Blue Falcon - Super Hero

I don't generally paint super hero miniatures (Heroclix has that covered pretty well) but I had this Man of Steel Heroclix sitting around so...

Any Saturday morning that featured Blue Falcon & Dynomutt was automatically a little bit better. There's probably some science that can back that up.

Anyway, I used green stuff to add the beak and other details. I suppose if I run across the Heroclix Dogpool figure sometime, I can make BF's assistant.

(I may have just open the door to doing a bunch of Wacky Racers minis too.)

-c

Melodia - Mon*Star Gang Gunner

<Insert obvious Melodia - Lady Gaga joke here.>

Anyway, Melodia was kind of a cool addition to the SilverHawks cartoon because she used music as a weapon. Of course, so did Bluegrass, but Melodia was much cooler than him.

Much, much cooler.

For Melodia, I started with the Heroclix Kabuki mini and added details with green stuff. Her keytar is green stuff and a bit of paper clip.

-c

Chell - Test Subject

You don't need me to tell you how good Portal was.

But I didn't plan to make a mini for Chell. Then they came out with the Days of Future Past Ariel, wearing a jumpsuit and holding a box that, from the right angle, looked like a cube.

I knew what I had to do.

For Chell, I used green stuff and a little plastic to make her Long Fall boots. The box she's holding is longer than a cube, but close enough.

Her jumpsuit and boots are kind of a mix and match from Portal and Portal 2. Since her jumpsuit is already orange, I painted the base blue. It would be kind of fun to have two, one with a blue base and one with an orange base though...

Will I be doing minis of GlaDOS or Wheatley?

Never say never...

-c

Miranda Lawson - Cerberus Officer

Mass Effect is full of dynamic, interesting characters.

And also Miranda Lawson.

I'm kidding, but Miranda was kind of dull to me, compared to the other characters. I almost always sided with Jack against Miranda, and rarely listened to her advice (for better or worse.)

But, I'll admit she has a cool uniform.

For Miranda, I used the Gamora Heroclix. I trimmed Gamora's sword a little to try and make it look like an Omni-tool or something.

Or maybe Miranda is secretly a Jedi?

-c

Samara - Asari Justicar

If they ever make a Mass Effect game where you can choose races other than Human, I bet there's going to be a million Asari.

Trust me on this one.

Anyway...

Samara fills the role that you have to have in any RPG-type game of being the stuck up Paladin type. She also kind of fills the role of the stuck up Wizard too though with her biotics, so she's kind of a two-for-one deal.

I thought she was kind of creepy at first, but as you get into her back story,  a lot of things make sense. She was my go-to Biotic troop...at least until I got Jack.

For Samara, I used a Heroclix Livewire and added her head tentacle things with green stuff.

For some reason, she looks a little like she's smiling which I don't think Samara ever did.

It's kind of worrying...

-c

Baroness - Cobra Intelligence Expert (Sigma 6)

Another version of the Baroness? Why not?

If there's one character that stays pretty much the same from version to version, it's Baroness. Black outfit, glasses, dark hair, all the same.

The Sigma 6 version looks a little more like a spy, but still pretty similar, so it was easy to convert a Heroclix Black Widow.

I think the strangest thing about the Sigma 6 version of Baroness is that I don't remember her doing much. She was pretty consistently used in the Sunbow cartoon and the Marvel comics, but in Sigma 6, I only remember her playing chess with Destro.

Which sounds like a euphemism, but isn't.

-c

Long Range - Sigma 6 Marksman

Long Range existed before Sigma 6 as a red haired vehicle driver, but let's be honest, he was pretty forgettable.

So, when I saw they recycled the name for a new character who is not only a driver, but also a sniper, I was interested. Plus, for some reason, Long Range's design reminds me a bit of the characters and art style of Lupin III.

I think it's kind of nice that this version of Long Range is Hispanic, rather than being one more white guy on the team. Between Duke and Hi-Tech, there's already plenty of white on the Sigma 6 team.

For Long Range, I used the Heroclix Johnny Blaze and added the visor with green stuff.

"Long Range lean and mean..."

-c

Spirit - Sigma 6 Tracker

Spirit is one of my favorite Joe characters so I was glad to see him included in the Sigma 6 reboot, but like his ARAH version, he's a little...problematic.

For some reason, it's hard to include a Native American character without them becoming a stereo-type. It seems to happen more with Native Americans than any other minority that they automatically get certain Indian traits: tracking, archery, mysticism, etc.

I'm not saying it's bad necessarily, but it's easy for the characters to become just caricatures of their culture.

Maybe it's even more obvious a problem since I was able to easily adapt the Warpath Heroclix to be Spirit.

Food for thought.

-c

Swamp Rat - Cobra V-Troops Infiltrators

I'm not sure what a "V-Troop" is actually.

Valor vs. Venom is one part of the Joeverse I haven't delved into yet. The only reason I even know about Swamp Rats is because one comes bundled with Snake Eyes (v23).

I picked up the Snake Eyes \ Swamp Rat set because I liked that version of Snake Eyes, but the Swamp Rat has kind of grown on me. He has a kind of alien look that is pretty intimidating.

I still had an extra Heroclix Man of Steel Soldier, so I used green stuff to mod his helmet and give him the cape thing.

I wasn't expecting it, but I think the outcome is one of the cooler looking Cobra troops I've done.

Way to go, Swamp Rat!

-c

Cobra PR Trooper - Public Relations

In general, I stick with "official" G.I.Joe figures. The source might vary and the character might be a minor, one-shot character, but they need to be official.

But, in the case of the Cobra PR Trooper, I'm willing to make an exception.

To me, this is an example of a good original character. Instead of being a super cool ninja or gunkata expert, the Cobra PR Trooper is just an underling who is pretty low on the totem pole.

And yet, she fills a necessary role in the Cobra Organization.

For the Cobra PR Trooper, I started with a Lois Lane Heroclix and added the bag, helmet, boots, and mask with green stuff.

I'll admit her helmet is a bit clunky. Perhaps Cobra Commander just took out his frustrations on her...

-c

Croc Master - Cobra Reptile Trainer

Croc Master or Bane?
Bane or Croc Master?

Which came first?

I knew when I stared this project who I would use for Croc Master. It was just a matter of finding the Bane Heroclix at a reasonable price.

Croc Master is another one of the divisive figures from the '87 line, like Raptor and Crystal Ball. Some didn't like the idea behind him, but I thought he made a great partner for Raptor. Plus, I figured a guy with a crocodile was kind of the equivalent of Mutt & Junkyard.

Although, there has been some question on whether his pet is a croc or an alligator...

-c