"I feel so lonesome I could I die..."

If you were a ever a Cub Scout then you remember saying this:

 

Cub Scout Oath or
PromiseI, (name), promise to do my best
To do my duty to God and my country,
To help other people,
and
To obey the Law of the Pack.

 Bring back any memories? I used to be a Cub Scout myself back in the day, and yet I still only vaguely remember how the oath went. But thanks to my mom who keeps everything from my childhood, I still have some of my badges, the guidebook, and I think, my old cub scout uniform.

 As I promised Dan from It's a Dan's World(sorry Dan, last shameless plug I promise) I had another interesting story(well to me it was) concerning comics and childhood memories. 

This unfortunate event for me involved a Cub Scout meeting that never was, and Web Of Spider-Man#59.

I guess it was around the fall/late-fall of '89 when I was headed to a Cub Scout meeting. I believe I joined up a year earlier, so I was still enthusiastic about being a member. Well, I get dropped off by my mom at the Scoutmaster's house located on base housing. This was of course when I was living in West Germany, and there were plenty of military bases and housing to go around. So I get out, and my mom's asking me if she should stay just long enough to make sure that they're there. I say no. I would come to quickly regret that particular action of mine for a long while.

I went downstairs into the apartment complex, down into where technically you'd have a basement. Except this basement had several rooms inside. Down the hall I went, heading straight for where the meeting was supposed to take place. Well I got there, and to my horror, I discovered that the meeting had been cancelled. Why I wasn't told or made aware I don't know. The Scoutmaster I believe kind of blamed her husband, but that's neither here nor there. I panicked! The thoughts "Oh God, what am I going to do?" raced quickly through my young brain. I quickly made my way up the stairs with the vain hope that somehow by some miracle my mom would still be up there waiting on me. She wasn't, and I was screwed.

With no where else to go, or no way of contacting my parents(remember kids this was before cell phones had been invented) I was stuck waiting right where I was until it was time for my mom to come pick me up from "the meeting." I think I started to cry a little, due to panic, but that suddenly stopped once I saw a fellow cub scout show up about 5-10 minutes later. I quickly dried my eyes and explained to the kid and his dad that the meeting had been cancelled. So they left. I was feeling like "take me with you", but in truth that probably wouldn't have been a good idea, since if I left with them, who would tell my mother where I was? So I was stuck there, waiting for the whole 2-hour duration of the meeting to wind down so that I could go home.

I sat there on the apartment steps, as the sky grew darker, and just started singing church songs( I went to church back then so sue me) as a means to keep myself both occupied and from seriously panicking. Bear in mind, I didn't have a watch on, so I couldn't tell what time it was. I believe it was about an hour or so later, who should show up, but the scoutmaster herself, along with her husband and son. I was both relieved and pissed at the same time! She saw me, and saw that I had been crying, and was bewildered as to why I was there. I explained to her what happened, and she instantly felt bad for me. My mother showed up not to long after that, and then the scoutmaster explained what happened. Again, for some unknown reason, nobody felt the need to call me that the meeting had been cancelled. Looking back on it, I find it strange that me and that other cub scout member were the only ones not to know about that, but everyone else somehow knew. Weird huh?

Well, to her credit, the woman did fell really bad about the situation, and apologized to me and my mother profusely about the whole thing. I did forgive her, but man was I still a little pissed about the whole ordeal.

My mom made things better though, by taking me to the BX, where the bookstore was located. That day, for my troubles, I bought Web Of Spider-Man#59, and all was right with the world again.

I guess I should add in all fairness, that perhaps karma had a hand in how that whole situation played out.

Yes folks, this is where the twist worthy of M. Night Shamalayan comes into the story. You see just couple of weeks prior, I had taken it upon myself to take off during one of the cub scout meetings to go visit a nearby friend. I guess I was gone a little longer than I thought, because when I came back, there was the Scoutmaster in hysterics because she thought I had been kidnapped or something else as equally horrific. Yes, karma is a bitch indeed, because I would later pay for what I did with the above mentioned story. So I guess in those terms, the scales once again balanced themselves out.

Oh, but now you're probably wondering "Is that it?" "What about WoS#59?"

Well I guess I can quickly sum that issue up by saying how cool I thought it was, and that it was one of the 1st Spider-Man comics I'd ever bought.

Basically, Spider-Man, powered by the powers of Captain Universe, shows up to save his usual sparring partner Puma, from getting his ass handed to him by Titania. This was probably the 1st time I'd ever saw Spider-Man beat on a woman, but for some reason it didn't seem to bother me. She was a villain, and that was all the justification young Mr.Morbid needed back then. 

Oh, and it was also an Act of Vengeance tie-in, which was a total bonus for me since I really loved that storyline.

Maybe in the future I talk about my love affair with Web of Spider-Man back in the day, as I was a devoted fan of the title. I specifically like the Name of the Rose storyline that ran through the later issues of the series; namely issues 84-89. That is definitely a post for another day. Idk why, but I just loved Alex Saviuk's art back then.

"Visting hours are now starting...."

I was talking(well really I was corresponding) with Dan from the blog It's a Dan's World, and we were discussing the my last post concerning the comic Marvel Tales. He said he also enjoyed that title, but preferred Marvel's other team-up book, Marvel Two-In-One, featuring The Thing. Now while I have nothing against Aunt Petunia's favorite blue-eyed nephew, I didn't really have too much of an interest in that particular comic. This was mostly because by the time I was made aware of the title, it had already been cancelled. I'd only later on discover it, but didn't really care for it too much. With the exception of one issue. For some strange reason, I seemed to pick up and buy Marvel Two-In-One#96.

Now if you're familiar with the plot/story concerning this issue, then you'd know this was the issue where Ben Grimm was recuperating in the hospital after surviving a beat down in a boxing match with an elder of the universe by the name of The Champion. This occurred in Marvel Two-in-One Annual #7. The Champion also held the power gem from the Infinity Gems for awhile before Thanos took it from him. Oh, and he was undefeated until the Silver Surfer of all people, kicked his ass.

Anyways, The Thing was in the hospital recovering, when unbeknownst to him, a large number of super-villains decide to attack the Thing when he's at his most vulnerable. not a bad idea right? Attack a weakened foe by playing the numbers game sounds like a really good strategy right? After all, that's something a bad guy does right? Kick a guy when he's down? And boy, were there plenty of bad guys to go around that held a grudge for poor ol' Ben. The list of bad guys reads off like a who's who of villains from around that time period:
Shellshock, Mirage, The Mad Thinker and his Awesome Android, Mechano-Marauder, The Mole Man,  the Grapplers: Titania, Screaming Mimi, Poundcakes, and Letha, the Hijacker, Dr. Doom, Beetle,Whiplash, Melter, Modok, Constrictor, Rhino, and  Dreadnought.
That's quite a list huh?

Well they all didn't attack at once, like they should have, but went for Grimm one at a time or team to team. Fortunately the Thing, he had his super-friends, like Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Captain America to name a few to watch over him, and they all pretty much fought off the bad guys, all oblivious to Ben. Well all the bad guys, except one who somehow manages to sneak in and get into Ben's room: The Sandman.

It seems the Sandman wasn't there to hurt Ben, but to give him a get well gift, which just happened to be one of the Thing's favorite vices: a stoogie(or a cigar for those not hip to cigar slang). Sandman was there because of the events from #86, when Ben shows up at a bar to fight, but Sandy not only surrenders, but just wants to sit down and have a beer; which they both do. Anyhoo, Sandman's just being there to support his new buddy Ben, and that was that.

I don't know why, but I really liked this story(written by Tom DeFalco by the way) and the decent art by Ron Wilson. Well here comes a personal story that relates to this issue.

When I was living in West Germany, I lived in an apartment complex on the German side of town. But I did have a string of American neighbors; most of them were military, but one in particular wasn't. His name was Bob. Bob was a cool guy who I sometimes hung out with as he lived in one of the rooms upstairs. He lived across the hall from a nice German couple, where I'd also sometimes hangout. I'd go up to his place and he'd let me play on his Nintendo, playing games like Super Mario and Double Dragon. I didn't have a Nintendo of my own yet at the time; that'd come a year or so later. I'd also discover that little known cable channel called MTV around that same time period, and man did that concept blow my young mind!

Well late one night, or very early in the morning, Bob was pounding heavily on our door. He must have been doing that for a good while, because my mom and dad heard it, but just passed it off as someone being drunk. Sometimes that happened, but not a lot. This apparently went on for what must have been a couple of hours, I don't know, somehow my sister and I slept through all of this but I do know that my mom finally went to the door and quickly found out why Bob had been constantly knocking and calling for my dad; He'd been cut deep and was bleeding profusely from his calf!

Bob quickly informed my parents what happened: Bob had gotten stabbed and sliced in the leg by his live-in girlfriend Marty. We'd later find out that Marty, who was at least 10 years older than Bob, was an alcoholic, constantly depressed, suicidal, and to top it all off, bi-polar. He explained that Marty had come home drunk, and that they had gotten into a big fight. he was just trying to sleep, and she wouldn't let him. Finally, she grabbed a knife and lunged for him. He quickly moved, but she still wound up cutting him on the back of his calf. And it was deep too, very deep! Somehow he managed to drag himself downstairs to our apartment after not being able to get an answer from the German couple across from place. He had been outside our door for an hour or so before my mom answered the door.

My folks quickly called the German equivalent of 911, and waited for the cops and ambulance to arrive while my mom wrapped towels around poor Bob's profusely bleeding leg. I mean he bleed buckets! There was blood all over the floor! Keep in mind Marty's still upstairs while all this is going on, and probably still wielding a knife. Well as my mom later relayed to me, Marty calmly strode down the stairs while my mom's back was turned to her. She could have stabbed my mom for all she knew, but Marty just walked calmly past everybody only saying that my mom should just "Let the motherfucker die." Those were her exact words.
The ambulance and polizi(police) finally arrived and took Bob to a nearby German hospital. I don't think Marty was arrested though.

Now for the part of the story where the Thing in the hospital comic comes into play. My family and I went to go visit Bob in the hospital after sunday morning church. I brought with me 3 comics in the hopes to cheer Bob up. Hey I was only 9 or 10 at the time, what did I know? Anyway, the 1st two were Marvel 2 in 1#96, and Avengers West Coast#73. I don't remember the 3rd one though. He thanked us for the flowers, comics, and just being there for support. I don't know what happened to Marty after that, but she quickly moved out, and he followed not to long after that.

What a story huh? And it's all 100% true, swear to God.

"Wait until I've told you this marvelous Tale of mine...."

I don't know why, but I've seemed to gravitate to Spider-Man. I like the costume, the women he's had in his life, and of course his powers. I also liked the fact that Spider-man, despite his "loner" image, was always teaming up with some hero or heroine in the MU. In fact he even had his own comic called Marvel Team-Up to capitalize on that fact.
I also seem to really like Reprinted comics. I guess it's because you feel like you're somehow cheating the publisher by buying what could be and sometimes is a an expensive issue for cheap. In any case, back in my youth I collected Marvel Tales feat. Spider-Man. I guess it was the combination of an old story I'd never read before and the new artwork that made up the cover. Even though I sometimes wondered how come the artwork on the cover usually never matched the artwork on the inside, it wasn't enough of a deterrent to keep me from buying the comic anyway. I guess in my young mind, the new cover was a bit of a bonus. Kind of the same principal applied to Classic X-Men/X-Men Classic also. And let me tell you, Marvel Tales used to have some kick-ass covers! Remember the covers that Todd McFarlene used to draw for MT? I do. Here's a sample of a few he did:

Some of favorites and the issues I actually had are the following:

And that's just a few from the covers section of my Google search. There were many more, but you get the idea. I just loved the marvel team-up issues, and honestly, the stories weren't all that bad considering the time period.



I think after blogging about the Marvel Tales issues, the next time I go to my not-so LCS, I'm gonna' grab a few of these just to reminisce a little.

Timeline: 1995

The year was 1995 and I was only a lad of 14, well I would be by the time Aug 4th rolled around, but you get my point.
Besides a later move in residence to another state that year that would prove crucial later on, 2 big events that year would impact and heavily influence my life from here on out:
My discovery of ECW and my full-on discovery of Image comics.
I can probably guess what you're all thinking: What!? He actually choose those 2 "events" that impacted his life instead of something more meaningful and newsworthy like the OJ Simpson trial or the Oklahoma Bombings. Well they were and they did, but I'm talking about fun,impactful moments.

I was living in Vero Beach, FL at the time, and I was up late one Friday or Saturday night. I was flipping through the TV channels looking for something interesting on, when I find on the Sunshine Network this strange new wrestling show. They had some compilation tapes they were advertising set to the the music of Rob/White Zombie's "More human than human." Oh cool! I thought. Even though I probably caught this new show in the middle, I was instantly transfixed. I was seeing wrestlers go through tables, bleeding, and I even saw Raven(I'd quickly later learn all of the wrestlers' names) and Tommy Dreamer fighting. 2 wrestlers fighting each other wasn't anything new to me, but when Raven grabbed Dreamer's hands and started seemingly breaking his fingers one by one, Oh sweet god I was hooked!

This wrestling show/company was called ECW, which stood for Extreme Championship Wrestling, and man did I think all the violence they performed was real! I really did. I though, "Oh these guys are real, they have to be." They were hitting each other with metal chairs, trashcans, taking weapons from the fans at ringside which could be pies, metal pans, or anything else they handed the wrestlers. This definitely wasn't the stale WWF or even staler WCW, this was real.

Of course later on I'd quickly smarten up about the fact that ECW was more real in portraying their brand of wrestling than any other company; they weren't, but thanks to the mad genius of Paul Heyman, I and countless others, including PPV companies, also thought the same way.  To find this all out didn't kill my enthusiasm for ECW any less, well maybe a little, but the blood and pain was all real and that's all that mattered to a 14 year-old boy back then. I'd also later buy DVD's of the show, such as their 1st PPV Barely Legal 1997. Hell even my parents bought an ECW PPV for me to watch, this one being 1998's Heatwave.
I also own a few ECW DVD's such as "The Rise and Fall of ECW", and some of the others that the WWE released a few years back.
To sum it all up about ECW: I discovered it during a very impressionable time in my life, and I'll never forget my 1st time......watching the show of course. What did perverts think I was talking about?

The other big event to impact my 14 year-old self in '95 was my discovery, or should I say re-discovery of Image Comics.

Two years earlier, I'd happened upon the 1st issue of Marc Silveresti's Cyberforce while searching the comic rack(God I miss those days!) at an old store that went out of business about 2 or 3 years later called Keens.
That and discovering Spawn was probably as far as I went during that time period. Flash forward 2 years later, and I'm at a local comic shop looking for something to pique my interest. That's when I discover some Image comics. At the time, they were heavily into their own company crossover event called "Extreme Sacrifice." Hey it was the 90's what'd you expect?
Anyway, I was lured in by the art and stayed for the story, which I know is an oxymoron, but still.....
I was instantly hooked, and with all the allowance I had on me, bought as many of these Extreme Sacrifice issues as I could find. One was an issue called Prophet, which featured wicked-ass artwork by Stephen Platt. I knew his work from 2 issues of the old Moon Knight series I had that Marvel soon cancelled after that in 93' or 94' I believe. Haven't seen his work since those Image days, but if you seen it, you might remember it.

I even found some issues of Brigade that caught my eye, and probably an issue of Glory too.
I could go on about how much I deeply cared and was interested in these groups, but I'll leave that for a future blog. Suffice to say, Image gained a loyal customer that day, and that continued on for at least a few more years.











Just in case you wanted to know, Extreme Sacrifice was all about this government killer name Chapel who had been infected with HIV and killed himself. I know, what a great message to send to kids right? Anyway, Chapel goes to hell and basically takes over the place. He goes shit nuts and unleashes a cloned killing- machine of the hero Prophet, named Crypt, and lets him go and basically slaughter most of the members of the various Image teams. There, I just saved some time......







 

And that was 1995 for me.
I also discover the wacky world of Sam Keith's The Maxx via MTV, got braces, and enjoyed sex education from HBO the only way HBO know how to provide sex ed. What can I say? I'll always have a place in my heart for Real Sex, Pimps up, Ho's down, , and Taxi Cab Confessions. They helped make me the emotionally-stunted young man I am today.....Thank you HBO!

"If wishes were fishes....."

Hey everybody,
just wanted to say how pleased I am by all the comments; it's nice to know sometimes that someone actually reads this crap. Just kidding, I love this stuff!

If you haven't already, you can head on over to either Toyark.com or itsalltrue.net for the latest pics and info on all your favorite toy lines, specifically on the ML and DCUC lines.

Yesterday I posted my wishlist of sorts for characters that should have already been made in the ML line. I'm pleased to see that I got to leave off Arim Zola since he'll be a BAF in Wave 2 of the ML relaunch next year. He'll be joined by Drax the Destroyer(he also was on my list), Cap Bucky, Ultimate Hawkeye, and I think Madame Hydra and Madame Masque. Those last 2 would really be a treat to see in figure form.

On the DCUC front, I recently learned that Wave 20 will be the last of the line, before being retooled to accommodate the recent rebooted DCU starting this September. There's more to the story, so again, head on over to itsalltrue.net and learn what's going on over on that end.
Wave 20, whenever that actually reaches stores, includes the following line-up:

• Professor Zoom, the Reverse Flash(yesss)
• Arsenal(or red arrow)
• GA Flash Jay Garrick(about time)
• Thom Kallor Starman
• Red Lantern Atrocius
• Hawk and Dove(not don, but dawn, so still cool)
• Modern look Green Arrow
• C&C Nekron

So not a bad  assortment of figures overall, but should've included a Elasti-Girl C&C instead of Nekron.
I don't think the line needed another GA figure, and if they were going to make Roy, why not go with the Speedy version so he could complete the Teen Titans along w/ an Aqualad figure too.

Alright, I guess I'll go ahead and be unoriginal and present you all with my Top 10 DCUC Hero and Villain wishlist:

Top 10 Villain list:

1. Abbra Kadabbra- He's was thorn in both Barry and Wally's asses, so why not make this "magician" from the 64th century, to cause trouble for the Flash again?
2. KGB Beast- How hasn't this monster of a man not been made yet? He could be reg. size or a C&C like Bane.
3. Dr. Polaris- I just want to see this guy in his Silver Age attire please. Yes, the one with the magnet on top of his head. At least it looks better than his current 90's inspired crap look.
   
4. Prometheus- He should be made just we can all crack Cry for Justice jokes. At least he was cool when Grant Morrison made him. Should come w/ a removable helmet,  and maybe a spare damaged one.
5. The Top- I'll admit it; I just like his odd green and yellow outfit. But he did have cool powers before being killed by Captain Cold.
   
6. Chronos- I've seen a kick-ass custom that looked like the real thing, so I know DC and the 4horsmen can play ball on this cool guy.
   
7. The Shade- He could either look closely like the JLU version, or the straight up comic version. I'll take either one. Should include his cane, removable or not top hat, and some shadow demons to scare the other guys with.
   
8. Poison Ivy- Why hasn't she been made yet? Are they waiting for Maxie Zeus or The Ventriloquist yet? Put her in her traditional look and watch the sparks fly.
   
9. Jason Woodrue, The Floronic Man- If made correctly, this guy could look so damn creepy, even the Joker would say damnnnnnn!
   
10. The Key- You could go either way with this guy; one version is the orange and brown suit, the other the Morrison version. Either one could be a variant, but I confess to really preferring his JLU look. He should come with a giant key, a key-droid, and maybe a lock...idk.
    

Some 2/multi-packs:

1. The Rogues- It' simple really, just squeeze 5 of the best rogues not already made into a box set. Set should include: Weather Wizard, The original Trickster, Mirror Master, Pied Piper, and Heatwave. Or instead of the PP, you could re-paint Captain Boomerang to his original outfit and there you have it.
2. Ra's Al Ghul and Talia Al Ghul 2-pack: What better way to stick it to Batman than to create this 2-pack for an instantly emotional and physical challenge for the Bat-God. Could include little Damian if they wanted to.
3. The Extremist 5-pack: How cool would this set look like? I'd go with the recent Countdown versions of this villainous DC take on familiar Marvel villains like Doc Ock, Doc Doom, and Magneto. Included inside: Gorgon, Tracer, Dreamslayer, Dr. Diehard, and Lord Havok. Forgot what they look like?

Top 10 Heroes list:

1. Elasti-Girl/Woman- Again, it's waaaay past time Rita was made so that we can all complete the Doom Patrol. She'd be a C&C of course w/ her red and white outfit.
2. Aqualad- Sure he gets less love than respect than his mentor/father figure Aquaman, but that doesn't mean he should be excluded from this line. Plus, he serves(alongside Speedy) as the means to round out the classic Teen Titans.
3. Speedy- Yes, there's going to be an Arsenal figure in the line, but wouldn't it be cooler to have a Speedy instead? He'll go nicely w/ the TT and the classic GA and Black Canary figures.
4. Modern Doctor Midnight- I have the GA version, and wondered how come the modern version hasn't been made yet. Let's change that by making Pieter Cross, and giving some cool accessories like a medical bag/kit, some blackout bombs, and a new owl.
5. Mera- Fans have been demanding her since Blackest Night and Brightest Day came out. She was planned to come out in the Wave 17 roster, but never made it due to "budget issues." It's time for some Mera please.
6. The Unknown Soldier-  If DC can put out a Jonah Hex or Kamandi figure, than they can also find room for this cool guy. He'd have 1 or 2 fake faces to wear, just like Cobra's Zartan does.
7. Sgt. Rock- See above; also who wouldn't want him, the unknown soldier, and Nick Fury to hang out w/Cap America and talk about old times? Hell yeah!
8. Fire- They're bringing the ol' JLI back, so now's a good time to see this figure done in the DCUC style.
9. Ice- See above; also now Guy Gardner would have his old girlfriend back to keep him company.
10.  The Ray- I'd love to get the GA version of this guy, and then they could make his son, the modern version, as a variant.

Some 2/multi-pack ideas:

1. Earth-2 box set- Finally we'd get to see some Earth-2 goodness. Set would include: Earth-2 Superman, Earth-2 Batman, Earth-2 Wonder Woman, Earth-2 Green Arrow, and either Earth-2 Aquaman or 
2. Modern Hourman and Mod Liberty Belle 2-pack: Yeah sure LB's been going back and forth between this identity and her Jesse Quick one, some make Jesse quick a variant.
3. Doom Patrol box set- Okay, stick Elasti-Girl/Woman in as the C&C, then pop in The Chief and Mento and you'd have the dream DP figure set. Mento would have his removable helmet, and the Chief would be similar to Prof.X, just not in a x-shaped wheelchair.
4. Silver Age Hawk & Dove 2-pack: They made the other Dove, now here's the 1st one and brother to Hank Hall, Don Hall. It could be done, and it would look awesome.
5. The Challengers of Doom- They were the precursors to the FF, so why not honor Rocky, Red, Ace,  and the Prof with there very own 1st time ever action figures?
6. The Blackhawks- They seem to be forgotten or ignored when it's time to make figures, so why not just release a collector's box set with all of the original members in their original outfits.

1. The Creature Commandos- Since DC's bringing 'em back, it'd make sense to put out action figures of them right? Let's see Frankenstein's monster, GI Robot, and the rest.

Alright I'm outta' here.......

"He's making a list and checking it twice..."

After reading some good news in the form of the the reveals of the 2 new waves from Hasbro's Marvel Legends series, I figured I'd post my ideal list of figures that should've already been made by now.

Top 10 Heroes:

1. Jack of Hearts- He just came back during the Young Avengers Children Crusade event, and was also just featured in the latest Marvel Zombies installment fighting off a zombified Squadron Supreme. Trust me, it's way past time Jack got his own figure. I'd have him come in his classic costume w/ interchangeable glowing hands, and maybe a vial of zero fluid.
2. Dazzler- Why she hasn't been yet, I don't know, but it's also way past time for Allison Blaire to get her very own action figure. I figure she can come either in her famous disco outfit, or her blue outback era outfit. You can easily make one or the other a variant.
3. Quasar- I'd like to see a really good to great version of this character. He should come in his current costume w/ a classic or Operation: Galactic Storm-era variant.
4. Darkhawk- Marvel made a MU version, now it's time for a full-on 6" figure. He should come ideally in his current look w/ an original look variant.
5. Damien Hellstorm- Well, since they already made a Mephisto and Blackheart figure, why not Satan's least favorite son? he should come in his classic look w/possible current look variant. And please include his famous trident.
6. Hellcat- I say why not? And the costume could be the classic one or the dark Norm Breyfogle one, as a variant. Idk, maybe make Hellcat and Damien a 2-pack? They were married at one time you know.
7. Blink- She's always been a favorite of mine during the AoA event, so why not make a figure of her. She should come with a removable cloak and translucent throwing staves.
8. U.S. Agent- Yeah, so he's got a 3" figure in the Captain America line, but what he really deserves is how very own 6" figure. Use the Ultimate Cap body buck if you have to w/ new head sculpt. he could come with either his original black and red shield or his new eagle one. I like his old one myself.
9. X-Man- For this version of Nate Grey, I'd prefer they go with his current Revolution X outfit over his original one. They could use two heads though, with one being his regular brown and grey-haired version, and the other his slightly bald/shaved look.
10. Firelord- If Hasbro can make a Drax the Destroyer, than they can make this former Galactus herald as well. He'd have his flaming staff with him of course.

Top 6 2/mulit-pack Hero ideas:

1. Squadron Supreme- Much like the DCUC CSA 5-pack that's coming out, you can either mix and match the MAX line versions with the originals, or make the MAX line version variants. Should include the main 5 with a 2nd series to finish off the rest if there's demand. So let's see Hyperion, Power Princess, Whizzer/Blur, Doctor Spectrum, and Nighthawk. Could come with tiny Tom Thumb figure.
2. The Swordsman/Mantis 2-pack: Why not make these classic Avenger characters and play out there doomed love over and over again.
3. The Inhumans 5-pack: Since Black Bolt was already made(but should really be re-done) why make the rest of the royal family? Set includes Medusa, Gargon, Tritton, Karnak, and Crystal. Idk, maybe squeeze a Lockjaw figure in there somewhere.
4. The New Warriors 5-pack: These figures are also long overdo for some love. Set would include Kid Nova in his orange suit w/regular blue outfit as variant, Namorita, Marvel Boy(either in full face mask and/or half mask variant), Night Thrasher, and Speedball.
5. Cloak and Dagger 2-pack: True there's already a Marvel Select version of Dagger, but wouldn't a true 2-pack of these characters be nice to own?
6. Imperial Guard 5-pack:  I guess as long as Gladiator is in this box set, the rest of the roster could be whatever. I'd include Smasher, Warst'ar, Hobgoblin, and Neutron or Electron.

Some other suggestions for single figures: Starfox, Brother/Doctor Voodoo, Sleepwalker, Gravity, Sunfire, Captain Universe, and Starlord(both current and classic look).


Top 10 Villains:

1. Grim Reaper- I can't believe he doesn't have a figure yet. Let's rectify that by putting one out w/ his classic horned look, w/ a zomibified, hooded version. Should have a detachable scythe w/ lasers and blasters.
2. Grey Gargoyle- Another classic villain not made yet, but should. He's also featured in Fear Itself, so he's a no-brainer. Classic look, w/ maybe 2 sets of hands; one blue, one grey from when he's making people/objects stone.
3. Living Laser- I want to see the classic version w/ a translucent "laser form" variant. Think the phasing variant for the Vision.
4. Titania- Put her together with the 2 figures of her husband, the Absorbing Man, and watch the carnage unfold.
5. Radioactive Man- Classic look only please. He just looks more bad-ass that way. Could come w/ translucent glowing radioactive variant.
6. Silver Samurai- He'll be in the next Wolverine movie, and he's a popular thorn in the X-Men/Logan's side from time to time. He should be cinch to make. Let's see a removable metallic mask w/glowing sword.
7. Destiny- She's pretty much the last hold out from Mystique's Brotherhood/Freedom Force group, so why not make her so they can help raise Rogue and Nightcrawler together right? She should have either a removable mask or masked head variant w/gun and journals.
8. Baron Zemo(son)- They made his daddy, but not him? Right that wrong and make this Baron in his classic look. Could include a sword, blaster gun, and maybe a shredded Bucky outfit?
9. Tiger Shark- This classic Namor villain deserves his own figure in his classic look w/ possible mutated current look variant.
10. Count Nafaria- For a guy that could take down both Thor and Wonder Man at the same time, he really deserves a figure of his very own. Classic look of course.

Other suggestion: Killer Shrike, Batroc the Leaper, Madame Masque, Crimson Commando, Magnus(evil Adam Warlock), Blaastar BAF,and the Scourge of the underworld.

Top 5 2/multi-packs:

1. The Hellfire Club 5-pack: Would include at long last; Sebastian Shaw, Harry Leland, Donald Pierce(w/interchangeable bionic arms), Jason Wyngarde(w/ Mastermind swappable head), and White Queen Emma Frost in her original outfit. Another 5th figure option is variant Black Queen Selene, or Black Queen Jean Grey.
2. The Enchantress and Skourge the Executioner 2-pack: The ML line would finally add Amora the Enchantress in its line along with loving dupe the Executioner and his axe, machine gun, and removable helmet. Could be based off Aries.
3. Frightful Four 4-pack: At long last we would see the evil FF! The Wizard, The Trapster, Titania, and the Sandman in his FF costume would make up this set. They could also swap Titania out w/Medusa if they wanted.
4. The Serpent Society 5-pack: This would be a stretch, but if Hasbro does make a set like this, let's see Black Mamba, Asp, King Cobra, Bushmaster, and Diamondback or Sidewinder.
5. The Molecule Man and Volcana 2-pack: Alright, maybe they can just make MM by himself, which would be cool with me. Otherwise hasbro can make the toy version of this pair from the Secret Wars.

And that's that. Let me know if you have any suggestions or remarks.
You can go to Itsalltrue.net for the latest news on the upcoming ML line line-up starting next year.

"Those were the days my friend, we thought they'd never end...."

I was just thinking the other day about my early years of collecting comics, and the types of comics that interested me at the time.
An early favorite that comes to mind is the Fantastic Four. I don't why this group of adventurers captured my attention, but they did. Maybe it was the simple, but cool costumes they wore. Maybe it was their super-powers. And maybe it was the family element that helped make me like them so much. I don't know, but something about the FF made me like them.

Long before I learned that Stan Lee and Jack Kirby created these characters, and the history of the creators themselves(I only had a basic knowledge at the time that Stan Lee created a lot of the early Marvel characters, but knew even less about Jack Kirby. I know, I know, but I was just a kid at the time. I had to figure all the backstory out so don't blame me; I was a kid you know) I learned of the recent(at that time)adventures of the FF. Sure I knew about the old 60's cartoon, I even saw it once or twice, but the line-up I bought and read was totally different than than the roster I thought I knew.

Here's what happened:
My mom and I had gone to a yard-sale on base housing( I lived in West Germany back then) and I of course back then, was looking for mostly comics. I'm sure if I found some cool figures, or GI Joes or Transformers I'd have been just as happy. But my main  mission was to score some comic books. Well, at this particular yard-sale I hit paydirt. I found Fantastic Four#'s 313, 318-319, and I think 321. Not bad right?
Bear in mind I knew completely nothing about the current storylines that ran throughout those issues. Again, as in most cases back then, I fell for the cover and the art. If the story was well-written, then that was a bonus, but mostly I cared more for the art.

Anyway, I read #313, and even though I didn't know why the Thing looked different, or why there was a Ms.Thing, and even why this wasn't the classic FF line-up, I just knew I had just read a pretty cool issue...and the art was nice too!
Even though it was old hat to old or regular readers, the 19th million battle with the Mole Man was fun for me. I think I even felt sympathy for him since all he wanted to do was for him and his moloids to just be left alone. Hey, the Hulk wanted to be left alone too, so why didn't the Hulk just move in with the Mole Man?
And of course I though Crystal helping both Things stay cool was, well cool idea which suited her powers. And who couldn't feel the pathos of Johnny Storm fighting his old feelings of love for Crystal, despite being married to Alicia? Even at 7 or 8, I could still comprehend what a sticky situation that must have been for ol' match-head.

Then I read #'s 318-319, and damn did I really get into the FF then! I didn't know who Steve Englehart was, or anything about his previous work, all I knew was that this guy could really tell a story.

 #318 was exciting to me, because(at least for me) this was the 1st time Dr.Doom teamed up with the FF. I loved how this pissed the Thing off that he had to team up w/Doom since Reed wasn't there to provide his usually technical genius, thus why the need to team with Doom. I also liked how bad-ass Doom was portrayed in that issue, as Englehart makes a tough, bad-ass like Blaastar job to Doom; and by strangulation no less! I mean he seriously chokes him out as if they do in professional wrestling or Ultimate fighting.

Simply violent and awesome for a young kid.

But that's only the 1st part of why I loved this story. The 2nd, was the really and truly brutal attack by Dr.Doom on Owen Reese, the Molecule Man. At the time, that was the most violent attack I had ever seen!

Seriously, look at how bad Doom pwns MM here!

Damn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And that's one of many reasons why Doom is so fucking bad ass! Just look at the blood coming out of poor Owen's face people!

Of course Owen gets better since his powers saved him, but Doom didn't know that at the time.

The 3rd part, was the next issue, #319. I see the Beyonder the 1st time, and he's basically God, or a god. What's really weird is how the whole thing ends. The Shaper of worlds and Kubik shows up to tell the Beyonder that he's part of a whole, the whole being a Cosmic Cube. The Beyonder doesn't take this well, and just wants to live, just like the rest of us. Again, these issues had so much pathos that even as young as I was, I kind of got the deeper meanings attached to the story.

By issues' end, both the Beyonder and the Molecule Man fused together to form a new Cosmic Cube.

Oh, and Doom got his memories back.

All-in-all, I was hooked to this line-up and this creative team. They wouldn't stay very long after this "Secret Wars 3" thing, and the next issue I'd pick up was during the whole "FF and their evil dream clones" thing.

Yeah I was confused too.

You never forget your first.....

I have a hard time remembering my 1st ever actual comic. I started really learning to read by reading those little Archie digests that you see at some supermarket checkout sections. It was fun and all, and I quickly became a fan of a 40 year-old character. In fact, there was even a cartoon show to watch during the 80's.

But I quickly outgrew the gang from Riverdale, and went straight for superheroes. Spider-Man was an early favorite at the time, but I think my first actual superhero comic, was Uncanny X-Men#268.

I was about 9 at the time, and the beautiful Jim Lee art immediately got my attention. I didn't know who he was, jut that I instantly loved his art. Added to the fact, that the cover promised that I'd see Captain America and Wolverine together for the first time(for me it was) was a happy bonus.
I didn't know much about the characters inside, other than the most basic of knowledge of their origins and where I'd seen them all before. But for me, knowing what the story was about, or how the characters all got there wasn't as important to me as just being able to see them all drawn together in that beautiful style of drawing.
I've since brought myself up to speed on everything, but damn was that a cool issue!

"And then I said I can't because my Dino's saur. Ha!"

Everybody at one time or another, has or even now, likes dinosaurs. Who doesn't? When I was a kid I went through my dinosaur phase as do most boys(and girls) around their young and impressionable years. Most grow out of it, while some others retain that love and either become Paleontologists, Archaeologists or some other dinosaur related career. I grew out of it myself, with the next big phase being all about insects. I was so into bugs(besides killing them of course) that if you'd have asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I'd probably have said an Entomologist. Well that didn't happen either, but you get what I mean.

My dinosaur phase was helped along by a few dinosaur related things that helped keep my interest in them during that time period.

Denver the Last Dinosaur: This short-lived cartoon from the late 80's was right up my alley, as a bunch of kids find....well here, I'll let the show synapsis tell what the basic premise of the show:

"A group of kids are playing in a construction site when they discover a giant egg. To their surprise, it hatches into a playful dinosaur, Denver. The kids do their best to hide him from the adults, have fun playing in a band, and sometimes even use pieces of Denver's magical egg shell to go back in time to the age of the dinosaurs."

Not too bad by 80's standards, but it only lasted one season from '88-'89. You can find this show on VHS or a DVD collection of you so choose.

Another dinosaur related concept that briefly hooked me was Dino-Riders by Tyco.

My neighbors had them, and I want them, but they wouldn't share and teased me about it. Jerks!
Basically these were humans with futuristic technology that used dinosaurs as living assualt vehicles. Kind of like a prehistoric GI Joe vs. Cobra type thing.
I never did get any dino-rider figures, but quickly grew disinterested with them anyway, so no big loss overall.

Finally, there was the Dinosaucers. What the hell's a dinosaucer you ask? The dinosaucers were basically the combination of dinoasaurs and aliens, kind of like the Transformers, but with dino's instead of robots.

They were broken into two groups; the good Dinosaucers, and the evil Tyrannos. You know, just like the Autobots and Decepticons. Except instead of the good guy leader having a cool name like Optimus Prime, this guy's name was Allo. The Bad guy's name was Genghis Rex, which isn't as cool sounding as Megatron, but still a lot better than Allo.

Like the Transformers, the Dinosaucers had alien technology and weapons since they were, you know, aliens and all. They also wore special suits that allowed them to morph or Dinovolve into whatever type of dinosaur they were, but could still talk and retain their intelligence.
Not a bad show overall, but this too didn't last very long as it also was cancelled after only one season('87-'88). There was supposed be a line of toys to come from the show, but those plans were scrapped when the show was, so no dice there.

So all in all, these weren't incredibly bad concepts, especially if you were into dinosaurs. But yeah, they haven't exactly stood the test of time either. Thank God for Wrestling, Superheroes, and the TNMT right?
I know I did.