A Funeral "Durge" for Eyes Gone Blind...

In 2003, Cartoon Network released a "micro-series" of cartoon shorts about the Star Wars Clone Wars. Directed by Genndy Tartakovsky (most notably responsible for the unbelievably awesome Samurai Jack,) these mini cartoons were sweet little action-packed space-balls of fun.

An action figure line was also released in conjunction with the series. I believe it was a Target exclusive series, and was limited to only four or five figures. It was really more of a "staction-figure" line, as the figures tended to be elaborately posed and very limited in articulation. They were designed in the highly stylized look of the Clone Wars cartoons, and were essentially mini-maquettes.

Of the few characters released, the hands-down best figure from the line is Durge:


Another Star Wars Universe type armored (and armed) space villain, Durge looks like an old Knight of the Round Table, complete with removable jousting lance.


His proportions are very similar to Bruce Timm's designs for the Batman, Superman and Justice League cartoons. His figure is about the same size as those toys too, and posed in the same basic stance, so he displays well with them.


Durge has articulation at the base of his helmet, at mid-torso, at the shoulders, and at the wrists. No leg articulation makes him difficult to stand, but he did come with a base so I guess that makes up for it.


He also has a little jet pack for high flyin' fun!


Made of a harder plastic than most action figures, and painted in a matte finish, Durge looks as though he stepped straight off the screen!


I know nothing more about this character other than what was shown in the cartoon shorts, which is very little. And you know what? I've realized, That's what's missing from most of today's "Star Wars."

Part of the magic of the Star Wars universe was always the mystery. Sadly, there's no mystery anymore. Everything has been explained to death. Lucas and his ilk have concentrated so hard on backtracking in order to give reason to every little detail, they have forgotten how much fun it is to NOT know. I wish I never found out who Boba Fett really was, or who built C3PO, or how Luke and Leia were separated. Or at least, in the "answering," I wish some new mysteries could have been created. Midichlorians? Bah Humbug!

And with that I leave you with a little bit of Durge from The Clone Wars Chapter 8, because everything about these cartoons is awesome:

Hot Rod(s)

Hot Rod was the youthful...well...Hot Rod who, upon the death of Optimus Prime (which he caused,) was chosen by the Matrix of Power to lead the Autobots...


...and was transformed (redundant, I know) into Rodimus Prime!


He started out as a groovy futuristic Hot Rod:


And when changed into Rodimus Prime, he became a souped-up...Motorhome?!?!

Okay I know he's supposed to go from teenager to an old guy overnight, but at least he could have turned into a forties Ford or something classic like that. Not ALL old guys drive Winnebagos!

At least he was heavily armed, because "Those Decepticons are just damned hooligans, and if they smash my mailbox or put a flaming bag of poo on my doorstep ONE MORE TIME..."


They don't sell 'em like this at The Scooter Store!


I always thought it odd that both figures/toys were released at the exact same time. There was no "Oh wow, Hot Rod, a character I have grown to know and love, has evolved and changed into a seasoned warrior and leader." It was more like "Hey kids, look at this guy, cool huh? Now look, he's another guy. Didja blink? Sorry, you missed it. Buy these toys now."

Before AutoBotTox:

After AutoBotTox:


"Thank the Matrix, I look twenty years younger!"

In 2004, in the Energon series of figures, Transformers released Rodimus...just plain Rodimus...the best thing to happen to Hot Rod since the day before he turned into Rodimus Prime.

First off, he's a Semi...and if someone is going to turn into (or is already) the leader of the Autobots they oughta' be a Semi. It's the way things are done, son. But Rodimus here isn't any old Semi. He's a rocket Semi...you know, the ones you see at the drag strips, shooting flames and haulin' ass. Yeah, that's my kind of leader right there, not a stinkin' Winnebago.

His head sculpt is even closer to the G1 cartoon look than the original figures.

He's impressive in bot mode as well. Nice flame highlights, and the wheels for shoulders really bulks him up. All the while his inspirations are undeniably there. A great homage to the Hot Rod/Rodimus figures of old. I don't know what his toyline/cartoon story are, so I just think of him as what Hot Rod should have become.

Rodimus is the shortest of the bunch. Part of the Energon series was a gimmick where two Autobots could be merged together to form a larger robot, and you could use any one with any other one. So they did a great job incorporating that feature while still maintaining a great robot and vehicle mode.

Hot Rod is great all around. A nifty vehicle, a solid robot, great sleek looks, and no extra parts to lose. He's always been a favorite.

Rodimus Prime is pretty cool too. His robot mode is very static, but his design is clearly a "grown-up" version of Hot Rod, and I did think that was cool as a kid. He's a single unit when in vehicle mode, which is a plus, and his vehicle mode is cool even if it is a motorhome. If you gotta pull over and nap, pull over and nap in style!




Roll out!

Ghost Riders In The Sky....

A few years back I envisioned what Ghost Rider would have looked like as a youth:



Today I swung into Target during a little road trip and spotted this SWEET Marvel Superhero Squad figure:


And as if Ghost Rider himself isn't cool enough, he comes with:



I'm not a particularly huge Ghost Rider fan. I know as much about his character as your average comic book nerd, and I liked the recent movie, but I don't recall reading more than one or two comics featuring him in my long and illustrious collecting career.

And I have not bought a single figure from this line. Although I've been tempted a time or two by cute little Steve Rogers, I've been able to resist the temptation before - but I just HAD to have this guy and his bike.

I guess you could say the Devil made me do it ;) Much like DCUC's Etrigan, I can truly appreciate a demon-possessed anti-hero marketed as a child's toy. Especially one with a set of wheels like these!


Modeled in the cutesy, little people style of the Marvel Superhero Squad, Ghost Rider, a flame-skulled-chain-wrapped-spiky-mace-flinging literal Hell's Angel creates such a contrast between cutesy playtime fun and eternal damnation that there are bound to be church-basement meetings this Sunday pointing directly to this blog and shouting "what are they doing to our CHILDREN?!?!"


"Penance Stare!"
But seriously. I grew up with Skeletor, and I turned out just fine. Hell, my uncles grew up with rifles, and my grandparents probably had full time jobs by the time they were six! If a little bitty cutesy-wootsy plastic Ghost Rider keeps you up at night plotting Hasbro's demise...maybe you shouldn't be using the internets - it aint for you ;)

"Get your motor runnin'..."
"...head-out on the Highway!"


P.S. - Jay, feel free to put this up on your Super Cycles blog, and I invite ToyRiffic readers (all three of you ;) ) to go check out Jay's cool blog full of motorcycle goodness!

As You Command...

Arguably the coolest of all G1 Transformers, Soundwave has always been a fan favorite. It's odd, because his alt mode, a mini-cassette player, or "Walkman" is quite silly, by now extremely dated, and massively non-threatening. But his robot mode is very imposing, alien and impressive, and his characterization in the cartoons along with the sound of his voice add tremendously to his appeal.



Soundwave was the first "large" Transformer I ever received. He's actually the only large G1 from the initial release of Transformers I had as a kid.


His head was the supposed basis for the Decepticon faction symbol.



Something else that added to Soundwave's appeal was the fact that he had his own little army of cassette soldiers. No other Decepticon (besides Megatron) had that many others at his direct bidding, and why Soundwave never took over as Decepticon leader is beyond me. If he had, the Autobots wouldn't have stood a chance.


Something I never knew until a couple years ago, Soundwave's weapons are batteries, and they actually fit inside a faux battery compartment in his back! Neat!

Soundwave came with Buzzsaw, a character never shown in the cartoons (to my knowledge.) He's the exact same figure as Laserbeak, only Buzzsaw is gold instead of red.


Miscolored or misnamed in the cartoons, Soundwave's little blue pal is actually Frenzy. The cartoons designated the blue cassette guy as Rumble.


Frenzy was originally released with Laserbeak. Later on a few more villainous cassettes were released, so by the time I got him Frenzy came with RatBat. I'm pretty sure I was after RatBat anyways, so Frenzy was just a bonus.


Many years later, a friend of mine gave me Ravage. He's in excellent shape, but he's missing his side rockets. He's seriously the coolest of all cassettes.

"Buzzsaw, Frenzy, Ravage, RatBat, Attack!"

The most recent version of Soundwave is in the new cartoon and Animated line of toys. I'm tempted to pick him up, as he is ingeniously depicted as a Scion with a massive sound system, which makes a lot of sense. Unlike a Walkman that grows to gargantuan proportions and has no visible means of self propulsion.

Batting 1000

A few years before Mattel acquired the rights to the 66 Batmobile (heretofore referred to as The Dark Ages,) Danbury Mint sent out a pre-order flyer for a deluxe model of the iconic TV Batmobile. Fans were ecstatic, as it had been decades since the 66 Batmobile had been released as a model or toy. Plans fell through, lawyers made money, and the car was not released as originally solicited; instead a comic version of the sixties Batmobile was manufactured. Fans weren't ecstatic anymore.

A little later, Danbury Mint added another Batmobile to their roster, and this time it was (at least to me) a hit!



The first true "Batmobile" from the comic books, this 1940s 1:18 scale Batmobile is simply stunning.


Inside are Batman and Robin, sculpted in the classic Dick Sprang style, looking like they just hopped off the cover of a 1940s comic book.


The details are endless, Opening hood, removable fender skirts, opening doors, steering wheel that turns the front wheels etc. etc. In true Danbury Mint style they went all out on this one.

I have a lifelong dream to own a real 66 Batmobile. But I'm torn. A good customizer could easily turn an old Ford into one of these Batmobiles, and (other than some half-assed Beetle conversions) I have never seen an accurate 40's Batmobile in full scale.


Imagine THAT in your rear view mirror!

Battle Cat

One of the coolest components of the Masters of the Universe line were the tiger/panther steeds of He-Man and Skeletor. I had Panthor as a kid, but never had Battle Cat. This guy was found recently at a flea market. The He-Man atop him was from the commemorative re-release series of the early 2000s.

I found myself thinking back today on the barbarian fantasies of the eighties - the Conan movies, Beast Master (a personal favorite,) He-Man and the Masters of the Universe etc.

Every time I'm in a bookstore lately I glance over the Robert E. Howard's books as well. Haven't read any of his original work, but it's inexorably pulling on me.

Hi-Yo Silver, AWAAAAAY!

In honor of the first ever BMX events at the Beijing Summer Olympics, I'm revisiting one of my first ever ToyRiffic posts, and one of my oldest "toys," my 1978 Schwinn Mag Scrambler:


One of the first ever true BMX bikes, this 78 Schwinn Mag Scrambler is the Competition model, complete with Competition gooseneck and forks.

About six years ago I replaced the tires, the chain, the seat and pedals, added a repro Schwinn badge, and re-greased all the bearings. Otherwise "The Silver Bullet" as my cousin and I used to call him, is original to the day I got it on Christmas in 1980.

It never had a chain guard, and I don't know if the seat post or kickstand or grips are stock Schwinn, but they are what was on it when I got it. Sadly it had pads too, but those have long since gone missing.


This thing is a tank. I only replaced the seat for a cooler looking one, not because of damage or wear. The grips have held up amazingly well too. The only reason I even had to replace the pedals is because my dad actually backed into it once. It was his fault, he had moved it behind the car and forgot lol. The only thing damaged was one pedal, which I replaced with one I had laying around and rode it for about five years with mismatched pedals. When I gave the bike a "once over" six years ago I slapped some modern pedals on it.

I've gone over the handlebars my share of times, and "Bullet" has had his share of scrapes too, but I kept it inside, polished it on occasion, and always, ALWAYS, used the kickstand. That has been the secret to his longevity.

Say 'Ello to My Littol Fren'

Another awesome (set of) villain action figure(s) from The Batman is (are) The Ventriloquist and Scarface!


There actually was a version of this figure released in the Batman: The Animated Series style, but it was in a four pack very late in the game, long after the cartoon's run had ended (to be reviewed later.)

So it was a little surprising to see good old Arnold Wesker released in The Batman series' relatively short run.


He was released in a three pack, with Clayface and Batman. There was also apparently a chase figure with some other muppety looking puppet. I don't know that puppet's story, or if he had any significance in the cartoon, and since I don't have him anyways this is all about Scarface!

Although Scarface is traditionally a gangster of the Al Capone mold, The Batman twisted the concept in a VERY cool manner. The Batman's Scarface has been designed after Al Pacino's famous film role, complete with leisure suit, sandals, and gold medallion. Since Pacino's Scarface was a "modern" retelling of the Capone story, it's fitting that The Batman took this design twist on the villain in order to separate it from Batman: TAS, or any other take on the character for that matter.


Wesker still remains a sheepish, non-descript nobody. A nice contrast of personalities, even if they share the same brain.

The only real "bad" thing about this series as a whole is the scale - it tends to be all over the place. A few of the figures are just too big compared to Batman, who one would assume is the standard for the line. Robin was huge, Poison Ivy was a smidge too big, and Ventriloquist is a little large as well. Oh well, he actually fits pretty nicely with the DCUC figures, so I'll adjust ;)

Articulation is extremely limited as you can see. But then, Ventriloquist is a coward and Scarface is an inanimate puppet, so what'dya expect?

Wesker's elbow does bend on his Scarface arm, so he can adjust the angle to allow the boss to yell at his goons. What more does one need?


One component of the comics that was never translated to the cartoons was that The Ventriloquist is a mediocre ventriloquist. He never could get the "B" sound out, as that would required moving his lips. So whenever Scarface was talking he'd say something like "Glock 'da doors ya' gastards! The Gatman is gound to arrive any minute!"

How he got the "M" sounds out is beyond me.

I've always liked the character of Scarface/The Ventriloquist. (Ironically, I'm no fan of Jeff Dunham.) I'd love to see the character(s) in some capacity in the next Batman film, if only as a minor mob boss in a scene or two. I don't know if he (they) could carry a whole movie on his (their) own, but he (they) does (do) fit into the "realism" that the current films have created.