The Microman Bio Mechanic suits were model kits released at the tail end of the original Microman line and reissued by Romando in the 90’s. You can read a thorough history of them at Microforever, but the sparknotes version is that they are chunky, rugged snap-fit battle armor kits for Microman figures. This one started out life as the tan and brown Desert Filtered type, but I was on a blue kick when I airbrushed it a while back. Microman is a pretty veteran toy franchise, so I went heavy with the weathering as if this unit had been there since the beginning.
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Romando Microman Bio Mechanic Suit BS2 with Hyper Microman 9 comments
Maschinen Krieger Pkf.85 Falke Antigravity Armored Raider 1/20 2 comments
Maschinen Krieger is a sci-fi universe created by Japanese modeler Kow Yokoyama. What started out as a bunch of groundbreaking kitbashed and scratchbuilt models because a modeling phenomenon that eventually turned into official resin and then injection plastic kits. The Falke Antigravity Armored Raider is a speedy attack vehicle that combines sleek curves with mechanical detail goodness. I was sent this Hasegawa plastic kit along with the matching set of figures and commissioned to make a maintenance diorama. The base is scratchbuilt by me.
Bandai Mobile Suit Gundam AGE-1 Normal Test Type Mega Size 1/48 Leave a comment
Mobile Suit Gundam AGE is the current Gundam franchise incarnation, and it is pretty great. The AGE-1 Normal is also a recent entry in Bandai’s Mega Size model kit line of 1/48 scale mobile suits, which are also great. I did a comprehensive review of the kit over at CollectionDX, and it is worth a read. Bandai is really pushing the limits of what you can do out of the box, including making the entire kit tool-less. The engineering is pretty incredible, and the result is a gigantic (~15″) tall action figure model kit that is chunky, posable, and rugged.
New reviews over at CollectionDX Leave a comment
The Robot Spirits Den’an Gei review got a lot of traffic last week, so I thought it’d be fun to start posting links to my reviews over at CollectionDX as they go up in case people don’t check there too often. I usually cover Glyos vinyl releases, 3A stuff, Iron Man, and real robots. Maybe over the weekend I’ll through and put together a review links page, since I have done a lot over the last couple of years. This week I posted a pair of sponsored reviews:
Bandai Robot Spirits MS-07B-3 Gouf Custom
Bandai Robot Spirits Gundam AGE-1 Normal
Review: Bandai Robot Spirits XM-02 Den’an Gei Leave a comment
So, I wrote this review for CollectionDX without realizing that we’ve already covered this figure. I didn’t want what I put together to go to waste, so I figured I’d post it here for my own edification.
Takara Armored Troopers VOTOMS 1/60 Diving Beetle Leave a comment
When Armored Trooper VOTOMS was released, there were toys in a number of different sizes and formats, including the 1/60 scale AT Collection Series diecast minis, which were similar in vein to the 1/144 Dougram figures and the Takatoku 1/144 Macross Destroids. These little guys are sharply molded, nicely detailed, and had a good heft due to the diecast parts. They stand around 3″ tall. Unlike the Dougram and Macross minis, the VOTOMS figures did not feature painted much detail, since the idea was that you would paint them up and apply the stickers yourself, in that classic 80s Dual Model style. I made a few mods to this guy and painted him up. You can see an unpainted out of the box version in Veef’s review on CollectionDX.
PRS ‘Clover’ Style Gundam at Winter Wonderfest Leave a comment
When I posted the finished shots of my Master Grade RX-78-2 Gundam painted with Monster Kolor, Matt Walker aka Dead Pre$idents asked me if he could display it at the booth he was sharing with Max Toy Co at Winter Wonder Festival in Japan. Monster Kolor paint has been a huge success for Matt, and he is always looking for demonstrations of its use in new and creative ways. My MK on plastic Gundam model fit the bill, and was shipped off to Japan for display at the show. These pics of the booth come courtesy of Kaiju Korner Andy, who has been providing the best English-language coverage of Japanese shows and festivals out there for a couple of years now. Go check out the rest of his extensive WonderFest coverage here. He took a gazillion photos, and there’s more still to be posted.
Here’s a shot of the whole Max Toy Co and Friends booth! My Gundam was in good company. I think it’s giving Max Toy Co’s new micro Kaiju Negora sculpt a bit of a shakedown!
Chilled Garamon for Gamaniacal at FOE 1 comment
FOE Gallery is hosting an awesome themed show in February. Mike Nordstrom is undoubtedly the world’s leading Garamon expert and aficionado, and has curated a show that is going to knock socks off. I was thrilled to get asked to participate alongside guys like Mark Nagata, Bob Conge, and Koji Harmon. I went for a realistic finish rather than Monster Kolor craziness, going full ‘model kit’ style on this super detailed sculpt. Show opens February 10th in Northampton!
Bandai Master Grade RX-78-2 Gundam ‘Clover’ Style 1 comment
Bandai’s Master Grade RX-78-2 Gundam ver. 2.0 is a heck of a kit. The design is clean and ‘doughy’ in a way that manages to capture the feel of the anime very well. The sharp and clean design made the perfect subject for a Monster Kolor powered airbrushed paint job. I wanted to do something more original than a clean white Gundam, so I followed a scheme similar to the original Clover Gundam toys, which were silver instead of white. Obviously I could not leave it just clean and smooth, because that would be boring, so I proceeded to apply the entire waterslide decal sheet Bandai sells for this kit, making for some interesting contrast against the clean sculpt. Katoki would be proud.
1/60 Scale Party Leave a comment
Reorganized some shelves while waiting for new arrivals. Here’s my 1/60 scale mecha lineup, featuring Macross, Dougram, Dorvack, Patlabor, Votoms, Gundam, and Mospeada. Basically, all of my favorite things. Click the top image for a bigger panorama.
Prometheus Rising Studios 