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Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 23, 2014 in Dr. Who, Hobbies and Collections 
Yes, you can buy Cards Against Humanity, the more outrageous, dirty version of Apples to Apples. But you can just as easily download the cards and print your own — the makers even provide a link. You can do pretty much whatever you want with the format and writing, just as long as you don’t call it “Cards Against Humanity.” So it’s really easy to make a fan expansion however you want, like Crabs Adjust Humidity. Taking note of this, the comedy group Conventional Improv made a show based on Cards Against Humanity that they perform at conventions. In honor of Doctor Who‘s 50th Anniversary, they had performed a Doctor Who-themed game called Cards Against Gallifrey. That fan version is now available to download, so consider mixing these cards in if you’re a Doctor Who fan. Read more…
Tags: card games
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 14, 2014 in Cinema, Hobbies and Collections 
Magic: The Gathering is still one of the most popular trading card games out there, despite being 20 years old. And since Hollywood has shown it is willing to develop even simple board games like Battleship into a reasonable facsimile of a movie, I can’t be entirely surprised that there’s a Magic movie on the way. Yes, Hasbro has made a deal with 20th Century Fox to adapt a card game into a movie. They’re aiming for something as epic as Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings, which sounds silly, but there’s a ton of lore (often expanded upon in books and comics) for writers to draw from, so it’s possible. Simon Kinberg, who helped produce the X-Men and Fantastic Four universes for Fox, will produce Magic as a franchise, with multiple movies being the ultimate goal. All well and good, but do we really need a Magic movie? Does everything need to be tied to a preexisting product or franchise these days? Read more…
Tags: 20th Century Fox, Magic the Gathering
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 7, 2014 in Hobbies and Collections 
Speaking of Legos, check out this purported leaked image of a Simpsons Lego set. With 2523 pieces, you’ve got a lot to work with as you construct the Simpsons’ house and populate it with the entire family (and Flanders). You can even open it up and check out the interior decorations, from the look of it. As this was a leak on Eurobricks, there’s no word on a date or price, but with that many pieces, you can expect it to easily cost you a pretty penny. Read more…
Tags: Lego, The Simpsons, Toys
Posted by Ben Huber on Jan 6, 2014 in Fandom, Hobbies and Collections 
So, did everyone bust on the LEGOs over Christmas break? Because there are a ton of amazing creations popping up this week. Ok, it doesn’t quite apply here because this was uploaded a little bit ago but it didn’t catch my attention until now. This huge model made by LegoBrickbaron looks impressive in pictures, with its bright colors and insane attention to detail, but it looks even better on video. Why? Because it moves and has a bunch of little mechanical moving parts. Check out the entire video to see Batman battling the Joker, Robin struggling to hang on, and the Penguin unleashing his penguin horde. Read more…
Tags: Batman, Joker, Lego
Posted by Ben Huber on Jan 6, 2014 in Hobbies and Collections 
This is just a great time for mechanical ball machines, isn’t it? First the LEGO ball machine earlier this weekend and now The Works Museum in Minnesota has commissioned an enormous K’nex ball machine that they proclaim is the largest in the world. The machine stands 23.5 feet tall, 40 feet long, and used over 100,000 K’nex pieces. In the video below, you can catch the highlights of the machine, like a 20 foot drop, a 60 foot long pathway, and 2 lifts to transport the balls to the top. Check it out! Read more…
Tags: K'nex
Posted by Ben Huber on Jan 5, 2014 in Hobbies and Collections 
Not the real thing, mind you, that’d be a bit expensive. Instead, you can own the NASA Mars Curiosity Rover… in LEGO form! For $30! That’s a bit more affordable, eh? It features the 6-wheeled suspension system and poseable robotic arms for gather data. The coolest part? It was designed by LEGO fan and Curiosity engineer Stephen Pakbaz. So this dude made both the real rover and the LEGO version — if only I could be half as cool as he is! You can buy the set online here (or in stores) but of this writing it’s currently out of stock and will be back January 17th. Read more…
Tags: Lego, Mars, NASA
Posted by Ben Huber on Jan 3, 2014 in Hobbies and Collections 
Akiyuky, the intrepid Japanese LEGO mastermind behind several incredible contraptions, is back with another impressive ball contraption, delivering hundreds of balls in a loop through a variety of neat machines. While the scale is always impressive, I’m liking this one a bit more for the extra character involved: those adorable colored animals picking up the balls and throwing them back is great! I hope Akiyuky and his crew of talented builders do more of the that in the future, because it adds some much-needed color to some amazing LEGO gizmos. Watch the blue ball travel through the contraption below! Read more…
Tags: Lego
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 29, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections 
Please, Hot Toys, please. What dark magic do you use to shrink actors’ heads down to figure scale? It’s insane. Also, making a Dark Knight armory replica with Alfred to boot? You’re just killing my wallet here. Both Bruce and Alfred look fantastic, and the cabinet containing all of Batman’s weaponry looks like a great way to store all those extra figure pieces, right? At the very least, if you’re already deep in the Hot Toys pit, this armory is basically the last thing to complete the collection. No word yet on a release date or price, but I bet it’ll be expensive. Check out some more images below. Read more…
Tags: Batman, Hot Toys, The Dark Knight
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 21, 2013 in Fandom, Hobbies and Collections 
Sure, it’s not street-legal, but still! A crazy LEGO fan from Romania, Raul Oaida, along with a entrepreneur, Steve Sammartino, built a life-size LEGO car that actually can be driven. It’s powered by air and pneumatic LEGO parts, which is the most crazy part. It doesn’t go very fast, but it’s still quite the engineering feat, using 256 LEGO pistons. Overall, it uses just over 500,000 LEGO bricks total, and can reach speeds of 20-30km, according to their YouTube page. What an insane project! Maybe they could make a car that’s street-legal next? Read more…
Tags: Lego
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 7, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections, Star Wars 
If you have the cash, that is. An auction is currently going on in which you can bid on the original blaster used by Harrison Ford during the filming of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Granted, the starting bid is $200,000, so this probably relegates it to the realm of hardcore and wealthy fans, but it is still an impressive piece of movie history to see. The auction description notes that this was probably the blaster used in the scene in which Vader force-pulls Solo’s blaster out of his hand, due to it being the lighter resin model and not the heavier live-fire gun used for close-ups. It’s got signs of wear from being used heavily in filming, but isn’t the lived-in aesthetic that made things feel much more real in the original trilogy, anyway? Check out the auction here and the images below. Read more…
Tags: Han Solo, Star Wars
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 2, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections 
Here’s a cool new card game I recently heard about: Superfight! The basic gist is as follows: a white card is drawn featuring the villain (Nickleback) and two weaknesses and powers (can clone self and wall-crawler). Then, you make a hero from your cards, and then argue to see who’ll win! The judge then picks their winner out of the various heroes and you begin again. It seems like a unique twist on the Apples to Apples and Cards Against Humanity style of card game, and it already features a bunch of expansion packs with extra cards. Check out the trailer below or order it online here! Read more…
Tags: card games
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 1, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections, Videogames 
The previous Nendoroid of Isabelle from Animal Crossing was so popular (and so adorable) that they’re bringing another one out, in her winter outfit! It includes a new “smug” face, star-shaped effects, “hands on hips” arms, and arms in a stretched out pose. Apparently, it also comes with these new arms in “summer” versions, so if you own the existing Isabelle Nendoroid, you can spiff her up too. She’s available for pre-order now, but won’t arrive until April next year. You can pre-order her on AmiAmi, HLJ, Hobby Search, or CD Japan. More images below! Read more…
Tags: Animal Crossing
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 8, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections 
The image you see above is a life-size statue of Gollum from the Lord of the Rings. Yes, life-size. Gollum himself is 3 and a half feet tall, and with the stand included, it is 140 cm. Made out of fibreglass and then hand-painted, this is definitely something made to be a centerpiece of your home. That said, I’m not sure I could deal with having a realistic, life-size Gollum in my house all the time. What happens when you walk downstairs for a midnight snack and get startled by it when you turn the lights on? Alternately, you could leave it at the foot of your bed. Now that would help you get up quick in the morning! If you want to purchase one, head over to Weta’s site and ready your credit card: this sucker is $2999! Read more…
Tags: Lord of the Rings
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 3, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections, Videogames 
Yup, the Minecraft hype train can’t be stopped! LEGO has had an incredible amount of success with their miniature Minecraft CUUSOO sets, and it now wants to replicate that on a larger scale! They’re going to be making minifigure-scale models that will expand to a whole line of sets. While they’re still in the very early phases, they’re asking for community input on what fans would like to see in the sets on their Facebook page. Currently they’re asking which Creeper design you like the most, so head on over and help decide! Then check out the video below which features more looks at the prototype sets! Read more…
Tags: Lego, Minecraft
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 1, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections 
Now here’s an excellent adventurer to add to your collection: Max Factory’s figma version of Indiana Jones! At around 6-inches, this is one of the most poseable and detailed figures for that size. It of course features Indy in his distinctive hat, but it appears to be modeled onto his head and not removable, which is a shame. Also included are the various relics and artifacts he’s picked up in his adventure, like the Holy Grail and the golden idol. Since Figma parts are often interchangeable between figures, I can’t wait to see how people mix Indy in with the other figures Max Factor has made! Check out more images below, and pre-order it here or here. Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Indiana Jones
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 27, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections 
How do you make the perfect scary decoration for your Halloween party? What about ditching that silly light-up pumpkin and going with a flying ghost with glowing red eyes? I’d say that’s a good deal cooler. And scarier! Those trick-or-treaters won’t know what hit ’em. YouTube user Alton Porter found a light ghost and skull decoration, wired the LED lights to his quadcopter, and took flight! The result is an evil-eyed ghost that will be sure to get a few people to drop their bags of candy in fright. It looks easy enough to build your own, and that’s what is tempting me the most…! Read more…
Tags: Halloween
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 11, 2013 in Cinema, Hobbies and Collections 
With the Amazing Spider-Man 2 on the way along with Transformers: Age of Extinction, Hasbro is gearing up their toy lines to coincide with the movies. Often times, the result is that the public’s first looks at characters is in toy form. So with Hasbro’s party recently, a lot of pics came out showing figures of the Green Goblin, Carnage, and Black Cat. We know Carnage isn’t in the next film, and we’ve only heard rumors of the Green Goblin, but these could be what these villains will look like eventually. So tread lightly, because spoilers abound! Also, there’s a powered-up Optimus Prime figure. No word on if he’ll actually have a crazy sword-thing in the movie. Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, The Amazing Spider-Man, Transformers: Age of Extinction
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 6, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections 
LEGO has done a great job with their modular series. It’s a series of sets that all fit together as a city street, allowing you to mix and match each modular as you wish to form your town. The latest addition? A Parisian Restaurant! It’s got a lot of really cool colors and unique pieces, along with enough details to satisfy the most advanced builder. I love the kitchen inside, as well as the brickwork on the chimney. You get five minifigures in the set too, and a LEGO Vespa scooter. Just the detail needed! This set will be running for $159.99 and will come out in January 2014. More images and a video of it below! Read more…
Tags: Lego
Posted by Ben Huber on Sep 28, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections 
I’ve seen starship comparisons before, but nothing quite this comprehensive: DeviantArt user DirkLoechel put together an absolutely massive chart of almost every starship out there. Star Wars? Of course. Star Trek? Obviously. Warhammer 40000? Eve? Wall-E? Yes, yes, and yes. It’s really neat to see each each side-by-side, so you can really start to get a sense of scale (something that’s usually pretty difficult to get a handle on in space). Now pick your favorite ship and try to hunt it down the high-res version, included below. Read more…
Tags: Sci-Fi, spaceships
Posted by Ben Huber on Sep 27, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections, Television 
We’re seeing plenty of fanboy-related topics show up on LEGO CUUSOO all the time now, and it looks like the latest one to win the support of the community is a Sherlock model. Based off of the popular BBC show, the creator on CUUSOO has included a variety of options for LEGO to consider when making it a set, including different sets of minifigures, different sizes of the model itself, and an optional display stand. Basically, they put a lot of thought into the factors that LEGO themselves considers when making a set. Now that it’s got support, LEGO has to evaluate the model and obtain the rights to make the set. This is usually the biggest hangup, but with a versatile model like this it might just work out. Read more…
Tags: Lego, Sherlock Holmes
Posted by Ben Huber on Sep 22, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections 
By “finished” we mean that he put the final brick in it. LEGO had been putting together a large scale model of the UN Headquarters, and wanted to go out with a bang — so else better to ask than the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon? LEGO actually has a smaller version of the UN HQ coming October 1st as part of their Architecture line, so there’s a hint of self-promotion here, but it’s cool that Ban Ki-moon had enough time to check it out. The LEGO Foundation does these kinds of projects, as well as school outreach, to help promote creativity and learning. It’s some pretty neat stuff! Read more…
Tags: Lego
Posted by Ben Huber on Sep 21, 2013 in Fandom, Hobbies and Collections 
Talk about cool – Volpin Props, the dude responsible for tons of crazy awesome replicas (which you can see on his site), was commissioned by Tested to make a replica of a Needler from Halo. Of all the guns from Halo, I always found the Needler to be one of the most distinctive weapons, and it looks great in physical form as well. In the video below are roughly 1400 pictures of the process behind making this piece. And if you want to see the in-depth step-by-step blog about it, check out Tested. Now, if only I could make things like this… Read more…
Tags: Halo, volpin props
Posted by Ben Huber on Sep 16, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections 
Japanese LEGO builder Moko has been on a roll recently with some impressive builds — most recently, Gipsy Danger and Kaname Madoka! I love the pose on Madoka, with her bow outstretched, and Gipsy Danger has that distinctive “ready to go” stance. There’s a lot of little details on these models, so I’ve dropped a few more images below. Also check out Moko’s other neat builds, such as the Evangelion Unit 01 we feature a while ago, Mami Tomoe (also from Madoka Magica), and both Gurren Lagann’s head & the core drill! What an impressive library of models! Read more…
Tags: Lego, Madoka Magica, Pacific Rim
Posted by Ben Huber on Sep 6, 2013 in Fandom, Hobbies and Collections 
I think in the future, everything will be made out of LEGOs. Not just our silly online videos recreating a movie trailer or the crazy space ships from our favorite films, but LEGOs will form everything. Our cars, our buildings, the air we breathe, maybe even your children will be LEGOs. It’s really the only path I see towards the future. So the first step is to recreate everything from the past with LEGO bricks first — starting with Thriller. Annette Jung has created the opening scene of Michael Jackson’s iconic music video, Thriller. I’m gonna bet it took a long time to make this, because it looks amazing. Read more…
Tags: Lego, Michael Jackson
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