HAS ARRIVED!

Welcome, my friends to the brand new OFFICIAL home of Zach Woliner, on the internet, ZACHWOLINER.COM
It's been a long time coming, and now I can afford a domain name and hosting account of my own, and so this shall be THE place to go, to find out about all things Zach. I'm just getting started, so there's not much content, as of now, but we ARE going to start out big.

UPDATED 4/25/07

It's That Time Again!

Yes, that's right, it's almost time for MY BIRTHDAY! It's a big one, too, as I'll be turning 25 years old! A party plan will be forthcoming, but for now, as I always do, I've been so generous as to provide you all with an extensive and VISUAL potential gift list, to help you find something just right. Even more helpful for you, it's divided into clickable sections that will take you to a more detailed look at the items in those specific areas of the larger image. So, make sure to get into that "Let's all celebrate Zach and his great awesomeness" mood, so that you'll be good and ready by Tuesday, May 8th, and the following party, which, if the 1-Year Anniversary/Blooper Reel party was any indication, should be a really fun time. Thanks, everyone!

UPDATED-3/16/07

Amazing New Breakthrough From Muppet Labs:
Where The Future Is Being Made, Today

Holy Muppemoly! Now, if you know me, at all, you know how much The Muppets mean to me. You might also know how, therefore, I've been very disappointed with how much Disney has just been sitting on this license of amazing potential, with a wonderful cast of characters, with a storied past, with Kermit, himself, having been around over 50 years. All I've seen that's significant since "The Mouse" purchased "The Frog" (and his assorted bunch of pigs, bears, dogs, chickens, penguins, and whatever Gonzo is), the long-awaited 1st DVD season-based Box Set of "The Muppet Show" (though there were still sadly some cuts, including the hilarious final punchline that MAKES the old pitch reel), the Master Replicas Kermit (Though it was based on the "poser" photo puppet, used in promotional images, and not an actual puppet, changing his appearance somewhat (Though I'm glad, in a way, that they didn't do a full-on puppet replica, as it would cheapen the ones actually used in production)). Now, there's still so much of a goldmine full of classic material dying to be released on the ultimate format of DVD (Like even maybe the obvious "Muppets Go To Walt Disney World" crossover, also of significant value, being the last hurrah, big production with all main characters, and all core Muppet performers still alive and well), in addition to finally, after too long getting a new TV series on the air, or major movie in theaters. I also mean working with the best talent, and doing something ambitious, like the Fraggle Rock movie sounds, and not just another classic story rehash. Okay, I'm bitter, but even as I realize nothing will ever be the same after Jim Henson's death, let alone after those of Richard Hunt and Jerry Juhl, along with Frank Oz and Jerry Nelson in Muppet-retirement, I think they can still work with the people they have, to do their best to not pump out garbage, when they even decide to give us anything.

Anyways, this type of train of thought led me to check in with one of the more up-to-date Muppet news sites, when there actually is news to report, muppetnewsflash.blogspot.com, only to find, amongst the non-"Classic Muppet" Muppet/Henson news, a piece so amazing and mind-blowing, it goes way beyond just the Muppet spectrum to interactive entertainment technology, in general. So much so, especially considering it's based in Muppets, I'm totally shocked I didn't hear about it, right away. Anyways, enough build-up, check this innovation, or more appropriately (being Disney), this Innovention Disney/Muppet Imagineering:

I just can't believe it! There's no person in there!!!!! It's like walking, talking Muppets, in scale to and reacting with real humans! Dave Goelz, one of the core (and only remaining member of the old super-core five) Muppetteers, was personally involved, and hopefully, at least for those kids present for the demonstration, he was voicing the live interaction with Bunsen. If only they could record every word or sound combination, in his voice, and have it programmed so whoever operates the thing, at any time, can give kids appropriate responses to anything, in the one true voice of Dr. Bunsen Honeydew! It could even last after, perish the thought, Mr. Goelz, responsible for my very favorite Muppet character, EVER, Gonzo The Great, joins Jim and Richard in that Muppet Theater in the sky.

I guess it's kinda spooky, thinking that if it could exist, such high-powered technology could potentially keep anyone "alive", eternally, especially as they couldn't necesarilly reflect all thoughts, feelings, and opinions of that person, though maybe that technology would exist, too, though also creepy. Either way, I digress. I just hope I get to see these guys, free-roaming, for myself, one day. Anyways, this bit of news is courtesy Muppet NewsFlash, courtesy of the LA Times. I hope you've enjoyed this look into the future, today.

In separate Zach-interest-based news, RIP Captain America. I know it's already been widely reported, with myself finding out sooned than I'd have liked, in a method I didn't like, just as my brother did, though in a totally separate way and time and place, I had to mention it, as it had a major impact, after following the whole Civil War thing, following and buying every single tie-in. Maybe I'll have a more substantial update on that later, despite this, itself being late enough.

UPDATED-2/4/07

LABYRINTH ACTION FIGURES!

Now, I know the news of a Jareth figure, as part of NECAs spin-off line, "Cult Classics Presents", has been known for a bit, and pictures have been available on the net, in articles at toy websites and pre-order pages at online retailers. In addition, the news of Hoggle, a key player in the film, as being a pack-in, as well as a goblin-bearing variant, has been known, as well, not to mention the excitement gathered by the concept of making additional goblins separately.

Well, my good ladies in gentlemen, all that being said, only Jareth has had promotional pictures out, UNTIL NOW! In the February issue of Lee's Toy Review, featuring a Harry Potter NECA cover (which look pretty sweet, in their own right, I might add), on page 16, we are given the treat of seeing, for the first time, the amazing likeness of our favorite curmudgeonly animatronic-headed/female little-person with the voice of Brian Henson, as well as in progress sculpts of no less than six individual goblins, including some more recognizable ones. Here is a scan of that page, clickable to enlarge to full size. You can just click the Labyrinth related area for that specific piece, cropped from the rest:

If you are going to use these images on your site, though they are from a publicly available magazine, please be sure to acknowledge where you got it from ,as I took the time to scan the images in. Thank you.

UPDATED-6/27/06

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LABYRINTH!

That's right, it was exactly 20 years ago, today, that the greatest film, EVER, Jim Henson's Labyrinth, was unleashed upon the masses. With talent like David Bowie, (future Oscar-winner) Jennifer Connelly, Brian Froud, Monty Python's Terry Jones, Mr. Star Wars-George Lucas, and of course, the legend, the genius, Jim Henson, there's no way this couldn't be the best movie ever made. It's a terrific fantasy film full of groundbreaking puppetry and gorgeous visual imagery, as well as some of the best musical numbers to appear in a family movie, including my all-time favorite song, "Magic Dance". It holds up incredibly well, on repeat viewings, and I should know. I've seen it over ten times, sharing its beauty with others on different occasions.

I've got two separate DVD releases, and though I thought it might take away from some of the magic, the behind-the-scenes documentary, "Inside The Labyrinth", narrated by Henson, himself, only made it all the more magical. I just found out today that my two door-knockers, based on their film counterparts, can actually talk. That makes their novelty value jump way up, and all the more cooler. I'm so glad I happened upon them in Hot Topic, that one day. Now I need to take them out of that bag I've had sitting around for months. Soon, the fabulous bust of Bowie's Jareth, in two varieties, though one might be a hard-to-get exclusive, will be released, at a fair cost, and not too much longer until the Japanese manga-styled sequel comes out, courtesy of Henson and Tokyopop. Should be quite interesting, and hopefully only build on the original, rather than simply repeat, or tarnish it's memory. Here's to you, Labyrinth, thanks for all of the fond memories!

As you may know, my birthday is rapidly approaching, on May 8th. As I am such a generous and kind soul, I thought, as a service to you, I'd give you a list, NAY, a VISUAL list, of some of the best stuff that you could get me as a gift, to help celebrate my 24 years on this earth. THAT'S ONE YEAR FOR EVERY HOUR IN A DAY! So, anyway, here they are, and to further help you, I've broken down this image into clickable sections, including names for each particular item, individually numbered for your convenience. Please enjoy:

However, as great as all of the above stuff is, what I REALLY like, and especially need, RIGHT NOW, are the following. LOTS OF MARVEL LEGENDS ACTION FIGURES!!!!! Ya see, I haven't seen any of these just released beauties, and this line is my favorite one to collect, with its combination of great detail, scale, articulation, and character variety. First off, we have the all villain wave 13, in which each individual figure comes with a piece of a larger figure of ONSLAUGHT, the villain from one of my most favorite crossovers in the Marvel Universe:

~~Included there are Pyro, Abomination, Green Goblin, Loki, Blackheart, and Lady Deathstrike.~~

UPDATED-6/16/06

This morning, I fortuitously walked into the White Plains Toys R Us (the one place I'd previously seen A single figure from Series 13, Loki (Who I immediately picked up)), just to do my regular check for others, after the mysterious singular figure spotting. To my surprise and delight, as soon as I passed those sliding doors, I was faced with a small vertical figure rack, (just to the side of the big opening display, featuring hot items, like most recently Superman Returns and now Cars) featuring the others in the line, minus Abomination. I quickly dashed to the regular action figure aisle, where there were plenty of the line to go around, incluing good old A-Bom. After grabbing him, I dashed to the register to make it to work on time, with a smile on my face, pumping Queen & David Bowie's "Under Pressure", twice, on the way.

Now, the next set is especially important to find, right now, as I've heard they're becoming available, but their nature may lead to that not lasting that long. You see, these are exclusively available at WAL-MART stores. While you may thing of Wal-Mart as being the hugest thing, everywhere, there's not really one close to me, so I'm at a bit of a loss, let alone having to deal with those known amongst the action-figure collecting community as "scalpers", who snatch up as many as they can, then hike up the price on eBay, with poor guys like me left in the cold. Wouldn't a coinciding birthday be the perfect time to get the best of these bastards? Yeah, I thought you'd see it my way. Thanks, gang! Check it out:

So, there you have Thor, Havok, Sentry, AGE OF APOCALYPSE (This one, my ALL-TIME favorite X-Men crossover) Weapon X, AoA Sabretooth, Captain Britain, Kitty Pryde, Ant-Man, and Warbird/Ms. Marvel. They once again utilize the brilliant marketing scheme of including many pieces of a larger "Build-A-Figure" or BAF to the fanboys, this time of the classic Avenger, Giant-Man. Unfortunately, this time around, you need an extra variant, though I don't mind, since it's the burnt-faced Weapon X, so keep a vigilant eye out for that. I could also do with the long-haired, bearded Sentry, if you happen to see him, as well.

Lastly are the two figures for the price of one, (though that's not actually true, but they're packed together so...) in these face-off packs, also apparently popping up at the big W-M. Check 'em out:

Just to wrap it up, that's Kingpin vs. Daredevil, Hulk vs. Leader, and Captain America vs. Red Skull. Believe it or not, these all have variants, which I wouldn't mind having, too. While the testicle-headed Leader is enticing, I could go for the flat-topped one, as well, not to mention unmasked versions of Daredevil and Captain America, who comes with a complete different character, Baron Von Strucker. That would be an ugly, bald guy in green, with a monocle, just so you know.

Well, there you have it, people, what are you still doing looking at the screen? Didn't you take notes or print everything, already? Run off to the stores! But seriously, once the month passes, and I've gotten everything you have to give, the full-on construction of this site as my meaningful place on the web will truly begin. Thanks for your support.

   -Zach