Battle Damaged Iron Man

So after hearing about CounterFett's glowing recomendations about the Halo MegaBlocks figures, and his mentioning of blind bagged MegaBlocks Marvel figures, I thought I'd give them a try when I found them at a Wal-Mart. All the issues I've had with the MegaBlocks figures are present in this one, the oversized chest pieces, the sense that this is a toy that should be in a gumball machine because something about it just feels kinda cheap and poorly made...

But that doesn't mean I don't like some things. It's really cool to see the level of articulation that these things have in a figure so small. Just under 2 inches tall and it has 12 points. Sure you've got to attack all the limbs into the ball joints yourself, but hey... Block figures. Also, the flame thrower effect looks really good and is well implemented. They're basicall hand held flames that are large enough to look like they're engulfing the hands.

I don't know what it is then. Maybe it's the way the plastic feel really cheap, it seemse lighter and more fragile than what you get with Legos in the same size. The sculpting seems off too, like there's too many details for a figure this small, and result seems like a hyper deformed creature where the limbs aren't in the proper scale with one another or the torso. Seriously, standing stright up, the hands aAnd the Thigh and the feet look like he's wearing corrective shoes.

So yeah, I don't think these things are worth $2.50. The Lego Minifigures are $2.99 and you feel like you're getting something of quality there. The overall product just seems like it could be a $3.00 collectible or something to show off. This... This looks like you bought it for 25 cents from a gumball machine.

Lady Sif & Volstagg

I don't know why, but I really dig the design of Sif in the new Thor movie. Maybe it's the actress, maybe it's the costume design, but I'm actually interested in what they do with the character in the movie (aside from having her walk around naked in a "I just teleported here from my home dimension and I couldn't bring clothes" scene where she beats up a horny hunter who finds her and then obviously tries to take advantage of her. Because that's how movies show a woman is empowered and not a girly girl.) That's doubly impressive when I remember that I don't give a damn about the character in the comics.

This minimate is actually one of the better depictions of a female in the line. Yes, the pain on the sleeved arm is rather messy, but the costume, facial detail, and hair work really well in my opinion. (Also awesome, first time they sculpted long hair over one shoulder... I think. They might have done it before.)

Sif comes with Volstagg from the Warriors 3, also known as the fat one who likes to drink and eat in addition to fighting. People love this dude, and I can dig him sometimes, but the figure... man that beard looks fake. Like "Office Party Santa" fake. And really, it might be movie accurate, but dude should be a lot fatter. I really hope they make the other dudes from the Warriors 3. At least the Japanese dude. Make that guy.

Outdoor Adventure

So I returned that tiny 1:18 motorcycle to Wal-Mart and picked up another Adventure Wheels vehicle, this time the unnamed ATV which I'm going to assume should be called what the only other TITLE FONT words on the box say: Outdoor Adventure, Off-Road Adventure. Whatever, it's an ATV and it's supposed to be in the proper scale. And it damn well better be. I saw a GI Joe ATV at Ross the other day and I realized that it was actually just a repainted vehicle from this Adventure Wheels line. Well, they added a gun, but other than that, exact same. So really for you're paying an extra $5-10 if you want GI Joe coloring. Oh, and I guess it comes with a GI Joe figure, but is that really worth the extra amount of scratch? No. (Unless you REALLY like Leatherneck.)

Because this ATV comes with a figure too. It's a generic guy in a helmet (helmet doesn't come off) who looks sort of like the Stig from Top Gear dressed up to be a Midwest forest guy. I guess, I don't have a lot of experience with Midwestern people. Either way it's a pretty bland figure which is sadly a better constructed and better articulated figure than anything in the new Green Lantern 4 inch line. (Those things suck. Possibly even more than the DC Infinite heroes which they are clearly based.)

As for the ATV, it does what I want. Which is to say it's a damn ridiculous vehicle for my 3.75" figures to be riding.

Emo Joe

This little guy is from the bubble gum machine line: Urbanzees.  His name is Emo Joe, because he's got a broken heart and badly styled, disheveled on purpose, black hair. He comes in multiple colors, but I got green.

And I got him because he was 25 cents, and I thought that would be an okay deal for a random piece of cheap and tiny, mass produced, vinyl art.

Speedload 6

The new Nerf Dart Tag Guns are out, and the pistol of the line-up is the Speedload 6. Simply insert the darts directly into the Quick Load Clip to load. Instead of pulling the Slide back and releasing, you've got to pull and push it through the whole motion in order to properly load a dart into the barrel. Then fire and repeat. If you're running low, just push more darts into the Clip's opening.

Seems simple enough. Although you do have to sort of stuff the darts into the clip because the opening is tighter than you'd expect. You save time loading compared to the Maverick, but if you want real speed, you'd probably do better with a Nerf gun that uses a real clip. Also, the thing is ridiculously large for a pistol. Seriously, it's like twice the size of a Maverick. The one advantage that this Quick Load system has though: it uses the regular darts instead of the streamline darts. I'm gonna play with this for a little while before I decided if I want to return it.

So yeah: obviously it's not a super impressive gun. But it's something to consider.

Puppet Theater

I continue to be amazed by the insane variety of Plamobil playsets. If the figures were more impressive I'd be buying Playmobil all the time. But as it is, I only can do it for playsets that I imagine would be hilarious if I placed my other 3 inch figures in those settings.

That's why I got the puppet theater here. The puppet accessory is particularly ingenious, fitting into the figure's hand without actually having to be a hand-puppet for tiny ball hands. But even more importantly, it fits the hands of my Edgar Allen Poe 3 inch figure.

That puppet is in for some hard times. I can't think an Edgar Allen Poe puppet show is going to be particularly cheerful.

Two Wheeler (No seriously, that's what it's listed as.)

It's a motorcycle made by Maisto. This one's from Wal-Mart so they've placed it under Wal-Mart's proprietary line "Adventure Wheels" but I've seen identical looking motorcycles with different paint jobs at Target... also made by Maisto. But what's important is that this is 1:18 scale, so in theory it should be perfect for any 3.75" figures you have.

Or I have. But it turns out that previous few of my 3.75" figures have the articulation to properly get their legs and bodies on this thing. And it turns out that the few which can, are too big.

Sure they're not tooooooooooooo big, but the scale is slightly off. Fortunately the motorcycle is cheap, so there is that. Still, kinda disappointing.