Top Twelve Toy Finds From June

TOP 12 TOY FINDS OF THE MONTH OF JUNE 2014

At the end of each month I, Brunpuppies, will put together a list of the top toys that I acquired over the course of the month. The number of entries will differ depending on just how many toys I got over the month. The order of the list will be based purely on my personal opinion of the items and is in no way definitive. I'm sure you the reader will have you own favorites and I am open to hearing about them in the comments section.

June was a particularly big moth of new toys mostly do to the lines being released to coincide with their respective movie summer blockbuster. Let's get right to with...

12. DC Comics Multiverse 3.75": 1989 Batman (Mattel)

"You wanna get nuts!? C'mon let’s get nuts!!"

This figure really could have had a better rank on this list, but Mattel had to go and make this a 3-3/4" scale figure. 

A Tim Burton / Michael Keaton Batman action figure is one I've wanted in my collection for a long time. This isn't a bad figure, sure it has some paint and QC issues, but it's really pretty good for it's size.  The problem is that I collect 6" scale figures and Mattel's switch in scales for movie figures just rubs me the wrong way. Oh well, I guess it's still possible that they could do one down the line. It also looks like Hot Toys is getting into the 6" market so it's possible they'll make one.

CLICK HERE to read my full review of this figure.

11. Transformers Movie 4: Generations Voyager Class Evasion Mode - Optimus Prime (Hasbro)

I can't seem to get myself into theaters to see the latest Transformers because of the piss-poor reception it's received. It sure is making tons of money, but it doesn't mean I want to have over two and a half hours of my life wasted. A lot of the toys for Transformer: Age of Extinction look pretty crappy too. The designs for the toys really seem to have taken a few steps backwards from the past lines. This is the one figure that interested me at all.

Other than Hot Rod / Rodimus Prime, Optimus Prime is my favorite Transformer. The classic 80's look is by far my favorite version, so I really like the fact that his on combines the colors and the vehicle mode of the old figure with the robot design of the new. I'm really quite happy with how this one turned out.  The proportions, design, and articulation are really very good. There are a few things I would have liked differently; the fact that the hands are recessed behind some panels is very awkward, I think making the upper arms red would have given it more of a classic look, the same goes for including a plate guard over the mouth, and maybe adding some exhaust stacks to the arms.

Even without making those changes, it's still a great figure. I just happen to have lost some interest in the property so it doesn't rank higher on the list. I should note that I didn't take a picture of the vehicle mode because did bother to finish transforming after fumbling around with it for a few minutes. If a figure is going to be sold in it's robot mode then the instructions should show you how to go from robot to vehicle, not vice vera.

10. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Movie Raphael (Playmates)

After buying this figure, I really wanted to go back and get the other three Turtles, but every time I went back, I just couldn't get over how much I dislike the the looks of them. Raphael is really the only one I like at all. As for the other figures in the line, Shredder is the only one I picked up because the rest were just outright terrible. 

Raph is really rather fun.  The articulation is good, the design of his appearance is perfectly fine, and he has most of his paint apps which is more than I can say for the other figures. I like this figure the more I look at him, especially his proportion which I think is what I dislike about the others, specifically Donatello. For now I'm happy just to have this guy.

CLICK HERE to read my full review of this figure.

9. Marvel Legends Infinite Series: Guardians of The Galaxy - Iron Man & Nova (Hasbro)

Yeah it's a cheat, putting these two together, but really they're a tie for me. I'm one of those people that still likes getting different Iron Man suit variations even though we've already gotten a ton of them and Nova is a character I've always really liked.

This Iron Man shares a lot of parts with the Heroic Age Iron Man, but between the different paint and some new parts, he looks really cool and different. I even like this suit more in toy form than I ever did in the comics. The articulation moves really well on this figure and I really have no complaints.

The Nova suffers a bit with the articulation. Not because there isn't enough or the range is poor, but because the parts are really soft. The elbow joints are possibly gummier than any other figure I have ever owned.  Even my old Toy Biz Deathlok, and that thing was really bad. I'm going to have it spend some time in the fridge in hops that it will stiffen up. Other than that, it's an awesome looking figure.  I love the costume design and the paint colors and any flying character that has articulation to look straight up, always gets huge points from me. If only more Superman figures could do that.

8. Charmed: Leo (Sota Toys)

Yep, this figure is far from current, but it rivals a lot of the better figures you find on the shelves today. 

I have never watched Charmed and I have no idea who this is, but when I saw him at a local collectibles store for a reasonable price I just had to pick him up. The store in question was terrible.  It just opened up in my local mall and I'm sure it's not going to last long. It may very well be one of the largest collectibles stores I've been in, but there was literally nothing in the store that interested me (picture every crappy toy that's come out in the last 15 years), especially at the prices they had, except this.

I'm not quite sure how they got a dozen of just his figure (yet none of the others from this line), but I'm glad they did. As far as I'm concerned this is just a generic ancient Greek soldier and a wonderful one at that. The the sculpt is great and the articulation is phenomenal. He's a lot of fun to pose and he stays standing relatively well. I really wish SOTA Toys was still making figures like this.

7. Quick-Build Model: Metal Kit - Suzuki Vinson (Testors)

1/12 scale vehicle with some great accessories? Yes, please!

I'm always looking for some sweet rides for my 6" scale figures and this quad fit the bill. I got this model kit for a clearance price of $10 in the model section of a chain craft store and it was worth every penny. Assembly was fairly quick, only about 15 minutes as the box stated. It involved no glue, just a bunch of screws and some snap together parts. The result looks just like the real thing.

The best part about this ATV is that it's clearly outfitted for a hunter / weekend warrior type. The gun rack with accompanying rifle and gun case, along with the compound bow and arrows look fantastic. The detail is perfect and the paint is well applied.

This quad looks great with most of my 6" figures and even many of my 7" ones too. My Green Arrow or NECA Dutch figure look equally good riding it. My collection of 1/12 scale motorbikes keeps growing, now I just need more cars and other vehicles.

CLICK HERE TO SEE TOYS 1 TO 6

The opinions expressed by the HiddenLevel Bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of HiddenLevel.org or anyone involved in the running of this site. HiddenLevel is not responsible for the accuracy of any of the information supplied by the Bloggers of this site.

The HiddenLevel Blog was founded as site for contributors to be able to express their opinions and share news about the interest they enjoy.  The main purpose is to have fun.

Other sites are welcome to use the information found on this sit as long as credit and a link are provided.  For and questions you may have or for further information about the site, please contact hiddenlevel.team@gmail.com

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Marvel Select Amazing Spider-Man 2 Action Figure Review

So The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was far from a perfect movie. Everyone has there own opinions as to what they did and didn't like about the movie. Personally, I liked just about everything about Spider-Man/Peter Parker himself, I just wasn't to thrilled with the villains or the direction of the story. I think one thing people can agree on is that the movie delivered the most faithful adaption of the comic book costume to date.

Product Description

A Diamond Select Toys release! The Amazing Spider-Man is back in an all-new big-screen adventure and he's also back in the hit Marvel Select line! This 7-inch-scale figure depicts Spidey in his brand-new costume and features 16 points of articulation. Comes packaged in display-ready Select packaging with spine reference artwork. Designed and sculpted by Gentle Giant!

Today's review is of Marvel Select: The Amazing Spider-Man 2 action figure by Diamond Select Toys. This figure is available in comic book and specialty stores for a suggested retail price of $24.99USD.

Package:  This figure comes in the same type of packaging that Marvel Select has been using since the line's begin.  I can't really think of any other line that has maintained that same style package for so long.  I'm sure for those that keep the figures mint on card and like consistency, this is a great thing.

The box is very big, and it does a good job of displaying what you're getting. There is a nice image of movie Spider-Man on the side that looks good when the box is displayed spine out on a shelf like a book. The back of the box has another shot of Spidey, this time full body and there is also a description of the Amazing Spider-Man 2 movie and of this figure:

For Peter Parker, life is busy - between taking out the bad guys as Spider-Man and spending time with the girl he loves, Gwen Stacy, high school graduation can't come quickly enough. Peter hasn't forgotten about the promise he made to Gwen's father to protect her by staying away - but that's a promise he just can't keep. Things will change for Peter when a new villain named Electro emerges, his ld friend Harry Osborn returns, and Peter uncovers new clues about his past. This 7-inch-scale action figure of Spider-Man is based on his appearance in the film The Amazing Spider-Man 2, features 16 points of articulation and is compatible with other Marvel Select action figures. Collect them all!

As I said, the box is big so if you do take the figure out of the package, you end up with a lot of waste. At least twice the amount of packaging that the average figure this size comes with and there is no real hope of saving and reusing the package to reseal the figure. So the package is neither environmentally nor collector friendly.

Verdict: 5/10

Sculpt:  I really like the sculpt on this Spider-Man quite a bit. The raised webbing and spiders along with the textures throughout the blue areas of the costume are really well done. The proportions throughout are almost perfect. I say almost, because I find the neck to be a little too short.  At first I thought the head might be too large,  but I think it's only because it sits too low.  Typically I think they make Spider-Man's head too small on action figures, so I think the fact that I'm use to seeing it smaller was also throwing me off.

I think I might like this figure better than the Marvel Legends version of the ASM2 Spidey, only because the sculpt and the articulation are integrated a better. The figure does a really good job of looking like it stepped right out of the movie.

Verdict: 9/10

Scale:  The scale for this figure comes out to be 7"(1:10) scale. The figure is just around 6.75" which means he fits in well with most Marvel Select figures.  He is shorter than some of the other movie characters, but I never considered him to be as tall as Captain America or Thor, so he seems to be just right along side the Avengers. He's also shorter than Wolverine, but movie Wolverine is played by a 6'2" Hugh Jackman and Spider-Man is played by a 5'10" Andrew Garfield so, again, the scale seems to be good.

The scale of this figure is definitely not going to work along side Marvel Legends figures, but fits great with many of the NECA or Mezco 7 inch figures. If you're looking to have Kick-Ass or Hellboy face-off against Spidey, this is the figure to use.

Verdict: 10/10

Paint:  Unfortunately I had a glaring paint issue with this figure that I wish I had noticed before I opened the box. Right on his chest just to the bottom right of his chest spider emblem, there is an area that should be blue, but went unpainted.  The store I bought him from had two of this figure and I past on the other one because there was some black splatter on the white part of one of his eyes.  Right there you have two strikes against the paint work for these figures, which is just too bad, because the rest of the paint is fairly well done.

The black lines on the web aren't perfect, but they are much better than I've seen on just about any other Spider-Man figure.  The black in general is very crisp and so is the white of the eyes.  The blue on the suit has a light paint wash that may have been unnecessary, but it doesn't look bad.

Verdict: 7/10

Articulation:  While not quite as articulated as the Marvel Legends Spider-Man, this figure has a wonderful amount of useful joints. As I said before, the articulation in incorporated in a way that maintains the realistic look of the sculpt, yet still allows you to get some really dynamic poses. I do however wish the head had a little more range of movement.  I think if the neck had been made a little longer, it may have alleviated that issue.

The follow are the points of articulation this figure has:

• Ball-jointed neck
• Hinge and swivel shoulders
• Hinge and swivel elbows
• Hinge and swivel wrists
• Ball-jointed torso
• Double swivel and hinge hips
• Double hinged knees
• Hinge and swivel ankles

Verdict: 9/10

Accessories:  There is no shortage of accessories that come with this figure. It is really a pleasure to get a figure like this that has so many options for display.  Here's what you get:

• a set set of hands with fingers out wide
• a set of griping hands
• a set of hands in fists
• a set of hands in fists with thumbs out
• a set of hands shooting webs
• 2 webs
• a fire hose nozzle
• a firefight helmet/hat

It's nice to not be stuck with yet another Spider-Man that has one hand in a fist and the other in a web-shooting position. You can still have that set-up if you want, but there are also so many other combinations.  The only set of hands I question are the ones that are in a fist with the thumbs out but not up.  I guess it's for holding the brim the the hat. Speaking of which, the firefighter items are unnecessary but very cool scene-specific props to have.  It's a shame the hose nozzle doesn't come with  a little bit of hose or at least have a coupling so you can add your own.

This toy should easily have a 10 out of 10 for this category if it wasn't for that fact that this is the "regular" version. It turns out there are three versions of this toy, this one, a Disney Store exclusive that comes with a Peter Parker head, and another version that will also include a display base.  Because I got the version that comes with the least amount of accessories, I had to at least take off half a point. I could have easily gotten the Disney Store version, the store near me always has tons of the exclusives, but I wasn't too keen on the head sculpt from the photos I saw.  The version with the base didn't interest me because display bases tend to end up in a box unless they are really interesting.  For those reasons, plus the fact that my local comic store was having a 25% off sale, I was fine with the version that I got.

Verdict: 9.5/10

Quality Control:  Other than the paint issue, I didn't have any problems with this figure what so ever.

Verdict: 8/10

Overall:  At this scale, this is by far may favorite Spider-Man toy.  I love that he works as both a movie and comic book accurate figure.  The paint issue annoys me, and I wish that specialty toy lines like Marvel Select and DC Collectibles didn't have so many paint problems lately, but it doesn't take away too much form my enjoyment of this figure.  I definitely recommend checking this figure out.  If you find one with better paint, it's easily a 9.  If not...

Verdict: 8.5/10

Click Here for a review of Warrior Claw Wolverine.

Click Here for a review of the DC Collectibles Batman action figure.

Click Here for a review of the DC Collectibles Nightwing action figure.

Click Here for a review of Talon and other action figures.

Click Here for a review of the DC Collectibles Bizarro action figure.

Click Here for a review of the DC Multiverse '89 Batman action figure.

Click Here for a review of Link from Legend of Zelda.

The opinions expressed by the HiddenLevel Bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of HiddenLevel.org or anyone involved in the running of this site. HiddenLevel is not responsible for the accuracy of any of the information supplied by the Bloggers of this site.

The HiddenLevel Blog was founded as site for contributors to be able to express their opinions and share news about the interest they enjoy.  The main purpose is to have fun.

Other sites are welcome to use the information found on this sit as long as credit and a link are provided.  For and questions you may have or for further information about the site, please contact hiddenlevel.team@gmail.com

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Press Release: How to Get Marvel Legends Agent Venom Exclusive Figure

The rumors have been going around for over a week now, but Hasbro has final sent out a press release with information on where to get the Marvel Legends Agent Venom action figure.  

Press Release: We are excited to confirm that Hasbro's Marvel Spider-Man Legends Infinite 6" Agent Venom Action Figure, previously revealed at Comic-Con International in San Diego last Summer, will be made available this Fall, exclusively at Walgreens in the U.S. 

 

This figure will be available for pre-order next month at SDCC. Fans should visit Hasbro's display booth during the show for more information.

Here are the official images of the figure in and out of package:

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Say Wah!? Spider-Man Statue with Boner

Via lockerdome.com

This is just so weird and creepy:

Lotte Shopping Center in Busan, South Korea has been home to a Spider-Man sculpture by an artist Eunsuk Yoo for over a year. What makes this even more unusual is that this was "erected" over a children's play area. Nice work, Eunsuk! It's a rather unusual, somewhat amusing sculpture of Spider-Man with a raging boner. 

The artist was quoted as saying, " My reason for making this piece was to apply the natural and physical phenomenon to a Superhero and depict it natural in the morning without lies and being superficial in a comical way". 

He then went on to say, " There have been some comments on various community sites and Facebook pages that this is lewd and a disgrace to the source material. Lotte Shopping Center has received many complaints this morning from a certain organization and after their meeting it was decided I have to modify the statue. Instead of modifying it I think I am going to take it down."

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Hot Toys: The Amazing Spider-Man 2 - Electro Figure

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was far from perfect and the main villain, Electro, was a bit more of a caricature than a character, but he was at least very cool looking.  His electrified appearance seems like it would be very difficult to translate into an action figure form, but yet again, Hot Toys was able to capture the look of an onscreen character perfectly.  These pictures of Electro look like they could have come right out of the movie.

http://www.hottoys.com.hk for more information

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Erik Laren's take on Amazing Spider-Man 2

Erik Larsen, creator of Savage Dragon and long time artist and writer on Spider-Man in the 80's and 90's, gave a quick review of the Amazing Spider-Man on his Facebook page today.  He also has quite a bit to say about the Sam Rami directed films. Here is what he had to say:

I liked Amazing Spider-Man 2 quite a bit. 

Andrew Garfield is such a perfect Peter Parker and he's simply fun to watch. Tobey Maguire never felt like Peter Parker to me and Andrew just nails it--from the build to the hair to the smart ass, goofy demeanor. I wasn't a big fan of the Raimi films--they seemed corny to me--the worst part about the first Amazing Spider-Man, the lining up the cranes just felt like too many scenes in the Raimi films (like the defiant New Yorkers on the subway) and he couldn't keep his mask on for two consecutive seconds--which really was not an issue here. In my eyes Tobey Maguire is like the Romita Peter Parker and Andrew Garfield is the Ditko/McFarlane/Larsen one. 

Emma Stone isn't quite Gwen as I pictured her--but her chemistry with Andrew Garfield can't be denied. They're a fantastic screen couple. Kristen Dunst was a dud and their whole relationship felt off to me. And I couldn't understand Peter's obsession with her. Re-watching any of the Raimi films is a chore to me--with way too many groan out loud moments and just general awkwardness--but not in a good way. The new ones seem peppy and fun to me--you felt the love between Peter and his aunt and Peter and his uncle whereas the scene where Cliff Robertson reads aloud the want ads from the newspaper from the first Raimi film just seemed so stilted and wooden.

They did pack in a lot. I wasn't thrilled that everything evil stemmed from Oscorp--but if that means skipping a few origins down the road--I'm all for that. Interesting that they skipped the introduction of J. Jonah Jameson and just had Peter taking pictures for the Bugle without actually having him visit the Bugle. Nice that they wrapped up the mystery with his parents and moved on--plus it gave him a compelling reason NOT to clear their name--lest he reveal himself--that was smart.

My wife always has a succinct and often hilariously uninformed post-movie review in the car. She thought it was corny and too silly but her two quibbles just amused me enough: "They don't serve dim sum at night" and "Jamie Foxx had a gap in his teeth but after he became Electro he didn't have a gap in his teeth" --it seems weird to me that with all of the crazy shit going on--Max Dillon turning into an electrical man--that his teeth getting slightly altered after the change seemed an odd place to draw a line in the sand in regard to her suspension of disbelief. She also said, "So, Harry Osborn becomes the Silver Surfer?" which cracked me up. 

I thought the post-credits X-Men scene was an ill-fit. Better to have nothing than an ad for some other film--it just seemed really out of place. I'm torn on the end with Rhino. It seemed a really odd place to leave it but also kind of appropriate. He's a second stringer that couldn't carry a movie and his appearance here kind of said as much. The machine guns seemed a bit weird though. Better just to make him a Rhino guy--having a Rhino that shoots bullets seems tacked on. I wonder if Marvel can stick the Rhino in a Hulk movie? They're already willing to have two versions of Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch--why not get him right somewhere?

All in all--happy with how Spider-Man is shaping up. I wish whoever's doing the Fantastic Four could get their shit together. That franchise is in the saddest shape of the current Marvel lot.

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Another List Of Spider-Man Costumes

Here's another list of Spider-Man costumes, this from Mashable.com.  It's not quite a complete list (Spider-Man Unlimited, Paperbag Spidey, and Cyborg Spidey are just a few missing) but it's pretty close.

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The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Review

You are about to enter spoiler country, proceed with caution.

Spider-Man might possibly be my favorite hero.  He's definitely the the most relatable for me.  I don't know what it's like being a billionaire playboy, an incredibly intelligent scientist, a man thrust into a different time period that is not his own, or an alien from a different planet.  I do however know what it's like trying to make ends meet, deal with relationship problems, and try to balance responsibilities with a social life.  That is what Spider-man/Peter Parker is all about.  I see myself in that character more than any other.  So I'm usually pretty excited when a new Spider-Man movie comes out.

The last few months leading up to the release of the new Amazing Spider-Man 2 movie has been a roller coaster ride.  It seemed like new characters where being announced as being part of the movie on a nearly daily basis.  I worried that there would be just way too much going on.  Then I would see some footage and the video would look slick and action packed.  I would get excited that this would be the best looking Spidey yet, especially with that perfectly comic book accurate costume.  But would the story suffer?  There were already a few more movies announced, I didn't want to be stuck with a Spider-Man I didn't like.

Then reviews started pouring in, some were mixed.  Many were saying the movie was good, but not amazing.  My expectations started to lower.  I really liked the first two Sam Rami directed movies and I thought the third was just okay, but I definitely didn't dislike it as much as most.  The reboot had a lot of potential, I just wish it hadn't wasted so much time retelling the origin story, especially when the changes just seem to be there simply to be different.  I was now excepting this sequel to possibly be my least favorite.  I went into the theater hoping that I would at least like something about the movie.

As luck would have it, I got the best Spider-Man ever!  No no, don't get me wrong.  I don't think it's the best Spider-Man movie ever, I think it's the best portrayal of the character we have ever gotten.  Andrew Garfield plays the perfect Peter Parker.  It just gets the right level of likable, wise-ass, quirky, responsibility driven every-man that the character should be.  The guy just knocks it out of the park.

I would love to see a movie where Peter Parker takes an internship at Stark Industries as one of Tony Stark's assistants. As long as they are played by Andrew Garfield and Robert Downey Jr.  I'm sure I would like every scene with the two them together in their civilian roles even more than their heroic identities.  Garfield now owns Spidey, like Downey owns his role as Iron Man.

As for the rest of the movie, the good out weighs the bad.  Emma Stone is Gwen Stacy the way Andrew Garfield is Peter Parker, spot on.  I completely believed the chemistry those two had.  I wish them the best of luck in their real lives (the 2 actors are currently dating), because they just seem to belong together.  Two other actors that shine in their roles are Dane DeHaan as Harry Osborn and Sally Field as Aunt May.  Their relationships felt real.  I could really believe that this was the Aunt May that had raised Peter.  Harry and Peter's friendship felt genuine…at least until things turned.

And there lies the problem with this movie, the damn villains.  The problem is not exclusive to this movie.  All the villains in the Spider-Man movie franchise suffer from not being very good. I don't really blame the actors in most cases; Willem Dafoe, Alfred Molina, Jamie Foxx, these are people that have proven they can act.  They just get put in these roles that involve poor choices. Usually the motivations behind the villains are really weak. Electro goes from loving Spider-Man to hating him because he forgot his name.  The guy wants to murder people because a guy he met for 2 seconds forgot his friggin' name!?  If I was him I'd be amazed that Spidey remembered as much about him as he does!

Harry Osborn's motivation is nearly as bad.  He just makes this giant leap in logic that Spider-Man's blood is just some magic cure all.  His dad leaves him all kinds of resources to help prolong his live, but he just ignore all of that and believes that Spider-Man must give him his blood or die.  When he does get his "cure" he has no interest in testing it or anything, just has it jammed into his veins.  What's the worst that could happen ?  Oh yeah, you could become a lackluster "Evil Villain" that serves very little purpose in the movie other than doing one thing that he is well known for doing in the comics.

Then there are are the other "bad guys."  Alistair Smythe is just a dochie jerk, Dr. Ashley Kafka seems like he came out of a Schumacher Batman movie, and Aleksei Sytseviche (the Rhino) seems like a corny cartoon character.  To be clear, I have no problem with the Rhino mech suit, I just think Paul Giamatti hams it up way too much.  Plus, for a movie with some great special effects, Giamatti looks poorly Photoshopped into that Rhino suit.  It's pretty bad.  I do love the scene at the end with the kid though.  That's how Spidey makes the kid in me feel.  Inspired to be strong.

There are a lot of other things I could pick apart, but I'm happy with the Spider-Man I got in this movie if not the villains.  At least he did a good job of trying to protect those around him, (unlike some blue and red clad superheroes) with one notable and unfortunate exception. 

-Brunpuppies

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Artist Spotlight: Marco D'Alfonso

Today's Artist spotlight is of a great illustrator named Marco D'Alfonso.  You can check out his work on his Deviant Page, M7781.  Today we'll be featuring some of his truly amazing Spider-Man art.  Be sure to check out his site, he's got some spectacular stuff over there.  His movie poster spoofs and dream team-up art is just sensational.

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