Reformatted R-08D Azalea Stealth Assassin

Reformatted R-08D Azalea Stealth Assassin by Mastermind Creations.

Added some red on head, biceps, flaps, and feet along with barely noticeable panel lining.

TK Underverse Dark Ninja review

Tomorrow Kings Underverse Dark Ninja by 3A.

Well, Dark Ninja of the Underverse has joined my small band of Tomorrow Kings by 3A. I was happy when I got it in the mail. As awesome it is, there is something really wrong about this product. It's well painted, but.. it smelled bad. Really bad. As if the paint was combustible. So I washed the clothes and although there was some fading, it's better than having a figure that stinks. Also another gripe is are sneaker sole design. They're curved in a way that makes posing a bit more troublesome than it should be.

The goggles are from a pilot helmet and gauntlets from an old Dark Knight figure which I weathered. Official pics show the katana sheath horizontally opposite of how I placed this one. Why? Because it makes more sense to me to have the sharp edge facing up.

Acid Rain Speeder Mk. II 88th Sand Division Vehicle Review

After hesitating for months and months I finally got Acid Rain Speeder MK. II by Oritoy and it is well worth it. This is a high end collectible so it doesn't come cheap. The Acid Rain line comes is in 1:18 scale so it can be mixed with G.I. Joes and other figures of that scale.

Disclaimer:
The set comes in a white unpainted styrofoam which I have painted to be used for diorama purposes. Also, weapons used are from G.I. Joe figures.

Aesthetics:
Buggy mode - The Mk. II looks like a light tank and dune buggy hybrid. It's an interesting design that is nice to look at from any angle. The paint apps are excellent. Weathering and texture throughout the vehicle. It has detachable accessories (2x cases, 1 pike, 1 shovel, 2x gun catridges). The seat belt is a soft rubber while the tires are hard rubber.

Robot mode - The mech mode has a tough and fearsome presence. It just plain looks badass and cool from any angle. My only gripe is that the pilot seems pretty exposed, especially his head. Would have liked a head shield. But I guess that's what modding is for. :-)

Articulation:
The mech has limited movement, but enough to pull off some cool poses with tight joints. Don't worry about the rotating tires for feet because the front panels swing down and lock the front tires in place.

Transformation:
Easy and intuitive. From vehicle to mech and back.

Extras:

Acid Rain Speeder Mk. II 88th Sand Division Pilot Review

After hesitating for months and months I finally got Acid Rain Speeder MK. II by Oritoy and it is well worth it. This is a high end collectible so it doesn't come cheap. The Acid Rain line comes is in 1:18 scale so it can be mixed with G.I. Joes and other figures of that scale. This set doesn't come with weapons for the driver/pilot, but since I have a few G.I. Joe weapons, it's fine. For this review I'll focus on the pilot. 

Disclaimer:

The set comes in a white unpainted styrofoam which I have painted to be used for diorama purposes. Also, weapons used are from G.I. Joe figures.  

Articulation:

The main reason for its sculpt lacking beauty is functionality. This figure has tons of articulation, and damn, does it have tight joints. That's a problem when it comes to wrists and ankles. Sometimes I think I might break the wrist joints that help in tilting the hands, but it is a very sturdy figure so I doubt they'll brake. Also standing straight can be a little difficult. Maybe the legs on mine are slightly uneven. And lastly if you take off the vest there's more articulation. 

Aesthetics:

The figure's form isn't the most aesthetically pleasing, but it makes up for it details and paint application. The helmet is removable as well as the vest. I underestimated this figure's potential for emotive display, and found it to be my favorite thing about it. Yeah, he can hold weapons, and pilots a bad ass transforming military vehicle, but seeing him holding a letter, photo, or newspaper has more visual impact for me. The MK. II set comes with a paper sheet that you can cut out detailed letters, newspapers, envelopes (stamps detail), and pictures. It's absolutely amazing! The pictures and letters that seem handwritten can be folded and stored inside the envelopes once folded right (tip: use little elmers glue to secure the envelope flaps). This adds a level of aesthetic and display options that I've yet to come across in any figure I've owned or seen. I actually enjoyed posing him reading letters and feeling homesick more than piloting the mech with the barrels ready to blow shit up.   

Extra

Character Illustrations

Here are few character illustrations of my character, Helena Strange.

2014
Click here to see same image unaltered (by Blogger).

2013

2006

Review: Mastermind Creations R-08 Azalea The Avenger

Azalea is Mastermind Creations' homage to Transformers G2 Arcee. The aesthetic is reminiscent of IDW Comic's take on the character which depicts her as a fierce combatant and assassin. In short, total badass. And so is this action figure.

Articulation:

This figure has tons of articulation for dynamic posing. The joints on my figure were either tight or just right (not loose, not tight).

Head - Ball joint. A little restricted from back kibble if you want the head facing up.

Arms - Shoulders on ball joints. Double jointed elbows. Wrist swivel

Upper torso - Chest on ball joint. Waist on ball joint which can only swivel unless you pull that portion up. Then you can rotate a bit and have some ab crunch.

Legs - Ball joint thighs. Double jointed knees. Front of feet can swivel down. And there's ankle tilt.  

Aesthetics:
Really like the look of this figure. Avoids the kibble issues most Arcee toy iterations have had. I'm glad they didn't try to make her cute. You can pose her as such if you're inclined, but I prefer her being a badass bot. Her weapons include 2 foldable blades that can be stored on her thighs and back, and two foldable blasters that can be stored on her back skirt/guard. Both sets are nicely molded and colored giving her more pose and display options.

Transformation:

A little tricky for me at first. I just had to come to the conclusion that I was not going to be able to have certain parts tabbed in perfectly (wrist to legs). At least you can change her look in alt mode.

Alternate mode:

Really cool looking hover vehicle that can be changed around to suit your preference. I like that it's not so restrictive. There's also a small stand that can be tabbed in at the bottom to make it look as if it's hovering. This piece can also be used to help balance the figure in bot mode when place on either foot. 

Here are a few more shots:

Behind the scene set up shot: