New Trailer for Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders!

Check it out, courtesy of the fine folks at IGN:

Adam West! Burt Ward! Julie Newmar! All reprising their Classic Batman TV Roles in Animated "Batman: Return of the Caped Crusdaers!"

Adam West!  Burt Ward!  Julie Newmar!  All reprising their Classic Batman TV Roles in Animated "Batman: Return of the Caped Crusdaers!"

The-One-True-Batman is back!  Adam West is returning as Batman in a new animated feature Batman: Return of the Caped Crusdaers.  West will be joined by Burt Ward as Robin and Julie Newmar as the Catwoman, with as yet unnannounced actors playing Joker, Riddler, and Penguin.  Adam West and Burt Ward first mentioned this over a year ago at a comic convention, but I hadn't heard anything about it since, and I was starting to give up hope that it was real.  But it is real!

The movie will be released on Digital HD on Oct. 11 and on Blu-Ray on Nov. 1.  For more info, including the first trailer, check out the full post at Entertainment Weekly:
http://www.ew.com/article/2016/08/17/batman-adam-west-burt-ward-julie-newmar-animated

The Outer Space Men Return!

The Outer Sapce Men began as an action figure line in 1968, which was a bit before my time, but I fell in love with them when the Four Horsemen brought them back in 2010.  Their version of the Outer Space Men quickly became my favorite modern day retro toy line.  That action figure line sadly ended a few years ago, but now it is coming back, courtesy of OSM creator Mel Birnkrant, Gary Schaeffer, and The Outer Space Men LLC.  One of my all time favorite toy lines is returning!  Woo-hoo!  Read the press release below:

MEL BIRNKRANT, GARY SCHAEFFER, AND THE OUTER SPACE MEN LLC ANNOUNCE THEY ARE CONTINUING THE OUTER SPACE MEN LINE OF ACTION FIGURES

NEW YORK CITY, NY, August 16, 2016—Gary Schaeffer has announced via social media and through the official OSM site (www.theouterspacemen.com) that, as of next week, the Outer Space Men line of action figures continues!

A brand new Colossus Rex in the vintage and rare 1968 blue variation with golden accessories will be released through the OSM website store. The details of which night and at what time has yet to
be announced; however, Schaeffer has said it is to be sometime next week and he will be personally alerting the fan base via social media and the OSM website.

Additionally, the long awaited Cosmic Radiation Edition is making its first appearance. The entire run of all OSM figures will be made in stunning Glow-in-the-Dark. Gamma X, the Man from the 4th Dimension, Cosmic Radiation Edition will appear first within booth #426 at Star Trek Mission New York Convention at the Jacob Javits Center over Labor Day Weekend, September 2, 3, & 4. Colossus Rex Cosmic Radiation Edition is next to appear in stunning Glow-in-the-Dark within booth #440 at the New York Comic Con at the Javits Center on October 4th , 5th and 6th.

With the long awaited announcement that the iconic and infamous Outer Space Men line of toys will be continuing, Schaeffer has gone on record saying “More OSM figures will now be issued, faster than ever before”.

With less than 18 months to go before celebrations begin for the 50th anniversary of the toy line, Schaeffer is guaranteeing that building up to that momentous occasion will introduce something so incredible and unique that the world will never be the same.

Schaeffer closed with the remark, "be prepared to see something so special and incredible that even Hollywood will finally admit that the OSM is a galactic force to be reckoned with!".

For more information, visit www.theouterspacemen.com

 

Star Trek Select: Mr. Spock Action Figure by Diamond Select (2013)

Star Trek Select: Mr. Spock Action Figure by Diamond Select (2013)

Since 2016 is the 50th anniversary of Star Trek, I'd like to review more Classic Star Trek toys.  So today I'm taking a look at Diamond Select's Star Trek Select: Mr. Spock Action Figure.  The figure comes packaged with a diorama base of the Horta from the Star Trek episode "The Devil in the Dark," which incidentally was Leonard Nimoy's favorite episode, and thus a fitting choice for this figure.

The action figure itself is very well sculpted, with a great likeness of Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock.  It comes with two heads, so you can change his facial expression, as well as two sets of hands, one of which holds a phaser.  The phaser is not removable, but you can just swap out the hand for one not carrying the phaser if you don't want him to hold it.  It also comes with two tricorders, one with an open flap, and one with a closed one.  That seems a little excessive to me, did we really need TWO tricorders?  But I guess complaining about there being too many accessories would be nitpicking, as most of the time action figures don't have enough. 

The arms are very well articulated, and can hold a variety of positions, such as making a Vulcan mind meld with the Horta, firing the phaser, or using the tricorder.  But the legs are where this figure falls short.  There is absolutely no articulation on the legs, instead you get two pairs of unarticulated legs, one kneeling, and one standing, that you can swap out.  And the legs are not even balanced properly for the figure to stand on, you must use the base and plug the holes in the feet into the pegs on the base in order for the figure to stay upright.  So essentially what you have is not really an action figure, but a customizable diorama piece.  So if you're the kind of toy collector that likes to collect things to display on a shelf, then this works great for that.  If you actually want to "play" with your toys, then this one falls short.

Love - Love (1966)

Love - Love (1966)

One of my favorite bands from the 1960s was Love.  Love combined folk, psychedelia, and garage rock into a truly unique sound.  In March of 1966, the Los Angeles based band released their first album, the self-titled "Love."  They released a single for "My Little Red Book," a song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David and originally recorded by Manfred Mann.  Love's version of the song was raw and primitive with simplified chord changes.  Supposedly Bacharach hated it, but it was a big hit in Southern California, and a minor hit in the rest of the country, where it reached #57 on the Billboard charts, and went on to become a garage rock staple.  Love went on to even greater acclaim with their next two albums, "Da Capo" later in 1966, and "Forever Changes" in 1967.

Here's a couple of clips of Love performing "My Little Red Book" and it's b-side "Message to Pretty" on American Bandstand in 1966:

Love - My Little Red Book


Love - Message to Pretty