News/Weblog 

Despite my love of movies, I never really cared much for the Academy Awards. I don't actively hate them, but it seems like every year they cause me some minor irritation. Case in point: various circumstances kept me out of the theater when The Last Stand first opened. But that was OK—I'd be able to see it a couple of weeks later. Little did I know that my local multiplexes were planning to replace The Last Stand with a rerun of Lifeof Pi thanks to its 11 nominations. That, coupled with Last Stand's general underperformance, meant that those of us who missed that narrow window would have to wait until the DVD release. That didn't stop me from building a replica of the Camaro, though!

This particular model was not on my "to do" list until a few months ago, when Round 2 announced that one of their upcoming models would be a reissue of the '40 Ford Sedan Delivery with Three Stooges decorations. That model year seemed awfully new for the Stooges, and rewatching Cookoo Cavaliers (the short that featured the "Hook, Line, & Sinker" gag shown on Round 2's box art) confirmed my suspiscions. It did, however, lead me to wonder if an appropriate early Ford was available...it was.

TOMY, the maker of the innovative Chuggington StackTrack Railway System, set a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for Tallest Toy Train Track on Saturday, May 11, 2013. The record-setting train track, constructed with Chuggington StackTrack—a durable die-cast railway system that enables kids to build vertical toy train layouts—towered 17 feet 4 inches tall. In order to set the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for World's Tallest Toy Train Track, TOMY Master Builder Jason Moreno and his helpers needed to construct a layout utilizing the Chuggington StackTrack die-cast railway track that met or exceeded 9 feet 8 inches in height, and a commercially available Chuggington StackTrack die-cast railway train had to travel from the top of the track all the way down to the bottom. Hundreds of kids and their families watched in anticipation and were delighted as the engine completed its journey down the spiraling StackTrack tower.

Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130513/CG12330

Moreno constructed the larger-than-life toy train layout as part of the Grand Centennial Parade of Trains in Vanderbilt Hall in New York City's Grand Central Terminal. The building began at 8:00 a.m. and was completed at 1:00 p.m., in time for the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS Adjudicator to authenticate the record-setting event and present the certificate to a delighted TOMY crew.

"This is a very exciting achievement for our company and for Chuggington StackTrack," states Willie Wilkov, TOMY's VP of Marketing Communications and Branding. "We are proud and honored to now be counted among the select GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title holders."

TOMY Master Builder Jason Moreno adds, "I went into the build being 100% confident we could set the record, but I'm not going to say it was easy!" Moreno worked on the build, which featured nearly 1,000 track pieces for more than five hours. "It was exhilarating and when that train made it through more than 140 spiraling turns and hit the bottom, I am sure you could hear the cheers and screams throughout Grand Central Terminal!"

Inspired by Chuggington's modern characters and fast-paced adventures, TOMY's Chuggington StackTrack die-cast railway combines train and construction play in a full line of toys. The line features playsets and high-performance engines that allow budding engineers to build tall, spiraling toy train layouts. Easy to connect and simple enough for preschoolers to build on their own, the Chuggington StackTrack die-cast railway system is a durable and sturdy solution for adding elevation to train sets and creating amazing action.

We had some nice weather over the past weekend, so I took to opportunity to do a quick repaint of the last of my T-Bird Go-Bot/Spychanger models.

Dean Jeffries
February 25, 1933 - May 5, 2013

Ray Harryhausen
June 29, 1920 - May 7, 2013

Last week, a popular source for knockoff and third-party Transformers figures was shut down. When it returned, it was without any of the KO figures (a fact confirmed as the new permanent situation by the site's owner via e-mail).

The topic of KOs (and their scale modeling equivalent, recasts) comes up regularly, and my own feelings on it are mixed. I've had my work stolen and used for both personal and commercial applications, so I know how that side of the situation feels. I also know how frustrating it can be to get the short end of the stick when trying to acquire a particular item. So I have adopted this general guide: If there is any chance that I can acquire a legitimate copy of an item, I will do so. That means that there are a lot of holes in my collection because the items I want are too rare and/or expensive to locate (Black Tracks, AMT ZZR kits, etc.), but I have faith that I can fill them in some day...it's just a matter of time.

But what if the item has no "legitimate" counterpart?

Thanks to the current global economy, Hasbro and Takara have been downsizing their figures recently. The Alternator/Binaltech/Human Alliance figures are gone, Masterpieces have been downsized to around 1/32-1/36 scale, and the only figures that I still regularly see in stores have been in the the much smaller Cyberverse series. I really can't see either company suddenly changing things up and offering us 1/24 scale versions of any of the Transformers: Prime characters. Not that Has/Tak are permanently out of that scale, but by the time the pendulum swings back Prime will be long dead (just as we'll likely see no new figures of characters from Machine Wars, Robots in Disguise, Energon, and Cybertron...it's just the nature of the industry).

So when a company makes an "oversized" version of a standard figure that fills this void, I take interest. Such was the case with Transformers: Prime Bumblebee. While I do own a copy of the standard size figure from Hasbro, this gave me the chance to add the character (along with Wheeljack) to my model collection.

TOMY, the maker of the innovative Chuggington StackTrackTM Railway System, announces a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS® title attempt scheduled for Saturday, May 11, 2013. Chuggington StackTrack is a durable die-cast railway system that enables kids to achieve elevation in toy train play. The Company will be constructing a larger-than-life toy train layout in an attempt to set the record for World's Tallest Toy Train Track. The public is invited to join the excitement, which will be a featured part of the Grand Centennial Parade of Trains in Vanderbilt Hall in New York City's Grand Central Terminal. TOMY's Master Builder, Jason Moreno, will be on site constructing the sky-high layout beginning at 10:00 a.m. until the 1:00 p.m. world record attempt is officially completed.

In order to set the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for World's Tallest Toy Train Track, Moreno and his helpers must construct a towering layout utilizing the Chuggington StackTrack die-cast railway track that meets or exceeds 9 feet 8 inches in height, and a commercially available Chuggington StackTrack die-cast railway train must then travel from the top of the track all the way down to the bottom.

A GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS Adjudicator will be on site to authenticate the record-setting event and, if the effort is successful, to present a certificate that officially proclaims TOMY as the world record holder. Families and kids of all ages are invited to participate in the event, which is free and open to the public from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Attendees may also visit the Chuggington areas in the Kids Junction, which will feature fun train activities, games, giveaways, and entertainment. Entertainment will include Radio Disney AM 1560, part of the #1 radio network for kids, tweens and families, who'll be there from 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. providing interactive entertainment and prizes.

"We're proud that our StackTrack sets enable kids to build their train sets UP, not just out. We've taken train play to new heights, and setting a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for Tallest Toy Train Track makes it official," states Willie Wilkov, TOMY's VP of Marketing Communications and Branding.

TOMY Master Builder Jason Moreno adds, "I'm confident we can set the world record. We designed Chuggington StackTrack to be really sturdy and easy to assemble, which will help me get the build done in time." Since he only has a few hours to attempt the record, Moreno has for the past several months been constructing practice builds and timing his efforts. "Our team is honored to have the opportunity to set a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title with our Chuggington StackTrack."

Inspired by Chuggington's modern characters and fast-paced adventures, TOMY's Chuggington StackTrack die-cast railway combines train and construction play in a full line of toys. The line features playsets and high-performance engines that allow budding engineers to build tall, spiraling toy train layouts. Easy to connect and simple enough for preschoolers to build on their own, the Chuggington StackTrack die-cast railway system is a durable and sturdy solution for adding elevation to train sets and creating amazing action.

It took me a while to talk myself into buying this one. Even with HLJ discounting it to ¥3200, it was still more than I usually pay for car kits. But I looked around, found some reviews, and the general consensus was that the kit was worth it. So I took a shot, and am glad I did: this is easily one of the finest kits I have ever come across. Demanding, yes. Even frustrating at times. But that's the tradeoff for a kit that features such an outstanding level of detail.

It took a bit longer than I would have guessed, but the first Venom vehicle finally makes it here with the restickering of Sly Rax's Piranha.

Before: