"WHAT IS THIS MAD OBSESSION WITH FREEDOM?"

"You are deluded, Captain. You pretend to be a simple soldier, but in reality you are just afraid to admit that we have left humanity behind. Unlike you, I embrace it proudly. Without fear!"- The Red Skull, Captain America: The First Avenger

Produced in Winter 2012, Red Skull was a very simple, basic repaint of one of the gazillions of clearanced Destro GI Joe movie figures with a Red Skull head, pistol, and Tesseract from the Captain America line-- a true LBC (lazy bastard custom) that was mainly a lark. Like Dr. Doom and Dr. Octopus, Red Skull was an early childhood favorite after watching a Captain America VHS tape featuring his origin. The stylized animation is still seared into my memory. Hugo Weaving's portrayal of the character in Captain America just endeared him more... what a great villain! The Marvel cinematic universe is better with him in it.

Initially, I was puzzled by the nose on the head sculpt of the figure, since Weaving doesn't have one once he reveals his true form. I do like it, however, so I decided to keep it. I feel like it kind of grounds him a little bit more in reality while having the overall same effect. The other day, though, I discovered a spare Red Skull head I did not know about, so a nose job may soon be in order...

NEXT TIME: "NOTHING TO FEAR BUT FEAR ITSELF..."

"EGGCELENT. I MIGHT EVEN GO AS FAR AS TO SAY... EGGSQUISITE."

October and Halloween, to me, aren't complete without a marathon of classic black & white B-movies starring The Man Himself, VINCENT PRICE. Mr. Price and horror are synonymous, but instead of choosing any number of his immortal villains, I went with a childhood favorite: CRIMINAL MASTERMIND THE EGGHEAD!

Created specifically for the 1966 Batman TV show and later integrated into the DC Universe, I don't see Egghead as an egg-themed Z-lister with bad puns and cheesy schemes... Instead, he's an actual threat for The Batman: A true criminal mastermind able to match wits with The Dark Knight Detective.

Produced throughout October 2012 and officially completed October 24th, Egghead primarily consists of a Cobra Commander and a heavily modified Star Wars head I found in the graveyard. I handled the sculpting duties, while my roommate Ilkhan Draconis-- a HUGE Vincent Price fan-- painted the head and facial features.

Here, Egghead poses with just a fraction of his vast wealth; small trophies and monuments to being able to outsmart The Caped Crusader... for now. NEXT TIME: DER ROTE SCHÄDEL...

"THIS AIN'T NO PLACE FOR NO HERO..."

Produced the last week of September through first week of October 2012, Zer0 here is from the video game Borderlands 2 and was created for my roommate's birthday. A serious gamer, his preferred class is sniper/assassin, and they don't get too much more bad-ass than Zer0.

Zer0 is almost a straight GI Joe repaint, with a heavily modified Iron Man head I had in my fodder bin. All of his accessories are also Joe weapons I've amassed over the years.

With such a diverse cast of characters and visually striking villains (I LOVE the dwarven Marauders), odds are good I'll be revisiting the world of Pandora soon enough. Sir Hammerlock beckons... NEXT TIME: THE DARK KNIGHT'S MOST EGG-CELENT ENEMY

"BY THE PRICKING OF MY THUMBS, SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES..."

I've always had a fascination with the occult, myth, ritual, and mysticism-- particularly vodou (or voodoo, if you prefer). Even as a little boy, I was drawn to the supernatural and its powerful images, few more sinister (and really cool-looking!) than the witch doctor. Here is my take: The villainous Dr. Witch.

Dr. Witch is an original creation produced in Summer 2012, and is intended to be an adversary for The Batman. Based out of the darkest, grimiest slums of Gotham, he conducts arcane rituals and is rumored to hold sway over life and death... He himself is purported to exist somewhere in-between...

This new rogue was made from a mix of primarily GI Joe and Indiana Jones pieces, with the necklace consisting of toothpicks, bits of fodder, and twine. He's shown here holding a blow dart gun, one of the many silent weapons he uses on his victims. Planned accessory? Mini Batman voodoo doll with scale pins... NEXT TIME: SHORT CHANGE HERO

"IT'S ALIVE! ALIVE!"

What's Halloween without a mad scientist? Allow me to introduce Dr. Clockwork, an original Batman villain I created. He's made from GI Joes, Star Wars pieces, and nightmares. He was produced in Summer 2011 and features heavy use of the modern update to my favorite GI Joe figure ever: The Battle Android Trooper (B.A.T.)

In an effort to create the perfect super-soldier and fueled by an endless research & development fund, Dr. Clockwork performed hundreds of twisted experiments... unfortunately, they were successful.

One of my favorite features of the B.A.T. (aside from the boss lenticular chest sticker) as a kid was the swappable weapon arms he conveniently carried in his backpack. When I saw the 25th Anniversary version's wicked takes on the arsenal, I knew they had to be for a villain.

The Unmensch were Clockwork's first attempt, but they were deemed a failure. Rumor has it the "good" doctor has started experimenting with human and animal DNA, and that he's unleashed the results into Gotham's sewers... ANOTHER, NEW SINISTER THREAT FOR THE BATMAN, NEXT TIME...

WHEN HELL IS FULL, THE DEAD WILL WALK THE EARTH

Inspired by my love of zombies and designs from the game DUST, here're a pair of "Unmensch," German for "monster" or "brute." They're assembled from GI Joes and 6" Marvel figure parts I had in the fodder graveyard.

MK I (Produced Summer 2011):

My first attempt at the character. I'm still pleased with the paint application and the clunkiness of the robot gloves. The gloves left something to be desired, which led to the construction of a new pair, and, ultimately, a new figure...

MK II (Produced Fall 2012):

Hasbro's Zombie Viper figure's sculpt was so insanely good that it needed a gross, realistic paint job to match. This Unmensch is less pristine than his intact counterpart. His decomposition is more advanced; pieces of his scalp are missing, and maggots have set into his face. Even better, his hands have much more articulation, allowing each individual finger to move... to get ahold of his prey as he lumbers toward them and never lets go. My favorite detail, though, is one you can't see: His one good eye can glow in the dark.

MORE UPDATES COMING SOON... UNMENSCH WILL MEET THEIR MAKER...

BACK OFF, MAN-- I'M A SCIENTIST!

What better way to celebrate Halloween (my favorite holiday) and launch the site than with my favorite paranormal investigators, the Ghostbusters?

The rookie here was made from Star Wars and Joe pieces, with accessories stolen from some Minimates I bought on clearance kit bashed onto some Joe web gear. A BBI walkie-talkie is also somewhere in there.

Haven't quite decided if I'll make the rest of the team just yet. I'm busy working on some other 1980s movie icons, but I may have to revisit this universe and make a Slimer... In the meantime, here's a behind-the-scenes prototype shot, with placeholder head:

...More updates to come, same Bat-Time, same Bat-Channel!