Mail Day From Cool And Collected.

It would have been so cool if Spidey had delivered my package. Cool and appropriate.

Ever since I've been out of work, I had to pick and choose what I really wanted to collect. When I was working, I was picking up Batman, Iron Man, Luke Skywalker, KISS, Beatles and anything else I was into. But not having that much spending money has caused me to step back and figure out what I really want to collect. Out went KISS. Bye bye, Iron Man. I still pick up Batman and Luke Skywalker, but that too has slowed down considerably. I've really been concentrating on Spider-Man related items and I haven't looked back. I may have added more Spider-Man stuff to my collection than when I was working.

Brian over at coolandcollected.com was looking to clear out some of his collection. I picked out some affordable Spider-Man related items and we made the deal. The package arrived the other day and when I opened it I was astonished at what was inside.

Wow. The deal was originally for the black suited Spider-Man, Electro, Doc Ock and the Spidey mask, but Brian, generously, added a bunch of Spider-Man related goodies to the package.

Brian added these Venom and Hobgoblin vehicles that were part of the McDonald's Spider-Man Happy Meals in the 90's that coincided with the T.V. show. I think I had Venom at one point, but never Hobgoblin. I am very glad to have both in the collection.

Brian also added a Spider-Man Pez dispenser that I didn't have already, as well as two items I've never really seen before. I'm guessing the disc might have been part of a game. Venom is awesome. He maybe tiny, but I wouldn't mess with him too much. He is going to go great in my Venom part of the Spider-Man collection.

The Electro and Doc Ock figures were part of the deal with Brian, but he also threw in the Spider-Man Green Goblin figure. Electro has holes in his hands for bolts of electricity, I'm guessing. Doc Ock is from the fantastic Spectacular Spider-Man TV show. That show should have had a longer run, but Sony pulled it for the current Ultimate Spider-Man show. I enjoy it, but not as much as I did Spectacular.

Not familiar with these two Spider-Man figures. I do know that the figure on the left was on a motorcycle at some point. The one one the right, no clue, but I like it a lot.

I grabbed the mask because I wanted to pair it with my vintage Ben Cooper Spider-Man mask. At some point, I'd like to have a collection of different Spider-Man masks.

I even got a copy of the Cool and Collected magazine. This was a treat as I really wanted to read this. I had issues with my downloaded copy and was unable to read it. Now I have the magazine and I cannot wait to open this up and enjoy the articles inside.

I really hope there will be a second issue. A magazine like this one is something the hobby sorely needs.

Finally, there's this guy. I actually thought this was a 6 inch figure and I was afraid I had it already. Then I took it out the package and realized I did not have this. This is the 12 inch black suit Spider-Man from te Spider-Man Classics line. I have been looking for this figure for a long time for a decent price and now, thanks to Brian, I can add it to my Spider-Man collection. Now, I need to find the red and blue suit Spidey.

I love the sculpt and paint job on this figure. A wonderful pick up, if I do say so myself.

Now that I am starting a new job and I'll have some disposable income, I don't think I will be changing things. I think I will continue to build my Spider-Man collection. Sure, I will still pick up a Batman item here (especially 1966 Batman), a Luke Skywalker there, but it's just mainly going Spider-Man for me going forward.

What will I do with some of the non Spider-Man items I have? I'm not sure just yet. I may post pictures up here and sell them or trade them for more Spider-Man related stuff. I'll post pictures if I decide to to that. Either way, Spider-Man will be front and center in my collecting universe from here on end. I can't wait to hunt for more pieces.

Thank you Brian. Go and check out coolandcollected.com if you haven't already done so. Go, go now!

Spidey, You Can Drive My Car...

Yes, I threw in some Beatles for the title of this blog, with a bit of a change of the lyrics to "Drive My Car", which was off the magnificent album, "Rubber Soul". Maybe I should have added the Beep Beep, Beep Beep, Yeah to it.

Yes, even Spider-Man had a car. It was the idea of Corona Motors who had built a non polluting car engine. They hired an advertising firm to convince Spider-Man to build a Spider-Mobile. At first, Spidey turned down the idea, but needing money for rent and food, agreed to driving it around, even though he doesn't have a drivers license. So, Spider-Man and Johnny Storm built the Spider-Mobile and Spider-Man used it to capture Hammerhead's thugs with it. But soon after, he was tricked into driving it into the river by Mysterio. But Corona Motors wanted the car back, but Spider-Man couldn't find the car in the river. It resurfaced soon after, modified by the Tinkerer, going after Spider-Man. Spidey was able to subdue the car and return it to the advertising firm, in less than perfect shape.

Now, I am not a car person. I do have my drivers license, but I have never owned a vehicle. I don't know a muffler from a transmission or a Ford from a Chrysler. I never actively collected Hot Wheels or Matchbox cars. As a kid, I had a few, but they became contestants in my daily smash em' up derby. I do have a few Batmobiles, a couple of Monkeemobiles and Deloreans but that's about the extent of my car collecting.

Yesterday, my buddy George and I were hanging out in Fishkill, NY and wandered in to the Walmart. I was looking for a Spider-Man tank top that I had seen earlier in the year and cannot find in my size anymore (Note to self: When you see something you like, BUY IT!). Well, I couldn't find the tank top in my size, but I did find these.

Again, I really don't buy cars, but when I saw these, I knew I had to have them. Why? For starters, the art on the cards are fantastic and the 97 cents price point was the deal maker for me. There were six different cars on the pegs, but I chose these four for my Spider-Man collection.

Cover of Amazing Fantasy #15 is a must pick up.

One of my all time favorite Amazing Spider-Man covers, the John Romita drawn Amazing Spider-Man #39.

I may be in the minority, but I love the Iron Spider costume. I think that is a bad ass look for Spider-Man.

Who doesn't love Venom? I do.

I bought these more for the art on the cards than the for the cars themselves, so I want to try to keep the cards in as mint condition as I can. Then, when I finally have my Spider-Man display up, I will have to figure out how to display them on the shelf. Maybe I will buy those cases that car enthusiasts put their on card Hot Wheels or Matchbox cars in.

This set has 8 cars in it, so the next time I am in Walmart or Target, I will be looking to pick up the other 4 cars. I never thought I would be wanting to add cars to my Spider-Man collection, but here I am. Now, if someone could only make a comic accurate Spider-Mobile, that would be appreciated. I think.

For Those Days When All You Want Is A Relaxing Game Of Chess

As a kid, I used to love playing Chess. I remember learning the game in elementary school at about 8 years old from one of my favorite teachers, Mr. Chappy. Funny enough, it didn't take me long to learn the game and whenever I wasn't playing sports, reading comics or watching TV, I was playing chess. I loved playing it and beating my friends and cousin on a regular basis.

Nowadays, I'm not the good chess player I was as a lad. I haven't really played a game in several years except for the time I played with my young nephew. I know your supposed to let the kids win, but that's not how I learned to play and I wanted to pass that along to my then 6 year old nephew. Unfortunately, that did not go according to plan. One arm swipe and the game was over. I haven't played a game since.

I never really considered collecting chess pieces at all, but that was before I started watching my good friend, Stew Murray's Superman videos on his YouTube channel. He has some very nice Superman Eaglemoss Superman related chess pieces in his collection. I liked them so much that I decided if Eaglemoss ever made a Spider-Man piece, it would be in my collection at some point.

Look what I found today:

I happened to find this at a comic book shop I shop at in Scarsdale, NY called Alternate Realities. There was a table with a ton of nice stuff and this beauty just happened to have been front and center. Of course, resistance was futile and I snatched this piece up to add to my collection.

The chess piece came with a magazine and a pamphlet, which is shown in the picture above. It pretty much gives you a run down of what pieces Marvel will have to offer at some point as well as gives you a description of what you can expect to see in the magazine.

Although I'm only interested in just the Spider-Man related pieces, there are some nice pieces in the Marvel collection. I'm really digging that Red Skull piece. I bet the detail in that sculpt is incredible.

Here are the pieces that will be released. First, the White Team (The Heroes).

And The Black Team (The Villains)

On the villain side, I will be picking up Venom, Lizard, Electro, Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus for the collection. Those Mandarin and Loki chess pieces look great though.

I am looking forward to reading the magazine. The magazine has a profile about Spidey as well as a poster of the cover of Amazing Spider-Man #40. It also has a section to teach you the game of chess as well as gives you some key phrases used in the game and the meaning behind them. The magazine even lists three key Spider-Man stories as well as strategy on beating Doc Ock.

The fact that the magazine uses the actual art from the comic books is a huge bonus for me. I could look at Spidey drawn by John Romita Sr., Steve Ditko and Todd McFarlane all day long, every day.

And here is the chess piece. I have to say I am quite impressed with it. These pieces are hand sculpted and painted so there is very little room for error when creating these pieces. I have seen some videos where there were some paint issues on them, but I can honestly say there wasn't any flaws on my piece. I was actually pretty worried about that, but was able to breathe a sigh of relief when I opened the package and saw that there was none to be found.

Take a look at that sculpting. I really think Eaglemoss and it's sculptors and painters did a fantastic job with this piece. Maybe they could have painted in the web-lines on his suit, but it's not that much of a big deal to me. Not big enough to detract how awesome a piece this is. The spider symbol on his chest s sculpted on. It's not painted on and I think that's awesome. It shows how much effort was made to make this a pretty quality chess piece.

The piece is made of metallic resin, so there is a bit of weight to him. He's not too heavy, you can easily feel that the weight is on the base of the piece. Still, I would try my best not to drop this piece as I don't know how sturdy it really is.

Here is a back view of Spider-Man. I love the black wash that's in the blue. Little things like that are what I am really digging on with this piece. The spider symbol on the back is not sculpted on. It seems to me that it was painted around, creating the symbol on his back. Am I making sense? Spidey Sense? No? Perhaps?

The base of each piece gives you the symbol of the chess piece it's representing on the chess board. In this case, Spidey will be one of the Knights on the chess board. The other Knight will be Wolverine.

Under, the base is lined with a felt material. This is to give the piece a better grip on whatever surface it's on. Or so I'm guessing. There also a number assigned to each piece. Not sure if the numbering means anything other what number piece you have off the production line. I really have to find out if these pieces are numbered to a certain amount and will cease being in production once it reaches that number.

Once again, I am thrilled to add a new and unique piece to my Spider-Man collection. Maybe if I start playing again, I will get a set just for play. Even if I don't, this piece is going to look insane on my shelf with my other Spider-Man items. I can't wait to hunt down the villains to add as well. Again, I never thought I would want to pick this up, but I'm glad I did. Having an open mind to certain things can really diversify a collection and really make it stand out.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I just downloaded a chess game to play on my tablet and I'm going to kick some computer tail. What, checkmate? Already? Damn!

Some Random Thoughts

I wish I had the guy that intro'ed SNL's Deep Thought's back in the 90's to intro this for me. 

Anyway, There was a few topics from some news items this week that I wanted to kick things off with:

Gal Godot is Wonder Woman in Batman Vs Superman

Personally, I am not too crazy about this.When I look at her, I don't see Wonder Woman. Yes, she has the height to pull it off, but not the weight, which she can gain. The question is, how fast. I think they start shooting in Feb and she is going to have to not only put on weight, but muscle too. People can point to Lynda Carter's Wonder Woman and and say she didn't have muscle and she pulled off the role and I would agree, but this is a different time. I want Wonder Woman to look like she can stand toe to toe with any villain, including Batman and Superman. 

I understand that she can put on the weight and she can be taught how to fight with a sword and her fists (if she doesn't already now how), but the perfect candidate was already out there in Jamie Alexander. She too has the height for the role but, unlike Gadot, has already proven she can be a convincing ass kicker and already looks the part.

I just want Wonder Woman to be done right. She is one of the three pillars of the DC Universe. There has been so many attempts at getting a Wonder Woman TV series or movie done and she is one of the characters in comics I feel deserves a movie. If done right, Wonder Woman could be a great movie.

I am willing to give Zach Snyder and the WB a break though. They picked a great Superman (although I will pass my judgement on Ben Affleck when I see the movie) and if they think Gadot will be a good Wonder Woman then so be it.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Trailer Dropped This Week

So, I got to see the trailer the morning Sony released it upon the masses and I have to say there is a lot I like about it. That said, there are a couple of things I didn't like about it. If you haven't seen the trailer just yet, you probably should stop reading this right now.

Still here? OK, I warned you...

I love the new suit. It looks more like the classic Spidey costume, which is what I was hoping would happen after the first movie. I will be honest, when I first saw the first costume, I despised it, but after viewing the film it grew on me. But I really didn't want it's return in the second movie, so good job on taking care of that.

I LOVED seeing Doc Ock's tentacles and the Vulture's wings in that one scene in what I assume to be a room in Oscorp. This must mean that we could possibly get the Sinister Six in part 3. We have the Goblin, Rhino, Electro, Vulture and Doc Ock. Who would be the 6th? A returning Lizard? Personally, let's get Venom in this group and have him done right.

Also, in one scene, if you pause it, there is a Venom file in the Oscorp computer files. (shrieks like an excited girl after seeing One Direction)

Dane DeHaan looks like he is going to be great in this. I've never seen anything he's done before, but sometimes you can just tell when someone is going to be good and I just have that feeling about DeHaan in this.

 I was initially bummed when Chris Cooper's name was dropped from the cast list, but I was elated to see him in the trailer. As much as I liked Willem Defoe as Norman Osborne, Chris Cooper is the type of actor that can take a role like this and run with it and make it his. 

Another initial casting choice that may make me regret doubting it is Jamie Foxx. I'm sure we will get the fans complaining he doesn't look like Electro or snicker at his voice, which fans are already doing, but after seeing the trailer, I think Foxx is going to prove that his inclusion in this movie is a good one. 

I also liked seeing the Daily Bugle all over the trailer. I am hoping for a J. Jonah Jameson cameo. If it's J.K. Simmons, I would really like that too.

I didn't like the Rhino-Dino in this movie. Really? Rhino is a machine in this movie? You couldn't CGI the Rhino suit on top of Paul Giamatti? Plus he's a Russian Mobster? Come on, I'm all for a tweek of a character, but not this. I am a big Giamatti fan, but I think he is all wrong for this role. 

I would have preferred they kept the Goblin until the 3rd movie and it be Norman Osborne. From the looks of the trailer and movie poster, DeHaan is going to be the Green Goblin. It seems they still didn't get the outfit right either. Green armor and no mask. What, is he going to be deformed to look like a Goblin? I'm not really sure how I feel about the Goblin in this. I guess I will have to see for myself and then make a decision. 

We geeks got a couple of things to talk about this past week. Now, maybe you agree or disagree with me on the points I made. Leave them in the comments section. I would love to read them. Maybe you might change my mind about a few points I made previously. I mean, I have been wrong before and it wouldn't be the last time I'm wrong either. Just be nice about it. I'm fragile. 

Funko Pop Comikaze Exclusive Peter Parker Vinyl

I remember seeing this cover as kid and ever since then I have been fascinated by Peter Parker unmasked as Spider-Man. Some of my favorite Spider-Man stories have Spidey unmasked for one reason or another. Like when Parker caught a 24 hour flu in Amazing Spider-Man #12 and lost all his strength. He went to fight Dr. Octopus anyway because he had kidnapped Betty Brant and Peter felt like he had to save her. Because of the flu, Parker was over whelmed and unmasked. Luckily, Doc Ock thought that Parker was masquerading as Spider-Man and threw him aside.

Or probably the most famous Spider-Man unmasking, which occured in issue #39. That is the issue when the Green Goblin discovers Spider-man's true identity, with the help of a gas that dulled Spider-Man's spider sense. He didn't know he was being followed after a fight with some crooks on the observation deck of the Empire State Building, where one of the crooks, who was hired by the Goblin, threw the gas at Spider-Man. Afterward, Goblin followed Spidey and saw him change back into Peter Parker and followed him to his house. After a fight on Parker's lawn, he was subdued, roped up and dragged away by the Goblin. Also in this issue, we discover that the Goblin is Norman Osborne. (SPOILER ALERT!)

Now, ever since I found out that Funko was releasing a Unmasked Spider-Man POP Vinyl, I knew I had to have one. The fact that it was a Comikaze exclusive and that Comikaze was taking place in Los Angeles and I'm a New Yorker was irrelevant to me.I was either going to get this on eBay or I would fly out to the con and get one myself, which is just what I did.

Only the Hot Topic booth was selling this figure, a fact that I didn't know until I was at the con for about an hour and after going to booth after booth looking for one. Lucky for me, one of the dealers told me where to find one.

The first thing is the packaging. One of the things I love about the boxes is the drawing of the figure you're getting on the bottom left. The drawing on this one is very well done as usual. The coloring pops off the package. We also have the usual clear cellophane that shows off the figure as well as the number on the top and the name of the figure on the bottom.

There's the sticker that proclaims this as a Comikaze exclusive. I've said it once and I'll say it again, management needs to think of a better logo than that octopus.

As usual, the back of the box shows off the other POP's in this line. Now, if I wasn't just strictly collecting Batman and Spider-Man, I might grab that Ghost Rider POP because it looks awesome. I also like the Dr. Doom and Silver Surfer. I know that Deadpool POP is going to be a popular one as well.

Now, as much as I like the sculpting on this figure, what jumps at me right away is the paint job. The black on his boots are all over the place. I love that he is looks like he is about to spin a web and Parker has been de-masked,  but that paint job on the boots just irritates me.

The back of the figure doesn't get any better. There are white spots galore on his left hip and left shoulder area. And the boots are pretty funk-a-fied on the back as well. Unlike myself, there is not a spot of white on Parker's hair. As if being Spider-Man isn't enough for me to be jealous of Parker.

One thing I remember, there was a dispute if POP made any bobbleheads and sure enough, this one is a bobblehead. I also see that Parker has been branded. I need to find out what that marking on the bottom of his foot his. I am not sure if any of my other POP's have a number on the bottom of their feet. Again, the boots are a complete mess. It looks like Spidey has been hanging out in the mud pits over at Lallapalooza instead of fighting crime.

Overall, this is could have been a fantastic figure had it not been for the paint job on it. Somewhere, a painter is getting destroyed by his boss so bad that he is shrinking into his beret and rightfully so. There is no excuse for a company to have released a figure so badly painted as this one was. I just hope that anyone else who managed to pick one of these up has a better painted figure than the one I got. I'm still going to display this next to my regular Spider-Man POP, but man, it should have been painted better.

I'm pretty sure you guys are getting tired of reading POP reviews and I promise this one will be the last review for a bit. I can't promise you how long because I am addicted to these little guys. They're inexpensive and look great displayed. Plus, there are others I will be picking up, but in the meantime, I will be reviewing other stuff and discussing other topics for the foreseeable future. But, I dare you to try walking past these at Barnes N Noble, Toys R Us or any other of your fine retail stores. They are like Lays potato chips. Once you get one, you just can't stop. I dare you to try.

Comic Book Marketplace Haul Part 3-Yes, More Spidey Books!

Now, I probably should have used a John Romita Spidey or a Todd McFarlane Spider-Man picture considering the 2 trade paperbacks I bought feature their work, but damn, I love Steve Ditko's Spider-Man so much that I had to use a pic of it for today's blog.

I had decided to concentrate on buying more trade paperbacks and graphic novels than picking up single issues. My reasoning for that was for because my comics always seem to get harmed in some way. You can imagine my anger when I discovered a leak in my apt during a recent rain storm and that leak spilled rain water all over my comic collection. Luckily, my Spider-Man and what few Batman books I had were away from the leak but the damage had been done. Now, whatever titles I read are usually in trade form. Going to the comic book marketplace, I wanted to keep an eye out for any trades that caught my attention. I found these two books and took them home with me.

I did say I loved Steve Ditko's Spider-Man. I have to tip my cap off to the man who co-created Spidey and drew him for 38 issues of Amazing Spider-Man and one issue of Amazing Fantasy, but to me, the greatest artist to ever work on the Amazing Spider-Man is John Romita. Romita drew so many great Spider-Man stories and some of them are in this book: John Romita Spider-Man Visionaries. Romita drew my very favorite Spider-Man story. The 2 part story, titles 'How Green Was My Goblin" and "Spidey Saves The Day!" has the Green Goblin finding out Spider-Man's true identity as well as revealing himself to be Norman Osborne. The Goblin's origin is also revealed and there is an epic battle at the end of the story. Another great Spider-Man story, "Spider-Man, No More", which would be part of the basis of Spider-Man 2 as well as others stories are included in this trade. As soon as I saw it and flipped through it, I knew it would be mine. the 4.00 price tag helped.

I also picked up one of the great stories in the Spider-Man mythos. Torment was written and drawn by Todd McFarlane in 1990 to kick off the new Spider-Man title. It's the story of Spider-Man hunting the Lizard as the Lizard has gone off on a killing spree. The first issue alone would sell 2.5 million copies, solidifying McFarlane's popularity. It's a story, surprisingly, I never had a chance to read in it's entirety. Now I will be able to. Then, I can sleep peacefully at night without muttering "Torment, Torment". Another four bucks bought back my soul.

I cannot wait to be able to open up these books and lose myself in the world of Spider-Man. I look forward to seeing Spider-Man battle the likes of The Green Goblin, Kingpin and The Rhino. Then, I can go into the sewers and watch Spidey battle the Lizard in one of the great Spider-Man stories of the 90's. For the next few months, I will be overloaded on Spidey stories. I can't think of a better way to spend my quiet evenings.

League Of Extraordinary Bloggers Assignment: Show Some Green

This weeks assignment form our fearless leader, was to show some green. Really? I smiled and was told that wasn't the type of green they meant. Nor should I attempt to open my wallet because it's well known that there isn't any green in there. Well, they were mistaken. I had a piece of gum left from the other day. HA!

No, I was told to show off the green in my collection. There enlies a problem. I don't have much green in my collections. I have way to many collections running that there isn't much room for green in it. With my Spidey, Batman, Iron Man, Luke Skywalker, Beatles, KISS and Back To The Future stuff, you can see that finding a place for green is well, difficult.

That doesnt mean I don't have any green.

I don't have a lot of Hulks, aside from these two from an early wave of Marvel Legends. Looks like Dr. Banner forgot to get undressed before Hulking up again. That is a cool figure. After seeing Brian's vintage Hulk collection, I think I'm wanting to pick up some more Hulks.

As much as a Spider-Man collector, my Green Goblin collection is pretty much non exsitant I have these two pieces because they are pretty bad ass. The one on the left depicits the cover of  Amazing Spider-Man #38 when The Goblin learns Spider-Man's secret Identity

The piece on the right is a Marvel Legends Masterworks of Spidey fighting Gobby. That one was inspired by The Marvels #0, The Battle For Gwen Stacey. I'm currently reading the Marvels. If you have not read it, I urge you to do so for Alex Ross's art work alone.

So, Sinestro is standing, John Stewart is hard at work, yet Ryan Reynolds decides to take a siesta? Stand up, Hollywood! You work for me now!

Then I remembered I had an Alan Scott Green Lantern figure and am kicking myself for not including him with my other Lanterns. Oh well, There will be another time, I'm sure.

Ok, Ok! No need to shake your ring at me. I'll get you into another blog, I promise. Shesh. You would think mariage would have settled him down

If this is not enough green for you, check out these fellow League members. Maybe Alan Scott will have his day in one of them:

http://www.infinitehollywood.com/2012/07/the-league-going-green.html

http://greenplasticsquirtgun.blogspot.com/2012/07/the-league-of-extraordinary-bloggers.html

http://shezcrafti.com/theyre-heroes-in-a-half-shell-and-theyre-green/

http://dorkhorde.blogspot.com/2012/07/league-of-extraordinary-bloggers-weekly.html

http://mattandtimfunny.blogspot.com/2012/07/green.html

http://blog.paxholley.net/2012/07/25/making-you-green-with-envy/

http://wp.me/psENw-4Ah

http://nerdlunch.blogspot.com/2012/07/lxb-its-not-that-easy-being-green.html

http://coolandcollected.com/im-seeing-green-hulk-collection/

Enjoy!