Day 243

Day 243 August 31^st

Beta Ray Bill

While the Stormbreaker box set is billed as a Thor box set the star of the set is very obviously Beta Ray Bill. Earlier in my minimate collecting a character like this seemed very unlikely due to the level of sculpting required, especially for the head, but now a days with how much DST has really grown with how they make minimates I truly believe that any character is possible! This is a great looking minimate! Very true to how he looks in the comics and the details are amazing! The new gloves, the new, more armoured looking leg pieces, the great boots and even the chest cap which thankfully does NOT make him seem sooo over bulky that chest caps can sometimes do; everything looks amazing! Of course I cannot leave out the fantastic job they did with the head sculpt; Beta Ray Bills head is by far one of the most unique looking head sculpts I have seen for a minimate and they nail the look perfectly! Bills hammer, Stormbreaker, looks spot on to how it looks in the books and is a great addition to the minimate. This is probably one of my favourite minimate releases so far of this year!

Day 242

Day 242 August 30^th

Sif

What a great looking, comic accurate minimate Sif from the Stormbreaker box set is! She practically jumps right out of the pages of this classic Simonson story and into my very welcoming minimate collection. The red really pops and there is no bleeding of colour or sloppy tampo/painting. The new headpiece sculpt is dead on for the look as well. Another great new character to add to the collection!

Day 241

Day 241 August 29^th

Thor

I do have to say that for as much as I was excited for the first Thor minimate, every time we get a new version of the classic look it keeps getting better and better! I love the new way of doing the boots so they are not sooooo bulky and of course the use of a standard chest piece instead of the bulky chest cap is another huge plus in my books! The reuse of the hammer with the inscription is great; I love that piece of detailing! For some reason the more I play with this one the more I keep picturing him as the Thor from the Twisted Toyfare theatres, there is just something about him, go figure!

Day 240

Day 240 August 28^th

Sundays with my Son

My first M.A.X firefighter chief it was in the 4 pack in wave one. He is holding the Jaws of Life. The smokejumper (in the next Sunday photo) is holding a chainsaw. I like the open jacket and the red helmet for the chief and the black helmet for the firefighters. I am excited for wave two for M.A.X. (mobile action extreme)!

Day 239

Day 239 August 27^th

Loki

I have been a fan of Thor for a long time yet am ashamed to say I haven’t read a lot of his comics…there was just something about the character that I liked even without reading his comics. So now I am eating up his books, old and new, like crazy and loving it! One particular run I am looking forward to reading is the legendary Walt Simonson run which is coming in one large hardcover book! Loki here is from the Action Figure eXpress San Diego Comic-con exclusive Stormbreaker 4 pack which is part of Walts run. They even had Walt signing the box sets one of the days! I really dig the way Loki looks and how well the look translated from the comics to the minimate. The colours are awesome and the details look perfect! If this is any indication of how cool this run of comics is going to be the book cannot get here soon enough!

Day 238

Day 238 August 26^th

Wave 41 Review Day 3

Age of Apocalypse Mr. Sinister and Nimrod

This is a new step for the blog, a slight swerve from the usual course. Recently there was a review posted of this wave after the reviewer was sent a free advance set of the minimates. I felt the reviewer was not all that interested in the minimates and the review showed that lack of interest. So here is my go at doing a good review!

Packaging –

Age of Apocalypse Mr. Sinister – I will make no attempts to hide the fact that the Age of Apocalypse storylines was by far one of my favourite comic book events ever!! I loved the character designs and am over the moon with excitement that we are getting some of them as minimates! The fact that this minimate was released as a variant and not part of an Age of Apocalypse 2 pack, or box set shows me that DST is more than willing to head back into the Age of Apocalypse and give us more minimates from the stories! Again DST hits a homerun with the cape! This one has less to it than the 616 counter part and therefore is even easier to see the more separate looking tendrils. The colours of this minimate are spot on to the look in the comics, no technical issues such like edge bleeding and such the like, the colours are crisp and strong through out this minimate. One of the hugest new pieces has got to be the AoA Mr. Sinister is amazing; it has just the right of amount of pure awesome to look dead on and great! The facial expression really does go a long why to help sell the minimates over all look and this one does not let down!

Nimrod –See previous day

This is an awesome set for any fan of the Age of Apocalypse storyline as it brings out a major player in some of the books and over all storyline. As an over all feel it looks great and I am all too happy how this version of Mr. Sinister turned out! I give this set 4.5 out of 5, again I have to dock points only for the tampos on the arms not going all the way around the arm, otherwise this is a perfect set!

Day 237

Day 237 August 25^th

Wave 41 Review Day 3

Mr. Sinister and Nimrod

This is a new step for the blog, a slight swerve from the usual course. Recently there was a review posted of this wave after the reviewer was sent a free advance set of the minimates. I felt the reviewer was not all that interested in the minimates and the review showed that lack of interest. So here is my go at doing a good review!

Packaging –

Mr. Sinister – Here we have a much requested and rather iconic X-Men villain. In all honesty I am all too happy that it has been such a long wait to get to Mr. Sinisters minimate release. This minimate looks so good that I think if he had been made earlier there is no possible way he would have looked anywhere near this good and chances could be slim to seeing another one being made, since his look is pretty much consistent. The colours of this minimate are perfectly matched to his comic book appearences and the red on white on the head pop perfectly! I really enjoy how they did the cape, especially since in the comics there are some great dynamic scenes with all the tendrils flying around and I was worried that they would not be somewhat, somehow separate on the minimates cape. Another great design piece on this minimate are the boots, I love the new ways in which DST is making these bigger/higher boots instead of the bulky and clunky boots. These regular style feet with the higher parts coming up the front really work for me…I think it really adds to the overall look of the minimates instead of looking grossly out of place! Again this is a great looking minimate, lacking only in the tampos going all the way around the arms but otherwise another fantastic transition from the comic books and great new villain to add to the minimate collection!

Nimrod – The choice of Nimrod as the army builder in this wave is a bit of a stretch, particularly given the look they chose. While I may be a bit rusty on my X-Men comic history, it has been awhile since I read most of them, I do believe that in this particular look Nimrod was never in a group, I seem to recall he was an advanced Sentinel from an alternate future. Given though that this alternate future was one controlled by sentinels I could see that maybe in that timeline there were multiples, the current universe however only one was around, until more modern stories that is. I love DSTs use of the pearl esque look for Nimrod as it really gives him a more metallic look, which really since he is a giant mutant hunting machine, kind of makes sense. The pink of his face and of the triangle on his chest really pop against the pearl-esque white, making them stand out perfectly and also lending to the details of the open mouth also looking really nice and clear! The over sized hands and feet add the bulk to the torso/chest and head slip over piece work really good to give Nimrod a fighting chance! One person has pointed out that the oversized boots might work quite nicely for a space or deep sea armour for Iron Man! Under the massive chest cap piece you can see some gears and things that help keep the look and idea that he was built in the future and is purely mechanical inside.

This set brings us a couple of great new villains especially over in the X-Men family of minimates! Nimrod looks great but DST scores huge points for Mr. Sinister as he is by far one of the most requested x-villain. I give this set 4.5 out of 5, again I have to dock points only for the tampos on the arms not going all the way around the arm, otherwise this is a perfect set!

Day 236

Day 236 August 24^th

Wave 41 Review Day 2

First Appearance Iron Man and Hulk

This is a new step for the blog, a slight swerve from the usual course. Recently there was a review posted of this wave after the reviewer was sent a free advance set of the minimates. I felt the reviewer was not all that interested in the minimates and the review showed that lack of interest. So here is my go at doing a good review!

Packaging – Since this was covered in the previous day’s entry I do not have anything else to add, aside from the fact that I really do enjoy the fact that they are using the art of the character below the window and on the sides. Oh! I forgot to mention the fact that the minimates styled characters have been added to the top part of the package, a nice group shot of Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Spider Man and Wolverine. I love minimate style artwork like that!

First Appearance Iron Man – Again some will jump up to point out that we have already gotten a minimate of this armour, several to be perfectly honest but I will also point out that each one has been different and unique in its own way. That distinctiveness holds true with this latest version as it looks a bit dirtier and rough looking, more akin to how it should look given the conditions under which it was created. While I was going over the pictures for this review I just found I really enjoyed the subtle details of this particular minimate. DST added just the right amount of roughness to the tampo to enhance the details on this minimate, and I love the vent they put on the back too! Even the details on the chest block look great, nice clean lines and colours – an awesome little bonus under the armour! Iron Man comes with a hair piece for Tony Starks head under the removable helmet. He also comes with a blaster and an alternate hand with a finger extended to indicate some sort of weapon/tool type deal. It was first used with the Cyborg minimate for the ill fated DC Direct line of DC minimates and after swapping it on here I can actually see where it might be useful.

Hulk – At one point it looked like this bulked up version of The Incredible Hulk was going to be called “Mega Rage Hulk” which actually became a popular title for it amongst the members of the Minimate Multiverse community and I would have to agree, that is a great name for this new minimate! Ever since the first Hulk minimate way back in wave 1 he felt a bit off, never quite right no matter what DST tried to increase his size while still fitting within the size restriction of the license. I have to honestly say that I think they nailed this one dead on! He is massive and looks like the Hulk should! No ridiculous ‘duck feet’ to help make him taller but still having pencil thin arms and legs with a bigger chest cap, no this minimate has it all – huge chest cap, big feet and hands and the new bulky pieces for the upper arms and thighs/upper legs. The best part of all of that is that they all work together perfectly to create a great Hulk minimate! As an added bonus DST included 2 different hairpieces, one a bit more messy looking which is a reuse from the Defenders box set Hulk – which still is one of my favourite minimates of the Hulk! Both hairpieces actually look really nice on this minimate so I am going to have a tough time choosing which one I will use primarily on display with the minimate. This is a Hulk minimate worthy of taking on Iron Man in his Hulkbuster armour!

Another great set in this wave, even if some will complain that they are just rehashes. I really dig the look of this version of the Iron Man armour and despite what some will say this new bulked up Hulk minimate is a great and fun minimate!! I give this set a MEGA 4.5 out of 5, docking points only for the fact that DST did not indeed name this Hulk “Mega Rage Hulk”, sometimes a great name can really sell a toy and/or character.

Day 235

Day 235 August 23^rd

Wave 41 Review Day 1

Unmasked Spider Man and Green Goblin w Glider

This is a new step for the blog, a slight swerve from the usual course. Recently there was a review posted of this wave after the reviewer was sent a free advance set of the minimates. I felt the reviewer was not all that interested in the minimates and the review showed that lack of interest. So here is my go at doing a good review!

Packaging – Wave 41 marks a new package design debut! I really like the larger window right off the bat as it really allows for a god view of the minimates inside, as well as a better peek at any extras in the package. The artwork on the front no longer runs the risk of obscuring the minimates inside and is also used on the side flaps, which provides a nice consistent feel to the package. The back showcases the entire wave along with a small bio/write up box for both characters. I like how DST is starting to use a double tray system on the inside for when the minimates have a lot of accessories packed with them; such is the case in this set.

Unmasked Spider Man – While some might nitpick at the name since we have already had a minimate named ‘Unmasked Spider Man’, I don’t really find it too much of an issue here especially since the look of this particular Spider Man is linked to issue 39 of Amazing Spiderman and the tagline on the cover was all about unmasking! The slip over mask is a nice touch here to make the minimate instantly recognizable as Spider Man to even the new or casual buyer. The face and hair for the unmasked look have a more old style look to them, I think anyways, which lends itself even more to the look of that iconic cover. The tearing away of Peters civilian clothes and the Spider Man costume showing underneath was executed perfectly and there is very little colour bleeding present, great work here as it is a make or break point of this minimate! The hair piece is a reuse from the Wolfmans Larry Talbot but frankly it looks better here. Other than the mask Spider Man also comes with a web line which is always great to get.

Green Goblin with Glider – This is a huge step for minimate fans that have been around for awhile, as we have long asked/begged/hounded DST to make a glider for the various Green Goblin minimates since it is rather iconic to the character. When they released the Menace minimate with a glider I am sure many people bought spares to have more gliders for other users too, I know I did! Here we have Normal in his classic Green Goblin dude, right down to the satchel for his pumpkin bombs. Speaking of them, the pumpkin bomb hand makes an appearance here, another great accessory for the Goblin. The use of the new separate cuff pieces for the gloves makes it possible for the pumpkin bomb hand look natural when in use since both hands still have the cuffs for gloved look. The long hat piece is now molded to the head and no longer a removable piece as it had been before and I actually prefer it that way. The big crazy looking eyes on his face really sell the maniac that the Green Goblin has been portrayed as. He does come with a second head and hairpiece to be unmasked as Norman Osborn, again playing back to the issue of Amazing Spider Man and the unmasking therein. I found the hairpiece to be a bit ill fitting as it seems to have a bit of a gap but I am sure a bit more working with it will fix that.

The glider is probably the biggest note of this whole set, and it does not disappoint! It has a foot peg on one raised platform along with a matching platform on the other side for the other foot to rest on. The feet fit nicely here and a stance looks really good on it. The wings are the classic, bat-like look and there is the thruster out the back and the iconic head on the front. On the underside are two ports, maybe exhaust ports, but they serve the purpose of allowing the glider to connect to the flaming propulsion base that is also included in the set. This really helps to sell the blasting off/flight look for the glider! There is one more accessory in this set and this piece locks the homage to the cover of Amazing Spider Man 39. That is of course the rope that wraps around the Peter Parker minimate and can be held by the Goblin while he is flying on the glider! In essence the rope then turns Peter into the most detailed accessory to the Green Goblin minimate ever!!

This set goes through huge paces to give us some great looking minimates with a ton of extra pieces and too boot it helps recreate an iconic moment in Spider Man history! I give this set a 4.5 out of 5, docking points only for the fact that the tampos on Spider Mans arms don’t go all the way around, a new trend that is a bit disappointing as a whole.

Day 234

Day 234 August 22^nd

Siryn Custom

This is a custom of mine, something I don’t do too often since I lack the time and skills to put a lot of work into some customs, but thanks to a friend on the Minimate Multiverse forum not only did I get an easy to follow recipe for parts but he also painted and decaled the cape, which would have been the biggest roadblock in this process. Now I can add Terry to my small grouping of X-Factor minimates, right beside the official Multiple Man and the custom Strong Guy. I really hope DST comes around to giving us some more of the modern X-Factor – it is currently and has been consistently my favourite read every month!

Day 233

Day 233 August 21^st

Sundays with my Son

Chun Li is my favourite Street Fighter character! These are also my first sets with Capcom characters. I am excited to see the new Chun Li in the Marvel vs. Capcom 3 line. I hope DST makes Chun Li in her player 3 costume, the green one!

Day 232

Day 232 August 20^th

Ray

DST really did a great job getting a good facial expression for Ray; it looks very accurate to the show. Again Ray has the removable chest cap with jumpsuit tampo underneath as well as the trap peg on the proton pack. As I said before I am a huge fan of the show and love how good these minimates are looking. The new sculpt on the wand looks fantastic and playing with these mates while doing the photos really takes me back!

Day 231

Day 231 August 19^th

Egon

There was only one part the DST had to get right with this minimate and they NAILED IT! Of course I am talking about the new sculpt of Egons P.K.E. meter which is fantastic. Ha! Seriously I did actually mean the sculpting of Egons iconic hair! This look is such a signature piece of the look of the show and yes DST did a fantastic job with it, dead on show accurate! Another great bonus with these minimates is the tampo of their jumpsuit underneath the oversized chest piece holding the proton pack. Although after seeing this feature it kinda makes me wish they would have used the removable packs like Janines and kept the characters less bulky.

Day 230

Day 230 August 18^th

Slimer

Another great example of the cartoon expanding the stories and characters as Slimer ends up joining the Ghostbusters team! I love that he even ends up busting a few ghosts with a proton pack of his own! DST did a really nice job with this minimate by making the proton pack as a separate piece so you can have Slimer with and without it.

Day 229

Day 229 August 17^th

Janine

One of the things I loved about this cartoon was how it really expanded the roles of characters and how awesome it was to see Janine don the Ghostbusters uniform and proton pack! The pink hues of this mate are fantastic and the facial expression looks amazing too! The colours of the proton pack are show accurate as is the new sculpt of the wand. I also love how the proton packs now hold a trap which is also a nod to the cartoon. All in all another hit for minimates and DST!