Big Bad Workshop General

[Ru1977]

decked out like a Texan at Walmart

That description made me want him more than anything else has. He'll be the alt right member of Cobra, codenamed Oath Keeper.

But still not into him $38 worth.

less than a quarter of a percent of the personality-in-design of a Destro.

Right, and that's why I'm not into him not even the masked look does anything for me. While the phantom corps and grey camo skull balaclava guys do.

 

[JakeEkiss]

If they nail the scale for my personal needs, I imagine it won't be too hard to persuade me into picking some up.

We've seen the scale of Monster Force and those seem comparable with GI Joe Classified, so just a bit shorter than your average ML. Seems just about perfect. I assume these will be comparable. (here's the Robo video with a timestamp to size comparisons on wave 1)

 

[canprime]

I think what I really dislike about 'Gridiron' being a military dude is that he's supposed to be the 'in universe' weapons manufacturer. So why is he decked out like a Texan at Walmart? The whole concept is so fucking try-hard. Like this guy has to be inserted into the mythology twice, because being a weapons manufacturer isn't good enough and being a cool soldier guy isn't good enough. He's gotta be BOTH. But with less than a quarter of a percent of the personality-in-design of a Destro.

It's lame. It's, as the kids say, cringe AF.


The NPC line looks like the absolute best take on a line of non-hero figures that I've yet seen. I don't know yet if I need any of them, but it's very cool nonetheless and seems to be in great hands as far as whoever is doing the concept and design. I think the big deciding factor on something like that is how the scale turns out. I don't want to hear about how real people vary in height and blah blah blah... I don't want regular people taller than my 'reasonably tall' superheroes. I don't want faceless bank robbers taller than Punisher. I don't want my random exorcist priest towering over Ghost Rider or Blade. You know what I mean?

If they nail the scale for my personal needs, I imagine it won't be too hard to persuade me into picking some up.

I think you could look at it from the perspective of all those "try hard/wannabe" posers you see in the real world. Whether that is just a regular person, politician or business leader (think Prigozhin from the Wagner group). Or even ICE Barbie (Noem). They all love to dress up the part and pretend they are these badass military people.

 

[mrboshek]

Damn, I opened this thread and the first thing I saw was the skull mask guy. For a second I thought that was a 1/6 military, until I saw the bent elbow. Granted, I wasn't wearing my glasses, but my vision isn't that bad and my phone isn't that small.

 

[TheGillMan]

So why is he decked out like a Texan at Walmart?

As someone living in Texas, I can say this is totally inaccurate. If he were a Texan at Walmart, he'd have a giant pot belly, no sleaves, and really cheap camo...and a baseball hat. Oh, and he'd have a really unkempt beard.

What would be more accurate is he is decked out like how a Texan at Walmart imagines himself to look!

 

[JakeEkiss]

As someone living in Texas, I can say this is totally inaccurate. If he were a Texan at Walmart, he'd have a giant pot belly, no sleaves, and really cheap camo...and a baseball hat. Oh, and he'd have a really unkempt beard.

What would be more accurate is he is decked out like how a Texan at Walmart imagines himself to look!

As a fellow Texan, can confirm.

Though a year or two ago I did see one of those faux cowboy dudes in my apartment complex with a literal six-gun on his hip. I just had to shake my head.

 

[AceofKnaves]

He'll be the alt right member of Cobra, codenamed Oath Keeper.

The best choice for this is “Shooter” from Valaverse. He literally looks like he just showed up for Jan6. Looks way more like a MAGA terrorist than a regular military guy.

And yeah, the self-insert “cool guy arms dealer warrior dude” stuff is MAXIMUM cringe. Creepy, even.

 

[JakeEkiss]

The best choice for this is “Shooter” from Valaverse. He literally looks like he just showed up for Jan6. Looks way more like a MAGA terrorist than a regular military guy.

And yeah, the self-insert “cool guy arms dealer warrior dude” stuff is MAXIMUM cringe. Creepy, even.

Trigger I think was the figure name, and sadly IIRC that one's loosely based on a photo of an actual military dude in Afghanistan from years and years ago. Like, not officially based, but the photo on this article did the rounds back then and became the basis for the modern tacticool militia bros we see today:

https://www.newsweek.com/top-us-mil...s-arent-professional-calls-facial-hair-794170

Thing I love most about this article is that it starts off by calling this guy a hipster, which is HYSTERICAL considering how he became the model for ultra-masculine bros who would absolutely HATE that label.

 

[JakeEkiss]

Bobby should rename that character "hipster" and see how it plays.

 

[JakeEkiss]

And yeah, the self-insert “cool guy arms dealer warrior dude” stuff is MAXIMUM cringe. Creepy, even.

I'm of two minds about this. On the one hand I can see it being that way, but when Hasbro was trying the face-scanning thing I really did consider getting myself as a ghostbuster. Like, on some level it's adjacent to cosplay, y'know? Putting yourself into the role for fun. Is it that different from playing hulking barbarians in D&D? I think it probably depends on the person. There's absolutely guys out there who would do that who I would not want to hang out with, but I suspect there are also big sweet dorks who would like it too.

 

[AceofKnaves]

Oh getting an individual figure of oneself is TOTALLY different, in my view, than having a figure of yourself professionally produced and foisted on OTHER people as an official part of a line.

And yes, I get that same ick, to a lesser degree, from even Sgt. Slaughter. The more a line, especially a military-style line, references real life, the more uncomfortable it makes me.

 

[AceofKnaves]

Trigger I think was the figure name, and sadly IIRC that one's loosely based on a photo of an actual military dude in Afghanistan from years and years ago. Like, not officially based, but the photo on this article did the rounds back then and became the basis for the modern tacticool militia bros we see today:

Oh yeah, I dig it.
And I think all that goes back to overpraised psychopath “American Sniper” Chris Kyle.

 

[Damien]

I think you could look at it from the perspective of all those "try hard/wannabe" posers you see in the real world. Whether that is just a regular person, politician or business leader (think Prigozhin from the Wagner group). Or even ICE Barbie (Noem). They all love to dress up the part and pretend they are these badass military people.

Definitely. But I also don't want losers like that on my toy shelves so....

Trigger I think was the figure name

It has two meanings you see. Because he shoots guns, and guns have triggers. But also, he's really just here to TRIGGER THE LIBS. My god, Bobby Vala is so fucking smart and witty and handsome. I can't even handle it.

I'm of two minds about this. On the one hand I can see it being that way, but when Hasbro was trying the face-scanning thing I really did consider getting myself as a ghostbuster. Like, on some level it's adjacent to cosplay, y'know? Putting yourself into the role for fun. Is it that different from playing hulking barbarians in D&D? I think it probably depends on the person. There's absolutely guys out there who would do that who I would not want to hang out with, but I suspect there are also big sweet dorks who would like it too.

I would argue, while agreeing that this is subjective, it's about more than just being a self-insert. It's about how you self-insert. If you get to be in the overall Big Bad Workshop world, which includes Monster Force and all this other stuff, and you can be ANYTHING - why would you be the try-hard edgelord military guy? That says a lot about a person, in my opinion.

He could have been a werewolf mummy with a gun that shoots smaller guns, which in turn shoot tiny chainsaws. No, he picked the tough guy post-modern camo and tacticool body armor and a regular gun. Lame. Reminds me of guys that play D&D and their character is named Blade Darkwolf and they're mad because level 1 stats don't allow them to be good at every ability and every skill even though it "totally fits their character."

 

[ManOfTheLamb]

I do understand why he's the arms dealer. He makes toy weapons. I, personally, would rather be made into a monster, but it makes sense at least.

 

[JakeEkiss]

Reminds me of guys that play D&D and their character is named Blade Darkwolf and they're mad because level 1 stats don't allow them to be good at every ability and every skill even though it "totally fits their character."

Well now you've gone and ruined the next D&D character concept I was working on. Thanks, Damien. He was a totally sick half-angel/half-demon with a giant scythe made from bones and had a totally hot goth girlfriend.

Back to the drawing boards!