Spending spree

In my spending spree I re-bought movie 3.75" War Machine and Mark IV Iron Man. I already have them, but War Machine was the one from China-bay with no helmet or weapons. My Mark IV was missing a shoulder piece. I've bought them both carded. I wanted perfect versions of both as they're the versions which served as the inspiration for Avengers: EMH, they are pretty much there but both have a few scratches and chips straight off of the card. I also briefly investigated the Revolmini versions of WM and the Mark VI. Apparently they’re amazing, but expensive now, and for Iron Man, the wrong armour.

I also re-bought the Legends Mark 42 - I previously had the KO. I was in two minds whether I needed the official version of an armour from a film I’m not that bothered about, but I'm glad I did - the gold is lighter, the sculpt a bit more defined and the red plastic is shinier. (Actually, it’s pretty comparable on the torso, but the KO head and limbs are very dull.) Oh, and the armour on the hands doesn't fall off. All quite subtle in a photo, but it looks considerably better in person. Also bought Arnim Zola for my 3.75” collection (though he can do double duty), I have officially given up on my custom. It’s all about A:EMH, though I’d like it he turned up in the MCU again.

I also bought Cyberverse Grimlock, I was hoping I might see it in person but gave up and bought it on Amazon.

And a Jigglypuff for my Smash Bros. collection - would really like a Captain Falcon from World of Nintendo but it doesn't look too promising. And a Ness I suppose. Jigglypuff came with a Pikachu who looks considerably more suitable for a Smash Bros. set up than my old one (which I have no idea who even made it).

Earthrise Smokescreen has arrived. He looks great, almost like a mini Masterpiece. The robot and car modes are incredible, bring on Prowl and Bluestreak! The colours are almost spot on, though a lighter blue would be good. The headsculpt is very cartoon accurate which is not my thing, but I like that he will has a different sculpt to the other two Datsuns. It’s funny to think that up until quite recently I was content with the Universe version - they look terrible now.

Did I mention I bought Titans Returns Overkill? Bit fiddly as I couldn't remember how to get the Titanmaster in properly, but a great little mold. Such a shame they never made a Slugfest. (Or Steeljaw - I really like the Ramhorn as well.)

Just paid for Super 7 Raphael. Very excited, hope he lives up to expectation! He and Mumm-Ra should be here soon. Well (drum roll please), he looks great! A perfect cross between the vintage and the Playmates Classics. The look of the vintage (like Transformers I prefer a toy look), with the posability of the Classics but without the blatent pins. I really like how they’ve done the pattern of the shell, and the size is just right, scaling nicely with Thundercats and Legends (Playmates Classics were too big). I waited a long long time but Super 7 have delivered, bring on the rest plus the Thundercats!

I bought a new (ish) TR Fortress Maximus! This was really quite ridiculous (and a little painful considering how cheaply I could have bought a new one for a couple of years back), but I got it just for the clear green chest window. I've never liked the Takara one despite it being perfect in every other respect. Finally my Fort Max is properly toy accurate.

I've opened Black Shadow. I didn't buy it when it came out because I thought I would get Thunderwing instead. It only recently occurred to me given that figure never happened, Black Shadow was fair game. The Titans Returns leaders are brilliant so it's no problem to have another. His colours are very Decepticon and its kinda cool to have all of the IDW 'phase sixers'.

I also opened Quake, I've had him for ages and kinda thought he might get another release, but a redeco of Hardhead is again not a problem. Need Needlenose now! I also like his colours. It's not G1 toy accurate but I've decided he should wear his turret as an homage to Megatron, I think it looks pretty good on his back rather than forwards like Hardhead. I know I've said this before but Titans Return was so good, I'm all caught up now apart from..... Quickswitch.

Annoyingly I picked up the boxset that he came in but sold the figure. After opening Greatshot I really wanted Sixknight to complete the (Japanese) six-changer trio. The G1 figure is a bit dumpy and so I decided that Titans Return Quickswitch is a better placeholder than G1 Quickswitch. It's funny, Black Shadow is a Japanese placeholder for the US Thunderwing, and the US Quickswitch is a placeholder for the Japanese Sixknight. I think they look good together, I like that the chest fins can tuck away for Quickswitch and are a different size for Greatshot to distinguish them in terms of shape as well as colour.

Last year I was concerned about the level of my spending, I’ve recently bought a lot of new things but it feels somewhat controlled. Everything I’ve bought I’ve wanted for a while, and planned to get at some point. The extra money came from selling things I no longer wanted so it feels okay (more on that at some point). I think my challenge now is not giving into any impulse purchases which aren’t well considered despite having a bit of money. It feels quite nice not having a ‘want’ list for things from eBay.

Horsies

I just bought the cassette Gurafi/Noizu/Frenzy set on Kapow. I wasn’t really too bothered but it was only £25. I have the KOs of the dino cassettes and my Frenzy is a vintage one not in great shape so it made sense. I’m not going to hunt down the Bumblebee releases of the other two, but if they get another release I might have to pick them up.

Have also bought Legends Elektra. I’ve always thought she was an important character but I sort of realised that was based on the Ben Affleck film (and Jenifer Garnier Elektra spin-off). Watching the Netflix Daredevil and Defenders seasons I’ve reaffirmed that view. (I've decided to keep my 3.75" hand ninjas as well.) Looking at the upcoming MCU projects, Eternals, Shang-Chi and Ms. Marvel, I wonder whether I will subsequently consider them important? They are missing that all important historical connection (I did see Ms. Marvel on sale for £15 though...).

I’ve got 21 characters on my wish list. Aside from Elektra and Alpha Flight it’s been the same list for over six months. That’s not to say there aren’t a few that I already have where I would replace them or add to them (Iron Man armours for instance). I’d like a A:EMH Giant Man as well if one was going.

The Transformers rumours seem to be shaping up nicely - voyager Dinobot and Tigatron. Whoop! Went on a shopping trip today, bought Doubledealer! It seems to me that someone on the design team is a fan - so random. I haven't opened him yet but he just looks great, already having a version of him took the gloss off slightly, but updates (not repaints) of '88 and '89 characters is really cool.

I've also put in a very expensive order for some Bossfight horses! The shipping was expensive and so will the custom fees when they arrive, but having Aragorn and Valinor for Valkyrie and Black Knight is really awesome. I don't care particularly for either of those characters but having some winged horses in my collection is cool. Almost any non-humanoid character seems more interesting to me. I've got Valkyrie and Black Knight out of storage to await their steeds!

Having put almost everything I storage, I was thinking about having a few things on display. Very minimalist, but I want to have the 90's X-Men displayed. With a few of my favourite teams, the villain is just as important. And so, I thought about Magneto. He needs to be there too (and Loki and Doom). I don't like the head I have for him, but I rather like the non-helmet head from the Apocalypse wave figure. It's on it's way..... I previously made an exception to customising my Legends figures for Wasp. I've now made an exception for Magneto as well. I realise as a collector, there's something rather good about 'upgrading' your figures. It's different to getting something new, it feels a bit more personal. Looks good.

Need to take it a bit easy now although hopefully the Super 7 figures will turn up soon. I've opened Jubilee and Gambit, my 90's cartoon X-Men lineup is complete (once Magneto arrives). They look amazing, this is why I started collecting Legends!

***********

Have just paid for the Strong Guy legends wave, so much for taking it easy! I'm really excited about getting him. X-Factor are somewhat special within my collection, if I had them in 3.75" then I wouldn't be buying them in 6". I'd get Quicksilver and Forge anyway, but the other guys not. I do like Havok in his X-Factor costume rather than his black 3.75" one though. Did I mention I need a Wolfsbane?! Have paid for Transformers Snapdragon as well.

So the entire lineup for Kingdom has been revealed through insiders and listings from retailers. Why don't they just reveal this stuff themselves?! Anyway, it looks amazing. For G1, looks like a long awaited Huffer and Pipes (hope they can pull Optimus' trailer), Tracks, Cyclonus, Inferno and Galvatron. Could be in the market for Warpath and Ultra Magnus (I mostly just want a lighter shade of blue). Between this line and Studio Series it looks like I've got pretty much everything I wanted re-doing, just finish off the Dinobots, and perhaps a Blaster and Perceptor please.

There is a suggestion that the Commander could be Rodimus (which would make sense opposite Galvatron). I'm pretty happy with the Hot Rod component of POTP Rodimus as Rodimus. I would mostly be grumpy because we wouldn't get a Thunderclash redeco. If it's Broadside I could be tempted. Titan, if it's Metroplex then I'm in, almost anything else I think I'd pass.

Beast Wars! My S1 collection is all over the place, reissue (but improved decos) Primal, Megatron and Tigatron, Universe Cheetor and Dinobot, 30th Rhinox, Waspinator and Rattrap, Legends Blackarachnia, and original Inferno. So, Airrazor and Scorponok are definitely needed. Cheetor needs a new version no questions asked. Dinobot and Tigatron need to be bigger so they're needed. I will wait and see on new Primal, Megatron, Waspinator, Blackarachnia and Rattrap to see whether to replace. Hopefully we will then get Tarantulas and Terrorsaur to complete the cast.

Pictures are out of the new Masterpiece Starscream and...... yeah, not really my thing. I was never a fan of either iteration of the original seeker mold, so decided against having a MP Starscream. I briefly decided not to get MP Megatron (MP-36+) either, but thought would just check eBay (can you see where this is going?!), price really quite high, but then I thought to check Amazon Japan. He’s on his way.......

As is Bluestreak (hopefully - I've tried out an e-tailer I’ve not used before). The usual suspects sold out very quickly. A hobby should not be this stressful. Ratchet has popped up an Amazon US exclusive, I went to preorder but not allowed any further. I'm not sure whether this is a bit of grumpiness, but I'm not sure whether I need him - Siege Ratchet's altmode is more IDW accurate, and he has more red on him. The Earthrise version looks a little grey. Ironhide and Ratchet not sharing an identical mold is a little disturbing, but the Earthrise is still a remold so it's not too bad. Maybe I can and should live with it.

I've sold a few bits on eBay so feeling reasonably flush - found a website still selling Titans Return Sky (Black) Shadow and Krok for a reasonable price. Bring on Blue Bacchus! I've just started reading the final volume of IDW's Lost Light so Krok was really needed. Fulcrum is probably a bit optimistic, but perhaps a Crankcase would be possible to almost complete the Scavengers. As a child of the 80's, I love the bright yellow on Krok, it's beautiful! It's nice to have toys of different colours and Krok is something unique. Titans Return was such a great line, so many different colours from the entire spectrum of G1. I can't see it being topped.

I’ve also bought Greatshot. Really had to hunt around online to find him for a reasonable price (kicking myself for not getting him from Kapow). Found him on Robotkingdom. He's one of three animal based G1 characters I don't have toys of, just need Black Zarak (please!) and Sixknight (unlikely). Would be cool to have the trio of Japanese six-changers (even if Greatshot is a reformed Sixshot in some continuities).

Boss fight horses turned up, crazy expensive custom fees but they look amazing. I also bought a ‘Goldie’....

I've taken a shotgun to my 'to get' list, the remaining few things are Lego (which I want to wait until I've moved house to get) and stuff for customs. There's no rush on that stuff. I did buy a new Combiner Wars Hot Spot (I’m calling him Hot Spot part deux....). He’s a great figure but my original got a little yellowed and it was easier to buy a new one than to try and fix it. I have an attachment to the toy that I couldn’t quite place but I think it stems from the Euro gold reissues - I seem to remember looking at the G1 figure in a particular shop over and over again (similarly to Snarl).

I’ve bought everything I ‘really’ wanted from my wish list, there could be a Fort Max and other bits on their way..... I need to train myself to not checking eBay again. It's been an exciting month. Breathe.......

**********

RIP Chadwick Boseman. I can't quite believe the news. A tragic loss for the world and the MCU.

Merc Off

So the next Transformers Generations line, I reckon either Japanese G1, maybe a sort of G3, perhaps the Unicron trilogy, as the fans of those series will start having money, or something new entirely. Perhaps more of a true ‘universe’ line where there are homages to everything. We’ve got pretty much perfect versions of Optimus Prime, Prowl, Ironhide, Bumblebee, Megatron, Soundwave and Starscream. Which makes it different to the situation pre Combiner wars. We’re getting a ‘86 movie line. They must know people aren’t going to buy them again immediately. I think Japanese G1 is the only thing that’s going to keep me buying at the rate I am now.

With Studio Series, based on Cyclonus, I guess they're going to go with cartoon colours, which for the most part makes no odds, but Cyclonus I'd really prefer a dark purple. With the Dinobots, I'd be okay with say Slag having a red head, but I'd really prefer a red bodied Swoop. I guess once the molds exist they will likely be released a couple of times, hopefully that won't mean too much buying and selling again. I’m not sure how I feel about Dinobots with lemon yellow instead of gold.

It’s difficult collecting toys when you’ve got pretty much everything you want, the chances of getting something you want is less than when you want lots of things! It’s a tough life. I think the weeks after a big leak are particularly difficult as you really crave some more news, but it doesn’t happen and you just have to wait patiently.

Having decided just to collect the core Thundercats (plus Mumm-Ra) and Turtles from Super 7's Ultimates line, a thought occurred to me. As a kid I had Peter and Stay Puft from Ghostbusters, so I want all the Ghostbusters and Stay Puft. Turtles I had Leonardo and Donatello, so I just want the Turtles. Power Rangers I had little plastic statues of all seven MM Rangers, so I want them. Thundercats I had Lion-O, Tygra and Wilykat, so I want the Thundercats, but I also had Mumm-Ra (both) and Jackalman. So maybe I need to get the mutants as well? Now preordered! Hopefully I will be able to get a preorder in for Michelangelo soon. Sounds like W1 of everything is finally on its way.

Have opened Legends Doom. Wow, this is a good figure. With some 6" (Daredevil for instance), it's a good figure, but the 3.75" figure is also really good. 3.75" Doom on the other hand, was never all that good - a bit unbalanced and you couldn't do much with the legs. This figure then makes up for all of that. The sculpt is fantastic, he poses really nicely, and the shade of green is perfect. It's great to add this classic villain to my collection. I’ve also opened Loki, wasn’t expecting much but I actually really like him, the face sculpt is really good. I feel like Red Skull is the main villain left that I don’t have, but given Magneto is in this photo he wouldn’t be appropriate anyway.

Had a delivery today, thought it was a bit early for Moon Knight to turn up, and indeed it was - it was Red Alert and Impactor. The Sideswipe/Red Alert is a really good one so glad I've got a reason to get him again. Impactor was a bit of an unknown, but it's nice to get a look at the mold.

***********

Moon Knight is here now, his look reaffirms my decision to modify my 3.75" figure. He's perfectly white, which makes me think I don't actually have that many white figures - Storm and white ranger off the top of my head. This is quite an unusual figure in that I swapped out the head and the hands from the ones already on the figure. Normally I try them out and decide that whilst novel, the defaults are best. He needs gripping hands! The staff is good but I also like the crescents (I'm not quite sure what you do with the little ones - lose them like the little one that came with the 3.75" figure?).

I really hope that the Disney+ series is good because I like this figure. Here he is having a ‘merc off’ with DP.

I’ve had a couple of deliveries - the remaining two Seacons, and I finally ordered Earthrise Optimus and Grapple. Hubcap is also apparently on his way. I’ve popped in a preorder for Pyro (yay!), hope to see Blob, Avalanche and Toad soon.

Wave 4 of the Earthrise deluxes is a little mysterious, will it even happen? I think there’s a few candidates, Tracks and Needlenose from the fan vote, then perhaps the remaining Autobot Targetmasters - Sureshot and Pointblank? Bluestreak looks to be an exclusive, but the other (easy) option I think would be a Mirage repaint as Slapdash. Would need Joyride then though.

Have opened Spinister, he's one of the Siege I still have to open. He's great, quite a tricky transformation without instructions (had to look at picture of helicopter mode to see where bits end up). Really fun though and another member of the Scavengers. Need a Krok!

Also opened..... Optimus Prime. Yeah, he's great. Yeah, he's just a voyager with a box. I'm happy with the small size (don't need anything that takes up too much space), and happy to have the option of displaying a G1 accurate Prime in truck mode so all good. Need to track down a Doubledealer next. He's a different level compared to most other figures in terms of articulation and posing. He's like the new Legends Spider-Man compared to (Absorbing Man wave) Venom. One thing I'm not entirely happy with is the colour, I think I'd like a slightly brighter red.

Looks like the next wave of Power Rangers will include MMPR black. That’ll be me almost done with Power Rangers. Until some bugger does awesome 3.75” figures and I decide to downsize..... I wonder whether we will hear anything about more Ghostbusters soon?

SCORPONOK!!! (And Dinobots and Beast Wars!)

SCORPONOK!!! My first thought was that the shade of green is perfect. Wow, his claws are huge but his arms are quite short. Headsculpt is perfect, I love that they made him a double headmaster. He’s so much more posable and stable than Metroplex, he’s looks so dynamic. Very very happy with him. I've got him standing in the corner of my room and every time I walk past I stop and admire him. He looks amazing.

SDCC is almost here and I’ve got my expectations well under control. My life is a bit of a car crash at the moment and I’m in dire need of some good news. The same was true two years ago though so the cosmic forces aren’t looking after me! I’m expecting predicable repaints for Transformers - Runabout, Inferno, Bumblebee, Datsuns, coneheads, etc. Basically ‘84/‘85 stuff. What I’m not expecting is anything too exciting (later stuff), I’d be very happy with some Japanese or European G1, or Beast Wars, but it’s very unlikely. I’m optimistic we might get some interesting news at NYCC.

Similarly with Marvel Legends, I’ll probably get a couple of figures from my want list, but not too many. An Inhumans or Brotherhood boxset would be great, but unlikely, though Pyro is rumoured and I reckon Avalanche is a possibility as a partner release. I reckon Falcon and Red Skull could happen due to the Disney+ series. Pretty much everything else I want makes more sense to be tied to future MCU releases and so not in the next six months. Other than that, Wolfsbane seems quite posssible. I’m not expecting anything from other lines since most of them have had reveals recently. Expectations managed!

I’ve finally managed to get hold of my Legends Jean Grey and Venom, plus the blue ranger. (A mate was holding on to them but then couldn’t pass them on because of lockdown.) I’ve opened Jean Grey, and she looks incredible! Though maybe a bit villainous? She’s on a par with Scorponok in terms of being the character I needed most. I haven’t actually got round to opening Gambit or Jubilee yet so not quite ready for the cartoon lineup of X-Men, but almost there! I was also interested in the unmasked Wolverine head but I don’t think it works, though it does have a bit of a X-Men Evolution look. Similarly with Cyclops, happy with my current version. Incidentally, I find the mix of yellows quite annoying, I like the gold yellow, really not keen on the ‘lemon’ yellow. Almost every X-Man with yellow uses the gold, apart from Multiple Man, least he’s not a core character I suppose.

Got round to customising Marvel Universe Moon Knight. It was quite a simple parts swap from the white ninja to give him him gauntlets and shin guards. Colour matching was a bit tricky as the figure had yellowed slightly. I also painted the eyes blue as I like that look. He's in a limbo at the moment as I've never seen or read anything with him in, I am anticipating the Disney+ series though so he will be officially joining my collection eventually.

**********

Well, some very interesting Transformers rumours in the run up to SDCC. Studio Series will start covering the 1986 Movie, and WFC III will be half Beast Wars! That all sounds incredible, but the thing that really got me was leader class Slag in SS. The Dinobots are my favourite characters, and I have a reason for liking all of them, but Slag was my first ever Transformer and a leader version of him would be incredible. Sounds like there will also be a Grimlock as well. If Sludge, Snarl and Swoop follow at the same sizepoint (or height at least for Swoop), I think I will cry with happiness. And if we get decent sized versions of (Beast Wars) Dinobot, Tigatron and Terrorsaur then will I cry floods. Sounds like Dinobot is a voyager, I’ll take it (along with a Grimlock repaint!).

Really, if this is all true I will be getting just about everything I want. The main exceptions being Victory Saber and Deszaras which given Takara's keenness to remold figures as needed (Dai Atlas, Piranacon, etc), makes their absence very strange. Either they don't think a suitable base figures exists, or, or, Hasbro has some plans for them? (They were in the fan vote a few years ago.......) I feel a Thunderclash could be done quite easily from a Rodimus, which would be a very obvious figure for SS, Selects perhaps? (Please, you did it for Rotorstorm!)

Okay, so my expectations are pretty high now, and you know they won’t reveal all this stuff at SDCC. Dammit! This is probably a bit premature, but much like pre Prime Wars and pre WFC, I wonder how on earth they will reel me in for another line after this. I'm going to try not to fight it this time. I realise, I need it, I need the continued excitement, I need something to look forward to. But if I could avoid getting too much that would be great - sort of a Marvel Legends amount of purchases each year. Speaking of which, hopefully there will be a few good surprises from Marvel Legends. Sounds like they're going to pretty spread out through the month.

The Haslab Sentinel looks pretty cool, for that much money (similarly to Unicron), I can pass. But if they did a Galactus at a similar size, well, if I'm able to sell a few things over the next year, I could be interested......

***********

The Kingdom thing is official, we're getting Beast Wars!!! (I can feel the tears coming.....) So it seems that by the end of WFC, jointly with SS, I will have pretty much perfect versions of the main 1984-86 and 1996 (Beast Wars) characters. I'm a little grumpy, but earth Bumblebee, Ironhide and Soundwave look great. I'll get them, I've put an Amazon order in Prowl and Ironhide. Bit sad about Siege Ironhide (and Ratchet), but I like that I'll still have the mold as Crosshairs. I need those van altmodes! I've put an order in for Hubcap as well, I think I'd take a Bumper as well if one was going.

It seems that a Marvel Legends Blob might be in the offering after one was seen in the background of a video. Please be true. (And can I have Avalanche and Toad as well please?!) Sadly it seems Wolfsbane isn't a possibility for a little while due to the extra parts needed.

In somewhat less exciting news I've got some Siege Micromasters; I've got Stakeout and Red Heat now, I got them because Stakeout was known as Holi in Japan and was a prominent (if annoying) character in Victory. I realise I don't really have any suitable Victory characters to pose next to him, but never mind. He's pretty cool and Soundwave minions aside, they are my first Siege Micromasters. It would be nice to have the complete team but like I say, Holi was the most prominent.

Rumble and Ratbat turned up as well (amazingly, I thought I would be waiting months). Ratbat is great, one of his better figures I think. I feel a bit torn with him because for the original five Decepticon cassettes, I like the (Titans Return era) Legends figures. Ratbat is smaller, but comparable to his G1 figure. Rumble is a little short arse. I think he just needs slightly longer legs but something looks a bit strange. They both transform nicely though, and I think I must seek out the Selects cassette pack with Frenzy and Doubledealer's team.

Rounding out my Siege purchases, I got a bit of a bargain on Red Alert and Impactor. I had sort of decided to get Red Alert since deciding to upgrade my collection, but wasn’t prepared to pay over the odds. Impactor I had realised he was ‘eligible’ my for my collection (as a Marvel wrecker), but didn’t get any further in my thoughts. Weirdly it was seeing Cyberverse Rack’n’Ruin that made me think I needed him. I think of Springer as the leader of the Wreckers, but given he’s a core S3 member I like the idea of having someone else as the leader. I collect Wreckers as a way of justifying the Jumpstarters and deluxe Autobots in my ‘cartoon only’ collection, and also as a counterpart to the Mayhem Attack Squad (which is how I justify having Bludgeon and various others in my cartoon only collection).

Earthrise Skywarp and Thundercracker have arrived. They look great! I decided to go for a bit of head swapping as I think a screaming Starscream makes more sense than Skywarp. The shade of purple and blue respectively are perfect, I think they are more aesthetically pleasing than Starscream. I’ve looked at the pictures of Dirge and Ramjet and am feeling okay with my decision to pass on them. Though, they’re renders so they might look better in actual photographs.

I picked up the final MCU (DVD) boxset, though I might not be watching DVDs in years to come, it's a great collectors set and comes with some nice postcards and posters. I'd love one day to have all of the posters up, nicely framed. It would be cool to have a display with the appropriate Legends figures in front. I also finally finished watching the first Netflix Daredevil season, it's only taken five years! Had a good cheer watching the final episode. My plan is to watch season two then watch Defenders. I watched Jessica Jones so have been introduced to her and Luke, and apparently Iron Fist is a bit rubbish. Will probably watch season three of Daredevil after that. Looking forward to Punisher and Elektra in season two.

Comic-con at home is here, and well, nothing’s really happened. I watched Super 7’s Turtle video, which was exclusives rather than any news, and the interactive exhibit hall doesn’t have anything from Hasbro. They did a fan thing on Tuesday for Legends and some good stuff, but nothing to get me too excited. I’d like an Emma but not prepared to buy a Pulse boxset to do so. So absolutely no news of any interest to me whatsoever! Still, we're getting leader class Grimlock and Slag figures and Beast Wars. Yessssssssss!

He's almost here........

Bought myself Netflix Megatron! When it was announced I looked at Lionizer and thought, ‘Oh look, a properly coloured Lionizer. That Megatron looks nice as well, but not really worth buying them again’. Then for a bit of fun I thought I'd check who Crosshair's Targetmaster is, given I have them for Misfire, Slugslinger and Triggerhappy. Turns out its Pinpointer who just so happens to be in the same set. So that I've got greatly improved versions of Megatron and Lionizer is just a bonus. I've paid almost £40 for a £5 Battlemaster..... Megatron looks incredible, he's Megatron number four (after Henkei, Hegemon, and Siege). I really can't see myself swapping again. The silver paint, the less offensive battle damage. The funny thing is I won't even transform it because I've already played with the Siege one and so have no need. Anyone need Siege Megatron?! (Or a black Lionizer which is widely available on discount.)

I’ve had a bit of a play round with Lionizer - I thought swapping the legs with the earlier one might make it look a bit more G1, but I think it adds too many colours. Swapping the energy effects is quite nice though so they match the eye colours - Lionizer and Nemesis Lionizer. (Despite Black Lionizer having one of the tiniest Autobot symbols I’ve ever seen.)

Due to Pinpointer I've also finally opened up Crosshairs. Similarly to Megatron I've not actually bothered transforming him. Similarly, it's still a great figure. I previously bought Titan's Return Orion Pax (who when he was leaked I'd hoped was Crosshairs as I liked the idea of Targetmasters as Headmasters), to customise as Crosshairs, but decided against it as the blue was a bit off and didn't fancy painting it. That mold was perhaps a bit skinny, this is perhaps a bit large, but it's great to have the character. Similarly to the Decepticon Targetmasters he's got a cartoon headsculpt, but I'm okay with the Grimlock look. Bring on Pointblank and Sureshot, I’m surprised how much I suddenly want them.

Some Transformers have been leaked, seems like Studio Series will cover the ‘86 movie anniversary, leaving part 3 of WFC to cover.... Beast Wars?! Deluxe Cheetor, Airrazor, Scorponok and Tarantulas, Voyager Tigatron and Terrorsaur, and Leader Dinobot please!

Super 7 have shown off Wave 3 of their TMNT, Michelangelo looks great. I’m really excited for all of their stuff, but would be good to, you know, actually get hold of some of it! Hopefully Raphael should be released soon. There were (at least) six Transformers reveals today, nothing doing for me, but apparently July is going to be a good month for Legends fans, hoping for (classic) Falcon, Ms. Marvel, Doctor Strange and Red Skull, and (X-Factor) Wolfsbane. Any of the Inhumans and Brotherhood would be a bonus!

Am about to pay for Scorponok! Wow, what a milestone. This feels like a really big deal, I'm really excited. He is for me the main character left without a modern update. Ever since Fansproject Chromedome was announced (in 2011 apparently), I've wanted to complete the 1987 cast - I think until then I didn't give it too much thought, there was Universe Hardhead (who seemed a bit rubbish), and BotCon Punch/Counterpunch, who I passed on because he was expensive and a pretty random character without some Headmasters to go with him. Scorponok is a particularly important character in the Marvel comics as well. Finally, my citybots (Metroplex/Trypticon/Fort Max/Scorponok) collection will be complete.

Left on the 1987 list are Throttlebots, and the previously mentioned Targetmasters (and maybe some Trainbots), but it's pretty damn close to every character from the US cartoon. My main collecting goal is every character from the US and Japanese cartoons (plus every main character from Beast Wars, including the Japanese series), but it's still an important goal for me. Victory Saber and Deszaras are a big deal, but other than them, the remaining characters don't seem all that important. Citybot wise, I think I could take a new Metroplex, and I'd definitely take a Black Zarak, but then that's that size class done with. Click, click, click, it's done!

In other less exciting news, I've been going through some more stuff. Whereas bagging up toys is quite straight forward, this is more tricky as it's my custom stuff. Finished customs I'm perhaps not that happy with, long since abandoned projects and not quite finished. Hoarded stuff ready for the next big project. I took quite a ruthless approach (eventually). One idea I had was to make a set of Terminator-esque animal robots - a bear, Sabretooth tiger, boar and a wolf. Based on the beast Pretenders, I thought it would be quite cool to make a sort of lab for Bludgeon. I made the heads and most of the bodies for them out of styrene rods, could have been pretty cool, but given a lack of a permanent display, is somewhat pointless, and maybe, just perhaps wasn't all that good. It's in the bin now. I also abandoned my plan to make a custom Paddles from POTP Sludge. I think generally customising Transformers and Marvel Legends is not a good idea. 3.75” is where it’s at for me.

Have popped an order in for Siege Rumble and Ratbat from China-bay, hope it turns up at they’re really hard to get hold of. As well as Siege Stakeout on Amazon. Hope to see them soon.

I’ve finally painted my Dracula custom, pretty happy with how the face and legs turned out, might repaint the torso armour a little. I’ve been planning him ever since a shadow picture of Quasar was released. It’s only taken me five years!

I’ve opened Mr. Sinister. The headsculpt is great, really like the grin. I’m not so keen on the cape, it’s very similar to the Marvel Universe one which I also wasn’t keen on. I only got him because he’s such an important villain for Cyclops and Jean Grey, but I think his stay on the shelf will be very brief. It’s time for the Blue and Gold teams, plus X-Factor, a little bit of Excalibur plus Cable. I might give Magneto a little more shelf time as well. Putting them out I have so many great figures, but I always find it quite hard not to put the Guardians, Deadpool, Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Thing back out as well.

It’s been a good couple of weeks for opening things, will open Gambit and Jubilee soon, maybe Loki and Doom. Oh, and maybe SCORPONOK!!!

Bagging finished!

Have almost bagged up my entire collection, Marvel and Transformers are all done, on to Lego and my other mini figures. Just looking at my Mega Construx (Bloks) TMNT, shame I wasn’t able to get Splinter (released), lair or a blimp (not released), but I found out they are still doing some TMNT stuff - comic style with the shading. There’s a bit of hope still for the future of the line. What there is no hope for is the metallic rubber on Krang's braces - a lethal mix really, metallic plastic and rubber is never going to last. It's still mostly in one piece but crumbling at the ends, I will attempt a repair with some liquid rubber I have.

I enjoyed looking through my Transformers - Titans Return was my favourite line - Decepticon Targetmasters and Monsterbots particularly. Even if I decide that this entire exercise is not how I want to store my collection, it's been invaluable to review my collection.

I've also moved on to Thunderbirds now, it's one of my minor interests but I still want a set of toys. I have toys from the 2015 Thunderbirds Are Go! line, supersize TB2 and TB3, then regular TB1 and TB4. These scale together fantastically well, and I'm okay with the modern versions. I bought multiples in order to have six pods. My issue with them are that I don't like the TB5, Mole and Firefly. (TB5 is too small anyway, and the latter two have been redesigned to be modular.) So, I bought the Konami TB4, TB5, Mole and Firefly, which are amazingly accurate to the original, but all scaled to be the same size.

I want a set of all five Thunderbirds, with six pods for TB2 and the main pod vehicles. In scale and in some style close to the original. I've investigated various options, but generally TB5 is excluded, and in model land, they seem to be different scales. So not easily doable then. I have the Takara TB2 (TAG) pods, with modular vehicles, which are great fiddle toys for a desk, but what I've realised is that there's no point keeping such toys in long term storage. But I want some Thunderbirds toys. So what to do?

Opened Sky Lynx - I wanted him to be a lighter shade of blue, but he’s actually rather magnificent (obviously). I also like the high level of detail on him which is something I tend not to appreciate. Changed him from shuttle mode to robot mode, might try out the base mode later, but overall he’s everything I want. My Call of the Primatives display is looking great with him, Trypticon, Predaking and Abominus. Just need some good size Dinobots - speaking of which a listing for ‘86 Studio Series Grimlock has appeared, please be a complete set of leader Dinobots!

***********

I have finished bagging up my entire collection! Well, almost. I've left a few things out on display - Siege/Earthrise figures, a few Marvel Legends and the very large figures. There's still a lot of things to sort through - mostly stands and custom bits/parts and tools. It feels like quite an achievement though. I'm not able to get any more large boxes for the time being so it's a bit of a halfway house, I need to tidy everything up and make sure it's stored appropriately.

I’ve also cleared off my (now single) display shelf and put Apocalypse, Juggernaut, Mystique and Sabretooth on it. I might dig out a Sentinel as well. I realised all of my unopened Legends figures are villains (mostly X-Men), so I’m ready for them to have their moment. Have paid for Leader as well so they are all ready to take over. I think Red Skull is the only character I really need to finish it.

First additions to the shelf are Magneto, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. It’s pretty much a perfect set. Magneto looks a bit young, and despite my no customisation rule - I’m very tempted to buy the Apocalypse wave Mags to get the non-helmeted noggin to put on him. Scarlet Witch looks a bit gothic which for me is a nice nod to the X-Men Evolution cartoon. Quicksilver is another member of X-Factor, for which, hopefully I will get Strong Guy soon. Strong Guy is gong to be expensive as unfortunately, I don’t want any of the other figures from the wave. I have struggled a little with the justification, but given I don’t have him in 3.75” form and want to complete the team I'm going to get him. I think I would have got Forge and Quicksilver regardless, Havok and Polaris I can justify because I also wanted them in their X-Factor costumes, and Multiple Man - like Strong Guy, I’m only getting to further complete the team (though I do have a 3.75" of him). Am hoping for a Wolfsbane soon as well as she's in the same category as Strong Guy.

I've opened the Lightning collection red ranger. I've had him for a little while and it felt like the right time to open it (and get him bagged up). He looks good, perhaps a little grumpy, but I like the unmasked but holding his weapon look. The butterfly joints for the shoulders are a little strange - it seems to have an edge that made me wonder whether it had been assembled the wrong way round but having looked at reviews, this seems to be consistent. Maybe white ranger had them as well but with the armour isn't nearly as obvious. I'm appreciating the energy effect, though I wonder whether it should be red? Anyway, pretty happy and I've got over half the team now. Blue is pre-ordered so just need black and green!

I've also opened Selects Gulf (Skalor). He's great, though I'm not quite sure whether I'd be able to turn him back into a fish without looking at the instructions - his limbs seem to be all over the place! The Terrorcon molds were great and this is no exception. I particularly like the accurate greenish gold paint on his face. It's nice having a new combiner limb not based on an Aerialbot.

I've now committed to a one toy per character rule, so G1 is no longer on a pedestal where I need a modern and G1 version of a character. In a few cases though, I am going to keep the G1 mold version of characters. I will keep my original BWII Seacons rather than getting the new Selects versions, and I will keep G1 Magnificus. And similarly for Diaclone Magnus (I call him Super Magnus). I'm keeping the G1 versions of any characters where a better modern version doesn't exist, or any characters related to the Dinobots and the cassettes.

I’m quite excited about the toys coming out this Summer, Super 7 Raphael, Scorponok and Legends Strong Guy as well as Kingpin and the Skywarp/Thundercracker set. Virtual SDCC in a month’s time!

New York heavy

Bagging up my collection has caused me to think about the history of my collection. (I'm on to Titans Return now.) To start with I was collecting reissues, keeping all of the boxes and so I left the instructions and spare parts in the boxes. The vintage toys I bought generally didn’t have instructions and most pieces were stored on the figures. Eventually as Classics started I just kept all of the parts loose in a big box. As I started selling things off I realised how difficult it was to find things again and so started sorting things by which ‘faction’ they were in (according to Dreamwave). As new things came out and it got increasingly tedious to even find the right bag for the faction, I realised storing things by toyline made more sense. I’m now storing them with the actual figure, even more straight forward! It would have made life easier to have adopted a system earlier, but when I started I was only going to get a ‘few’.

Bagging up Combiner Wars feels different to most of the older figures, I feel sad. They’re such great figures. I remember my initial reaction as ‘I’m happy with my third party stuff’ which turned into ‘these are great’, and eventually, ‘hope they do Computron and Abominus’. Which they did! I remember getting the Aerialbots in TRU before they were released in the US. I remember the disappointment of Wave 2 not getting an (official) UK release (and the panic of getting the Stunticons online). Then the happiness of finding the Protectobots at Tesco. I didn’t mind the way the 5th members of the team were handled - it was really exciting getting them as exclusives. What a great line. I didn’t get burnt out on the molds until Power of the Primes with Darkwing and Dreadwind - I got the Liokaiser around the same time, and only then felt fed up with the Aerialbot mold(s).

Talking of Abominus, I’ve never actually bothered combining them before, and I've not used the Perfect Effect upgrade set I bought. The bits all turn into separate weapons which is great, but I'd rather just have really good hands and feet. (Purple versions of the Computron parts.) I don't think they're too compromised and the feet are a very similar size. I like the idea of Computron and Abominus being a later generation of combiner, and therefore improved. He looks pretty great on my desk, though I've always wondered whether they would look better with a unified colour scheme - light grey, purple and blue perhaps? It wouldn't actually mean too much change - just make Rippersnapper and Sinnertwin grey rather than beige and yellow respectively, then it's just a matter of making them all the same shade of purple and blue.

I've opened Wheeljack, he's a little bit great. I'm so happy I've decide to upgrade my 84/85 Autobots. He's less of a bright white than Siege Prowl and Ratchet, but he really makes the old Generations mold look a bit chunky in the legs (it was a good figure though). A very pleasing transformation. Bring on the rest of them!

***********

I went for a walk today and found myself wondering why I was packing up my collection. I realised there are some good reasons. I find my display stressful, there's not enough space to display everything and what's not on display is hard to get to so I never rotate it. What is on display I can't see very well as most of it is up high on shelves. It means I know exactly where the accessories and instructions are for everything, and finally it's a chance to review my collection - do I need everything? Everything should serve a purpose, even if that purpose is recreate a scene from a comic. But to recreate that scene, are multiple versions of characters justified? I do feel sad packing things up, but overall it feels like a positive thing to be doing - to feel like I'm in control of my collection and not the other way round.

If everything should serve a purpose, what should say, Optimus Prime do? What do I want from it? I want him to look like he does in my mind - a sort of toy/cartoon/comic hybrid. I want him to display well with the other '84 Autobots, I want him to display well with Megatron, and I want him to display well with the other Autobot leaders. Earthrise Optimus does all of those things, the G1 and Classics figures do not (given I have WFC versions of the other '84 cast).

***********

Some interesting Marvel Legends preorders have popped up - tempted by Spider-Man, Green Goblin and War Machine, but have just popped in a preorder for Moonknight for the time being. Initial shots of Green Goblin show him having super crazy eyes, but the more recent images look much more sensible. The Strong Guy BAF wave has also gone up, expensive.

Sky Lynx is on his way! Wasn't expecting him until August. I've pretty much packed away all of my Transformers now, but have left most of Siege plus Abominus and Predaking out (so I can see how they look with Sky Lynx). I felt really sad putting the Dinobots away. So far I think I'm up to about 10 large IKEA boxes of toys (including Marvel but excluding the Titan and Leader Transformers). All that remains now is Lego/mini figures and Thunderbirds. Despite having bagged pretty much everything up it's amazing all of the leftover stuff - stands, parts, booklets. Haven't quite worked out where it will go in this brave new world.

I think I’ve realised the problem with my collection - too many things that look awesome by themselves. I made a bucket list over 10 years ago which included ‘getting my collection organised’, only now do I am doing that.

With my Lego figures I think I might position it to being more of a New York theme. I have the Ghostbusters firehouse, I have the Mega Bloks Turtles hanging out on (and hanging off of) it. The only Marvel Lego figure I really want to keep is Spider-Man, perhaps because he has such an iconic look, but it's starting to feel very New York heavy, which makes sense since so of my favourite cartoons were set there growing up. I might get the Lego Friends set and Statue of Liberty to really finish it. Maybe exceptions for Deadpool and Batman. I like my Lego Star Wars, Thundercats Minimates, Mega Bloks Power Rangers. But otherwise I think I'm going to get rid of everything else (I don't really have much else - Avengers and Justice League figures really). I quite like the idea of a Turtles lair as well, might be a project for some point.