Terror of a New Week

Hope everyone is looking forward to a new week! Me... I'm a little sleepy. Daylight Savings time happened over the weekend and it always throws me off for a few days. The weekend was good, though I can't say alot happened. New episodes of The Mandelorian and 1000 lbs Sisters was watched. We had a nice dinner with Mom at Olive Garden Sunday. Gargoyle's Quest was played... it was cold and rainy. 

As far as toys go, I finally found Shadowstrip at Walmart completing the Velocitron Speedia 500 collection (unless they release any more). This little set of exclusives meant a whole lot to me for some reason and now I'm ecstatic to have them all. I almost bought a few more EarthSpark flip changers, but held off. With Toylanta coming and my birthday at the end of the month... I kinda feel guilty indulging too much. 

I did grab a set of the Dollar Tree Power Rangers figures. I was hoping to find more Final Faction, but sadly they haven't restocked. The Rangers though are a nice little set of mini figures. It's the MMPR team, sadly without the Yellow Ranger. I found it ironic as I passed out while watching Zyuranger Saturday night before finding these Sunday. I love Pluto Tv, speaking of which, they're doing a Beast Wars/Beast Machines thing today. There's a cool re-airing of Beast Wars happening in Japan thanks to Rise of the Beasts... so I like to think this is our equivalent here in the states. 

Despite being very sleepy, I've got a fun week in mind for you all. Thanks for reading Zone Base. It means so much to me that you all support this little fan blog. If you could share it with your friends, that be awesome. Well, I've got some chores to do between watching Beast Wars on Pluto Tv. We've got a new bird bath that could use some adjustment. 

Burning New Week

A new week is here, and with it... I dunno. I had a pretty good weekend. The weather has been pretty nice latley so I took the opportunity to grill out Sunday. I'm not sure if an early spring is setting in this year, but I'll enjoy a relaxing afternoon around the grill cooking some good food. Did some shopping Saturday, resulting in a new pair of Hey Dudes. I've always been a sneaker guy, but these little shoes might have me finally changing my ways. The Mrs got me a great pair for Christmas and now we're at two pair. The times are changing I guess.

As far as toys go, I got some fun stuff. A trip by the Dollar Tree resulted in finally finding some new Final Faction figures. I got 4 of the new Venom series Kharn toys. Just need 2 more and to find the Elite series. A stop by TJ Maxx provided a Lightyear Hyperspeed series buggy set. I'd been hoping to find those since seeing other Inchman posts on Instagram using them. Walmart didn't have anything I've been looking for, so I took the occasion to order some Beastbox. Got the new rabbit set (just in time for Easter) and the Godzilla flavored SubZero figure. My Mom came by Sunday for the cook out and gifted me the new Talon Fighter (Netflix CGI He-Man) and a Bakugan set she found on clearance.

There's a new episode of Transform Squadron avaliable for your listening pleasure. I hope it helps you get this week going. I've got some fun stuff planned for you all this week as usual. Thank you for continuing to support Zone Base. It may be just a podunk little fan blog, but it's mine and I appreciate you all reading. Please don't forget to share with your friends. I don't ask much. No ads or hand outs required, but it'd be great for more people to enjoy this fun stuff with me.

Weekly Update: 10/3/22

Time for another week here on Planet Zone! Thanks everyone for coming back for more robots, monsters, and misadventure! It's officially October and we've only got one more month of Pumpkin Spiced Mayhem. I guess it's time to turn up the spooky dial up! Thanks for supporting the site and continuing to read my badly written nonsense. Don't forget to share with your friends!

I decorated my yard for Halloween this weekend. Well, mostly, I'll add more as the big day draws near. Turning your front yard into a spook show is fun, but a nightmare to keep up with for a month. So stay tuned! As far as toys go, I bought Legacy Elita-1 and a Gundam Mobile Suit Ensemble blind box from Target. I got the G-Fighter. I really wanted the Unicorn Gundam, but I'm happy with what I got. I'd like to complete the series. Couldn't find any Halloween Kinder Surprise eggs, just 3 more to go to complete this years set. Wish me luck! A stop by the Dollar Tree resulted in the new series of Transformers mini figures. They're similar to the prior set, just smaller.

I also found the last Final Faction accessory pack I needed for now. I thought I had caught up with them prior before realizing I was short one. A later stop by Pop Shelf resulted in a Kirby blind bag. The figures are of Kirby in his various forms and I'm honestly not sure what the one I got is called. I've seen if before, but not sure what it's called. He's angry and has a big purple poof coming out of his head. I dunno, goes that way sometimes. 

The most Final of the Factions

Two years ago I walked into that Dollar Tree on a cold November day and discovered a new toy line called Final Faction. Like other early adopters of the line, I was blown away by this really cool set of figures reminiscent of 80's and 90's action figures available exclusively at the Dollar Tree of all places. Final Faction has since grown to be something special in the toy world. I'm glad I discovered it organically just walking into the store.

It's neat to be on something from the ground floor and I'd never had thought something like a discount store toy line would ever be cool. But here we are, and here it is. I'm mentally drawing comparisons to other discount likes like Dragon Riders of the Styx and The Other World. Even with the thematic differences, it's great to see something similar happening again. Most discount lines these days are discount versions of mainline brands so seeing an original creation like this is refreshing. In 2003 the line will have the new Venom and Elite series. I'm pretty excited to see it continue.

Weekly Update 8/22/22

It's a little late, but it's also the start of a new week here on Planet Zone! The weekend went by faster than I'd have liked, but I still had some fun! I enjoyed some early Halloween stock at various stores and took the Mrs hunting various Krogers for Squishmallows. During the outing I picked up Scourge, Clamp Down, and Road Rocket from the Velocitron Speedia 500 collection at a Walmart. Also picked up Authentics Arcee and a Bakugan Cubbo at Five Below during their Squishmallows event this weekend. A trip to the Dollar Tree resulted in several Final Faction accessory packs I've been needing. Not a bad weekend for toys!

I intended to work on some models, but an impromptu lunch with family killed some of that time. Oh well. I was planning to record this months episode of Transform Squadron today, but things happened. Don't worry, it's still coming! Just sometime soon instead of just coming soon. I almost forgot to mention. The Mrs suprised me Friday morning with a Red Cog and some snacks. I wasn't aware they made jumbo Red Vines. They do! They're just like regular Red Vines... BUT JUMBO! I've got a fun week in store for you all. Hope you like Gameboy games! Thanks for reading Zone Base, I really appreciate it. If you life what I'm doing, please share with your friends. It's all I ask!

Update from Planet Zone: 4/11/22

 

The weekend is over and it's time for a new week here on Planet Zone! This one flew by a little faster than I expected but still had a good time. Most of the weekend was spent helping the Mrs find Squishmallows. Between hitting up a Kroger Saturday that had recently gotten a bunch to going to a few Five Below's for their most recent event. Over the course of the weekend I got some neat stuff too. The Kroger did turn up some interesting Transformers bootlegs for $2 each. They had upscaled Legend class Hot Shots and what I initially thought was Cyberjets. I grabbed an orange Cyberjet and realized shortly after it was an odd Robotech bootleg. Pretty random for a grocery store bootleg robot.

The Legacy Arcee I got last weekend was missing some stuff, so it got returned. Target had gotten some new Core Class figures, but only has Iguanus left. Fortunately that's the one I wanted most. They had a good bit of stuff, but it was stuff I already had. Hopefully I can get another Arcee soon... as well as more Legacy stuff. We checked Walmart afterwards and same story. Well stocked, but stuff I already have. I skipped getting a retro Megazord this week, but still plan on getting them all. I did get the 'Power of Grayskull' He-Man from the Netflix show. Been wanting that one, I love translucent figures. They had Man-E-Faces as well, but I'll grab him later. Out of Million Warriors, but I figure those are selling fast. Perfect thing for an Easter Basket.

Sunday was that Five Below event and we hit up a few to find ones she was after. There's new stackable Squishmallows and they're well sought after. I got some cool Bakugan (individual names are escaping me at the moment) and may make a point to complete the Mystic Pack set I see at Five Below. It's a good looking set, and I have a few already. They're just the right price there, but I do have some more expensive ones that have a lot of cool extras. Really glad I fell down this rabit hole. It's been a lot of fun.

While between Five Belows, we stopped at a Dollar Tree. Easter is next weekend and we grabbed some inexpensive stuff to make Easter Baskets for our nieces. While there I got the new versions of the Transformers bag clip figures. Initially I thought they were the same as before, but they're noticeably smaller and the sculpts look a little different. That could just be me, but they're cheap enough to not worry about an extra set. The ongoing hunt for new Final Faction figures finally came up with some figures. There's still plenty of new stuff to find, but I at least got Riptide and Amari. It's a discount line at a time where there's various issues keeping stores stocked. Just gotta be patient. Who'd have thought a discount line would be this cool? Oh yeah, me. I've been praising it since it first hit. Real ones know.

It's fun getting new figures each week and with so much new stuff hitting, it's exciting to find it as it hits. I still haven't found the new Studio Series Soundwave yet. I'd joke that I'll see Elvis first... but I already did in 2004. I've got a fun week planned for you all. Thanks for reading Zone Base and your continued support. I know it's spring time and most of you want to get out there and have some fun. So it means alot that you're still taking the time to read my nonsense. There's a new episode of Transform Squadron coming soon (I promise) that I hope you all enjoy. As always, don't forget to share with your friends! 

Clean up and Slay the new Week

It's a new week here on Planet Zone and one week closer to Christmas! I don't know about you guy's, but Christmas time is a strange flavor of chaotic for me. Between the shopping and holiday gatherings while still working and living my normal life, it's a stressful yet fun time of the year. Though on Christmas Eve, there's a peaceful calm that's never replicated any other time of the year. I spent most of this weekend shopping for gifts as well as another Sunday Squishmallow event at Five Below for the wife (they're practically having one every weekend lately) before having Mom over for dinner that night. Sunday was my Mom's birthday and she turned 70!

We had a wonderful pot roast the Mrs cooked in the crock pot and some cake while watching various Muppets Christmas specials. Mom brought me a Mega Construx MOTU Skeletor head she had grabbed while out. It's the Fisto set, I already have it, but welcome the extra parts. Whenever Mom finds them in the clearance aisle she grabs them for me. I've got a couple extra figures by her doing that which provides excellent extra parts for future use.

While out I did manage to find some if the new Final Faction toys. I got all the new figures, just need the Arrow ATV and new accessorie sets to be caught up. I never thought something like a cheap dollar store toy line would be as popular as it is. Pretty cool to discover something like that on launch as well. Neat. Fun fact, the guy who designed the figures works for Super 7 now. I happen to think very highly of them and happy to see that merging of things I like. This year I missed out on the Lego  Star Wars Advent calendar.

Bummer, but in it's place the Mrs gave me a different kind of toy calendar. The Microbots Advent! These are small block kit robots that are a merge team. There's various sets available, mine is a dinosaur team vs a car team. It's a 12 day Advent Calendar, so I'm just now starting to feature it on my social media. That Instagram of mine is going to be a pretty neat place for a while! Well, I've got some household chores to do in between a little toy pics for this week on the site. Better get to work! Thanks each and every one of you for continuing to support Zone Base. It means so much to me that you continue to enjoy my madness. Put on a sweater (it's cold out there) and please share with your friends!

SPC. Shift

With Shift we're coming to an end of our weekly look at Final Faction toys until some new stuff comes out. Allegedly the vehicles are due sometime in the summer with the next batch of figures by fall. So you can be sure that I'll be talking about them when the time comes. For now, let's look at Shift, the ninja of Alpha Team 1. 

Shift comes with a set of swords that she can technically hold, but are molded together to mount on her back. I have seen folks trim them away to function as handheld swords. However if you've got the Covert Ops accessory set, there's plenty of appropriate to her character weaponry so that you can keep those swords as a backpack. Shift fills the role of ninja type warrior while adding a little variety to Alpha Team 1.

Augmented Combat Rescue Mech A.C.R.M

The coolest member of Alpha Team 1 is the A.C.R.M. Piloted by a disabled 15 year old kid named Boyd via virtual reality, the mech unit is a heavy hitter. The Air Assault weapons pack completes the figure adding wings, boosters, and gun pods. It's pretty hard not to look at this figure and be impressed. Especially as it only costs $1. A.C.R.M has been a pretty popular toy for customizers as well. I've seen everything from alternate colors to takes on other characters with the figure as the base. 

Like all of Final Faction, this is a 3 3/4 figure with 5 points of articulation. Similar to the Synthoid, it's a much more chunky toy and looks bigger in pictures. Also like the Synthoid, it's one of the more impressive figures in the line. At Toylanta, I was showing Buddy the figures and the two definitely blew him away. I don't want to oversell the toy, but it really does feel like a much more expensive than it is.

Hive Class Drone

The Kharn Drone Class is a basic grunt used for combat and labor operations. Not highly intelligent, but able to accomplish mission tasks.

As their name would imply, the Drone is the basic soldier of the Kharn army. I do like how so far all the Kharn is army builders. Just droves of attacking aliens that can be equipped differently with various accessory sets. The design of these guys is a cross between a Xenomorph and something out of Quake. That mixture of 80's and 90's aesthetics in Final Faction is a big part of what makes it such a fun little line. Like the other Kharn soldiers, I wish the Drone was available in a variety of colors. I could see a 'fire' or 'ice' version of this figure with corresponding included weapons.

SGT. Steel

Continuing our weekly exploration of Dollar Tree's Final Faction toys brings us to SGT. Steel. Steel is a pretty cool dude as his sunglasses would imply. If the big wings on his back didn't clue you in, he's the jet pack flyer guy of Alpha Team 1. So far the members I've shown you have been heavy duty ground soldiers, so the variety is much appreciated. 

He's pretty much the Final Faction version of Red Falcon and that's pretty great. If you want to deck him out with accessories, I'd say the Air Assault and Covert Arms packs would suit him fine. Unfortunately Steel is the only Final Faction toy I've gotten that's had any QC issues. Mine wasn't screwed together well leading to a loose head. Fortunately all it takes to fix this is one of those tiny screw drivers they also sell at the Dollar Tree.

Hive Class Brute

The Kharn Brute Class specializes in power and destruction. They have very low intelligence and are controlled by a commander. Their skin is nearly impenetrable and it’s hard to take them down.

The Brute is a Kharn troop that resembles a demon straight from hell. These are the big bruisers that are usually carrying some heavy firepower into the battle and are twice as hard to kill the regular soldier. You know the type.

The figure comes with a big alien gun that looks like it would be more than enough in a fight. However the Quake Arms and Shock Arms accessory packs provide extra firepower to do some serious damage. It's really surprising to get such a cool figure for just a dollar. Let alone a completely cool line for a dollar each.

SGT. Ruck

Ruck is the ground artillery guy in Alpha Team 1. Like Steadfast, he's also a cyborg . Ruck has robotic legs and his covered in cool sci fi armor that you can plug various guns into for more firepower. He's pretty much a walking tank in these regards. Ruck comes with a backpack mounted gun that can fold over his shoulder. It matches up with the sculpted on headset that likely gives him a heads up display for use with his various attached weapons.

I see that armor and think Alien Syndrome. A major part of why these Final Faction toys are so cool is that old school flavor in the designs. Ruck is a great example of that. Like I said above, you can attach various attachments to him via accessory sets. The gun pods from the Air Assault set would be a natural fit though I think he's general enough for most things from the sets to match up pretty well. This figure with a helmeted head would make for a good army builder figure. He's a solid action figure from a line with a lot going on for it. I just can't say enough good things about these toys. It's a amazing they're exclusive to the Dollar Tree. There's more heart in these than much more expensive figures.

Hive Class Synthoid

"Synthoids are used in all Kharn operations and are not to be underestimated. They have very advanced technology, a synthetic biology, and are highly intelligent" 

Today we're looking at the Synthoid. These guys look like a cross between a shark and a space ship with some insect thrown in for good measure. The figure comes as you see here out of the package, but can be decked out with the Synthoid Pack accessory set. This gives you an alternate set of arms and back mounted gun pods for extra fire power. It's a pretty cool extra option.

I appreciate the far out sci fi look of Synthoids. The other two Kharn figures look like extras from Doom while these guys are classic B movie aliens. The colors are great, but like others in the Final Faction group... I want to see these guys in translucent colors. The Synthoid specifically would look great in random florescent transparent plastic. I could really see myself driving to a bunch of different Dollar Tree's and stocking up on all the different ones I could find. Maybe stop by McDonald's for lunch. Get a McDouble or two.

MSGT. Steadfast

I've talked about Final Faction here before, but not enough. This wonderful little line has become quite popular since launching around Christmas. It's a nice throwback to action figures of old and extremely inexpensive. Being exclusive to the Dollar Tree, each figure/accessory set is only $1 each. That's super hard to beat. The figures are 1:18 scale and have five points of articulation. 

This is MSGT. Steadfast, the leader of Alpha Team.1 (the good guys). Steadfast has seen some action as his cybernetic arm would imply. He's decked out out in olive green riot gear and a removable helmet. The helmet offers a full face shield with goggles and respirator so he doesn't catch covid-19.

Also included with Steadfast is a big gun. You can't deal with an alien invasion by talking. With a gun like that, Steadfast isn't mincing words. I'd recommend the Heavy Arms accessory set to fully outfit this soldier with a ton of firepower. He's the kind of toy you want to just pile a million guns on. Just a kick ass type of guy. Steadfast is the perfect figure to start with in Final Faction. Not only is he the leader of the good guys, but an awesome action figure.

It's The Final Count... Faction

The Dollar Tree is one of my favorite stores to pop into. Between low priced household goods (the excuse for a visit) and random surprises (the reason for a visit) you can find a lot of neat things for not a lot of money.

Seemingly out of nowhere, Dollar Tree dropped their new exclusive sci fi toy line called 'Final Faction' sometime in November. It's pretty great and at a dollar each, it's easy to complete them all.

Alpha Team 1 (the good guys) vs the Kharn (the bad guys with the fate of the Earth left in the balance. The figures are 1:18 scale with five points of articulation (generally) which is a sweet spot for me. 

The highlight of the line so far is the additional accessories sold separately in themed packs. Extra guns, weapon pods, and even flight packs can be attached to the figures for a level of customization I didn't expect.

 

There's more figures on the way and even a vehicle! The sculpting and paint isn't too bad either. I do anticipate some sweet custom work done on these. There's even an animated series on the Dollar Tree's YouTube channel. I've only gave it a quick glance, so I don't have much of an opinion yet. It does appear to be pretty kid friendly, which is what I'd expect. 

It's hard not to like such a fun line with so much variety. Even harder not to like it at the super low price. I really like the colorful packaging and presentation of everything. The figures look familiar while being something new. 2020 has been a crazy year. Who'd ever think a Dollar Tree exclusive toy line would end it with such a mic drop?

Transform Squadron 27 All I Want For Christmas Is Doom

LISTEN NOW

It’s Christmas at Zone Base! The lights are hung on the porch and now there’s just a tree in the living room. Rob talks about the way cool new Final Faction toy line before talking about his Lego Star Wars Advent Calendar. Then it’s random memories of Christmas music he hates and loves before spiraling into madness about a Burger King commercial. Merry Christmas!