AGGRANAL

My Tron Attempt... First Custom Munny

2011-08-02T22:55:00.007+08:00


I Glow...

I have had this design in my head for some time now. Ever since the concepts for the recent Tron remake came out, I've been doodling on different toy formats but eventually settled on the GID Munny... umm because I thought it would be cool if the figure glowed. :D

Went out to Secret Fresh and grabbed a GID mini Munny and went about my first attempt at a custom...

I actually drew on a blank outline sticker from an earlier purchase (that has been sitting in storage for too long) which came in handy.

Being someone used to painting tabletop minis, I couldn't imagine painting on a toy without priming first with a spray can. (yes I admit I was just being lazy... should have just masked and sprayed) I searched the net and asked around and eventually decided to try markers :D.

For this figure I used Sharpies, Schnieders, and the free one that came with the munny. I started off with pencil for the outlines, and traced them with the finest Sharpy I could find. I then filled the colors in with the broader pens. The process was rather tedious as being the lazy person that I am (see above), I didn't bother masking the areas that I intended to leave bare for the glowing effect. This meant that I wasted lots of time and straining my eyes, outlining the design with the markers and going over areas with sand paper and wipes again and again.

Eventually I finished the head...

Looking at the initial sketch, I had actually intended the suit's lines to be the only source of glow on the figure, but after seeing the head in the dark I felt this did produce my desired effect. I decided to try sanding the purple marker down to the point where the glow would still show without completely erasing the color. (yes it ended up pink... ) I was actually pleased with how it turned out, though I couldn't get that smooth and even finish that I wanted.

Finished the head after an evening's worth of effort XD

Moving on, I applied to coats for the Black areas, and one really thick coat of purple for sanding after leaving it on overnight. I am not sure, but i found the color stuck better when left overnight and didn't come off completely with the sandpaper.

Front view

... and the back side

Doing the body and arms was faster at least. Having familiarized with the techniques I was better able to proceed in stages, applying the black last to allow easier handling while sanding the pink on the toy for instance. I finished off with red outlines on the borders of the pink area for when the munny is not in the dark, as this better defines the design.

and now of course here is the little guy in all his glowing glory... sorry for the crappy pic I am not really sure how to shoot in the dark. XD

I hope this was an enjoyable read and I would like to leave this post with a shot of my next project :D

-alger

The Secret Beast ! (review)

2011-05-04T00:33:00.001+08:00

Just realized I have not done a toy review for some time... actually I have not put up a post for some time. :P hehe my bad, but anyway I want to get back into blogging mode with a really awesome post...

Fondly called the "Secret Beast or Fresh Beast"... the latest addition to my shelf, the Beast Brothers' SecretFresh exclusive custom 8" Calendario Dunny Azteca. There were only 2 ever made and sold, and thanks to the awesome guys at SecretFresh, I was able to score one of them!

The figures are hand made 8" customs of the Beast Brothers' "Calendario" dunny for Kidrobot's Dunny Azteca series II 3" collectibles.

The figure comes in its own museum style crate with laser etched cover panel. I really like the packaging because it stand out, is nicely executed, and the fact that it's another display piece in itself.

The front panel slides off to open the container, and inside the 'toy' is protected by bubble wrap, foam bits, and a plastic wrap...

... and there's the guy right there. Metallic Emerald green color theme, with red Swarovski Crystals.

This being the first real 'custom' that I have bought, I must say I am pretty proud of the purchase. Both figures were sold moments after Secret Fresh posted them on their blog for P27,000.00 each. I feel grateful Bigboy offered me first dibs to secure one, since the next buyer in line intended to buy both.

Here is the figure next to the original 3" version (sporting 2 crystals for eyes). There are minimal differences to the details on both interpretations. The icons on the head-dress, the body armor, and tongue, are given a more 3-dimensional feel on the 8" version, allowing them to stand out more. The face was given more of a proportion change, which I feel took away much detail instead of enhancing the look from the 3" dunny. Overall though the figure still appeals, somehow the reduced detail on the face enhances head-dress, and lets the character of the figure standout.

The back of the figures look pretty much the same. I like how the logo was 'raised' though, and of course that all-seeing eye really stands out, now that it's actually sculpted. It would have been cool if the red pupil were a large crystal though, but that probably would have been overkill. Overall I am happy with the treatment given to the back, just enough attention to see the artist's vision, and not so much as to draw attention away from that awesome front.

I'd like to review this view for two reasons. First the obvious logo that the artists placed at the bottom of the figure, and secondly the fact that it is embossed on leatherette booties. Yes the figure has booties! I like how the leatherette (or some similar material perhaps?) was used to pull-off the footwear and skirt. I find it really gives just that much more character to the piece.

Now for a little ugly, unfortunately. My figure has some damages on it, in fact I was informed of the paint chip before I came over to pick up the figure. I only latter found the gap at the back of the Head-dress, after I opened it to admire at home.

there is a gap where the head-dress and 'head' meet

paint splatter (black) and paint chipped (white)

Whilst certainly these were disappointing to find on the figure, I am really happy to have been informed that the artists are coming to manila later in the year, and have offered to do the touch up themselves. The repairs are really minor (they could simply send the paint and I could do the touch up at home really), and I am honestly more thrilled to learn that there might be a chance to meet them in person, but it really feels good to know artists who give personal attention to their creations even after having sold them.

Thanks for reading and hope it was enjoyable.

-alger

Filling Up Blanks

2011-02-10T01:01:00.001+08:00

Part of the fun of moving into a new house, well at least in my opinion, are the new cabinets and shelves waiting to be filled with stuff. It doesn't really matter if said stuff are new or old really, I simply find filling up the empty spaces to be a joy.

For this new house though, it was even more exciting because we had a say from the ground up. Besides the basic layout and feel for my room, what I had specifically wanted from the beginning were book shelves and display cases with frameless glass doors. I wanted somewhere for my collections to be seen, so that I could finally take them out of their boxes and put them where visitors can enjoy them as much as I do.

The first picture is of the main cabinet. As can be seen in the pics, it has those display spaces I wanted, as well as lots of other compartments for other stuff. From top to bottom just a quick rundown, those are novels, some Mighty Muggs, 1:6 toys, Vinyl Collectibles and of course Board-games. The centerpiece of this set up is really Box Boy by Christian Tamondong, everyone I have brought to see this cabinet draws their attention to it sitting there in the center shelve. It's an awesome art/toy that was designed and produced locally. I got it from my girlfriend (thanks hon :D) as a Christmas gift, it's numbered 39 of a limited run of 40 pieces. Signed and doodled by the artist... I should really write a review of it one of these days :P.

Now on to the right half. It houses my paperback novels. At the moment I am reading Scott Lynch, and Joe Abercrombie mostly. Right below the books are the Dunnys with Luke Chueh's Blood and Fuzz right in the middle. There are also Baby Sharky Twins and O-no-Sushi in the display cabinet. This is the cute side of the whole set up I guess, and I feel brightens up my day every time I look over it.

The left half Houses my most recent addiction... I mean Hobby. 1:6 scale action figures. These are Hot Toys and ThreeA figs. I have a few more coming in :P... I'll probably blogg more about these when they arrive.

Right above the action figures are my Tolkien books. I'm a fan, and really enjoy reading and rereading his works, even beyond the Lord of the Rings. The other hard bounds there are Lovecraft and R.A. Salvatore books.

Now to wrap up this post, I want to show the "other" cabinet in the room. I have yet to fill it up properly really but for now I'm happy to have taken out the Akira Bike from storage, the one on the upper left section. Ill fix this one more before actually blogging more about it.

That's all for now I guess. Thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed.

-alger

Secret Fresh Ortigas branch has opened

2010-11-10T23:05:00.002+08:00

Secret Fresh at the RONAC Art Center along Ortigas, has just opened shop and are offering a great selection of vinyl toys and other cool collectibles.

I use the word "toys" but really what these guys have up for sale and display are truly works of art. Visitors to the store/gallery are treated to viewings of rare pieces as well as new releases. For instance on display they have a set of Gorillaz vinyl figs, gigantic hand painted dunnys, and even the Manny Pacquiao & Mickey figure set, though unfortunately not for sale.

Whilst there however I was fortunate enough to grab one of these guys before they ran out. Yup they had a couple of Blood and Fuzz 8" dunnys there. Ok I actually bought this before the grand opening. Lol Bigboy was gracious enough to let random stranger me in to have a looksie a few weeks before they officially opened. They had about 5 of these left then, though on opening day I saw only 2 boxes on the shelf and now they are *poof*. This is one awsome piece and it came signed by Luke Chueh. I'm really happy with this purchase and grateful someone brought this in to the Philippines, at a reasonable price mind you.

What I did eventually buy after that oppening night, though I had to wait till the next day since there were way too many people that evening, are these guys...

A pair of Kiething's Baby Sharkies. Really cute and looks awesome on the shelf. Like the Blood and Fuzz above these guys came signed by their creator. This purchase actually came after my girlfriend asked Bigboy if she could open a set and see how they looked on a table together. after seeing that we just had to get both not just one. I guess the guys at the store liked they as well, cause they were still on the display table when we left.

Anyway to end this I would just like to say that the Secret Fresh guys are awesome, as well as their shop. I truly am hoping to see more from these guys (3A.. ahem ahem... 3A ;P). They have great plans for bringing in more talent from around the world to visit us here, as well as promoting our local artists as well.

Congratulations on a succesful opening!

-alger

Happy 50th Dad!!!

2010-10-18T22:54:00.000+08:00

Happy birthday dad!!

Our father's birthday is actually on the 20th of the month, but we gave him a little advance on the party and presents last sunday. We had a small BBQ session at home, that nearly became a kitchen affair because the typhoon decided to threaten the late afternoon with strong winds and a possible downpouring in the evening. Besides the wonderful meal and the ipad mom got dad, me and my sisters were able to surprise our father with a little custom toy we made for him.

it is based on the Danboard toy by Revoltech.

Every year, me and my two sisters try our best to surprise our dad with something different for his birthday, but we usually end up giving him shirts or coffee mugs. This year though we were determined to get him something more personal and unique.

After weeks of brainstorming to no avail, I chanced upon some danboards at Greattoysonline.com in greenhills. I immediately knew I had found the perfect gift for him. They were out of stock though, and i had to keep emailing the shop for an order and to make sure it arrived early enough for us to pull the surprise off. I bought twowhen they arrived, initially because i wasn't sure how to do the customization and was worried that we might be needing more than one try. However, when I showed my sisters they quickly concluded that stickers and marker pens were the way to go. After realizing that the customization would be relatively easy to do, we decided to do a mom Danboard with the spare toy to give them a set.

Just a couple of weeks back, we had to move out of the new house because of some painting and varnishing works to be done to our rooms. Despite the obviouse headache with moving out again, this actually gave us best opportunity to finish the toys. My sisters quickly went to work with the stickers and pens, while I secured the company logos for the dad version.

Anyway without further delay here are the finished products! two new customized Danboards for my dad's display cabinet.

My dad's wearing his favorite boxer shorts, whilst mom is in hercolorful PJ's. we are really pleased with how these guys turned out, and we're even happier to see the curiosity and pleasant surprise in dad's face when my sister gave them to him with both sets of eyes lit up (yes they light-up via a switch at the side of the head)

anyway that's all for now, the post is too wordy once again, I appologise. Anyway I'll post more frequently when we move 'back' into the new house (hopefully within 2010).

Until my next post! I hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading!

-alger

My First iPad Art

2010-08-19T22:46:00.001+08:00

I finally uploaded this! Oh happy day!
My first try at using Sketchbook Pro on my iPad. Did this Tron inspired Mighty Muggs in about 2 sittings. I used 3 layers, 3 brush styles, 2 main colors, the mirror and erase tools, and my fingers. I'm pretty pleased with how this piece came out, though honestly finger painting wasn't as easy as i expexted it to be. I realized once again how fat my fingers are... and here i thought the iPad's bigger surface would be more forgiving. Don't get me wrong though, I had a lot of fun doing this and deffinitely hope to do more stuff in the future.

-alger

The Mez-Itz line looks promising

2010-06-25T23:57:00.002+08:00

A while back I got a couple of Mez-Itz, namely the Hellboy and Abe Sapien ones. I was very pleased at this toy line. Mezco translated the character's images into their mould very well, and maintained a unique personality as a toy line. The fact that their articulation made them really posable and looked awesome on the shelf helped as well.

Mezco came out with a few others like Freddy & Jason from their respective horror franchises, a monotone Zombie, Perseus from the Clash of the Titans, the Wolfman, and a few others. None of these really caught my attention and so until now Me and Kat have kept to our ever growing Mighty Muggs collection and didn't buy any further into the Mez-Itz line.

Recently though there was an announcement that Mezco would be partnering with DC to introduce characters from their universe. This actually piqued my interest, and I have been keeping an eye out for possible sneak peaks. Recently my wait was rewarded and I saw these guys online...

There are of course More Hell Boy and... yes finally that's Johann Kraus the detective

Then there are these Kick Ass Mez-Itz, complete with 2" keychain counterparts

Some Watchmen have also surfaced... I'm really liking the Rorschach one

Here are Green Hornet and his sidekick Kato. I am not that excited about these though...

... but I definitely am going to be on the lookout for these guys! Yes the first iconic DC characters in the Mez-Itz form, Batman and Joker!

Well these are definitely not easy to find here in the Philippines, but I hope with more appealing releases such as these, that we get to see more Mez-Its in local toy shops. I'm sure lots of collectors will want them if not the nostalgic fanboys.

Just a quick post for now. When I get some more info on these guys I'll try to update.

-alger

Backstabbing Fun!

2010-06-12T17:43:00.003+08:00

The last time my gaming group met up, we ran Cutthroat Caverns. This game, by Smirk and Dagger Games, came highly recommended by a number of people from the TW forums, and I have to admit we had a blast with it. My thanks to Brel and Adrian for this one.

I can't help notice though that the game wasn't recommended just to me, but more to my gaming group. We have a reputation as a bunch of self-serving backstabbers, who regularly play co-op games. It has never been just about winning the game in my group, but its how much you can beat down each other along the way.

In Cutthroat Caverns players take on the roles of adventurers who have just obtained an all powerful artifact, and are in the process of escaping the caverns. The game throws a series of encounters at the players that can either be boss battles, or events. There is a catch however, and that only the 'killing blow' awards players with prestige. The player with the most prestige after a set amount of encounters wins, but of course players can also win by getting those in the lead killed first.

The game is played in rounds consisting of 4 distinct phases. At the first part of each round players draw initiative cards, this makes turn order for every round different. After which, the second phase lets each player place one attack card face down on the table. Attack cards can potentially do 0 to 200 damage points, or enact special effects such as items stealing or doubling up of a second attack.

The third phase is where 'player interaction' comes in, as each reveals and resolve their faced down attack cards in initiative order. Note that the sequence and amount of applied damage determines who gets the kill. As each attack card is revealed, players have the option of playing action cards to change the outcomes. There are cards like "Rally" which aid an ally's attack by adding damage to it, and then there are cards like "Trip" that cancels someone's damage and makes them miss the next round.

If the monster somehow survives the antics of adventurers, it attacks during the fourth phase of the round. Each monster attacks and effects gameplay differently. some might simply say "attacks player #2 for 10 points", whilst others might have really lengthy explanations for adding tentacles and blocking players. Of course before ending the round players get another chance of sabotaging each other, yes there are cards like "Meat shield" that volunteer your friends to take the damage for you.

Playing the game and watching my friends play it without me made me appreciate a number of its qualities. First and most important I believe is that backstabbing and getting each other killed is not as much fun as backstabbing someone just as they are about to execute a DoubleDamage-FocusedStrength-100Pts.Attack. The second thing I found was its not really about the what bosses you encounter (we drew the dragon on stage 2, then a goblin for the final boss... and yes the goblin took longer to kill), but its about who you encounter those bosses and events with. The third and last revelation would be that I really need sleeves, not only for the main cards that get shuffled and reshuffled into decks and hands, but for the big encounter cards as players keep passing them around to read and re-read the rules printed on most of them.

Over all this is a great game. Moderately easy to pick up, even for more casual players. Some cards tend to be wordy, but their effects are easy to resolve games-wise thus becoming clockwork in no time. My copy of the game came with a few cards with bubbled surfaces, I'm not sure how this came about, but the defect was not significant enough to affect gameplay. I would definitely recommend this to friends and would really encourage people to try this with a gaming group similar to mine and let loose all your inner needs to be sneaky backstabbing friends.

-alger

Soul of Popynica Kaneda's Bike ... finally here

2010-05-31T01:53:00.004+08:00

I just picked this up yesterday from Greattoysonline's Greenhills branch.

It is the 1/6 scale replica of Kaneda's bike from the phenomenal Akira manga and anime. This is by Bandai, or Project BM! to be precise, in collaboration with Katsushiro Otomo, the creator of the Akira franchise. From what I have read online, this is supposedly the "ultimate reproduction" of this Iconic bike, and has all the bells and whistles to show for.

As excited as I am to start reviewing the bike itself, I feel that I should give a little mention to the amount of packaging this came in. The outer packaging is predominantly in a matt black cardboard box with glossy outlines of the bike printed around it, and various images of the bike with explanations printed at the back. The inner packaging is styrofoam with cutout compartments for each individual part. it is fairly easy to take out the items without using force or fiddling with tape and wire. Each item is further wrapped with plastic sheet which keeps the bike unscratched and shiny. It seems a little excessive, but it gets the job done.

the main bike is about 50cm or 19 1/2 inches long, with a die-cast metal frame beneath the heavily detailed exterior. The internal mechanism can be exposed by removing the cowling panels. Some of the more notable details inside are the working suspensions on the wheels, movable front module to simulate 'parked' and 'drive' modes, adjustable headlight, and soft seat (it feels like rubber or silicon).

The Cowling plates are attached to the vehicle by magnetic studs. I really like this, as it means the designers didn't need to provision out of placed recesses on the model to accommodate where the armor plates would latch on. With the magnets, you only have to align the parts and they automatically snap together. I was initially worried that this would make the plating loose, but after playing around with it I found the plates to fit nicely.

there is a switch at the bottom rear section of the bike. This is for the three power levels, namely "off", "lights", and "lights & sound" (Requires batteries, yes bells and whistles people). It features light-up functions of wheels, indicators, taillight, headlight, and console panel. Turning the left accelerator plays engine & cruising sounds, whilst pressing the brake will play a screech sound. There is curiously a jack of some-sort just below the seat. I have not tried it yet, but it seems you can connect speakers to this.

Here is a little size comparison of the bike and my Nokia E71 mobile. After taking this shot I realized that the bike would actually make a really cool cellphone cradle... hmmm ideas...

Anyway, I got the limited initial production version it seems, which means it comes with an additional box containing unmarked cowl panels and a lot of stickers. This is supposedly to make the bike appear as shown in Katsuhiro Otomo's art for the DVD cover.

overall I am very pleased with this replica. Definitely a proud addition to the shelves. I'll have to keep it for now though as we are moving to a new house soon. I'll find a suitable space there to showcase this bike and post some proper pictures of it lighted up onto my flicker account soon.

Just a quick post for this one. Nothing much more to say about this bike, it's an absolutely great piece and I hope Project BM! comes out with more items of this quality.

-alger

New stuff on the shelves and in the closet...

2010-05-22T02:47:00.002+08:00

Yup it's been a while since I last made a post. Looking at my posts listings, I find that there are actually very little that are published, a lot that are in-the works, and none that are recent. Well here is one to break the long absence, and hope that it kicks me back into gear.

There have been a number of new additions to my room these last few months and I thought it would be neat to post about the more interesting stuff.

For starters, I finally got the Jim Raynor n00bz from Blizzard. After much convincing, ... (*ahem* *begging* *ahem* *cough*cough*) the same great guy who got me Ragnaros, finally sold me his convention souvenir. (in case the reader doesn't know, its the black box in the pic above)

The n00bz's case 'marine' mold was originally designed for this figure. It's made of the same high quality material with the same points of articulation as my earlier reviewed Ragnaros n00bz. What makes Raynor special though is the obviously awesome paint-job, but more importantly is the blaster. What would a marine be without his trusty side arm afterall? :)

Anyway, some interesting Eastereggs found on the armor are the BlizzCon '09 logo, a Horde insignia, and the Diablo III logo. I particularly like the tasteful distribution of detail on this figure. for instance, in front the Pixelated skull on the visor, and the armor plates stand out, but from behind the detailed backpack and the chimneys are the ones that attract attention, then even with a low angle view there are the details on the leg armor plates and joint designs the draw the eyes. This in my opinion makes the mini more interesting.

Now, back to that awesome 'gauss rifle'. The Jim Raynor n00bz comes with an oversized weapon. This is coated in a semi-gloss, bronzed-silver finish and is about 3" to 4"long. the 6" n00bz can actually use this as a cane, and can't lift it horizontally without tipping over. Despite this setback I still say the Rifle looks great and that making it oversized really adds character to this collectible. I'm not too sure but I believe the blank n00bz at the convention actually included plain white blasters as well.

As much as I am enjoying this toy, after taking these shots, i am actually keeping Raynor in his box. I'll find a place latter in the year, on my shelf in the new house so that I can display it properly. So expect to see another post with this and a number of other Vinyl collectibles that I have stashed away in my closet for the time being.

Since we are on the topic of 'toys in the closet', here are some new Toy2R stuff that I'm also saving for the new house. First is the Joe Ledbetter Smash Ice Blue Edition. I'm not sure if this is a limited run, but it sports a yeti themed color scheme and a goofy face, which differentiates it from other apes in the Smash line. There are articulations on the wrist, shoulders, neck, and hip areas, though I personally found that only the wrist and shoulders were really articulate enough to play around with.

The others that I bought from Toy2R's products are the Glow-In-the-Dark Evil Apes. These guys are surprisingly articulated well, considering their odd shaped body and limbs. There are articulations at the waist, neck, shoulders, and wrists. They do not have a strong glow, but good enough so that they can be seen in the dark as blobs. I found the character amusing and wanted to paint one up, though for now I am unsure as I'd also like to keep the Glowing feature intact.

Given the hectic last few months, there have been a number of additions to my room that were gifts. These, in their own quirky and amusing way, have helped me relax and smile every time. First up is Captain America Bobble head. My girlfriend gave him to me, and he shall keep me company in the office, wobbling away all me griefs at irritating clients and annoying hard headed personnel. Cap' features a clip-on shield and attached wings on his head, and stands about 4" tall. I tried moving the arms, though these didn't seem like they were meant to be movable.

My other stress busting secret is another gift from my girlfriend, Panda the Ball. He isn't exactly a collectible, nor does he feature any points of articulation. All he are his floppy limbs and ears, and glass button eyes, but he can still make me smile by just sitting on my sofa. On occasion of course, being a properly shaped, the bear also serves as a giant stress ball. Panda is about 12" wide, the height depends on how long my little sister has been sitting on him though and it changes from time to time.

Ah now to finish things off. I apologize for the really long post, and for flying off in multiple topics. I am allowed to get carried away once in a while however, and I hope that this entry has proven a reasonable distraction from your work and if not informative, at least amusing.

Till my next update.

-alger

We Finally Got Them !!!

2010-02-08T21:27:00.003+08:00

We finally found Jazz and Shockwave! Absolutely love them. The wave that they are released in also includes the Optimus and Bumblebee movie versions, but I don't find them as appealing. I'll check with Kat if she wants to get them latter on though for the collection.

Initially I was planning on displaying them sealed, but temptation overcame me and so...

Yup I just had to take them out...

Once again the classic Transformer character designs translated well onto the Mighty Mugg's basic frame. Jazz Comes with the same head as Bumblebee and a blaster-gun, whilst Shockwave comes with a blaster-arm. Interestingly Shockwave's weapon is attached to his back by a flexible plastic tube that allows the arm to move about easily. The back wings on the Jazz Mugg and the cable of Shockwave are fixed, unlike the wings for Starscream which are detachable for storing.

Both were bought from 2Rats in V-mall and came in good condition. The boxes were in acceptable condition with only a few knocks at some corners. The figures themselves have nice paintjobs, although Jazz does show some sign of scratches on the black portions which to me are still acceptable. All the joints are firm and there are no deformations on the accessories.

Overall I love these new additions to the collection, and Shockwave is easily my favorite of the Mighty Muggs line at the moment. But more importantly I really feel good to see signs that the Mighty Muggs toy line is not being canceled. My girlfriend and I would definitely want to see more characters come out and to be able to add to our growing collection.

Just to finish off this entry, I would like to post this size comparison of the characters currently invading my shelves. From left to right: Jazz (Mighty Mugg), DIY Toyer (Qee), Hellboy (Mez-itz), Ragnaros (n00bz)

Thanks for reading :D

-alger

Hellboy and Abe Sapien Mez-itz !!! (some holiday loot...)

2010-02-03T07:15:00.003+08:00

It has been a while since my last post. It has been a busy holiday, with the sudden onrush of festivities and work related distractions. Anyway, now as my daily routine goes back to a more normal pace, I would like to take the time and write a review for some toys I got during my hiatus.

An uncle of mine gave me Hellboy (top) for Christmas, and I found an Abe Sapien (bottom) whilst browsing at 2rats in Eastwood. They are Mez-its from Mezco. Their site mentions that these are 6" variants of the original Mez-itz line, though personally I don't think these look significantly similar to these Mez-itz predecessors.

Hellboy is a Con exclusive comic variant whilst Abe is the Hellboy 2 Movie version. There is also a Hellboy movie variant but I couldn't find one in the local stores. Both figures I have are wonderfully detailed, with as much character painted on as it seemed tasteful to bring the basic Mez-itz mold to life. Abe comes with plateaus that serve as goggles on his head. Hellboy, in addition to similar plateaus that serve as his sawed-off horns, comes with the Right Hand of Doom (articulated at the wrist), his signature Samaritan handgun, and an articulated tail. One standard articulation that I enjoyed on both figures was the ball-socket type head joints instead of the usual swivel, as these enabled more interesting poses that you couldn't really do with most vinyl collectibles.

(pic from theblotsays.blogspot.com)

Another aspect of the toys I found interesting were the differences in their packagings. Above is the standard movie version Mez-itz. The Abe I bought came in one of these, which featured clear plastic windows. Both the front and back of the box have similar windows that taper slightly to the sides of the box, thus enabling views of the figure from multiple angles. I really like how this packaging helps showcase a lot of the figures inside. The art on the box itself does not draw away attention from the toy itself, which for me is a good thing.

The Comic Con Exclusive Hellboy on the other hand had different packaging.

(pic from www.actionfigurepics.com)

Instead of the standard clear plastic window, this box came with line art drawn on all four sides. The front and sides showed closeups of the respective views of the figure, whilst the back showed a full body line art of the toy. The art came in muted colors with a "con exclusive" sticker standing out with its blue and yellow. I found this to be very appealing and I would really enjoy displaying this next to the loosed toy.

Overall I am pleasantly surprised by how appealing these were to me. I was not really planning on getting them, because I'm not really that familiar with the characters and the toy line. Unlike the Mighty Muggs that I currently collect, these offer a bit more articulation, but fewer character availability. They are coming out with the horror line though which includes Jason, Freddy, some zombies, and the Wolfman. Perhaps I'll be tempted to get them as well, if my finances allow. Now if they came out with an Aliens and Predator line, those I would definitely start saving up for.

-alger

Elusive Mighty Muggs (We wants our Jazz...)

2009-11-17T14:21:00.004+08:00

This post is just a quick follow up on the last one. (I know ... I really should do the next painting tutorial, but I saw something online that really made my day)

From the very start of our Mighty Muggs craze, Kat and I wanted to complete the whole Transformers series of the product line. The classic designs of the characters translated really well onto the format, and this appealed to us and which is why these guys easily became our favorites.

One character in particular that we sought after was Autobot Jazz. He and Shockwave, were supposed to have been in wave 3 along with Megatron and Starscream. However because of some weird internal decision, only both of the latter mentioned were released. Rants and rumors began to spread online and some even believed the whole line to be cancelled (there were also other Muggs that weren't released, which fueled the rumors).

One other rumor that surfaced was that Jazz and Shockwave were seriously 'under-produced' and were shipped to only a handful of stores worldwide. This was followed-up by an Ebay post from a Hong Kong seller that showed a picture of Jazz in a beat up packaging, supposedly from a shipment that never went to market. I have no idea if anyone bought this and weather it is real or not, but it at least proved that there was a community actively looking for these guys, and that the market was not so small as to kill off the product line.

Well that was early this year, and the multiple conventions have gone by with no word on the plans for these much sought after characters. Kat and I basically considered our Transformers set complete, or at least doomed never to be 'fully' complete, and started collecting the other series of the Mighty Muggs toy line. A few days ago though I came across this post about Upcoming Muggs from the Mighty Muggs Lounge forum. Finally hope on getting the Jazz and Shockwave Muggs for our collection. They are slated for fall this year though I expect these guys will probably be delayed a bit longer. As the saying goes however, "Better late than never". I'm going to have to ask Kat to see if we can pre-book this set, and hope that they come out soon.

Thats it for this post and once again thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed.

-alger

As a little bonus I'm putting below some excerpts from an old interview conducted by the Mighty Muggs Lounge with the Mighty Muggs creator. The full interview you can find here Interview on Mighty Muggs Lounge, but below are just the two questions that I found amusing.

Jose: Chris, can you tell us what “100% recycled awesome” actually means?

Chris: Well, it just sort of started out as a cute little slogan thing that we slapped on the side of the package, I know a lot of people have misinterpreted it. The official explanation I’ve been giving people is that Mighty Muggs are made of plastic, plastic comes from oil, and oil comes from dead dinosaurs and dinosaurs are awesome! (laughs) so that’s my answer.

Jose: Lastly, any particular reason for the square peg hole on the bottom of the Mighty Muggs feet?

Chris: So you can peg them on to stuff! Silver Surfer is actually the first figure that will actually come with something with a peg on it for him to stand on. It’s one of those things when you get on a line you always wish “wow, I really wish I had put a peg there so I could make him stand on stuff” and I didn’t want to have that regret with this line so I told myself I would build it in from day one, I don’t know what I mighty use it for but I know I might use it and that’s why it’s there.

My Mighty Muggs Craze

2009-11-11T19:46:00.013+08:00

A few months back, my girlfriend Kat and I started collecting Mighty Muggs. They are vinyl collectible toys released by Hasbro, featuring characters from the Transformers, G.I. Joe, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Marvel franchises. They are rendered onto a common frame/mold that lends the characters a rather cute super deformed look. We currently use the official website and mugglab to to get more info on the characters available.

The collection started with an offhand comment I made about wanting 15 kids someday. That, plus the fact that my is virtually drawn to round cute stuff all the time, made Mighty Muggs an obvious purchase for us.

Our first Mighty Mugg was Transformers' Optimus Prime SDCC exclusive (though we got it at Toy Kingdom here in the Philippines... I'm not sure how they define "exclusive" but it works for me). From there we started hunting down both the Decepticon and Autobot Characters.

We had trouble finding Megatron and Soundwave, and a friend advised us to go to Greenhills, along Ortigas Avenue. We found there are a number of shops on the third floor of the Shoppesville section selling collectible toys. Our favorite is GreatToysOnline.com, which offered the most selections of Mighty Muggs for us. Not only did we end up with Soundwave and Megatron, but we also bought some Marvel and G.I. Joe Muggs as well. So far our purchases from them were all in good condition, both the figures and their colorful boxes.

A curious condition Kat set for our collection is for them to be all displayed in my room. I definitely am not going to complain. Of course, just so I don't hoard all the fun, I gave her a few of them to keep her company at home.

I initially displayed all our 'kids' on my computer table shelf. Needless to say, the collection outgrew this small space (and my 15 child goal), so now most of these guys are back in their boxes now. Kat and I have talked about planning a nice display for them in our new house next year. Another reason why keeping them inside their boxes is good idea for now.

I keep them on a shelf, trying my best to showcase the beautifully designed boxes. It helped that that the particular shelf I'm using is sized just right. Unfortunately now with over 30 of them I have had to do 2 layers on that shelf, so yeah there are a number that don't get as much face time...

I have taken more photos of our collection during my bored weekends and I have them up on my Flickr page. Feel free to look through them. I'll probably write more about these guys at some latter point but for now I just wanted to share how the addiction started and how we have been fueling it.

Till my next post (which will probably be late once again) thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed :)

-alger

Miniature Painting Guide Part1

2009-11-04T15:25:00.003+08:00

This post is a follow up on my first one. As I mentioned I recently acquired a copy of the Space Hulk board game by Games-Workshop. Not wanting the beautiful miniatures to go to waste, I have decided to take up the brush and try my hand once again at miniatures painting. Before rambling on though, I would like to point to someone else's work that I really admire. Below is Ork 105; painted with two colors only by paulvalenx As the title implied, the model was painted using a mix of 2 colors. This awesome style really game this miniature personality, placing the lone orc on a bleak battlefield atmosphere. Kinda like being one of the few survivors after a major battle where neither side truly won.

His work has inspired me to go monochromatic with my Spacemarines and Tyranids. I decided to limit my use of colors to two pots of paint as well. Not only do I hope to give the minis that dark and confined look, but I also hope to give my copy of the game the 'command bridge' feel to it.

Ok now, on with the tutorial. Before painting any miniature it is always best to clean off the excess mold lines, known as flash with a modelling knife. Take care to always cut in directions away from you and be careful so as not to shave-off fine details of the mini. Here is a page showing a selection of blades (link), you can find them locally in National bookstore and most hobby centers. I personally prefer using the Excel knives.

Once the model has been cleaned, it is time to 'Prime' it. I personally prefer Gunze Sangyo products for this as I have used them comfortably for years and find them reasonably priced. I am however not sure if any of the local hobby shops carry the brand, although I think I saw a few cans in V-mall the other day. For the model below I used 'Mr. White Surfacer 1000' (note: the higher numbers on other cans indicate finer particles in the spray, meaning they are less-likely to clog up details of miniatures).

Since I was going for dark and gloomy, I wanted to work from black. As a general rule, White primer will make your colors brighter, whilst black the opposite. I painted the black layer on after the white surfacer was suitably dry, if a can of black primer were handy then I could have definitely skipped this silly step. Some quick tips on priming models though: a.) do it in well ventilated areas and b.) do it in multiple 'thin' coats. Going trigger happy on the spray can will make your miniature look like a clump of paint and make a grand mess of your workspace (that's experience speaking right there).

To make handling easier I always pin the bottom, a tip shared to me by a friend some time ago. Drill a hole into an inconspicuous portion underneath the miniature and glue a rod or wire in. This can then be stuck into a piece of cork or foam, so when painting your hands don't have to touch the miniature.

1 or 2 pieces of wire may be attached depending on how fixed you want the miniature to be whilst painting. For the mini above I used 1 so that the miniature can spin around, allowing access to hard to reach areas.

Above are some work in progress shots of the Base Coat. Ill discuss painting on Part 2 of this series. I'm still working on the paint job and realized that I paint really slow now. This is largely due to lack of practice and time. :P

-alger

Updating the Blog with crappy connection

2009-11-03T14:52:00.003+08:00

I am long overdue for an update to this Blog. I wanted to do a tutorial on the Dead Hero mini from the Space Hulk Board game, unfortunately the internet connection at home refuses to cooperate with me. It's odd that as I try to upload stuff onto Flicker, the status message confirms the files are up but they aren't. It seems that the connection at home isn't stable. The annoying part is we just upgraded to a Cable internet service with Sky, and it goes screwy everytime there's a storm in the Metro as it seems.

Anyway, for now I am posting using the office computer. I just wish to list out how I intend the next few Posts to flow.

Miniature Painting Guide Part 1:
I'll show how I prepare a miniature for painting. From removing flash, priming, and pinning the miniature for easier handling. I'll also list out the brushes and paints that I use as well as a few techniques that I most often use.

Miniature Painting Guide Part 2:
I will show pictures of the the painting process. Beginning with the base coat I'll discuss the steps I do up until the highlights and topcoat are all applied.

Miniature Painting Guide Part 3:
For the last of the set I intend to review my work and work procedure and offer up a few tips for anyone who would like to try their hand at painting minis as well.

Considering my absolute lack of ability with regards to sticking to the plan, I am sincerely hoping to at least pull through with this one. Not only to get more practice in my hobby, but also to build up momentum in keeping my little space here updated.

Till my next post.

-alger

The Battle Masters

2009-10-25T22:41:00.003+08:00

The Battle Masters (TBM) is a relatively young web comic set in the World of Warcraft Universe. Its being drawn and directed by Yonzon, a friend of mine who also writes for WoW.com .

It tells the story of his characters in the game, with a PvP atmosphere. There has not yet been an appearance from prominent NPCs or in-game story elements yet, but rather TBM's story only plays-off of the main storyline without totally being directed by it. There are hints and mentions of the great war that is going on that helps tie the comic to the WoW universe, but it still remains apart. I like this approach as it gives the author a good atmosphere to work with leaving many options for the comics future. At the moment I find the story is still building momentum, but I must say that I am Liking the art. He has a clean style with prominent lettering without cluttering the panels too much. The character designs are also interesting. He has retained the WoW character designs but at the same time given each o his own character their own distinctive feature.

One last bit about Battle Masters is that Yonzon has also put in some reviews and insights on his posts on the page. Of particular interest are the product reviews of the Razor peripherals which I found rather informative.

I'm looking forward to seeing more from this site and hopefully from the maker of the Comic as well.

-alger

I got my n00bz !!! yay

2009-10-22T23:09:00.003+08:00

A friend of mine attended Blizzcon 09 where the n00bz by Blizzard and Bigshot Toyworks were released. There were three versions for sale, a murlock, ghoul, and ragnaros, oh plus a 'blank'. I asked him to help me grab a Fury of Ragnaros and I just got it from him today after he came back to the Philippines

( actually I was begging to buy his Raynor n00bz which only came in the goody bag... I failed :( )

Anyway, here are my impressions on the toy. Fist off the packaging I must say was simple and would really look nice on a shelf. It displayed the figure through two panels of clear plastic and has a similar feel to the packaging of Hasbro's Mighty Muggs line, complete with the figure silhouette cutout on one side. I find the simple dark toned colors really brought out the figure encased within. One gripe i have is that while unpacking the figure, I found it difficult to pop it off the frame. It could be just me but I Would have preferred a looser packaging as I have had experiences where the paint stuck to the clear packaging or the figure getting scratched in the attempt to get it off the frame.

The toy itself is made of durable material and the paint job is clean and detailed. Blizzard apparently held a painting contest internally to determine the first mass produced editions of these toys. This probably explains the quality of the art, and mass producing them doesn't seem to have had much effect on the level of detail.

FRONT

BACK

The figure stands about 6 inches in height and is about 7 inches across depending on the pose. Below I give you a side by side shot of Ragnaros and a Logan Mighty Mugg for size comparison

Overall im very very happy with my n00bz. Needless to say I will definitely display this one proudly on my shelf. Am really grateful to my friend Zach for helping me grab a copy. (Zach publishes an online web comic based on the WoW universe and the art is kickass ... link)

-alger

I got my Space Hulk !!!

2009-10-19T18:21:00.003+08:00

I want to use this space to talk about my gaming hobby in general. From what games I'm looking for, currently playing, and currently working on.

To start things off I want to get into Space Hulk (3rd. Ed.). I have wanted a copy of this game for a very long time, and finally this year a new edition was released. Bought my copy from Paradigm Infinitum (PI) in Singapore last month, and was able to add on another set of board tiles and accessories from Fed on Tabletopwars.com who was looking to split a box's contents.

SPACE HULK
By Games Workshop is a 2 player game where one side plays the all-devouring Tyranids who have infested a floating 'space hulk', and the other side playing the valiant space marines who are tasked with exterminating these aliens or 'xenos'.

The game rules are very polished, having been written, revised, and improved over the course of decades. I find that whilst playing the game, players are not being controlled by the rules. True that the movement, shooting, and close assault rules are there to restrict players and balance the game, but i fell that they also offer a wide opening for player strategy and interaction.

The return of the timer from first ed. was definitely a plus, as well as is the new 'defensive stance'. Both serve to give that atmosphere of hunting down an agile and deadly creature in confined and awkward spaces.

anyway ill write a proper review in some other post. For now I would like to show my Box. Having bought two sets of board tiles and accessories, I had to make sure they fit nicely into the box without the individual tiles being damaged.

I cut up a spare carton box and glued the pieces together and got this: