The Rumor Buster

Rumorbuster 2.0

Well after weeks of hard work, Rumorbuster 2.0 is ready for launch. It’s only a sample of what’s to come but we’re still building. In the meantime, we’ve had a good run over here on Blogger, but it just isn’t scalable for the plans we have in store. Galleries, space for comments and discussion, and more on the way.

Once again, Rumorbuster 2.0

Welcome to Rumorbuster 2.0

I’m sure some of you have noticed the drop-off in the semi-regular columns recently and that’s because behind the scenes we’ve been working on Rumorbuster 2.0.  Talking to a few regular readers showed that there were a few things 1.0 could use to benefit from. Foremost was space for galleries.  Compression and storage was a big issue for the old space, as was figuring what to do with photos.  Manually coding HTML pages to store them was so 1997, and many details are lost in compression.

Now with the Rumorbuster Galleries we’ve got a place to put galleries with hi-res photos.  The gallery has space for comments, rating  photos and eventually we’ll post profiles, descriptions and information.  Right now the galleries are about 1/4 done but throughout the week we’ll be uploading a few hundred more photos and we’ll continue on until we’ve finished shooting and uploading all the Super Hero Squad figures (and of course we’ve got some other small-scale heroes thrown up for good measure.)

Second, Blogger’s comment system left a lot to be desired.  Users couldn’t edit their comments and there was no way to discuss just general topics without a post started.  When there was a post on the subject, it’s only on the frontpage for a few days anyway.  So after much thought, let there be a Message Board.  Enjoy, but remember that we’re a family friendly site.  You’ll see that there are some awesome features in the message board including a place for everyone to post and rate reviews and articles, trader feedback where you can rate traders you’ve done business with and the ability to attach images to your post (no external hosting and linking!  Yay!)

Third: Shorter URL!  therumorbuster.com is quicker, faster and prettier than the old URL.

Fourth: Everything is going to be under one roof from now on.  Once we’ve brought over the archives and checklists, everything will be under one name.  No spotty service with Google Sites, no bouncing between that and Blogger.  Everything will be local, and that means we’re not slaves to whatever formalities and formats those services require (ie. no more being limited to the HTML and formatting of Google Sites.)

Now, some of you may wonder why we didn’t wait until everything was scanned, shot and brought over.  The answer: the longer we wait, the more stuff we need to bring over. More posts, more pictures, more links.  By switching over now that the framework is set up, we’ll know what needs fixing and we can carry on building with what we’ve got here rather than adding to the stuff we need to bring over.

Please send bug-reports or suggestions to clevernamehere@therumorbuster.com, or post them on the board.

More SHS animated information!

From the Omelete site comes this Google Translated page that doesn’t say much (at least not much in translation) about the series, but does offer some handy promo art featuring… Ms. Marvel! First image, top corner, below Hulk and Thor.

Hulk: Brawl on sale

The Hulk SHS set Brawl that Shook the World is in Toys R Us’s 2-day sale, marked down to $14.99, apparently with free shipping if you use their website. Not a bad deal for 4 figures and the “sonic tank” and those that have held off on buying a repaint set.

Infinite Heroes Defense of Oa

And Toy News International has posted shots of the Defense of Oa set. If only the Battle-Damaged Manhunters could have been differently damaged. John Stewart is listed as an exclusive figure, so apparently there’s no plans of him being released individually, at least not for a while.

Some people just don’t get it…

Wow.  There is just so much that this person just doesn’t get.

Like, for instance… can someone describe how, exactly, the Super Hero Squad is “scary”?  And isn’t suggesting that kids will just “grow up thinking that Earth’s Mightiest Heroes is made up of midgets and little people” kind of silly?  A little like suggesting kids should never see the Sunday comic strips because Charlie Brown is a short, fat little kid with a huge head?  They should probably stay away from cartoons involving animals as, by that logic, kids will grow up thinking dogs, pandas and hedgehogs can talk.  And the shocks in store when they find out that plumbers don’t grow after running into magic mushrooms.  Suggesting that kids are going to be in for a shock when discovering that “regular” comics (and what, tell me, is “regular”?  Only mainstream comic characters?  Only characters from the Big 2?  Only top-tier characters from the Big 2?) don’t look like the Squad is an alright proposition, but honestly, not every representation in “regular” comics will look like a Simon Bianchi cover.  That’s like suggesting Bill Sienkiewicz should never have been involved with such classic stories as Demon Bear-era New Mutants or Elektra: Assassin because it wouldn’t look like most other interpretations.  Or, on a similar argument, suggesting that only artists with narrow ability to mimic the style guides should have employment.  Goodbye Chris Bachalo, until you learn to conform!  Zeb Wells you are on notice!

Anyway, I’m sorry Mr. McMillan thinks the Squad is Marvel’s torpedo, diluting their strength, scary, and weird. 

Oh, and families… if you visit the article, be wary of the comments.  There are some people who just hate cute.

Super Hero Squad 7-pack

Hasbro seems to be trying to unload those Wave 1 sets sitting around the warehouse with a Value Pack of 7 sets from Wave 1 and 2. 

- Angel & Colossus 
- Cyclops & Magneto 
- Wolverine & Sabertooth 
- Daredevil and Elektra 
- Hawkeye & Captain America 
- Iron Man and Thor 
- Hulk and Wasp

Everyone but Ghost Rider and Punisher!  It’s a great deal for people looking to catch up, looking for older figures or even customizers