If you’re fond of the Mini Epic line of collectibles from our friends at Weta Workshop then today is your day. Fans can expect to see three new Mini Epics, which will be available to order in the next few months.

The second character from The Hobbit Trilogy will be Radagast the Brown with his friend Sebastian.

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy will be getting two new amazing epics characters today. Collectors can expect to add Eowyn and Arwen who, as you can see, both look awesome. As soon as we have firm pre-order dates we will let you know.

Continue reading “Collecting The Precious – Weta Workshop’s Comic-Con at Home Day 3”

A45-UC3108.imageUnited Cutlery has a brand new item that we have the chance to show off you all for the first time.

This new staff is for Gandalf the Grey and is the staff we see him carry after being rescued from Dol Guldur. What once was the staff of Radagast the Brown goes on to be used by Gandalf in the final Hobbit movie as well as The Fellowship of the Ring. Measuring 69″ tall this superb replica can be added to your collection right now for $175 with it shipping in April of next year. A nice touch for those that order this is that you not only get the staff but Gandalf’s pipe and nail, which he uses to clean his pipe after a fine smoke.

Continue reading “Collecting The Precious: Exclusive First Look at Gandalf the Grey’s The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies Staff”

denver_post_pic TheOneRing.net and Happy Hobbit are coming to Denver Comic Con next weekend, June 13-15 with a packed schedule full of Middle-earth fun for fans including a preview of what we expect to see in THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES with Sylvester McCoy (Radagast)!

Join us for an amazing weekend of activities including:

  • TheOneRing.net exclusive T-Shirt at the WETA booth
  • Hobbit: BOFA preview with SYLVESTER MCCOY in person
  • Happy Hobbit panel and fan table
  • FREE FOR ALL fan meet up “TORN MOOT” Friday night

Continue reading “Denver Comic Con – Here We Come!”

THEHOBBITDOSPAPER_zps7483134eEarlier this week we showed you a preview of Smaug from Jerry Vanderstelts upcoming print for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. Tonight, we’re pleased to let you know that this print is officially up for order! This stunning print has so many of the great things we saw in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. It includes incredible images of Bilbo, Thorin, Gandalf, Smaug, Azog, Bard, Legolas, Tauriel, Radagast, The Necromancer, and much more. Once again Jerry has made a must have collectible for Middle-earth fans. Fans can snag this print in three different types of displaying options;  a Canvas Giclee which can be purchased starting at $325, an Epic Canvas Giclee that also comes in at $325 but is limited to 10 pieces total, and Paper Giclee for just $65. No matter which option you choose this is going to be a stand out item in your collection. So order your print today!

IMG_8086One of the showstoppers at Comic-Con 2013 was a character I had been looking forward to seeing since the The Hobbit Trilogy was announced. Being pretty pleased with how this character was done left me looking forward to finally adding a statue of him to my collection. Thankfully that wish came true when I made my voyage to the Weta booth during Comic-Con last year. I was really blown away by the job done on the Radagast the Brown statue and just how spectacular a job was done to translate the onscreen character into a 1:6th scale statue.

PACKAGING

The overall graphic layout for Radagast’s box stays the same as we’ve seen with previous entries in the line. Per the format we’ve come to know, the front of the box gives you a great shot of Radagast, graphic work for the title of the movie, and of course the Weta logo. The sides of the box for Radagast also present a familiar format with different looks at the statue. While the other side of the box presents some of the various products you can get for The Hobbit line of collectibles. The back of the box contains a great story on Radagast as well as information regarding details of the character and statue. The Styrofoam on the inside is typical with what we’ve come used to getting with these statues.

SCULPTING

IMG_8241The task of sculpting Radagast the Brown was handed to the ultra talented Steven Saunders. He has once again shown why he is a master of his craft with the skills needed to bring the movie to life within your collection. The Istari would be proud to have Mr. Saunders sculpting them I believe.

I personally think the likeness to actor Sylvester McCoy with all the makeup he wore is pretty much spot on. You’re going to be hard pressed, I think, to deny that this isn’t an excellent reproduction of the character. This goes all the way down to his nose being just a little crooked. As we know Radagast‘s appearance is a total mess, which is wonderfully shown on this statue with his beard going every way possible.

One of the things I love the most about Radagast is the unique look he has with his hodgepodge of an outfit. It is one of my favorite things about him. His coat has some amazing details in it with little plants or flowers on the back of his coat, which just happens to be fraying at the ends of it from the constant wear and tear. His vest and undershirt appear to be the same type of material along with looking exactly the same. Both of these are also fraying/tearing at the end from him wearing them all the time, as is the case with Radagast’s entire outfit. One small detail I love on the vest is it being held closed by just one simple button, which has some nice details within those buttons. Radagast’s pants which now resemble capris from most likely being the only pants he wears as he roams Mirkwood. The one detail that I think I love the most about his outfit and did not notice until after seeing the movie is he wears two different shoes. This reminds me of a neighbor that used to live by me that always had on two different pairs of shoes. They’re totally different designs with one having fir at the top and leaves while the other is a plain black leather looking shoe. He also carries with him a worn out bag that appears to be made out of the same material as his coat.

IMG_8230Radagast lives a simple life style so he doesn’t really have weapons or jewelry that we’ve seen on other statues from this line. He does have his unqiue hat that like the rest of his outfit is made of cloth with the little cloth fiber details that make up the hat. Wizards really don’t need too many weapons, but one you can bet they will have is a staff. The staff has the little wood grain details put into it, which when painted help create a real wood looking staff. It also at the top of it has the crystal that he used to help save his little pal Sebastian when we first meet him in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.  Speaking of Sebastian he joins Radagast on this statue climbing the log that has fallen on the ground making up part of the base. This little addition may be the part I love the most as that moment when Radagast saves Sebastian made me think of how much I love my puppies. Those are not the only animals that help make up this statue with a cute little mouse and robin that is landing on Radagast’s outstretched hand.

I think Weta has done an excellent job with the poses on these statues allowing them to gives us a look inside these characters. As I mentioned in a previous review the Elves have both a power as well as a beautiful elegance. The pose for Radagast shows his care of nature and love of the animals that make up his world. As an animal lover myself it really is the cherry on top of this statue.

PAINT

IMG_8235The streak continues by Weta with how the factory paint came out on Radagast. The overall skin tone on Radagast I think is really well done, and very much looks like a healthy human should look. The one issue with my statue is the redness is a little on the strong side but overall doesn’t take away from the statue. The grey coloring of his beard does a great job highlighting the hair detail and matching what we saw on screen. When put into my collection cabinet his paint apps look great along with the rest of the collection.

As I mentioned earlier the outfit is really exceptional. I love the way they used the various shades of browns to help create the worn look of the clothes. It’s also great that the browns highlight the detail within the outfit and don’t hide the details that were sculpted into the outfit. His shoes have a great paint job with the one having some cool gold painted leaves on the shoes while the other does have the old worn leather look. The animals and parts of Mirkwood that make up the rest of the statue stays at the high level as Radagast himself when it comes to paint detail. They even did a nice job on my least favorite part of the character with the bird poop in the proper spots.

Overall

IMG_8205Radagast retails for $275, which puts him inline for the non-Dwarven characters. I really love this statue! I love the character and just how well done this statue is. Again, I think this is a statue you must see in person to appreciate how beautiful this statue really is. I was also lucky recently to get Mr. McCoy’s autograph here in Kansas City’s Comic-Con to add something to my Radagast statue.

SPECIFICATIONS

Radagast is limited to just 1000 pieces worldwide and is ready to order now from our friends at Weta. As we wind down The Hobbit Trilogy this is going to be a hard statue to get a hold of so don’t wait an let it pass you by.

Dimensions:

11.8″ x 9.1″ x 5.5″ (H x W x D)
30 cm x 23 cm x 14 cm

Weight:

5.1 lbs (2.3 kg)

PHOTOS

radLate last night our friends at Weta Workshop sent out a special email with information regarding the details on the final new collectible from Comic-Con 2013. The last of the characters fans will be able to get their hands on is the loveable Wizard himself Radagast the Brown. Radagast was sculpted by the amazing Steven Saunders who has already turned out multiple winners from both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. The Wizard comes in with a price of $275 and an edition size of only 1,000 pieces worldwide, with expected shipping in February 2014. Having seen this in person at Comic-Con this past July I really think fans are going to love having this in their collections. Its a superb looking statue.

Continue reading “Collecting The Precious – Weta Workshop’s Radagast the Brown Pre-Order Information”