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ANR Geekly 230 - What do you hope Santa will bring you?

January 13, 2026·2 hr 7 min·5 clips

es. And I guess like 1010 companies have had the line or redone the line. So we'.

The show opens on figures that have finally started showing up after a long wait, or at least after being unexpected enough to feel like a surprise. It stays in that lane for most of the conversation. The hosts keep it close to the hobby, with quick opinions and not much ceremony. They spend most of the time on Mega Man X. One version has a darker navy look, and the hosts go back and forth on whether that color choice works better than the earlier one. The newer release is Bandai's version, so it sits in the same family as the other figure but makes different choices. Those differences matter to them. One host prefers the earlier color scheme. The other points out that the newer one has metal inside and feels built differently. That leads into the body shape, where the legs look thicker and the pants-like silhouette gets a joke at the figure's expense. The practical side of collecting keeps coming up. A peg is small. A hand is hard to remove. One wrong move could stress the joint. That kind of thing is not abstract to them, because it changes whether the figure feels like a display piece or something you do not want to touch too much. The episode also turns into a preorder check-in. One host says they already preordered another version and will keep it, even while admitting they do not think many other companies will make that character. Jada comes up as well, and there is enough interest there that one host preordered that line too. The result is not broad brand loyalty so much as picky collecting. That selectiveness is part of the fun. They are not pretending every release deserves shelf space. They are asking whether a figure is the right version of a character, whether the proportions look right, and whether the line is worth branching into. The conversation also carries the feel of late-year arrivals. More figures are trickling in just before the end of the year, which gives the episode the energy of collectors checking the door for packages. That timing matters because it changes what is exciting, what is redundant, and what suddenly becomes a must-have. Even when they wander, they stay tied to the hobby. The talk is about trust in a manufacturer, confidence in a preorder, and the small compromises people make when a figure is close but not quite perfect. It is the kind of episode where the point is not a grand verdict. The point is watching two collectors work through the purchase, the hesitation, and the moment when a figure earns the shelf space or does not.

As heard by us

Collector banter, preorder tension, and a tight argument over figure proportions.

Collector talk stays grounded in the bench, with preorder updates, figure engineering, color choices, and the small stress points that can make or break a release.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

For when you want a figure chat that argues shades, proportions, and engineering.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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