Pic of the Day 153

Nemesis Prime, Transformers Classics SDCC Exclusive, by Hasbro.

For more information on this figure, you can check out my new collection wiki.

Continue reading...

Song of the Week 2

Oceanborn - Nightwish - 1998

Nightwish follow up their debut album the next year with Oceanborn. While Angels Fall First is very good, Oceanborn has more songs that I like, so I guess I'd say it's a better album. It was much harder to choose one piece to feature for the album. I highly recommend listening to this album in full, in particular, my favorites are Stargazers, Gethsemane, Devil And the Deep Dark Ocean (with haunting melodies and pipe organ lines that make me thing of Phantom of the Opera), Sacrament of Wilderness (this is one of my ring tones), The Pharaoh Sails to Orion, Sleeping Sun, and A Return to the Sea.

However, for all Nightwish albums going forward I'll be listing all but a song or two as my favorites from the album, so I'd better get used to making myself stick to my one-song-per-album rule now, or I'll end up posting 10 songs an album for most of this feature.

Gethsemane - Oceanborn - Nightwish

Toll no bell for me Father
But let this cup of suffering pass from me
Send me no shepherd to heal my world
But the Angel - the dream foretold
Prayed more than thrice for You to see
The wolf of loneliness in me
...not my own will but Yours be done...

You wake up where's the tomb?
Will Easter come, enter my room?
The Lord weeps with me
But my tears fall for you

Another Beauty
Loved by a Beast
Another tale of infinite dreams
Your eyes they were my paradise
Your smile made my sun rise

Forgive me for I don't know what I gain
Alone in this garden of pain
Enchantment has but one truth:
I weep to have what I fear to lose

You wake up where's the tomb...

"I knew you never before
I see you never more
But the love the pain the hope O beautiful one
Have made you mine 'till all my years are done"

Without you
The poetry within me is dead

Continue reading...

Song of the Week 1

Angels Fall First - Nightwish - 1997

Since I've been extra pre-occupied with music lately, I thought it would be fun to try another feature here. I was never able to post a picture every day, but let's see if I can post something at least once a week. Seeing as I have around 360-ish CDs, I thought it would be fun to post one track from each record I have. Let's see how consistent I can be.

To celebrate my new favorite band (along with Depeche Mode), here is Beauty and the Beast from Angels Fall First by Nightwish. Nightwish is a Finnish band, this was their debut album, 1997.

Beauty and the Beast - Angels Fall First - Nightwish

Remember the first dance we shared?
Recall the night you melted my ugliness away?
The night you left with a kiss so kind
Only a scent of beauty left behind

Ah, dear friend I remember the night
The moon and the dreams we shared
Your trembling paw in my hand
Dreaming of that northern land
Touching me with a kiss of a beast

I know my dreams are made of you
Of you and only for you
Your ocean pulls me under
Your voice tears me asunder
Love me before the last petal falls

As a world without a glance
Of the ocean's fair expanse
Such the world would be
If no love did flow in thee
But as my heart is occupied
Your love to me now has to die
Forgive me, I need more than you can offer me

Didn't you read the tale
Where happily ever after was to kiss a frog?
Don't you know this tale
In which all I ever wanted
I'll never have
For who could ever learn to love a beast?

However cold the wind and rain
I'll be there to ease up your pain
However cruel the mirrors of sin
Remember, beauty is found within

Forever shall the wolf in me desire the sheep in you... 

Continue reading...

Pic of the Day 152

Munitioner (aka Not-Swindle) by FansProject.

Specifically, this is Crossfire-02B, a third party designed and fabricated robot/vehicle that can combine with the Hasbro Combaticon figures (from the Energon or Revenge of the Fallen lines), taking the place of one of the existing appendages to provide a more G1-esque look to the combined Bruticus figure.

It is awesome.

Also, my picture didn't turn out too bad either. I've been experimenting with the light box my wife got me, learning a little bit about white balance and focus, and other photo related stuff. Really, all I've learned is to keep messing with the different meaningless numbers until the picture looks the way I want it to.

Continue reading...

Pic of the Day 151

Batman, from the Ame-Comi line of DC Statues.

The Ame-Comi line is a series of highly stylized, anime-styled, statues, based on women from the DC Universe, up until this figure.

I finally picked one of these up, I've been watching this line since it began, and had the opportunity to pick up two of the early figures for $18. But I didn't, and now it's going to cost me 2 or 3 times that to get them. There are a few that are particularly excellent, that I really want, but others also think they're excellent, and are therefore expensive on eBay.

If anyone can help me get the first Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Power Girl, or really any of the others, for good, low prices, let me know. Especially the first Wonder Woman, that one is awesome, and I can't wait for the Artemis repaint.

Continue reading...

Pics of New Stuff, Finally

Well, it's been ages since I posted anything about my collection, so I'll make up for it with a deluge of pictures. This is some of the stuff I've acquired over the past few months, starting with the more random items.

I finally got around to buying the Collector's Editions of all Depeche Modes albums from Speak & Spell (1981) to Exciter (2001), and the Best of Depeche Mode dvd set, all for the documentaries, which have been absolutely fascinating. Also picked up a bunch of DVD singles I was missing from the Playing the Angel album. Apparently I forgot to put A Broken Frame and Best Of in the picture, and Exciter hasn't arrived yet.

The best part is that via VideoLAN my laptop can actually play the PAL format DVD singles, so that was an added bonus to buying them. Still missing three live DVDs, or perhaps it would be easier to say of the four released I only have one. New live DVD set comes out in November, I'm totally buying it, since I didn't make it to the concert when they were here.

Firefly Companions vols 1 & 2. Finally was able to pick these up on eBay for cheap ($15 shipped for both and the DVD set). Good to have them along side the Serenity Companion. Nathan Fillion is sexy enough that I can overcome my homophobia enough to say that I have a man-crush on him.

I loved How to Train Your Dragon, almost as much as I love The Incredibles and Toy Story 2. Had to pick up the second version of this figure when the reviews I saw said it wasn't too bad.

I also loved Predators, and so was unable to resist picking up the figures when I came across them. Hope I can find the others.

I stopped buying Halo figures a loooong time ago, but a review of the Halo Reach preview set convinced me to pick them up, and they do look good, so I'm happy with them.

And I'm still buying GI Joes with the Pursuit of Cobra line. I thought I had pictures of all the wave one figures I bought, and wave two, but all I can find right now are the two hardest to find from wave one.

And misc Joes from discount stores.

I caved in and bought the DCUC Green Lantern 5 pack, when I heard Guy Gardner was selling for over $30 on eBay. It looks like he's dropped a bit, and I wonder if I could buy them individually for cheaper than the retail price. But I'm probably too lazy to do it.

And finally on to Transformers, which have been a much bigger focus lately than perhaps they should have been. Oh well.

ROTF Fracture (Classics Mirage repaint)

Custom ROTF Voyager Ultra Magnus

KO Classics deluxe Magnus

Generations wave 1, 2 and 3

Hunt for the Decepticons Voyagers: Battle Blades Prime, Banzaitron, Sea Spray

ROTF Mail Away Recon Ravage

FansProject Munitioner and Explorer

iGear Nemesis Leader and Masterpiece Ultra Magnus

Henkei Dark Skyfire

Animated Prime, Classics Storm Cloud

Classics Cliffjumper, Sunstreaker and Astrotrain

Classics Mirage, Sideswipe, Hound and Ravage

Classics Hot Rod and Cyclonus

ROTF Bruticus and Classics Devastator

Continue reading...

New Depeche Mode DVD - Live in Barcelona

Since my previous post was on Depeche Mode, instead of me doing a new post with all the toys I've bought lately, it seems fitting to mention them again.

On Nov 8, 2010, Depeche Mode will release another live concert, Tour of the Universe - Live in Barcelona. The video will contain 21 tracks recorded over two sold out shows in Barcelona on Nov 20 and 21, 2009.

It will be available in three formats, 2 disc Blu-ray (for those video snobs that have Blu-ray players and hi-def TVs. I wish I cold be a video snob), Deluxe 3 disc set (DVD + 2 CD), and a Super Deluxe 4 disc set (2 DVD + 2 CD), with a bonus DVD of rehearsal tracks, music videos, and a documentary video. (Visit the Official Depeche Mode website for more info)

Guess which one I'll be getting...

And, since my Depeche audio collection is nearly complete, I guess I should start focusing on completing the video collection. I need the DVD sets for 101, Devotional, and Touring the Angel - Live in Milan.

Continue reading...