The Avengers 3.75" Chitauri Cosmic Chariot Invasion

I have an army... of one. This thing cost around US$28 here so yeah it'll have to be just one for now. Sorry Loki.

I'll start with the figure first. Is it a Chitauri? Or is it actually General Grievous? Thats the impression I got when I saw this figure. The helmet looks off. If I remember correctly, most of the Chitauri in the movie wore more rounded helmets. And I would have liked if the eyes and mouth were exposed. Looking at the back of the figure, there's some sculpted detail on his skin. I think its supposed to be part of his armour which was unpainted. Speaking of which,  the armour has some nice sculpted detail. The "skirt" portion is flexible and it is a separate piece glued to the figure. The paint application is poor, especially the gold areas. The paint does not fully cover what its supposed to and it overflows onto his skin in some areas. And I think the figure could use a black wash. He's too clean. Overall the figure looks okay, but the helmet really needs to be changed.     

Articulation. He's got a ball joint neck, ball hinge shoulders, ball hinge hips, thigh swivel and swivel hinge ankles. There's no elbow or knee articulation, which is rather disappointing  

He comes with a Cosmic Chariot. It comes in two parts. The smaller part is a seat which supports the figure. I like that the chariot can be made flat for storage. There's also a missle. The button to fire it is located underneath the chariot.  

This is a one man chariot. I seem to recall in the movie that it should hold at least two Chitauri. Anyway, the chariot looks good. There's lots of detail on it. It has a brownish colour. I would have liked if it were light gold as pictured on the package.  

The "shoulder protectors" and the seat have ball joints. The levers and foot stands can be moved up and down.

The figure can stand decently on the chariot. There are pegs where the figure can be secured.

"This is going to be fun."

Some comparison shots. The Chitauri is slightly taller than Thor. I think that thats about right.

That's all for now, thanks for viewing!

Marvel Universe Kraven the Hunter

Marvel Universe wave 18 is out. Having gotten part of it in wave 21, there were only two figures left for me to hunt (intended) down. One of them being Kraven.

First things first. Where's the leopard print on his pants? Lol. This is a great figure. He's got a great headsculpt. He's got a mean facial expression. The brownish ring around his eyes and slanted eyebrows contribute to that. His hair is really neat, perhaps too neat for someone like him. A lot of detail has gone into the figure, be it painted or sculpted. His jacket is a flexible piece with the lion's features sculpted in and the mane sculpted on. Its removeable but its going to be troublesome to do so. His armbands and hand straps are well painted on. His belt is a separate piece. There are clasps on the pouches and theres also sculpted detail on the sides of them. Very nice. He's got sculpted skull knee pads and his boots are sculpted as well. The paint application is great overall, except for the messed up left eye on my figure. But on the other hand, it makes him look even meaner.  

I didn't know he wore skull knee pads.

Here's the collectable comic shot. It looks familiar but I can't place it at the moment. 

He comes with three accessories. A necklace, a spear and a knife. You'll need to pop his head off to put the necklace on. The necklace is rather small and stiff and it sticks out above his chest. I prefer him without it. Also, its not painted like what is shown on the back of the card. 

The spear has nice detail on it. The staff portion and feathers have texture to them.

The knife looks a bit like a shaving knife. He can only hold it properly in his left hand. The grip is too loose with his right. Check out his finger on his left hand. Very cool. 

Articulation. He's got a ball joint neck, ball hinge shoulders, bicep swivel, single hinge elbows, wrist swivel, torso pivot, ball joint hips, double jointed knees, and swivel and hinge ankles. His jacket prevents a full head rotation. And due to how his boots are sculpted, there's not much use of the ankle hinge.

Some comparison shots. The main thing for me is that he's bigger than Spider-man.

Mysterio was revealed at SDCC. That leaves Sandman and Vulture to form the original Sinister Six.

Great figure. Look out for him in stores. Thanks for viewing!

STGCC 2012 Update 5: Comic Illustrators, Character Designers and Toy Personalities

Its just over a month to go to the Singapore Toy, Game and Comic Convention (STGCC) 2012. The countdown begins now! Here are seven more personalities who you'll be able to see at STGCC. Read on to find out who they are.   

Jason Paz, Comic Illustrator

One of the new names at STGCC, Jason Paz’s remarkable works have graced the pages of Incredible Hulk, Marvel Zombies Supreme, Thor: Deviants Saga and Agents of Atlas. Apart from comics, his versatile pen strokes can be seen on popular sketch card sets for the A-list trading card companies Upperdeck, Rittenhouse Archives and Cryptozoic Entertainment’s The Walking Dead.

Martin Hsu, Character Designer 

Martin Hsu is figuratively and literally the new kid on the block at STGCC. A character designer at Disney TV Animation and Nickelodeon, the all-time popular children’s entertainment TV channels, Martin is also developing his own brands such as Dragon Boy and CRAKENS. Martin’s works have also been featured in major exhibitions for Sanrio, Hasbro, and Disney.

Also joining this year’s personality line-up are comic illustrators Mico Suayan (works include Marvel Comics’ Thor, X-Men Legacy and DC Comics’ Batman Arkham Unhinged), Carlo Pagulayan (Marvel Comics’ Elektra, X-Men Unlimited and Marvel’s Planet Hulk with well-respected writer, Greg Pak) and Stephen Segovia (whose rich portfolio includes DC’s Countdown to Mystery and Marvel’s Wolverine Origins, Mighty Avengers, Silver Surfer and Ultimates vs Ultimates Avengers). Toy personalities Koto Nishiyama and Shinichiro Kitai of DEVILROBOTS fame will be on board STGCC as well.

Mico Suayan, Comic Illustrator

 Carlo Pagulayan, Comic Illustrator

 

Stephen Segovia, Comic Illustrator

 

Koto Nishiyama and Shinichiro Kitai of DEVILROBOTS

Please visit http://www.singaporetgcc.com/guests for the full list of pop culture personalities attending STGCC. More personalities will be revealed leading up to STGCC!