Transformers Galaxy Force Vector Prime

Presenting Transformers Galaxy Force Vector Prime - Voyager Class.  I purchased him last week loose but complete off the black market for PhP 1,000. Note that I designated him as a Galaxy Force Vector Prime and not a Transformers Cybertron Vector Prime - Which is the cartoon that first gave popularity to Vector Prime. I designated him a Galaxy Force Vector Prime because, based upon his paint scheme, this particular Vector Prime was made by Takara and not Hasbro.  When Vector Prime was first released in 2005, Hasbro kept his colors stark i.e. bone white, solid browns, blues and gold. Takara stayed truer to the cartoon and muted Vector Prime's whites and browns to bring out more of the intricate gold color detail that they spent more time and effort on.  

G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra: Crazy Legs (Wave 6)

In Memoriam - KIA, Trucial Abysmia

Presenting the G.I. Joe Assault Trooper CrazyLegs from Wave 6 of the G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra series. G.I. Joe CrazyLegs has yet to hit the international market and is not even listed as a pre-order on Amazon. At first glance, CrazyLegs may seem to be a very simple action figure - nothing flashy, quirky or strange enough to make CrazyLegs a worthy member of the G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra Line. He comes with a heavily modified Beryl 96 (?) Assault Rifle, an alternate SMG-R Submachine-gun, a pistol, a parachute and a helmet with goggles. G.I. Joe CrazyLegs's is also dressed like a reject Power-Ranger - Hasbro remained quite true to what he originally looked like when he was first released in 1987. But G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra CrazyLegs has one single VERY INTERESTING trick that most G.I. Joe figures do not have - which we will show later

Toy collectors unite to help Japan

Here's something that toy collectors can do to help the victims of the Japan earthquake and tsunami. Convoy of Hope and The Big Toy Auction are teaming up to hold the "Heroes Give Hope" benefit auction. Donated and created toys, artworks, and more will be auctioned off in a Live Auction event on Sunday, July 10, 2011, starting at 3:00 PM EDT (and 3 AM, Manila Time).

The online catalog allows absentee bidding up to the day of the event. The Big Toy Auction also uses a unique streaming technology to allow bidders to bid real-time on the day of the auction from wherever you are in the world. One hundred percent (yes, all of it!) of the final hammer price of each item sold will go directly to Convoy of Hope for their efforts on the ground in distributing much-needed food and supplies to those affected by the disasters in Japan.

Japan has a special place in the hearts of toy collectors because it is where many iconic toys came from like Pokemon, Gundam, Voltes V, etc. If you're interested to be a donor, you can visit The Big Toy Auction for more details.

So, don't forget to save that date--July 10, 2011 at 3 PM EDT (3 AM, Manila time). It's a great way to get rare finds and help, at the same time.

G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra: Cobra Viper (Wave 6)

Presenting the soon to be mass released G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra Viper. The POC Cobra Viper is part of Wave 6 of the G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra Series. I cannot right out say that this is nothing more than a repackaged 25th Anniversary or Hall of Heroes Cobra Viper because - while I feel it is - there are minor cosmetic differences between the three. These cosmetic differences are not very apparent and chances are, if you just glance over the figure in the store, you will not be able to spot them. So if you're the type of collector who wants to build a Cobra Viper army and sit smugly knowing that not all of them are alike and that there are minute differences that only "true" collectors will notice, then this is the figure for you. 

G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra: Snake Eyes (Wave 6) Temple Guardian

Presenting G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra Snake Eyes Temple Guardian from the yet to be released G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra Wave 6 line. When I first spied this particular figure on a toy convention coverage by ToyNewsInc. I thought this was a variation of Storm Shadow. But apparently it's not. It's Snake Eyes Temple Guardian. But he is a re-paint of the G.I. Joe 25th Anniversary Storm Shadow (from the Resolute series) that came with Wave 8 Comic Book pack along with Tunnel Rat - that I have somewhere in storage. Snake Eyes Temple Guardian is slated for international release on April 30. I chanced upon this particular figure on the black-market (Probably smuggled) as a set and Snake Eyes Temple Guardian cost me PhP 700 and will be available on April 30 on Amazon for US$ 11.95. 

G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra: Iron Grenadier

Presenting the G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra Iron Grenadier! I guarantee that this will soon become one of the  holy grails of the G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra Series. We wrote about the Cobra Iron Grenadier recently because of the "uniqueness" of the Cobra Iron Grenadier's main weapon after ToyNewsInc  reported about the Cobra Iron Grenadier in Feb of 2011. 

They slated the G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra Iron Grenadier for release in the US in Spring 2011. A quick glance on Google showed that - as of this writing - there were no Pursuit of Cobra Iron Grenadiers out there yet save for previews and pictures from the February convention. So when I passed through Greenhills a few days ago, I had to grab it. It was the only set available in the entire area! I had a strong feeling that this particular figure had been pre-ordered (read a smuggled) and the buyer had an extra that he wanted to recoup his operating cost from.\

This G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra Series Iron Grenadier was part of a set of 6 new G.I. Joes purchased on the black-market for PhP 4,200 or PhP 700 each. It's available on Amazon for US$12.95 plus shipping AFTER APRIL 30!!!! I'm a week and a half ahead! The Cobra Iron Grenadier is a literal TANK! and a must have - especially if you can build an army of them.

Sinestro Corps: Arkillo

Presenting the snapping jaws of the Sinestro Corp's main muscle: Arkillo from the Blackest Night Series 7 action figure set. Sinestro Corp's Arkillo is a re-issued re-paint of Green Lantern Series 1 action figure set Kilowog. Naturally a new head was introduced and a new set of hands - though both Sinestro Corp's Arkillo and Green Lantern Corp's Kilowog are apparently right handed.

Sinestro Corp's Arkillo supposedly comes from the same space sector as Lantern Kilowog and both used to have the same profession in their respective corps - the role of drill-sergeant (A role which Lantern Kilowog has since passed on to Lantern Stel) Although Sinestro Corp's Arkillo has a very different method of motivating Sinestro Corps members i.e. he kills everyone who doesn't perform. 

Toy News: DC Direct this Christmas Green Lantern Series 5 and Starcraft

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas thanks to our friends at DC Direct.  They've just announced two must watch action figure series that collectors just cannot miss and are slated for release this December 2011 - not 2012, so we still all have one full year to enjoy them before the end of the world. 

First up is the 5th installment in the Green Lantern Action figure series which will include, among others Lantern Guy Gardner, Lantern Kyle Rayner's current squeeze Lantern Soranik Natu - doctor and successor of Sinestro in the Green Lantern Corp; Lantern Stel - the robotic current Drill Sergeant of the Green Lantern Corp having replaced Lantern Kilowog; and at least two more figures including the big blue Elephant looking incarnation of a Hindu god Blue Lantern Brother Warth and a yet to be disclosed figure of Sinestro - which they are still keeping under wraps. Personally I believe that it will probably be an incarnation of Sinestro as he was as a Green Lantern. 

Halo 3: Cortana - Mcfarlane Toys Series 1

Presenting Halo's Cortana  from McFarlane Toys Halo 3 Series 1 collection.  If you've played any of the three original Halo games or even read the novels, then you should be quite familiar with the AI sidekick of the Spartan Master Chief - although everybody would probably agree that technically, the Master Chief is the haughty Cortana's  muscle sidekick. The McFarlane Halo 3 Series Cortana  stands approximately 4.5 - inches tall - taller than your average G.I. Joe figure - not including the base. Cortana  has absolutely NO articulation. Cortana  is  just sculpted in her sexy, no-nonsense "I'm hot and I know it and oh I'm better than you" pose." She is sculpted out of semi-translucent blue plastic with darker symbols tattooed over her body that reflect her "thought processes." 

Cortana's base - commonly seen in the video game as the source of Cortana's projections has three blue diodes that project light to the translucent figure resulting in the impression that Cortana is a projection rather than a sculpt.

Transformers: Battle Rollar TFC EX-002 The Prime Scout

Presenting Transformers: Battle Rollar, AKA the Prime Scout AKA TFC EX-002. Battle Rollar is a "Fansproject" from TFC Toys (Which unfortunately has one of the worst toy-web-sites I've ever seen). In a nut-shell, Battle Rollar is that cute little buggy that comes out of Optimus Prime's trailer in the cartoons.

The comic book included in the package hints - and I say hints because... well it's not much of a comic book - at Battle Rollar once being a small Transformer in the service of (And with a severe man-crush on) Orion Pax (Who would later become Optimus prime). When the war started, the Decepticons raided the warehouse where he worked and Battle Rollar ran - making him the only survivor. It isn't clear after that how he became a buggy (Just plain Roller) in the service of Optimus Prime or why he never transformed prior to this.

Probably because he was a coward.

G.I. Joe: Cobra Ferret (Custom)

While trawling through Greenhills a few months back, I came across this Cobra Ferret. This particular Cobra Ferret is a custom job done in military olive drab that gave it a neutrality that allows it to be used by G.I. Joe. The fun fact about this though is that this particular custom job is not original. Trawl the internet and you will find photos just like it. The original Cobra Ferret was meant as an answer to the fast G.I. Joe RAM cycles. While the Cobra Ferret could not match the RAM Cycles in speed, the Cobra Ferret could go where the awkwardly balanced RAM Cycle could not. However unlike the RAM cycle that could rely on its speed to keep its driver safe, the Ferret has neither armor or speed, reducing it to security and/or infantry support roles. 

This particular custom job, enhances its role as an infantry support vehicle and grants it a one-shot assault role - well there is power in numbers after all so imagine a cadre of one-shot assault vehicles coming down on a base's defenses. 

Transformers Generations: Warpath

Presenting Transformers Generations: Warpath. I chanced upon Transformers Generations Warpath while trying to raise my spirits on a Saturday morning in Toy Kingdom in Powerplant Mall. So I got it for the local retail price of  PhP 699.75. It retails on the black-market for as much as PhP 1,400. Is it worth it at that price? In my opinion a resounding "NO!" But it is a nice figure to have. If you're buying it on e-bay or through the internet, you should know that there is a Transformers Universe Warpath that is Legends class but looks very similar to the Transformers Generations Warpath Deluxe class. So make sure you clear that before you commit to buying anything on the internet, you might end up with a small tiny figure (Which actually isn't so bad, keep it). 

G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra: Shadow Tracker

POC Shadow Tracker

Presenting the G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra Shadow Tracker. The Cobra Shadow Tracker is probably one of the sleeper hits of the G.I. Joe Pursuit of Cobra series. I initially did not want to pick him up because, well seriously who or what is he? A guy dumb enough to stalk around in the jungle in a glow-in-the dark Jason inspired hockey mask and dreadlocks? Can you imagine what must live in that hair? And why is he carrying a vest with pouches for ammunition if he isn't carrying a gun? 

Plus there isn't much literature on the Cobra Shadow Tracker that can be found other than what's on the back of the Cobra Shadow Tracker's blister card. 

So I wasn't too keen on getting the Cobra Shadow Tracker. But I did. And after letting my imagination play with him, I found out that the Cobra Shadow Tracker has one feature unique to the figure that was never publicly announced and makes the Cobra Shadow Tracker a must have.

Cobra Shadow Tracker's blister card reads "Shadow Tracker works for Cobra as a wilderness hunter and guide. Scorning conventional firearms, he uses traditional weapons from around the world. he tracks his prey using primal instinct: He hears the dark whispers of the jungle, senses distant footfalls in the Earth, and taste his victim's fear in the wind. When Skydive lands in the jungle, Shadow Tracker instantly knows - and starts the hunt."

Toy News: G.I. Joe 2011 Convention Sightings

April 3 marked the end of the 18th annual G.I. Joe 2011 convention in Orlando Florida. Naturally Hasbro took the opportunity to showcase its next line of G.I. Joe toys all slated to hit the market this fall. Till the last quarter of the year comes, I suppose we'll have to content ourselves with these images courtesy of our friends at ToyNewsi.com.

The highlight of the convention is the action figure selection from the new G.I. Joe Renegades cartoon series including this very fetching version of Scarlett that you see on your right.

Transformers War for Cybertron Battle Axe in TFA's hands

We got a request from our Facebook account as to whether or not the Transformers War for Cybertron Optimus Prime Battle Axe we reviewed a few days ago will fit in the hands of a Transformers Animated Series Voyager Class Optimus Prime. I have to admit that it felt a bit weird to realize that someone had assumed that I owned a Transformers Animated Series Voyager Class Optimus Prime, but, yeah I did. So here it is.

Obviously the biggest factor here is size. The Transformers Animated Optimus Prime is more than two heads taller than  the Transformers War for Cybertron Optimus Prime. The two are closer - and in fact look good together - when they are in truck mode.