I collect a lot of toys. That should be appearant when fans watch my videos, read my blogs or visit my website. Most of the time I have a list of requirements a toy has to meet before I buy it. Monsters, robots, Japanese/Import toys, DC comics, Batman's rogues gallery, Batman the animated series, bootleg, knock off, obscure, unique looking, vintage (older than 25 years), Mego, sci-fi movie, horror movie, ETC. That's just a small example of these requirements, it goes on and on and it's reflected in the diversity of my collection. Mr. Freeze standing next to Blanka from Street Fighter 2, Batman pulling the arm off of a Resident Evil zombie and Godzilla fighting Schwarzenegger from Commando is just a portion of the madness you might witness on my shelves. But there is one stipulation alone that beats all, the elusive glow-in-the-dark feature.
I can't explain it, I really like toys that glow in the dark. Whether it's the full figure or just a part of it (hands, face, eyes, weapons), I'm strangely drawn to it like a moth to a flame. I've bought toys I normally would pass up and kept toys I'd normally sell or trade just because it glows. I recently picked up a Bison from the Street Fighter movie figures that I would have probably sold or traded but when I noticed his hands glowed in the dark, he found himself sitting on top of my dresser. I've bought and kept kids meal toys, blind boxed vinyl, GI Joes and other lines I'd normally pass over just because it said glow-in-the-dark on the box. I've even bought silly repaints/repackaged figures because it glowed (i.e- "Radioactive" Cornholio from the Beavis and Butthead figure series).
Maybe it's slight insanity, possibly it's the pleasant green color that radiates out from the toy or it could just be a mental defect in me caused by the lead in the plastic but I enjoy my glow-in-the-dark toys. I know everyone has their toy quirks, not that I feel bad about mine. Some people like mini figure toys, some collect exclusively 1/6th scale figures; while I don't restrict myself to one genre I do enjoy hunting down GITD figures. There aren't many of them out there, so it makes it a fun challenge and I can't say I'm obsessed because I have passed up toys that glowed that I thought were less than interesting in my time. What's your toy collecting quirk? I want to know, I know every collector has one and now I'm curious what my fellow readers like.
It wasn't too long ago when I showed off the set of Presidential Monster figures I ordered just before I broke my shoulder earlier this year. Since then, they have quickly become one of my more favorite retail toy purchases of this year. Which is saying a lot to be honest because I don't normally dig newer toys. I think part of the fact they stuck with me so much is because they are a specialty item only available through limited markets. With secondary market prices on the rise and a piece I read on strangekidsclub.com , the desire for a set of these figures became a dire need and superseded just about everything I was actively hunting down at that very moment. Through a course of fortunate events, mostly because eBay prices were creeping out of my price range, I met a man who led me to his website where he sold complete sets for retail prices. He also happened to be the proprietor of Heroes in Action , the main website for the Presidential Monsters line.
(man, just watching this makes my shoulder hurt again)
To be honest, there is plenty of reasons why this line really struck a cord with me. Mainly I was stuck at home for the better part of a month in a brace and unable to reach my collection and these were the only things I could see on a regular basis without bugging my wife. When I feel bad, I like to surround myself with things that make me happy as I'm sure a few readers do too. I bought them at first for the novelty and figured eventually I'd probably flip them for a decent return since the value of a complete set was constantly on the rise. But getting to sit and study them for a lengthy amount of time, I grew to really appreciate the detail behind each figure. From the patterns on the cloth used for each figure to the scales, fur and rotting skin sculpted on the faces and hands; these were something of an unsung masterpiece in the toy world. Why doesn't anyone sing the praises of these marvelous toys?
(I guess there was no need for this photo but I like it anyways)
The first set, some still available here, was comprised of 7 Mego-style figures on colorful, character specific cards complete with original artwork. I'm a really appreciative fan when it comes to packaging featuring character specific artwork, it's the small details that can make me love or hate a series of figures. Not because I'm an asshole (because I am, let's not forget that fact) but I think a figure should be just as eye catching in the package as it is out of it.
Zom-Bush (George W. Bush)
Everyone's favorite former head of state parodied for the sometimes dead look on his face during press conferences. The torn and tattered clothing along with the really awesome undead paint scheme really drive it home to be one of my favorites from the line. They were even so nice as to pack in a single sheet Zom-Bush poster which was promptly hung up in our room shortly after receiving our set. I wonder if Bush got one of these or was even aware of it? Next time I know he's coming to my town I'll get him to autograph mine, I'm sure he wouldn't mind.
The Ronmy (Ronald Regan)
This was one that I wasn't sold on when I was buying the set. To be honest, I was gauging whether it was worth just buying the ones I want or buying the set outright and parting out the figures I didn't want. To get the 4 I wanted cost the same amount as it would have to bought the whole set and I'm a sucker for getting more toys for my money. All in all, Ronmy was actually a decent figure. I love the fact they used the classic Mad Monster pajama like bodysuit to pull off the mummy bandaging effect. It makes for a really nice throwback to the classic figure lines that inspired this set.
Wolf Bill (Bill Clinton)
Here's one I was considering not buying in the first place. I've never been much of a Wolf man fan unless it was Lon Chaney. I'm more of a Dracula and Frankenstein fan that and I get the joke they were making but I guess I was hoping for more of a Dr. Jekyll / Mr. Hyde sex fiend. I guess I'd go more high brow or maybe I just make jokes no one gets (I'm fairly sure it's the latter). But, so far there's a theme with these last 3 figures I've touched base on, none of them have shoes. I do like the sculpting of the fur and how they captured the mid transformation wolf and man hybrid, making him hairy enough for people to get the reference but human enough to recognize hound dog Bill Clinton.
Phantom of the White House (John F. Kennedy)
Our first figure with shoes! Here's another one I wasn't really sold on till I got it in hand. That's the problem with online exclusives; I've not bought pieces from toy sets and then seriously regretted it at a toy show when I get it in hand and really get to admire it. Where this figure impresses is the outfit; cape, vest, shoes and pants are really great quality. Also, the sculpt is a dead ringer for JFK without obscuring it for the Phantom joke they were going with. They did give him a tan / peach colored (I'm bad with describing colors) demon mask. I was kind of hoping they would go for something closer to the Red Death mask from Phantom of the Opera but I'm not too disappointed.
Monster from Watergate Lagoon (Richard Nixon)
The Creature from the Black Lagoon, the Gillman, Swamp Monster, Fish Man; no matter what you call him he's probably my favorite of all the classic monsters. Richard Nixon, Dick Nix, Tricky Dicky; no matter what you call him he's probably my 3rd favorite president. Two great tastes that taste great together ( that sounded better in my head than it does in print but I'm going to go with it). I really like the head sculpt on this, the bloated gill man head with the predominant nose sells the toy for me. The added touches of webbed hands (molded into the iconic "I am not a crook" victory signs) and feet make this figure one of my top 4 favorite figures from the line.
Baracula (Barack H. Obama)
There is no denying how cool and funny this figure is. Love the man or hate the man, they captured the current Commander and Chief's likeness and gave you probably the best costume of the line. I'm not sure if the current president can take a joke or not but I'd love to show him this figure if I had a chance. This figure does go for more as a single figure outside of a complete set and most places won't sell you a Baracula unless you buy the other 6 figures. Truly one of the crowning achievements of the line and I suggest if you buy one figure from this series to seek him out.
Lincolnstein (Abraham Lincoln)
In this series, Lincolnstein and Baracula are just about neck-and-neck my favorites from the line. What an awesome figure. Great costuming complete with top hat and the sculpting is by far the best of the line. Little details like stitches and neckbolts are not neglected, overall the entire run hasn't skipped on detail and value. Yet again, this is another figure most sellers won't let you have outside of a complete set so he is another, at least in my opinion, must have figure.
My only gripe with the series, and I hope the powers that be at Heroes in Action are listening (well, reading), is that to enjoy the figure outside the package you have to destroy the packaging I admire so much. I love what Gentle Giant Toys did with the Jumbo Vintage Star Wars figures and I think more companies should follow suit. Make the package into a semi-clamshell that can be carefully disassembled to display the figure whenever the consumer wishes while also give the owner the ability to put it back in the package and hang it on a wall with ease. Either way I really like the line overall, more so than I ever thought I would. For anyone who thought these figures are as cool as I think they are, they are available in limited quantities through Heroes in Action, famous online retailers and eBay. I suggest you act quickly, another round of Presidential Monster mash ups are heading to online retailers sometime this year with more amazing concepts as Van Palin: the vampire hunter, Romney the Robot, Teddy the Yeti, Martian Van Buren and Jacksferatu.
(Martian Van Buren)
(I really want to know what's up with the Yeti variant)
Tom Khayos and Raging Nerdgasm present our top 9 favorite action figures of all time. Why top 9? Because we like to do one less than the competition (I’m lazy and besides I consider the 10th spot what everyone else adds in the comments).
Number 9
MMPR Green Ranger
MMPR came out when I was about 12 and had a massive impact on me. I was old enough to be involved in a real toy craze. My mother and I hunted before and after school and on the weekends for new MMPR toys I didn’t have. I focused on the larger 8 inch Rangers and Evil Space Aliens but eventually fell into the 5 inch line as well. Then came the zords and low and behold, if you wanted Tommy the Green Ranger, you had to buy the DragonZord. Now this was double jeopardy for me, a figure I needed for my Ranger team and he shared my first name.
The Green Ranger was really no different than the other five I bought already in those awesome triangular boxes, just the different helmet and the real kicker; the golden chest plate. Those first few episodes where Tommy debuted you knew he meant serious business, no one walks into a scene wearing golden shoulder and chest armor and expect to blend into the background. He was a serious bad ass and had one objective, destroy the Rangers. The DragonZord was an awesome piece to bring home and crack open right away. By the time I got one, Tommy was already a good guy and sort of the leader of the MMPR but he was still kicking the Ranger’s asses in my world.
I loved the color combination of green and gold. Like Pimp Don “Magic” Juan says, “Green is for the moneys and gold is for the honeys.”
Number 8
Slush Head (Kalimarr)
This was a hard decision, I’ve always really liked Slush Head. Not that he isn’t my favorite figure from the line but I recently got my own Sagitar figure and have to say if I had him during my adolescence, he’d be the figure I’m talking about now. I was always a bigger fan of the New Adventures of He-Man. Swords and sorcery were never my thing, space mutants and technology always had my attention. Granted, both cartoons were pretty bad even though many of you still hold them in highest regards but I always dug the New Adventures more than Masters of the Universe.
Slush Head had that different look; a big fishbowl on his head full of an unknown liquid a little thicker than basic water, two silver robotic tentacles, great scaly textures along his exposed arms and legs and some really fantastic dark turquoise armor. Slush Head had really good articulation for his time and the helmet was “sealed” so none of the viscous fluid could escape. The New Adventures line was full of some really inventive characters especially coming hot off the heels of the original series that made He-Man into the multi million dollar franchise it is today. The integration of technology and mutants made for some really well detailed figures. Were they as detailed as the cartoon that inspired them? Nope, but they made a decent attempt to get the likenesses close enough to pass the inspection of your average 6-10 year old in the late 80’s. But, He-Man figures weren’t known for being show accurate.
Slush Head was always a stand out figure and in my opinion got high marks for both detail and play value.
Number 7
Gripptogg from Power Lords
Even as a kid growing up in the 80s, I wasn’t aware of Revell making anything other than model kits. The series was full of some of the most bizarre aliens and monsters I had seen my whole life and I didn’t really discover the series till it was long gone from store shelves. I would have loved to have seen something other than the usual Masters of the Universe and other kind of boring fantasy lines on the shelves as a kid. I’m guessing they really didn’t get enough of a push by the stores or even their production company themselves. I did one day at the flea market come across one of the most peculiar 6 inch figures I had really ever seen.
Being the early 90s, there was no such thing as an internet database to research toys, so I had to rely on the talents of those with more experience than myself. Finding out the figure’s name was Gripptogg was cool, I just called him four arms. Learning about Power Lords made me want more of them and I accumulated a few over the years. Now only lacking 3 single figures and the Volcan Rock play set, I feel very accomplished due to the fact the figures don’t show up often. All these accomplishments aside, Gripptogg holds a special place as the first figure that launched me head first into learning about a seldom mentioned line.
My Gripptogg’s seams were never sealed shut so my figure had the annoying habit of falling apart. He’s since been glued together.
Number 6
Hot Head from TMNT
TMNT was the first toy series I actively pursued. I was a casual collector my whole life and still now I buy what I come across and can’t say I hunt down things specifically but TMNT was the exception to all that. Every month there was new mutants, both good and bad, to add to the collection as well as different representations of the four turtles. I hunted down every new mutant I could find and spent my allowance and chore money I did. I’d even go into debt with my parents, bartering future chores for a TMNT figure so I didn’t have to leave it behind. With focus like that, I got figures people search for today like Hot Spot, Scratch and Dino Shredder.
Every TMNT figure I own I don’t think I could part with but there’s a select few that I’ve bought duplicates of and Hot Head is one of them. How can you go wrong with a red dragon humanoid with an extending neck? Now picking Hot Head out of the few hundred figures they’ve made wasn’t easy. I really liked Mutagen Man, Baxter Stockman, Wingnut and Screwloose, Muckman, General Tragg and Triceratron. Hell, I have a Super Shredder on the card with Kevin Nash’s autograph but I’d have to save him for a collection of my favorite possessions with cool stories. Hot Head was just inventive, everything attached to the TMNT line had something to do with an actual animal hybrid. Outside of Mer Dude, he may be one of a short list of fantasy creatures added to the ranks of TMNT.
I wasn’t even aware of Hot Head’s extending neck until like a year after I bought him. I was pulling him out of a box by the head and it surprised me. Very coy Playmates, very coy indeed.
Number 5
Joker from Mego’s World’s Greatest Super Heroes
I’ve always been a big fan of the Joker. The comics made him Batman’s most unrelenting arch nemesis and the 1989 movie really made him the most over the top villain who wasn’t suffering from insanity, he was enjoying every minute of it. Jack’s performance of the Joker really cemented my love for the character and I sought out all the toy representations I could afford. I stumbled into Cesar Romero’s performance too and found it just as compelling as Nicholson’s but more campy and fun and blood and bullets and laughing gas.
Mego was another one of those great lines I didn’t have the luxury of growing up with. I was too late to even experience the death and clearance of Mego. I got bits and pieces of Mego dolls over my whole life collecting. Every so often I’d luck out and get a doll right at complete but I’d end up selling it or trading it. I wasn’t much for the Planet of the Apes line and the only complete Marvel one I owned was Spiderman and everyone owned Spiderman. One day toy hunting I ended up in an antiques mall and got lucky by stumbling into a Mego Joker. Dead mint like he just got taken out of the box and just $35, a very fair price.
Number 4
King Kong Bundy from WWF LJN
King Kong Bundy wasn’t just one of my first LJN WWF figures, he was my first concealed blunt weapon. The figure had to be not only the biggest of the WWF line but also the heaviest. The whole LJN line was durable, sure the paint might smudge but unless you dragged them behind a vehicle or let a dog get at them, they’re probably still around today. With him I broke a window and knocked out a cousin in a heated argument. He was the only LJN WWF figure I owned during my childhood, I think the only reason I bought him in the first place was I’d never had a toy that heavy before and it intrigued me.
I can’t even tell you much about King Kong Bundy’s career unless I wiki’d it, to me he was just an iconic wrestler in a black singlet. I was always more of a Hogan or Macho Man fan but I didn’t own one of those till I was nearly an adult.
Number 3
Hacker from Centurions
This one was really hard because how can you have Hacker without Doc Terror? I’m brave enough to split up this dynamic duo of evil and confess my love for one over the other. Hacker had a cooler name, both in a sense of being related to computers and chopping people to bits. I like the color blue and he’s right at 90% blue. I prefer his helmet design over Doc Terror’s and his selection of weapons even though they are interchangeable. And, I like the fact that under the helmet Hacker looks like Sloth from the Goonies.
Unlike Doc Terror, Hacker’s chest is full exposed. Either he’s got something to show off or he’s the bravest person on a battlefield where lasers are flying and crap is blowing up all around him. Hacker’s helmet had horns, enough said. Finally, Hacker’s cyborg half is called Legion and we all know Legion doesn’t forgive and Legion doesn’t forget. All around a cool and underrated figure.
It wasn’t till recently I got my very own Hacker figure. I find myself at my desk with him more often than Doc Terror, subliminally he’s my favorite among the two of them.
Number 2
Kenner’s 16 inch Alien
The first action figure I owned, no joke. My mom bought it for me at a yard sale and I couldn’t have been more than 6 months old. I’d drag it and my teddy bear everywhere with me, the cutest and strangest thing you’ve ever seen. With all the controversy made over this toy I wish the people who pushed to get it pulled from store shelves could have seen me playing with mine like it was my best friend in the world. With the failure of the large Alien, Kenner scrapped all intentions they had for making a 3 ¾ inch line of figures which while I had no idea at 6 months old still made me wonder what could have been. It wouldn’t be till the 90s when we’d see the Alien franchise rear it’s head again in action figure form.
While the 90s Kenner line was mostly laughable with Alien hybrids of everything from crabs to rhinos the large figure based off the 1979 movie was all business and no fluff. It was so scary and based off of one of the most twisted sci-fi movies of it’s time, parents and activists made it their job to have it pulled from respectable toy store shelves. I have older toy collector friends who recall seeing them after the recall at discount retailers stacked chest high for ⅓ the original price and eventually disappearing due to a huge interest in overseas buyers from Japan. Most unique thing about him was the action feature of the striking 2nd jaw and his sheer size made him a cool toy to play with.
Even when I went through periods of not having many toys displayed in my living space, the 1979 Alien was always out and made for a really chilled conversation piece that could turn even the most anti-nerd into a big kid.
I grew up in the 80’s and 90’s, well displaced from the toy heaven I always looked back at fondly of the 60’s and 70’s. I’m not saying the era I grew up in didn’t have great toys (TMNT really molded me into a savvy shopper, going for the best of what the line had to offer.) I’m just saying I would have really dug being able to buy Star Wars figures with my allowance or getting Micronauts for Christmas. One of the great lines I really wish I had more of was Major Matt Mason. Major Matt Mason was an awesome series of rubber, bendable astronauts and a couple of aliens along with their space equipment which made for some really awesome display shots in magazines and personal collections.
I got my first taste of Major Matt Mason (and after typing that I feel like I shouldn’t have but I’m going to roll with it, Raging Nerdgasm keeps it raw) at a flea market junk bin. Now to get one of the main astronauts would have been really cool but I got Callisto, friend of the Matt Mason crew. He had no accesories and his paint was peeling off but all of the wires inside the figure were intact. What a find and only fifty cents back in the late 80s! Granted, I knew more about what it was than the dealer I bought it from but I didn’t care, I had a piece of one of my holy grails of toy collecting. Callisto stayed by my side most of my life till I misplaced him during a move 3 years ago. Luckily I found him again in a sock drawer, apparently I protected him so well even I had no clue where he was. I’ve also added Matt Mason himself to my collection in the last 2 years, scored for a meager $15 bucks. I may never get the opportunity to add more of this line to my collection but I’ll always be proud of the two pieces I have in my possession.
I always like Callisto because he was cooler than your average bendy and the translucent green head always reminded me of apple flavored Jolly Ranchers.
This is what I was seriously interested in at the 3 for $10 bin when I visited the Yancy Street Comic Con, a Batman doll from the Masterpiece edition book from roughly 2003. Even at $5 for him, he would have been a total steal considering how long I looked for it. I grabbed him and 2 carded figures and went about my business at the show, not even 5 minutes in the building and I'm already out $10 and have a bag full of toys. This definitely set the pace for the rest of the show.
The Masterpiece edition sets were popular but comic book nerds with the deepest pockets deemed the sets too expensive and they ended up on clearance shelves within a year. Each Masterpiece was impressively packaged in a sturdy, heavy gauge cardboard box trimmed in glossy read and yellow with a picture of the character in their golden age outfit; lifted right out of the comic book's pages. They made 3 masterpiece edition books; Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman. Each book was a kind of chronicle of the character since their creation to current canon. Each book came with a keepsake piece; Superman came with a statue of him in his golden age outfit, Wonder Woman came with a barely poseable doll clothed in her golden age attire and Batman came with a really neat and sought after doll that was fully poseable in a cloth outfit with a cape that could hold any shape you bent it into.
(mine came without the book, just for reference only)
The figure is very well done with a nice range of articulation, similar to a Mego doll. The outfit is not removable. The figure is actually sewn into the costume, so be careful not to spill anything on him (if you are prone to having Cheeto fingers, you might want to invest in a Tide detergent stick). The boots are actually part of the body, along with the cowl and gloves. The belt is a really strong yellow but feels a little too big compared to the scale of the figure, same goes with the batarang (which confuses me because it's not a toy meant for children, but I could see it eventually getting into a child's hands. But still, give the collectors what they want.). Best aspect of the figure is the ribbed cape. Each rib is bendable and holds whatever pose you give it so your Batman can be frozen in whatever cool action shot you'd like.
I also really dig the clear plastic cocoon it came in.
