3/9/15

TMNT Groundchuck

My favorite original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle characters are the ones that parody actual comic book superheroes and villains. Slash (the Bizarro of the TMNT line), Wingnut (a clear Batman parody) and this guy, Groundchuck.

It may not be immediately obvious that Groundchuck parodies a mainstream comicbook character, because he's based on the relatively obscure Deathlok. Even their names sound the same: 'Deathlok', 'Groundchuck'. I am also of the mind that there's a little Deadshot thrown in for good measure.

This is the second Groundchuck that I have owned. The first was a bit beat-up, and I ended up giving it away. This guy is near minty - even the tips of his horns are still painted and show no wear whatsoever! Best part? I got him for fifty cents! He was at a second-hand store in a bin of mostly McDonald's toys that I nearly skipped over completely. He was the only TMNT toy in there, so I either lucked out or missed out and some other guy got the rest. But either way, I am glad to finally have him in my collection in good shape.

I might even have his weapons in a nag of TMNT accessories I picked up at the flea market a few weeks ago, but I need to dig into the closet to find them.

Groundchuck is a munitions expert (see the Deadshot connection?) in the employ of The Shredder. He was generally paired up with Dirtbag when he appeared in the original cartoon. He does not give you wings.

12 comments:

  1. Good lookin' horns on this dude. Love this figure.

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    1. Yeah I was very surprised at the condition of this guy!

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  2. Great figure! Maybe a bit of Cyborg in there too? You think they will reintroduce him in the current show?

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    1. If the show goes on long enough, anything is possible!

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  3. I just realized that instead of being a type of hamburger meat, the name is probably like Ground Hog + Woodchuck = Groundchuck. Or whatever.

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  4. Huh. I never picked up on the references to Deathlock and Deadshot but now that you mention them I'm totally seeing them! I had this guy as a kid, too, and he's definitely one of the coolest figures in the line. I picked him up from a comic shop about three years ago or so. I really enjoy the new toyline but I'm still impressed by how many crazy, weird details Playmates put on these older figures. The new cartoon surpasses the original in pretty much every way imaginable but the old toyline still has plenty of superior elements to it.

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    1. The original toyline was just a masterpiece of fun and uniquely artistic sculpts. I think relying wholly on digital for the current designs had eliminated a lot of that.

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  5. I never had him, and I always forget his name so I usually call him Bulls Eye.

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  6. A sweet and solid action figure Eric...good score!

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  7. Count me amongst those that completely missed the Deathlok similarities. Now I can't unsee them.

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  8. Picked up this cool figurine about two years ago.

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