available through building sets.

So I tried to get the girls (if you squeeze to identify, they're the only ones with

molded breasts) but ended up with two Velmas. One I gave to Mario.

I also tried to get some monsters. I wanted a Lagoon Creature and let fate choose me a random monster. I was hoping for a Dracula but instead got a clown. An orange clown. It looks like he's wearing a prison jumpsuit.

With no Daphne, I guess I'll have to pretend Amy Pond is Daphne.

TARDIS

Oh, I bought another TARDIS, but at least this time it's scaled for 4 inch figures. Because really, I bought it so I could do scenes like this.

Unfortunately the left door on mine won't stay open. It makes the click sound but the spring forces it shut the second I let go. Sad. Otherwise, it's awesome. 

Oh and a friend gave me the Character Building TARDIS, which is very poorly designed. Just structurally, it's not designed to be a firm build.

It's just those four flimsy pillars and 4 panels representing the walls followed by a roof. If you dropped it, the thing wouldn't just break apart, it would explode into its individual bricks.