I open a toy & post it here... VOL 2!

[Team Jetfire]

[Team Jetfire]

S-54
Hasbro- G.I. Joe Classified: Serpentor.




Now this might be a hot take, but as a kid (or maybe even now) I don’t love the character of Serpetor. I mean, don’t get my wrong he’s amazingly over the top and ridiculous, but I was always more sympathetic to Cobra Commander. Could be because I had Coco in his awesome armor as a kid and it left a much better long term impression. Can I also say that I also question why he is reflected as a handsome white guy. I mean, for those not aware, his fictional biography is that Dr Mindbender created him using strands of DNA from the genius of Napoleon, the ruthlessness of Julius Caesar, the daring of Hannibal, and the shrewdness of Attila the Hun who were consequently not all caucasian. Ah well, I guess the fact that Cobra Commander turned into a big snake man gives the Cobra team the diversity that I want.

Pros: I mean come on: Easily contender for toy of the year and it’s not even fair. THe figure is amazing, the chariot is amazing, the sculpt is amazing, the accessories are amazing and even the box, which I tossed, is AMAZING.

Cons: I’d be remiss if I didn’t include the fact that this set was pretty pricey at $129 CAD and was a bit of a pain to track down. I love 98% of the things that Hasbro is doing except there propensity to release these figures as exclusives or on Hasbro Pulse. Making something difficult to get can kill a line faster than anything else.

[Team Jetfire]

[Team Jetfire]

933-2
McFarlane Toys- DC Multiverse: The Drowned, Batman (woman?)-Earth 11



Dear Executives at DC and/or Warner Brothers,

I’m sure you are busy with messing up another live action DC project, formulating a plan to make Ezra Miller seem likable or looking past JK Rowling’s personal views in hope of capturing some more of that sweet-sweet Harry Potter money, but hear me out: The Batman who Laughs cartoon movie or live action production. It’s clear that there is a market for it given all the love for the multiple characters that have been produced and it’s something that hasn’t really been done before so it really could be a cool change to what we are used to.

Batman? Is that an intentional name on the package or did they just mess up? Everything that I see online names her as Batwoman or rather Bryce Wayne of Earth 11. Same basic song and dance, parents killed, adopted the dark, became a crime fighter, but also lost the love of her life Sylvester Kyle when a Metahuman killed him. Fast forward a few years after she eradicated all the Meta’s in Gotham when she decided to take on Aquawoman in the ocean leading to her updated appearance. Anyways, that’s all I know.

Pros: Batwoman has a beautifully detailed sculpt, nice articulation and ability to pose and of course a cool trident.

Cons: Despite a fantastic looking figure (which she is) I just don’t understand the decision to invest in a figure like this. Also, a flight (swimming) stand would have been a very nice touch.

[Team Jetfire]

934-2
Hasbro- Transformers Prime: Wheeljack




Can we talk about the newest Rise of the Beasts live action movie coming up? The character design of Wheeljack specifically? I just have one question: Why? Like, why does he look like that? Why did they take a very classic looking Wheeljack from the previous Bumblebee live action movie, that this is a sequel to and just update it. And while I understand the requirements of a big budget movie with corporate tie-ins, the tendency to take a known character and just throw it away for something completely foreign is bananas to me. Why does this keep happening in live action movies?

Pros: Pocket sized figure with an ability to transform and even has a weapon. What could be better?

Cons: What you see is what you get here and I have no issue with it.

[Team Jetfire]

[Team Jetfire]

935-2
Hasbro- Star Wars Black Series: R5-D4



There are times when I recall the moment when I picked up a certain action figure and buying R5-D4 is one of those times. I was at Marlborough Mall (a mall in Calgary) to meet a client for work and was a bit early for our appointment. Needing to kill time, I checked out the always disappointing Wal-Mart and stumbled upon a EB-Games where I, like some suit wearing version of Uncle Owen, stumbled upon this little guy on the shelves and was motivated to pick him up. When it was my turn to pay, I overheard the cashier mentioning that they just received a small shipment of the hot new Nintendo Switch console and without thinking I said I would buy one if no one else had it on hold or if it wasn’t spoken for. I think I also got Link and some screen protectors at the same time, but that part is hazy given that I didn’t open the dang thing given that I didn’t know if I was going to keep it given that they were pretty scarce and could sell it for a profit. I didn’t even tell my kids (who would have loved it) thinking that they would pressure me into opening it without considering the potential.

A few months went by and when it was clear that supply kept up with demand, I figured it was time and surprised the kids with it on one particularly bad weather day. We still have it and even though I have not played it near as much as I had wanted to, I really love having it. Also, R5-D4 is ok too.

Pros: This might be slightly embarrassing to admit, but I think I just realized that R5-D4 is just a red R2-D2 with a different head. Why did I think he was different from R2? Anyways, R5 is a decent figure with a cool sculpt and some neat little arms that come out of his chest area.

Cons: I just reviewed C3P-O and basically have the same complaint: On their own, droids aren’t worth the price tag for the single figure release and should always come in a two pack with another droid.

[Team Jetfire]

26-R
Toy Biz: Video Game Super Stars: Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time- Link and Epona
Approximate Release Year: 2001




Not going to lie, I love that the world of Link is still in the cultural zeitgeist given that I was a fan all the way back to the first gold plated Legend of Zelda game back on the NES. In fact, I’ve rolled credits on more Zelda games than any other, second to perhaps the Super Mario games, so having a few Link figures in the collection makes sense. That said, I have to take this moment to confess something that has been bothering me: I’m not a huge fan of Legends of Zelda Breath of the Wild nor am I going to play Tears of the Kingdom. Shocking right? Possibly the best games on both the platform and in the gaming universe. And I’m just going to turn up my nose. Now it is not for lack of trying as I did buy Breath of the Wild with every intention to play through and I did put some solid hours into it, but the reality is that I’m not a good gamer and this type of open world game is just too difficult for me to figure out. Turns out that I need an arrow, or a linear story to guild my game play and these games were made without that feature. Now don’t get me wrong, I probably would have spent hours as a kid playing it through, but as an adult, I just don’t have the time to allocate for that kind of campaign and when I do there is so much time in between gaming sessions that I would forget the flow and controls of the game. So to close out this confession I will say that I love the look and overall world of the games and am glad that they exist, but unfortunately I’m just not in a position to really enjoy them. Oh and for the record, I did play and roll credits on Ocarina of TIme way back before I had kids, so it stands to reason that I COULD do it on Breath of the Wild too.

Pros: Toy Biz was ahead of time in a lot of ways with action figure design and overall articulation. I suppose that is why the original Marvel Legends and Lord of the Rings figures are still so revered. In any case, Link and his trusty steed Epona have nice cartoonish sculpts, a decent amount of articulation that makes it possible for Link to stand up AND sit on a horse (a great feat for action figures, and a few character specific accessories including a sword, a sheath for storage (yay!) and a shield.

Cons: Fully articulation animals are challenging and while I appreciate the leg joints, without ball jointed hips they are basically useless.

[Team Jetfire]

[Team Jetfire]

S-55
Hasbro- Marvel Legends: Thor: Herald of Galactus.



So I’ve all but stopped buying Marvel legends except for ones that I deem are “super cool” looking OR are “super cheap” or a combination of the both and this Thor was a combo of the both.

Now what makes a figure “super cool” in my eyes? Well for starters it needs to be something different: I’m not interested in another boring Iron Man or Spider-Man: it needs to be a different character or a unique take on an existing one. Secondly: I love cool or different accessories: I don’t want hands or heads, but want character specific stuff that looks cool. For example on this Thor, I liked the energy hammer, the lightning effects and was particularly happy to see they included two extra crows given that I have ALWAYS LOVED an animal buddy pack-in with all my toys (more to come on that later). And lastly size. When a figure is larger than the rest and they come with more stuff I am in. Smaller figures can be cool, but it feels like a worse value to me.

As for what makes a figure “super cheap” well it depends on how cool the figure is. That said, I’m happy to pick up a figure when it is anywhere between $15-$20, but I’ll pay a bit more for a cooler figure. Given that they now retail for $35 plus, half price seems to be a good bet for me.

Pros: I love this figure and put it above so many of the recent Marvel Legends figures that have recently opened. He has a unique sculpt as a different version of Thor, a bunch of accessories including an energy hammer, lightning effects, spare hands, 2 crows AND still comes with a BAF piece.

Cons: Because he’s a bigger figure, the arms only have single pivot elbows. Also, I wish they made a way for the birds to sit on his arms/shoulders.