Alpha Skin Tone Comparisons

I am so pleased with the Triad Alpha figures that I'm planning on buying more Alpha bodies (African and Hispanic).  These figures come in small, medium, and large bust versions.  I want to get a couple of small bust figures.  The figures pictured below are medium bust.  I grabbed a few dolls with similar skin tones to get an idea of which dolls may get a new body.

 I think that my On Location: Milan Barbie will get a new body.  She's been stuck on the model muse body for long enough.

 Close, but no cigar.  I'm not sure which doll I will use for the Hispanic Alpha (none of these).

I even contemplated de-boxing my Princess of South Africa doll, but she is a little too dark for the African Alpha body.

I REALLY wanted to de-box my Venus and Serena dolls to place them on Alpha bodies!  But they are little too light for the African Alpha body.

OMGoodness I have good news!!!  Triad will be releasing more ethnic head sculpts for the Alphas!  Check out the forum on the Triad website - Louie posted a photo of an AA PVC head that is in the works.  I.CAN'T.WAIT!

Just some body trying to get a head...

I've been wanting to get a head for this figure for a while now.  I hope that this head will be a good match!

Phicen Vs. Dance 'n Flex Christie

I wanted to compare my Phicen seamless bodied figure with a Gumby-bodied action figure, but I don't have one.  So I'll compare her to a Dance 'n Flex Christie (Gumby all the way).

The Phicen figure has rubber skin over an articulated "skeleton".  She is articulated the way that most action figures are articulated.  She has trouble holding some positions because her rubber skin restricts some movement.  It can bunch up at certain points (I'm looking at her underarms right now).  Also, you have to be really careful about posing her, because she will break if you try to bend her where she's not meant to be bent.  Christie has rubber over wire, and you can pretty much bend her any way you'd like (that is, of course, until the wire breaks).

The Phicen can stand on her own and she looks more natural.  The Barbie needs help to stand, and she has spaghetti arms and pancake hands.

 They can both sit down.  The Phicen has skin that folds over when she sits down (hmmmm, so do I actually).  I could not get Christie to cross her legs.

 Here they are doing modified push-ups.  Christie can arch her back a little bit more than the Phicen.

 They can both bend to each side.  Christie can bend a little more than the Phicen.

 Neither of them can do the splits, but Christie comes the closest.  I would not recommend that you try to get your Phicen to do the splits.  Bad things will happen (see below).

The next photo is so horrible that I could not bring myself to post it here, so I will post a link.  Brace yourself before you click here.  The Phicen figure now has a hole in her upper inner thigh.  Christie has a crack on her rear (no, NOT the one that belongs there).  They are both lint and dust magnets, as you will see.  How am I supposed to clean these things, anyway?

Overall, I like the Phicen much better.  I think that she has a more natural look, and I think that her articulation is enough to achieve most day-to-day poses.  I will not be attempting any extreme posing with her.  Lesson learned.

The Phicen that I have is an older figure.  The company has improved on the design and the new batch will be released soon.

Ripcord Rebodied

There have been times when I've been guilty of giving my husband selfish gifts.  For example, I have sometimes (on rare occasions) given him an action figure that I myself would enjoy.  That way, we both get a gift (and me twofold, since I get to give and receive).  My husband is not a collector, or at least he wasn't before he met me.

So a couple of years ago I bought a GI Joe Rise of Cobra Ripcord action figure "for my husband".  He was actually excited to get this gift.  I remember him opening the Toys R Us sack and exclaiming "Ripcord!".  I was glad that he liked his gift, and I was anxious for him to REALLY enjoy it by freeing Ripcord from his packaging.  Imagine my dismay when he told me that he was going to keep Ripcord in the package.  I tried to convince him otherwise, but his mind was made up.  So all this time, Ripcord has been displayed in the toy room with the other boxed figures, ready for action but receiving none.

For the past couple of weeks, I've really dived back into this hobby (have you noticed?) and I've been eyeballing Ripcord and wanting to release him from his plastic and cardboard prison.  I asked my husband about opening Ripcord and his answer was still no.  So what's a girl to do?  I bought a loose Ripcord on eBay for cheap.  He's been played with and doesn't have all of his gear, but he will do the trick.

He wasn't here a full day before I popped his head off and put him on another body.  Ahhhhhhhhhh, I feel much better now!  I call him Marlon.  A spare Dennis Rodman head is currently occupying the spare Ripcord body.  Here are Marlon and Dennis posing with my husband's Ripcord, still safely in his package and no longer a temptation to me.

 

He's a pretty good looking guy.

The Alphas think so, too.

So I have learned my lesson.  I no longer buy action figures for my husband that I really want for myself, and I no longer buy him gifts that I may be tempted to use for purposes other than what he wants.  Thank you Ripcord for helping me to learn and to grow.  LOL!

Triad Alphas (African and Hispanic)

Where have you been all of my life?  My new Alphas from Triad Toys have arrived!

I am very pleased by both of these figures.  I am thrilled about the African figure because I've been wishing for a darker skinned female figure for a while.  Triad delivered!

I love posing these figures, and I think that they are both lovely.  

Here are my Triad ladies pictured together.  Triad has come a long way since the Otaku 1.0!

These figures are pretty, yet tough.  Elijah Burke is about to find himself flat on his back.

See more of my Alpha photos on Flickr.

Russell's Travels

Russell is enjoying his visit to the land of Lilliput. 

A Very Happy Family

The Happy Family (Alan, Midge, Ryan, Grandfather, Grandmother) await the arrival of a new bundle of joy.

 

Nikki arrives.

More photos here.

S.I.S. Rocawear Darren

S.I.S. Rocawear Darren is a recent arrival, and today I released him from his box.

He is articulated and ready for action!  He has quickly made new friends.

Reduction

My BBI Perfect Body Hispanic figure had been complaining of back pain.  She wanted an alteration.

 

I switched her breast plate, and she is feeling much better now.

 

He Needed It More

My Hot Toys TrueType Slim AA figure (or Terrence, as I like to call him) needed the Ken fashion pack more than Steven.


The clothes and the shoes are tight, but I don't mind.

Here's a group shot of some of my action guys.

A New Steven, A New Fashion

I love it when dolls and fashions are cheap.  That's why I could not resist when I saw these items on sale at Target.

Steven has a facemold that had previously not been represented in my collection.  Even better! 

Steven is ready for fun in the sun, or more chilly days ahead.

Barbie Basics Ken AA

I debated with myself about whether or not I was going to get this particular Ken.  He has a great face, but ugh, a model muse body for a guy?  Really?  I'm not at all pleased with his body, but I like his different face and I like his clothes, so I decided I'd waited long enough.

There's not much that I can do with him in terms of posing, so watch for him to be standing in the background of my photos looking cute (until he gets a nice articulated body).

Here, Ken and the Hot Toys TrueType Cuban American (I really must give her a name) share a special moment.

Hot Toys TrueType Cuban American

It took me a long time to decide to get this figure.  I wasn't crazy about the pictures that I had seen (because of her face), but I decided to get this one because I don't have any other figures quite like this one.

So maybe her face isn't so bad after all.  It is beautifully painted.

She's fully articulated and ready for action.

But that will have to wait until another day.  Right now, she's just relaxing with her new friends.

Phicen Seamless "Hindu" Body

Here are photos of a Phicen figure that I purchased last year.  She has the Brown (or "Hindu") skin tone.  Phicen will be releasing more bodies with this same skin tone later this year, in a small bust version and a large bust version.  From what I can see in the photos of the new releases, there have been quite a bit of improvements made over this figure pictured below.

WLBD Club Doll

This is my 2011 WLBD Club Doll Yanci.  She was made by doll artist Lorna Paris.  She's a departure from the type of doll that I usually collect, but I love her just the same.