Back in black

I haven’t got many preorders at the moment, this caused me to look my buying history. A few years ago I was mostly just continuously refining my collections. But, I noticed was that in late 2020 to mid 2021 I started quite a lot of new collections. It started with the 90’s cartoon Sinister 6, then onto the A:EMH Masters of Evil (to be fair, both of those were sub-collections of Marvel Legends). Then in keeping with the 6” theme, I started on cartoon Clone Wars (not that one) Star Wars Black.

Without a pause it rolled into collecting Diaclone inspired repaints of WFC. Then came the big collecting change, doubles of the main (and more) characters to recreate the catalogue pictures.

Then I got into a bit of Mega Construx MOTU, but then this turned into putting together a Lego Iron Man armoury, which rolled into prequel and sequel Lego Star Wars, Marvel (teams and buildings), and New York City inspired Lego.

And to finish I discovered Cyberverse. Looking back I can see what started me off on these paths. A photo of Diaclone toys in robot and vehicle modes. Photos of Mega Construx Battle Cat. Photos of the retro version of Legends Mysterio. Photos and cartoons that sparked something within me, they set off my imagination. Maybe I’m content with my collections now and it’s just a matter of keeping going again, but I have to admit, starting a new collection is where the excitement is. What’s going to tempt me next?

I’ve had most of my collection packed up for almost a couple of years. There’s quite a lot…..  but I don’t think there’s suddenly going to be a big chunk that I decide I don’t want.

I really like my Platinum Dinobots but…. Snarl should have gold chrome rather than silver and…. well, this accident with the SDCC version happened. Yay!

I bought the new Diaclone Ironhide figure, I’m calling him ‘Armorhide’. I put him together with the nonnef bits. Oh and I built the Lego Batmobile. Definitely better than the old version I had, this looks like the 90’s cartoon/Tim Burton version. Back in black…..

Held off a little while with ordering some other stuff but have bought Titans Return Seaspray and a Studio Series ‘86 Sweep (on very dodgy grounds - I wanted to see if I liked the colour better!). I bought the No Way Home/Doctor Strange Lego set, and another Legends Wolverine (slippery slope, I’ve been trying to avoid doubling up on characters). And put in a large Reprolabels order, that ought to do it! Oh and a couple more Sweeps…….

 

Holy Grail (ish)

Black Zarak!!! The G1 is my holy grail and unless they do a reissue this is as close as I’ll ever get. He looks utterly amazing so providing he doesn’t crumble in to gold dust then job done. I hope at some point to get him on display with Fort, Grand and Scorps.

Had a fair few figures arrive, first up though was Blaster. He’s a little bit good looking. A bit of sloppy paint aside, he’s perfect. Then Lift-Ticket, Hoist looks good in red. I really like the mold so looking forward to it in blue and hopefully, yellow. And Perceptor. I’m less worried about the grey/blue than I thought I would be, more turquoise would be nice but it’s fine. Definitely an improvement over the original Generations and probably an improvement over Titans Return. I’m glad I’ve experienced the original though, like many of the original Microchange figures it was a bit special.

I’ve had my last Marvel Legends orders come in. Firstly the SHIELD agents set, new bodies for my Nick Furys, slightly cleaner without the wash, and less wobbly. The Excalibur set came in. Captain Britain looks great and is much more stable on the new buck. Meggan is a bit scary and (having no attachment to the actual comics), and prefer Kitty in her X-Men costume. Feeling a bit anxious about the lack of any Marvel or Star Wars preorders I’ve ordered Baron Zemo. Phew….

SLUDGE!!! He looks fantastic. Can’t wait to get him. Intrigued by the transformation. I think it will be a special moment when I have a complete set of X-Men, Turtles, Thundercats and Dinobots. I’ve got all the X-Men and Donatello should be on his way soon to complete the Turtles…….

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I’ve got all the Turtles! Donatello looks great, no sloppy paint like Michelangelo and much more stable than Raphael. The team is complete, that’s me done with Turtles unless Mega Bloks decide to do any more sets.

Leader SS ’86 Starscream has come in, no particular surprises. I like the mold and the accessories are fun. My other new SS figure (SS ‘BB), is Soundwave. He transformers into a nondescript speeder of some sort, but looks pretty cool. I wonder if I could be tempted by other figures if I actually watch the film?!

Baron Zemo arrived, he looks good and a more A:EMH accurate version than the one I had before, and that’s the most important thing!

And so that’s pretty much all my preorders in. Legacy looks a little while off. Perhaps time for a bit of Lego.

Autobot Heroes

I’ve had Kingdom Rodimus for quite a while, but for some reason I just hadn’t got around to opening him. With the curious exception of Titans, the time it takes me to open a Transformer is proportional to its size/price class. I figured he might as well be my Christmas present to myself and so have finally opened him. He’s not a figure to open on the sofa in low light! I struggled to get him to tab together properly but in the cold light of day, he’s great. He looks amazing so I can’t see myself replacing him.

The other figure I’ve taken a while to open is the other Autobot Hero, Wreck-Gar. He’s also pretty amazing, I’m looking forward to getting Junkheap for him to ride.

I mentioned buying something Turtles related, and it’s here! The reissue blimp. This is something I really wanted as a kid and is at least partially responsible for my interest in zeppelins. I’m hoping to make a little modification to it but will just enjoy it for the time being.

I’ve got an extra Skywarp and Thundercracker so can have one in each mode. I swapped the screaming head from my first set with Starscream so had to swap them all back. Just need Studio Series Starscream to complete the trio again.

I got some Lego for Christmas which got me thinking about my Lego display on my desk. I’d sort of accidentally started a New York theme and so thought I might as well embrace it and bought this. Then I saw there was a new Sonic Lego set. Just my bag! I hope they do a sequel with a bi-plane and Tails (and later another with Knuckles).

January is set to be a crazy month, and first up is Pipes. I’m not sure whether it’s a MTMTE thing but I like him more than Huffer. I might try and make a red visor for him. I got Kingdom Wheeljack, not particularly exciting but it’s to replace the Netflix version - damn battle damage. And…. toy deco Galvatron arrived. Not quite sure which version to keep in robot mode and which one in cannon mode. Looks really good, will need a grey crest though.

Tigatron and Terrorsaur! Some of my most wanted Beast Wars figures. Tigatron clips together very nicely on mine and looks great (grrrr-great). Only slight complete is the incomplete paint applications on his back (the slight browning to make the fur colour more realistic). Terrorsaur is a great retool and the headsculpts are both stellar.

Doctor Strange! One of my most wanted Legends figures so very happy to have him. He looks very 70’s, but with the moustache goes well with Iron Man. The Illuminati are complete (I couldn’t quite be bothered to get Black Bolt and Namor out).

Wow, what a month! I also got a certain Titan, but I’ve not opened it yet.

Super Dinobots

Last month was a quiet month. I started this one by preordering Super 7 Vultureman (where’s Snarf?!), and in fact, all of the ‘new’ Thundercats - Ben-Gali just looked a bit too good. I’ve started making up for last month being quiet now……

Couple of bits have come in, Jackpot and Artfire. (Interesting it wasn’t Stepper.) Jackpot is good looking but destined for life at the back of the Lost Light shelf. Happy to finally have an Artfire. The mold is great and as much as I liked the Universe Inferno mold this one has better proportions. I’ve been looking at pictures of Diaclone toys, really want a yellow Trailbreaker! (And red Mirage and Skids - Target exclusives maybe? And maybe black Tracks.) I assume we’ll get a Crosscut, and it seems that ‘Guard’ is black Ironhide. I think because the yellow Trailbreaker seems the least likely I want it the most!

I’m unable to watch the new episodes (series 4) of Cyberverse but that hasn’t stopped me looking at the wiki page and…. there’s a team of mercenaries so I need Bugbite and Nightbird. Bugbite was quite straight forward, but since I have the 30th version of Arcee I decided to go for the (more expensive) Legends repaint for Nightbird. Rather then the Chromia repaint…. That got me thinking that maybe I need the original (motorbike) 30th version of Chromia. Then just to finish I realise I don’t have a Quintesson. So I managed to spend more in a couple of days than the previous month. Still, all caught up on my Cyberverse collection of non-Cyberverse figures. I’m hearing rumours of an Alpha Trion so could be in the market for that. An Afterburner repaint of the voyager conehead mold might be nice as well!

I watched the trailer for the new Spider-Verse film. Looks good I think, I must see whether the first one is available on Disney plus (it’s not). A few days later a young relative asks to see a picture of ‘Spider-Girl’. (I assume she means Spider-Gwen but we discussed both options.). A few hours later this happened:

Sigh. I must try and see Into the Spider-Verse. I have the other Spider characters in 3.75”, so I don’t ‘think’ I need them all.

It’s been quite an eclectic month, some Turtles (more on that soon), but also Star Wars purchases, a new Palpatine, the new hand accessories are very impressive. He looks great (well, awful really but you get the idea). And some ARC troopers and captain. And Ultimates Slithe. He has some serious heft but I’m really enjoying Super 7’s Thundercats’ mutants. Only a couple more years before I get Monkian and Vultureman.

I looked at the list of upcoming Marvel Disney plus series and have (comic version) figures of almost all the headline characters except….. Ironheart. (I also need a Shang-Chi from the films.)

Finished the year on a Blaster preorder. Awesome, can’t wait. So, 2021, it’s been an expensive year (mostly) due to my doubling up on certain Transformers characters including Victory Saber….. It’s been a good year for Dinobots, I got the Reaction and Pop! Grimlock. I got the G1 versions of the AOE figures, I got Studio Series AOE Grimlock, I got the two G1 Actionmasters, I got the Grimlock repaint of Kingdom Beast Wars Dinobot. I got Cyberverse Slug, Snarl and Sludge. But best of all, Studio Series ‘86 Grimlock and Slag. Bring on the rest. Happy Christmas!

Poutine!

My Diaclone collecting has carried on with Road Rage, I like the flame deco more than the cartoon red only version on Tracks. Bring on more, the leaks are suggesting we should be getting almost all of them.

I have finished watching Cyberverse series 3. That combined with these three mean I'm ready for the upcoming series 4/TV movies! Shame that Snarl is yellow rather than gold and they didn't make use of an extra piece to give him his traditional shoulders. I like the Marvel comic style blue head on Sludge, he also has a very traditional transformation. They're meant for kids, I get that, I'm generally just happy to have another set of Dinobots. I do require a Swoop though.

I have reached the pinnacle of my collecting, leader class Dinobots!!! Slag is superb. I’ve bought two obviously, but it’s just blown my mind. To say I can’t wait until Sludge is an understatement.

There was a point around which Combiner Wars was announced, we’d had Skids, Trailbreaker and Hoist from Hasbro. Fansproject had put out a nice set of Insecticons, and were going well with their Dinobots and Headmasters. They jointly with Maketoys had covered most of the combiners, and Mastermind Creations had done (doing?) an amazing job with the Predacons, and Sixshot, and had Overlord planned. I honestly thought I was almost done, and I realise now that I feel very similarly.

I reckon I’ve got seventeen Transformers left on my must have list. Eleven are available for pre-order or have been found on store listings (Sludge/Kickback/Skids/Perceptor/Blaster/Blitzwing/Victory Saber/Tigatron/Terrorsaur/Inferno/Tarantulas). That leaves a couple of Dinobots and Insecticons, which seem reasonably certain, and Deszaras and Thunderclash. Hasbro have been hinting at both of these through vague comments about more Japanese characters (who else is there?!) and comic appearances combined with the upcoming Motormaster who could well be a remold option. Whoo.

I accidentally bought the rest of Alpha Flight. They’re not ‘main’ characters by any stretch but I want to visit Canada and these will be my permanent reminder that it’s a place I want to visit. I also bought poutine to get ready. Yom.

I bought Marvel Legends What If Captain Carter. I'm not quite sure why, but I hope to able to pick up a Hydra Stomper at a reasonable price to go with.

Drum roll please..... I'm done with Power Rangers! (For the third time I think.) I've got the green ranger. I know what to expect with these guys now so there's not much to say. Collection goal complete!

New Record

Whenever I get something new, inevitably I look at it briefly then think about what's next. But sometimes reality dawns upon me. I've (almost in some cases) got modern, articulated, occasionally toy accurate, sometimes cartoon accurate versions of almost the entire cast of the G1 cartoon, the Japanese cartoon and Beast Wars. Both my child self and my just started collecting self would be absolutely staggered. Optimus Prime, Megatron, Dinobots, Soundwave and Blaster, Metroplex, Trypticon, Fortress Maximus and Scorponok. Marlboro Wheeljack, blue Bluestreak, Minerva, Black Zarak, Victory Saber. I used to look at catalogues as a kid. I used to look at people's G1 collections when I started collecting. I've almost got them all. But most excitingly of all, leader class Dinobots!

It's been quite the epic week, first MP Trainbot shown off, Victory Saber confirmed, Terrorsaur up for pre-order, and I've broken my record for the most I've ever spent on a single Transformer. All that on top of some very exciting confirmations on the rumour circuit, and that on top of that top, Marvel Legends Doctor Strange.

So despite having spent an absolute mint, I’m feeling pretty good. I’ve got a fantastic collection!

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Ratchet’s got some new wheels, Red Alert has a spoiler. Looking good. I’ve also completed my new collecting goal to double up on all of the original characters (well, apart from a few Minibots). I’ve also tripled up on some Sharkticons.

I finally got round to getting these two whilst I wait for Cyberverse and Studio Series.

The Mark III has finally arrived, I now eagerly await Mark II and IV, and Mark VI and War Machine sets!

And my most expensive Transformer is….. Grand Maximus! I had convinced myself to wait for a repaint of the inevitable leader/Commander class Fort Max, but I think a display of the two Titan Maxes and Zaraks will be amazing. So fantastic news on Victory Saber hitting all the stretch goals, I’ve bought two. Perhaps buying Grand at this exact moment wasn’t my greatest ever decision!

I've finally got Super 7's Michelangelo, what a wait. He's the one I really wanted as a kid but equally he's the toy colour of turtle skin that I like the least. Hopefully the rest of my Super 7 preorders will come in soon but I'm not holding my breath. I'm optimistic for next month that I get one of my wants (Snarf, spirit Jaga or Vultureman).

Randomly I got this. Just need Lightning Collection Green Ranger to finish off Power Rangers for good. Again. Pulsecon next week!

Just say go!

I got Red Skull. Absolutely nothing remarkable about him but he’s almost the final major villain I want (just need Ultron…..).

Got the next wave of Kingdom, Tracks and Scorponok. I like them both, Tracks holds together fairly well but needs a bit of persuasion. Scorponok looks more like a lobster to me rather than a scorpion but I guess it’s show accurate.

Sideswipe looks great, really like a scaled down MP. I was going with a display of Siege robot mode, Earthrise/Kingdom vehicle mode but since he’ll be displayed next to Sunstreaker I’m not quite sure.

Finally got Earthrise Ratchet. He’s exactly as expected. I’m very reluctant to replace him or Ironhide as I really like the mold - similarly to the rumoured new Stunticons. I’ve just seen the Nonnef upgrades for Ironhide and Ratchet - that sled is brilliant!

I also got Buzzworthy Fangry. The beast mode headsculpt is great, really should have been a wider release. Bring on the other Headmaster juniors. They have been rumoured, as well as Minerva being a Wrecker along with Thunderclash in new IDW. If she gets a toy then so should he?!

I’ve backed Victory Saber, assuming it succeeds then hopefully we get more JG1, Deszaras has been suggested and I think God Ginrai would be a dead cert. Kickback has been seen on a listing. So assuming we get the rest of the Dinobots and Insecticons, along with the listed Blaster, Perceptor and Blitzwing, my collection is looking good. Thunderclash please!!!

The MCU is kicking back into life. Most excited for Spider-Man and especially Doctor Strange. (Surely we should get that long overdue classic Legends figure?) The next waves of Super 7 Turtles and Thundercats are making their way out. Hopefully they’ll announce some new figures (they seem more interested in announcing new licenses…..), but maybe Snarf?

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Iron Man and Ultron! I was really looking forward to these two. That’s all the main villains covered now. It’s my first comic Legends Iron Man, sporting the 90’s cartoon look. I realise that between the Avengers and X-Men, what I’ve gone for is the 90’s cartoon look but the line up from the 2010’s cartoons (A:EMH and W&XM).

Four Horsemen have just unveiled Cosmic Legions and, wow! They look amazing, and after eventually talking myself out of buying them I realise they help me understand my collecting habits. These figures appeal to me a heck of a lot more than the Mythic figures. By collecting alien Jedi and villains in 3.75" scale, this is what I'm trying to get. Science fiction looking figures, preferably in 3.75" scale, but crucially with something that ties them together. If Bossfight studios do something similar (sci-fi styling) then I could well be tempted for background alien characters.

Preorder for Marvel Legends Captain Britain and SHIELD agents in. I’m tempted to keep Meggan but since she’s never appeared in anything I’ve seen I really can’t justify it. AND in very happy news, Doctor Strange has been shown off!!

In combination with a load of Transformers rumours coming out, I feel that pretty much everything I want could and probably is going to happen. It looks like we're getting the last couple of Beast Wars S1 characters. I'm getting increasingly obsessed with Diaclone repaints, and it also seems like we're also getting most of them. (I think the main one I want now is yellow Trailbreaker.) Especially excited to see Sludge mentioned, they seem to be doing the Dinobots in the order they were created in the cartoon.

I got some Sharkticons! Three of them. The shark headsculpt is great, and I think the eyes are fantastically well done. Thinking about the Nonnef upgrades caused me to get a couple of guns for Sunstreaker and Galvatron (plus some pin covers). I've got Kingdom Mirage (doesn't hold together very well), he also came with Grimlock who I actually really like, but will probably pop a bit of paint on him at some point.

Finally I got some headsculpts, plus some bodies actually. Sam Jackson (who can go on one of the SHIELD agent bodies), RDJ and Gwyneth Paltrow (who came with bodies I already had).

Incredibly happy with all the stuff that's supposed to be coming out, Doctor Strange is fantastic news. I've got quite a few things lined up to open - more doubles of the pre-Transformers characters, plus a couple of '86 movie characters, but no rush.