The ICP Direct showroom display.

Robin: Recently, I seem to be on a roll updating a number of the old-school character designs. The Batman Returns-as-animated Robin figure sorely needed my customizing attention. The base is the above mentioned figure. First I dremeled off the comic-book style belt, chest "ties," glove and shoulder details. Then I filled in the abs and the arm muscles with Kneadatite, following this with some heavy sanding. The belt is cut from vinyl, and the belt buckle is cut from the end of a styrene tube, filled with Kneadatite and sanded. I also built up the boot tops with Kneadatite. I then primed and painted the figure. Following that, I cut the cape from vinyl, painted it separately, and glued it to the back. The logo is printed and decoupaged on. I now have an old-school Robin on the shelf that doesn't look ridiculous.

Superman: Some time ago, I made a Superman from a Racer X figure. While I was very much aware that his chest was not anywhere near on-model, I felt he was much closer than the Hasbro offerings, and at the time I was satisfied with it. However, I've since become much pickier with my attention to detail, and my older Superman custom no longer satisfied me. That being said, the best custom Supes I'd seen was Tung Nguyen's. Of course, the guy can sculpt perfect legs from scratch. Short of waiting ten years to develop my sculpting skills, I had to do with Racer X.

Recently, I came upon what I think is a great compromise. I merged Tung's efforts with my previous Racer X recipe. What you see here is the Hasbro torso and Racer X legs combined. I filled in the unnecessary bulging muscles on Supes abdomen and arms. I also repositioned the left arm to a more comfortable shape, as well as the right hand. I removed the ridiculous original Supes head and replaced it with a casting of the improved European Supes head. Moving to Racer X's legs, I dremeled off the few sculpted details. I also dremeled away the top half of the "belt," reducing its width to match what Supes' belt should be. I used styrene and Alumilite to make the boot tops, and Kneadatite creates his outer-panty-line. The belt loops are vinyl, and the cape is 100% pure Hasbro.

All in all, I am very pleased with this figure. Just in time to be made obsolete by the Justice League show's designs.

Commissioner James Gordon: After Scott Rogers, I'll be the second one to praise Hasbro for finally making not only a Commissioner Gordon figure, but a civilian character at that! I only wish they hadn't let the interns sculpt the body. I felt it was my duty to correct his sculpt.

First I dremeled off his donut-padded belly. I used Kneadatite to fill some Swiss cheese gaps and then sanded the belly smooth. I then cut the legs just below the crotch line and reattached them at a better angle with Kneadatite, sanding the seems until smooth. I also removed and reattached the arms at a better angle. Finally, he sports a tie made of vinyl. A good paint job (including eyes) and I have a Gordon that's not in an eating contest with Homer Simpson.

DeeDee: One day, I realized that the Danger Girl figures might make great bases for an Angst DeeDee. I mentioned this to Iron-Cow. Next thing I know I was being convinced that such a project would be my responsibility. "But I'm the animated guy," I said. "Well they're very animated characters," Iron-Cow replied. "You can do it best, I'm sure." Well, with the price of Danger Girl figures dropping faster than internet start-ups, now seemed the best time to try.

The first DeeDee (to the left) is made from the bob-haired Blonde Danger Girl. I dremeled off some of the unneeded details from her legs and shirt. I removed her fall of hair and moved it to the opposite side of her face, so as to remove her further from the base material. Her belt is a strip of vinyl, and the studs are simply drops of Superglue left to dry. The brim of the hat is also cut from vinyl, while the hat's body is a lump of shaped Kneadatite.

The second DeeDee was made from the Russian Danger Girl, and as such required more work. First, the mesh top had to be removed. This gal also sported a great deal of sculpted detail on her pants and boots, and it all had to be dremeled off and sanded smooth. I used Kneadatite to sculpt some boot details to match her twin. Fortunately, the belt was already in place on this figure. Kneadatite also extends the lower line of her shirt. I swapped Russian chick's head with Blonde chick's, so as to facilitate the twin effect, keeping the fall of hair in its original place. (Insert Tomax and Xamot jokes here.) Her hat is the same as her
sister's.

Creating these two was a lot of fun. Tweaking with the designs was very liberating. Now I know why Matt loves Angst.

A parting look at the ICP Direct display.