Ramblings...

Has it really been since May?

Most people already know that Emi and I are getting divorced. By the 23rd of this month, we have a court date and that will be that. While I was excited to move on originally (this would have been a couple of months ago), I am finding that the grass isn't necessarily greener on the other side. Emi says this will be a new beginning for us.

I've moved across town. Found a nice lil apt for cheap and usually chill w/ the neighbors across the way. Thomas and Kody stay on the weekends.

I am a Daiso (of Japan). It is a Japanese households store in the mall. I rather enjoy working there.

I've recently gotten back into Warhammer40k. I've bought the starter kid so Kody and I can play. He will be playing Space Marine and I'll be slowly building a Tau army. I was originally gonna do my own Space Marine army and Kody's would be separate, but I decided to make them all one. NOT that I had a huge army anyway. I'll be doing a pre-Thousand Sons army. As in, BEFORE the 1000 Sons went all Chaos! The colors will be Midnite Blue and Boltgun Silver. The story I made up is that when they join Chaos, the Chaos Supreme Lord will change their boltgun metal trim to gold trim. My Tau, on the other hand, will be Scorpion Green and Black.

As for GI Joe, I quit the 8" a while back. I am slowly building my VvV VIpers and NeoVipers just for the fun of it. The 25th figures are upon us and I am buying those up when cash allows AND when I actually see 'em. They haven't flooded the stores yet so I guess there's still time. OR I've missed the boat. Again.

Anyway, that's about it for now.

Delays Delays Delays

Due to life problems, the 3rd episode has been delayed indefinitely.

On the other hand, I've got a ton of ideas popping up in my head and am considering how to play them out. I'm considering a Firefly dio that has the potential to be VERY fun.

Until next time...

On the Dio Front for Ep3 of THE ISLAND

I'll admit it, I've been procrastinating about Ep3. I guess now that I'm working, my interests are elsewhere. Almost to the point where I'm not that into GI Joe at the moment. But alas, once I get the ball rolling, I'll be back on it. As it stands now, I keep on coming up with ideas and I think I want to do things very differently for Ep3 and Ep4 and maybe Ep5. Part of my dilemna is the fact that there are 2 storylines going on.

I've got the main action w/ Graydon and the crew on the actual island.

Then there's the Serpent's Tail storyline which deals w/ Cobra's new, uhmmmm, ship.

In Ep3, there'll be a situation where the Joes aren't fast enough to take Cobra down. This leads to some catastrophic events. HOWEVER, the Joes don't know what else is up Cobra Commander's sleeve so they really couldn't have been THAT preventative. Either way, things won't quite go right in Ep3 IF I can fit it all in. Part of the problem, again, is that I'm thinking more cinematically. I want to make the story bigger and deeper and more interesting. Like it's a graphic novel.

I've also been working on Samurai Wars (working title) during my lunch break at work. I've been doing a lot of sketches and doodles, trying to get my drawing under control again. I still have the same pencil style and for the most part, inking style. But since I'm doing it all, I'm experimenting with some different coloring styles. Originally, it was gonna be a regular comic book; full color, etc. I'm considering doing it in all gray tones w/ splashes of color here and there. It's not quite like the Metal Gear Solid comic but it's not manga either. I would love to think that it'd be like Lone Wolf And Cub but my art is soooooo different, that's a bad analogy too.

In any case, I'm doing a pin-up for my man Chuck. I promised I'd have a comic for him, but well, I'm months overdue. Whilce Portacio, look out! (Wetworks was years late) I'm hoping a pin-up will be good enough for him and we'll see what he thinks of the style.

Until Next Time

I'm back.

It's been awhile. Things have been up and down but this blog is catering to GI Joe and dios and toys, while my pathetic myspace.com blog is for other things; like real life. In any case, I'll do it all here this round.

I'm working at Daiso (Of Japan). It is a 100Y store or "coin" store. A few people have called it "the Ikea of Japan". We've had a lot of people come thru who have lived in Japan and are already familiar w/ Daiso. Looking at their website, their stores are bigger than Ikea and apparently, they have the weight of Walmart! Not the worst company to work for, y'know? In any case, Daiso here is a households good store where everything starts at $1.50. ($2 in Canada, heh heh) I'm enjoying working there. There's a dress code and for the 1st time in my life, I enjoy wearing a tie and well, a nice outfit. I feel professional and worthy. Don't mind that I sweat like a pig in there when stocking.

The managers have put me in charge of the "Japanese section". Now, most people are like, "uh, it's a Japanese store w/ Japanese products, what's that mean???" It means that I take care of the tableware and specialty Japanese (funky) products. From hand-carved drinking glasses to chopsticks to wooden toys, calligraphy, mats, baskets and funky dio stuff (clay samurai statues, dollhouse furniture, etc). I was just put in charge of it Thursday so... I'm really enjoying working there. It's a different pace than Trader Joes which is incredibly nice. The management is entirely different (which is nice) and I'll admit it, I was scarred by my experiences at Trader Joes. Over 4 years there!

Yes, I learned a lot from the Channel9Store, PCC and Trader Joes. Each were a stepping stone. I learned how to stock and display items from Ch9 and TJs. I learned the art of hustle and harder work ethic from TJs as well as proper cashier training. It's great to have the retail experience of Ch9 and the hard work ethic of TJs. I believe it sets me apart from the 'kids' who work there who don't have either. I think I understand what is meant by "retail experience". It's not just throwing things on a shelf. It's learning how to display the items, where to display them properly, what looks good, etc. THAT is more important to average retail. TJ's, it's more like, stock it so it looks shoppable. Romaine Salad is Romaine Salad. Slam it in, bam, you're done. Daiso has that slightly, but I try to make sure things are faced so they look attractive. Sure, it takes longer, but when I am in control of my section, I want it to be as pretty as possible.

On the dio front... I've worked a few shots so far. Aerial scenes. I have yet to actually set figures up to shoot. I know I shold but I haven't had much time this last month. I had to work fast to get Episode2 out. But I know what Episode 3 is about (well, most of it). I have plans for the next dio (or Ep4, whichever wraps things up). And I have plans for a Snake Eyes/Storm Shadow dio. :D

That's it for now. I'm glad to be working and am enjoying it since I've had 1.5 yrs off. I didn't think I would, but I love working at Daiso.

Until Next Time...

Ups & Downs

Things aren't going so well for me at the time. I'm having to make some changes and sacrifices.

But I'm still moving forward on the current dio set. The plan is to shoot the sequence when it's done, get Episode 2 of the Island wrapped up and then hopefully take care of Episode 3 very quickly (since the set will have been built). It's a pretty wild set and far better than the "generator room" from the last dio (which didn't quite go the way I wanted). I'm having to recycle my foamboard. And since S6 is no longer on the charts, I can use THOSE walls for fodder.

I hope things go right when it comes time to shoot.

Until Next Time

Watching the paint dry...

Yup, that's pretty much the case these toys with the dio. Episode2, for the most part, has all been shot. There are 2 scenes that take place outside the story and they both need sets. Now, while the scene where Duke is prepping the troops, I can just throw some walls up and make it work. But the scene w/ Cobra Commander (that's right, CC shows up w/ Commander Vlasko, Interrogator and eventually, Major Bludd as well as Destro and maybe Baroness) is taking forever. I'm building a set right now. It's gonna be several stories tall and well, each level of the set takes paint. In which case, I'm trying to add more detail to it so I'm adding all sorts of little tidbits that's taking up time.

Like... The Death STar isn't entirely smooth, y'know? There are gun towers, and ports and rectangular boxes and just 'stuff'. Now, my set isn't that anal nor am I building a Death Star, per say. But I'm building a tower/bridge for a helicarrier. Ok, secret's out of the bag. ;) But how it's done, you guys will just have to wait. I'm building a 1/18th scale helicarrier. Well, not the whole thing, but in parts that are pertinent to the stories. Kinda like Marvel Ultimate Alliance, the video game. You don't see the whole thing when running around, just parts of it.

I'm working on the 2nd level and prepping the 3rd level. I'm out of foamboard so I'm recycling the old. I'd love to get Ep2 out A WEEK AGO but it just ain't happening. It should be good in the end...

Until next time!

The Island Ep2.

There's more to the storyline that what is happening to Graydon and his crew on the island. I'm working on overlapping stories where the 2nd story is underlying. There's absolutely no hint of it in the Prologue. In Ep1, Ace and Slipstream are checking out the area because intel says that Cobra has 'something' out there. Also, Interrogator leaves the island, telling Major Bludd that "he'll see him on the Serpent's Tail".

The Island storyline should wrap up in Ep3 while the 2ndary story really starts to get moving. I am currently building the set that Ep3 will take place on. The Joes take it to Cobra who end up taking it to the United States. I don't want to give much away yet but Ep2 is taking awhile simply cuz I'm building a set. Well, it's not even a set. It's a tower or ops complex like you'd see on an aircraft carrier. I have a lot of ideas for design and I'm trying to step it up a notch on the actual set.

What this 2ndary story does is open up the, uh, story, for other characters. Namely Cobra Commander and Duke. Details of Ep3 and the 2ndary story aren't quite written but it's close. Give it time. When the set is done for Ep2, the episode should be ready soon after.

Until Next Time.

Let's talk about the good guys!

So in "The Island" story, we have good guys and bad guys. I've already discussed the Cobras used in Ep1 and for the most part, Ep2. Sure there are a few others that show up but because I haven't shot the sequences yet, I won't add them in yet. I can only assume Destro and Cobra Commander show up but that can always change at the last minute. Also, in Ep3, I'm really gonna switch things up. "The Island" will wrap and the 2ndary storyline will take over w/ a 3rd storyline coming in strong (I hope). Expect to see lots of Firefly doing his thing. And no, not the NINJA thang!

Onto the good guys...

Lt. Graydon. Like I mentioned w/ Bludd, Hellfire and Interogator, I wanted to make a link between my dios. I think it's easier to give the reader something to recognize by using a familiar character. Again, Graydon is leading the group but he's leading a squad of Greenshirts this round. While he is in charge of the rescue force, he also has Scarlet and 3 Steel Brigade members to be concerned with. Why doesn't the RRTS1 go in? I wanted to pare down the characters and use other figures. Plus, I thought it'd be more interesting to use underdogs.

Scarlet. I've never worked with her before. I create just about everything in my Joe verse. Sets, stories, characters and situations. Scarlet is the 'handler' for the 3 Steel Brigade members. She is grading them to see if they have what it takes to be full-time GI Joe members.

Redzone, Checkpoint, & Rook : The Steel Brigade. These three members are part of an elite Greenshirt squad. The Steel Brigade are the Joe members between stage of Greenshirt and full-time GI Joe. Some are content to be an elitist back-up force. Others want to move up. These 3 members are testing to become full-time GI Joes.

Gray Wolf. Gray Wolf gives a link to the last story. He's a chopper pilot. He is Native American and was trained by Dart and Spirit in survival and scouting skills & techniques. He is a competent full-time Joe although he doesn't have much experience. He's a survivor.

Gen. Colton. His role in this story is simply a vehicle to use him. I'm not quite willing to part with the figure so I figured I'd find a way to use him. I wanted to set up a dynamic between Hawk and Colton. They have their views on how to deal with Cobra. Thing is, Colton is new to the team and Hawk has been leading the Joes the way he's been doing for a long time. Sometimes, a change is needed. Thing is, did Colton bite off more than he can chew???

Greenshirts. At one time, I had 20+ Sand Vipers. What was I supposed to do w/ pea soup green Beach Heads??? I didn't like the old style GSs and sure as hell didn't like the DD GSs so I figured I'd use the peasoups as GSs. I wanted non-descript, masked, average looking figures and these were, for the most part, perfect. The original plan was to paint their torsos all black (like Navy SEALS, the movie) but I got lazy.

I think that's it! Until next time.

I was thinking to myself that when I'm working on my dios, different movies give me different inspirations. For the Sigma6 universe, I tend to rely more on Star Wars than anything else. Certainly with the amount of hand-to-hand fighting and weapon fighting, Star Wars is pretty good. There's also good battle scenes too. But when it comes to 3.75" GI Joe, I tend to take it more seriously. Or rather, the Joes are more serious. I rely on movies like Doom, Aliens, Alien Vs Predator, Predator 1 & 2, Stargate... Certainly more ideas come from a broader range of movies. My dio, "The Island" also pulls from the tv series Lost. I guess I just like horror in my 3.75" verse as compared to the 8" verse.

Today, I think I'll babble about the characters involved.

Interrogator. Not everyone has a huge role. There are cameos, appearances, background chars and then main characters. Some chars are just a vehicle for the story. In terms of Interrogator, he's a great figure. Everyone has built him up to be a badass as well. In War For Territory (or was it Transformations?), Interrogator shows up for a bit part and then leaves. He actually makes a comment that he's needed elswhere and going to the island. In this story, you actually see him again but what he's doing, it's still a mystery. He's a shady character.

Major Bludd. I wanted some sort of continuity from the last dio. I figure, if I'm doing a Joeverse, there needs to be some reptition of chars so it's not a WHOLE new Joe story w/o point of reference. By using Major Bludd (and Interrogator), you get a feel that I didn't suddenly make up another Joeverse. I love the figure too which is why he shows up. In my verse, Major Bludd is a more hands-on leader than Cobra Commander, Destro or Commander Vlasko (custom). I'm also working out his character. What's also fun is the reaction when Lt. Graydon meets him again.

Cobra Troopers. One thing I really wanted to showcase were the Blueshirts running around. I have yet to get them into a real action scene but I decided during these dios that the average foot troop should have the largest population. Not Vipers. And definitely not NeoVipers which are cream of the crop. I, unfortunately, haven't given them much action time, but I figure having them around is good enough.

Cobra Vipers. The step up from Blueshirts is probably how everyone feels about them. I wanted to showcase a lot of these bad boys too. What the reader is getting is that Cobra is full of foot troops, not specialty troops. It's also fun to plug in friend's names as characters too. I have yet to acknowledge Luis (Tone Guns), unfortunately.

Cobra NeoVipers. Let's get to the point here. Hasbro didn't follow thru on the Cobra Officer and I need someone to lead the Blueshirts. I decided on the NeoVipers since their filecard (as horribly written as it is) says they are officers of some sort. Well, who better to lead the Blueshirts? NeoViper Drew Swenson shows up again! Poor guy still hasn't been promoted.

Overkill Karl. There are several Overkill models. The original Overkill is doing his own thing and was used in Transformations. Overkill Karl is a cyborg whose program is faulty. He's a little nutty and not nearly as smart as the others. But he serves his purpose. He's just fun to have in to showcase a bit of odd humor and vanity.

Hellfire. This guy is the evil version of the GI Joe, Rollbar. Rollbar never had a place in the Joeverse. He was captured and turned into a gnarly SawViper. He and his buddies show up, only to go hunting for the creatures on the island. I thought it'd be fun to link the dios together by these characters. It helps the reader feel that they are in the same universe, that the world is the same as the other stories.

Everything should be answered in Ep2...

I think that's it for Cobra chars of Ep1. I'll discuss the good guys of Ep1 tomorrow if I get a chance.

Until Next Time.

ToyFair in the haus!

General Hawk (Justin) of GeneralJoes.com and the boss of Sigma 6 Central (.com) has found a way into Toyfair. Toyfair is basically a big ad for toy companies to show off what's up for the future. It's a chance for businesses to make or break a toyline. New stuff is revealed there and if it gets cool response, it's back to the drawing board. Some toys can be great, but if someone like Walmart shakes their collective heads, the idea is scrapped. Pics are flooding in from figures.com, toynewsi.com and s6c.joebattlelines.com.

2007 is also the 25th Anniversary of GI Joe. Hasbro is bringing back the 3.75" figures (after a bit of a hiatus from B&M (brick & mortar) stores. They are taking 25 characters from 1982-1985 and giving them new articulation and an updated sculpted look. While the initial pics looked great to me, seeing the stuff at ToyFair has me wanting more. Or rather, I'll just stick to what I have. No need to see my stuff!

On the flipside, there is the 8" figures. Sigma 6 was just a theme name and it's time is up. The 8" franchise of GI Joe is splitting 3 directions. Commando. Combat Team. Adventure Team. The latter 2 are nods to the old 70s toys. Adventure Team will be dealing with the Joes (and Cobra) fighting monsters and animals. MONSTERS? Yup. Mummies should show up, y'know? Maybe dinosaurs. We've seen alligators, tigers and snakes! My interest is in the Combat Team. But the best? Snake Eyes and his mech. Oh wow. Talk about neato!!!

Let's get to the gritty!

It took me a long time to get the next 3.75" dio rolling. When doing Transformations and War For Territory, I had grand ideas and the execution was decent at best. It was good in some places, not so hot in others. But the story carried it all thru. That was, I believe, almost a year ago. As I was doing the last chapter of War For Territory, I was already starting the Sigma6 dios. The S6 dios are their own entity and totally fun. The 1/18th Joes have a different feel and is more serious in terms of story and characterization.

Originally, I had wanted to do a sequel to the other 2 episodes. (Don't get me started on the categorizations, it's very confusing). It's pretty vague, but I never actually 'said' the two aliens from another world die. If you read into it enough, one knows that the green duder (forgot his name!) can open portals. So the reality is, they weren't thrown into the energy beam. I had seriously considered making the story so that Cobra goes back in and ends up in the aliens homeworld. Kinda like Mortal Kombat 2. It never got further than that.

Hooking up w/ Netflix, we began to understand just what we could really rent. I got sucked into Lost and watched a few more movies and thought it'd be great to do a GI Joe/Lost story. (then I watched the 1st season of 24 and damn!!!) It took months of thinking. Summer was turning into Fall. Fall was turning into Winter and in the NW, that means it's usually wet and cold. How was I supposed to do tropical landscapes in the winter when everything's dead. I was telling people that it wouldn't be shown until Spring or Summer.

Such would not be the case. I decided to create a whole new set that would act as the underground bunker like in Lost. It's not quite as anal as the other big set I did, but at the same time, it's better designed. ie; there's no map to follow and I won't bother showing off the possiblity of corridors in the Cobra research facility. Sure, I'd love to go all out w/ the sets but money and time (and THomas), it's not possible. What I've done, it works pretty darn well.

I did take some outdoor shots when the weather was nice. They came out well and Episode 1 was released about a week ago. On top of that, I had released a 5-page prologue (w/ bios!) as a teaser of what was to come. I just didn't expect Ep1 to show up as quickly!

I'm working on Ep2 when I can. It's one thing to shoot sequences. It's another to create pics. I've had to create a lot of pics for my dios as of late. Ep2 starts w/ a 4 panel fotoshopp'd sequence. I have more sequences to shoot. What's rather nice is that a lot of stuff that didn't find it's way into Ep1 (it was getting long), was immediately put into Ep2. Ep1, I wanted the team to find the installation and also enter it. I kept the finding and put entering into the next episode. I have to watch the MBs involved. I can't go past 10 mb and Ep1 is just under 9mb. The email systems don't like anything over 10mb being transferred, y'know?

Anyway, I'm working on Ep2 when I can.

Until Next Time.

OOPS!

Has it really been over a month since the last blog? I suppose not a lot has happened.

Emi and I recently went to the new Olympic Sculpture Park in Seattle. I've been dying to go ever since I first heard about it a year ago. We spent the day in Seattle and had lovely weather. Thomas enjoyed himself too. The sculptures are really neat and it's great to see a park in downtown Seattle. It's not quite finished but I'm sure it will be soon.

I've been working hard on my 3.75" dio. It was originally slated for a Spring or Summer release but I pushed ahead. The S6 dios are done for now and put on the backburner. I did a 5-page prologue just to get things rolling and well, things DID keep rolling and Ep1 was created about a week later!