Frozen. Black. Pearl. By M2 Machines.

Recently, I've had a falling out of love with M2 Machines. I discovered them about a year ago and quickly amassed a sizable collection of their models. Every Walmart trip involved taking a good look through their M2 stock and walking out with one, two, maybe five models. But the more I kept them in my collection, the more I lost interest. They no longer caught my eye like they once did. I've discovered other brands that did the same models, but better. And by better, I mean better quality.

That's really what ultimately led me to sell off a chunk of my M2 Machines collection. Too often, I would look at them and catch an eyesore. On some, it's the messily-molded wheels and tires with the flat spots. On others, it's the hood or doors not fully closing. On nearly all of them, it's the discrepancy of ride height on all four corners. Quality is where M2 is really falling behind, and the most frustrating part is their complete indifference to it. I peek every now and then at their Facebook page to see their upcoming product, and I always see the same tired complaints about quality, without a hint of recognition from the folks running the page. What a complete waste of great designs and great cars.

In a rare turn of events, I actually picked up three of them the other day. If you've been living under a rock (or in the middle of nowhere) and didn't get the memo, certain Target stores have now started carrying premium diecast product, M2 included. That's where I found these, and they looked way too good to be left behind. This is the Auto-Drivers Frozen Black Pearl series, which is essentially a recolor of one of the previous Auto-Drivers series. Every model is the same, but the color has been changed to, you guessed it, Frozen Black Pearl, also known more commonly as matte black. I'm not exactly sure where the "Pearl" is, but it doesn't matter, as these are flat-out stunning. While these are not devoid of quality issues, black certainly helps hide a lot defects.

You could say this is M2's counter to Greenlight's Black Bandit series. While these are flat black to Greenlight's gloss black, they've certainly been given the same kind of treatment. The wheels look spectacular in black, to go along with the white lettering on the tires. We've got Chevy vs. Ford vs. Dodge. The Big Three of the U.S.A. Which one do you got?

For me, it's the Mopar or no car. I love the '66 Charger. The Torino comes in second. The Camaro? Well, I used to be a Camaro fan. Not to say they're bad, but they don't wow me as much as they once did. Whichever one you pick, you're a winner either way because these are keepers. Oh, just make sure you take a good look first before purchasing in case there are, you know, quality issues.

M2 Machines: Two from Detroit Muscle Release 33

To many of you, it may seem like I'm a huge muscle car addict. Most of my posts bleed red, white, and blue. I'm really not. I'm a die-hard tuner fan at heart. My top 10 list of favorite cars ever would probably be 90% Japanese. When I was younger, I was all about exotics. Muscle cars were never on my radar until the past year or so. A large part of that is because of this hobby. No, scratch that. 100% of that is because of diecast. I started seriously collecting them less than a year ago. It started with M2. Then, I fell in love with Auto World. Recently, I've been overdosing on Greenlight. Throw in a little bit of Johnny Lightning, Racing Champions, and what have you, and I'm now a fan of good ol' classic American muscle.

Of course, living in the U.S.A. means I get exposed to these all the time. Not necessarily when it comes to 1:1's, but definitely in 1:64's. All of the premium diecast brands we get here specialize in American muscle. No surprise, really. And I have no problem with it at all. The great thing about this hobby is it allowed me to gain an appreciation for all makes and models, regardless of country of origin.

Today, we come full circle and feature the brand that got me started on all this: M2 Machines. Two neat pieces from the Detroit Muscle line, Release 33. Two castings that I already have, but disguised in new colorways, one pink and one orange. As much as I knock on M2 for having such a limited selection of castings, they always knock it out of the park with inventive designs and colorways. That's called making the most of what you've got.

This is the 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass 442. I should note that I'm a sucker for anything pink. This one isn't hot pink or bright pink. It's a more toned-down metallic lavender type of pink. And it looks so, so fabulous. Throw in some stock wheels, simple striping, and spoiler delete and it's one of the classiest and cleanest 442's you'll ever see.

And then there's this 1970 Ford Torino Cobra SCJ Twister Special. A mouthful to say, but a sight to behold. I love collecting diecast that have trim-line designations. Small variations make a huge difference to me. The fact that this one is specifically the Twister Special really sweetened the deal.

Even if you couldn't care less about muscle cars, I'm sure these caught your attention. If you haven't already, get out there and take a good look at something you don't normally collect. You just might fall for it!