STAR WARS: Yuuzhan Vong

Presenting a Yuuzhan Vong warrior from the STAR WARS 2009 Comic Book Action Figure 2-Pack that included Jedi Master Kyle Katarn (Best known as the player-character in the STAR WARS: Dark Forces video games).

The Yuuzhan Vong, or "Children of Yun-Yuuzhan" or the "Chosen Race" were responsible for the destruction of the New Republic, and the deaths of nearly 365 Trillion sentient beings throughout the galaxy including Anakin Solo (Youngest son of Princess Leia and Han Solo), Chewbacca, Admiral Ackbar (though technically he died of natural causes), Chief of State Borsk Fey'lya (Finally and long overdue) the establishment of the "Sword of the Jedi" - Jaina Solo, the formation of the Galactic Alliance which now included the Imperial Remnant, and the planting of the seeds that would lead Jacen Solo to eventually fall to the Dark Side and become Darth Caedus.

The Vong were hulking accomplished warriors skilled in hand-to-hand bio-tech weaponry and garbed in Vonduun Crab Armor that was actually capable of stopping lightsaber blows and armed with amphistaffs - living serpents that could also resist lightsaber blows, and, at a touch from their Vong owners, become stiff spears, slashing weapons, whips or even released on its own to deliver venom filled bites.

But perhaps their greatest advantage was that they could not be perceived in the Force - which created all sorts of difficult situations for the the defending Jedi who were forced to adapt their tactics to an invisible opponent.

Ardella Cosplay

Photo by Andy Wana: flickr.com/photos/andywana

Photo by Andy Wana:
flickr.com/photos/andywana 

Presenting Aussie Cosplayer Ardella - best known for her Cosplay renditions of Power-Girl, Black Canary and Poison Ivy among others.

 I got introduced to Ardella's work via another Cosplayer who is more famous for dressing up as video-game characters to create split-screen videos where she plays both the violin and piano, Lara - she does a mean "Game of Thrones" intro.

Anyway, this buxom blonde - sometimes red-head - is really a brunette named Beck - at least I hope it's Beck, her accent is a bit thick as she readily admits on her YouTube page.

Check out her photos after the jump.

Avengers vs X-Men - the Dungeon's visual opinion

Presenting my visual opinion of what Cyclops really needs after two issues of Avengers vs. X-Men (AVX) 1 & 2.

And we have one more stab at the leader of half the X-Men after the jump!

STAR WARS Republic Attack Recon Fighter

Presenting the Star Wars Republic Attack Recon Fighter. Following my review of the Republic Attack Dropship, I thought that we could probably give some of the other freshly minted Star Wars 2012 vehicles a try.

And it just so happened that I had another vehicle associated with the Low Altitude Assault Transport/Carrier (LAAT/C): the Republic Attack Recon Fighter piloted by Anakin Skywalker.

However where the  Republic Attack Dropship  is meant to complement the LAAT/C by delivery crack (on Crack) troops to where the LAAT/C cannot go; the Republic Attack Recon Fighter is meant to be transported BY an LAAT/C and then deployed to serve as a forward observer.

This is actually where I have some issues with the design of the vehicle. Any military vehicle is a fine balancing act between armor, speed, and firepower - of course there are other factors such as capacity, sensor capabilities, etc... but those are auxiliary modifications that follow the first three. The Republic Attack Recon Fighter would seem to trade speed and armor in favor of overbearing firepower.

Which doesn't make any sense for a reconnaissance craft.

Transformers Powercore Combiners: Heavytread and Groundspike

Presenting the Autobot Heavytread and his mini-con companion Groundspike from the Transformers Powercore Combiners series. Back in March we featured the Autobot Combiners Grimstone and his Dinobot drones.

What I did not mention in the review was that the Grimstone and his Dinobot 's manual mentioned another  Autobot combiner and showed him combined with the Dinobot drones. That Autobot was Heavytread. Ever since then I would go out of my way to look at the shelves to see if he was available because he looked quite cool combined with the Dinobots. But alas he was not. With the Transformers Powercore Combiners on sale and disappearing from the racks I lost hope that I would ever find one till I wandered into Toy's R Us in Powerplant Mall in Makati where I found him, alone on a shelf and on sale. So I took him.

The Awful Truth About Cobra

And it just keeps going:

Green Lantern Sinestro

Presenting Green Lantern Sinestro from Series 5 of DC Direct's Green Lantern toy series. If you've been following the cartoon, then you know that following the results of the War of the Green Lanterns, Thaal Sinestro was chosen by a Green Power Ring - that has since resisted all efforts to be removed (Even by the Guardians) - and has been reinstated as the Green Lantern of Sector 2814 (Earth) replacing Hal Jordan whom the Guardians had perceived as the greatest threat in the Universe (Despite having saved their asses again) despite massive protests from the rest of the Green Lantern Corp.

Since then he's been bothering Hal Jordan and doing things that Hal Jordan never even thought possible - like creating what appears to be a semi-permanent construct Power Ring for Hal Jordan; creating temporary power-rings for at least fifty trapped Korugarians; Using his Lantern as a flying battering ram to kill a member of the Sinestro Corp and to free him from prison, and; Stating that he has not once, but twice destroyed a power-ring through sheer will - a fact that Hal Jordan did not think possible, failing to remember that Ganthet - the Guardian of the Universe who had stepped down to become a Green Lantern - had done just such a feat recently (Though it cost him a hand).

Cosmic Spear Loki - Avengers Movie Series

Presenting the Cosmic Spear Loki from the upcoming Avengers Movie toyline. If you saw both the Captain America: First Avenger and Thor movies, then you saw the Cosmic Cube that was wielded by the Red Skull as nothing more than a destructive power source (Which, if you follow Marvel comic book lore which may not be true for the movies, is a drastic under-use of the powers of a Cosmic Cube), and you saw Loki (Played by Tom Hiddleston who reprises his role in the upcoming Avengers movie and reportedly will again play Loki in Thor 2) fall from the heavens to Earth.

Well now Loki has the Cosmic Cube and this time it's in the hands of someone who knows how to use it - and he put it on the tip of a really cool spear that would fit right in with the Lord of the Rings. Hasbro has captured the villain that forced the assembly of  Earth's Mightiest in an action figure heralding the launch of the movie in May (Base not included)

G.I. Joe Renegades Law & Order

Presenting Law & Order from the G.I. Joe Renegades toy line. As I write this review I can't help but hear the gavel sound effect from the Law & Order TV series - that I really love - every-time I write the words "Law & Order".

So these are actually two characters. Law is Officer Christopher M. Lavigne from Houston Texas, and; Order, a German Shepherd - it must be weird to give orders to Order.

In the comic-book time-line, Law & Order worked originally for the Houston Police Department before deciding to enlist - I'm not so sure he should have been able to take Order with him - because he wanted more fulfillment. They became a Military Police K-9 unit and trained with the Airborne - the modern American Military uses K-9 units in active combat roles as well, a K-9 unit was included in the SEAL team that took down Osama Bin-Laden..

Law would rise to become head of security for the G.I. Joe team.

Star Wars: Durge

Presenting one of the main-scourges of the Star Wars Clone Wars saga, Durge. Durge is a Gen'Dai - a long lived (4,000 to 7,000 years) race known for three things: non-aggressive tendencies; a dispersed nervous and vascular system accompanying the lack of vital organs; and heightened senses - including the ability to hear a human heartbeat 200m away.

So like the rest of his race, Durge can be hacked, stabbed, dismembered, burned and probably even be quartered and drawn and the worst thing that could happen is that he goes into hibernation to regenerate - which he once did for 60 years.



UNLIKE the rest of his   race, he has an undying need to hunt down and kill people. Which he did quite well as a Bounty-Hunter for over 2,000 years before Anakin Skywalker threw him into a sun because he just wouldn't die.

Durge was made even more deadly after receiving training at the hands of Jaing, a rogue Mandalorian Training Master. Both Jaing and Durge underwent an experimental operation that enhanced not just their armor suits but their bodies with enhanced cybernetics. Mandalorians came for Jaing after the procedure and succeeded in killing him which totally pissed off Durge who swore to get even.

Crystal Warrior Robots and Crystal Base

Presenting the Crystal Warrior Robot set and their Crystal Base. Everynow and then, I admit to trawling the cheap side of toy-stores. You never know what you can find for practically nothing.

And this Crystal Warrior and Crystal Warrior base set is just one fine example. Everything you see here - the 7 inch tall Crystal Base and Crystal Warrior Robot set - all of which are built from acceptable plastics (Not cheap, but not high-class plastics either) cost a total of PhP 400 (Roughly US$ 9.00).

Masters of the Universe He-Man and Battle-Cat

Presenting from the Masters of the Universe Toy-line, He-Man - the Most Powerful Man in the Universe - and Battle-Cat.

I have to admit that I'm begrudgingly growing to appreciate the new Classics line of He-Man, but since I'm trying to limit what I'm collecting, Mattel's lovely line will have to remain a "Nice to look at, nice to have" thingee. 

But when the new animated series came out in 2002, I collected the the toy-line that accompanied it.

It's actually not known to many that the 2002 animated series was not meant originally as a reboot of the 1983 series. Which explains why the characters maintain vestigial tokens from the original series, and - more importantly - why He-Man has a new sword that appears technology based rather than magic based in appearance.

In the original plot, Skeletor was finally able to acquire both Swords - and indeed, if you own the quite tacky Masters of the Universe Gold Armor Variant of Skeletor, then you have him with both Swords, not just one. He-man's sword was rebuilt by Man-At-Arms and gifted with the original sword's properties.

Margie Cox - Star Sapphire

Presenting Cosplayer Margie Cox as the Star Sapphire. A few weeks back when we reviewed the  Star Sapphire , I got into a discussion over the practicality of the  Star Sapphire 's costume.

I mentioned in the discussion that I actually knew - rather followed - one of the more popular Cosplayers made famous for her portrayal of the  Star Sapphire but for the life of me at that time I could not remember who it was.

I finally had time to look for her last night and I found her.


Her name is Margie Vizcarra Cox, from Atlanta Georgia. She's the Coordinator of the Local Branch of Heroes Alliance of Atlanta. Google Star Sapphire Cosplay and you'll find tons of her photos in the infamous pink body-suit - though she also does a mean Catwoman, She-Hulk  and Wonderwoman.

Transformers DOTM Powerglide

Presenting the Commander Class Powerglide from the Transformers Dark of the Moon (DOTM) Cyberverse - Collect the World Series. Wow that's a long name.

I have to say that I'm not really a big big fan of the smaller class of Transformers. But I am a fan of Transformers that come close or pay homage to their animated roots. And the DOTM Powerglide is pretty close to that in my opinion - save for the fact that the wings should be at his shoulders and not on his arms when he transforms.

Anyway, he was on sale so I got him.

The arrogant Powerglide will forever go down in Autobot history as being one of the only (?) Transformers to fall in love with a human. I'm sure more than one of us shed a tear when - upon realizing that he had no future with socialite Astoria Carlton Ritz (Now THAT's a name) - whom he single-handedly saves from the Decepticons - he opens up his chest in private and reveals that his circuits are lit up in the shape of a heart.

Marvel Avengers Movie Series: Captain America Shield Launcher

Presenting Captain America (Shield Launcher) from the Marvel Avengers Movie toy series.If you read our review of the Avengers Goliath Assault Tank, then you've already seen this figure replacing the crappy Captain America that accompanied it.

In a nutshell, this is the modern adaptation of the movie-based Captain America as it will appear in the upcoming Avengers movie. As you may recall, Captain America's original costume - not the pansy one he wore while selling war-bonds - was born out of the 1940s. They obviously thought that he needed an up-grade and here he is.

As with his 1940's movie costume (Though he kept losing his helmet), this modern uniform is closer to the Ultimates Captain America uniform (By Brian Hitch) than to Captain America's uniform in the normal Marvel Universe timeline.