http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/notdolls/2007/10/gijoe-and-cobra.html

I've been wanting to do this post for a long time, and finally just carved out an hour to do the shoot, and few hours more to create the gag and do this post.

Gags like this are tough, because to me, they're funny. But this gag also uses the single-pack Wave 1 toys from the Hasbro G.I.Joe 25th Anniversary line, and they're hard to find (at least in my neck of the woods). So, I should have done this months ago to get all the haters more upset.

Tho these are from the Hasbro G.I.Joe 25th Anniversary line, they include no variants. (The only known variant is a Snake Eyes with a black Timber. I haven't seen it, but while interesting, Timber's not black, so WTF?)

Anyway, bad guys are fun. And while the G.I.Joe theme song is better than the Eastern Block lite Cobra theme, the whole "Yo Joe!" battle cry honestly only worked for me in the cartoon with Gung Ho. But there was an obvious circular joke for me to exploit with Roadblock. So I did.

I do have the Wave 1 25th Anniversary Cobra and Joe boxed sets (and the Wave 2 Cobra Legions, for that matter, but the quality is unfortunately not as good as the Wave 1 sets). Since the Wave 1 boxed sets are easier to find, there isn't as much urgency for me to do the follow-up gags.

The quality of the Wave 1 figures is top notch. They're super-detailed, have separate rubberized accessories (bandoliers, etc.) not found in the 1980s versions, more weapons, and what appear to be less-breakable thumbs (my big pet peeve with the originals).

Below is Flint, the least interesting of the bunch to me, but he was my brother's favorite growing up, so I copped to picking this one up (plus I have a Lady Jaye and Scarlett threesome joke in the works). All of the figures I've seen have a problem with the right wrist, which looks loose and detached, but functions OK. He's got a pistol (holstered in the pict below), and a shotgun.

The Cobra office is pretty slick, and the hardest to find. I believe he's a bit short-packed in the current run. Besides his machine gun, he's got what looks like a single sai /nightstick jobby in a two-ring holster on his left leg in the pict below.

Ah, hooded Cobra Commander. Anybody remember that this was a mail-away back in the day? Only my brother had the patience to get things like this and Holographic Anakin Skywalker. Good times. He comes with the trademark pistol the helmeted Cobra Commander (re-issued in the boxed set) came / comes with.

Below is "good" Storm Shadow, who has a great bandolier / "sword quiver" (the lower sword in the product pict is removable), a knife that is supposed to fit in the belt's plastic loop (doesn't well in the product below), and a bow (but now arrows; what up with that?).

Timber comes with Snake Eyes. He looks grumpy. Great sculpt, zero articulation.

Snake Eyes is easily the coolest of the bunch. He comes with his trademark Uzi, a katana sword, and a big ol' knife (holstered below on his right thigh). This Snake Eyes is a better sculpt than the one included in the boxed set (though the latter is truer to the 1982 sculpt).

Below is the original storyboard from which I worked for this particular gag. Roadblock didn't make it in (this strip is too crowded as it is).

• Li'l Cap'n America 'n Li'l Wolvie
• Optimus Prime and Mojo
• Professor X

The Astounding Wolf-Man:

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/reading/2007/10/astounding-wolf-man.html

Captain America: The Chosen #2:

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/reading/2007/10/captain-america-chosen.html

Sub-Mariner #4:

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/reading/2007/10/sub-mariner.html

Buffy the Vampire Slayer SEason Eight #7:

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/reading/2007/10/buffy-vampire-slayer-season-eight.html

Avengers: The Initiative #6:

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/reading/2007/10/avengers-initiative.html

The Order #3:

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/reading/2007/10/order.html

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/notdolls/2007/08/madman-and-savage-dragon.html

I've been looking forward to the Marvel Toys (what was Toy Biz) relaunch of their super-articulated, well-sculpted figures for a while, and they've finally started showing up in Texas area Wal-Marts.

Moving on from their Marvel Legends line (which they sold to Hasbro, and themselves look like they will be improving, starting with Wave 3), Marvel Toys, ironically, is now not doing Marvel comic book figures, instead focusing on independent heroes from the likes of Image, Top Cow, Dark Horse, and 2000 AD.

Dubbed "Legendary Comic Book Heroes", Wave 1 includes two of my favorite indie heroes, Michael Allred's Madman and Erik Larsen's The Savage Dragon.

I was able to pick both up at the same time, both sculpts are fantastic, and true to their titular 2D comic book heroes.

I'm pretty impressed with how much Madman looks like his comic book likeness. I'm not sure I've had a toy that looks so much like it was pulled right from the pages that spawned it. Part of it is the sculpt, part of it is the paint job, and part of it is the dull matte white mold that works really well with dramatic lighting and camera angle variations. And he comes with a retro Snap City ray gun, which is funky.

The Savage Dragon figure has a great thick upper body and trademark disproportionately small legs and feet. The jean and tennis shoes part of the sculpt and paint are spot on, as are the meat-slab giant hands -- which have amazingly articulated fingers and thumbs (so you can have him "wave" at baddies; or hang ten; or thwip his spider webbing; er ...). I've heard complaints of flaccid fins from other collectors, but I think that's a personal problem; my fin is stiff and upright.

There are no guns or other accessories for the Dragon, which kind of bites (couple of .45s would be nice). And this sculpt has a couple of imperfections, the irritating one being a white imperfection inside his mouth line.

And, yes, the sculpt above is wearing his trademark sleeveless T-shirt -- that's right, speculative collector bee-otches -- I've taken yet another variant toy out of its package! (Somewhere, an overweight collector with walls and walls of unopened toys is crying and shaking his fist at me.)

The picture above is inspired by Madman Atomic Comics #3, Michael Allred's latest in the current franchise relaunch. This issue is absolutely brilliant, as Allred continues the character's existential meanderings, and pays tribute to dozens of comic artistic styles through the decades. It's like having a pantheon of historical and contemporary artists do a Madman tribute book, and it's stunning. Frankly, I'm disappointed that everyone who values comic books hasn't rushed out and bought the issue.

And the comic panel above is my paltry play at the series' existentialism. You can read it clockwise ... or counterclockwise! (Lookit me!)

Enjoy!

(Oh, and a quick rant about Marvel Toys. Their Website on the Marvel Legends side has been in decline for a long time (probably as early as when the internal decision to sell the line to Hasbro was made), with inconsistent product updates and broken database links the norm. Until recently, there has been no new section for the Legendary Comic Book Heroes line. Even now, there's just a placeholder. A robust online presence is pretty key, and not treating the Website like a service translates into lost pre-sales and mindshare opportunities. Especially since the first two waves of their product are already in the marketplace. Marvel Toys, productize your Web site!)

(The following is a description of the picture included in this post for the blind and visually impaired.)

The Savage Dragon holds Madman and says, "Stop thinking out loud!!!" Madman thinks, "I don’t think that’ll be productive." There is a picture of Madman's face being sucked into his gun, and he says, "Can’t suck my brain out of my head." Madman is holding a smaller Madman which is holding an even smaller The Savage Dragon. Madman says, "I think you’re being --" The smaller Madman he is holding says, "-- a bit small..." The smaller The Savage Dragon he is sholding says, "Gnarliness seriously spent." The Savage Dragon is holding Madman's ray gun. Madman is laying down with his hands behind his head. The Savage Dragon says, "Mind if I borrow this?" Madman says, "Knock yourself out." The Savage Dragon holds the ray gun to his head. The Savage Dragon says, "This’ll shut you up." This returns back to Madman thinking, "I don’t think that’ll be productive."

I updated my blog with day-by-day summaries of this year's Comic-Con:

• Wednesday: http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/ramblings/2007/08/comic-con-wednesday.html

• Thursday: http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/ramblings/2007/08/comic-con-thursday.html

• Friday: http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/ramblings/2007/08/comic-con-friday.html

• Saturday: http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/ramblings/2007/08/comic-con-saturday.html

• Sunday: http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/ramblings/2007/08/comic-con-sunday.html

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/notdolls/2007/06/nightcrawler.html

I'm nothing if not juvenile.

There's no way some version of this gag hasn't been done, but I couldn't find it, and my posed Mr. Sinister inspired me for this follow-up (you should check that post out to get the full gag).

I actually went back and forth on whether to use the German for "excuse me" ("Entschuldigung") or "I'm sorry" ("Es tut mir Leid"). While I like the sound of "Entschuldigung" better, I liked the "tut" in "Es tut mir Leid" (yes, a brainy juvenile is a frightening thing).

This figure is from the Marvel Legends "Galactus Series" (aka, "Series 9"), and is a Sam Greenwell / Phil Ramirez sculpt. I really like the sculpt and pose ability -- even Nighty's third toe / "pose able dew claw" is ... pose able. As are each of the two toes and two fingers on each appendage. The thumb, unfortunately, not so pose able.

The face is well done, though I wish it had more of a "I'm-a-happy-go-lucky swashbuckler elf" look, rather than a "I'm still pissed Chuck Austen inserted his biases to muck with my religious origin background".

My only other gripe is the hip joints rest out a big wide, which is only really noticeable if someone points them out. Like I just did. Because I like to share.

The text font is Blambot's Letter-O-Matic, and the "BAMF" font is their Umberto font. I wanted to use their "Oh Crap!" font (for an additional double entendre), but it didn't look as good.

I am so juvenile ...

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/notdolls/2007/06/mr-sinister.html

Much as I love my Captain America / Halo crossover, Cap's still dead, the Halo 3 beta (and here; and here) is about to end, and this particular blog needs a new entry. Enter the ToyBiz Marvel Legends incarnation of Mr. Sinister, one of the X-Men's main baddies. Great paint job, and a lot of pose ability, with this particular offering having solid joints (which I really appreciate; a bunch of my collection came loosey-goosey out of the box). The cape is some rubbery material, and has the trademark "I veally vant to suck your blood" collar and torn fringe-ish look. And this is another Dave Cortes sculpt, and has fantastic detail. That dude is amazingly talented.

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/notdolls/2007/05/captain-america-and-master-chief.html

Halo is wicked hot. The beta for Halo 3 starts Monday. Halo gets a comic book series this summer from Marvel. Captain America was recently shot and killed, and we're not yet sure what up (sorry if I ruined it for you, but it was in the New York Times, kids).

And crossovers are hot. Like the New Avengers / Transformers crossover that's also coming this summer.

And Marvel keeps mentioning Halo and Xbox. Like in Avengers: Initiative #2 (how blatant is that?).

So, I've merged grassy knoll theory with a crossover that should happen, but in my imaginings has gone horribly awry. I'm guessing there's a subset of intersected geeks that will find this funny. That subset will get the additional homage on page 1.

The Captain America is the unmasked variant from the Marvel Legends Face-Off Series 1. This is a great, well balanced and painted sculpt (another great one from Dave Cortes). I can seriously pose him in more positions without him falling over, because of the weighting. I'm not crazy about the lack of mobility of the head (couldn't get it to "snap back" from the sniper shot), and it'd be nice if the waist rotated.

The Master Chief is the original Halo figure from the Joyride Studios Series 1. They know how to sculpt these things (other than the knees, on this particular model; but John's a cyborg, so they get latitude).

I think my theory of a second shooter holds water ...

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/reading/2007/05/darker-marvel-universe.html

(If you're waaay behind in comic reading, the below may have spoilers. You've been warned.)

The Marvel Universe has become a darker place.

I'm a reading a slew of comics, but we're coming out Marvel's "Civil War" cross-over arc, which split super-teams, family, and friends, and pitted them against each other.

It's culminated with Captain America being shot and killed. This is a big deal to me.

And the repercussions have made the Marvel Universe tougher, more cynical, more dangerous.

To be frank, I'm glad.

I've just worked through a ton of books, and three of them punctuate the new flavor of my favorite comic book universe:

• Amazing Spider-Man
• Punisher War Journal
• World War Hulk

http://www.adamcreighton.com/blogs/notdolls/2007/05/captain-america-and-optimus-prime.html

Oh, Optimus, Cap, please don't fight. I mean, you're cut from the same atoms, when it comes right down to it.

Face it, Optimus is the robot bastard child of John Wayne and Captain America. Don't get me wrong, but when the incomparable Peter Cullen voices Prime, I often hear some version of the Duke saying, "Is this an energy dagger I see before me?" (I love you if you get this.)

The Optimus Prime above is the Hasbro Titanium Series die-cast version from The War Within Transformers comic book relaunch by (now defunct) Dreamwave Productions. I really like this incarnation as a character re-imagining, and as a vehicle and robot sculpt, it's great. However, despite its articulation, the incredible looseness of joints makes it nearly impossible to "play" with (or more importantly, use for stop-motion animation). 'Tis a bummer, but I may create some small rubber cement plugs to tighten the jointings if I've got a script that really calls for my favorite Transformer. And if I'm feeling ambitious. And crafty. And have rubber cement.

And the itty bitty (pretty much scale) Captain America pictured is the (possibly) variant version from the WizKids "Ultimates" line of Marvel HeroClix (I also have the regular and unique Caps from the "Inifinity" series, but not the "Armor Wars" version; yet).