Tag Archives: 90s

#3949: The Thing II

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

THE THING II

FANTASTIC FOUR (TOY BIZ)

“Bombarded by cosmic rays during an exploration in deep space, Ben Grimm’s body underwent an extraordinary transformation. His strength, endurance and durability were boosted to super-human levels and his skin became an orange colored, rock-like armor. As a member of the Fantastic Four, The Thing is a sworn protector against villainy and threats of conquest, but his monsterish appearance has always remained his greatest enemy. Often feeling the need to disguise himself when entering public, Grimm’s crude camouflage poorly covers the heart and soul of a true, blue-eyed hero.”

While the team has always shared equal footing within the confines of the book, and have always been equally billed, there’s no denying that there’s an unprecedented break-out character from the quartet that is the Fantastic Four, and that’s Benjamin J. Grimm, the ever-lovin’ blue-eyed Thing.  Curiously, when Toy Biz put together their line based on the team, Ben was, through odd circumstances, *not* the first to double up on figures, as both of the Storm siblings beat him to the punch.  But, he was the first to get a properly planned variant, and also one that made a good degree of sense.  Since Ben’s rocky-form can’t turn on and off like the others (most of the time, anyway), he frequently had to hide himself away under a baseball cap, a colored hoody, and a pair of Aviators a trench coat, glasses, and hat.  It’s a signature look that’s been adapted a number of times, including as part of the very first Toy Biz line, which I’m looking at today!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The Thing II was released in Series 3 of Toy Biz’s Fantastic Four line.  He was the only member of the team present in this particular line-up, which was otherwise a much wackier collection of characters.  The figure is just shy of 5 inches tall and he has 9 points of articulation.  His bulky stature means even with the standard articulation, he’s not exactly agile, but you can get some subtle variations of his standing around pose.  While it would seem like a great time to re-use parts from the first version, this figure sported an entirely new sculpt.  The line was generally a loose tie-in to the show running at the time, but Ben marks a departure from “loose,” being a pretty spot-on recreation of his animation model from the show.  Of course, it’s his Season 1 model, which was far more cartoony and goofy, and stands out more from the rest of the line, and which was phased out of the show in the same year this figure was released.  It does okay by the design, though, and certainly captures its more bold line-work and cleaner rock structures.  It’s certainly a more huggable Thing.  The figure comes out of the box wrapped in a cloth coat.  It’s a very thin material, and also not *technically* designed for removal, since it’s tied shut with a very tight knot.  You can remove it, though that certainly makes it more prone to damage.  The figure’s paint work is fairly light, with just the eyes and shorts, which appear to be the same two colors.  It’s perfectly fine it its application.  The shade of orange plastic used for the bulk of the body does seem a touch pale, but it’s at least a bit better than the Marvel Super Heroes version.  Ben is packed with his hat and sunglasses, which are specially molded to fit over his head.  They do okay, and round out his disguised look nicely.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Since I came into the line a little bit after launch, this was my first figure of the Thing.  Mine, of course, immediately had the coat torn off and thrown aside, since I really just wanted the basic figure.  When my Grandmother took me to the KB Toys Liquidation Center in Delaware about a decade later, they still had a pile of this guy, so I got myself a second one, who has kept his jacket on the whole time, so it’s a little nicer.  He’s a very specific take on the character, and it’s interesting to have such a cartoon-specific version of the character, given there aren’t matching figures of the rest of the team.  He’s not incredibly playable, all things told, but he does make a neat enough display piece.

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0050: Cantina at Mos Eisley

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

CANTINA AT MOS EISLEY with SANDTROOPER

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (HASBRO)

Hey, who’s ready for a thematic tie-in?  I sure am! Yesterday, I looked at one of two cardboard playsets released during Power of the Force II.  The first released of those two actually was a more direct callback to the original Kenner run, a Mos Eisley Cantina, and I’ve looked at that one, albeit tangentially, via the figure it was later released at retail with following a run as a mail-away, who I reviewed back in 2020, making this a Flashback Friday Figure Addendum, following up on the Sandtrooper!

“Their remote location makes the spaceports of Tatooine havens for the varied masses from across the galaxy. At the seedy Mos Eisley spaceport, this variety is more than evident at the main hangout, Chalmun’s Cantina. The most loathsome of Mos Eisley’s population can regularly be found there, including imperial sandtroopers, who are deployed by the Empire to quell outbursts with brutal efficiency. In the days before the Galactic Empire, the spaceport of Mos Espa hosted a similar reputation as a “wretched hive of scum and villainy.” From the outdoor markets to the junk shops – overseen by the gambling crimelords, the Hutts – Mos Espa was a place where a nine-year old boy could learn the ways of the universe.”

Hey, remember how I’ve got all these Power of the Force figures I can review? Great, I don’t have to remind you why I’m doing this review, then. I’ve looked at all manner of Stormtrooper variants, many of them from this very line, but today I’m kind of doubling back and looking at a variant of a variant. Oh man, how crazy is that?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The Sandtrooper was released in 1998, accompanying a 3D display diorama of the Mos Eisley Cantina. He was the actual figure used to sell a bunch of cardboard, wrapped in cardboard. Neat trick, I suppose. We had gotten a standard, run of the mill Sandtrooper in the main line, but this one aimed to be different enough to make collector’s buy. Guess it worked. According to expanded universe materials, this guy actually has a name. He’s Davin Felth, the trooper who says “Look sir, droids!” while they’re searching on Tatooine. And now you know that. Don’t you feel like your life has meaning now? The figure stands 3 3/4 inches tall and he has 6 points of articulation. He uses the same head, torso, and pelvis as the single-carded Sandtrooper, but gets a new set of arms and legs. It’s still the super goofy PotF2 trooper build, but by this time things were starting to be a little bit more toned down. Those arms and legs are definitely less bulked up compared to prior troopers. His pose is also a more neutral one, but, in an interesting turn of events, he’s not really able to do anything but hold that one neutral pose. He looks like he’s standing guard (which makes sense for the playset he came with), meaning he’s designed to hold his weapon in a non-battle stance. He can’t actually hold it by the handle, due to the relative posing of his arms. The paint on this guy is also toned down from the prior Sandtrooper. He’s still got a little bit of weathering, but it’s nowhere near as intense. His pauldron has changed colors to mark a change in rank, with it being white instead of orange. For some reason, the black section has also changed to a light grey, which is an odd choice. Moving further down, the figure has also lost the black detailing at the elbows that prior troopers had, which does look a little weird. The Sandtrooper was packed with a blaster rifle and a patrol droid (missing from mine) which plugged into his back.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

As part of my goal of getting all the figures from the PotF2 line, I’m having to track down some of the more odd-ball releases as well, which includes this guy. I ended up getting ahold of one from a loose collection that was traded into All Time, though he was missing the droid piece. He’s not a bad figure. I actually like him quite a bit, certainly more than I was expecting to.

That’s a May 2020 review up there, meaning I wrote this review in the midst of the pandemic shutdown, when I had a *lot* of reviewing time on my hands.  My notable backlog of Power of the Force figures was certainly an asset during that stretch of time.  I definitely got a little more quippy during that period, for sure.  Hey, comedy gets you through it, I guess.  The review of the figure holds up fine, so no issues there.  Pandemic Ethan knew what he was talking about.  The figure proper was missing his Scanning Droid, which I have subsequently tracked down.  It’s a pretty fun piece, and it plugs into the spot originally meant for his survival pack, which is a clever re-use of the spot.

The main omission, of course, was the actual playset.  It’s similar in concept to the Jabba’s Palace, and has a similar footprint.  The exact layout’s a bit different, though, with walls that fully enclose it, and a lack of raised platforms, instead placing the emphasis on the central bar, as well as the two included booths with tables.  I think it ends up working a bit better in terms of potential use with the figures, and there’s a general feeling of better stability to the whole thing, which I do really like.

#3948: Jabba’s Palace

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

JABBA’S PALACE with HAN SOLO in CARBONITE

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (HASBRO)

“As one of a species known to live for at least one thousand years, Jabba the Hutt had plenty of time to build up his ill-gotten empire. No other crime lord lived in such luxurious, palatial surroundings, where his every need was immediately attended to by members of his court and a large collection of slaves. The repulsive, slug-like Hutt had his fingers in just about every unseemly activity known, from elaborate smuggling operations to his early days on Tatooine when gambling on Podraces was as big as the sport itself.”

When the original Star Wars line launched under Kenner, they had one proper playset, based on the Death Star, but in order to further expand the line at a smaller budget, they also partnered with Sears to offer another playset, based on the Mos Eisley Cantina, which, to save on tooling costs, was made out of card stock.  This was repeated for Empire, which saw a similarly card stock Cloud City playset.  By the time of Jedi, they didn’t need to concern themselves with tooling costs as much, so no card stock sets were crafted for that one.  When bringing the line back in the ‘90s, Kenner/Hasbro went back to that particular well, though, and we got a couple of new ones, including a Jedi-based one, Jabba’s Palace.

THE SET ITSELF

Jabba’s Palace was released as part of the “3-D Display Diorama” sub-line of Star Wars: Power of the Force II in 1998, officially under the Hasbro brand, not the Kenner one.  Included in the set was the fold-out Palace playset, an exclusive Han Solo figure, and some associated accessories.

The main set is, as noted, made from card board.  It’s based on the throne room of Jabba’s Palace as seen in the movie’s opening sequences.  Or, at least an approximation of it, which lets you get all of the main story focus spots into one main area.  The set has a footprint that’s about 25 inches long, and includes Jabba’s throne, the grate in front of it that leads to the Rancor’s pit, the entryway with the stairs, and the trophy wall that held Han in his carbonite slab.  The whole thing folds out without too much trouble, and tabs together without much issue.  The printing is generally pretty nice, and there’s a respectable amount of simulated texturing.  The only real downside is that some of the raised elements don’t hold weight especially well.  They do overall better than expected, especially Jabba’s throne, but the spot where the carbonite slab should go isn’t very good at supporting that weight.  Still, there’s plenty of space for spreading out the many denizens of the palace released over the course of the line.

The included exclusive Han Solo marks the second time the line did Han in Carbonite, following up on a solo release in ’96.  This one was based more specifically on his look immediately after being unfrozen, when he’s all…damp.  The figure stands 3 3/4 inches tall and he has 8 points of articulation.  He uses the same legs as the last version, but is otherwise a unique sculpt.  It’s certainly different.  Is it better?  In some ways.  They did at least actually get his shirt right this time around, and the added movement on the elbows is very handy.  The head’s not really any more Ford resemblant than the early release figures, but he’s got the wet and sweaty slicked back hair, which is accurate to the scene and also hides the likeness a touch.  I’m not sure exactly what’s going on with his facial expression, but it’s at least different from the other Han figures.  The paint only exaggerates the oddness of the face, with those strange eyebrows.  The rest of the paint is decent enough.  Han is packed with a pair of manacles, as well as a version of the carbonite block that has a spot where Han was thawed out.  The figure fits well in the spot, but there’s no real way for it to stay upright with him in it, which is annoying.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This is one of those sets I remember seeing a few times as a kid.  I don’t know that I fully understood what it was, and I mostly just remember the Han with carbonite.  Since I already had the standard one, I didn’t see much need for this one at the time.  Obviously, my opinion on that shifted, since I, you know, own one and all.  The Palace is a pretty simple thing, but I think it really works well as a backdrop for the figures.  Han’s fine, but definitely goofy.  Still, not a bad set, all things considered.

Shoutout to my friends at All Time Toys, from whom I purchased this figure for review!  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3947: Magne Arthur

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

MAGNE ARTHUR

MICROMAN MAGNE POWER (TAKARA)

In the ‘90s, teams of colorful heroes imbued with weird fantasy powers were all the rage.  Well, Power Rangers was all the rage, and a lot of other people wanted that success for themselves, so other stuff became very Power Rangers-like.  Takara’s Microman, descendant of G.I. Joe and progenitor to Transformers, decided to give the whole thing a try, as well as throwing in a bit of a scale shift.  The result was Microman Magne Power, a brief run on the line at the tail end of the decade.  Today, I’m looking at the central member of this incarnation’s core team, Magne Arthur!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Magne Arthur was figure 001 in Takara’s Microman Magne Power series.  He was the first of the figures that debuted the line at the very end of 1998, and helped to establish the line’s new style.  The figure stands abut 3 inches tall and he has 12 points of articulation.  As with the rest of the figures in this line, Arthur was scaled down from Microman’s usual 3 3/4-inch set-up, with the in-universe explanation being that these guys came from a  different Micro Earth than the original line’s figures, following up on the slightly smaller vintage Micro Hoodmen, who shrank themselves further to conserve resources.  His sculpt is largely the same as the other four core figures from the line, albeit with a unique head.  Arthur’s head was especially unique amongst the launch figures, as he didn’t have a helmet like the other four, instead just getting a set of funky headphones.  It’s ultimately a sculpt that’s a bit more in keeping with the earlier Microman figures in that regard.  From the neck down, he’s the same as the others, with the same kind of dated, bulky and boxy sort of body sculpt.  As the leader guy of a team of chromatically themed heroes in the ‘90s, Arthur was obviously predominantly red, which is done in a nice translucent plastic.  He’s also got white and dark grey accenting, and of course the usual chromed head.  As with all the basic figures, he had no accessories, but did have magnets in his torso, right arm, and feet, so you can stick him to all manner of metal surfaces.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

After discovering this line’s existence from the Micronauts guy at Mego Meet in 2011, I jumped pretty quickly on finding what I could of the line domestically.  Thankfully, Big Bad Toy Store had a rather nice selection of figures for pretty cheap at the time, so I was able to get the whole core set without much trouble.  Arthur is the most standard of the set, and that makes him the easiest for taking in the whole of what the line meant to be.  It’s not quite the success that Takara was hoping for, but it’s still a fun little set to look back at, and Arthur is a nice central piece.

#3945: Gorgon

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

GORGON

FANTASTIC FOUR (TOY BIZ)

“A member of the mysterious race known only as the Inhumans, Gorgon is one of the staunchest defenders of their hidden city of Attilan. Possessing the ability to cause staggering shockwaves with a stamp of his hoof-like feet, as well as superhuman strength and stamina, Gorgon is a foe to be reckoned with…as those who would exploit or harass his people have discovered, to their regret!”

Apart from a brief stretch of time where Marvel was *really* trying to push them as X-Men replacements, the Inhumans have kind of been a back burner for Marvel.  As supporting players, they’re neat enough, but as the main feature, it’s hard for people to connect.  They’ve struggled pretty fiercely with proper toy coverage, and it’s been a running gag that in 30 years of them getting toys, the royal family’s never been done collectively in one cohesive style.  Hasbro’s finally doing it this year, but in the mean time, I’m running back to near the beginning, with Toy Biz’s second entry in their ultimately incomplete line-up, Gorgon!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Gorgon is the final figure in the Series 2 line-up of Toy Biz’s Fantastic Four line.  He predates the character’s Season 2 debut on the show they were tying into, but uses a design that’s pretty typical classic Gorgon, in line with what the show eventually used.  The figure stands just over 5 inches tall and he has 9 points or articulation.  While the arm movement’s perfectly fine, the legs are quite stiff.  The right hip is tied into a kicking (or in this case, I guess stomping) feature, same as the first Gambit, so it’s not really for posing, so much as it is either locked down or extended upward.  The non action feature-y left hip doesn’t have much more motion, though, and his knees are also kind of limited.  That said, he can stand there all menacing like, which is most of Gorgon’s thing anyway.  The sculpt is generally pretty good.  It gets all the major points, and certainly looks the part for the character.  He does feel maybe a little small, especially by more modern standards, but it’s not an unreasonable size.  The sculpt’s also a tad soft on a lot of the details.  I do, however, like the detail work on the head, especially his somewhat unkempt hair.  Color work on this figure is decent overall.  The colors match well with his usual depictions, and application on the paint mostly looks good.  He does have a bit of missing paint on his chin, but other than that, the coverage is pretty consistent.  Gorgon is packed with a pair sci-fi rifles, re-purposed from the X-Men line’s Bishop.  Not really Gorgon’s speed, but I guess there was extra space in the package and they wanted to fill it? 

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I didn’t have a Gorgon figure as a kid.  I wasn’t as personally drawn to the Inhumans, so I just stuck with Black Bolt.  My dad had one, which he got during one of our many trips to Ageless Heroes when it was closing down.  I remember messing with it a few times, but not much beyond that.  Ultimately, he wound up third to last on the list for this line, snagged early this year when Rachel and I took a trip down to Factory Antiques Mall.  He was there, he was affordable, and I didn’t have him, so it all worked out.  He’s not without his drawbacks, but he’s also kind of neat in his own right.  

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0049: Quicksilver

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , ,

QUICKSILVER

X-MEN (TOY BIZ)

It’s Friday!  Finally!  Oh boy, the week’s over…almost.  Well, here’s a double blast from the past, because today’s Flashback Friday Figure Addendum is another one of those doubling down on an addendum entries.  So, let’s look at Quicksilver again…again!

Countdown to Avengers: Age of Ultron: 7 days remaining.

Alright, we just took a look at Scarlet Witch and Hawkeye, two of the most important Avengers in my books. They both joined the team back in Avengers #16, along with the subject of today’s review, Quicksilver. They were led by Captain America and dubbed “Cap’s Kooky Quartet.” Yeah, it was the 60s. Anyway, Quicksilver is an Avenger of moderate importance, though he’s not quite on the same level as the other two. Still, he’s an important guy, and seeing as he’s Scarlet Witch’s twin brother, it’s a little difficult to have one without the other. Plus he had that fantastic scene in X-Men: Days of Future Past, so he’s going places. Let’s look at one of his action figures!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Quicksilver was released in ToyBiz’s 90s X-Men line as part of their infamous “Muntant Armor” series. The figure was available in two possible decos: his classic blue and white and his current (at the time) white and grey. This one, in case you hadn’t already noted, is the white and grey, which, for those interested, was designed by legendary artist George Perez when he helped re-launch The Avengers in the 90s. The figure is 5 inches tall and has 11 points of articulation. Quicksilver was built on one of ToyBiz’s recurring male bodies of their 5 inch lines, which first popped up in the sixth series of ToyBiz’s Spider-Man line. It’s a pretty decent sculpt, with a nice, lean look, and a decent amount of movement. The only real downside is the left hand, which was hastily retooled from a web-shooting pose, resulting in a rather strange looking fist. In addition to the base body, Quicksilver features a head that is sort of new. The facial structure is the same as that of the “Battle Brigade” series Archangel, but the hair is completely new, giving us Pietro’s signature ‘do. The face is actually a lot better for Quicksilver than it was for Archangel, and the hair is very nicely handled, so it works very well. The figure’s paintwork is generally pretty well-done, though mine has taken its fair share of wear and tear. The lines are a bit fuzzy in some places, but overall the figure is pretty decent. The semi-metallic sheen on the dark grey parts is actually pretty cool, so there’s that. Quicksilver was packed with a stands shaped like a dust cloud and some sort of strange machine gun thing. Most intriguing about this is that he doesn’t actually have any armor, not even of the “Muntant” variety.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I got Quicksilver at a local toyshow, which my dad took me to, probably about 15 years ago. I remember that I was never able to find either of the Quicksilver figures when they were at retail. My dad had the blue and white version, but my collection was sadly Quicksilver-less. So, when I found this guy, I was pretty excited. I didn’t have a choice in deco, but I actually like this one, so it worked out. This figure’s still a pretty strong figure, even after almost 20 years. I’m certainly glad I found one!

That’s the original review from 2015, and here’s what I had to say when I revisited it two years later:

Oh man, this review was part of my rather lengthy countdown to Age of Ultron’s release. I was very excited for that movie. It’s funny to see my line about him “going places” seeing as the MCU Quicksilver won’t be going much of anywhere. You didn’t see that coming?

My actual review for this guy is pretty solid, I think. It’s worth nothing that, despite this being the fourth figure I reviewed on this body, I do believe it’s the first time I actually reviewed it. I kept referencing the Fallen figure’s review, but I never actually discussed the body there at all. Pro tip, guys: re-read the reviews you reference.

During The Find, I dug up this guy’s little dust cloud base thingy. It was re-used from the X-Men 2099 line’s Mean Streak figure. Quicksilver’s feet slide into the two slots, and he looks like he’s running. I guess. There are also wheels on the bottom, so you can push him around like he’s a parade float or something. Nifty.

I still like this guy a lot. One of these days, I’ll need to track down the other costume.

My first addendum notes it was a pretty good review the first time around, and I’m inclined to agree, even a whole decade removed.  Good for me, having good and consistent reviewing habits.  About a year after the addendum, I finally did get that other costume, so good on me for that one.  When I first revisited the figure, I’d found his dust cloud running base, a repurposed piece from fellow speedster Meanstreak (who I have reviewed in the time between these addendums), but was still missing his goofy arm-mounted machine gun accessory.  I found it!  Yaaaay! I don’t know that it was ever used with any other figures, but it’s an odd piece for Pietro, and also doesn’t really seem to work all that well with this figure’s mold.  I mean, he can hold it, but it’s awkward.  Also, in the time since my last visit to this figure, I’ve done a little bit of restorative work to his paint, so he’s not longer got that weird balding look.

#3944: Millennium Falcon CD-ROM Playset

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , , ,

MILLENNIUM FALCON CD-ROM PLAYSET with HAN SOLO

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (HASBRO INTERACTIVE)

“Explore 7 Worlds of the Star Wars galaxy! Battle TIE Fighters, search for the Death Star and destroy the Empire!”

Are you guys ready for things to get weird?  Okay, so, you *are* reading a review on a toy review site that’s nosing in on 4000 entries, so maybe weird’s a bit relative.  Are you ready to jump into some of the weird marketing strangeness of the ‘90s?  Yeah, of course you are!  In the midst of the success of the Power of the Force relaunch in the ‘90s, Kenner got bored with just doing basic toy stuff, and really started just trying a little bit of everything to see what stuck.  The back half of the decade saw household computers become a lot more common, and CD-ROM based media was seen as the thing to get into.  Toy Biz did a whole set of Marvel figures that included CD-ROMs with digital comics, but Kenner/Hasbro needed to do better than that, so they built a whole interactive platform.  Like, literally.  It was a platform that you put over your keyboard and it let the figures “interact” with your computer.  Welp, let’s check this thing out.

THE TOY ITSELF

The Millennium Falcon CD-ROM Playset was added to the Star Wars: Power of the Force II line in 1998 as a standalone piece.  It was released not by Kenner, but rather by the Hasbro Interactive division, because of its more computer-based side.  Included were the actual Falcon playset, an exclusive Han Solo figure, and a Windows 95-compatible CD-ROM with a “game” featuring 7 different locales that you can “guide” the playset through.  I, unfortunately, don’t have a Windows 95 PC these days, so I was unable to try out the game.  I know.  For shame.

The bulk of what’s included here is the playset.  It’s a sizable chunk of the innards of the Millennium Falcon, largely focusing on the main cockpit, but also including one of the gunner stations, so that you have some options.  It’s a pretty large set-up, which does actually give you some space for fitting in a bunch of the figures.  It’s notable for actually giving us a pretty nicely sized take on the cockpit, which were don’t usually see.  In fact, it’s a bit too large, which isn’t the direction you’re used to seeing.  It’s also somewhat comedic that, for as much space as there is included, they still don’t give you all four seats.  That said, there are the two seats for Han and Chewie, as well as two spots with pegs for additional figures.  In terms of sculpting, it’s all pretty rudimentary stuff.  Not a lot of smaller technical details, and it’s soft even by the standards of the other offerings around it.  It does at least have a neat visual presence.  The whole thing is designed to go over a standard sized (at the time, anyway) QWERTY keyboard, placing the weight on the outside sections.  There’s even a strap meant to hold it in place, lest the children get to vigorous in their playing.  The three seats, the two spots for the standing figures, and three different spots on the central console are all capable of pushing down, and through use of springs, they can correspond to the keys to “interact” with what’s on the computer screen in front of them, which will appear through the set’s widow.

In order to really tie it into the line, there’s an included Han Solo, who’s exclusive to here.  Nowhere else to get him.  Unless, of course, you just opted to get the very similar figure from the gunner stations line from the prior year who was likely still available and retailed for 1/4 of this item.  But this one’s got knees!  This figure stands 3 3/4 inches tall and he has 7 points of articulation, which, yes, includes the knees.  On the flip side, though, he loses the waist swivel that was standard for the rest of the line.  This is Han with the headset and gloves, seen most prominently during the gunner station sequence when they’re being chased by the TIE Fighters.  It’s a sculpt that’s similar but not identical to the gunner station one.  It’s different for different’s sake.  It’s still on the old Han likeness, so it doesn’t look much like Ford, and he’s still a little bulked up.  Generally, though, it’s not a bad figure, just a bit redundant.  The paint’s more or less the same, which is to say it’s fairly basic and not terribly exciting.  He doesn’t get any accessories of his own, but by this point in the line, everyone had, like, 50 Han Solo blasters, so you can just give him one of those.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I did not own this set as a kid.  I did look at this set *sooooooooooooooooo* many times on the shelves at CompUSA, where it was the only toy that was ever carried.  My dad was in IT and had to make a lot of trips there for work, and there this set would sit.  I thought it was cool, but there was no way I was getting it for its retail price.  Instead, I got it many years later, when I had my own job and my own money, and no one could stop me.  It came in through All Time Toys a number of years back, and it was still very cheap at the time, so boom, I had one.  It’s goofy.  There’s no denying that.  But, it’s also kind of a cool display piece, even removed from the whole CD-ROM thing.

Shoutout to my friends at All Time Toys, from whom I purchased this item for review!  If you’re looking for cool toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.

#3941: Dragon Man

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

DRAGON MAN

FANTASTIC FOUR (TOY BIZ)

“Created by Professor Gilbert, once an instructor of Reed Richards’, and granted a sort of pseudo-life by the mad alchemist Diablo, the android Dragon Man is an unstoppable juggernaut of rage and fury! His great wings enable him to fly, his powerful tail strikes with the strength of a dozen bulldozers, and his fiery breath is as hot as a raging inferno! The only thing that distracts this simple man-brute from the rampage of destruction is his fascination with Sue Richards, the Invisible Woman!”

Dragon Man follows the wonderful early Marvel tradition of having a name that’s a simple mash-up of two things, which is attached to a character that is not actually those things…usually an android.  That’s certainly the case here.  He’s not actually a dragon or a man, but just an android.  His earliest appearances aren’t too involved, with him typically just acting as a tool for other antagonists, but over the years, he’s grown into his own fully-fledged character, eventually reforming, and ultimately serving in a mentor sort of role for Bentley-23, a clone of the Wizard.  He’s gotten a surprising number of figures for how infrequently he’s been used outside of the comics.  Today, I’m looking at the first of those.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Dragon Man was released in Series 2 of Toy Biz’s Fantastic Four line.  While the line generally served as a tie-in for the cartoon running at the same time, Dragon Man is one of two figures in the second set not to appear in the show.  A variation of this figure was also adapted to Toy Biz’s smaller-scale die cast line.  The figure stands just over 5 inches tall and he has 4 points of articulation.  It’s notably rather restricted for this scale, but a lot of that’s to do with how the design works.  The sculpt is decently handled.  It takes Kirby’s base design for the character, and makes it work within the context of the animated style if the rest of the line.  The build and texturing is a good match for the character, and he’s just got a nice, satisfying heft to him. He has a “fire breathing” action feature, activated by squeezing his legs.  It’s the same gimmick as the Marvel Super Heroes Venom’s tongue gimmick, which is goofy, but fun.  The color work on this one is mostly molded color, but there’s enough paint to sell the rest of it, and it’s all cleanly applied.  Dragon Man is packed with a fireball piece which is…well, I’m not sure exactly what it’s meant for.  It’s not really something he can hold, or anything, so it’s just sort of an extra bit that floats around.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Dragon Man’s not a character I’ve had a *ton* of interaction with, especially not as a kid, since he wasn’t featured in the cartoon or any of the comics I read.  I had the die cast figure, thanks to a boxed set I’d bought for other characters, but never the proper figure.  In fact, this wound up as the *last* Fantastic Four figure I needed to finish the set, so I finally made it a point to track him down in the last month.  He’s simple, but there’s a definite presence to the figure, and he fills out the shelf nicely.

If you want to see this figure in motion, I did a quick video with him over on the Figure in Question YouTube channel, so check that out here!

#3940: Max Rebo & Doda Bodonawieedo

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

MAX REBO & DODA BODONAWIEEDO

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

Thus far this month, I’ve dedicated my weekly Star Wars reviews to looking into members of the Max Rebo Band, so it can’t come as a terrible shock that I’m continuing that today, especially given the as to now lack of, you know, the guy what the band’s named after.  He’s kind of important, right?  Good ol’ Max?  Funky blue elephant looking guy? Guy who, per the Robot Chicken sketch, has a gig tonight? That’s the guy.  And he’s even here with a not-Greedo-playing-a-clarinet guy.  So, let’s wrap up the band and take a look at these two today!

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Max Rebo and Doda Bodonawieedo are the third and final of the three “Max Rebo Band Pairs” two-packs released as a Walmart-exclusive Star Wars: Power of the Force II offering in 1998.  Once more it pairs an original band member with one of the additional embers from the special edition.

MAX REBO

The centerpiece of this whole thing, Maximillian “Max” Rebo (or “Siiruulian Phantele” as was his original name in the pre-Disney days) was portrayed in the original film by puppeteer Simon Williamson, who was originally meant to play a different band member, who didn’t work out for production.  Rebo was of course offered up in the vintage Kenner line, which did its best to interpret him in figure form based on what little we see of him in the film.  As such, he was made a more humanoid character, with legs hiding behind his instrument, as opposed to only having legs, which he uses to play.  This was adapted into other sources, and became the standard for the pre-Disney era depictions of him, which included this figure.  The figure stands about 3 inches tall and he has 5 points of articulation.  His articulation is generally pretty restricted, but he at least does get decent motion on his shoulders, which is good for posing with his instrument.  The sculpt on Max is really great.  It matches his design well, and works in plenty of texturing on his skin, giving him that proper “guy in a rubber suit” feel.  Rebo’s color work is fun, with his bright, vibrant blue implemented well, and the accenting adding a nice pop to the general look of the character.  Max is packed with his red ball organ, a rather extensive and elaborate instrument that he can be slotted into the middle of.  It’s by far the most impressive instrument included here, and honestly one of the line’s most impressive accessories in general.

DODA BODONAWIEEDO

The rather silly name “Doda Bodonawieedo” was first introduced to this Special Edition addition to the band with this very figure, which is pretty nifty, while also still being silly.  Doda is one of two Rodians added to the band in the Special Edition; the Greedo design was one of those distinctive ones, so it makes sense to give it a bit more play.  The figure stands 3 3/4 inches tall and he has 6 points of articulation.  His movement is the standard stuff for the line, but like Barquin, he’s rather preposed, in order to hold his instrument properly.  The sculpt’s a nice one, capturing the Rodian head design really well, as well as working well with his outfit and posing.  Again, a lot of similarities to Barquin in this area, which I can certainly dig.  His coloring keeps the usual green for the Rodians, contrasting it with reds and oranges, which helps him stand out pretty nicely from the rest of the band.  Doda is packed with his own instrument, which apparently is just a “horn” with no fancy space name or anything. It does gets some pretty neat paint work, so that’s pretty cool.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

When I found the other members of the band, the only one *not* present in the collection was Max himself, which was sort of humorous, but also quite annoying.  I’ve been keeping tabs on loose Max Rebos ever since, but wasn’t having much luck.  I ultimately found the most economical choice was just buying the pair sealed, so I wound up with a spare Doda.  Honestly, it was pretty well worth it, because Max is so very, very cool on his own, and the band is just that much cooler with him included.  This is a set I’m really happy to have finally gotten to complete.

#3937: Blastaar

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

BLASTAAR

FANTASTIC FOUR (TOY BIZ)

“Dubbed the Living Bomb-Burst by the subjects he once ruled within the strange dimension called the Negative Zone, the mighty Blastaar has the power to generate staggering explosions from his fingertips. But, despite this power, Blastaar was eventually overthrown, and he was exiled to our positive universe! Now he uses his concussive abilities to try to recreate his lost empire…but the Fantastic Four inevitably foil his schemes for conquest!”

The Negative Zone, an alternate dimension that exists singularly throughout all of the Marvel multiverse and is ever writers favorite way of explaining things they don’t want to explain, first appeared in the pages Fantastic Four, where it was initially an uninhabited space.  A year after it debuted, though, it got its first resident of note, Blastaar, a deposed monarch of the Zone.  He made a brief appearance in the ‘90s FF cartoon, and by extension, got his first action figure via Toy Biz’s tie-in line for the show.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Blastaar is part of Series 2 of Toy Biz’s Fantastic Four line, released in 1994.  He’s one of the three villains included in the line-up.  The figure stands just shy of 5 inches tall and he has 7 points of articulation.  Blastaar’s mobility is really restricted, due both to his design and his action feature.  The neck has a cut joint, but because of the hair, he sort of only moves it at an angle.  He’s also lacking any elbow joints, and his arms are at a very straight angle.  The sculpt is unique to Blastaar, and it’s actually a pretty impressive piece of work.  He’s suitably bulky, as the character should be, and there’s some very nice texturing, especially on the figure’s hair and beard.  He’s got a bit of a Kirby vibe, but also still manages to fit with the rest of the line.  The only real quirk of the sculpt is how the action feature works into it.  He “blasts” missiles out of his hands, meaning they need to run up the entire length of his arms, meaning the arms are totally straight, and he’s got holes on either side of the arms.  There’s also no clip or actual proper launching feature, so they just sort of pop back out.  The paint work on Blastaar is pretty simple for the most part, but hits all the important notes for the character.  He’s packed with the two missiles, for use with his launching feature.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Blastaar is on the earlier end of additions to my collection; I got him as a gift from a family friend back when he was new.  I knew nothing of the character at the time, and he ultimately got kind of overshadowed by the fact that I got Cyclops II at the same time, and that was clearly where all of my focus went.  Blastaar himself kind of got thrown to the side, and ultimately ended up in my Dad’s collection.  I wound up replacing that one more recently.  He’s a good figure, who very much didn’t get a proper shake when I was a kid.  But…you know, Cyclops.

If you want to see this figure in motion, I did a quick video with him over on the Figure in Question YouTube channel, so check that out here!