Extreme-Sets have unleashed their third series of diorama pop-up environments that are great for display or more interesting photographs. We have a few looks lined up to cover them all, but I wanted to get started with the one on the forefront of versatility: the Headquarters environment.
I have made it clear that I am I big fan of these sets. They are well made, thoughtful in terms of design and subject matter, and add a nice new dimension to any display. The company got their start with wrestling-themed sets that have become a permanent fixture of my classic WWE display, but they have also expanded into action-oriented spaces for all kinds of action figure genres. Sets like the SEWER and SUBWAY can fit a variety of Earth-based collections like Marvel Legends, TMNT, etc., but the new Headquarters set adds a much-needed intergalactic contingent to fray.
I wanted to look at this set first not only because it offers a sharp turn to the other sets I have looked at in the past, but also because I just saw Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2. Most of my space-themed figures come from a galaxy far, far away, and I have those environments covered with my Space Walls, but Star-Lord and crew are out there guarding the galaxy at every turn, so if they are going to interact with an environment, it is going to need a bit of an extraterrestrial touch. Personally, I find this new Headquarters to be perfect for that.
It might be all the purple, too — but this is a set that is accessible, but that is also great for an outer space look. I know it would be easy to default to a neutral color like grey or white for a set like this, and while those colors would totally work, the purple is much more dynamic and interesting. As always, the printed graphics are original, but with an air of familiarity about them, and very clean and crisp. The resolution stands up great at this scale, and looks perfectly suitable for display or in front of the camera. I am always impressed by doorways and implied halls because that is a forced perspective that these flat surfaces can achieve, and this set is shows that off nicely.
There are two basic walls in this set, as in, while nice, they do not offer the same kind of interaction as the other walls, but I think that is necessary for good balance. Two wall have “screens” that are focal points, and that is aided by the two fold together 3D consoles that are also included. These are nice concepts because while you can have something like that in a grounded headquarters, they can also sell the set as the interior of a giant spaceship. Finally there is a wall with a jail cell complete with bars, so HQ is complete with a detention block. This is an interesting idea, and I kind of wish you could punch out the bars and have a black backdrop so you can jail a villain or two, but it is convincing as it is.
I swear, I am about to move and I am positive my new toy room will be larger than what I have now, and that is a good thing because I keep wanting to add these extreme sets to my permanent display. I really love the Guardians with this Headquarters set, but as you can see, it can work for any space-theme line. Heck, maybe Mace Windu went and got himself a ship to match his lightsaber. Works for me!
You can order this Headquarters set (and the others) directly from Extreme-Sets, or from the always reliable Big Bad Toy Store. I promise you won’t be disappointed and come back, we will have looks at the other sets soon!
