The End of the Countdown to Halloween?

Since Halloween is on a Friday, that means that this is the start of Halloween Weekend, right?  So technically, I can still make Halloween posts through Sunday!  Yeah, that's the ticket!  I have one final Halloween post coming up sometime this weekend, a group photo shoot with all of Funko Universal Monsters ReAction figures.  I actually took the photos a month ago, when I first opened up the figures, but I haven't gotten around to posting them yet.  I don't have any more time to post them today, though, so look for one final "Halloween Weekend" post sometime on Saturday or Sunday, before I go back to normal blogging.

In the meantime, enjoy some spooky Hardy Boys photos made with Google+'s Halloweenify App:

Socket Poppers/Con-nec-tors "Dr. Dracula the Vampire" Vintage Action Figure - Ertl/Matchbox (1990)

The doctor is in, and he wants to suck your blood!  It's Dr. Dracula, the vampire figure from Matchbox's Con-Nec-Tors in Europe, and Ertl's Socket Poppers here in North America.  I reviewed a few other Socket Poppers this month, but to refresh your memory, these are 3 3/4 inch action figures with head and limbs that can be removed and swapped with other figures in the line to create wacky combinations.  Plus, they also make great cartoony action figures on their own, even without the parts swapping.  Let's check him out after the break!

Clash of the Titans "Charon" Action Figure - Mattel (1981)

For my second post of the day on this fine October 31st, I'll be looking at Charon: a 1981 action figure from Mattel's Clash of the Titans line, based on the Harry Hamlin starring film of the same name. Charon is the skeletal ferryman who ferries passengers across the river Styx.  We'll cross the Styx together... after the break!

Your are now entering... The Twilight Zone

Halloween is finally here!  My most monster-toyriffic day of posting begins now, with this look at the retro 3 3/4" Twilight Zone action figures from Bif Bang Pow.  Earlier this month, I featured Bob Wilson and the Gremlin from this line, and today I'm going to take a look at the other figures.  Check them out after the break!

Countdown to Halloween Random Toy Grab Bag

Tomorrow is Halloween!  Are you ready?  I'm kicking off my day-before festivities with this post of random monster toys.  Later on today I'll be taking a look at Bif Bang Pow's Twilight Zone figures.  But first, let's dip in to the Random Halloween Toy Grab Bag...

Retro Wednesday! Funko ReAction Freddy Krueger

For our second Retro Wednesday figure of the day, we'll be looking at that lovable scamp, A Nightmare on Elm Street's Freddy Krueger!  What sort of hilarious hijinks will this rascal be getting into?  Let's find out after the break!

Retro Wednesday! Funko Universal Monsters The Wolf Man ReAction Figure

Only two days 'till Halloween!  Today, were spending Retro Wednesday with two Funko ReAction figures.  First up is The Wolf Man, from the Universal Monsters series.  Let's check out our hairy friend after the break...

Universal Studios Monsters "Frankenstein's Monster" Boris Karloff Action Figure - Sideshow Toys (1998)

Halloween is almost here!  Yeah, I know I already had a Frankenstein theme during week 2 of the Countdown to Halloween, but this is week 5, where anything goes... and you can never have too much Frankenstein!  So let's check out Sideshow Toys' Boris Karloff as Frankenstein's Monster action figure after the break!

Halloween Week Begins With My Custom Phantom Hellscape Playset!

My original goal for the Countdown to Halloween was to do one post a day, and to have a unique horror theme for each week.  I've missed a few days here and there, but I've also posted two or three posts in one day on others, so over all, I'm still ahead.  However, as we head into week 5, I'm having a tough time keeping it up.  Work and other things have gotten in the way a bit, and eaten up more of my blogging time than I anticipated they would.  So for the rest of the week, I'm going to change it up a bit.  Instead of doing a theme (this week was supposed to be "Supernatural Evil: A week of Ghosts, Demons, and Mythological Creatures") I'm just going to be doing a catch-all horror week.  This will allow me to finish up some of the posts that were supposed to be done earlier this month, but didn't get finished in time.  Also some of the posts will be a little shorter than usual, just a few pics and some brief text.  I currently have 12 unfinished Halloween toy features, although a few of them I will probably combine into group features.  I'm going to have to drop my last couple of movie reviews I had planned, though, for now (those take too long to write and edit all of the screencaps).  Still I've got plenty of stuff to finish out the week, and my plan is to do two posts a day until Halloween.  So week 5 of my countdown, now known simply as "Halloween Week," begins now...

I've been using a variety of different playsets in the backgrounds of my Halloween action figure photo shoots.  Several of them were McFarlane Toys playsets, which I also reviewed.  I also used a few Fisher Price Imaginext playsets that I picked up at thrifts stores.  One of my playsets is unique, though.  It's my "Phantom Hellscape" playset, which I made by combining a couple of preexisting playset pieces, with a few cheap add-ons I picked up at the dollar store, and giving them a custom paint job.  Read more about it after the break!

Beyond the Stars and Beneath the Waves Music Playlist

Hi guys!  Today is supposed to be the beginning of week 5 of my Countdown to Halloween, but I'm running a little behind schedule.  So instead here is my final post for week 4, my Beyond the Stars and Beneath the Waves Music Playlist.  Every week, I've been listening to music that matches my weekly themes as I prepare my blog posts, to help put me in the right frame of mind.  Then I attempt to make playlists on YouTube and Spotify that match the music I'm listening to at home.  Since neither YouTube nor Spotify have every music track ever recorded on them, I can't always get the exact songs I want.  Sometimes I replace them with a similar track, or other times I just skip them.  YouTube is usually the closest match, and this week is no exception.  My playlist consists of:

1. PJ Harvey - Seagulls
2. Angel Witch - Atlantis
3. The Jesus & Mary Chain - Kill Surf City
4. The B-52's - Rock Lobster
5. Pixies - Wave of Mutilation
6. U2 - The Ocean
7. Cranes - Underwater
8. Nine Circles - Twinkling Stars
9. Prinzhorn Dance School - You Are The Space Invader
10. Chrome - Eyes On Mars
11. The Lothars - Dust Mah Space Broom
12. Louis & Bebe Barron - Forbidden Planet: Main Titles - Overture
13. Ronald Stein - Not of This Earth! (Main Title)
14. Ferrante and Teicher - The Man from Mars
15. Wipers - Alien Boy
16. Brownsville Station - The Martian Boogie
17. Cindy Nahaeeka - Alf Song
18. Graham Coxon - People of the Earth
19. The B-52's - Planet Claire
20. The Rezillos - Flying Saucer Attack
21. DeForest Kelley - "He's Dead, Jim" (Star Trek audio clip)

The embedded playlists are after the break...

Humanoids From the Deep (1980)

I wasn't expecting much from Humanoids From the Deep.  I mean, it stars Doug McClure for Pete's sake....... that's not exactly the "Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval."  But still, I was surprised by just how bad this movie was.

The production quality of this film was really cheap.  So cheap, that when I first watched it, I thought to myself, " Hey, I didn't know this was a low budget made-for-TV movie!"  And then the Deep Humanoids started tearing off women's clothes and raping them.  It looked like they spent the entire production budget on boobs.  The scenes with naked women almost seem like they were spliced in from a different, higher-budget movie.  It turns out there's a reason for that.  Apparently, producer Roger Corman wasn't pleased with the job director Barbara Peeters did directing the nudity and rape scenes (A female director not down with the exploitation of women?  Imagine that!) and brought in a second, male director in post production to film additional scenes of rape and nudity.  The final film ended up being quite a different beast from what it was in the original script.  Director Peeters and female lead Ann Turkel were so disgusted by the changes they asked to have there names removed from the film.

Socket Poppers/Con-nec-tors "Swamp Monster, Mutant, and Cyclops" Vintage Action Figures - Ertl/Matchbox (1990)

Are you ready for a bonus Saturday edition of Vintage Fridays?  This week's theme is "BEYOND THE STARS AND BENEATH THE WAVES: A Week of Space Monsters and Sea Creatures!"  And we've got that covered and then some in this post!  Today I'll be looking at three vintage monsters from the Socket Poppers/Con-Nec-Tors toylines.  Grumo the Swamp Monster, Alantide the Mutant, and Trilor the Cyclops.  In addition to the toy review, I also made a scary (or maybe just a kind of weird) Halloween photocomic starring these figures, along with a few vintage action figure guest stars.  Let's check it out after the break...

Micronauts Alien Invaders Vintage Action Figures - Mego (1980)

"Horrifying alien invaders from an unknown planet, with giant brains that glow in the dark!"  They were the Micronauts Alien Invaders, released by Mego in 1980, shortly before the company went out of business.  They were evil aliens with cybernetic weapons implanted onto their limbs, turning them in to living killing machines.  Let's take a look at these terrifying Space Invaders after the break!

Retro Wednesday! The Creature From The Black Lagoon Funko ReAction Figure

Frankenstein's Monster and the Bride of Frankenstein are my favorite characters from Funko's Universal Monsters ReAction figures.  The Invisible Man is probably my favorite design of all the figures.  But The Creature From The Black Lagoon I think has the best sculpt.  The figure itself is pretty much all green with a few minor paint apps, but the detail work in the sculpt is really great, so it doesn't need a lot of paint on it.  All of his major scales or segments are depicted, with lots of fine lines on the fins, and a fish scale pattern all over him.,  All of those little details help bring this character to life.  It comes in a regular green version, and rare glow-in-the-dark version.  I've only gotten the regular version, so far, but I'm going to keep my eyes peeled for the glow version.  Check out some photos of the Creature after the break.

Sundry Monday! Uncle Gilbert from Diamond Select's The Munsters, Plus the Collect and Connect Staircase

It's Uncle Gilbert from the Munsters!  That's right, Uncle Gilbert, everyone's favorite member of the Munsters family!  What that, you say?  You don't remember him?  Well that's okay, he actually only appeared in one episode.  But look at the guy.  He's the Creature from the Black Lagoon, only wearing clothes!  I guess this was just too wacky of a character for Diamond Select to resist making an action figure of.  I'm going to be checking him out after the break.  Also, since this is the final figure of the four figures from wave 3 of The Munsters, I'm going to be assembling the collect and connect staircase prop that came with all the figures.  All of this, plus a surprise appearance from Adam West... in today's special Tuesday edition of Sundry Mondays!

Universal Monsters The Metaluna Mutant Action Figure - Diamond Select (2012)

Week 4 of my Countdown to Halloween begins now!  This week's theme is "BEYOND THE STARS AND BENEATH THE WAVES: A Week of Space Monsters and Sea Creatures!"  When it comes to space monsters, you don't get much more spacemonstier than this: it's The Metaluna Mutant by Diamond Select, from the Universal picture "This Island Earth."  Let's go!

The Saga of Crystar "Moltar, The Prince of Chaos" Action Figure - Remco (1982)

This is going to be the final post for week 3 of my Countdown to Halloween.  This week's theme has been HALF HUMAN, HALF HORROR: Vampires, Werewolves, Apemen and More, a Week of Human Beings Crossed With Horrible Things!  I've been focusing on half human, half animals all week, but this guy's a little different, he's half man, half lava!  It's Moltar, the Prince of Chaos and Leader of the Magma Men, from Remco's The Saga of Crystar Action figure line.  Let's check him out after the break in this bonus, non-Friday edition of Vintage Fridays!

Half Human, Half Horror Music Playlist

This week's playlist is "Half Human, Half Horror: Vampires, Werewolves, Apemen and More! A Playlist of Human Beings Crossed With Horrible Things."  It's divided up in sections for the type of monster below, but the playlist itself runs together.

ARE WE NOT MEN?

• (Sound Effects - Wild Animal Sounds)
• Elastica - See That Animal
• The Germs - Manimal

HALF HUMANS

• Butthole Surfers - Human Cannonball
• The Cramps - Human Fly
• Elastica - Only Human

CAT PEOPLE

• The Kills - Cat Claw
• Cindy Nahaeeka - Cat Wants Cheese
• Godz - White Cat Heat
• The Cure - The Lovecats

MONKEY MEN

• Pixies - Monkey Gone To Heaven
• The BellRays - Monkey House
• Baby Huey & The Baby Sitters - Monkey Man
• Does It Offend You, Yeah? - The Monkeys Are Coming
• Nirvana - Very Ape

BAT PEOPLE

• Frankenstein and the All-Star Monster Band - Who are the Casual Girls (in a Vampire Video Game)
• Gorillaz - Dracula
• Meco - Love Me Dracula
• Hot Blood - Soul Dracula
• Total Coelo - Dracula's Tango
• Arctic Monkeys - Perhaps Vampires Is A Bit Strong But...
• Screaming Lord Sutch - Dracula's Daughter
• Roky Erickson & the Aliens - Night of the Vampire

WOLF MEN

• Guitar Wolf - Planet Of The Wolves
• TV on the Radio - Wolf Like Me
• The Nomads - Where the Wolf Bane Blooms
• The Born Losers - Werewolves On Wheels
• Radiohead - A Wolf At The Door (It Girl. Rag Doll)
• Lee Kristofferson - Night of the Werewolf
• The Cramps - I Was a Teenage Werewolf
• Howlin' Wolf - I'm the Wolf
• Southern Culture On The Skids - Werewolf
• Round Robin - I'm the Wolfman
• Swans - The Wolf
• Vincent Price - To Become A Werewolf

Embedded playlists you can listen to after the break:

The Wolfman (2010) Unrated Director's Cut

I was pretty excited about The Wolfman, Universal's 2010 remake of it's classic 1941 horror movie The Wolf Man.  But then the movie came out, and got pretty bad reviews and word of mouth.  I still wanted to see it to judge for myself, but I kept letting it getting pushed back in my queue in favor of other flicks.  But it's directed by the same guy who directed The Rocketeer and Captain America: The First Avenger, so it should be good, right?  I finally got around to watching it yesterday, only four years late!  And you know what?  I likes it!  Is it a classic?  No, not really, but it's still pretty darn good.  I'll talk about it a bit after the break.

"The Remco Dracula Picture Show," Featuring the 1979 Remco Mini Monster Dracula

The Mini Monsters were a line of 3 3/4 inch officially licensed Universal Monsters action figures released by Remco in 1979.   They are very similar to classic Kenner Star Wars figures and have the standard five points of articulation.  Dracula originally came with a vinyl cape that was black on the outside and red on the inside, but my figure has a replacement cape of all black.  The action figures joining Dracula in today's photo series are a vintage Kenner Princess Leia, Zica Toys' Six Million Dollar Man, and Funko ReAction's The Goonies Sloth.  One note, my Dracula figure has a piece of paint chipped of off his nose, but I touched it up in the photos.

And now, on with "The Remco Dracula Picture Show..."

Flash Gordon Beastman Vintage Action Figure - Mattel (1980)

Half human, half gorilla, and half Smurf... if my math is right, that equals one scary monster! It's "Beastman," a figure from Mattel's 1979 Flash Gordon line of action figures.  Let's check him out after the break, in this bonus Countdown to Halloween Thursday edition of Vintage Fridays!

Retro Wednedsay! Bif Bang Pow's Twilight Zone Action Figures: Bob Wilson and The Gremlin

I've mostly been reviewing Funko and Super 7's ReAction figures on Retro Wednesdays, but they aren't the only people making retro figures in this scale.  Today I'll be checking out two of Bif Bang Pow's Twilight Zone figures: Bob Wilson and The Gremlin, from the classic William Shatner starring episode "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet."  Check them out after the break!

Half Human, Half Horror

Don't really have time for a full post today, so here's an animated gif from my upcoming pictorial of Remco's Mini Monsters Dracula.  The complete set will be up in a few days.  And I've got lots of good stuff coming this week, so I'll hopefully make up for the lack of a substantial update today.

Sundry Monday! Raceway Lily and Hotrod Grandpa Action Figures from Diamond Select's The Munsters

Week 3 of my Countdown to Halloween officially begins with this post, as I begin HALF HUMAN, HALF HORROR: Vampires, Werewolves, Apemen, and More, a Week of Human Beings Crossed With Horrible Things!  I'm kicking it off with a look at two action figures of Half Human, Half Bats, aka Vampires!  It's Grandpa Dracula himself, along with his daughter Lily, from Diamond Select's The Munsters action figures.  In particular, it's "Raceway Lily" and "Hotrod Grandpa," both based off of their appearance in the Munsters episode "Hot Rod Herman."  let's check them out after the break.

Todd McFarlane's Monsters "The Mummy" Playset - McFarlane Toys (1998)

I've already photographed a few of my Mummy action figures on this playset, now I'll be taking a look at the playset itself, as well as all of the accessories and figures that come with it.  Let's take a trip back in time after the break!

The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living Music Playlist Part 3

Part 3 (of 3) of my  "The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living" music playlist.  Each week for the Countdown I've picked a different theme, and each week I've been putting together playlists to listen to that reflect that theme, and I thought it would be fun to share them here.  For Week 2, I ended up with a really long playlist, so I decided to break it up into three parts.

The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living, Part 3, features the following tracks:

1. Alessandro Alessandroni - Lady Frankenstein - Sequence 1
2. Cuby & The Blizzards - Your Body Not Your Soul
3. Pixies - Break My Body
4. The Pack A.D. - Body Parts
5. Dan Sartain - In Death
6. Mind Spiders - You Are Dead
7. Ty Segall Band - Death
8. The Dears - Death Or Life We Want You
9. Trash Talk - Gimme Death
10. Groovie Ghoulies - Zombie Crush
11. Deadcats - Crypt Zombie Hula
12. Phantom Planet - The Living Dead
13. Milk Music - Beyond Living
14. Yoko Ono - Death Of Samantha (with Porcupine Tree)

The YouTube and Spotify versions of the playlists may vary from one another, depending on what songs were available from each service.


YouTube - The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living, Part 3
Frankenstein Monsters, Mummies, and Zombies Abound in a Playlist of Music For Reanimated Corpses!


Spotify - The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living, Part 3
Frankenstein Monsters, Mummies, and Zombies Abound in a Playlist of Music For Reanimated Corpses!

Universal Monsters "The Mummy" Retro Action Figure - Funko/Super7 (2014)

Today I'm featuring Funko and Super 7's Universal Monsters ReAction figure of THE MUMMY!  It's mostly just molded in colored plastic, with a few minimal paint applications!  It's got the standard 5 points of articulation!  It's got great looking card art!  What else do you need to know?  Nothing?  Okay, then here's a few more pictures:

The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living Music Playlist Part 2

Part 2 (of 3) of my  "The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living" music playlist.  Each week for the Countdown I've picked a different theme, and each week I've been putting together playlists to listen to that reflect that theme, and I thought it would be fun to share them here.  For Week 2, I ended up with a really long playlist, so I decided to break it up into three parts.

The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living, Part 2, features the following tracks:

1. HorrorPops - Walk Like A Zombie
2. The Beau Brummels - These Boots Are Made for Walking
3. Throbbing Gristle - Still Walking
4. Joy Division - Dead Souls
5. Trash Talk - Awake
6. Eyeball Skeleton - Spooky Mummy Case
7. The Fall - I'm a Mummy
8. Satan & His Disciples - Mummies Curse
9. Ultimate Spinach - Ballad of the Hip Death Goddess
10. Kate Bush - Egypt
11. David Bowie - We Are The Dead
12. Rocky Horror Picture Show - Over At The Frankenstein Place

The YouTube and Spotify versions of the playlists may vary from one another, depending on what songs were available from each service.


YouTube - The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living, Part 2
Frankenstein Monsters, Mummies, and Zombies Abound in a Playlist of Music For Reanimated Corpses!

Spotify - The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living, Part 2
Frankenstein Monsters, Mummies, and Zombies Abound in a Playlist of Music For Reanimated Corpses!

Socket Poppers/Con-Nec-Tors "Garza the Mummy" - Ertl/Matchbox (1990)

Behold the mighty Garza the Mummy!  This figure was released in Europe by Matchbox Toys in 1990, as part of their "Con-Nec-Tors" line of action figures.  Matchbox is best known for their toy cars, and the Con-Nec-Tors were actually a spin-off of Matchbox's Con-Nect-Ables line of cars.  The action figures had removable heads and limbs which could be swapped out with the heads and limbs of other figures in the line, to create all kinds of crazy combinations.  The same figures were released a year later in North America by Ertl Toys, under the name "Socket Poppers."  I'll be doing a full post on the Socket Poppers/Con-Nec-Tors sometime after the Countdown to Halloween, where I will be swapping out body parts, but for now I'll be focusing on the individual figures.  Check out the Socket Poppers Mummy after the break!

The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living Music Playlist, Part 1

The second installment of my Countdown to Halloween inspired music playlist.  Each week for the Countdown I've picked a different theme, and each week I've been putting together playlists to listen to that reflect that theme, and I thought it would be fun to share them here.  I posted my Week 1 playlist last Sunday.  For Week 2, I ended up with a really long playlist, so I decided to break it up into three parts.

The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living, Part 1, features the following tracks:

1. Vincent Price - To Raise the Dead
2. Chromatics - Mask
3. Elvira - Here Comes the Bride (The Bride of Frankenstein)
4. L7 - Pretend We're Dead
5. Yoko Ono and Yo La Tengo - Hedwig's Lament / Exquisite Corpse
6. The Soft Moon - Dead Love
7. Radiohead - Bodysnatchers
8. Judas Priest - Living After Midnight
9. Poliça - Leading to Death
10. Suede - The Living Dead
11. The Horrors - Sleepwalk

The YouTube and Spotify versions of the playlists may vary from one another, depending on what songs were available from each service.


YouTube - The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living, Part 1
Frankenstein Monsters, Mummies, and Zombies Abound in a Playlist of Music For Reanimated Corpses!


Spotify - The Dead Shall Walk Among the Living, Part 1
Frankenstein Monsters, Mummies, and Zombies Abound in a Playlist of Music For Reanimated Corpses!

Universal Monsters "Frankenstein" and "Bride of Frankenstein" Retro Action Figures - Funko/Super7 (2014)

This week I'm featuring Funko and Super7's Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein ReAction figures.  Long story short, I love these figures.  The only thing I'm not 100% on board with is the way they sculpted the Bride's dress.  I think they should have either made it a solid piece, like The Clash of the Titan's Charon action figure, or rounded it off, like how Kenner sculpted Princess Leia.  The split down the middle look Funko went for here makes her look like she has Gumby legs!  Don't get me wrong though... I loves me some Gumby... I just don't think it's the best look for this figure.  But it's still a great figure, and I love having it my collection.

So check out my photos below.  They feature Frankie and The Bride, and guest star Alan Alda as "The Mad Doctor."

Wild Zero (1999)

 
Wild Zero is has got to be one of my favorite movies of all time.  It's about an aspiring young rock 'n' roller named Ace, who's just finding his way in the world.  He wants to be the next big rock star, and he's got his rock 'n' roll look down pat, with his leather jacket, motorcycle, and greasy hair.  He's even met a cute young girl who might be his one true love.  Now he just needs to learn to, you know, play the guitar.  But just when things look like they are going his way, flying saucers invade the skies, triggering a "Plan 9 From Outer Space" style zombie outbreak!  Plus that girl he fell in love with?  Turns out she's got a penis.

The situation would be hopeless for anyone else, but Ace has an "ace" up his sleeve:  a magic whistle that calls his favorite rock 'n' roll band, Guitar Wolf!  With the help of Guitar Wolf and the power of rock 'n' roll, those zombies and flying saucers don't stand a chance!

Sundry Monday! Diamond Select's The Munsters Hotrod Herman Action Figure

Welcome to "THE DEAD SHALL WALK AMONG THE LIVING: Frankenstein Monsters, Mummies and Zombies Abound in a Week of Reanimated Corpses," Week 2 of my Countdown to Halloween.  Today I'm going to be looking at one of Dr. Frankenstein's more oddball creations: Herman Munster!  Specifically, it's Hotrod Herman, from Series 3 of Diamond Select's The Munsters Action figures.  With this figure, Herman is dressed up in leather drag racing gear, sort of looking like a monster version of Marlon Brando in "The Wild One!"  It's based on the 1965 Munsters episode "Hot Rod Herman."  My pictures and thoughts on this figure are coming up after the break.

Mysterious Murderers Playlist

While I was creating this weeks posts, I made a "Mysterious Murderers" themed playlist to listen to, to put me in the right mood.  The full list is:

1. Leadbelly - Where Did You Sleep Last Night?
2. Kaleidoscope - The Murder Of Lewis Tollani
3. Screaming Lord Sutch - Jack The Ripper
4. The Yardbirds - Evil Hearted You
5. The Kinks - He's Evil
6. Adam and the Ants - Killer In The Home
7. Blur - I'm Just a Killer For Your Love
8. The Black Angels - Evil Things
9. Alice Cooper - Desperado
10. Black Sabbath - Lady Evil
11. James Kochalka Superstar - Spread Your Evil Wings And Fly
12. The Glove - Perfect Murder
13. The Flaming Lips - Turning Violent
14. Liars - Mask Maker
15. The Faint - Violent
16. Talking Heads - Psycho Killer
17. Alice Cooper - Killer
18. The Black Angels - You're Mine
19. The Jesus & Mary Chain - Psycho Candy
20. David Vandervelde - Murder In Michigan
21. Elliott Smith - Son of Sam
22. Ty Segall - Son of Sam
23. Orbital - Satan
24. The Illuminoids - Phantom Ain't Easy  (Justice vs. David Bowie)
25. Nirvana - Where Did You Sleep Last Night?

After the break, I've included Spotify and YouTube playlists for most of these tracks.

Vintage Friday! McFarlane Toys' The Phantom of the Opera Playset (1998)

The Phantom of the Opera Playset in the Package

Released in by McFarlane Toys in 1998, as part of the "Todd McFarlane's Monsters" series, The Phantom of the Opera Playset comes with two action figures, a pipe organ, balcony, and chandelier set piece, and several additional accessories.  Let's check it all out after the break, on this bonus Sunday edition of Vintage Fridays!

Retro Wednesday! Halloween Michael Myers ReAction Figure

Hello and welcome to a BONUS Sunday edition of Retro Wednesdays!  For the Countdown to Halloween, I have more scary action figures to review than I can fit into my usual three days a week schedule, so you'll be seeing toy reviews pop up on other days as well.  Today I'll be looking at Funko and Super 7's ReAction figure of Michael Myers, from the movie Halloween. This is Michael Myers back when he was still a psycho killer, before he joined the cast of Saturday Night Live and made those Austin Powers movies (they are the same guy, right? I was never quite sure, because of the mask.).  Let's check him out after the break:

The Black Cat (1934)

Boris Karloff!  Bela Lugosi!  Together in what might be the finest picture that pits the two against each other, a story about a Satanic cult, "inspired by" Edgar Allan Poe's The Black Cat.  Read all about it after the break.

Twin Tweets

So, did you see what David Lynch and Mark Frost, the co-creators of Twin Peaks were both tweeting today?

https://twitter.com/DAVID_LYNCH/status/518060411690569730
https://twitter.com/mfrost11/status/518060486156230656

I could go for some of that gum right now, how about you?

P.S.
Who knew that Mark Frost's head looked like an old rotary telephone?  With a head like that, he could be a Batman villain!

The Saga of Crystar "Zardeth, The Wizard Who Worshipped Chaos" Action Figure - Remco (1982)

Every Friday, I review a different vintage 3 3/4" action figure, and today I'm featuring Zardeth, the evil wizard from Remco's The Saga of Crystar line of action figures.  Does he fit in with this week's "Mysterious Murderers" theme?  Err... kinda, I guess.  He does wear a Phantom of the Opera style mask!  Okay, that's settled, then,  Let's check out this EVIL action figure after the break!

KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park (1978)

The film was also known as "KISS Meets the Phantom" and  "KISS in Attack of the Phantoms."

In 1978, at the height of their popularity, rock band KISS made their feature film debut in KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park.  In the film KISS play a super-powered version of themselves as they fight an army of evil androids and unravel a missing-persons mystery at a failing amusement park.  But don't worry, all that doesn't stop them from performing a series of concerts and treating us to several classic KISS songs.  Does this movie sound awesome, or what?  Wait, did I mention it's a super low budget made-for-TV movie, produced by Hanna-Barbera (the same guys who produced Yogi Bear and Scooby Doo)?  Yeah, "awesome" might not be the right word to describe this flick.  Read on to find out what word is...

The Phantom of the Opera (1925) Full Length Movie

My theme for this week's Countdown to Halloween posts, "Mysterious Murderers," was inspired a great deal by The Phantom of the Opera, so when I saw that the full 1925 version of The Phantom of the Opera was available to watch for free from the Internet Archive, I had to share it.  Check out this classic horror film, starring Lon "The Man of 1000 Faces" Chaney, after the break!

Get Creeped Out By The Phantom of the Opera and The Invisible Man ReAction Figures, the Subjects of This Week's Retro Wednesday!

October is finally here!  That means it's time for the Countdown to Halloween! I'll be making Halloween inspired posts every day this month, and with a different horrifying theme every week.  This week's theme is MYSTERIOUS MURDERERS: Devil-Worshipers, Masked Killers and More, in a Week of Men Who Kill From the Shadows!  It's all about the creepy weirdos who wear masks and disguises, or hide in the dark, and kill, kill, kill!  It was inspired by one of today's action figure subjects : The Phantom of the Opera.  Posts later this week will feature an evil magician, a satanic priest, a masked serial killer, and a Phantom of the Opera wannabe who battled a '70s rock band!  I won't spoil it for you by telling you exactly what I have in store... you'll just have to come back every day to find out!

Today, I'll be looking at two Universal Monsters action figures from Funko and Super 7's ReAction line: The Phantom of the Opera and The Invisible Man.  Lets' check them out after the break...