The Dark Knight (toy line) Rises

A new Batman movie means new Batman toys, and the highlight as always is the Movie Masters line by Mattel. This time around for The Dark Knight Rises, we get a few new figures and a rehashed version of Batman from the last film.

I'm not really sure why I bothered to buy this figure of Batman. It's a decent toy, and worth picking up if you didn't get one last time around, but there's no significant difference between this and the version released a few years ago for The Dark Knight.

I am excited to have a Figure of Alfred. I mean, aside from the fact that it's Alfred, what we've finally been given is an action figure of Michael Caine. (Now if only someone would make a figure from Get Carter.)
It's a nice enough toy, but suffers from some weird production problems (a slightly warped face), and Mattel continues to use that same imperfect "man in a suit" body that they've used and reused so many times now. But just the same, it's great that they'd put out a figure of a secondary character like this.

What I haven't picked up yet from this line is the Bane figure. I sort of wanted to wait until after I've seen the film, but it's starting to look like that may be the best figure of the three, so I'll probably get it soon.

Detective Mode

Most of what I've bought from DC Direct over the years has been great. The new Detective Mode version of Batman from the Arkham City game is no exception.

I'd sort of wondered why they didn't do this for the Arkham Asylum line. They could have done a paint variation at some point, but it's cool that they waited 'til now to make this a regular figure.

Operation

Picked up this Playmobil set from the thrift store the other day. It's missing a few parts--including one nurse--but I think it's well worth the two dollars I'd spent.

Asajj Ventress and Holographic Darth Sidious

One consistent truth about being a collector is that interests change, and from time to time you just have to let things go. Sometimes those are easy decisions to make, but other times it's not so simple.

A good example of that has been my history of collecting Star Wars merchandise.

I got into the whole thing because I was interested in vintage toys, but it was a matter of timing that drove me to all of the modern stuff that started coming out nearly twenty years ago. One of the things that kept me excited about collecting Star Wars, was the idea that not only are these newer toys appealing to my sense of nostalgia, but in many cases they're improving upon what we had as kids in the ‘70s and early ‘80s.

A perfect example of this is what Sideshow Collectibles has been doing with 12-inch Star Wars figures over the years, and in particular I'm thinking about Asajj Ventress and Holographic Darth Sidious from 2007.

I happen to be thinking about these figures because they're something that--though I think they're pretty fantastic--I've decided to sell off. And that's a weird thing for me, because my natural toy hording instinct wants me to hold onto these two. But the honest truth is that I don't own a warehouse, and again... sometimes you've just gotta let things go.

Asajj is great. I still think it may be one of Sideshow's nicest female figures. The sixty dollar price tag was reasonable at the time as well--considering how most of what Sideshow puts out these days has more than doubled.



What was even more cool, was that at San Diego Comic Con that year, you could pick up a Holographic version of Darth Sidious on his Mechno-chair.

The figure was simple and fun. It had creepy spider legs, it lit-up, and it could be posed talking to Asajj Ventress... which is exactly what I did.