John Arturo - When did you start collecting and how did you get into the hobby?
Joe C. - I started collecting comics 18 years ago , and statues when i moved out of my parents house when i was 22. I'm not sure how I got into reading and collecting comics, but it was a natural progression from loving movies like Star Wars and Indiana Jones. Then I started to collect statues because I think it's an amazing art just like the books themselves. The Hasbro Marvel figure collecting started recently. I told myself i would never collect action figures because the collections can grow in size super fast and I don't really have the room and collecting statues felt more "mature", but I just fell in love with the designs and sculpts of the Marvel Universe figures. They are only 3.75 inches tall, but the detail and paint jobs are extremely well done. Plus I love how obscure they get with the characters they choose to make. What kid now would buy a Gladiator or Wrecker figure? The designers are clearly Marvel fans and made these figures for collectors and fans.
John Arturo - Do you collect anything else?
Joe C. - I just started to collect and paint Warhammer fantasy figures. The sculpts that go into those tiny guys is simply amazing and the pro painters are incredible, I'll never be that good. Plus the game seems fun as hell.
John Arturo - What is your favorite collectibles company?
Joe C. - Hmm, it's hard to pick one, but i mostly get Sideshow stuff and Bowen. But recently I'm loving the Hot Toys stuff and Kotobukiya. In fact I think my next purchase will be the Kotobukiya Deadpool or Archangel.
John Arturo - What is your favorite part of collecting?
Joe C. - My favorite part of collecting comics is just being able to get lost in the lore and the amazing story lines. Statue, probably seeing the amazing detail the artists get in the statue and the paint jobs, and action figures is all about the hunt. Getting to the store early to pick through the freshly stocked shelves of Marvel figures, sometimes getting lucky with a hard to find figure.
John Arturo - What is the key thing you look for in an item you want to add to your collection?
Joe C. - The key thing for my statue collection is all about the quality of the sculpt and paint job. I really love detailed sculpts and paint and great poses. I sort of want it to look like they can just come to life and walk off the shelf.
John Arturo - What is your favorite movie?
Joe C. - That's impossible to answer. Original Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Jaws, Die Hard, Lord of the Rings, Alien, Aliens, Terminator 1 and 2, Iron Man, the Dark knight, Thor, I can go on forever....
John Arturo - What is your favorite piece from your collection?
Joe C. - Hmmmm, right now its probably a fight between my life size Iron Man bust and my signed Deadpoool statue. But that Marvel vaults book I'm going around getting signed by as many old and current Marvel artists and writers is probably the one that is most personal to me. Also my signed Michael Turner comics mean a lot to me, he is an amazing artist and was a super nice person when i met him, its a shame his life ended early.
John Arturo - What are some items you are most looking forward to adding to your collection?
Joe C. - I'm waiting for my Hot Toys Captain America to come in the mail, I'm trying to create the Avengers in Hot Toy figures on my desk at work, so I'm looking forward to them making a Hulk. Also i really really want a movie replica of Caps' shield to hang on my wall, cant wait for Sideshow to make one of those. On the Hasbro toy side I really want the exclusive X-Force Archangel figure and the exclusive Nick Fury figure.
John Arturo - Finally, what is your favorite aspect of ComicBookMovie.com?
Joe C. - I love getting to see all comic book movie news in one place, whether I'm in the mood to get a spoiler or not. :)
If you have a collection (don't worry about the size, it could be 4-5 items and that is still a collection right?) and want me to showcase it on the site, then shoot me an email by clicking the "Contact Me" link here. I will shoot you a few questions to answer to go along with the images and once a week we will showcase a users collection on here.