Toy Kingdom Transformers Cybertron Con Raffle!
Here are the mechanics for the Toy Kingdom Transformers Cybertron Con Raffle Promo
1. Earn one (1) raffle coupon for a minimum P 1,000.00 single receipt purchase of any Transformers item at Toy Kingdom Makati.
2. Present proof of purchase at the redemption area where purchase was made any day within the promo period, and get your corresponding number of coupons.
3. Fill out the raffle coupon with your name, address, telephone number, email address and signature, and drop in the designated box provided.
4. Promo period is from June 19 - 20, 2010.
5. Deadline for submission of entries will be at 4:00pm of June 20, 2010.
6. Draw date is on June 20, 2010 - 5:00 pm at SM Makati Concourse Area under the supervision of a DTI representative.
7. Prizes at stake:
Six (6) Transformers Toy Figure (one winner per toy)
Three (3) A-01U Alternity Ultra Magnus
Three (3) Optimus Prime & Rodimus Co-pack
8. You can only win once.
9. Winners will be notified thru telephone and registered mail. Unclaimed prizes after 60 days upon receipt of notice will be forfeited in favor of International Toyworld Inc. with prior approval from DTI.
10. Prizes are not transferable and not convertible to cash.
11. To claim your prize, present notification letter, winning raffle stub ,two (2) valid I.D.s
12. In case of a lost stub the ff. must be presented :
a. Notarized Affidavit of Loss
b. Valid I.D.
13. Employees of Playkit, SM Mart Inc., International Toyworld Inc. New Directions Inc. and it’s affiliate companies, and their relatives up to second degree consanguinity or affinity are disqualified from joining the promo.
14. Promo organizers’ decision is final with the concurrence of DTI.
It’s a Great Month for
Philippine Toy Collectors
There are 2 times during the year when toy geeks in the Philippines go nuts. One is in December. It’s fairly obvious why, since toy manufacturers are going nuts fielding product in time for the Christmas rush. There are a ton of conventions and sales that pop up in 4th quarter to add to the mayhem.
But June is the month that most toy fans really get their geek on. June has traditionally been the month when Collectibles Unlimited Association runs the annual Philippine Toy Convention.
This great event is now in it’s 9th year and has grown from a display of toy collections and some vendor tables. It now encompasses all sorts of geekery, including Cosplay, Comics, Movies, Anime, Cartoons, etc. It’s basically our version of the San Diego Comic Con.
Here’s a list of the contests and events happening:
The ToyCon will also be host to the DC Comics 75th Anniversary. There will be DC themed competitions and activities, and Filipino comic artists who have worked for DC Comics will be there to sign autographs. Not to mention limited auctions open to those purchasing items at the DC booth.
It’s really too bad I’m not going to be able to go.
You see, although the guys of the Collectibles Unlimited Association puts on a great show, there are reasons I’ve avoided the Toycon. First, it’s insanely crowded. I know there are reasons that it’s traditionally held in Megamall (it being in the relative center of the Metro Manila area), but the event outgrew the venue about 2 years ago. Last year, the line to go in went from one end of Megamall to the other and back around again. Once the door opened, all those people were inside the enclosed space of the Mega Trade Hall, which really isn’t all that big or airy.
Two, it’s not really a great place to go if you really just want to shop. If you don’t get there early, you’ll miss out on the best deals, but if you do get there early, you need to fight your way through the crowd to the tables. It’s a losing proposal for me especially since I’ve found that there aren’t a lot of great “deals” once you’ve gotten to a certain level of collecting. When you’re new to the hobby, you go to the Convention and there are hundreds of toys you want at prices that seem like a bargain, but after a few years, you’re looking around and thinking, “Not much new this year…” or “But I already have that…” or “I saw it cheaper at Greenhills…”
At this point in my collecting “career”, I’d rather visit the Transformers Autobot Alliance.
The event, organized by Cybertron PH, Toy Kingdom, and Playkit is happening on the same weekend as the ToyCon, but at the SM Makati Event Center. They’ll be releasing new Transformer products throughout the weekend (with a 1 per customer distribution center) and will have games and activities for children. So far it looks like we’ll see the War for Cybertron Optimus Prime and Bumblebee, Leader Class Starscream, and the Powercore Combiners.
Keep in mind that we don’t know WHEN the new toys will be delivered and released. It could be on the first day, it might be on the 3rd. The event is more for to increase the visibility of the Transformer brand than it is for the collectors. But still, a good chance at scoring the new Transformer toys at suggested retail price without the crowds seems to me to be a much better way to spend my day.
Sure I won’t have a chance to catch Alodia and the other cosplayers strut their stuff, or check out the customs competitions, but there are plenty of opportunities to do that.
The 9th Philippine Toys, Hobbies and Collectibles Convention 2010
June 19-20, 2010
10am-10pm
Megatrade Hall 2-3, SM Megamall and Megamall Event Center, bldg A, basement.
Transformers Autobot Alliance
SM Makati Event Center
July 19-22, 2010
Secret Wars Storm & Nightcrawler
I recently decided to streamline my Marvel Universe collection. There are 3 sets I want to continue collecting when it comes to these 4″ figures and they are Iron Man, The Hulk, and the X-Men.
X-Men issues comprise the majority of my comic book collection, from the late 80’s to about the mid 90’s. I stopped collecting when the prices of the books started eating into my lunch money, around the time I hit high school. Still, I never lost my love for that team of misfit mutants.
So when I saw this 2-pack with the teams most capable leader (in my opinion anyway), Storm, and the “furry elf” Nightcrawler, I couldn’t pass it up. I was lucky to find it. With the reduction in Playkit’s orders of Marvel items, it’s been a hard year for collectors. Toy Kingdom in Podium only had 2 pieces of this and none of the other branches got more than a handful. Both this set and the Doctor Doom and Absorbing Man sets disappeared quickly.
Like the rest of the Marvel Universe line, Storm and Nightcrawler are both about 4″ high. The good thing about this size is that they are easy to store and easy to display because of their small size. They are also closer to the proper scale when posed with the various X-Men Build-A-Figure toys we’ve gotten from the Marvel Legends line over the years; the Sentinel, The Brood Queen, Onslaught. Maybe not Apocalypse, Blob, or Mojo, but the first three, yeah, definitely some display options there:
Just like all of the Secret Wars 2-packs, this set has a clear winner and loser. Storm is the better of the two in this case.
In my opinion (which is heavily influenced by my growing up in the 80’s), the mohawk Storm was the best Storm ever. Claremont really began to give her a personality other than the fish out of water foreigner. She played the really cool aunt to Wolverine’s cigar-smokin’, trash talkin’ grumpy uncle.
The figure captures artist Paul Smith’s punk redesign of Storm perfectly, from the outrageous mohawk, to the incredibly badass leather jacket. Even without her weather powers, you don’t mess with Ororo Munroe.
Articulation is ok; somewhat limited by a few lacking joints. Since the Marvel Universe female mold is used, this figure has all the problems of all the previous female characters we’ve seen. She lacks both upper arm and thigh swivels, which hampers posing. While the ball-socket hip joint works better here than on the male figures, it’s still a step back from the ball joint that Marvel Legends popularized. She also lacks any wrist articulation, which is another sticking point.
Aside from that, you’re going to have to keep a stand handy to help her stand. Due to her absurdly small foot print, she’s almost impossible to pose without one.
Paint is ok as well. There were two examples I saw and the other was pretty bad. There were several white splotches on the black portions and her eyes weren’t properly aligned with the face’s sculpt.
The sculpt however works well with the figure. With the new head,the belt and jacket really sell this figure as a real 80’s Storm. Sadly she doesn’t have any other accessories. Even if she didn’t have powers when she wore this costume, a lighting bolt or two (Electro had ones that could have been re-purposed easily), or a knife would have been welcome.
She fits in well with the leather GI Joe girls. They’re pretty much in scale with each other, so if you want a black female to join your Joe team, here’s your chance.
Despite her low points, Storm is an excellent figure and well worth the trouble I took finding this set.
Nightcrawler, however is a different story.
He’s pretty tall for a Kurt Wagner figure. I don’t imagine him being bigger than Colossus, but he’s about the same height. Maybe the Showdown Colossus is too small, but I feel the proportions of this Nightcrawler figure are all wrong. Too far past lanky.
He’s got more articulation than Storm does, but again, he’s missing neccessary joints, including that required thigh cut. The biggest dissapointment is his ankle joint however. Since he’s got the weird three toed foot,the joint that connects his foot to the leg is in the middle of the foot rather than the end. The way it’s designed means that he can only really swivel his foot around. If you want him to move it forward so he can squat, you’re out of luck.
He’s NIGHTCRAWLER. He’s supposed to squat in the shadows.
In addtion, he shares that same ugly hole in his torso that is visible when you bend him too far forward. It’s an eye sore, and since his torso joint isn’t all that useful due to the lack of other joints, makes it unfogivable.
There are two other things that peeve me. The first is the glued-on shoulder pieces. They do not reach the bottom of his chest. Both sides terminate right before the joint between the chest and stomach. They aren’t even cut right, being horizontal while the seam of the two pieces is slanted. As it is, he has this obvious black strip between the two red plains.
The second is his tail. It’s so blah. It does not look like a natural curve at all, like it was being whipped or curled, or as if it had any muscle in it at all. It just hangs there looking useless.
Poor, poor work, Hasbro.
Despite my like for the Storm figure, the sorely lacking Nightcrawler really kills this set for me. Retailing at Php 900 (about $20), I think that it’s unacceptable that a possibly great set is ruined like this.
If you have an X-Men collection, you’ll need to pick this up, but otherwise, don’t bother.
Related Links
Secret Wars Doctor Doom/Absorbing Man
Hammer Files Colossus
Hammer Files Kitty Pryde
X-Men Origins: Wolverine with Jacket
X-Men Origins: Iceman and Cyclops
If you're looking for biased, one-sided views of toys and other assorted geekery, then you're in the right place. If you want objective, you'll need a blog written by someone who isn't an obsessive geek.
These are my views on various toys, movies, places, and things, along with assorted pictures and the the occasional link to stuff I find sufficiently geeky.
Enjoy your stay and leave a comment.
Slangards
I may give you a half-way serious answer.
