LEGO Plantmobile MOC

Taking cues from my past build: the Poison Ivy Man-Mower, I designed a new ride for my LEGO Poison Ivy this past weekend: The Plantmobile!

I picked up the plant-man minifigure specifically so he could act as a Poison Ivy goon. His scared facial expression isn't the best for the purposes of being Ivy's driver, but I haven't yet swapped it out for something more appropriate.

More Batmobile inspired than the Man-Mower, the Plantmobile even has leaf-wing fins...

...and a rotating plant after-burner! Good-doers beware!

Fisher-Price Adventure People Green Alien Astronaut

For the late seventies/early eighties action figure generation, Fisher-Price Adventure People were as ubiquitous as Star Wars action figures. They were everywhere, and most of us had a smattering of them from many different themes: campers, families, medical professionals, extreme sportsters, and of course, astronauts and aliens!

My cousin had a lot of the space stuff. I only had normal people like a kayaker, a dirt bike racer, and a deep sea diver, and probably a few others. The astronauts were cool, and the aliens were cooler, but sadly if you were expecting a Hammerhead or Bespin Luke and you got one of these under your tree at Christmastime you were probably disappointed. In retrospect, these guys are gorgeous and I wish I had more. But as of press time, I only have this green-skinned blue-haired astronaut which I found at the thrift store a couple weeks ago. Not sure if he's from a different planet, a dark dimension, or if he's just a normal astronaut who has been blasted by gamma rays.

Fun!

Toxic Crusaders Major Disaster Action Figure

Geek confession time: I've never seen The Toxic Avenger. The karma associated with this sad fact may explain why any time I come across a Toxic Avenger action figure at the flea market, it's broken. Seriously, they are always missing an arm or a leg or something vital to my personal dictate to not buy broken toys. I'm fine if accessories are missing, but the last think I need are limbless action figures.

Anyways, although I have yet to add Toxie himself to my collection, I did find one of his cartoon cronies in good condition: Major Disaster. Having never seen the movie (or the Toxic Crusader cartoon for that matter) I had no idea who this guy was when I found him, but his mutie visage gave me a good enough clue that he was associated with the Toxic Crusader animated series. Turns out he's actually a good guy, and has plant-powers like Swamp Thing or Poison Ivy. Cool!

Major Disaster is a neon-nineties beauty. Playmates really nailed this line, and it's a shame these things don't pop up more often in my second-hand hunts. If nothing else, I really need Toxie himself now!

Random Toy Pic :: April O'Neil, 1992

'This is my best 'Al Bundy' pose. Well, it was this or my hand in my pants.'

This 1992 April O'Neil came my way via an after-garage-sale free pile. She lacks all her accessories but FREE APRIL! She's in great shape, and heretofore was not an April O'Neil in my modest April O'Neil collection (I have five Aprils now...this one as well as Bride of Frankenstein April, Nickelodeon April, Classic April, and 2007 TMNT movie April.

That's a lot of Aprils!

Hot Wheels Batman v Superman Batmobile

Thanks to Mario from A Year of Toys (which is a complete smokescreen as he has been blogging about toys for far more than a year!) I have my hands on the newest Batmobile - so new the movie it appears in hasn't even hit screens yet - the Batman v Superman Batmobile!

This Batmobile looks like Keaton and Bale's Batmobile got it on and made a baby. I can't say it really does anything for me, like the Arkham Knight Batmobile, but I suppose seeing in action may change my mind.

 Hot Wheels has released this Batmobile 'New for 2016' which means for once I'm ahead of the curve.

There's really not much more I can say about this Batmobile until we see some actual shots of it in the movie. Rumor has it that this Batmobile either converts into or somehow attaches to the Batwing; those odd rear spoiler looking wings imply that may be true. And of course Batman v Superman has to top Bale's Tumbler to Batcycle, and a flying Batmobile would do it.

There's also the 'propulsion-envy' to consider, and a flying Batmobile would be just the thing Batfleck might bust out of the Batcave to confront Superman. I guess we'll just have to wait and see!

There is a weird little tampo on the top, like a small hatch or something. The short scene in the trailer would imply this is too small an opening for Batman, so I don't think it's an entry point of any sort. Perhaps it's where the kryptonite launcher pops up from, or maybe it's the connection port for the Batwing, or it's where Bruce pours in the rubber bullets for the gratuitous gattling guns this Batmobile is sure to have in spades.

'Requisite gull wing doors'? Off the top of my head there has probably been one, maybe two batmobiles in the history of Batmobiles with gull wing doors. I also can't tell by looking at this thing how gull wing doors would work given the lines on the vehicle, but I suppose that's just one more exciting reveal waiting for me when Batman v Superman finally hits theatres March 25th, 2016!

Hot Wheels Back to the Future DeLoreon 2015 Hover Conversion

It's 2015, and while you still can't get a flying car in real life, you CAN get a Hot Wheels version of the Back to the Future Delorean time machine with hover conversion!

What a spectacular Hot Wheel! Every kid I knew when I was a wee lad (even before Back to the Future hit movie screens) pretended at least one of their Hot Wheels or Matchbox cars could fly (usually whichever one had opening doors). So any kid would love this one even if they haven't seen the movie and don't realize it is also a time machine. Although I don't know how easy it will be for kids to find or get their hands on since old dorks like me are probably not letting it sit on shelves for long. Hopefully Mattel saturates the market with this DeLorean soon, but so far it seems to be pretty elusive.

The DeLorean has four tiny wheels underneath that still allow it to roll around, and the hover wheels aren't movable in any capacity.

The original Hot Wheels Back to the Future DeLorean is the first film version. Other than the wheels, the primary difference is that the hover conversion has the Mr. Fusion in back.

Here's hoping for more BTTF DeLorean time machine versions from Hot Wheels in the...wait for it...future! In the least we need one with white-walls and electrical components strapped to the hood like in BTTF part 3.

Imaginext Man-Bat

The Imaginext Man-Bat is on store shelves now! Man-Bat is one of Imaginext's larger figures, like Solomon Grundy and Clayface. I found him at Wal-Mart, but have already seen him at Target as well, so he's clearly not a retailer exclusive or anything. He shouldn't be too hard to find.

Like Solomon Grundy, Man-Bat has a button on his back to make his arms move (or in Man-Bat's case, 'flap.') Also like Solomon Grundy, Man-Bat can hold on to an average sized Imaginext figure with his 'hands.'

Man-Bat is nice and solid, his feet are large enough to support him and his wings in pretty much any pose. His arms have multiple points of articulation for many batty poses. I especially like how he can envelop a figure like those weird bat creatures in Beastmaster.

Here's Man-Bat next to Killer Croc for size comparison. Man-Bat doesn't come with an accessory which is kind of disappointing (even Grundy came with a piece of lead pipe to kill Mr. Mustard in the study!) but don't let that stop you from picking him up! He's great and really reminiscent of the Batman Animated Man-Bat action figure from the nineties. Which also came with an accessory, now that I think about it. Oh well, no accessory is better than a cheesy accessory!

Imaginext Bat-Family Foil Packed Figures :: A Christmas Miracle!

Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus...and he got my wishlist! Hot off the digital presses, Imaginext.com just released images of a new wave of foil packed single bagged (possibly blind bagged) Batman themed figures! No word yet on a release date, but the website gives these figures a suggested retail price point of $4.00 each. GOTTA HAVE THEM ALL!

 The most shocking addition to the Imaginext Gothamite collection is Red Hood. Hokey smokes!

Maskless Slade Wilson aka Deathstroke. This is a fun one although I do already own a masked Deathstroke. If I could pass on any of these, this would be the one.

New 52 Nightwing. I never liked the red Nightwing symbol, but this one will look cool next to my other Imaginext Nightwing. I suppose I could pass on this one too but it's always tough to pass up any version of the original sidekick Dick Grayson!

FORCED PERSPECTIVE! Purple Catwoman appears to be a straight repaint of the original Catwoman and also comes with the same cat her original version came with. Still, she's PURPLE so of course she's a must have.

Two-Face. Two-Face was one of the first Bat Villains Imaginext made, and he looks a little dated now that the series is so much slicker and more streamlined. So it's nice to see an updated version.

Batman unmasked! I love it!

Zero Year Batman. PURPLE GLOVES! This is a fun bat variant styled after Greg Capullo's Zero Year Batman. A definite must have.

Imaginext didn't have a single shot of Joker, but he appears to be a repaint of the modern Imaginext Joker with a giant wrench. Because reasons. I do like that they painted his saddle-shoes though. Classy!

Expect to hear more about these the second I or others start to find them at retail. Stay tuned!

Imaginext Red Tornado

I've always been a fan of Red Tornado. He's an awesome robot that hangs out with superheroes and as far as I am concerned Vision can f- the right off. I dig the whole Marvel movie situation that has permeated our American movie-going culture, but pretty much everything Marvel has done in the superhero department DC did first and better. Except, you know, when it comes to making them all into movies.

Anyways, at least DC has Marvel beat in the toy department. Case in point: can you get a pre-school aimed Vision action figure? CAN YOU?!?! The bastard was the McGuffin in a multi-bazillion-dollar making movie so IS THERE A TOY OF HIM BY PLAYSKOOL?!?!?!

No, there isn't. But you CAN get Red Tornado from Fisher-Price's Imaginext toyline. Because Fisher-Price has the balls to bust out the obscure! Playskool barely dares to make one of the Avenger movie's founding members (Black Widow) and only then in a K-Mart exclusive multi-pack! But hey, if you want 327 Spider-Men, they got yer back.

Okay, so Red Tornado is a Target exclusive, paired with Cyborg. But he's not that hard to get, honestly. I mean, he's Red Tornado, packed with Cyborg. People aren't lined up at midnight to get their hands on this set. Of all the Target exclusive Imaginext sets, I've seen the Red Tornado/Cyborg set hanging around the longest.

I actually got mine from the flea market. I try to avoid spending too much money on Imaginext toys that aren't specifically Batman related, at least at retail, so this set was one I begrudgingly passed on. But I couldn't pass on Red Tornado at flea market prices!

As always, I am so very impressed at the level of detail Fisher-Price adds to their figures. Red Tornado has all kinds of details all over his costume. Honestly, they could have taken their plain buck and painted it red, but Fisher-Price made a figure that had not one single piece that is not unique to this figure. A feat indeed considering Fisher-Price is owned by Mattel!

Red Tornado is set to make an appearance this season on the CBS TV series Supergirl (an amazing show - if you aren't watching it, you are probably a communist), so it's great that I have this Imaginext version...especially because I am hopeful enough to believe Imaginext has some Supergirl figures in store for us real soon!

BRING

IT

ON!

I've got BootLEGO bats in my belfry!

Looking at BootLEGOs on eBay the other day, I stumbled on to a brand new Bat-lot of Batmen with the new style cowl (I had yet to own any LEGO or BootLEGO Batmen with the new cowl style) and not only that, but the set included some great Batman variants. So even though I was as yet unfamiliar with the bootleg company that produces this lot (Duo Le Pin) I figured the pennies-on-the-dollar cost was worth the potential risk, so I ordered them...and man am I glad I did!

First up is Batfleck. I am pretty sure I will end up with an official LEGO set or two for the upcoming Batman v Superman movie, but BootLEGOS are so damn inexpensive and WHO CAN WAIT?!?! Also, thankfully I now know that Duo Le Pin is pretty high quality. These BootLEGOS are even closer to LEGO quality than the Sheng Yuan and Decool I have previous experience with! This set is just incredible. Don't get me wrong, they are still bootlegs and there are a couple flaws (one Batman head had the same no-emotion expression printed twice...ironic for Batman who isn't one to emote...and this Batfleck inexplicably has a scuba mask on the other side of his head) but...damn they are great. And they cost me less than 75 cents each with free shipping from China! And it only took less than a week for them to arrive! GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Up next: at first I wasn't sure if this were an 'official' Batman or not, it actually took me a minute to realize that this is the Batman: Arkham Knight Batman! How cool is that?!?!

This Batman even has printing on his arms and the sides of his legs! QUALITY! Another fun detail is that Arkham Batman has a calm expression without stubble while his angry expression has stubble. Like in the game, Batman gets angrier and less fresh as he battles throughout the night!

Next: Batman Begins. Each Batman minifigure comes with a batarang, a base and a bunch of pieces to make some little Batmobile/Batdrone or something. I left those out of the shoot because they are really just filler.

Next: Batman from The Dark Knight (in grey.) Some of the Batman minifigures came with plastic extended wings, and some came with cloth capes. I actually did a little mixing/matching to suit my desires, this one may have come with the cloth cape that I gave to Batfleck. Whatever, the whole point of these buildable minifigures is mixing and matching!

Batman Beyond. HOLY MOLEY! This guy alone is worth the low low price of admission! Other BootLEGOers have made half-assed attempts at Batman Beyond, but this is the first correct and screen accurate one I've ever seen. He came with a red cloth cape (another irony, THIS is one that should have the solid wings...in red) but Batman Beyond does not have a red cape, he has red retractable wings, so I left it off the minifigure.

Batman of Zur En Arrh! This is now the third BootLEGO Batman of Zur En Arrh I own (each from a different BootLEGO company. Wow!) We do indeed live in incredible times. I will have to do a side by side by side shoot of this version of Batman soon.

All these Batmen have back printing too, BTW. MOAR QUALITY!

Green Lantern Batman! Another wonderful and surprising addition. Now that I think about it, this guy had a cloth cape, so I switched it out with Batfleck. He looks better with solid wings (although they would look better still in green. GL Batman also came with flesh colored hands...weird...so I switched them with some spare black hands (BootLEGOS always seem to come with additional hands.)

Last but...well...least...is Space Batman! I think this Batman appeared in the LEGO Batman 3 video game. He has a normal face and a space face but the 'normal' face is weird because it is printed on the white plastic head. No skin tone. He looks more like Batzarro with the other face. So I'm sticking with space face!

Man, what a set! The quality of Duo Le Pin is incredible, even the cloth capes are better than anything I've experienced from BootLEGOS to date (while still falling short of LEGO quality...but not by much.) The unique characters and the use of the new style cowl makes this set a must have for anyone who likes to dip their toes in the BootLEGO pool from time to time.

LEGO MOC Justice Society of America

I was thinking about The Spectre today, probably because of the new James Bond movie, and it dawned on me that I probably had (between all the LEGO and bootlego pieces I have lying around) enough bits and bobs to make an honest to goodness Spectre minifigure.

I returned home from work (because those are the thoughts I have when I am bored at work) and busted out my stash...and as it turns out I was right!

I've posted about my MOC Jay Garrick Flash and my Sandman minfigures before. As for Spectre, I pieced him together from a bootlego Green Arrow hood, a bootlego Loki cape, a LEGO ghost torso and arms, random white legs, a LEGO Toy Story army man's green hands, a random LEGO green crotch, and a LEGO Ninjago skull.

I love The Spectre, and can't believe it took me this long to piece a LEGO version together!

Random Toy Pic :: Batman Meets...Batgirl?

'Hello, sexy. Want to find out if the Batmobile has a back seat?'

I picked up this Star Wars alien Kabe from the flea market the other day. Kabe was originally released as a Power of the Force Star Wars fan club exclusive along with Muftak (a version of which I already own.) Kabe is a girl, and a bat-headed Chadra-Fan girl at that, who appeared in the original Star Wars Cantina scene! How could I pass on her for just a dollar? I couldn't, that's how.

No, YOU Kneel Before ME! :: Random Toy Pic

I Ain't Afraid Of No Ghost! :: Real Ghostbusters Peter Venkman

Halloween is over, but the spooky fun never stops around here!

I found a scaredy Peter Venkman from the Real Ghostbusters action figure line at the thrift store today, and my intern helped me with a Halloween Hangover frightening photo shoot!

Squeeze his arm and Peter's eyes bug out, his jaw drops and his hair pops up! AAAHHHHH!

Not surprisingly, Peter is a bit spooked by all those spooks above. 

Perhaps more surprisingly...

Peter was also spooked by a trio of Barbie's super pets...

...and Mr. Snuffleupagus too!

Peter Venkman, you're a bit high-strung. You need a vacation.