Advent Hill Zone - ACT 4!

Another day, another trip to the Advent Hill Zone, where we're counting down the days to Christmas through the timeless fun of plastic Hedgehog-related novelties!

Our fourth box, and our smallest yet! What lies behind it?

It's more trouble for Knuckles, as Metal just got some Spikes to lay in his path!

Star Post #1: General Info

A platforming game staple, Spikes are one of the most basic stage hazards in Sonic, protruding from any given spot in a Zone just waiting for player characters to run or jump into them. As expected, you hit the Spikes with Rings, you lose the Rings, and if you hit them without, you're toast. Your character's temporarily safe from them if you've scored an Invincibility power-up or gone Super, but the best way of dealing with them is to simply watch where you're going and avoid them. (Also, don't land on a bed of them while playing the OG version of Sonic 1. An infamous glitch will combo you to death.) While stationary most of the time, certain Spikes pop in and out of where they're stationed, giving you a brief moment to time a dodge. Spikes have been featured in most of Sonic's platforming adventures (as well as a few non-platformers,) owing to their usefulness as an easy level obstacle.

Star Post #2: Trivia

While Spikes have featured in a ton of games and even some comics, their animated appearances are a lot rarer, with only two to their name: a brief cameo in a scene from the Sonic OVA where Sonic and Tails traverse the Land of Darkness, and as part of an Eggman death trap in the very first Sonic Mania Adventures episode.

Goal Plate: Closing Thoughts 

Pretty basic stuff today, but here's a somewhat interesting tidbit: I already had a set of Spikes that came with my Jakks Mecha Sonic, but these are smaller and have a completely different color scheme. Never thought I'd ever own two different plastic variations of such a simple video game hazard. Quite a world we live in.

Act 4 just blew by, but there are still 20 more boxes to get through before Christmas, so keep it parked to The Lazy Shell for more action from the Advent Hill Zone as the month continues!

Advent Hill Zone: ACT 3!

Welcome back to the Advent Hill Zone, where the magic of Sega and Jakks Pacific have come together to give us a whole box of goodies to explore just in time for the holidays.

Third box is up! What's it got for us?

Knux beware, because our first baddie has busted out! It's the original faker, Metal Sonic!

Star Post #1: General Info

Metal Sonic made his debut in Sonic CD, kidnapping Amy Rose and later facing off against Sonic in a race to the finish. He is Dr. Eggman's greatest creation and one of Sonic's deadliest foes. Single-mindedly obsessed with both outdoing AND destroying the Blue Blur, Metal does whatever it takes to carry out his objective. He can easily match Sonic's speed, project force shields and electric fields, copy the skills and abilities of others, and even transform into a variety of more powerful forms (such as Neo Metal Sonic, Metal Overlord, and Metal Sonic Kai) under the right circumstances. Yet, despite all that, Sonic always finds a way to triumph over him, leaving Metal to pick up his pieces and come back stronger and more driven in his mission the next time. Metal Sonic has also blazed through the realms of gaming, comics, and animation multiple times. (Though, he's appeared in only ONE long-form animated television series: Sonic Boom. Wonder if Sonic Prime'll change that?)

Star Post #2: Trivia

Though Metal Sonic made his Archie Comics debut in Issue #25, the Sonic CD adaptation, did you know that he wasn't even called Metal Sonic at first? He was initially referred to by the name "Mecha-Sonic" in his first two comic appearances, which is especially humorous given that Sonic 2 featured a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT evil Sonic robot that also happened to be called Mecha Sonic. (Which both Archie and the European manual dubbed "Silver Sonic." Robotic Hedgehog naming is surprisingly complicated.) However, he would at last be referred to by his proper name starting in Sonic the Hedgehog #86.

Goal Plate: Closing Thoughts 

Gotta love Metal! Now we've got a good guy, a bad guy, AND an accessory. Wonder which of these three categories will see a boost tomorrow?

We've sped past Act 3, but there's still another 21 waiting for us, so be back here tomorrow as we venture further into the Advent Hill Zone!

Advent Hill Zone: ACT 2!

Welcome to our second day in the Advent Hill Zone, where a boxful of speedy, Sonic-y surprises are doled out one-at-a-time each day leading up to Christmas!

Box 2 awaits! What could it be?

It's our first accessory, a 1-Up Monitor!

Star Post #1: General Info

As the name suggests, breaking open a 1-Up Monitor gives Sonic (or whichever character you happen to be controlling at the time) an extra life. It made its first appearance all the way back in the original Sonic the Hedgehog and some variation of it (whether in this Monitor form or as a capsule-esque Item Box or straight-up floating head/icon) has appeared in every Sonic game with a Lives system. The accessory that we just pulled is specifically based on it as it appears in both the 16-bit version of Sonic 1 and all versions of Sonic CD.

Star Post #2: Trivia

You wouldn't think something as specifically game-y as a 1-Up would make an appearance in tie-in media, but Fleetway's Sonic the Comic found a way! Issue 13 of the popular UK-published series featured a story called "Double Trouble," which introduced a clone of Sonic created by his friend, Dr. Ovi Kintobor (Eggman when he was a good guy in this particular continuity,) that was intended to give the Blue Hedgehog a helping hand in case of an emergency. However, this "extra life" turned evil and was imprisoned within a Monitor, leaving it with nothing to do but plot revenge. That revenge eventually came when the clone tricked Tails into busting him out, causing him to run wild. After a bit of confusion and an altercation with the REAL Sonic, however, Tails was able to seal him back inside his prison. Sonic then punted the Monitor into space, never to be seen or heard from again. (A shame. This fellow probably would've gotten along like gangbusters with Fleetway's version of Super Sonic. I wonder if the CLONE'S Super form is actually a nice guy?)

Goal Plate: Closing Thoughts

From a figure I didn't have to an accessory I already did! (Thanks to Jakks' 4 inch Mighty figure.) You can never have too many items for making fun Sonic level displays with, though! They should release more variants of this accessory for the other characters.

Act 2 has concluded, but be back here bright and early tomorrow as we enter Act 3 of Advent Hill Zone!

Advent Hill Zone: ACT 1!

Happy December! A while back, I celebrated the holidays by cracking open a couple of Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG Advent Calendars and sharing what I got day by day alongside a few extra bits of strategy and trivia related to each card. However, 2019 was the last time Konami put out one of those, so I've been unable to continue that seasonal fun ever since. If only ANOTHER franchise that I love quite a bit that's been on a roll across games, film, and animation lately put out their OWN Advent Calendar that was also the perfect mix of really cool and adorably festive! It'd be a great way to RING in the season!

Yep, as you might've guessed from my not-so-subtle hints, Sonic's his name, and this year, Christmas is his game. This is Jakks Pacific's new Sonic the Hedgehog Advent Calendar, featuring 24 full days of toys from their sprawling line. There are also some Christmassy bits EXCLUSIVE to this box, so I certainly couldn't pass this chance up! (Especially since I've yet to pick up any of Jakks' smaller-scale Sonic stuff.) 

Welcome to Advent Hill Zone, a series where I'll be taking you through this box one day at a time until the big man shows up on Christmas Day. If you've read any of my previous Yu-Gi-Oh! Advent posts, the format of this whole thing'll be a bit familiar: I'll crack open a box, share what's inside, give a bit of trivia on each character/object, and finish things off with my own personal take. Now, without further ado...

Who's hiding behind our first door?

Why it's none other than Rad Red himself, Knuckles the Echidna! (Sporting a festive Emerald-green hat!)

Star Post #1: General Info

Knuckles, of course, made his debut in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, having been tricked by Dr. Eggman into fighting against Sonic. (That happened a lot with him early in his career.) The last of his kind and descendant of the mighty Knuckles Clan, he serves as the sole Guardian of Angel Island and the massive, powerful gem hidden upon it, the Master Emerald. Though he can be a bit gullible and short-tempered at times, Knuckles takes his duty very seriously and will do whatever it takes to keep both his Island and the Master Emerald safe from those who would abuse either. For that reason, he spends most of his time alone, keeping watch over his domain. Despite that, over time, he's developed a strong friendship with Sonic and crew and is always willing to lend a helping fist towards thwarting Eggman's ambitions. (So long as he can get back to the Master Emerald afterwards, of course.) Super strong and capable of gliding through the air, digging through the earth, climbing walls, and locating hidden treasures, Knuckles is an Echidna of many talents. A core cast member of the Sonic series and definite fan favorite, Knuckles has appeared in everything from games to cartoons to movies to comics. (He even had his own Archie-published spin-off book for a time in the 90's.) 

Star Post #2: Trivia

Did you know that Knuckles made a brief cameo on Space Ghost: Coast to Coast? It's true! Space Ghost is seen messing around with a Sonic 3 & Knuckles game before resuming an interview in the Season 1 episode, "Gum, Disease." The gameplay featured is of the Knuckles boss fight in the Hidden Palace Zone (while playing as Sonic & Tails) and the game's title theme can even be heard. You can check out this pure 90's mash-up for yourself on HBO MAX!

Goal Plate: Closing Thoughts

Oddly enough, I think this is the VERY FIRST articulated figure of Classic Knuckles that I've ever owned, so I'm super happy that we got him on our first day at this! (Especially with his cute little extra holiday flourish.) Calendar's off to a great start!

We've reached the goal for Day 1, but we've still got another 23 left to conquer, so be back here tomorrow for another Act of the Advent Hill Zone!

Hauls: The Robo Knight Before Black Friday

Surprise! Wasn't expecting to make another post until Christmas proper, but Black Friday (and thrifting) works in mysterious ways. Here's some more stuff:

Power Rangers Megaforce: Robo Knight Before Christmas (DVD)

Another of my parents' thrifting finds, and a very seasonally appropriate one at that! Megaforce isn't exactly a well-liked season by a lot of people, but Robo Knight will ALWAYS be a major highlight of it, so I'm happy to finally have his Christmas special on DVD. (Despite it mostly amounting to a REALLY weird clip show.) Also included are two random, un-Christmassy episodes from Wild Force and Jungle Fury because I don't know and a digital copy that was still redeemable despite it being secondhand! Score!

Vintage TMNT Bandana

Persona 5 Royal (Switch) (Best Buy)

Yet another thrifting gem was this TMNT bandana. I'm not really a person who would wear a bandana, but the vintage art is so cool and it makes for a neat addition to my collection of random Turtle ephemera. (Still thinking of where/how to display it.)

The Phantom Thieves strike again! While I already bought Persona 5 Royal for PS4 LAST Black Friday, I've had my eyes on the Switch version since it was released last month, craving the ability to eventually replay it portably. However, the full $60 price tag for a game I already owned and recently played, even one as fantastic as P5R, made me shy away and decide to wait. Well, Black Friday 2022 came along and did me a solid! Despite the fact that the Switch version launched so recently, Best Buy had it at HALF PRICE, which I couldn't pass up. Probably not going to replay it for a while, but I'm definitely excited to eventually re-experience this amazing game in a new way, with ALL of the DLC along for the ride!

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (Switch) (Walmart)

THIS was a long time coming. I'm a VERY casual Zelda guy, but after very much enjoying A Link Between Worlds almost a decade ago, I've been drawn particularly to the simple puzzle-solving, adventuring fun of the 2D overhead titles. So, when a remake of Link's Awakening was announced, I was excited to check it out. However, the full $60 price tag despite it originally being a Game Boy title and the modest length that comes from that origin made me prioritize other things and wait for a price drop. Said price drop certainly took its sweet time, though, as the best Amazon had it for at any one point was like $40. (Which eventually reverted back to either $50 or straight-up full price.) I got so impatient waiting for a good enough drop that I recently just decided to play the DX Game Boy Color version on my 3DS instead. In fact, I was already several dungeons into said DX version before I heard about Walmart's Black Friday deals FINALLY offering the Switch version for just $30. Needless to say, I jumped on that instantly and restarted my Koholint adventure with lots of wonderful modern quality-of-life improvements. (It's AMAZING playing an old game and its modern remake back-to-back and noticing just how many tiny tweaks improve the game immensely. Especially love how the remake gave the warp points their own map screen so you can actually CHOOSE where you want to go instead of hopping in and out of holes, continually warping until you arrive at your destination.) Having a lot of fun and very happy to finally have this game on my shelf.

That's it for the last of the pre-Christmas hauls, but I miiiiiiiiiiiight have something special planned for December, so you might hear from me a little sooner than I had originally planned. (Not counting this post, of course.) Stay tuned. 🎅🦔

Hauls: Shell Games

Time for another tried-and-true pre-holiday clean-up post! Gotta get this stuff out there so you guys can have a chance to see it before the Christmas Fallout beckons!

Min Min amiibo (Best Buy)

Been a little bit since the last amiibo haul! (Over a year if you're keeping track.) Fighters Pass Volume 2 finally hits the shelf starting with the Ramen-based Rumbler herself, Min Min!

Super Mushroom Bag

Imaginext Goldar and Dragon Shield Black Ranger 

McDonald's Knuckles Toy

TMNT 2012 Ooze Scoopin' Donnie

Bootleg Movie Star Raph

My parents did their usual thrifting thing and brought me back this assortment of goodies. That Bootleg Movie Star Raph is definitely the most interesting piece. (Thought he was the real deal at first until I noticed his distinct lack of elbow cuts and off-looking face detailing.) Also of note is the odd Super Mushroom bag. Not entirely sure what it actually is (it feels like a kid's lunch box, but there's definitely not enough storage for that to be the case,) but I still found a use for it.

SpongeBob SquarePants: Revenge of the Flying Dutchman (Gamecube) (Amazon)

THIS was a fun, albeit sporadic, purchase! It all started when I checked out a fun little deep dive into this particular game and its development on YouTube. (Mostly brought on by my hype for the upcoming Cosmic Shake.) After enjoying said video, I got the itch to play this again after completing it during my childhood. (This was actually the very first PS2 game I got heavily invested in back in the day.) I still had my PS2 copy...but I lacked a PS2 to play it on. That made me shift gears to the Gamecube version I had somehow never previously owned despite having every other standalone SpongeBob game on the system. Were aftermarket prices reasonable enough to finally complete my Gamecube SpongeBob library? Well, I'm bringing it up here, so that's an emphatic "YES." Got a copy in good condition with everything but the manual on Amazon for like 30 bucks. (I still have the PS2 version's manual, so I wasn't terribly bothered by the lack of the GC version's.)

Replayed and completed it all over again over the course of the latter half of August. While it's certainly the most primitive of the SpongeBob console 3D platformers, I still had a lot of fun revisiting it. Game kinda has its own structure and flow that's very fun once you get it down and it even reminded me of Banjo-Kazooie in places, surprisingly. Clancy Brown even reprises his role as Krabs, which is an odd rarity among SpongeBob games, even the most popular ones. All in all, I'm glad that I decided to give it another go and it makes me even more pumped to experience the first completely new SpongeBob 3D platforming adventure in years when it releases in 2023.

128 GB microSDXC Card (Amazon)

Saw that SD Cards were on sale on Amazon, so decided to grab a bigger one to double my Switch's storage space. Simple as that.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collection Limited Edition (Switch) (Amazon)

Ooooooooooooh, this is a big one! As you might recall from my 31st Birthday post, one of my gifts was actually pre-ordered, but didn't arrive on time for the actual day. THIS is that gift. A veritable DREAM collection of ALL of the classic 8 and 16-bit Konami TMNT games complete with both a suite of fun enhancements and display options for each title AND a HUGE museum of bonus content featuring everything from boxart to manuals to developmental sketches that had never before breached the innards of Konami's archives. How do you make such a collection even better? Well, how about also releasing a Limited Edition package that also includes a bunch of fun bonus swag such as an artbook and trading cards all wrapped up in a special box adorned with brand new Kevin Eastman artwork? Yeah, everything about this is amazing. I would've settled for just the ability to play Turtles in Time on my Switch, but the sheer extra mile that Digital Eclipse and Konami have gone to in producing this collection just warms my mutagen-pumping heart something fierce. 

NECA TMNT Adventures Slash (AliExpress)

Frozen II (4K Combo) (Disney Movie Insiders)

ANOTHER biggie! I thought I was done with NECA's TMNT figures, but they pulled me back in by not only announcing a new line based off of the Archie TMNT Adventures comic, but ALSO that Slash would be the first character released. If you know me, you know that Slash is my favorite TMNT character and the Adventures version happens to be my favorite classic version of him ("The Vultures named me...SLASH!") so this was an obvious must-have. They absolutely knocked him out of the park, too. While I would've included a mini palm tree with him instead of that weird alternate weapon that he never actually used in the comic, the detailing and look of him are superb. Definitely the best take on Slash that NECA has done so far and one of my favorite toys of him period.

As for the DMI redemption, it took a little bit of saving up, but I finally completed my Frozen animation library with the sequel.

Steve & Alex amiibo Two-Pack (Best Buy)

More amiibo! Not a Minecraft guy in the least, but the sheer startling oddity of Steve and his pals joining Smash Ultimate (and breaking Twitter in the process) entertained me quite a bit and they appropriately stand out just as much on the amiibo shelf.

Sonic the Hedgehog Archives Volume 17 (Amazon)

IT IS DONE. With Volume 17 of Archives, I finally have nearly every mainline Archie Sonic the Hedgehog issue for my physical perusal. (Minus an issue or two somewhere around the 120s.) I should give the whole run a read some time. (I started a readthrough before a while ago, but I didn't get far.)

TMNT Sewer Army Tube (In A Sewer Party Tube Box)

Knuckles and Tails McDonald's Toys 

More thrifting goodies my parents picked up! While I'm not huge on collecting toy vehicles, that intact vintage box (for a different toy than the one that was tossed in it) made it a must-have for my TMNT collection. (Especially love the $5.49 Children's Palace price sticker still on it. This box is a piece of history!)

Also, I wish the people who gave these Sonic 2 McDonald's toys to these thrift stores also included their little stand launcher things. They're kind of difficult to display otherwise.

Super7 TMNT Ultimates Slash (Big Bad Toy Store)

ANOTHER amazing Slash! Super7's been seeing mad success with their TMNT Ultimates line, producing wave upon wave of modern action figures directly based on the Playmates classics of old. While I'd never picked up any of them before (I'm usually one to prefer comic and artwork takes on TMNT character designs versus the original Playmates sculpts,) as usual, I couldn't pass up Slash. He's a great, hefty evolution of that original figure and just wonderfully detailed and accessorized. He looks especially nice alongside my other Slash figures. (INSANE to think that just a few short years ago, Slash's only toys were ones geared towards children, but NOW I can build a display with collector-quality figures of pretty much EVERY classic version of him! We really are living in the best timeline sometimes.)

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Best Buy Exclusive Steelbook (4K Combo)

This was actually meant to be a Christmas present, but my Dad had me open it early because he feared it might be damaged. (It wasn't. It was just a paper insert flopping about inside.) Not typically a steelbook guy, but the instant I saw that Best Buy's exclusive used the wonderful poster art that directly homages the GAME Sonic 2, I knew that I had to have this version. (Also helped that it was the only version to include both the 4K AND standard Blu-ray.) Excited to give this 3D Blast of a film a rewatch!

Transformers: Beast Wars Volume 3 (Amazon)

Volume 3 completes IDW's Beast Wars series cut tragically short by license migration. While I still wish that it had gotten a few more years in to tell more stories about my favorite beastie bots, I loved all of what we did get and am very glad that they were at least able to collect the full series (including the Annual) in trade form before everything went out of print. Hopefully Rise of the Beasts will spark (heh) a new era for the Maximals and Predacons in media.

Pokémon TCG Trick or Trade BOOster Bundle

My parents found these for me while they were out grocery shopping. While I'm a very casual Pokémon TCG guy, I adore the sheer novelty of a whole Halloween-themed set meant to be given out to trick-or-treaters and had a lot of fun opening them on my Twitter throughout October. 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge (Switch) (Amazon)

Cowabunga Collection wasn't the ONLY huge win the Turtles had in gaming this year! Shredder's Revenge serves as a perfect spiritual successor and evolution of the classic Konami games and is ridiculously fun. Great music, beautiful sprite art, tons of deep-cut bosses, and even the original voices of the four Turtles on board to give it that extra little bit of legitimacy. It's just a complete love letter in every way and I adored my time with it. (Heck, I even got all of the Achievements for it TWICE. Once on Xbox through Game Pass and once on this physical Switch copy. THAT'S how much I dug this.)

Pre-ordered this with my Birthday cash (Knew the INSTANT it was announced that I'd need this game physically) and it arrived like two weeks after the listed date. (Limited Run. Nuff said.) So glad to be able to have this on my shelf. (As well as to have the code for a free Pizza Hut Personal Pan Pizza that came with it. Seriously.) 

Power Rangers X Street Fighter Lightning Collection - Morphed Ryu Crimson Hawk Ranger (Big Bad Toy Store)

Power Rangers X Street Fighter Lightning Collection - Morphed Chun-Li Blazing Phoenix Ranger (Big Bad Toy Store)

Wrapping up, HERE COMES A NEW CHALLENGER! Yep, the Turtles aren't the only crossover characters invading the Lightning Collection, as a pair of World Warriors have ALSO joined the fray, fresh off of their inclusion in the Legacy Wars and Battle for the Grid games. Not a huge Street Fighter fan by any means (mostly because I can't play the games to save my life,) but the sheer fact that I can have a Power Rangers display featuring morphed versions of Street Fighter characters AND the Ninja Turtles just gives me ALL KINDS of jollies as a huge fan of crossovers in general. They even both come with stands! (MORE OF THOSE, PLEASE, HASBRO.) 

That'll do it for this batch! See you guys for the Fallout post and hope you all have a great holiday season!