GIJoe Toy Blog

Latest Shinanigans.

2010-11-08T21:45:00.000-08:00

Well obviously the Joe world is hard core boring right now with only a new TV show on teh horizon that looks descent at best. Hopefully we will get good toys out of the show.

As of late I have mostly been focused on Sculpture, figured I would share some with you all, of which one is actually a Joe character, my sculpture of Helix. Enjoy...

Operation: Rescue Doc

2010-03-19T20:46:00.000-07:00

CPT. SATCHER got a tip from a undisclosed forum concerning a selling of Doc on the black market website eBay. This link was followed and eventually package was intercepted in Athens GA from Hong Kong. These are images from the final moments of the Rescue Doc mission.

Firefly and 2 support soldiers were first on site.

Firefly set up C4 onto the package containing Doc.

Less than half a mile away a GIJoe recon strike team moves in.

Snake Eyes sprints across the remaining area while the other members of the squad take out Firefly's support. Firefly cant be fired at due to his closeness to the C4. Snake Eyes somehow manages to ghost away from the bullets from Firefly's rifle.

Snake Eyes slices Firefly open.

Firefly collapses in a pool of blood.

Cpt. Satcher diffuses the C4 set up on the package containing Doc.

Snake Eyes uses his hardened steel Katana to slice open the bubble enforced packaging.

Hawk and Snake Eyes gently removed a plastic wrapped Doc.

Doc's packaging was removed.

After one hour of on site medical attention Doc was stable and able to be transported to Cpt. Satchers side table.

Im sure this is terribly written but Im really sick so whatever.

My Toy Filled Birthday

2010-03-17T15:39:00.000-07:00

All of my toys enjoyed over Spring Break thanks to my Birthday!

My gal and I with me sporting my new Cobra hat from walmart.

Hat gets a 9.3 out of 10.
My gal gets a 10 out of 10 :-)

CM War Machine is the only disappointment in the bunch, he is basically a brick.

He gets a 5 out of 10.

Love the classics IM, love his flight stand as well.

He gets a 9.5 out of 10

Movie IM is awesome, I got one with great paint apps too.

He gets a 9.7 out of 10.

I love the High Velocity Armor, he closely resembles a jet and has bulky legs that make him look beast.

He gets a 9.8 out of 10

I got the SS/TR comic pack for 7 bucks at TJ Max! Epic I know!

SS gets a 8.8 out of 10.

I gotta paint his eyes and glue some stuff down. He has ape arms.

TR gets a 8.5 out of 10.

Crimson Dynamo is great save his lower legs, I tried to boil and pop them but it started to crack the hinged part of the lower leg.

CD gets a 8.9 out of 10.

The Iron Monger plays very well, his arms rotate with ease and he is just a lot of fun to handle and pose, he is very solid and stands easily.

He gets a 9.7 out of 10.

I found Croc Master at TJ Max for 4 bucks, I will repaint black and then do the green dry brush over the green areas.

CM gets a 8.9 out of 10.

My most unique purchase of the week is from the Halo line. He is pretty close to perfectly in scale. His articulation is great especially after doing some cutting on the back of his knees. He is bloody expensive though, $11!

He gets a 9.9 out of 10.

Found this gun pack for sale at Target for 2.49 and bought it since it is all in scale and since I had just picked up my ODST.

guns get a 7.5 out of 10.

I had an awesome spring break with lots of fantastic toys!

My gripes with the IM2 line is that none of the figures can look up and I wish the pulsar hands were bent more upwards like he is aiming.

The American International Toy Fair 2010

2010-02-13T17:45:00.000-08:00

I know a lot of you guys have been checking out the press release footage and pictures surrounding the Hasbro GIJoe booth at the international Toy Fair 2010 and I know all of you have been checking my site constantly to see what I like because if I like something, its gotta be cool right? ::looks at Ice Cream soldier on desk:: well.... here is my thoughts!

Whats looking good....

First off, all of the packaging is awesome!

The Hiss is sick, as is the packaging!
see demo here

this rad SS looks sweet(arab SS!)

The new Duke with two heads doing the hokey pokey is rad!!!

and lastly, this is the greatest beachhead of all time!!!

Now... we all know Fierce Krypton is one of the most critical people in the world so....

Whats not looking so great...

vietnam Duke...

Dopey Snake Eyes...

and sadly, nearly all of the figures from the Resolute packs which everyone has been waiting patiently for...

join the collectors club for free to get really depressed about the resolute figures here...http://www.gijoeclub.com/club/res10figures.cfm

lots of great images over at...
http://photos.yojoe.com/showgallery.php?cat=681

That is all!

Resolute Snake Eyes Custom- 8 inch

2010-02-11T12:29:00.000-08:00

Updated custom for you guys!!! Base is a McFarlane Resident Evil toy. Here was a video from when I was first working on it....

Here is finished product, Sword is real metal, pictures amplify wash technique. Let me know what you think!

PS. He is for sale! Make me an offer.

1:18 War Machine from Iron Man II Line

2010-02-10T14:56:00.001-08:00

Another un-released toy review for you followers of mine! This toy is awesome! Whoever sculpted this is a freaking master! Mine is missing the shoulder canons(small price to pay when you are one of only 9 people to own something) but he still has substantial firepower on his wrists and I plan on doing a lil custom work to get him some more action on his shoulders. Shoulder pads lift up perfectly, each gun holder on his back slides up easily into position(they are separate pieces so one can be up with out the other), incredible articulation considering bulkiness, ball jointed hips are the best I have ever seen and allow you to put his feet together for flight poses, and last but not least, fantastic paint apps. Only gripes are that his lower legs seem a little loose(although mine is fresh from the factory), not very much chest movement up and down, very little head movement up and down, and his right fist seems small.... but all of that is so minuscule considering this War Machine is what I have wanted all my life! He is fantastic! Hopefully he will hit stores soon and you guys can grab him.

(sorry about loose writing style, wrote this up in 5 minutes, gotta study! LMK what you think or just let me know you took the time to check out my blog)

9.7 out of 10

-FK

Awesome Video!

2009-12-02T20:00:00.000-08:00

Video Games - E3 2010 - Comedy

Desert Battle Ripcord Review

2009-11-30T15:48:00.000-08:00

Im coming back with a bang guys! Just got my hands on the unreleased Desert Battle Ripcord and going to give you guys a quick review of him.

Overall a really cool figure! Head of course is a little large without the gear on. The wings are very well designed and are spring loaded. The winged back pack has a very large peg to help it go through the web gear so don't expect to be able to pop it on anybody else with out some cutting. The flight suit is well designed but the pouches and air tubes tend to fall off. Speaking of stuff falling off, if I were you I would expect to super glue the pouches and tubes down to both the helmet and the flight suit, otherwise he will fall apart constantly and you will lose parts. His pistol fits snug and his helmet is soft plastic that kinda molds to Ripcords face. The boosters and rockets that attach to the flight pack can be swiveled with little to no risk to them falling off. Do not expect for him to be able to shoulder his rifle or even a sub machine gun with his gear on, pretty much one handed guns only. Their are some great design aspects such as his air tubes being made of very soft rubbery material instead of hard plastic like the para viper hoses(which SHOULD make him able to look around easier). The vests connector joints are also very well done and don't give him hips or add any significant bulk such as seen in many other figures(TRU exclusive Firefly). My main gripe with him is his helmet, it seems like his helmet has been created... off center. You can never get it quite centered because... it isn't exactly straight to begin with. I had this figure shipped straight from factory so it is possible that upon its official release this will be fixed but as it stands mine is a little off. Also don't expect any left, right, up, down movement for his head when his gear is on due to the collar piece.

Even with all the quirks he is still awesome, he oozes style and if you think of him more as a vehicle than a pose-able figure he instantly gets much cooler. Love the blue highlights, love the wings, love the gear(especially after some gluing and cutting on the collar), and in all honesty his design is fantastic. Good job Hasbro, keep up the good work!

8.5 out of 10

New 2 packs showing up at retail

2009-09-03T19:52:00.000-07:00

Seems the walmart exclusive 2 packs are popping up all over the east coast! Happy Hunting, I think the resolute Gung ho looks pretty awesome and if you didnt snag the Cobra 7 pack then the 2 pack with shockblast and night creeper is a sweet way to score one of them.

GIJoe Rise of Cobra Review!

2009-08-08T21:42:00.000-07:00

NO SPOILERS IN MY REVIEW, PLEASE DONT LEAVE SPOILER POSTS EITHER

In a word, awesome! I have been one of the few who has always voiced that it would be great and I think I was right! Went and saw it last night at 12:05 and it was truly fantastic. Once it hits with the action it does not stop and it does it all very well. A few iffy CGI moments(including the repelling in the snow shot that is in the trailer, why they used it in the ad I dont know). The story of many of the main characters is totally new but I could care less, if I wanted GIJoe from 1985 I would watch the OG cartoon, this new take on the characters to me was great! They did change some things about Snake Eyes' past which many may not like but I didnt mind much. Had a few big Reveals that were pretty cool. The underwater scenes are amazing, the accelerator suits are done VERY well and are basically a good excuse to destroy everything between the good guys and the bad, cars, trains, buildings, it doesnt matter, its going down. The movie was really great and all the actors(save Tatum and Quid maybe) did a great job. My audience loved it as well, everyone clapped, many cheered. Go see it!

If I wasnt a Joe fan, 85% since I am...
93% Great action, great fun, good plot, lots of explosions and ninja fights, descent acting, and a HUGE budget!

7 Packs- Quick Review

2009-07-21T22:44:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to let yall know what I think of the new 7 pack figures, I actually typed this out as an email for a buddy but I figured my readers might find the quick impressions list useful so here it goes...

Chuckles-Heads to big, cant do the gimp hand, cool gun
Rip Cord- Great figure, needs a head swap that will sit higher on the neck and not be so ugly
Outback- Heads too high, great Chuck Norris head, head is an amazing sculpt
Zap-fantastic, puts the OG to shame, needs his helmet glued down
Recondo- needs his elbows xactoed so he can bend arms 90 degrees, hat needs to be glued down
Wet Suit- Hoses need to be glued, great figure
Hit&Run- New legs make a big difference, really great figure, Ill glue his helmet down but most people wont mind it

Mindbender- hes alright, I grew up loving the yellow/purple 90s version
Range Viper- Surprisingly amazing! he is my favorite, great articulation, great weapons, helmet works perfectly
Alley Viper- Not liking the 2 tone blue, dont like that his helmet gets pushed off by his vest... I think I might glue it down, Dont like that he cant hold his shield well(Although it does bring back memories from the OG lol) crossbow wont stay on backpack
lamprey- Surprisingly awesome I will glue the face mask down and paint it silver then he will be a favorite of mine.
BAT- backpack and body damaged head are sweet other than that nothing new, hes missing the black wash over the metal areas.
Strato Viper- One of my favorite OG figures, love the update. I will lower his head a lil bit
Night Creeper- Amazing! love him. OG is another favorite. Love the sword and bow. I will hollow out his hood and lower it so that it rests on top of his goggles.

Packaging- AMAZING! I was amazed at how awesome they looked lined up in the packaging, might be the first toy I have ever been tempted to keep MOC for a day or two.

Resolute Snake Eyes Custom 7inch Figure!

2009-07-17T22:14:00.000-07:00

Enjoy! Oh and by the way 80 bucks worth of GIJoe will be on my door step on the 21st so expect reviews of 7 pack figures!

Sorry Things are So Boring Around Here Lately...

2009-05-27T22:20:00.000-07:00

Fact is there is NO new GIJoe product on the shelves.... New Alley Viper figure shots are coming in but they still arent on any pegs... When things heat up with the movie expect lots of posts!

Dusty, how he should have been!

2009-05-09T17:16:00.000-07:00

I reviewed the Dusty figure recently and told yall I would make a repaint and that he would be epic, well that day has come my friends! This is actually the first time I have remade a classic figure to be more like its OG counterpart, generally I just create random stuff that I think looks cool. You will see that that idea kinda carried over into this figure when I added knee pads to him to make him look cooler. Dusty was my absolute favorite toy when I was a little and I was very disapointed with the remake of him because it did very little for me nostalgically so I remade him. I like that I did the paint over his eye so dont tell me it makes his face less defined :-)

Recipe:
Head-Hawk
Body-Dusty
Knee Pads-Sculpted

Please let me know what you think of him, thanks and enjoy!

PS. Ignore my pitiful original Dusty, his feelings are easily hurt.

New Movie Trailer!

2009-04-30T20:22:00.000-07:00

This trailer was supposed to air at the opening of the new Star Trek movie but it has already hit in France(hints the subs) so here it is a little early!!!

Looks awesome too me. I think it will be a fun movie, looks like they have the budget to pull off the accelerator suits which is very comforting! If nothing else this movie will make some new fans and flood the toy isle with new toys. Hopefully Kids will love them and I will be forced to take a variant figure from a 6 year olds mini hands as he screams for his mom.... well.... maybe I went a lil too far,what I meant to say was hopefully kids will buy up these toys and earn us another movie and a longer toy lifespan.

Amusement in its Lowliest Form

2009-04-21T10:33:00.000-07:00

The Crimson Enforcer Custom

2009-04-15T21:56:00.000-07:00

Hope you enjoy... its def. PG13

An elite soldier by the name of Frank Williams was the leader of an 8 man Delta Force squad. His team was left for dead in a secret war against the Colombian drug cartel, he was the only American survivor. After falling off the grid and swearing to pay back the United States for there actions he joined the evil forces of Cobra. He quickly climbed the ranks and became a Crimson Guard and then a Crimson Guard Immortal. His duty as a Crimson Guard Immortal was to keep the Baroness safe at all times. When meeting the Baroness for the first time he bowed and kissed her hand gently and said, "It is an honor to serve you my Queen." Needless to say 3 weeks later the Baroness was not a one man woman anymore.

In the mean time Destro was testing a new toy, the acid rifle. The weapon was designed to fire a shotgun like bullet that would envelope a nearby foe with an intense acid that would burn through skin. After testing the gun he went to visit his lovely lady Baroness to show her the new weapon that would make them millions. He opened the door to his quarters only to see a Crimson Guard Immortal uniform on the floor and a man in his bed with his woman. Rage tore through Destro's veins. His voice thundered "Allow me to reveal my new weapon you scum!" Frank Williams realized what was happening and was careful to put himself between the gun and his mistress. Frank gazed into the Baronesses terrified eyes as the acid enveloped the back side of his body. Frank Williams screamed in agony. Acid dripped from his upper arm to the Baroness's shoulder leaving a light burn, she gave a faint scream as she brushed it off of her shoulder then looked back at Frank. Frank looked at her shoulder and whispered "It seems I have failed to protect you my love, forgive me.", he then slipped into unconsciousness. Destro's voice thundered through the room yet again "If I deal with you now you will not live so I will postpone your judgment." He turned and left the room.

14 minutes later Dr. Mindbender was following the Baroness's orders and injecting adrenaline directly into Frank Williams heart. He knew that if he failed to keep Frank Williams alive he would lose his own life to the Baroness's rage. The Baroness did not dare to try to sneak away and see him until 3 weeks had passed. When she finally saw him Dr. Mindbender had turned him into a half robotic being. His flesh only remained because of different chemical compounds and drugs that were constantly being injected into him. Dr. Mindbender introduced the the cyborg to the Baroness as "The Crimson Enforcer".

3 weeks later Destro would hire a mysterious new elite soldier that he only knew as "The Crimson Enforcer" as his own personal body guard.

It took The Crimson Enforcer 4 weeks to have Destros absolute trust. On a cold night Destro entered his quarters only to be met by his body guard holding an acid gun. Destro was never seen again. The Crimson Enforcer is no longer a guard for the Baroness but he is often seen entering and leaving her quarters.

I introduce to you, The Crimson Enforcer

Quick Dusty Review

2009-04-01T16:18:00.000-07:00

Character: This was my favorite GIJoe when I was a kid, I remember begging one of my good friends to give him to me and he Finally did and I was ecstatic. I still have his original and think he is awesome. In my play he wasnt such a goof ball like he was in the cartoon.

Figure: This may sound weird... he has more potential than any 25th GIJoe, but he is kinda lame out of the box. Let me explain, first off his camo is lame and nothing like his original camo which was more of a chocolate chip camo. Also his boots and stuff used to be black which looked way better. His helmet is kinda weird as is his cloth which isnt nearly as cool as the original one. Mine is also missing his straps which makes him boring... which is where the real problem is, he is just... bland. That said with a repaint and a little bit of customizing he could be fantastic! He has an extra swivel joint at his waist which is pretty awesome and makes a few more poses possible. I think If I paint him, add some knee pads to him, perhaps replace his helmet and swap his head with a Hawk head and he will be pure gold. Until then he is just... ok. No where nearly as awesome as the OG.

8.5 out of 10

Quick GIJoe 5 Pack Review

2009-03-24T10:38:00.000-07:00

Hawk- With some paint he is fine but he is no where near as good as his single card counterpart. I painted his jacket and he looks pretty good. This is the one figure they made no attempt at improving, his hands still suck and his elbows have terrible range of motion.

Flint- The head sculpt grew on me once I played with him. His right hand is pretty terrible and prob needs to be replaced. Good arms though and great new web gear.

Lady Jaye- She is alright to me, never was a fan of the character. the joints for her boots are the wrong color which bugs me. I liked the old torso better. Also not a big fan of the collar which is def. "popped".

Shipwreck- Worlds better than the old one. New head sculpt is great in person. Feet joints dont have much motion but other than that he is great.

Snake Eyes- He has almost an animated vibe: long arms, big feet, jutted out chin. None the less I love him. I wasnt sure that I would like him but he moves and poses fantastically. a little black wash over his gear/visor and silver dry brush over his visor and nades and you have a much more realistic figure that looks great. Timbre is also great and his sword is the best sword ever made under the GIJoe name.

Resolute 5 Pack Review

2009-03-19T16:16:00.000-07:00

Im going to do a quick review of these figures since a lot of yall have yet to buy it!

Cobra Commander- I would imagine that with some xacto work on his skirt he could be epic but as it stands he cant move due to it. He comes with a sweet sword and really cool german lugar pistols.

Res trooper/Officer- This is a fantastic sculpt. The helmet prob needs to be glued down because otherwise its gonna fall off when you play with him. His legs have a certain style about them, almost like a superhero, small lower body big and bulky upper. These figures are perfect, I wouldnt change a thing other than maybe the weapons. The cannon is freaking sweet and actually looks very realistic.

Res Duke- He looks terrible with his helmet off, with it on he is fine. His flight backpack is pretty cool and creative. His helmet would be great for customs work, airborne helmet or airtight helmet would be very easy to do.

Res BAT- I thought I was buying the pack for this figure but I actually like the Res troopers better. He has a great color scheme that looks awesome in person. As always his neck needs to be lowered just like any other BAT. He has the only quality issue out of the pack. His arm accessories do not stay attached to the peg during play, for some reason they just dont do as good as the single carded arms.

Overall this pack is really great, I would suggest buying it and selling the CC off for 6 bucks shipped. The quality control seems pretty good although the BAT face mask seems hit or miss and his arms dont work well. Other than these few gripes this pack is worth every cent.

Cobra 5 Pack Quick Review!

2009-03-12T12:17:00.000-07:00

Zartan- He is def nothing spectacular but with some black paint he will be pretty good. He also comes with a Storm Shadow mask which is pictured below.
8.5 out of 10 if you paint his chest

Storm Shadow- Not quite as good as the HoH because of the paint job but much cheaper.
9 out of 10

Cobra Commander- The figure is actually not bad other than the head sculpt. With a replacement head (which should be easy to get from the custom need/have thread) he would be a solid figure.
6 out of 10

Viper- Lets face it, he is why people are buying the pack. His hands are surprisingly bad considering they are a resculpt. The thumbs are the fatal flaw, they make it difficult to make him hold his gun. Also his wrists tend to want to pop off, kinda annoying but overall a great upgrade with the chrome and descent wrists.
9 out of 10

Baroness- Talk about a hidden gem. I bought the pack expecting to make some of my money back by selling her off but she is actually my favorite figure from the pack! She is very skinny but I got over that. She is one of those toys like lt. torpedo, you dont know how amazing she is until you have posed her and played with her(please no quotes ::roles eyes::). Her heels make her look sexy and chic in any pose. She has a hard time holding her gun but her guns amazingness makes up for that because once you get it balanced in her hands she looks like a butt kicker. The glasses are surprisingly bad in the pic below but my Baroness' glasses look fine!
9.6 out of 10

So the pack gets an overall rating of 8.42 out of 10! That's right, I did math for you people!

Deadpool Review

2009-03-10T09:25:00.000-07:00

Well I finally got the Deadpool toy today and I decided to post a quick review up.

reference Picture

I gotta say... I am really disapointed with this figure. I have a lot more bad things to say than good.

Character: To be honest I dont know much about him other than he is awesome looking and he is a witty BA dude.

Figure: He looks great just standing there.... but then you try to play with him or pose him and things go downhill. His ankles dont do there job which means he cant do many crouch poses. His hips look awkward for doing poses where he is kicking. My Deadpools Head was very very loose before I dabbed some super glue on the joint. The Chest joint is nearly useless and cant be fixed quickly or easily with an Xacto like a GIJoe or the Marvel 3 3/4 line. His waist/chest straps are really annoying and tend to ride up on him and in the end just get in the way, this is def a circumstance were a solid sculpt would have worked much better. His weapons are very rubbery especially his swords. His pistol doesn't stay in his holster because it doesnt ride low enough in it. His hands have a hard time holding his weapons. His sword sheeths look way too bulky and high on his back. All of the plastic he is made out of is very soft and I feel like I can accidently break him very easily. Also my deadpools right hip joint is extremly loose and I cant manage to pop the hip off even with the boil and pop method so I cant get super glue to help him out..... I hate to say it but this guy is extremely over-rated. I was very excited about him and I have been hunting hard for him only to be let down in a big way. The last time I was this disapointed was when I was like 10 and I got an awesome Carnage toy for christmas and his leg broke off after 30 seconds of play.... Deadpool is right at that level of disapointment for me.... Sorry to be so harsh on him, I know a lot of people like this toy, but I am def. not a big fan of him. He is ok for posing due to his awesome looking-ness esp. if you replace his weapons and web gear. Maybe His rating will go up a point in a few days when I am not so disapointed.

6 Out of 10

Sorry about being such a downer, maybe a bunch of people will post and tell me Im dead wrong and people will decide Im just a super picky punk. :-)

Bazooka Trooper Review

2009-03-09T10:44:00.000-07:00

Character: It is a brilliant idea, RPG's are easily included in any Dio, or story if you play with your Joes.

Figure: Overall this is a pretty cool figure. He is definitely the best Cobra Trooper so far but he does have his problems. His crotch is still the old terrible one and his elbows still lack range of motion. With some adjustments to his elbows he is really great. I got them to where they would bend a bit more than 90 degrees and that makes him able to hold his Bazooka in really awesome poses. I am still a hater of the knife, it is just to big and bulky. He comes with really great web gear that looks awesome to me and his helmet is cool looking but prob needs to be glued down if you want to just play with him instead of only posing him.

8.5 out of 10 with the adjustments.

Marvel Universe Wolverine Review!

2009-03-03T18:09:00.000-08:00

The coolest thing about this toy for me is that I had no idea it existed until I saw it at Toys R Us! Imagine a world where you have always wanted marvel characters in 3 3/4 inch and you are wondering around a store looking for a stupid horse toy and then suddenly there they are! Tons of Marvel small sized highly articulated figures! Anyways I bought the wolverine and he is fantastic.

Character: Are you stupid? He is awesome I should slap you for asking!

Figure: He is very well done his sculpt is pretty much perfect. His chest joint goes left to right(like the BAT) and front and back. If you dont asjust his chest slider he leans much further back than forward. He comes with two weapons a red sword and an M16 with a grenade launcher both are pretty cool and fit in with GIJoes perfectly. The only real downsides are that his right arm doesnt go very far down to meet his chest, his joints arent as tight as they could be, his neck is at a kinda weird angle, and he does not come with a stand which is a huge bummer. That said... who the heck cares?! He is wolverine minus the terrible yellow and he is in the right size! Pretty Awesome. The fact that this is the kinda figures we are getting on Wave 1 of this line makes me very hopeful!

9.3 out of 10

Bruce Lee would Kick Snake Eye's tale!

2009-03-01T21:30:00.000-08:00

....at least at ping pong :-)

3 ParaViper Customs

2009-02-27T08:51:00.000-08:00

I have been working awhile now on these 3 ParaViper customs. They are all a part of my Cobra Night Force team so of course most of the yellow and orange is blacked out. 2 of them are ParaVipers after they hit land and one of them is the ultimate PreJump ParaViper.

ParaViper 1- Think counterstrike :-)

ParaViper 2- Think scary Navy Seal
This guys mask was hard as crap to do, looks freaking sweet in person!

ParaViper 3- Think what a nearly realistic ParaViper would look like.
BBI was a big help with this guy the chute and the pack are from there ParaDiver figure.

Wave 11 Zartan Review!

2009-02-26T17:42:00.000-08:00

Well Im a little slow on the drop but I just recently received my Wave 11 Zartan so I figured Id let you guys know how he holds up.

Character: Pretty cool to have a bad guy that can change his skin color and whatnot.

Figure: In the past Zartan has had the crappiest figures ever!

In 1984 he could glow, other than that he was butt ugly and pretty lame. Now Hasbro has finally given us a solid Zartan figure!

His faces arent really all that and the idea of putting a mask on and being someone else is pretty flippin dumb.

Zartan: With this crap I found in Storm Shadows linen closet I can become a ninja!
Scarlett: "Is that Storm Shadow or Zartan?"
Duke: "who cares? shoot him!"

His water pistol is pretty lame so I gave him a cool gun, it is very hard to pose a left handed Joe but that is cartoon/comic accurate so whatever.

His armor looks really great and his articulation is fine except for his chest joint which is extremely limited out of the box. With a quick adjustment he can bend as far as you like, his armor will not restrict him.

Im not going to even mention the swamp skier(aka the jet ski for a swamp) cause everybody knows how lame it is due to its absurd smallness. Overall he is very lacking in accessories but with a new gun he is pretty awesome. I wish Hasbro had left the skier out and made him glow different colors like his original but whatever, leave it up to Hasbro to break something that is perfect.

9.0 Out of 10.

Holy Crap! There is going to be a GIJoe Game!

2009-02-16T20:01:00.000-08:00

So I just read over at IGN that a GIJoe game is in the making!

I am going to rent this game for sure (and convince my brother to do the same if there is online co op), then after I beat it a few times Ill wait for it to be 20 bucks and buy that joker!!! It sounds pretty freaking awesome to me, Im sure it will be rushed and cheesy but who the freak cares!!! I mean, I still dig this kinda crap...

Here are some highlights from the news article...

"Even Shipwreck can send out his parrot to drop bombs on nearby enemies. "
-haha epic cheese!

"One mini game puts the Joes in charge of a laser weapon mounted on a satellite. In a top down perspective, the Joes will have to fire on waves of advancing Cobra enemies in order to keep them away from an important objective."
-Im thinking the overhead bomb raid in COD4, except I get to kill Cobras!

Someone Threw Crap into the Fan!

2009-02-16T18:56:00.000-08:00

All kinds of crap going on in the Joe world... including this....

this thing is pretty cheesy. I cant imagine anyone buying it but whatever.

The Joe Universe exploded over the last few days with the Joe booth at Toy Fair 09. All kinds of images have flooded the internet of the upcoming movie toys. Overall I would give them a solid C. I can see myself buying a few of them which is about how many figures earn my money in every wave. Here are a few that I think look promising.

But far more importantly than the silly GIJoe movie line are the modern Era classic figures coming out! They will be sold in a 7 pack which generally means "Yay 2 good figs for the price of 6!" But not this time, this time they are all freaking sweet!

Check em out Here

Outback looks like freaking chuck norris! Recondo will be awesome for customizing, and I trust he will look flippin sweet when he gets his hat. There is nothing wrong with Zap. Chuckles is pretty rad looking and I love his head sculpt but it is a shame about the left hand, everyone complained about it on mainframe yet tehy used it again. Hit&Run is one of my all time favorites from the ARAH line and it looks like they have really done this repaint up right(except for his arms not being true to ARAH). Wet Suit is blah. Altitude is Ripcord and he will be freaking awesome once he gets his Paratrooper gear!

I love airborne stuff and 2 in one set is a sweet deal!

Now for the Cobra side of things. Dr. Mindbender is exactly what he should be(but he is still a terrible looking character). Range Viper is pretty sick and he will be even better with his gear on, he will also be sweet for customizing.
Alley viper is going to be baller as anything when he has his mask on, which i hope will be once piece so that hes either wearing his mask/helmet or not, otherwise his head is going to get too bulky! yay for finally getting him! I hope they release his blue and white counterpart as well at some point. I cant believe they made a super gay figure named lamprey into a crazy mean looking dude, he looks really great considering his ARAH original. The BAT is kinda lame to me so Ill just sell him off, Id rather do my own battle damage. Night Creeper looks pretty great, his head wrap is a little to large but Im sure it wont take to much customizing to make him perfect. Strato Viper looks fantastic! I really dig his ARAH version and I am really glad they made him and that I dont have to buy a jet to get him.

These modern classics look great to me! These are toys that I actually have memories of which is really cool, until now the re releases were of toys I got later in life off the internet(save 89 snake eyes and a few others). but I actually have memories of a lot of these guys and I am very excited about the nostalgia I am going to experience when I get them.

Survival prototype BAT

2009-02-11T19:21:00.000-08:00

Another custom post yay!

There is something more or less boring about a robot that is mass produced due to its weakness in battle.... Thus, I created the Survival Prototype BAT. He is a one of a kind prototype BAT that was created to do whatever it takes to survive. The result is a sometimes too ruthless android trooper that adapts to his surroundings and uses whatever he can to upgrade his armor and weaponry.

You can see pictures of my concept art, my weaponry synopsis', my file card concept, and the actual figure at the following link...

http://s727.photobucket.com/albums/ww279/thomassatcher/Survival%20Prototype%20BAT/?start=0

Here are a few pictures of the figure :-)

Enjoy!

Little Tidbits... He can still move and pose just like he doesn't have any of the extra armor, I designed it so that his shoulders and arms can still do anything, the left shoulder actually bends when you lift his arm and the right shoulder is shaped so that he can still lift his arm and swivel it. The sword sheath is removable. Green stuff was my friend for this project. The shoulders and neck are re sculpted. I think the weapon synopsis' really bring the character to life. In some of the pictures his sword is not finished( chipped in certain spots and silver handle in latter pics). He is based off of the mid evil Knight. The wire leads to his elbow not the arm so his shield arm is easily removed and replaced with whatever arm you want. He is my favorite GIJoe of all time.

Cobra Eel Review

2009-01-29T20:52:00.000-08:00

Well I havent had much time lately but I promised yall reviews after Christmas and they never came. Here is my sorry excuse for a review for Cobra Eel.

Character: Hes got the whole special operations thing going for him, pretty sweet.

Figure: He is a great figure and I am really glad I have him. His helmet fits on his head like a glove(not to mention his crazy head articulation). I ended up cutting the hoses on mine because it doesnt let you pose his head in many directions. This sculpt has awesome articulation, prob one of the best offered so far. His gun is kinda lame. His flippers are sweet but his feet arent black like they are so thats kinda weird. The main drawback is the craptastic holsters. They dont hold his knives for crap. I shortened the handle on the knives and I cut the bottom part of the holster off so that the tip of the knife is showing. That made him a lot cooler. Overall he is a pretty great figure.

9.3 out of 10 with out adjustments
9.5 out of 10 with adjustments.

Best Thing Ever!

2009-01-17T11:50:00.000-08:00

So Seth Green is a big GIJoe fan and is actually on a few of the forums.

-Seth Green "When I was 7, I was up for a part involving G.I. Joe. I thought, 'I know everything about G.I. Joe!' To prove it, I brought my toys, but I got so excited about playing with my toys that I blew the audition."

Thanks to him being nuts and in charge of Robot Chicken we get this awesomeness...

Did you see the random DeeJay get owned and land in the middle of the dead bodies? haha.

You should see the Fumbles customs coming out on the forums!

Here is one of em.

"It's Fumbles, It was always Fumbles."

Super Bowl goes Joe style

2009-01-16T17:29:00.000-08:00

"Variety confirms that the G.I. Joe:Rise of Cobra trailer will premiere during the Super Bowl! on February 1st! Also set to premiere is the Transformers:Revenge of the Fallen trailer! Mark the date folks, February 1st is the day we finally get to see actual footage from these highly anticipated movies! "

What do yall think of that! Woot! Can you believe I thought I would have no reason to watch this years Super Bowl? I hope it pwns and all the noobies at the Tank cry.

:-)

I'm posting like a mad man today.

Viper from Viper 5 pack.

2009-01-16T17:06:00.000-08:00

This is going to be my next GIJoe obsession, figured Id let yall know.

Chrome + New Wrists= The WIN!

Custom Para Viper! Woot!

2009-01-16T11:19:00.000-08:00

Recently finished one of my 3 Para Viper customs!

Thought you guys might want to see him. Let me know what you think.

I made it where this one actually has a parachute on his back instead of just a reserve! I used green stuff to sculpt the chute into his gear. He also has a rifle holster on his left leg. I removed the extra clips from his leg and re-attached them to his rifle holster as well. I removed the bottom tubes. I also dirtied up the entire figure especially the bright parts and the clear tubes. I removed the side pouches and attached them to the actual figure. This improves articulation while wearing his gear and makes him look more complete when he is not wearing his gear. He is packing a MP5 that has a red dot, silencer, and grip on it. His leg harness' have been attached at the belt line. This custom figure pwns the original and makes a lot more since on the parachuting side of things.

Go here to buy him :-)

sorry about the crazy picture sizes but yall gotta admit Im getting better! My picture taking has gotten better thanks to my brother telling me what the heck was up and now my pictures dont exceed bandwidth and disappear. Oh and by the way anybody who is anybody should use Photobucket. It keeps blowing my mind! the big thing that means for yall is that I wont dread taking pictures and posting em up because that site is making my life waaaay easier.

Custom BAT

2009-01-12T19:51:00.000-08:00

I posted my custom BAT up for sale at Hisstank.

His entire body has been black washed to create a dirty look. His head has a small cut in the top left side which has been painted appropriately(I would not mind making this larger upon request at payment). Now for one of the biggest and most important adjustments, His head was removed at the neck. I then set it at an angle and glued it down. I used Green Stuff(Kneadatite Epoxy) to create a new neck for him that is at an angle more like what is seen on most 25th anniversary figures. This gives him a "ready for action" stance instead of the "I am designed to stand straight up like a board" stance that he has out of package. I then sculpted some shoulders and a collar for him so that from the side he looks more proportional. All of this work is very sturdy! This process took hours to complete not to mention the time it took for me to wait on the Epoxy to harden into solid plastic. I then painted the area and did 2 layers of acrylic sealer so that it could hold up to regular play. The neck is now much more natural and is capable of looking much further up and down. I put one bullet hole into his chest plate. I did not break all the way through the plastic because it is supposed to be bullet proof glass not regular glass. I looked at many pictures of how bullet proof glass reacts to taking a bullet and did mine accordingly. I also bore out the chest slider joint in the front and back so that he can bend further down and further back than he can out of the box. I then created one bullet hole in his left upper leg and painted it accordingly. I also did a custom paint job on the backpack which looks far superior to the old dingy grey backpack. The over all effect of my adjustments takes this figure over the top. He looks nearly real and he is capable of many more great action poses due to the adjustments to his neck and chest joint. He is on sale for $50.

Bust a cap!

Que Super Hero pose in 3...2....1...

Im your Huckleberry.

Cool vs. Gay tonight at 7PM

Will the real pwnzor please stand up?

The End, buy it!

Yo Joe!

2009-01-12T18:19:00.000-08:00

GIJoe's base, the PIT, is in control of the "STAR WARS" Missile protection program(look it up if you don't know it). BeachHead and others are running routine security walks outside the PIT when he thinks he sees something move at the tree line. He calls it in and Airborne and bazooka tell him they will do a fly by in there heli and check it out.

Elsewhere at the PIT Firefly silently breaks into a door after taking out two guards with a silenced pistol. He has a handful of Vipers backing him up.

Below the PIT a team of Cobra Eels has breached security in the sewedge tunnels and has set explosives that will place them inside the PIT.

As Airborne flys over the outskirts of the Joe base he sees something move and is suddenly fired upon by a forest full of Crimson Guards and Vipers. Bazooka and Airborne open fire on the cobra scum that is quickly closing in on the PIT. Just when Airborne thinks it cant get worse he spots Para Vipers falling from the sky onto the top of his base.. Airborne radios in to Duke that today the PIT is at war!

Meanwhile in a valley somewhere in Canada snow serpents patrol a giant missile silo. Snake Eyes watches from over a mile away through binoculars. He has no support with him, he has been watching this silo for 2 weeks to learn its weakly secured spots and to ensure that it remains inactive.

Will Firefly and his help from a handful of Vipers and a special forces Eel team manage to infiltrate the main computer system and shut down the Nations missile defense system? Is the PIT at serious risk, or worse, the Pentagon? Will it all land on Snake Eyes' table?

You decide.

Bazooka Helmet Custom

2009-01-05T14:36:00.001-08:00

Another custom from yours truely!

I re-sculpted Bazooka's helmet because I thought it looked like he took a big salad bowl and shoved it on his head. I shaped it with my dremel then took some old green fabric I had around the house and super glued it down to it. I then used some matte acrylic sealer and coated it and let it harden into plastic. I have always wanted to try this technique and it worked very well. This means that if you like the possibility's of making fabric gear but dislike the fact that it is soft fabric you could make it from fabric then coat it in acrylic sealer and it will be just like plastic.

sorry the pics suck.

Snake Eyes Custom Head

2009-01-02T21:15:00.000-08:00

I kinda hated the head that was on the 25th style V3 Snake Eyes so I made my own! I got green stuff for Christmas this year because my brother and sister in law are the bomb and this was my first project. I wrapped the old head with green stuff, sculpted it, let it dry, sanded it, painted it black, painted the goggles silver, then used acrylic sealer to seal the deal. This is the end result!

Let me know what you think!

Here is a link to one of my other projects that I am doing.

Terror Of Bethlehem Video Down

2009-01-01T21:23:00.001-08:00

So Hasbro took down the awesome holiday GIJoe stop action fan movie that I posted a little while ago. In response I made a rant on Hisstank.com... and they shut it down!!!! Holy crap!!! What is up with the world of GIJoe??? It is insanity... next thing you know my blog is going to be shut down! I know some of the readers of this blog are avid Tankers and some are probably even mods but I just cant help but say that this suppression of opinion is ridiculous. What is up with this? Why is the world of GIJoe so up tight?

Here is my rant that got "closed"

So lame.

UPDATE: Holy Crap now they took it down all together?!?!?!?! Insanity... I might just leave the gay Hisstank community....

My Reviews over the past year.

2008-12-27T18:14:00.000-08:00

I decided to compile a list of the figures I reviewed this year and what they scored. I have also thrown in my ratings on all the other 25th Joes I own but never posted reviews for.

From best to worse of 2008
Resolute Duke 9.8 avg
Crimson Guard 9.8 avg
BAT 9.5 avg(9.4 without adjustments 9.6 with adjustments)
Para Viper 9.5 avg
Snow Serpent 9.2
Beach Head CP 8.7
Snake Eyes(v30) 8.5
Stalker 8.4
Cobra trooper 8.2
Tomax/Xamot 8
Snake Eyes(v34) 7.9
MainFrame 7.6
Wild Weasel 7.5

Other Toys
Animated Prowl 9.8
Iron Man Stealth 9.6

I have four new figure reviews on the way and three of the four will be in the 9-10 range so be expecting them in the very near future!

Christmas Time!

2008-12-22T21:15:00.000-08:00

Christmas is right around the corner! I have bought myself 3 GIJoes that will be Christmas gifts. One of them is Airborne which everyone knows is the bomb but I will still review him, expect that review about a week after Christmas. Until then, Merry Christmas!!!

Here is a Christmas video for kicks and giggles!

In-Depth Wave 13 Resolute Duke Review!!!

2008-12-09T14:16:00.000-08:00

I have managed to get my hands on a Wave 13 Duke, which is amazing especially since I live in Georgia where a new Wave is more rare than a "tickle me Elmo" was in the 90's.

Character: I am very excited about the Resolute Cartoon! I can't wait to watch the show while playing with all of my Resolute toys. I am sure this Duke will be the main Duke in my mind from this point on.

Figure: Overall this is a great figure! He is very detailed unlike all of the other 25th Dukes. He also has sweet weapons and new Resolute card art.

Lets get into the details!
Package: The card art is all new yet maintains the old feel. It is redesigned but not so much that you feel like it is a different toy line. I think it looks great and I look forward to seeing more of it.

Articulation: His articulation design is pretty good. His elbows have a better range of motion than just about any other 25th figure(save maybe Crimson Guard). His legs work great and the vest doesn't limit motion in any way. Some may complain that the hips are too wide, personally it doesn't really bother me. His one fatal flaw in the articulation department for me is his chest joint. It is unusually bad. He can bend backwards a fair amount but he hardly bends forward at all. Its not a big deal but it will require an Xacto to really make this figure great.

Quality Control: My particular figure has a pretty good paint app and the plastic feels the same as any other 25th figure. The only draw back here is that they used black plastic for his white knee pads. This means that a little bit of black is bound to get through here and there.

Accessories: There should be a more manly word for accessories... let me know if you know one that's better. He comes with his vest(which I see no point in removing other than to edit his chest joint), a pistol, a knife, and a fictional G36Cish gun that has silver paint apps on it. All these weapons are great but none of them fit on the figure which is a downer for some but I personally could care less. I think he comes with great guns and I look forward to swapping em in and out of other figures hands as well as his own.

This figure is an awesome toy that I think will take over the idea of Duke for many fans. Its gritty and realistic design make is really shine next to its counterparts. Also, it is really awesome to see some new stuff, remakes of stuff I already have can only keep me happy for so long. This totally newly designed Duke is a must buy for any collector.

9.9 out of 10 with chest adjustment.
9.7 out of 10 with out adjustment.

Let me know what you thought of the review! The comment board is open for anyone, no account necessary.

Random stuff

2008-12-05T09:54:00.000-08:00

Finished my Para Viper custom! I painted the orange areas and his knife sheath black and clear coated them. I also Black washed his gear and pretty much anything else that wasnt dark blue. He is now officially my favorite Cobra figure of all time.

Hopefully I will be getting my Resolute Duke in the mail today or tomorrow. Its kinda crazy I have barely even seen wave 10 or 11 while the rest of the country is seeing them everywhere. My fear that I want see wave 13 for months and months and my excitement about Resolute and Duke made me grab him from a Tanker online. Ill review him as soon as he comes in!!!

My Custom Para Viper

2008-12-01T17:59:00.000-08:00

I have made some adjustments to my Para Viper that have worked out very well!
Here is the overall effect!

The first things I did were to cut down his collar so his helmet could swivel and to glue his goggles down to his helmet since they cant go anywhere else anyway. Next I did what I do to all of my 25th figures, I dremeled out his chest so he could bend further down.

Then I removed all of the hoses and put the bottom ones up top so that it had a longer reach. I put super glue in the helmets holes and made them fit tightly by taking the hoses in and out until the glue was solid. I also cut off the majority of the hose holders on the bottom of his helmet.Here are some pics.

Here is the back of the pack with the hoses cut and replaced.

I super glued his belt down. I also cut the side packs off and super glued them down to his waist. I did this for two reasons. firstly, it looked weird to me how the packs came off of his lower chute area all perfectly level with his chute... I dont know why that bugged me but it did. Secondly they don't look good when you bend his legs up, the front bending up is fine but the sides shouldn't go up with it. This adjustment makes him move better and look better IMO.

I also think it makes him more interesting when he isn't wearing any of his gear.

Anyways thats all there is too it! Essentially I glued down his belt, glued down his goggles, cut his side packs off and glued them down, dremeled his chest, and replaced his top hoses with his bottom hoses so that they are longer... wow thats actually a lot of adjustments. My mods make him able to move his head back and forth even with all of his gear on, bend further down, look better, and make him bend better when he lifts his legs up. I will likely paint the orange black in the future when I have some clear coat available.

Hope you like it! Let me know what you think.

Para Viper Reviewed!

2008-12-01T11:54:00.000-08:00

I finally found some of the new GIJoe stuff! I have bought Para Viper and the BeachHead/Dataframe comic pack(you can expect a review of them soon).

Para Viper

Character: This is a new Cobra trooper and he strikes me as totally awesome! His filecard is probably the best I have ever read. I love the idea of an infiltration paratrooper.

Figure: Overall this figure looks sweet to me!

From the preview pictures I thought his gear would limit his motion a lot but I found that the only really limiting thing was his collar that made it where his head couldn't look back and forth. I ended up using my Xacto to cut his collar down so that his helmet can swivel freely. As much as I dont mind the paint job(the orange in particular), I have seen some customs that look way cooler!

For example:

custom by Obi-Shinobi.

Also, his hoses are a little too short which is kinda annoying. Other than that he is a sweet figure. My favorite thing about him is that he is kinda like 4 in one... I like him with all his gear on, no helmet(I twist the hoses behind his back for this), no gear, and Just helmet.

I plan on painting something on his chest orange to make his "just helmet" version totally sweet.

His weapons are also pretty cool. I love the MP5! His light machine gun has a kinda weird handle and isn't very solid. Anyways he is a cool figure and I am very impressed with his sculpt and design.

9.7 with adjustments.
9.3 out of 10 with out adjustments.

Some Art from Yours Truly

2008-11-21T10:02:00.000-08:00

I did a few quick sketches over the last few days and I figured Id post em up. The BAT is drawn from my figure. The 91' Snake Eyes is from his file card.

91' Snake

BAT on rooftop

I'm fully aware that the both of there heads are a little off but whatever. I kinda experimented with using really dark pencils on the BAT drawing. The snake Drawing is more like what I usually do. Unfortunately how I usually draw is very bland to me, thats why I tried using really dark pencils on the BAT.

I would like to learn how to do comic book shading in the near future. Anyways thanks for looking.

ARAH Reviews!

2008-11-18T09:32:00.000-08:00

Wow I love all of my new guys! I got a fantastic deal on these ARAH Joes and I love all of them.

Techno Viper

What a genius idea! A viper that fixes messed up vehicles! He is a great figure. Some people hate bright colors on Joes but that is not me. I grew up in the 90's, yellow "moldable bio-armor" putty and neon colors are my mainstream. It took me awhile to get used to his mask and to decide where his actual eyes where but I got used to it and now I think he rocks. The only thing that could be better would be if he had a little bit more detail.
9.7 out of 10

Iron Grenadiers

This guy is amazing! One of my all time favorite Cobra's now. He fits well into my Joe universe and he can hold any gun! I also love his mask, it is more pointy in the front than the picture makes you expect.
10 out of 10

Freefall

I used to play with this guy at my friends house all the time when I was a kid which makes him an instant classic and love of mine. I am also big into the para trooper esque Joes. His arms are a little higher than most but I dont mind much.
9.8 out of 10

Low-Light

Everyone should own this dude! He has awesome playability. He is like the ultimate night force figure and in my world he is an amazing shot. He rocks hard core. He might actually be one of my top 5 GIJoes of all time
10 out of 10

Salvo

This dude is pretty awesome as well. I wish I had bought him complete because he comes with some hardcore guns but oh well. He makes for a cool heavy gunner GIJoe.
9.7 out of 10

Strato-Viper

This dude makes for a cool Cobra pilot. His face is not as pointed as it looks in this image and that kinda threw me off when I received the figure but I have gotten used to his mask and now he looks cool to me. His pistol on his chest limits the guns he can used to short or small stocked guns. On the other hand he has incredible detail on his legs including some chap style leather that is pulled tight by strings. This sculpt is one of the most detailed ARAH figures I have ever seen.
9.6 out of 10

Night force Crazy legs is on his way in the mail! woot!!!

If I ran GIJoe production...

2008-11-10T18:04:00.001-08:00

I would hook fans up with under cover Joes! GIJoes wearing regular civilian uniforms. I would produce 1 figure every wave that was a fan favorite in civilian clothing. Maybe give them a vest that isnt part of the body sculpt and sculpt a pistol sling on his chest so that he is still armed but you cant see it from the outside. It would open up the possibilities of GIJoe play substaintially. In a lot of the comics Joes spend half of there cover time wearing regular clothing. Heck snake eyes is in multiple comics wearing a black long sleeve T shirt and Hat!!! I would so buy that figure! We have literally 37 versions of Snake Eyes, one of them in regular army clothing and a hat. It seems very reasonable to have a version that can actually go out in public and not get laughed at. I think collectors would go crazy for that kinda crap! Any ways.... A whole bunch of things would be different if I ran Hasbro, all of it for the better. What do you think of this idea?

Coming Soon!

2008-11-10T11:14:00.000-08:00

I am getting some ARAH Joes in the mail fairly soon and you can expect me to do quick reviews for them! Sorry about not having any Joe happenings lately. The Georgia Joe market is really dry right now! All we are getting is revision waves. All of us GA Joe collectors are stuck searching Kohls and Krogers hoping to find Wave 11... Its like a whole other side of "Joe hunting", way more competitive and way more difficult. Even when I do find the new stuff I have to convince the store to match Krogers sweet $4.99 deal on single packs. Like I said pretty crazy in GA right now but expect some reviews soon.

2 New figures reviewed!

2008-11-04T17:41:00.000-08:00

Halo 3 Toy

I bought a Halo 3 Series 3 Master Chief with sniper rifle and spike grenade today!
He is pretty fantastic! I think he might have come out like.... today, because all I can find is prototype pictures. The only difference is that you cant see the pegs on his shoulders and his spike grenade doesn't rest any where on his body.

He has great articulation and they made the hips much better! Now you see more of the ball joint and less of the other weird hip joint that I don't like much. I had to browse through like 5 of them before finding one that had good enough paint for me. His spike grenade is totally useless, it cant be held and it cant rest any where on his body... plus mine broke in half! EDITORS NOTE: I drilled out my own hole in the spike grenade and now it can rest on his back, looks pretty cool as well. I also discovered that my other spartan can hold the grenade which is a plus as well. Other than his gimp nade he is pretty flipping sweet! It is nice to finely have a master chief toy that meets all of my requirements. His sculpt is brilliant, I wish I could meet whoever sculpted/designed him. He is a "campaign master chief" and therefore none of his armor is removable which is a plus in my opinion, no worry of crap falling off and it makes him less bulky and totally seamless. Overall I really love this figure! He pulls off playability and amazing poses all in one.

9.3 out of 10

Iron Man Toy

I also bought Iron Man Concept Series Stealth Striker Armor recently! A long time ago when Iron Man figures came out they where going for $9.44, I told myself that was too much and to wait until the price dropped. Well after months of waiting the price jumped up too $10.44! I was totally ticked and decided not to buy them. Well a few days ago I walked into walmart and they were on sale for $7.50! I had to make a tough choice between "THE IRON MAN" and "The sweet looking stealth armor".... I chose the stealth armor. Anyways, this dude is the hottness! Apparently everyone agrees with me because he is going on ebay for a fortune..... maybe I should have sold mind, too late now though. Anyways he is pretty freaking sweet... His entire body other than his head is a new sculpt, it is different than all of the other Iron Man figures! His back packs wings dont spread out very wide but it still looks pretty cool. They automatically shoot out of his backpack when you press a fairly well hidden button. His shoulders pads are awesome! They are two pieces(one below the other) and they work perfectly and look amazing as well(the pictures up top dont do them justice because the bottom shoulder pad isnt extended out). One of his hands is opened for pulse blasting and the other is in a fist for head bashing, overall they work fairly well together. His paint job makes him look dark and moody. I did do some articulation adjustments on him(and one of them was unexpectedly difficult). I cut little slivers off of the tops of his legs until his upper leg could go nearly 90 degrees too his body and I dremeled out his chest just like I do with 25th GIJoes. Dremeling his chest proved to be extremely difficult but worth it in the end. It is also very nice to be able to make that adjustment and not be able to see it at all after you are done. These adjustments make him the ultimate butt kicker! The only thing that could have made him better would be finger articulation so both hands can pulser blast or head bash.
9.8 out of 10

Bought my first Transformer!

2008-10-21T16:03:00.000-07:00

Its not a Joe but its certainly down the same alley. I recently joined the TFW2005.com forums to learn more about Transformers. I made my first thread stating that I was totally new to Transformers and that I was a Joe fan looking for high articulation est. in a Transformer. The fan base responded like crazy, whatever they suggested I would watch youtube reviews of and decide what I thought about it. I ended up deciding on the Transformers Animated Deluxe Prowl. Here is the link to the thread I started.

I am going to go ahead and review this toy because I think it is amazing and everyone should get one. Sorry if it sounds like I'm doting in my review.

Animated Prowl character: He is the silent ninja of the new animated TF show. He is kinda the Snake Eyes of the TF show. He doesn't talk much and he is super confident and doesn't rely on anyone but himself.

Animated Prowl Deluxe Figure: This dude is just the bomb! I haven't stopped playing with him since I bought him. I got him on sale for $7.77, I think he is regularly $10. I promise you he is well worth it! He has very very few faults straight out of the package. His vehicle mode is a black ninja motorcycle(fitting since hes a NINJA)then he transforms into a highly articulated butt kicker with awesome throwing stars as weapons. Transforming him is just hard enough that its fun but not so hard that you don't feel like doing it. His articulation is incredible! I only made 2 adjustments to this figure, I cut a little bit of yellow plastic off of his upper leg to make the bottom part of his leg go 90 degrees

and I dabbed some super glue in his hip joints to tighten up the hips. THATS IT!!! After that his articulation is flawless, I guess if I wanted to be super picky I would request wrist swivel but I don't really care, it doesn't hinder him at all. His head looks every direction including straight up and as far down as anyone ever looks. He has all the average joints plus and extra joint in the middle of his shin which actually works well and doesn't look weird even though a human cant do it.

His weapons include two throwing stars and a red stop light??? His throwing stars are awesome they are his hub caps and they have sweet gears that make them rotate out of the center then back in. He comes with a red stop light because he can supposedly make anything into a weapon.

GIJoe's are almost the right size to ride his vehicle mode, but at the end of the day the bike is a little too large.

The only down side he has overall is that he cant hold his throwing stars extremely well. BUT WAIT! He makes up for it! If you have any old huge guns that look stupid in Joe hands they probably fit perfectly in his hands and look good too! This takes the figure over the top! He fits perfectly in the GIJoe world with two 50 cal machine guns in each hand!

Full Size

I love him! One of my favorite toys. definitely my favorite non GIJoe toy. Go get him!

9.8 Out of 10
Could use wrist swivel, doesn't hold throwing stars perfectly, and I did have to do a few minor adjustments to perfect him.

Keep in mind entries like this take serious time, if you read it let me know what you think please. Thanks.

Hasbro Q&A questions answers!

2008-10-20T10:18:00.000-07:00

Joe sites across the internet have received answers to the most common questions. These Q&A's are on different sites but I am going to compile them for you all. At the end of the Q&A, I will write out my thoughts on the recent news.

Thank you for your incredible support over the past year. What started as just a handful of figures in2007 now includes a full line of figures, vehicles, comic packs, DVD packs, Mighty Muggs, and Combat Heroes. Yo Joe!

We would like to take this opportunity to answer one of the most common questions about the classic 3 3/4"" figures we have heard from the fans:

Will there be any more classic 1980's 3 3/4"" figures after fall 2008?

Hasbro G.I. Joe Team: In late 2008 (fans) will see a bonus wave of single figures and classic comic packs that are redecos of figures from the 25th Anniversary collection. Due to the huge success of the G.I. Joe line, we were able to squeeze in a number additional figures into the end of this year. But this does not mean the end of classic figures or new tooling! As we head into 2009 prior to the August 2009 live-action movie G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, (fans) will see newly tooled classic vehicles, newly tooled versions of your favorite characters from G.I. Joe Resolute, and a number of favorites (fans) have been waiting for (including) Dr. Mindbender, Alpine, Tunnel Rat, Alley Viper, Recondo, Outback, Night Creeper, Zap, Shockwave, and even more!

With the release of the 2009 movie (fans) will see many of (their) favorite 1980's characters in movie styling, but that does not mean the end of the classic style. The Hasbro G.I. Joe Team recognizes that there are plenty of additional classic 1980's figures and vehicles to release in the future after the movie and in the years to come."

Now, on to this month's Hasbro G.I. Joe Q&A...

From Figures.com
1. Images of Storm Shadow, Cobra Commander and Duke figures which bear a striking resemblance to their 2002 G.I.Joe vs. Cobra counterparts have shown up online and rumor has it these are the new G.I. Joe: Resolute figures. Is there any confirmation of this and when can fans expect to see the Resolute line?

Hasbro: There is no confirmation on this and you will see the new Resolute images in some of your favorite collector publications in the coming months...

2. Internet buzz has recently grown regarding the use of the same head sculpt for multiple characters (ie: Gung-Ho's headsculpt for Cutter and now Leatherneck) and die-hard fans are starting to feel these characters are lose their distinct and defining personalities. Is this a cost-saving technique fans and collectors can expect to see in future figures?

Hasbro: We have heard collector feedback on this and will try and improve. This issomething we use more often to save time rather than to save money.

3. Die-hard and new fans alike are absolutely in love with the new Sideshow Toys' 1:6 scale G.I.Joe figures; however, these figures seem to deviate from character designs which many collectors are used to seeing. Who decides what direction (looks, accessories, features) these high-end 1:6 scale figures will take on - Hasbro, Sideshow or a collaboration? Fans and collectors alike would love to know more about the magic behind this truly impressive new series...

Hasbro: Sideshow has outdone themselves with G.I. Joe! The figures are a collaboration between the toy design team at Hasbro andthe design team at Sideshow. All sides have a ton of passion for the brand and are determined to put out great work.

4. Fans now have a Tiger Force Flint with new arms and gloves. When can collectors expect to see everyone's favorite Warrant Officer in his more traditional uniform and colors?

Hasbro: The Hall of Heroes coming out this spring will feature Flint with gloves and all!

5. With the G.I. Joe live-action movie less then 11 months away, when can fans expect to see other multi-media tie-ins -- such as video games, online contest, etc -- similar to what fans saw with the release of the Transformers film last year?

Hasbro: The full blockbuster treatment that Transformers received will also be seen with G.I. Joe. You can expect to see things really heat up in the months before the movie...

from YoJoe!
1. Fans have a LOT of helicopter personnel on the Joe Team -- six to be exact including WIld Bill, Pilot Scarlett, Lift Ticket and Airborne. However, fans still don't have a helicopter. When can collectors expect to see a Dragonfly, Tomahawk, or something to give our rotory wing warriors a ride?

Hasbro: There is no current plan for the re-release of a classic helicopter before the movie. We hear what you are asking for and will look into what we can do. .

2.Fans have multiple Zartan figures and all of the original Dreaknoks. So when can collectors complete the Zartan's familiy tree with Zandar and Zarana figures?

Hasbro: With some key Joe's and Cobra's still left to do, it does not look like we will be doing Zandar and Zarana.

3. While the line focuses heavily on first and second tier characters like Duke, Cobra Commander, Snake Eyes and Zartan, it's currently missing a few key players. Where are Ripcord, Recondo, Lowlight, Dialtone, Dr. Mindbender and the other iconic cartoon and comic personalities and when can collectors add these to their collections?

Hasbro: Ripcord will not be out before [the] movie. Recondo and Dr. Mindbender are on the way. No official word yet on Dial Tone and Low-Light. (editor's note: this sounds VERY good for Dial Tone and Low-Light in my opinion!)

4. Transformers is one of - if not the MOST - popular Hasbro toy line on shelves today and every Hasbro property seems to have a Transformers cross-over, including both Marvel and Star Wars. So where's the G.I. Joe and Transformers cross-over toy line? The two have crossed over multiple times in comics and a transforming Rattler into Starscream or HISS Tank into Megatron would be amazing.

Hasbro: We know that many of our fans would love to see a cross-over between G.I. Joe and Transformers, but for the short-term the goal of both brands is to drive the movie based fantasy and create top tier-brands for a new generation of kids. Once we do that perhaps we can evaluate a cross-over as the icing on the cake.

5. Hasbro's Star Wars line currently includes a "Droid Factory" build-a-droid bonus with its individual figures. Is somthing like this possible with the Joe line and when can collectors expect to be building a SNAKE armor, which could easily be broken down into six component parts and packaged with single carded figures.

Hasbro: We have the MASS Device on shelf as we speak with our DVD packs. We will not be doing a build-a-SNAKE Armor this year.

From HissTank.com

#1. Within the last couple of months several Comic Con Exclusive Gold Destro's have surfaced on the secondary market with the date code stamp "81921". Can these figures be considered legit? If not can you shed some light on this situation?

#1. A. If not can you shed some light on this situation? According to the engineering team, the code on the back of package is a vendor code and no more Gold Destros have been, or will be, produced.

#2. Are we going to see the likes of Recondo and Dr. Mindbender?

#2. A. Yes!

#3. Can you give us one surprise that fans may not have expected?

#3. A. Chuckles!

#4. Are the resolute figures going to consist of new molds or are they going to be mainly repaints of the existing figures. Examples are Duke, SS, CC and SE. Is there anything else you can tell us about resolute? Perhaps there's a promotional website for the series on it's way?

#4. A. There is a promotional website on the way for Resolute. The figures will be primarily new molds.

#5. We already know the figures up to Wave 13 Can you list the the final waves and the figures included. How many waves are left until the change over to Movie Toys.

#5. A. Sorry, we do not release specific wave and remix info. You can expect to see a new wave of single packs about every other month.

My take on it!
None of it seemed incredibly informative but never the less there are some cool things in these answers. Chuckles is a fan favorite and should be pretty cool. I wish they had given us more info on the resolute/movie figures. They act like this movie is going to be as big as the Transformers movie.... if that is true then I am psyched!(editors note: the 1st transformers movie had a budget of 151 million the upcoming GIJoe movie has a budget of 170 million! Maybe I should have a little more hope for the movie.) I am pretty happy that ripcord is coming out he is cool as anything. Tunnel Rat and Alley Viper sound promising as well. I wonder.... they are getting into the 90's characters now with Night Creeper and Alley Viper, think they will dull down the colors or keep them as purple and orange as ever? Interesting thought considering that a lot of people think the colors were what killed the line to begin with... For what it is worth I hope they are bright, I liked those colors. Its what I grew up with and its what I love. The Hall of Heroes could be pretty sweet, up until this point I have thought all of the large 5 packs of Joes were cheesy but Hall of Heroes sounds pretty epic and could be cool. Hope yall enjoyed the read, leave your thoughts.

GIJoe Quality Control

2008-10-14T10:32:00.000-07:00

Just like the neon colors were the end of the Joe line in the 90's I fear that Quality Control is going to be the end of the 25th line.

I have already heard reports of the new dusty being shipped without his straps(which he relys on to look good), I have seen a terrible eye paint application on Quick Kick( Although it does kinda make him look like a phsycho possessed Bruce Lee), the terrible Rattler stickers, the mis-spelled Stands such as "GIJDE", missiles missing on the Target Exclusive planes, and Hands breaking off due to terrible plastic and terrible paint apps. I have a feeling that with Hasbro continuing to make lower and lower quality products while the price goes up is going to kill the line.

New picture of neo viper from movie!

2008-10-09T15:17:00.000-07:00

My fear that every single character in the new gijoe movie is going to have a black costume continues to grow! I had this crazy idea when the first image of a neo viper standing in a bathroom came out, that there would maybe be some ranking system were they had different colored stripes on them or something.... that has become very unlikely even in my crazy head. It looks like GIJoe has taken a 90 degree turn from the neon colored 90s toys. It seems that every single character is going to be wearing black except for storm shadow.... Kinda lame in my opinion.

I wanted to apologize...

2008-10-06T13:27:00.001-07:00

Hey guys, sorry about all of my images going bad, I am still in search of a good place to upload pictures. If you have any suggestions let me know. Most of them have a stupid amount of adds and pop ups, or the images get dropped after a month, or they take forever to upload. Again if you have any suggestions let me know.

On a more toy related but not quite GIJoe related topic I have become very interested in the Gears of War Marcus Fenix figure and the Assassins Creed Altair figure. Here are some images of them. Hopefully I will be able to pick them up sometime. They arent necessarily the most poseable things in the world but I think they make up for it in there sheer awesomeness of detail.

People complain about the attempt to cover the joints killing these toys' articulation but I think I can solve that with my exacto. (Grins freakishly with fire burning in eyes)

Wild Weasel Review

2008-10-05T11:02:00.000-07:00

I refused to buy Wild weasel and Ace double pack because I hate the ploy that I have to buy a crappy toy to get a good toy. Later I heard he would be released with the Target Exclusive conquest plane and I thought I was going to get that but after hearing about the crappy stickers and seeing it in person I decided not to purchase it.

So I found myself looking through YoJoe.com's list of 2008 figures feeling like I had all of the toys I wanted except for one, Wild Weasel. I decided to get him from the BST forum on the tank and grabbed him for 6 bucks including shipping. which in my opinion is way better than fueling the stupid double pack fire.

Now to the figure.
aesthetically he looks pretty good! I think his head is a little bit to short but I can get over it. The goggles pop on and off perfectly and it is a good perk to the updated figure. TRhe pistol looks very realistic and fits in his holster perfectly. the 1984 Wild weasel is one of those toys I think looks sweet but his head doesnt look up and down so I never had much interest. This updated version has brought him to life for me and I enjoy having a cobra pilot in my collection. I did some cutting on his belt because it limited his right legs movement. Also his ankle joints dont do a very good job but other than that he is a pretty good toy.
7.5 out of 10

Wraith has hit and has been reviewed by Hisstank!

2008-10-03T00:20:00.001-07:00

I called this from a mile away! I love how he comments on how it is exactly how I said it would be.

Here is what I predicted
"Wraith: Esthetically he is amazing! I love the sci fi stuff. Looks really cool but I predict that the armor hanging down from his upper chest is going to kill his articulation. It also looks like those shoulder pads might limit articulation of the arms. Also those little pipes from his lower arms to his upper arms look like something I would have to chop with an exacto on day one, I would imagine that they will make it hard to maneuver his arms. His P90 is hugely out of proportion. Overall, he looks good but I dont think he will be fun to play with at all. Perhaps you guys who pose your Joes(Posers! lol) will enjoy him."

Here is what Eopie Herder has to say on the tank
"I have to say that overall, the helmet was the most pleasing aspect of the figure. The rest, while in the package looked great, I find it to be far from it. The small hoses on the arms are TINY, and very fragile. They also prohibit the arms from having a full range of movement. Unless you break them. Kinda limits the poses in my opinion, which was a bummer. His gun is also too large, and does not fit well in his hand, the length of it causing his arm to rest in a strange way. He comes with removable chest armor, said rifle and a Cobra stand."

I can see now from the close up pics that the chest piece would def limit movement as well.

Beautiful, I should totally be in the cutting room at hasbro telling them what sucks and what doesnt.

All of this and there are people trying to sell the clear version for $25 cause its a "variant"... terrible in my opinion, this means collectors will buy this crappy figure and Hasbro will think people love it when really people are just buying it to sell it.
:-)

Crimson Guard and Tomax/Xamot reviews

2008-09-25T15:16:00.000-07:00

Sorry its been so long. I am at a huge transitional point in my life so I haven't spent much thought on GIJoe lately. Regardless, the Target 8 dollar comic packs have had me stopping by stores recently and today I finally bought some stuff. I grabbed the Crimson Guard single pack and the Tomax/Xamot comic pack.

Tomax/Xamot
I never had these toys as a kid but watching the TV show I thought they were pretty cool. The whole twins thing and the fact that they feel each others pain est is pretty clever.

The figures: I think they are pretty awesome! For 8 dollars I am very pleased. I could never bring myself to spend 10 bucks on 2 twins but $8 for some reason seemed much more appetizing. The legs and torso are incredibly well sculpted and I am proud of Hasbro for making the sash soft plastic. On the downside the shoulder pads have a tendency of popping off and they cant hold there guns very well(which are green by the way??). There arms don't quite make 90 degrees which was a problem until I got out my Xacto. Regardless I am glad I own the characters and I am glad I have the 25th version instead of the originals.

Conclusion:
8 out of 10

Crimson Guard

Ever since the Crimson Guard was originally released I have been standing in toy isles staring at him in the package trying to decide whether or not he was as cool as I thought he might be. I was scared the head might look stupid and big. Also when they first came out I didn't know how to Xacto a chest joint to make it bend better, so I figured that with how much lower chest I could see he wouldn't bend very far down(big deal to me). Well today I finally sprung for him on the re-release card...

The figure: Absolutely Brilliant! If I could only own one 25th figure so far it would definitely be the Crimson Guard! His stance is sweet! Looks like he is about to "open up a can" on somebody. The guns are great! They have similarly sized handles so you don't have to try to make his hand hold a small pistol grip after holding an assault rifle, they are perfectly interchangeable! The head model to me is sweet looking and much better than the original(Im sure someone disagrees but oh well). His sculpt is plain yet flashy due to the paint job. The paint job is awesome... Silver buttons on the chest and boots,sweet gold soft arm band,silver stripes down the sides of his pants, and a cool silver logo on his upper left shoulder(Note: I picked between 5 of them and a lot of them had messed up paint jobs because its a very precise paint scheme). As far as articulation, I bore out the chest joint and cut a small sliver off of one of the backs of his boots to give him ridiculously good leg movement. With these adjustments he is nearly flawless. Now for his only flaw, he has a sick pistol but it doesn't fit into his holster! I solved this problem by using my exacto knife to hollow out the holster a bit and now the pistol will sit perfectly in place.

conclusion:
With my adjustments he is a 10 out of 10.
Straight out of the box he is a 9.5 out of 10 due to the holster(dis-regarding the chest bore out, which I do to all of my figures in order for them to get higher than a 5 on my rating scale).

GIJoe Commercial

2008-09-12T14:00:00.000-07:00

Just in case anybody was wondering what the target market is for GIJoe toys check this commercial out.

Commercial

Haha, "I got it!" funny crap. If I was in the room and somebody saw that commercial and said "Thats the stuff your into right?" I would totally deny it.... haha It makes me ashamed to be a fan and a collector. I loved the hairy grown man hands holding the toys, what a joke! lol

The other thing is that I think those vehicles are totally lame, the Hiss has been around forever and that tank with Breaker is incredibly out of proportion. I sat there and watched the beginning and said to myself "look at all that cool crap!" then it started showing the new stuff and I thought "that stuff is so freaking lame!!!" Haha I want that flagg and that 85 snake eyes with guard tower way more than the new junk! Oh well, the new Target exclusives give me hope for the future of the Joe vehicles.

Target Exclusive Rattler Pictures!

2008-09-09T16:49:00.000-07:00

More pics!

Well, I have been desperate for a new 25th line toy to be excited about and I didnt expect it to come in the form of a vehicle but it has! The new Rattler pictures are making me get that itch that makes me wish I had more jingle in my pocket. I have been replacing my 25th excitement with original ARAH excitement, then I saw this! Looks really great, better than the original which is saying a lot! I am also amazed at the packaging and presentation! We get to put the stickers on! and the art of the water beneath the plane and the bombs being dropped is a class act! Anyways I am excited about it and I hope to get my hands on it!

G.I.Joe Resolute!

2008-09-09T16:37:00.000-07:00

Ever since I heard about this "mini series" that would have 5 minute shows that would equal an hour worth of film, I thought it was silly. I then gave it a second thought when I saw that everyone was so excited. I thought about it logically and decided that it could very well mean some cool new toys, some great hype, and maybe even some good viewing. I have been trying to wait for the official trailer to be released so that I could view in high quality before making any judgment but today I broke down and watched the clip..... Amazing!!!! I am super excited! Looks like its going to be awesome! It may be a little "japanese animation-e" but I don't mind so much. It looks like it is going to be sweet. Check this clip out then read the rest...

Everybody knows that Snake Eyes makes GIJoe. I was amazed at how well they portrayed him! The shot when the viper is unloading his sub and ends up almost shooting at his feet before getting ripped up is something I have always wanted to be portrayed well that I cant do with my toys. I was super impressed with the quality of the drawings and the voice overs. Good stuff!!!

Wave 10 First Impressions

2008-09-04T18:51:00.000-07:00

Im going to share my first impressions for the new Wave 10 Joes that are on there way to stores. Here is the HissTank link so you can see them for yourself.

http://www.hisstank.com/gi-joe-news/25th-anniversary-3/gi-joe-modern-era-wave-10-canadian-cards-7622/

Wraith: Well asthetically he is amazing! I love the sci fi stuff. Looks really cool but I predict that the armor hanging down from his upper chest is going to kill his articulation. It also looks like those shoulder pads might limit articulation of the arms. Also those little pipes from his lower arms to his upper arms look like something I would have to chop with an exacto on day one, I would imagine that they will make it hard to manuever his arms. His P90 is hugely out of proportion. Overall, he looks good but I dont think he will be fun to play with at all. Perhaps you guys who pose your Joes(Posers! lol) will enjoy him.

Paratrooper: Well I guess he could be awesome if all you do is pose your Joes but I dont see him serving any part for my collecting and playing.... He just has way to much stuff strapped to him. The recent Snow Serepnt was pushing the limits for me as far as removable vests and straps goes. I cant imagine this guy being playable at all. I will pass on him.

Mutt&Junkyard: He looks very good! Looks like his right hand might be slightly annoying buy not worth freaking out about. His hips are a bit too wide but again I will get over it. The only potential deal breaker I see is his vest, if it limits his chest movement much at all then that will be a problem. I will wait and see what he looks like with my own eyes.

Bazooka Trooper: come on Hasbro I am falling asleep in the middle of the toy isle with this guy, peg warmer anyone? I refuse to spend 9 bucks for a repaint of a guy I have that comes with a flashier vest and a new gun. Sorry army builder lovers.

Duke: At least they gave him some weapons! The 25th series seems very lacking in the weaponry department so far. At least he has 4 pieces of plastic in the package other than himself and his stand, that is an improvement. Other than that I just see a boring repaint.

Croc Master: Thats what I am talking about Hasbro! His holster is a bit large and I will have to judge that pipe coming rom his mouth when I am playing with the toy. Thats right! When I am playing with the toy! This is the one guy from wave 10 who has an extremely high chance that I will pick him up.

Review: Custom Crimson Guard Assault Vehicle (C.G.A.V.)

2008-09-03T20:06:00.000-07:00

The KingofVillians himself has contacted me through HissTank and requested that I review his custom C.G.A.V.

You can check out the vehicle here
HissTank.com CGAV

Full Size: Here

Overall this custom is sweet! I have always been a huge fan of the beat up stuff, those bullet hole sticker packs were like gold when I was a kid. Im gonna give some pros, cons, and suggestions.

Pros:
The silver scuffing on the edges looks great!
the bullet holes are actually indented!
Great attention to detail!

Cons:
Looks like the red might be a little to bright for me.
The bullet holes are a bit too clustered. My thoughts on this are as follows.... I have shot a lot of guns and there would never be a spread of bullet holes that tight. The holes need to be more scattered.

Suggestions:
well those bullet holes cant be erased so I would suggest more scattered bullet holes across the vehicle to balance it out. Also I think if you give that much attention to the metal parts of the vehicle you really need to give a little attention to the tires. Maybe some mud splatters or just gray scuff marks.

Overall this is an awesome custom. If Hasbro released this I would certainly get my hands on it! Great job! Hasbro take notes!
8 out of 10

B.A.T. Articulation Enhancement

2008-09-03T19:12:00.000-07:00

As you all will come to know I am a huge articulation buff, thats what makes a Joe a Joe for me. Then I started wondering if I was the only one that thought that the articualtion on the 25th figures was lacking so I set up a poll. According to the poll I set up on HissTank just about everyone wants more articulation in there 25th figures. Here are the simple adjustments you can make to your B.A.T. to get better articulation!

Tools: BAT figure, X-Acto knife.

I am keeping it very simple so that anyone can do these adjustments.
Also the adjustments were already made before I started taking pics so I couldnt exactly do before and after shots but if you have the figure you will see the difference.

tools:

First step, Arms. I didnt do as much to the arms as I could because I didnt have the time but once you start you will feel the difference and see exactly what is limiting the movement, choose how much you want to do.

I drew out the shape you want the arm to take, instead of just a big square coming off of a balljoint.

http://www.oogletoogle.com/files/279iywdv6ivnlx6s0su8.jpg

Here is the adjustment to the right chest near the shoulder joint. I bore it out so that the arm can go nearly 90 degrees forward. I amped up the brightness in the area so you can see and made a mark as a guide for where you want to cut to get the best results.

Full Size: http://www.oogletoogle.com/files/wyogk1rulld4cvoarfr4.jpg

Do the same basic steps to the left arm and chest.

Next up, the Neck, this will make a huge difference to the toy! First pop the head off by pushing up on the chin.
Use your Xacto to cut a sharp angle towards the bottom of the ball joint for his head. This is easy and makes a big difference. The cutting motions for this step are highlighted in red in the picture.

Now you will prob find after this that the only limiting factor to his head movement is his neck. I went ahead and shaved down the front part of his neck, this does remove most of the painted area on the front of the neck, to me this is well worth it, you decide.

Full size:
http://www.oogletoogle.com/files/y8f5531y3rfjq93mjkic.jpg

Here is the front of the neck, the highlighted area is the part that has been cut and is missing paint, you can do more or less, just depends on how important articulation is to you and how unimportant paint is to you.

Full size: http://www.oogletoogle.com/files/bdwm2ks8wo01926xtbh0.jpg

Last step the chest. You may have realized that his chest joint is different than most, he has a side to side slider slit in the upper part off his body that goes left to right. cool joint! i dig it! anyways for the bottom normal joint... make it so you can see the slider slit(I think you have to start with the front and push his chest up and to one side). push your xacto in and bore the slit out downward. If you are working the front part of the slider, cut straight down towards his belt if you are working on his back slider cut down towards the middle of his butt. This makes it so his chest joint can bend further forward and further back. this is a big deal to me and is why I love the o ring! As always this is a battle between cosmetics and articulation you can take this as far as you want(i dont think there is any point where it becomes impossible to bore further down)

Chest joint mod pics:
Front:

Back:
Here is the back slider joint:

Now for the end result pictures!

full size

full size

Hope this helped yall out some! If you have done similar basic articulation adjustments let me know so people can benefit from it! I hope you all enjoyed this walk through, please comment. I would love to know what you all thought of this post.

Hey Joe Fans!!!

2008-09-03T18:59:00.000-07:00

I searched the internet up and down and was fairly unimpress with al of the personal Joe sites. There is always YoJoe.com and the Tank but I wanted something a little more personal. Anyways I have decided to make a blog so I can waste more of my time thinking about Joes! Good idea right! I will be posting up toy reviews, my thoughts on new toys, stuff on old Joes, articulation enhancements, Joe customs, movie news, and occasionally random stuff that might not exactly pertain to GIJoe's. Subscribe and I will try to keep things interesting for you!