SignatureChoice
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Posts posted by SignatureChoice
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On 9/12/2021 at 12:55 AM, Onyx_6 said:
I believe the switch on the code name and specialty is intentional, as is all things dst does. It appears that this is an homage to the original figure which also had those switched:
As a non-American with very little knowledge of G.I Joe, learning about this little tidbit and how it makes the packaging a proverbial 'easter-egg', finding out about this little homage to the original figure has me quite tickled indeed.
I very much hope some die-hard G.I Joe fan will have a chuckle at this reference to Cobra Commander's past, thank you very much for the context Onyx_6
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Ever since the amazingly named cylonchaney created this thread, I've been thinking on the concept of Rick and Morty minimates heavily. Perhaps the fact new episodes are currently airing has contributed to my keeping it on the brain.
Anyway, my latest thought to share here is that the...modularity (?) of minimates would lend itself very well indeed to the "the same but a little different" nature of parallel realities and by extension Rick and Morty. I'm struggling to articulate what I mean, but the combination of interchangeable parts and numerous characters with only minor differences seems like a match made in heaven.
Allow me to provide an example. Let's say that, in this hypothetical minimal line, you have Rick Sanchez and Mr Meeseeks. Now, while many of us would like to get Rick and Morty together, one and done, we know they'd probably be split up in a true 'wave' scenario (as opposed to boxsets/single figs). Now, with just a few extra parts thrown into the bubble, both of these figures could become 'army builders'...for a diverse army. Let's say you include, an extra heads&hair with Rick (eyepatch rick perhaps, and some sort of fun hat with rick hair underneath) and an extra 2 Meeseeks heads (say, one with the orange hair tuft, and one with stubble). This two-pack would appeal would allow one to army build a council or ricks and a horde of Meeseeks while also giving one numerous options for diversity with the alternate parts.
Admittedly, much of my frenzied thought here is rooted in the fact that Rick, the ostensible lead of the program, has near innumerable variations on his 'theme' that share many common elements, and that the interchangeability of minimise parts presents an elegant way to efficiently offer figures of such a unique franchise, while the nature of the program and the individuality of these 'variant' Rick's may well encourage buyers to 'army-build', or at least make multiple purchases, in a way other licences might not.
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On 9/4/2021 at 5:56 PM, buttheadsmate said:
Fantastic choice of interests SC , palz & kubricks being passions of mine.
Re: Stanley K. The Shining features in bizarre stuff I collect ,I recently purchased an Adler typewriter nigh on identical to Jack's & nothing would give me more pleasure than to see some Stanley Kubrick ....er...Minimates .....awesome licence IMHO . Imagine having several identical Spartacus Minimates ( much like the existing Star Trek Minimate line
) .....all declaring that they are Spartacus ?! It could even be a scene from Toy Story 5 *
I am not an avid fan of Dr.Who despite my love of daleks . This in't as odd as it may seem especially when you read up about the daleks' creator Terry Nation .
Bearing in mind I am on vacation ,having little to do , I have just checked out ebay listings for 'Docter Who' .....sure enough there are a few there
Sadly Dr.Hugh items are thin on the ground although Dr.Wu (Jurassic Park ) is there.
These GI Joe 'mates best turn up soon otherwise Hugh knows WTF we'll be talking about?
* Check out "Shining references buried in Pixar films"
Cheers BHM, always good to see interests in common. I laughed at your Spartacus/Star Trek comparison there, very apt haha and I'm thrilled to hear about the Adler, though I have to wonder if it's in grey-blue or light tan? Either way, all work and no play...
Excited to potentially hear your thoughts on the Joe mates packaging, I noticed in the (block-figure) Kubrick thread it seems like you're no stranger to graphic design and layout
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These look awesome! Love the window flap and the file cards, although hopefully the error HellfireSamurai spotted will have a chance of being rectified as once one's seen it one can't unsee it lol
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Between discovering the etymology of the 'yay shot' and learning these wonderful eBay search tips this thread is the most fun I've had with typos in a very long time indeed, jolly good stuff. Not only entertainment but edutainment
glad to hear there's at least one fellow Doctor Who fan here buttheadsmate, and a treat to hear the mangled misspellings that've led you to Dalek discoveries; on a similar note to the Hulk Buster/Hulkbuster spacing, I've found some buried treasures adding a space between Cyber and Men when looking for Cybermen on AusBay.
Smashing to hear that those 'Darlek' listings go for a song on eBay UK...I can't help but be reminded of Sidney Newman mispronouncing the omnicidal pepper pots as "Doorlocks" in that docudrama. Happy Kaled hunting BHM; I hope some some Dalek, or Darlek, rolykins glide your way
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what an announcement, G.I. Joe mates as I live and breathe! and to hear of a Snake Eyes Minimate long before I hear of a snake-eyes film, how wonderful indeed.
I know that I'll absolutely need at least one Cobra Commander, for a wildly out of scale board game night with mega construx Skeletor, kre-o Megatron and schleich Gargamel. Should make for some Risky Business indeed, if they can hold Australia ?
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On 7/9/2021 at 5:18 AM, luke314pi said:
I have my next 24 customs planned out.
I also keep a spreadsheet for what parts from each set I am able to use, and then I know what parts are available for future customs. For example, at one point I had 35 sets of Patch/Lady Deathstrike. So with my spreadsheet I knew that I could use Patch's upper body for Arcade, lower body for Black Tom, and Lady Deathstrike's hip piece for Jack of Hearts, one arm for In-Betweener, hands for Black Tom, and an upcoming use for her legs.
Here are some fun numbers: My customs have used parts from 90 different Minimate base figures so far, and let's assume each Minimate has 8 usable parts (hair, head, torso, set of arms, set of hands, hips/legs, set of feet, one accessory). That is 720 different usable parts available to me. I probably average 30 customs per release, so I am drawing upon a pool of over 21,000 Minimate parts to create these customs.
What an interesting peek behind the curtain Luke, just wanted to thank you for sharing
also grand to see how far ahead you look, fantastic stuff mate
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I feel like the McFarlane stuff is a great example of the potential for small scale Rick and Morty figures, with some a major limitation in the building block component. While Rick and Morty, as with many cartoons, lends itself well to the construction element, I feel like that's a bit of a hurdle for many adult fans who have an interest in owning figures. I'm sure many would fancy a two pack of rick and/or morty to pop on their desk, but the prospect of constructing and displaying Rick's saucer and a garage (or indeed not, and the proverbial 'loss' one would feel purchasing the set only for the figures) may stay their hand. While the figures (disclosure, I purchased the McGarage set with jerry and Mr Meeseeks, and to be honest solely for mr meeseeks and the meeseeks box, and to see how the scale worked with mates, Palz and the like) are perfectly serviceable and their moulded heads certainly give them a charm, this is certainly a show that would benefit from the articulation of the Minimates body.
Quite the paragraph to say I completely agree, but now that all I've got down my more technical thoughts on the matter perhaps I'll take this chance to dream. The sheer number of characters (and indeed variants) in Rick and Morty could make for a line with the longevity and coimpletionism of Nightmare before Xmas, while the number of galactic and inter dimensional conflicts and distinctive factions involved could make for army building waves the likes of Halo. Imagine members of alien races packed in with Council of Rick's members, in addition to a wave of main cast, family and friend's two packs with chases. Definitely quite a chance to dream.
Who would be on your Wishlist? who would you pack in with who, and what accessories might they come with?
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it's been a little while between innings gang, but I'm very to be back, and so welcome
thank you for the warm welcome buttheadsmate, MisterPL, Zach, Luke, Shanester and of course thereasonsy, hang in there my fellow Aussie, I'm glad to be here
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11 hours ago, MisterPL said:
Prior to The Acquisition™, the AvP license was a separate agreement. Since then, I'm not so sure. It seems like it would fall under the same Disney umbrella (technically it does) but Lucasfilm and Marvel still handle their respective properties.
I've no idea who's handling Terminator now but that's another franchise that I'd like more Minimates from.I very much like The Acquisition (TM), very much indeed! I also am yet to get a hold of superscript ? but yes, The Acquisition indeed. If only we could get some mates of Minimates into the mouse house as sleeper agents, to push our blocky agenda and get these licences licensed!
We'll start with minimates in the desk drawers then move on to horse's heads in the beds if we have to >;) I kid, I kid, Mr NSA, I kid. I also heard about (alleged?) unproduced Godfather minimates, lending context to that lil' joke lol
Indeed though, Terminator mates still have so much to give! I might have to try find the Terminator Mates threads on here now lol ever since I first saw the T3 Kubrick set, and more intensely once DST became got their own Cyberdyne shares, I'd hoped that set would one day receive a minimate counterpart, with a blocky T-X with ALL the swappable hands and maybe a mini Claire Danes...all the better to save the minimate scale T-1 to be picked with the T-X endoskeleton in the same vein as the Hunter-Killers...
I digress though comrades. To riff on the Grateful Dead's 'friend of the devil', a mate of minimates is a mate of mine
Let's draw lots on who's going undercover at the Franchise Farm. I've even heard they call them silos lol thank you kindly for the info MisterPL
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On 11/24/2020 at 8:12 PM, buttheadsmate said:
You have hit the nail on the head with that post. Bravo.
I really got into X-Files Palz , I still hate their 'hands' but apart from that they sometimes get elevated to 'my most-loved' . The most loved of my most-loved are a set of 4, Series 2 , Autopsy Scullys , each one is a different colour . They are sublime .
Oh wow, wow indeed! Such an iconic look for both her and the show represented
are the figures moulded wholly in different colours or you've different outfits under her lab coat? Either way, that's incredible
The hands are indeed one of the shortcomings of the Palz design (in fact, as I wasn't quite aware of Tooms when I first got him as a Pal, and as I was quite young, I mistook the stretched out hands on his stretched out arms for like, crustacean style claws or something he must have used on the show lol how wrong I was. what an accessory though & what an ep, Squeeze especially with Tooms as a suburb sequel/conclusion. Prime pick for those double feature VHS tapes x-files was first sold on but I digress) and it's a real shame, considering how much Palisades spoiled us in terms of accessories, that some can be difficult to get into anyone's hands. My professor Farnsworth I-Man (I-Men, now that's a ways back) has to wield the alien stiletto these days lol good news everyone
On the hands/claws note though, on the aliens, especially the S2 attack alien, they bring out the otherworldly in such an elegant lil way without going the full 'moulded hands' route. Once again though, it can be difficult if you want them holding anything lol I myself like to dangle the lil baby pod/alien fetus from the Erlenmeyer Flask from the aliens claws, like he's on dad duty.
EDIT: I'm sorry if this was terribly prying BHM, I was quite the newbie indeed when I wrote this mate
But, to return to your Dr. Dana Scully quartet, does that mean you have four gurneys also ? if you've any of the aliens from the line I do hope you've got one strapped up. A bit of a confession, but I recently ordered an S2 Buffy Cordelia from the US as lil gift for myself (hoping it gets here before Xmas) and I mainly bought her just to have one of those gurneys to call my own...and to strap my autopsied up S1 grey alien to of course lol hoping to hear more about your rainbow of Autopsy Scully's mate
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7 hours ago, cylonchaney said:
Hopefully one of the things they do is start paying Alan Dean Foster the royalties they owe him for Star Wars and Alien franchise novelizations.
https://nypost.com/2020/11/20/star-wars-writer-alan-dean-foster-says-disney-owes-him-royalties/
I'm so happy to see this signal boosted here #DisneyMustPay
On a side note, I can't see why there haven't been packs of minimate Aliens and Predators together, but I imagine there must be a good reason. Is the greater "Alien vs Predator" licence a wholly separate, perhaps unacquired third entity to the Alien/Predator licences DST presumably still holds perhaps? I'm curious.
I feel like mates for the two ill fated films are a missed opportunity considering the ease of re-using parts (they have already mastered and moulded aliben$, predators, eggs, huggers, bursters etc) and the obvious evolution that is packing repaints/reissues of both creatures together. I could see two four packs, one for AVP one for requiem, with say, two Xenos and a predator in one then vice versa in the other, and some sort of (hopefully easily licensed, perhaps even faceless goon) humans to fill out the ranks.
Hell, I wonder if they are in any way prohibited from just making an Alien vs Predator two pack of minimates, akin to how McFarlane and later NECA did. I'm no lawyer but perhaps not even necessarily directly tied to/licensed as any part of the AVP video game/comic/films...
My main line of thinking is, the two intergalactic terrors in question probably have more fans between them than either would individually, and both are near perfect army builders. Of course, this is a slippery slope. We're only an endoskeleton pack in away from Alien vs Predator vs Terminator lol food for thought tho
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G'day,
I just finished up my introductory post and on reflection, I've realised how much Palisades Palz were important, formative even, to me as a youth. I was also exploring the site, and found this here forum.
I realise many might not want to dredge up the past now Palisades has passed, but I also hope some of you folks could dig getting a bit nostalgic about the true cousin to the Minimate, the Palisades Pal.
I also realise I should stay on topic, since I'm creating a topic, but if I may be so bold my topic at large is simply Palz themselves. But, in the interests of fostering conversation, I will include some observations and thoughts I've had over the years as 'prompts', if not just signposts for our walk down memory lane:
Why the flip was Comrade Artzen, Mr Alex Krycek himself, packed 1:64 to a case? Alongside the smoking man he's one of the series few truly recurring villains, and has a slightly more exciting (read:playable) M.O within the show. As opposed to smoking and stubbing out cigarettes menacingly. Also, Krycek had soooo many different looks, from FBI suit to undercut-leather jacket mercenary to his old man disguise. I can understand a variant being packed so as to become a rarity, but it's a great tragedy the only Krycek we saw was a 1:64 packed 'Comrade Artzen' variant. Is it still called a variant if it's the only figure we ever got?
The issue of making unique characters chase figures recurs with the 1:64 Marita Covarrubias. I missed out on Deep Throat, that's on me. He wasn't blind packed anyway. I was lucky enough to get a 1:16 X figure, so I had someone to leak information to Mulder anyway. I'm grateful to have him, but I dread to think of those X-Files fans who got onboard X-Files Palz series 1 and were big fans of the informant characters. It's the same deal as Krycek, anyone wanting to complete a set of Mulder's first 3 whistleblowing friends would have had (and now most definitely) has their work cut out for them, and once again, it's not like the chase figure needed to be the only example. Marita had even more looks than Krycek throughout the show, some of them were even plot-pivotal. Unlike Highlander, there needn't have only been one.
Those two talking points became grievances quite quickly, and that's not what I intended, not at all. To be honest, I've never had anywhere to voice those long percolating thoughts. Onto a taste of the positives, without which I wouldn't be typing this labor of love. To name but two of my loves in this sadly defunct line:
- Accessories designed with block figures in mind
From the black oil spill pool with space for two Palz feet moulded into it to the Autopsy chest piece included as an accessory with aliens, Palisades really knew how to work with their medium in interesting, elegantly simple way. The whole 'two outfits per figure' angle on the Buffy line was an inspired early design choice, and as Palz licences became more diversified they never forgot the modular nature of their figures. They even released one of the earliest Build-A-Figures in Buffy Palz Wave 2...quite the logical move when your figures are already designed with disassembly in mind, and Palisades was certainly no stranger to smart moves
- Accessories at large
To an X-Files fan, the little white and red paper X-File included with each figure really showed the company cared, or at least cared enough to you know, read up on the episode the figure represented might belong to. That one slip of paper made each and every figure a little thrill in itself, and having one somewhat uniform accessory throughout the line really helped it have a cohesive feel. Little touches like these can be seen throughout the Palz releases; from the tiny wrapping tape to stick John McClane's pistol to his back to the trading cards included with the Buffy Palz to the early example of a Build A Figure in Buffy Wave 2's 'The Judge'. also including his own props across the wave, and speaking of characters played by actor Brian Thompson oh how I wish Palisades had made it far enough to make Alien Bounty Hunter Palz
Even if they packed them 1:64.
Anyway, I'm hoping Palz is acceptable as both the singular form and the plural, and that I can find other Palz Pals out there
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but what's puzzling you, is the nature, of my game...& as you can no doubt gather, I do love the Stone's riff (pun intended) that is this forum's name.
Puzzle yourselves no more though as here I am introducing myself. I'm an Australian bloke in his mid 20's, should anyone reading be a Thunder Down Under themselves, I'm born, raised and reside in the Sunshine State, where fun times await. From what I gather, that's also what Florida is known by to its friends, but I digress. But yes, tl;dr: I'm a 90's kid of the Pineapple State, Australia.
Now, were I doing this AFK, IRL if you will, I'd be carefully navigating the introductions while tamping down social anxiety, and burying my Minimate collecting (and similarly less 'hip' hobbies) deep in my 'closet', if you will. But this here is a safe space and ooo-eee I'm incredibly glad I found it. So I might do something I've never really done, and discuss my history with Minimates.
Now, as y'all may be aware, minimates (as with many forms of more 'niche' figures, and seemingly, with the obvious exception of LEGO, mini figures at large) are rarely available domestically in Australia, at least in my experience. It's perhaps important to note I grew up and came of age living on a farm in rural Queensland, further compounding the issue.
So, let us begin, over a decade ago. A childhood friend of my mother, both of them big fans of glam rock, brings her back some knick knacks from the US of A, including one Mr Ace Frehley of KISS in Minimate form. On later visits back to Australia from my mother's friend, I was blessed with further 3inchers, minimates of my own. I definitely had AA's Kirk, Spock and McCoy, possibly Gorn also, and I also had some of the Bruce Lee range (an early custom, well, kitbash, I made was using shirtless Bruce Lee as the chassis for an Iggy Pop) and remember pining for Alice & Ozzy. So, as with most addictive things, my first hit was free.
Later, I'm on that inter web, it's some time just post-2005. My parents have made sure to make/receive the evening's phone calls on the landline, as it's dial up internet allowing my family's battered IBM to ride on the information super highway and, as I hope you know, unless you had a second phone line dial up made using the internet and taking phone calls an either/or decision. Of course mobile phones, and wifi, and so on changed all that. Anyway, I'm deep in it, and on either OAFE.net, MillionairePlayboy or the (sadly defunct) AllNerdReview.com I notice these new fangled Marvel Minimates. I'm enamoured at the smaller size, the range of characters comic book licences would allow them (this is all pre MCU, remember those times! think how well rounded AA/DST had their Marvel roster before much of the public had even CONSIDERED the universe beyond Raimi Spideys and Lee Hulks again I digress) and indeed, for my sins, I was beyond charmed at the use of 3", 2.5, and 2" scales in the Lord Of The Rings line. Times were good.
Times were also good with my first TRUE love, and I realise this may be a tad blasphemous: Palisades Palz. The blindboxed second series, which I managed to find around age 8 in a boutique toy shop during a holiday to the Sunshine Coast. I pulled out trench coat Mulder, Tooms, Newborn Alien, Skinner, X... and was already ankle deep in the X-FIles at that point, having rented all 3 VHS specials from our local video store many a time. You can imagine how ecstatic I was, and tbh I consider that moment, of finding my own minifigures IRL, my true 'start of darkness' in terms of mini figure collecting.
Maybe we can petition for another 4 pack, if not a wave, of X-files mates ? It wasn't long at all before I was diligently saving my pocket money (my allowance, for you Yanks) and fastidiously researching all year, then begging my mother to take my stack of small bills and put it into her bank account and call a number of toy store I'd heavily researched that STILL HAD an entire case of Die Hard Palz and importantly, shipped to regional areas as remote as where I grew up. & you bet your butt we got em, and that I soon kit bashed a Byers and Langly to be prepared for when I (hopefully some day) get my hands on Melvin Frohike himself. Once again, I digress, but...if you're into Palz and reading this, don't be a stranger
But this isn't Palisades Palz Plutocracy, it's the marvellous Minimates Multiverse, so I'll get back on track. Once I got my first real job, and perhaps more crucially once I got my first debit card, I could expand my (as you can imagine, already somewhat sizeable) mini figure collection in earnest. That's where the ever exquisite Luke's Toy Store enters my life. For too long, I'd see amazing, eclectic four packs from such a variety of properties in ToyFare (long live print media!) or online, and despite my best efforts I couldn't find anyone to stock it in Aus, or anyone who'd ship such small items internationally without taking the piss (which is to say, lightly ripping me off/overcharging). Needless to say, very few of the minimates in my collection would be there without the fine service Luke provides, and so I feel it's important I give a resounding thank you to the man himself right off the bat. Long Live Loose Shipping!
Anyway, sorry for the essay, if you've read this far thank you kindly. If you're looking for a tl;dr, the guts of my intro is in the first para proper but I'm a 26 yr old Pineapple Statesman, which for those in the know means I live in Australia, in what's supposedly the Sunniest State. Looking forward to talking to y'all, and thank you kindly for having me x
peace,
A
Shang Chi Movie Mates
in Marvel Minimates
Posted
This might not be the place but I emphatically second the new spider-man being an absolutely excellent chance for not only a Raimi Green Goblin but also a Raimi Doctorpus. While I am disappointed (and tbh a little shocked) that the latest installation of the wildly successful MCU has warranted no minimates at all, I am hopeful that throwing back to the Raimi films (and indeed, the genesis of the modern Marvel feature film fandom) in the new Spider-Man will usher in a new wave of nostalgia for those films and hopefully allow we minimate fans to finally have a chance at the Raimi designs that may have kickstarted some of our Marvel/Spider-Man fandom.
For two things that dominated the early millennium (Raimi's Spiderman renaissance and the arrival of the hyper-articulated block figure that is the minimate ) it seems an absolutely travesty they are still yet to be married. The Raimi spider verse was, for many, the first instance of the Marvel world they experienced, and I feel the level of nostalgia amongst my generation for the Raimi trilogy is often overlooked.
Tl;Dr : would love a Raimi Green Goblin/Doctor Octopus, in the event DST don't make a habit of skipping Marvel cinematic tie-ins.