Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire

Empire of Old weekend saw not just yesterdays movie, but a viewing of Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire Easter Sunday (today) morning. I've been chomping at the bit for this one despite the heaping of kaiju love I've been getting lately. Since the movie just came out, I'll avoid spoilers, but it's obvious this was awesome. The Monsterverse movies are basically modern Showa era (and a touch Heisei) with big Hollywood budgets. One of the biggest gripes when watching Godzilla movies is waiting for the human scenes to end so we can get to the monsters. Monsterverse is almost all monster mayhem and it's wonderful. Godzilla and Kong (with some friends) team up to take on The Skar King and Shimo (with some friends). GxK an insane mixture of giant monsters and cool visuals. It's hard to cram 2 hours of awesome into a short post... freaking badass.

Ghosterbusters: Frozen Empire

I just got home from my first movie of the Empire of Old double feature weekend. I have been looking for the newest Ghostbusters movie since it was announced and despite my viewing being delayed a week, was VERY excited to see the newest adventure. Considering the movie is just a week old at this point and just opening in other countries now... I'll try my best to avoid spoilers. That being said, this was an absolute blast. Frozen Empire feels more like a feature length episode of the Real Ghostbusters than a movie. One of the new team members is even a direct homage to the animated version of Egon.

That's a good thing as after 40 years I want to feel the 40 years of Ghostbusters in the newest movie. Frozen Empire is a solid adventure with a great story. Garraka is a solid final boss and a serious threat. I enjoyed the idea of getting the chills being used as weapon. As a long time Ghostbusters fan, the variety of ghosts and gadgets was pure euphoria. The various story lines of each character was a real treat as well. There was a big cast and everyone had their own thing going on in addition to the main plot.That made the movie so much better, there was just so much going on. My only disappointment was when it ended. Great movie.

Jonsen BB-03JS (BeastBox)

After the end of a long day, I just want to relax. Jonsen feels the same. He's had a long day and just wants to get some rest in his portable energy bath container. If a hot springs variation of a robot monkey is what you're after, BeastBox has just the toy for you. Jonsen is a special edition of their JoJo figure that I picked up a Teso Life a few weeks ago. Jonsen is a Japanese Macaques, a snow monkey that likes to soak in the hot springs of Japan. I initially thought he was a Yeti due to his molds origin as a robotic gorilla. It's impossible not to like Jonsen with his cloth onsen towel (to cover his shame) and Portable Energy Bath Container.

The bath, is a clever reuse of a Box Charger. The plastic is frosted (must be all that steam) and has a lovely bit of artwork that can be mounted on it's open lid to complete the experience. It really is a creative use of the Box Charger. Jonsen is a pleasantly articulated bot whose big arms can be used in a quadruped stance or bipedal while he punches somebody with those giant fists. Transformation to box mode as very easy. Everything just kinda folds into place and you can pretty much figure out how with a little fiddling.

Considering relaxation is his whole gimmick, it's only appropriate that transformation would be a breeze. Jonsen has a really characterful design highlighted by a really pleasant color scheme. The JoJo mold is available in a variety of colors and generally pretty great in all of them. However, Jonsen's colors are extremely pleasant which adds to whole package of this toy. It just makes you smile. Have a great day everyone.

Bios: Astrotrain

"The greatest opportunities are borne from adversity."

Function: Bounty Hunter

Constructed to serve as a transport for Megatron and his warriors, Astrotrain became discontent ferrying unappreciative Decepticons across the galaxy. In the chaos that followed the Unicron Battles, Astrotrain struck out on his own as a bounty hunter. Astrotrain convinced the Mini- Con Starcatcher to join him by promising him wealth and riches. The same promise was made to a trip of Mini-Cons who joined him later: Astro-Hook, Astro-Line, and Astro-Sinker. Astrotrain is cruel, but he is also extremely loyal to those under his command. He has an innate ability to inspire loyalty in others. His years of successful commissions have afforded him significant wealth, allowing him to upgrade his systems, greatly enhancing his strength. However, he has never given up his primary weapon, an ionic blaster that disrupts an enemy's internal circuitry.

Strength:8 Intelligence:7 Speed: 7 Endurance:7

Rank:6 Courage:9 Firepower:8 Skill:7

Gary Grooberson with Pukey (Frozen Empire/Fright Features)

Getting back to our look at the Frozen Empire Fright Features figures is Gary Grooberson! Gary is Phoebe and Podcast's teacher from Afterlife who was a fan of the Ghostbusters that was all but ready to join the team and date Callie (Trevor and Phobe's mom). Gary was played by Paul Rudd, who felt like a really natural choice for Ghostbusters. I kinda want to pair this figure up with my Toony Terrors Michael Myers so the two can have a rematch. Gary is your standard Hasbro Fright Features figure. There's nothing really new to talk about with him other than it's good to see him as a figure... I liked Gary. This feels natural. I do wish these newer Fright Features toys had more life outside of a movie release. I'd love to see variations of them like the original Kenner toys.

This Gary figure would be a natural Ecto-Glow Heroes release. Gary has the standard Proton Pack accessory and comes packaged with Pukey. Pukey is a newer ghost and a Class V. Full Roaming Vapor like Slimer. Pukey appears in Frozen Empire and has a variety of merchandise on the way. I'm looking forward to seeing him on screen as I enjoy his Ecto-Stretch toy. As an Ecto-Stretch ghost, Pukey can be pulled or mashed around or placed over a Ghostbusters head for Ecto-Stretch fun. He's a cool looking ghost and like Slimer is oddly sculpted kinda scary compared to Gary. Not complaining about that! Gary and Pukey make for a fun release and have me gearing up more for the new movie. Which by the time your reading this will be out. I'm holding off seeing it until this following weekend in a double feature with Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire on my birthday during my Empire of Old weekend. Waiting that week will feel like an eternity.

Breakdown (EarthSpark/1-Step Flip Changer)

Getting back to our ongoing look at the EarthSpark 1-Step Flip Changer toys (and realizing I've skipped over Megatron and Twitch) is Breakdown. Breakdown is a rather odd entry in the figures as you can see that he's a straight repaint of the Wheeljack 1-Step Flip Changer toy. Of course this doesn't leave us with a very screen accurate depiction of the character... but you know what? It looks really good in these colors. Like, this didn't have to be Breakdown. They could have used these colors and called the toy Wheeljack GT or something. I legitimately want a regular Wheeljack toy in Breakdown colors now. Aside from how nice the toy looks... it's still the same toy mold as Wheeljack (whom I've talked about before).

So there's nothing new here. Fortunately it's a good figure (if you like Flip Changers like I do) and man that Gobots comparison I've made with these guys rings through even more so with Breakdown. Wheeljack already reminded me of Major Mo, this one does as well... but with these colors I can't help but to compare it to the white version of Crasher. Part of me wishes they'd outright make Gobots characters in these molds. That'd be neat.

ToyLanta 2024

It's ToyLanta time once again! My annual trek to the best damn toy convention is going on this weekend! I'll be updating this space daily with my adventures, so be sure to check back to see what all happened. I'll also be hosting the annual Transformers panel Sunday at 12PM if you're in attendance. Speaking of, come up and say hi! Be sure to check out my Instagram throughout the weekend as I'll be updating it frequently. 

Friday: I got to the convention MUCH later than I wanted to thanks to a mixture of rain and traffic turning a 1 hour drive to 2. Once there, I walked in and man... I really like the location. It's the same one as last year and it's great (just wish it was closer). Though I soon found out registration was closed, which was no problem as I've gotten in later before and usually have no problem getting my badge. However, this year Buddy (show organizer) was absent due to illness. Speaking of, get well soon cards for Buddy were being brought around and I made a point to sign one. Since registration was closed, I was just told to wait until the morning to get my badge and just walk around anyway. That was unexpected, but I did just that and took a look around the dealers room as it was being set up. I was very tempted to buy some M.U.S.C.L.E figures, but as it was all shutting down, held off until later.

Friday night at the convention is the popular lobby swap party and of course room trading. I ran into Jacob and chatted for a minute. I then looked around the lobby swap before taking a picture of the room trading board. The room numbers had details on what each offered and I roamed the halls taking in each set up. I found myself in various conversations during this time as I'd cross paths with others doing the same. It became like a fun scavenger hunt for the best room and we'd tell each other in passing. One particular door stunk to high hell, there wasn't a room swap in it, but everyone seemed to have encountered it at some point. I met some cool people like Matthew and Cody. Great conversations and good fun with like minded people. What a convention is all about. 

My Friday toy haul included a Convertors Nofka, which is a scaled down SDF-1. I bought one a few years ago at a prior Toylanta, this one is in much better shape. Both still are missing the back wings/towers though. I then found a Bug Bots Bee Bot in black and yellow! Bug Bots are one of the things I'm specifically looking for this year, finding one so early was a real treat. I got it and a Stranglehold inner robot for a total of $5! Here's hoping I can find more Bug Bots and a Stranglehold Pretender shell this weekend. Last, but not least, a still in box, vintage bootleg Convertors Zardak! A renamed Orguss was such a random find. The dealer had another in alternative colors. I held off incase Shawn wants it. (*Saturday Edit* he got it!) 

I headed home soon after as it was getting late. Thankfully the drive home was a breeze, despite the rain. I'm hoping the rest of the weekend goes well and this year follows the prior years conversations in being the best one yet. This con never gets old and each year feels like an individual experience. I love that. Some more Shawn, Joey, and Brian should be there tomorrow. It'll be great to see them. Hopefully I'll find some Rock Lords and Monster Gobots. Battle for the Rock Lords was released March 21st 1986, it's only appropriate to aquire some so close to it's anniversary. The Mrs had dinner waiting for me. A veggie burger with these seasoned carrots intended to be fry substitutes Birdseye makes. Delicious, I was starving. 

Saturday: Thanks to traffic I didn't get to the convention until 12pm. Not too bad, but I hoped to be there earlier. I got my badge right away and set out to find Shawn, Brian, and Joey. During the search I purchased a Rock Lords Boulder. I eventually found Shawn and Joey and led Shawn to Matthew's table where Shawn bought the Convertors toy. We were twining Convertors. We walked around the dealers area and chatted. One dealer had boxed Microman and even a Devil Satan 6 box set. Dang! 

My Mom had came with me and spent most of the day doing her own thing. However we met up for lunch in the hotel restaurant. On my way to meeting her, I got a Generations Selects Diaclone version Twin Twist. While we waited for our food, Shawn and Joey joined us. Brian joined us not much later and after some food we all roamed the areas and generally had a great time. I picked up multiple Gobots, McDonald's Food Changeables, Zombots, and something else I can't remember right now. Fun fact, apparently Joey's Mom and mine were friends in High School. Small world!

Around 4:30 Shawn and Joey headed home and Brian went to his room. I roamed the areas for a bit. Talked Godzilla with a dealer. Bought a Ultraman Tiga figure, some more Gobots, and a Robotron car. I think it's a Robotron car. Maybe. As the dealers room shut down for the day, I found Mom and Brian with family in tow came down to say goodbye. They'll be headed home in the morning before I get back to the show. The Mrs ordered us Longhorn Steakhouse for dinner when I got home. I was starving. The flatbread I had for lunch was good, but it was time for serious nourishment. There's one more day of the great toy show which includes my panel. Man I hate how it's going by so fast. It's been a great con this year.How many times have I typed I in this post?

Sunday: Well, a day later and I'm updating for Sunday. I got to the convention around 11:20 am after a mostly easy drive, though I was stuck behind what was apparently the President's motorcade. I think so anyway, apparently he was in town. I met up with Dusty right away and we chatted about Transformers up until the panel started. As the room filled up, a gentleman from the botvscon YouTube channel came in and was an absolute pleasure. The room went from half full to mostly full during the panel as usual and Dusty and I had a great chat with each other and those in attendance. We actually ran over time.

Dusty left for the day after the panel and I roamed around for a bit. I bought some M.U.S.C.L.E figures and another McDonald's Food Changeables toy. I spent a few hours just looking and taking in everything. The con was wrapping up as dealers were packing up. I did find another Bug Bot... but it was the same one I got Friday for 20 bucks. Yikes! The same guy had a  very dirty Boulder for 40. All things considered, I made out like a bandit on the ones I got. However, the guy also clearly didn't have many sales so... maybe I just made out decently and he was a bandit. I was getting hungry and debated getting a fruit bowl from the snack stand but decided to just head home.

The con was over and everyone was starting to leave out. I saw Matthew on the way. It was great meeting him and seeing Brian, Shawn, Joey, and Dusty. Good con this year. Actually, I've never had a bad Toylanta. Each year is my favorite until the next one. It's great how after a decade of attending it, I've never had a bad one. Every year is it's own story and experience. I stopped by the grocery store on the way home to pick up some juice left off our grocery order and got home to take a nap and enjoy a great home cooked dinner.

Thank you all for reading Zone Base. This concludes our first special event of the year! The site will get back to normal for now, but Halfway to Halloween is coming up in a few weeks! I've got a lot of fun planned until then. Please share the site with your friends and don't forget... Mutal high fives everyone!

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Bios: Soundwave

"From the sky to the sea, they will fear and respect me."

Function: Warrior

Soundwave is a welcome aly to the forces. Bat mode makes him ideal for stealth aerial recon missions. Ultra-sensitive internal radar can detect even the slightest disturbances. Alligator jaws penetrate every known alloy. Tail sends seismic circuit-disrupting shockwave through terra firma. Like his fellow Mutant warriors, Soundwave is dark and brooding; has a tendency to be overly dramatic.

Strength: 6.8 Intelligence: 6.7 Speed: 8.4 Endurance: 5.3
Rank: 5.0 Courage: 8.9 Firepower: 7.7 Skill: 7.9

Donatello (Turtles of Grayskull)

Crossing dimensions into Eternia isn't so bad if you're Donatello and strike up a friendship with Man-At-Arms. The two tech geniuses create Turtle-inspired Eternian armor to combat Krang's mutants!

Turtles of Grayskull is one of the more fun developments in Masters of the Universe Origins in a long time. Taking a similar approach to the Masters of the WWE Universe series by blending two brands together, Mattel has brought the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles characters to Eternia! Unlike the WWE MOTU toys, the Turtles are firmly in Universe with He-Man and the gang for some fun adventures. Thanks to a dimensional portal, the TMNT find their way to Eternia as does The Foot Clan and some of that pesky Mutagen Ooze.

This leads to TMNT characters styled as MOTU and mutated Masters! With a far out premise like this, it's only fitting that this group of Turtles are seemingly based on the late 80's/early 90's incarnation that's still my favorite era. It goes without saying this is a fun line of cool designs and radical concepts. I really like it.

Donatello here is my first of the figures and a pretty fun one at that. Since Donny is the brains of the crew, it's only natural that he's styled like Man-At-Arms. As a figure Donatello is best described as exactly what he is. A TMNT designed as a MOTU Origins figure. He's sized and articulated comparably to other Origins figures. It's really neat just how well this works. Being a mashup of designs, Donny's trademark Bo Staff is a combination of staff and Man-At-Arms's club. This whole hybrid of themes is just awesome and looks great. It feels more like a designer toy than a figure available at standard retail... which is something I've felt about MOTU Origins since the beginning. A neat feature with the Turtles is their shell can be removed and held a a shield. That's something so simple yet effective as a cool design choice. This is a silly concept that they've managed to pull off amazingly well. I'm all in.

Autobot Ratchet (Studio Series 86/Voyager Class)

I happily picked up Ratchet shortly before Christmas. I say happily as I've been quite endeared to Ratchet since the early days of G1. In particular, during a time when my family was moving to another state, my older brother and I found ourselves often staying with family as our parents locating us a new home. During that time, well, it wasn't terribly exciting. I often found myself re-reading issues of the Marvel G1 Transformers comic. In those early issues, Ratchet took a starring role for a bit. I fondly look back at the frames of Ratchet helping campers cook hot dogs still to this day. Of course this toy of Ratchet is meant to represent him as he appeared in the 1986 movie, being a Studio Series toy and all. I've made my fondness for this series of figures known and having this very screen accurate figure of Ratchet is a real treat.

Of course Ratchet is a remold and repaint of the Voyager Ironhide figure I've talked about before. I raved about that Ironhide... and that's pretty much the same opinion of this Ratchet. A truly excellent toy of a classic character. Let's look at their differences. Not just a simple recolor as you'd assume, Ratchet has some new molded parts. A new head, as Ratchet traditionally has a chevron on his helmet as opposed to Ironhide's 'mowhawk'. Being an ambulance, of course he has a light bar. Most notably and something they really could have not done is Ratchet features a different waist piece. To differentiate the two back in the day, there were slight differences in their show models. Something like a slightly different waist made for a somewhat different looking character. In a toy though... I probably wouldn't have noticed. That little extra attention to detail is appreciated. Ratchet retains the dual pistols Ironhide was packing, they both used them. Ratchet is sporting a show accurate deco that really pops on this toy. Of course the Red Cross markings on his shoulders have been replaced with the Autobot variation seen in recent toys for legal reasons. Like Ironhide before, this is my favorite figure of Ratchet to date. As a legacy character, he gets plenty of updates. This one, however, is special. It feels like a much more premium figure than it should for a standard retail release. That's a good thing and this is a good toy.

Frozen Monday

Light 'em up, a new week is starting up! Not just any week, the first special event week of the year on Zone Base! Toylanta is this week and with it comes my annual con report MEGA-POST! Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire also comes out in the US this weekend. Of course I'll be waiting to see it until next weekend with Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire on my birthday Empire of Old double feature. I'm excited, two big weekends in a row!

I'm going to be exhausted.

This was a fun weekend. I got some rest and enjoyed some great food. My cheat meal for the week was some pizza on Saturday and the wife made low sodium tacos Sunday! Speaking of Saturday and Godzilla X Kong, I stopped by Circle K with hopes to find their GxK tie in stuffs! The breakfast sandwich was sold out and the candy bar was nowhere to be found. However they did have the slushies! No special cups either, but I went in with low expectations from a gas station movie tie in. Godzilla Blast is a cherry slush, while Kong Crush was blue raspberry. It was a delightful experience drinking the two, even if the store under delivered on product. I drank the two with straws crossed in an X. Because they're teaming up.

That was a lot of sugar.

I did get a few things. As it's been the past few weeks, Toylanta and my birthday are coming up. So I didn't want to buy myself much. However, I did pick up the GxK Suko and Doug 2 pack. The set has been tricky to get as everyone wants a Doug, and so did I! Not to be outdone, my Mom stopped by for dinner Sunday bringing gifts. Some odd TMNT figures she found at a thrift store. As well as MOTU Origins Mossman, Earthspark Spin Changers Bumblebee, and some Transformers Classic Hero team figures that she had picked up on clearance. I've already got a Mossman, but don't mind having another. I wasn't counting on buying that Bumblebee, but am suprised with how fun he is. Delightfully Super Robot for a modern toy. The Classic Heros? Delightful.

Well, time to finish my coffee and this episode of AEW Collision on my DVR. I've got some chores to do as well as get ready for the convention. The con bag needs to be prepared and I've got to find a way to survive the short week before Toylanta! It's only a 4 day work week, but will feel like FOREVER. Speaking of fun, have you tried the new Cold Foam Creamer from International Delight? Wonderful. Making lattes at home has never been easier. Well, we've got one heck of a week in store. These special events on the site are a blast. Thank you so much for reading Zone Base. This would be a great week to share the site with your friends, I mean dude... Toylanta! Mutal high fives everyone!

Antagony (Generations Selects/Voyager Class)

In another case of a prior BotCon exclusive getting a second life in recent years, Antagony is made from the wonderful Legacy Inferno toy as the original was made from the Beast Wars toy. I missed out on that original figure. I was working my way through local city college in 1998 with a job at Office Max and generally broke. BotCon was still out of reach for a few years and so were those wonderfully cool exclusives. However, like Sandstorm (whom I must cover here at some point), good fortune shone with a second chance at owning the character in an updated form. As much as I love that original Inferno mold, the Legacy version is a great new toy that improves on the original with modern engineering and great sculpting.

If you came looking for the more human faced Antagony Andrew Wildman drew, this is more screen accurate to Geof Senior's depiction. Antagony, being a straight repaint of Inferno doesn't offer anything new aside from including an alternate head. The alternate head can change her or Inferno into Scavenger, the other Beast Wars ant. It's a neat extra and makes me wonder what the Legacy version of Scavenger would have looked like sold on his own. Like Inferno before, Antagony replaces the original toys missile firing gun with a update of Inferno's BFG and the flight mode no longer has it's spring propeller gimmick. That's something I consider an improvement.

Antagony transforms into her giant ant beast mode fairly easily and robot mode is satisfyingly articulated. I really enjoy the new Legacy head sculpt with its opening jaws. It's just so satisfying to open and bare those big teeth! Antagony is a black ant with great uses of purple and lavender. While no longer a BotCon toy, she is exclusive to the Generations Selects branding making her exclusive to online and specialty retailers. Antagony was another Christmas gift from the Mrs. which makes the toy a little more special to me. Like my own little special edition.

Bios: Overhaul

One tough Autobot, Overhaul has never thought much of intellectual pursuits. His solution to a complex problem is generally to stomp on it until it gets simple or stops being a problem. He's never felt that he's had the respect his strength deserves from the other Autobots, but now that he's on the Jungle Planet -- where might makes right -- he feels right at home.

Strength: 6 Intelligence: 5 Speed: 4.5 Endurance: 8
Rank: 4 Courage: 8 Fireblast: 6 Skill: 7

The Mandelorian (Epic Hero Series)

Hasbro's newest Star Wars series just launched at the beginning of the year in January, though it wasn't until mid February that my local Walmart started stocking them. I was initially interested in them from early reports (and was under the assumption they were Walmart exclusive). After dipping my toes in the Epic Hero waters am firmly hooked. I got my first one when they first started showing up locally and he's the subject of today's post. The Mandalorian is Star War's newest hero starring in his own series alongside that adorable Grogu (who has his own Epic Hero toy). Mando (as his friends call him) is a cool gunslinger who's everything you want in a Star Wars character post original trilogy. He's represented well here in this new EPIC HERO SERIES figure format.

What makes an Epic Hero Series? Hell if I know, but what I can tell it's a throwback to the classic Star Wars figures of old. I'm thinking these are along the lines of Hasbro's 'Core Class' style figures with a more exciting name. A simpler figure at a lower cost intended for children. Din Djarin (as people who can pronounce it call him) is a 4" action figure with 5 points of articulation. That's a little bigger than the Kenner figures we associate with Star Warriors (normally 3 3/4"), but overall mighty similar. Din is decently sculpted and comes with both his trademark blaster pistol and the Darksaber that he carried for a while. He also has a removable plastic cape and little ports in his forearms. A good bit of the figures in this series has these. While I don't have any that utilize the ports yet, I'm assuming it's for sharing accessories. The figure is obviously kept simple with basic articulation and minimal paint apps for budget. Regardless, it still looks pretty good and as someone who swears by Kenner style figures... I like it! Sure it's a little bigger than I have come to expect, but I have big hands. That extra 1/4" isn't super noticeable to me. I look forward to getting more of these cool little figures.

Neo Micro Battler Arom (Battle Tribes)

This past Saturday was Microman Day, a day that celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Microman toy line. With this year being the 40th Anniversary of Transformers, it's absolutely important to take a look back at the building blocks of Transformers as we know it. Microman's place in Transformers history is without doubt obvious. Micronauts which was also made from Microman prior to the launch of Transformers is important to observe. Last year Battle Tribes by Spy Monkey Creations offered a complete Micronaut homage set in their Battle Tribes wave 32. They have prior homaged the Mego line, but this set was particularly great. 

Arom is a translucent green Micro using the Micro Battlers wrestling body. As such he comes with a variety of extra parts. Additional boots, trunks, extra heads (many food themed), a tector belt, and matching mini wrestler partner. Arom is a really cool homage to the classic Microman and Micronauts toys. Battle Tribes are a fun Glyos toy line featuring various fantasy and wrestling figures in a variety of options. Being Glyos toys, their interchangeable nature is a perfect match for a Micro update. We'll be taking a look at the Microman/Micronauts flavored wave 32 over the next few weeks here on Zone Base. 2024 looks to be a special year in the world of Takara SF. Arom is here to help celebrate.

Stick around Planet Zone this Week

It's Monday Zone Base readers and time for a new week of fun! I had a good weekend despite it starting off with some routine medical testing Friday. It's just something I don't enjoy and am thankful to be over with. With Toylanta and my birthday nearing, I haven't bought myself much. However did pick up Turtles of Grayskull He-Man and a Ghostbusters Fright Features Phoebe from Frozen Empire. Saturday was Microman Day, which celebrated the 50th anniversary of Microman. This being the 40th Anniversary of Transformers, this is an important milestone to observe. I enjoyed seeing various toy bloggers post pics of Microman toys in celebration and joined in on the fun by posting pictures of the most recent Micronauts themed Battle Tribes toys. Sunday was Mar10, aka Mario Day. I enjoyed the various Super Mario Bros news and played Super Mario Bros 2 for awhile in observance. Not to be left out, Godzilla: Minus One won an Oscar! I don't watch the Awards, but am so happy for the movie! It really was an amazing film. Not to be left out was a online Digimon convention full of news. I look forward to those new Digivices! I also managed to watch several episodes of Samurai Pizza Cats and The Adventures of Super Mario Bros 3. A surprisingly fun, but simple weekend. I've got some errands to run and some chores that need to be done. So it's time to end this and get to work. I've got a fun week in store for you all. Thank you for reading Zone Base and please don't forget to share the site with your friends. Mutal high fives everyone!

Gamer Edition Optimus Prime (Studio Series/Voyager Class)

While I still don't understand the Gamer Edition figures being in Studio Series and not Legacy, I am quite fond of them and am enjoying the updates to some generally neat looking takes on classic Transformers characters. This Gamer Edition Optimus Prime is his War for Cybertron design as a Voyager Class toy instead of the smaller deluxe class figure it was originally released as in 2010. Even for a Voyager Class, Optimus is really large and imposing. His War for Cybertron look was so bulky, he needs to be big for it to work properly. If it seems like I'm focusing on him needing to be big, then you've arrived at one of the reasons I like this figure. It's big and imposing as it should be. Optimus is not some little squirt, he's a big bruiser and this toy conveys that very well. While there's definitely larger scale Transformers toys out there, this feels substantially larger than other Voyager Class toys. Like a Armada era figure level of chonk. That's good.

Optimus is also pleasantly articulated with plenty of gimmicks. You can remove his lower right arm and replace it with a gun arm. This is more screen accurate to how he's portrayed in the War for Cybertron video game and similar to the live action movies. It's pretty neat, just be care not to lose that arm. Optimus is carrying his big axe as well. It can be unfolded to be double bladed as it is during melee attacks, or folded in half to match it's appearance in cut scenes. I've been told blast effects can attach to the gun, but I've never done so myself. Last but not least, Optimus's chest can open up and reveal a removable Autobot Matrix of Leadership. I'm always a sucker for this gimmick, no matter how many times they do it. Sadly the Matrix is too small for Optimus to hold it, but it's still super neat.

Optimus transforms into his Cybertroinan truck mode fairly easily. I say fairly as one of my major complaints about the original War for Cybertron figures was the complexity of the transformations. Some weren't so bad, but others.... look, it took years to run the Cenobites off. Everything goes where it should with minimal fiddling. With so many toys having odd clearance issues these days (I swear it's the CAD models being a little tight), it's nice having one with things just going where they're supposed too without trivial adjusting. Remember that removable arm I mentioned above? Make sure you've reattached it for transformation. Unfortunately the gun arm and axe don't have anywhere super convenient to go in vehicle mode. There's places to put them, but results may vary. The gun actually looks pretty decent on the roof, but you'll need to get creative with the axe. That or stick it somewhere and don't loose it. That's the closest to an actual complaint I have and it's really just a nit pick. I could complain about how easy it would be to loose the removable forearm, but that'd be a nitpick as well. This isn't intended for children to play with, it's meant to be a collectors thing like GI JOE Classified or Star Wars Black Series. These little extras are meant for a nicer figure to stick on a shelf and show off. They didn't sacrifice some details just so I could stick the axe somewhere. I get it. It's like buying a Lexus and complaining that the car was nicer than a Kia. That being said, it's a great figure of a cool design. I really appreciate having a nicer figure that's meant to be a more premium item available at standard retail. Not to mention, there's just nothing better than a big chonky Optimus Prime toy.

Bios: Sideways

"Efficiency through self-sufficiency."

Sideways is a conscientious, ninja-like warrior who races to battle. Disguised as a sports bike he exceeds speeds of 250mph. Mysterious and silent, he reveals little about himself except a fierce drive to confront the enemy and quickly return to Cybertron. On Earth, he undergoes a personality change that gives him both a good and a bad side based on Mini-con influence. This split makes him highly unpredictable. It's hard to predict which half of his split personality will win in the end - the good side or the evil side!

Strength: 4 Intelligence: 6 Speed: 6 Endurance: 5

Rank: 6 Courage: 6 Fireblast: 6 Skill: 8

Trevor Spengler with Slimer (Frozen Empire/Fright Features)

The newer Ghostbusters films intentionally have the flavor of The Real Ghostbusters (with a healthy dose of original movie love) with the newest film, Frozen Empire, made specifically to feel like an episode of the classic cartoon. It's only fitting that Hasbro named their tie in toy line Fright Features as a callback to the Kenner Ghostbusters toys based on that same show. Unlike the original Fright Features, these newer figures themselves don't contain a gimmick. Their partner ghosts, however, do. Frozen Empire's Fright Features ghost gimmick is Ecto-Stretch Tech.

This makes the ghost a rubbery, stretchy little ghoul that's fun to play with and can also be stretched over the figure's head simulating being slimed, possessed, or other ghostly interactions. The figures themselves are basic 'core' style action figures that come with a standard proton pack. Trevor returns from Afterlife a little older, but still the teenage grandson of Egon Spengler. From what I can tell, Trevor seems to be a straight reprint of the Afterlife figure paired with a Ecto-Stretch Tech Slimer. Like the prior Hasbro Fight Features figures, Tevor is 4" with five points of articulation. Obviously a fairly basic toy, but considering all you get in the box for $9... not bad. Not to mention, the stylized sculpting paired with the basic articulation gives it a strong Kenner flavor. It works. Trevor includes the same Proton Pack used in the Afterlife Fright Features toys.

It's a decent version of the weapon with the Pack attaching firmly via a per and the Neutrona Wand that can either mount on the pack or be held. Slimer is pleasantly sculpted to match his movie appearance. The Ecto-Stretc Tech ghosts are actually quite scary compared to their human counterparts. That's pretty neat, I would have understood them being more cartoony. Slimer is very rubbery and can be squished and stretched. He's also hollow and thanks to an opening on his back, can fit over Trevor's head and be stretched over. It's a silly gimmick that's fun to fiddle with. I feel like this is a fun way to 'slime' the figure without making a mess. I'm excited to see Frozen Empire and Trevor is a fun start to a new series of Fright Features figures. There's a new vintage series of the classic Real Ghostbuster toys running along side these for additional Ghostbusting. Looks like we have a fun Spooky Spring in store for us Zone Base readers!

Tasmania Kid (Legacy: United/Core Class)

Legacy continues being the Generations series I want with this new version of Tasmania Kid, a character I honestly thought would be lost to time. A kid appeal character from Beast Wars II, Tasmania Kid is Takara's version of Beast Wars Snarl. Not a repaint or remold, the same toy with a new name for the market. I don't believe Snarl was released by Takara, so he could easily be considered the same guy with a different name if you choose. Like all other recent Transformers figures, Tasmania Kid is a pretty great update of the original design. The original toy featured a spring loaded transformation, something all the initial Beast Wars basic class (precursor to Core Class) figures had. Of course this wasn't universally loved by all, so this newer toy skipping the gimmick is probably welcome for a lot of people.

I personally wasn't bothered by it, but can see how it would turn off some. Despite the lack of spring loaded transformation, Tasmania Kid transforms VERY faithfully to his original toy. It's pretty impressive. It's like they took the original toy and improved it. Tasmania Kid transforms into his Tasmanian Devil beast mode fairly easily and satisfactorily. It's just a pleasant experience. He retains his Tasmanian Gun arm cannon, which is the tail from his beast mode. Unlike the original toy, there isn't a firing missile. Something I'm not sad about, though it does look a lot smaller now. Not just because it physically is, but seems puny. Not a bad thing, it's just that this is such an accurate update that the difference in seems out of place. It's fine on it's own.

It's probably easy to see that I'm happy with this toy. I'm obviously a big Beast Wars fan and love all these recent updates. It's really cool and a lot of fun for me as a fan. Especially after all the years where Beast Wars was seemingly put away and all but ignored. The orignal toy was always a cool little figure. While I doubt a Snarl version will be coming... though if that's Takara's version it would be sort of awesome. I would love to see a Bound Rouge as that was always a cool recolor. Or hey, maybe a leopard version... that would blow my mind.

Prepare for Week

Welcome to another new week here on Zone Base! I hope everyone had a great weekend! I spent mine doing a mix of housework Saturday and struggling with allergies Sunday! I managed to get some early Easter shopping done and enjoyed my weekly bubble milk tea while watching paranormal videos! With my birthday and Toylanta coming in the next few weeks, I've been holding off buying very much stuff. I did order Demon Dart BB-32 for some Beastbox fun however. I'm hoping to get a new episode of Transform Squadron out within the next few weeks. Between wanting to set up a new recording setup and mentally stretched out... it just hasn't happened yet. I haven't abandoned it, promise! After some annual routine medical testing this week, I'm hoping my mental space will be open enough to get some recording done. Thank you all for continuing to read Zone Base. I'll be renewing the domain soon and that'll mean this is fully the 8th year of the site! Well, officially. It was in 'under construction' status for a little longe. If you like what I'm doing, thanks! Please share the site with your friends and mutal high fives all around!

Megatron (Legacy: United/Core Class)

The Unicron Trilogy was one of my favorite eras in the past 40 years of Transformers. That time frame was a fun time for me in my fandom. The stuff that came out and went on was just great. It's kinda a dividing line as a before and after the movies came and the big boom. I'm not begrudging the movies or the big boom, just fondly looking back at a fun time. Both the Armada and Energon designs of Megatron are some of my favorite versions of Megatron to this day. Thankfully recent Transformers releases have paid attention to Armada (we'll be getting to that a little later), but today let's look at this super cool update of the Energon version of Megatron in my much loved Core Class.

Toy engineering is a funny thing, the original Energon Megatron came out 20 years ago and was a fairly large and impressive Leader Class figure. 20 years later, this MUCH smaller toy is a pretty accurate recreation of that figure. I wouldn't say it's exact, but it's close. Megatron turns from robot to spacecraft/jet in a few simple steps. It's very similar to G1 Thunderwing's alt mode, which lead to several fans hankering for a Thunderwing repaint back in the day. The original toy (and it's smaller alternate version) got released in a variety of colors as versions of Megatron or Galvatron, but never Thunderwing. It's funny how the toy looks like G1 Galvatron in robot mode and G1 Thunderwing in vehicle mode. The Unicron Trilogy toys were full of homages while still coming up with new things.

The tank/sword weapon returns in a much simpler form. You can no longer separate the sword from the tank nor does the tank fire a missile or feature any lights or sounds. It's a really simple version of the original accessory. Folks would often find ways to have their Megatron hold the sword more traditionally back in the day. There was also garage kits of swords that Megatron could hold. It was neat seeing all the cool stuff people were coming up with. Still, it was always an odd choice for Megatron's Armada body to be his weapon in this upgraded body... and they held onto it for this new toy. Somebody at Hasbro or Takara is REALLY stuck on that. A neat newer feature is that the shoulder cannons can be removed and held as traditional blasters. The orignal guns were on joints that would allow for pivoting. These are much smaller and cannot, however can be plugged in either standing straight up, or forward. Neat! This is a cool little update of a fun design and a great little figure all around. I'm very happy with it, not just because of my personal fandom for the character... but it's just a neat toy. I'm hoping some of the other recolors of the original toy get released. That would be awesome.