REVIEW: SIDESHOW TOYS G.I. JOE STALKER

Hey Everybody,

So this is one of the last things I got before having to reorder my finances. I didn't purchase the entire figure, more just the nude figure and some of his accessories. I'm not super keen on many licensed products, but often those products tend to yield good headsculpts and parts that would make for nice personalized projects. So when Sideshow's G.I.JOE: RAH Stalker was unveiled, I knew I wanted his head. Stalker has one of the best ethnic sculpts I have seen in a long time. So luckily, I just happened to have caught a Toy Anxiety part out at the right time shortly after his release. So I ordered his headsculpt.





I was hesitant to get his body, as I had heard some off putting things about the Sideshow Prometheus body, but rather than worry about a skintone match trying to put him on another body, and being that this is like the 3rd generation of this body, I thought it was safe enough to try. I have to say that the body isn't bad. It's rather on par with the Toys City male bodies. It only has a little play / looseness in the ankles, but that's really it, overall it was decently sturdy.



Something I like with Sideshow's G.I.JOE figures is the hands... on average each figure comes with 6 hands (Some even more)... 3 poses for each side to accommodate a variety of accessories. I ordered an extra pair of gloved hands for him as well so I would have extra wrist posts to put a pair of Hot Toys relaxed hands from the Barack Obama-esque True Type, so that my figure could have relaxed bare hands. They are a fair enough skintone match.





So the other accessories I got from Stalker were his old style 3.75" figure's HK MP5-esque submachine gun, which was OK, not the best piece, I think they modeled it directly after the 3.75" weapon... because it has just about as much detail... in retrospect I'd have passed on this piece having seen it in hand first.





I also ordered a pair of his Khukri knives... they are a piece of art. Nice sheaths that are reversible, and the blades themselves are fantastic. I didn't snap any pics of those as they are on the workbench in preparation for addition to a project. Overall I am quite pleased with the figure. I will probably do an eye repaint like I normally do on all my figures, but for now he's good until I decide who he is going to be.







Thanks for following,

MUSINGS...

So, what have I been up to lately? Not too much. Mostly trying to reorganize myself to deal with a new financial situation that isn't going to afford me as much cash flow for 1/6 as I used to have.

Now trying to see things in the best possible light, this made me think that perhaps it isn't such a bad thing. Having less money simply means making and getting more out of what I've got.

So that being said, I need to refocus on some projects. One of my main projects that was truly a bit too "lofty" a goal needs to be reconsidered... IE The Loft...lol I think my original plan was great, and in the best possible situation would have been fantastic, but space and budget constraints are going to need me to downsize it some. I think rather than my large open space design, I need to make it more compartmentalized and modular so that it can be set up and taken down and not be a permanent fixture taking up 5 feet by 3 feet of my living room. So that will be a project I'll start revisiting in the near future.

I have more stuff than I ever know what to do with. I don't write trade lists mostly because it's easier for someone to just ask me if I have something than for me to actually sit down and catalog stuff. For my characters I want to work on for casts for projects, I need to go through what I have and start putting things together rather than keep thinking about buying new stuff to do the same.

Having less new things to get also gives me the opportunity to revisit older customs and update them... either be it with paint apps, applying new skills and techniques I know now that I didn't know when I made them.

So rather than look at this as being a bad thing or time, I feel with a positive mindset, I can turn this into a very good opportunity to work on things I haven't in a long while and catch up on things I've been meaning to.

Thanks for following.

WORKS IN PROGRESS: MERCENARY & THESSICA

Last week I had repainted my Soldier Story Stephen Lang / Col. Quaritch headsculpt. This week it was working on his character and gear. So I have decided that his character is going to the a mercenary / head of security for an arms dealer character I will be working on for a cast of characters.





I decided to go with the pair of green ACI 5.11 Tactical style cargo pants, a black short I have had for ages by Hasbro. It is from way back, from a Delta Force Commando figure from well over 10 years ago. It's old, a little faded, and had rolled sleeves that I did on it years back, and it just seemed to fit nicely. I then used Hot Toys styled molded boots from the Toys City 90's SEAL. I'll have to pop up a quick tut on how I attached them without any modification to the Soldier Story body. PACA Body Armor Vest is from the Soldier Story SAD V2. Gloved hands are also from the Toys City 90's SEAL. Lastly the Safariland 6004 Drop leg Holster is from the Toys City DEA FAST figure.

For his armaments, I decided to go with a custom modified 21st Century Toys USAS 12 Shotgun. I shortened the barrel on it, made a compensator, added a mount for attaching a BBI / TTL Surefire Taclight Foregrip, and finally went with Sideshow G.I. Joe RAH line Magpul PMAGs for the magazines. I went with the Sideshow PMAGs because they are overscale... so much so they feasibly work with the weapon and approximate 8 round magazines for 12 gauge ammunition. I also modified two Hot Toys Kydex M14 magazine pouches with velcro to attach to his vest to hold spare magazines for the USAS. I also gave the character a Hot Toys Sig Sauer P250 handgun instead of the Sig P226 that his holster came with. Both weapons have practically identical dimensions so they both work with the holster fine.













So for now, this character is pretty much complete.

Now, on to Thessica. She is my repainted TTL headsculpt that I went with magenta eyes for something different.





I used the bodysuit from the ZC Girl Carol set and boots from Sideshow's Star Wars Asajj Ventress. I am basically going for a sci fi / survival horror / alien killing style character for her. I liked the brown outfit because it made me think of Ripley in Alien: Resurrection. For her weapon, at least her signature piece... If there is one thing I have learned from Aliens and Star Wars, it is that you can take any WWII German weapon and slap some parts onto it and make it into a neat sci fi weapon lol.













She still needs some more gear, but I am pleased with how she is coming along :)

Thanks for following.

REPAINT: SOLDIER STORY SEAL / AVATAR COL. QUARITCH

Hey Everyone,

So way back before the new year I picked up the Soldier Story SVD SEAL nude figure:

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This was a nice headsculpt that was based generally off actor Stephen Lang's character Col. Quaritch from Avatar. The base figure had a much darker hair color and didn't suit it for me.





So I repainted the hair white like the actor's actual hair, touched up the scarring, and then repainted the eyes.







Right now he is set to be the head of security for an Arms Dealer character I have in mind.

Thanks for following.