I only kill Superman on Doomsdays that end in "y"

In my humble opinion the biggest comic book event of my lifetime is the Death of Superman saga.

Sure, there are more important storylines that have had greater resounding effects, driving stories published even to this day (Crisis on Infinite Earths comes immediately to mind,) but none have caught the attention of the masses and the media and the fans and the uninitiated alike to the level that the "Death of Superman" did. And all comic book uber-events since have paled in comparison.

Sure, in the end it was nothing more than a huge slugfest, but people actually believed Superman was dead and not coming back! Let's face it, that alone is a huge feat.

In addition, no other comic event has left a larger swath of iconic new characters that people still care about to this day; among them the clone Conner Kent, the genius inventor Steel, and of course, this guy:

This is the JLU Doomsday action figure, based on his appearance in the Justice League Unlimited episode A Better World (and a couple more after that.)

This Doomsday was an exclusive figure only available in a Target six figure set released around 2006. Mattel made sure these spectacular large scale figures were hard to find (as if the rest of their toys weren't hard enough to get a hold of!) and I think Doomsday was the first large scale JLU figure released. Later they repainted him orange and red (to recreate an episode where he fights Superman in a volcano) and they also released Gorilla Grodd in another six figure set (which I sadly never found at retail) and Solomon Grundy was released as a San Diego comic convention exclusive - which means many many fans never saw him at all due to the immediate and sustained high secondary market price.

I guess you could also count Darkseid and Ultra Humanite as "deluxe" because they were also a bit larger and used different bodies than the standard male JLU figures, but at least each of those guys were sold as singles at retail. Of course neither of them were particularly easy to come by either.

But back to Doomsday. A big, grey, ugly killing machine with protruding bones, bad teeth and an insatiable appetite for death. Superman's death, to be exact.

I found this Doomsday at the swap meet, which is why his paint is a little roughed up. I just consider him about 15 minutes into the battle royale. I do have one I picked up at retail way back when, but he's boxed up somewhere and anyways this one was a quarter, so I had to buy it and blog about Doomsday and reminisce about a simpler, more honest time in comics. ;)

There have been quite a few toys made of Doomsday, but this JLU version is perhaps one of the best due to his awesome Bruce Timm design aesthetic. I do wish that someday, somewhere we could get a Doomsday almost completely clad in his green containment suit and hood, with one hand strapped behind his back like he started out in the comics. That'd be keen! But in the meantime we'll have to contend ourselves with this Superman smashing iconic Doomsday.

Batman: TB&TB Batmobile - by Hotwheels!!!!!

I just saw this picture of the 2010 Hotwheels line-up at Saruman's BigBossToys blog and my eye was immediately drawn to #49

Holy die-cast toys, Batman! That is in true fact the Batman: The Brave and the Bold Batmobile in Hotwheels form!

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay! I will be stalking the Hotwheels aisle like paparazzi on Sean Penn from now until the day I have this toy treasure in my hands!*

*thank God I already found Ecto-1, or else I'd have to double my efforts. I haven't seen a second one of that vehicle yet!

Shout at the devil!

I just stumbled onto a couple pictures of Silver Banshee, who will appear on Smallville this Friday (April 2nd) in an episode entitled "Escape."



I previously looked at the Silver Banshee action figure from the Target exclusive Superman/Batman: Public Enemies toyline. A fun toy and a fun character. And of course I am a "since day one" fan of Smallville so I will definitely be checking out this episode!

YesterToys: good night's sleep edition

It's cool to like Tron. A lot of hipster doofuses are even acting like they were big fans of it back when it was originally released in 1982.

Something tells me most of them are jumping on the bandwagon now that the sequel is being released (and looks awesome,) but maybe they are being honest and actually did dig the movie way back then. Maybe some of them even saw it in the theaters. Maybe some of them had a toy or two. Maybe some of them played the video games.

But I'm willing to bet none of them had Tron PJs!



Booyah!



I even had all the toys. Don't anymore, and have only tracked down Flynn and Warrior thus far. Another hipster doofus (kidding) who has them all (in original and NECA re-release) is Reis, so check out his Tron figure photo gallery if you wish you were as cool as us.

Hailing Commander Adama

:: :: :: :: BEGIN TRANSMISSION:: :: :: ::
Incoming message from: Strongheart
Via: Toyriffic orbiting satellite.
Location: Classified.

"Commander Adama. Initiate program "Control, Alt, Delete" now.
Strongheart out."
:: :: :: ::END TRANSMISSION :: :: :: ::


If you aren't sure what's going on, see this post right here.

And be sure to watch Geek Orthodox closely for the next update!

Top Kamen

There was a recent attempt to revive the Kamen Rider franchise (or to bring it to American audiences' attention,) and I don't know how successful it has been, but from what little I saw of it, it didn't really speak to me. Forget uber-armored dragon and bat themed dudes, when I think of Kamen Rider I think of guys like this:

This vinyl figure is Kamen Rider J, made by Bandai Japan in 1994.

When I was in the first grade I had a friend who had family in Japan, and they would always mail him vinyl Kaiju and other Japanese characters from Godzilla to Ultraman to Kamen Rider. Kamen Rider always fascinated me because these guys looked like insect based superheroes - a hit concept for sure, just ask Stan Lee.

I don't think I've ever actually watched an entire Kamen Rider episode, but the gist is that these grasshopper helmeted guys ride motorcycles and defeat similarly rubber-suited foes. What's not to love?

Kamen Rider J is a "newer" version of the Kamen Rider, which originally debuted in Japan in 1971. His costume has evolved but still retains enough of the original concept to be immediately recognizable, and of course the vinyl platform, with a whopping three points of articulation (waist and shoulders) is exactly what I remember my friend having when we were kids.

Fireflies

I like this song. I like it now even more that I have seen the toy filled video.

nananananananana no evil shall escape my sight!

From the episode of The Brave and the Bold entitled The Eyes of Despero! When the Green Lantern Corps needed Batman's help against the intergalactic despot Despero, Sinestro (he's still a GL here,) Guy Gardner and G'Nort work a little power ring magic in order to give Bats equal footing:



Cool is right. And you know what's cooler? This:

Yeah, they actually made an action figure of Batman as a Green Lantern!

Actually called "Sky Shot Batman" because the people who work at toy companies are so out of touch with what they produce and the people that buy it, it's mind boggling, this figure is an amazing addition to the Batman: The Brave and the Bold action figure line-up.

In addition to looking like this figure stepped straight off the screen, Bat Lantern comes with a power ring constructed jet pack and helmet that both look Bat-inspired, and not like things thrown in to weigh down the toy and justify the price. Yes, you heard me, a cool accessory for a change! It even fires a missile which is also made of translucent green plastic. Seriously, this is how you do a toy right! If I taught classes on how to create variants of a character, I would hold this S.O.B. up for an hour and then say "class dismissed."

The "handles" are a pliable plastic, and they attach to the helmet to give a space-suit type feel to it. Of course he needs to breath! And of course Batman would construct a jet pack with the power of the ring. Propulsion envy.

Finally, all that stuff can be removed giving you a Green Lantern Batman exactly as depicted in the cartoon. I absolutely love how the Bat symbol and GL symbol have been integrated into the costume.

My only quibble is a minor one and has more to do with the plot of the cartoon than the figure itself. Since Batman's GL suit is powered by other GL rings (not one worn by him) he does not have one of his own, and the figure also does not have a GL ring. I may have to paint a green dot onto one of his fingers to "fix" that. Otherwise this is an outstanding figure for any fan of the cartoon, or of Green Lantern, or of Batman... hell, if you don't love this toy you have no soul.

YesterToys: Toys I didn't have Edition

Thunder Thunder Thunder - Thundercats...HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

(Sadly, those are not mine.)

It may shock and amaze Toyriffic readers to learn that during it's initial run, I had absolutely zero Thundercats toys and no interest in getting any either.

Now don't get me wrong. I watched the cartoon every afternoon. And I appreciated the toys for what they were, giving them their due respect at my friend's house who was mad for them and had them all. But by the time the cartoon and toyline were hitting their stride, the appeal of scantily clad steroid abusers was over for me, having thoroughly ridden the wave of MOTU from day one.

I was moving past that sort of thing, into robots that turned into vehicles and household appliances dammit - I was no longer a boy, I was a man!

I really liked the cartoon, and I loved the the execution of the concept, maybe even moreso now that I am going through my second (third? fourth? did the first one ever end?) childhood. I do have a Panthro now, my favorite character of all (although I couldn't find the box he's hiding in before this post) that I found at a yard sale a couple years back (which prompted me to do some sketches,) and I do see some of the third-tier characters pop up at the swap meet from time to time. But I haven't really taken that plunge into the kitty-pool quite yet.

There is one thing that would get me diving in head first, however:


Meow.

Chill Out

Head on over to my collaborative blog Batman The Animated Toys and gaze upon the awesomeness that is "Insect Body Mr. Freeze!'


If you dare!

(P.S. This is one more of my San Jose Toy Show finds - got him for $5! Yay me!)

Jeepers, Creepy, where'd you get that GoBot?

One of my best finds at the toy show yesterday was this cool Monster GoBot in perfect condition!

The guy selling him was dealing in Transformers and Transformer parts and thought this was a small version of Scorponok. He does look a lot like a Decepticon, especially with the green/purple color scheme, but I knew he is in fact a Gobot. I offered the dealer a dollar for him and he happily handed him over.

What I didn't know at the time was that this Gobot's name is Creepy, and that the green and purple version was a mail-away exclusive back in the mid eighties. The standard wide release version was purple and black.

I had a couple of the monster GoBots as a kid, but not Creepy, so finding him in great condition, and discovering he's a harder-to-find exclusive, and yes...paying a buck for him...made my day!

Creepy GO(es from ro)BOT to a mechanized lobster or something. I'd say he turns into a scorpion, but that designation goes to the aptly named Scorp, so I'm not sure if Creepy is really anything more than a monster-looking vehicle. Regardless, he looks pretty cool in both modes and is well made with die-cast metal for his chest plate and upper arms and legs. His claws open and shut and rotate 360 degrees, and he has four plastic wheels in vehicle/insect mode.

From the depths of the Antares Star System, on a scorched planet of soot and ash, a modified mutant emerges - Creepy.

Through a weird intermingling of metallic and living parts, this fearsome creature arises -- easily able to change from monster-robot to monster-vehicle.

A welcome recruit to Cy-Kill's band of Renegades, Creepy can use his claws to snap GoBots in half, or send a lethal poison shooting out from his spider legs.

The worst of all monsters to creep into existence, Creepy thrills to the sport of his deadly games. Even Renegades must take care that Creepy's power doesn't threaten their existence. Guardians - Beware! The final conflict may be near!

Yay GoBots!

Swoop, there it is!

I went to a toy show in San Jose today and came away with a couple relatively recent figures I had wanted for a while, a couple fun things for real cheap and a couple real cool finds from decades past (more on those later.)

The toy show was a lot of fun. Basically a swap meet that is only toys, so no wasting time on clothes and fruit and other such nonsense. I never spend a lot of money at these types of things because 1) I don't have a lot of money and 2) one of the charms of toy collecting/appreciating as a hobby is that it is as expensive as you let it be, and part of the charm of it for me is it's inexpensiveness. Sure, there are toys out there that cost hundreds and even thousands of dollars, but I'm content to keep my purchases in the single digits, and I never go away (too) unhappy for it ;)

One of my well priced finds was this Hawkman from "The Batman" cartoon a couple years back. He cost $5 mint on card. Of course I tore him out of the package as soon as I got home.

I remember this Hawkman hitting shelves in 2007 or 2008 and thinking I wanted him, but I just didn't want to start a whole new JLA lineup so close to the JLU toyline. Little did I know that Hawkman here, along with Green Lantern, Flash, Superman and Martian Manhunter were the last few figures released in the The Batman toyline (under the subset Shadow Tek or Shadowtek,) as the cartoon was canceled shortly after their appearances.

So they all came and went pretty fast and I later thought "Well I should have at least grabbed Hawkman!"

I enjoyed The Batman, especially the last couple seasons as it seemed to hit it's stride. The style of most of the characters was unique and fun (Bane was kind of stupid, but the Pacino Scarface was inspired!)

A lot of good toys made it into the line too, unfortunately some suffered from inconsistent scale issues, most notably Robin. He was huge compared to Batman!

Hawkman is in perfect scale with Batman, however, and he's really nice with his large sturdy plastic wings and huge mace for villain-smashing.

"Call me Big Bird again and I'll break another rib."

"Fair enough. Tweety Pie."

Mast-Erasers of the Universe

The marketing Juggernaut that was Masters of the Universe in the mid Nineteen Eighties missed no opportunity to shill itself, slapping it's likeness on everything from toys to bedsheets to lunchboxes to erasers:

I know we all bought these as "school supplies" only to have an excuse to play MOTU in school with legitimate sanction. A cheap cheat I know, but you did what you had to do. I don't recall them doing anything more than smearing pencil lead all over your paper if you were forced to feign working, but as mini-figures they are pretty nice even by today's standards.

The manufacturers used three colors of paint on Skeletor alone. And they didn't scrimp and only color one side, his paint apps covers him all the way around.

Beast Man only got two colors of paint. I guess there are perks to being in charge.

Beast Man did however get a superior face sculpt (sorry, Skelly!) but he is also more than a hooded skull so there's more to work with.

These guys are pretty fresh and look completely unused. Yes...I got them at the swap meet today. A buck for the both of them. I know, Reis...you hate me ;)

They were sealed in a baggie together, not sure if they were originally sold that way but I doubt it. It did however keep them fresh and clean for decades so I'm glad someone had the foresight to seal them up.

Batmouse!

I've been following a blog for a while now by an artist named Oscar Martin, who drew some non-English language Tom and Jerry comics back in the late eighties and early nineties. (Isn't the internet wonderful!)

Recently, Oscar published the pages from a Batman parody he drew titled simply "Batmouse." Although I can't read the comics, the art speaks volumes and is very fun to look at, especially if you are both a Batman and a Tom and Jerry fan, like myself.

And besides, Tom and Jerry don't speak, so who needs words in a Tom and Jerry comic anyways?

I remember when the Keaton/Nicholson/Burton Batman movie came out and all sorts of parodies ensued here in the US. I bought most of them as I couldn't get enough of Batman at the time, and I would have snatched this one off the comic racks so fast had it made it state-side!

Go check out all the pages of Batmouse (and more foreign language Tom and Jerry comics) at Oscar's blog Tom & Jerry Artwork

And thanks to Oscar for allowing me to reprint the above page here and link to his blog!

YesterToys: Headcase edition

Here I am sometime after the release of The Empire Strikes Back, at my Grandparents' house with a couple Star Wars themed presents! Up front is the well known Darth Vader helmet shaped figure carrying case. This case has seen release after re-release but at the time it was brand new and the coolest collector case on the block!

Next to me is a Play-Doh Hoth themed set. I remember it had a couple molds so you could make Snowtroopers and I think R2-D2 and C3PO out of Play-Doh, as well as a few other Empire Strikes Back themed characters. It even had a small plastic snow speeder for them to ride in!

If you look closely you can also see Tina, Grandma's Daschund, snoozing in the chair at top right. She was one of the greatest dogs ever.

It's beginning to smell a lot like Christmas...

Saints and Begorrah! There's never been a more appropriate St. Patrick's Day arrival since that box of "Snake-B-Gone" showed up on Maewyn Succat's doorstep!

Masters of the Universe Classics Moss Man was waiting for me today when I arrived home from work. Talk about "Wearin' of the Green!"

Since I joined the Club Eternia subscription service for 2010, I don't have to play around with the debacle that is Mattycollector.com. I do, however, have to get figures I wouldn't normally have purchased in order to get them all without hassle and stress (if at all.) And I admit, Moss Man was one upcoming figure I was pretty "meh" about. I never had him as a kid so I didn't have an emotional attachment to the character at all.

But now that I have him in hand (and this may be the pine fumes talking) I think he's pretty spectacular!

The original Moss Man was essentially a flocked and pine-scented Beast Man. The new MOTUC Moss Man is no different, with one exception. Like a few other MOTUC figures, Moss Man has two interchangeable heads, one representing his original look and one representing his cartoon or mini-comic look (not sure which one in Moss Man's case.)

My first inclination was to prefer his "iconic" look, because even though i never owned him, that is how I remember him from commercials and from friends' collections.

Until I swapped heads for this photo shoot...

Get a load of that face! The green pupil-less eyes really "pop" and seem to have a glowing life of their own. And the expression is very wise and aged, like a plant elemental should be, not growling with red-blooded lust like the previous head. I promise, oh wise and wonderful Kreann'Ot N'Horosh, that I shall never mow another lawn as long as I live!

In addition to the extra noggin, Moss Man comes with his wooden club and a vine satchel/sheath with removable stone knife. He's beautifully flocked (although I fear the long term staying power of the flocking after a few years of handling) and the very strong scent of a Christmas tree scrubbed with Pine Sol.

Hide this guy in the bathroom medicine cabinet and tell the wife you just cleaned in there, she'll probably believe you!

May you be in heaven half an hour before the Spectre knows you're dead

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!

In honor of this day of drinking Guinness and eating Corned Beef and oh yes, remembering our Irish heritage (whether or not we actually have any - and yes I do,) I bring you the DC Universe Classics' Spectre figure from the recently released Wave 12.

Spectre is Irish? Of course Spectre is Irish! As if the righteous rage, excessive violence and pale skin aren't enough to convince you, the green of his costume, the name Jim Corrigan and the fact that he was a cop in the thirties should be enough to tip the scales and certify this guy as "100% Irish."

"When Irish eyes
SEEiNtoTHeDarkDEPThsoFYourCoLdPItifULsOULs,
Sure'n it's like a summer morn!"

Spectre is a great DCUC figure to get into your collection (if you can!) Especially if you want to complete the core 1940s JSA like I do. His face sculpt is great and spooky and realistic without being too much of a ghostly parody or worse, just some pale generic male face. His hood, cape, gloves and boots look just like they do in the comics, and other than that he's a near naked white guy in green shorts so the less said about that the better.

There is a glow in the dark variant version "available," who I would probably also buy if I saw him in stores because glow in the dark always equals win. But for now I am glad I found the regular version and he may be the better of the two, as he does have some minimal shading on him to bring out the sculpt and to help give him an undead, pallid look.

So enjoy your St. Patty's Day, drink a stout or two...enty, eat some corned beef and cabbage, try not to anger the angel of God's wrath, and most importantly - Beware the Leprechauns!

YesterToys: Haters gonna hate edition

A lot of people like to bash the GoBots but I'm here to say they were, are, and will always be AWESOME!

What's not to love? They were equal opportunity employers, they fit right in with Hotwheels (making them true robots in disguise,) they made a ton of cool vehicles like motorcycles and P-38s and Japanese Zeros and Submarines, every figure was made with die-cast and plastic parts, they were inexpensive, the good guy leader (Leader-1) was an F-15 not a mamby-pamby semi truck that couldn't break 55mph unless it lost it's brakes going down a steep grade and the bad guy leader (Cy-Kill) not only had "Kill" in his name, but he was a motorcycle, not a low caliber gun who had to ask his fellow villains to hold him and tickle his nether-regions before actually being any kind of threat (guns don't kill people...)

And I say all this as one who loves Transformers. Let's face it, most GoBot haters are just prejudiced and have not actually come to their hatred through actual contact with GoBots.

Sure a few were lame, but so were, and are, more than a few Transformers.

Anyways, let's call a truce. Transforming robots are damn cool no matter what.

I'm not sure the exact year of the picture here, but I'm posing with quite the transforming robot birthday haul. You can see I was no Toyline Nazi as a kid either; I integrated everyone together in peace and harmony.

Largest of all is the GoBot Command Center, an epic AT-AT like playset with lights and sound and even an elevator! Mixed in the scene are some smaller Transformers like Huffy, looks like 2 Cliffjumpers, Windcharger, and Brawn. From the GoBot camp are Fly Trap, Small Foot, Block Head, Spoons, and I think Crane Brain. There is also what looks like 2 watch-transformers who are most likely generic, a Convertor brand transforming car, a "generic" Astro Magnum version of "Shockwave," and finally Zod, the battery operated evil GoBot dinosaur tricycle monster thingy. You turned him on and had to stab him in the gut with a joust-like stick to shut him down. That dude was epic and I so need one now. I really wish I had held on to all my GoBot stuff!

Livin' After Mid-Nite...

...Rockin' in the dark!

I love the JSA and the Golden Age of comic book superheroes that spawned the legendary team. One of the greatest of that rag tag group of colorfully clad crime stoppers is Doctor Mid-Nite.

Decades before Marvel's blind superhero began cavorting around rooftops in silly colored underwear, Dr. Charles McNider lost his sight in a blast meant for one of his patients. He later discovered that although blind in normal light, he had perfect vision in absolute darkness! Taking on the persona of Doctor Mid-Nite (because that's what you do when you discover you have a strange ability, right?) McNider soon joined the ranks of the Justice Society of America along with his "black-out bombs" and trusty owl friend Hooty!

"Give a hoot, don't pollute...the halls of justice!"

Hooty rests on Mid-Nite's forearm nicely and even has neck articulation, so he can spin his head all the way around just like a real owl!

"Who turned on the lights?"

As poorly distributed as DC Universe figures are and as difficult as Mattel makes it to get these toys to me, one of my collector's goals is to get all the core members of the JSA in the DC Universe Classics style. I've missed out on Dr. Fate and Wildcat so far but was lucky enough to grab Doctor Mid-Nite and Spectre (more on him later) on the same trip.

Unfortunately for my stress levels, Green "Alan Scott" Lantern and Hourman are part of an upcoming Walmart exclusive wave, so I am going to have to be creative to track them down!

Good thing I have a cadre of collector friends...kind of like the JSA!