The Best of 2012!

As this year draws to a close it's time to look back at the year in nerdom!

Line of the Year:

I have to give it to Marvel Legends this year. They've taken the line back to it's routes and released some real winners in this line that's only been out for a year.

Best Comic Series of the Year:

DC Comics:


Batman. This year for DC Comics, Batman takes the crown. This series is the crown jewel of the reboot and the current arc involving the return of Joker is the most fun I've had reading a Batman comic in a long time.

Best Single Issue:
Batman #13 wins this hands down. It brought Joker to a whole new level and had one of the most memorable moments in Batman comics.


Marvel Comics:


Winter Soldier. Marvel has no doubt had a great year but Winter Soldier quickly became the book that I would wait for every month, it had the perfect mix of espionage and action.

Best Single Issue:
Spider-Men #4. Never has an issue from Marvel comics made me tear up this much.

Best Comic Mini-Series:

Spider-Men. This was, in my opinion, the best mini-series to come out of Marvel in a very long time.

Best TV Show:



Big Bang would have won but honestly the show has been hit-or-miss for me this year. Arrow on the other hand has won me over with every episode being just as good, if not better, than its predecessor.

Best Comic Book Movie:



The Avengers brought every single comic fans dream to life. 'Nuff said.


Best Exclusive:

The San- Diego Comic-Con Exclusive Uncanny X-Force set, is the highlight of Marvel Legends for this year. I will definitely have a review for this up soon.


Now, for the big one.

My Top 10 Figures for 2012:

10.) DC Comics Unlimited New 52 Superman

This figure is a massive improvement over the original release, more on how in the upcoming review, but let me just say that, since it looks like the New 52 is here to stay, this is the new Definitive Superman action figure.

9.) Avengers Wal Mart Exclusive 6" Captain America

This figure had a love/hate relationship with most but I found this to be one of the most fun Captain America figures I've had in a while.

8.) Avengers Wal Mart Exclusive 6" Hulk


This is probably the coolest Marvel Legends scale Hulk I've ever had. His articulation is fantastic and he is just fun to mess with.

7.) DC Comics Unlimited New 52 Hawkman


Since I saw the revamped Hawkman I've been hoping we would get a figure and here he is. An absolute improvement over the original DCUC Hawkman!

6.) Marvel Select Amazing Spider-Man

 

A shining example of what Marvel Select is capable of and the best Spidey we've gotten from the line.

5.) Marvel Legends San Diego Comic Con Uncanny X-Force Fall of Dark Angel set


This set is such a massive success, and don't worry if you couldn't snag it at SDCC, Hasbro has plans to re-release the figures throughout the Marvel Legends line with minor paint changes.

4.) Transformers Prime Deluxe Class Vehicon

The Transformers Prime line has been hit-or-miss but this figure s hands down the best one to come out of the line.

3.) Marvel Legends Bucky Cap


Don't get me wrong, the line is great overall, but this figure is what truly told me Marvel Legends is back to reclaim their crown as king of the toy aisles.

2.) Play Arts Kai Batman& Joker


These figures are, in my opinion, the definitive Batman and Joker figures. It's going to be hard to beat this duo.

1.) Toys R Us Exclusive Masterpiece Optimus Prime

Missed out on the 20th anniversary Optimus Prime, and don't want to pay up to $700 online for an MP-10 Prime? Toys R Us has snagged this exclusive and it is truly the "be all, end all" of Optimus Primes...Optimi Primes? Anyway this beauty deserves to grace your shelves.


Honorable Mentions:
Star Wars Vintage Collection Darth Maul, Batman Unlimited New 52 Batman, DC Direct Justice League:"We Can Be Heroes" box set, DC Comics Unlimited New 52 Flash

Well that's it for this year guys, see you in 2013!




 

Farewell Mr.Parker

*SPOILERS AHEAD!*

                   As most of you already know, yesterday was the release of the 700th and final issue of The Amazing Spider-Man. The issue upon my first read made me angry. I'll be honest, I jumped right on the bandwagon of hate. However I went home and re-read it and to be honest, I'll probably catch a lot of heat for this, but I'm ok with what happened. The thing is that, if you look back at all of the Spider-Man comics, there has been one lesson that has always been taught, one lesson that fans of all ages have come to memorize and even use in every day life. One of the biggest lessons that we've come to learn from Peter, is that "with great power comes great responsibility", and we've watched Peter live by that saying since the very beginning.  Now, however, he teaches that lesson in a new way, we see him take the role of a mentor, if only for a minute, and it shows us the impact that Spider-Man, his morals, and his story can have on a man who has fallen so far. It shows that we should share Peter's view, that nobody is beyond redemption.
                When it comes down to it Peter was just an ordinary guy in an extraordinary situation and that's what made him so relatable over the years. Peter is just an average guy. He faces regular problems like how to make ends meet, how to maintain a relationship, and how to maintain a job. That is something you would never see Tony Stark or Steve Rogers tackle. Peter Parker was, in a sense, his fans that would read every issue, sympathizing  over his daily struggles, and cheering when he won the hard battles, crying with him when Gwen Stacy died, and showing pride when he honored her memory the right way, by not murdering Green Goblin. Sure it can be argued that heroes like Superman, or Captain America show what a true hero is, but if you ask me they don't. They have it easy, Superman has godlike powers to help him, Captain America can be backed by the government in a minute, but Peter fends for himself, and that's what made him so successful fifty years later, but every good story must, at some point, come to an end, and although it may not seem like the best way to send out the ol' web head, I think it was pretty well done.
               Sure, it sucks that Peter didn't die in his own body, that someone else is now Peter Parker in appearance only, but what makes up for that, to me anyway, is what Peter did in his final moments. Peter went out saving the day yet again, and made sure it would be safe, for the foreseeable future by creating his heir to the Spider-Man name. True Doc Ock wouldn't be your first guess as the new Spidey but it does make sense. Technically Peter and Ock are two sides of the same coin. If Peter decided to use his powers for his own gain, he would have essentially been no better than Ock, and that is what makes this work so well. Peter made Ock relive Peter's life but with everyone replaced by Doc Ock and people he knew. He showed Ock why he did what he did, the choices he chose, and he showed him that you can't give in, that you have to persevere because if you keep going, and you maintain who you are as a good person, you will be rewarded.
            Peter showed Ock that a person can go through so much, and at the end of the day, he can do the right thing, and he can be happy, and Ock understood that. He understood it because that life of heroism could have been his would he have devoted his genius to fighting crime. Now, Peter Parker has chosen his heir, and Ock promised Peter he would live up to it. I may be alone in this, but I don't think there is anything more powerful than a hero, who exudes so much heroism that he can reform one of his oldest foes. That, to me, shows how much of a hero Peter Parker really was, and will be remembered as. Before I ramble on, let me just say that Peter Parker's legend is not over. It lives on in us, through the memories we carry, whether it be the first time you picked up a Spider-Man comic, or your first time seeing the mask, everyone at some point has heard of Peter Parker, and that's not going to change. I've said what I have to say, so now I'll leave you with a quote from The Amazing Spider-Man movie, that popped into my head as Peter Parker left our world in that last page of #700.

"So come on home Peter, your my hero, and I love you."
                                                                 - Uncle Ben

Christmas Haul!

Hey guys, I know I said no posts until tomorrow but I want to dedicate tomorrow's post to The Amazing Spider-Man#700. So today I'll be bringing you my Christmas Haul for figures and graphic novels!

In order to not fill up my picture storage again I will list the graphic novels, but provide pics for the figures.

Graphic Novels:
The Walking Dead Compendium 1
The Walking Dead Compendium 2
The Walking Dead Volume 17
Superman/Batman: Sorcerer Kings
Batman: Earth One
Doctor Strange: Season One
The Hulk: Season One
Superman: Birthright

Figures:

Marvel Select Disney Store Exclusive Unleashed Hulk

Neca Assassin's Creed Revelations: Ezio, DC Young Justice Red Arrow, DC Universe Classics Green Arrow

Toys R Us Exclusive Transformers Masterpiece Optimus Prime

DC Collectibles Justice League "We Can Be Heroes" 7-pack

My gift to myself with some Christmas money: The first wave of DC Comics Unlimited figures

The DC Collectibles 2012 Joker Bust

 

That about does it for this Christmas Haul of nerdom, come on by tomorrow for a write-up about the Amazing Spider- Man #700!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Blog posts will resume on 12/27, enjoy the holidays with your friends and families! Merry Christmas everybody!!

Speedster Sunday: Reviews of DCUC Wave 20 Reverse Flash &All Stars TRU Exclusive Flash!

 

Today marks the 1 year anniversary of this ol' blog on the Internet, and I have to tell you it doesn't even feel like it's been a year. It's as though the time just went by in a flash! So in honor of that, for the anniversary post I bring you two of my all time favorite DCUC's for Speedster Sunday!

 

The Basics:
Price Range: $15.99 - $65.99

Scale: 6"

Character Bios:
The Flash:

As Barry Allen went about his business in the police crime lab, and electrical storm broke over Central City. Soon the lab exploded with a blinding bolt of lightning, bathing Barry in the supercharged fluids. This random combination of chemicals turned Barry into the fastest man alive! As The Flash, Allen vowed to use these powers to help humanity and guard Central City with high-velocity vigilance!

For more check out: http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Flash

 

Professor Zoom - The Reverse Flash:

Born in the 25th century, Eobard Thawne was a fan of the Flash and wanted more than anything to be like the object of his obsession. He went so far as to transform his own face into Barry Allen's likeness and recreated the bath of supercharged fluids, giving Thawne the same powers. Thawne traveled back in time to meet Barry, but the travel made him mentally unstable and he became a supervillain bent on the destruction of his former idol.

For more check out: http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Professor_Zoom

 

Now, onto the Review!

 

Sculpt and Paint:

 

                                         

 

The sculpt of the two figures are the same as the sculpt of the original DCUC Flash from Wave 7, the only difference being the head sculpt of Professor Zoom, and Professor Zoom having an open left hand to hold his accessory. Other than that nothing was changed. The Flash still looks just as good as he originally did, and I think this paint job does the figure much more justice then the paint job on the original figure did, the original being the bright red of Zoom's ear pieces and a slightly darker yellow than Zoom's. Zoom's head sculpt looks fantastic, and overall these two figures just compliment each other so well. To me, even though they share the same body mold, these figures are two real gems to come out of the DCUC line. My only nitpick is that It would be great to have The Flash and Zoom each come with interchangeable hands, two fists, and two that have the "flat open palm" look that the Flash or Tom Cruise has, when they run.

 

Articulation and Accessories:

 

The Flash comes with a standard DCUC display base which I cannot for the life of me find in time for the review. Professor Zoom comes with his lighting rod baton, which I can't really get into without giving massive spoilers, but I will say it is essential that he came with it. For articulation, since they are the same body, you guessed it, same articulation! It's your standard DCUC articulation. Ball jointed head, Swivel-hinge shoulders, swivel bicep, hinge elbow, swivel wrist, ab-crunch, swivel waist, T-joint hips, swivel thigh, hinge knee, and hinge ankle!

 

 

Overall:

I know I've already said it but these are two DCUC figures that are gems. They are a shining example of how the DCUC line can take two characters, simple in sculpt and accessories, and make them the most memorable of the line. The trick though is finding The Flash, Professor Zoom is a bit easier to find. Flash can run you as much as $100 on the secondhand market which is the only way to get him now, Zoom is still up there but not by much, I was able to find him for $15 on amazon. That said, happy hunting, because these guys are definitely worth the hunt!

The Flash: 10 OUT OF 10!!!

Professor Zoom: 10 OUT OF 10!!!

 

 

 Now that the review is done, I'd like to just say that it's been a great first year for this blog, and I'd like to thank all of you that check this blog out and keep coming back for more. Thank you guys, and have a great Christmas!

 

Back in a Flash!

OK!!! So I've finally finished my first semester of college which means all of my papers and finals have been completed which means MORE POSTS!!! Due to preperation for the holiday season, new posts will start up on December 27th. On the 27th I will have apost just for the release of Spider-man #700. After that expect posts for a Christmas haul, more figure reviews, customs, and the annual "Best of". Tommorrow, December 23rd also marks one full year of the blog being up, and I have a special review planned for that! That's it for now, see you guys tomorrow!!

Man of Steel trailer #2!!!!

HERE IT IS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have been waiting for ever and this is just incredible!Hit 1080p for best quality and check out the Man of Steel in theaters this June!

Go-Figure Post #2!

 

Hey guys, so originally these were going to be divided into several different posts but I decided to string'em together in one post. Today we'll be looking at some quick mods and customizations. The first one is probably the most complex, Marvel Legends Ghost Rider! Now I  had modded this guy in the past but I was never fully satisfied with him but now, I think we have a winner!

 

                          

Supplies Needed:
Needle-Nose pliers

neck chain

Blue Sharpie Paint Marker

Paper Towels

crazy glue

 

 

First remove all additional pieces, his jacket, belt, and head. Take the paint marker and go over the pants a bit at a time. after leaving the paint on for 5 seconds take a paper towel and smudge it around to create the denim-esque look. Next for the jacket, my initial problem was that it was too clunky. Therefore I cut off the pegs and peghole pieces of the jacket. Trimmed down the underarm area so his arms can go down to his side, and glued it down to his torso so it stays in place and looks more form fitting. The shoulder pads, I trimmed the outer edges so the arms have more clearance to move forward and back as well as out to the side. On the belt I removed most of the chains save for the top right chain. As for the fire accessory in his hand, its just a marvel universe iron fist accessory. The neck chain can be used however you like, I like wrapping it around his forearm and having it go all the way to the floor.

 

 

Next up is Marvel Legends Thor. This started out as a wave 1 Return of Marvel Legends Thor, but I wanted a Marvel Now! Avengers #1 Thor. I did take some liberties with the design though ( I dont like the black under the arms on the design).

 

 

Supplies Needed:

Needle Nose pliers

Red fabric

Scissors

black fabric

Black Sharpie Paint Marker

Rubber bands

Wal Mart Exclusive 6" Movie Thor

Crazy glue.





 

I started with the head. I cut the hair off from below the wings foward, took the wings from the wal mart thor off, flipped them upside down and glued them on to the underside of this Thor's wings to create the cheek guards, then took the hair I cut off and glued that onto the bottom of the flipped wings. and painted the whole helmet silver.

 

 

Now, I repainted his whole torso, boots, and sash...thingy with the black shrpie paint marker, give it a half hour to dry. I also painted on fingerless gloves to his hand. Also let dry for a half hour. While that drys, begin cutting the black fabric to glue onto the front of the sash (See first pic) and cut the cape. Cut off the original cape, take the fabric and line up the top so that the layers connected to the uru orbs are layered (see above) and glue down. wait 30 seconds, re apply glue, wait 30 seconds and apply a lien of glue where the cloth meets the orbs for extra security. Lastly, wrap the rubber bands around his calves and ankles. That's about it!

 

Next is The Avengers Mark VII Iron Man. This guy started out as the Mark IV but when I found out Hasbro wouldnt be making a 6" Mark VII I got to work. This is a straight up repaint.

Supplies Needed:

Sharpie silver paint marker

Sharpie gold  marker

Sharpie ultra fine point black marker

 

This is the easiest one. Just print yourself out a pictue of the Mark VII and go to town. I oulined all the lines in the armor with the black sharpie. But here's the trick, the gold areas. Paint in silver first, then once it dries, go over it in gold regular sharpie marker to get the most accurate gold tone.

 

 

 

Now last but not least we have The Avengers Thor. I found out that yet again Hasbro would not be making an Avengers style Thor in 6" scale so I got to work.

 

Supplies Needed:

Marvel Select Thor

Red Sharpie paint marker

Blue Sharpie paint marker

Navy Blue Sharpie

Black Sharpie

lighting effects from any Star Wars 3 3/4" figure

crazy glue

scissors

red cloth

paper towels



Let's start with the pants. Now If you look closely on the Wal Mart 6" Movie Thor figure you'll notice there is already a seam line going down the middle on the front and back of the leg. Go over the seam with the Red Sharpie paint marker. Once it dries, go over the inner part of the pants with the Navy sharpie, blot it with a paper towel, and like the Ghost Rider, paint it with blue sharpie paint marker, but immediately take a paper towl and rub it around to get the perfect shade of blue! For the boots, just take your navy marker and go over the silver bits.

In the torso, match your figure to the above image, and  you'll notice some of the black area on the torso armor was silver, simpl go over it in black Sharpie and rub it in with a paper towel. Next wherever you see a red outline on the torso, that was done with the Red paint marker. As for the gauntlets the red around them is just red cloth that I cut and glued down. For Mjolnir, I just crazy glued lighting bits all over it. For the head, take the Marvel Select Thor head and take a scissor and scrape around the inside to create a hole that will fit snugly on the ball joint. Finally remove the cape that the figure comes with, and glue on the Marvel Select Thor cape.

 

Thats it for today, hope you guys enjoyed!