Jin Saotome's Dangerous Toys Daily Spread!

Time to sleep with the fishies see...

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Sun, 11 May 2008 22:35:56 GMT

Hey everyone! Another week of updates is here and I have four new customs to offer. First is my Agent 47 from the game 'Hitman'. He's big, bad, bald, and deadly! He'll be in an upcoming issue of PSM along with my new Sigma 6 style Iron Man. They're doing a whole article on customizing and asked me, Kyle Robinson, and another customizer to help with the article. So keep an eye on the stands for that. This week also brings 2 new GI Joe customs, Lt. Stone and a Desert Ops Combat. Lt. Stone was more commonly known as being a Sigma 6 character recently and that's what the 25th Anniversary form is based off of. I did add a bionic leg to him to mix things up a bit. Here's the pics!

Also, my SWARM custom made it into the top 3 in the GI Joe Club conest! Now he'll be featured on Hasbro's Official GI Joe site and you'll be able to vote for him again for 1st place between the ~~15th~~ changed to the 19th to the 30th of May. So bookmark the page and get your clicky fingers ready if you want to see SWARM make it to Hasbro!

New Guide Alert!! New Guide Alert!!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Thu, 08 May 2008 11:14:53 GMT

Now that I have your attention, just a short journal update here about my new guide:

Eye and Flesh Tone Painting Guide

I'm also using a new brand of brushes that I have found very affordable and easy to get ahold of, the Dynasty Eye of the Tiger series which have really held up to my painting style. And if they impress me I can recommend them! The set of Rounds and Detail are what you'll need to do tiny eyes and line-work. But they're so inexpensive you can buy some of each.

Hope you enjoy the guide!

IRON MAN ROCKED THE THEATER!!!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Mon, 05 May 2008 06:27:54 GMT

If you haven't seen the Iron Man movie yet, GET TO IT! I am still reeling from the sheer awesomeness of the whole experience. We had a really good crowd at the theater, everyone cheering and laughing, it really makes for a great experience. But about the movie itself, I could find no fault with it, no complaints, no, "Eh, that didn't look real." thoughts even entered my head. Robert Downey blew me away with his cocky bravado turned hero. He IS TONY STARK. I can't see him as any other character he's played in his movies, nor even as Robert Downey anymore. And this never happens with me. I'll watch say, Tomb Raider, and know the whole time that's Angelina Jolie on the screen as Lara Croft just as I've seen her play her role in Mr and Mrs Smith.

But while watching Downey, all his past roles, characters, and history dissolved for me, he was so convincing. That was Tony Stark on the screen, in the suit, captured by the bad guys, anywhere he showed up. It was like Gwyneth Paltrow was acting alongside Tony and Downey was offscreen somewhere getting a drink. As for the rest of the movie, well, you simply must go see it. And you can see it with -anybody-. Your mom, your little brother, your Goth buddy, your boss, or even snag a wino off the street (just promise you'll buy him a 40oz after the show is over, they're game for anything). The movie is fit for anyone, save the movie critics who like the sexually confused, psychotic, serial killer flicks that they always spout out are 'masterpieces'. You don't need to be a Marvel fan or Comic geek to enjoy this movie.

On the custom side of things I have three new figs! One is the Battle Damaged Iron Man where he's shot out of the sky by the tank and blows it up with the tiny 'ping' rocket of his. It's in all the trailers so no spoilers there. I managed to install a tiny internal LED system with a dedicated on/off switch. Again, I apologize for not having an LED tutorial but every time I do one it's totally different from the last LED system I made. The other Iron Man is an 'Armory' version since I've had a crapload of emails requesting another and had the cast head that Black Arachnis made for me based on the original I sent him. You can order them from his site if you like it! And then there's the Black Ops version of my COMBAT GI Joe. Enjoy!

Wired for customizing!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Fri, 02 May 2008 07:37:48 GMT

Holy cheese I had my first phone interview this morning and it was with Wired Magazine! They apparently stumbled across my customs on EBay and asked, nay, demanded that I pony up for some exclusive chat. Wanna see the article? Head to Wired.com and I should still be on the first page. If not that link will take you right to the article. Every pic has more of the interview so check out all 12! Of course there's the classic mistake of them calling action figures 'dolls' but I think everyone does that unless you're in the figure collecting biz. I'll let it slide, cause like, it's Wired Magazine!

Ok, done tooting my horn. Back to customizing.

I have my eye on you!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Thu, 01 May 2008 11:14:15 GMT

Ahhhhhhhhhhhh! It's a mid-week update! Usually I wait till Sunday or Monday but I can't keep this custom bottled up that long.

IT'S SHUMA GORATH!!

This is a custom that was 3 years in the making. Probably more since I've been doing customs since Marvel vs Capcom2 came out what, 11 years ago? I had been searching for the perfect tentacles and eye for Shuma. I wanted him exactly as I envisioned. Just recently it all came together... and you get...

That guy! Mr cosmic squid himself in all his green glory. Man I'm proud of this one. Took a lot of sculpting too. For all those of you that requested him on a weekly basis, I hope the wait was worth it. Thanks for keeping me stoked about making him!

Yo Joe!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 20:45:03 GMT

I've been getting a lot of requests for GI Joe figures after my S.W.A.R.M. debuted on the GIJoeClub.com's custom contest! Swarm made it into the top three too, thanks for all your votes! He'll be featured in Hasbro's website at some point along with the other two contest winners and you'll have a chance to vote for #1 then. I'll have links to that when it appears.

C.O.M.B.A.T. is back, this time in 3 3/4th" style along with Red Laser! Combat you may know, he's my Joe-android trooper. But Red Laser is an actual character in the GI Joe universe, well, 'Action Force' universe I guess. When GI Joe was released in Europe they decided the name should be changed to reflect a more international theme as 'real American hero' may not appeal to UKers. So they renamed the line Action Force and Cobra became the Red Shadow. The Red Laser comes from that line and was originally a repaint of Cobra Commander. There's your history lesson! Now on with the pics:

In other news, my 'Repulsive Iron Man' on Ebay drew over 11k views! That's like the most EVER. Google the name and you'll find he was blogged all over the place, lol! Hmmm, what else... I'm working on more TFs, a very requested Marvel vs Capcom character, and planning out Brick Ninja series 2. Catch you all later!

"Blaaaaaarrrgh!!!... urk... bleeeeeech! Hic*.. "

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 03:44:13 GMT

This week we have a special treat for you all, a special Jin Saotome's Dangerous Toys/Shortpacked custom collaboration! David Willis of Shortpacked.com drew up some original art to kick off my 'Repulsive Armor' Iron man gag figure to go along with this week's auction. So not only do you get the custom figure but also an 8.5 x11" piece of hand-drawn art that features Iron Man careening through a neighborhood, flying drunk and knocking over mailboxes. LMAO! I about fell out of my chair with laughter when I first saw it, the man does awesome work.

I whipped up a Negative Zone Spiderman that I've been meaning to do forever as well. And what's this, a Transformers custom?! Yep, it's Autobot Springer made from a movie Incenerator! I didn't get him finished in time for this week's auctions but he'll be up next Sunday so you have a full week to check him out.

And my apologies if I haven't answered my emails promptly or if this week's update seems a little thin. I've been working on a project with a major online retailer and if everything goes through (they're reviewing my work now) I might be pretty busy for a couple of weeks. But man, trust me, it is soooo worth it! Updates as soon as I can say who and what. For now, enjoy the customs!

We're dealing death, who's in? Place your bets!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 07:22:57 GMT

Hello all, another Monday morning update for you! This week we have and *ahem* interesting assortment of customs for you. At the top of the list is Frank Frazetta's Death Dealer. You should of heard his name by now as this man draws some of, if not the best fantasy artwork ever! I really enjoyed making this custom and considering making myself another one to keep, possibly display at the SDCC. What do you think? Next up is Iron Man in his 'Movie Hulkbuster' style armor. Big bad and tough! And with redesigned hip joints so you can pose the legs. The Iron Monger toy he was made from does NOT have right leg articulation, instead it's static-posed so you can squeeze it for the action feature. Bad Hasbro! Baaaad! But there's a better opening cockpit Iron Monger coming out in series two. Also keep an eye out for the blue eye/chest series 1 Iron Monger varient! The originals have red eyes and were one per case, you may want to hang on to these if you have t

Then is the Cobra Reaper, my second Custom GI Joe contest entry who didn't make it to the top 25. He's styled with a mystic theme that isn't that far-fetched from the GI Joe lore. I mean come on, we got a 'Dark Ninja Master' in the Sigma 6 series who was powered off the souls of dead ninja or something.
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Oh! Am I missing someone? Well.. since you asked so nicely... XENU HAS ARRIVED! If you don't know who this guy is I don't blame you. You'll have to wiki him and read up because anything I try to explain here about ol' Xenu wouldn't make much sense. I suspect I'll have some interesting emails/replies in the next few days after this one. Hey, it's all in good fun tho! And the guy (or being) does make for a very interesting character. I think even South Park spoofed him before. Also look for a colaborative work coming from me and David Willis of Shortpacked! some time this week. It'll turn you green... with envy? Or something. Laters!

There's a SWARM approaching!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 04:57:33 GMT

Oh boy am I jazzed! I entered the Cobra S.W.A.R.M. into the GIJoeClub.com's Custom Figure Contest and made it into the top 25 customs! Now club members get to vote and the top 3 go on to Hasbro's Official GI Joe website. First place goes to Hasbro! Wanna vote for the figure? Only GIJoeClub.com members can and the basic Trooper membership is free. So head HERE and register, then head to their forums to vote!

He lights up too, I think that's a first for a 25th Anniv GI Joe figure. Click on his image to see all the pics and the custom Filecard with backstory I made for him. Enjoy!

May 2nd can't come soon enough...

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 20:48:31 GMT

Because oh man, every time I see an Iron Man commercial I get all jumpy! And speaking of Iron Man, the rain of customs continue with two more IMs. One is a darker metallic IM styled somewhat like the movie version but using the House of M Iron Man body. The other is the Stealth iron Man we didn't get as a store exclusive (instead we got the WarMachine Wal Mart 'stealth' one). I've whipped up a dual-color Halo 3 green/gunmetal EVA Spartan too. But who's this mysterious character in te shadows, dressed in green and black? It's the Vigilante, an original character designed by my friend Minosha05 on deviantArt! He really wanted a custom done of his character and I liked the design. It wasn't a commission however, I still don't have time to do those, just a freebie. I do those sometimes. So enjoy the new customs and keep an eye on Playstation the Official Magazine, Kratos is in this month's issue!

Yeehaw! Time to rope some doggies!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 18:57:39 GMT

Um, whatever that means.. I'm in the cowboy mood after making my 'civilian cowboy Wolverine' custom! This week we have three new Marvel Legends with a Silver Centurion Iron man and a new Tony Stark. I have some Halo customs in the works too but didn't get them finished in time. Probably because I spent too much time hunting down the new Iron Man movie figures! Those guys are cool and I had to order my Iron Monger from toysrus.com because he's shortpacked. My isn't he Sentinel-looking, hmmm? We'll see what we can make of the big guy. And get this, EBay cancelled my Master Chief in display case auction AFTER it ended! Now I can't see who bid or send a second chance offer, so I relisted it as a buy-it-now so the second place bidder can snag it without waiting a week. I thought this was some sort of April Fools prank on me until I couldn't find the listing and EBay refunded my listing fees. How sucky is that? So if you were the second place bidder snag MC before he's gone!

Here's the new customs this week tho:

In other news Jin Saotome's Dangerous Toys has a more user-friendly look and a new name! After various complaints from mothers whose children were being blinded from steel claws and metal spikes, our lawyers thought it best to give the site a whole new look to help keep lawsuits down to a minimum. So enjoy the new look of things and keep on the look out for the My little Ponys customs that will be replacing all the dangerous stuff soon!

Flood infected me cough cough!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 03:59:28 GMT

Man, I caught a Flood, er, bug and have been sick for almost a week! So sick I wasn't able to finish my customs in time and two had to go up Monday. I'm feeling a little better however but still hacking up stuff and blowing my nose every 5 minutes, yeccch. So what did get finished this week? Tex from Rooster Teeth's 'Red vs Blue' series, now you can all stop emailing me to make her, lol! I made a Flood infected Marine, and Master Chief in a 'Museum of Humanity' Display case. They're all up on Ebay now!

Also I put up a Halo 3 Spartan head assortment that features new heads, some Flood infection forms, and a plasma grenade! The head assortment and Master Chief Display end on MONDAY, not Sunday night, so keep your eyes peeled!

Just another week of making stuff!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 04:48:59 GMT

Hey all, more Halo 3 customs are on their way. Last week's were a big hit and I'm taking suggestions on different type of 'Flood forms' to make. I'll also be trying out new colors/combinations on my Spartans including some metallics and yes, I do have a regular Master Chief planned. This week (which is almost over, sorry for the late post) we have the Black EVA Spartan, the Steel Spartan with salvaged Pelican Cannon and UNSC power arm, a purple Mark VI, and a Flood infected Grunt. And what's this, a Symbiote Spiderman?? Yep, after seeing the new animated Spiderman figures on the shelf that head was exactly the one I was looking for to complete my Spidey.

Keep an eye out for Iron Man figures in stores, they're set for street release on the 22nd! I've heard nothing but good things from the people who got their figures early and Wal Mart has an exclusive War Machine version with cannons and nifty stuff that I'm really looking forward too!

"SPARTANS! Tonight we dine in Blood Gulch!"

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 05:48:40 GMT

This week's update has three Halo 3 customs! The Flood Infected Master Chief is really creepy looking and was requested a lot from different message boards. Also I figured out a way to upgrade the regular Halo Spartans rather than just a simple repaint. They all feature removable extra 'unmasked' heads that YOU choose at the end of the auction. The new MAP system (magnetic attachment point) allows you to attach their guns and grenades without using those unsightly pegs. I really like that feature, and the Combat MAPs on the bottom of the feet allow them to stick to your fridge and other metal objects. This will be really cool on the EVA Spartans I have lined up as they're the ones best suited for anti-gravity situations. I also have a spooky-creepy 'Magic paint brush' auction with a kooky story behind it! You'll have to read it, heheh.

On with the pics!

Transformers customs are still in the works, I just keep getting sidtracked! I have an Astrotrain and Incenerator lined up plus a Metroplex that I -still- haven't repainted, arrrgh. Just not enough time in the day and I blew quite a bit searching all over town for different Halo figures. These Halo 3figures are COOL. They're detailed, super articulated, and have great sculpts. My buddy Mike Crawford did his review of them that's right on the money. I'm happy McFarlane has started making articulated figures again rather than just plastic statues! In fact you can tell them so! I'd hate to see the next line of video game figs turn back into statues. So write to them HERE and let the guys at McFarlane toys know you want to see the articulated figures continue.

He's back... and this time, it's WAR!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 00:35:09 GMT

Eh... I gotta do something about my LJ subject titles, lol! I can't help but make them cheesy. But it's true, War Machine is back! A lot of you asked for a War Machine based on the DC Armory Batman that I did my Iron Man out of. Also that he be a single figure as some of you didn't have the funds to bid on last week's 2-pack. So I whipped one up complete with heavy dury removable weapons and a working laser-pod! My VG AllStars Kratos is finished too! Figures.com will have a full article on him up this coming thursday to keep an eye out.

In other news I'm trying to find an import resin kit. It's old, it's not of a popular series, but it's my 'Holy Grail' of things I'm trying to find. What is it?

It's the Blodia from the series 'Cyberbots' by Capcom. Jin Saotome pilots it and if you've ever played Marvel vs Capcom you've see its giant fist in his super moves.

So yeah, there's this kit out there somewhere, Japan based most likely. Could be a garage kit and I've seen other Cyberbots mecha in kit form. And that's all the information I have. Somewhere out there, somebody knows about it. Where it came from, how limited it was, etc. I've checked with Hobby Link Japan, HobbyFan, and some other places but they don't know who made it. If anyone has contacts in Japan or can track this kit down for me, well, I'd be your friend for life. Thanks!

Another week, another Iron Man

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 07:44:03 GMT

I'm telling ya, they just won't stop! Iron man customs are taking over my workshop, aaaagh! But in the midst is a new ML custom, Cable! This week I created a really, really sweet (I think so any way, heh) Iron Man out of a DC Armory Batman. Ever since I saw the figure I knew it would made a good IM base. It's a DC direct figure with lots of articulation, surprising! Also I whipped up a Cable. Funny thing too because he was just going to be a non-armor Civilian Cable until I thought he needed more to him. Turns out Sigma 6 armor pretty much fits a ML figure! Is that because Sigma 6 figs are so skinny or because ML figs are so wide? Eh, now I have all sorts of options in the future tho. Here's the pics!

In other news my Sigma 6 Kratos is finished and will be appearing on Figures.com some time next week in an exclusive article. Check back here and I'll update with a link when the story hits their site. I really liked how he turned out... maybe I'll take a teaser pic!

A War is brewing... a War Machine that is!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 22:25:42 GMT

Hey all, a mid-week update! I've finished my War Machine and National Guardsman 2-pack early. So far my Iron Man 'series' I guess you can call it is getting a ton of attention. I'm a huge fan of the movie sporting my SDCC promo Iron Man shirt whenever I can and can't wait for it to come out. I have plans for the Hasbro movie figures as well when they hit the shelves. Many of you have been asking me to get back into Marvel Legends and I feel bad that I'd abandoned it when the going got rough. But I did need a breather and my stint on working with Transformers/Sigma 6 left me with new techniques and fresh ideas of which you're seeing with my new Iron Man figures. Here's War Machine and National Guardsman!

Often I'm asked to do 'original characters' instead of comic book characters. While I'd love to come up with some I'm a fan of Marvel/movie/video games. I want figures of those characters, not the ones running around in my head. Sure I have some superhero designs, I even thought up a slew of X-men type mutants/villians, have the specs written down somewhere. But I love the characters and figures that are out there and enjoy works by other talented designers/artists. And I absolutely love taking an existing idea/design and changing it, which is what customizing really is. I want to keep doing 'alternate universe' figures like these Iron Man suits that don't exist in normal comic continuity Remeber the Age of Apocalypse, House of M comics? I love those themes. Same characters but with a twist! So you'll probably see Thor, Deadpool, and other characters done by me in the future in a new style. I recently picked up some DC Armory Batman figures to make Iron Man characters from and it seems like people already had that in mind, they're showing up on EBay! How'd they get them so far? CornerstoreComics.com just got them in. I'm behind, nooo!

Some of you may of noticed there's a link to TheFwoosh.com on my Customizing Links page. In all honesty I've been holding a grudge against that place for far too long. During the last year I recieved quite a few emails from fans saying they'd signed up there and mentioned me at some point, then were mocked and promptly banned. It killed me to know I couldn't do anything about that and new customizers were being turned away just because of their association with me. Then the emails stopped. Months passed and things moved on.

Then just recently I recieved an email telling me I was mentioned on the Fwoosh and should check it out. I did some digging and didn't find what I expected. There were no flames, gripes, or harassment. In fact the big post was by my buddy Black Arachnis about the Superglue Sensativity Warning that I've been posting everywhere. I'm making a Customizing Saftey page that will have it in there but for the time being you can check it out HERE for more info. Getting back to the point I didn't see any of the l33t mentality that I had fought so hard with in the past. There's lots of guides and tips on the Fwoosh's customizing section and it honestly looks like the drama has died down there. I've emailed Pablolobo the site's owner (yes, my Brick Ninja mummy guy was based off of him, all of the figs were based from members, lol) to see what was up and discuss things.

I'm really, really hoping things have changed there because really they have some great stuff in their customizing forums. If you have a chance check them out now. If anyone gives you grief try not to react too harshly because really, all message boards have their problems and it looks like the Fwoosh has really been cleaned up.

Back on Marvel Legends it seems!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 23:44:43 GMT

Yes, the new Iron Man movie has me jazzed to do some Marvel legends figures. I was getting way burnt out on those back when I was doing Deadpools and Magnetos. Doing the Sigma 6 and Transformers customs helped me hone my painting skills a bit more and has me looking at ML differently when it comes to characters. Tho I'll still do comic-accurate figures I want to tinker around with new styles like I'm doing with my Iron Man customs. Still have some video game all stars in the works, like Sam Fisher from Splinter Cell I just finished! Kratos is up next and will appear on Figures.com in an online article when he's done. Yes I still need to do Samus but I'm getting behind on collecting the parts needed, sorry. She'll get done eventually. Transformers Animated figures aren't hitting till June or something, gah, and I have no idea when the Classics/Universe figures are coming out. We'll have pics from ToyFair soon to tide us over and get me thinking on what to make out of the upcoming figures. Until then, here's my two newest customs!

"Megatron is a TANK?!?!?!"

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 03:47:40 GMT

Yes indeed, if you remember his Generation 2 form he took on the look of a green tank with purple camo. Some people hated it, sticking to the fact that Megatron was a mysterious mass-shifting gun while others though it was a good look and to-scale for the character. So wether you love him or hate him, I've created him! Also I've finished Bat Sentry Unit 02, and he LIGHTS UP! Holy smokes that was a pain to do. We're talking over 3 hours of wiring, soldering, hacking him up, and figuring out how to get the chest to spin and not wrap up all the wires inside. But it worked! Now he has a regular symbol, battle-damaged symbol, Unit 02 designation, and the light-through chest symbol. Press the button and his shoulders/chest lights up. I'm really stoked on how he turned out.

I hoped to have more stuff finished this week but didn't get things completed due to various RL issues. Everything is back to normal tho and my VG All Stars Kratos is almost done who should be followed by Sam Fisher with the three nifty lights in his nightvision goggles. And yes, more ML figures in the works, just need to make time for them. Laters!

Iron Man, Iron Man, does whatever an iron can.

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 22:12:39 GMT

Ok, well maybe he can't steam press your shirt but he can fly around and blast bad guys with repulsor rays! This week I kinda took it easy, getting over a cold finally and being tapped by ToyFare to do a commission asap. They were in a bind and I whipped out a custom figure with accessories for them in under 2 days! Normally it was something that should take a week or more. Not sure when/if I can show the custom so I'll let ya know. People have been writing in asking me to do some Marvel Legends and I was able to finish Iron Man this week, seeing as the new movie is approaching and the toys could show up any day. The head was made from the Thorbuster Iron Man, proving there's actually a good use for it! I didn't use any apoxie sculpt, just removed the forehead thingy, chopped the mask off at the mouth (making it the new jaw) and cut thin pieces of styrene strips for detailing. Ultron is being auctioned off as well since Iron Man needs a nemesis to fight and what better than the modern 'univac' version of him.

On top of that I made a Transformer, the Holiday Bumblebee from David Willis' Shortpacked! strip that his character Ethan was hunting for. Bee's up for auction and the funds will go to Willis in hopes of keeping his strip around or maybe buying him a sandwhich while he toils away at BotCon this year. So really I didn't cheap out and I'm working on my VG Allstars Kratos and Sam Fisher along with some normal Transformers customs.

More updates when I can!

It's Transformers Fan Request week again!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 23:18:32 GMT

I bet you all thought I had completely forgotten about Transformers customs with all the Video Game customs I've been whipping out, eh? No way! My roots still lie in giant robots and I was just taking a vacation from all that dryrbrushing silver, really. This week I revist some of the fan requests that I've had piled up for a few months. One person in particular sends me an email/message every other day asking for a Jetfire custom. Well I hope you're watching because he's done! I almost didn't want to give him up, man he took a long time to paint! A purple Galvatron, Movie Primus to battle that Movie Unicron, and Landmine! But wait, didn't Landmine just come out? I had heard someone recently say that he resembled the GI Joe A.W.E. Striker, that green dunebuggy they were always riding around in. Well he really looks like it now, right down to the GI Joe lettering! If you have a chance you MUST get movie Landmine. He's the most articulated Transformers figure I've ever seen and his range of movement is amazing. Sculpt is wicked too! So check out the newest TF customs and keep those requests rolling in. I'll have some more video game customs in the works and try to alternate between them. Heck, I might even do a Marvel Legends custom! (gasp!) You never know. These four are going up on EBay Sunday night, good luck bidding!

"We Can Rebuild Him- Make Him Stronger, Faster..."

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 19:09:56 GMT

It's the Bionic ma.... wait, no, Bionic Commando! This week I've whipped up two new VG All Stars figures. Gordon Freeman is the other one straight from the game Half Life in his HEV suit. Big thanks to my buddy MacKrafty for sending me the Sigma 6 stuff he found on sale in Texas. He snagged the Adventure Team stuff for $11! I used Recondo for BC and a Zartan for Gordon. Man... sculpting armor, especially square sections in soft clay, that just sucks! The glasses were cool to make tho and the description of how I did them is on Gordon't page. The same method can be used for any size figure and I'll probabaly have a tutorial soon.

Where are the Transformers you ask?? Don't worry, I'm making some this week. There's only one of me tho and I had to get some figures finished for Playstation. That's a few months done so I can go back to my regular customs. Might even do a ML character if I feel the urge! I'm waiting for the Iron Man movie figures to hit personally. I need to make a Guardsman out of one of them and do some headswapping, light-up features. So keep an eye on the site and you'll have some updates soon!

I'm here to kick ass and chew bubblegum. And I'm all outta gum."

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 02:02:36 GMT

Duke Nukem's famous quote! And he's finished along with my Solid Snake from MGS1, the next two figures in my VG Allstars line. Duke took an incredibly annoying amount of sculpting to get rid of Sgt Boulder's sweater and replace it with muscles and a tank top, gah! I am proud of Duke's sunglasses tho, that took a steady hand to get them perfectly rounded. Solid Snake was a lot easier but I have to lean towards Duke in sheer asskickery. I have a pic of Duke in mid stomp too, check out the photos!

You'll notice Snake now has his game-accurate guns too. You can find them in the same place on my Customzing Links page as the Steel Swords, the seller has all kinds of weaponry that fits 1/6th and Sigma 6 figures. I'm still waiting for the right body to ship in order to make the rest of Samus from Metroid so she might be pushed back a bit, sorry. Gordon Freeman from Half Life and Bionic Commando are being made as we speak. Duke, Solid Snake, and the Bat Sentry are all up on EBay this week too, so good luck!

Video Game Classics Figures!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 20:45:54 GMT

This month I'm kicking off my new 'line' of figures I guess you could say, all based on video games. Remember my Helghast soldier that was featured in this month's Official Playstation Magazine #2? Well they'll be showing up other issues as well, muhaha! This week I have Ryu Hayabusa with real steel Dragon Sword and my Helghast heavy Soldier with Cerberus Chaingun finished and up on EBay. Own these figures and then pick up the magazine they appear in, can't beat that!

Solid Snake from MGS1 (and Ninja too hopefully), Bionic Commando, and Samus Aran are in the works right now. Each week I hope to finish one or two of them. They'll all be done in Sigma 6 GI Joe style so feel free to suggest characters that would fit in with that sort of line. It would be kinda hard for me to make a Jak and Daxter out of the S6 figures but something like Marcus Fenix from Gears of War is definatly possible. Also, what to call my 'line'? I was thinking VG Classics, except not all the games can be considered 'classics' because some are new. Ideas?

Playstation, The Official Magazine #2 is out! Helghast custom on page 9!

jinsaotome@hotmail.com — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 06:20:50 GMT

I finally hit a big national magazine, the new Playstation The Official Magazine issue #2! It's out on shelves now and has Solid Snake on the cover. It's not PSM but a new one that just started apparently. Cover looks like this:

And on page 9 you'll find my Helghast custom taking up more than half the page, wowza! There's a UK edition of this as well that features a longer interview and possibly a picture of myself in there. Since I don't have access to UK magazines I'm not sure what page it's on. I'm making another Helghast soldier (possibly heavy or the commando one, still working on it) along with a Ryu from Ninja Gaiden and Solid Snake in Sigma 6 form. I won't have anything up this Sunday since it's so close to Christmas and I'll have family coming over. A week of relaxation and holiday fun is on the schedule, right?

Ah! You'll notice the site has changed around a bit, specifically the banners and icons. Big thanks to Kyle Robinsion of Toy Soup for creating the nifty new banners! I'll probabaly have the site redesigned at some point but not during the holidays, too much work. Hmmmm, not much else to report. Keep an eye out for the new Allspark Power figs showing up at Toys R Us and the new DC Universe series, which Michael Crawford was good enough to review for us.

Have a Merry Christmas everyone!!!!!!!!!!