Dec 22, 2012

Heh heh! The Mayans were wrong...

Another day, another bullet dodged... We survived the last big "End of the World" scare.

I survived The Thundarr Apocalypse, Judgement Day, Hercolubus, The KY Scare... I mean the Y2J  Y2K scare. I was left behind on 2 allegedly fake Raptures... Now I can add Mayan Apocalypse to this list... I suppose that this would be the time to celebrate... Saturday and then the Sunday that comes afterwards!

Speaking of Hercolubus... Look what I found!

That's a piece of the Hercolubus II: El Exodo by Joseph Lando... The guy from El Poder de Shakti...


This guy...
but even better here's THIS!

The Aliens are hacking Youtube and vandalizing the video! In any case we Survived! We can laugh at these failed prophesies... also the weird ass harness that Joseph Lando is wearing.


Dec 20, 2012

Looking at the 30th Anniversary Figures.

Going on a written pseudo- review this time... Swift, easy and my voice is a little hoarse now...

I said HOARSE... not HORSE!
I'm giving one LAST LOOK at the 30th anniversary line... I know I kinda made one already, but that was before I had all the figures.
This is a bit too unfair... Then again it would still be unfair if it was everyone vs Castle Grayskullman!
So let's Start with The 80s Create a Character Winner: the Fearless Photog. It sounds like a Review, but this is not a review. The reviews are going to be linked throughout this post... so remember to open the links in a new tab...
These two make a perfect team: The Peeping Toms

Eternia's Paparazzi have nothing on Photoneck
Nathan Bitner's creation is a bit Bizarre... He's a dude with a camera head that weakens his enemies and traps them on the TV on his chest... Reality shows before Reality shows... I'm glad to have gotten him on Cyber Monday! Even if it's just to make Peeping Tom jokes.

Next on our list is a guy... well he is not a guy... He's a Homo Draconicus... and

That was a bit harsh!
Even his name sounds like a Mega Man character!
To be Honest, I wasn't looking forward to this guy at first. to me he kinda looked like one of those knock-off lines from the 80s. The Four Horsemen did their magic and once I got him in hand, it all changed... He improved even more when the Weapons pack gave him his missing accessories! I LOVE Draego-Man even if he's a Doucehbag...

Next comes one figure that I've talked a LOT about... Scott Neitlich's creation, The Mighty Spector.
I can't have him with that Deadpool mask!!
I guess I can say I have a love/hate relationship with the character. A few Tweaks here and there make him a bit more bearable... 
He can get Twinkies whenever he wants... Sneaky bastard!
Mainly, eliminating the Deadpool mask... Cause Chimichangas and Bea Arthur do not exist on Eternia! Seriously though, his Facelessness  and Modern Earth Sci-fi Spy look makes him feel a bit out of place with the rest of MOTU... He'd fit better in Primus with the New Adventures folks though. Seriously though, I've abused the comedic potential with this guy...

Now here comes a character that I LOATHE...
I still dislike SLL even if I was objective in the Review.
Sir-Laser-Lot, Geoff Johns' creation, who I'm not a fan of. Man-E-Faces Shoulders and Trap Jaw Biceps would have made him a bit more appealing for me. I'm not going to lie, his mace is cool! If it wasn't for Cyber Monday he would have never "graced" my shelf.

I can't be the only one who thought of this pair like this!


Also the superman-esque color scheme and the Hasbro Toy face are major turnoffs for me with this character! Need to make a Cobra commander pic with him soon...

Next comes a guy who males Cutman not look ridiculous... and Sir-Loser-Lot look cool!

It's Mr.Microman-wannabe! Speaking of Microman

All we need now is blonde monkeys!

As you can see I'm not that fond of Cy-Chop either... It's mostly due to the uselessness of Cy-Chop outside
of his Theoretical action feature (spring loaded "shears") aside from that, he's not that great... I still haven't even put him with the Horde's temporary display until  Granamyr arrives, then they'll have to migrate somewhere else.

But now here comes the bookend to the 30th. A figure that, like Photog, I've beaten their only joke to the death... Well, Castle Grayskullman has a second joke, but it would be in poor taste if I post awkward moment pictures of CGM, King Grayskull and Skeletor whenever the latter rambles about wanting to be inside Grayskull... SO, Here we go with another Grayskullmania reference!

I am a real Eternian! Fight for the rights of every man!
That's all the figures of the 30th Anniversary line...
I love Draego and Castle Grayskullman. I Like Photog and Spector... So my loathing is saved for Sir-Loser Laser-Lot and Cy-Suck Chop!

It Came from the Toy Chest: Mattel DID keep their promise 20 odd years later

And I'm tackling the FIRST of the 30th Anniversary Figures last... but if you do it like Spector all this wibbly wobbly timey wimey stuff is more confusing.

In any case that's the video review for The Fearless Photog...

Dec 19, 2012

It Came From the toy Chest: How does he eat, pee or poop?

Cause he has Gigantic Hedge Trimmers for hands... I'm tackling Cy-Chop, the fifth figure of the MOTU 30th Anniversary Sub-Line!

It came From the toy Chest: He is Hal-El of the House of Kal-Jordan

Eh... I uh, have a Review for another MOTU 30th Figure... MY Cyber Monday Package has arrived so let's start the review Marathon before The End of The World...
 Long live Sir-Loser-Lot!

Dec 12, 2012

It Came From the Toy Chest: This is going to be a bit awkward for Skeletor now...

Since now Castle Grayskull has suffered from a case of anthropomorphism...

Here's the Castle Grayskullman Review, brotha!

Dec 11, 2012

It Came From the Toy chest: Rohad Who?

It's Dekker Time here at the House of Rants and here is the Dekker Review...
Yes, it's a Video Review...

Dec 8, 2012

It Came from the Toy Chest... I am not whining I am complaining

And the size of my complaints are even BIGGER!! Since you provably have seen the Fluttershy Review (Rarity was made first, but published later due to the Fluttershy Video Experiment!) Now Rarity is whining... not really but I needed an excuse to post a Rarity Whining video

I need a Fashion Style Scale Spikey-Wikey!

So, I have a Fashion Style Rarity... One Applejack and I complete the set... no, that Fashion Style Celestia doesn't count!
She's pretty much normal Rarity, but bigger. the only different thing is the accessories, which tend to be frilly, girly stuff that little girls would enjoy, but not me... Also she has a saddle... for someone to ride her... Fashion Scale Spike?

That's enough small talk about Miss Wa Haha!

I really love her Wa Haha! So now let's move on with the Ratings! As Always 1 = crap and 5 = awesome.

Articulation:
Rarity only has 1 Point of Articulation and is due to the rooted hair. I already complained about the Ponies' lack of articulation before. Almost 30 years and no improvement in the POA!As an Action Figure collector Rarity would get a 1 here... but since it's the MLP Standard that would translate to a 4 in a MLP collector scale.

Paint and sculpt:
So many Barrettes... 5 of them... Then again she IS Rarity.
Well there's not much to talk here... She's pretty much molded in White and the extra stuff is tampographed. Her eyes are tampographed and Look like Rarity's unlike rainbow Dash's too sweet and gentle eyes. Her sculpt is similar to the standard MLP stuff...The rooted hair makes her look Completely NOT show Accurate...she's got two different shades of Purple AND it looks a bit off...
See, I wasn't joking about the Saddle... Wait you could see it
on the MOC pic...
4.0 for Rarity!
Accessories:
Here's where the Rarities show their differences. The Fashion Pony has lots of Barrettes, Horse, uh shoes... her comb, her saddle, a necklace and a bracelet. Everything suits her since she's the Fashionista Unlike most of the other Fashion Style Ponies, I MAY do something abnormal...

 
 EXACTLY! So I may dress her up every now and then. I have to say that Rarity gets a 4.5 cause I kinda wish the accessories she has were more show accurate.

Overall:
Rarity gets a 3.17 but if I use the Pony Curve she gets a 4.17 and that's a pretty good score. While Rarity is not my Favorite Pony, her accessories suit her a lot better than what the other ponies have.

Rarity Body Care Products, because She is Rarity!

BONUS Review!!
MLP: Bath on the Go kit... Yes, it's an apple scented shampoo, body wash and body lotion set in a cute Rarity bag. It smells like Apples... In fact I smell so much like Apples that I wanna chop myself and make an apple pie!

Dec 7, 2012

It Came from the Toychest: In the House of Burgers only the Randor is King!

Obvious Burger King Joke alert! King Randor is the next victim of my Guerrilla style video reviews...

Next review will be a written one that I had in the back burner for a while... or a Pink Aisle video... still thinking which one to release first. For now Enjoy the King Randor Review.

Dec 3, 2012

It Came From the Toy Chest: Taking a day off at the Spa!

No, it's not a Barbie Review, but it IS from the Pink Aisle...

I'm still debating if going to the video league or staying on the written league...

Dec 2, 2012

It Came from the Toy Chest: My Tree is even bigger

If you're a follower of this blog, you'd probably guess what I mean by that...

If not, then look at the video...
So, by Bigger Tree I must mean a BIGGER FLUTTERSHY!

Yes, I have a Fashion Style Fluttershy... which is similar to normal Fluttershy, only bigger!

So, let's move on to the ratings part... wait a second!? Where are all the pics and funny comments and all that?

I tried a video review... for a change. So there you have a quickie of what she's got.

Now if you are too lazy or just want the ratings:
Here they are:
2.67 normal curve 3.67 using the Pony curve. Obviously having 1 POA hurt her. Not being as Accurate to the toon did hurt her a little and the worst offender was her inaccurate Angel. (which is most likely a repaint of her small scale animal friend.)

Dec 1, 2012

It Came From the Toy Chest: No wonder Shredder lost all the time!

was going to make these next two reviews as individuals, but you can't split Rocksteady and Bebop.

This one I DID Have as a kid!
What can I say about these two buffoons? They're the 2 top underlings of 80s Shredder and two of the earliest bad guys in the line. They were exclusive  to the 80s cartoon and they don't show up on the TMNT game that was "25 years" in the Making...
My Friend Leo had this one... but lacked Rocksteady.
 Now I rectified a mistake from my childhood and got myself a Bebop... I wish I could find a Shredder... I got me a Rocksteady too cause Rocksteady and Bebop go well together like Peanut Butter and Chocolate.
Bebop's gear... a lot less than the Toitles...
 So, let's take a look at them!
Obviously they all have their distinct buck with no shared parts... Only the Turtles get to share parts and that's on their default looks. This line is made mostly of new sculpts... THERE IS SOME Parts that are shared, but like I said before, it's mostly on the Turtles and the occasional accessory.

Melee weapon, gun and makeshift shield... both of them have the same things!
 I'd like to point out that most non-Turtle characters don't get that many accessories, as you can see with Rocksteady and Bebop.

I keep forgetting the insane amount of detail that these figures have!
These guys have a LOT of detail going on... Especially Bebop. he has a leg brace, bunch of stitches on his pants. His jacket is frayed at the edges and his Shoulderpads have turtle bones dangling from them. While Rocksteady doesn't have as much details as Bebop, his body has some wrinkles and bumps reminiscent of a Rhino's skin.
**** You! Tokka and Rhazar! Also the 2012 mutants the dog and the fish dude...
Rocksteady and Bebop is where it's at!
I guess I should just rate them now... I must remind everyone that these are 80s toys, so technically their score will be rather low if compared to a modern era figure such as Marvel Legends, or MOTU Classics.

Articulation:
Rocksteady:
He has 7 points of articulation and his neck articulation is severely limited.
Bebop:Like Rocksteady he has 7 points of Articulation. The neck articulation is not limited, but the way his head is positioned his head looks weird when turned.
80s score: 4.5 for Rocksteady 5.0 for Bebop
2012 Score: 1.5 for Rocksteady 2.0 for Bebop
Paint and Sculpt:
Rocksteady:
Like I said earlier, Rocksteady is less detailed in sculpt than Bebop. but he's got some nice detials on him that make him pop! He's pretty much sculpted in the appropriate colors and has minimal paint applications. That translates into clean lines and no paint mess. His left Eye is a bit sloppy, but it's noticeable if I look at it up close.
Bebop:
Bebop has a LOT of details in his sculpt that are almost unnoticeable due to his minimalist paintjob. Sadly, Paintwise Bebop is not that great. Most of the issues are on his face. I like the idea of having the pinkish tones from his snout slowly fading into the brown of his body, but the way the paint is applied kinda looks like Bebop over-powdered his nose! There is also a bit of slop around the edges of all the areas where he has a chain.
80s score: 5.0 for Rocksteady 4.5 for Bebop
2012 Score: 3.0 for Rocksteady 2.5 for Bebop
Accessories:
Here I don't have to separate them since they have the same type and amount of accessories.
A blade for Close Quarters combat, a Gun for Long range and a makeshift shield to defend. Sure it's a LOT less than the Turtles but normally non-turtle characters don't get as many accessories.
80s score:  4.5
2012 Score: 1.5

Overall: 
Rocksteady AND Bebop make a nice set for old-school TMNT fans. Sure they are not as articulated as modern figures, but I'd rather have them than the Fish guy and Dog guy from the new toyline, cause Nostalgia... and I wish we could get updated versions of Rocksteady and Bebop...
I'd say that Rocksteady gets an 80s 4.67 vs a 2012 2.0
Bebop gets an 80s 4.67 vs a 2012 2.0

 Like I said before, the 2012 scores are a bit low because I'm comparing them to the normal standards of a 2012 figure.
 
Recreating this was the best part of having Rocksteady and Bebop (and April) as a kid!
April is tied with Cooking Twine, just like I remember...