Batwoman & The Question

They're in a well written book now! Also lesbians! Guess which one the mass media decided to focus on!

These minimates came out years ago but I never picked them up. Batwoman & the Question, DC's most prominent gay super-heroes emerged from the 52 event but then got relegated to the mini-series ghetto. But now that Batman's dead they've inherited one of the Batman titles (Detective Comics) and although I don't read it, I hear it's pretty good. So as part of my ongoing mission to maybe pick up all the DC minimates (there's a finite number since the line got cancelled years ago) I decided to pick this 2-pack up.

Overall it's fairly standard DC Minimate fare. Batwoman's face is actually a single piece mask that fits tightly over her 2nd secret identity head. (Real tight. I'm going to have to get a push pin or something if I ever want to get it off.) The paint on her hair (it's a huge mask piece) is lacking in places. But in a twist, the Question (Rene Montoya version... I would have prefered a Vic Sage version but you take what you can get) does have a face on the back of her head so you can switch it around. The hair piece is just big enough to hide it when you want the figure to go into "Question" mode. Although based on how the hair/hat piece is designed, the figre looks better with the blank face. The hair line seems to high otherwise and it looks like Rene has a huge forehead.

Space Speeder

Containing just 14 pieces (4 of which are used to make the minifig alien) it's the Space speeder. See this, this is what I remember Legos being about. As a kid I rarely got the big Lego sets, I usually got one of the smaller sets, like this, which contained a minifig and a token vehicle, like a motorcylce. (Man, I want a Lego motorcycle.)

As a vehicle, the Space Speeder is pretty unimpressive. But the minifig is cool, and that' usually the reason to get these smaller sets.

Halloween Lego impulse item (8907)

I could have sworn they used to sell Halloween Lego treats. Like a big bag filled with smaller bags that you could give out to Trick or Treaters instead of candy containing small lego sets like you used to get in Happy Meals. I could have sworn.

But when I went around all I found were some $3 Power Miners sets in plastic bags, containing roughly what you'd get in the small $3.50-$5 impulse Lego boxes, but in a bag. (In fact the scanning system lists it as "Halloween Impulse.") The Rock Creature set contains a small catapult to launch the Rock Creature, but it's only made from 12 pieces, so it's a very unimpressive catapult.

So I picked up set 8907. There's no name anywhere on the packaging, so I'm calling it the Poker. I got it because the packaging and the toy remind me a lot of the old Lego sets I used to get as a kid. Also a minifig and a vehicle with wheels for $3 is a pretty good price. Plus the Lego minifig has the reversable head with 2 expressions on each side, which I really dig on the newer minifgs.

Comic: Lost at Sea

Originally posted at my old minimate blog a year ago.


Click to Enlarge the image

2nd Doctor & Cyberman

Inching ever closer to a full set of Doctors, here's the 2nd Doctor. He's one of my favorites, since it was one of his episodes that got me into Doctor Who. He played his Doctor like a whimsical clown, who could secretly destroy you with science. The likeness is amazing, and the articulation is on par with the best from this line, even if his long coat restricts the hips a little. But I like his coat. It helped make the character.

The Cyberman is the same as the Tomb of the Cyberman from the Cyberman wave, minus the cybermats and the build-a-figure piece. It's a bit disappointing having to buy the same figure twice, but when it comes to Cybermen, I don't mind. Especially since part of the point to the Cybermen is that they're an army of identical creatures. It's part of what makes them scary... Unless you make them hold hands.

I like this set. It's one of the best Doctor Who figures I've seen, certainly one of the best face sculpts.

Holographic Count Dooku

Just came in today! Another cheap eBay purchase, this figure reuses the Count Dooku mold from one of the Sith Evolutions set. It's a great sculpt, and to be honest it's one of the best Star Wars figures I have in my possession. However, it is a holographic representation of the character, which creates a few problems. Firstly, it really can't fit in with other figures unless you want them surrounding a Dooku hologram. Secondly, he comes with his lightsaber. Essential for a regular Dooku figure, but completely unnecessary for a hologram. Thirdly, due to the translucent plastic, some of the joints show throw, particularly the ankles and waist.

Still, a great figure for a really low price.

Krusty Krab Adventures

The Lego Racers McDonald's toys got me back into Legos, although ironically not into Lego Racers. Of course one of the drawbacks of Legos is that they're kinda pricey. Someone once told me: You know when Lego's started got so expensive? When you started paying for them yourself.

So I've been wavering on this Krusty Krab Lego set for a while now. The price was just to steep for me. Then I found it on clearance at Target and I was very pleased. (Each store clearances different items. It's like a treasure hunt with only a small chance of happiness!)

The Krusty Krab structure is rather nice, offering some ingenious play value. There's a safe that opens and closes, a grill, cash register, and Lego burgers. They're all made very simply, but they look great. There's some ingenious use of blocks and pieces to create a building structure that's more complex than it seems. And I really like the glass door pieces. They make it seem like a real building.

But the reason I wanted this set is the Patty Wagon... GET IT! It's a hamburger car! A CAR DESIGNED TO LOOK LIKE A HAMBURGER! INGENIOUS!

Seriously, I love this thing. It's ridiculous but plausible at the same time!
The final thing in this set is the Lego figures themselves. Mini-figs they call them. This has always been my sticking point with Legos. Since I'm big into minimates, the Lego figures feel like a letdown. They're not as detailed, have less articulation, and their accessories aren't all that. I feel like Lego mini-figs are there so it doesn't look like the vehicles are driving themselves, but I guess I'm in the minority. For some reason Lego's decided that each mini-fig tends to be worth $3-5 a piece. So if you've got a lot of mini-figs in a set it costs A LOT more. I just don't agree with that, but I'm not in charge, so I'll try not to rant on this in the future.

These Spongebob mini-figs are a mixed bag. One the one hand they look good. To match the cartoon's look they've customized the figures with new pieces and paint that's more detailed than you usually see in a Lego mini-fig. But to meet the scale of figures, the smaller pieces have smaller leg pieces which are made smaller by not having the joing in there that allows them to sit. Yup, Spongebob & Mr. Krab can not sit down. They stand only. I found that amazingly disappointing. Still, Spongebob is an ingenious mini-fig.