DOCTOR STRANGE EYE OF AGAMOTTO MOVIE PROP REPLICA

Movie prop replicas can be a great way to add a fun touch of favorite films into your surroundings. So, I was geeked about the chance to have my very own Eye of Agamotto amulet like the one utilized by Benjamin Cumberbatch to bring the mystic arts abilities of Doctor Strange to life within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Disney has produced a number of Infinity Stone-related movie prop replica items from the Marvel Comics inspired superhero films including the Eye of Agamotto; which turned out to be powered by the Time Stone, one of six cosmic gems that can provide wielders amazing power. These prop replicas are available exclusively at a souvenir shop attached to Epcot's Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind roller coaster and the shopdisney online store. 

I purchased Doctor Strange's Eye of Agamotto on shopdisney.com to check out these Infinity Stone themed movie prop replicas and determine if I might want to pick up any of the others as this was a favorite out of the lot. Others available are the orb holding the Power Stone from Guardians of the Galaxy, the Aether Container that held the Reality Stone from Thor: The Dark World, the Tesseract with the Space Stone from Captain America: The First Avenger, Loki's scepter with the Mind Stone from The Avengers, and the Iron Man gauntlet from Avengers: Endgame that holds all six Infinity Stones.  If I was impressed with Doctor Strange's Eye of Agamotto, the odds are really good these other items would also all be finding their way to my house to be incorporated into a Marvel fan display in our game room or home office.

There was a lot of excitement in the air when the package containing my Eye of Agamotto which I had eagerly been awaiting arrived from shopdisney.com. Enthusiastically ripping up the boxes for what I had thought would be the unveiling of my own piece of Hollywood magic, the oxygen in the room emptied as I gasped at a disappointing dud. This has to be the most disappointing purchase I can remember making in a long time. I normally don't write negative reviews but wanted to warn others not to be suckered into what looks like a really cool prop replica being marketed by Disney. 

First of all, and most troublesome, the Doctor Strange Eye of Agamotto movie prop replica isn't screen accurate. Its sized about twice the size it actually should be! It is more like a big clock you'd see Flavor Flav wearing around his neck than the amulet donned by the Sorcerer Supreme. Absolutely, too large to be used for cosplay! As well as hindering the display value of the amulet because it looks out of place big. Doah!

Second, instead of utilizing AAA or AA batteries, which would have been totally doable based upon the girth of the amulet, you need to insert the more expensive style wristwatch style batteries to power its special effects. I don't normally keep those in stock around the house. Fortunately, batteries are included with it! But I'm not looking forward to eventually replacing them. 

On a more positive note, the glowing light effect of the Time Stone does have a nice ambience to it. It has a supernatural glow and emits a mystical humming sound. The Eye of Agamotto prop replica does get kudos for that. The Time Stone is removable but doesn't glow on its own removed from the amulet. 

The amulet is also very sturdy with its body made out of metal. From tapping on it and feeling its weight, you can tell that this isn't just a plastic mold. Disney's Eye of Agamotto is made with metal giving it the feel of actually holding a real magical amulet, well that is if such a thing actually existed. Still, it has the durability you think would be put into a prop used on a set to make sure it doesn't get broken while filming a movie. 

Additionally, the packaging incorporates some nice details to make it look like a techy storage container. That adds a fun element to unpacking the Eye of Agamotto and is worth keeping around to store it when not using for cosplay or display. 

I just can't get over just how obnoxiously big this is! That is such a huge detraction. Though I guess it does look rather cool on a display shelf if you are viewing it from a distance. The size is enough of a negative though that Disney's Doctor Strange Eye of Agamotto doesn't earn a Geek Daddy nod of approval. Buyer beware! 

LANGDON WATCHES

With my days full of professional and parenting responsibilities seems like I'm always peeking at my wrist to keep track of the time and where I'm supposed to be. Yes clocks are now on all our phones but I still have a preference for traditional wrist watches. I've always had an appreciation of watches both as fashion accessories and mechanical tools.

With that in mind, I had my mind set on getting an automatic mechanical watch to wear. These watches don't use batteries but are instead are powered by a series of gears that are energized by the motion of your arm as you move about while wearing it. These are some of the most reliable watches you can get and also tend to be very expensive often with price tags over a thousand dollars. With young children at home, family expenses didn't make spending that much money on a wrist watch practical.

I'd put aside my desire to get one of these automatic mechanical watches until I came across a Kickstarter campaign that caught my attention. A start-up horologist out of Ontario, Canada was selling these watches to raise some capital to help get their business up and running. These watches had the look of more expensive brands that I'd been coveting but were priced at under $200. Liking their pitch and product, I took a chance and invested in my first Kickstarter.

My watch arrived this week and I'm very impressed! It keeps accurate time and the automatic mechanical operations have been working great. I wore the watch for a few hours before setting the time and self-winding mechanism started without a hitch winding up the gears powering it just by being worn during my normal daily activities. And the watch has been ticking steadily ever since!

Called the Parkdale Automatic, this watch has a classic, minimalist appearance complimented by a genuine brown leather strap. Instead of a seconds hand being tied in with the hour and minute hands, there is a separate track for that which makes the dial a bit less cluttered. This also has seconds stand out on their own instead of being looped in with the hours and minutes on the dial. This adds aesthetic detail as well as functionality to the watch. A nice touch in my opinion.

I have smaller sized wrists with my 5'5" frame and large watches can be overpoweringly to big for me to wear. The polished stainless steel case for this watch at 41 mm diameter is a perfect size for me. It fits great yet is large enough to also be comfortable for someone with a larger frame than mine.  I was wowed too by the fact that with all the mechanical operations going on inside the case it is only 11 mm tall. This is not a bulky watch making it look great on your wrist whether it is being worn out to work or play in.

The only thing I regret about this Kickstarter investment was that I didn't also buy their watch with a white dial too. If this watch continues to work as great as it has in the first week I've had it, I'm truly going to be thrilled. So I'm absolutely giving the Parkdale Automatic from Langdon Watches a Geek Daddy nod of approval!

If you would like to get one too, Langdon Watches is now taking orders on their website.