I have had my share of embarrassing moments throughout my life, somehow associated with my lack of knowledge pertaining to a certain way of life. I have always been pegged a city boy. That is what happens when you are born in the Bay Area and the most rural area you have lived is the urban center of Boise, Idaho.
While I am a pretty good hiker, and grew up visiting many beautiful areas in the Western US, I am a complete fish out of water when it comes to certain walks of life like farming, hunting, off-roading, and other activities. One of my most infamous stories comes from my time in Brazil, when I was walking with a friend near a rural farm and noted that I had never seen a horse sleeping, and didn't know they slept on their side with their legs sticking straight out. And come to think of it, that is sure a fat horse! My friend, who grew up on a farm, stopped dead in his tracks and asked if I was serious. The surprised look on his face made me think that it was common sense that horses slept like that. So I asked him that, and he laughed even more. He then pointed out that what I was looking at was a bloated dead horse, and then proceeded to NEVER let me live my city boy moment down.
Why do I bring this up? Because I am very near having another of those moments. I know NOTHING about military life, other than what I hear from friends and watch in movies and documentaries. I think I have a decent appreciation for what our friends in the military deal with, but when it comes to all things pertaining to the military, I am horrifically uneducated.
Which brings me to the brand new Matchbox MXT-MVA. Is it sad that the only association I have with this vehicle is that The Rock drove it in Fast & Furious 6? This is a legit military vehicle, and I can only think of the version driven by a pro wrestler in a movie about cars, glossy muscles, and bikinis. Shame on me, city boy.
But how awesome is that!?! The Rock drove it in FF6!! Matchbox did not create the MXT casting to be part of the Fast and Furious promotional machine that has worked its way through Mattel and Hot Wheels, but I am sure they are not complaining about the timing. Call it a fortunate set of circumstances. Of course that is if consumers realize what they are looking at. That is why I put FF6 in the title of this post. Might as well try and help folks make the connection.
The model is well done. Some will note it has painted-on side windows. My guess is that affords them some flexibility with future versions, but it also appears there is no interior. I guess we will find that out when someone opens one up.
Today we are showing two new models, and the only way to connect them is to mention that Fast & Furious 6 was set in London, and so is the new Matchbox Two Story Bus. Sense a theme?
I don't have much to say about the new Bus, as it is nicely cast, it has a plastic body, which will annoy some collectors, and will obviously take its place in the mainline while the classic Routemaster reserves itself for premiere lines like 60th Anniversary.
It does lack the charm of the Routemaster, but it is a very well done rendering. It will be interesting to see how this model performs once it hits the pegs...
All in all, two models that aren't down the Lamley Alley, but interesting enough to join the collection.
(You can find both models, along with all the latest Matchbox, here on ebay
Matchbox International MXT-MVA & Two-Story Bus (2013 New Models):
