It's a bird, it's a plane...

...it's a Super GoBot!

Cy-Kill to be precise.

Although GoBots were well known as predominantly 1:64 ish scaled vehicles/robots, a handful were produced which were much larger and more in proportion with their major competition, the Transformers.

Both the Guardian leader (Leader-1) and Renegade leader Cy-Kill were produced as Super GoBots during the series' short run.

Cy-Kill, as his name implies, transfo...I mean Goes from Bot mode to Motorcycle mode. The Super GoBot version differs from his mini version in that his wheels and engine are integrated and do not detach from Cy-Kill at all. While this is an advantage in that you do not have any extra parts to keep track of, it detracts a bit from his design - part of what made Cy-Kill look so cool in robot mode was that his wheels were held on his shoulders.


Cy-Kill is pretty solid, with his torso/head being die-cast metal and the tires being made of rubber. His "change" is simple but effective, and of course his old school Japanese giant robot design is quite groovy.

With GoBots recently on my brain, I guess it shouldn't surprise me that I found him at the swap meet today, but good golly miss molly I nearly lost it when I stumbled onto him! I had the small Cy-Kill when I was a kid (and he had the green/grey/black color scheme) so although this one is a little roughed up, he's a great find and in good enough shape to happily be added into my slowly rebuilding GoBot collection.

We built this Batmobile on Rock and Roll

A few weeks back my brother from another mother Charles aka Chunky B of Eclectorama fame sent me an awesome package full of toys, just out of the kindness of his Texas sized heart. I certainly owe CB a huge public "Thank you!" (and more) and I will eventually cover all the keen toys he sent me here on Toyriffic.

First up is this groovy C3 Construction Mini-Batmobile.

Cue announcer: "When last we left our intrepid duo, they had been encased in plastic by the troublesome Toyman!"

Anyways, I just got around to releasing our heroes, as well as the pieces of their Batmobile, which I quickly reconstituted.

Before Lego had the Batman license a few small and large Batman (and Superman) themed building sets were released in 2004 with figures and playsets/vehicles that were made up of Lego compatible blocks and components.

This mini Batmobile even has a rotating flame coming out the rear of the jet turbine. Neat!

Of course the stars of the sets were the figures themselves. Not sure if the building block playsets were phased out due to lack of consumer interest or because Lego lawyers got on the case, but Minimate figures are still going strong with licenses covering everyone from DC to Marvel to Ghostbusters to Battlestar Galactica to almost everyone in-between!

In addition to Batman (with expandable cape,) this set included a Tim Drake Robin, complete with his bo staff.

Also included is a Batarang for Batman. "Be careful out there, chum!"

Of course the figures fit nicely into the cockpit, but only one at a time (it is the MINI Batmobile after all!)

Last but not least, the set includes a suction cup with a piece of string connected to it for high flyin' adventure!

Thanks again CB! I owe you big time!!!

Despite all my rage, I am stil just a rat in a cage!

Reports are coming in from all over geekdom (ironically, not one single solitary reporter is wearing a low neck yellow jumpsuit...except me) about the recent acquisition of all things TMNT by Nickelodeon.

Of course, the first "guy" to acquire the ninja turtles was none other than Master Splinter himself!

This Master Splinter is the re-released Playmates action figure from last year, part of the TMNT 25th anniversary commemorative release. Like Leonardo, I found Splinter at Ross for $3.99. Unlike Leonardo, Splinter does not come with a DVD episode of the original cartoon - only the four turtle releases appear to have that addition.

Splinter has a small star shaped "scar" painted on his cheek. I don't recall how that fits into the cartoon or comic version of Splinter, but I do remember Splinter losing an ear to Shredder in the movie before his owner was massacred and before he mutated into a humanoid rat. I guess that is what the scar is meant to represent.

Like all of the original TMNT releases, Splinter comes with a rack of nifty ninja weapons. And a cane. But that ain't no ordinary cane!

It hides a sword! Damn that's cool. The weapons and accessories really added to the greatness of these original TMNT toys. Sadly they are also the hardest parts to find still with the figures, which is part of why these re-releases are so welcome in my collection.

The bow/arrow combo came apart from the rack - attached to the rack were the two cane pieces and two throwing stars. I only removed the cane/sword, as the throwing stars are sure to be lost, even by me.

"First Disney/Marvel, now Nickelodeon/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. 2009 is truly the year of the rat!"

That's no moon...

...it's a Pez dispenser!

Hey kids, pretend your gullet is Alderaan and blast it with sugary goodness!

Pez are a part of my childhood that I just can't let go of, although my collection of them has ebbed and flowed over time. Currently all I have left in my collection that I still cling to are a few Star Wars Pez and a couple Batman Pez, but I've had everyone from Fred Flintstone to the Incredibles to Big Bird to Pluto over the years. The granddaddy of candy / toy dispensers, Pez are the king and I will always have mad respect for them. I remember when the first assortment of Star Wars Pez came out over a decade ago, and the combination of Star Wars and Pez was like crossing the streams of awesomeness. When that partnership culminated in a Death Star Pez dispenser, a bell rang and an angel got it's wings. This thing is still so cool I can barely look upon it for more than 20 minutes without having to return it to it's shelf for fear of the world ending, as it's all clearly down hill from here.

"That's not my diagnosis."

The DC Infinite Heroes Scarecrow is one of the most detailed DCIH figures yet.

Each piece is unique to this figure alone and he has all sorts of stitching and straw bits sculpted into him; not to mention that big old hat!

He has a great face sculpt too, and I like how his eyes are painted skin tone "underneath" his mask. Scarecrow is a great DCIH figure, and like most, pretty hard to find.

"Speedy Gonzales ees the fastest mouse een all of Meheeco!"

DC Infinite Heroes: 16

DC Infinite Villains: 15

Gorilla my dreams

Does anyone know the origin of this King Kong looking gorilla?

EDIT: Thanks to Jon K of Random Acts of Geekery (I knew I could count on Jon for the answer!) I now know this is the Palmer Plastics Company King Kong from their Unbreakable Movie Monsters pack released in the mid 1960s, and that he also originally came with a tiny Fay Wray (wish he still had her.)

He is a couple inches tall, and is cast in solid blue plastic.

He also looks like he's hailing a cab.

I found him at the swap meet, and I got him for free the same day (and from the same vendor) I got my little blue Zonkers alien.

He's a little rough, and if I had to guess I'd figure he's older than the Zonkers guy who came out in the eighties.

"Hello my baby, hello my honey, hello my ragtime gal!"

Ouija be Jammin'

Today I stumbled upon a glow in the dark Ouija Board at the local thrift shop. In true "I've seen this scenario in too many movies" fashion, I put it back on the shelf and left the store. In even truer "I've seen this scenario in too many movies" fashion, it gnawed on me the rest of the afternoon to the point that I had to return and buy it.

If it had been a regular Ouija board, I may not have been so inclined to own it. I admit to a little cultural superstition steering me away from it in the first place.

However, there is one caveat that I will always adhere to in life: glow-in-the-dark trumps demonic possession any day of the week.

Sadly I am not able to capture the glowing effect in photos - I usually cheat and use a black light but I don't know where mine is right now. Anyhow, seeing as it's almost Halloween, I imagine the veil to the spirit realm is pretty thin, so let's ask the all seeing Ouija some questions shall we?

"Oh mystical and magical Ouija, is Eric the coolest toy collector of all?"

Whoah! It's accuracy is uncanny!

Could be a fluke, let's try it again.

"Oh wise and wonderful Ouija, (flattery will get you everywhere,) is Eric the handsomest toy blogger alive?"


ZOMG! It's like it knows me or something!

"Oh great and graceful Ouija, will I soon be a millionaire, adored by fans the world over for my wit and wisdom?"


SWEET!

Alright, one more question before I turn in.

"Oh powerful and potent Ouija, do my readers think this post is funny?"

What's for dinner?

Justice.

This is just too damn funny, and the exact reason I don't own a Batman costume.



via Stay on Target via Topless Robot

And while you're at it, check out Tuna Movies' YouTube channel. These guys are HILARIOUS!

Who ya gonna call?

I'm not doing a Halloween themed toy every day this October (I'm saving the "theme" work for my art blog Art by Bubba Shelby,) but I do have a few holiday relevant toys laying about, so I'll be posting them sporadically through the month.

One that fits the bill, (many bills for that matter,) is The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man!


Seriously, how do you categorize this guy? He cannot be pigeonholed. Is he Kaiju? Is he a ghost, a demon, a posessed entity? Is he a cartoon character? Is he an advertising mascot (albeit a fictional one?) Is he adorable? Does he step on churches?


Yes.

The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man is one of the coolest movie monster ever. Although he spent so little time on screen in Ghostbusters, he was so "high concept" and brilliant that those few minutes were enough to cement him into the hearts of a generation.


He's marked "1984 Columbia Pictures." He was released by Kenner in 1986 as part of their Ghostbusters toy line.

I watched the Ghostbusters cartoon when it was on, and I loved the movie, but I didn't collect the toyline. I thought it was too "kiddy" with all the action features and cartoony versions of the movie characters. I did not know at the time that such a screen accurate toy of Stay Puft was available or else I would have gotten one for sure. To be honest, I have paid so little attention to the Ghostbuster toyline of the eighties that I never even knew this version of old Pufty existed until yesterday when I found him at a rummage sale. Glad I did, now Mr. Stay Puft can take his rightful place between Godzilla and King Kong on my shelf of giant rampaging monsters!

My blood runs cold...na na na nana na...Cy-Kill is the centerfold!

I was visiting my parents a couple weeks ago and I came across a couple of my old GoBots magazines. I brought them home figuring they'd make a great blog post, and since I posted about a GoBot yesterday, today I bring you GoBot Magazine's Premiere Issue cover date Winter 1986 (released late 1985,) in it's entirety!

Well, not quite, I don't have the Collector Poster anymore. But the rest of the magazine is here. Click each picture to embiggen, if you wish.

Premiere Issue! Collector Poster! Meet Leader-1 and the Guardians! Sweet!

And check out Leader-1's nonchalant expression as Cy-Kill gives the GoBots logo the finger.

A big Tonka truck ad on the inside cover - GoBots were distributed by Tonka, but by the time I was buying GoBots I was done with Tonka Trucks. So that ad's a waste.

Greetings from Leader-1 on page 1.

Published by Telepictures Publications, Inc. - I wonder if any of those people still put "GoBots Magazine" on their resumes...or if they ever did.

Muppet Magazine probably had a more successful run than GoBots magazine, I'd wager.

Fan letters. I can't help but wonder about these people, what are they doing now, and do they still look fondly back on their letter or art being published in GoBots Magazine as a high point in their life? Look, you can also subscribe to GoBots Magazine. I didn't.

More letters and art. Do you think Matthew Kramer of Grand Forks North Dakota is a graphic designer today? Oooh, and look at that spiffy watch you can get if you can choke down a Charleston Chew!

Finally, some articles. Movie Previews talks about Legend (a classic,) and Young Sherlock Holmes (a...whatever.)

Yipes, this one gives me pause;

"Special Event: It's not every day you can launch your teacher into space. Well, Concord, New Hampshire, high school students will watch it happen when their social studies teacher blasts off with astronauts on-board the Space Shuttle Challenger on January 22, 1986. Sharon Christa McAuliffe, who was chosen from 11,000 teacher applicants, will keep a journal about her space experience. Yes, but will she be tested on what she learns?"

I remember that day vividly. My Fifth Grade teacher Mr. Avery wheeling a TV into the classroom, "The Space Shuttle...it exploded."

No it didn't!

"Yes...it did."

Sorry, back to the magazine.

A High Tech report on robots.

We've come a long way since 1986.

Page 17 begins "The Blast of Doom" by P.E. King (what is he, a duck?) and R. Reese. I wonder if those are real names?

Oh those silly Renegades.

Leader-1 trying to get me to subscribe again. Is he on commission?

Leader-1 shows Dr. Braxis what's what, and the Statue of Liberty needs saving.

An article about "Explorers" starring River Phoenix. I loved that movie...I wonder if it's available on DVD. Probably not.

"If I Had a Robot..." state the stars of 1986. It should have been "If I can see my future..." Daryl and River would have both benefited from a little more forward thinking.

Word search. Looks like I found them all. In record time too, no doubt. The Jetsons (with Orbity) and Galtar! The funtastic world of Hanna-Barbera indeed.

Finally, the back cover. A glowing bouncy ball. Wait, the glowing bouncy ball people had an advertising budget?

Well that's it. Feel free to enlarge the pages and try to enjoy the magazine...because I have one more issue that I may or may not grace Toyriffic with, depending on how many cries of "Yay" or "Nay" I get on this one ;)