The other day, after a long absence, I got around to putting my email address back on the website. It originally disappeared when my old laptop died, taking the password with it. I had it recorded elsewhere, but there was Effort involved in getting it back. Since that address gets spammed to death (the reason why I stick that particular one online and don't use it for anything else) I wasn't in a big deal to put in Effort.
Within an hour of finally getting the password sorted & putting the address back online, I was hit with a couple of (non-spam) emails, which maybe means I should have reinstated it a tad sooner.
Anyway, one of the emails was from someone requesting comparison photos. Eager to please, I gathered up a bunch of figures (mostly whatever was sitting about) and took a few photos. Enjoy!
I'm a dad and I like toys. My children like toys too. This site covers what I (and they) think of some of them.
Saturday, 26 July 2014
Thursday, 24 July 2014
Review: 24" Ghostbusters Stay Puft Bank
When it comes to Mr Stay Puft bigger is always better. First we had the NECA version, then we had the Mattel version, and now we have the Diamond Select 'bank' version.
...because it's definitely a bank, right? With Mattel still hold the action figure rights, it means the stuff put out by Diamond Select has to have a coin slot to avoid any annoying court action. Accordingly, Stay Puft is completely free of articulation, but then the articulation on Stay Puft would have been so limited its absence is completely unnoticeable.
...because it's definitely a bank, right? With Mattel still hold the action figure rights, it means the stuff put out by Diamond Select has to have a coin slot to avoid any annoying court action. Accordingly, Stay Puft is completely free of articulation, but then the articulation on Stay Puft would have been so limited its absence is completely unnoticeable.
Sunday, 20 July 2014
Boxes
I've been watching a lot of Toy Hunter recently and been fascinated by the amount of Americans who have huge toy collections stored in huge rooms/garages/barns and yet, somehow, just have everything stored in a giant mess of tatty cardboard boxes. Really, you spend this much money on toys, have a load of space available and then don't have everything sorted out properly?
All of my stuff has always been reasonably well organised, despite the lack of space, but over the past couple of weeks I've been having a sort out and general tidy. After buying a bunch of shelves from Homebase (the type you're supposed to stick in your garage - not quite the pretty glass display cabinets I dream of) and some plastic boxes, all my (and the kids') toys are stored neatly away...yet easily accessible for playing with.
A recurring problem during the sort out was the what to do with the cardboard boxes the toys came in (I've definitely against keeping things Mint In Box - toys are meant to be played with!). I've got loads of the things, plus even more cardbacks. I don't like chucking them out, but even flattened they take up a load of space that could be used for other things (namely more toys).
The question is why didn't I chuck them as soon as I got them? Some crazy idea that I might someday sell everything and boxed items sell for more? Because the boxes look pretty? Because some are 30-odd years old and it just doesn't feel right condemning them to the recycle after all this time?
Bits of all the above, most likely. I took a stand, however, and have pruned them back a little. Some of the less than exciting cardbacks have bitten the dust, as have a couple of boxes. Actually, as I write this, I'm beginning to think I ought to go and sort through some more right now. This little piece of text is convincing me that I really don't need to keep all these things, that the house would be better off without them.
It'd be a lot easier if I had useable loft space. But I don't. The loft has been filled with all the insulation in the world, which is great for The Planet and reducing The Bills, but not so great for storage.
...maybe I should just send them somewhere safe for the moment. Somewhere out of the way, like maybe Grandma's loft...
All of my stuff has always been reasonably well organised, despite the lack of space, but over the past couple of weeks I've been having a sort out and general tidy. After buying a bunch of shelves from Homebase (the type you're supposed to stick in your garage - not quite the pretty glass display cabinets I dream of) and some plastic boxes, all my (and the kids') toys are stored neatly away...yet easily accessible for playing with.
A recurring problem during the sort out was the what to do with the cardboard boxes the toys came in (I've definitely against keeping things Mint In Box - toys are meant to be played with!). I've got loads of the things, plus even more cardbacks. I don't like chucking them out, but even flattened they take up a load of space that could be used for other things (namely more toys).
The question is why didn't I chuck them as soon as I got them? Some crazy idea that I might someday sell everything and boxed items sell for more? Because the boxes look pretty? Because some are 30-odd years old and it just doesn't feel right condemning them to the recycle after all this time?
Bits of all the above, most likely. I took a stand, however, and have pruned them back a little. Some of the less than exciting cardbacks have bitten the dust, as have a couple of boxes. Actually, as I write this, I'm beginning to think I ought to go and sort through some more right now. This little piece of text is convincing me that I really don't need to keep all these things, that the house would be better off without them.
It'd be a lot easier if I had useable loft space. But I don't. The loft has been filled with all the insulation in the world, which is great for The Planet and reducing The Bills, but not so great for storage.
...maybe I should just send them somewhere safe for the moment. Somewhere out of the way, like maybe Grandma's loft...
Friday, 18 July 2014
Review: MOTUC 2014 Quarter 2
3 figures and a beast for this quarter and, disappointingly, there are problems with all of them. Bah.
Transformers Construct Bots: Shockwave
In a time when plastic toys are facing heavy competition for childrens' attentions from electronic-based pastimes, Hasbro are keen to expand their properties into new areas and, hopefully, snatch back some of the lost pocket money. They're attempt at a Transformers Lego, 'Kre-O', was a moderate success. The mini-figures (kreons) were near-universally welcomed but the fact that you couldn't properly transform the block models (once the vehicle was built you had to take it apart to 'transform' it into the robot) was criticised.
So now we have the Construct Bots range. These promised to be fully customisable Transformers. You could build them from parts using the instructions in the box and then swap around pieces to your heart's content. Most importantly, the Construct Bots transform between modes without the need to dismantle them first.
Being a big fan of the purple dude (and him being discounted), I picked up Shockwave first. The instructions were relatively easy to follow and building only took me a few minutes. The plastic is quite thick, though I was in some fear that the clips would snap as I put pieces together (it should be noted that none did, however).
So now we have the Construct Bots range. These promised to be fully customisable Transformers. You could build them from parts using the instructions in the box and then swap around pieces to your heart's content. Most importantly, the Construct Bots transform between modes without the need to dismantle them first.
Being a big fan of the purple dude (and him being discounted), I picked up Shockwave first. The instructions were relatively easy to follow and building only took me a few minutes. The plastic is quite thick, though I was in some fear that the clips would snap as I put pieces together (it should be noted that none did, however).
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