Tron 20th Anniversary Retro Action Figures - Originally Released by Tomy (1982), Reissued by NECA (2002)

Tron action figures were originally released by Tomy in 1982.  There were four figures, Tron, Sark, Flynn, and a generic soldier/guard dubbed "The Warrior."  In addition, Tomy produced two lightcycles, red and yellow, that the figures could ride in.  The figures were molded in translucent plastic with minimal stylized paint apps.  Tron, Flynn, and Stark had 5 points of articulation (head, legs, and arms) and came with a glow in the dark disc that they could hold in their hands, or plug in to a hole in their backs.  The Warrior had 4 points of articulation (arms and legs) and came with a glow in the dark staff.  The figures are a little bigger than Kenner Star Wars figures, but still in the same basic scale.  They are more like a full 4 inches than Kenner's 3.75 inch figures.

Sark and The Warrior

The figures in my photos are not actually vintage.  They are 2002 Tron 20th Anniversary rereleases from NECA.  NECA rereleased the original four figures and two lightcycles, as well as produced a third lightcycle in blue.

Flynn and Tron

More photos after the break...

The Terminator and T800 Terminator Retro Action Figures - Funko/Super7 (2014)

Today I'm taking a look at the two Arnold Schwarzenegger Terminator figures from Funko's Reaction line, "The Terminator," featuring him with longer hair and the outfit he stole from punk rocking Bill Paxton at the beginning of the movie, and "T800 Terminator," featuring him in his short hair, leather jacket, and sunglasses, like he wore in the second half of the movie.  Let's check them out after the break!

Amazing Heroes Wave 1.5 Retro Super Hero Action Figures

A while back I wrote about Fresh Monkey Fiction's Amazing Heroes Kickstarter project, to make a series of retro superhero action figures, similar in style to the classic Marvel Comics Secret Wars figures from the 1980s.   That project was successfully funded in August, but a lot of people (including myself) were disappointed that the the stretch goals didn't get met, because that would have made two more cool figures, Silver Streak and Champion of Mars.  So the folks from Fresh Monkey Fiction, launched a second Kickstarter project to get those two figures made, and a added a third figure as well, Mike Allred's Madman!  Seriously, Madman, how cool is that?  They've also added a new set of backer cards for the figures designed by a group of great comic book artists, including Mike Allred, Phil Hester, Erik Larsen and more. Finally, if you missed out on the first Kickstarter, this well give you a second chance to pick up all of those figures you missed the first time.

There are only a few days left for this project, so if you haven't checked it out yet, head over to the Kickstarter page and check it out for yourself!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/549582372/amazing-heroes-wave-15-retro-super-hero-action-fig

Star Wars "Han Solo" and "Chewbacca" Vintage Action Figures - Kenner (1977)

Today I'm taking a look at a couple of classic Kenner Star Wars figures from 1977, Han Solo and Chewbacca.  At least I thought I was taking a look at classic figures!  It turns out that the Han Solo is actually a reissue of the figure from 1995!  I guess I need to read those eBay ads a little more carefully before I bid on them.  I thought I was getting a really good price on a group of loose vintage figures in practically mint condition, and it turned out he reason they were in such good condition was because they weren't actually from the 1970s.  But you know what?  That's fine.  I'm not buying these toys as investments, I'm buying them because they are fun, and this Han Solo is just as fun as the original.  Let's check him and Chewie out after the break!

Retro Wednesday! Funko's The Goonies ReAction Figures: Mikey, Data, and Mouth

I've featured Sloth and Chunk from Funko's The Goonies ReAction figures earlier on this blog.  Today, I'm going to finish up the Goonies with the the other figures in the line: Mikey, Data, and Mouth.  There all pretty good figures, making The Goonies one of my favorite sets of action figures from the ReAction line so far.   Let's check them out after the break!

Star Wars Power of the Force "Landspeeder" Vehicle - Kenner (1995)

A few months ago, I decided to start collecting vintage Kenner Star wars figures again.  I had a pretty sizable collection of these when I was a kid in the '70s and '80s, but I gave them away to kids in my neighborhood when I was in Jr. high, thinking I was too old for them.  Since, then, I've considered buying them again, but it seemed like a daunting and expensive task.  I think it was the release of Funko and Super 7's ReAction figures, done in that old Kenner style, that pushed me over the edge and made me start collecting them again.

Dollar Store Robocop Action Figures

I'm back today with a quick look at a pair of Robocop action figures I found out the 99 Cents Only Store, of all places.  Usually, they just have low quality Chinese junk toys, but for the Christmas season they've actually branched out with some semi name brand stuff.  I'm guessing that these were originally on sale earlier this year at regular toy stores for regular toy prices, and ended up at the 99 Cents store because nobody cared about that Robocop remake these toys are based on.  But still, at $2 a pop (not 99 cents, unfortunately), these figures are probably worth picking up, even if you weren't a big fan of the movie.

Retro Wednesday! Funko Buffy the Vampire ReAction Figure

Nearly perfect, except for one major flaw.

The last Funko ReAction figure I opened up was Mia Wallace from Pulp Fiction, and I was severely disappointed with that one.  It had some terrible paint flaws, and a freakishly misshapen face.  So I was worried about what the next figure I got, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, was going to look like.  Luckily, the paint job and sculpt are really good on this one.  Unfortunately, there was a different serious flaw with this figure, so this one ended up being a disappointment, too.  Read about it after the break.

Regular blog posts will resume shortly...

I've had a deficit of free time lately, and haven't been able to post much to this blog.  Sorry about that.

I should be resuming regular posting soon, probably on Monday.

Retro Wednesday! Funk Pulp Fiction ReAction Figures: Vincent Vega and Mia Wallace

Last week I took a look at Jules Winnfield and Jimmy Dimmick from Funko's Pulp Fiction ReAction figures.  This week I'm checking out the remaining two figures that have been released so far:  Vincent Vega and Mia Wallace.  There are still four more figures due to be released from this line, and hopefully those will be in stores later this month, at which time I'll be looking at those, too.  I was pretty happy with Jules and Jimmy, and I'm happy with the Vincent Vega figure, too.  Unfortunately, the Mia Wallace figure is a mess.  Check them both out after the jump!

Fisher-Price Adventure People Alpha Star Vehicle and Figures - Fihser-Price (1983)

The "Alpha Star" is one of my favorite toys from the Fisher-Price Adventure People.   It was first released in 1983, and came with a motorized planetary rover and detachable trailer, both with a bunch of fun interactive features.  It also included an astronaut, a robot, and an alien creature.  It had everything a kid would need to have some awesome planet exploring adventures.  Let's check out all of it's fun features after the break!

Retro Wednesday! Funko Pulp Fiction ReAction Figures! Jules Winnfield and Jimmy Dimmick

Yes!  The Pulp Fiction ReAction figures are finally here!  These have been some of the ReAction figures that I have been anticipating the most, and I finally have the first four figures in my hands.  Today I'm going to be looking at two of them:  Samuel L. Jackson's Jules Winnfield, and Quentin Tarantino's Jimmy Dimmick.  Let's check them out after the break!

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures Creature From the Black Lagoon Photo

The Creature From the Black Lagoon

This is my final "Halloweekend" post, officially ending my 2014 Countdown to Halloween.  I had a ton of fun doing the countdown this year, but it was a bit exhausting!  I'm going to take a few days off to recover, and then I'll be back starting on Wednesday with more toy reviews and other fun stuff.  Thanks to everyone who read and commented on my posts, and thanks to everyone else who participated in the Countdown for all the cool stuff you posted!  See you in a few days!

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures Dracula Photo

Dracula

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures Wolf Man Uncaged

The Wolf Man Uncaged

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures Wolf Man Behind Bars

The Wolf Man Behind Bars

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures The Mummy

The Mummy

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures The Phantom Lurks in the Shadows

The Phantom Lurks in the Shadows

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures The Bride Walks

The Bride Walks

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures Portrait of a Monster

Portrait of a Monster

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures Frankenstein Unchained

Frankenstein Unchained

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures The Invisible Man Photo

The Invisible Man

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures Invisible Man in the Window

Invisible Man in the Window

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures Wolf Man Photo

The Wolf Man

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures at Castle Dracula

Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures at Castle Dracula

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures In Their Cards

Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures In Their Cards

Halloweekend / Funko Universal Monsters ReAction Figures

Since Halloween was on a Friday, I'm treating it like a three day weekend, aka "Halloweekend."  I've got a handful of photos of Funko's Universal Monsters ReAction figures that I haven't published yet, so I'm going to be putting them online every couple of hours throughout the weekend.  So check back every couple of hours if you're really bored!  Or come back on Monday morning, and just look at them all at once.  Or... don't look at them at all, because you are burnt out on Halloween, and want to know why I'm not posting photos of turkeys and pilgrim action figures!  THE CHOICE IS YOURS.

Universal Monsters

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: