The army grows...

Whaddup, peoples???

Okay, okay, I really need to make my posts less sporadic. It's true. I just figured I'd successfully bought myself some time by dropping the big production AshuraShine news last time! :P But I guess that cred has long since run out, huh? LOL

Aiight, well, here's hopefully a proper update!

Yes, AshuraShine "mass production" is in full-swing (heh)! This is happening...no busters over-promising and under-delivering. What can I say? Alec is The Man. Working with him has been a breeze. And it hasn't been ALL "work" either: besides production AshuraShines, we've been putting our diabolical minds together for some bizarre experiments. So not only are standard pink figures on the way, but there'll definitely be some runs of figures featuring bizarre effects! Check out the prototype posse:

A couple of the white figures feature color-changing powders from Wolf Voigt's SolorColorDust.com site! I didn't get a chance to shoot any outdoor pics of 'em, but just watch that youtube video...this stuff's no joke. Alec hadn't worked with Wolf's powders before, so it was a little bit of a learning experience. Let's just say they WORK! So after the first waves of pinkies go out,we're gonna have some fun!

Next up, we messed around with translucent dyes. Nothing mind-bending here, but c'mon...that's dope! You almost wanna pop him in your mouth (please don't! I ain't trying to mess with any lawsuits! :P )...

And then we tried pouring gold glitter into the clear/amber rubber concoction. Absolutely wild! All the gold settled to the "bottom" during cure (really, the top, since the figures are cast upside-down). It's really hard to make out the detail in the photos because the light reflecting off all the gold glitter is scattered in so many different directions...but that sharp detail is all there...

Y'know, I think the best part of all this testing has actually been seeing how damn durable these toys are! Remember before the LRG fellas hooked me up with Alec, I'd not only never handled a rubber-cast toy...I'd simply *never heard of* rubber designer toys! As far as I was aware, underground/DIY folks were casting their own stuff at home in resin. And resin can be pretty strong...but it's just not Onell-tough! This rubber? Onell-tough! [Yes, I just wanted an excuse to post those youtube videos we made years ago! :P ]

And it only gets better: I've noticed that the addition of powders actually has NOT made these lil figures more brittle or otherwise susceptible to breaking. See, conventional wisdom says that if you mix a bunch of powder (glitter, coarse glow powder, fine thermo-/photochromic powders, whatever) into a binder or matrix, well, you have less of that actual structural stuff per unit volume to hold the thing together. So a rubber toy *with* lots of powder in it should have LESS RUBBER than the all-rubber version, right? Well, since the rubber's spread a lot thinner in the powder-infused toy, it should theoretically be a lot more prone to tearing.

Well, I'm happy to report that I've been carrying around one of the white AshuraShine prototypes (infused with photochromic powder that turns deep indigo in the sun!) in my pocket for several weeks. Besides getting a bit dusty, he's survived getting shoved in and yanked outta my pockets hundreds of times, I've thrown him against the pavement here and there, and I even tried to rip one of the arms off (lightly, of course--I'm trying to simulate rough play, not a fight with my ex!). Not a scratch! I'm sold, y'all. Rubber's what's up.

Okay, more on MUSCLEs next time. Alec and I have plenty more ill stuff planned for y'all, so stay tuned. AshuraShine's just the beginning!

And before signing off, I just wanted to post a quick Gin Gin update. The saga continues. I've talked to Walker a bit more about the problem. As it turns out, it ain't the paint. In fact, if the toy were to be *fully* painted, we'd probably be done by now. We'd probably have been done by 2012! Apparently, all this time has been spent wrestling with the stickers--specifically on the shields. Lots and lots and lots of wasted vinyl decal. No luck yet. So Walker's down to a couple final tricks up his sleeve to try to get them to work...but if all else fails, we're actually going BACK to the early (think Yojimbo) style arm shields with engraved/embossed details that we're just gonna hand-paint. We'll see what happens!

Some weather we're having...

Or...not having I guess! But despite this disquieting lack of winter, ya still have to watch out for your health. This weather's enough to throw folks off their natural rhythms, y'knowmsayin? It's enough to give ya pneumonia, I'll tell you that. Well, maybe not ME. And maybe not YOU. But certainly someone. Someone who ought to be perfectly healthy...and busy painting Gin Gins right now.

...

Haha...yo, I know that's foul...but I can't help myself. A certain someone we all know and love is currently suffering...and all I can do is make jokes about him NOT servicing my damn needs! :P Well unfortunately, folks, that's where we're at at this very moment. Some damn bug has infiltrated my unnamed partner's body...and it's messing with my steez. What can ya do? Pray for our loveable chooch's speedy recovery!

Meanwhile, I have some cool stuff brewing...that I can actually share with you! First up, I've teamed up with the Veef, himself--Andrew (or "VF5SS") of CollectionDX and TBDX fame--to produce yet another "3rd party" add-on for an existing toy. This time, it's not so much an accessory meant to enhance an existing toy; instead, it's more of a replacement part.

Some of you may be familiar with Yamato's 1/60 VF-1 Valkyrie toys from the hit anime, Super Dimensional Fortress Macross (or if you like, Robotech: The Macross Saga). Well, these toys are considered by many to be THE DEFINITIVE toy representation of the aircraft-robots known as "Valkyries" in the show. Alas, apparently, their shoulders are prone to 'sploding. Rather than wall-of-text you to death with the details, I'll let Andrew explain it himself. Apparently these parts are sorely needed, so I expect the replacements I designed to be a hit! They will be sold directly from Andrew's Shapeways store (they will be printed in polyamide). And good on Andrew for stepping up and spearheading this project. We're infusing a little positivity into a fandom that has issues with staying positive, y'knowmsayin?

Oh! And before I jump into the big news for this month, I just want to give our boy, Mike D, a big shout-out! Especially since we're on the subject of 3D printing, Mike is getting set to ROCK people's domes with a full size, 3D printed Popy Jumbo Machinder Garada K7 replica! If you're familiar with the original Popy toy, then you know what time it is. You know full well how utterly insane this project is. Words kinda can't describe it...so just follow Mike's blog and watch this incredible replica slowly come to life. Hard to believe, but it's been over ten years since Tom Franck scratch-built his legendary replicas of this toy--arguably one of the single most coveted Japanese character toys in history...

Anyway, I said "big news", didn't I? Okay, I've got some REAL fire for y'all... Brownnoize Productions has teamed up with MUSCLE Things.com to bring you (finally!) a straight-up legit release of ASHURASHINE!!

Feast your eyes...

Please believe me when I say this...this toy UTTERLY SMITES pretty much every other custom MUSCLE I've ever handled. No, I'm not even talking about the sculpt--we've all seen AshuraShine on my blog for months now. What I'm talking about is the casting, itself. I mean, look at it:

It looks good, right?

No...no, it doesn't.

It looks AMAZING. Simple as that.

And I know what y'all are thinking: okay, yeah, that's dope...but what's so special about that? That's real. I mean, resin casting is commonly known for super-"high resolution". Every tiny, sharp detail--flaw or otherwise--that can be seen with even a magnifying glass will come out in your resin casting. That's the beauty of the medium.

But check it. This ain't resin.

It's rubber.

I have never handled something "homemade" like this before. It's absolutely nuts...and my mind is *still* blown by this lil guy. My man, Alec, at MUSCLE Things is a mad scientist, straight up and down. There's no getting around it.

So basically what happened was, a little before New Year's, Kinnikuman/MUSCLE super-collector, Tyler, discovered months old pics of AshuraShine from last summer during a routine websearch...and he decides to post them on facebook. He dropped me a line outta the blue about buying one...and the very next day, I get a PM from Jay "Clawfreak" at October Toys (who saw Tyler's facebook post!) asking the same damn thing. Well, I told them my resin-casting woes...and they step up and volunteer to do some research to find a legit caster for me! Eventually, this all leads to Alec...but there's a catch: he only casts in rubber. What's the difference? Well, how about a four-day cure time for starters. Yikes. But everyone raves about this dude, and since the final product has a durometer similar to classic MUSCLE figures, we decide to drop him a line.

The rest is history. Or rather, it's about to be. Because, yes, we're going into production with these bad-boys! Brrrrrrap!!!

We're still working out the details, but we're shooting for a reasonable pricepoint for such a large, complex hand-casting. "Reasonable" for such customs is probably gonna be between $20-30USD. Heh...I'm STILL blown away by the sick resolution on this guy. The prototype Alec was working from was just a $35 3D Systems hi-res polymer printing from Shapeways...and if you look real close, you can actually make out the faint print lines going across his upper chest!

Yeah. That's NO JOKE.

Anyway, I've been comparing him to some other figures I have:

As you can see, the color is DAMN close to these vintage US-release Mattel MUSCLEs. The durometer is actually a tiny bit lower (softer) than the PVC MUSCLEs that we got in the US. I then compared him to a reissue Kinkeshi (Spinning-head Ashuraman, of course!):

As it turns out, AshuraShine's a bit tougher since the original Japanese-release Kinkeshi were closer to eraser rubber than denser/harder PVC. So overall, we have a bit of a compromise in terms of how hard the material is.

But whatever, man--this thing's hotness, and I'm psyched to be able to offer these. The initial run is only gonna be ten of these guys, and we're shooting for early April. They'll be bagged with a header card. If they do well enough, we'll obviously make more. And yes, Alec and I are looking into other colors...including glow and color-change!

As always, stay tuned here for the latest. And by all means, tune in to Little Rubber Guys for the discussion! Thanks for all the support...on- and off-line! One love.

Has it already been two months??

First of all, Happy New Year!

Heh...for the past month, I kept telling myself I'd get some progress pics to post on the blog. It'd be all teaser-like...y'know--totally gangsta! But each week would pass...and I still didn't actually have anything to show y'all. Such is the life of a toymaker...

Well anyway, I just wanted to post a quick update to let folks know I still draw breath. In fact, it's probably more accurate to say that I'm often out of breath these days! The gears keep turning, despite not having a ton to show off these days. Really impressive things are going on in the background: I'm continuously learning and am constantly amazed by what others perpetrating similar insanity are accomplishing. So anyway, I may not have any pics to show off this week, but the least I can do is give you a quick run down of stuff in the works...

There IS a MUSCLE project in the works, folks! I can't really tell you the details or the scope of the project right now, but it's definitely fun stuff. Yo, I can't wait to provide more info...but as you know, it's all vaporware until I can provide hard evidence. Hey, I need to prove to myself, as much as to you guys, that this stuff can be done, y'knowmsayin?

And of course, the star of the show is obviously Foe Gokin Gin Gin. I'm telling y'all my brain is absolutely melting! At the moment, everything's outta my hands: the finished parts are in the possession of a well-known painter/sticker fabricator. You think you're impatient to see what this thing looks like? Haha...I'm pulling my hair out over here! Well, once the aforementioned well-known artist has had a chance to work his magic, the parts will come back to me for final assembly and magnetization just before photographing and posting all over the interwebs. And all the while, I'll be dancing an Irish jig!

That's it for now, guys! I'll be back, hopefully soon, with some Gin Gin progress pics (whether fully assembled or not). I'll leave you with this youtube clip that's as genius as it is adorable!

I'm out!

Patience starting to pay off...

And I don't know who's been more patient: y'all or myself! Heh...well, a couple weeks ago, I dropped some science about Matt Walker's In Living Kolor - Boston custom toy show. That shit was the bomb and it was fun being able to share the experience with those who couldn't make it. Thing is, I didn't mention any of the big news going on behind the scenes at Broinnoize HQ. I promised an update soon, and well, here it is!

I'll start with the high-profile stuff first. Unicron stands are in! A fleet of hundreds of these things descended upon BBTS last week. They should be shipping from there soon. In fact, from what I've heard, a few went out prematurely without inserts. Don't fret! The inerts are in BBTS' hands and I have no doubt that Joel will send them out immediately to anyone who got a preemie.

But anyway, I'm excited because I've been getting more and more accolades recently from folks who really appreciate the product. As I've mentioned before, it's not a mind-blowing or life-changing item, but it's something practical that really improves an already popular toy. To be able to offer something like that, and have it be received so favorably, is pretty humbling. And who needs humbling more than I do?? ;)

What that also means is that I finally got my own small order of stands in, so those who've preordered directly with me will get their stands very soon (they shipped this morning)! These will likely be the last Thrones of Chaos I'll be handling myself. I have about five left in stock...so if you want in, just let me know!

And lastly, the success of these stands means profit. I'm making it rain like Aaron Hernandez, motherfuckas! Aiight...not really. I made a little scratch offa these, and while I'm far as FUCK from being a capitalist, it's nice to have the "legitimacy" (for whatever that's worth) of getting paid for a good idea. But I think the important thing here is that all of the proceeds are going back into the game. Commercial successes like the Throne just make pipe dreams like the Foe Gokin all the more tangible.



Next up, the minifigs. Yup, the MUSCLE-style figures...remember those? Well, because of the top-secret nature of what's going on, I'm under a gag order. Let's see...what can I leak to the public? Well, first off, I'm abandoning resin casting. At least for this project. More on that later. But what does that imply? I'm definitely not abandoning these minifigs...so maybe I'll just let y'all ponder that shit! Big stuff is in the works, though. Potentially the biggest ever for Brownnoize.

AshuraShine was a fun ClawShine-inspired side project to fucks with, but I don't think he's going into actual production. I may just make him available for print via Shapeways or something. Anyway, despite having just said that, rest assured...baby Gin Gin will NOT be alone for long!



And now the biggest news I've got for this week: Foe Gokin Gin Gin arms may finally be a GO!!

Aiight, so I mentioned above that I'm done with resin casting. It's not that I don't have faith that what I want can be done in the medium...it's more about getting there. See, in previous posts, I've mentioned working with various resin casters in the US. Well, the problem is cost and reliability. Resin casting is a fantastic medium for up-and-coming independent toy makers doing their own thing. The shit's mad labor-intensive though. The geometry I'm after is pretty tricky...and to get clean, unwarped castings that are free of defects (bubbles), a lot of work is involved. That means loot.

The benefit of resin is that it's got pretty low start-up costs and usually no (or low) minimum orders. That's great for low-run stuff, of course, but the price per unit can be pretty damn high. The alternative would be injection molding overseas. The problem with that is the extremely high start-up costs involved in getting steel molds made. Of course, the unit price for injection molded items is just pennies...but to make that initial investment back, you have to sell MAD units. That ain't happening if you're just doing low-run stuff. Well...I may have found a middle ground. And y'all ain't gonna believe this shit!

Shapeways.

On the strength, I can't even make this shit up. For real. The much maligned motherfuckin' Shapeways to the rescue! Think about it: ZERO start-up costs and ZERO minimums...and even if the unit price is high, pound for pound, it's still not nearly as high as resin-casting. Just print-to-order. One unit or one hundred. No difference. You're getting extremely dimensionally stable parts that are essentially flawless by nature. And even if Shapeways is habitually behind schedule, you're still gonna get your shit in about a month...which is a LOT more fucking reliable than some resin-casting outfits out there, y'knowmsayin??

I know I've voiced my concerns about Shapeways in the past. I look at it this way: initially, they promise you the world...and it ain't until you start getting models rejected, or awful prints, or annoying service, etc., when you realize that that promise comes with a lot of fucking fineprint. But here's the thing: once you get used to those caveats, you can play within their rules a bit better and optimize your experiences with them. And I think that's what I've managed to accomplish.

But let me back up a minute. [Right...'cause this story isn't fucking long enough already!] Peep this shit:



The black arms you see are resin castings from an older sculpt of Gin Gin. [You can see all the 3D shield detail included above--if you recall, the original plan was to paint that shit...but more recently, we decided to smooth-out those details so that we can apply stickers.] Now, these are HIGH quality castings. Yeah, in other words crazy loot. They look tight though...and in fact, the Yojimbo Gin Gins, the Tohoku Gin Gin, and the galvanic plated ones from the last Summit are all based on this sculpt.



Well, at the Summit itself, none other than the benevolent Uncle Warren (if you don't know, you better ask somebody) took me aside and praised me for how gorgeous the metal-plated exclusives looked. He went on to mention, however, how dope it would be if the blades could actually spin. Aiight, maybe he didn't say "dope", exactly...I'm just paraphrasing here. But it got me thinking...

Spinning blades involves a mechanism, rather than a dumb lump of material...and in designing a mechanism, the utmost concern is dimensional stability. Well, guess what medium offers that by its very nature!

Aww shit...look what Sanjeev done did:




Jeah...these photographs are 100% straight legit! Free-spinning, Grendizer-shredding weaponry! Printed in polished polyamide (what Shapeways calls "White Strong Flexible Polished"), this material is super strong and extremely lightweight. Pretty much perfect for toy mechanics. And this isn't the first time I've rocked domes with Shapeways' polyamide: those missile-fire Cosmic Squadron figures Walker and I were showing off at the Summit? Yep...Shapeways to the rescue.




The detail is tight, the action is smooth. Really can't ask for much more. It'll cost about $35 to produce two complete arms to dress up a single figure (which, ironically, is pretty damn close to how much the raw pewter costs for a single figure's head and body!). Still, I can't front: resin is inevitably going to be more per unit--even without the start-up costs--and injection molding in China just isn't realistic unless I'm turning these out in the thousands.

So what we may be looking at is a final production Foe Gokin Gin Gin, albeit a naked one. With the packaging essentially complete, all we have to do is get more arms from Shapeways, design the stickers, mix the paint, and get to work! Light at the end of the tunnel, folks...



Til next time...

In Living Kolor - Boston

Dang, it's been a minute, huh? Well, I'm back, y'all! Lots of fine-tuning going on behind the scenes, but I'll tell ya what: I'ma wait a bit before posting a full report on what's going on with Brownnoize. But don't worry--the update will be well worth the wait. Power moves on the horizon. For right now though, I wanna throw down on behalf of my boy, Matt "Dead Presidents" Walker. On Saturday, October 8th, Boston was treated to Walker's custom toy extravaganza, In Living Kolor.



In Living Kolor is a series of modern (mostly designer) kaiju-centric custom toy shows organized by Walker and sponsored by a bunch of independent toy makers such as Ultra-sensei, Mark Nagata. Sure, there was a lot of Mark's Max Toy Co offerings on display, but there isn't any one particular toy maker exclusively featured. In fact, the show isn't really limited to Japanese vinyl. Sure, it's mostly kaiju, but there was some wild diversity at the show.



So what's the unifying factor? Well, the toys sent in by various artists on display at the show are customized using Walker's versatile Monster Kolor paint. The paint is formulated for soft vinyl toys, but these cats put the shit through its paces. I saw all types of resin toys painted up in MK...hell, I even saw a ill hacked-up G1 Slag. Pretty crazy stuff.



The first In Living Kolor show took place in Japan, and was incredibly popular. Mad top-shelf Japanese kaiju toy makers such as Dream Rockets, Sunguts, and Real x Head showed up for the live-painting segment of the show. Yes: Matt actually sets up airbrushes for folks to use on the various free toys available at the show or anything else they want to bring! So while some truly off the hook customs sent in by artists are on display, the Monster Kolor flows like water for attendees...and everyone gets a chance to get in on the artistic action!



Like I said, this particular ILK show took place in our own backyard: Boston! The venue was Lot F Gallery right in the financial district...and very close to the Occupy Boston protest. Kinda surreal, but it was just nice to honk my horn in support of the folks standing up to this inhuman economic system. Anyway, a bunch of the massholes came out to represent and show support for Walker. And that's what was probably the best part of the show for me: the people.



Not only was it good to see folks I have regular contact with, but it was INCREDIBLE to reconnect with folks I haven't seen, literally, in years. More on that later. And finally, it was cool to meet heads from the area whom I'd only heard of before--people into the same geeky shit that drives us!



^^ Walker, himself, with JoshF and Regan--good peoples and great artists in their own rights (though not toy-related). They always come out for local
events so it was no surprise to see them come out to support our boy, Walker.



^^ For once, Ben didn't fuck up the dates...like he did with the Summit. In fact, he drove some seven hours to get his ass to the show. Good on 'im.



^^ Nekrodave, my boy and kingpin, was in attendance, of course. Like JoshF and Regan, he always comes through for local toy happenings.

But ultimately, what blew my fucking mind apart was seeing Matt Doughty of Onell Design and that whole crew! Now, I hadn't seen Doughty in a good year and a half. Motherfucker! Well, my man was looking good and while we didn't talk for all that long, it was great to renew the friendship and commit to seeing each other more.



As for the rest of the crew...



^^ The inimitable Jessie Moore of RawShark Studios and, of course, Callgrim.com. I love Jessie. The man is a beast--yet another incredible artist and toy maker. One of the funniest, sweetest bastards I know; again, it was fucking great to see his Gimli-looking ass again after all this time!



^^ Boris Savic of Planet Banimon. Another great guy I met through Doughty and Jessie. Heh...me, Boris, and Jessie always talk about playing basketball together, but we're just a bunch of old fucking men! :P Boris is the shit, though. Nicest guy ever and, in fact, he just had his second child, so I'ma take this moment to wish him a big Congratulations!

And while I didn't get a shot of him, the crew's enforcer, Grillo, was there too. Another good cat who's always in attendance for the big events, Grillo provides muscle when it comes to QCing Glyos figures prior to shows, bagging and tagging stuff, boxing and preparing toys for shipment, etc...



So anyway, besides long-standing friendships and renewed old ones, I got a chance to meet a couple cool folks. James, the host of Lot F, was mad cool. It was good to get to know him a little bit and even if we didn't have a ton of time to talk with all the action going on, I look forward to doing more shit with him in the future. I mean, who knows, right? Maybe someday, I'll be hosting some kind of Brownnoize Productions toy show there!

Also, I got to meet one of James's boys and Monster Kolor forum contributor, Todd Robertson. Todd's been blowing up the spot lately with his mechanized customs, but I had no idea how down to earth he was. He's just a pure, straight up and down toy fan. Zero pretense. Couldn't give a shit about "the scene" or being a big personality on the internet (*ahem*). All love for the toys. I look forward to following his work more. And speaking of which, check this shit out:





Well, besides Todd's amazing customs, there were some other cool toys on display, of course. I've given you a little taste above, but you should check out my photobucket for more pics of a bunch of random shit. Here's a couple more quick highlights before signing off:



^^ Walker's legendary custom Jumbo Machinders. These guys (straight from my collection, by the way! :P ) are absolutely rock-solid. That paint ain't going anywhere. Those who're familiar with trying to refurbish or customize Jumbos knows how notoriously difficult it is to get paint to adhere properly to polyethylene. This super-secret MK formula Walker used on these things is no joke. It's a game changer.



^^ And some jerk had a bunch of special edition metal-plated Gin Gin toys for sale. In fact, some may still be available here! ;)

Anyway, that's it for now. JoshF will be posting more coverage on the TBDX Brog soon...and I can't wait! He was painting like a machine at the show. And, damn, wait'l you see the custom projects he and Walker have cooking.

Like I said before, check back soon for another post with a big update about what's going on with Brownnoize. Stay tuned, kids!

The Reverend sells out!

Aiight well, not really! But anyway, I'm back from my West Coast adventures. Been back for a couple weeks now, actually. And, oh, have these couple weeks been busy!

For real, yo, this is some BIG news. Y'know, it's one thing to continue striving towards the dream: a 100% locally homegrown chogokin. But with such a lofty goal--and with so many fundamental changes and setbacks along the way--it's easy to lose focus, y'knowmsayin? Well that's where all the side projects come in. They're great creative outlets. They don't demand too much of my time and resources. And they help me keep my edge.

The highest profile--by far!--side project has clearly been the "Throne of Chaos" Unicron display stand. Besides using TBDX as a focus group, it was a solo effort. Since there were no collaborations involved, I could make the process completely transparent and share my progress in real time. And to see the project go from concept, to CAD design, to fabrication, and ultimately to final product for sale...it's wild feeling, yo.



So what's with the "sell out"??? Partly thanks to the wild popularity of the Amazon.com exclusive 2011 Unicron, stand sales have hit a critical mass in terms of popularity. They've been discovered! And now, y'all can purchase the Throne of Chaos directly from BigBadToyStore.com! Can you dig it?? As of right now, I'm out of the retail game for these guys.

Over the last nine months or so, these stands have blown up the spot. Nah, hardly the highest-selling 3rd party TF accessory out there, but I've turned around about 100 units. That's a lot for one chooch from outta nowhere on the internets! And the folks who threw down have raved about their purchases. It's gratifying to know that you've created something that people are actually feeling...let alone having added a quality item to the far-reaching Transformer toy pantheon.

Of course, for those who've already paid for preorders from me, I'll certainly honor those orders. Everyone else, I'll refer to BBTS or any other retailers who decide to pick these up (naturally, I'll be sure to announce any new retail deals here!).

So Joel at BBTS posted his preorder offer for the stand last Thursday, but there hasn't been an e-mail newsletter mentioning it since then. Hell, it hasn't even shown up on their front page yet. But y'know what? Joel's already taken more preorders than stands I've sold in my entire time producing them! That's some hardcore shit, right there. I'm big-time, baby! ;)

Well, that's it for now. Again, I'm really proud of this accomplishment...and even more pleased with all the love TBDX cats and other TF fans have shown since this ride began. And, hey, just because BBTS is taking over the public show, I'm still running shit behind the scenes. I still wanna hear feedback (positive or negative) from y'all. Get at me via the "Contact Brownnoize" link on the right!

Brownnoize is officially on vacation!

...And not entirely by choice! :P

But more on that later. For now, Summit highlights.

Aiight, so last weekend was the East Coast Chogokin Summit, and didn't I tell you it'd be tight?? Oh, no question. Widely considered the greatest Summit to date, a grip of toy collectors, artists, toy-widows (and widowers!) converged on the Godfather's crib north of Boston. I knew I'd be spending the night there, so I went to town on two 40's (Private Stock this time...no mu'fucking 8-ball) and assorted other boozy treats...all mostly on an empty stomach! It was epic. I dunno if there's any official Summit coverage on the internets yet, but there ought to be soon...I'd recommend keeping an eye on CDX because JoshB always rocks the most comprehensive coverage.

I was WAY too busy partying to take any pics of my own, but between Mike's mini Jumbo Villains, Walker's eyeball-melting custom Jumbos and missile-fire Cosmic Squadron, and my own metal-plated Gin Gin exclusive release (YES), there was plenty to see other than the usual Summit treasures for sale! Even CDX's Leonardo Flores provided the nerd-beats with classic anime hits from Macross, Yamato, and the like. Damn. And that's not even mentioning how great a time everyone was having. Words can't even come close to describing everything. Sorry if you missed it [Ben! MAN, did we break that kid's balls for having fucked up the dates!]. Only until you see actual pics can you really grasp how far we've come as a community and as artists. I know I was there getting lit with homeboys I hadn't seen in a ill minute, but it was TRULY special to be a part of the whole thing.

And y'know something? It didn't even *start* for me on Saturday! Wednesday night, Hillsy (of TBDX and skullbrain fame) flew in from Seattle. As soon as he arrived, did he wanna drop his stuff off at the crib? Maybe freshen up...or even crash after a long day of travel? Fuck no...we hit up the Fours in Quincy and fucking drank. This marked the beginning of the demise of my liver. The next morning, Jim M (ALSO from TBDX and skullbrain fame) had taken the red-eye in from Oregon and got a rental whip. During the day, we just chilled, ate some good food, and hit up some local comic book stores. That night, though, Mason was having a chill get-together at his place. And Mason's is always a fresh time--the man is the embodiment of hospitality...and an amazing cook.

Ah, I did not join them, however...as I had plans to meet up with a very special lady who was flying in from Oakland just for a short while. Yeah, INSANE fucking timing--what with buddies from out of town staying over and the Summit to prepare for! But like I said...she's special. Oh, what an evening. Walk in a park. Drinks. Long drives. Late night walks in a field and on a beach. Chased by cops(!). Yeah...the Rev's in love. ;) Anyway, LONG after Hillsy and Jim left Mason's and came back to my place, I snuck back in at around 5AM and slept blissfully!

The next day was Friday, and me and the fellas headed into Cambridge to hang out at Harvard Square, one of the few spots around the Bean where there are a few decent nerdy things to do all in the same place (while having bars in close proximity, of course). From there, we headed straight to JoshB's for pre-Summit tailgating at HIS place...and that was just a blast. Josh's spot is a great place to converge in larger, more diverse groups...and it did not disappoint. We headed back to Brownnoize HQ fairly early, drank a bit more, and talked til around 4AM while I put together Summit exclusives and got packed for the event in the morning.

After hitting up a local package store (hence the 40 oz's) early on, we got to Alen's...and the rest of the day was magic. Besides getting hammered--much to the delight of the Usual Suspects, who'd mostly only ever known me to be a sober dude--there was so much great hanging out with new folks and reconnecting with old buddies. One treat I was looking forward to was meeting Frankie B. Washington and James Biggie, creators behind Robot God Akamatsu. Again, adding more talent and drive to the community.

Anyway, long after most heads had split, me, Jim, Mark "machinesoldier" G, and Chairman Erik stayed up late having a great heated-but-honest discussion about race and class. HA! You know how we do! Wouldn't have it any other way. But it was just a great thing to be able to connect with these cats and for us all to listen to each other, y'knowmsayin? Anyway, we dropped one by one like flies, and even after two 40's, I somehow closed the place down. RIGHT before I crashed (around 2AM at this point???) though, I got a call from my lady friend back in Oakland. ;) We just chatted for about fifteen, but it was SUCH a lovely way to end the evening!

The next morning, Sunday, we awoke from the dead and a good 15-20 of us all met up for dim sum north of Boston. A few of us, still standing, then headed down to the South Shore to see Josh "C10" F's incredible toy collection and Japanese tea garden at his parent's place. Ridiculously, the place is only about 5-10 minutes from where I'm living now...yet I'd NEVER made it over there before! A very special treat for me, indeed. Anyway, after that, we all headed to Brownnoize HQ, where everyone was delightfully horrified to see the hilarious squalor I've been living in lately! ;) It's like half packed-up, recently-moved toy collector shit...half UNpacked, completely disorganized toy collector shit...half mad scientist toy factory. It's like man-bear-pig...only a place, not a monster Al Gore is hunting. Totally fucked up...but still great to show Erik and the other out-of-towners. There was plenty of ball-breaking about "Extreme Home Makeover: Toy Edition" and the like! Classic. Anyway, we were all pretty beat to shit at this point, so we capped the visit off with a gathering around the Goldrake kiddie ride. Afterwards, I had to say goodbye as I was about to drop fucking dead.

Folks dispersed and eventually headed back to their respective coasts and continents...and the memories and inside-jokes live on behind knowing smiles. Good fucking times. I really wish everyone were as fortunate as to have such a tight crew they can share their ridiculous passions with, y'knowmsayin?

And incredibly enough, this wall of text ain't even over, motherfuckers!

Remember that special lady friend I've been been mentioning? Well, her birthday's coming up and she treated herself to two ILL seats at Sade in San Jose this past Thursday night...and guess who that other ticket was for... BOOYAKA!! Yo, so I flew out Wednesday chilled with some of her friends that night, and just spent the most amazing time with her. Do y'all really wanna hear the sappy shit? Nah, probably not...but suffice it to say that it's been a fantastic time. Yo, the Sade seats? Right down the middle, dead center in front of the stage. She was so close, I coulda beaned her with a wiffle ball. And lemme tell you: that woman is EVERY damn bit as sexy and talented as she's EVER been, word is bond. Not only has she not lost an ounce of power in her voice, but just the amazing audio-visual production of each song was so off the fucking hook. I'm really glad I got to see Sade...even if only once in my life. And to have seen her with a lady I'm completely smitten with was nothing short of magical. ;)

So remember how I said this vacation ain't exactly by choice? Well apparently, there's a fucking hurricane about to decimate the Bean. Holy fuck. It figures I'd be out in gods damned California...when Mother Nature decides MASSACHUSETTS should break off and sink into the fucking ocean. My flight was for tomorrow morning. Back to work on Monday. Yeah, right. Get this: I'm stuck in Oakland until NEXT weekend!! And, of course, this is brilliant timing with the 2011 Amazon-exclusive Unicron having JUST come out...and me getting floods of orders for stands. Well, for those interested, I ain't getting back to the world until September 5th...so I'll reply to any inquiries then. And I'll also get my Summit exclusive leftovers photographed and posted here for sale (y'all SERIOUSLY gotta see this shit!). But for now, I'm going off the grid. I guess it could be worse. I mean, I'm in rather nice company... ;)