Catwoman Catcycle Chase Set (The LEGO Batman Movie)

This set has three minifigures: Catwoman, Batgirl, and Robin in their default costumes. There's also the titular Catcycle and a convenient jewelry store for Catwoman to burgle.

LEGO Batman Movie Minifigures Part 1

So I went to see the LEGO Batman Movie and it was great so naturally the next day I allowed myself to be swayed by marketing and went out and got some Batman Legos. The blind bag minifigures are truly blind bagged. There's apparently some kind of "bump code" but sources say that's often unreliable and would agree so I just bought a few and here they are:

Kamen Rider Zangetsu Shin Melon Energy Arms Rider Hero Sofubi

Perhaps the most complicated character from Kamen Rider Gaim was Kureshima Takatora. Living in that shady area between good and evil he goes through a great arc that I won't spoil here. The Melon Energy Arms is his second set of armour and uses the upgraded Genesis Driver.  The level of detail on this sofubi is outstanding and balances out the warped feet that forced me to use a piece of masking tape to help him stand. This character was super popular which makes his figures difficult to get for reasonable prices. That being said I will totally snap up other iterations of this design should the opportunity arises.

Kamen Rider Ghost GC01 Ghost Change

Kamen Rider Ghost was last year's (2014-2015) Kamen Rider series. Tenkuji Takeru died on his 18th birthday and is brought back to fight the evil Ganma.  This series was fun but I loved the designs more than the overall story. The hoodie gimmick is a brilliant way to cut down costs on all the different rider forms and works much better than you'd expect. This figure comes with Ghost's Ore Damashii default form and his GanGun Saber.  The Ghost Change line is a few steps up from sofubi figures and not quite as slick as SH Figuarts.

Ultraseven 21 Ultra Hero Sofubi

Ultraseven 21 (said "two-one" in the show) was the commander of the Space Garrison in Ultraman Neos and he was able to take on several different human forms while he supported his subordinate Neos.  His design is a clear homage to the original Ultraseven but like Neos he has his own touches like his "Eye Slugger" is called a "Verzard" among other things. This sofubi was made in 2003 and is again taller than the current crop.

Ultraman Neos Ultra Hero Sofubi

Ultraman Neos was a direct-to-video Ultra Series that took a back to basics approach over its 13 episodes. The titular character is visually quite similar to the original Ultraman but with his own unique touches. Due to its short episode run this was one of the first Ultra Series I watched in its entirety. I liked the connection to real-world science with Dark Matter being the source of the monsters and their revised Ultraseven 21 taking the Zoffy role.

Miclas Spark Doll Sofubi

Ultraseven was a source of many great monsters. Miclas appeared in the third episode of that series and in a twist was a sort of helper kaiju to the titular hero against Eleking.

Eleking Spark Doll Sofubi

Another of the more popular kaiju from the Ultra Series, Eleking debuted in Ultraseven and has been featured in many of the later series.

This electric giraffe is a classic design and a lot of fun.

Gamora (Guardians of the Galaxy Animated Series)

Gamora, the deadliest woman in the universe, began her life in comics as a supporting character in Jim Starlin's groundbreaking Warlock series. She's Thanos' adopted daughter and became an integral member of the current iteration of the Guardians of the Galaxy.

The success of the live action film has spawned an animated TV series which continues the adventures of everyone's favourite interstellar rogues. This figure hails from the toy line tying into the series which so far only encompasses the 5 main characters.

Total Justice Black Lightning with Electrobolt Strike Cannon

Total Justice was a line of action figures made by Kenner starting in 1996. It is remembered for its extreme poses and bizarre "fractal armour." Wave 3 came out in 1997 though I didn't acquire Black Lightning until recently.

Black Lightning is DC Comic's first African-American superhero, he was created in 1977 by Tony Isabella and Trevor Von Eeden and had a very 70's-tastic costume complete with an Afro wig/mask combo. This figure depicts Jefferson Pierce in his second costume which debuted in his 1995 series and is just as much a product of its time as the original. (Though lacking 90's-riffic pouches and unnecessary belts)

Ezra Bridger Star Wars Rebels 3.75"

Star Wars Rebels is a great addition to the Star Wars universe. It maintains its own flavour while touching upon some threads from the Clone Wars cartoon which I have only recently discovered and wished I'd given a chance when it was actually on TV. (Yay Netflix!)

One of the central characters on Rebels is Ezra Bridger alias "Space Aladdin" in season 1 at least. I kid but you can see where it comes from in the character design and his backstory as a pickpocket/street urchin on the planet Lothal.

Dinosaur Tank Spark Doll Sofubi

Sometimes the shoestring budgets the Ultra Series had to operate under resulted in some amazing designs and creativity. Other times things just went bonkers. Dinosaur Tank is one of those. It's sheer elegance in its simplicity while being one of the most ridiculous designs ever. I'm working my way through Ultraseven slowly but haven't reached episode 28 which introduced this amalgamation of awesome.

Dark Lugiel Spark Doll Sofubi

The big bad in Ultraman Ginga is Dark Lugiel. He is responsible for the transformation of all the Ultra beings and Kaiju into their "spark doll" forms which conveniently looked exactly like the toys from the tie-in toyline...brilliant. He's a sort of dark reflection of Ultraman Ginga and looks pretty cool.  The figure is actually a pretty glossy black that I'm not sure shows up in these photos. Like I've said I'm not a good photographer.

Alien Metron Spark Doll Sofubi

The Alien Metron race first menaced Earth in the eighth episode of Ultraseven. Like many other classic kaiju they reappeared here and there over the years but my favourite iteration was a lone Alien Metron named Jace who appeared as a super-fan of an idol singer in Ultraman Ginga S. Jace's human form was based on Hayakawa Ken from Kaiketsu Zubat, a super obscure reference for the true tokusatsu fan.

Zetton Spark Doll Sofubi

Another classic Ultraman monster, Zetton first appeared in the final episode of the original Ultraman show and was responsible for causing Ultraman's colour timer to stop and Zoffy had to come down from Nebula M78 and rescue him. Zetton has been portrayed in several ways over the years but this is the original design.

Alien Baltan Spark Doll Sofubi

Alien Baltan is one of Ultraman's earliest foes, first appearing in episode 2. His lobster claws have made many appearances in various Ultraman TV Series over the years.

Ultraman Victory Spark Doll Sofubi

Ultraman Victory is a character from the sequel to Ultraman Ginga. Ultraman Ginga S returns to the classic formula by introducing the Ultra Party Guardians. Victory's human host is from a hidden underground race known as the "Victorians" so original. It was still a fun show.

Ultraman Ginga Spark Doll Sofubi

Ultraman Ginga was the first Ultra Series I watched in its entirety. I'd watched some Ultra Q, Ultraman, and Ultraseven but only a few here and there. Ginga was a bit of a departure from the classic Ultraman formula as there was no Science/Military Organization and the main characters were teens who just graduated from high school. On the show Ginga's head crest, arm bands, and shins all had parts that could change colour when Ginga used different powers such as Ginga Thunderbolt or Ginga Comfort.  Clearly I liked this show a lot since I'm blabbing about it so much but that's enough.

Ultraman Nexus Junis Spark Doll Sofubi

Ultraman Nexus is the main character in the 18th Ultra Series.  This figure is Nexus' Junis mode which is stronger but not as fast as his default form. Nexus was a series that tried to appeal to an older audience but still lots of kaiju smashing action.

Alien Akumaniya Spark Doll Sofubi

My Alien Akumaniya is from the Ultraman Ginga Spark Doll series of Ultra Kaiju though he first appeared in Ultraman Leo. (Kaiju get reused a lot in the Ultra Series)

Mochiron Spark Doll Sofubi

Mochiron first appeared in episode 39 of Ultraman Taro. I have not seen this episode I just tend to buy kaiju based on how cool I think they look.

Armada Megatron Leader Class Figure (Combiner Wars)

A nice big Megatron in a style from a cartoon I've never watched nor am I likely to anytime soon. But he looks cool and was cheaper than the G1 styled redeco. Let me be sacrilegious for a moment and say this dude looks even cooler than the "all-grey-all-the-time" G1 Megatron. He's sporting classic villainous green-and-purple which I love and some good red accents like the funky horns.

ToQ 6 Sentai Hero (maybe?)

ToQ Rokugou might be my favourite of the team. He is a reformed shadow monster called Zaram but takes on the human name Nijino Akira.  He is somewhat depressed and sullen with regard to his situation punctuating his arrival with a ditty on his harmonica. Akira is devoted to his teammates though and made Sentai history by being the first official regular Orange Ranger.  This figure is not a sofubi like the others but is made of hard plastic and has a button on his back that makes punching sounds when pressed.

ToG 5 Sentai Hero Sofubi

A fairly typical "cute girl" character Izumi Kagura is ToQ Gogou. Her imagination might be the most powerful of all the ToQgers and she can chant her way into some silly situations.

ToQ 4 Sentai Hero Sofubi

ToQ Yongou is the cool and laid back Nonomura Hikari. His keen rational mind allowed him to adopt the identity of the "Kendama Detective" for one episode. He is skilled in both combat and "IMAGINATION!"

ToQ 3 Sentai Hero Sofubi

Natsume Mio is ToQ Sangou. She is the team's "big sister" figure but is not keen on romance despite having drawn the attention of a few boys including Tokatti.

ToQ 2 Sentai Hero Sofubi

ToQ Nigou is the bespectacled Tokashiki "Tokatchi" Haru who fills the bumbling but brainy role on the team. But he certainly doesn't lack "IMAGINATION!"

ToQ 1 Sentai Hero Sofubi

Ressha Sentai ToQger is the Train themed 38th Super Sentai series. Suzuki Raito is the bombastic and imaginative leader of the ToQgers. Here's ToQ Ichigou in soft vinyl form:

Bisk Warrior Class Figure (Transformers Robots in Disguise 2015)

Rock Lobster! In my opinion Bisk has one of the greatest and most ridiculous designs in the current Transformers cartoon. Possibly ever but that's a tall order for a franchise that started in the insane eighties. Still this figure captures Bisk's whimsical deliciousness and totally lives up to his pun-tastic name. 

Ressha Sentai ToQger Group Pics

Rainbow Trains that run on IMAGINATION! Find out more about Ressha Sentai ToQger here

Ratbat TG-20 Deluxe Class Figure (TakaraTomy Transformers Generations)

I was fortunate to be visiting Tokyo when this figure was released and it wasn't until I returned home to Canada that I learned Senator Ratbat here was a Japanese exclusive. He's a redeco of the Generations Scourge and as such can still poke his head out in vehicle mode. Ratbat has a sleek metallic paint job like most of the TakaraTomy Generations figures and it looks great.

Paralon Warrior Class Figure (Transformers Robots in Disguise 2015)

Paralon is a Toys'r'us exclusive redeco of RID Scorponok. I chose Paralon because his head looks like Beast Wars Scorponok which is rad. He's very purple and has nifty hands.