Over the weekend, I went back home and attended a birthday party for my good friend Kyle. It was technically a joint birthday party for my friend Caitlin as well, but she was on an intense-sounding bike ride for much of the evening. Either way, it was a good time.
Chun-Li accompanied me.
There’s no guest review today. Instead, it’s a half-guest review. Today, I’m joined by my friend Eric aka Alexx aka Toys and Tomfoolery. You probably know him already. You can visit his website (which he’ll update any day now), or check out his very active Instagram, which features so much good stuff I couldn’t even possibly describe it. He photographs every good toy line you can think, gives exhaustive rundowns of entire toy series, creates funny comics, and just shares his stunning art with the world. I am a big fan.
Eric acquired 1993 GI Joe Long Arm recently, so I asked him if he wanted to do a collaborative review. I’m not sure if he regrets it now, but he said yes. I took about 8 photos or so, but the rest are all Eric. You can tell which are which, I’m sure.
(Editor’s Note: Today’s post comes from Ross Sewage. You may know Ross from his toy photos on Instagram and Twitter. You may also know him from his blog, where he shares in-depth guides on repairing and customizing electronics and music gear. Or, it’s possible that you know him as a member of Exhumed and Impaled. Ross’ GI Joe and Transformers photos are always a delight, and I’m excited he sent me a review of this big, lumbering Cobra robot. Enjoy!)
Review and Photos by Ross Sewage
I am a fan of many toy lines, but I am a G.I. Joe collector at heart. Still, I follow other toy lines and I have always been jealous of Transformers collectors. They have a vast richness of third party productions. These are toys not produced by Hasbro, the owners of the Transformers intellectual property, but other designers and factories not associated with Hasbro.
Hardcore G.I. Joe fans will, of course, point out the work of Black Major and Red Laser. Both of these mysterious individuals have produced some fun figures over the years which are largely redecorations of old Hasbro o-ring figure designs. There are also a lot of customizers doing cool work and some 3D printers churning out small bits and bobs to flesh out a collector’s G.I. Joe world. Transformer fans, though, get entirely new, factory-manufactured designs with original, complicated transformations. They’re produced with an (more-than-meets-the) eye towards recreating elements from the cartoons and comic books that Hasbro either missed the mark on, or they’re just bigger and more bad ass than what Hasbro is willing to do.
Continue reading “GI Joe Steel Kaiju (Cobra Sentinel) Review”
(Editor’s Note: Today’s photos come from the one and only RTG of Attica Gazette. He generously provided me with these beautiful photos of 1990s GI Joe figures so that I might share them with you. RTG is one of the world’s best GI Joe photographers, and also one of the world’s best toy photographers in general. Not only that, but he’s been my friend for around 13 years now. I am grateful and honored to publish these pictures on my little website.)
(Editor’s Note: Today’s review comes from Nekoman, proprietor of The Viper Pit. You might have noticed the link in my sidebar before now. Nekoman is a person whose writing and photography I respect immensely. He’s one of the rare GI Joe enthusiasts who’s younger than I am, and I enjoy reading his perspectives on the toy line and how it influenced him growing up. If you haven’t read the Viper Pit and you’re hungry for more GI Joe content, then get started immediately. Today’s post, though, isn’t GI Joe related at all. It’s even better!)
Review and Photos by Nekoman
Japanese 90‘s toys are an interesting thing in the ways that both eastern and western cultures overlap and diverge. In some ways I feel like Victory Gundam represents a similar take on the edgy and extreme stuff from the 90‘s, like Unlimited Carnage, just by way of Gundam. Of course, I would also tell you that Victory Gundam has aged about a thousand times better than anything from Marvel in the 90‘s, but that’s probably because I’m less keen on comics, and very much more of a weaboo, so… yeah bias and stuff.
Continue reading “1993 Gundam MS in Pocket Review (Zolo, Zoloat, Contio)”
Hi there.
I do, in fact, have something new and GI Joe related to share with you today. It’s not a full review, but don’t worry– you’ll get one of those on Thursday. It won’t be a GI Joe review, but it will be fantastic.
And you’ll also be getting a full gallery of amazing GI Joe photos on Friday. That’s a lot of stuff my friends and I are putting out for you this week.
Speaking of friends, I wanted to share some of my favorite things other people have been working on recently
And, as promised, I have a GI Joe thing for you, too.
(Editor’s Note: Today’s post comes from my friend Colin, the mastermind behind Colin’s Joes. It’s my favorite kind of toy review blog– the kind where the author waxes poetic about what a toy means to them and also gives a factual, in-depth review. If you like ARAH-era GI Joe and aren’t regularly reading Colin’s website, I highly encourage you to do so, because he makes every single post something special.)
Review and Photos by Colin H.
The “Neon 90s” weren’t so neon for me. I had a Sunice ski jacket that I got in grade 8 that was so bright it would burn your retina if you weren’t wearing sunglasses. But that was when neon died for me, sometime around 1992.
The decade started with moving from a small town (Fort Smith, NWT) to a small city (Yellowknife, NWT), and progressed through learning to drive, my first girlfriend, my first drink, graduating high school, working at a music store, and dropping out of university. Twice. I spent most of the time cruising around my hometown in a Ford Tempo, listening to Dre, the Wu, Big and Pac. And I remember going to the bars in Edmonton on the night that Y2K was supposed to disable the world’s computer networks, and in the relief of having survived disaster, I may have kissed three different girls at midnight.
I started the 90s hooked on X-Men comics, and I ended the 90s hooked on X-Men comics. But in between it all, I sold off my childhood GI Joes, then lived without toys for a few years, before coming back at 17 as a part time collector, grabbing late-run 90s figures at the local Wal-Mart, ordering classic 80s Joes through mailaway offers from Hasbro Canada, and lucking into a few early ARAH MOCs.
(Editor’s Note: Today’s post comes from my good friend Video Dracula, whose work you can find on Instagram and Twitter. His writing about Transformers from many eras, and the accompany photographs, are quite stunning and brilliantly formatted. Give him a follow on Instagram if you like this review!)
Review and Photos by Video Dracula
Hi, I’m Dracula! You may remember me from such films as The Monster Squad and Santo and Blue Demon vs. Dracula and the Wolf Man. These days I mostly post on Instagram about Transformers.
Continue reading “1993 Transformers Generation 2 Axelerators and Skyscorchers Review”
(Editor’s Note: Today’s post is something a little different. My friend Sintechness (Twitter, Instagram) was kind enough to share his photo taking process. A lot went into this amazing photo of Funskool Ripper, and it’s fascinating to see how he accomplished such a great shot.)
I’m always amazed at great toy photography. I’m even more amazed when I see how it’s actually produced. My own process boils down to making a haphazard set on top of my stove (it gets the best natural lighting in the house, so shut up) and throwing some toys in it. That is literally all I do. But some people, such as Sintechness, go above and beyond with practical effects and dazzling artistry.
Here’s what went into making this incredible photo of everyone’s favorite Funskool Dreadnok.
(Editor’s Note: Today’s review comes from my good friend Cody, who you may recognize from our Whipsaw review. Cody is a fantastic photographer, action figure customizer, writer, and storyteller. You can find Cody’s work on Instagram.)
Article by Corps Commander Cody
The Corps! is one of my favorite toy lines of all time. While most others write them off as cheap imitations or, at worst, complete and inferior knockoffs, I think The Corps! is a worthy brand. They have continued to provide products with all the fun of GI Joe at reduced cost. In fact, they are still producing figures today- some of the non articulated ones are not to my taste, but they’re constantly on store shelves, unlike some brands I could mention.
Even the biggest Joe Bro who says that every military figure that’s not a Joe is a Corps! figure may agree that the greatest “Lanyard” “Corpse” was Whispering Willie. They may not know his name, but they love his face. And brother, I do too.
Continue reading “The Corps! Whispering Willie (Version 1) Review”
The Dragon Fortress 