Southpaw Samurai

Just because we were discussing scale and perceptions of size, here's a quick collage of images I put together of the figure-scaled fighters (theoretically 1:18). I took a shot of each next to an X-Wing, then scaled them so the X-Wing was the same size in each photo, so they're close to within a percentage point or two of all being how big they are to each other. (L-r: Imperial Shuttle (wings up), N-1 Naboo Starfighter, X-wing (FX), A-Wing, Y-Wing (most recent one because I'm glad they fixed the nose guns... but my right engine frame is still warped from the box), B-Wing, TIE (large wings... I sat it on its back just so the size of the wings can be appreciated... the wings stay straight vertical when it's right side u), P-51 Mustang (for scale comparison...should've thrown in my F-16 Falcon to dwarf every thing else), and the shuttle again (with its wings as extended as they can sitting flat... the actual wingspan would lose another 1/2 inch or so if it was actually 'flying'). While the Y-wing is disproportionate to itself (engines are tiny) and not in proper scale for 1:18, it doesn't look that out of place and most people who aren't Star Wars ship buffs rarely notice how wonky it is. The shuttle, however, almost looks more like a two-crew gunboat/bomber instead of a ship that should fit four in the cockpit and a squad of men in the back. I never had too much issue with the plating on the Y-wing. If the ships do have deflector shields, the shields could be the main deterrent when it comes to space debris. The Falcon does have exposed parts as well, although granted, not nearly the entire ship like the Y-wing and the X-Wing has exposed stuff on the top of its main fuselage (presumably makes it easier for the astromech droid to perform in flight maintenance). When we got to see the overly sleek N-1s in TPM, I was one of those hoping that by the third movie we'd see early, fully plated Y-wings (or their direct ancestors). It's sort of a shame that we instead just got early X- and A-wings mixed with TIE parts.

I totally concur. It's sort of weird because they're established repaints that fan always seem to ask about. I haven't been collecting most of the new Transformer lines, but if I were, I'd want all six seekers... heck, I'd even take Sunstorm despite the eyesore his color scheme is and I know nothing about his character. Frankly, if done with choice colors, people might even buy NEW repaint versions. Nearly any TF line that paid the slightest bit of homage to the G1 should not only realize that these characters are repaints that come naturally, but they could also be used as army builders if done right. I'm still waiting for my Thundercracker MP... and would probably only spend a half hour before deciding I'd take the conehead trio at $50-100 a pop too. But, chances are we'll get Snake-eyes in each of the six seeker color schemes before Hasbro realizes they're not the plague-ridden characters they seem to think they are.

Absolutely true and I wasn't so much implying that the Y-Wing was close to scale as saying that most people who would look at a display with one in it who aren't big Star Wars fans would wonder why it looks so small. The nice thing about the Y- and B-Wings is that you don't see them often (nearly at all in case of the latter) and almost never with something to give a definitive scale visually, unlike the Shuttle that you got a good idea of size compared to person. So while it may pain you and I to see such a warped old bird, I've only had one friend or visitor ever ask why the Y-wing isn't the right size (I'd love to see a YW in scale with a FX XW... even if it meant it would pretty much take up a shelf on its own... having the cockpit dwarf the two engine pods does look silly... I've always liked the big, ugly, brute-force look of the Y-wing). The larger winged standard TIE is really nice and I agree most of the rest look great against the X-Wing and even okay next to the AW and figures, although the bomber still feel like it's too cramped... then again, I'm basing it solely on how it looks and the general feel that bombers shouldn't be smaller than fighters. If Hasbro were to say, "In the next two years we're re-releasing the big wing TIE, the Interceptor, Bomber, and Advanced all in white/light grey with nothing special on the paint jobs, I'd almost have to reconsider replacing my blues... but it's just bugged me that the recent ones have heavy paint apps... the stripe on the 181st is one thing (still dislike it), but the extreme dirt/damage is almost silly. When do you ever see a filthy or badly damaged TIE? They seem to blow up if the pilot sneezes! A little dirt/wear around weapons or what-not I'm fine with, but keep my Imp ships clean and my Alliance ships filthy. Speaking of clean, yeah... the N-1 is pretty nice... and you're right in that it might just be the closest to actual scale as far as the figure-scaled fighter go. I unfortunately have it in a box because it's big and it really doesn't work with much else, but I still like it and if I ever have the room, might pick up some droid fighters for some hanging battle.

That was all my own writing, poking fun at exactly what you're referencing. I'm sure some people at Hasbro wouldn't mind making fun of it, but I'm not so sure it'd be released so blatantly. I came back to the Joe comics for that little sprint where Hasbro told Hama, "Kill away with anyone we're not making." and he went on a spree. It was shocking to see Joes getting mowed down.. although at least the first batch or so actually both proved a point and made for a few good moments (like Cobra Commander originally freaking out that someone killed the Joes when he meant 'get rid of them' as in to dump them and keep on moving. Still, poor Doc just went out so brutally...

Dusty needs to be done. V1 in particular. Dusty was one of those figures that looked cool, yet also looked relatively 'normal'. And today the 'standard looking GI in desert camo' would be a nice figure represent a good number of the U.S.'s currently active troops. I know that a desert camo might also be considered 'bad taste' or whatever from some people, but even if you dislike the war, it's still a nice homage. And to top it off, Dusty was generally a cool character. Somebody had a Duke on ebay that was painted up in something between correct U.S. desert camo and the desert camo 'Hall of Fame' 12" figure from the early 90's and I was sooooo tempted to bid on it just to get a piece of matching cloth to turn him into Dusty....

The shuttle IS pretty big... although, sadly, the scale is still on the small side compared to figures, even considering its a toy. The new X-Wings and even the Y-Wing can pass to those who aren't die hard fans, but the shuttle's not as forgiving, despite its general size (you could ship a small child in its box). Getting the FAOSchwartz re-release a few years back was the completing piece to my bookshelf top Imperial Welcoming Party layout.... I have the shuttle up on a 1" or so set of blocks so that the walkway doesn't look like one has to slither out of it (metaphorically fitting for Palpatine, but at his age, he should have to limbo or crawl out). The shuttle's about as tall as the the AT-AT, to give some an idea of size.

"St.Paul, MN - Capt. Carl Greer, better known to many as simply 'Doc', arrived back at the local G.I.Joe headquarters today after an undisclosed amount of time as a captive of Cobra. Doc seems to have suffered his captivity relatively well, displaying a little weight loss in the face, some elbows that can't bend fully, and apparently wearing adult diapers. Doc has been a long term member of the special forces unit known as G.I.Joe, functioning as the team's medic despite being a fully trained and competent general surgeon. In the early nineties it was believed that he had died on a mission, having suffered at least five machine gun rounds to his head. However, it appears that he was just 'in a coma' and now is doing much better. Doc will return to active duty soon. Meanwhile, G.I.Joe intelligence is trying to determine why Doc was being ransomed by Cobra not for money, release of prisoners, or some other goal, but for stickers and 'flag points'. Experts believe Cobra recently discovered some old mail-in offers for equipment and is hoping to procure them with said points." My Doc arrived today (well maybe yesterday or Wednesday, but didn't have time after work to pick him up from the Post Office). There's already pictures around, so I won't waste anyone's time or bandwidth, but I'm mostly happy. Doc was one of my second tier favorites as a kid. This is a good version that includes all his goodies, including his stretcher. He also has a flare pistol, which is nice (I was worried they may include an actual gun, which would be a no-no for Doc the pacifist). His head is a little small and the helmet sits a little high, giving him a less serious look, but it's not bad. His face is a little thinner than his original toy and his card painting/comic appearance. He unfortunately uses most of Duke's body, so you have the rolled up sleeve elbow issue as well as a wide crotch. Duke's torso otherwise works with the pockets and stuff and makes a good substitute for not having a unique body of his own. I almost wish they didn't try to pretend Duke's wings weren't there. Capt. Greer graduated airborne school, after all, so why not have the pin? He comes carded in a extra plastic clam shell in a white box. The box has a huge G.I.Joe logo, the words 'G.I.Joe Doc' on it and is unsealed, so be careful if you live near people who might be interested in such if the postman leaves it at your door. Overall, he's a good figure. Very close to the original and the elbows and crotch aren't as big of a deal for someone who won't be in as many action poses. I'm glad he made it to the collection and I have to agree with someone from another board that said it's good he wasn't released to the masses as he'd probably be sharing space with Buzzer if he had been. As a mail-in, he's available, but only to those who want him. I'm almost tempted to shoot for another as his head would make a decent Short-Fuze custom with the glasses he wore in the comics.

The Firebat was a very cool toy. Looked cool, was accurately displayed in the cartoon, and was just slick... the whole Terrordrome was just a fun playset... and I say that even though my brother and I got it when I was personally moving out of my G.I.Joe phase. Its only downside was that it was huge and couldn't be broken down like the original Joe base or the Flagg (never had the carrier, but a friend did). Even though I really don't want to buy vehicles that can't be used for figure holders and/or will take up space, I might have to get the Firebat.... The Dress Blues Gung-ho was certainly one of the more unique and cool looking figures and it inspired me go for the role of a Marine in the school Christmas Pageant shortly after he came out... my mom based the costume more on him than the photo we found of a Marine uniform. The only problem with that Gung-ho as a toy was trying to explain why he was running around doing stuff in his tidiest outfit... you KNOW Gung-ho would've at least opened the jacket up (and probably tore open his shirt as soon as bullets started flying ). He makes a great display figure though. Hasbro should do him up, but also give us somebody in Army, Navy, and Air Force dress uniforms... heck, and throw in Cutter in a Coast Guard outfit. Would make a nice set and if they did it so the hats weren't part of the head, it might appeal to those who would want to customize a bunch of Joes in their Sunday best. After my personal concern over getting the Target exclusives (which I almost didn't want until the chance of not getting them came to mind... ), two of my local Targets are almost swimming in them.... and we're down to three Buzzers, 1 Duke/CC pack, and 2 Duke/Scarlett packs at my nearest one, so we might be seeing a restock finally. I'll keep an eye out for the figures people have mentioned in their wish lists here.

I'm trying not to look too much at the Snake-eyes photos... it's the one costume we initially assumed was good looking and the more you look, the more problems you have. I'm wondering if the visor thing was simply the result of just either problems producing a good looking grill visor that could sustain any kind of rough-housing without getting warped or poking Mr. Park in the eyes and still look good on film. Still, much like someone said about the Baroness, I've seen well done fan costumes that did it. And seeing the half'n'half outfit is just killing me. He and Scarlett were two I'd forgive going a spandex or tight latex on, but it does really need to be one way or the other. He can still be 'Mr. Cool Ninja' and have a slightly baggier top. Heck, I really think all he'd need is some kind of vest or fuller webbing and the arms can be left as tight/rubbery as they are. I'm torn on the face (aside from the visor). One one hand the details of the face seem too wrong for Snake-eyes... the details almost make him more some modern Voldo from Soul Calibur...yet it also gives a really creepy vibe... and while that's not the Snake-eyes we know and love, it does work in terms of the creepy-sneaky guy who moves from shadow to shadow. One the plus side, it's Ray Park underneath all that, which means we should see some fun action... and that's the reason he hold his katana correctly and not like some baseball bat like just about any non-Japanese (and, sadly, even some Japanese) actors do in shots. I tried not to see Flint in Quaid's pictures... the beret almost immediately sends you that way, but I have no problem with Hawk wearing one. But you're right... not just the beret, but the black on top of camo, and even all the exaggerated looks... it's truly a 1980's Flint if he stayed in the military the past 25 years.... If they didn't want to go the route of overly colorful, almost silly outfits from the toys/cartoon, they should've looked at Predator. You had a half dozen or so spec ops guys. All wearing mostly realistic get ups with somewhat dull colors (nothing fancy), yet each one was unique in appearance and silhouette. People might laugh if you mention Predator as 'high art', but there's actually some costume design choices modern movie makers can learn from there.... I haven't seen many positive opinions in the various boards that have linked to these pictures.... even more an uproar than the Transformer pictures. Maybe... just maybe they're only so far into this that they can make a few changes. Of course, I'm more confident that I'll find the money and pull to make a sequel and reboot this series.

Not that I was particularly excited about this, especially after last year's movie that sort of resembled a Hasbro toy line, but I'm quickly falling into the 'No Joe' category myself. You round up a random bunch of U.S. soldiers from Iraq (or even native Iraqi security guys who half the time look as polished as a paintball team) and they'd look more colorful, diverse, and exciting than these costumes. I still don't get Hollywood and their love of black costumes for characters from comics/games/toys. Even if they HAD to have the accelerator suits in the story for whatever reason and they had to be black, you'd think they'd at least try to tease fans with more regular military outfits or maybe something that plays the slightest homage to an original costume (heck, Sideshow did it with their figure teaser using army surplus store outfits). As for the more unique looking folk: I know it might seem odd as a guy to complain, but is one of Cobra's diabolical plans to secretly wash all of Covergirl's clothes so that they shrink? I always pictured Covergirl as the type that would wheel herself out from under her Wolverine covered in grease and dirt, wearing a shirt and baggy BDU pants and you'd still think you just witnessed an angel appear. To me, she's the type that tries to hide some of her beauty so as to be more respected for her skill, not one who dolls herself up and finds the most flattering uniform she can. Aside from that personal peeve, I'm at least glad she's not in all black. Dennis Quaid as Hawk worked for me from the first time I heard it.. just wish he didn't look so grumpy in all the pictures. And, for the love of whatever, if he's going to wear a leather jacket over his uniform, WHY does it also have to be black? While I was never big on the whole Hasbro reimaging Hawk a old, almost-younger-Ronald Reagan-esque brunette, but I sort of dug the whole bomber jacket look. Stormshadow.... Disliked the costume from Reloaded, so it earns no more love here. I can understand him wanting a more modern look, especially since the whole 'pajama ninja' look is almost more 20th century fantasy than fact anyway, but one would actually fit in BETTER with a 'traditional' ninja outfit than what he's wearing. Back in the old comics, Stormshadow lived in a water tower on the roof of a fancy-schmancy upperclass Manhattan building and the doorman would greet him coming and going in his ninja outfit since Stormie had lead him to believe he frequently costume parties. With this costume, the doorman would instead greet him with a "Ah, welcome back, sir! Did you enjoy another one of those very weird Wachowski Brothers parties?"

Saw that earlier on AICN and even with time, all I can think is "Needs more color." I'm not even talking fan boy 'needs to be cartoon/comic/toy accurate color' either... they could paint some of it lime green and I'd be happier with it than its current 'Hollywood black'. Heck, I'd be happier if it was a solid color of something other than black... could be a dark blue or maybe a purplish color. Just something to be a bit more livelier. Black isn't even the most ideal night camouflage, so that's not the excuse. I know it sounds like I'm saying her hands are too small or something, but this is just more a visual aesthetics thing than a fan boy thing. Even if this wasn't a completely new intellectual property, I'd still be saying that too much black in everyone's costumes is boring. Then again, I head someplace that her suit's sort of a physical stat-boosting suit like they wear in the Crysis game.... and, if so, she very much looks like she belongs in the movie adaptation of that game... wait, isn't this a G.I.Joe movie?

As much as I detest the whole 'de-evoling into a snake' thing, I'd probably get a Roadblock with a mostly gone CC that wraps around him. Of course, I'd prefer if Roadblock had pupils and you could white them out if you want him blind rather than trying to add the pupils myself (shivers from memories of days of trying to paint miniatures). But I agree. Roadblock v2 always looked more like a real soldier, except for the bright green parts. A darker green would do wonders for him. But, yessssssssssss, a movie Cobra Commander with his ssssscepter and black/red cloak would be sssssupreme!

Shin might know of a complete checklist and/or all encompassing visual gallery. Otherwise, it wouldn't be that difficult for us to come up with a list. Short of Pimpdaddy Destro and the few Target or Toys'r'Us exclusives (a number simply repaints), there hasn't been too been much except the main line of the first three five-packs, then singles and double comic packs. As the line is popular and sometimes scarce, it'll be hard to find one location to buy up everything in one swoop for a decent price. Aside from a few true rare figures, you actually will probably have better luck in five years when the market dies a bit and people try to unload some of the stuff they bought up either to make a quick buck or because they're trying to figure out why they bought all these figures. You won't find every figure (as many are plainly sold out), but one online store I will vouch for as I've bought things from them for years upon years with no problems and a lot of friendliness is BigBadToyStore. Their 25th Anniversary selection is HERE. Usually with new stuff they'll be pretty reasonable (usually pennies to a buck or two above what you'd pay at Target if you could find them). As their stocks go down, they do raise prices and rare stuff can be a bit more expensive and might be better off looking around. These days you're also paying all in the increased shipping because of oil prices, so the benefits of ordering from them aren't as great as they once were, but I can't say a bad thing about them, customer service-wise. I've actually bought most of my 25th Joes from them and have gotten the waves quickly, completely, and safely (even though I just open everything up, it's nice to not have stuff arrived beat up) while my local Targets present waves of Buzzer clones.

Praise be laziness and/or store managers that misunderstand dates on orders! On a lark and going with my assumption yesterday that the one Target near me that didn't have anything out yesterday was running behind on end cap changes, I stopped by that Target after work today and, lo and behold! a near mint display... must've been put out less than an hour or so previously as the Target was packed but nothing had been shifted about (including SW and TF parts) and the Joe vehicles were all balanced in numbers. Very nice timing. Have to tell you, even though I wasn't desperate to pick these up, it does feel really nice seeing them ring up at @$10.70 after taxes rather than the $15-25 scalpers are asking pre-shipping. Any Minn/St.Paul folk who might be looking, it was the Super Target on University and Hamline. And anyone outside the Twin Cities who's looking for them, if you PM me by @3pm tomorrow, I'll take a look after work again. I don't know how long they'll survive, but it'll add maybe 5-10 minutes to my drive time home to swing by there. I sort of wish they didn't sticker up half the vehicle. Yesterday it was balancing the shark face on the Specter. Today it's from wishing I could trim the stickers. The giant stickers were nice as a kid, but the large numbers and cobra symbols on the Hiss are just glaring to an adult who really shouldn't be critiquing toys in such a manner. I suppose I could find repro labels for the HISS and just redo it all. Might consider it for the black one...

I concur. Not just a pretty good likeness, but also an attractive looking female Shepard. Usually even if you get one looking pretty good in the creation screen, once the game starts and the camera is at a different angle and she opens her mouth, she looks like some malformed troll....

So far, I've lucked out and my only bowlegged comic pack figure is Scarlett. No jokes about her, please... Scarlett's a fine, upstanding Southern lady! But, yes, I do have slight warping on a few, particularly the warped hands like Shin where holding on to the guy without the rubber band becomes difficult (and in the many cases, the rubber banded gun isn't sitting correctly... I'd consider leaving them if they were). Very disappointing downside to the forced positioning in the plastic trays. I totally agree that they should put them in more relaxed, if not neutral poses. Dynamic poses in packaging might sell a few more figures to kids or parents and certainly make the MIMB collectors have something better to look at, but the results of the forced positioning can almost wreck the figures as both a toy for kids (yes, toys still are bought to be played with!) and for those of us who like to display (and sometimes play) with the figures loose.....

Well, given the displays weren't up at all last week at my local Targets, I decided I'd split my list of 'what I can get at Target' up in four and make an early morning run to a few stores today in hopes of snagging something before the scalpers came through. I decided to sleep in an hour this morning and am not sure if I should be kicking myself for it. Of four local Targets, three had the display out and all the Joe stuff was already cleaned out except for Night Specters in two. The fourth didn't have any display out at all (didn't ask as I didn't want to waste time... it's the one closest to me, so I might stop in after work this week to see). Damn scalpers/greedy employees. Maybe it's because it's the only one I found or maybe because I didn't realize it had the Rattler's shark mouth on it, but the Night Specter has grown on me a bit. Still, I was never really fond of the Sharc and I REALLY don't have the room for extra vehicles (except the jeeps, HISSs and RAM as I can use to place figures on), so I may still be offering it up free sans Grandslam (we need more head molds for the original 13). I'm assuming the rest of the shark mouth is included on a sticker sheet... why didn't they bother to at least put it on completely? I can see only putting detail stickers on the outside facing side and not bothering with any little stickers (don't remember if the Sharc had 'No Step' stickers or not), but not putting on the other eye or the rest of the smile is inviting lopsided-ness. I'd offer to help track down desperately wanted figures for people, but it's still Buzzer city at all my nearby Targets (if any). It was almost depressing seeing the same situation at four different stores today... the leftovers of scalping vultures....

The blue definitely stands out more than the big, solid hunk of black of the original scheme. But the blue also makes it look a bit more 'plastic-y' than the black and I'm mainly in for the nostalgia kick, so the original black is the one I'd have to get. That said, my ultimate goal would be to get two of the black ones and one of the blue ones as a sort of 'command' version. I'm thinking of painting them up a bit to both provide some definition to the black ones and make the blue one look a little less phoney. Speaking of repainting, Grandslam looks like just a complete repaint of Flash, head-to-toe (no head from someone else), right? If so, I might just look for another Mr. "I-pick-my-own-rank" Gambello instead trying to find the Specter and then throw on the JUMP from the upcoming Duke. If I do find a Specter, would anyone here want a pilot-less, all-black SHARC for free? I had a SHARC with Deep "I need an oil can...joints frozen" Six as a kid but it never really enthralled me and having it in a non-original scheme makes it all the less appealing. Saw a Grunt the other day in person and the pictures actually somehow make him look better than he is. Who had a vendetta against Cpl.Graves at Hasbro? Grunt was the original G.I.Joe poster boy and had that dignified, ruggedly handsome, if generic military recruitment poster look for his card and associated art. Granted, his original toy head WAS the one that looked like an ugly, balding guy who just had a stroke, so maybe this is more a direct toy homage over how he appeared in other media (but given that the other two generic Joe heads were the bored, beared one and the sad stoner one, there wasn't much choice back then). At least the new Grunt doesn't look like he's had a stroke... just a mentally challenged hillbilly with a touch of Asian features with what's supposed to be some face fuzz but instead he looks like he's been eating too much barbeque. I think I'd rather brunette-up my comic pack Duke's head and repaint my other comic pack Hawk's body to make Grunt then consider picking up this pack. The one unique, if a generic repaint, figure in the three pack deserves a bit more respect than he got.

While I respect the whole 'can't go and get stuff from back when there's stuff on the shelf' policy from the standpoint of making it 'more fair' for customers and (most honestly) to save Target money by not re-ordering while there are peg warmers, I agree that it prevents them from making a sale and in the long run just makes it worse for the non-hording/scalper collectors. If I were relying solely on local Targets for Joes, I'd have the first three comic packs, the original three five packs, Beachhead, Stalker, Buzzer, some Cobras and CCs, and that's about it. Everytime I wander down the toy aisle, all there one sees the past few months have been Buzzers and the CC/Duke and Hawk/Scarlett comic packs. By not replenshing the stocks, the gang of Buzzers just sits there. Few, if any peoiple would buy Buzzer by himself... what kid wants a hippie-motorcycle guy with a chainsaw? If they'd replenish more often, a kid or parent might grab a few Joes and then maybe decide they need another baddie and Buzzer will do. I'm not holding my breath on finding the three Target vehicles at retail.... or at any decent price. There might be enough stock that eventually it isn't worth it for scalpers to resell, but otherwise why would any of them leave them on the shelves when they can easily put them on ebay and sell them for 200% the cost? I used to blame the scalpers, but these days I blame those who buy from them. If it weren't for those who are willing to pay 2-3x the cost of something just so they could have it now, scalpers wouldn't be so proliferated. I have no problem with someone buying a second toy to resell and try to make a quick buck, but it sickens me to see five or six ebay listings each for the trio of vehicles from the same seller. I completely revolts me that people are willing to drive the bids up on what is an obvious scalper. Fortunately, the Target vehicles aren't dear to me. The only reason I'd consider the black SHARC is for Grandslam and I could probably do better just finding a Flash and doing a repaint. I should be able to get a black HISS later on, so the blue one would just be for variety, and while the AWE Striker is one of those 'wish I had' toys from childhood, having never had it I don't feel as compelled as I am with say the VAMP.

You might be able to find a cheap bridge, which basically allows a wired connection to talk to a wireless one. The better retail ones are usually in the $100-200 range, but you can sometimes find deals online or in stores for single port ones (often they're specially referred to as wireless game adapters instead of network or wireless bridges) in the $30-40 range. Still not cheap, but the side bonus is that you could use it for anything that has a LAN connection. I've used both a single port one and multiport one and both have worked well for my 360 (which the wireless adapter for just wasn't picking up a strong enough signal). Looking for a cheaper USB wireless device probably won't work, unfortunately, as you'd need to install drivers (which the 360 won't let you), and configure it (ditto).

There's actually at least TWO and both are less over-the-top than Koei's (although I'd love to see a series based on Koei's designs and melodramatic touches... even if DID mean having a 'beautiful' Zhang He. After all, in many ways Dynasty Warriors is a reinvisioned version of the theater-like interpretations of the stories and characters, so it's actually not too far off, even if it's decidedly non-historical in its look). The first is , known in the english speaking world as 'Great Conquest: Romance of the Three Kingdoms' and has the late Pat Morita (Mr.Miyagi) narrating. I came across the VCD of it ages ago. It basically tells the story of Liu Bei getting in on the conflict with the Yellow Turbans up to Lu Bu's death, if I recall correctly. While it's apparently based on fuller series, this is the only part officially released in English. I couldn't quickly find a link to either the movie in its entirety nor even a more represented clip (the link is a fan-made montage), however. And then there's this , which has more of the story, but reflects a bit more traditional Japanese anime wackiness. I've only watched pieces of it on the Internet. I still like the incredibly long live action series, even if you could probably read the books faster than watch it. You can't find a media that DOESN'T have something Three Kingdoms related. Manga, anime, live action, music, video games, board games, card games (my favorite is this one where the instruction manual is in Engrish with gaps in gameplay logic, but can still be pieced together and be fun, especially as you have Lu Bu (as overpowered as in Dynasty Warriors) running amok, but also constantly being bribed away and betraying each of his current masters), etc... etc..... heck, I'd be surprised if there is ANY product category someone hasn't made a Three Kingdoms product for. I've even seen a Kong Ming (Zhuge Liang) phone which I now regret not getting. Of course, Zhuge Liang and Guan Yu are almost their own industry individually....

I'd actually rather see the naughty bits than do a Beowulf-like Austin Power style censorship which just detracts because it winds up being hilarious and distracting. That said, there's no reason why the good Doctor can't be covered most of the time and maybe be too glowly or otherwise distorted if they want to avoid the inevitable adult ratings. He should be naked, though... why should he bother with clothes except when he's officially a superhero and is 'on display'? ....Now will we still see the multiple Dr. Manhattan threesome scene? I do definitely want to see the Nightowl 'Snowowl' outfit though... I don't minght Nightowl being more armored than the comic... it both makes sense and plays up on the movie incarnations of superheroes... but he should still have the whole 'too much like a comic superhero and you start looking dorky' thing going.

Mog, I like the silver accents on the CG helmets. I was curious how that would look. The lighting in the first picture makes it look really good with it still be dark and muted enough. The second picture shows some of my concern over the silver winding up being too bright (although not as bad as I thought it might). I might try a gun metal or something either darker or applied thinner and see what I wind up with. But I have to agree that adding a little metallic to the face plate adds something (and makes it look a bit more like the package painting). I have to agree on both thr wider helmet being nicer, but the neck on Fred looks off. Only recently got my hands on the wave 3 comic packs and haven't had time to give my opinion (still don't to go into full details right now), but definitely have to agree with Shin on the newer comics... it's like Hasbro went to Hama and said, "Give us a three paragraph vignette on this or that and we'll turn it into a comic." And the Ace/Wild Weasel reprint choice was a disappointment. I personally would've gone for the 'Ace/Lady Jaye/Skystriker vs. WW/Baroness/Rattler' issue (it was in the 30's of the original run). That was classic Hama: personal, understated, well paced, and enough military stuff without sticking to reality too much and making it boring. Instead we get an issue with three pages of Ace, a few of WW, and mostly the Stealth Fighter. And all Ace does is ignore a carrier's wave off and brings a burning XF-14 crashing down on the flight deck and Keel-Haul tries to give Hawk the riot act over it and Hawk has this poo-eating grin on his face and replies, "I might lead the team, but on this ship, they're your men." If I was Keel-Haul at that point, I would've replied, "Fine. He's my man. Now you'll know how I got my name. Get me some rope!" I'm sort of glad I had mostly moved on from the toys and comics before that point, even if it was Hama still writing. Speaking of Ace doing stupid, crazy things, I my BBTS Ace arrived the day after I decided to pick on up at Target. Glad I did. The Ace I picked off the shelf actually looks relatively sane, but the second Ace has that incredible, wild-eyed, pinpoint pupil, 'going to shoot that Rattler down with lasers from my eyes!' look that everyone's been talking about. I almost feel like I should place him on the shelf either seated at a table with a big steak, in front of a pile of money, or something....

I have to agree and this was a major point of contention in my argument with my friend because he felt the whole 'coming for the girl' part was trite, too mushy-mushy, and totally out of left field. My friend basically saw the movie through Neville's eyes, where the mutated victims were simply mindless eating machines. I had to point out where again and again the leader guy was demonstrating some intelligence and at least immitational creativity, social behavior, and a goal centered around the capture of the female, whether she be mate/sister/daughter/or even simply 'part of the clan' (although the leader's obviously out for revenge at first, believing that Neville is simply hunting and killing). It was really interesting to me how people can come away with two such distinct views. I will not argue that it's way too sappy-happy, but my friend even blew the whole mutant-Neville diplomatic relations outcome out of proportion by suggesting they made all peace in the new ending. Like I told him, "It's not like the ending has the humans and mutants all sitting around a campfire singing and the mutant leader guy bringing two mutant puppies over so that both he and Will Smith can each have a new pet (although, now that I describe it, I would pay to see that ending)."

I had the most heated argument I ever had with a friend over the two endings... and neither of us really care a lot about the movie either, so it's plain silly. But he was quite irritated with the non-theatrical ending.