Vault Review: BrickArms
WW2 German Heer Soldier
One of the things I love about toys is the creativity you can put behind them. We all collect our favorite lines, but some of my fondest childhood memories are the characters I made up. Who needs preset backstories? I’ll make my own, thank you. This is why I’m such a huge Lego fan. It’s also why I’m a big supporter of independent toy companies. So when a company is able to bring together these two loves of mine, I feel it’s necessary to showcase them here at IAT. Here’s my review of BrickArms WW2 German Heer Soldier.
On a normal trip to Toys R Us, I usually cruise all the action figure isles. I like to know what’s out, even for the lines I don’t collect. It helps me keep up on the toy world for boys. The negative side of this is that I sometimes end up buying things that I wouldn’t normally pick up. Transformers, Star Wars, and much more obscure lines tend to make it onto my shelves for the simple fact that they looked cool or interesting while I was perusing the store. This is how I ended up with my latest purchase: Shaak Ti.
Continuing our efforts to complete our 
On Tuesday, I reviewed one of the first Lego sets from the upcoming Toy Story 3. And, as I mentioned then, I wasn’t able to escape with just that one piece of movie merchandise. Lego and Mattel both had TS3 product on the shelf that day. I naively thought I could just look through the characters Mattel was offering. After all, I wasn’t planning on buying any. But that’s how they get you. Minutes later, I was handing over the cash for my new Seek ‘N’ Destroy Sparks. 
This is the week for Toy Story 3 toys. Don’t believe me? Check your local Toys R Us. Judging from area reports, most TRU’s got their initial shipments of Mattel and Lego toys for this upcoming movie. Sadly for my wallet, I was tempted by both. I have very mixed feelings over the Mattel toy, but you’ll have to come back Thursday for that review. Today’s review is Lego #7789 Lotso’s Dump Truck. As with other movie related toys, there may be some unintentional spoilers, so be warned.
Last year, Bandai’s Soul of Chogokin line produced a Big O figure. It is undoubtedly the best figure that Big O will ever get. The only downside was that it was very expensive and difficult to obtain for those outside Japan. But as a truly dedicated, or according to my girlfriend, an insane, Big O Fan, I had to have it. But I wasn’t done. Bandai also offered an exclusive accessories pack to the people who ordered their Big O figures through the Chogokin website. This made the accessory pack equally expensive and even harder to obtain for us non-Japanese citizens. Of course, I still had to have it.
The MOTU Weapons Pak. I never had one as a kid. A black marker and the sacrifice of Zodac's gear was the closest I ever got. When MOTU Classics took off, I hoped Mattel would resurrect the idea of a weapons pak. One of the main reasons was because I hoped it would include an orange shield and axe for Faker. This first weapons pak, labeled Heroic Warriors, doesn't have those, but it still has plenty of cool pieces. Still, how do you review 19 weapons? We weren't sure. They're all sturdy and painted well. What else? Well, when we can't be informative here at IAT, we turn to cheap humor. Here's 15 Minutes at the MattyCollector Weapon Shop.