CAPTAIN AMERICA REPLICA SHIELD PROP BY EFX COLLECTIBLES

What's this? A rare Saturday post? Yes, this could have easily gone up tomorrow, but given that today is the Fourth of July -- America's Independence Day -- I couldn't pass up the chance to post some pictures of my newest collectible acquisition.

But, as always, I'm going to spend some time to set the stage first. A few years back, EFX Collectibles announced they would be producing a line of prop replicas based on items from Marvel Films' productions. Among these items was Captain America's star-spangled shield.

Now I'm not a prop replica guy. I owned none until this one. I was never into "role-play" type toys as a kid, and I'm not really into them as an adult either. But there's something about Cap's shield -- it's not just a prop, it's a piece of art. So I was really excited at the prospect of owning it and mounting it on my wall.