Star Wars 2010 CW20
Mace Windu
Since I’m trying to whittle my review backlog to a manageable level, let’s get a few more Star Wars figures out of the way.
This is the figure that first piqued my interest in the Star Wars line. I had skipped over these figures at Toy Kingd because of their limited articulation (usually a deal breaker for me), but then I read on the Cybertron PH boards that Mace Windu had articulation that approached that of the Marvel Universe line. I was totally like O_O.
Since I had no idea about the state of the market when it came to Star Wars, I immediately set out to find a Mace Windu, not realizing that at the time, he in demand and in short supply. If I remember correctly, that’s how I got the Snow Bunny Padme and Plo Koon; I couldn’t find Windu so I got the best figures I could find so I wouldn’t go home empty handed.
Thankfully, Hasbro is getting good at including popular figures in new shipments and Playkit (the local Philippine distributor for Hasbro products) seems to be getting a good number of these new assortments. I picked up A Windu when I got my Cad Bane & TODO.
We’ve already gone over the package in the last review. It’s a slightly-angled, square-ish, card-backed bubble. Again, it has the “Galactic Battle” card included with it.
I don’t know about these things. I guess I’d need more figures and cards to really get into it, but it stands to reason that the cards would have been more collectible if there was a better-sized artwork on the front. Or, since the stats listed in front may be part of the game, they could have dumped the rules from the back of the card and put a nice pin up there, with a thoughtful quote for the Jedi, a rousing call to arms from the clone troopers, or an vicious invective from the Sith.
As it is, they’re about as useless to me as the 20 or so identical dice I now have.
Aside from the Galactic Battle items, he’s also got a few more items in his inventory. There’s the now welcome sight of a figure stand (great for the Clone Wars line especially since only a few of them can really stand on their own without help), his unique purple lightsaber, and a Mandalorian helmet with a bomb secreted in one of the halves.
Honestly, I could care less about the helmet, since he can’t really do anything with it. There are some interesting displays you could probably do with it, but after that it’s value is nil. Kids will probably lose it in a few minutes after opening.
His lightsaber on the other hand is the same purple bad-motherfucker we saw in the movies and the series. That is awesome.
The only other thing I can think of that they could have included would be a hooded Jedi robe. That being said, I’d still be happy if it had just come with the lightsaber.
But the real thing that puts this figure above the rest of his Clone Wars brethren is his amazing acticulation.
Forget Marvel Universe. This toy surpasses the joint work done for the figures in that line (save for maybe the Bleeding Edge Iron Man). His upper half has the normal Hasbro ball jointed head, swivel-hinge shoulders, swivel-hinge elbows and swivel wrists with the standard swivel waist.
It’s below the belt when he goes nuts.
His hips are a huge improvement over the usual Star Wars T joint swivels. Instead, he’s got angled swivel-hinges that really allow for great, wide stances. With that he’s also got nice swivel-hinge knees, and get this, swivel-hinge ankles!
The ankles are the real kicker here, since the set up allows his feet to remain flat on the ground in almost any pose. This does an amazing amount of good for his stability.
I’d recommend this figure to anyone who likes the 3.75″ or 4″ scales. It’s a great thing that he’s still available around the metro in Toy Kingdom and Toys ‘R’ Us for the retail price of Php 500.00 (a little more than $10.00 US).
There is just one caveat however. This is a Clone Wars figure, which means that it follows the aesthetic of the show; blocky and exaggerated. If that’s not your cup of tea, then you should go for The Vintage Collection version.
Cad Bane and TODO 360
Great.
I knew I should never have bought that Snow Bunny Padme action figure. I knew it would lead me down this path. Envy leads to want, want leads to temptation, temptation leads to me blowing a whole month’s toy budget on a completely new line that has nothing to do with anything else in my existing collection.
Now that I’ve started with Star Wars: The Clone Wars, I can’t stop:
Those are the figures I got from the last Toy Kingdom toy launch. Before that haul though, there were several smaller purchases that included a Mace Windu, a Cato Parasitti, and a Cad Bane.
Cad Bane has been a figure that I’ve been wanting to get for the longest time. The first version of the figure looked ok to me, but looked like it had no knee joints. Coupled with the line’s simple swivel hips, it was a deal breaker. I kept looking at that figure everytime I was at Toy Kingdom, but promptly put it back. An action figure without working joints is boring.
Then I heard that there was another version coming, this time in a vehicle bonus pack that had Bane’s speeder. I was excited by the news, but then crashed when I saw it in person. The head sculpt looked odd to me, and he’d lost his jacket’s coattails. Coattails are cool. Almost as much as bow ties and fezzes.
Again, deal breaker.
Then more news. A 4th version (the 3rd one came in a Target Exclusive 2-Pack with an IG-86 Assassin Droid) coming at the end of 2011, this time, with a better head, knees, and coattails. Prayers answered, thank you Hasbro the benevolent.
And to make it even better, he came with a pet!
If you’ve been following the Star Wars figure line, then you know they’ve changed their packaging a couple of times since it first came out. Instead of the white, rounded bubble pack that came with Padme, the newest card is blue, square, and features heavily the Galactic Battle Card Game.
They are a lot easier to stack than the old ones, and that means a lot less space taken up, so a plus in my book.
The back reads like this:
“Cad Bane and TODO 360 sneak inside the Jedi Temple. Bane has a well-deserved reputation as a ruthless bounty hunter. He is hired by Darth Sidious to steal a Jedi holocron. He and his techno-service droid gain access to the building and break into the well-guarded holocron library.”
That story arc from the first season of The Clone Wars was one of my favorite, so it’s easy to understad why I bought Bane first.
Another reason he was first on my pull list when I started the line was the fact that he’s got such great accessories. The first version had the hat, two pistols and a rifle. That’s some great gear!
This one’s got even more. In exchange for the rifle, 2011 CW No. 42 has his sidekick in “Holocron Heist”, TODO 360, plus a satchel (this time removable). A more than fair trade if you ask me.
Especially since TODO is so damned adorable.
How can you not “AWWWW…” at that face?
TODO’s not much of an action figure himself. He’s got one point of articulation; a ball and socket joint at the neck. The rest of him is basically just a tiny little statue, but that’s all right. I do wish he came with a stand though, since he’s supposed to float around on his anti-grav feet.
The sculpt on Cad Bane is just as nice. I passed on the 2nd version because it looked a little too cartoonish for my taste. This one has the same sort of scowl, but ends up looking a little more realistic, and with much better proportions (the 2nd figure looked too broad shouldered).
From what I can tell, the lower half of Bane, his forearms, and his hat are re-purposed from the 2nd figure (the one with the Pirate Speeder). The rest of him looks new to me.
The Hasbro Star Wars line really likes to use real cloth where ever it can. For Bane, they made his coat tails out of a very thin leatherette. Sadly, it doesn’t work as well as they probably hoped. One, it’s too thin, so it doesn’t hang right at all. Two, it’s not cut right, so it doesn’t wrap around his waist as far as it should. There’s also no space between the two flaps, since Hasbro just used one narrow strip of fabric and snipped a line down the middle of it, not taking away any material.
Boo.
They should have at least cut away a thin isosceles triangle to seperate the coattails.
That’s the biggest gripe I have about this figure, but I’ll list others you might want to consider before you buy.
But really, all that pales when the figure itself is seen. He’s a FUN toy of a very cool character, AND he comes with the most adorable droid to ever come out of the Star Wars continuity.
How can you not love it?
FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2011!
Saturday, May 7, 2011 is gonna be another big day for comic fans. The Robinsons Galleria Branch of Comic Odyssey will be celebrating the geektastically delicious holiday, Free Comic Book Day or FCBD for short. If you’ve never been to an FCBD, it’s that wonderful time of year when comic shops around the world give away Free Comic books.
Yes, you heard right. Free. Comics.
The exact mechanics vary from store to store, but for Comic Odyssey I think it’s your choice of 3 of the Free Comic Day editions plus whatever goodies the cool guys at the comic store prepare. Last year I got a bag of various bag issues to go along with the official free comics. Of course this is all while supplies last and there’s always a big crowd, so best to get there early.
Back in the day (when dinosaurs roamed the Earth), there used to be an actual line, where you had to stand for hours from the time the mall opened to the time they started distribution. Thankfully, things progressed during the last few years. The awesome staff at Comic Odyssey now give out numbers as new customers arrive at the store. The customers are then free to roam around the mall until the event starts, and the mall management doesn’t have to deal with the huge group of creepy nerds discussing the feasibility of Cyclops using his force beam to propel himself through the air. I’m not sure if they’ll use this method this year (their page says it starts at 10:30) but here’s hoping.
Aside from the free comics though, the store will also be having it’s big FCBD sale, which means 50% off on all graphic novels, hardcovers, action figures, manga, etc, and all the issues in the back issue bins will be only Php 50.00 each!
And if your a fan of the local scene, artists like Lyndon Gregorio, Gio Paredes, and lots of others will be signing books. There will also be guest artists who work on the big books, like Carlo Pagulayan, Gerry Alanguilan, Jay Anacleto, Leinil Yu, etc.
Not that any of that’s really needed. They had me at the word “Free”.
FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2011
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Comic Odyssey
Level III, Expansion Mall
Robinson’s Galleria
Edsa, corner Ortigas
Quezon City
Philippines
(632) 914-0040Event starts at 10:30 AM
Comic Signing from 1:00 - 4:00 PM
For more information on Free Comic Book Day at Comic Odyssey, click HERE.
For a list (and photos) of the FCBD editions this year click HERE.
If you haven’t heard of Electromagnetic Tentacle, let me fill you in. They create shirts with a distinctly Filipino twist various geeky properties.
Let me give you an example. Filipinos have a phrase, “Bahala na si Batman” which translates to something like, “It’s all up to Batman”. The phrase comes from “Bathala“, a Tagalog diety that is now used colloquially to refer to the Judeo-Christian God as well. Bathala is close to Batman, or at least starts with the same letter. Someone, someplace coined the phrase and it spread like Ebola.
Years later, Electromagnetic Tentacle made THIS:
The word balloon translate roughly to, “It’s always me. Always up to me. No one thinks about who’s looking after me! Colorful expletive!”
It’s funnier if you don’t require an explanation.
Here’s a sampling of their other stuff:
Don’t worry if you don’t get some of them. They’re all specifically geared towards the Philippine geek. Trust me, they’re funny.Funny enough in fact that several of their wave 1 and 2 designs are sold out.
Anyway, if you live here, the I don’t need to explain all of this to you and have just wasted 5 minutes of your live. Suffice to say that ET will be selling shirts at the Metro Comic Con 2011, and they’ve got a whole new batch of designs. Bring some cash with you. If you pre-order at their homepage, you get Php 50.00 off the regular price!
They’ll also have some special edition shirts as well:
If I wasn’t such a fat-ass, I’d have bought all their shirts a long time ago. Stupid itty-bitty Filipino sizes…
***
Visit Eletromagnetic Tentacle on their homepage.
Order shirts HERE.
Or friend them on Facebook.
Read more about the Metro Comic Con 2011 HERE.
Marvel Universe Greatest Battles:
Wolverine vs. Silver Samurai
So thanks my momentary insanity at that last toy launch where I bought EVERYTHING they had, I missed a few releases these past few weeks. It’s been a busy time for Marvel collectors with the second wave of the 6″ Iron Man: Armored Avenger toys hitting shelves, the new Marvel Universe (MU) Giant-Sized X-Men box set finding its way to Toys R’ Us, a Star Wars re-stock, and Dark of the Moon toys in Greenhills, and to top it off, the new Greatest Battles (GB) 2-packs.
I was still able to get this set from Toy Kingdom (Php 900.00 or about $20.00 US) about 2 weeks after they were delivered to the different branches. Sadly, I wasn’t so lucky with the Deadpool vs. Taskmaster pack, but that was to be expected. Wolverine vs. Silver Samurai is still awesome by itself.
This being the 15th Wolverine in the MU line, with 3 more coming soon (another GB 2-pack with Sabretooth, the Uncanny X-Force box set, and the Gigantic Battles Sentinel set), and another 14 from the X-Men Origins: Wolverine (XMO) toy line, you can see how this set might pale in comparison to the Deadpool vs. Taskmaster set. The thing is, this is the first version we’ve gotten of Logan’s “Patch” persona.
Patch is Logan’s (his new name, “James Howlett” doesn’t have the same pizzazz, so you won’t see me using it) alias when he’s in Madripoor, the made-up Southeast Asian country he goes to to relax. As his idea of “relaxing” is tearing through a horde of demon ninjas, Patch’s vacation wear isn’t a panama hat and loafers but rather a black catsuit and gloves.
He wears this on the cover of the included comic book, a reprinting of the cover from Wolverine Volume 2, #2 by John Buscema. The classic issue sees Wolverine duking it out with Silver Samurai in “Lowtown”, or the Madripoor slums, over the cursed Murasama Sword. I don’t have the issue, but from what I’ve read (and from the look of the cover), it’s sweet. Sadly, the interior of the book does NOT have that story. It’s a reprinting of the more recent (and far inferior) Wolverine: Origins #43, a story about some third rate villain named Romulus and a silly plan to stop him. As the issue appears in the MIDDLE of the story arc, it makes no sense as a stand alone work.
Anyway, back to our regularly scheduled programming.
It’s pretty thoughtful of Hasbro to make this Wolverine about two heads shorter than the Samurai and stockier than the ones that have come before it. It makes showcasing them together that much closer to the images in the comics. Next to my XMO Cyclops and Logan, he’s about half a head shorter. Not having all 30 or so 4″ Wolverine figures that have been released in the various lines, I can’t tell you if it’s a re-deco of an old mold, but it does work extremely well.
The body has excellent articulation. A ball jointed neck with some room to allow the head to look slightly up or down, a lower chest joint to allow the torso to swivel and pitch forward, swivel-hinged shoulders, pin hinges for elbows, swivel wrists, double swivel-hinged hips, double pin hinged knees, and swivel-hinged ankles. The combination of these joints really allow for great posing possibilities.
Sculpt is so-so. While I like the thick build of the body, the clenched fists, and the defined muscles, I hate the face. It looks as if he’s trying to pass a particularly stubborn log while taking a crap. He doesn’t look angry, but rather… constipated. I was hoping I could change it with one of the other Wolvie heads I’ve got, but none of them seem to fit the ball on the top of his neck. The paint doesn’t help it much either. It’s not really messy, but red gums really look weird at this scale. They should have just left the teeth white.
I do like the new claws, however. The past 4″ figures have all had claws that were of a piece; a single slab of plastic with black paint in between ridges that simulated the weapons. This figure has 3 separate knives sticking out of his fists. The plastic is pliable yet maintains it’s shape well, another plus.
Remember though, that MU 2-packs are mostly a good figure, and one throwaway. Since the Patch figure is ok, the other figure in the pack has to be great.
It is.
And what do you know, it is!
Keniuchio Harada is the son of Shingen Harada, former head of the Yakuza Clan Yashida. He’s a mutant who can charge an object with energy (arbitrarily called “tachyon” energy), which he can focus. Normally he focuses it on his sword, which allows it to cut through hammers and shit, like on those Ginsu commercials you see on late night TV. You know, “buy now, get one free! Never needs sharpening!”
Silver Sammy looks to have done some infomercial shopping himself, since he comes with two accessories; a katana and a samurai dagger or tanto. Both are pretty plain, but they serve their purpose. I don’t know if the sword included is the Muramasa Blade, but it would have been nice if they had given it some paint, or made it out of translucent plastic so it would glow. The blades do fit into loops on his left side, on his waist. Hasbro gets gold stars for letting us store the accessories on the figure.
The sculpt on this toy is fantastic. His armor is supposed to be made of steel, so they’ve got rivets all accross his chest. There are tiny sculpted ropes tying the pieces together. The cloth portions of the costume (like his arms) are appropriately wrinkled, and the armor pieces (shoulder pads and skirt) are made of soft, pliable plastic that won’t break easily. The detail on his forearms and shins are especially nice.
Paint is good as well. He’s painted all over in a silver finish that isn’t too shiny. It’s got just enough tarnish not to look brand new. The only places that aren’t silver are his face, a small red portion of his helmet, and the red sun burst on his chest plate. The red design is cleanly tampographed on, and even leaves the silver “ropes” unpainted. His face is much better than Wolverine’s, and doesn’t look half as silly.
The best thing about Sammy is his articulation. He’s a new figure (not re-hashed from parts of an older toy), so he’s got all the extra joints that were introduced with the Hammer files. I mean cut thighs! As far as I’m concerned, cut thighs was one of the best things about another favorite of mine, the Hammer Files Colossus.
This means that the Samurai can really pose with the best of them. With the ankle and hip joints, he can easily do crouching and wide stances, giving him much more play value than the old Fury Files figures.
I think the Silver Samurai really does make this set, but the inclusion of the Wolverine figure, one that we thankfully have NOT seen before, makes this worthy of a high recommendation. Sammy has already made it to the top of my favorite list of MU figures, and Patch is now my go to Wolverine.
I just wish I could switch out his head…
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.
