Yesterday, September 11th 2012, marked the 20th anniversary of the first appearance of Harley Quinn!
As you all know, Harley first appeared on Batman The Animated Series in the episode 'Joker's Favor.' That episode originally aired September 11th 1992.
Goddamnit that means I'm old.
But thankfully Harley is a spry 20!
Paul Dini, Harley's co-creator (along with Bruce Timm) tweeted this yesterday:
"Hard to believe it's been 20 years since Bruce and I unleashed this little minx on the world. Happy "Birthday", HQ"
It is hard to believe indeed.
Happy Birthday Harley!
Showing posts with label First Appearance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label First Appearance. Show all posts
9/12/12
2/19/12
Poisunday Ivy :: Poison Ivy's First Appearance
Poison Ivy first appeared way back in 1966, in Batman #181.
Also appearing for the first time were Dragon Fly, Silken Spider and Tiger Moth, who immediately faded into obscurity...
...but did re-appear again MUCH later in Batman #670 thanks to Grant Morrison.
But this isn't DragonFlySilkenSpiderTigerMothSunday, now is it?
Hubba hubba! If you can resist that offer, Batman, then maybe YOU should be the one they call the Man of Steel!
Also appearing for the first time were Dragon Fly, Silken Spider and Tiger Moth, who immediately faded into obscurity...
...but did re-appear again MUCH later in Batman #670 thanks to Grant Morrison.
But this isn't DragonFlySilkenSpiderTigerMothSunday, now is it?
Hubba hubba! If you can resist that offer, Batman, then maybe YOU should be the one they call the Man of Steel!
7/15/11
Feels Like the First Time
Other than needing to someday re-acquire a Secret Wars Wolverine action figure, I was pretty sure I had all the Wolverines I needed in my life. Then I saw this Marvel Universe First Appearance Wolverine and just had to add him to the collection!
I'm no big fan of his yellow and blue costume, preferring Wolverine's brown costume over any other. But I have to admit I do prefer the look of his original cowl over the hyper-exaggerated ears of subsequent cowls. The nose and whiskers are a neat touch as well.
Not much else to say about the figure; you either love this look or can do without it. I'm pretty sure all of the figure besides the head are previously released Wolverine parts, and he comes with nothing more than a base (which is nice...ARE YOU LISTENING MATTEL?!?!) He's as good if not better than most Marvel Universe figures quality wise and looks good on my desk at work.
One final note, his lips also look sort of Michael Keaton-esque to me. Imagine if Tim Burton had made a Wolverine movie in '89 instead of Batman? I'd like to visit that alternate universe someday!
I'm no big fan of his yellow and blue costume, preferring Wolverine's brown costume over any other. But I have to admit I do prefer the look of his original cowl over the hyper-exaggerated ears of subsequent cowls. The nose and whiskers are a neat touch as well.
Not much else to say about the figure; you either love this look or can do without it. I'm pretty sure all of the figure besides the head are previously released Wolverine parts, and he comes with nothing more than a base (which is nice...ARE YOU LISTENING MATTEL?!?!) He's as good if not better than most Marvel Universe figures quality wise and looks good on my desk at work.
One final note, his lips also look sort of Michael Keaton-esque to me. Imagine if Tim Burton had made a Wolverine movie in '89 instead of Batman? I'd like to visit that alternate universe someday!
9/8/08
Car Toons Week Day 1: The Incredobile
Welcome to Car Toons Week here at ToyRiffic!
This week we'll explore some of the greatest vehicles to never exist! Vehicles that have jumped from the drawing board (or computer screen) and into the real world through the magic and wonder of toys!
Yay toys!
Today's car comes from the masterpiece Pixar film, The Incredibles.
This is the "Hero Changin' Incredobile" manufactured by Hasbro in 2003. The car is already pretty incredible. While it isn't an exact representation of the movie car, it's pretty close. It's also nice and large, and scaled to go along with the (few) 5" action figures made in conjunction with the movie.
But that's not all - when you push down on the hood it becomes even MORE incredible:
Okay, it doesn't do a whole lot on the outside. The turbine pops back and the hood pops up a bit...but it's what's inside that counts:
As you can see through the windshield, the car starts off with a tuxedo clad Mr. Incredible in the driver seat. Presto change-o and voila:
Mr. Incredible is now clad in his sixties superhero duds! Just like in the movie!
Here's a closer look:
Before.

After.
And it all happens in an instant!
Unfortunately the tux clad Incredible is not removable from the vehicle. As you can see the reason for the long jutting turbine is so tux-Incredible can slide into the "trunk," which makes up for the funky design as it is an engineering work-around. I can accept that.
But on top of needing a toy of the Incredobile (and being given very few options,) the biggest reason I picked the set up in the first place was for the First Appearance Mr. Incredible figure, which IS removable!
The Incredibles is one of the best animated films ever. Heck, I'd go so far as to say it is one of the best films ever, period. It is certainly the best animated superhero film and if not for The Dark Knight I would say it is the best superhero film of all time.
It was also a poorly handled toy property. We got so little, and so little of quality, when this toyline could have been the next Batman Animated series of toys, and could have carried on into perpetuity. There were so many superheroes shown or alluded to, and their history in the film spanned decades! We should have dozens of superheroes lining our shelves right now. We should have a sequel! We should have a weekly series! *breath in breath out breath in breath out*
Okay I'm back.
Mr. Incredible circa mid-60s:
This guy is so very cool, sporting his baby blue sixties duds. I don't even have a red Incredible, but I had to have this one as it is his "First appearance" look. I just love having those "first" versions of my favorite superheroes, like Batman, Captain America, and The Hulk.
It also dawned on me only as I took these pictures that Mr. Incredible's "I" looks like a necktie, which is apropos for a Father/Superhero. I wonder if that was an intentional aspect of his design. It seems too brilliant to be accidental.
His toy design is brilliant as well. His hips are very loose to allow for him to go from laying under the hood of the Incredobile to sitting upright in less than a second. If you hold him up by his torso they'll flap in the breeze, they're so loose. Yet somehow he was deigned in a way to allow the hips to hold when standing.
They can't even make toys designed in a static standing pose stand up half the time! How they pulled this one off is a mystery to me.
"Ladies."
The headlights also open up and fire missiles. Keen.
Here's a back view. The car does look much better with the turbine in.
But I'm sure this feature comes in handy for tailgaters.
It also looks better with the grill/hood up. Sadly you can't have both at the same time.
All together a great toy, and a sad reminder of what might have been had this toyline been properly exploited.
This week we'll explore some of the greatest vehicles to never exist! Vehicles that have jumped from the drawing board (or computer screen) and into the real world through the magic and wonder of toys!
Yay toys!
Today's car comes from the masterpiece Pixar film, The Incredibles.
This is the "Hero Changin' Incredobile" manufactured by Hasbro in 2003. The car is already pretty incredible. While it isn't an exact representation of the movie car, it's pretty close. It's also nice and large, and scaled to go along with the (few) 5" action figures made in conjunction with the movie. But that's not all - when you push down on the hood it becomes even MORE incredible:
Okay, it doesn't do a whole lot on the outside. The turbine pops back and the hood pops up a bit...but it's what's inside that counts:
As you can see through the windshield, the car starts off with a tuxedo clad Mr. Incredible in the driver seat. Presto change-o and voila:
Mr. Incredible is now clad in his sixties superhero duds! Just like in the movie!Here's a closer look:
Before.
After.
And it all happens in an instant!
Unfortunately the tux clad Incredible is not removable from the vehicle. As you can see the reason for the long jutting turbine is so tux-Incredible can slide into the "trunk," which makes up for the funky design as it is an engineering work-around. I can accept that.But on top of needing a toy of the Incredobile (and being given very few options,) the biggest reason I picked the set up in the first place was for the First Appearance Mr. Incredible figure, which IS removable!
The Incredibles is one of the best animated films ever. Heck, I'd go so far as to say it is one of the best films ever, period. It is certainly the best animated superhero film and if not for The Dark Knight I would say it is the best superhero film of all time.It was also a poorly handled toy property. We got so little, and so little of quality, when this toyline could have been the next Batman Animated series of toys, and could have carried on into perpetuity. There were so many superheroes shown or alluded to, and their history in the film spanned decades! We should have dozens of superheroes lining our shelves right now. We should have a sequel! We should have a weekly series! *breath in breath out breath in breath out*
Okay I'm back.
Mr. Incredible circa mid-60s:
This guy is so very cool, sporting his baby blue sixties duds. I don't even have a red Incredible, but I had to have this one as it is his "First appearance" look. I just love having those "first" versions of my favorite superheroes, like Batman, Captain America, and The Hulk.It also dawned on me only as I took these pictures that Mr. Incredible's "I" looks like a necktie, which is apropos for a Father/Superhero. I wonder if that was an intentional aspect of his design. It seems too brilliant to be accidental.
His toy design is brilliant as well. His hips are very loose to allow for him to go from laying under the hood of the Incredobile to sitting upright in less than a second. If you hold him up by his torso they'll flap in the breeze, they're so loose. Yet somehow he was deigned in a way to allow the hips to hold when standing.They can't even make toys designed in a static standing pose stand up half the time! How they pulled this one off is a mystery to me.
"Ladies."
The headlights also open up and fire missiles. Keen.
Here's a back view. The car does look much better with the turbine in.
But I'm sure this feature comes in handy for tailgaters.
It also looks better with the grill/hood up. Sadly you can't have both at the same time.All together a great toy, and a sad reminder of what might have been had this toyline been properly exploited.
5/16/08
Captains Courageous

I have always thought Captain America was a very cool character. He's so cool, in fact, that a decent action figure version is hard to come by.
Let's face it: his costume is...flamboyant. If not properly presented, you might as well have action figures of the entire cast of Cats on your shelf. Jazz hands!
I never had the Secret Wars version of Cap when I was a kid, but I did have Wolverine, Iron Man, and Dr. Doom. Their exploits in my back yard were legendary, and my wish list at the time included Captain America, Spiderman, and Dr. Octopus (my favorites from looking at the back of the packaging.) But it was not to be. But don't worry, Wolvie and ol' shell head held their own just fine.
I made a trade for this Secret Wars Captain America recently, and he's in really good shape for his age.
The larger Captain is a Marvel Legends figure and is available now. He's extra groovy because he represents Cap as he appeared in his first issue - complete with his diamond shaped shield that only appeared in that one issue (due to it's similarity to another existing superhero at the time: The Shield.)
1/25/08
The First Batman!
No not Adam West (although an Adam West/Batman action figure is thirty years over due.)
I'm talking about the "First Appearance" Batman figure from DC Direct.

This figure represents Batman as he was drawn in Detective Comics #27 - Batman's first appearance.
There are very distinct design cues (ie his ears on the side of his head) that only lasted a couple issues. Like a grey Hulk or a diamond shield wielding Captain America, this Batman "rough draft" is a great toy and a great glimpse at the past.
I'm talking about the "First Appearance" Batman figure from DC Direct.

This figure represents Batman as he was drawn in Detective Comics #27 - Batman's first appearance.
There are very distinct design cues (ie his ears on the side of his head) that only lasted a couple issues. Like a grey Hulk or a diamond shield wielding Captain America, this Batman "rough draft" is a great toy and a great glimpse at the past.
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