 |
| This year's finalists |
 |
| Say hello to my "little friend"! |
Featured in January, We loved the Reprolabels upgrade for the "weathered look", however we felt that they didn't quite "pop" enough - in fact it's hard to even notice them.
We absolutely also loved everything about the FWI-5 weapons collection - the only thing we hated about them is that you could actually kill someone with the sharper weapons.
 |
| Pimped up Prime |
Featured in February. The mighty Sky-Lynx! We loved the Hasbro Transformers Combiner Wars Sky Lynx for being really well made and quite sexy - though there are some issues with his feet and the shortness of his tail. We really enjoyed shooting him, particularly when combined with a stand. Sky Lynx's shuttle mode is even cooler!
His combined mode: Sky Reign, was... okay. Nothing special, nothing horrible.
 |
| Hear me roar!!!! |
 |
| Meow! |
 |
| The Millennium Falcon: Currently under New Management |
Featured in March. This is the the Lepin Star Wnrs (That's not a typo) Episode VII Millennium Falcon - a ripoff of the Lego Episode VII Millennium Falcon. We loved it because it cost a fraction of the original Lego set - which is severely overpriced here in the Philippines; For being a wonderful (albeit fragile) play-set filled with little gimmicks, and; for having a wonderful "patchwork" interior and exterior.
It was cited for being rather flimsy; Having horrible versions of the Star Wars characters, and: For having faulty firing mechanisms for its spring-loaded weapons.
 |
| Open up! |
Star Wars Black Series Ahsoka TanoFeatured in April. We absolutely loved the 6" Black Series version of Failed Jedi Ahsoka Tano, and to date it's far superior to any of her 3.75" version - including our beloved Vintage Edition Ahsoka Tano. We loved her detailing, particularly the layering of her armor/clothing; The two silver lightsabers that can he hooked to her sides, and; Ahsoka's extremely high articulation which made her a joy to pose and is perfect for the action-figure given her dervish style of fighting.
The Star Wars Black Series Failed Jedi Ahsoka Tano was cited for having an extremely deadpan face whose montrals limited her articulation, and; for having rather flimsy lightsaber blades.
 |
| Ahsoka will be back - most likely to die by Vader's blade. |
 |
| Lieutenant Junior Grade Fred |
Featured in May. Admittedly Fred's entry into this year's Dark Lord Dungeon Toy of the Year is a bit of a surprise. Usually it's the Master Chief who runs for this honor. So it's nice to see someone else step up to bat.
McFarlane Toy's Spartan Fred is loved for bearing a Centurion-class Mjolnir Powered Assault Armor - The Centurion features C4I2SR - or a Command, Control, Communications Computers, Intelligence, Information, Surveillance and Reconnaissance package (He sees everything!). It is our favorite of the Spartan armors - even if it's a bit bulky. Despite the bulk, Spartan Fred is also loved for having quite a high degree of articulation.
Spartan Fred was cited for being gray instead of having the blue tint that he bears in the video-games; His bio also suggests an affinity/preference for knives. Fred has none, and; for requiring us to cut his trigger finger free from the rest of his fingers just so that he can hold his weapons.
 |
| Post surgery Fred could finally hold all of his weapons. |
 |
| No nipples on this wetsuit |
Featured in June. The SOTA Toys Angelina Jolie, Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life action figure is actually one of the older toys in the Dungeon, and one we just decided to feature last year. It's also one of our favorites despite the fact that she looks like a very young Angelina Jolie, or Sophie Turner, and; the pose-ability of the figure is hampered by the lack of foot-pegs.
We love her for being a very nicely designed figure - she literally flows. Her harness hampers some of her articulation, but we actually don't mind - else she'd look like she was wearing a condom. Speaking of which, we're actually happy that SOTA toys removed the nipples from her suit that the movie Lara had.
 |
| Perhaps Sophie Turner should be considered for a Tomb Raider Movie |
 |
| Optimus Mazimus |
Featured in July. The Hasbro Combiner Wars Optimus Prime was a finalist in our Toy of the Year competition in 2015. He's back more than a year later sporting a new upgrade from Perfect Combiner, the PC-08 torso and hand/feet upgrades.
We praise the PC-08 for providing Optimus Maximus with a solid torso that supports his ability to stand - and look good while he's doing it; for now having a nice looking back where you can mount weapons, and; for maintaining the articulation of Optimus Maximus despite having his legs splayed open. We also praised it for providing the Combiner Wars Optimus Prime with a nice "jetpack" in robot mode, and a make-shift "gun-carriage" in truck mode.
We cited it however, yes, leaving Optimus Maximus with her legs permanently open, and for the "gun-carriage" not properly aligning with Optimus in truck mode.
 |
| LIGHT UP THE DARK! |
 |
| Built to fly |
Featured in September. The Marvel Legends X-Men Juggernaut BAF series action figure is loved for how beautiful she is; Her high articulation - we're particularly fond of the way Marvel designed her knees and for the fact that her hair did not really affect her articulation; Having a spare "bare" hand that allows collectors like us to have her use her powers, and; for looking really, really good with the other X-Men action figures.
She's practically perfect. The only thing we really did not care for was the fact that her wrist rims sometimes move out of place and there's the possibility of losing the wrist rim when you remove her hand in order to install the "bare" hand.
 |
| Come here if you dare! |
 |
| A Red Day!!!! |
Featured in October. The ITF01 Abyss is the Red variant of a knock-off (KO) War for Cybertron (WFC) Optimus Prime. The original one released was blue.
We loved Abyss for looking exactly like the Takara WFC Optimus Prime. Faced with pictures you would never actually be able to tell the difference - which is just size. We love the fact that the manufacturers decided to fix the WFC's tendency to fall over backwards by simply adding a tab to the back of both legs. We love the fact that he comes already armed with a battle axe - we had to purchase the Corbot V Battle Axe separately for our WFC Optimus Prime. We love how his eyes just glow and we love the metallic sheen of his outer shell.
We hated how his joints started out practically frozen and how they loosened and continue to loosen after that. Continued play should result in a figure that just flops around. There was also a problem with his rifle. It was the same size as the Takara version and refused to stay locked in place without blue-tack.
 |
| Look into my eyes! |
 |
| The original Assassin |
Featured in November. Altair is our favorite Assassin from the Assassin's Creed game series - also the best of the game series in our opinion (Except for the inability to kill two people at the same time and the inability to do a death from above).
McFarlane's take on Altair was heavily criticized for being an incomplete incarnation of the character: He lacks the short-blade; several throwing knives, and; his crossbow.
The biggest draw-back of this figure though is his virtual inability to move thanks to all the hard-plastic clothing. A big let-down considering that the character is a parkour master. Big let down given that McFarlane's HALO figures come with high-levels of articulation.
We love the detailing though.
 |
| Quiet killer |
 |
| Big Daddy! |
Featured in December. Shigeru Ningyo Do - SND-01 Primo Vitalis Combiner Wars Optimus Prime in our opinion is one of the best ever - if not THE BEST upgrade kit to enter the market as of today.
We've had our share of upgrade kits over the years but nothing like this. Upgrade kits in the past have always served to enhance the toys they were made for. SND-01 created an entirely new toy over the carcass of an already great toy - the CW Optimus Prime. We also loved the SND-01 for remaining solid in all three forms, and for maintaining the high-articulation of the CW Optimus Prime.
However we did hate it for its truck mode and for its Optimus Maximus mode which we felt was too big for its own good (In fact without the PC-08 upgrade feet, it would have even more stability problems).
 |
| Too cool for school |
THIS YEAR'S DARK LORD DUNGEON
TOY OF THE YEAR IS:
The Star Wars Black Series Ahsoka Tano
 |
| Thank you but something tell me I shouldn't have this Holocron |
No comments:
Post a Comment