While dropping by TRU at the Vivo City outlet last weekend, I chanced upon this interesting Iron Man 2 movie series 2+1 pack!  It contains the hard to find Whiplash figure, a regular Mark V Iron Man figure, and large Sea Assault Drone figure!  All for SGD 39.90 per box.

Iron Man 2 Assault 3-pack at TRU - front view.

This is good news for collectors who missed out Whiplash and haven’t gotten their Mark V Iron Man figure from the movie series yet.  The Sea Assault Drone figure is about a head taller than the other 2 figures, so it probably counts as a 4-inch tall figure, rather than 3.75-inch tall which is the regular height for action figures of this scale.

Iron Man 2 Assault 3-pack at TRU - back view.

I’m not sure if Whiplash is repaint here.  His colors look quite movie accurate and I like how Hasbro packaged him with Mark V Iron Man.  What’s missing is the wrecked up racing car that Whiplash ’slashed’ in the movie, LOL! 

The price looks all right for 3 figures, of which the Drone seems to be exclusive to this set.  If you’re keen in getting this set, just make your way to TRU soon.  I’ve not been to other departmental stores to see if this set is also selling elsewhere.  Nevertheless, happy toys shopping!

Marvel Universe action figures - wave 10

Top row (from left): Captain Britain, Team X Wolverine, Multiple Man & Mystique

Middle row (from left): Ghost Rider, Green Hulk & Spider-Man (Red/Blue)

Bottom row (from left): Colossus, Iron Patriot & Wrecker

Although I have not seen wave 9 of this Marvel Universe toyline in Singapore departmental stores yet, the catalog photos of wave 10 are already available online.  The new characters this time are Captain Britain, Team X Wolverine, Multiple Man, Mystique & Ghost Rider!  As usual when they finally arrive in the local stores, there will be a mad rush by fans and collectors for the new and popular figures of the wave. 

I also wonder is there such a limited release of this toyline at mass retail here, while Iron Man 2 movie figures and Star Wars toys flood the shelves for prolonged periods of time, with regular restocks?  The Marvel Universe Comic Packs on the other hand are not really flying off the shelves that quickly anymore.  There seems to be a glut of them warming the retail pegs and shelves now. 

Anyway if you are collecting this toyline, you do realise by now that there are still many more characters in the Marvel Universe that have yet to be made into toys.  As long as this toyline doesn’t get cancelled anytime soon, be prepared to not just save up for future new and variant releases, but also make more room in your home to store them all.  Happy Marvel toys collecting!

Yup, the post title says it all! 

For toy collectors who build armies of the repeated or similar (usually) soldier toys, do you have a target on how big your toy soldier armies are going to be?  If not, you will just keep pumping in more money to buy the same soldier character toys over and over again. 

In a way, won’t it become like a sort of extreme obsession?  Some collectors have army toys that are more than enough to cover the entire floor of their bedrooms! 

What about you?  Are you an army builder toy collector too?  How do you manage your rapidly expanding army toys, in terms of storage or display space, money and your emotions etc.?  Do feel free to share your thoughts, comments and suggestions here!

This toy sighting came as a surprise for me.  In the US, Transformers Revenge of the Fallen (ROTF) Deluxe REcon Ravage action figure is supposed to be a mail order toy.  But in Canada, Australia and now right here in Singapore, he’s available to everyone at a mass retail store!  This one was spotted this week on Friday at the TRU outlet right in the middle of Orchard Road!  How nice!

I was at the store with LEon that day to see this ROTF Deluxe Recon Ravage toy in person.  LEon was very quick to point out that Ravage’s hind legs do not have the chrome silver finishing that are present on his front legs and on the guns mounted on his hindquarters, as seen in his back card photo.  What a letdown! 

Anyway when I took Recon Ravage to the cashier to check the price, I was informed that he costs SGD 27.90.  I forgot to ask if I get another ROTF Deluxe toys, will he qualify for the “3 for SGD 50.00″ ROTF Deluxe toys sale that the store is currently having.  If you are keen to get this colorful panther, you might wish to confirm with the staff before you buy.

Happy toys shopping!

Following part 1 & part 2 of my earlier blog posts this week about the LEGO Fair at Centrepoint, here are the rest of the photos I took of the LEGO displays and observations there.  Enjoy!

One of the LEGO Fair pillar advertisments outside Centrepoint to draw your attention.

One of the LEGO Fair floor advertisments inside Centrepoint to lead you to the atrium.

The following LEGO landscape displays are situated on the walkway that links the entrance of Centrepoint, and all the way into the atrium area.  They are placed so right in your face that you wouldn’t miss them!

Custom LEGO construction site display - view 1

Custom LEGO construction site display - view 2

Custom LEGO construction site display - view 3

Custom LEGO city & bayside landscape display - view 1

Custom LEGO city & bayside landscape display - view 2

Help! A LEGO building’s on fire!  No worries, a LEGO fire engine & a LEGO fireman minifig are here!

LEGO bayside cafe interior view

Custom LEGO city & bayside landscape display - view 3

LEGO fire boat to the rescue!

Custom LEGO city & bayside cafe scene

Custom LEGO campsite scene

I’ll probably visit the LEGO fair again to admire these LEGO displays once more, before they are taken away.  When I was there this week, I couldn’t stay long after taking these photos as I had to go for my next appointment. 

If you haven’t visited the LEGO fair yet, I highly encourage you to do so soon.  After all, viewing them is free!  Happy LEGO toys admiring and shopping!

Following my blog post on the same topic yesterday, here are some more LEGO display photos I took at the atrium of Centrepoint this week.  Enjoy!

Custom LEGO city landscape display - view 1

Custom LEGO city landscape display - view 2

Custom LEGO city landscape display - view 3

Custom LEGO city soccer match scene

Custom LEGO city landscape display - view 4

Custom LEGO city cafe

Custom LEGO city police station

Custom LEGO city police truck & city park

Even more LEGO landscape displays photos coming up tomorrow!  Do come back again to view them! 

The following photos speak nearly everything I want to mention about this LEGO fair at the Centrepoint atrium this week.  The displays will be there till the end of this month.  Do find the time to go take a look at them!

Life-sized custom LEGO fire engine

Smaller custom LEGO fire engine 

Large custom LEGO fireman

Smaller custom LEGO fireman

Custom LEGO countryside landscape with trains & farm - view 1

Custom LEGO countryside landscape with trains & farm - view 2

Custom LEGO countryside landscape with trains & farm - view 3

Custom LEGO countryside landscape with trains & farm - view 4

Custom LEGO countryside landscape with farm & cows

Many of my close up photos caught too much reflection of the display case.  Hence I can’t show the detailed photographs of all the LEGO scenes there.  It’s really so much better that you’re there to view all these spectacular LEGO landscape displays in person!

LEGO Toy Story 3 Train set display

Besides the numerous LEGO landscape displays, there are also many shelves of current LEGO products on sale, with some combined city sets selling at discounted prices.  They will be there for a limited time only, so hurry down this weekend, while they are still there.  Happy LEGO toys shopping!

…when 2 or more collectors find out that they all own a certain toy (which is usually the highly sought after kind), they will inevitably and very predictably ask one another how much they paid for it?

People just love to compare, even when it comes to toy collecting!  It feels like a kind of hierarchy being established.  If Collector A owns a rare toy that Collector B doesn’t have, then A ‘ranks’ higher than B in that collection.  If both have that toy, then the one who paid lesser for it ‘wins’, LOL!

Similarly if you praise a prized toy belonging to a collector, he or she will tend to reveal how much they paid for it, without you asking the question.  A feel good feeling they had perhaps?

I have nothing against the above.  They are just observations I made not only in the toy collecting hobby, but in other similar aspects of life as well.  Just like when you compliment someone that her clothes or bag are very nice and suit her, her response is likely to tell you on her own how much she paid for them!

Sometimes when people ask me how much I paid for a certain toy, I wonder how should I reply?  Retail price or clearance sale price?  It may make you feel a bit down if you ‘lost’ in the ‘price game’, LOL!

So did you encounter such toy observations before?  Feel free to share your comments here!

Overall I found the whole event this year very disappointing.  Not only because I didn’t have anything to buy, but mainly because there were too few stalls.  In short, I was better off visiting the Sunday Toy Market at China Square Central on a random week!

From the beginning I was already skeptical about the Toy Carnival 2010.  Since it was part of a much larger gaming exhibition, it inevitably became a ’supporting cast’ instead, and in a very small section right at the back of the hall some more!

Furthermore, I totally dislike going to the Expo on a long weekend where so many other events were happening there on the same day.  There were the Food Fest, John Little Sale, Popular Bookstore Sale, and some furniture events on the same weekend too!

Hence the moment I stepped onto the Expo MRT station platform, I just felt like leaving immediately because of the large crowds, and not to mention the hot and humid weather!  The walkways outside the individual halls were so packed with people that I had to walk outside in the heat instead. 

So how about you?  Did you make any great toy purchases at the Toy Carnival 2010?  I know some toy collectors did, but I think they were the minority.  Most of us feel shortchanged when we went all the way there to squeeze with the crowds.  I hope the organizers of the Toy Carnival will bring the event back to SAM, like in 2009 in the coming years!

Well, I thought I read rumoured news that the Autobot twins - Skids and Mudflap might be left out of the cast of Transformers movie 3.  Apparently like many fans around the world, a photo such as this taken on the movie set astounded me.

So are the twins going or not going to be in the movie?  Only time will tell. To me it doesn’t make too much difference, as long as my favourite Bumblebee is still the star of the movie!