F For Fake

If I remember, I'll take another pic later so you can see it up close.

Excellent question, because it took me a minute to figure out, myself! He has three clear, round...nubs, I'm going to call them. Anyway, those three nubs are what you rest the weight on, and you pose the legs as you like. When I was assembling him, it took me an embarrassing amount of time to figure out what the nubs were for, until I got the legs on and realized, ah yes, this is so it doesn't shatter into a million pieces!

So apparently I was asleep at the wheel during my latter day Dark Horse collecting, and recently realized that I was missing this series, aside from the Alpha. No idea how I did that. Anyway, a cheap lot recently popped up on eBay, so that has been rectified.

Indeed, @Otter1775a nice copy of a wonderful book. Never get tired of seeing that one.

And finally, Hasbro Pulse shipped out a large box of their own, as the Mojo World box set arrived this weekend as well. Now, I was excited about this at first, as this is PRIME X-Men to me. The stretch from around 200, then Mutant Massacre, Fall of the Mutants, Inferno, plus Longshot, Art Adams covers, all of that stuff, those are MY X-Men. When it was originally solicited, I was happy because while it's true that we had a nice Dazzler already, this head deco was pretty cool. More important were the new versions of Longshot and Mojo! Woohoo! Then, like, just months later, we find out we're getting a stand-alone deluxe Mojo figure, AND another single-carded Longshot with a new headsculpt. So, these are no longer that exciting, and are in fact already going to be a little redundant. I don't understand hasbro's thinking on these releases coming so fast on top of one another, but whatever. Anyway, this set comes with bells and whistles that I assume the single-packs won't, and I have to say, the packaging is glorious. Very cool. Wish it was Arthur Adams artwork, but otherwise, no complaints. So, I feel like I may have overpaid, and hadn't need been in any hurry to pick this up, but having it in hand, I'm pretty happy with it. There are extra hands, knife, and blast fx for Longshot and Dazz not pictured here.

Also in the box from BBTS were the McFarlane Blue and Gold set, and this third party Transformers upgrade kit. I'm still not a fan of the McFarlane DC line. I don't like the sculpts, I don't like the soft rubbery plastic, and I don't like the character selections. But I will buy Beetle and Booster any way you want to give them to me, forever and ever, amen. This set isn't too bad. It's a shame they cheaped out on the goggles and made opaque, whereas nearly every other toy line to date has managed to make them transparent, but otherwise I guess they're not too bad. Haven't decided on if I want to take them out of the box yet, as I doubt I'd "play" with them much, and they're pretty nicely displayed here. If I liked them better I'd be tempted, but DC Direct and Mattel made superior versions years ago that satisfy my pose and play needs. So these are just display pieces. I scrambled to grab this upgrade kit when I saw it, just because I NEEDED THAT FISHING POLE FOR HOT ROD. I am a sucker for anything related to Transformers the Movie, and this fishing pole, complete with tiny Daniel on a rock, was too much to resist. Add in some LEAKING POOLS OF OIL for damaged Kup, and some other randomness for Jazz, and I couldn't be happier. I'll eat this stuff up with a spoon.

Ha, that's funny, I was coming to post the same thing! My Pile of Loot from BBTS shipped, and this dude showed up this weekend. Not trying to steal your thunder, here are a few pics I took. I just had time to get him out, try on the different heads, and that's pretty much it. I was kinda iffy on the price, but honestly, he comes with 8 heads, three sets of claws, three sets of regular hands, two belts, extra buckles, claw fx, a stand, a flight stand, AND a sculptured piece, all in a snazzy metal box for $150, so really, he's a bargain. Haven't had time to do anything fancy yet, but here's a breakdown on the heads.

Ha no kidding! That was a big surprise, four bullseyes! I was way too easy on Superboy. Oh well, I feel pretty good about it!

I’ve been more or less off the computer since Thursday, getting ready for our big Halloween party on Saturday. Just got around to this today, and had to do it on my phone! Hopefully I don’t completely bury myself this round, as I’ll have my nice big work monitors to use for the next books. I don’t expect I have a prayer in this contest, but I’m really curious to see the real grades, particularly on one book.

I agree, Maggott looks like a well-made figure, but mentally I associate the character with the absolute nadir of the comics, so I just can't love him, no matter how nice the toy is ha Poor guy, I just cant' give him a chance! I vaguely remember the storyline that Vulcan came from, but it wasn't one that I had any affection for. It's a nice sculpt, I can see how the body will be useful down the line, but for me, if I don't have a strong nostalgic connection to the character, I really have no use for the figure.

Thanks bud! You know, I never think of myself that much as a "gamer", but when I fall in love with a game, I really become obsessive about it, and these games all took up some major real estate in my brain and heart over the years.

First console was also the Atari 2600. Oddly enough, I won one at school as part of a costume contest, like a Career Day sort of thing. I wanted to be an artist, so I dressed up as a "painter" with a beret and little palette and everything. So, I won the Atari, but my folks, or, uh, Santa, had already purchased one to give me for Xmas. So, the school let us return it and keep the cash. Not bad! Oddly enough, my favorite game was probably the one that came with it, Combat. I had plenty of other games, but the arcade ports were always disappointing (Pac-Man, Frogger, Donkey Kong...these were NOT the games I loved at the arcade) and I also had a lot of generic titles. But Combat, it never got old. I'd play it with my Dad for hours. Speaking of Dad, he loved Dig Dug, and some 20 or 30 years after the fact kept that old 2600 on life support on a little CRT tv in the basement so he could play Dig Dug. I eventually got him one of those All in One packages where the games come preloaded in the controller, and you can plug it directly into the tv, but I don't think he every liked it as well as he liked just playing the old Atari.

For me, it's Fallout 3, New Vegas, and 4. No matter what other games come into my life, I will eventually get tired of them, and drift back to the wasteland. I get YEARS or playtime out of these games. My list of all-timers would also include Phantasy Star II, Twisted Metal I & II, Resident Evil (the first, on PS), as big nostalgia hits, some of the most fun I ever had with games. I recall the first two Bioshock games being completely absorbing. And when it comes to pure, endless fun and replayability, the various Mario Kart games never get old, for me. Anytime I play one of those, it's as much fun as it was the first time.

I've been interested in the Marvel Retro 375 figures for some time now, but never took the plunge. I'm a big fan of the aesthetic, but the price tag kept me away. These really are my ideal Marvel action figures, the exact toys that I wanted so badly as a kid. We had Secret Wars, but there weren't many of them. What I really wanted was a large roster of characters in a 4" Star Wars style toy. Nearly 40 years later, we finally have them! I was initially excited when the 3.75" Marvel Universe figures were released, but while the scale was correct, the look and feel were all wrong. By cutting Legends-style articulation into the tiny sculpts, the toys got really ugly, really fast. I just couldn't get into them. So, now we have these, and thanks to a sale at Best Buy, I've dipped my toe in the water. BB has these in a listing on clearance for $4.49 each! That's a bargain. However, you can't select the figure, you just have to take a flyer on it. So, I placed an initial order for 10 figures, and ended up getting 9 unique figures with only one duplicate (Silver Surfer). I was happy, so I placed a second order, and got many dupes, but also a couple of needed figures. At this price I may keep the dupes to save as carded display, or I may return them. Not sure. Regardless, here's the haul so far. If you want to take a leap, here's the link. https://www.bestbuy.com/site/marvel-legends-retro-375-figure-assortment-styles-may-vary/6443610.p?skuId=6443610

In honor of the season, I thought I'd better get some horror books in before Halloween arrives. I last read these stories back when the omnis came out, so that was, what, 10-12 years ago? So, I'm not sure how much better this recent restoration is, but it DOES look lovely. My feelings about the material haven't really changed: Gene Colan is great, no question. Storywise, it takes a while for the title to figure out what it wants to do. The time period, the supporting characters, the approach to the title character, that is largely in flux for this entire book. Around the time Marv Wolfman shows up, things start to straighten out, and by the last couple of issues, we seem to have a vision for the title. If memory serves, it should really start hitting its stride when the next volume comes out. This brings my total to about 391.

Agreed. I really wanted to love the show, I did. But it leaned too heavily on digital gore and CG effects. Evil Dead has always been about practical fx to me, the goopier and cheesier the better. I liked parts of it, but overall it was a bit of a letdown. I will say, I thought they left it in a very interesting place, and the next season would have been very interesting to me. This weekend I watched the new 4k releases of the Evil Dead 2013 remake, and Army of Darkness. I hadn't watched ED 2013 since it was in theaters, so it was interesting to revisit. It's really kind of a nothing movie, not much there, but I admire just how far they went with the gore. It was definitely pretty strong for a mainstream flick at the time. Army of Darkness, of course, is still great, and the new transfer looks terrific.

I will give this a chance. I really hated the original X-Men series. I was about 14-15 at the time it hit, and had been a serious, hardcore X-Men fan since around age 9. X-Men was LIFE! The cartoon seemed like such a dumbed down, kiddified version of the comics, and I was a brat about it. I also strongly disliked the character designs. They seemed so stiff and overly detailed compared to the fluid, beautiful animation of Batman the Animated Series. As an adult I realized that I should have just been able to appreciate the fact that the show existed at all! I watched most of them when they were streaming (was it Hulu? I can't remember) and I enjoyed it a great deal. Sure, I still didn't like the animation or character design, but I was able to appreciate how much they TRIED to streamline decades of superhero soap opera into an entertaining kids show. I'd been much too harsh on it. So, I am looking forward to seeing what this holds.

Actually, i think they SHOULD install cameras, and the live feed should come right to the boards. Boardies should have access to a control panel that allows us to speak over a loud speaker when we see shenanigans. Or maybe even a light electric jolt? "Hey! We saw you! You didn't even look at the label when you encapsulated that book! Zap!" I'm kidding, of course. Kind of.

I feel ya. And yes, the size/space thing is another big issue for sure. Even if I'd wanted to pay the price to buy him, I have no idea where I would have put him! So, maybe it's for the best. If I ever managed to stumble upon a bargain, I can't say I wouldn't pull the trigger, but that seems unlikely at this point.

Oh yeah, tell me about it. I should have been all over it, but at the time I just could not justify the cost. Of course now that he's selling for like 4 times that cost, i am kicking myself. Oh well. I have to remind myself, "you can't have everything."

I tell ya, for me, it was just that he didn't seem to be moving that fast, and he was pricey. So I told myself "Eh, you've got time." Then one day I looked and he was sold out everywhere, and prices were getting silly.

Yeah, I could really kick myself for missing him on the first go-round. It was just one of those cases of never wanting to spend the money at the time, and now, well, I really wish I had! ha Since they've reissued Jetfire twice, and Sky Lynx is on the way, I'd say there's a chance we'll get Omega. Then again, they may do a repaint instead. I'm sure, given Hasbro's history of re-use, we haven't seen the mold for the last time.

Finished reading my Question omni, the first time I've read these since the trades came (and quickly went.) Still love this series. It is the very definition of the 80's "grim and gritty" DC style. There aren't many sympathetic characters, who live in a seemingly hopeless world of corruption. O'Neil was doing his best attempt at hard-boiled crime, and Cowan's art remains kinetic and exciting. Can't say the stories are a ton of fun, but they're still pretty great. Desperately hope we get another volume to finish out the series. 30 issues, brings me to 380 for the year. Woefully far behind!

And finally, if anyone missed out on Jetfire the first two times, the third time is the charm. It's such a great sculpt and figure, I imagine he'll sell out yet again, and prices will climb once more. Apparently Sky Lynx is coming again at some point as well. I wish they'd give us Omega Supreme one more time, as I missed out on that guy the first go round. Anyways, yeah, go get him if you need him. https://www.bigbadtoystore.com/Product/VariationDetails/133865

Also, I don't pick up many Marvel Legends anymore, but I will buy any and every Outback-era X-Men toy they want to make. SO, I had to have this Bonebreaker BAF. Unfortunately, the wave he came with suuuuuucks. Still, it ultimately made the most sense to go ahead and buy the wave, and sell off the ones I don't want, as the BAF is selling for about $80 on eBay by himself. Luckily the "Do these claws look infected to you?" Wolverine figure didn't include a BAF piece, so I only had to get the other six figures. I wanted the Havok (he's a definite improvement over the old Wal-Mart figure, and the clip on energy rings are cool) and Sabretooth (the head sculpt is kind of a disaster, but the body type and colors are my childhood memories of the character), everything else goes on eBay. Vulcan? Darwin? Maggott??? Man alive, shelf-warmers galore in this wave. The Siryn figure is really nice, but I don't know the character, so I don't need to keep her.