Trek stuff, of course

I have been very reluctant to say too much until the new "Star Trek" movie goes into general release next week. Even listing my favourite scenes would be like a list of spoilers for others.

At the free advance screening I went to (last Monday), the audience of competition winners was mesmerized. Laughing in the funny bits, sniffing in the sad bits, jumping in the scary bits, but otherwise totally engaged with the screen. I still haven't read a bad review, and it's also heartening to read comments from people online saying they went in fully expecting to hate the movie and ending up loving it. I know there'll still be people who absolutely hate what JJ Abrams has done, but hopefully the overall increase in ST popularity will hang around for a few years more.

I picked up a ticket for local evening screening on Thursday, and have a theatre party booking in the CBD with friends for Friday night. Maybe IMAX on the weekend?

As for the action figures, I'm just not understanding the hatred for them I've seen so far on various collectibles listservs and TrekBBS. I've now seen examples of most Playmates figures in 3.75" and 6", and they are great! (6" Uhura is still elusive). Even the 6" Kirk, which looked a bit odd in some preview pics, looked fine in the package.

The 3.75" figures are soooooo cute. They are way more articulated than Mego and Galoob 3.75" figures, and more cleverly-jointed than ERTL ST III figures. (Uhura's bare knees don't have ugly silver pins in them!) I can't wait for my huge mail order packages from Rick at NewForce to arrive, so I can assemble the tiny crew onto the bridge and transporter playsets. (Gosh, I think I ordered the playsets. It was soooo long ago.) The local 3.75" figures are not having bonus bridge pieces in their packaging, but these bits will come with Wave 2 figures later in the year, I've been informed.

Every figure I picked up had excellent painted detailing; I'm not seeing the poor face applications people have complained about. Others have mentioned that Uhura and Pike were the shortpacks in the US, and I only saw one of each on Thursday night at Hobbyco in the CBD, so I grabbed them for future customising. I'm thinking that I might end up securing any cadet uniform-outfitted figures I ever see on special and using them to make a roomful of alien cadets!

Ah, and my eBay-ordered "Buy it now" Funko Andorian "Wacky Wobbler Bobble-head" turned up yesterday. Very cute, but it doesn't talk. Many online references claimed that he was supposed to, but that's only the Kirk and Spock, I understand.

Now I want the Gorn, I think.


Funko "Star Trek" Andorian Wacky Wobbler Bobble-head
meets Playmates' 2009 movie Uhura (3.75"), evil Nero (6")
and evil Nero Mini-Me (3.75").

Showing restraint

When I first moved here in 2000, I made myself a promise that the lounge room would be a "Star Trek-free" room, since I had a spare room to gussy up as a Star Trek Shrine, and a family room (with no family to put in it) for the overflow. But it didn't take long for the Star Trek videocassettes and CDs, and then DVD boxed sets, and even my wonderful "Piiiiiigs iiiiiin Spaaaaaaace" playset (with First Mate Miss Piggy, Captain Link Hogthrob and Dr Strangepork of "The Muppet Show"), to creep into the lounge room and help to clutter it up.

Well, now that the new lounge suite is here: the dust has been eradicated, for the time being, at least; the two caged birds have been banished to another part of the house; the walls, ceiling and skirting boards are all freshly painted; and I've shown great restraint by bringing out only the Trek CDs, DVDs, and just a few VHS tapes. And the antennaed blue mannequin dressed in his authentic "It's a Wrap!" Andorian outfit from "Star Trek: Enterprise", of course. Only the essentials...