Counting... Ehm... Drinking Crows

1)
I have reasons to buy most of my toys, I'm freaky like that. And also over-analytical, my wife tells me that all the time. I usually don't rely on impulse and use logic to take most of my decissions. I just add my desires to my reasons and 2 plus 2 is 4.

2)
Also, I have that kind of twisted mind that can find a logical explanation to the irrational, so I'll convince myself (and quite surprisingly other people too) that those toys need to be bought, by me. In other words, 2 plus 2 is 4 because I want it to be.

But 3)
Sometimes 2 plus 2 is 5. Sometimes I jusy have to say "fuck it" and buy a toy just because.



This is the 6" Drinky Crow figure by Tony Millionaire.

I wasn't very familiar with the weird and awesome art of Tony Millionaire when I saw this figure, but, for some reason (that I still can't point out, dammit!) I really wanted this figure.

But hey, I have this video that will give you some background of the character:



After seeng that I would have gotten the figure for sure, but I didn't need to since I had it already on a package coming my way.

The figure is really accurate and funny. It comes with interchangeable eyes, and a bottle of booze (with removable cork, tell me that's not awesome!). The only down side is that the package had a twistie that cut through the paint in the bottle. You can see it in this pic.



But I'm still displaying that way because, let's face it, what's a Drinky Crow without his drink?

Until next time.

Super Stylized Post

In a futile attempt to catch up with my MOTU Classics posts, I'll talk about two figures at once, if I do a couple of this, I may be able to catch up by the time we get the Snout Spout, probably, in 2016.

But I'll try not to cheat too much and both figures will have something in common. Let's start with Count Marzo:



Marzo is an original character created for the 200X TV series. He was a third sorcerer, a little less powerful than Skeletor, but with more power than Evil-Lyn. Plus, a weird accent from eastern Europe and an inclination for evil goatees (see here).

Marzo is a great figure, and, as a fan of the 200X toy line, I was more than happy to get him. Mattel said he was rushed in the production stage and that's the reason for the "Super Stylized" hair. There will be no more of this non-sense from now on, they said. Well, I, for one, like it a lot.



Some cool things, like his new hand created to hold the mystical gem that gives Marzo his powers, or the amazingly cool looking sword really seal the deal.

Next figure is even more controversial:



You thought I was going to talk about Chief Carnivus, didn't you? Well no, I'll write about him sooner or later, but the debacle of the 200X peaked with Whiplash, so I'll talk about him.

You see, Whiplash came with an extra head, a 200X inspired extra head.



After the release of the figure Mattel officially "retired" the 200X aesthetic for good. Why? I don't know, tooling costs? To screw with the fans? I really don't know anymore, feels like I don't know who you are anymore, Mattel!

Probably, somebody got pissed, 'cause some money on extra tooling was spent only to get a look that's not classic at all.



But I really don't care. If the Four Horsemen, the creative team behind the redesign of the character, changes it completely in the revamp, and gives you an extra head to avoid the classic one in the "Classic" line. Well, they are trying to tell you something. And I think is this: "The original head looks dumb! So very very very dumb! Oh God is it dumb!" (I may be paraphrasing there a bit).

This figure was never one of my favorites and I think it wasn't because of the stupid looking head the vintage toy had. But the new head was created for a more massive body and doesn't look entirely right in these buck either. At first I thought it was a different shade of green, then I realized that the head was just a tiny bit too big, and the proportions were off because of that.

I still think that 200X face looks cooler, so I'm sticking with that one.



The head swap was a real pleasure, the head popped out immediately and was replaced just as fast. But the tail was a different story, I had to make it fit the two holes in the back and, man, was it hard. Once I got them right I found myself staring at a great looking figure, just not the best in the MOTUC line.



Until next time.

Garbage covered awesomeness

When my good friend (and super awesome artist Charles aka Monsterforge) had to send me some King Kens for a custom. He also told me "I made something for you", when I read that, I'm not proud to admit it, I jumped up and down clapping like a little girl. And although I know his customizing skills are incredible, I'm also a child-like idiot that would shriek everytime someone gives him a toy.

But I wasn't prepared for this:



That, my friends, is Muck Man from the vintage TMNT Playmates line, and he never looked better.



You see, the old turtles line had some amazing sculptors and the detail this figures have is amazing, but the paint apps weren't really all that. Usually, the sculpted details were painted the same color as the rest of the figure, because it was cheaper that way.



But Charles was able to bring all those details to life, and man, Muck Man is (literally) covered in them.



Also, Charles struck a nerve with this one, because he knows I'm a sucker for Ninja Turtles Toys! So, this figure is going to my Awesome Toys Display (yes, I have one of those).



And Charles, I can't thank you enough for this. You are an awesome guy and a great artist... But now I hate you a little bit, 'cause I really want to comission all the TMNT vintage figures in this style, and even if you are up for it (there's only like 130 of them), I can't pay the estimated 750.000 billion dollars it would cost (the money was calculated according to the awesomeness of the final product), you bastard!

And because I'm pretty angry right now, I'm going to post this picture of you!



Ha! Revenge is a bitch, no?

(I love you, man!)

You are the wind beneath my nightwings

Quick superhero toy update: For quite some time now I wanted a new Nightwing figure for my Batman display. The one I had was the Superman/Batman DC Direct figure based on the art of Ed McGuinness.

And he looked like this:



As I said before, I like Ed McGuinness style for some characters, but I don't think it particularly works for everybody. The second after I bought this figure I regretted it, 'cause Nightwing (in my geeky mind) is not a super muscular guy, he's more like an acrobat. Plus, I didn't buy (and never will) an Ed McGuinness Batman figure, so Nightwing was actually bigger than Batman and that makes no sense. NO SENSE I TELL YOU!!!

My wife tries to tell me these are not real people, so I shouldn't care that much... I know, she's crazy, right?

The Nightwing I really wanted was the one that came with the Hush series 2 in 2004, but that figure was so good that sold out quickly and I couldn't find it anywhere in Argentina. The only time I saw it on sale was incredibly expensive. So I had to pass. And wait.

This year, DC Direct decided to reissue that figure (along with the First Appearance Nightwing from 2005) for a series of two-packs called DC Origins. And buying those two figures was actually cheaper than getting the original 2004 Hush NIghtwing. The rest, as they say, is math...



Both figures were repainted with the metallic colors DC Direct discovered recently (they think that by using those color we forget that these are actually used sculpts, no DC Direct, we don't forget). But in a character like Nightwing, I think the shinny paint is kinda cool.



This is the Nightwing I won't be using for the Batman display. He's wearing the original costume, and for a while, in the 90s I thought that costume was cool. Why? Basically, because it wasn't his old Robin costume with the pixie boots and green speedos. So, a bag of potatoes would have been a cooler costume than that (for a guy in his mid-20s or so).

Still, I like this figure, because it's silly, and it's smiling and has an almost innocent feel to it. Not a bunch of articulation, but stands well on it's own and that's all I really care. No issues with the paint either.



Now, this is the figure I wanted. I really like this costume and Tim Gunn approved it too, so, hey, if Tim Gunn says it's OK, then who am I to argue? The figure is basically one color except for the face and the light blue stripe. The sculpt is great, but now he's a serious, serious guy. The paint is quite accurate, but not perfect, and that's a shame. But he still looks great.

Dc Direct is not announcing a lot of things that interest me, so I'll continue to cherry pick their lines as I cherry pick most of my toys... Hmm now I want cherries... Cherries were not my favorite fruit when I was a kid... But well, time changes us... And speaking of that:



Until next time.

Dunny by artist: Zukaty

Bad news everyone: I caved in and started to buy another line. Like Action League before this and MOTUC before that and Super Hero Squad before that and Futurama before that and JLU before that and TMNT before I even knew I was collecting toys. OK, OK, considering my personal history, I can't really say this is "news", but it certainly is "bad"...

I just got sucked in another money-wasting-nerve-wrecking-blind-boxed toy line: Dunnys

It all started with George Gaspar's Skull Dunny and continued with other random figures until I decided to start getting them in a more build-a-collection way. I don't pretend to be a completist, that is impossible, there are millions and millions of Dunnys out there. What I'll do is try to get Dunnys done by specific artists (both official and custom). I'll try to be a completist with the regular ones: I.E. every dunny by Doktor A or Frank Kozik.

But today I'll show an awesome custom created by UK based artist Paulo a.k.a. Zukaty. Some time ago, he decided to recreate the (almost) complete Dunny 2010 series. Here's the result:



All of these are great, but since the beginning of his quest (posted in the October Toys Forum), the one I really wanted was the Poison Dunny. And guess what?



After sending him a mail, I got what I wanted!



It looks great, and it is just a fun concept. The sculpted parts look good and he was able to be very accurate with the paint in a very small scale. It's a simple design but incredibly effective, proof that you don't need to be over complicated as long as you can create something truly original. Zukaty did.



When I saw it, the "Final Condiment" line made me laugh out loud, that's because the original Dunny used to create this one is the Ketchup (or Sket-chup) Dunny by Sket-One.



There's also a Sweet Relish Dunny, a Mustard Dunny and a Mayo Dunny (And no, I'm not joking here people). But it doesn't end here, you see, Paulo didn't just send me the Dunny, he went the distance and included a mini canvas original painting.



Why did he do this if I only wanted the Dunny? Because he's an awesome guy, that's why.

Zukaty is selling the rest of his creations here. Check them out before they are gone!

I'll start posting more Dunnys soon, but first I have some superhero toys, more customs and a ton of MOTUC posts to go. Busy busy busy.

Until next time.

The adventures of Tiger Batman around the World - Part II

Hey everybody! I'm back from my honeymoon, and do you know what that means?

Yes, more Tiger Batman around the World pics for you!

This time I went to my neighbor country of Uruguay and two cities: Montevideo (the Capital) and Punta del Este (roughly translated as Eastern Point, a coast city). I love this country very much as I spent several summers with my family there.

There's not a lot of pics because, well, it was my honeymoon dammit!



Tiger Batman and the four meat mistery dish in the Hotel Buffet with Montevideo in the background. Holly Cholesterol Batman!



Tiger Batman in the Punta del Este pier, the high season is yet to begin so, not a lot happening right now, but imagine this filled with luxury yatchs I'll never be able to afford.



Tiger Batman and the pool of our Hotel, not too shabby I must say...



And finally, Tiger Batman and the Drowning Man's hand in Punta del Este. You can't save everybody Batman!

There was also a pic of Tiger Batman and the Casino Slot Machine that was avoided by Casino Security. My hysterical screams that he was the Goddam Batman, therefore, not a threat to the Casino didn't impress them at all. I still won a shit load of money, just to show them.

I'll resume regular posting on the blog now that the wedding is done.

Until next time.

Spooky Halloween post is not spooky and late

Hello guys and girls. First of all I want to apologize for not posting anything in the last month. The fact is (here's where I open my life to you oh anonymous Internet crowd), I'm getting married tomorrow. And planning the party (that's happening this friday, baby) was terrible. I had to order a whole crate of Soylent green and also had to buy some plutonium from some Lybian terrorist (we can't get plutonium in any corner drugstore like in 1985, y'know?) and also bringing that Goddamn Bruce Wayne back to the present so he can attend. It's really hard work, let me tell you.

But after this, everything will be good and back to (almost) normal.

I wanted to make a Halloween post so, today I'll be reviewing The Mummy from the Universal Monsters line...



Hey. Wait a minute... That's not the Mummy... Wait here, I have to go slap an intern.

...

(Slap!)

OK, I'm back. So, like I said, today I'll be reviewing Negative Man from DC Universe Classics wave 13.



This figure is simple, the base buck with a few minor alterations and new head and hands. Negative man had to use the bandages because he was radioactive (like that plutonium I mentioned, and you thought I was rambling). I love the Doom Patrol, being kinda freaky myself I just love the idea of weird and strange looking heroes defending a world that fears them while taking orders from a guy in a wheelchair... Yep that doesn't sound familiar at all.



Jokes aside, I love this group (and yes, they were created before the X-Men), I thank Mattel for the chance to get them in figure form for the first time. Now all I need is a C&C Elasti-girl and a Chief in wheelchair. And I'd like to point out that if I don't get them I'll be pretty pissed off.

I hope that the inclusion of the Doom Patrol in Batman: The Brave and the Bold boosts the chances of a complete Doom Patrol soon.



By the way, if you're not watching Batman: The Brave and the Bold, do it. It's awesome!

In conclusion, Negative Man is a nice figure, simple and to the point. On his own is not mind blowing, but as a potential part of the Doom Patrol he's great!

Oh, and for those of you who asked (nobody really asked), here's a Halloween joke with an obscure reference for you!



Until next time.

You were always on my mind

There are a couple of good reasons why I got this toy:



Number 1 (The altruistic reason):
This toy is the first release of Raje Toys, and I try to support, as much as my wallet can, the new people that release new ideas and awesome looking toys. I followed the creation of Dr. Brain (He's insane in the membrane - Hey, that's what the box says...), he started as a custom and was so praised that they decided to make it into a toy in its own right. And boy, did they succeed.



Number 2 (The look reason):
Since the first time I saw the teaser pictures I knew I was going to get this toy because it just looks so damn good. The sculpt of the body is really simple, very smooth and with almost no sculpted detail. The "head" and brain are a different story, the liquid in the jar is painted, which is a good choice, the brain is great, and back tanks are a nice addition to the figure as a whole. It doesn't have a lot going for articulation, but I don't really need it, just want it to stay there and look cool. And it does. There's a chase variant painted grey and red, but I really like this one better.



And finally...

Number 3 (The real reason):
It's a toy about a Brain in a jar. And I-JUST-FUCKING-LOVE-TOYS-WITH-BRAINS-IN-JARS!!!

Until next time.

A little bit of He-Story

Actually this story is quite simple...

It's a story as old as time itself. Boy meets Alien-Girl and falls in love. Boy is also heir to the throne. Prince-Boy and Alien-Girl got married. Prince-Boy is also Captain of the guard. Captain-Prince-Boy has a Brother. Brother is also Blue, making him Blue-Brother. Blue-Brother is jealous of Captain-Prince-Boy so he plots to seize control. Traitor-Blue-Brother gets an army and attacks Powerful-Castle-Filled-With-Powerful-Old-People. Traitor-Blue-Brother brings acid with him. Big Mistake. Captain-Prince-Boy defeats Traitor-Blue-Brother, burns his face and becomes King-Boy. Burnt-Traitor-Blue-Brother asks Powerful-Magic-Evil-Being to save his life. He transforms into Skeleton-Blue-Sorcerer. King-Boy and Alien-Girl have twins, but Princess-Girl is stolen by previously mentioned Powerful-Magic-Evil-Being. King-Boy decides to give half of his world to his brother, but he's kind of a douchebag and he gives him the dark creepy half, and keeps the best half with the beautiful beaches, lots of sun light and cat people to himself. Finally Skeleton-Blue-Sorcerer decides to come back and take over and Douchebag-King-Boy has to rely on his son's (Prince-Fancy-Pants) split personality to save the day.

I mean, anyone can see it coming. Right?

Well, I got one of the main players in that story sometime ago and it's time to talk about him:

This is Traitor-Blue-Brother



Keldor, brother of Randor, that is. The figure is a great piece but I'm not loving it completely. I mean, it was a cool idea to give Skeletor a human background, and to make it a treacherous brother is actually pretty poetic. The figure looks great too, but there's something that just doesn't do it for me. First, there's just no explanation to why he's blue and Randor is not. Did Randor's father had more than one spouse? Was that legal in Preternia? Is Keldor a bastard? I don't know, sometimes I wish to know... Sometimes I just want to imagine a really big bed with King Miro (or whatever Randor's father name is) in the middle and a lot of girls from all the colors of the rainbow. That sounds more like Conan than He-Man, but wouldn't it be great?

Anyway, Randor is the good guy and Keldor is the bad guy, and you know this by their choice of facial hair. If you don't know it by now, you should always remember:



Keldor was not part of the subscription so he could be easily avoided, but I battled with myself when I decided to buy the 200X Keldor, and since I lost that battle and got that figure in all his burning glory, why go through that again?

Keldor comes with two half boring Power Swords, as I said before, I'm getting sick and tired of Power Swords by now. But he also comes with the one thing the character needs. Since you will only want this character to replay that scene when his face is melted like ice cream on a pan. Hmmm, Ice cream on a pan... Wait a minute...

OK I'm back... Ice cream on a pan sucks, it's a terrible idea, don't try it at home. Where was I? Oh yeah, Keldor comes with the only accessory he needs: a vial of acid to utterly destroy his face. Ah, good Eternian times!

Fictional characters should know better by now...



Until next time.

(I was going to talk about She-Ra too, but this post got too long already and I have to work, I'll catch up to MOTUC before I review Carnivus. Guy-Pretending-To-Be-A-Scout's honor!)

Montreal Haul!

No, I did not go to Montreal, although, that would have been a good excuse to explain my lack of posting lately. sadly, there's no excuse, just a lot of work and a Freak Studio too tired to sit down and write jokes about toys.

But the amount of toys and toy pics I have now, annoys me, and since I usually put the toys in their displays after I've posted about them, I'll better start posting again before I die in toy-valanche.

To explain the title: My dad had to go to Montreal, my dad is a doctor, but he also loves art and is a quite talented artist himself. He didn't really get toy collecting, but he did understand me and I finally convinced him that art toys are a true art form that has to be aknowledge (I also gave him an Andy Warhol figurine that changed his mind a little bit).

Now we usually talk about toys and artist, so, when he went to Montreal and found a designer toy shop there, he asked for a guy I mentioned like a thousand million times: Joe Ledbetter, and he got me these:



The haul consist in two incredibly different pieces of Ledbetter's unique art. Slander snake and Toxic Swamp Dog.



The orange Toxic Swamp Dog (and the only one I'm going to have, I'm not a fan of colorways, so I just get the design in the color I like the most, since this was a present I'm keeping orange as my favorite) is made in one of Toy2r platforms and I have to admit is quite massive.

And when I say massive, I mean it:



I think this is a fun piece, but I have a bit of a problem with Joe Ledbetter doing platforms: His art is so different that he really needs a special sculpt in order to show his designs.

Toxic Swamp Dog is cute, but I don't really like it as much as the other toy my dad got me: Slander Snake.



Here you can see why Ledbetter is so special: he makes his 3D designs look like 2D. And I love that about him, first, because I think it looks great, second, because nobody does nothing quite like it.

Something similar to what happened with Toxic Swamp Dog happened here: My dad got the purple Slander, so Slanders, for me, are now officially purple.

Another great thing about this sculpt is that you can open it to reveal...



The snake's dinner. Gross... But kinda cute (my mom actually thought it was an egg...)

I'll try to get my hands into more Joe Ledbetter toys. But I'll try to find the ones with the specific sculpt before I get the others that are just painted platforms.

Until next time.

(After I explained my mom what that little ball in the snake's stomach was, she decided the figure wasn't cute anymore)

In brightest day, in exclusives cash...

There's an awesome customizer online that goes by the (also awesome) name of The God Beast. I met him through a forum. But I won't talk about his amazing work (although you should totally check it out here), I just want to thank him for hooking me up with some DC Direct exclusive figures.



Black Lantern Hal Jordan and White Lantern Sinestro (from C2E2).



I don't usually talk about packaging, since I'm an opener, unless packaging is way cool or fun (like the Wonder Twins or the new exclusive Plastic Man from Mattel) I'm not interested in it. In this case I just thought the box was clever and very well designed, with only one flaw: An exclusive toy is something you are lucky to get. You either went to the event where it was sold or found it on ebay and pay like the unworthy idiot you are or you find someone to get it for you...

My point is that if you know you are making that kind of toy, and you're going to make a nice looking book-like packaging...



MAKE IT RESEALABLE!!!!

OK, rant over. Let's go to the figures.



Hal Jordan as a Black Lantern is just a repaint from last years SDCC Hal-Jordan-in-every-color-we-can-think-of exclusives. So in the sculpting department there's not much to say. Since I don't own any of those, I'm happy with this well sculpted figure and I wanted to have one for the Black Lantern/Justice Zombies display I'm putting together. Although, next to the more detailed dead lanterns it may turn out to be a little bland.

Hal came with a Black Lantern ring, similar to the one you got with the comics. Except this one has a code the other one doesn't.



Sinestro, on the other hand, was a pleasant surprise. his crooked smile and Vincent Price mustache are great. At first I thought he was just another repaint too. But he doesn't look like Justice or Yellow Lantern Sinestro (I don't actually own these, so I may be wrong). But I guess it's a new sculpted head in a repainted body.

I like the color of the head. DCD seems to have troubles deciding if Sinestro should be pink or purple, but I think this is just fine.

Also, he's the only white lantern you are going to get (in full white lantern outfit, at least) until Geoff Johns decides he needs another car and a better TV set and writes another giant Crisis-like arc.



Until next time.

(Hey wait a second... Isn't Geoff Johns writing Brightest day? That sneaky bastard... Next you are going to tell me we are getting a Mera figure too...)