Quick shot of the workbench, where I'm finishing up a couple of customs that, when combined with some other customs, will make one super event. Stay tuned.

On July 27, 2009, I made a post about how Marvel had introduced a Red She-Hulk, and said that I would be making a new Red She-Hulk custom. Well, she's just about done.

Way back on May 12, 2009, I posted a custom of what a Red She-Hulk might look like. At the time, I predicted that Marvel (the company that brought you She-Hulk, Spider-Woman and Spider-Girl) would create a Red She-Hulk sooner or later to cash in our their new Red Hulk.

Marvel moved a lot quicker than I thought they would - in July of 2009 they announced the Red She-Hulk. And of course my custom wasn't even close. So at that point I vowed to make an accurate Red She-Hulk custom. Now, over a year later, I am proud to present the comic-accurate Red She-Hulk. Please, go forth and check her out.

A new custom fresh from the primer box, waiting on my workbench for me to mix up the right shades of metallic blues.

There was a power outage at my job last week. So as I was sitting there for two hours waiting for the electricity to return, I sketched out some more designs for upcoming customs.

There's only one Man of Steel. But even an icon like Superman changes his clothes. And so for the next few weeks I'm going to post Superman customs of his various looks from over the years. And then I'll post some customs of his friends, and some of his enemies as well. But no birds or planes. They'll have to get their own event.

First up, a blast from Superman's past - the Superman Robot, a tribute to when Superman was smart enough to create his own fleet of Superman robots, complete with his own powers.

Our second Superman custom this week is Superman Prime from the DC One Million mini-series. The story had the modern Justice League visiting the year One Million and discovering that Superman is still alive and is also metallic gold. So stop looking the in sky for that bird and plane and go check them out.

We continue our review of the various looks of Superman this week with a quick jump back to the 1990's - Recovery Suit Superman, from the Death of Superman / Return of Superman event. You know, the storyline where Superman died but then not really died and came back in a nifty black and silver suit with long hair? Go check out a custom of Superman in a nifty black and silver suit with long hair right now.

In the 1990's, there was no bigger event in Superman comics than the Death of Superman, where Superman was killed (spoiler!). A huge commercial success, the Death of Superman was followed by the Reign of the Supermen, a storyline where four new heroes were introduced, each claiming to be Superman. This was also a pretty popular storyline, and the four replacement Supermen are still around. In fact, DC Direct made Minimates of the Cyborg Superman and Steel, then quit making Minimates before they made the rest (Reason #12 on my "Why I'm Still Angry They Stopped Making DC Minimates" list). Today, I'm fixing that error.

Straight from the Reign of the Supermen storyline, this week's first custom is Superboy, the teenage clone of Superman, complete with 90's style haircut and extreme attitude. And next is the Eradicator, living Kryptonian computer turned Superman duplicate. Check them out as I stay here and get more bitter about the cancellation of the DC Direct Minimates.

See that, DC Direct? Now I can reenact the Reign of the Supermen any time I want. Why don't you go ahead and quit some more toylines, huh?

Quick shot of my sculpting project for this weekend - Plastic Man. Obviously he still needs a little work.

Before you look at today's custom, you should ask yourself, "Have I read "All-Star Superman" by Grant Morrison?" If the answer is no, then you should go do that now. Not because you need to know the story to appreciate this week's Superman custom, but because it's a really good Superman story.

For those of you who have read "All-star Superman", I present one of the memorable supporting characters from the story - The Unknown Superman of 5400 A.D., a mysterious future decedent of Superman. Go check him out, won't you?

Extreme close-up of top-secret custom project.

Currently on the Minimate Multiverse forum, there's an "Alternate Universe" contest running, where you redesign an existing Minimate into a different character from an alternate dimension. So the character is similar to the original, but has startling and strange differences. For that contest, I proudly present my entry - Batduckman. Go check him out.

Had a small setback on my Plastic Man project. You can see that the arm is broken off, but if you look close, you might be able to see where I had to fix breaks in the chest and other arm. I'm having real problems working with the custom, and I'm not even that far. I may have to abandon this one and rethink my approach.

Jeff Parker is a very good compic book writer. I was a big fan of his Agents of Atlas series, and I'm enjoying his Hulk comic, where he's actually making the Red Hulk an interesting character. But in a recent issue (Hulk #30, in fact), Jeff hit upon another of my great comic loves - the composite character. I love it when two different characters get smooshed together into one, like the Composite Superman or the Composite Hulk-Thing I made. So when Jeff introduced the Compound Hulk - part Red Hulk, part green Hulk - I knew that I was going to have to make him.

In honor of Jeff Parker, I present the Compound Hulk. Go check him out in his red and green glory.

I'm sure you've all been waiting patiently for me to post more Superman-related customs. So this week I present the last of my heroic Superman-related customs with the modern Superboy. He's a lot like the 90's Superboy, just not dressed like he's from the 90's. Go check him out, and come back next week when I present a few Superman villains.

Quick shot of my paint easel modeling the latest in spring custom Minimate fashions.

The Charitymates event will be held again this year, taking Minimate customs and putting them on eBay to raise money for charity. This year the theme for the customs is tournament fighters.

Above are some designs for my fighter. I'm not happy with the design yet, I have no idea how much I'm going to have to sculpt from scratch, I have no idea for colors and no ideas for a name. Good thing I don't have to have him done until June 1st.

Superman doesn't have the great number of villains that Batman has, but he does have some good ones. Luthor, Brainiac, Mr. Mxyzptlk - none of them are posted today. But I do have a few good villain customs.

First up is the Silver Age General Zod, who looks and acts nothing like Terrance Stamp from Superman 2. So no beard and black leather, but if you you like guys in hats, then you're going to love this Zod.

I also present Metallo, the criminal brain in a robot body with a Kryptonite heart. But no hat, so advantage Zod. So go check them out.

Have begun randomly hacking and cutting Minimate parts hoping that a design for my Charitymates custom will emerge. Not sure it's working yet. May need to get more parts and a bigger knife.

After a little delay for a trip out of town, I've started the next part of my Charitymates custom - sculpting. I just started, but right now he looks a little too happy.

Piece by piece my fighter Minimate gains his face as I keep sculpting his helmet.

I can already tell that I'm going to keep tweaking with this guy's face until I put him in the mail and send him away. Maybe I should start working on something different.

My fighter guy may not have a name, and his mask may not be done, but at least he's got a fancy skirt-thing to wear now.

A quick shot of my nearly-complete fighter. I thought he was ready to get a coat of primer, but then I noticed a few flaws, so no primer for him tonight.

Look who made it to the primer box! He's now all primery and stuff.

Current look at the paint bench with my Charitymates fighter and his friends getting their paint on.

Wow, it's been a while since I updated. But I've gotten stuff done in the past two weeks. Honest! It's not like I went on vacation or something! My Charitymates fighter is just about ready! You'll see him soon! And look! You can see my other fighter (and his friends) laid out on my workbench. They'll be done soon, too! Really!

I even completed a trade for a spare Shocker! Would I do something like that if I was slacking? I think not!

Done. Unveiling this week. Tuesday, probably. Still need to come up with a name.

After some work and a lot of delays, I'm happy to finally present my first fighter for this year's Charitymates - Sasu, the masked assassin. In Japanese, his name means "to stab", which is what he does. With knives. You should go check him out now.

And I even have photos taken of him! I've even posted the photos online so you can see them. If you finish reading this sentence, you'll find out that my new fighter is named Barrett Diablo and you should go check him out.

Earlier this week I unveiled my latest Charitymates fighter Barrett Diablo, but did you know that he's not the only devil-faced Minimate that I was working on? Of course you didn't, I've never talked about it and you're certainly not a mind reader.

Anyway, I'm happy to present the inspiration for fighter Barrett Diablo - Barrett Diablo in a suit. The shocking story of the Diablo behind Diablo can now be read in its entirety. Go and learn the truth behind my devil-faced characters.

The first of my recent Charitymates customs - Sasu - is now live on eBay for your bidding pleasure. I want to encourage to bid on all the customs - proceeds from the auction go to supporting Direct Relief International - but bid responsibly. You need to pay your mortgage, but do your kids really need a college fund? Think about it...

I've been quietly gearing up to work on a bunch of customs this summer. This is a picture of some random thoughts I had for future customs (which may or may not have been made during meetings).

Quick shot from my sculpting binge this weekend. I was supposed to be working on a bunch of people who carry lanterns and like green (guess who!), but also started working on this guy. It takes a lot of Super Glue to attach tiny triangle to a Minimate body.

This is other part of my sculpting binge this weekend - a certain alien dog-faced character who may or may not be a Green Lantern.

Quick shot of my "In-Progess Box." Soon a handful of those Minimates will be taking the shower to Primer-town.

Last Halloween I unveiled my Son of Satan custom, with his classic red cape and pentagram chest scar. But did you know that the Son of Satan has updated his look since then? No, he hasn't lost the pentagram - it costs a lot to have that much scar tissue removed.

To match the modern, bad-ass attitude he's been given over the years, Daimon Hellstrom got a more modern look. No more cape, no more pointy boots - just tight leather jeans and rock star hair. So go check out the modern Son of Satan, and decide for yourself if it's an improvement or if he's just a a Billy Idol rip off.

Get out your checkbooks - the second wave of Charitymates customs is now live on eBay. This group includes some great customs, including my other fighter custom, Barrett Diablo. Go check them out and bid like a crazy person. You don't need lunch this week, do you?

Iron Man! Movie star! Founding Avenger! And owner of one of the biggest collections of armor this side of the Knights of the Round Table! So let's take the next few weeks and look at another bunch of Iron Man related Minimate customs!

So to start the latest round of custom Iron Man Minimates, I present a character who's 50% Iron Man - the Iron Lantern, the combination of Iron Man and Green Lantern, thanks to a crossover event between DC and Marvel Comics. While the character wasn't seen again after the event, his look was iconic enough to inspire me to make a custom for him. So go check him out, and prepare for more Iron-y custom goodness next week!

Iron Man isn't content with being known as the Golden Avenger - I think he wants to be all the Avengers. My evidence? The patriotic red, white and blue of the Captain America Armor. Is Iron Man trying to soak up some of that Captain America movie love for himself? Go check out the custom and decide for yourself.

And while you're there, you can check out the other original custom Iron Man armor I made - Volcano Armor Iron Man. It's perfect for fighting Lava Men in volcanoes or in giant Hot Pockets or any other lava-filled spaces. Go forth and enjoy.

One of the perks of being a friend of Tony Stark? Eventually you'll get to wear the Iron Man armor. And if you're a really good friend, he'll make a special set of armor just for you. Just ask Jim Rhodes, longtime friend and pilot of Tony, who received his own set of armor and became known as the hero War Machine. Since suiting up in the 90's War Machine has had a few distinct looks. Why don't we take a look at a few of them in custom form?

First up is the Prismapolymer War Machine, a very shiny armor designed to resist laser beams. The Prismapolymer armor only appeared once, but once is enough to get a custom from me!

Next is the Ultimate War Machine from Marvel's Ultimate Universe, which is like the regular Marvel Universe without the history. Except he's not really from there - he's based on the Hasbro action figure and I don't think he's ever been in the comic in this armor. Confused? Just go look at the custom and feel better!

Well, I've tried to put it off as long as I could, but it's time to wrap up another Ironmania. Yup, this is the last of the Iron Man customs for a while. Please, don't get choked up over this. While it's a sad occasion, just remember what Tony Stark says - "Don't cry. Or your armor will rust."

Our first armor today is Mark 1 Gold Iron Man Armor - which is the movie version of his first armor, but painted gold instead of gunmetal grey. It's the kind of easy variant that Hasbro would make to fill out an Iron Man action figure line, and I'm not too proud to make one myself.

The final Iron Man custom was inspired by another custom by the ridiculously talented Shamrock - the Iron Bat! Shamrock originally mixed Batman with Iron Man in a wonderful custom, and I had to make one for myself. So stop reading this and go look at them both!

Is it time for an easy repaint? Sure! Check out the silver Dreadnought!

Like cars, Dreadnoughts come in a choice of colors. If you're big on their classic appearance, then you're happy with the standard metallic blue color. But if you're like me and remember first seeing Dreadnoughts as they fought Iron Man, then you'll want a sporty custom silver edition. Which you'll have to make yourself. But you can use mine as a guide! Go check them out!

This is another case where my sculpting probably went too far.

Latest batch of Minimates ready for some primer.

See the Amazing Spider-Man cover over on the right? It's from an upcoming issue of the Spider-Island storyline, where a whole bunch of people on Manhattan gain Spider-Man's powers. Even villains like the Shocker, who happens to be on said cover with six arms. It's a bold new look for him, but would it work as a Minimate? Find out now, with my new Six-Armed Shocker custom!

Things I Drew At Work (part 1)

Things I Drew At Work (part 2)

Since it was announced that a Deadpool Corps box set is coming, now seems like a good time to show up a custom I put together recently - Headpool, the zombie head member of the Deadpool Corps. Who's also coming in the box set. Which kinda makes me feel a little like I wasted my time. Please, go check him out and make my effort seem worth it.

Teaser Photo #1 for Top Secret Custom Con Project. Hopefully.

I'll explain this later.

Also, happy 8-year anniversary to my customs site.

Sometimes you just need to see a super hero fight a super villain. Not a super-serious fight with major consequences - just a simple fight against a villain who can make the fight look interesting, but you always know that the hero will will. If you're looking for that kind of fight, might I suggest the Brothers Grimm as your villains? They're two brothers with magical suits that can make flashy weapons like razor-sharp stars and explosive pies appear in their hands like, well, magic. And they ride clouds! The Brothers Grimm make villainy look visually interesting - too bad they're too dumb to actually win any fight. Go check them out, won't you?

Trying to finish up some new customs before Halloween. We'll see if I can make it...

Years ago when I was in elementary school, I was fascinated by the Crestwood Monster Books. These were a series of books about famous monster movies like Frankenstein, Dracula and Godzilla, full of movie summaries, pictures and had distinctive black and orange covers. I loved them. I spent hours pouring over them, memorizing the plots and becoming fascinated with monster movies years before I would be able to see them. Years later, my library had a book sale, and I bought the Frankenstein book.

I guess it's my history with Frankenstein that leads to my latest custom - the Son of Frankenstein style Frankenstein's monster. He's a lot like the traditional Frankenstein's monster, but in the movie he wears a furry vest. It's the only classic Universal movie where the monster wore something different! And because I know that (thanks, Crestwood Monster books!), I had to make a custom for it. Please, go check out the monster's fashion sense.

I love this cover.

That is all.

Remember that Hulk cover for a post ago? I love Vampire Red Hulk so much I made a custom of him. And just in time for Halloween! You should get started celebrating Halloween early and check it out.

I like Halloween. I like to do a lot of monster-related customs each year to celebrate. Sometimes I use some pretty obscure characters. And while I'm making them, I keep thinking to myself that I'm the only person who will appreciate this custom. This is another one of those times.

I present the obscure Vampire By Night. A fairly new vampire character to the Marvel Universe, I'm still a fan of the concept - Paris Hilton by day, bloodsucking vampire by night. Go check her out, and don't let your Halloween candy bite you.

Finishing up work on a very special repaint of the Minimate pirate ship.

Random Parts Teaser Photo #1 for Top Secret 2012 Custom Con Project (because there's no way I'm going to have these ready this year).

You might have noticed the silver circles in the background of the last picture. Those are Toys R' Us exclusive stickers, found on every exclusive set of Minimates they sell. I have a habit of peeling them off the package and putting them on my box of paint.

As you can see, I've bought a lot of TRU exclusives.

Tonight - one night only - the battle of the editors! Two journalists enter the ring in a bout to knock the other guy out!

In this corner, hailing from New Your City - he's the Editor-in-Chief of the respectable tabloid The Daily Bugle, nicknamed "the Spider-Slayer" - J. Jonah Jameson! Possessing a righteous flattop and explosive temper, J. Jonah is ready to write his opponent an editorial of brutal beatings!

And in this corner, hailing from the City of Tomorrow, Metropolis - he's the Editor-in-Chief of the major metropolitan newspaper The Daily Planet, nicknamed "Don't Call Me Chief!" - Perry White! Possessing high journalistic standards and a friendship with the greatest super hero on Earth, Perry's ready to deliver an early edition of defeat!

Check them out, and then place your bets on the winner!

Extreme close-up of a new face decal I'm working on for a future custom.

Extreme Close-Up Teaser Photo for Top Secret Custom Con Project. They're done and ready to go - you'll see them when Custom Con goes live in December.

One of the best things that Diamond came out with this year was the Calico Jack Pirate Ship for Minimates. Wonderful detail, lots of playability - it's perfect for all your Minimate pirate ship needs. And Diamond is coming out with many different versions of the ship (including a great glow-in-the-dark ghost pirate version), but I think there's a lot more they could do. For example, they could make a bright pink version that my daughter would love. Instead I made one. So go check out the Pretty Pirate Ship, won't you?

My customizing activities go at a much slower pace so I can enjoy the season. But one of my recent projects premiered today at CustomCon 30 - Crayonmates, the perfect combination of crayons and Minimates. Go check them out, and check out some of the other great Minimate entries from earlier this week. You'll be glad you did.

With Christmas mere days away, there may never be a better time to post the holiday-themed custom I made for my Secret Santa gift this year - Christmas Captain America! The birth of Jesus and the birth of America - now as one convienient Minimate! Go check him out as you have a wonderful holiday season.

And in case you missed them during CustomCon, I've gone ahead and added my Crayonmates to the site as well. Now you have no excuse to not look at them.

Coming up in 2012 - more customs! More irregular updates! My long-delayed big bunch of Green Lantern customs! A web site upgrade! And these two Minimates will be painted!