Custom Figure: TV21 Comics Black Dalek (Second Version)

As the Dalek drones of the TV21 comics slightly changed colours so did the Black Dalek, and with my "Guard" Dalek drones now under the command of a Red Dalek Leader, I felt it was important to also add a new Black Dalek to the mix to complete the chain of command. This second version of the Black Dalek is another custom I've been looking forward to doing for some time now, and the increased availability of the Guard Dalek mould following the release of History of the Daleks sets finally made it an affordable possibility.

Custom Figure: TV21 Comics Red Dalek Leader

With the classic Dalek figure back on the market again thanks to the History of the Daleks sets being released at B&M Stores, it's been great to get back into producing custom Dalek figures on a regular basis. As you might be aware by now the 1960s Dalek comics published in TV Century 21 are one of my all-time favourite pieces of Doctor Who media, so building up a collection of figures to properly represent them has been a dream of mine for some time. The comics finally getting republished in 2020 also rekindled my love for them all over again. After creating a comfortable little display of a black Dalek, red Dalek and two Dalek drones in the colour schemes of the early strips, my next plan was to do the same for when the designs and colours of the Daleks began to mirror that of their movie counterparts. For example the standard silver and blue Dalek drones became the blue-domed versions seen in Dr. Who & the Daleks.  This time around getting the drones done didn't require any paintwork, but they did need leaders - and this is where the Red Dalek Leader of Skaro Control Sky Seven comes in.

Custom Figure: TV21 Comics Dalek Drone

Anyone who’s been following this blog will know I’m a HUGE fan of the Dalek comics printed in the pages of TV Century 21 (later simply TV21) during the 1960s and republished as The Dalek Chronicles. I’ve done a few custom figures over the past few years, even managing to source one of the rare Golden Emperor model kit. But with figures of the original 1963 proving quite pricey on the aftermarket, making any more has felt like a pipe dream. That is until Character Options announced the B&M Stores exclusive History of the Daleks sets. With the figures now back on the market, it’s time to fill up the ranks with a couple of Dalek drones. After all, you can’t have a proper Dalek hierarchy if you don’t have the ones at the bottom.

Custom Figure: TV21 Dalek Comics Menoid Master Mechanoid

The Menoid Master is the leader of the Mechanoids in the TV21 Dalek comic strips, which told the story of Dalek history and conquests in world outside of Doctor Who. Whereas the Mechanoids that appeared in The Chase were simply robots that were abandoned on the planet Mechanus, the Mechanoids of the comics were a different story. As the Daleks began their plans for conquest across the cosmos, the Mechanoids were among their earliest opposition – warning them to stay away from their territory. War was narrowly avoided thanks to the efforts of the Zerovians, but the Mechanoids were still wary of the Daleks and continued to consider them enemies.

Toybox REVIEW: Reshape TV21 Comics Golden Emperor Dalek Model Kit

This is a project that I've been on and off with for about six months now, but only really found the time to finish it this weekend. If you've been reading this blog, you'll know by now that I'm a massive fan of the TV21 Dalek comics from the 1960s (during the height of 'Dalekmania'). Their origin may be completely different, but seeing the Daleks in a Doctor-less strip created a really rich history for them that made the race so much more than the ruthless villains we see on TV. Leading them was the Golden Emperor, a unique Dalek with a smaller skirt section, giant spherical head and seven dome lights adorning it.

I knew I needed to have one, but a good looking custom is something I've always felt beyond my current skills and the chance of Character Options ever producing one is probably zero. Then I came across this garage kit from Reshape and Comet Minatures (who have sadly since closed down and re-opened as internet store Timeless Hobbies). The asking price was a little high (it has gone up slightly since I purchased it) and the set was recommend for experienced model builders, but with it being my dream Dalek I knew I had to have it.

Toybox REVIEW: Doctor Who Eighth Doctor with Dalek Alpha

Despite 2013 being a celebration of Doctor Who's 50th anniversary, anyone remotely in the know can tell you that it hasn't been a great year for Character Options' 5" toy line. Not only have the modern series figures been replaced with a brand new 3.75" line, but the classic figures have halted to a non-existent snails pace. Its not outright stopped because thankfully there's a 5" War Doctor (with alternate eighth Doctor head) coming in February 2014, but that's still a while off. So what has the line given us this year to celebrate this momentous anniversary? More Daleks of course!

Love it or hate it, Doctors and Daleks seem to be one of the few sure sellers this scale has and so CO have decided to kill two birds with one stone by making 11 Toys R Us exclusive Doctor/Dalek sets for each Doctor. While all of these are only repaints, some of them are quite interesting - like this one for example, the Eighth Doctor and Dalek Alpha.

With only a TV movie and Night of the Doctor minisode to his name, eighth Doctor Paul McGann doesn't have a whole lot of on screen appearances to draw from. Opting to go the comic route rather than draw on McGann's popular Big Finish audio stories, Character have dived into this Doctor's selection of stories from the official Doctor Who magazine and gone for Children of the Revolution, a story that acts as a sequel to the second Doctor's The Evil of the Daleks.

The box has the same standard design of all the previous Doctor Who figure sets that have been released over the past few years - blue 70s style vortex design with the 90s logo. The back features a picture of Paul McGann from the TV movie and a brief bio of the eighth Doctor and the Daleks. Its a shame that the Dalek one is just a generic "evil aliens" paragraph , because Dalek Alpha is actually one of the nice humanised Daleks. A little synopsis of the comic might have been good too, because all things considered it is fairly obscure.

THE EIGHTH DOCTOR

Remoulds were off the table, so getting an eighth Doctor figure based on his brand new look from Big Finish's Dark Eyes (and presumably onwards) was sadly never going to happen (although with a new slightly hairless McGann coming with the War Doctor, fingers crossed for the future!). Since the Doctor's standard suit has already been made available in the 11 Doctors figure set, this figure also takes its design cues from the comics and places the eighth Doctor in a repainted version of his normal costume with a rather fetching blue coat.

Character Options' human sculpts can be hit and miss at even the best of times, but this particular figure has a pretty good likeness to Paul McGann as he appeared in the 1996 TV movie. Looking at the face too closely through a camera with flash makes it seem like he has some sort of weird make-up on, but in hand the shading looks far more muted and adds a nice bit of depth to the eyes. As a straight repaint of the 11 Doctors set Eighth, it has been sculpted with the right hand clenched to hold his sonic screwdriver - however this release sadly does not come with the Doctor's trusty tool.

Character Options' articulation still feels a bit outdated in comparison to American toylines (there's no point in even comparing them to Japanese collectors' lines), but for what it's worth this Doctor actually has a decent range. Being on a plug the head has a bit of up/down motion as well as being able to turn naturally, and the arms have four points of articulation at the shoulders, biceps, elbows and hands. Moving down the body we have a waist swivel, which is rounded off by an upper leg cut and knee hinge. The coat is made of soft plastic so will easily move out of the way when bringing the legs forward, but don't expect to the upper part to move back very far.

DALEK ALPHA

One of the three original Daleks infused with the human factor in The Evil of the Daleks, Dalek Alpha is a rarity among Dalek toys as it is the first classic Dalek to be released in red (technically the first red Dalek in the line is the Supreme from The Stolen Earth/Journey's End). There has been some discrepancy as to whether this figure is accurate, as the comic strip itself has Alpha as simply red and silver for the most part. That being said, the comic doesn't have amazing detailed colour to begin with, the silver is more dark grey and the hemispheres are black in at least one panel so who knows. Personally I prefer the red/silver/black as it adds a better deal of colour variation to the toy. 

To put it quite simply, Alpha is possibly the most beautiful looking Dalek that Character Options have released. The colour choice really makes it stand out from the endless swarm of silver and grey ones produced, and the alpha decal on the side of the dome may only be small but makes it feel like something unique. Alpha has three wheels on the base and so can be rolled along a flat service freely, and features a 360 degree rotating dome and moveable appendages. Essentially it does everything a classic Dalek should do, but looks considerably better doing it.

It would be easy to just sit and moan about how eleven Doctor/Dalek repaint packs is both cheap and disappointing, and in many cases I'm sure it will be. However I don't think this one should be considered among them. This is only the second figure the Eighth Doctor has gotten, and with movie likeness rights possibly up in arms other characters may not end up happening. As a huge fan of the more obscurer releases, I'm ecstatic to see Character Options tried with this set to release something truly unique. They may both only be repaints, but a different McGann figure is always welcome and Dalek Alpha has never seen release before and probably never will. In terms of originality, this set without a doubt stands as the winner among all 11 and certainly the only one I'd consider a "must have" for collectors. The more love the eighth Doctor gets, the better.

Toybox REVIEW: Doctor Who Dalek Invasion Time Zone Playset

If there's one good thing the switch over to the 3.75" scale has brought to Doctor Who toys, it's that it allows for much greater variety . Before play sets were pretty much limited to TARDIS consoles but now Character Options have opened things up a bit with the introduction of "Time Zone" sets. These consist of cardboard dioramas on a connectable plastic base, with an exclusive figure usually thrown into the mix as an added incentive. So far there have been four sets released - a Cold War one with an unarmoured Ice Warrior, a Hide set featuring a Crooked Man, an Angels Take Manhattan set with Cherub Angels (funny how this scale doesn't have Rory, Amy or River though) and another that doesn't really fit with the others. Why? Because it's not really based on an existing story nor does it actually come with a figure. This is of course the Dalek Invasion set, which creates a new modern Dalek invasion setting and comes packaged with a vehicle which long time Dalek fans might be particularly interested in...

While it doesn't really give an indication of how big the diorama is when assembled, the Dalek Invasion set comes in a reasonably big box with the standard blue Doctor Who decor. Both sides feature images of the assembled set, while the back also features pictures of the other Time Zone sets and the following bio.

"2075AD and the Daleks have invaded Earth once more. Using their might Saucer ships they bombard London driving the surviving population underground. Once they land, the Daleks patrol the ground looking for survivors in the rubble to either exterminate or transform into their puppets using Dalek nanocloud technology. In the skies the Daleks use long range 'Hoverbout' Anti-gravity disks to pursue the resistance.

The TARDIS materialises near a Trans-Sys matter transmission station in Hyde Park and the Doctor realises that he will need all his resources to once again defeat his oldest enemies and save the Earth from destruction. The future of the human race hangs in the balance..."

Inside you'll find the contents neatly packaged in a number of plastic bags.

The good news for any disgruntled model builders is that the set not only includes an easy to follow instruction pamphlet, but also doesn't require any glue to get pieces to hold into place. Everything has foldable tabs which even manage to maintain the shape of the 3D items. The only bits of plastic involved are the base, the two towers which hold the backdrop in place and four pins that hold the two parts of the backdrop together. Everything else is 100% cardboard.

And personally I'd have been happy to pay for a little bit more plastic here. It isn't that the kit is difficult to put together by any means (although the "Saucer Over London" board gave me way more trouble than I'd like to admit), but I have my doubts that this set would last very long in child's hands - especially if for any reason it needed to be disassembled and reassembled at a later date.The tabs are sturdy enough to hold everything in place but this still involves folding the cardboard, and struggling with the aforementioned board showed me just how rippable it is. Cost was obviously the biggest issue here (and I guess lower cost = more sets), but I definitely think this could be a bit sturdier.

Anyway, enough wishful thinking and let's focus on what we do have here.  The backdrop is a great image of Dalek saucers over Westminster, with one landed and jutting out a 3D ramp which figures can be placed on (or in a Dalek's case, also rolled down). Beside it is a TARDIS cut out which I imagine could be switched for the plastic version should you own it, and next to that is the made-up "Trans-sys" system. This is actually a rather cheeky little in-joke when you think about it - that Trans-sys logo also happens to be the Character Options company logo. The one 3D prop is a cardboard newspaper bulletin board proclaiming the invasion. Although I'm sure by the time that paper came out everyone was more than aware there was a saucer over London... 

But enough about those boring pieces of cardboard, let's talk about the REAL draw for this set - the Dalek hoverbout vehicle. While this might seem like a redundant piece of technology to fans introduced to the show through the new series, this nifty little vehicle actually has a long history with the Daleks outside of the show. Back in the days when they COULDN'T fly, the Daleks dominated the skies with these hoverbout vehicles - which were also (and perhaps more popularly) known as "Transolar Discs". The vehicles have gone on to appear in several other pieces on non-canon Who, including an onscreen appearance in the "...More Than 30 Years in the TARDIS" documentary. So yeah, seeing this reimagined for the new series style Daleks is kind of a big deal.

The hoverbout comes with the rail section unassembled and in three pieces which lock neatly into the holes - the central control section and the rails on either side. The base features a Dalek shaped groove for a 3.75" figure to fit in - it's a reasonably snug fit, but the Dalek doesn't lock in so it is possible for it to suddenly roll backward if you aren't careful. It doesn't have any articulation on it but the colouring and detail is absolutely superb - lots of varying bronzes, blue anti-gravity "lights" at the bottom and to top it all off the Dalek's plunger fits perfectly over the control panel. My only real gripe is that I wish it came with some sort of stand, because that detailed bottom needs to be shown off and precariously balancing it on a Bandai Tamashii stage isn't really working for me.

Recommending the Dalek Invasion Time Zone playset is one of those things that  relies on a number of factors. If you're a collector with a huge fondness for the TV21 comics like myself, then this is an absolute must have for the hoverbout, no doubt about it. If this static vehicle is of no interest to you, then the set is a bit of a harder sell. The diorama is nice, but only really for collectors with space on their side (which I'm sure is a rarity). I'd also assume most collectors would be prepared to fork out for something stronger, but kids will love it even if they wear it to be pieces.

Honestly, the best way to have made this a definite win would have been to just include a Dalek figure. I have no idea why that wasn't done in the first place.

Custom Figure: TV 21 Comics Black Dalek

I'm into the TV-21 Dalek comics in a big way. So much that getting a nice little collection of comic-deco Daleks is one of my biggest priorities when it comes to customs. I've already got a Zeg, and another project in the works (which you'll see in the pictures further down) thanks to a garage kit I managed to find online. The only problem is that these require 1964 Daleks as the base, and these aren't particularly cheap to procure anymore. While a talking version is out in the near future to make life a little easier, I managed to pick an original one up from a convention and started work on my next project - the Black Dalek!

Notice how I said "Black Dalek" rather than "Dalek Supreme"? This is how the Dalek is referred to by the Emperor in the comic and to me the name connotates a little more than simply leadership. When Zeg challenges for leadership of the Daleks and proclaims his invincibility, he is demanded to test his worth against the Black Dalek. Though the Black Dalek's firepower proves completely ineffective against Zeg, the challenge suggests that this is perhaps the strongest Dalek in the empire. Not just a leader, but a black knight of sorts. The Emperor's champion.

Though other black Daleks would appear in the comics with different decos (including the Dalek Supreme of the 1965 Dr. Who and the Daleks movie), this one is based off the black/silver design that first appeared in the strip. As mentioned the base body is a 1964 Dalek, with Citadel's "Chaos Black" and "Mythril Silver" paints used.

Next on my "to do" list is a couple of standard drones in various different colourschemes!

Toybox REVIEW: LEGO DC Universe Super Heroes The Joker

Who can have a Batman without a Joker? When I received the LEGO DC Universe Super Heroes Batman set (#4526), I was ecstatic to see I was also given his arch nemesis for him to be posed with/battle against. Like Batman, the DC Universe Super Heroes Joker set (#4527) can be combined with the Green Lantern set (#4528) to create a powered up Joker.

The Joker is made up of slightly more parts than Batman - 57 as opposed to Batman's 40 (although there were a few spare pieces left over when I was finished building). Once you build the skeleton frame, armour pieces clip on to make out the bulk of the Joker. Save for the small orange spikes decorating the shoulders, there aren't any small pieces making up the Joker himself (there is however a bag of small pieces in the box for the weapon).

One thing I have to commend on this kit is the head, they absolutely nailed it. From the rubbery hair to the glaring eyes and huge grin, LEGO couldn't have done any better in portraying the Joker's insanity. With lots of ball and socket making up the frame, Joker has plenty of articulation to show off with a full range of movement in the head,shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees and feet. The spiked shoulder pads are also on a ball joint so can be moved around to prevent constricting arm movement.

Hanging from Joker's back are two articulated tail coat pieces, which are a nice touch and add quite a bit more character to the kit. Joker's weapon of choice is an oversized pistol, which is held together by smaller LEGO technic (is it even called that any more?) pieces and made of up of some rather nifty-yet-garish translucent neon yellow and orange pieces. Its far more fitting to the character than Batman's dual swords, and is a nice accessory to give the Joker some fun poses.

Batman was a fun figure, but The Joker is even better. The headsculpt is brilliant, the clashing colours reflect the Clown Prince of Crime's dress sense and the weapon looks good and is actually fitting to the character. I've not played around with the Green Lantern to be able to judge, but it has some very stiff competition to be as fun as this figure.

Now I just need to get myself a Green Lantern to super power my Joker.