Friday, December 31, 2010

Outer Space Men Class of 2010



The first year of the new line is wrapping up (calendar year, that is) and here's a quick pick of the first 16 action figures in the line-- minus a weapon variation or four.

2011 is still up in the air, but the Horsemen have confirmed Mystron and Commander Comet as the next two in production. We hope you've enjoyed our ramblings, and be sure to come back next year for more news as it comes up!

Thursday, December 30, 2010

Mel Birnkrant's Outer Space Men 2010 Figure Fixes

Outer Space Men creator Mel Birnkrant got his figures recently, and shared some design notes from the 1960s and some ways to ruin the figure customization tips in making the toys slightly more like his original concept.


First up is Metamorpho. His original concept had the figure as having a translucent plastic helmet so more light would get in, but the 2010 release has an opaque grey costume. Solution? Swap in the glow-in-the-dark Alpha Phase Metamorpho helmet.


Next is Inferno. The original unproduced figure was to have light-up elements, specifically the head. Due to the enclosed helmet, this proves difficult. To give the figure a glow (after you swap in a translucent head, of course) he suggests you butcher customize the helmet with a small hole in the back, and he also explains how to do it.

Friday, December 24, 2010

Outer Space Men Holiday Edition Packaged & Loose

The Outer Space Men Holiday figures are arriving, and naturally, we ordered a set. Check 'em out.


As you know, there are gold and silver accessory variants of these figures. Rather than giving you gold or silver, the Four Horsemen mixed these so we got gold versions of Xodiac and Metamorpho with silver versions of Inferno and Astro-Nautilus.

As always for the clear figures, they come in the same bags with stapled header card. So if you picked up the Alpha or Beta Phases, you know what to expect.

If by any chance you have a silver Xodiac to sell, do let us know. And here's a loose shot of the group.

Monday, December 20, 2010

The Outer Space Men: The World of the Future

While not a huge surprise, the original 1960s series creator (and patron saint of toy fans) Mel Birnkrant has confirmed he is currently designing more new aliens for future series of the action figure line. Via the Fantastic Exclusive forums:

"Believe it or not, today, I’m working on sketches for OSM line extensions. Just getting started really, but I think I have some exciting ones in mind."

While not specific, it does confirm that the line will probably go beyond the initial 7 released figures and 6 proposed and unreleased ones. For his original 1960s sketches (of which that illustration is one), visit Mr. Mirnkrant's galleries on his web site.

Holiday Edition Outer Space Men Shipping

We just got our shipping notice for our Holiday Edition Outer Space Men. Watch your email boxes, kids! According to the Four Horsemen, delivery is expected for later this week, just before Christmas.

Review: The Outer Space Men Infinity Edition Inferno

From 16bit.com:

Standing about 3 4/5-inches tall (at the top of his removable helmet), this figure is fantastic. Just look at it! Molded in a grey plastic, the figure has been painted silver although it's tough to tell just by looking at it. As such, be careful when handling it because it's entirely possible that the paint may rub off over time with heavy play. The head and flame backpack are also molded in silver, but painted over in reddish orange. Due to the plastic the manufacturers used, it seems that the figure is painted all over when in fact it is not. Other highlights on the figure are painted to make it look like the original design, including some gold flourishes on his gauntlets, an articulated ornament on his chest, painted black "bendy joints," and of course, a specially decorated codpiece. The ladies love the codpieces. [ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]

Sunday, December 19, 2010

Quick Pic: Outer Space Men Infinity Series 1 and 2 Group Shots

While we're working on some reviews, why not see some more progress? Here's a group shot of Wave 1 (or "Series 1" and "Series 2") of the Outer Space Men.


As an added bonus, here's Inferno next to the vintage 2010 mail-in rocket-firing Boba Fett for scale.

Quick Pics Incoming - Outer Space Men's First Twelve Figures

While we're working on reviews next week (and beyond), we wanted to give you a link to some quick images we uploaded to our Flickr page showing off the new Infinity Edition figures alongside their Alpha Phase and Beta Phase counterparts.


Above, get a gander of Xodiac swapped with his various siblings.

Saturday, December 18, 2010

Outer Space Men Infinity Edition Figures Delivered

In all the excitement on Friday, we totally forgot to mention that our set of the Outer Space Men series 1 (Astro-Nautilus and Metamorpho) plus series 2 (Inferno and Xodiac) arrived in fantastic shape. We're snapping pictures for reviews in the coming days, and we can say that it's totally worth getting a set to play around with.

Particularly exciting is mixing the Alpha Phase Inferno with the Infinity version. This picture we just snapped in a hurry while we were futzing around, The picture is the Alpha Phase Inferno with the alternate arms and gun from the Infinity figure. What a difference some color makes! The Infinity Inferno is molded in grey plastic and painted red, in case you were curious.

A quick note: if you use the Alpha head and flames with the Infinity figure, it looks a heck of a lot more like the original prototype toy-- more on that later this weekend or early next week.

Outer Space Men Trading Cards in 2011

Apparently comics and figures aren't enough, the Outer Space Men are getting a line of trading cards!


There's not a ton of info just yet, but promo cards are making the rounds and it looks like it will feature the original photography from the 1960s, and typos. (One says "Xodiak.") We found the story at Non-Sport Update forums, because the manufacturer's site at Sidekicklab.com was seemingly down for the evening.

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Official Pictures of Outer Space Men Holiday Figures

Previously we were treated to unfinished test shots-- today, the Four Horsemen shared the real deal with the rest of the class with silver and gold accessories. It's like the Burl Ives song, with less rum.



Those are the silver ones. New changes from the prototypes include painted details on Inferno's gun, a little Saturn on Xodiac's chest, and added deco on Metamorpho's weapons. We're crossing our fingers that the samples we bought are silver and not gold because silver is so much more Micronauts-y.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Holiday Edition Outer Space Men Orders Tonight!

From the Four Horsemen press release:

(Or just click here to order them as/if they are available.)

UPDATE: On sale now! The final price is $48.50 shipped in the USA, and yes, they do accept Paypal.

OUTER SPACE MEN: GALACTIC HOLIDAY EDITION!

The elves at Four Horsemen Toy Design Studios (http://www.FourHorsemen.biz) have been working hard to make sure you all have a festive holiday season. The fruits of their labor have shipped and will be arriving at Four Horsemen Studios soon!

The Outer Space Men: Galactic Holiday Edition Will be arriving at Four Horsemen Studio’s warehouse on Wednesday, December 15th and will go up for order at Store Horsemen (http://www.StoreHorsemen.com) tonight, Tuesday night, December 14th at 9:00pm EST.

If you place your order before this Thursday, December 16th at 11:59pm EST, and you’re within the continental US (and the figures haven’t sold out yet), your package will ship out by Monday, December 20th via FedEx Ground (orders shipping to P.O. boxes excluded from FedEx delivery). That means that you’ve got a pretty good chance of your package being delivered in time for Christmas!

Each Galactic Holiday Edition Outer Space Men figure (Astro-Nautilus, Metamorpho, Inferno & Xodiac) comes with their own character specific, randomly packed silver or gold accessories, many of which are vac-metal plated!

As with all preceding special edition Outer Space Men releases, the GHOSM will come poly-bagged with a character specific header card and a backer card featuring all four of the currently released Outer Space Men in their own environments.

Go to the Four Horsemen’s website: Four Horsemen.biz (http://www.FourHorsemen.biz) to get a look at early, in-progress shots of the Galactic Holiday Outer Space Men figures and their awesome vac-plated accessories!

Also, all Outer Space Men figures feature a modular, interchangeable pop & play system that is compatible with Onell Design’s Glyos action figures!

The Outer Space Men: Galactic Holiday Edition figures are a special edition set, so – as with all special edition OSM sets - quantities are extremely limited. Be sure to get to Store Horsemen and order your set as early as possible to make sure that you continue to have a happy holiday season!

For all up-to-the-minute Four Horsemen updates, please friend us on Facebook (FourHorsemen ToyStudio), follow us on Twitter (@4horsemendesign), or just drop by the main Four Horsemen website daily (http://www.FourHorsemen.biz).

Monday, December 13, 2010

Outer Space Men Infinity Edition Shipping

We just got our FedEx confirmation number proving that our regular carded Outer Space Men action figures are on the way! We'll have pictures as soon as they show up.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Holiday Edition Outer Space Men Coming

In the mind-boggling-but-why-stop-now third series of clear repaints, we're going to get some Holiday Themed Figures. The set of four will have new colors, vac-metal (or silver and/or gold) accessories, plus be for sale early next week-- December 13 at 9:00 PM EST.

Click here to see the figures in their new colors, and this Four Horsemen update has info on accessories. Of note, Xodiac's helmet is now completely opaque.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Our NYCC Beta Wave Figures Arrive, Packaged Samples



While only 30 people got sets by mail direct, odds are you're beyond caring what the packaging looks like-- but here it is! It's the same packaging as the Alpha Wave from San Diego Comic-Con, but the New York series still looks great-- especially Xodiac on the black background. In person, it's stunning.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

NYCC Outer Space Men at ShopAFX

Action Figure Xpress has sets of all 4 Outer Space Men for $47.99. Given that they're pretty limited, the price isn't half bad. Closed auctions on eBay have been $50-$75 for the set, or about $17-$20 for a single figure. Or, of course, you could just order the normal figure set which is due to ship later this year. The set is limited to roughly 300.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

NYCC Beta Wave Outer Space Men Shipping

If you didn't get to New York Comic-Con, odds are you ordered (or tried to order) the four Beta Wave Outer Space Men figures from Store Horsemen. If you did, your order has been processed and odds are you have just received a FedEx shipping notification that your order is being processed for shipment today.

Friday, October 1, 2010

The Outer Space Men: First Wave On Sale Now

After months of hoping and an unprecedented two waves of "prepaints," Store Horsemen added the first four figures for sale. Right now.

As a reminder, the full set of four figures is $40.00 plus shipping. Each two-pack is $24.00. Astro-Nautilus is packaged with Metamorpho, and Xodiac is packaged with Inferno.

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Packaged Outer Space Men Samples

If you collected or read about the original Colorforms Outer Space Men toys, one thing you might remember is that packaged samples of toys that never got made are a big part of it. Thankfully, these new packaged samples of the first four figures are really, honestly coming. They go on sale tomorrow night!

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Actual Production, Pre-Orders Revealed for First 4 Figures

After months of pre-paints and rumors, the first look at the final production figures and word on pre-orders are up on the Four Horsemen web site. Figures will be available in pairs for $22 or as a set of four for $40, plus shipping. It's also worth noting that the final painted figures look really good-- considering the asking price and the likely low production run, we're quite impressed.

Sales start 6 PM Pacific on Friday of this week. Be ready!

Friday, September 24, 2010

New York Outer Space Men ON SALE NOW SOLD OUT

A few minutes late, but still timely, Store Horsemen has the 4 New York Comic-Con Outer Space Men up for pre-order. Only 30 sets are available and it's limited to 1 per person. A set is $40 and $9 for domestic shipping in the United States. Good luck!



UPDATE #1: These have since sold out-- by about 6:10 PM.

UPDATE #2: On The Forums, the Four Horsemen confirmed the set sold through in 1 minute, 41 seconds. If your order confirmation number ends in 2998 or less, you got in. If not, odds are your order will be canceled. Obviously, watch their forums for more specifics on this issue. And hope they make more to fill the orders with next time.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

More Packaging: Xodiac, The Man from Saturn

The Four Horsemen added shots of packaged Xodiac in its long-running news rundown on the Outer Space Men line. What's there to say? It's nice. Check it out.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

More Outer Space Men Packaging: Inferno

As expected, The Four Horsemen updated with Inferno's Packaging today. It's retro-inspired and they also let slip a tidbit about its form function, so the collectors wanting to open figures and store them on their cards are in luck:

"Just like the Astro-Nautilus & Metamorpho packaging, Inferno's packaging will feature a collector friendly replaceable blister!"

If you've collected Japanese figures in the late 1990s (and beyond), you know that this is a real treat!

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Metamorpho Packaging Revealed, So Here It Is

Fans of this line (and retro graphic design) may wish to check out this Metamorpho cardback, which has a lot of great work in it. It turned out well-- but we don't need more description, just go see it.

Monday, September 13, 2010

Outer Space Men Packaging, Target Date Revealed

Entering our second week of reposting news, we're thrilled to see The Four Horsemen update with the first-ever packaging photos for the standard edition of their new line-- check out the cardback and cardfront images. Much like the modern 25th Anniversary G.I. Joe line as well as Hasbro's various retro Star Wars series, they bring the old style to life while also bringing in a few modern touches. It looks really sharp, and explains just what the heck these things are. We approve. Astro-Nautilus is the only one on display so far, but hey-- gotta start somewhere.

Also, it looks like they may be available by October/November, which is fantastic news.

Friday, September 10, 2010

NYCC Beta Wave Nautilus or Astro-Nautilus?

The blue Beta Wave Astro-Nautilus was revealed today to be clear blue and pretty darned swell. The Alpha Wave version was clear purple. Limited to 330 pieces, it will be paired with the Beta Wave Inferno figure and sold via Action Figure Xpress at New York Comic-Con for $24 per set.

We approve.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

NYCC Beta Wave Xodiac Revealed, Green

The next New York Comic-Con exclusive figure from Outer Space Men is Xodiac! The Man from Saturn is now green, rather than orange or the final production figure's colors. His gear comes in orange, and he's pretty striking in a sort of an Ecto-Cooler kind of way.

The Four Horsemen also revealed that this Toy Tokyo exclusive will be paired with Metamorpho and sold for $24. There will be 330 sets.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

NYCC Beta Wave Inferno Is Yellow

Next up on the announcement parade is Beta Inferno, a yellow prepaint of the upcoming figure from The Four Horsemen. This New York Comic-Con exclusive is also limited to 330 pieces and will be sold at the Action Figure Xpress booth-- AFX had the Alpha wave at San Diego Comic-Con earlier this year.

A limited number of these will be sold online, but at 330 pieces, well, don't get your hopes up.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

NYCC Beta Wave Metamorpho Revealed

Seen here is the Toy Tokyo exclusive Metamorpho which will be limited to a puny 330 pieces. Sold at New York Comic-Con later this year, it'll probably be $10-$15 and sold with a yet-to-be-revealed second figure. But we're waiting for more on that.

The Alpha Wave Metamorpho was sold at San Diego's Comic-Con International and was cast in glow-in-the-dark plastic. This one is clear red, and quite striking.

Monday, September 6, 2010

NYCC Outer Space Men Beta Wave Exclusive Details

The Four Horsemen celebrated Labor Day in the USA by working. Specifically, by posting a press release with details of their new exclusives-- no pictures are available yet but they mentioned in their forums they could be up as early as this week.

The short of it:
- There will be 4 figures, 330 of each
- StoreHorsemen will have 30 (yes, 30) sets and that's it
- The figures will be sold via Action Figure Xpress and ToyTokyo at NYCC

These "Beta Waves" are notable in that they are the second set of "prepaints" before the real figures are made... and when will this be? No idea. But for building hype, this company seems to be doing a great job of ensuring fans will have to do some work to get these. For more details, consult their press release and stay tuned here for more!

Monday, August 9, 2010

New York Comic-Con to get Exclusive Outer Space Men

Details are sketchy, but we got word through the Fantastic Exclusive Forums that there will be new exclusive figures available at New York's own convention on October. The as-of-yet unconfirmed details are as follows, which we repost here as we couldn't get the link to work, and the emphasis is our own:

Outer Space Men Astro-Nautilus: The Man from Neptune Action Figure - Category: Toy
The Four Horsemen's widely popular Outer Space Men action figures continue with this exclusive variant of Astro-Nautilus with crystal clear blue plastic, florescent green painted eyes, crystal clear orange ABS accessories.

Outer Space Men Inferno: The Flame Man from Mercury Action Figure - Category: Toy
The Four Horsemen's widely popular Outer Space Men action figures continue with this exclusive variant of Inferno with crystal clear yellow plastic and red painted eyes. Both Outer Space Men figures will be extremely limited to just 300 pieces.


Images, pricing, and confirmation of the additional two characters are not yet available.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Review: The Outer Space Men SDCC Alpha Phase Metamorpho

Via our parent site 16bit.com:

Metamorpho is the first modern release of the character from the old Colorforms Aliens line, this time as an action figure. Limited somewhere between 300 and 500 pieces, this glow-in-the-dark Alpha Phase "prepaint" features about 12 meaningful points of articulation, Man-E-Faces style face changing, and swappable arms. Fun enough to be worth the $10, but you won't get it that cheap. [ READ THE FULL REVIEW ]

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Outer Space Men Gear Does Fit On Star Wars Figures

...we're working on real reviews, but we'll share some more snapshots from play tests along the way.


This is the 2010 Bespin Fatigues Luke Skywalker action figure wearing the Comic-Con International Exclusive Alpha Phase Inferno helmet. The gun fits right into his hand, but the helmet is naturally loose as it was developed for another head. Should you ever need to give Luke this kind of helmet, well, here you go.


Here's the same Luke figure wearing the Xodiac gear. Surprisingly, the helmet seems to fit just fine, as does the gun. Is there a practical reason to do this? No. But I thought it looked funny, so there you go.

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

What's out? What's coming?

LAST UPDATED DECEMBER 24, 2010

AVAILABLE NOW

Alpha Phase: San Diego Comic-Con 2010 Exclusives
Astro-Nautilus, Clear purple, 300 pcs
Inferno - Clear red, 300 pcs
Metamorpho - Glow-in-the-dark, 300 pcs
Xodiac, Clear orange, 300 pcs

Beta Phase: New York Comic-Con 2010 Exclusives
Astro-Nautilus, Clear blue, 300 pcs
Inferno - Clear yellow, 300 pcs
Metamorpho - Clear pink, 300 pcs
Xodiac, Clear green, 300 pcs

Infinity Edition
Astro-Nautilus, the Man from Neptune
Inferno, the Man from Mercury
Metamorpho, the Man from Alpha Centauri
Xodiac, the Man from Saturn

Holiday Edition: Figures have either Silver or Gold weapons
Astro-Nautilus, Clear red
Inferno - Clear blue
Metamorpho - Clear green
Xodiac, Clear colorless

COMING SOON
Infinity Edition
Commander Comet, the Man from Venus
Mystron, the Man from Hollow Earth


The original line in the 1960s had 7 figures produced with 6 more almost produced for a second series, which achieved a legendary status among toy collectors. There are also said to be numerous unfinished concepts, so it's entirely possible previously unseen characters could make it out. Otherwise, it might cap at 13 sculpts plus repaints.

Monday, July 26, 2010

Outer Space Men Vehicles: Use What You Have


The Outer Space Men are jointed very similarly to vintage 1978-1985 Star Wars figures. There are also added knee, ankle, wrist, and elbow swivel joints, but the fundamental "arm and hip swivel" articulation remains. The good news? This means these figures should fit in essentially any Mini-Rig, starfighter, or tank you so choose... as long as bending knees aren't necessary.


This means a number of G.I. Joe and other toy lines are perfectly compatible with these, if that's something you're looking for. (Pictured: 2010 Clone Wars Fighter Tank, Star Wars Cloud Car, Star Wars Snowspeeder from Hasbro.)

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Outer Space Men 2010 Packaging vs. Glyos Packaging

The 2010 Outer Space Men line takes a lot of cues from the Onell Design Glyos toys-- most notably the "open source" (read: freely usable) articulation system which allows for parts-swapping. Onell is currently using a ziplock-esque plastic bag with a stapled header card, which the Horsemen adopted for the new range.


The glow-in-the-dark Metamorpho is seen next to a Glyos figure. This packaging may only be for these exclusive figures, as one of the Horsemen shared that actual blister cards are in development as of Comic-Con this week.

Interesting notes:
• There are no UPCs or SKUs on the packaging.
• There are only 2 header cards-- it's Metamorpho on one side, and Astro-Nautilus on the other. Smart cost-cutting move!
• There is no mention of SDCC or Action Figure Xpress (the booth at which these were sold) anywhere on the packaging.