I Want A New Toy

This guy showed up a while back, but I lazed out on writing about him. I mentioned back in February that I was going to pre-order which I hate to do. When it comes to ordering things I revert back into a five year old and check the ship date with such regularity you would swear I had OCD.


His official title is Subject 805: Tactical Containment Unit Operator. I don't know what that is, but it looks cool on paper. He's from Sideshow Collectibles, and part of their original The Dead line.
If you're not familiar with Sideshow you should check them out. They make figures for a lot of licensed products and you'll probably see something you like.


Now, I have a lot of toys, but the pride of my collection are my 1/6th scale (12") military figures. I don't think I ever grew out of my original GI Joe phase as they were my faves as a child. There are several companies producing these such as Dragon and Blue Box. They are made to be as historically accurate as possible down to the slightest detail. Weapons may be metal with moving parts and removable clips. Buckles snaps and belts all work. Even the zippers are scaled down in size to make sense with the uniforms. All in all, they are true collectors pieces.

It looks like Sideshow Toys is giving this fanboy what he wants by creating an army of undead to battle the army I've been amassing over the years.



First thing you'll notice on 805 is the face sculpt. Sideshow did an amazing job. It is obvious that 805 is loosely based on Dr. Tongue, one of the first zombies seen in George Romeros Day of the Dead. The skin color is perfect, and the face wound is particularly gruesome. The darker red on the inside of the tongue suggests bruising from biting down on it too much.





805 is missing his left hand, and if there is anyplace I could pick nits, this is it. The arm is locked at an angle, I would have preferred it pose able. At least ship the figure with an optional arm.






The uniform is basic blood spattered BDUs and a tactical vest. 805 ships with a radio headset, machine gun and a stand with The Dead logo printed on it. Other items in the box are paper documents which are impractical and shouldn't be unpacked.

The figure is solid though as are all Sideshow figures and short of the left arm, can hold a variety of realistic poses.
I'm pretty pleased with 805 since it combines my favorite toy type with my favorite subject, zombies.


I have a pre-order in for Subject 1025: The Babysitter as well. I'm also going to try for a Comic Con Babysitter exclusive, but I'm not to hopeful as those sell out fast.

Of course while it's great to have a zombie figure, this could lead to complications.

No sooner do I get him on my shelf........

Get it off! Get it off!!

Ahhh!

Take it down!

Fire at will!

Kapow

Don't you die on me!

You did all you could.

Holy crap he's alive!

Grrrr, Arrggh!

Something tells me I'm going to have a lot more zombies before too long.


If anyone knows photoshop and would like to gore these up, feel free.
Let me know if you do

All photos in this post are Creative Commons,
Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share Alike


This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

Something Is Still Wrong With My World View

What is my obsession with accidental porn or smut or whatever? It just gives me a special little tingly feeling like I'm in on some dirty joke that needs to be made obvious. I found this a long time ago and probably laughed in the "Ethnic Foods" section of the Key Food for about 10 minutes.

It's Spicy

Kurt Shaped Box

I had something planned for today, but I feel a need to put it off.
Begin rant in 5...4....3....2...1

Sometimes you read something that just gets your blood pumping. It fills you with such shock and awe that you stare incredulously into space simply trying to process it. Such was the case this morning when I read in the news that someone had broken into Courtney Loves home and stolen the remaining ashes and lock of hair of Kurt Cobain.

Think about that for a second....think about how it makes you feel.

Now before you start wondering if I'm a Hole or Nirvana fan, let me assure you that is not the issue here. Sure I loved Nevermind, but coming from an early punk background there was never anything truly new that Nirvana did that I hadn't heard 10 years before. I also enjoy Hole, but never listened to a full album till my wife moved in, and probably haven't since.

The point here is that someone stole cremains. Now I know this may seem like a minor crime in the eyes of many, particularly with the atrocities committed in the current global climate, and the lengths man will go to destroy man, but what does it say about us that I have become so inured by the bombardment of suffering we are made to witness on a daily basis that I am appalled by this unconscionable act of emotional torture.

According to the press Courtney has said she does not know what she'll do if she doesn't get them back, "it's like losing him all over again." The cremains and hair were kept in a small plastic bag shaped like a pink teddy bear so she could take them with her when she wanted to feel close to him.

Another thing I find shocking about this incident is the callousness this crime is treated with simply because of the victim. To insinuate that she snorted the ashes, or that the remains are not all she had left considering the settlement of Kurts estate is cold and unnecessary. Forgetting the fact that she is raising Kurts child, consider how you would feel should the remains of a loved one be stolen. Would it matter how much they left you in the will? Of course not. Why can't we afford Courtney Love the same sympathy we would for anyone in her situation?

Who do we feel sympathy for? Every star in Hollywood seems to want to help Britney or Lindsey to stop the trainwrecks that are their over privileged lives. One thing Courtney has never done is lie about who she is. Is that why she deserves less? A drug addict, musician and stripper who never properly recovered from a very public shocking death and forced to become a single mother at the age of 30 is less of a person than a 20 year old princess who has been given every opportunity and still willingly and knowingly destroys herself.

In this entertainer as royalty culture we live in try to remember the last person Courtney Love has been romantically linked to. I looked, I checked it out. Sure there are rumors of everyone from Bruce Willis to Pete Doherty, but they remained rumors. Nothing confirmed. The last person I could find Courtney Love romantically linked to was Kurt Cobain. A rarity in this who's doing who game played so publicly in Hollywood.

Having a reliquary is nothing new. Whether it's a ring, a box or a pink plastic teddy bear, the need to feel close to a lost loved one is very real. My wife made reliquary pendants for all her sisters, each containing the ashes of their mother. If this was ever lost.....I can't even imagine the sadness my wife would feel. I wish I had something left of my mother, but unfortunately was not in a clear enough mind upon her death to think that far ahead.

Before I go off on a tangent, let me just say that I hope the person or persons who perpetrated this obscene crime are found and punished. While it may be impossible to place a monetary value on someones cremains, the thief/thieves also took thousands of dollars in jewelry which should insure they at least face felony charges. Should Kurts ashes show up on Ebay or Craigslist or some other internet listing, I hope there are decent enough people out there who will report it, and not exploit it.

Maybe I'm hoping for too much

Does This Skull Make My Ass Look Fat?

Vacation is over, and I may not have gone anywhere, unless Liberty City counts, I'm pretty well rested. Relatively clear of mind and ready to go. A lot of things to talk about, but who knows if I'll get to all of them. I'll try my best.

I want to send a huge birthday shout out to my good friend Noah creator and artist behind the Skull A Day project. Today also marks the last day of the project and the beginning of a much needed rest for this modern day renaissance man.

Yesterday a group of friends and fans gathered on Belle Isle to help Noah create his living Group Skull #364. Even though 9am on a Sunday felt a bit unreasonable for most to take part in an art project, everyone got into the swing of things as Noah composed the shot via walkie talkie to his two helpers on the ground. The results are, of course, amazing and I have no idea why or how Noah sees potential skulls everywhere while most people see random objects and shapes.

Is Skull A Day getting a rest? Not according to Noah who is going to launch Skull A Day 2.0, what exactly that means? Only he can say. The only thing I know is it won't be a daily project.

As I've said before. Noah's next project prominently includes yours truly, but no announcements till he feels the time is right. I'm really excited about it and I hope anyone reading this will join us for the ride.

In the meantime, enjoy these shots I took yesterday at the second to last Skull A Day creation.
The final Skull images can be seen on his site.

Milling About

The Artist On His Perch

My POV

What the Heck Will This Look Like?

And You Thought the Sun Was Hot!!!

And On The 366th Day He Rested

All Your Pork and Beans Are Belong To Us!!

If you didn't know, I'm on vacation this week. Part of that is staying away from the computer as much as possible, but I finally broke down to watch this video. I know it's already made the rounds, but in case you haven't seen it, here's Weezers first new video off the upcoming (June 3rd) Weezer: Red Album.

Enjoy

I'm heading back to Liberty City, or perhaps Vegas to keep the country safe from terrah, cause you know, they hate freedom and all that.

The Dead Just Keep On Coming

Coming Right For You!

In even more zombie news. The Hollywood Reporter announced that George Romeros original zombie opus Dawn of the Dead is going 3D! I really don't need another reason to see this film in the theaters but here it is. My mind is already racing at what a 3D treatment will do for certain scenes, chopper zombie anyone, and the true horror here is that we'll have to wait a year to find out. Let's hope they push this up and we see a Halloween release.
For the full story and an explanation of the 3D Dimensionalization process go here.

Summertimes Blues

With summer coming on fast it's time to say goodbye to all my TV friends. Normally this wouldn't be the case as summer replacement shows would kick in. The writers strike screwed all that up and some shows have been canceled (4400, Dead Zone etc.) and some like FX's The Shield and Rescue Me have been delayed. So what's a media whore Geek like myself to do?
Fortunately, there are so many movies I want to catch up on that I shouldn't be hurting too much.
As most of you know, DVD's come out on Tuesday. Yesterday saw the release of a couple of things I'm excited for, and one I'm slightly curious about.

Right out of the gate, probably one of my more anticipated releases. George Romeros Diary of the Dead. If you've been following my ongoing manifesto, you'll know I braved the crushing traffic of Northern Va., and endured the most interminable wait on a movie theater snack line ever to see this film. If you haven't read my NorVa adventure go here. True, I had some issues with the movie, but I still sported a zombie stiffy for this reboot of my favorite franchise and of course I highly recommend it.
Here is my review.
The disc is packed with extras so I'm excited for that as well and will probably watch at least once with the commentary on. There are also featurettes, Romero talking about his inspiration and many others. I know I should wait for the eventual Bluray release, but I'm all about the instant gratification.

Tying in with Diary of the Dead is the 40th Anniversary release of the one and only Night of the Living Dead. I know most of us have this film in several different forms. My understanding is this is the one with Romeros seal of approval. Personally, I own pretty decent copies of this movie, but I will still rent this for any extras I may have missed. Romeros name on this edition leads me to believe he may actually make some money from this one after letting the film slip into public domain. If you don't own this film, pick it up. If you do, now might be a good time to rewatch it. We can all stand around the pyre and blow out the birthday zombies together.


Finally, while it's true I was born in the 60's. I consider myself a product of the 80's and was just entering adulthood in 1982 (still in my teens) and had no idea how a degenerate angry punk rocker was going to fit in...anywhere. Fortunately someone took a chance on a little show called Square Pegs which was the Freaks and Geeks of my time with a much better soundtrack. This show gave us our first glimpse at the fashion icon that is Sarah Jessica Parker, the much much cuter Amy Linker (god I feel like such a perv right now), Jami Gertz (Star from Lost Boys - tell me you didn't have a crush, I dare you!) and valley speaking New Wavers (totally, totally). The show only ran for one season, but it was all we needed. I don't think I could have taken Square Pegs: the College Years where Muffy develops an 80's style coke habit. Does it hold up today? I for one plan to find out. I don't think I'll break down and buy the set, though Amazon is listing it for a budget friendly 25 bucks, but I'll definitely put it on my Netflix list.

You know, maybe the summers not looking so bad after all.