Alternity Thundercracker

If you know me well enough, you would know that i have an sort of an impulsive behaviour when it comes to collectibles. Recently i had a craving for a shiny high end transfomer in the midst of my Hasbro normal grade Transformers. This made me turn to Tomy Takara, a pioneer in toy making from Japan, they've brought us a great deal of kids toys from beyblades, to collectibles like transformers.

One line that stood out to me was the Alternity, because of it's availability and it's not so high end price unlike the Masterpiece line which goes up to about 500 ringgit. The alternity line cost around 160 ringgit. Because of it's price tag, the conundrum of which one should i acquire arises. The Alternity line was short lived, for reasons unknown to us, so they only came up with 4 models, each model has a minimum of 2 remakes, mostly a different paintjob. Fortunately for me the store which sells this line only has one colour of each model, making it just a choice between the models!

Of the models, i highly disliked the suzuki swift cliffjumper model, because it looks bulky, fat in a sense. The Nissan Fair Lady Megatron was different to the original Megatron because it used swords instead of blasters, which kinda put me off. Another thing about Megatron which i did not approve of was that the back of his head was resting on a flat surface, which juts out a little which makes it look odd for a head not to be on it's own. Next came the Nissan GT-R Ultra Magnus, which looks highly cool, but after reviewing the reviews, it has poor articulation making it not be able to stand up, and also it's an autubot which sways my decision as i'm a big decepticon collector, (when i say big, i mean in heart, not in collection)

This leaves me with no other than, no surprises here as the title already stated, the Mitsuoka Orochi Thundercracker! Which i myself have no regrets of purchasing, and you'll see why in a minute. The Alternity seekers have been getting mixed reviews by the public which is understandable as everyone has their own taste.

The model is a Japanese Sportscar, the Mitsuoka Orochi, which to my suprise, there is a Showroom in Malaysia, where there is a huge billboard of the Mitsuoka Orochi. The car itself looks fine, along with the eccentric blue colour makes it pleasing to the eye. A great deal about the Alternity line is the attention to fine detail they have, the car has everything from wipers, headlights to rims and radio aerial!

eek, sorry for the gap in the middle there, must have slipped my eye while taking photos.

Stunning, isn't he, (note i did not call it a she like most cars, thats because thundercracker is a male decepticon) there's even a spot for the car plate!

Now as to why i wanted something like the alternity line so badly, ...

... you can actually open the doors, hood, and the trunk! Not only that but if you look closely inside ...

... there is car seats along with steering wheels, Sorry for the flash shot, but i had to take it to prove the point about the car seats and the steering wheel.

It just fits so well with my other toys, it's about the same size as a deluxe figure, which most of my collection are. This toy has a third mode, in addition to vehicle and robot mode, which is flight mode, his back wheels can be turned into tiny wings, similar to Turbo Tracks from the G1 continuity.

A lot of people don't have much love for this third alternative mode because it's pointless in a way, but i absolutely adore it, it just adds on to what's already great about this toy. Now for the long awaited robot mode.

They've actually tried really hard to make this look similar to the original seekers, giving it a (false) hood for the chest, Wings, and hand mounted blasters, also the wings on the legs which gives him the flight mode in it's car form is suppose to represent the plane fins from the seeker mode. This figure offers a lot in terms of poseability, and it doesn't have much of a stnading issue as most transformers do have. One big complain about this figure is the doors in the robot mode, the doors don't play any part in robot mode and are kinda just awkward there, (this angle doesn't really prove my point about the doors, but if you have the figure you'll know what i'm talking about) the doors also very easily detaches when transforming which is a pain. The figure also looks ugly from the back as many reviews mention, but as some people point out, who cares? you don't display them from the back anyway, who does that?

Overall a stunning figure, worth every penny if you ask me.

For more pictures of him visit my flickr :)

Decepticon Thrust

So recently, i acquired a new deception to my collection. To be fair, i have not yet to review any of my deluxe class decepticons, so even though it's not my first of the collection, it's the first to be introduced to the perauverse.

Also i think it's probably out of my current collection a good one to be introduced because it falls into the original 1985 G1 (generation 1) transformers cartoon and it's very very close to cartoon accuracy. Which is a big YES to many transformers collectors.

For those who don't know him, here is Thrust from the cartoon. He's a conehead and a decepticon Seeker. Originally the conehead design was unattractive to me. But the market for transformers currently doesn't hold many variety (unless purchasing online, which i'm quite afraid of in case the toy has a imperfection). Out of the coneheads he is probably favourable to me because he does not have the main wings lying on the legs, (the toy version anyway).

Here's what my toy looks like. It's almost identical to the cartoon! Probably only difference is that the wings are on it's body instead of the leg but i prefer it that way anyway. Things to note about is that the rifles and the turbine are removeable, so you can socket them anywhere you want. The turbines can be socketed on the feet. Similar to the dreamwave arch version below.



Guess the part where you can accesorize him however you want kinda puts your own touch to it. The transformation of this decepticon is relatively easy, i say relatively because in comparison to most transformers it's a piece of cake. The vehicle mode is a normal jet, it's supposed to take on a form of a modified f-15. Probably because the original seekers are modeled after the f-15 and this is modified from the original seekers. Here's what it looks like it in it's vehicle glory

All in all Thrust is a great deal. He looks good and is a great add to your collection. He can even dismount his blasters and hold it in his arms like below, which is 100% cartoon accuracy.

By now you're probably thinking, is it all great? unfortunately, no. Sadly with all seekers remolded from Henkei henkei's Starscream they all have really short arms. you won't really notice it with the blasters hanging from the side, but that's just an optical illusion! Just like almost every transformer, they have problems when it comes to stabilizing them while in the upright position. He doesn't pose much poseability because his wings block most freedom for movement of the arms and legs, most of the time if you move the hands, you have the move the wings as well.

One thing i love about the deluxe line is the attention to detail, the one that really sticks out to me in this model is the wheels, if you look at the picture of thrust holding his blasters i kinda forgot to fold the wheels inwards, it's by his chest, if you compare it to the first picture of my toy you can probably see difference. Here's an upclose of the wheel while it's in vehicle mode.

What catches me about this is that they probably didn't need it since in transformation mode you can't see it, and it's such a small detail, why bother? i don't think it would have mattered to the fans. Thats why i really love the fact that they've done it!

Overall it's a great toy, worth every penny. So if you love decepticon seekers. it's a must buy!

Gundam RX78-2 Anniversary edition HG 1/144

So. This is wayyy overdue. Luckily for me i have some pictures of it in my phone. even though it's in storage somewhere far far away.

Overall. This is probably my most favourite Gunpla that i own. Every Gundam fan should have some model of the RX 78-2. And if you don't! this would be one that you would like to invest in.

Here's an example why it's so great, notice the particular attention to detail! and this is at the bottom of the feet mind you! Just imagine how good looking the rest of the parts are!

The Legs by itself. The gunpla poses great poseability, check out how articulated the joints are in the legs. I don't have a picture of the hands but the hands can pretty much move in any direction. Most gunpla at the 144 scale have stiff legs but this one is awesome. Also it can do a alsmot 90 degree spilt!

This is what all it's parts seperated looks like! The joy of making a gunpla!

Just like any Keroro Fan would, the head goes in at the last! yup yup.

Here's a posing shot, with all of his weapons! I have to admit it's not the best of angles. Hence why it's not on flickr. And here are more better looking shots!

Looks fantastic overall doesn't it? There's more pictures of it on Flickr! you can view them here.

Totally an awesome figure. Has tons of poseability and great articulation, Colours and details are great. And not to mention he has an awesome arsenal, bazooka, lightsaber, gun, shield and that chain hammer. The probably only downside is his lightsaber is a onepiece. If you collect gunpla you'll know what i mean! But this is a definite Must Have :)

... Comes Brightest Day!

Welcome to Part 2 of my 2 part heroclix review. I don't think it was too hard to guess that after Blackest Night was obviously the Brightest day, any DC comic fan should know this, it was pretty much the biggest event of 2009-2010. Now let's see what we have in store for us today.

Here's a look on the complete set of 7 new figures in the Heroclix Action Pack Brightest day. Unlike their predecessors, Blackest Night, these Figures are not dynamic poses but are more of a standstill. Even so, these look grrr-rreat! And come at a cheaper price! New figures comes new powers which brings a whole new playing field into Heroclix. Each figure also have the ability Regeneration, since they did come back from the dead. And the best part about these figures are....wait for it .... KEYWORDS! Not only do all of them possess the keyword 'Brightest Day', some of them have their own keywords. Now lets take a look at these figures up close.



Here we have Aquaman and Osiris. It looks to me they're pretty much similar in sculpt if you look at the poses. Probable only difference is that Aquaman stands on a tentacle. Aquaman gives a whole new playable field for the keyword "Atlantis", i mean he is the king of Atlantis after all. His Trait, allows him to deal damage to opposing characters whenever a Player with the keyword Atlantis is KO'd. This is generally attributed to the fact that the current revived Aquaman no longer controls aquatic life but only dead aquatic life. Fun Fact: every aquatic life he goes near dies. Anyways, imagine having an army of Aquaman. Lets say 4 Aquamans, If 1 got KO'd, the other 3 will be doing damage to each opposing character that attacked that Aquaman! Thats 3 x 2 = 6 Damage! Dangerous. Although it would be utterly useless against damage reducers.

Osiris is pretty much just like most Mystical character that receives their power from Shazam, only plus side is if he rolls a critical hit, the remainder of the game he modifies his combat values by +1. Try your luck with him.

Here we have Martian Manhunter, (The not so) Deadman, and Captain Boomerang. Martian Manhunter is probably one of the cheaper Powerhouses that comes with a lot of pow! Here he has a trait that allows him to use Exploit Weakness, Outwit, and Probability Control until your next turn whenever an opposing character is KO'd. Here's another character that has a new power after reviving, conversing to dead people. Overall he's a great fig, and i absolutely adore his sculpt, maybe just because it's half Black Lantern, and since i don't own any Black Lantern Figs, this kinda makes up for it! although sometimes i wish he was full black lantern.

Deadman, Now not dead, is my favourite figure in terms of stats. He's got a great healing power, and he doesn't die easily since he has a amazing ability to stop taking damage on the last dial. He's a wonderful tie up figure, and he has the ability to summon any figure with the brightest day or White Lantern Corps Keyword. Oh, did i not mention? He owns a White Lantern Ring, not sure why yet, but i'm sure will be revealed in the Brightest Day storyline eventually.

Captain Boomerang, One of the cheaper and weaker figure but with the ability to attack all characters in his boomerang path, it might come handy after all if you use him well! Great addition to the keyword Rogues.

Alas, our last two figures, Firestorm and Hawkgirl. Firestorm is probably one of the rarely used figures as his special abilities don't really give much options and you can use better figures for his cost. Not to mention his lack of keywords :/

Hawkgirl on the other hand is a cheap and strong warrior. Her trait Master Aerial Combatant allows you to modify her attack and damage values by +1 whenever she attacks a character with the Flight ability! Now that's what i call power!

All in all, a fantastic set, another must buy for DC Heroclix lovers, this set has not failed me. Great Quality overall, although there is some complains where Hawkgirl is weak at the legs and tends to snap, i haven't had that problem but it always doesn't hurt to pay extra attention to them.

So this wraps up this weekends Heroclix bonus edition by me. I hope you enjoyed it as much as i did. :)

From Blackest Night ...

Welcome, I've finally decided i should get going on my collections, today i bring you part 1 of a two part Heroclix review. I give you, my Heroclix Blackest Night Starter Set.



Here we have a complete view of all the Figures from the starter. I will briefly describe each figure later. One of the best parts about this set is that the figures have fantastic dynamic poses. It's been highly regarded as one of the better sets and a must for anybody who plays Heroclix.

These only downside of these figures really is that they lack the keywords to make them highly playable in Heroclix, regardless though they can still pack a punch! I mean think about it, superheroes and villains with power rings, surely they'll do more damage than they normally do.

Here, from left to right order, we have Indigo Lantern Atom, Green Lantern Hal Jordan, and Violet Lantern Wonder Woman. 3 classic superheroes, Atom is highly used because of his pretty awesome healing powers. Green Lantern has a special ability that lets him regenerate instead of taking pushing damage. And Wonderwoman is basically a high damage powerhouse. Atom's sculpt has been deemed one of the best heroclix figures, and if you look at it, you can see why. My only upset with this is the Green Lantern figure. He is so tiny. he looks like a small boy when standing next to wonderwoman. Atom's small but that makes sense, he is the Atom! he can shrink!

Red Lantern Mera and Blue Lantern Flash, Mera is somewhat evil since red lanterns are all rage, This gives her highly large attack and damage stats for a cheap cost. But the downside of her is she is easily taken out with low life of 6 clicks. Blue Lantern Flash is probably my favourite figure to use, a well all rounder with good stats, and useful Powers and Abilities like Hypersonic Speed, Enhancement, Perplex, etc. This figures are probably the most fragile out of the set. So pay careful attention when handling them.

Here's our two villains Orange Lantern Lex Luthor and Sinestro Corps Scarecrow. Lex Luthor is probably the most useless figure in my opinion, his stats are mediocre and his special ability is hard to use in expert games. Scarecrow on the other hand, doesn't play out well but i have to say his figure is probably the best looking one for me. I mean, check out the yellow lantern crows. Not fairly used but will probably have some usefulness in a Sinestro Corps theme team.

Overall a great starter kit, anyone looking to start playing i highly recommend getting this kit. Its just appealing, and one of the coolest Dc comics Collectibles you will find in the market.

Supermobile

If batman can have a batmobile why cant superman?

well there you have it folks. Superman's got his very own ride. with his colours.
bet batman's jealous now! what you're looking at is. WFC Optimus Prime. (note the nerd notation WFC which stands for War For Cybertron, havn't actually played it but the toys from it look cool.) i just love how the car seems to be just about the right size. its a big armored car that looks like it can break anything in its path! now superman doesnt have to go charging head on with his fist anymore. you can thank me later superman.

Along with a new transformer, a new stop motion is in motion! hehe.
For my 2nd attempt on stop motion, i used my webcam instead of using my phone cam to take photos. a lot of rookie mistakes, but don't think its that noticeable.



Notes:
next time have sound.
better lighting.

I think i should have gone with the vehicle to bot mode instead since i showed you guys the vehicle mode first. but i'll save that for the next time i try my stop motion.


eyecatching isn't it?

i call it the auto justice league task force. also ajltk. owlman pilots the gundam. heh.

Great isn't it how the gunpla and optimus prime are just about the same height. i'd like to see that the gunpla are a security measure the perauverse has taken against of any hostile transformer takeovers. watch out world. transformers have landed

Ravage in the land of Perauverse

SO!

recently i purchased myself a bunch of transformer toys. ah. the satisfaction of adding to my collection.

ah what is this? it seems like some sort of space vehicle!

looks like its headed for perauverse! dum dum dum. pew pew.

ah, looks like it landed in my frontyard. as you can tell. its quite a mini toy, judging on the sizes on my keyboard. wait what is this! it's TRANSFORMING. pew pew.

forgive me. for my first ever poor quality stopmotion. but everybody's got to start somewhere right? hehe. i liked it.

anyway, here's an upclose look on Decepticon "Legends Class Ravage"

i absolutely adore this, its tiny and cute. it doesnt have much poseability but its a might fine ornament. and theres more! in comparison with the major population of the perauverse

its not that much bigger! i think he'll fit well. and also in comparison with my deluxe class transformers figures, he's just about the size g1 ravage should be. the joy. anyways lets welcome ravage to our humble world!

my secret war for gotham city!

here's the scenario,

Gotham city~

a city overrun with chaos and amok. villains, heroes, and vigilantes alike try to control the city with their might!

It's up to you to decide who keeps Gotham and who leaves,

it's basically a heroclix scenario game,

a normal 300 pt game.

but here are your basic teams,

you have the

Batman Family (which is a given)

Batman Enemies (not your regular ones though)

Bruce Wayne and Co (which adds some new elements to this game)

Batman Family Team

First off let me explain the Batman Family Team.

We have

JL Batman ots - 75

Cr Batgirl -70

+ Lunge 5

Cr Nightwing - 79

+Lunge 5

AA Robin 66

total - 300

the Big Bad 4 of Gotham, or the Big Good 4, however you want to look at it.

This team is a good all round team with high attacks, outwits and perplexs,

basically this team focuses on stealth and destroying your opponents from the shadows.

hard hitters batman and batgirl go in for the jump while nightwing and robin supply some good cover with smoke clouds and what not and sometimes a good punch or two.

A fun team to play with, but play your cards right, dont jump the gun to quickly or else.

Can you and Batman save Gotham from it's downfall?

Batman Enemies

not your usual suspects, here is your starting line up

CD Clayface R - 57

Cr Red Hood - 81

Cr Robin - 79

AA The Question - 37

BatB Holiday Killer - 43

total - 297

an Odd combination of enemies you might think, but deadly it is!

Evil Twin Robin joins with Red Hood Clayface and the Holiday Killer to do dirty deeds, while The Question believes that the only way to restore peace on Gotham is through heavy destruction and Chaos, hence comes and joins the Revolution to take on Gotham for it's own.

The way to go about this team is to take advantage of the Batman Enemy TA (Team Ability)

with high attacks from Red Hood and Holiday Killer, you give Clayfaces poor 8 to a jump of 10-11. This Makes Clayface your frontman, use him to knock out anything in your way, you know he's gonna be one hard cookie to kill, while Red Hood and Holiday stands behind providing with a little range support. Robin and Question uses stealth to stay in the dark while providing some support. This team is a bunch of evil geniuses, with you being able to make use of up to 4 outwits at a go, as well as a perplex help from Robin and Question. Play your cards right and you could help the Revolution take over Gotham in style.

Bruce Wayne and Co.

Bruce Wayne is a man in High Places with High Friends, let's take a look at what we have in store,

BatB Bruce Wayne/Batman AE - 48

BatB Wonder Woman - 108

BatB Jason Blood/Etrigan AE - 44

Cr Rip Hunter -97

total - 297

Bruce Wayne with his celebrity status tries to take Gotham into his hands by calling on friends Wonder Woman, Jason Blood and the time traveller Rip Hunter. As you can see this team doesn't have high hitters, yet anyway. The strategy here is to make use of Wonder Woman, strive for the first strike, she gives off a high damage of 4, with flurry, that means, your first strike can kill off an opposing force, and to make sure that happens you've got Rip Hunter and Jason Blood with probability control to make sure the hit goes through! Keep Rip close to Wonder Woman for that special support where his SP helps to make sure no one can counter your moves, Bruce Wayne thought of his team to ensure there is no room for errors. It might seem this team relies heavily on Wonder Woman, but that is at first, when enemies are exhausted, call upon the Big Guns Batman and Etrigan for that late game ass kicking! The only team that doesn't rely on stealth but also the only with a taxi (Wonder Woman with flying ability) Are you a Big Shot enough to bring Bruce Wayne and Co to Stardom?

Overall view we have a pretty balance team, Batman Team as an all rounder that should be able to pack a punch or two, The Batman Enemies, who give no way for leniency with outwits to counter their opponents every move, and Bruce Wayne and Co, with a power packed squad that will try to topple the balance in the playing field. Strategy is key into taking over Gotham City! Play the right cards and lead your team to domination!

---------------------------------

With that in mind ends this episode of Battle for Gotham, tune in for more teams to come, which maybe includes the world's finest, which means and appearance from our buddy and pal superman, and the master vigilante Deathstroke might like to use Gotham as his playground.Also maybe i might have a battle of my own to see which team takes the throne of Gotham.

my secret batman collection

As it seems i've just been blogging about my girlfriend's collection, it was just right that i'd talk about my own. It's no secret that i've been a Batman fan since i was a small kid, notably because of Batman: the Animated series, a little twist on the normal cartoons as this was dark and a little bit more serious, although every kid seemed to love it.

Who could forget this huh? It was a classic, from the first robin, Dick Grayson, till he became Nightwing, not sure why they skipped the 2nd robin, but here's to the 3rd, Tim Drake.

I always found Batman overatted until a couple years ago, when i started reading DC comics, now Batman is probably my most favourite character of all. He's the exact opposite from Superman the White Knight, Superman is seen as a hero, stopping crime and what not, and Superman seems to be above the law.

Gotham City however is overruled by crime syndicates, Gotham doesn't need heroes, they need saviours. Batman does the dirty stuff no one dares to do, and is seen as a vigilante, He works out of the law, so that makes him hated by most of the police. No one is above the law in Gotham.

A dark and scary city. To really understand, you probably have to read the series.

I was actually planning to push this post another 2 weeks back as i have some more Batman stuff coming on the way, but i couldn't help it. First off, this is the few Batman toys i have,

Batman from the Brave and the Bold Action League Collection, And the other 2 are from Heroclix. The difference between these here are notably the costumes, The 2nd from the left is the classic "Dark Knight" getup which is being used now by the Batman of this century, while the one on the most right is the same as the most left, the classic blue Batman set up from Batman's early days, now being revived in one of the latest, more light hearted Batman Series: The Brave and The Bold. and

And Being a big fan, who could have left out the notable Batman family,

On the right of the Dark Knight, we have Bruce Wayne, Batmans' alter ego

From the left (backrow) Damian Wayne, Commisioner Gordon, Nightwing, and Tim Drake as Robin. For those who don't know, Damian Wayne is Bruce Wayne's son, not illegitimate but legit, Bruce Wayne was married, and is still up to my knowledge, to Talia Al Ghul, Ra's Al Ghul (One of Batman's greatest enemy, the leader of "The League of Assasins") Daughter. Weird huh? To be added soon to this collection, and the one above, is another Batman! Another Nightwing, Another Tim Drake Robin and Batman Beyond. I'm so excited!

and next up, who could forget the villains of batman? not I! eeek! i just realised i forgot to include Clayface T____T, well Fear not, when my new figures arrive i will include Clayface along with them, well for those still reading, i'm sure most of you guys can indentify most the baddies, scarecrow, riddler, two face, mad hatter, Bane. Well the not so remembered ones, are Azrael, Catman, and Deadshot,which i did my homework to make sure! Did all originate from Gotham and are Batman enemies.

Other Heroes that work in Gotham, not so known to many as well, Gotham's heroes all have a trend if you notice, they don't like the spotlight. Creeper and Ragman. To be included in this would also be Question which is on the way! probably in a box somewhere T_T.

Well fans, Nuff said! I hope you enjoyed my toys. and are looking forward to more of them in future :)

my secret dc universe villian war

now that i think about it, i reckon every blog title starting with "my secret" is kinda hard. Look at my crappy title right now, its too long and unattractive, but what to do? i already started it like that, time to maintain formation.

today i will start blabbing on this new miniature figurine collectibles that i have, HEROCLIX, amazing as it is, they have characters from the dc continuity, like batman, robin, superman, and so on. We will go into more detail about that another day!

Ever wondered what would happen if the secret six take on the rogues!

(DC comic reference for all those who don't know)

According to the heroclix point value, the secret six, (ragdoll is unavailable yet in heroclix so i put together some of the members of the secret six as i please) would be 311. where the rogues ) would be, 297.

Pretty close in terms of team value, but secret six consist 6 members and rogues contain only 4.

However i feel pretty sure that the rogues might take the victory as the rogues figures are more recent meaning they have better skills, where as most of the secret six are old models so they, pretty much, suck.

Now for those who don't know, who's who, i give you, THE SECRET SIX, from the top, (left to right) Parademon, Scandal Savage, Bane, Mad Hatter, Deadshot, and Catman.

and my mini army of ROGUES, again from the top, (left to right) Mirror Master, Heatwave, Trickster & Pied Piper, and Captain Cold.

Well to find out who wins, i obviously have to find someone to play with and decide the outcome!

and here's a little sneak peak,

FROM AFAR! BLUE LANTERN FLASH SEES THE ROGUES.... to be continued.

also

drum roll

to come, a little something,

:D

await and see the glory!