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!

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!

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!"

Hotwheels Boom Car :: 2017 New Release

I spotted this 2017 new release Hotwheels Cannon Car, aptly named the 'Boom Car', at Target the other day and couldn't walk away from it. I have a Duplo Clown and Circus Cannon that I simply adore, and while this Hotwheel would have been a great car to have on it's own, it was actually designed to hold (and even fire) a LEGO minifigure!

As you can see, the front is open to hold a minifig, and the explosive plunger serves as a handle for the minfigures.

The red, white and blue color scheme is not only patriotic, but also perfectly matches the New 52 Harley Quinn LEGO minifigure!

The back of the cannon is also open, with the idea that you flick the minifigure with your finger to send them flying! It does work, although try as I might I was unable to get a decent photograph of the action. You'll just have to take my word for it, and if you find the car, invest the dollar to do it yourself!

The Boom Car pairs great with this version of Harley, and will be displayed with her for the indefinite future! I hope Hotwheels releases multiple color variations so I can load up more of my Harley and Joker minifigs and take on Gotham City with a Boom Car Army.

Hotwheels has released a few of their cars with minifigs in mind, but the Boom Car is the first with an 'action feature' in mind. After shooting these pictures, I remembered the LEGO Stuntman that came out a few years ago and realized he'd also pair great with this car. Various clowns and other minfigs will also go great with this one. If you're a fan of Hotwheels and LEGO minifigs, I can't think of a single reason you shouldn't own this car.

'Walk of Shame' April O'Neil :: New from Playmates!

"Call me!"

This is Shogun April O'Neil from 1993, and one of the last waves of original TMNT action figures. Based I assume (having never seen the movie) on the TMNT III live action film, April is either lost in time wearing her traditional ancient Japanese garb, or is walking off a massive hangover of regret, hoping she doesn't run into anyone she knows on the subway ride home while wearing a stolen bathrobe and pajama bottoms taken from the bathroom floor before climbing out the window of the apartment of a guy she only knows as Tinder's @BigGunz69.

"Jose Cuervo, you are NOT a friend of mine!"

At least her make-up isn't smeared. Small favors!

I'm sure April's hair was a bit less 'Splinter's-nest-y' when new, but it's a hot mess now! I found her at the bottom of a quarter bin at the flea market last weekend. I'm sure the seller had no idea she was a TMNT as all his other TMNT figures were overpriced. In his defense, Shogun April comes across as a McDonald's Happy Meal Barbie type toy, and not one single thing about her would lead you to believe she was April O'Neil. But hey, I won't judge her. We all have our pasts.

DC Superhero Girls Batgirl and Special Guest: The Batmobile!

My intern's birthday was a few weeks ago, and she ended up getting a handful of the DC Superhero Girls action figures.

I wanted to see how her new Batgirl matched up with my Power Attack Batmobile from 2012, and the pair look made for each other!

I found this Batmobile at the flea market last year, and the flimsy tailfins have some plastic stress discoloration (they're pretty cheap and thin, so this is probably a very common issue if you find one of these second-hand). It was also missing two of the three attachments/projectiles it originally came with, but it had the best one...the buzz-saw...so I can't complain.

Also, it only cost me a dollar. A dollar Batmobile is better than a dollar every day of the week!

The DC Superhero Girls action figures are great figures. They're well designed and engineered, and they are pretty fairly priced at around $9.99 each. They don't have accessories per se - Batgirl's hood is removable, and maybe her 'bat-pack' too, but I wouldn't consider those accessories in the general sense. Regardless, at least they don't all come with a stupid BAF piece and cost $20 each.

Although, a DC Superhero Girls Giganta BAF would be AWESOME!

The buzz-saw (and other projectiles that I don't own) launch when you push down on the middle...I don't know what those are...exhaust ports? Fuel injection units? And the Bat-Face becomes a battering ram (Bat-ering ram?) when you push the whole hood down.

Batgirl digs her new ride. If only she had her learner's permit.

The Walking Toddler :: Countdown to Halloween 2016

I don't know what you expect to find in Atlanta, Baby Rick Grimes, but perhaps you should be heading in the opposite direction...

Follow the link to check out all The Adventures of Rick Grimes as we Countdown to Halloween 2016!

JLU Dr. Midnite action figure

For all the superhero movies that we're inundated with these days, I'd absolutely LOVE to see a 1940s period piece Justice Society of America movie. The 'Batman' of the team would of course be Dr. Midnite. A brilliant surgeon with the ability to...see in the dark.

Ok, so the Golden Age wasn't exactly a golden age of ideas, but still, this guy is awesome and if you disagree he'll punch you in the face in the middle of the night and you won't have seen it coming.

I found this Dr. Midnite JLU action figure at the flea market at the same time I found Yz, and I also got the good doctor for fifty cents.

Random Toy Pic: Who Knows What Evil Lurks in the Hearts of Men?

The shadow knows!

I was digging through some older Batman stuff  that's been boxed up in the garage for a while and came across one of my all time favorites. I couldn't resist taking this shadow picture of him - such crisp sharp lines!

In case you're wondering who this gentleman is...


Crimson Patrol Batman, from the 2006 'The Batman' toyline.

They didn't go full Azreal with this one, as it's simply Batman in CalTrans orange under that helmet (slow for the cone zone!) but still, what an awesome homage! I remember being shocked when I saw this guy on the shelf, I couldn't believe The Batman line was referencing the Knightfall storyline.

Say, you willing to take fifty cents for that Thunderbolt?

I found the Thunderbolt Yz at the flea market a couple weeks ago, buried in a kid's random pile of action figures. Unfortunately Johnny Thunderbolt was nowhere to be found. But hey, I got his Thunderbolt for fifty cents, so I won't complain!

Back during the Golden Age, Johnny Thunder would summon up his Thunderbolt by saying the magic word 'Cei-U', and the shtick was that he didn't realize he was saying a magic word when he did so. He would just say something like 'Say, you need to stop attacking the city, mister supervillain!' and Yz would appear and thwart whatever villainous drama that was occurring at the time.

Yz is one of the last unique JLU figures of the retail line, and was released in a multi-figure set that was probably a Target exclusive or something like that. He is cast in clear plastic, but painted with a pink fade. It's a neat effect, and Yz is a unique and cool Golden Age character to have in JLU form.

Say, you wouldn't know where I can find a fifty cent Johnny Thunder action figure, would 'ya?

Secret Wars Triumvirate

When I was a kid I owned three Secret Wars action figures. I definitely wanted more, and remember looking at the cardbacks and Sears catalog for hours thinking how cool the other characters were. Especially Dr. Octopus. I really wanted him but never got him. I know, who ever thought Dr. Octopus was awesome? Probably just me.

Not sure who got me the three I owned, or how or why I even came about them - I don't know if they were Christmas presents or birthday presents or if I picked them out with my allowance or even if I got them all in one shot or if I got them on separate occasions. I just remember playing with them for hours and hours in my backyard and loving them all. The three I owned were the three characters heret: Iron-Man, Dr. Doom and Wolverine.

At the time, my comic book knowledge was rather limited, and my first exposure to each of these guys was through their Secret Wars action figures. I had no idea until many years later, for example, that Wolverine's claws were actually part of his body, I thought they just snapped on like the toy.

I finally have all three band members together again. Sadly I don't have Wolverine's claws or Doom's guns, but I can get over that since I got Wolverine from a thrift store and Doom from the flea market. I did buy Iron-Man a few years ago mint on card off eBay, so I do have his shield with the lenticular cards, but those were never anything I played with as a kid anyways so who really cares about those.

I love having these three together. They really bring me back to my childhood and the good times I had with these guys. If I were a comic book writer I would totally write an epic story that involved these three. And I would insist that the artist give Doom that garter belt!

Random Toy Pic :: Suicide Squad

Just a quick pic of the Squad all together (every Squad member I own in 6" scale that is).

Yeah, I'd totally go see this movie!

Secret Wars Wolverine

As a kid I had a whopping three Secret Wars action figures and I loved them all: Wolverine, Iron-Man and Dr. Doom. I would play for hours on end in the woodpile in the back yard, where I could build caves and buildings and other strictures for my superheros to battle around and within.

I didn't hold on to those Secret Wars figures past childhood, but did pick up an Iron-Man a few years back, and do have a rough Dr. Doom as well. And now I have a really nice Wolverine thanks to a random bag-o-toys from a local thrift store!

Wolverine actually had some wear around his mask, but since it's black, I was able to sharpie it up and make it look much better.

Sadly he doesn't have his claws but I can live without them. When I was a kid, this Secret Wars figure was my only exposure to Wolverine, so I though his claws were just strapped on to his wrists in the comics the way they did so with the toy. It wasn't until years later that I discovered they came out of his hands!

Additionally, since my first exposure to Wolverine was this figure, I am overly fond of the brown costume and think it's his best look.

This is basically the best Wolverine action figure ever and I am beyond stoked to have found him again.

Wolverine was in a three dollar bag of random toys, mostly junk, but I would have paid three dollars for Wolvie alone! But I got some great other pieces too, including...

...a Secret Wars Captain America! I already have a cleaner version of this guy, so I've promised this one to a fellow collector. Side note: I HATE when action figures have that damn nose-rub missing paint sitch. One of my major toy pet peeves. Anyone have a cure? Skin-tone model paint or something?

Anyways, Cap is in pretty good shape, all things considered. And finding TWO Secret wars figs for three bucks is a pretty damn nice find.

But wait, there's more...

Super Powers Flash! And again with the damn nose-rub. ARRRGH! Wolvie had the nose rub too, but again, I had a black sharpie. Sadly I don't have a skin-tone sharpie!

Regardless, Flash is a pretty nice example and I dig him. His actin feature doesn't work well but who cares.

Even though I'm a DC fanboy now, I never owned any Super Powers figures as a kid. I have a handful today, and love finding them in the wild on the rare occasions that I do. Still need a Batman though!

Mallah and Brain :: DC Infinite Heroes

I'm almost certain I once blogged about these two DC Infinite Heroes action figures: Mallah and Brain. But there's no evidence of them on the blog, so I must have deleted the post for one reason or another.

Having recently dug them out of storage, I figure it's time to look at them again (for the first time?)

The DC Infinite Heroes line was a real mixed bag. Some figures, like Hush and Jason Todd/Hush, as well as Mallah and Brain here, are pinnacles of the 5 POA (more or less) action figure genre. And some were just phoned in.

The line could have been so much more but...well...Mattel.

If I remember correctly, I had to make a trade to get the set that included Mallah and Brain (it may have been the set that also included a young Tim Drake Robin but it's been so many years!) Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately) Infinite Heroes never got around to releasing their arch nemesises (nemesi?) The Doom Patrol. But I will forever have a gorilla in a beret and a robot trashcan with a glass-encased brain, so who am I to complain?!?!

Mallah and Brain are in scale with Imaginext figures too! Actually, if you want to get technical, I always figured Brain in the 6" scale, because the actual brain is about 6" scale. VERSATILE!

Did I mention that Brain has an 'action feature'? No I didn't and I know that, my memory isn't that bad! When you push on the brain, his jaw closes. I like to make him say 'Exterminate' because I can!

Mallah and Brain are two of my all time favorite action figures.They are simple, small, well sculpted, and great characters that are rarely seen in plastic.

JLU: Big Guns Kick the Hell Outta' You!

The Mattel Justice League Animated/Justice League Unlimited toyline only produced a very small handful of 'oversized' action figures during it's tenured reign. 99% of the figures in the line shared the same basic size/standard male or female 'buck' or base body, arms and legs. But these big guys were each 100% originals.

If memory serves me correctly, of all 'people', Ultra-Humanite was the first Justice League Animated villain to make it to action figure form. Darkseid was produced not long after that, and it wasn't until the end of the line many years later that Doomsday and Gorilla Grodd made the ranks. Each of the latter was a Target exclusive figure in their own respective five packs, which consisted mostly of re-releases and re-paints of Batman, Superman etc etc. I'd complain about the difficulty I had finding all these guys at retail (I actually had to buy Grodd off a friend) but that pain is nothing compared to the fact that Mattel did make one more JLU big-fig that I don't own: an SDCC exclusive Solomon Grundy! HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO ME MATTEL?!?!?!

Thankfully the Imaginext Solomon Grundy makes a respectable stand-in. But it still hurts not having the JLU Grundy!

Miss Martian Young Justice Action Figure

A couple years ago I was able to find the three Young Justice two figure sets that included the BAF Amazo on deep discount at Big Lots. I blogged about Amazo but never did get around to blogging about the figures in the specific sets. Until today!

Whether or not I ever get around to the other two sets is still pure conjecture, but I am here today to take a look at the best figure of all of them: Miss Martian from the Miss Martian/Martian Manhunter two pack!

I know next to nothing about Miss Martian, aka M'gann M'orzz, except that she's actually a White Martian and not actually a Green Martian like J'onn J'onnz.

This action figure of Miss Martian beautifully recreates her Young Justice animated design. She technically has five points of articulation, but her hair prevents her head from moving and her skirt hinders her hips. The cape even limits her shoulders, so she really only has two and even those points of articulation aren't terribly articulated.

You can get her to stand on a flat surface, but fortunately she came with a base so you don't have to worry about her toppling off your shelf (which she will).

Her companion piece Martian Manhunter is also a great looking figure straight from the cartoon. Not sure if this specific costume of his occurred in any comic outing, but it's a nice blend of classic and modern.

Miss Martian hasn't taken the toy aisles by storm, in fact I'm not sure if there exists any other figures of her besides the BootLEGO minifigure I picked up a couple years ago. She's pretty prime for the current DC Girls Superhero line though, so hopefully we see more of her in the near future.

As for Young Justice, it ended far too soon, and while the toyline had a handful of hits it suffered from many of the issues that tend to plague Mattel toylines, the specifics of which I will spare you from reliving.