Review: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) - The Black Series Zorii Bliss (103)

 I haven't posted in ages and since we're in quarantine for the virus, it looks as if I'll have a lot more time now. So, here's Zorii Bliss in all her glory. I went to watch that film twice, once when it came out with my dad and another time with a couple friends. On the first watch, I thought she was a nice addition even if she didn't appear that much. She provided a little bit of background for Poe Dameron and I had nothing against her. On the second watch, one of my friends was annoyed, or angry, about her being in the film. The reason being that she appeared out of nowhere and it got in the way of Poe and Finn being together. Which, I saw coming, nothing against it but I have little attachment to the series which made me enjoy the film. This figure showed up through Amazon Prime so I decided to take some pictures, especially since I don't do Star Wars stuff, and my Black Series figures get neglected. 

 Nice box, artwork looks good.

 It has the same aesthetic as all the third phase Black Series figures.

 She's number 103.

 Zorii Bliss on the side, I gotta come up with a better way to show these pictures.

 The back looks nice. I like the way the helmet looks. It's very Tokusatsu.

"It is difficult for scoundrels to remain neutral in the war between First Order and Resistance, and Zorii Bliss and the Spice Runners of Kijimi must soon take a side." 

 Okay, right off the bat, she looks amazing. I was looking forward to this figure once I saw the movie. At first, I didn't much care but in the film she has a really basic spandex bodysuit with a bunch of extra gear, which again, very Tokusatsu. I love the way the details are done, the seams on the bodysuit underneath the gold gear. Even the gold bracelets have detail on them. The belt looks amazing and they are a good home for her blasters which go in with the handle facing out. The boots are nicely done, but very hard to balance. I think the ankle articulation is to blame rather than the design of the boot. The chest shield, or the "bib" up at the top looks good. The whole figure has a nice cloth wrinkle detail throughout the sculpt. Even the neck, which is a separate piece to the upper torso (much like a Figuarts figure). The helmet looks strange and I love every bit of it. It has a "V" shaped visor and a lot of nice mechanical details on the sides. It's very symmetrical, I can't tell if it has a dark wash but it does have the detail pop. Maybe there are some hits of black detailing here and there. 

 She just looks amazing, I'm surprised with how much I love this figure. Both hands have gunslinger wrist articulation which is, honestly, the essential articulation when it comes to figures that use weapons.

 They hold her pistols pretty well, maybe the hands are a little too big for the pistols.

 The pistols have so much paint I can't even, how does a $20 figure have an accessory painted this well! She has a lot more detail than a Lightning Collection figure for the same price yet, have nicer paint application to her pistols, which are a lot more complexly detailed than most Sentai weapons.

 Anyway, she can hold them both at the same time and they look great! The single joint on the elbow does look silly.

 The holsters are connected to her thighs along the strap that is detailed. I wish the belt kept it's place but it moves around if you bend her legs at the hip since it's not secured.

 For a perfect figure, what else do you want? Well, she has a surprise!

 Her visor comes off! The clips on the sides of the visor allow the visor to come off to reveal her eyes. The figure's eyes are not as nice as Keri Russell's but they tried!

 She looks better from far a way but it is a nice surprise. I didn't expect her to be able to do this. 

 In the end, she's a nice addition to the collection. We just need a new Finn and Poe to go along with the rest of The Rise of Skywalker crew.

 She was $19.99 on Amazon, I thought these figures were supposed to go up in price this year. She should be available everywhere that has Black Series figures for about the same price. Just, don't go out. I believe online shopping is still safe but don't quote me on that. It's best if you look that up. Stay safe everyone, wash your hands!

Review: Marvel Comics - Marvel Legends Build-a-Figure Super Skrull (2020)

 The Super Skrull, again, not familiar with these characters but I do like the designs. It has a very classic look to it and I love it! When this was revealed I wasn't all that excited due to the fact that I know very little when it comes to Marvel's comics, I'm super familiar with the movies though!

Review: Fantastic 4 - Marvel Legends Doctor Doom (Super Skrull Wave)

 This is the best figure in the wave, seriously, I was looking forward to this one as soon as it was announced despite me knowing next to nothing about the character. I did watch Fantastic Four (2005) with Chris Evans as the Human Torch and he was the main villain for that one. He looked okay, but he's always looked better in his comic form, more specifically, his updated look with the evil looking helmet, not the Iron Man, old-school robot looking one. Let's get to it!

Review: Fantastic 4 - Marvel Legends Invisible Woman & Human Torch (Super Skrull Wave 2020)

There's a video out for this, if you want to check that out click right here! I got Invisible Woman through Amazon since I had pre-ordered her ahead of time. I found the Human Torch and Doctor Doom at Wal-Mart later that weekend, so last weekend, I mean, the one before this most recent one. So far, I'm very pleased because it's the first time I have all fantastic four as a team. I would have preferred to have the classic costumes, the Walgreens ones, but this will do. Let's get to it.

Review: Fantastic Four - Marvel Legends Mr. Fantastic & The Thing (Super Skrull Wave)

The first wave of the year! Finally I have the Thing and Mr. Fantastic, although not in the form that I'd like but this will do! I've been waiting for this wave for a while now and since I really liked Captain Marvel and the Skrulls I've wanted a comic version of the Skrulls for my collection. I pre-ordered these as soon as possible and they were supposed to be released next month but these showed up early. If you don't follow me on instagram, go there @loveymush. Let's get to it!

Review: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - (First Edition) Black Series (90) Supreme Leader Kylo Ren

 Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker has been out for about a week and I want to go see it again. Seriously, I really loved the film and my Shifu, who loves Star Wars and wasn't the biggest fan of The Force Awakens or The Last Jedi, loved it! There's so much to it and not having a lot of history with the franchise, especially since I only just go really into it over this past year, helped. I like the character of Kylo Ren, he's interesting and I think the way some of the internet sees him is pretty funny. Let's get to it.

Review: Power Rangers Lost Galaxy - Hasbro Lightning Collection Lost Galaxy Magna Defender

This is the coolest of the second wave in the line, seriously, just look at it. Despite not watching Power Rangers Lost Galaxy to completion, I did watch a bit of it so I'm familiar with the character. I loved the costume although I did think the horns on the helmet were a bit silly. I do like his armor, he looks like a knight, which is appropriate since his character in Seijuu Sentai Gingaman was called Kuro Kishi (黒騎士), which is Japanese for "Black Knight". It's quite impressive that he made it to the line to begin with, especially for a character like this to be introduced so early in the line's lifetime. He has one of the more intricate, if not the most intricate, suits in the series. He was the first figure I found along with the Beast Morphers Gold Ranger at Walgreens.

Review: Power Rangers In Space - GameStop Exclusive Psycho Blue Ranger Hasbro Lightning Collection

This was another figure that I got from the U.K., the other one was the Dragon Shield Black Ranger from a couple months ago. They were a part of the same order but I'm just really bad about getting to these on time. So here we are, months later after all the hype on this figure is over and I feel extra bad since this figure is everywhere and will probably be on clearance in a couple months along with most of the line which is pretty sad. Unfortunately Power Rangers, and to a lesser extent Super Sentai and most Tokusatsu properties aren't popular anymore or at the moment. I wish they were but that isn't the case. As for the character, I do remember watching Power Rangers In Space, I don't know if it was a rerun or if it was a part of Jetix's Power Rangers Generations series that they had. I remember seeing the Psycho Rangers and thinking that they looked so cool! They had pretty awesome designs and I didn't realize until recently that they all shared the exact same design, give or take the male and female proportions, but they were nearly identical. Which is kinda weird since even the Sentai suits have small differences in the costumes besides their color. Denji Sentai Megaranger, which is where Power Rangers In Space takes the source footage, is a great example since the basic base suit is the same throughout the Megarangers but with their color. The helmets are nearly identical until you look at the edges or their visors which is used to distinguish them. Not for these guys and we'll talk more about that on Wednesday!

Review: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - (First Edition) Black Series (91) Rey & D-O

 On Triple Force Friday I went out to get some new Star Wars figures, my goal was to get all of the 6th Edition figures... I failed, but I did get most of them. On that day I got Kylo Ren (90), Sith Trooper (92), Offworld Jawa (96), and First Order Stormtrooper (97). I couldn't find the Mandalorian, and I wasn't interested in the ones from the games so I waited and got those later at Walgreens. I'm still missing the First Edition Mandalorian... I didn't get the regular releases until later, I got the Sith Trooper from Amazon, and I got Kylo Ren during Triple Force Friday as well. I just got this Rey figure today, especially after watching the movie last night (12/19/19). I loved it and I won't give any spoilers yet, I'll wait a couple days before doing that. I was satisfied, as someone who only watched the sequel trilogy I thought it was a fitting end. I was familiar with the original trilogy and I watched Star Wars: A New Hope (1977) so I understood a lot of what was going on. Let's get to the review.

Review: Avengers: Endgame - Marvel Legends Build-a-Figure Endgame Thor

Finally we get to the man himself, Thor! Son of Odin! Again, burned out, super busy, especially around this time of year and I wanted to take a couple pictures before posting this one. I like the direction they went with for Thor, I wasn't expecting it and honestly, I was surprised. I thought it was a little much at the beginning and little by little he was becoming himself again. As for this figure... eh, I would have preferred his armored form more than this one but we have it and I'll appreciate it but I can't wait until they release the armored form. Anyway, let's get to it.

Review: Captain America: Civil War (2016) - Marvel Legends (Phasing) Vision (Endgame Thor Wave)

 This is another figure we didn't really need. However for those who missed out on the Toys R Us exclusive 2-pack with Vision and Scarlet Witch this is a good way to get him. He is different than that one and I'll get into that later. This would have been a much better spot for so many other figures in the movie especially those with Endgame specific looks and to use that slot for a figure that didn't even appear in the film... is eh. Let's get to it!

Review: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) - Spider-Man & Iron Man Mark

This is the last of the Marvel Cinematic Universe Spider-Man figures, actually, there's the Iron Spider from the Infinity War 80th Anniversary 2-pack so, second to last! I first saw this at a TJ Maxx a couple years ago for about $20 and... I didn't get it, and I have regretted it ever since. This was on Amazon for about $40 bucks and I didn't get it, then after Spider-Man: Far From Home the price went up to $60 so I wasn't getting it. I almost caved until comradd_figsrus from instagram had some items on sale. He was selling this set, the War Machine 2-Pack, and a Dormammu wave MCU Doctor Strange, all for $140 which honestly is a pretty good deal in my opinion, especially with that Doctor Strange. Payment was easy and shipping was fast so I was incredibly pleased.

Review: The Incredible Hulk - Marvel Legends Vintage Series Hulk San Diego Comic Con Exclusive

This was yet another item that I got through Hasbro Pulse, The Incredible Hulk! Which was a San Diego Comic-Con Exclusive that was available online in limited quantities. I did get the membership for $50 but ultimately it was worth it since I got a total of 5 items through them. The Marvel Exclusives were set to be sold on the 28th, I only managed to get the Collector and the Grandmaster 2-pack the first day and this one sold out before I could checkout. The following day, this was supposed to be out by 12:00, I tried to refresh the page for hours and almost gave up but once it was around 1:15-ish it was live and it was go time! I should have gotten two... either way I'm happy I got it, I do have the 80th Anniversary 2-pack one but this one has its own charm that we'll go over in a bit.

Review: Marvel Comics - Marvel Legends 80th Anniversary Captain America

Captain America, the super soldier! When I saw the prototype for this figure I was so excited, it looked like a brand new sculpted figure and I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. A great representation of the classic Captain America look. I don't have many comic caps, the only other one I have is the one from the Vintage Series with that nice right blue color that doesn't really go with Cap since it doesn't really match the flags colors. There are some issues I have with this figure though, I'll go over that in a little bit.

Review: Power Rangers Dino Charge - Hasbro Lightning Collection Dino Charge Red Ranger

I had to watch Power Rangers Dino Charge in order to watch this review because I didn't really watch it. I'm so far behind in seasons that it's hard to catch up. I did watch all of Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger before, I loved that season! Most of the recent seasons of Power Rangers are a little hard to watch, this one however wasn't bad. I enjoyed some parts of it, especially when he tried to take out a weapon from his bag but besides that I thought the acting was eh. I was slightly surprised by the fact that they decided to skip a Sentai season to adapt into Power Rangers. I thought Go-Busters was great, and especially since the morphing sequence included "it's morphin' time!" I thought it would be a great season to bring here but also the merchandise wasn't that much, a couple zords and a few rangers with very few modes. Kyoryuger on the other hand had 10 Rangers, 10+ Zords, a bunch of batteries which was the gimmick of the show while Go-Busters didn't have much of a gimmick. Still, I saw the Dino Charge toys in stores and I actually got a fair amount of them, I didn't get all of them unfortunately but I did get a couple. And S.H. Figuarts also had their core team completed plus the Armored Might Rangers were pretty cool. We didn't get any more recent teams with the Legacy Collection which was okay, but it would have been nice to see the Ninja Steel Rangers or even the Super Megaforce Rangers in that form but it was cancelled after Hasbro bought Power Rangers. To my surprise they put the Dino Charge Red Ranger in the first wave which wouldn't be my first pick but honestly, who cares? Let's take a closer look!

Review: Power Rangers S.P.D. - Hasbro Lightning Collection S.P.D. Shadow Ranger

Power Rangers S.P.D. was one of the few seasons I remember watching from beginning to end. I loved the theme songs and the designs of the helmets and suits. It used footage from the Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger, the 28th season of Super Sentai. I also thought that Anubis "Doggie" Cruger had a pretty cool design, and he actually had a much better design over his Sentai counterpart, Doggie Kruger, whose design I'm getting more and more used to. It was also the first season I actively tried to complete a team... and that never happened. I did get the S.W.A.T. mode of the Shadow Ranger and I still have him somewhere over there. Seeing that he was going to be a part of the  Lightning Collection I was excited especially after all of the Dekarangers were released as Figuarts and the S.W.A.T modes were revealed but never released which was very sad. This was one of the two figures I was able to find in stores along with the White Ranger. While Shadow Ranger is a pretty cool name I think Dekamaster is much cooler.

Review: Power Rangers Ninja Storm - Bandai of America Legacy Collection Build-a-Megazord Storm Megazord // Red, Yellow, Blue Wind Rangers

Power Rangers Ninja Storm was the last season I saw before I moved to the United States and every other season I watched was in English. It was right after Wild Force had come out and I loved that season, especially since Lions and Red were two of my favorite things so you know it is. I did think that the theme song was a little strange and different from what came before. It was also an interesting season in which the wirework and CG was funky but I didn't care, I was 7. I did have a couple toys that my dad had sent from the U.S. but no transforming mecha, I had a big zord where you could put a Red Ranger that came with it and I loved it! Unfortunately, earlier this year Pua Magasiva passed away. This was also the first full team to be released by Bandai in the Lightning Collection line and the only set of three rangers to build a Megazord. Although Dino Thunder was a team of three they used all five of the rangers to build that Megazord. Power Rangers Ninja Storm was based off of Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger from the Super Sentai Series in Japan.