DiD - LAPD SWAT : Assaulter.

Name: Ryan "Goose" Driver.

Age: Unknown.

Rank: Police Officer Third Grade.

Std. armaments:

LAPD S.W.A.T. t-shirt x 1.

LAPD S.W.A.T. tactical uniform (shirt & pants) x 1.

Inner cotton shorts x 1.

Tactical Double Duty TDU belt x 1.

PROTECH TAC-6 PLUS® HP full coverage tactical vest x 1.

PROTECH tactical ballistic bicep upper arm protection x 2.

PROTECH Dual Tango Down M4 magazine pouch x 1.

PROTECH Double UMP 45 magazine pouch x 1.

Double handcuff pouch x 1.

Universal radio pouch x 1.

Shotgun shell pouch x 1.

PROTECH utility pouch x 1.

Hydration system carrier x 1.

LAPD S.W.A.T. Class II Special Ops harness x 1.

UTG tactical single point sling x 1.

Drop pouch x 1.

OMEGA elite gas mask pouch x 1.

OMEGA elite M-16 /flash-bang pouch x 1.

Tactical name tapes x 1.

41D & 23D commemoration patch x 1.

LOS ANGELES police breast patch x 1.

LAPD S.W.A.T. patch x 1.

Fast ballistic helmet (includes: EOS Tactical MPLS Headlamp, NVG Lanyard for VAS Shroud, ContourHD Camera & Goggle Swivel Clips ) x 1.

FM53 twin port protective mask w/ sunlight outsert assembly (includes: Voice Projection Unit (VPU) & Comms Cable Kit ) x 1.

Oakley M-Frame Strike sunglasses x 1.

3M Peltor S.W.A.T.-TAC III ACH single communication headset w. arc rail adapter & Signal Combat PTT x 1.

Motorola Astro Saber III speaker x 1.

416 Carbine Rifle w/ MIAD grip & PW flash hider & PTS ASAP sling plate (includes: 4x magnifier with flip-to-side mount, XPS-2-0 weapons sight, MP Gen 2 MBUS flip up front /rear sight, M900V vertical fore grip & EMAG magazine w/ plate) x 1.

Kimber Custom TLE II (LAPD S.W.A.T.) pistol x 1.

6360 holster (S.W.A.T. custom) w/ MLS accessory fork on quick release harness & quick locking system (QLS) x 1.

C.A.T. (covert anti-terrorism) #203 knife x 1.

Multi-Port Plus flash-bang grenade x 2.

S-Biner carabiner x 1.

KONG 511-L3 carabiner x 1.

Tactical door wedge x 1.

X26 stun gun w/ Tek-Lok holster & CQC ambidextrous platform x 1.

Disposable double cuff x 2.

BlackBerry-8700G cell phone w/ case x 1.

HK Porter 0690C 9-inch Handklip cutter x 1.

OMEGA Water Beast Reservoir w/  Big Bite Valve and HydroGuard x 1.

Fusion Climb Tazo II screw gate straight D carabiner x 1.

TAC- watch x 1.

TAC- pen x 1.

S.W.A.T. classic 9 inch side zip boots x 2.

About LAPD SWAT:

While not the first to use specially trained units, the LAPD was the first to form a specific SWAT team, and originally created the term, "Special Weapons And Tactics".

With the increasingly rampant crime, general policing is not enough to cope with the special circumstances.

LAPD came up with the idea to form a specially trained and equipped unit. It intended to respond to and manage critical situations involving shootings while minimising police casualties.

In 1967, seniors of LAPD approved this idea and formed a small select group of volunteer officers. This first SWAT unit initially consisted of fifteen teams of four men each, for a total staff of sixty. These officers were given special status and benefits. They were required to attend special monthly training. This unit also served as a security force for police facilities during times of civil unrest.

In 1971, the SWAT personnel were assigned on a full-time basis to Metropolitan Division to respond to continuing action by subversive groups, the rising crime rate and the continuing difficulty of mustering a team response in a timely manner. Metropolitan Division, which had a long-established reputation as the tactical unit of the Department, was reorganised into 6 units: "A", "B", "C", "D", "E", and "K-9" Platoons. The Special Weapons And Tactics Unit was given the designation of "D" Platoon, and at the same time formally adopted the acronym SWAT.

D Platoon (SWAT):

D Platoon is the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team of the LAPD, provides the Department with 24-hour coverage necessary for immediate response to barricaded suspects, snipers, crisis and hostage negotiations, potential suicide-related situations, and other high-risk incidents. Rapid deployment, surprise, extensive tactics training and thorough planning are all parts of successful SWAT operations.

- write up from the box.

..........................................................................................................................

I very much anticipated this figure ever since it was previewed by DiD Corp last year. Although I am still very much "assembly-phobic" when it comes to figure of such genre, I couldn't resist the prototype photos and the tonnes of cool tactical gears, armaments which come with it. And with DiD Corp doing a S.W.A.T., it should be an icing on the cake because they do some really great stuffs pertaining to WW2 and WW1 figures in general. Excluding the actual historical accuracy or what not, I am very much a fan due to the material which DiD used. The LAPD S.W.A.T. does not disappoint, even at a higher retail price than previous DiD figures. It is insanely packed with accessories. Just look at the lists (I must point out that military-maniac fellow figure collecting frens yawn at all this). But with details arise the "put it together" nightmare. I spent a good four days pouring over the sparse instructions, cross referencing with various sources on the Net. My fingers and wrist screamed for rest. And I thought I am about to go blind and most likely suffer from hallucination due to lack of sleep. At one point I swear the figure seems to be mocking me for unable to get the "gears", particularly the bloody communication headset, together. I think I punch a fist on the air when I finally triumph. But it is a pyrrhic victory. The LAPD S.W.A.T. Assaulter, of which its head-sculpt shared a familiar likeness to Ryan Gosling (a famed actor whom ironically I didn't watch any which starred him. The name on this figure is supposedly derived from one of the characters the actor played), suffered from a severe weakness which I couldn't deny. Now, this is strictly my own opinion. That weakness is the darn seamless arms. I am a rubber arm phobic. It restricts the angle and pose which I want. DiD actually cover the inner usual ball joints arm with the molded muscular, with veins to boot, arms over it. At least for the figure in hand, the rubberised arms pose-ability are restricted, denying me the "classic" elite team "fluff look". At least they shown it could be done in the box pictures and in exhibition, but still I wouldn't want to risk "cracking" it. Otherwise this would be one of the best S.W.A.T. to date figure.

H.R. Giger.

Hans Rudolf "Ruedi" Giger (February 5, 1940 – May 12, 2014)

There was another artist the producer wanted me to meet. He had seen this guy’s work in a show that was at Paris at the time. He took me over to one of the really fancy hotels in Paris, not the one I was staying in, where this artist, H.R. Giger was staying while his show was on display in Paris.

Giger brings out this little tin foil and said, “Would you like some opium?” I said, “Why do you take that?” He said, “I am afraid of my visions.” I said, “It’s all in your mind.” He said, “That is what I am afraid of.”

- Alien screenwriter Dan O'Bannon (September 30, 1946 – December 17, 2009) on meeting H.R. Giger, from "The Beast Within: The Making of Alien".

ThreeA - Popbot : Tomorrow King Cornelius.

I could say, "once upon a time" but this is not a fairy tail.

- Cornelius (musician), "69/96" album cover write up.

'Beware the beast man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, or lust, or greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death.' -  29th scroll, sixth verse, of Ape Law.

- Cornelius (character), The Planet of the Apes (1968).

A (mis) interpretation:

Unit type: Mass production replicants.

Model type: The Tomorrow Kings - GEN 3.0.

Unit type: N/A.

ID : Cornelius / コーネリアス.
Rank: Shatei.

Manufacturer: The Luthor Bean Jr. Corporation.

Incept date: 12th June 1994.
Serial no.: TKG03MAC12061994.

Longevity: 4 years.

Function : Close assault.

Physical level: A.

Mental level: C.

Abilities: Panzer Kunst - anti-armour martial art; 69/96 - sword technique; superhuman physiology.

Std. armaments: Monomolecular-edged nodachi x 1; Monomolecular-edged o-wakizashi x 1; Monomolecular-edged ko-wakizashi x 1; Krak grenade x 6.

1995. The Cornelius TKs, along with the Zira TQs assaulted the Mortis Legion near Grid 7173. It is suicidal but worth it. Their mission and objective are completed - obtaining the remaining gene-seeds stolen by the machines earlier from Hatchery 50. A sole surviving clone returns to Luthor Bean Jr. at Hatchery 51. Luthor instructs another TK to store all the gene-seeds within a container known as Alpha and Omega, and put within the cryogenic shell of an empty SUP 03 neutron bomb. Bean Jr. then releases that TK from his neural programme and service. The by then excommunicated Oyabun TK, together with two others, take the container away from the Leviathan I, to Terra where Lady Sham awaits. The future of all the replicants contain within the bomb. As the life boat departs, the screaming machines swarm across Grid 7173, wiping out everything in sight. At Grid 7174, Luthor Bean Jr. and the Edo TK series would continue to defend it but the Ten Years of Darkness would be a severe test to them.

 

.......................................................................................................................................

 

TK Cornelius was originally an exclusive for the NYCTF (New York City Toy Fair) 2013 for traders only. Later 3A decided to drop it as a limited figure for 3AA members at Bambaland online store to commemorate the launch of WO3A (World of 3A), which replaces the ThreeA Production Blog website. The difference is only in the packaging (I could be wrong on this), the NYCTF ones being package in clear, see through box while the 3AA version is well, in card box. The headsculpt is new, which is a relief, as from UKTK onwards, another new HS is introduced which I kind of not too fond of, due to the "brinjal-like", shoe-horn shaped new HS and would take some time to get use to. Corny's HS is fine. Yet knowing the unpredictability of 3A offerings, the old HS might still re-surface in the so-called Classic line of TKs. Onto the figure itself, it wears the same re-cycled sweater from Merde Mission, the same boat-shoe, red grenades, many many pouches and bags, plus three swords, one which is particularly long with scabbards. These swords are first seen from TK Moon (and upcoming TK Sun / Snowblind). I have no idea what these Japanese swords are called, so I simply fill in the gap with random, quick infos from Wiki. This TK honestly reminds me of Naruto, but I still like it due to its more "pop" orientated colourway. However, the body is still the skinny ones. I hope to see the more fuller bodied, regular type makes a come back. All the "mis-interpretation" and "fluffs" are drawn based on the name - the Shibuya-kei genre musician Cornelius and the ape from The Planet of the Apes.

ThreeA - Adventure Kartel : Oppenheimer The GID Zomb.

 

 

We knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried. Most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad Gita; Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty and, to impress him, takes on his multi-armed form and says, 'Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.' I suppose we all thought that, one way or another.

- J. Robert Oppenheimer.

A (mis) interpretation:

Name: Albert Enrico Oppenheimer.

Alias: The Rad Zomb / The Glow Worm.

Age: Unknown.

Affiliation: The Zomb Horde.

Abilities: Radiation manipulation; Apathy; Contaminant immunity; Disease immunity; Enhanced durability/invulnerability; Enhanced endurance; Oxygen independence; Pain suppression; Pressure resistance; Self-sustenance; Thermal resistance; Anatomical liberation; Consumption healing; Disease generation; Enhanced bite; Enhanced strength; Killing instinct; Matter ingestion; Semi-immortality; Regenerative healing factor.

Std. armaments: Himself; The Eviscerator - daemon weapon.

Oppenheimer is one of the first generation of the Zomb Horde. He is vastly more intelligent than most of his kind, his intellectual skills rival only by the Zomb MD, though the difference is that his belief is still very much grounded in science, with physics being his only faith, as oppose to the necromancy dark arts favoured by the majority of the walking dead. He a formerly one of Terra's leading physicists, invited to be part of the group of experimentalists on board The Apsinthos, with responsibility on the development of radiation-weapons related experiments. Although unverified, it is speculated that Oppie has been around during the Age of the Great War, and was responsible for designing the likes of bio-alchemy munitions and the crawling horror of phosphex for the warring factions through Rothchild Corporation, a knowledge of which it brings over for the Zomb MD. Others say he stole the ideas from Rothchild's scattered STC (Standard Template Construct). Regardless, he experimented and created many weapons of mass destruction involving thermo-nuclear and bio-alchemy physics. The War Zombs militia in particular look upon him highly, for these hellish devices, irrevocably taints the ground upon which they are used, with many lives rendered barren, becoming an uninhabitable, irradiated charnel zones. Rumour has it that majority of United Americana irradiated "Cursed Earth" sub-sectors are Oppie's truest legacy for humankind.

Oppie possesses the usual corruption of Nurgleth but largely keep to itself within The Apsinthos cold fusion core, which is nicknamed "Oppie's Malignant Tumour". He possesses the ability to manipulate radioactive decay, causing all the Zomb Horde to instinctively stay clear of Oppie, fearing his ability which could melt or vaporise them in an instant. Despite his zombie physiology, Oppie displays the physical effects of long term proximity and exposure within the cold fusion core which gives him an abnormally pale skin that displayed unhealthy lightning-storms of veins and blood-bruises staining the flesh but with the usual yellowed-jaundiced, glassy eyes of a living dead. A literal, living dead consisting of cancerous cells, Opie is so saturated with life ending radiation that he literally glows in the dark bowels of the Carrion City. He could induce cancers upon the living within certain proximity. He is also known to be capable to generate and manipulate heat through thermal radiation. Oppie has been observed to generate energy bomb made up of radiation that can explode on contact like a micro nuke with a variety of effects. Numerous defenders and hunters of Zombs died terribly by complete physical disintegration upon encountering Oppie via radiolysis upon explosion. He could also release electromagnetic pulse to disrupt electronics or technology along with radiation pulse, follow up by a deadly fallout blizzard throughout the surrounding area. Survivors of Oppie's attack often succumb to physical mutation, ranging from developing extra limbs or in extreme cases, turn into a writhing mass of fleshes. These victims are often granted euthanasia by Baron Seth Von Sydow. The deadliest ability, however, is self combustion or detonation. Oppie is susceptible to stress and prone to have severe anxiety attack. This leads it to builds up immense energy and pressure within its body, and then literally causes itself to explode with the intensity equivalent to a nuclear explosion. Oppie's body become vapours as it explode, then reform. He demonstrated this ability only once, that is during the Robot Islands War, where the onslaught of the borgs and bots become too much for him. Oppie screamed and in split-seconds, a blinding light enveloped him and the resulting detonation destroyed Island 3 and vaporised the inhabitants in its entirety. He was thought to have been destroyed but is later reported to have survived.
Oppie sometimes carry a daemon tainted chain saw weapon with him, known as the Eviscerator. It has a motorised biting teeth that Oppie uses to saw and slash through enemies. The teeth themselves are fashioned to be incredibly sharp with monomolecular edge. It contains a crude version of the disruption energy field generator more commonly found in power weapons. Although very unwieldy and tiring to use, the Eviscerator is fully capable of bisecting an armoured man or tearing open almost any physical object in a single stroke of its blade. It can slice through walls and even damage vehicles. The weapon makes an angry buzzing sound as the teeth spin around, intensifying into a high pitched scream as they grind into armour. Since it must be wielded with both hands it cannot be used in combination with another close combat weapon.

Despite his powerful abilities, Oppie is rarely, if even, seen participating actively in any Zomb Horde attacks upon New Andria. He would rather stays alone, talking to himself or indulge in creating weaponries for the War Zombs at the behest of the Zomb MD. The Plague Lord ironically prefers to leave Oppie alone despite his deadly ability, in order to avoid causing any out of control emotional outburst due to stress which would be catastrophic, leading to up to the point of an unwanted explosion within the Necropolis. Oppie requires constant feeding of radioactive source. Each display of his powers often leave him in a weakened state.

 

......................................................................................................................

 

Oppenheimer, an obvious reference to the real life physicist whom is considered the father of atomic bomb, is a surprise, limited 3A drop. It is my first, full GID (Glow In Dark) figure (Tommy Mission's Hand of Fate doesn't count as it is an accessory). I was hesitant at first to press the "add to cart", button as I'm not a fan of GID figures but I saw the "potential", that is, this is a Boiler Zomb which is associated with radioactivity. And I don't have any Boiler Zomb. Perhaps Oppie satisfy or "fill the gap" of unique Zombs in my collection. The figure is nice, as in 3A sort of way and curiously the usual "turpentine" smell is absent. Joints and articulations are kind of loose though, something which starts from Potato Commander. Hopefully it is not due to overlook QC concern. Comes with the Boiler Zomb suit and the non-molded boots which is reused from nearly all their other figures across the major lines. Oppie wears a 3A logo black tees beneath. Unfortunately, I couldn't capture the glow in the dark effect. The fluffs are as usual derived from WH40k, a bit of 2000AD thrown in, with the chain saw from Toys City and that's about it folks. Maybe I may want to hunt for a proportionally sized  WW2 atomic bomb replica to go with this figure. Now that would be rad enough for me.