Recondo

The Collector's Depot came through! I've been e-mailing them about checking into HOT TOYS to see if they could get the new 1:18 scale Aliens & Colonial Marines sets & I just got word that they did! The best part is that Mike was able to keep the figures at a rock bottom price.. only $10 per figure. The few other places that I've seen these things for sale have them at $12 or better. I am not sure if there are any Aliens fans out there, but I've wanted highly detailed "Joe scale/articulation" Colonial Marines figures since I was a kid & first saw the movie in the theaters. lol.. FINALLY! This is the first wave of figures, with more waves to follow (containing more marines, etc). Here's some info for you guys... First off, here's the link to the sale page: The Collector's Depot Toystore Second, here's a link to the HOT TOYS company web site where you can see up-close pics of how cool the figures are (& how Joe-like): Hot Toys, Inc. (Aliens) Lastly, here's a link to a review (with pics) written by the Joe community's very own Flint WO2 (Jon) who can't say enough about these figures: http://www.joesightings.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=3760 And here's a link for other reviews: http://www.alienscollection.com/ This is all just a heads-up for you guys. I see that BBTS is already sold out of these, so I am not sure how long these will last. Peace.

Again, thanks guys. To further what I talked about earlier, I guess Hasbro said in the con roundtable, (paraphrased) "..there were originally 13 'Delta/Joe' style Plague members slated, but for now only the first 3 are getting released." (thanks to Chris aka Werecat) And I think we'll have a chance to see more of these (I hope).. maybe even all 13 if fans enjoy the concept & demand them.. but not for a long while now witht he 3 3/4" hold. But hey.. who knows.. its a new fresh idea that Hasbro came up with & maybe they'll eventually follow through with it. Like the original 13 Joes, we'll possibly have an original 13 Plague to talk about someday. One can only hope.

Awe shucks.. *blush* lol I am just happy that you guys like em. I may never write another file card again, but it was fun getting to do it for this pack, even just this once.

Heya guys. It seems like a lot of people around the web are unsure about the Plague and/or their place in Cobra.. maybe I should fill in the back story. When Brandon Jerwa & I were asked to write these, we were given the general theme. According to Hasbro, CC wanted to establish his OWN version of a "GI Joe" team.. and build it up with the best of the best from each of the Cobra specialties (hand selected). CC wanted them to become individuals with code names, a team name (The Plague), and perform special/elite operations for CC himself. Essentially, CC came to the point that "if ya can't beat 'em, join 'em" & decided that he'd try a Joe style unit instead of a usual cannon fodder unit, like the rest of his army. I am guessing that if these packs sell well and there is enough call for them, Hasbro might consider coming out with more Plague members in the future. But anywho, these are the first 3 that were selected for the team.. and their file cards say where they came from, why they are so great (compared to others from their respective groups), & what they specialize in. Hope this helps. (PS Brandon wrote Grim Skull & Red Zone.. I wrote Rook & Gallows.. & we both contributed to the other 2, Guillotine & Checkpoint. I hope they meet with your approval! )

Just an "FYI" guys.. Mike at BullMarketToys.com has wave #3 listed.. all figures at $5.67. (Cheap shipping too) I guess he only has a limited quantity, but will be getting more wave #3 after the current batch sells out. He also has the preorder set up for wave #4.. with ALL figures being $5.67 too. The only catch is that for every 2 army builders ordered (from wave 4.. I don't think this applies to wave 3), you need to buy 1 non-army builder.. so for example, if you order the 4 non-army builders from wave 4 from BullMarketToys, you can get up to 8 army builder figures AND at the same low price as the rest of them... no army builder price inflation... Pretty cool imo. http://store.bullmarkettoys.com/2005375gijoe.html Side note.. this does not mean that any other e-tailer out there has a better or worse deal. This is meant only as a shopping option notification. Please check all e-tailers & HTS to determine which store is right for you.

If anyone needs a v1 Lowlight backpack to go with his DTC lowlight, lmk. I think I have 2 or 3 extra. (With the hole in the back of the vest, it helps a lot.)

I gotta say that I am thankful for DTC.. and more specifically, thankful for the return of 80's style single card figures. I can't put a finger on exactly why.. maybe just nostalgia.. but I find myself SOOOO much more excited when I open up the new DTC single card figures, vs opening any of the 2-packs. Thank you Hasbro!!

Just FYI.. I have 2 of the "v4" BATs (from the DTC BATs pack) for sale, as well as an Overkill. If interested, check my signature link for the list.

Well, with the new close-up pics posted.. I guess I was wrong about the camo (wasn't the first, won't be the last.. lol). Awe well.. I am still pleased as punch regardless. #US1#

Other than Med Alert, I am in total awe. WOW. And I am very surprised at myself too because I am not usually a fan of reused parts for new characters.. but DANG, Dwight did such a good job with these that I can completely overlook my usual hang-up. (PS Thanks for the excellent pics!)

Awesome pic!! WOw.. i am really impressed. I tell you what, I don't care what anyone says... lol.. this new blueshirt is really starting to grow on me. I now know that I am going to army build this puppy for sure. The ONLY thing I don't like is the red pads on the boots (don't mind them on the wrists).. but those will be the easiest things in the world to put a coat of black paint over & a little clear coat. I think Hasbro might have a quite big-time seller with this thing!

Does anyone think that the SAW Viper & Grand Slam have camo or a color paint wipe? I remember when the first pics of the Winter Patrol Mirage surfaced.. most didn't see the figure as being "clear" & those that did were told that they were crazy & that it was just the photograph playing tricks.. lol.. low & behold, the figure did turn out to be clear. So with these 2, as I look at them, I see either camo paint (darker OD on Grand Slam & almost "urban" looking on the SAW Viper), or I see a colored paint wipe to create basically the same look. Does anyone else see this? Perhaps I am wrong & am the "crazy one" this time.. lml. Its kinda hard to tell though.

Hey, thanks to Alyosha for the blow-ups! OH WOW! This wave looks awesome! Holy cow. With the exception of Bludd & Footloose, I was SO let down with wave #2 that I feared that the DTC stuff was starting to tank, but I have new hope now! I can't believe how great these figures look with reused parts.. Dwight outdid himself! I mean.. Grand Slam couldn't be more retro-yet-updated if he tried. New OD camo uni & yet the same quilted orange pads & updated helmet? Oh man.. the detail on that figure is AMAZING. I am not crazy about the yellow grenades, but hey.. that's nothing a little black or OD paint can't fix. :-) This is the first SAW viper that I actually LIKE. I always disliked the original & this one screams "realistic style military figure Cobra" to me. And the new weapons? omg.. BOUT time we got rid of that huge oversized machine gun! I love how he retained the green goggles.. VERY cool. Low Light is as close to his retro v1 look as I could have possibly imagined.. and I couldn't be MORE pleased! Again.. the new weapon, WOW. Med Alert is basically a new Lifeline & is not all that thrilling (I'll admit).. BUT.. they took that gawd-awful Hard Drive & actually did something decent/more appropriate with the body, so I am pretty happy. It'll be great to finally have a new medical specialist again though, to be sure. I LOVE the new twist on Monkeywrench.. very cool & unlike the original, he doesn't have a "Torch wannabe" look to him. Sweet! And the new Trooper is quite cool as well. i'll definitely be buying up a bunch of these. I've seen where some have hated on the helmet, but I think its just a product of Hasbro giving us what we want. For years I've seen people talk about a removable helmet blueshirt, but inherent in that is that the helmet will look bigger than a molded-on helmet. Its just the nature of the beast. i am not thrilled about the red pads on the boots, but that will be SUPER easy to go over with black paint. Otherwise though, I think the trooper look fan-freakin-tastic.. & with the blown-up pics, he appears to be a darker blue than originally thought. Cool! And I don't mean to be all happy-happy-joy-joy about these either. I mean, like I said.. I was pretty let down by wave #2, so its not like I enjoy everything that comes down the pike, but THIS wave has me pretty excited.. at least for 5 out of 6 figures. #US1#

I've seen few places where people don't like the new "Sigma" Bat much. If anyone doesn't like theirs, I have 2 each of the other 2 BATs & an extra Overkill (from the pack) as trade bait for the new style BATs. Just an FYI. As far as the look of the set goes, I have always disliked neon, but for some weird reason, I don't mind the neon that much in this set. Maybe because these are robots instead of human soldiers, I dunno. I think overall Hasbro did a pretty good job.

I went with Dr. Venom, but there are a few others I'd like to see: -Shooter (the Joe team member that we never heard of again after #1) -Scarface (though I think we unofficially got one in the TRU blueshirt pack) -Sgt. Major (IG) -Dr. Knox -Prof. Burkhart -Old Iron Butt (Gen. Austin)