• January 2026
    S M T W T F S
     123
    45678910
    11121314151617
    18192021222324
    25262728293031

  • On Facebook

    On Facebook

  • Archives

  • Categories

  • Comic Blog Elite

    Comic Blogs - BlogCatalog Blog Directory

Impulse Buying and Price: Guardians 2 Hot Wheels

Posted on May 15, 2017 by Walt

It seems almost amazing at times how much impact price has on impulse purchases. And what a difference that 97 cents makes compared to, say, $3.99 per unit.

Case in point: a wave of Hot Wheels, with various vehicles done up in honor of the main characters in Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 2 and related stuff.

guardians_2_hotwheels

For a little under the price of a mere 2 regular Marvel comics (or 1 1/2 #1 issues), I snagged all 8 of these. Walmart had a big bin of them, and I poked through, initially curious after the Drax one caught my eye…then decided that ok, if they had all 8 shown on the back of the cards, I’d go ahead and get them…but if they only had 7, or 6, or such, I’d put ’em back and buy none.

But they had all 8, so…I bought ’em.

These’ll go with the Captain America: Civil War wave I picked up the same way last year.

I’m not much of a car guy, but occasional things like this, with snazzy packaging that really grabs the attention (moreso than the vehicles themselves), are fun…and really don’t take up that much space, thankfully. And since I’m not buying up the action figures and other stuff that cost a lot more…I allow myself the indulgence.

All the more with zero interest in other movie toys for stuff like Spider-Man or Wonder Woman, and not even seeing any product for Alien: Covenant and such.

C’est la vie!

Filed under: 2017 Non-Review Posts, 2017 Posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Toy Chronicles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

New Toys: Foot Cruiser, Supermen, and Munchkin

Posted on May 12, 2017 by Walt

Last weekend, I finally pulled the trigger on buying a Foot Cruiser I’d seen at a local vintage toys store.

foot_cruiser_a

This is–from what I understand and recall–one of the earlier vehicle toys for the TMNT toy line in the ’80s. Story-wise, I believe this is supposed to be a flying car–one that Shredder got ahold of that was left behind by the Neutrinos.

foot_cruiser_c

I found that I really liked the coloring of it, and got it into my head that I did actually want it, though I’ve typically held to "just" getting the "van" vehicle for the TMNT lines as the "iconic" vehicle, never having cared to drop the kinda money required for a Technodrome toy.

foot_cruiser_b

And of course, it goes quite well with a couple of Foot soldiers riding about, wouldn’t you say?

Along the way, I’d come across this Superman pack, containing a figure from five different toy lines; though the Justice League Unlimited figure is a "repaint"–I believe the line had ended well before the onset of the New 52 and the trunks-less costume.

superman_ultimate_collection_front

With the addition of these figures to a shelf full of Supermen already, I may need to expand to a second shelf or otherwise spread stuff out a bit more…or pack ’em tighter together!

superman_ultimate_collection_back

It also helped–in deciding to purchase this–that it was on clearance, making the figures individually MUCH better priced than most of them ever were as individuals! I’ve got my eye on a TMNT pack like this with a bunch of Leonardo figures, but that will certainly have to wait til after some other paycheck, assuming it’s even still available by the time I’d opt to go looking for it!

Finally, over the last few months, I’ve added to my Munchkin collection, with Munchkin X-Men as a surprise discovery on Amazon a week or two back.

new_munchkin_games

While they’re admittedly more "open space" than not, I found that I’ve really liked the "Munchkin Deluxe" editions with the square boxes, giving them more of a board game look than just a card game. And with the Guest Artist Editions also getting the same box treatmen, I’ve snagged a couple on sale. The Munchkin Legends I came across (surprisingly!) for 50% off as a sale price at Kenmore on Free Comic Book Day, and didn’t care to talk myself out of it, since I’d already been "interested" and resigned to the likelihood of having to pay "full price" minimum for it.

I’ve learned that the Star Wars collectible card/dice game from Fantasy Flight Games is "back in stock," and even saw some boosters last weekend. I was VERY interested in it back in late February/early March…but with the original set now being in-stock ALONGSIDE an EXPANSION set, with both in very limited quantities…combined with other comics, books/graphic novels, games, etc. that I’m also interested in–I’m just not gonna chase the game. Granted, the company vastly underestimated what demand would be and it was highly under-produced…but stuff I’ve read about the limited quantities of the base set and price-gouging I’ve seen on the secondary market…I’m gonna stick with finite, "fixed" games.

Like Munchkin.

Filed under: 2017 Non-Review Posts, 2017 Posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Toy Chronicles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

1990s Aliens Toys: Bishop

Posted on May 9, 2017 by Walt

I remember, as a kid, seeing some Aliens toys while out at some store with my Mom. I’d thought they were kinda cool, but she had zero interest in buying any of them for me.

I think I’d associated them with an arcade game that was at the local skating rink…it’s also possible that I associated them with a bit of a movie I’d seen when Dad fell asleep watching tv; it’s also likely that–this being Kenner–I may have seen commercials for the toys. At the same time–the more I do think about it–I may have already read the novelization of Alien3, and perhaps had already seen the movies, which may have further explained my noticing/taking an interest in these…possibly prior to my getting into the books based on the Dark Horse Comics series.

I recently came across a couple of the figures at a local The Exchange and for the price, went ahead and bought them…though disappointingly, they did not have any of the actual Alien creatures…just a couple of the soldiers.

I was also particularly interested in the "free comic" that was included, quite interested in what that was content-wise. I did not bargain for it to be a rolled up pamphlet with no real story that simply serves as a guide to playtime and/or other toys to get!

Anyway…here’s stuff with the first figure–Bishop!

Aliens_Kenner_Bishop_front

The character looks like a "cool" android here, but not much like the film character. Considering these toys were (as I recall) marketed to kids, and (also as I recall in coming across them as a kid) found in the toy aisle with other kids’ toys…it’s just as well that there were differences as I doubt most kids that would’ve been wanting these toys would have been old enough to (responsibly) be shown such a violent R-rated film.

Aliens_Kenner_Bishop_back

The back of the card gives a tidbit of information about the character, and shows off the other toys in the line–something that (in this quantity) I wish more toy lines would do to this day. Seeing/knowing what’s out there does a lot more than having to (or happening to) "research" a toy line and whatnot. Show off the other cool stuff and prompt the person with this toy to also want those toys!

Aliens_Kenner_Bishop_profile

While these were just into the early 1990s, they tried to (somewhat) follow the "clip and collect" thing (something I personally most associate with GI Joe and TMNT figures).

Aliens_Kenner_Bishop_profile_instructions

Also good to have some basic info about the figure without having to "guess" or "not know until purchase" and getting the figure out of the package!

Aliens_Kenner_Bishop_back_tagline

"Space Marines," huh? "Space ______" sounds cool, I guess. Aliens "attacking," but no significant details. "heavy metal," yeah, ok, sign of the times. Generic text/"tagline"/"elevator pitch" for the line…rather sanitized, but hey…these were for kids!

Aliens_Kenner_Bishop_back_aliens

The aliens look a bit blocky here…but still cool. I’d be most interested in the Alien Queen and the Scorpion Alien, though wouldn’t mind getting the other two!

Aliens_Kenner_Bishop_back_marines

The rest of the "Space Marines"–though I notice at least one prominent character missing. Ripley had to be included, obviously…but otherwise, apparently who actually wanted any females? I’m not sure who "Atax" is with the "disguise" suit; but otherwise, looks to me like a good mix on the characters generically: A woman, "only" a couple white guys, a black guy, and robot.

And perhaps that was one of the things for the film–quite the good ensemble cast.

Aliens_Kenner_Bishop_back_vehicles

And as with any ’80s or ’90s toy line…of course you had to have "vehicles" to go with the figures! Of these, I’d sorta be interested in Ripley’s power loader…though ultimately I’m not all that interested in any of these.

As for the line itself, I’d love to find the Aliens themselves cheaply, even "loose," though I’d be quite interested in seeing what sort of "story" one gets across all the included "comics" inserts.

And speaking of said inserts…here’s the Bishop one, numbered as "No 1" and apparently starting off the adventure!

Continue reading →

Filed under: 2017 Non-Review Posts, 2017 Posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Toy Chronicles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Aliens Day 2017

Posted on April 26, 2017 by Walt

It’s interesting to see the various "days" that folks have come up with. Seems like there’s something for every day of the year. Where once there were "Hallmark Holidays," now even those would be prestigious rarities by comparison.

That said, one of the ones that I can actually appreciate is Aliens Day. April 26th…or 4/26. As in LV-426, the planetoid with the colony that the Colonial Marines and Ripley went (back) to in the film Aliens all those years back.

And as one of my all-time favorite franchises, and not having properly observed it last year in its inaugural outing, I figured I’d dedicate a post to it this year.

Yet, I don’t have anything lengthy or long-winded; I could ramble about my thoughts on the films, the books, etc; some memories tied up in stuff around obtaining various pieces of my collection, but I don’t actually have the time or patience at present.

SO, in lieu of lots of words, I’ll let some photos do most of the "talking."

Aliens Day 2017…here is my Aliens collection.

aliens_day_2017_a

The films. Well, the Blu-Ray editions, anyway–once upon a time, I had the Aliens Quadrilogy dvd box set–the 9-foot-long thing with all those discs and such. I also had all the single films on dvd, with a couple different editions of Alien and Aliens. I’ve since bought a pale imitation of the Quadrilogy dvd–bare-bones films–BUT that one came with a code for a digital copy, giving me a digital set of the first four films.

And over the past year and a half or so with the Anniversary Edition releases for the first two, I’ve bought those for the bonus (physical) content.

I also lump the Predator franchise in here…I find that via the Aliens vs. Predator and AvP stuff, the two are solidly linked, and the Predator stuff just works well partnered with the Aliens stuff.

aliens_day_2017_b

I believe I have the entire run of ’90s novels, each adapting one of Dark Horse Comics‘ mini-series. About 12 years ago, there were several more books released directly from the publisher under a now-defunct imprint. And of course, there were the movie novelizations. More recently, Titan Books has been putting out new stuff such as a trilogy of Alien novels set between the original Alien film and Aliens.

aliens_day_2017_c

Titan also put out a newer trilogy "crossing" franchises–Predator, Alien, and Alien vs. Predator, set in a further future, and set the stage for what could be some very interesting universe-building should further novels be produced. There’s also a newer anthology of short stories, and a number of other books and products outside the Titan well.

aliens_day_2017_f

Of course, there are the comics–which I have in multiple formats. I’m loving the oversized hardcovers. There are the original collected volumes. We recently got a collection of Dark Horse‘s collaborations with DC on the Aliens stuff. The excellent Omnibus series encompassing Aliens, Aliens vs. Predator, and Predator itself.

aliens_day_2017_d

Then there are the toys/figurines/etc. Funko Pop figures, regular and oversized; Minimates, Neca, Funko Mystery Mini figures, and even a "cute" plush happy-looking face-hugger.

aliens_day_2017_e

In trying to get a bunch of the Alien creature from the Mystery Minis line, I wound up with far more Predators–the standard, the "wounded" variant, and the extra-rare translucent "invisible" variant. I eventually snagged the "full-size" standard Pop figure.

I’m also very much looking forward to the new movie due out in about three weeks, and to the concluding chapter of the mega-arc Life and Death that’s due out this week.

I’ve seen a number of other toys/figures I’d like, but they tend to be very much on the far-too-expensive side for me, especially where life is right now.

I do imagine a re-watch marathon may be in the near-future for me, as well as having plenty of reading yet to go, having been back through or just through (in the case of the newer releases) some dozen or so of the novels in the last year-plus.

aliens_day_2017_g_blogtrailer

Filed under: 2017 Non-Review Posts, 2017 Posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Toy Chronicles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

More Imaginext Power Rangers: Dragonzord!

Posted on April 25, 2017 by Walt

There’s little quite like finding a far-too-expensive toy you’ve wanted (but been unwilling to pay that high of a price!) marked down nearly 50%, combined with unusual personal-life stressors to instigate an unplanned purchase.

In this case… the Imaginext Dragonzord!

imaginext_dragonzord01

Part of the expense on this one over the other various figures and Zords seems to be the “remote control” functions, and built-in sound effects/music.

When you turn the Zord on, it plays the traditional “dragon flute” tone; left sitting it’ll also roar.

imaginext_dragonzord03

With the dragon flute (remote), you can make the Dragonzord turn in circles, go forward, and fire the chest-missiles. Turning the platform the Green Ranger stands on will open the chest and activate the “arming missiles!” sound effect.

imaginext_dragonzord02

While this one is not nearly as detailed and awesome as (I imagine) the Legacy Dragonzord, this cost me less than 1/3 of what that one would…and this moves, has the sound effects, and is much bigger.

imaginext_dragonzord_and_megazord_and_white_tiger

While this Dragonzord dwarfs the White Tigerzord…it is itself dwarfed by the Megazord I got some time back. I won’t put it past myself to get on a kick and want to track down the other individual Zords (Pterodactyl, Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops, Sabretooth Tiger, Mastadon). But really, for now, I’m quite happy with the ones I’ve got!

mini_dragonzord

A few weeks back, I found this miniature Dragonzord…some sort of “Armor Series” of Imaginext figures…this slides (just barely) over a Green Ranger figure. (Somewhere along the way I’d also bought a pack of Mighty Meeples…which included a duplicate of the Superman that I bought for $1 weeks before that.)

mmpr_and_marvel_mighty_muggs

And to close out this post…above I have a shelf with my Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers Funko Pops figures and the Imaginext figures. They’re also sharing space with some of my much older Marvel and Star Wars Mighty Muggs.

Filed under: 2017 Non-Review Posts, 2017 Posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Toy Chronicles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

More Vintage TMNT Figures: Ace Duck and Fugitoid

Posted on April 19, 2017 by Walt

I’d actually pretty much forgotten about a local vintage toy shop, Retroland Toys. In definite need of distraction from stuff going on ‘in real life’, I ended up stopping in last Friday–I think it’d been at least a year, if not a couple years since the last time I’d stopped in.

Given my recent-ish hunting down of vintage TMNT toys, I was curious as to what their stock and prices were like, particularly in comparison to Big Fun in Cleveland Heights.

more_vintage_tmnt_fugitoid_ace_duck

They had a decent assortment of the older TMNT figures; nothing that particularly surprised me, but I was rather excited to note they have a Foot Cruiser and a couple of really good-condition Man Ray/Ray Fillet figures…making me think I do want to get a “replacement” even though I’m not gonna flat-out get rid of my original of the figure.

They also had a number of variant turtles–sports turtles, military turtles, surfer turtles, and I found a couple of rocker turtles. (There were a bunch of figures and vehicles in a display case, and then a bin of individual figures bagged with accessories in a bin next to the case).

And for what I was half-expecting…VERY GOOD prices! A couple had prices a little bit out there, but for the most part they all seemed to be $10 or a little under, with the vehicles in the $20 range. Basically, the prices are perfectly on par with buying any new contemporary figure/vehicle, if not cheaper.

I ended up deciding to get Ace Duck and Fugitoid, with Ace Duck having been fairly tops in my mind as the next reasonable figure to be able to get.

I also “randomly” remembered over the weekend that I used to have the “Wacky Action” Shredder figure, so I’ve added that to my list…and I’ve added Ray Fillet.

Overall, for figures that seem relatively common-ish that may not be terribly hard to track down, I think I’m pretty much left with Ray Fillet, Splinter, Tattoo, and the Foot Cruiser. Hothead, Wacky Action Shredder, the Robotic Foot Soldier, the 5″ Krang/Android Body, and the “Toon” Shredder & Neutrinos I don’t think I’ve actually seen in person since seeing them on pegs over 20 years ago when they were new and I passed on them at the time.

I also suspect the Party Wagon will be a bit hard to find intact. My own is a “shell” with the top missing, numerous accessories missing, and so on…and mine’s in pretty darned good condition compared to several I’ve seen online. I don’t care about most accessories for it, but want the main outer part to look whole and not be missing anything obvious.

From these, I suspect it’ll be down the rabbit hole on tracking down other figures or “coming across them” “in the wild”–Star Trek TMNT and Cave Turtle TMNT and whatnot…perhaps a replacement or replacement parts for the Turtle Blimp.

My primary checklist thus currently stands as the following:

Replacements

  • Ace Duck
  • Baxter Stockman
  • Fugitoid
  • Rocksteady
  • Triceraton
  • Splinter
  • Ray Fillet
  • Wacky Action Shredder
  • Party Wagon (vehicle)

New (to me)

  • General Traag
  • Rat King
  • Leatherhead
  • Usagi Yojimbo
  • Dirtbag
  • Tattoo
  • Wyrm
  • April II
  • Merdude
  • Hothead
  • Krang’s Android Body (regular figure size)
  • Robotic Foot Soldier(s)
  • Toon Shreder
  • Dask (Neutrino)
  • Kala (Neutrino)
  • Zak (Neutrino) (if radically different from the ‘non-Toon’ version)
  • Movie Star Leo
  • Movie Star Mike
  • Movie Star Raph
  • Foot Cruiser (vehicle)

more_vintage_tmnt_fugitoid_ace_duck_blogtrailer

Filed under: 2017 Non-Review Posts, 2017 Posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Toy Chronicles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

New TMNT Toys: Super Shredder, Crimson Leader, and Muckman

Posted on April 12, 2017 by Walt

I finally tracked down the new Tales of the TMNT: Super Shredder figure. After seeing the wave back in early January (and stupidly "passing" on any of the characters) I then found myself highly interested in at least Super Shredder himself…said interest ramped up once I finally got the DVD and got to SEE some of the episodes with the character!

super_shredder_super_shredder_front

Here’s the figure, still on the card. I intend to get him off it, but that hasn’t quite happened just yet.

super_shredder_super_shredder_back

Here’s the back of the card. We see simply Super Shredder, and the four turtles variants. While they’re not horrible by any means, they’re "just" variants, and not particularly interesting to me, nor nostalgia-inducing or eye-catching, etc.

I was initially actually partly turned off BY the back of the card for this wave–I’ve long disliked the "generic" cards, far preferring the individualized ones, where you know simply by the card itself what figure it came with, and details are tailored TO the specific character!

super_shredder_crimson_leader_front

This time around, after checking numerous Walmarts, Toys R Us, and Target stores, when I found the figures actually in stock again, I was surprised by a couple of figures I’d had zero expectation of seeing.

Crimson Leader is one of them.

Didn’t remember seeing Tiger Claw quite like this (maybe I fell asleep or didn’t get as far into the DVD as I’d thought) so had zero expectation of a figure; didn’t know that I didn’t know and all that.

I nearly passed on it…but on the off-chance that I’d change my mind, I opted to buy it, to prevent an extremely expensive-through-buying-other-stuff-by-being-in-stores-I-otherwise-wouldn’t-be-in campaign later hunting for this later.

muckman2012_front

The biggest surprise to me was finding Muckman!

I’d have sworn I saw something about the figure at least a year back, maybe 2-ish, that a prototype had been created but the figure was then cancelled (to my definite disappointment).

When I saw the figure on the box of a new version of one of the vehicles for this line, I thought it was an old one, and had gotten past QC or some such since the figure had been cancelled

So finding this in-person, seeing it almost simultaneously with Super Shredder, I grabbed it off the peg, added it to my cart, and couldn’t wait to get out of the store with it to get it home and opened.

muckman2012_back

Here’s the back of Muckman’s card. Doing away with the Dimension X wave and such, we have some figures both new, recent, and old.

A couple versions of each turtle–the "Spyline" TMNT and the "Super Ninja" TMNT. We have the "regular" non-serpent Karai, a couple of "Ninja Action" turtles, and three of the Mutanimals.

On the "bad guys" side, we have Super Shredder and Crimson Leader…despite this figure obviously having a different sort of card back than the Super Shredder-specific figures.

Recent-ish figures like Armaggon and Robug are here, as well as mid-time figures like the mutant Shredders, Bebop, Rocksteady, and the Robotic Foot Soldier. I’m not sure if I’m glad to se Stockman-Fly hanging around…though I’m rather surprised at seeing Dogpound BACK in the mix…especially with ALSO having Rahzar in this same mix.

C’est la vie, I guess..!

muckman2012_profile

Muckman’s profile bit…

muckman2012_figure

…And the figure already out of his packaging/off the card!

muckman2012_card_good_guys

A slightly larger view of the figures on the card back for the good guys…

muckman2012_card_bad_guys

…and the bad.

muckman_1990s_2012_blogtrailer

And finally, the "classic" Muckman side-by-side with "new" Muckman.

I’m rather disappointed with the new one NOT having the manhole-cover foot…I know I’d seen an image of a "prototype" WITH it; it wasn’t til I had this figure out of its package that I realized the difference.

Annoying as some stuff is with over-reverence of the ’80s animated series…when there ARE good nods back with the TOYS I tend to quite appreciate it…it’s a small detail that would have REALLY made this a great figure in the nostalgic sense.

Filed under: 2017 Non-Review Posts, 2017 Posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Toy Chronicles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

More New (to me) Classic TMNT Toys

Posted on April 10, 2017 by Walt

I received some more of the vintage TMNT figures I’d ordered last week, which was quite cool. I’ve also realized that Wingnut must have been THE figure I was most missing having, of the earlier figures…it’s just so cool actually having Wingnut & Screwloose after all these years!

fall_of_the_mighty_mutanimals_200x306With the newer vintage figures, I believe I now have what Mutanimals characters there were: Man Ray (Ray Fillet), Mondo Gecko, Leatherhead, and Wingnut & Screwloose. To my knowledge, they never did figures for Jagwar or Dreadmon.

Though Slash kinda got tied into them toward the end of the Archie run of TMNT Adventures, and the current versions of Slash (IDW series and the 2012 animated series) are both Mutanimals, I don’t quite see him as a "classic" Mutanimal.

While I was taking photos for this blog, both cats interrupted me, with Chloe being particularly disruptive. I wound up taking the opportunity to get a photo to do a mockup of a comic book style cover, hence the image to the left of her with the figures she knocked over.

On to the recent figures!

rocksteady_ratking_usagi_april

This order included a "replacement" Rocksteady. Of a number of figures, this one’s one of the more disappointing ones for me to have had to replace: the character was THE first TMNT figure I ever got, back in the heyday when stores were inundated with figures but NO ONE had the turtles themselves!

Rat King and Usagi Yojimbo are figures I’d never owned, and thus totally new to me. I’d seen images of this "newer" version of April, and really dug it…the face is slightly off, but I like the hair, and the extra coloring…makes the figure look far, far less bland than the original iteration.

wyrm_and_leatherhead

The other order I’d had was Wyrm and Leatherhead. I’ve never cared for this version of Leatherhead–the character as depicted on the original animated series–but I came to like the Archie comics version, and wanted the figure solely for having been one of the Mighty Mutanimals. The figure is actually probably one of my least-favorite sculpt-wise, and just looks awkward and tiny as heck compared to his 2003 and 2012 series’ incarnations, or even the original Mirage comics.

Wyrm is far more colorful than I’d prefer, particularly compared to the TMNT Adventures version, but I’m still definitely glad to finally have the character in my collection!

Updating my "list" of figures I’m wanting:

Replacements

  • Ace Duck
  • Baxter Stockman
  • Fugitoid
  • Rocksteady
  • Splinter
  • Party Wagon (vehicle)

New (to me)

  • General Traag
  • Rat King
  • Leatherhead
  • Usagi Yojimbo
  • Dirtbag
  • Tattoo
  • Wyrm
  • April II
  • Merdude
  • Hothead
  • Krang’s Android Body (regular figure size)
  • Robotic Foot Soldier(s)
  • Toon Shreder
  • Dask (Neutrino)
  • Kala (Neutrino)
  • Zak (Neutrino)
  • Movie Star Leo
  • Movie Star Mike
  • Movie Star Raph
  • Foot Cruiser (vehicle)

movie_star_donnie_before_after

Along with the figures, I also ordered several accessories! The main one was Donatello’s belt. I had the original figure, still…but was missing the belt. It’s amazing how different and how "complete" the character looks WITH the belt, such a simple accessory!

tricraton_now_whole

And my $2 incomplete Triceraton received a $1.50 tail, making for a $3.50 replacement figure overall–cheaper than a Marvel comic!

The Rocksteady and Rat King figures pictured above were technically bought withOUT their belts…but it was actually CHEAPER to buy the figures and the belts individually than to buy the characters with their belts and some other accessory(ies) each, that I didn’t particularly care for!

april_orig_newer

Here’s the "new" April side-by-side with the original April, for comparison…

usagi_yojimbos

Usagi Yojimbo (classic) next to his 2003 counterpart, with an appropriate background! Usagi Yojimbo is actually the title of the comic series, though in those comics, not actually the CHARACTER’s name. (Oops, original animated series…) For sake of simplicity, in terms of the figures, I go with that, despite knowing better. ‘Nuff said.

vintage_tmnt_mighty_mutanimals_blogtrailer

And finally, my Mighty Mutanimals, at long last, assembled!

Filed under: 2017 Non-Review Posts, 2017 Posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Toy Chronicles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

New Robins of Spring

Posted on April 6, 2017 by Walt

I’ve added some new Robins to my collection this year…and most recently, my first-ever “new in package” Eaglemoss figurine!

robin_eaglemoss_box_front

I’ve been contemplating ordering this one for awhile, but held off awhile. I finally pulled the trigger and ordered it, actually expecting it to be “loose,” though hopefully well-packed. I was pleasantly-surprised to get it still in its package, which afforded me a little more context on these figures than I’d seen so far.

robin_eaglemoss_box_back

For one thing, definitely cool to see more, including a number of ones I do not have. I’d gotten the Penguin and Ra’s Al Ghul, but the rest of these are new (to me). Definitely VERY interested in the Superman one, as well as Green Arrow and this version of Batgirl!

newer_robins

Along with the Eaglemoss figurine, other recent additions include the Batman: The Animated Series Robin from Funko, though this one’s one of my Tim Drake exceptions, as I’ve found myself increasingly interested in figures and such of all the Robins, not just Tim.

Then there’s the Imaginext version of Tim’s Robin, as well as the Imaginext version of Red Robin. And finally, the elusive Mighty Minis version of Red Robin.

most_robins_in_context

These join a few of my other Robins, as well as the other Eaglemoss figurines and other Mighty Minis and such. Not in this particular photo are a 12″ Robin from the Batman Unlimited “Titan Heroes” line, a Robin bust bank, a huge version of that Dorbz Robin, and at least one shot glass.

robin_eaglemoss_box_booklet

This is the booklet that came with the Eaglemoss figure…while this is not my favorite version of the costume, it is Tim Drake, and I want to say he was in it for several years before going to the Red Robin thing for a couple years, before the New 52 stuff.

I do look forward to actually reading through this booklet, though I wonder at its take on the character, and what I’ll learn from it or if it’ll seem “off” to me, considering I’ve largely followed the character (off and on) since 1989. (Just think: in 2 more years, Tim Drake will have been around for 30 years! More than 1/3 the entire existence of the Batman comics!)

most_robins_in_context_blogtrailer

Filed under: 2017 Non-Review Posts, 2017 Posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Toy Chronicles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »

Re-Collecting Classic TMNT Toys

Posted on April 4, 2017 by Walt

Well, I think it’s official: my new "thing" right now seems to be classic/vintage TMNT figures…given the below, the ones I bought a couple weeks ago, and the ones that arrived just last week.

vintage_tmnt_from_bigfun_20170331

End of last week, since it was relatively "on the way home" from work, I stopped in at Big Fun (vintage toys store) and snagged three figures from "the case" (and got a surprise discount for buying multiples!) and one from a bargain bin.

General Traag came with a couple of his accessories, which I believe were part of the pricing. It was pointed out that Baxter and Merdude did not come with accessories–something I was totally fine with! (And having looked at stuff online, a number of folks sell Baxter without the wings, or the fly-arm things at all…that this one had those was the main thing to me!)

Finally, the Triceraton is missing its tail…but I already knew I could order a replacement tail online such that this one as-is and the tail combined will work out much cheaper than finding a "whole" figure.

While I’m sure I’ll add other figures as I see them, learn of them, or re-realize their coolness and such, my current "want list" is as follows, for replacing figures that I’d had and need/want to "restore" my original collection as well as adding characters I never did get as a kid.

Replacements

  • Ace Duck
  • Baxter Stockman
  • Fugitoid
  • Rocksteady
  • Splinter
  • Party Wagon (vehicle)

New (to me)

  • General Traag
  • Rat King
  • Leatherhead
  • Usagi Yojimbo
  • Dirtbag
  • Tattoo
  • Wyrm
  • April II
  • Merdude
  • Hothead
  • Krang’s Android Body (regular figure size)
  • Robotic Foot Soldier(s)
  • Toon Shreder
  • Dask (Neutrino)
  • Kala (Neutrino)
  • Zak (Neutrino)
  • Movie Star Leo
  • Movie Star Mike
  • Movie Star Raph
  • Foot Cruiser (vehicle)

A couple of other recent acquisitions (and the store price for these at Toys R Us has kinda set the bar for me for what I’ll pay for actual vintage figures!)

super_donnie

I don’t remember Super Donnie in stores in 1993…and I think by 1993 I was or had already shifted away from collecting the figures, in favor of comic books.

super_mikey

And not much sense getting Super Donnie without also tracking down Super Mikey!

(Presently, as this post goes "live," I’m on the hunt for the current-series Super Shredder…independent of these other Super _____ figures!)

tmnta_partial_shelf

I also believe I’m–at long last, this half-decade or so later–completely "caught up" on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures volumes from IDW.

I’ve been frustrated for weeks at the insane prices for vol. 2 of the TMNT by IDW series…why a "middle volume" (especially so early in the run!) would be out of print has been BEYOND me. Thankfully, the other day, I saw a list put out by Diamond listing new reprints of previously-out-of-print volumes, and spotted it on there…so I should be able to be caught up by the time the fifth volume comes out, whenever that is, in the next couple months.

I also want to get the rest of the Usagi Yojimbo Saga volumes before any of 5-7 go out of print. I have yet to actually read any of these (unfortunately!) but I’ve been "holding out" to also hopefully come across good pricing on the pre–Dark Horse stuff, and read the entirety of the character’s saga.

I guess we’ll see what the next few weeks hold for TMNT stuff in general!

vintage_tmnt_from_bigfun_20170331_blogtrailer

Filed under: 2017 Non-Review Posts, 2017 Posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Toy Chronicles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

« Previous Page — Next Page »