Yes Virginia, there is such a thing called 'Toy Destiny'...

War Machine from Marvel-Hasbro

Never in my wildest dreams did I expect for this opportunity to come, and just when I thought that I had totally given up in finding a mini 3-inch figure of War Machine to somehow complete my Iron Man 2 collection... there they were... staring literally right in front of me... hanging on display at a famous toy discount store. I was in complete bliss! Where have you been all my life?!.. Is this real?!.. For heaven's sake somebody pinch me and tell me this isn't a dream! Instinctively I grabbed the very first War Machine figure I saw in front of me and knowing that there might be another one hidden somewhere, I began to thoroughly search each and every row I came across and bingo! Saw another one lurking somewhere in the middle section and immediately took it as well.


Before I continue folks, let me give you a brief rundown on the entire story behind my constant search for that elusive 3-inch War Machine figure for all of you guys to know what I have been blabbing just earlier... Marvel/Hasbro came up with this Iron Man 2 line-up of toys (which includes the 3-inchers) during the world premiere of the second Iron Man movie back in 2010. Eventually the excess stocks of Iron Man 2 toys went on sale around middle to late last year (2011) and that was the only time I was able to purchase the Mark III, Mark V and Mark VI since their prices were slashed by half. The 3-inchers were as abundant as it can be and all I had to do was carefully choose the better one where there were no issues with the paint job, cosmetic defects and so forth. And in that line-up, War Machine and the Tactical Assault Drone are also included... but not even one of these figures was to be found selling or even hiding somewhere from the Marvel Toy Section! Talk about "intentional scarcity" where some individuals would hoard the items that they know would be the most wanted by fans and collectors alike and jack-up their prices 2 to 3 times more! I couldn't care less about the Tactical Assault Drone if I don't get to buy it, but come hell or high waters I must have just even one War Machine figure... just one figure to complete my collection and that's it! Sadly weeks turned to months and months into years, and eventually I've decided to give up my search for those War Machine 3-inch figures because for one thing, I know for a fact that there are other toy shops who has those and as much as I want that item, I will not even dare to shell out my money for something that they are selling way too high than its intended retail price. But I guess it was indeed my destiny to cross paths with this baby and all I needed was to wait for a looonnnggg time, but it paid off quite well! I bought the two War Machine figures I found on the spot and went home feeling, as always, like a winner!

Despite being small with several paint job issues, this figure is still worth having!

I've posted some of the photos I took earlier and honestly, despite its small frame and limited posing action, this War Machine figure just looks awesome from every angle you look! No wonder every single War Machine item, from the smallest to the biggest figure, were selling out fast! Iron Man rocks big time no doubt about it, but there's something about the War Machine suit that gains (slightly) the upper hand than that of the other Tony Stark masterpieces... the colors? The payload of weaponry? Maybe these two factors have contributed greatly in making James Rhodes' alter-ego look really bad-ass! 'Til next time folks, stay safe always!


(*Click on the images for larger view and more photos inside)

Iron Man Mark III and Mark V miniature figures

HBO Asia finally premiered the movie "Iron Man 2" a couple of days ago and it was just as awesome as ever! Aside from the fact that Tony Stark gets to whoop Whiplash's ass, the movie also featured the debut of James Rupert "Rhodey" Rhodes' badass alter-ego, War Machine! I was so drawn to that movie that I even got to watch one of its scheduled reruns yesterday. Though I've got to admit that my liking for Iron Man isn't as huge and "hardcore" as my adoration for my childhood comic book hero Ghost Rider, but there is something about this superhero that really kicks butt... maybe it's the cool suits or Tony Stark's attitude and flair for rock and punk music, kinda hard to say... but altogether, personally, Iron Man is a-OK!

Iron Man Mark V

Iron Man Mark III

It was recently that I got to buy my very first Iron Man Mark VI miniature figure which was on sale at Toys R' Us in Trinoma, the entire collection from Hasbro consists of five figures, three Iron Man suit versions, the Tactical Assault Drone and War Machine. But it seems that the Drone and War Machine figures are nowhere to be found for unexplained reasons, so I decided to finally complete the entire Iron Man suits by purchasing earlier this afternoon the Mark III and Mark V figs which are still available at Toy Kingdom The Block (SM North EDSA).


I'm still keeping my hopes high that someday, somehow, somewhere I might be able to find the two missing figures from the collection, but for now I'm just going to enjoy these ones first...

Great buys: Iron Man 2 3-inch action figure from Hasbro

For the longest time I wasn't able to get myself a new toy for my collection since I have been stuck inside the house, most of the time doing nothing for some unexplained reason... maybe I was just too lazy to go out or I might be just too conscious to spend my money on cab fare since getting a taxi nowadays is gold, so to speak. It was only last July 16 (Saturday) that I got the chance to buy me a toy when I visited the Toys R' Us branch in Trinoma while waiting for my other buddies to appear for our 15th anniversary celebration at Yakimix. After getting my sister the Moxie Girlz Alice in Wonderland edition, I headed towards the action figures section where luckily I still found a number of Iron Man 2 3-inch toy figures being sold on sale for only Php 100 each.

Iron Man 2 Mark VI edition from Hasbro

These Iron Man 2 miniatures have been selling at Toy Kingdom and Toys R' Us for quite a while now and since they are still in circulation, I never hesitated to get myself one or else I might regret it later if they decide to take it off the shelves one of these days! Looking at the back of the packaging, the line-up consists of 5 action figures which comprises the Iron Man Mark III, Mark V, Mark VI, the Tactical Assault Drone and of course War Machine. So far only the three Iron Man versions are available in both stores but the Tactical Assault Drone and War Machine figures are rather elusive and nowhere to be found! It really sucks big time since I've been constantly searching for the War Machine figure in every shop or stall that I went to but to no avail. I'm pretty sure that sooner or later I'll be able to complete all three Iron Man figures, but I won't rest until I get myself that elusive War Machine fig to finally complete my collection.