
ACTION FIGURE NEWS & REVIEWS
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- Rogue One Trailer released
The full Rogue One trailer has been released, and you can watch it fully below. In terms of the toys, these will start hitting on Force Friday 2016, 30th September. We know that at some point after this date we are due at least one wave of 6" Black Series figures see here but may include minor spoilers as well as the AT-AST and figures that we saw at SDCC, see here.
- Disney Store exclusive Marvel Legends 4-pack of figures from Captain America Civil War
An interesting eBay listing has surfaced showing what looks like a Disney Store exclusive set of Marvel Legends. The pack will contain re-releases of the Captain America and Iron Man figures that were released loose in the Giant Man wave of Civil War figures. Also included are the Civil War War-Machine, which had been an exclusive to Target in a 2-pack with "Disco" Iron Man, Mark 27. The final figure is the Falcon which was packed singularly and exclusive to Walmart (and over here in the UK to Asda stores). The images included with the auction clearly show the blue Disney store logo. We would assume the RRP would be around $80 / £75 when it (or indeed if) it hits stores.
- Review : Egon Spengler, Ghostbusters Select (Diamond)
Review : Egon Spengler Ghostbusters Select (Diamond Select) Wave/Series : Series 2 Released : July 2016 Price : £19.95 - £22.95 The arrival of Egon Spengler, along with Peter Venkman, in Series 2 of the Diamond Select Ghostbuster figures will mean for many that they are done with the series having now picked up the original 4 Ghostbusters. I hope this isn't a mistake on Diamond's behalf that then see's future series put at jeopardy due to reduced sales as collectors only interested in the four core characters drop off when Series 3 hits. Egon arrives in the same oversized Select packaging. The front of the packaging shows off the figure and all his accessories, with the Ghostbusters text logo down the left hand cardboard wrap round. To the side of this, and as a triangular flash, is the character name and a head & shoulders shot of Harold Ramis. This image of Ramis is repeated to the side art panel, albeit larger. Underneath this is the Ghostbuster ghost logo. Round the back the card base is a stylised and silhouetted scene of the final battle from Ghostbusters with the beams crossing and creating an electrifying effect at the top of the card. Overlaid onto this is the Ghostbuster text logo again and the "Select" diamond logo. There is then a full length image of the figure itself down the right hand side as you look, and to the left of this is a paragraph that gives you a bit of background about Egon and his role in the movie. Underneath this text is a further box, edged in a hazard black and yellow effect, which details the other two figures in the wave - Dana Barrett and the aforementioned Peter Venkman. Out of the box and you will be presented with Egon, complete with Proton Pack and Emitter already attached. To the side is a proton stream effect, a PKE meter, a Walkie-Talkie and 4 pairs of hands - 2 gloved and 2 ungloved. Egon stands 7 and 1/2 inches tall, this puts him as the tallest of the team and consistent with Ramis stature and the promo pictures of the Ghostbuster Team which puts Egon as the tallest of the group. The head sculpt is not perfect, but is a passing resemblance to Ramis. For some reason he has been sculpted with a smirk, and not the more serious Egon we see for most of the film. The head is massively let down by the paint job that is very cartoonish with a a single flesh tone and then over exaggerated eyes and eye brows. The hair is also one tone, and there is a clear line round the back of Egon's hair line which should be brown but has been left skin tone. The same occurs around the ears, making him look like he has had a severe hair cut. The glasses are not a bad attempt at this 1:10 scale, but are still a bit too thick. They do sit naturally enough, and are glued in place at the side of the temples, and this allows a touch of adjustment on the nose. The downside of the glue is messy residue on the side of the head and on mine this was so severed it had taken off a layer of paint above the ear. Like all the Ghostbusters to date, where the head feels under detailed the costume is anything but. Once again there is a new, or at least tweaked, chest sculpt for Egon. The whole jumpsuit is sculpted with folds of cloth, creases and zips and is then wonderfully weathered and dirtied up. The suit includes the Ghostbuster logo on the left shoulder (as you look at him) and this is a decal and well applied. There is also the Spengler name badge on the right chest (as you look) which is a little less crisp. The suit is accessorised with a utility belt, which include a working holster for the Walkie Talkie. You also get elbow pads and the proton pack itself which is strapped onto Egon and can't actually be removed without cutting the straps. The Proton Pack is cast out of black plastic and is really well detailed with coloured wiring and plenty of intricate stickers of warning labels. Like Peter, these stickers are applied with a little less care than series 1 - and Egon even has one missing on the base of the pack. The Proton Emitter is attached permanently to the pack with a flexible cord. The intention from Diamond was to have the emitter hang on the pack via way of a triangular bracket, but this sadly does not work in any stretch of the imagination. You are then left with having the emitter in Egon's hand - or the best of a bad situation is to sling it's cord over the pack and let it hang down the right hand side out of the way. I also think the emitters in Series 2 have either been cast in a softer plastic, or been packed badly as both Egon's and Peter's arrived bent and misshapen. The hands swap in and out really well and you can choose normal hands or gloved ones, with the gloved versions also having removable cuffs which means you can have them as long or short gloved on the figure. Each hand option works with various accessories so its worth playing around to fit the accessory you want to display Egon with. Outside of the Proton Pack & emitter, Egon is packed with a plain black Walkie Talkie which has been included on all the Ghostbusters to date. This sits in one of the hand options, and when not in use it slots into a perfectly sized holster on the belt. The other accessory, and so far exclusive to Egon, is the PKE meter. This is again cast of black matt plastic, with two painted silver antennae and a green painted screen. Considering the issues with the head paint it is impressive that under this green screen sits three individually coloured lights painted blue red and yellow - and further two red ones further down the meter. The articulation on the figure is identical to the other Ghostbusters, particularly as the arms and legs seem to have been reused. Egon's head sits on a ball joint which rotates to either side, but doesn't seem to have much movement up or down. The ball jointed shoulders move the arms out a full 90 degrees ot the side, and will also rotate the arms above the head. Couple this with a rotating elbow joint that also bends to 90 degrees, then holding the Proton Emitter in two hands is not a big issue. There is a chest joint as well as a waist joint, and although neither moves massively - combined they do give enough to twist Egon's torso to almost side onto the legs ready to fire his Proton Stream. Down in the legs and the T-joint hip remains in use and Egon can get into the splits or sitting, but neither look particularly natural. Without a ball joint hip to rotate, Diamond have included a thigh split which is one of my pet hates in terms of ruining the lines of a figure. The knees are a redeeming feature though as they are double joints but well disguised behind a clever central knee cap panel. The feet end with a rocker joint at the ankle that bisects the boots. Like Peter in particular, because of the weight of the figure and the Proton Pack pulling the figure off centre I have found Egon a tad tough to stand up and stay stood up. Loose joints at the ankles doesn't help either, so if you are going to display these figures without a display case door to stop them shelf diving then I highly recommend a stand of some type. It is pleasing to see Diamond have resolved the Proton Stream effect issue from Series 1 and this now slots onto the end of the Emitter really well and doesn't look half bad. I look forward to getting all four of my figure lined up with the Proton Stream to check out how they look. We asked Diamond the plans for retro supplying Series 1 and it turns out if you were missing your clips in Series 1 then all you need to do is contact the Diamond Select Customer Service Team to discuss a resolution - and the good news is this is international and not restricted to the US. The final pack in with Egon is part of the Rooftop Diorama that will build over the course of the 15 figures in this collection. Egon comes with a single piece, a piece of the rear of the floor that connects up with the corresponding piece from Peter Venkman, and that then links up with the pillared triangular sections that come with Winston and Louis Tully. For anyone needing the instructions to the Ghostbusters Roof Set, then we have posted them HERE for reference. Like Peter Venkman, Egon Spengler feels like a step down in quality, or at least in care and attention, vs Series 1. The head is an odd choice of sculpt with that smirk, and the damage the glue has caused and the missing paint on the hair line is not really acceptable. The detail in the rest of the figure does make up for this to a degree, but even here you have missing and misaligned decals on the Proton Pack. And the stability issue will be a problem for many, and this is a wider issue for the Select range as a whole with loose joints plaguing many releases for a number of years. Egon is not a disaster by any means, and the real beauty of the figures is lining up the Ghostbusters team of four as they certainly are more than their individual parts when assembled in a display. I score Egon a 3 out of 5. Buy from Amazon UK Buy from Amazon US Buy from Forbidden Planet
- Ghostbuster Select rooftop diorama instructions / how to build
One thing that has not been included with the Diamond Select Ghostbuster figures to date is a clear set of instructions on how to build the large rooftop diorama that will span the 5 series (15 figures) of the range. We asked DST why these were not included, and were provided with the following - which will be a big help to collectors.
- NECA confirm a plan B for Aliens Newt, and a figure "in the works" from Alien Resurrection
NECA's Director of Product Development, Randy Falk, is back from a well earned holiday and has already been sharing some snippets on Twitter that Alien fans are going to be really happy with. The first concerns their controversial SDCC 2016 exclusive of Newt from Aliens. The exclusivity has frustrated many fans and collectors although NECA had stated that they were working on a way for international customers to get the figure. It seems a plan B is now almost signed off and we will find out more in the next week or so. The second piece of news confirms that NECA are at least working on figures from Alien Resurrection with this tweet confirming that an Alien 4 Ripley is being worked on. This doesn't necessarily mean a Ripley figure will be released - there will obviously be approval rights and various other barriers to overcome before this Ripley reaches release. Alien 4 is certainly not the best film in the franchise and has mixed feelings from fans, but whatever you feel about the film it fees great that we could be adding Alien 4 figures to our Alien collections. Randy Falk has also said previously that a newborn Alien Hybrid from Alien 4 is a future release possibility, so couple the hybrid with a Ripley and a Resurrection Xenomorph and that is a pretty awesome wave.
- McFarlane's first 7 inch "Color Top" figures are hitting stores now.
McFarlane's long awaited return to their 7" figure roots has been news for quite a while now, with numerous figures already released across such franchises as The Walking Dead, Assassins Creed, Gears of War and Attack on Titan. This week see's the first of these #1 and #2 hit comic book stores in the US, with UK shops due in the next 7-14 days. Figure #1 is Rick Grimes from the Walking Dead, with a UK RRP of £19.99 and he is just £17.99 at our affiliate partner Forbidden Planet if you pre-order today via this link "Begin your hunt for in-demand figures from the new larger size and incredibly detailed McFarlane Toys Rick Grimes action figure. From the record shattering hit television show, AMC’s The Walking Dead, Rick, the hardened Sheriff’s Deputy, does whatever it takes to protect his family and fellow survivors from both the walking dead and the living. He and others continue to seek refuge in a desolate and post-apocalyptic world." Figure #2 is also from The Walking Dead, Michonne. And again is up for pre-order as low as £17.99. "Michonne, a fierce survivor and main character, kept much of her past a secret. Now that she no longer wants or needs to be alone, Michonne has accepted her role as protector and confidant of Rick Grimes. She reluctantly picks up her katana and acknowledges that no one can leave behind the savagery of this post-apocalyptic world." You can download a PDF checklist of the first two waves (red and blue) of the new Color Top range HERE
- Review : Peter Venkman, Ghostbusters Select (Diamond Select)
Review : Peter Venkman Ghostbusters Select (Diamond Select) Wave/Series : Series 2 Released : July 2016 Price : £19.95 - £22.95 The first wave of Diamond Select's Ghostbuster figures arrived earlier this year to mixed reviews with the first wave giving us Winston, Ray and Louis Tully. Wave 2 is now with us and will complete the Ghostbuster team with Peter and Egon. Diamond have retained the same packaging design for wave 2, the usual select format with large blister pack that is wrapped in a side panel and backing card. The front of the packaging shows off the figure and all his accessories, with the Ghostbusters text logo down the left hand cardboard wrap round. To the side of this, and as a triangular flash, is the character name and a head & shoulders shot of Bill Murray from the 1984 film. This same image of Murray is repeated to the side art panel, albeit larger. Underneath this is the Ghostbuster ghost logo. Round the back the card base is a stylised and silhouetted scene of the final battle from Ghostbusters with the beams crossing and creating an electrifying effect at the top of the card. Overlaid onto this is the Ghostbuster text logo again and the "Select" diamond logo. There is then a full length image of the figure itself down the right hand side as you look, and to the left of this is a paragraph that gives you a bit of background about Peter Venkman and his role in the movie. Underneath this text is a further box, edged in a hazard black and yellow effect, which details the other two figures in the wave - Dana Barrett and Egon Spengler. Once unpacked you are presented with the Peter figure itself along with a plethora of gloved and un-gloved hand options. His proton emitter and proton pack are already attached to the figure, with the proton stream effect packed to the side along with a walkie-talkie radio. Peter stands 7 inches high, and like most Select figures feels a hefty and weighty piece in hand. The facial sculpt is a fairly good likeness to Murray, but is not helped at all by some pretty lax paint applications with what looks like a thick one tone flesh tone and simply painted cartoon eyes and eyebrows. The mouth is touched with a slightly pinker tone, but there is no attempt to bring out any of the Gentle Giant sculpt with some variations or washes? Peter's hair is also a soft puffy sculpt rather than being defined - and again this is flatly painted in a single brown tone. If the head lacked any detail, then the rest of the body is swimming in it. It seems that despite the similarities in the suits on screen, each Ghostbuster figure has been given an individual torso sculpt so that each neckline and cut of their body looks different. Yes, there is then some re-use in the arms and legs, but you can forgive this as it certainly doesn't stand out - and where a change is needed it is made. Take Peter's legs for example, he wears his trousers over his boots not tucked in like the other three. This is replicated on the figure. The whole jumpsuit is sculpted with folds of cloth and plenty of zips and buckles. Over this base suit are separate elbow pads and a hefty utility belt that comes equipped with a holster for the Walkie Talkie as well as more straps and gubbins. All of this is painted and then weathered and dirtied up nicely, this is certainly not a Ghostbuster fresh out of the laundry. Diamond have also done a superb job of the Ghostbuster logo on the figures right shoulder, and a pretty decent (but not as good) job on the stitched name panels on the left chest. The Proton Pack, which is identical to all the other figures, is still a magnificent piece. Yes it is cast in plain black, but onto this are various coloured panels and wires and some really intricate danger warning stickers. These stickers are however placed a little more haphazardly vs Series 1. From the Proton Pack hangs the proton emitter, and on the figure I received this is quite soft plastic and was badly bent in the pack. The emitter fits reasonably well into the figures hand, and of course you can swap out the hands to a snugger fit and with the option of having them gloved or ungloved, and even with the rubber sleeves on or off to make the gloves short or long. The issue with the emitter comes in when you want to stow it away as it is permanently attached to the Proton Pack, which in turn is permanently strapped to the figure. Diamond have tried to sculpt a clever triangular notch into the emitter and a corresponding lip on the pack - and exactly as I found with Series 1, this fails completely to connect and does not work. The best solution I have got is to swing the emitter over the pack top and let it hang down the left hand side. The figure comes with a good repertoire of articulation starting with a ball jointed head which allows Peter to look fully round, up and down. Peter also has the luxury or a jointed torso and waist, and this allows some twisting of the upper body to either side. The arms are made up of a ball jointed shoulder, single jointed and rotating elbows and then a pegged wrist joint. This all means Peter can hold his emitter in both hands, as well as having a full range of arm movement out to the side and above his head if you want. The legs start with the standard Diamond T-Joint which allows each leg to swing out forward and out to the side. The rotation is then achieved by a thigh cut, which does look ugly and spoils the run of the jumpsuit. The knees are double jointed and are better disguised and the legs finish up in an ankle rocker. The ankle rocker is the cruical joint on these figures as it determines the stabilty. Because of the weight of the figure and then the extra weight and balance created by the proton pack this figure is hard to balance out naturally, and sadly the ankle joints are not strong enough to help you out. This was a minor issue on Series 1 but feels worse on Series 2 and much looser and I haven't got through a single day yet without Peter falling over - so much so that stands are now on order. All the Ghostbusters are packed with the Walkie Talkie, which is a plain black cast plastic and is nothing special. It does fit nicely into the hands and slots into the holster in the belt when not in use. So far Winston has come with the trap and Ray with his goggles. Egon is also coming with a PKE meter, and that leaves Peter with.... well nothing. Sadly there is no extra for Peter and yet another trap in particular would have been an easy pack in to even up all the Ghostbusters. Series 1 was soured by an issue with the proton stream where Diamond had forgotten an important connecting piece and therefore collectors were not able to put their stream onto their emitter. Thankfully this piece is now included, although the rumored promise of adding spares into Series 2 have not come to fruition. The piece works reasonably well and the proton stream is as good as you will get at this scale. Sadly the issue remains that without Diamond stepping up and resolving the Series 1 issue you wont be posing all your Ghostbusters "crossing the streams" or battling Gozer. Of course one of the big sellers to Diamond's range is the ability to collect all 15 figures and then assemble the Rooftop scene from the Ghostbusters finale. Peter comes with two pieces of the roof top which will connect up to the side piece that comes with Louis Tully. This then connects to a similar single piece packed with Egon and then finally links up with the other side piece from Ray. These roof pieces are fitting together quite well and snugly and are not seeing any big variations in colouring, which has been an issue before in connecting pieces from Diamond (Chitauri and Hawkeye roof pieces being a prime example). With Series 1 and some of Series 2 in hand you can now start to see the sheer scale of this piece. All in all Series 2 is a bit of a step down from series 1. The whole figure feels a bit loose in the joints and with some sloppy decal application - as if there has been a rush to get these ones out to the collectors. The inability to stand, and therefore be displayed, is frustrating and not helped by the loose leg joints that have been an issue on Diamond Select figures for as long as I can remember. The emitter being bent and not hitching up to the backpack is also a negative point, particularly when Diamond have tried to engineer a solution but made it too complicated and in the end it has failed miserably to work to any degree. Thanks to the new movie and a raft of new licences there is going to be a tonne of competition very soon for Ghostbuster figures and although the select are a step up from the Mattel 6" figures, they will be eclipsed by both Mezco and Blitzway. It is fair however to say that this comparison is not eggs vs eggs with the Diamond figures coming in at a £20 price point and therefore a quarter of what you will be paying for Mezco (Blitzway pricing not confirmed). I am going to score Peter Venkman a 3 out of 5, a one point decrease to the score I gave to Winston and Ray from series 1. If Diamond are going to keep collectors in the face of the new licences then there are some niggles to iron out, none more so than how to retro fix the proton stream effects. Buy from Amazon UK Buy from Amazon US Buy from Forbidden Planet
- A look "in hand" at the Disney Store exclusive Premium Marvel Figures
I came across the new Disney Store exclusive Premium Marvel figures today at the Disney Store, Trafford Centre. These new 10-11 inch figures are a strange hybrid of styles coming in a window collectors box that takes a lot of inspiration from the Star Wars Elite series. Each figure boasts 30 points of articulation and come with soft goods tailored clothes and packed with specific accessories - Cap gets his Shield while Widow gets her Batons. The figures retail at £29.99 (€39.99) and the first two released are Captain America, and surprisingly a Black Widow (not an Iron-Man in site as yet). They aren't bad looking, but they will suffer from being an odd size in the market (Cap is 11" and Widow is 9"). The price point of £29.99 is not bad for that scale of figure, but up close they don't have the same polish that the new larger Marvel Legends 12" figures are bringing. Captain America Black Widow
- SH Figuarts Stay Puft Marshmallow Man 1/12 (Ghostbusters)
Ghostbusters are obviously a "hot" property this year, and we are getting an avalanche of new figures this year from various sources including Diamond, Mattel, Mezco and newcomer Blitzway (who are doing both 6" and 12" scales). Also entering the fray, although to what extent as yet we don't know, is SH Figuarts who unveiled Marshmallow Man at San Diego. The figure is, we assume, around the standard 6" in height and therefore more a fit with their MonsterArt figures like Godzilla. Stay Puft will come in at 180mm / 7 inches high and will include alternative hands, and three head options (smiling, angry and in pain). He will hit stores in January 2017 costing 7,344 Yen - this converts to £55 or $72, and expect to add at least another £10/$10 on top once this has been through import. I guess the big speculation at this stage is whether this is a one off from SHF or if they intend to expand the licence to the Ghostbusters themselves (new or old)? SHF are no strangers to one off figures, and Stay Puft does have a cult enough following to have collector appeal. It would, however, be cool to see what SHF could do with a set of 1/12 Ghostbusters
- Sat-TOY-Day News & Reviews - Issue 34
Happy Sat-TOY-Day everyone! CLICK HERE for this week's issue. After three consecutive weeks of conventions there is not a lot of news floating about, although fans of the Far East Star Wars 1/12 products will be pleased with some new figures confirmed this week. So while the news is thin on the ground we take the opportunity to publish our extended review of the SDCC/LFCC exclusive Obi-Wan Kenobi Black Series Set. www.facebook.com/mephitsu www.twitter.com/mephitsu www.issuu.com/mephitsu
- Toys R Us in UK now stocking product from DC Collectibles
I find it very interesting that Toys R Us (UK) now seem to be stocking products from DC Collectibles. They have the original Arrow TV Series 1 double-pack with Oliver Queen and Deathstroke. Great price too £29.99 There is then a Batman Comic Book 4-pack containing The Joker, Superman, Batman and Robin. This one is £39.99 Dare we UK fans think we could be seeing DC Collectible 6.75" figures on Toys R Us shelves going forward? And is that a good or bad thing?
- Exclusive 6 inch Marvel Legends arriving in selected Asda stores?
Anne on the Action Figure Trading Community on Facebook has found exclusive 6" Marvel Legends Falcon and Winter Soldier at Asda in Stafford. These two figures are Walmart exclusives in the US, and have thank fully translated to UK Asda stores at £19.97 each, which is cheaper than Asda are selling the Captain America wave for in some of their larger stores. The downside, at this point, is that only 11 stores are reported to having stock.












