Cross Another One Off The Checklist

In terms of acquiring new items for my various collections, 2013 was a solid year for yours truly. I managed to knock off a few items I had on my must have lists, vintage and contemporary. I made a promise to myself that 2014 would be more of the same. I still have my checklists for things I would like to add to my various collections. With all the conventions, flea markets and shows I try to attend, I hope to make a huge dent on those checklists.

Back in July, I posted a blog about the top 5 Batman figures I wanted to pick up for my Batman collection.I was able to cross off the DC Direct Super Friends Batman figure and thanks to a gift card my sister got for me as a Christmas gift, I was able to knock another off that list and it's a figure I have been wanting for a while now.

I finally have the DC Collectibles New 52 Batman figure and It's such a cool looking figure. I have read a few of the New 52 titles. I've read the first arcs of The Justice League, Superman and The Flash, but for my money, the best title in the DC Universe is the Batman book. I enjoyed the Court Of Owls Vol 1 and The Death Of The Family so much. When I saw that Batman would be made into a figure, I knew I had to have him.

When I picked up the figure, the first thing I noticed was the front of the box. I liked that it looked like a comic page being turned to revel the figure behind it. Whoever designed the box should be given points for originality.

On one side of the box shows a picture of the figure that was purchased, which is based on the art of Jim Lee. It also gives props to the designer of the figure, in this case is Jack Matthews.

The other side has a silhouette of the Caped Crusader. Very nice graphic. I like the shadow effect with the eyes and the bat symbol whitened out.

 
The back of the box has some info regarding the comic and shows off the figures coming out in this particular wave,which in this case is Aquaman and Green Lantern. The back also shows the rest of the figures in this Super Friends...er, I mean Justice League line.

Now there is a Batman. Upon first glances at this figure in stores before I finally picked it up, I realized I liked this figure a lot. Now that I have it out of the box I can say I really, really like this figure a lot. The paint on this figure is unreal. The grey is a perfect back drop to the the black that just pops out at you.

Looking closer at this figure, the sculpt on it is just fantastic. I love who this figure captures the lines on the suit just like in the comics. Although you probably can't see thanks to the flash on my camera, I can assure you that the face sculpt is awesome. Jack Matthews did a fantastic job sculpting this figure.

The back of the figure shows of the cape, which is a one piece made of a rubbery plastic material attached to the figures shoulders. Like the figure itself, Matthews did a fantastic job sculpting the cape. I love the folds on it and it even has a couple of folds on either side of the cape. The coolest thing about it is how the back just drapes behind and just lies on the ground.

Now, if our looking for a massively articulated figure, I would advise you to keep on looking. There is a bend at the knees, elbows and there is a biceps swivel and that's it.

The head doesn't turn side to side, there is no movement in the fingers or toe and no hip swivel. To be honest with you, it really doesn't detract form how cool this figure is. Then again, I have never been a huge fan of too much articulation on my figures. I find that it makes them hard to stand. If I was putting them in action poses, then I could see a use for them, but I really don't pose my figures.

Now, if I had to take away marks from this figure, it would be the lack of a base and accessories. This figure is one of the more expensive ones I have picked up. Would it have killed DC to have added a batarang or two? How about a base? I do like my figures in an upright position, but considering the lack of articulation on this bad boy I don't feel that will be an issue.

Despite the lack of articulation, base and accessories, I have to say that this figure might be one of my favorites in my Batman collection. Definitely in my top five favorites. I feel it captures the spirit of the New 52 comics perfectly. Great sculpt, great paint job, great figure, period. One I feel that should be in every Bat collection.  

New York Comic Con

I resigned myself to the fact that I would be missing New York Comic Con this year. I was actually fine with it. I am saving my pennies for my trip to Los Angeles to see my baby at the end of the month, so I wasn't even thinking about trying to find a way in this year.

Then, around 4:30 PM Friday afternoon my buddy, Jose, texted me asking me to call him. I ran to my desk at the office and called him back. Turns out he had weekend passes and his friend cancelled for that evening and he wanted to know if I wanted to go.

Um, yeah.

So, after I got off work, I met up with Jose in front of Jacobs Javitz Center and in we went. Jose runs a website called Talking About Games, which talks about makeup and hair styles. Nah, it's a video game website. You can check out the website at talkingaboutgames.com.

Ok, enough of the props. On to the pictures.

I'm pretty much going to let the pictures do the talking here. Unfortunately, since time was limited, I didn't get to see everything I wanted, which is fine. I ha a blast in the time I was there and hope I can make another Comic Con in the future. If you are on my Facebook page, you already seen these, but if you aren't (shame one you), here they are.

Walking up to the entrance

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I would kill to own this.

This too.

I love this poster

Snootchie Bootchies

I still need that Art FX Batman statue.

Love these bust banks.

My favorite booth was the Toyworth booth, which displayed some sweet vintage stuff.

Check out that awesome vintage Batman and the Justice League playset. Drool.

Sweet vintage looking Spidey card from Hallmark.

Awesome Batman stuff. I want them all!

I will be reading this when it's released. I believe it's going to be put out by Dark Horse.

Lola from Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. made an appearance.

We end with Neil Adams. One day, I will have a commissioned Batman piece from Neil. Unfortunately, at $300.00 a pop, that will be a long way off.

Again, I want to thank my buddy, Jose from Talking About Games for the pass to get in. I really enjoyed looking at all the cool stuff. Go check out his website and listen to his podcast as well. I will guest on it one day and knowing the two of us, you never know what will come out of our mouths.

Hope you enjoyed the pictures.

League Of Extraordinary Bloggers: Saturday Morning Cartoons

I remember the days when I used to wake up real early on Saturday mornings to watch 6 hours of non stop cartoon goodness. Yeah, 6am. I was the kid who refused to get up at 7:00 to make a 7:30 bus for school, but yet I would happily get up at 5:45 to grab some Lucky Charms or Count Chocula to nosh on as I watch some awesome 'toons. The other day, I got curious and checked out what was showing on a Saturday Morning. What I saw was informercials. Are you freaken kidding me? I wanted to see Tom and Jerry and saw some dude spouting the virtues of a t-shirt that would hide your belly fat (I ordered 3 in back, white and fucia blue).

So it is my duty to get this right. On my new channel, WMIKE, we show cartoons on Saturday. And not just any cartoons. We got the vintage stuff here. And if you like Superheroes, well sit back, relax and watch some classic Superhero cartoons. Here's the line up:


6am-Underdog

Not your typical Hulk Smash Superhero, but I thought it would be fun to start off with a show like Underdog. Might be nice for kids to see where the movie came from.

6:30am-Couragous Cat and Minute Mouse

Unfortunately, the only clip of this cool cartoon I could find has a Spanish voice over during the intro. I always had a blast watching this Batman parody created by none other than Bob Kane, creator of Batman.

7am-The Supeman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure

Originally titled The Superman/Aquaman Hour Of Power, this show not only shows Superman and Aquaman cartoons, but you will also see the likes of Green Lantern, The Flash, Teen Titans and Justice League of America. Very cool show from Filmation, circa 1967

8am- The Marvel Superheroes

Not to be outdone by DC, Marvel had a half an hour of superhero cartoons that showcased Iron Man, Captain America, Thor and Sub-Mariner. The animation was pretty poor, but the art and stories were lifted straight out of the comics. And oh, those catchy theme songs:

Moving on..

8:30-The Fantastic Four

I'm not the biggest fan of the Fantastic Four, but Hanna Barbara did such a great job with this show that it has to be included in my lineup.

9am-Spider-Man

The show that made me the Spidey fan that I am today.

9:30am-Spider-Man (90's)

While not exactly vintage, it's too good not to be included in the channel's Spider-Man hour block.

10am-Batman With Robin The Boy Wonder

Like with the Spider-Man block, Batman will also get his hour block, starting with his first animated apperance on this Filmation show from 1967.

 

10:30am-Batman: The Animated Series

Almost went with the New Adventures of Batman and Robin from 1977, but I had to go with the best Batman cartoon show ever.

10am-The Hulk

Had to get The Hulk into the lineup and this was a good show to stick in there. With The Hulk's solid showing in The Avengers movie, this show should do well.

10:30-Battle Of The Planets

This classic anime cartoon should do real well with kids who love japanese animation and adults who remember it's original run in the late 70's.

11am-The Super Friends

Finishing off the morning is an hour of arguably one of the most beloved super hero shows ever.

So, there it is. The Saturday morning lineup on WMIKE. These are shows I loved watching as a kid and still do. I think these shows will be very popular today as they were yesterday. All that they need is a new generation of kids to watch and enjoy them just as much as we did. In today's world were video game consoles, the internet and smart phones rule, I think some vintage slips right in nicely to balance it all out because sometimes we all need a break and these shows provide that break. And they do an awesome job, if I do say so myself.