Pheyden/Exellis/Crayboth: new toy line you should see

I only got a Glow-bon which was pretty much all I wanted (though the Glow Armodocs were gone by the time I got there...)

But from what I've read, people are just going insane for these things... items selling out at 5 am in the morning? People skipping work and school because they stayed up all night for the drop? Insane. Dedicated fans of course, but insane!

Yeah, I was refreshing the blog for three hours straight last night, being strung along by Matt's "11:00...nope, 12:00...nope,1:00..." and my grizzled old body wouldn't stay awake anymore. Of course I found out when I woke up that the drop finally went live about fifteen minutes after I crashed. C'est la vie. It's good to see so many passionate fans for these, and it's also good to see that virtually NONE of this stuff is thrown on Ebay to be flipped.

I tried staying up. Oh, how I did try.
I woke up at about 6:45 with a cat staring expectantly in my eyes and promptly freaked out. Fortunately I was able to score The GITD Armodoc and the Clear Armodoc somehow before they went out of stock.
The drop was at 5:34 AM, and I stayed up until 1:40-ish.
No matter how tired I am now, I can't imagine how tired the Daughty household is now. Those folks did a wonderful job.
What gets me is the impatient rudeness some people had surrounding this release. I mean, it's a bunch of independent artists, not some huge company like Bandai. They weren't sitting on their tushies experimenting with over-the-counter narcotics. They were working hard through the night to make everything just right. I tell you, if Bandai put as much passion and sweat into their products as Onell Design does, we would have a much better Macross Quarter on or hands.
I am not making excuses or anything for the lateness of the launch. I don't know these folks personally. I have no agenda other than to point out what should be obvious and infintely forgivable. These folks are not trying to make a fast buck or take us on a wild goose chase. They are making their dreams real.
Half the fun in this is the whole crazy experience, from watching the journey from concept to completion to launch.
Of course, the other half is the wicked awesome toys we get in the end. Yeah, we might miss some exclusives (I am still struggling through Glyaxia and doubt I will be able to get the exclusive toys therein), but there are many, many good things there to play with.
It's my hope folks who are getting annoyed take these things into consideration, and, like Matt Daughty so kindly put it "If this kind of thing bothers you to much you may be in the wrong area, it's crazy here!"

Peace!

Interesting, all the blog comments I read were supportive and good-natured, but I stopped reading it shortly after midnight (my time). Maybe people were having drunken sleep-deprived meltdowns. :/

As for the Gylaxia, you don't have to finish it to get to the store. Unless you want to, of course! Fun game. I'm a sucker for scrolling shooters.

Hot, limited online "drops" that sell out instantaneously. Sounds kinda like the boutique vinyl scene. ;)

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[pgaijin.blogspot.com]

Hardly.

But don't get me wrong...I'm pretty pissed I missed out on the Hades Pheyden! :P

eriku Wrote:
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> Interesting, all the blog comments I read were
> supportive and good-natured, but I stopped reading
> it shortly after midnight (my time). Maybe people
> were having drunken sleep-deprived meltdowns. :/

Heh. Well, reading over my post, I used a plural in order to be intentionally vague instead of using a singular. If you read the comments on the Onell Blogger site, A fellow named Matt (there's a number of Matts on that there Blogger - most are positive and encouraging) was kinda rude and impatient. Definitely the kinda guy who would tear a strip out of a Walmart employee for something out of their control and trivial.

The Glyaxia game is awesome. I totally enjoyed it (after zooming past it to get the limited items!). At the time I wrote the above passage, I thought there were some other limited exclusives for those who finished the game or scored high or unlocked the passcode on the bottom of the screen. Turns out the ones in the secret store were the only ones. I know these characters are tiny pixelated SD things, but I really dig them.

Matt plans to make more Hades figures to fill orders and get some for some folks who missed it, Sanjeev. Since you know the guy making these things, I am sure you can get one.

I'm not TOO worried about getting one...I sometimes get stuff WAY early (and am sworn to secrecy...like, I've had a glowie Armodoc for months), but usually, I'm a wave or two behind. I don't mind, though--I'd rather see the real hardcore fans get their goodies first.

Good to know more Hades are on the way.

Dude, I've been playing Glyaxia ALL day. Just unlocked the secret character. This is no joke when you have to hide the fact from your boss... :P

Ugh. I waited this out last night and saw the store refresh. Even though I am in CA, my fatigue made it difficult to decide what to buy. I know. I am a weakling.

I have not had time to play through Glyaxia yet, but I am curious to see who/what Echo Morph is. Just bought the toy out of curiosity (and because it had a whole bunch of neat silver parts).

Watching the people get testy on the forum was interesting. Haven't seen that before re: Glyos toys. There are starting to be more 'gimme gimmes' that are visibly collecting, so I fear hillsy's comment may be on the mark.

i failed again

RainBot Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>
> Heh. Well, reading over my post, I used a plural
> in order to be intentionally vague instead of
> using a singular. If you read the comments on the
> Onell Blogger site, A fellow named Matt (there's a
> number of Matts on that there Blogger - most are
> positive and encouraging) was kinda rude and
> impatient. Definitely the kinda guy who would tear
> a strip out of a Walmart employee for something
> out of their control and trivial.

I just went back and read the blog posts that were left after I tuned out last night and yeah, that guy was definitely lacking tact. Good to see his vibes weren't infectious though, and it was funny to read Matt address him personally.

Does anyone have a link to the blog or forum where people are starting to bitch? I don't really keep up with either...and I'm not interested enough to go looking...

Hell, maybe this shit IS turning into boutique vinyl! :P

Anyway, I finally beat the game with both Infiltrator and Hades (just 'cause I wanted to do so with both)...unlocked the secret guy...AND beat it with the secret guy. Holy fuck, the secret guy is HARD to beat the game with!

My only gripe is that the very end of the game doesn't change when you use the secret guy... Eh well. Can't have everything!

Here is the link from the drop.
Just scroll down to see Matt. Another fellow, Mindless Focus (apt) was going a bit crisp in the October Toys forum as well, complaining about Onell Design's lack of customer service! He apologized, though.
I don't know what Boutique Vinyl is, but I shudder to think of what it might contain...
I did the same thing on the game, but I found the secret character to be easier. His firepower is much more powerful.
It also depended what computer I was using. My Macbook and its touch pad were nowhere near as effective as the clunky PC and mouse I used. The computer actually slowed the attacks, and I was able to dance around, Matrix-like and kick serious posterior.
I was hoping for an ending with much stomping around with the secret character, but that would have meant a whole new ending with added animation, music and editing. I was kinda hoping for a super-rare figure prize for beating the game in all three modes, but was kinda glad there wasn't. When the drop hit I didn't want to miss anything, and with my lack of video gaming skill, there'd be no chance in hell I'd win anything.
Looks like the end of April will bring some Delphi into the mix with a Delphic Custom Corps. Kewl.

Wow, sorry I asked! :P

Way too many Matts and way too many posts to sift through. Oh well. Anyway, what can ya do?

Actually...you CAN just wait until EVERYTHING is completed and ready to green light...before saying a word to anyone...then make some announcement that "tomorrow night at midnight" all this shit does down...then release everything at an exact time.

Doesn't that make sense?

Christ, it has become designer vinyl! Hahah!

I'm late to the party, but now I finally have a Gobon.
Of course, since I'm already on the website I might as well pick up that metallic buildman. And I've been thinking about getting an original "Founders" Pheydon.

Why am I always broke? I can't figure this out.

^^Classic!^^

Hey, so while we're on the subject of new Glyos releases, who has a fucking Callgrim?

Mason and I placed a big order when that recent wave hit, but we elected not to have them shipped (we wanted to pick them up directly from Jesse...and congratulate him on the release in person!). But looking around online, there's, like, ZERO discussion of Callgrim anywhere...

Maybe I'm crazy, but those figures look fucking AMAZING to me and I'm getting close to pulling my hair out in anticipation. I mean, they're bigger, look fucking sick, and have more parts than the usual Glyos guy. There was a brief review on CDX, but I want more, damnit! That flash animation damn near turned me into a drooling vegetable the other day!

I'm surprised that the recent Callgrim wave hasn't sold out yet (hopefully that just means he was smart and made a shit-ton of 'em!), but whatever man. Fuck boutique vinyl-esque availability (or lack thereof)...I just want the damn toy! :P

I have a Callgrim. It's neato. There. Now you have discussion.

I bought some Callgrims but I haven't started building with them yet... offering the backpack parts as a separate item was awesome though, and I have a few ideas to arm some figures now.

Introducing Prometheus Rising Studio.
[prometheusrising.net]
I make 3D printed mecha action figures.

I've got a Callgrim. I like it fine, but I honestly prefer the Glyos stuff. I think it's Callgrim's posture that bothers me. His knees are so bent that in order for him to stand he has to be staring at the ground. He's fun though, and I like having all of the different parts to mix with Glyos stuff.

Now what about Beanbots? There's something else nobody talks about. -_-

Sanjeev Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wow, sorry I asked! :P
>
> Way too many Matts and way too many posts to sift
> through. Oh well. Anyway, what can ya do?
>
> Actually...you CAN just wait until EVERYTHING is
> completed and ready to green light...before saying
> a word to anyone...then make some announcement
> that "tomorrow night at midnight" all this shit
> does down...then release everything at an exact
> time.
>
> Doesn't that make sense?


Absolutely. And that would make sense for a Sanjeev Toys drop. :) I guess I take the whole thing in context. I knew it would be koo koo going in. I know the artistic nature of the Doughty crew (you've seen the chaos of Matt's workspace!), and I give a LOT of leeway to independent artists. My patience with bigger companies, like Toynami, for example, is much less because they have more means to produce great stuff and communicate that to their fanbase and choose not to. I see the passion and joy that goes into the Glyos and Callgrim stuff, and can relate to it. Onell, Rawshark and Incubot create great stuff, are full of nice people following and sharing their passions, and *always* follow through despite hiccups in communication. I suppose that leaves me wide open to be taken advantage of, but to support these projects, I am willing to risk it.
Sometimes the artistic passion overrides the logical and even sensible thing to do. The result is often worth it, I have found.

"I'm getting close to pulling my hair out in anticipation."

Would we even notice? That's a massive 'fro.

---------------------------------
[pgaijin.blogspot.com]

According to video footage he has more hair on his knuckles than I do on my entire head.
Which is to say that he does not have much hair on his knuckles.

The Callgrim stuff is wonderful. Jesse is super talented.
I only missed the Green fella and the silver fella. I thought I'd save a bit for the Glyos drop (and what a drop).
Yeah, they have bent knees, and with their backpack fully loaded you need to balance it out in a weird way. I just pose mine with one knee backwards and it looks like he's taking a dramatic step forward.
I have a second order coming at some point. Can't wait to fiddle. I've been doing some customizing on a Phanost head I got with CC3 and might mash them with an extra Callgrim.

Damn...it's taken me WAY too long to reply to this post!

Thanks for the comments on the hair, guys...the diameter these days is staggering. Hopefully, there'll be some video of it this weekend coming from CDX HQ. It's getting unwieldy, though...I gotta either chop it off or corn-row it. I fear the corn rows, however, because I've never done it and I have a pretty dry scalp. :P

ANYWAY...the knee thing eriku and Rain brought up always bothered me about Matt's figs when they first came out. Then, Matt told me about the reverse-knee trick and I had a forehead-slapping moment:



I kinda hate the forced knee-bend, but is there any straightening trick like above for Callgrim?

Heh...I think between me and Mason, we have about 8 of these guys coming in the mail!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 04/12/2010 11:28AM by Sanjeev.

Y'know, I was wondering why there were no replies to my last post above...I checked the thread, and I'd forgotten to attach the fucking pic! Well, anyway...there you have it: the straight-leg trick.

AND, Mason and I got our Callgrims this weekend. All the parts seem to be perfectly linear. That is, the pegs are parallel to the overall part. That's obviously a little different from the original Glyos guys (so no straight-leg trick).

Fortunately, you can just swap the upper legs with original Glyos-style ones. Doesn't affect the looks that much, but it replicates the trick pretty well:



And you can also reverse the knees to do a little crotch-thrusting!



--
Sanjeev

'Us Massholes straight up just don't give a fuck. I still pronounce "Mazinger" as "Tranzor Z".'
-Nekrodave



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/12/2010 11:47AM by Sanjeev.

I tried the reverse-knee thing with Callgrim back when I first got him but...yeah, it doesn't work as well as it does on the Glyos figs. :p

I never thought of using the Glyos upper leg swap - that does look a little better.

Is that a diecast head on that Phanost?
You Bostonians and your cliques... how I envy thee!
Thanks for the leg trick. Head-slap indeed.
These things are crazy fun to customize.
Didja get any info from Jesse? He mentioned to me that he was in the middle of the next drop of figures (I got some more coming this week, I hope), and the Onell site points towards another animation...



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/12/2010 03:34PM by RainBot.

Sanjeev Wrote:
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> I fear the corn rows, however, because I've never done it
> and I have a pretty dry scalp. :P

If I may be so bold to digress, but it seems you just need to keep your scalp oiled...

[www.amazon.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/12/2010 05:13PM by Kwesi K..

It's true. I'm just making excuses 'cause I'm a wuss.

Unfortunately, the video we made at JoshB's went kaput, but here's a glimpse of the dynamite I'm packing.

And I thought Glyos heads were large for their bodies... :)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/13/2010 07:30PM by RainBot.

Sanjeev Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> It's true. I'm just making excuses 'cause I'm a
> wuss.
>
> Unfortunately, the video we made at JoshB's went
> kaput, but here's a glimpse of the dynamite I'm
> packing.
>
> [www.collectiondx.com]
> 102-3/P4110565.jpg

You drop some weight, Sanjeev? Looking pretty thin there.

More serious than thou

Lucky bastards, hanging out with David Cross.

While painting another project, I figured I'd fiddle with some Glyos parts and make a speeder bike that I will now call "The Grimcycle" because I am obviously steeped in coolness.






Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/16/2010 04:31PM by RainBot.

fug mee...

Y'know, maybe someday I'll actually try to build something with these motherfuckers! :P

Well, fuck me again!

If I'd known about these sooner, I woulda posted here, but about 2-1/2 hours ago, the Real x Head mini Pheyden/Sarvos set painted by Matt Walker came and went. I just found out about this morning and was lucky enough to score a set...along with a reissue Hades Pheyden!







^^I'm hoping one pair of these images works, damnit!

[onelldesign.blogspot.com]

Woowww!! Outerspace Men redo, by Four Horsemen/Onell Design collab. SuperDuper figure homage. Can't wait for more news on this. Totally different Glyos joints application.

Holy crap! That was unexpected. 4H sculpts with Glyos joints? YES PLEASE

Can't wait to see Alpha 7 and Colossus Rex, those are my favorites.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/02/2010 01:51AM by eriku.

It's kinda weird. I picked up a self-published guide to those Men in Space figures - they were originally bendy, crappy things, but featured unique designs.
I definitely want that Octopus fella.
I am just wondering what the "Super Glyos System" mentioned shortly after Glyaxia went live is all about...
In the meantime... glow in the dark!




Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/03/2010 08:51PM by RainBot.

Ah, excellent use of the Glowbon head!

OK, seriously, not owning nor ever having seen one of these in person, what is this "innovative" joint system they're speaking of. It must be particularly well-hidden in the toys. Nothing shows in pics for sure that I can see. Please correct my ignorance here.

More serious than thou

Every connection point is the same type of joint, so you can snap together pieces any which way. Most of the body parts are sculpted in such a way that they can easily pass for other things. Like for example you could use a bunch of leg parts and arm parts to make a gun or even a vehicle and it wouldn't necessarily look like it's made of a bunch of legs and arms.

It's kinda like Lego, only not blocky. :3