infallible

For the longest time, I tried to display every variant and costume change that was made. Since then, I trimmed it down to what I really wanted to display. So no longer are there 40 Wolverines and Spider-Men. But there's still a lot of stuff. I try to build in room to grow in my display, but who knows what will come? The Subway cookie display sounds like a good one, though.

I bid on some of the Unification Spock auctions on eBay, but keep losing them. Now, there aren't even any listed. Has anyone come across another source for them? Any idea if DST will offer them online or something? (I'm doubtful, but optimistic. :-) )

Valid point, but at least most of the Starks were fairly different. The Wolverines are taking the Marty McFly path: Here's Wolverine. Here he is in a muscle shirt. Here he is with no shirt. Here he is with bone claws. Etc. At least with all the Iron Men, you get some variations on his armor. Not to mention the myriad of Wolverines we've gotten over the entire run of Marvel 'Mates. We didn't really get much in the way of Iron Man until recently. Don't get me wrong, we've probably gotten too much of both of them, though. I just hope this Wolverine movie is good so I feel more justified in getting these 'Mates.

I only purchased these for the MiniMates, and had no use for the C3 sets. I, too, love LEGO, but there's a reason that LEGO's number one: quality. The C3 blocks weren't very good for building, and for the most part the sets weren't very good. They did have a few nice ideas (like Superman's clear flight arcs), and the Batcave had potential if it had been real LEGO. I tossed out all my C3 bricks a couple years ago, keeping only MiniMates of course.

Would you say that it insists upon itself?

Yawn. If this was the new line, then I'm underwhelmed. I'm sure DST knows what they're doing, but are these random movie-based sets working for them? Are they working better than Trek or BSG would have? I'm skeptical.

Thanks for setting this up, Cap. I'm writing this up without reading the other responses, so that everything's original. Nominations, as requested, in order of preference: 01) BEST MINIMATE (top 3 choices) Mk III Iron Man (Marvel 21, Iron Man Movie) First Appearance Wasp (Marvel Avengers) Transformation Venom (Marvel 24, Spider-Man) These were some absolutely solid figures with a lot going for them. The movie Iron Man looked fantastic with the details and the choice of colors, not to even mention that inside the suit was a detailed Tony Stark. Wasp was a pretty definitive version of the character in that it came with so many ways to modify her look. Trans. Venom was similar in that you could use that single figure and do a complete Brock to Venom stop-motion transformation. Two aweosme faces, a mask, a hairpiece, and tampo underneath the Venom-chest? Awesome. 02) WORST MINIMATE (top 3 choices) Gladiator Kirk (Trek 3) Marty in T-shirt (BttF Excl 2-pack) Dead Pegasus Six (BSG Razor singles) Dishonorable Mention: Classic Batman (DC 7) Why are these the worst? Because they're the most un-necessary. Going through the list, I don't really have any stinkers as far as quality goes, but there were some "why bother?" 'Mates that came out this year. I think everyone had a question mark over their head when we saw Kirk from Bread and Circuses. In BttF, we got Marty in every conceivable amount of layers that we could, but this t-shirt one was the least essential of the lot. Dead Six is a nice enough looking 'Mate, but wholly useless, especially since we got her alive in the same release. Ole Batman was almost on the list, but got left off because he isn't as objectively inessential as the other three. But what really stings about these is that three of these un-needed figures came in three separate lines that got early cancellations (Trek, BSG, and DC). It hurts that these slots could have gone to more deserving figures that will now never see the light of day. 03) BEST PACKAGING (one choice) Marvel Waves 23 and 24 This is an easy one. This packaging really stands out by being attention-getting, yet still simple. Getting the window-boxing back in there really shows off the product, and I think actually seeing them sells the product better than a studio picture. MiniMates are one thing that can really stand up to being seen and held rather than looked at. 04) BEST BOX SET/WAVE (one choice) Star Trek, Mirror Mirror This is what a box set should be about. A focused theme that delivers good product. Everything hit right about these figures: great facial designs, appropriate accessories, and crisp looks. Not to mention the ability to have that secure, removable dagger on each of them. Great set overall. Honorable Mention to the BSG Razor box set. Most of the same compliments can be given to this set, but there was one Cylon too many in there. It felt a bit redundant, especially compounded with the many Cylons in the single-packs. 05) WORST BOX SET/WAVE (one choice) BSG Razor single-packs Yawn! I can appreciate the idea of single-packs, I suppose, and I'm sure you army-builders loved this. But this set just featured too many boring Cylons. Not that Cylons are boring, but the versions in this set were. As mentioned in the "worst" list, there's Dead Six, which was just un-necessary, even for a short-packed figure. Then you have somewhat lame re-hashes of lots of Cylons that were hardly even seen in the movie, and a design that has a minimal impact on the show as a whole. Drop Pegasus Six into the box set in place of the pilot, and scrap the single-packs all together. 06) SEXIEST MINIMATE (top 3 choices) Marlena Moreau (Star Trek Mirror Mirror) Gina Iviere (BSG Razor Box) Tony Stark, Playboy (Marvel Hostile Takeover) Mmm, mmm. Now we're talking. There is something super-hot about raven hair and blue eyes, so you're the winner, Marlena. Your short skirt and Mirror Universe aggression didn't hurt things, either. Keep your red dresses, because Tricia Halfer was smokin' as Gina in Razor. Sure, there wasn't as much skin in her work clothes, but she was total librarian-hott with the glasses and ponytail. Then there's hunky Tony Stark in full-on party mode from Hostile Takeover. Guys, don't pretend he couldn't make you go gay for a night. Granted, none of them is as sexy as Swashbuckling Sulu from last year, but you can't win them all. Honorable mention to Betty Ross (Marvel 22, Hulk movie). You're pretty, Liv, and you almost made the list. You just fell a tiny bit short of the others. 07) BIGGEST SLEEPER (top 3 choices) Transformation Venom (Marvel 24) War Machine, Mk II (Marvel 23) Ultron (Marvel 19) Who would have expected another Venom to be so good? I still have a special place in my heart for tongue Venom from waaaay back in the second wave, but this one is probably the next best. We've gotten an inordinate amount of Venoms over the years, but this one came out of nowhere with his adaptability. Most of this is covered in the "best figure" category, so I won't rehash it. War Machine got a great look for Rhodes, and the move-around weaponry makes him look totally badass. In what could have been just a silver re-color of Iron Man, they instead put some good bells and whistles onto this figure to make it stand out. Lastly is Ultron who makes the list from the inspired use of the translucent head under the molded face. It makes the figure look just a touch more eery, and makes him stand out above the crowd in likeness. 08) IF ONLY... (one choice) Black Bolt Considering his importance to the Marvel Universe as a whole, but more specifically to all the recent events he's in, it's just amazing that this guy hasn't been made yet. I think he's the last Marvel A-list guy that's still waiting around. 27 announced waves and we're still waiting for Black Bolt but not for Firestar? Honorable Mention: Too many to name. But this is because of the sad fates of BSG, Trek, and DC. There are plenty of Marvel folks that can still be made, but we'll never see Cavil, Data, or Kyle Raynor (among many others). 09) FAVORITE CUSTOM (top 3 choices) I'm excusing myself from this category, because I don't go to the custom boards. Sorry! 10) BEST ACCESSORY (top 3 choices) Iron Man flight base (several Iron Man sets) Duff's guitar (Charm City Cakes) Duff's chainsaw (Charm City Cakes) That flight base is so cool. Human Torch's from back in the day is also a great base, but this one is very dynamic and works awesomely for Iron Man, but can be used for lots of others. Make it in clear, and it'd even work for Superman or any other non-rocket-based flier. And let's give some love to the Chef Duff MiniMate. It's hard to choose in a blister that's so packed with new accessories. However, if forced, then I'll pick his guitar (which I actually like more than the red one we got with Marty last year) and his chainsaw. Totally badass! Honorable Mention: Duff's rock n' roll cake, Duff's icing blaster, Spock's Vulcan harp, Spock's remote control. The real cake is awesome, but getting it MiniMate-ized is awesomer. This accessory cracks me up, and I love it. As does his icing shooter. It just looks so cool! As for Spock's harp and remote, you're getting two accessories that represent two of the cheesiest moments from Trek. Spock singing to those hippies is totes hilar, yah? 11) WORST ACCESSORY (top 3 choices) Gaeta's extra hand (BSG 4) This one's hard because I usually just put bad accessories into storage. But I went ahead and did some research through MiniMates Central and other places to remind me of what was released. I couldn't find three accessories that I thought were bad. Only Gaeta's mystery hand here stood out to me just because it's so unclear as to what it is. I'm guessing if I knew what it was, I wouldn't even list it. 12) BEST VARIANT (one choice) War Machine, Mk II (Marvel 23) As mentioned in "sleeper hit," this figure is just awesome. Why he's the variant and War Machine Tony is the main figure is baffling. Wonderful figure in every way. 13) WORST VARIANT (one choice) Miniseries Baltar (BSG 4) Not quite as un-necessary as the 'Mates in the "worst figure" section, but pretty close. I know he looked goofy in the show, but his 'Mate is goofier. It's made all the worse because of the more deserving Baltars we won't be getting. 14) BEST IRON MAN OF '08 (top 3 choices) Iron Man, Mk 3 (Marvel 21, Iron Man Movie) Modular Iron Man (Through the Ages) War Machine, Mk II (marvel 23) Shout-outs (which are better than honorable mentions) to Gauntlet Tony Stark (TRU exclusive 2-pack) and CEO Tony Stark (Through the Ages). Gauntlet Tony is very cool looking and epitomizes, to me, the Stark from the movie. It also captures a nice scene of him in his lab being excited about his invention. CEO Tony, similarly, captures a great scene from the comics, and makes himself distinct from all the other variations that Tony's gotten this year (both in and out of armor). I've mentioned the greatness of Movie Mk 3 in the "best figure" list and War Machine Mk II in the "sleeper hit" category. Modular gets a mention here because of how it captures perfectly that period of the armor Tony wears. It just works. I wish I could list "modern Iron Man" from Civil War on here, but that figure just doesn't work. A lot about that figure didn't click, and I'm hoping we can get a nice modern Iron Man down the line, because Tony's current armor looks awesome.

The writers' strike killed 24 and Heroes 'Mates. That's pretty interesting. Very disappointing, but interesting. I wouldn't have thought that tie-ins like that would have been affected that much. Maybe if Heroes can manage to get good again, we can get another shot at them. But I'm still missing that Chloe figure... :-(

I'm partially in agreement with our dour friend here. I'm pretty burned out on the movie 'Mates. Don't get me wrong, I think a line like this is better than others (like man with no name), but it's just not "all that" as the kids might say (or have said ten years ago). When a very collector-centric fanbase like Trek doesn't make it, does even Ghostbusters stand a chance? Maybe it's only intended for a box set or two, and if so, then I think that's a better strategy. But I'm still a bit bitter over not getting the rest of Rocky and the recent termination of BSG and Trek. This is on top of previous non-starters like LotR, Street Fighter, and 24. While I don't blame DST for it, there's also lingering feelings over the loss of DC. I guess I just can't get too excited about this or something like T2 in light of what's gone on in the past in regards to unfinished lines. Not finishing things has become a pattern in the MiniMate world, and it's a bit disheartening.

Ha ha, well, to make his new, girly flowing locks, they can just re-use Emma Frost's hair from the X-Men box set.

A Dark Avengers box set may not be as hard to make as you may think. Don't forget that the tampo for Osborne is already complete from the scrapped Target wave, so getting a Norman might not be as difficult as it seems. If they did Director Norman, then just re-use any suit mold that's sitting around, maybe with some new colors. If they do Iron Patriot, then it's just a re-coloring of existing Iron Man molds. A new brown-suited Wolverine wouldn't be out of place, since there have been a lot of new parts made since Gaijin Wolvie came out. Theoretically, Hawkbullseye would be almost identical to the previous release, just with a new head. Sentry could be a direct re-release. Neither Ms. Marvel-Moonstone nor Capt. NohMarvel would require no new molds. The only one that would need new stuff would be Ares, which is why I'm betting he wouldn't be in the set (though he's the one I'd most want). Even so, I don't know that we're getting anything with Dark Reign. There just hasn't been enough stuff come out in that storyline yet. But if there is something, I think that The Hood has the best shot at being the dark horse in a box set, like Nitro was in the Civil War box set. Of course, they could pull a Secret Invasion and use it as an excuse to get some much-wanted figures out that were only tangentially related to the series. How else would we get an old-style Beast or Phoenix? Much less JEWEL??!?!? Meh, what do I know? If I had to make a themed box set, it'd be Norman, Emma, Hood, and lady Loki. There. I'll make that my prediction.

Frak this line. I'm sure it's not one or the other, but I'm kind of tired of new licenses coming when they're dropping others without finishing them. I just can't get excited for these new lines much anymore. Here we have T2, something I would have been hyped about before, but I'm on the fence about getting them or passing entirely. Does anyone think this will be any different? Looking into my magic crystal ball (appropriately named "past performance"), I see this line going for one or two waves, having more solicited only to be dropped while another new line is announced (Heroes finally? Aliens? Who knows?). I guess I just feel burned by BSG and Trek, and still feel scarred by some other lines like DC (which I know was a DCD decision, but it still hurts).

This is just heart-breaking. Especially since had the line ended after the next two waves, then things could be considered somewhat complete. I can't say whose fault all this is, but I'm losing a lot of faith in MiniMates as a line. After losing LotR, DC, 24, Rocky, Star Trek, and BSG, I'm just not sure I want to keep going with things outside of Marvel. I mean, I invest a lot of excitement and spirit into these lines, only to have them cut off midway through while still very incomplete. Not to mention the money I put in. I have no desire to display an incomplete line. At least with Trek, we got the entire TOS bridge crew, but what do I care about just displaying a Sisko or Picard? It makes me feel like I've wasted my money on these lines when there's no commitment to get them complete. I get that DST has to make ends meet, and maybe I should appreciate what I get, but I'm not in it to be a guinea pig for lines. Take the money that goes into dead ends like Silence of the Lambs or the Man with No Name or most all of these other movie lines, and put it into lines like BSG or Trek. It just feels like they'd rather halfway do a bunch of lines than go whole hog with a few. Ugh, I guess I'm just having trouble with the whole situation, and it's shaking my foundation in 'Mates as a whole. I've been buying these dudes since 3" Trek, so I'm not a fairweather fan, either.

Fixed that one for you, buddy. As for me, I couldn't care less if these get dropped like Ghost Rider. I preordered these hoping the movie would be good, but I still haven't seen it and don't feel like I'm missing anything. I'd take a comic-based 4-pack over these any day.

This could very well be the first Marvel wave that I skip, and I've been buying since wave 1. I'm not very enthusiastic for the movie to begin with, and I'm even less thrilled about getting three more Wolverines. Wolverines which are not that different from each other. Though they did nail the likeness. I'm not sure why they keep on even making movie waves. They don't even come out until many months after the movie is in theaters and all the hype is gone. I'll probably still end up getting them, but I'd really prefer a new comic wave rather than these.

I'm surprised to hear this, considering that now seems like a great time to get BSG stuff out there. Among fans, BSG-fever is pretty hot now since the final episodes are starting on Friday. For once, it would be conceivable for the figures to be out at the same time the property was in the public eye. Now seems the time to re-solicit these things because everyone's thinking BSG right now. I'm going to be all Blue Lantern about this, and wait until there's a more official word, but things aren't looking good.

Pretty cool little sets. Good ways to get some nice, core characters. These seem tailor made for the new Toys R Us deal...

I'm not wishing for them. I'd much prefer the money and tooling goes into new comic 'Mates rather than the movie 'Mates. But I'll buy them if they come out. :-)

Especially curious is this post on the AA site about shipping dates. It covers everything that AA does, including MiniMates, and is an update to when things are shipping with specific dates for each. It goes all the way out from today through March, but Star Trek 'Mates aren't listed anywhere. The Trek replicas, UQS, and regular action figures are all listed, but no 'Mates. They do list Marvel, BSG, and Spirit 'Mates in there, though.

Thanks to this thread, I went out to TRU yesterday, and lo and behold, there they were! I was pretty excited. They were mixed among the comic figures amongst the Superhero Squad figures.

Interesting find. I'm interested, but would like to see prototypes or something before ordering. But thanks for the notice on Marvel 25/26, I did preorder those. :-)

I just got my Iron Man set from AFX late last week, and notice that Hulk was shipping out that same day. I've ordered from CSC plenty of time in the past, and they've been great. I wouldn't worry too much about it.

Black Bolt. No question.

I agree that box sets are the way to go for the movies. We don't need full on waves for most of them. Plus, I think this is more retail-friendly for things that are more quickly in and out of the public eye like movies.

Very nice. I'm liking this box set, and it's a perfect set of four characters. And, Dan, I think that we're more likely to get an Anders as part of a regular wave, since he pretty much is a main character in the series since New Caprica.