Request for a friend

Place your foot, step by step, very cautiously, on the different rungs of the ladder of yoga. Ascend very gradually to the summit. Be earnest in your sadhana (practice). Equip yourself with the necessary qualifications. Do not waste your time in search of a preceptor. When you are ready, you will enter the halls of wisdom. And there, waiting on the threshold, you will find your preceptor.

Sage Vasishta says: “I assure you; on the authority of my own intuitional knowledge, as well as that of other illumined souls, that the reality can be realised by man. But one who has known it cannot communicate it to others, for want of means.” Even the knowledge acquired by the five senses, which are common to all, cannot be communicated to others. You cannot tell the taste of butter to a man who has never tasted it. Nor can you communicate the idea of colour to a man born blind.

All that a teacher can do is to tell his disciple the method of knowing the truth. All he can do is to tell the disciple of the path that leads to unfoldment of the intuitional faculty.

If you have a burning desire, like Lord Buddha, if you possess patience and forgiveness, and if you have devotion to the preceptor – then you can contact avataras and sages right now, this very second.

- Swami Sivananda

Page layout: Panel 1-4 is very small, so small they could fit across the top, in one row of pictures at the top of the page. Panel 5 is as big as it can be.

Panel 1. Small panel. Perceptor is diligently tinkering with a contraption. He is oblivious to what’s going on around him. He’s trying to solder together a microchip.

Panel 2. The same basic scene, but it shakes a little.

Sound                                 FX BOOM!

Panel 3. Same basic thing again, but it looks like he’s gotten it fixed. His concentrated expression should be unchanged.

Panel 4. Also a small panel. Close on his face. Brushes away a drop of mechanical fluid as a laser goes past his face. We don’t see where the mech fluid is coming from. His concentration hasn’t changed.

Panel 5. Big panel. There’s a huge war erupted outside Autobot base. On the Autobots side: Sky Lynx is leading Perceptor, Hardhead, Highbrow, Wheelie (yes, Wheelie), Fastlane and Cloudraker. The Decepticons are lead by Sixshot, and contain Apeface, Snapdragon, Weirdwolf, Slugslinger, Triggerhappy, Ruckus, Crankcase, and Cindersaur.

Sky Lynx’s wing is cut. He’s in mid-battle with Sixshot. Maybe Sixshot is in wolf mode and is clamped on, tearing his wing off, and shredding with his claws. Fastlane is down, and his twin is holding him, trying to protect him, firing into the cluster of Decepticons that are surrounding them.

Perceptor is in the middle of it, but not fighting. He’s working on some kind of machine. It looks like it’s part of the Autobot base’s defense systems.

Cloudraker                        Fastlane’s down! We’re being overrun!

Hardhead                          Perceptor! You’ve got 3 guns! Use ‘em!

Panel 6. Perceptor, without saying a word, fuses two wires together. The machine hums to life. Now, we can see his full face, and we can see that he’s got a huge gash across his forehead, and that’s where the mech fluid is leaking from.

Sound FX WWOOUUMMMMMMM

Panel 7. An EMP pulse erupts from the machine, going through all the Transformers.

Sound FX                              TCHOOOOOWWW

Panel 8. The Decepticons drop, incapacitated. The sound FX is from Decepticons falling out of the sky. The Autobots are unaffected.

Sound FX                               Crash! Crunch!

Hardhead                              Heh. Still like my way better.

Panel 9. Perceptor looks around at the wounded, he has his welder in his hand. Slight smile on his face.

Perceptor                           On to the next task. Who is in the most dire need of repair?

The pen is mightier than the sword!

Paul Eiding is a household name in video game voice acting. His name/voice has been attached to an ongoing string of video game blockbusters (Diablo, StarCraft, Metal Gear Solid, Diablo II, God of War, Fallout 3, Dragon Age: Origins, StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty) and even ones not deemed blockbusters (Tenchu 2, Escape From Monkey Island, EverQuest II, Jade Empire, Advent Rising, Ratchet & Clank series, Ninja Gaiden II), still received critical and commercial success. His resume of voice acting dates back to when the industry could finally fit enough data on a disk to enable it. It was that fact that put him out front of the nerd herd of voice actors: his early adaption to a developing industry.

Paul started on the stage and still calls it his true home but his commercial success came from his voice. His career started to develop by doing cartoon voices for the likes of Gobots, The Jetsons and The Smurfs (see his career start up story, in his own words, here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Igcj9shVXfI). His jump from the obscure to mainstream can be narrowed down to his voice role of Perceptor in the 1980s version of Transformers.

He exploded on to the voice gaming stage by landing a gig with Blizzard in their tremendously successful role playing, top down, click fest versus demons game Diablo. Every time your warrior class in that game uttered, “I gotta pawn some of this stuff,” because your inventory is too full, it is Paul Eiding letting you know. When Pepin the Healer lets you know about a potion he wants you to give to the witch, Paul Eiding is uttering those words. Diablo was one of the first games to be packed with a full audio experience and when you look back at that game and wonder why it scared you so much it was because the sound and the voiced lore was new, fresh and downright pee your pants scary. The voice acting for Archbishop Lazarus and the lore you read throughout the dungeon….Paul Eiding. Two fine examples of his fear inducing voice can be listen to/viewed below.

Blizzard was a pretty good company to get in good with regarding a future in voice acting. Soon after his success in Diablo he showed his range by voicing Aldaris in StarCraft and its expansion StarCraft: Brood War. If the following doesn’t bring back memories and the frustration that comes from not having enough pylons, then you probably didn’t play StarCraft.

 If the picture to the left looks familiar then you too enjoyed sometime with Solid Snake of the Metal Gear Solid series and more importantly you enjoyed the voicing of Paul Eiding as Colonel Roy Campbell (pictured left). The Metal Gear Solid series success was due to the original PlayStation’s ability to use Compact Discs, new to gaming at the time, which enabled game data and rich sound. That rich sound enabled the US version of the game to hire Paul Eiding as the voice of Colonel Roy Campbell. It of course didn’t hurt that the game play of Metal Gear Solid was fun and great at creating tension.

In Blizzard’s follow up to Diablo, aptly named Diablo II, Paul voiced one of my most memorable cinematic scenes in a video game thus far (below). Funny enough, even Marius (the meager human within the scene) points out the voice of Mephisto. Who is voicing Mephisto you ask? You got it, Paul Eiding.

More recently Paul has lent his voice acting talents to Fallout 3 (voicing over 10 characters), Dragon Age: Origins (multiple characters), StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty (multiple credits) and Halo: Reach (Spartan Commander). His most recent video game credit to date, via www.imdb.com, is his reoccurring role as Zephyr in the recently announced Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One. I can only hope that another credit will be announced soon for the highly anticipated Diablo III.

Where many have had Hollywood success and then played their hand at voice acting, Paul invested early into a new and highly rewarding (commercially and personally) career of video game voice acting. Interesting enough Hollywood noticed and Paul has had voice acting roles in the animated movies Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, Up and Wall-E. I know Paul’s heart beats for the stage and more blockbuster movie roles will surely come calling from Hollywood. I just hope he keeps his toes in the video game water so all us nerds can continue to enjoy his talents.

The Weekend Off 3 from Joe Urge Productions on Vimeo.

THE WEEKEND OFF 3 MUSIC & ARTS FESTIVAL

http://www.theweekendoff.c​om/

http://www.northforkmusicp​ark.com/

Featuring…..

National Recording Artists

KELLER WILLIAMS!!!

and…

VIBESQUAD!!

==========================​===========
ARTIST SCHEDULE
==========================​===========

FRIDAY 8/5

Gates open at noon!

3:00 – 4:30 – Funktional Flow
4:30 – 6:00 – Pia Mater
6:00 – 7:30 – Fundimensionals
7:30 – 9:00 – Jimkata
9:00 – 10:00 – Slip Madigan
10:00 – 11:30 – Keller Williams

Late Night DJ’s

11:30 – 12:45 – Skanntron
12:45 – 2:00 – Bacon! & Twist
2:00 – 3:00 – Wax Combat
3:00 – 4:00 – Klafka

SATURDAY 8/6

12:00 – 1:00 – Aquila
1:00 – 2:30 – Audio Influx
2:30 – 4:00 – Aqueous
4:00 – 5:30 – House on a Spring
5:30 – 7:00 – Timbre Coup
7:00 – 8:30 – Dopapod
8:30 – 10:00 – Consider the Source
10:00 – 11:30 – VibeSquad

Late Night DJ’s

11:30 – 12:45 – 3P0
12:45 – 2:00 – Kloud vs. Perceptor
2:00 – 3:00 – Big Basha
3:00 – 4:00 – Emjay Biggz

Sunday Morning special chill out session from Mark Kloud and Perceptor

==========================​===========
TICKET INFO
==========================​===========

Prices:

$65 presale
$85 gate

Friday and Saturday day passes available at the gate for $45.
They are good from noon to 10am the next day (yes, camping included!)

Available online at: http://www.theweekendoff.c​om/

Currently Available at:

Aaron’s Alley, Rochester NY
Terrapin Station, Buffalo NY
Headin’ to Hertel, Buffalo NY
Glass Roots, Batavia NY
North Fork Music Park, Warsaw NY

==========================​===========
OTHER INFO
==========================​===========

VENDOR APPLICATION:

http://www.joeurge.com/doc​s/vendor-app.pdf

NO DOGS (Sorry!) and NO GLASS!

Highbrow

Highbrow is a voyager figure that has been released for some time now. If I’m not mistaken, he is released under The Hunt For Decepticons subline. Right before Halloween of 2010, I met up with a dude from Craigslist to buy Armada Starscream from him. At that time he told me there has been sightings of Highbrow at the local Target. Other sightings on Seibertron does confirm that this figure has been released. So I’ve been keeping my eyes open, and almost 5 months later, I find one around mid March in said Target. To this day I’ve only seen one Highbrow. He’s hard to find in my area. I forgot to take pics of him in the box, so here he is in robot mode.

Highbrow is ok in robot mode, but his alt mode is where he really shines. I can’t think of any other TF that has a WWII plane has his alt mode. The plane is well constructed, has plenty of detail, is very robust, and simply looks awesome. The spinning propeller gimmick is also a nice touch. For a pic of the alt mode, check out my last post where he appears in a group shot.

Kup and Scourge

Around the middle of the month, the GF and I had sushi near her place. There was a TRU nearby so naturally I suggested we stop and take a look. This TRU is located in a really crowded shopping center on a major avenue in the heart of Silicon Valley. Navigating around the parking lot was next to impossible with all the cars trying to get in and out. When I finally parked, I complained to her that we’re not coming back unless I find something. As it turns out, I found Kup and Scourge here. So I guess we’ll be going back.

I opened both of these and they are awesome figures. Kup as a pickup is a great update for 2011. The alt mode is solid and the robot mode more resembles how he looks in the G1 Movie. Scourge in this form is way less of a shell-former. Oh btw, he his NOT a Targetmaster. I always assumed he is because of how the gun looks and the fact that Universe Cyclonus is the Targetmaster version. The gun does Transform like Targetmaster figs, but it is so he can use them as twin pistols or one larger rifle. This kinda reminds me of the Double Targetmasters in G1, except the guns do not transform into figures. I highly recommend both Kup and Scourge.

G2 Laser Optimus Prime

The following day I went to Target to buy some everyday supplies. This is a different Target from the one where I found Highbrow (I got a bunch of Targets near me). If I’m at any store that sells TFs I’ll be sure to stop by and check it out (more on this later). On this trip I found G2 Laser Optimus Prime in the Reveal the Shield line.

I opened this figure as well. Overall he’s not too bad, but he does have some flaws. I like the robot mode. The mechanism of the wheel transformation is not too intuitive. In fact I already broke off some tabs trying to figure it out. Also, in alt mode it is hard to store the sword where it’s supposed to go. I can’t recommend this Prime as highly as the 3 figures above.

Wheeljack, Thundercracker, Lugnut

About two weeks later, I made an order from HasbroToyShop.com for Wheeljack, Thundercracker, and Lugnut. I saw that they were available and in stock, so I went ahead and bought them. I think I already mentioned repeatedly that I bought Jazz and Tracks from HTS around Christmas and I didn’t see them in stores til about 3 months later. I have a feeling the same thing will happen again for these 3 figures. I don’t feel like waiting for 3 months to get them, so I made the order. I don’t have them in hand yet, so no pics to show. But I’ll be sure to do that for a later post.

Perceptor

After work in that same day, I went back to the shopping center of the Target where I found Prime for a haircut. Since Target is right next door, I stopped by real quick to check it out. I’m glad I did because I found Perceptor.

I still have not opened Perceptor, but I plan to real soon.

I mentioned earlier in this post I will stop by the TF section of any store that sells TFs. This includes even clothing stores! For instance, earlier this week I was at Kohl’s. For those that don’t know, they do have a toy section and they carry TFs. They generally put it all the way in the back. Anyway, I found a whole bunch of Reveal the Shield Special Ops Jazz at Kohl’s! They had like 5. Before the Kohl’s visit, I only saw him twice at different Targets, and only 1 each. So how did Kohl’s get 5?! I can’t explain it. Either Hasbro has a really weird distribution system, or there are way too many TF hunters out there camping out at the Targets and Walmarts and TRUs that as soon as some new figs come in, they hunters snatch them. I didn’t see anything I needed on this visit. However, I should point out that Kohl’s sell the deluxes at $14.99 each. Ouch! But regardless, I think I will make Kohl’s a regular hunting spot from now on.

Well, that’s it for March. I don’t plan on hunting for TFs today (but you never know, hehe). NCAA March Madness is coming to a close with only 4 schools left, and it feels like I’ve had a March Madness of my own in getting all these TFs. I already have plans for some more TFs in April, so the Madness will continue. I might do full reviews of some of the figures here. Transform and Roll Out!

Darkmount! Stand on Payload and roll out!

"Sorry, Prime, I just don't know what 'You're a toy!' means!"

Soundwave just wants to have fun!

Just hold steady... don't fire 'til you see the whites of their eyes!

Herpderp I'm a truck with a head

"What do you mean 'Payload is a Decepticon?' I wouldn't stand on a Decepticon for a ride!"

I float like a butterfly, and sting like a bee!

"'Cause this is THRILLER!!! THRILLER night!"

"Oh, get back! Get back! Get back to planet Cy-ber-troonn!"

So that’s all I’ve got for now. Enjoy! Next week I’ll probably have a new review.

By the way, if there are any figures/poses you want to see (as far as figures go, you’ll have your best luck with the Hunt for the Decepticons, Reveal the Shield, and Generations lines), let me know in the comments and I’ll see what I can do.

I want to send some major cudos to one of my RL friends for inventing what we here in immature-ville like to call, “the robojob”. I had pretty much seduced Perceptor, but in my organic form, I couldn’t have sex the way that Cybertronians do. They literally open their chambers and meld sparks; it’s supposed to be really intense. So I gave up.

But then, my friend was like, “Maybe you could use your psychic powers to manipulate his spark!”

I was playing a gray who was becoming a headmaster. It made sense. I rolled.

20.

Motherfucking 20.

So, good for Perceptor.

In conclusion
Perceptor’s a decent toy bordering on good, but nowhere near as great as most of the Generations/Reveal the Shield toys released around the same period. Vehicle mode is good, but transformation and robot mode have their flaws. Still, this is spot on Perceptor. Recommended if you’re into G1 or Perceptor in general, Not Recommended if you just want a good standalone toy.

Review
Vehicle mode is okay. It’s a half track truck or jeep or whatever. It looks nice enough and you can transform the roof lights into a cannon for a little added playability. Otherwise, it’s about on par with most TF vehicles.

Transformation is a mixed bag. First up is vehicle to robot mode. For the arms/shoulders, it involves partially transformating/rotating the front tires out, and then repositioning the arms for clearance. This isn’t necessarily totally clear in the instructions, so I thought I’d mention it. Also, the front of the car turns into a backpack for Perceptor in robot mode, but it doesn’t seem to click on too well on mine. It gets the job done but liable to get untabbed while posing.

Leg transformation is neat though, it has a lot of folding and compressing that gives you that worthwhile transformation feeling.

Transformation back to vehicle mode is a classic case of massage-forming though. This is pretty much my biggest beef with the whole transformation in general. Once you go through all the steps to transform Perceptor back into vehicle mode, you’re going to have to “massage” his legs/back of truck portion back into position. Considering how neat and precise other Generations/Reveal the Shield toys have been, this return to massage forming was rather jarring for me when first encountered.

Robot mode looks great, for the most part. The shoulders don’t really click anywhere, but that’s fine on account that there’s enough friction in the shoulder joints to hold the arms up anyway. The problem is that the arms a tad long, giving Perceptor monkey-esque proportions. This isn’t helped by him being short and squat.

Normally I’m fine with gorilla like proportions, but only if it’s intentional or appropriate for the toy/character. Hunt for the Decepticons Hailstorm for instance, has very gorilla-like proportions, but that’s okay, because that’s what he’s obviously meant to look like. Not so with Perceptor though. It almost seems as if the designer knew that there would be nowhere to tab Perceptor’s shoulders in robot mode, so he decided to make the arms longer in case the toy owner wants to position the shoulders as high as possible. But even then, the arms are simply too long.

While the transformation that formed the legs was pretty neat, it resulted in very limited knee articulation in robot mode. Not only that, but the knees are ratcheted range of motion. You can only bend the knees one or two clicks before the leg assembly causes stoppage. It’s worse on my Perceptor. One leg doesn’t even get any click at all, due to the positioning of it’s internal ratchet.

But it’s not all bad. The good thing about this toy being Perceptor is that since G1 Perceptor was a non-combat oriented scientist, you wouldn’t need him to be able to pull off any extravagant action poses. Fortunately, his upper body articulation is quite good. He wouldn’t make a good IDW Perceptor, but hey, IDW Perceptor is sort of lame anyway (he’s only cool because he’s out of character).

Also, while the proportions detract from his aesthetics, the chrome on Perceptor is friggin’ awesome. I’m not usually a fan of chrome. I mean, I like it, but only when it makes sense. Having chrome for the sake of it doesn’t impress me. But with Perceptor here, the chrome is used mighty effectively. It’s very old school, and considering the rest of Perceptor’s colors are spot on as well, it means that while this toy isn’t a great toy in and of itself, it’s still a great Perceptor toy.

All in all
This guy isn’t a bad toy. If he were released 4 or 5 years ago, he’d be super special awesome sauce. But he’s released now, along with Transformers toys that are far superior on a technical aspect. However, if you need a Perceptor for your shelf, he’s your best bet right now. I wouldn’t recommend this mold unless the color scheme is that of a well established character, which in this case, it is. So yeah, get Perceptor if you’re into G1. Skip him if you’re not.

Pros: Looks great as a Perceptor toy.
Cons: Somewhat poor transformation. Wonky robot proportions. Limited robot articulation.

Grade: C

Hunt Deluxe Wave 6 (Coming December 2010)

A Bumblebee I don’t have.  It was before my collecting time, so I am happy to be seeing them coming out again.  The only time I could get one was in the Bumbleebee three pack with the movie and animated versions I already had.

Perceptor!  Lookin’ old school in his robot form, and a nice vehicle mode for tearing up the turf.   How long until we see a snow bound version with those treads in the back?

A Generation 2 Optimus Prime.  not much to say there.  Have to wait and see when it comes out.

Wreck-Gar, say what?   He is back again.  This time looking like a dirt bike in his vehicle mode.  His robot mode is pretty good looking, having a bit of a mish-mash look.

Generations Deluxe Wave 6 (January 2011)

Cliffjumper in the War for Cybertron version.  With the new Bumblebee that came out, it was only a matter of time until Cliffjumper followed along.

Sergeant Kup.  The old crabby Sergeant is back with a “way too nice looking truck” vehicle mode.

Then we have a couple of jet Decepticons, Thunderwing and Scourge.  Wha?  A flying Decepticon?  Yup. 

Voyager Wave 4 (December 2010)

Don’t forget about those Voyager big boys coming out.   Mindwipe has been repainted into Strafe. Nothing like a red and silver paint job to scream stealth. 

We will finally get Lugnut in a more realistic version based on his Animated style.   If you have been following my posts, I am kinda’ excited about Lugnut.

Then we have Solar Storm Grapple.  Don’t know what makes him “Solar Storm” but I guess we will have to wait for the packaging story to find out.

Voyager Wave 5 (January 2011)

Wave 5 of the Voyager class is more of the same.   Except this time we get a repaint of Seaspray into a much darker an ominous looking Deep Dive.   It looks like an Aoutbot emblem on his chest, but I doubt he is going to be an Autobot.

I am giddy with excitement for the new stuff coming out.  The Hunt continues.

Today we’re gonna’ be talkin’ about SAD SHIT.

SAD SHIT as in The Top 5 Traumatic Deaths in Movies kinda’ SAD.

Please take note that everything contained in this list is a product of the Azn Badger’s childhood; so don’t expect any movies on here to be made anytime past the mid-90′s.

Anyway, let’s get thing’s rollin’, shall we?:

#5. The NeverEnding Story – Artax Eats Some Mud. Check That, A Lot of Mud…

The NeverEnding Story was a tough movie for me to watch as a kid.

It was long, I didn’t really get it, there was a lot of unintentionally scary imagery, and oh yeah, it was long.

Pictured: One of the INTENTIONALLY scary parts of The Neverending Story.

So long in fact, that I never really finished it as a kid, resulting in me thinking the whole thing ended with the end of the world at the hands of The Nothing.

Pretty fuckin’ sad, am I right?

Thankfully, I went ahead and saw the rest of the movie a few years ago, thusly patching up a few childhood scars in the process.

That being said, while this death doesn’t really count as a death; ’cause if memory serves, Artax is still alive and well at the end of the movie, to the young Azn Badger the fuckin’ horse died in the mud hole.

Anyway, this death marks probably the first and only time the Azn Badger ever felt any sort of emotion in reference to a horse.

It was the fuckin’ kid that got to me, that girlie-boy Atreyu.

Hah! Father Time kicked his ASS!

They’re both standing in them mud, and the fuckin’ kid is blowin’ his lungs out screaming at his fuckin’ horse to “not give in to the sadness of the swamps” n’shit.

Meanwhile, the music is swelling and gettin’ all sad and crestfallen n’shit.

The whole thing was just too much for me as a kid, and for the life of me; I bought into it.

"Artax, you're sinking!" Oh God, make it stop!!!!

While I didn’t really “get” the Neverending Story back then, little episodes like Artax bitin’ the big one stuck with me on a visceral level; in this case, making me very sad.

Fun Fact – The only reason I remember that damn horse’s name is because of his death scene when Atreyu yells it about 50 times.

Repetition:  It works.

#4. The Lion King – Mufasa Gets 50,000 Wildebeasts Rammed Up His Ass

Who's featured most prominently on the poster? That's right, MUFASA.

Mufasa was a pimp.

You take the raw power of James Earl Jones’ voice, and transplant it into the body of the biggest, baddest, most pimp-as-fuck lion in all of existence; and you’ve got Mufasa.

"This, is CNN..."

Needless to say, in my youth; Mufasa’s death hit me pretty hard.

As I hope we all know, Mufasa met his fate at the hands of the combined force of a stampeding herd of wildebeast, and the nasty claws of Jeremy Irons.

Wow. Believe it or not, I think Irons just topped himself...

Any less, and I’m sure his pimp-ass self would’ve survived somehow.

Anyway, Mufasa; pimp that he is, rushes headlong into the stampede to save his pussy-ass son, Simba.

'The fuck was up with kid in the 90's anyway? He was EVERYWHERE.

While he is successful in rescuing the boy, Mufasa takes some serious shots from the fuckin’ wildebeasts, the kinda’ hits that would fold a lesser lion in half.

All the while, Hans Zimmer’s music was goin’ crazy, and all the kids in the audience were either pickin’ their boogers, or hoping against hope that ‘ole Mufasa was gonna’ pull through and not fall prey to “Bambi’s Mother Syndrome.”

That’s right Disney, don’t pretend that us kids don’t know about “Bambi’s Mother Syndrome.”

Disney: Teaching kids that their parents are gonna' die.

Just as Mufasa’s managed to escape the stampede for just a few seconds, out strolls his brother; Jeremy Irons.

Slimey prick that he is, Jeremy Irons busts out his freshly manicured nails; and digs them puppies into Mufasa’s paws; but not before saying something creepy and vaguely savage like:

How ironic that the pimpest of all lions would be felled by a bunch of wildebeast AKA the butt of every Discovery Channel predator/prey joke…

To make matters worse, Mufasa’s death has the added impact of having a 40 minute guilt trip attached to it.

Jeremy Irons tells Simba, straight to his face; that the whole thing was his fault.

This of course results in Simba running off into the wild for the next 10 years to eat bugs and talk to clouds.

Talking to clouds: Useful for convincing one's self to go out and kill their uncle.

Oh well, guess we all have to cope somehow…

#3. The Land Before Time – Littlefoot’s Mom Gets Sharptooth-ed

I betcha' this movie wouldn't have done half as well without the T. Rex on the cover.

The Land Before Time was a special movie for me back in the day.

Come to think of it, while I’m sure how it all worked out, Don Bluth movies were all some of my favorites as a kid.

Not this one though... This one was just plain awful...

While the Secret of NIMH was definitely the cream of the crop, even back in the day, (sword fight!) The Land Before Time had dinosaurs and Spielberg-ian funding, making it a close second.

Although it wasn’t a Disney production, rest assured Mr. Bluth saw fit to work some “Bambi’s Mother Syndrome” into the mix in the form of Littlefoot’s Mom.

Much like the Lion King after it, Littlefoot’s Mother meets her fate partially due to the actions of her son.

Stop smiling, you killed your mother!

In short, Littlefoot and Cera are dickin’ around in the wild, they piss off Sharptooth, Littlefoot’s Mom shows up to save the kids, does so, but is mortally wounded in the process.

Easy to see why, look at that beast! He's a fuckin' Pimp-A-Saurus Rex I tells yah'!

Cue lengthy and heartbreaking death scene wherein parent reminds child that “they’ll always be with them.”

While the actual battle with Sharptooth was awesome to the young Azn Badger, instead of horrifying as it may have been intended to be perceived, the death sequence afterwards was just plain tough to sit through.

Oh no, it's happening again!!!

Even now, I bet I’d have a tough time getting through it without biting my lip or taking a deep breath or 2.

#2. 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea – Captain Nemo Succumbs To His ACTING TALENT

20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, along with The Adventures of Robin Hood, was one of those terrific “old movies” that as a kid; I never knew was “old.”

I watched the both of them about a million times, and I don’t think I ever got close to getting tired of them.

While Robin Hood had swashbuckling and and ungodly amount of merry laughter, Leagues had Kirk Douglas and a GIANT FUCKING SQUID.

You have no idea how many times I sat through this entire movie just to get to this part.

The epic-ness of these 2 factors made for one of the single most spectacular and enchanting films of my childhood.

That being said, despite Kirk Douglas’ Ned Land being my favorite character, James Mason’s Captain Nemo was a pretty close second.

SO fucking pimp...

Even as a kid, I loved his pimp-ass beard, and the curious way in which he spoke.

His voice was awesome and all, but I loved the pace of his speech, how it was just a half beat slower than everyone else.

Appropriately, it made him seem enigmatic, like you’d never be able to figure out what he was thinking in a million years if you tried.

Anyway, while 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea was yet another movie that I didn’t quite “get” when I watched it as a kid, Captain Nemo’s death was something that I understood all too well.

As with seemingly all deaths on this list, the music made all the difference.

Captain Nemo is running atop the Nautilus, dodging incoming gunfire from the dudes that want his technological secrets.

He jukes left, he jukes right, and all the while the strings in the orchestra are goin’ fuckin’ nuts.

Suddenly, just as he’s within feet of the entrance to the lower deck of the submarine, his body spasms and the music crashes to a halt with a horrifying *DOOOOMMM!*

No squib, no blood spurt, just James Mason’s ACTING TALENT and the power of a music cue.

From there, the rest of the movie has Nemo, resigned to the fate of his eventual death; lurch and stumble his way through the submarine to a couch next to an undersea viewing window.

Nemo’s last moments are spent gazing into the deep blue that he loved so much.

While the death was pretty epic, it was the initial gunshot that hit me as a kid.

As soon as that music cue hit, my tiny heart sunk down to my toes.

*Sniff!* I honestly thought he was going to make it…

#1. Transformers: The Movie – Optimus Prime Becomes One With The Matrix

FUCK YES.

This may seem like a cop-out to some.

A predictable, bandwagon-y ploy to get the nerds to read the blog; however if any of you genuinely think that, then you obviously don’t know the Azn Badger.

As mentioned several times on this blog, I watched Transformers: The Movie, quite literally nearly every day of my early childhood.

My older brother did the same.

Transformers: The Movie was one of those magical films that just did it for me as a kid.

I loved Godzilla movies as kid, but that was because I loved Godzilla as a character.

Man, what I would give to have been one of those kids...

Transformers: The Movie was a case of me simply loving an individual movie more than any human child should.

While I was a little bit too young to have enjoyed the Transformers TV show while it was first airing, The Movie served as my ambassador to the series; giving me a crash-course on the Gen-1 stuff before I even started watching the re-runs.

That being said, the opening battle on Cybertron, that takes the vast majority of the original cast of the show and kills them off in favor of new toys, I mean characters; was truly a thing of beauty.

The battle on Cybertron worked because it had actual stakes.

Lives were lost on both sides of the conflict, such that you truly got the sense that everyone was fair game.

Hell, Ironhide was one of my favorites from the TV show, and he got his head blown off in the first 10 minutes.

"Such heroic nonsense..."

Not only that, Prowl died a few seconds earlier via some hot chili; and Wheeljack, fuckin’ Wheeljack wouldn’t even get the respect of having an on-screen death.

Should probably cut back on those habaneros Prowl...

These were big name guys, characters that were at the forefront of the action in every episode of the TV show, and here they were gettin’ their clocks cleaned in the first 20 minutes of The Movie!

Then they went and killed Optimus Prime.

If the battle between Optimus Prime and Megatron at the beginning of Transformers: The Movie is one of the best fights in cinema history, then the death of Optimus Prime is surely one of the most dramatic deaths.

I love the subtlety of the death sequence.

Everyone is gathered around Prime, their facial expressions communicating far more than words could hope to.

Aw, Kup's sad face is sad!

Perceptor, the closest thing the group has to a doctor, presents his diagnosis with a simple:

“I’m afraid the wounds are, fatal…”

With the silence broken, Daniel; the child of the group, is the first to speak his mind:

"Prime, you can't die!"

From there, the whole thing just gets more and more epic.

We have the passing of the Matrix to Ultra Magnus, the not-so subtle symbolism of Hot Rod catching the Matrix, and Optimus Prime just plain being awesome, even as he’s moments from death.

"LIGHT. OUR DARKEST. HOUR."

At the end of it all, the hammer of childhood trauma drops as Optimus Prime’s entire form turns black, a decidedly fatalistic percussive music cue hits; and Prime commits his final act as his head limply turns to the side.

Shit just got real.

That, my friends; is how you kill an icon.

... And thank you Michael Bay for showing us how NOT to do it.

In a earlier post I mentioned that I must find the 25th Anniversary versions of Insecticons and Perceptor. Yesterday I finally found them at my local TRU. I quickly bought one of each. I know… at $34.99 each they seem a tad expensive, but in the same previous post I went into why I don’t agree. There was still one Perceptor left on the shelve when I left TRU, but no more Insecticons.

Check out the pics below.

I love the artwork and the silver TRU Exclusive sticker on the front. “Decepticon Agents”?! That’s a new one.

“It’s a world where things are not what they seem. It’s a world of heroic Autobots and evil Decepticons who are known as… the Transformers!” They repeated the G1 box descriptions word for word. Awesome!

Both of them with the lid open side by side.

Look at all the details on the Insecticons! They sure don’t make them like this anymore.

Robot, microscope, and… tank! Perceptor kicks ass… or not. He’s a lover not a fighter.

I just noticed that all 3 Insecticons have wheels on the feet in insect mode. Somehow I didn’t think this was weird back in the 80s…

I’m not sure if I will be opening these. In the box they just look too cool and these may be primed to go up in value. We’ll see.

That’s it for now my fellow TransFans. Remember… Transform and Roll Out!

So many stock have been in and also out. I do apologise if I didnt put them up here. Been quite a busy body

Here are some newer ones ..

ROTF Legends Class MISB – Optimus Prime / Bumblee Bee / Jetfire / the Fallen / Starscream / Megatron / Skidz / Mudflap / Sideswipe ((prices from RM 22 – 30)

G1 Legends class LOOSE – (prices from RM 20 – 30)

jazz
beachcomber
whelie – henkei version with paperworks n spec cards
cosmos – henkei version with paperworks n spec cards
warpath – henkei version with paperworks n spec cards
hound
blades (helicopter)
G2 megatron (tanks)

galaxy force ramjet
galaxy force trust
cybertron soundwave
armada jetfire like plane

EZ Devastator BIB – RM –

TRU Special 25th Annis. Insecticons MISB – RM 165.00

Alternator SDCC Hot Rodimus Loose with gun – RM 125.00

ROTF Leader Class Prime / Jetfire – RM 230.00

Takara New Year Convoy MIB – RM 615.00

Yamato VMF Motoko Kusanagi (Ghost in the shell) MISB – RM 240.00

———————————–

Awaiting arrivals :-

TRU special 25th Annis. Perceptor – RM 165.00

ALTERNITY03 Bumblee Bee / Cliffjumper – RM 160.00

ROTF Takara BUSTER PRIME  – RM 270.00

MP04 Convoy – RM 600.00

WoW series 4 – Tuskar + Gnoll Warlord – RM 140.00

** I will be visiting Melbourne on a business trip. Do expect some delay in response and replies. **

Keep on Trucking!

For any of you who wish you could get your hands on some of those toys but in good condition and without spending $70-200 a piece, here’s your chance.  Hasbro is re-releasing reissues of Transformers G1 (Generation 1) toys of the Insecticons and Perceptor.  They will both be Toys R Us exlcusives.  We’re not aware of the price on them, guessing around $40-50.  They should be available sometime in September of this year.

Reissue Perceptor

Reissue G1 Insecticons

SDCC Reissue Soundwave

25th Anniversary Optimus Prime (reissue)

11. Perceptor

Transforms into: Microscope

Perceptor is a scientist, one of the most brilliant minds the whole of Cybertron can offer. He is always looking to learn more, and his discoveries have proven invaluable time and time again. Though his specialties lie in metallurgy, electrical engineering, and other sciences closely related to Transformer physiology, his thirst for knowledge has made him kind of a scientific jack-of-all-trades.

He’s no warrior but his insight and intellect would be a nice addition to the autobot roster. Plus he’s the one who was responsible for designing and creating the Dinobots.

10. Brawn

Transforms into: Land Rover Defender

Brawn was one of the original eighteen Authobots on the cartoon and one of the strongest despite his size. Although he is smaller than most of the other Autbots, he is second in physical strength only to Optimus Prime.

Seeing as how the Decepticons usually always have way more powerful and cooler transformers, Brawn would be a powerful and interesting character to have on the big screen.

9. The Insecticons

Transforms into: Insects

Although the insectacons were recruited by Megatron and follow the Decepticons, they are highly independent and are for the most part loose cannons. That makes for good watchins.

8. Blaster

Blaster’s transformation is an AM/FM Stereo Cassette Player or ghettoblaster, hence the name. Blaster was a popular character from the original series. He is a member of the Autobot communications sub-group and is the Autobots’ answer to the evil Decepticon Soundwave. He also has the ability to eject various tape warriors within his deck, including (Steeljaw, Ramhorn, Rewind and Eject).

Screw Soundswave. Blaster is the shit. An Autobot with a charismatic disc-jockey attitude is a welcome addition after the demise Jazz.

7. Skyfire

Long story short. Skyfire was scientist back on Cybertron and worked with Starscream. They went on a research mission to a new planet called earth, where Skyfire was caught in a polar wind storm and burried alive. Millions of years later when the Decepticons returned they found and reannimated him. He then joined Megatron but soon began to question his allgiance. After several battles with Starscream, Thundercracker and Megatron, a wounded Skyfire left the Decepticons to join the Autobots and become one of their most eager, fastest and most valuable warriors.

6. Kup

Transforms into: Cybertronian pickup truck

Kup serves as something of a mentor to the more rebellious and youthful fellow Autobots. He is also said to be among the oldest of the Transformers. Kup is famous for constantly rambling on about all of his glorious war stories. With his age, wisdom and years of experience he becomes Grimlocks favorite transformer due to his mezmorization tales.

5. Blitzwing

Transforms into: Tank, MiG jet

Blitzwing is a Decepticon triple changer – capable of transforming into a Type 74 main battle tank and a MiG-25 jet fighter. His fellow Decepticon triple changers are Astrotrain and Octane.

A battle-loving Decepticon warrior, Blitzwing frequently uses his jet mode to strafe land-bound Autobots, then quickly transforms to tank mode to finish them off with his powerful energy mortar. In robot mode, he prefers to use his electron scimitar to fight foes one on one.

4. Omega Supreme

Transforms into: Tank, Rocket base with orbiting laser rocket,

Known for his great strength and greater courage, Omega Supreme is the Autobots’ last line of defense against the Decepticons. He will stand unwaveringly against overwhelming odds, and although outwardly grim, he is known by those with enough insight to actually relish the enormity of his task – Omega knows that if he falls, it is unlikely there will be any remaining Autobots to take his place, but he would not have it any other way.

Having a transformer with this much size, power and diversity on the big screen would be unreal.

3.Galvatron

Transforms into: Lazer connon

With vast strength but questionable sanity, Galvatron’s primary weapon is his particle accelerator cannon, mounted on his right arm, which can fire blasts of assorted types, including electrochemical energy and particle beams. He transforms into a futuristic laser-cannon emplacement (similar to a Howitzer) and can, on rare occasions, assume the form of a laser pistol, shrinking as he does so to allow other beings to wield him.

On the Decepticons return journey to Cyberon following their attack on Autobot City in the Earth year 2005, a mortally wounded, but still functional Megatron was jettisoned into space along with several other fallen Decepticons in order to reduce Astrotrain’s mass to reach Cybertron. The end seemed to be near for Megatron — but it was not to be, as he summoned by Unicron, who made him an offer – in return for Megatron’s service, he would give him a new body and new troops to command. Megatron initially refused, enraged at the thought of being Unicron’s servant. However, faced with obliteration as his only alternative, Megatron reluctantly accepted Unicron’s offer, and was reformatted as Galvatron.

It makes sense that since Megatrons body was destroyed by the AllSpark in the first movie that should he return they bring him back exactly like they did in the animated movie.

2. Grimlock and the Dinobots

Transforms into: Mechanical T-Rex

Grimlock is among the strongest of the Transformers, possibly an equal to, or even superior to Optimus Prime and Megatron in certain continuities. In T-Rex mode, his powerful jaws can snap virtually anything that comes between them – from steel cables to a Decepticon limb. He also can shoot an energy ray from his mouth. In robot mode, Grimlock wields an energo-sword, whose blade is sheathed in crackling energon and can slice a two-foot thick concrete wall in one slash. He also uses a double-barreled, self-propelled rocket launcher.

Seeing how most of the Autobots are pretty much enormous pussies compared to the Decepticons, having Grimlock and the Dinobots show up would give a little leverage and attitude to the good guys.

1. Unicron

Transforms into: A massive planet

Known as the “chaos bringer” Unicron was created shortly after the dawn of time.  He is the most massive and deadly of all Transformers.  His goal is to absorb the Universe; planet by planet, solar system by solar system.  With each world he devours, he grows in size, strength, energy, knowledge and power.  He carries out the assimilation these worlds with total ambivalence to the lives of those he destroys. His origin is quite mysterious and yet somehow absolutely connected to the planet and inhabitants of Cybertron.

This will never, ever happen and if Michael Bay somehow surprises me and does bring Unicron to the big screen, I’m sure it won’t be the Unicron that we all grew up loving.

Stumble it!