Saturday, June 19, 2021

Today On The Boulevard: The Last Releases From Hot Wheels Case H

Welcome to another edition of Today On The Boulevard. If you read my Kroger exclusive case review, then you already know how I said I would post about the other releases I was missing once I found them. Well... as you can see from the title, I was able to find the other ones from case H. So with that being said, let's get this review started.

The first release for today's post, is the Mad Manga that's apart of this year's HW Art Cars mainline set. You won't typically see HW Art Cars featured here on the BLVD. I usually don't like the artwork that's applied to them. Now, there are a few rare occasions where I do end up adding one to my collection. Basically, I will get them if I don't have the casting, or if I happen to like the design that was created. 

This release of the Mad Manga, is the one time where I actually got it due to the artwork that's featured on it. For this release, the designers created a cool manga styled theme that features some robots. The artwork on this release, gives me flashbacks to when I used to watch Gundam on Toonami way back in the day. 

I should also mention, that I really like how they decided to only decorate specific sections of this casting's body. Those sections are it's door, hood, and roof.


The wheel color is the only thing I don't like about this release. I don't mind the chrome blue that was used for the wheel itself. What I have a problem with, is the tire section. I know this is an Art Cars release, but I feel it's a really well done release, which is why I wish it had black tires. 

One of the cars in today's 1:64 Scale GT Circuit race, is the recolor of the BMW M3 GT2. Some of you might remember how I wasn't very pleased with the design featured on this release. Basically, I felt that the designers could have created a much better design. To be honest, I still kind of feel that way. However, my opinion of it is starting to change, and it's all thanks to this recolor.

There are two main things I like about this release. The first of those things, is the overall color scheme. This release is now sporting the exact colors that are seen on BMW's race cars. The second thing I like, is how the designers decided to add an additional real-life sponsor decal. Pirelli is the company that's featured. Having a tire sponsor, is a huge plus for me. In fact, I feel it should have been added to the red one. I feel the red one's color scheme is perfect for a Pirelli livery.  


There's one thing I would have done differently with the design. As you can see, it's racing number is once again three. Personally, when it comes to recolors of race cars, I feel they should be given different numbers. 

The last thing I want to point out, are it's wheels, which are different. I like when recolors are given different wheels, and it's even better when they aren't the same color. 

As usual, there are multiple 1:64 Scale GT governed races going on at Diecast BLVD. Drag racing is the other one that's being held today. Now, if you decided to participate, then I hope you're prepared to lose. Today, I'm driving this year's Treasure Hunt release of the Mustang Funny Car. I don't always get the regular Treasure Hunts when I find them, however, I will if I like the casting. And this is one casting I like. 

I like all of the design choices that were made for this release. Remember last year's release of the Baja Truck in the Speed Blur mainline set? Well... this Mustang Funny Car was given the same exact theme. And I feel the theme looks really good on this car. In my opinion, it's a really good alternative to the standard Hot Wheels Racing livery.


(Here's a picture of last year's recolor of the Baja Truck.)


The top of this release is decorated as well, and this is where most of the additional decals are. No real companies are featured on this release, which is fine since I like their fantasy decals. 

The second car participating in today's 1:64 Scale GT Circuit race, is the recolor of the 2016 Ford GT Race. Like a lot of recolors I get, I like this one more than the first one. The first color is still nice because it's based on an actual Borla themed Ford GT. I just feel this one is better because it matches a lot of the other Borla themed releases I have. And helping to make it match, are the side stripes, which are now red.

 
I know there's been a few different colored Borla themed releases, and I'll admit that they are nice. But, I feel the design looks much better on a black car. It's worth mentioning, that there two releases in my collection that made me have that opinion. They are the Car Culture Shop Trucks release of the '83 Chevy Silverado, and the Super Treasure Hunt release of the 2015 Ford Mustang GT. 

As you can see, the wheels are the same as the first one. I know I said I like when recolors are given different wheels, but I think this casting looks fantastic the J5s. So, I have no problem with the decision to use them again.  


Currently, there are only two Hot Wheels Tooned castings that I like to collect. The Manga Tuner is the first one, and the Mattel Dream Mobile is the second one. The latter is the last one I got from this case. Back when this casting made it's debut, I was hoping to see many different releases of it. And so far, I'm very pleased with the ones that have been released.

Like the first color, this too has a wild exterior and interior color scheme. The exterior is lime green, while the interior is red. I usually wouldn't like this, however, this is the one casting where I feel it works. This car already has a cartoon like appearance, so why not complement it with a wild combination of colors. 


I don't know about you, but I feel there are so many other great exterior and interior color schemes for this casting. In fact, I'd love to see one of these finished in yellow. And maybe it could have a white interior. The possibilities are almost limitless for this cool little car. So I hope to see many more releases going forward. 


Okay everyone, that's everything I got. It might be a little shocking, but my favorite among the releases in this post, is the Mad Manga. Like I said, it gives me flashbacks to when I used to watch Gundam on Toonami. Of course, this doesn't mean I don't like the other ones just as much. After all, I did decide to put them on my want list.

So, what was your favorite release from this year's case H? Go ahead and let me know down in the comments section. Alright, that's all for this edition of Today On The Boulevard. Until next time, thanks for reading, and happy collecting.

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