House of Frankenstein

Oh man, Frankenstein. He's a classic. Whether you prefer the intelligent version from the books or the shambling groaning version from the Universal movies... Well most people prefer the Universal version, versions...

Frankenstein was played by something like a dozen guys over multiple movies... and a while back the Sideshow folks made 1:6 scale figures out of all of them. Seriously, from every classic Frankenstein movie. Hell, even Young Frankenstein. And each figure was molded to look like the specific actor from each movie. Pretty neat.

At some point in my 1:6 buying frenzy I decided I should get a Frankenstein to help fill out my "Monsters and Villains" quota. But which one. A quick look at all the figures revealed 2 things: some of the actors that played Frankenstein looked weird with the make-up on. They made Frankenstein look like a  little chubster. Also: a few of the Frankensteins were packaged with Brains in Jars.

That second part immediately narrowed down the choice to two sets. One the original Frankenstein set which features Frankenstein's monster looking just like everyone remembers. It's the image that gets put on postage stamps. The other was the House of Frankenstein monster, from the first of the monster mash movies that featured Frankenstein, Wolfman, Dracula, and some generic mad scientist and hunchback. (Although mad scientist was played by the original Frankenstein, Boris Karloff.) Both Monsters looked great in the pictures.

Ultimately I went with the House of Frankenstein version. It was cheaper and it came with two brains. TWO BRAINS IN JARS! Who ever heard of such riches. The figure looks great and has amazing articulation, although if the short sleeves ride up you see that his entire body isn't green and you risk exposing some regular flesh colored forearms. The figure also comes with a molded, plastic book that you can't open and is a little large to be considered the 1:6 scale version of the book from the movie. I think, it's been a while since I saw that movie. But come on, who has a book that's as high as their knee? (Besides toddlers. Although it was a monster movie, and giant mysterious tomes aren't out of the question.)

I haven't undressed the figure, but the upper torso has a weird joint and I'm wondering if it's held together by a rubber band. I admit, it makes me a little nervous, as if the figure is more delicate than I had anticipated. (Ironic?)

Also, and this is the first time I've ever experienced this, the twist ties holding the figure to the card, they were actually designed so the only way to get them off the figure is to take off the jacket and then thread the twist-tie around the figure, under the clothing.

Weird.

New Warriors set

Why'd I get this set? Well, it was cheap and I've already got a couple New Mutant minimates from previous Toys R us waves. And you know me, once I collect a couple members of a team I want to complete the team. Of course now...

The original New Mutants have taken to wearing their old uniforms again, but this is them when they were teens, at the start of the New Mutants series. We've got Wolfsbane (werewolf), Karma (can project her mind into other people), Sunspot (energy charged solar powered super body), and Cannonball (unstoppable flight propulsion). They didn't include Mirage (illusions) even though I'd say she's arguably more important than Karma... although this was probably the only way they'd make a Karma figure, so I guess that makes sense. They'll probably make a Mirage figure sooner or later. That'd be cool, there's so few Native American superheroes whose powers aren't somehow based on their heritage. But hey, Karma, the Vietnamese mutant whose powers aren't martial arts based! Awesome.

So one of the things I love/hate about this set is that two characters are in their New Mutants uniforms but the other two, Wolfsbane and Sunspot, are in their transformed forms. But they also spent some time in their un-transformed uniformed states. So they included spare heads so you can put them on the basic New Mutatnt uniformed bodies of the other figures. It's a neat feature, but now I want another pair of bodies for these heads, which means I'd have to buy another set... It's diabolical.

Abraham Lincoln

Because I slid back into 12" figures because of a good 1:6 scale President, I knew if I was getting more then I'd have to find other high quality President figures. Fortunately they made one of the most iconic ever and it was by Sideshow, the like #2 name in 1:6 scale figures. And even more fortunately I found it at the price point I was comfortable with (Not paying $100 for a Sideshow version of Grant or Washington.)

As the packaging implies, President Lincoln was released as part of a set of Civil War figures. Other famous historical figures: Stonewall Jackson, General/Future President Grant, and a bunch of soldiers I don't know because I'm not a Civil War buff and most of what I Know is a result of text books and that PBS Documentary by Ken Burns.

I will say that I'm glad they released this figure as Bearded Lincoln and not young weird looking Lincoln.

Since this is a Civil War based set, Lincoln he comes with appropriate accessories. He gets two mini version of the Gettysburg Address written on what feel like easily tearable paper and his iconic stovepipe hat.

And that's it.

Well, unless you count the stand he's packaged with. Or his clothing. But I don't. So he gets two pieces of paper that I'm never taking out of the box and a hat.

Although as far as hats go, it's a pretty good one. Very solid and stays attached to the head more than you would fear when put it on. Overall: Happy with the product and now I want more action figures of Presidents in this scale and of this quality.

AMP Episode 32: Do the Mario!

Oh hey, Episode 32 of the Articulated Monster Podcast is up now!

 

A little more teasing of Mario than normal, but then again, we also had trouble staying on track for the episode discussion on new Glossary terms for Toy Collectors. We also talked a lot about Battle Beasts, because we're a toy podcast.

Lego Minifigures Series 7

So yeah found these and spent 45 minutes squeezing packages to get the ones I wanted. I passed over a lot of this wave, although I might go try and find the daredevil at a later date. So many of the figures were too generic or dull for me. I mean really, what's the difference between a tennis player and one of the regular Lego City generi-men? And truthfully, I've never said to myself, I really want a Lego Hippie. There just weren't as many figures that I considered to be truly inspired. And quite frankly, after 7 waves these dudes don't fell as special anymore. They need to spread out the release schedule a little more.

So let's go over who I did want and why.

Aztec Warrior: He looks amazing, The helmet piece is surprisingly detailed, with painted eyes and a lot of sculpting. Also: one of the running themes in these minifigures that I really like is the historical warriors, so I wanted him to fill out that role as well. Meanwhile the Viking Woman was too similar to the Viking dude from last wave and featured the triangle dress piece I dislike, so I ignored that one. 

Bunny Costume Man: I just thought this was an amusing thing for them to try and create. Because really, if it's not Easter then this guy is a Furry. They made a minifigure that represents a semi-deviant subculture.

Glam Rocker: I just like the non-conformist look. It's a nice diversion from Lego's typical White Euro-centric Suburbia aesthetic that permeates the rest of the Lego lines. 

Bagpiper: Two things: 1) Bagpipes are awesome. 2) It's a Scottish dude wearing a kilt and playing the bagpipes. Ladies and gentlemen, I think we've found this wave's Stereotypical depiction of a culture or ethnicity! Oh and one other thing they did, that I think is amusing, is that they gave the Scotsman something under his kilt. (As opposed to what legend says is usually under there.) Some white briefs. 

Although the Aztec has himself a thong loincloth apparently.

DeLoreans! (Pronounced the way they sing "New Orleans" in the Simpsons "Streetcar Named Desire" musical episode)

So like most minimates that show up in Toys R Us these days, there are two versions of the flying Back to the Future minimate Time Machine: one for the direct market and one for Toys R Us. I picked them both up. First I picked up the Direct Market version because it's the only way to get the Jennifer minimate. You know, Jennifer, Marty's girlfriend who was played by Elizabeth Shue in the sequels.

Now, while it's great to get a Jennifer minimate to round out my collection of Back To The Future minimate collection, she unfortunately comes with the version of the DeLorean that is in phase, so the front half of the car is cast in a transparent plastic. It looks cool, but it's hardly what one might call the definitive version of the flying car. (although I love that they added the food processor/ fusion reactor on the back.)

So, since I wanted a better representation of the flying time machine, I ended up buying the Toy R Us version, which is more solid and comes with a non-descript Doc Brown minimate. I'm a tad disappointed with this version. It's heavy in the parts reuse, to the point where he comes with two holes in his head to hold his sunglasses in place, even though THIS SET DOESN'T INCLUDE HIS SUNGLASSES. 

Yeah, so my Doc Brown just has random holes in his face. Because the only Doc Brown head they have without holes is the older looking Doc from the first movie set... So instead they use the younger looking Doc from the second set, which had holes for sunglasses... sunglasses that do not exist in this set. And yes I mentioned it again because it's pretty damn annoying.

The DeLorean looks good though.

AMP: Looking For Listener Questions

We'll be recording episode #32 of the Articulated Monster Podcast tomorrow evening, so I'm doing an open call for listener questions. Just leave a comment on this post and we'll respond on the podcast.

3d Thursday: TARDIS Interior

You should be able to click on the picture to see a larger version. Some ghosting, but otherwise it's not a bad picture considering it's really hard to do macro shots with my camera.

Hot Toys True Type African American

So you may have heard of this figure. If you have, it's probably for the same reason I bought it. Because it was designed to pay more than a passing resemblance to President Obama. So sometime around a month ago I took my spare change to the coinstar and got an Amazon certificate and somehow got it into my head that I really wanted an accurate-ish looking action figure of a President, especially a recent one I think is pretty cool. Then I thought, hey, you know what would be cool, if I could get one that could be posed with my Jesse Ventura 12 inch figure.

So the combination of these factors had me looking for accurately sculpted Obama figures, and this was one of the best. (The others were okay, but not good.) The likeness isn't 100%, but at the right angles and with the right lighting it looks great.

He's a Hot Toy buck body, so that means 1) I now have a sense what a Hot Toy body is like, and 2) it came fully nude without any clothing or accessories. That is not a state I want to see a representation of the President in.

So I had to get some clothing for the figure. Which means starting to look at 1:6 scale clothing. Turns out that the cheapest way to get 1:6 scale clothing is to either buy Barbie doll clothing or find cheap, old 12 inch figures no body wants and strip them for clothes. Which is why I got those Star Wars figures at that toy sale.

Sadly it turns out the clothes on the Kenner 12" figures are a bit small. The pants barely fit on the Obama figure and they cut off at the shins, looking like Jedi capri pants. And I could barely get Han Solo's shirt & vest on him. The pants were pretty much out. So it looks like I'll have to go shopping for some cheap 1:6 scale clothing for the President.

And I gotta say, this purchase has me fascinated with 12" figures again. I get that urge every few years. I look a little closer at the Barbie aisle and such. Although now that I've seen this Hot Toy and how the head sculpting is, and have been reminded recently of how crap the Barbie & old Kenner 12" figures actually are, I find myself looking more at the 1:6 collectible market of Sideshow, Triad and Hot Toys. We'll see how that turns out.

Twelve Inch Tuesdays... No, I'm not calling it that.

So I've been getting into 12 inch figures lately. I'm a tiny bit obsessed. It's like when I went overboard with the 4 inch figures a year ago. I've got to remind myself not to buy every semi-interesting thing I see because unlike the 4 inch figures, these things are insanely expensive. But if I'm getting stuff, I might as well write about it, right? Right.

I could do a regular feature, call it Twelve Inch Tuesdays or something less innuendo laden. Sixth scale Saturdays... No... I don't want to buy so many that I can justify one day a week on this stuff. And I sure as hell can't be buying any Hot Toys figures... Any more Hot Toys figures... Who the hell makes toys that cost $300? And why did I start getting into the 1/6th scale aspect of the hobby when the aftermarket cost of the figures I want is like 500% MSRP on $100 figures?

I gotta say, I'm sorely tempted by the upcoming 12 inch 11th Doctor figure and whoops, looks like I've preordered it... This is a ridiculously expensive aspect of the hobby and I'd like my obsession with it to end now please. Also, please make a 1:6 scale TARDIS that costs $10 please.

And most importantly, why is it that no one made a quality sixth scale Richard Nixon figure?

Yes, I want more high quality presidents. I'll explain tomorrow.

Ponderings

Do I want to buy an Orko at the Matty Collector sale or do I just want him because he's usually hard to find?

Edit 3:40 pm- I wanted because he's hard to find. After holding the Slimer figure in my hand and realizing it would be the same size, I knew it wouldn't be worth the $36 the figure would have cost me.

Enemies of the Third Doctor set.

I knew I had to get this set when it came out. It features three bad guys from the 3rd Doctor's era in the Seventies. This is the era that has aged the worst out of all the Doctor Who eras, mostly because it was a bit too corny. Don't get me wrong, it had some great stories, but it also had stories that were a little campier/worse looking than the Adam West Batman show. Batman worked because it owned its ridiculousness. Not so much 70's Doctor Who.

But I'll say this, the 3rd Doctor's era had some pretty iconic bad guys. The Autons only showed up in two classic stories but their status as villains was so iconic that they were perfect for the first episode of the new series. That's almost 40 years between stories. 40 years!

So a set of Classic Doctor Who figures featuring three of the 3rd Doctor's enemies? I'm interested. Because toys of cheap 70's sci-fi monsters could be awesome. I mean we get a Drashig! I hated the story the Drashig was featured in. HATED IT! But I love that they made a toy of it, especially considering how cheesy it looked.

 Well let's look at what's included in this set.

A Drashig figure, which is actually a rubber hand puppet. In the show the Drashig was supposed to be enormous, so to make it in scale with the 5 inch figures would have been difficult, but this is a pretty good way to do it. Also, the Drashig on the show looked like a bad hand puppet so this is pretty much perfect in that regard. (British television in the 70's... what a hoot.) The puppet actually fits my adult sized hand, so hooray for that.

The other figures are a 70's style Auton, which I actually prefer to the modern day Autons, and Omega. Omega was the bad guy from the Three Doctors 10th Anniversary special. His body has vanished and he exists as pure will. He hasn't realized this yet, so he still wears elaborate clothing. He finds out his true state when he takes off his helmet and there's nothing underneath. I was wondering if they would figure out a way to turn that into an action feature, and they did. You can remove the helmet/head making it look like he has no head.

That pink globe? That's a Nestene Consciousness that controls the Auton. In the show they came to Earth as meteors that looked like pink glowing globes made of plastic.. so hey, just like that only bigger.

Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, wave 1, continued

I've already gone over the Toys R Us Exclusives from this wave. There were four other sets, but since one was Phoenix vs. Morrigan, and I've already got figures for both those characters and the corresponding accessories, I'm only going to be going over the other three sets. But they're cool sets.

Deadpool vs. Dante

It's nice to get a Deadpool with all its accessories. The last time I got one it was missing one of it's alternate heads. So that was a disappointment. But this one is great, especially since they decided to avoid making his mask a separate piece covering his deformed face, so the head doesn't look over-sized and out-of-scale.

And Dante is... Dante. I don't play the Devil May Care games, but I enjoy playing as the character in the games. His coat is well implemented to allow for maximum arm movement, although the lower part of his coat restricts leg movement. Fortunately both figures come with the new transparent minimate stands to ensure that they stand up no matter what pose they're in.

I really like those stands. I love that they're being included with most of the Marvel Vs. Capcom figures.


Iron Man vs. Arthur

I already have like a dozen Iron Man minimates, and this one is pretty standard, but this guy comes with a ludicrously large cannon, so I'm going to give it a pass. This time.

Meanwhile, Arthur is awesome. His accessories are badass (look at that shield!) He pretty much proves that you can do medieval knights in the minimate form! Also, how awesome is it that Capcom gave a nod to the true old school!

Dormammu and Trish

It's hard to tell, but Dormammu has a face. It's just printed on transparent orange plastic using orange paint. So yeah, kinda hard to see.

His robes restrict almost all of the figure's movement. You can pretty much bend his elbows and that's it. Combine that with the difficulty of seeing his face and it's an overall disappointing minimate.

As for Trish, it's cool they added her so early in the line, and it makes sense to pair Dormammu with a demon hunter, but let's face it, video game over-fetishization of the female form does not lend itself well to the minimate block body. The result is ridiculous, but the good kind of ridiculous. You know, like the way people appreciate Police Academy 7. (Although I will defend the non-ironic merits of Police Academy 1-6.)

Still, her accessories, like her giant sword, are a pretty neat addition to the minimate world. A shame she doesn't have her sunglasses from her memorable victory animation.

Invasion of Time set

I've already looked at a Leela figure and a Classic Sontaran figure. Both are flawed. And in the case of the Leela figure, deeply flawed. So getting a set with a Sontaran featuring the correct number of fingers and a Leela that doesn't look like it was assembled in a rush could be considered a good way to upgrade things. They both look great, the Sontaran in particular is a wonderful rendition of a cheaply made costume from the 70's.

The figures also come with a Sontaran helmet and the time gun, which erases someone from history.

Overall, I love the Sontaran. I wish Leela was wearing the same outfit she had in her SDCC figure since I think it looks more detailed and exciting. Sure it,s show accurate, but this suit is far too bland and drab. It's like she decided to just wear a drab brown skirt rather than wearing leather from animals she killed herself.

AMP Episode 31: Hoover Dam History

Our delayed by Easter episode of the Articulated Monster Podcast is now up. Get it by listening with this widget, downloading it from the Talk Shoe page, or off of the iTunes.



This episode we talk about Justin Bieber, Mattel schadenfreude, gateway toys, Stalin, and of course, Hoover Dam. Also, Mario was late so we got a substitute for the first segments: Chris Rutkowsky, game designer of RPG games such as the ENnie award nominated BASH! and Honor + Intrigue. Check out his webpage at www.bashrpg.com. Incidentally, this gives other James a chance to actually hold a conversation about RPG stuff.

And if you are so inclined, check out his newest game, Honor + Intrigue  at http://www.bashrpg.com/HonorIntrigue.html. It's available for purchase as a pdf download and as a pre-order if you want a print copy. I'm sure it's great. Chris is a great designer, BASH! is one of the few RPGs I've ever played and, even more importantly, enjoyed.

Femme Fatales Series 1

I love how ridiculous it is that they finally release figures that follow up the IndiMates line, but they can only do so under a new line. That might explain why the set includes figures from the 90's IndieComics boom like DarkChylde or Lady Death. The only figure in this line-up that is currently being published is Tarot, and I'm pretty sure they made her because they had a figure already sculpted from another Tarot line that was cancelled due to low pre-orders.

Combine this with the other ridiculous part of trying to make figures of buxom ladies using the square bodied minimate design and you just have to admire the "Who gives a crap" attitude of Diamond. They like the idea and they're going to run with it. So kudos for that.

Meanwhile, I enjoyed the IndiMates line, so a continuation of it, regardless of the name they're called is something I'd be willing to support. I just hope eventually we can get some minimates of male characters from 90's Indie Comics, even if no one remembers them because they weren't sexy women... (You think it's a coincidence that the only figure in this set that isn't walking around in her underwear is wearing Daisy Dukes? That was considered modest dress in 90's indie comics. So sad.) Seriously, the only ones I can think of are Mage and Bone... Wait, SCUD. Do a SCUD minimate, it would be cool!

Buyer's Remorse: Easter Weekemd Edition

It's time for another post in the semi-regular Buyer's Remorse feature, where I run down what I bought and tell  you why, and if I regret it enough to return it. The items this week are from this recent Easter Weekend. I also saw some Avengers Legos at a Target, but not the set I wanted, so I skipped them.

Pinypon
I have no idea what this is, but it was in the Target Easter clearance bins for $1.50 and the dude has a pixelated picture of a robot on his shirt. At least I think its a he. The packaging seems to say that all the other figures are girls. And the website is based in Spain. Weird.

The internet says its a new collectible doll with interchangeable hair, clothes, and other accessories. And they have two faces on their head? Probably like the Legos. For $1.50 I'm willing to see what's going on. That's cheaper than a Happy Meal toy.

Darth Vader
Dude, it's a tiny plush Darth Vader for $2. (Again, Target Easter Clearance bins.) The only thing I haven't figured out is if the Jelly Bean bag and associated ribbon is attached to his hands or can be removed without damaging the figure.

Batman Legacy: Arkham City Batman & Catwoman
Found these at a Toys R Us. They had these and the black and white ones which I didn't even consider buying. But this... They're a bit bigger than the DCUC figures, but it's the cheapest I'll get a modern looking 6" Catwoman with Mattel level articulation. Still... $30 for two figures... Wait, that's actually cheaper than Target.


Marvel Grab Zags
Based on jboypacman's posts I decided I wanted to get the Cyclops mini vinyl figure because Cyclops is awesome. Unfortunately it took me buying and opening a package with Spider-Man in it to figure out how to properly squeeze and feel for Cyclops. It's possible but you have to figure out what you're looking for. They're both open so I'm not going to be returning either of these.

Vanity
12-inch figure, or 1:6 scale. I've actually been considering getting this figure for about 2 years now. And I'm seeing a small resurgence of interest in the 12 inch figures from my brain, so I figured: Now or never. Ordered it online, so returning it is very difficult.

Well, that's it! Oh wait, there's also a Justin Bieber set that I bought for the accessories, but I might return that... if for no other reason than I think I can get it cheaper elsewhere.

Loki and Odin

Yes, yes, I know. Anthony Hopkins as a minimate. But I've already got the Silence of the Lambs set, and that's more than enough Anthony Hopkins minimate for anyone.

I pretty much got these guys because they were cheap. I'm not really into the Movie figures, although having an Odin figure did make this an easier decision to make. Loki though, don't really care. I prefer the design of comic book Loki. And I haven't bothered to see the Thor movie, so I have no attachment to this version. But at least he has the ridiculous helmet... that makes it impossible to stand him up unaided for any reliable amount of time.

Good thing it was cheap.

Green Goblin & Unmasked Spider-Man

Oh my god! How many times are they going to release unmasked Peter Parker? I get that they want to simulate a classic comic book cover, but I don't need another "secret identity revealed" Peter Parker in my collection. Really guys, one is enough. And I really would have skipped this set, I really would have, but you found my weak point and included a Goblin Glider for the Green Goblin.... A vehicle. You made this a vehicle set.

DAMN YOU! Fortunately the other accessories help alleviate some of the pain I felt when I spent good money to effectively buy a glider.But really, aside from the Norman Osborne head, this is pretty much like the other Green Goblin minimate I already have. I really only wanted the glider. And the rope.

11th Doctor TARDIS Playset

Because there actually was a 9/10th Doctor playset, which was smaller than this one. Because the set was a bit smaller.

But anyway, I'm finishing off the look at toys I bought at the "Gallifrey One" Doctor Who convention in February. This was the biggest purchase, obviously, and it was a bitch trying to fit it into my bag. I had to leave the box behind. Fortunately it was already disassembled, and I finally put it together when I got home. But there were so many parts, taking up weird spaces in my luggage. Oy.

But I think it was worth it. The set is a sight to behold. The big highlights are the central console..

and the multi-tiered levels.

In many ways it looks just like the set from the show. Sure some parts are a bit flimsy, since they're made of cheap cardboard (pretty much all the walls) and the floors are made of some surprisingly flimsy plastic, which have to be fitted into the plastic frames just right, but it's still a solid bit of plastic... the parts that are plastic. Well worth every penny, although mostly because I didn't pay any shipping fees and it was sold at the suggested MSRP. I don't know if I'd be as in love with the set if it cost $20 more than I paid.

But it looks great with figures in it.

Age of Apocalypse boxset

Fortunately this was on sale, otherwise I probably would have skipped it. I've wanted a Sunfire minimate for a while now, but the only one they've done so far has been this Age of Apocalypse version. Although he briefly used this look when Apocalypse brainwashed him in the 616 universe. So hooray for that.

And I'm glad this set came with AoA Cyclops, since he's one of the cooler AoA designs. Character was a bit pointless, but I never read Age of Apocalypse for character development... or really at all. I skimmed the story, but never bought anything from it except a parody comic produced by Marvel in the What The-?! vein.

Although I'm a bit miffed that the back of the packaging clearly is decribing not AoA Sunfire but AoA Sunspot. Seriously, the first two words in that description are "Sunfire" and "Sunspot." That's just sad.

The set also comes with AoA Rogue and Magneto, but who cares. All you need to know is that Magneto comes with alternate head, hair and helmet to create his angry Magento look. Oh and they have removable capes.

Cylon Raider

Have you ever had a day when you go to a toy store, walk around, don't see anything you MUST BUY, but still feel a nagging in the back of your head that you should get something. You went out of your way to make the trip, you've got some money to burn, you haven't gotten anything new in a while, and you want to justify the fact that you're a collector in some way. Also, you're surrounded by toys. So you look around and find something that you kinda want, something you've been on the fence about for a while but never bit the bullet and purchased.

I'm sure it's indicative of some sort of sickness. I bet that's the first step to being on the show Horders or its bad TLC knockoff.

So what I'm saying is that the Cylon Raider will end up being my version of the mummified flat cat under a ton of empty boxes. (Incidentally, I do throw most of my packaging away, unless it looks awesome, in which case it goes into a tub of flattened, empty packaging... Yeah... Hoarders... But at least I throw away the plastic bits.)

I mean, as I've mentioned before: I never really watched Battlestar Galactica, but I have enough minimates to justify giving the series its own Tag. So why would I get a Battlestar Galactica vehicle?

Because it's a ship designed to look like the face of the Cylons from the old series and that is adorable. Also, the minimate is a killer robot painted gold. I'm a sucker for an absurd robot toy and this is two of them...

So maybe I won't end up on Hoarders after all. I just need to... uh...

Huh.

Parking Lot Sale Purchases

I went to a Parking Lot sale at Toy Fusion, something AJ had tipped me off about a while back. It was an interesting place, full of vintage toys on sale by vendors who either knew what they had and what it was worth, or people trying to clear out their garages. That means there were a lot of boxes with miscellaneous toys in various condition on sale for cheap.

It also meant I got to see toys I've never seen before. It was like a mini-flea-market for toys. Except the toys weren't all 50 cents or 3 for $1. But I mean look at the obscure stuff you could find!

I'm pretty sure that's a Peter Pan from the Disney Store line of articulated action figures. Aside from a waist joint, this thing had the same, possibly more, articulation than a Mattel figure. *rimshot*

So let's go over what I ended up buying, and why, since that's the name of this blog.

Movie Masters Isamot Kol

It's a Green Lantern Movie Masters figure. After the debacle that was the Ryan Reynolds Green Lantern figure in this line, I vowed not to get another Movie Masters Green Lantern figure unless it was Isamot Kol or really, really cheap. (Like under a dollar cheap.) This figure meets that criteria by being Isamot Kol. Like all Movie Masters figures, this is poorly designed. The way the limbs are designed, it's really difficult to have him stand up unless he's on all fours. However the articulated tail and mouth mean I really like this figure because his massive jaw opens. Actually all the problems I have this figure could have been solved by adding articulated ankles. There's articulated wrists! How can articulated ankles be that much harder?

Oh, also, trying to distinguish a green ring on a green hand: Not so easy. It took me a minute to figure out what hand the ring was on.

Kobra

Look, I'm not calling him Lord Naga. TRADEMARKS BE DAMNED!

I wanted this guy for a while now, mostly just to broaden my DCUC villain collection. I didn't want to pay full price because he has a plastic cape, which I hate, and because DCUC figures are too expensive these days. Fortunately, loose, without his build a figure piece, the dealer was willing to bring the price down to something I can live with. His legs are a bit warped, but that just be the way he's designed.

Hot Seat

Mario pointed this car out to me, and I decided to get it. It's a Hot Wheels car designed to look like a toilet. With a plunger as the steering wheel. And the seat has a hinge, so you can have all the fun cliche jokes about leaving the seat up.

What do you want, it was $1. I thought that was well worth the limited amusement value that I get out of the thing.

Cyclops

After seeing all the loose Marvel Legends figures, I thought I should get one if I found it at a good price and I really wanted it. So that's how I chose Cyclops here. I love Cyclops and all his repressed, weird back-story insanity. I skipped this figure when it first came out, and I've sorta regretted it once I began picking up some 6" figures.

The dealer was willing to cut the price a little, so it was an easy decision. Especially once I saw that his fingers were articulated and he has double jointed elbows so you can pose him doing his iconic visor-touch. I'm still not in love with Marvel Legends, especially when the thigh doesn't have a cut joint to supplement the ball jointed hip-thigh, but I really like this figure.

12-inch Luke & Han

These aren't even the collector's series. They're the really bad, early 90's Kenner figures. I pretty much only got them so I could cannibalize them for the costumes and because the guy cut me a huge discount if I got both.

Damn, they have big hands.

And that's pretty much it. Except for the 1:6 scale chainsaw I picked up.

Man I miss when Toys R Us had a wall of 12 inch figures. (Which is where I got Jesse Ventura... Actually I found him stashed on a clearance shelf, but only because the Toys R Us had carried him earlier. We never really appreciated the 90's.)