Cappy

Great mash-up, bhm. Where did those figures come from?

Yeah, what he said!

Okay, yes and no. it depends on the type of plastic used. Historically clear plastic used a different polymer base than solid PVC type. It is much harder to dye, to the point it usually only comes out lightly tinted, if all all. i tried for years to dye Transformers, usually with varying degrees of failure. Minimate type plastic may be another beast entirely though. I hear you on that. As I said, getting a red is gonna be pretty tough. Yes, some one did. And the grueling process perfectly illustrates your point: some clear 'Mates took the dye well (original Ice Man), many did not (GB ghosts, even more recent Ice Men).

Despite Dinbot's witticism, clear parts do dye, but getting red out of a yellow piece is going to be pretty tough. Best you might do is a red-orange. Same effect with translucent paint, I expect.

Which is why I simply avoid posting; wouldn't want to irritate the staff. psst, bhm, you missed commenting on this one: *Cappy scuttles back to his dark corner*

Ah, not so many (5 Stiltmen worth), but I find 5 segments-high is plenty for practical play/display purposes. So there's enough to share around!

Sweet quote. Thanks for that, moc. I've got more stilt segments than are reasonable, so I'm going to build two Stiltmen and have stilt wars! (One might be a Stiltcylon, haven't decided.)

20%? Cripes, that's a big jump!

One of the Targets near my home actually has signs posted in the Hot Wheels and action figures aisles that effectively say, "Don't ask us to bring cases out. We restock when appropriate." I thought it was kind of cool, gives the scalpers a wedgie for the day. Also interesting that some managements are aware of, and pissed off by, hard-core collecting habits.

Okay, a little late to the game, but I've finally read through this entire thread. Since I had the privalege of attending SDCC this year, I owe to society to add my comments on, well, the comments: I remember this from conversation with DSTChuck, and Storm touches on it in his summary: TRU has a guy, who is a Marvel comics fan, who decrees what mix DST provides. Sometimes it's general, but the exclusives are often more specific. Yep, Chuck said the contract wouldn't allow them to give away Marvel product. He did say Marvel with Marvel, then all other 'Mates together in one section. DST is building a back story for the MAX line. ID cards for the characters, exposistion on the packaging and (future) website. Give them a story to fuel the kids' imagination. Sort like licensing but without a license. Chuck did mention that is concern is for DST prototypes. He not only has no control over Art Asylum stuff, but believes their policy was much looser. So if you're buying from an Art Asylum ex-employee, no need for concern or guilt. The only news on Univerisal was no new news. They are proceeding as planned.

Damn. I was unaware of those chases! Now I've got to update my want lists...

Sounds to me like you've got a test shot there.

And yet, some people desperately made new friends because of it. Perhaps it's part of DST's master plan to bring joy to the world?

I've seen a lot of things in my long life, but this... ... even Ivan's excellent camera and skills can not capture the sheer pain this caused. You ought to have seen him from the front -- I know I do anytime I close my eyes. We couldn't seem to pull more than four of us together at one time this year. As far as I know (or remember), no pictures were taken at these small affairs. I met and chatted with Ivan, Storm 1:08, and Aaron (plus his cool friend Gary). All very nice people. This one chap from England kept following me around.... "buttheadsmate"(?) I think he called himself. The more time I spent with him, the more I missed Timbo.

Yeah, I can. (surprise, surprise) There are subtle differences that mark the two as different runs, that and I saw the case they came in -- clearly marked with shipping labels from 2010. The two 'Mates have the same physical structure. Side-by-side, they are identical blues. The only differences I can find are: 1) The head, upper arms, and thighs on my 2008 have always been slightly lighter than the rest of the figure, which could just be a production run randomness on my 'Mate. This issue is fixed on the 2010 version. 2) There is less paint inside the knee-cap-joint on the 2010. That is, if you flex the leg, it clearly reveals white plastic. 3) The 2010 version has a 2010 copyright notice, plus the butt-number tattoo. I'm considering this a re-release.

Maybe you're not, but some one in the DC editorial staff is. *mutter, grumble, frkle...*

First 1000 DST booth customers on Thursday receive a free Battle Beast. He's green with gold armor. I don't know how the whole purchase thing will effect availability. At noon, they will be giving out actually free promos: Thursday is a MAX pilot Friday is a Ghostbuster promo Saturday is a clear orange blank (no evidence of other colors) Sunday is no promo at all

Dang, we got chatting with DSTChuck (had him cornered for a good hour) and I gave the 'Mates only a quick looking over. Already forgetting what all I saw. I do remember the BTTF 4-pack and Doc was in white, perhaps his radiation suit? I'll have to double-check that tomorrow. They had a whole case of Halo stuff, including vehicles. Easily twenty different 'Mates on display, Spartans look different than Master Chief, clear versions of the armor. And the aliens rock! They don't look like Minimates at all, but as a set on their own, the Halo stuff has me excited. The SDCC Battle Beast is a green gator in gold armor. The first 1000 people to buy something at DST on Thursday can score a Beast -- gonna be hard to score doubles on this guy (or any at all).

I've got a couple accessories from that series that work. Never occurred to me to look for a full-on playset. Love the hamster tube, probably going to buy it just for that.

"Dammit! For the last time, archery is a real power!" Perfect! (For the record, Hawkeye and Green Arrow are some of my favorite characters.)

Definitely time for the lefties to weigh in (of which I am one). If there is obvious precedence, like Cap's shield always on the left arm or a holster, I'll go with that. After that, I will bow to the injustice of the world and make many of the 'Mates right-handed by default. My favorite 'Mates, however, are always left-handed. I would argue that all superheroes can wield their weapons ambidextrously -- these people are super human and their lives depend on every advantage they can get. That and here's a very non-scientific observation I once made: Roughly 15% of the population is left-handed (oddly enough, the same is true in other mammals), but in the Air Force squadron I spent some time in, of the personnel rated to fly, some 40% of them were left-handed. Huh. I've always wondered what that means. One should note that all, all of my logo and blank 'Mates are left-handed. Now what are the odds of that?

I'd suggest meeting up after the panel -- people will be anxious to get into the room early and get a good seat, being all fidgety and distracted if we hold it before the panel.

Wow! Nice find, Gramps, thanks for sharing. Now my quest begins. hmmm. Cramer, the one at Target (at least online) is different. Not much, and that's not to say the scale isn't the same, but it is different. Requires more research.

So, if I were to drop big bucks on older Kubricks, it would be on Tron (with lightcycles!) and Planet of the Apes. I've seen a Be@rbirck advertised for the Tron remake. Does anyone know of plans to release new Kubricks for the Tron remake?

Oh, I remember Minimate Theatre: sometimes rude, always funny. Welcome back, Dave, glad to see you're keeping up with the changes.