Imaginext Darkseid, Parademon and Blind Bag Series 2 Kingdom Come Superman

A recent trip to Wal-Mart yielded the Imaginext Darkseid/Parademon two pack and the DC Blind Bag Series 2 Kingdom Come Superman!

This new Darkseid release from Imaginext is their second Darkseid release and far superior to their first. Not only is the new release based on Darkseid's classic look (while the first release was based on the less awesome New 52 Darkseid design) but for reasons unknown to anyone who has ever read a DC comic book, their original Darkseid release was a bit on the Smallseid. In fact, I hated this guy so much based on scale alone that I completely dodged him at retail, and only own him because I found him for fifty cents at the flea market.

The new Darkseid is both classically designed and slightly oversized, which makes him formidable without being overly large.

Darkseid is anticipated to play a big part in the upcoming Justice League movie (or at least it's ongoing series) so Imaginext is getting ready by releasing this figure now, and they have also including a Parademon along with him (which have appeared in the Justice League trailers.)

The Parademon (called merely a 'minion' on the Imaginext packaging; perhaps ParaDEMONS aren't kosher kid toy fodder?) is also classically designed, based on his classic comic book appearances and not on the modern comics or movies. Sadly the quality control on this set is pretty low, I saw multiple sets with extremely shoddy paint apps on the Parademon before I finally nabbed this set. And even this one, the best I've seen, has major over-spray paint issues.

That said, he's a Parademon and ideally I'd like a handful of these army builders, so I'm ok with an imperfect version now in the hopes that I get a few more in the future.

Kingdom Come Superman is part of the DC Blind Bag Series 2 wave. The first wave was Batman-centric and has been hard to find in the US (mostly being found in K-Marts and Barnes and Nobles) while Series 2 has had a wider release (I've seen them at both Wal-Mart and Target.) At first I didn't think I needed another Imaginext Superman, but the Kingdom Come 'S' symbol coupled with the grey hair makes this one a must have! He's now my 'go-to' Imaginext Superman, replacing the battle damaged Superman that came with Doomsday.

As usual., Imaginext has an embossed number on the back of their blind bags, taking the guess(squeeze) work out of finding the figure you want.

The DC Blind Bags Series 2 codes are as follows:
Kingdom Come Superman: 90
Brainiac: 89
\Aquaman: 95
Unmasked Black Manta: 96
John Stewart Green Lantern: 92
Sinestro: 91

There was only one other in wave 2 that I couldn't live without, to be posted about later!

"What the hell are you supposed to be?"

Darla's Ducks

My Intern Darla wanted me to take a picture of some of her ducks to share on the blog.

Which of course lead to a few other toys joining in on the photo opportunity.

And also lead to a picture of ducks with donuts. I'm not sure what her artistic message is, but I'm sure it's deep.

Bootleg Batman / Secret Wars Captain America Mash-up Action Figure

At the San Jose Toy Show I attended a couple months back, I came across this terrible yet awesome bootleg Batman action figure. Obviously based on the Secret Wars Captain America action figure design (The pirate boots are a dead giveaway!), they added Bat-Ears...

...and even left behind the Captain's ears! Bootleg Batman is made of solid rubber and is smaller in scale that the original Secret Wars action figures. His paint is pretty terrible but honestly that's probably exactly how good it was the day this guy rolled out of the Mexican Bootleg Batman Factory. I'm actually shocked that he still has his cape and that it is in one piece, and not torn or missing, as it's a pretty flimsy piece of vinyl and could easily have torn at the neck or wrists in the however many years this guy has existed.

My Intern can't stand to look at this guy any longer. Show's over folks, nothing else to see here!

Teen Titans GO! Starfire by Imaginext

Last week I reviewed the Imaginext Teen Titans GO! Raven, and today we look at Starfire!

Starfire is a single figure set, one of the basic releases and retails for $7.99 (at Toys R Us). These new Imaginext Teen titans GO! sets are being spotted at Toys R Us and K-Mart as of press time. They should be showing up everywhere Imaginext are sold any day now.

Starfire comes with a pizza flinging bumper car. I may have missed the episode wherein a pizza flinging bumper car is a thing, or maybe it isn't a thing and they just threw in a pizza flinging bumper car because reasons, but either way I'm ok with it. If nothing else, I can pawn the bumper car off on Harley Quinn or the Joker as it is within their interests.

Starfire also comes with a pizza launchign pizza box. It doesn't connect to anything nor is there any way for Starfire or any other figure to hold it. But hey, pizza launcher. Good times.

Starfire is more off-model from the toon than Raven. Her head just isn't large enough. I also take issue with her ears being part of her hair-piece (and therefore not flesh colored.) That said, I'm glad Fisher-Price released Starfire (and Raven) right off the line. It says a lot for how far toy manufacturers have come and for who the Imaginext toyline is aimed at. Ye olde 'girl action figures don't sell' mantra of past decades may finally have lost it's delusional steam.

Ain't no party like a crazy pizza party 'cuz a crazy pizza party got anchovies, son!

Starfire comes with three pizza disks, so your kids will lose them all in about 30 minutes or less.

The Teen Titans GO! cartoon is hilarious and absurd. I'm hoping to see many Imaginext variants based on ridiculous cartoon storylines and moments. I also hope we get a lot of villains and additional heroes too (Aqualad, Speedy, Kid Flash etc.) In the meantime, it's nice that rounding out the four primary team members won't require you to buy massive and/or exclusive playsets or jump through other ridiculous hoops to accomplish.

Imaginext Teen Titans GO! Raven Review :: Azarath, Metreon, Zinthos!

Imaginext is now in the Teen Titans GO! toy game, and they've jumped into the ring swinging!

The sets are hitting retail now, being spotted at K-Mart and Toys R Us so far. I found the single figure sets of Raven, Starfire and Cyborg at Toys R Us yesterday. No sign of the bigger sets though. I picked up the Raven and Starfire sets immediately, as I am both surprised and impressed that the girl characters were both released in the first wave of figures, and as single figure 'starter set' releases to boot!

Had you asked me to predict the release pattern of these figures, I would have said Raven would be in a later wave (or never released at all if the series wasn't popular enough for multiple waves) while Starfire will only be available if you buy a massive, possibly second-time-around-repainted playset. Times, are they a-changin', maybe? Or is the release of both Raven and Starfire right out the gate simply a toy collecting anomaly? I don't know, but I'm not complaining.

The sullen, grouchy, goth, half-demon Raven is a must have for any Teen Titans GO! fan. Who doesn't love her dead-pan delivery and God (Devil) like powers?

Raven's figure design is pretty accurate to the toon. The Imaginext Teen Titans GO! figures are, like the Imaginext SpongeBob series before them, stylized to match their cartoon counterparts. They don't fit seamlessly into the standard Imaginext superhero action figure line-up, (they're taller, and of course their heads are larger and more cartoony) but kids probably won't care. I know mine mix genres and characters all the time regardless of size or scale differences. Adult collectors will be split, many will be fine with the cartoon aesthetic, and many will probably complain, because many usually do no matter what a toy company does. I for one am happy to see the toys looking like they stepped right out of the cartoon. I would have preferred Raven to have her hood 'shadow' over her upper face, but...

...her hood is designed to be removable. So the shadow would not have worked with the hood off. Perhaps there will be a variant, or I'll get a second figure and paint her, as I imagine many collectors will consider doing. I'm just happy the hood is removable, as this fact opens the door for a Lady Legasus repaint! Of course that would also be a pretty simple custom, in the off chance I end up with multiple Ravens.

"Where is 'Hell', Alex?"

Hahaha, 'Mommy, where DID Raven get her tentacles from?' Speaking of the tentacles, they are an ingenious accessory, they make a nice base as well as a rolling 'vehicle': when you push Raven across a hard surface, the tentacles portion of the base rotates! So awesome.

And Raven's cape is not only removable, but it stands on it's own. Not positive if the cape has sentience like Dr. Strange's cape, but I think it does. Anyways, I like to imagine it has a life of it's own.

The full set of Imaginext Teen Titans GO! figures and playsets can be seen on the back of the package. You can get Raven, Cyborg and Starfire at the basic figure level, Beast Boy and Robin at the figure/small vehicle level, another Cyborg at a large vehicle level and another Robin and Mammoth at the Titans Tower playset level. I'm sure Robin will be the figure with the most releases and repaints, and I am optimistic we'll start to see some villains next wave if the theme proves popular. Personally, a Mallah/Brain set is on the top of my wish list! who do you want to see?

The basic figures (Starfire, Raven, Cyborg) retail around $7.99 each. I assume the Beast Boy and Robin w/jet sets are probably around $14.99. The Cyborg and large vehicle is probably around $24.99 and Titans Tower will probably retail for around forty bucks.

Tune in next week to read my Starfire review!

Teen Titans GO! Robin...UNMASKED!!!

"Hello, ladies!"

Mattel recently released a line of Teen Titans GO! minifigures, which are a little bit 'super-deformed' and are also made up of interchangeable parts. They are being sold in multi packs as well as individually in blind bags. I'm not terribly impressed by them (I'm holding out for the Imaginext line of Teen Titans GO! figures and playsets!) and have ignored them up to now, but when I discovered this Robin was available as part of the blind bag Series 2, I knew I had to have him!

I mean JUST LOOK AT THAT MUG!

I watch Teen Titans GO! with my kids pretty often. It can really get my oldest daughter cracking up to the point of tears. I don't follow it episode to episode, but it has some hilarious moments and unlike a lot of children's programming, I can stand to watch it. I vaguely remember this episode, wherein Robin removes his mask to reveal he's super handsome underneath. I'm sure it'll pop up in a rerun soon as well, and I'll pay a little closer attention to the storyline next time.

But just the mere concept and execution are so silly and stupid that I couldn't pass up on a chance to own a figure of this Teen Titans GO! unmasked Robin. The blind bags have embossed number codes on the back, and Robin's bag ends in '09'. I found what appeared to be a fresh box, and went through every figure in the box, only to find one lone Robin. Not sure if that's the way every box is, but Handsome Robin may be shortpacked.

Regardless, I got one! Now I need a big stick to keep the ladies away!

Damian Wayne Batman BootLEGO minifig

Batman Issue 666, cover date July 2007, introduced us to a dystopian future wherein Bruce Wayne's son and current Robin Damian Wayne had adopted the mantle of the Bat after his father's death. And now, then years later, those crazy Chinese BootLEGOers have made him into a minifigure!

Instead of wearing a cape, Damian Batman wears a trench-coat with a massive collar. Because DYSTOPIAN FUTURE!

This minifig also has a little cloth collar piece, and comes with your basic grapple-hook/gun. Damian Wayne Batman is a gorgeous minifigure, and a neat Batman AND Robin variant that I'm willing to bet the farm will never be a part of an official LEGO playset. I got him off eBay as usual, and I got him for less than a buck, shipped from China! Madness!

Wonder Woman in theaters NOW!

I saw Wonder Woman last night and loved it. I really believe that if the WW film franchise carries on (and there's no reason to believe it won't) then Gal Gadot will be the Christopher Reeve of this generation. The whole movie was great, but a stand-out for me was seeing the Golden Age villain Dr. Poison, played by actress Elena Anaya. She didn't have a ton of movie time but every moment with her on screen was mesmerizing. I hope the action figure lines are successful enough to get a second wave so I can get me a Dr. Poison action figure!

All the Amazon stuff was great, (I'd watch a whole movie about kid Diana, played by little actress Lilly Aspell), all the WWI stuff was great, it was just a great movie. Go see it!

In the meantime, here's a handful of Wonder Woman toys that belong to me and my daughters. Viva la Wonder Woman!

The Tale of Peter Rottentail

As a bona-fide toy expert, I often get asked to identify toys and toy accessories. Usually I can answer without a lot of effort, through either my own vast storehouse of knowledge or via the internet, through groups I follow with multiple experts weighing in, or by directly contacting other individuals I consider equally genius experts.

In all the years I've been collecting toys I've never been more stumped than I was by a query that came to me via email back in January of 2016. (Unless you count my own search for the Rabbagator). It seems Michelle had an important toy that she had been given years ago stolen from her work desk, and she wanted help identifying it so she could track down a replacement. Unfortunately she didn't have any pictures, (you mean not everyone photographs their toys?) and could only provide me with a written description. As you will see later in the post, her description was dead-on; had her toy committed murder a police sketch artist could have easily drawn him from her description, and the cops would have arrested the murderous rabbit post haste. In fact, I had even drawn a picture of it for myself based on her description, hoping it would jog my memory and I'd be able to identify it.

Unfortunately nothing in her description rang a bell for me or any of the handful of others I presented it to. She initially described her cherished toy thusly: "...It is a blue bunny, he has a bandolier (spelling?) Of small mice. He also is wearing a loin cloth and has spikey shoulder pads (armour). His ears are wrapped together and he barely stands. He is very very muscular."

My initial thoughts ran the gamut from Space Usagi to Bucky O'Hare, from TMNT to MOTU, but her bunny was none of these. I scoured the internet, asked at toy collector message boards, directly contacted fellow toy collectors...nothing. I asked a handful of follow-up questions of Michelle, hoping to hit on a new piece of info that may lead to the right rabbit, but got nowhere. All I hit were dead ends.

At this point all I could do was hope I stumbled on to the toy in question, either in an image online somewhere or in person on one of my frequent toy hunts. Michelle probably figured I had given up.

Jump ahead to May 2017:

I attended the May 20th San Jose Toy Show with my oldest daughter, in large part due to the appearance of Lee Meriwether, Catwoman from the '66 Batman movie. Before standing in line for Ms. Meriwether's autograph, we literally, and I mean literally, perused EVERY SINGLE VENDOR in the show, finally coming upon the VERY LAST table for the VERY LAST vendor in the VERY FAR corner of the building. There on a table full of random toy detritus I saw it, and I damn near couldn't believe my eyes...a muscular blue bunny, wearing a bandoleer of mice, with a spiky shoulder pad and ears wrapped together. Holy shit IT'S HIM!

I couldn't believe my eyes. After all these months, I had never forgotten about this mystery bunny, and had hoped luck would lead me to him one day, and here he was! There was no doubt in my mind the second I picked this rabbit up that it was our blue barbarian bunny!

I bought him from the vendor and immediately sent a picture to Michelle, who confirmed (through admitted tears) that I had located her long lost rabbit. I later did some google searching (once he was in hand he was much easier to identify, the magnets on his feet convinced me immediately that he was part of one Tech Deck line or another, and the Rosetta Stone effect took hold rather quickly from there). Turns out he's Tech Deck Grimm Dude Peter Rottentail from the Storybooks Gone Wrong series.

I snapped these pics so I could share Peter's tale, then I dropped him in the mail to Michelle. They have now been reunited, and Michelle even paid me a handsome finder's fee for my troubles (really it was no trouble at all! Thanks again Michelle!)

Freakin' Tech Decks...sheesh! Who knew?!?!

In This Corner: Andre the Giant

I have to admit, I didn't follow wrestling when I was a kid. I had friends who did, so I was certainly aware of the now iconic wrestling personalities of the eighties, but I just never could get into the scene. These days I'm a huge fan of Lucha Underground, so I've been paying a little closer attention to the whole professional wrestling shebang, which of course also means paying closer attention to the toys! That said, as of press time, there are no Lucha Underground action figures. But I for one am hoping that issue is rectified soon!

As for WWE (or whatever WWF is called nowadays, since losing the copyright to those damn animals!), Mattel has been pumping out figures for a few years now, and they recently released the one and only Andre the Giant. Of all the wrestling legends, Andre is, quite literally, the biggest. I remember seeing him in matches when I'd be spending the night at a friend's house, and being amazed at the massive, imposing figure Mr. Giant cut.

Andre later cemented his place in pop culture by playing the lovable giant Fezzik in The Princess Bride. This specific version of Andre was part of a Target four pack, which I picked up on clearance and sold or traded off the other figures in the set. The only one of the set I knew or cared about was Andre himself!

My nephew had a bunch of wrestling figures when he was into wrestling a few years back. I've always been impressed with the sturdiness of their wrestling figures, it always seemed a notch or ten above any of the DC comics stuff they put out. Andre is no different, and is a great all around action figure. I need to pick up a few more so Andre has someone to challenge him!

"Waitaminute, you're not Bone-Saw!"

Spider Maul, Spider Maul, does whatever a spider does, y'all!

Love or hate Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, almost everyone is on the same page when it comes to the badass tattooed Sith Apprentice Darth Maul.

Maul was idiotically killed off in TPM, but was later revived in the Star Wars: Rebels animated series. First with a six legged insect body, and later with sweet sweet robot legs. Because SCIENCE!

I don't watch Star Wars: Rebels. I also could care less about the Hero Mashers toyline Hasbro has been Hero Mashing down our throats for the past couple years.

However I simply could not pass up this Hero Mashers Darth Maul  (especially since I found him on clearance)...

...which includes both is spider-body and his chicken legs! The 'spider body' is a simple hollow shell, but it's effective.

The chicken legs are solid, but only move at the reverse-knee. Hero Mashers are more visually impressive than they are articulated. This figure looks like he should have joints all over the place ("Hey, it's medicinal! I'm a paraplegic for cryin out loud!")  But it's all in the sculpt, and there's not much actual engineering going on. That';s fine, as this guy would probably be double or triple the price if that were the case.

I have to admit, I'm curious now to see what another Hero masher would look like with Maul's robot-chicken legs! Maybe this Hero Mashers concept isn't so stupid after all.

Nah, it's pretty stupid.

"You lost your legs? Cry me a river."