G.I.JOE 1/6 Black Dragon Ninja

Both the G.I.JOE team and the terrorist organization COBRA are keenly aware of the superior martial arts skills possessed by members of the ARASHIKAGE CLAN. While COBRA COMMANDER has employed the RED NINJAs from the ARASHIKAGE ninja clan, the ruthless leader formed a select group of ninjas who were completely loyal to protect him should the RED NINJAs or any opposing force ever get too close, leading to the establishment of COBRA'S BLACK DRAGON NINJAS.

COBRA COMMANDER had his BLACK DRAGON NINJAS brainwashed as a precaution to ensure that his growing ranks of ARASHIKAGE never rise up against him or COBRA. Little did he know that the ninja STORM SHADOW is a master of the atsui nami (a deep mind control technique), which he cunningly used on the BLACK DRAGON NINJAS to ensure their allegiance to him.

Regardless of who their true master is, these ruthless ninja warriors are swift, silent, and deadly, and they pose a tremendous threat to anyone who crosses them.

Scroll down to see more preview pictures of this soon-to-be-released Sideshow Collectibles 1/6 scale Black Dragon Ninja 12-inch figure

Sideshow Collectibles 1/6 scale Black Dragon Ninja 12-inch figure will come with: Articulated Prometheus 1.1 body with over 30 points of articulation, Hand-painted portrait with sculpted fabric style mask, Fabric vest with COBRA logo, Fabric undershirt, Fabric pants, Fabric belt
Rope, Fabric forearm and shin bracers with wraps, Detailed sculpted hands, forearm and shin armor, Fabric sash with pockets, Fabric satchel, Fabric hood, Fabric neck wrap, Sculpted / fabric headband with COBRA logo. One (1) pair standing Tabi boot, One (1) pair action Tabi boot, Eleven (11) Interchangeable hands for alternate display options, Tanto knife with scabbard, Nodachi sword with scabbard, Kyoketsu-Shoge, Six (6) Hira shuriken, AK-74SU assault rifle with parastock and pad, Five (5) waffle magazines, AK silencer, AK sight, Waist support extendable figure stand with COBRA stand

Click to view original size - BIGGER & BETTER!

Sideshow Exclusive: The Sideshow Exclusive version of the Black Dragon Ninja Sixth Scale Figure includes a unique feature available nowhere else - Additional hand painted scarred portrait with sculpted armor style mask for alternate display

Grand Theft Auto III 10th Year Anniversary Limited Edition Claude

10 years ago, this month, the revolutionary open-world epic Grand Theft Auto III was released to the world – a game that set players loose as a small-time criminal at the bottom of the food chain in Liberty City, a sprawling metropolis where anything can happen – and probably will.

Rockstar Games has announced that they will be releasing a limited-edition 12-inch action figure of lead character Claude, created by renowned collectible manufacturer Sideshow. It will be available for pre-order in limited quantities at the Rockstar Warehouse.

This fully articulated 1:6 scale action figure of Claude comes dressed in his original attire of cargo pants and a bomber jacket, but can also sport his iconic Liberty City Prison-issued jumpsuit (supplied) and comes equipped with an arsenal of classic weapons from Grand Theft Auto III including a bat, knife, grenades, pistol, sniper rifle, and assault rifle.

Grand Theft Auto III 10 Year Anniversary Limited Edition (Only 1,500 pieces) Claude Action Figure Features: 12-inch body with nearly 30 points of articulation, Fabric Liberty City State prison outfit, Bomber jacket with real zippers, Canvas cargo pants, sneakers, Two assault rifles, Sniper rifle, Grenades, Knife, Sub machine gun, Baseball bat, Pistol, Extra hands including One pair of fists, One right trigger hand and One left C grip hand.

Notice how everyone's getting into the 1/6 market and competing for our moolah.

You can order the Grand Theft Auto III 10 Year Anniversary Limited Edition (Only 1,500 pieces) Claude Action Figure HERE

Sideshow Collectibles Star Wars 1:6 Clone Commander Bacara

Commander Bacara, also known by the numerical designation 1138, was a clone commander who worked alongside General Ki-Adi-Mundi against Separatist droid armies on the Outer Rim planet Mygeeto. Though he fought alongside the Jedi in numerous battles, Bacara's ultimate loyalty was to the Republic and its Supreme Chancellor. When Palpatine contacted him personally and executed Order 66, Bacara carried out the command without question. He and his fellow Galactic Marines opened fire on Ki-Adi-Mundi, killing their general.

Sideshow Collectibles will be releasing this 1/6 scale Clone Commander Bacara 12-inch figure as part of their Militaries of Star Wars line. Sideshow Collectibles has been most successful in releasing the armored troopers from the Star Wars films. No other 1/6 manufacturer / company has been able to consistently put out these 1/6 scale Star Wars figures except Sideshow and kudos must be given to the company for being able to stay focused and keep collectors and fans happy with their constant release of these figures. Very soon, we'll be able to form a platoon out of all these Sideshow clone troopers which is more than what Hot Toys has done. Hot Toys has not been able to release the "Platoon" 12-inch figures even though they had teased collectors about it. It seems the platoon is MIA (Missing In Action) in Vietnam! Isn't that where Hot Toys fakes had been spotted? But that's for another post.

The Sideshow Collectibles Star Wars 1:6 scale Clone Commander Bacara 12 inch Figure features: Articulated Armored Body with over 30 points of articulation, Detailed Fabric Bodysuit, Highly Detailed Full Body Armor Set with Revised Shoulder Pauldron, Phase II Open Face Helmet Portrait, Fabric Kama Command Skirt, Fabric Chest Pauldron, One (1) pair flat palm hands, One (1) pair thumbs up hands, One (1) pair closed fists, One (1) pair trigger grip hands, One (1) pair C-grip hands, One (1) right hand with one finger point, One (1) left hand with two finger point, One (1) left hand with two finger spread, One (1) pair standing boot, One (1) pair action boot, BlasTech DC-15A Long Range Blaster Rifle, BlasTech DC-15S Blaster Carbine, Two (2) BlasTech DC-17 Pistols, Lower support extendable figure stand with Star Wars logo

Some nice poses of the Sideshow Collectibles Clone Commander Bacara 12-inch figure released

In the Star Wars film "Revenge of the Sith (2005)", which was the sixth and final film released in the Star Wars saga and the third in terms of the series' internal chronology, it was nice to see some individuality among the clone troopers, especially with the commanders.

An unorthodox training regimen run by the Advanced Recon Commando known as Alpha-17 was designed to bring out the independence and tactical genius which was dormant within all clones; his regimen emphasized individuality and creativity, elements which had been modified in the original creation of the clone troopers. As a result, each clone commander took a name and added their own unique touch to their armor which was different from the troops under their command.

So besides different color markings for unit designations, clone commanders themselves adopted additional add-ons for individuality and to stand out from their troops, very much like how the Roman centurion stood out from the legionaries they commanded.

Poor General Ki-Adi-Mundi. The Jedi Knight never even knew what was coming. Shot down in cold blood by his own commander and troops :( A sad chapter in the Star Wars saga.

Sideshow Exclusive will be a 21st Nova Corp Galactic Marines base for alternate display

Not missing much if you can't get the exclusive, especially if you choose to display your figures without the display base like me :) Move along, nothing to see here.

Sideshow Collectibles 1/6 Crimson Guard

Sideshow Toys teased us last week with a single image of the upcoming Crimson Guard figure coming out under their G.I. Joe: Real American Hero line. Well, this week, they have released the rest of the Prototype /Preview images. 

A pleasant new neighbor. A local auto mechanic. A respected school teacher. To most citizens, these are conventional roles found in every community. To COBRA COMMANDER, they serve as the perfect guise for his CRIMSON GUARD. CRIMSON GUARD soldiers are the most elite of all of COBRA COMMANDER's legion of VIPER solders.

The terrorist leader strategically places the CRIMSON GUARD deep undercover, using their respected statuses in society to influence the flow of information and finances, so that their communities favor COBRA and its eventual goal of global conquest by any means necessary.

Despite spending most of their duty in a combat-free setting, CRIMSON GUARD soldiers are highly trained and expected to maintain top physical condition to overcome the G.I.JOE team or anyone else who dares to oppose them.

The Crimson Guard 12 inch Figure features: Articulated Prometheus 1.2 body with over 30 points of articulation, Highly Detailed and Hand Painted Crimson Guard Helmet Portrait, Detailed Fabric SIEGIE Uniform Jacket with Affixed Rank and Medal Badges, Fabric Undershirt, Fabric Pants, Detailed and Functioning Storage Pack with Fabric Straps, Standard Issue SIEGIE FAL Rifle, One (1) FAL Magazine, Bayonet, .45 Assault SMG with Folding Stock, SMG Sling, Three (3) .45 SMG Magazines, Micro Red Dot Sight, SMG Suppressor, Tactical Left Hand Drop Leg Holster, .50 Caliber Automatic Pistol, Three (3) .50 Magazines, Two (2) Flash Bang Grenades, One (1) Magnetic Mine, One (1) pair gloved fists, One (1) left C grip hand, One (1) left gloved open hand, One (1) right gloved trigger hand, One (1) right C grip hand, Newly developed sculpted boots, One (1) pair standing bottom boot, One (1) pair action bottom boot, 1:6 Scale GI JOE Figure Stand with COBRA logo

The Sideshow Exclusive version of the Crimson Guard 12 inch Figure includes a unique feature available nowhere else: Highly Detailed and Hand Painted Unmasked SIEGIE portrait

Sideshow Collectibles Star Wars 1/6 scale Holiday Yoda Preview

From Lucasfilm's 1981 greeting card design by Ralph McQuarrie, Holiday Yoda is a must-have for Yoda fans during this year's holiday season!

The Sideshow Collectibles Star Wars 1/6 scale Holiday Yoda Figure features: Fully Articulated Body, Highly Detailed and Hand Painted Portrait, Sculpted Hat, Fabric Jacket, Fabric Pants, Belt, Cane, Ball, Sculpted Alphabet Block, Detailed Stack of Toys with Fabric Drawstring Sack

The last description for the items included: Detailed Stack of Toys with Fabric Drawstring Sack means that the toys you see inside the sack are just one molded piece and not individual miniature pieces that you can take apart.

The sculpted hat looks to be stuck to Yoda's head as it is always seen on Yoda's head and is never removed. What I would have liked to see would have been a 1/6 scale Santa Claus outfit set (including removable hat) which includes the sack of toys. In this way, those of us who already have the Sideshow 1/6 scale Yoda which was released earlier only need to purchase the outfit without having to pay for another Yoda figure. Those who didn't get the Yoda originally might be tempted to purchase one just because now there's an additional option of posing Yoda as Santa Claus, besides having Yoda as Jedi Master.

I already have a 1/6 scale Santa Claus outfit and my version of Santa has been dishing out his version of Christmas Greetings every year ;p

Of course Sideshow also tries to make their Holiday Yoda look more appealing by posing him with his hut but that residence alone will set you back by a few hundred bucks :( Not my cup of tea.

Sideshow Collectibles Star Wars Utapau Shadow Trooper Preview

The brainchild of Armand Isard, Director of Republic Intelligence and Director-General of the Senate Bureau of Intelligence, the shadow trooper division was created mainly as a reconnaissance tool. Designed to augment the dwindling number of ARC troopers, shadow troopers operate singly or in pairs. They operate covertly, yet still in armor, posing as mercenaries of bounty hunters to slip quietly in and out of locations while quietly gathering intelligence.

Shadow trooper armor is based on standard Phase II clone armor. Strategically placed magseals allow the attachment of deceptive plating that alters the appearance of a shadow trooper. Different styles allow the shadow trooper to appear to be Hutt-hired mercenaries, Black Sun operatives, or independent bounty hunters. The plating is primarily cosmetic; it does disguise a clone trooper's sensor signature against detection devices. The plating also alters regular movement, preventing observers from recognizing the characteristic "clone gait."

When the Confederacy of Independent Systems stronghold was discovered on Utapau as General Grievous' hideout, a platoon of shadow troopers was assigned to infiltrate six sinkhole cities and place jammers that would allow the Republic army to invade without notice. Success of the shadow trooper division led to the creation of the Storm Commandos, as well as Blackhole's elite stormtrooper forces.

The Utapau Shadow Trooper 12 inch Figure features: Articulated Armored Body with over 30 points of articulation, Detailed Fabric Bodysuit, Highly Detailed Full Body Clone Shadow Trooper Armor Set, Phase II Helmet Portrait, One (1) pair flat palm hands, One (1) pair thumbs up hands, One (1) pair closed fists, One (1) pair trigger grip hands, One (1) pair C-grip hands, One (1) right hand with one finger point, One (1) left hand with two finger point, One (1) left hand with two finger spread, One (1) pair standing boot, One (1) pair action boot, BlasTech DC-15A Long Range Blaster Rifle, BlasTech DC-15S Blaster Carbine, Lower support extendable figure stand with Star Wars logo

Basically another clone trooper figure repainted. Sideshow should charge less for these since they already have the basic mold and they only have to paint each figure differently. They can mass produce these by the tens of thousands and then paint each batch differently. There isn't any new innovation in design, no research and development costs, no new product or accessory (every Sideshow Star Wars 1/6 scale clone trooper 12-inch figure comes with the two rifles - one short & one long - and a lot of hands since there really isn't anything else they can include) so the only cost is paint!

If Sideshow Collectibles had given a different base i.e. a dynamic diorama-type display base with each figure, then at least there's something to look forward to with each new release. Otherwise, it's going to be orange, red, grey, blue, black and camouflage colors. Let's get creative, Sideshow! Make us excited!!