Star Wars Black Series Darth Maul

Presenting the Star Wars Black Series Darth Maul.

Now again before you jump out of your chair to buy one NO THE BLACK SERIES DOES NOT INCLUDE A LIGHT-UP LIGHTSABER - that's Photoshop (because I think it's cool).

Without a doubt, this is the gem of the First Wave of Black Series figures to hit the market. Not that I don't appreciate the Black Series Luke Skywalker. Speaking of Luke Skywalker, you should know that the Black Series Darth Maul is juuuussssttt a tad bit taller than little-old Luke.

Now if you thought that the Star Wars Vintage Darth Maul was the bomb, just wait till you see what the Black Series Darth Maul can do!

Nickelodeon's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Presenting Nickelodeon's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!

From left to right, Clockwise: Michelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello & Raphael.

To the uninitiated, these lyrics are all you need to know: 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Heroes in a half-shell

Turtle power! 

They're the world's most fearsome fighting team (We're really hip!)

They're heroes in a half-shell and they're green (Hey - get a grip!)

When the evil Shredder attacks

These Turtle boys don't cut him no slack! 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 

Splinter taught them to be ninja teens (He's a radical rat!)

Leonardo leads, Donatello does machines (That's a fact, Jack!)

Raphael is cool but crude (Gimme a break!)

Michaelangelo is a party dude (Party!) 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Heroes in a half shell

Turtle power!

Star Wars Black Series Luke Skywalker

Presenting Luke Skywalker from the Star Wars Black Series.

Now before you go balistic NO THE BLACK SERIES DOES NOT INCLUDE A LIGHT-UP LIGHTSABER - that's Photoshop (because I think it's cool).

Anyway, this is Hasbro's most recent and quite interesting venture involving the release of 6-inch tall figures to accompany their regular new 3.5" figure line. Luke Skywalker Rebel Pilot is one of four figures involved in series 1 of the Black Series line that includes R2-D2, Darth Maul and an Imperial Sand Trooper (Troop builders start drooling, they Sand Troopers look awesome).

Anyway, as I understand it, Series 1 has yet to reach International Distribution levels (But they're already available in HongKong and the Philippines), and there is much debate as to whether we should embrace Hasbro's move to the larger format or curse them to the high heavens, so here's a peak at the Black Series Luke Skywalker.

Transformers Prime: Thundertron

Presenting Thundertron from the Transformers Prime Robots In Disguise Toyline.

Okay: Shoulder pads, what appears to be coat-tails, a beard, a peg-leg and a saber.

Hmmmmmm. All we're missing is a hat and we we'd have one bondafide Transformers Pirate (Get this, he transforms into a Lion who has what looks like an earring pierced into his left ear).

Thundertron is, for the lack of better words, yes, a pirate. He bears neither the Autobot nor the Decepticon sigil. He has his own sigil  (Head - skull? - over swords) that you can see on one of his coat-tails or on the packaging. So you could say that he fights for himself.

Thundertron was released as a part of the Transformers Prime toy-line, but he actually has yet to make an appearance in the cartoon. Despite his visage, he hasn't made an appearance in the Beast Hunters series either, but it does hint on him becoming a character for the series, especially sine Thundertron bears no love for anything Cybertronian - weird I know.

Gipsy Danger Action Figure

Presenting a Gipsy Danger Action figure from NECA.

Spoiler Alert: Yes I will be discussing the movie along with the review, so if you haven't watched it yet, it's off my conscience. 

To the uninitiated, Gipsy Danger is a Mark-3 Jaeger (Deutsche for "Hunter") from the United States. - one of an undetermined number of colossal robots built by the Pan Pacific Defense Force to combat the Kaiju (Think cousins of Godzilla spewing forth from a dimensional vortex in the middle of the Pacific Ocean).

At first all goes well for the Jaegers in their battle against the Kaiju - hell you've got a 260ft tall, 2000 ton robot to defend you so it should go well right? Except that the Kaiju keep getting stronger and deadlier. One by one, more and more Jaegers fall in combat and the entire Jaeger program is shelved in favor instead of the construction of a gigantic wall around the Pacific to keep the Kaiju out.

Except the wall doesn't work (well worked like tissue paper) and the world is down to four Jaegers including the rebulit Gipsy Danger (mothballed after one of its two pilots is killed off the coast of Alaska while fighting a really nasty Kaiju).

So the world is coming to an end.

Kinda like Robox Jox (There's even a small salute to Robot Jox in the film as the Jaegers seem to like to fist-bump) meets Godzilla.

EvieEvangelion Cosplay

Presenting EvieEvangelion Cosplay.

Evie is a 22 year old Cosplayer out of the Southern Part of Ontario Canada. She describes herself as "A Big nerd (Video Games, Anime, Comic Book, etc.) and Cosplay.... and... a big Evangelion fan, and i love Berserk too, resently got in to Puella Magi Modoka Magica, and i'm rather open to most things <3"

Hence the name EvieEvangelion.

But what actually piqued my interest in this self-proclaimed "Maiden of Many Faces" cosplayer is that she is one of the few women who agreed to pose in body paint instead of costumes for photographer Jim McAvoy.

And I have to say that Evie Evangelion's Cortana is hands-down the best cosplay of Cortana that I've seen to-date - Cortana is after all technically naked.

In fact the only things lacking from Evie Evangelion depiction of Cortana are the inability to see through her, the "datastreams" that flow up and down Cortana's body, and
Cortana's holographic projector base.

Transformers Generations Sandstorm - Triple Changer

Presenting the Transformers Generations Triple Changer, Sandstorm.

Sandstorm has an interesting history. In the Marvel Comic Books where he originally appeared, Sandstorm was a member of the Wreckers who had the distinct privilege of having "beaten the crap out of Optimus Prime" and "Terrorizing the crap out of humans" in his resume (In another continuity, he actually is rumored to have killed an Autobot).

But in the main cartoon, he's the only member of planet full of Pacifists willing to fight the Decepticons. He eventually convinces his people to fight, but they end up blowing up the planet to win.

Transformers Generation Sandstorm - the Triple Changer, is not to be confused with the Human Alliance DOTM Sandstorm that we featured over a year ago. He was also a triple-changer.

Marvel Universe Rogue

Presenting the Marvel Universe Rogue from the Marvel Universe Uncanny X-Men Boxed Set.

This is the costume that Jim Lee gave Rogue when he took over the X-Men all the way, waaaay, back in 1991 when the X-Men comic book was launched and she became a member of Cyclops'covert  "Blue Team" alongside Wolverine, Psylocke, Gambit, Beast and Jubilee. I've been reading comic books since 1986 and this is actually my second favorite Rogue outfit following the green bathing suit on black. I'm not a real fan of the "hoodie" wearing Rogue of today.

Those were the good-old days when Xavier's dream seemed so close to realization and the X-Men were a force to be reckoned with that was not militarized. Jim Lee's vision also produced the best - in my opinion - Banshee (So glad and excited that he's back!) and Forge (Not so glad that he's crazy now) outfits as well as the best kick-ass uniforms and vehicles courtesy of the Genoshan military.