Hasbro has some nice products coming over the next year or so. The last of the 30th anniversary figures are quite cool and sad to see that end cause this year for Star Wars fans has been quite special. The other figures that where there but been arriving brought a lot to me because some of these I’ve not gotten a chance to see in my local stores. Then you had special figures like the Mandalorian Pack that is coming out and getting a nice sneak peek. Then you toss in for Indiana Jones fans the new figures coming there way and Hasbro had a nice little setup.

Gentle Giant also brought some nice big guns to the show this year more so than the last two years I’ve been there. Star Wars fans are getting some very nice pieces like the new Darth Maul statue which while smaller than I expected but the overall look is quite nice. The OT animated line is getting the Emperor which depending on how you want to approach the piece could fit nicely into your Clone Wars set. Then you had several items which had the famous no picture sign. My favorite of those had to be the Asajj/Dooku statue which if it comes out right will be one of the best Gentle Giant statues ever, and if you have the Star Wars Insider issue will combine to make a nice little display spot. The Tusken Raider bust was really pretty sweet and made me quite happy I decided to order two of them.

Lord Of The Rings fans are also in for a nice treat with the Sauron Bust that is as big as any Gentle Giant bust they’ve done. The detail in it really looks quite nice and appears to be very close to what was on screen. The Orc bust they had was also very cool and while not something everyone will get those that do will find it be quite nice addition to the collection. One bust I had really been looking forward to seeing was the Balrog bust and it did not disappoint me in any way. The detail was amazing and the coloring was just so freaking great! I’m not sure what the delay is on this piece but after looking at it for three days I wish Gentle Giant would ship it. After seeing the new classic busts from Lord Of The Rings I will not be getting them. The Lord Of the Rings ones where some of the worst items at the show but on the other side the Star Wars ones did look ok enough to keep the 2-3 I have on order so far.

The Halo and Indy pieces from Gentle Giant also came out looking quite nice in the forms at the show. If all the final products come out looking this way I can see myself adding a few pieces from the Halo line at least since I’ll be leaving my Indy items to Sideshow. Overall, Gentle Giant as I said did the best job of any year I have made the trip.

Sideshow Collectibles did it again this year with some great new items and big time announcements. Star Wars fans got quite a few nice announcements to go along with the items at the show. I’ll start with the items at the show. One item right out of the gate that surprised me a lot was the Anakin Obi-Wan Diorama. This was so much BIGGER than I expected it would be and have to say that Trevor Grove nailed both the liknesses on Obi-Wan and Anakin. This truly captures the amazing moment that was the Battle of Heroes. We finally got to see how the Illum Padme is coming along and overall she looks pretty good. The outfit needs to be tweaked but Sideshow has come out and said this is going to happen. The greatest thing about this figure is how close she looks to Portman herself. In the opinion of this trooper it’s as close to a ringer of any 1:6th figure I’ve seen. Bespin Luke is a great looking figure as well really impressed me to the point I’m glad we got another Luke figure. Again, I believe Sideshow hit a homerun on the likeness factor and this will make Luke fans quite happy when he gets here.

The Sandtrooper Diorama while small packs a huge punch for the coolness factor. The detail captured in this piece is off the hook when you look at just how small the Sandtroopers are. Its so much better than I believe anyone can imagine when they see the pics online. I’m really happy Sideshow choose to make this one the next piece because this scene is just one of those moments that hits the spot in the memory bank at least for me anyways. Then you have some of the news coming out the Sideshow Panel really added a nice pop. Fans got to see a concept for a Yoda vs Dooku Diorama which when it comes out will be a much have piece in this line and then you toss in the naming of the two pack being Palpatine in deformed and non-deformed is just too cool for school!

That wasn’t all for Star Wars fans either! We all know Sideshow works with Medicom to bring in some of their items and we got to see just how freaking great those are gonna be. The Medicom Boba Fett is just as cool as can be and I’m glad I was able to score one of these bad boys. The VCD figures of 3PO, Wicket, and BHST are also pretty neat especially for folks like me who collect this line. The real show stopper from Medicom though was the Darth maul figure. This figure just plain kicks a double s and should not be missed by any Star Wars fan. The only item I’d like to see changed is the material his outer robes are made out of and I’m 110% happy.

Lord Of The Rings fans got treated to a few nice items and announcements as well during Comic-Con 2007. The big announcement/items shown was the new Frodo and Samwise 1:6th scale figures. These figures are a nice boost to this line and also show Sideshows new bodies which they teamed up with Hot Toys to create and the impact this could have on other lines. The likeness and detail in these two little Hobbits will make those that get them drop their jaws when they start arriving. The Gandalf The White Premium Format figure is much much better in person than I expected. The costume is just mind boggling in the detail the folks from Sideshow where able to get into it. Also I like how you’ll be able to change some items out on the Exclusive because this really helps improve the pose. It looks just like Ian Mckellan did playing when playing this role. The only change I would like to see made is the hair along the left side of the body.

The Legendary Scale bust of Gandalf The Grey was a quite the surprise to me in just how cool it looks. Those that ordered it will be nice while those like me that didn’t will have to think about getting the regular or the waitlist for the exclusive. Also the Helms Deep Diorama looked very nice as well. The movement that you feel when seeing this piece really takes you back to all the heck going on during the battle for Helms Deep. The likeness to Viggo on Aragorn is pretty good not the best I’ve ever seen but overall it looks good. I was also pleased to see what one of the next dioramas was gonna be based on with the Eagle vs the Fellbeast. This appears to be one massive Diorama and for those of us getting it we might want to start saving room in the collection now.

Comic-Con 2007 was a real blast. I got to meet a fellow trooper in Odie and he helped me out so much covering the show and with getting an exclusive from Gentle Giant. So Thank You Odie for the help and I look forward to working with you next year. I’m tired, sore, and feel pretty beat but this trooper is ready to suit up for action again and looking forward to next year! I hope you all have enjoyed our coverage as much we enjoyed bringing it to you. Till next year this is Longshot signing off.  United we Find!!!