So, you guys like the obscure characters? Ok, cool, how about a little-known 1970s Marvel character, based on an even LESSER-known Mego toyline, renamed from a DIFFERENT little-known Japanese toyline, that was itself so poorly received that it was incorporated into an ANOTHER toyline altogether? This one you MIGHT have heard of . . . little show called Transformers, it was kind of a big deal once.

But the Marvel adaptation of the Mego toys renamed from the Japanese toys, that was called Micronauts, and this character is one exclusive to the comics, not the toys themselves. He was briefly popular in the 80s, had a few cameos in the 90s, and then joined Star-Lord's pre-Guardians team to fight in the Annihilation War, before being forgotten AGAIN, ignored by the new Guardians of the Galaxy until they broke up and Rocket picked him to join the B-team . . . a oversight that he hasn't let Rocket live down since he agreed to sign on. He's handsome, wise-cracking, agile, and (once again) green, he's the bad@$$, beautiful, bodacious, bouncing Bug!

Of all the "secondary" Guardians, Bug is probably the one I like the most. He's not angsty, he's not dark and deadly, he's not a blatant copy of another hero, and he's not super generic. Sure, his powers have been done before . . .

Clings to walls, danger sense - Spider-Man
Talks to bugs, (used to be) very tiny - Ant Man
Three fingers and toes, super agile - Nightcrawler
Energy-firing melee weapon that returns when thrown - Thor
Green - half the Guardians of the Galaxy

. . But it's an interesting combo, he's got a unique design, and he possesses that rare and important quality that so many characters seem to lack nowadays: fun. Not cool, not funny, not outrageous, just overall fun. And it's a trait I really appreciate, and one that, of course, tends to mesh well with and really define the Guardians as a whole. If Rocket and Groot weren't already the team mascots, Bug would surely be one of the top contenders.

I made Bug using a Fantastic Four "flame off" Johnny Storm figure. His ball joints were blue, his costume was wrinkled in all the right places, and he had excellent joints. I swapped in the head, forearms, and lower legs of a Nightcrawler figure to give him the handsome face and triple digit hands and feet the character is known for. The antennae and feelers were all made using some green electrical wires, so they'd match color without paint and retain flexibility. The belt pockets came from a Judge Death belt. The rest is sculpt and paint.

Instead of making swappable heads, I decided to make a removable helmet. I used a generic dollar store gladiator helmet as a base, and the rest of the details were sculpted. I painted the helmet using a metallic green with a slight gold dry brushing to give it a color shifting sheen that looks awesome in person. The Rocket Lance was a GI Joe missile with some minor sculpting attached to a long lollipop stick, all painted gold.

Only four more posts to go until my more-than-complete Guardians of the Galaxy are finished! We're on the home stretch now. Only one more (custom) member of the pre-Marvel NOW! team left, and then it's the modern team and the minor mod figures! Know who's up next?

Excelsior!