Apparently, size does matter...

One of the main reasons (excuses) I had to buy Gentleman Ghost in Wave 8 of DC Universe Classics was that he came with a Mini Atom figure, and I wanted one for my JL display.

After I saw him I decided that this Atom was a bit too small (that's just stupid, Atom is supposed to be small) to look good on the display. Even in the front of the display the teeny tiny Atom wasn't noticeable enough.

I checked the other Atoms in the market and started a very long quest to find this:



DC Infinite Heroes Atom from Mattel.

Little did I know that Mattel's bizarre distribution system and a line that never really took off were going to be the greatest obstacles in my way.

I asked several friends that live in other countries (covering Australia, the US and several Latin American countries) to locate and send the little bastard. But nobody was able to find it (special mention to FishMilkShake that actually got me the Ryan Choi Atom, a figure I also wanted).

Finally in my trip to San Francisco I was able to find not one but two Atom figures (the DCIH one and the gorgeous Eaglemoss figurine, I'll talk about that one some other time).

The little figure looks better in person than in pictures, the Playmobil hands are so small that are not a big problem in the overall look. That said, I'll say this: I don't like this line, and I wouldn't buy any of the other characters. But I think the sculpt looks good enough to mix with DCD and DCUC figures making Atom, one of my all time favorite characters, more noticeable in the display.

I'll keep the little one somewhere though, he's just too cute.



Until next time.

(Remember that the Freak Studios First Freaky Contest ends in a couple of days! Hurry up!)

Core of evil

I said in Moss Man's post that I had several MOTU Classic figures to talk about, well I already got Optikk now, but if I keep skipping these, I have the feeling I'll never be able to talk about them. And believe me, they are so much more important than a freaky one eyed space mutant.

In fact, these are three figures that establish the core of evil in Eternia:



First of all I was able to get the re-releases of Skeletor and Beast Man. And I'm really happy about that. I call them (and the third figure, you may know who she is) the Core of Evil, because they are by far the most relevant bad guys in Eternia, I would add Trap Jaw, Mer-Man and even Tri-Klops to that list, but of the six great villains, only three were part of a motion picture starred by the one and only Ivan Drago and that chic from Friends.



As I said before, I always liked the bad guys better than the good guys when I was a kid. And Skeletor is one of the reasons why that is. Well, I'm not going to get in that online fight to determine if Skeletor was more of a badass than Hordak or if it was the other way around.

It was always clear to me, that Hordak was designed to be like the... Like the Super Saiyan version of Skeletor if you allow me to use that expression, he had like the same concept of a skull in a muscular body, only instead of a human skull was a monster skull. He was also a shape shifter and that's kinda badass.

That being said, I always liked Skeletor better. Why? Because most of the time the original is always better, even than the mega hardcore copy. (Wally West being an exception of this, there, I said it!)

MOTUC Skeletor is great, he's a simple design with lots of details. Thank you 4 Horsemen! And I'm displaying him with the staff, because I'm tired of all the Power Swords and half Power Swords, and also, because when I was a kid, Skeletor weapon was, without exception, the staff.



I like this figure, the sculpted fur is a nice touch also the feet are great, and stand out from the rest of the line. The face is frozen in an eternal growl and the colors remind me of a baboon's face. Until this moment, I've never pictured Beast Man like a Monkey Man, I always thought he was more like a lion/wolf man when I was a kid. But I think it works, he's supposed to be every animal, right?

Also, nobody says "Mumbling henchmen" like Beast Man. He was so of much a must-have for this line, that he was released before Skeletor. Because you know that if you're releasing the evil master, the evil minion has to be there early to get Snake Mountain ready for him. He's with Skeletor almost 24/7, so he must have an anecdote or two...



I'm not even going to start with his name being "Raquel", because if we are going to talk silly names, we might as well talk about the queen:



Evil-Lyn real name (according to her bio) is Evelyn.

Wait, what?

I'll say it again: Evil-Lyn's real name is actually Evelyn. In a world filled with Stupid names like Squidish Rex, Trydor Esooniux Scope, Araneus, Hec-Tor Kur and Raqquill Rqazz (I couldn't resist mentioning it, man, Eternian parents are the biggest assholes in the World when it comes to naming their children), Evil-Lyn's code name is the worst, why? Because her REAL name is EVELYN MORGAN POWERS.

That's like the best name ever, especially if you are an evil sorceress. I don't know if this is an actual original He-Man bible name or just part of the new rebooted MOTU Universe Mattel is going for. But this is too much, you just turned a pun into a disgrace.

OK, so... Other names for Evil-Lyn... and... GO!



The figure itself is very nice. It's basically a Teela repaint, so, if you liked Teela, you are going to like this one too. I liked that they used the original blue and yellow of the old toy instead of the pale skin and gray suit of the 200X series. I don't mind. And when Mattel finally makes a new release with the revamped colors, that's another figure I can avoid. Thanks Mattel for saving me money.

Evil-Lyn comes with Screeech, her version of Zoar (it's the fourth time we see this eagle Mattel, aren't you spreading the eagle thing a little bit too thin?). Well, at least this time the eagle has an actual perch to stand, and a kick-ass rocket launcher so, yeah, he's going on display, unlike the others.



Until next time.

(But, I mean, really? How can you mess up a name like EVELYN MORGAN POWERS!!!)

Mucha Lucha

I like lucha libre as much as the next guy (unless that guy is Reis, in that case he enjoys it quite a bit more). Lucha libre or "Catch" as we called it here, was very big in Argentina during the 70s and 80s, the influence of masked Mexican wrestling was significant enough for us to have our own mythical wrestling show called Titanes en el ring (Titans on the ring).


Awesome. Also, disturbing. Also, awesome.

Then things started to get silly and when kids weren't interested enough in the original characters of the show, they used characters that were popular at the time, like... I shit you not... Voltron!



You know you have taken a wrong turn in life when a guy in a Voltron suit is kicking your sorry ass...

So, as a kid that grew up with that, you can assume two things:
1) I love Voltron!
2) I love masked wrestler action figures.

Sadly I never started a collection of this. I was always tempted, but the crappy toys we used to have are still way to crappy to track them down. I've seen several great toys in Mexico, but I'm not that familiar with those luchadores. So, I'll just pass on them.

Some time ago, I found one site in the Interwebz with some kick-ass toys and I promised I would buy them on sight. The site is called muttpop and the series I loved so much is just called Lucha Libre.

There are not a lot of figures on the line, they are a lot of repaints. And I would have killed for one of this:



Dr. Destruction!

Or even this one:



El Panda.

Look at those guys, they are great!

The only problem with them is that they are not that easy to find (almost impossible in Argentina), and they are quite pricey. But I was just lucky enough to find one the minis (at an affordable price) in my recent trip to San Francisco. And, as I said, I wasn't going to let this one escape.



The Mini Gobi is an amazing vinyl toy. The expression with the white eyes and the grin. I just love everything about this figure. It's like a little sleazy luchador. And his luchador name should be The Weasel or something like that. As I said he comes in a variety of different colors and designs:



But I like the original better. I was really happy with it. My only problem is that he has some problems standing up and he tends to fall down, but, if placed against the back of the shelve he just looks good enough to make me forget that.

The thing that really gets me about this figure are the two cigarettes he's holding at the same time. That just cracks me up... I sense a demotivational toy poster coming...



Until next time.

Muuuuuuucha Luuuuuuuuuucha (I miss that show).

Contest reminder

Don't forget, you have two weeks to come up with an original MOTU character using existing parts of MOTU characters (some minor alterations are allowed), give him a name and a bio and send it to me (funforfreak@gmail.com).

A better explanation of the bases to enter here.

Don't miss on this opportunity to win a very rare, very geographically exclusive Fuerza T Pantano.

You too can have an original character and flip a metaphorical bird to Mattel's copyright!



What he said!

Until next time.

(Let your imagination fly as high as Stratos, with half the Scottish accent).

Don't worry, be Harley

The greatest thing about everyone knowing I'm a toy collector is that occasionally people give me free toys.

I had this conversation with a friend (he reads the blog, I didn't even knew he knew I had a blog, and wishes to remain anonymous, so we'll just call him "Friend", man I feel like Ludo from Labyrinth... "Ludo Friend")... Where was I? Oh, right, the conversation I had a couple of days ago:

Friend: So... I have a toy I don't want and I think you would like...
Freak Studio: Great, I want it!
F: But I still haven't tell you what it is...
FS: It's OK... I'll take it...
F: OK, but I'll just give you this toy if you don't have the character already...
FS: ... O... K
F: It's Harley Quinn, from the DCD Mad Love pack...
FS: ...
F: So, do you have one?
FS: ...
F: ...
FS: ... No.
F: Liar, you do have one!
FS: I don't! I can't believe you would accuse me of...
F: I saw it last week at your house...
FS: ...
F: ...
FS: Oh, THAT Harley Quinn... But that one is impossible to stand and has a broken arm (this is actually true).
F: OK, but you can't have it.
FS: But I really want it!
F: No.
FS: But I really really want it!
F: No.
FS: But I really really really want it!
F: NO!

This went on for like seven or eight "really really really" more, finally my friend gave up and handed me this:



Booyah! Thanks to The Simpsons that taught me that being incredibly annoying is a sure way to get things! The complete story behind this is that my friend ordered the Mad Love two pack because he wanted the Joker (it's Alex Ross' Joker but painted in the metallic colors DCD is apparently really enjoying these days). He's a huge Joker fan but not a toy collector, so he gave me Harley. The bad thing is that the Joker's cane was broken in two. So, to show I'm not completely heartless I ask that if any of you readers have an extra Joker cane (I don't really know why would you have one, but I'll ask anyway), please contact me (funforfreak@gmail.com). Thanks!

The Harley I owned was the Hush version that's almost the exactly same sculpt as this one. It is a gorgeous sculpt to begin with, way better than Mattel's one in my opinion. So, if this is just a metallic red repaint, you may ask, why did I wanted it so bad?

Because of this:



The Harley from Hush has pre-posed feet. making her completely impossible to stand without the help of the base, the base from Hush is quite big and it uses way too much display space. For this re-release, DCD sculpted flat feet, allowing Harley to stand perfectly on her own.



Also what I told my friend is true, Harley's arm was a little bit fragile, it didn't fall off, but you couldn't move or pose if you wanted it to stay in place.

The only thing in which DCD dropped the ball here, is that they forgot to paint one of her boots. One is supposed to be red, but they are both black. Just a minor problem of an excellent figure. So, I'm happy...



... You might even say crazy happy about this couple.

Until next time.

(I'll really really really really really really really really miss you!)

The Brave and DeLuxe

I like Mattel's DCUC, the sculpts from the 4 Horsemen are incredible and except from a few things here and there (like the hideous female buck) I'm very happy picking up the figures I want, and enjoying them very much.

But they are not Mattel hottest line.

I love Mattel's MOTUC, again the 4 Horsemen behind the wheel, and the nostalgia factor added to the modern way of producing action figures is more than enough to avoid hating the line every time it sells out in a nanosecond. Anyway, with all there is against the line, I jump up and down like a kid when I get one of the figures.

But they are not Mattel hottest line.

I'm addicted to Mattel's JLU, I have every different figure produce so far (except for one, damn Holliday Hal!), they are an incredible fun line that runs deep in the core of the DC Universe and brings us obscure characters in a shape I, particularly, love. I'm a sucker for the Timmverse.

But they are not Mattel hottest line.


Mattel hottest line right now, I declare it, is this one:



Action League, from Batman - The Brave and The Bold. I just can't enough of this mini guys!

This dude up here is the Gentleman Ghost and his Ghost horse. They are part of one of the five Deluxe packs this line has. This includes, the good gentleman, his horse and a Batman (all of them have a Batman) that's wearing very chic Nth Metal knuckles.

Wanna know what Nth metal is? Wikipedia has an article about it. Amazing, right?



Gentleman Ghost and his Horse have a special feature too, they glow in the dark! And as you can see you can put GG in his horse quite comfortably. I wasn't sure if I was going to keep the horse in the display at first, after all, he's kind of a vehicle, but when I saw how cool they were together how could I say no?

There's another version of GG that comes with the Toys-R-Us exclusive Action League 6 pack, it's translucent. But I think I'll stick to this one.

The thing about the Deluxe packs that makes them... well... Deluxe, is that they are big, waaaay bigger than a usual two pack, because they have a cool extra, like the glowing horse, or because they have a very big figure inside, something like...



Gorilla Grodd! The baddest of the bad apes in the DC Univ... Wait! Didn't I just talked about him? Like, three days ago?



Oh yes, yes I did.

Grodd and Batman are one cool two-pack, Grodd is huge (for this scale) and it is done perfectly. He has ball joints in his shoulders (that's the best articulation so far in the line) and he's very well detailed. Also, his mind control helmet comes off. Superb.

The Batman, of course, is Tiger Batman, or Jungle Batman, or Schumacher deco Batman. Don't look at me like that... Every geek makes Joel Schumacher jokes... Even Bruce Timm.

You don't believe me?

Here's Joel Schumacher in Batman The Animated Series:



Ehem... Moving on.

I said there were five Deluxe packs: You have seen two of them. Other two I didn't get, Batman with the Bat-sub, and Batman with the Bat-cycle. They only had Batman repaints and a vehicle, and I'm not a fan of vehicles.

But the fifth one, oh, the fifth one I needed...

That last one was Batman (in Tim Burton's Batman suit), and also the Batmobile. and a figure that wasn't released anywhere else, ever:



A villain so cool, so kitsch, so absolutely necessary for an 80s Injustice League fan like me, that I didn't care if I had to buy the goddam car to get him. I wanted him. Plus, I have a friend that likes the vehicles but doesn't like the figures, so I'm gonna sell the car to him and get some money back. How's that?



How can I say no to Batman?



Until next time.

(Looking good there Batman!)

But Mooooooooooom...

Another post? This is insane.

But I can do it, just have to cut down on the rambling a bit and... Who am I kidding? I can't stop the insane ranting, that's all I know how to do.

And talking about insane, today I have two toys of insane characters. One is insane with evil, the other is just plain crazy. They are the last (I think) of the Toynami run in Futurama toys. in other words: Futurama Wave 8.

The wave has (like all the rest of the line) two figures: Mom and Chef Bender. OK, so maybe this was not the wave of my dreams I anticipated in October 2009, but at least is half of it.

I have to say, that I'm a little pissed, because if wave 8 is in fact the last, then another Bender variation was a lousy way to say goodbye. Also, after Super King in wave 5, Chef bender is just lame. So I won't even post a picture. That's how pissed I am (also, lazy).

But Mom, the head of the oh so evil Mom corporation is just incredible. Behold:



Mom is not packed in with any accessories, which was odd considering all the other figures had at least one cool thing. But that's until you realize that Mom's body feels a little hollow, you apply a little pressure and...



Boom! Mom turns from saggy old maternal woman to thin old evil dominatrix in a second. Instead of a MILF, she's more like a MTSMS (Moms That Scare Me Shitless).

I like how they managed to give us both looks in one really cool figure. Of course, the accessory itself prevents the figure from having a decent articulation. But none of the previous figures were great in that department. So I'm OK with it. Mom's going to the shelve in her suit, because she can't really stand on his own the other way (big head, small feet. You do the math).

What Mom does have are the last parts (that's why I needed Chef Bender) to create the last BAF (actually BAR - as in Build-a-Robot) of the line.

Roberto, the stabby bot!



Roberto is so great that every time I look at him I get less and less angry at Toynami for not making the other waves I demanded last year (but really, they should've known better). And what's not to love? He's big, he's crazy and he has a knife. A cool thing is that the knife is not attached to his arm, so you can display him without it. But I really don't think why would you wanna do that...

I mean... He's a stabby robot!



If this is the last wave, I'm happy about how this line turned out. All the major characters are there, although Nudar in wave 4 stole a place from a more deserving character. Anyone else thinking "Scruffy"?

And don't get me wrong, I love Roberto, but I hate the fact that we're not going to have a Hedonismbot to lower the moral standards of our collections.

(I posted this pic before, but I like it so much I'm gonna post it again)



You still have SDCC Toynami, make it happen!

Until next time.

(I apologize... For nothing!)

Hugging up the big Monkey Man

Let me talk about the concept of the BAF or C&C (depending to where your allegiance is) for a second, if you don't mind.

I, as a guy who appreciates toys, think is a great and fun idea. The fact that you can get a bonus figure (and a big one at that) by buying other toys, the mere thought that a greedy-money-gabbing-toy-company can give you a present in the form of a C&C is just plain amazing! And makes me feel like a kid in front of Santa.

I, as a cherry picking collector, hate the idea of having to buy a complete wave just to own a kick-ass huge figure made of pure awesomeness with a great detailed sculpt and articulation. I hate the stupid-money-wasting-toy-companies for giving it away instead of making it easy for me and just let me pay for the damn thing instead of hunt down a complete one. Or worst, hunt down a complete wave of figures I don't want just to get the one I do.

So, as you can see, I'm in a love/hate relationship with the C&C concept.

Sometimes is love, I got the Metamorpho I needed for my JL display for almost nothing.
Sometimes is hate, I still don't have Kilowog!
Sometimes is love, a could get the pieces of Atom Smasher from a good collector friend.
Sometimes is hate, Wave 14 is another damn Walmart exclusive and I really really really want Ultra-Humanite!

Today, is love:



I was able to track down the last of the DCUC's C&C I really wanted: Gorilla Grodd!

He's the one Gorilla you can't miss because he's not only a huge Gorilla in the middle of a city talking about his plans of World domination (that, usually, would tip you off), but he's also the one Gorilla that almost all of the time has cables sticking out of his head.


Like this.

You see, this pointers on how to recognize a giant talking gorilla may sound stupid. But in the World of DC comics a law abiding citizen should know these things.

For example, you can't confuse Grodd with Congorilla...



See? the lack of cables and the addition of a red jacket are always good pointers (he's also yellow).

Also, you don't want to confuse either of these with Monsieur Mallah:



He would be the ape with a burette and a sissy brain in a jar. You may also notice that he speaks with a French accent. Does it make sense? No. Is it awesome? Yes.

Sorry about the digression there, I really hate when people get their monkeys mixed up.



I really like Mattel's Gorilla Grodd. And I LOVE the fact that I found it in perfect shape and just for the price of one figure. Going to swap meets in parks is always a good idea in Argentina, if you are coming here anytime soon keep that in mind.

Until next time. Unhand me you damn dirty ape!

It's a moss have

I really need to speed the posts up. I still got re-releases of Skeletor and Beastman to talk about, and Evil-Lyn too. I promise I'll get to them soon enough, but every time I'm ready to do a post about them, something happened.

Last time I was going to, Trap Jaw happened. And now my good friend Dozymuppet (I said anyone that gives me toys is my friend even if I never met them before) sent me this killer figure, and the others got postponed once again.



Check it out, is MOTU Classics gone-in-four-fucking-minutes Moss Man!

As you can see, he looks great in package, but you know I open everything, so...



Lets start with the first thing that hits you when you check the figure: the smell. The minty almost Vic-Vapo-Rub-y smell is not as strong as other people said it would be. Maybe because he was shipped from the US to Australia and the to Argentina, and Moss Man lost a little bit of freshness in the way. And it's a relief, I have my MOTUC display in a closed cabinet, and I really didn't want Moss Man to stink the place up (I'm rooting for an odorless Stinkor when we get to him - yeah, someone at He-Man.org just fell of his chair).

The flocking is very good, better than I expected "partial flocking" would be. And this is, thank goodness, the unflocked ears version (at this point I would have accepted an earless version if that meant having the character - oops, there goes the He-Man.org guy again).

In the accessories department, Moss Man does pretty well. A bag, a knife and a mace. But best of all, the extra head with the new 200X look:



The bag looks cool, is a great addition to the character, you can imagine him collecting wild plants or magic seeds in order to keep Eternia green. The knife is good too, it fits in the bag perfectly. And the mace is nice weapon for a Nature God to have, the sculpt details of vines and wood makes the mace a great weapon on its own and not just a silly repaint (see Weapons Pak).

But the head, man, the head is just amazing! I'm sorry about all you vintage line lovers but the 200X Moss Man just blows the other head out of the water (Again! Wow, that guy from He-Man.org really needs to read this blog wearing a seatbelt).



Thankfully, for the rest of the line I won't have any more trouble. I met recently a guy that in a greed-fueled-moment (Larfleeze would be proud) bought two subscriptions (you know the kind, he, maybe you even ARE the kind). Then he decided that wasn't what he really wanted (he's an opener like me), and is going to sell me the figures when they arrive. So, I'm now a subscriber to MOTUC... Sort of.

So, finally my troubles with Mattel ended! Yes! Finally! Thanks again, Dozy for completing the only figure I needed and wasn't going to get any time soon.

Until next time! What do you mean "Tytus is not a subscription figure and you have to order it from the site..."? Oh, fuck!

Freak Studio's First Freaky Contest!

OK, first a little story behind some really strange figures I have.

In the 80s the MOTU franchise was given by Mattel to an Argentinean company called Top Toys. One of the bases of MOTU popularity back then was that most countries had local companies making the toys, that way, they were cheap enough to become a success.

In 2002, when Mattel was ready to relaunch and revamp He-Man, Top Toys thought that making a MOTU line again was a good idea, so they asked Mattel's permission to use those original molds to recreate MOTU. Mattel of course said "Hell No! we're making another new cool line of MOTU and it's going to be a huge success! BWAHAHAHA" (futurology, not one of Mattel's strongest points).

But the good people of Top Toys honoring the proud Argentinean tradition of "we are in the geographical bottom of the world, who gives a fuck about copyright", decided to use those original molds anyway, with new colors and new names they created a line of eight original characters.

This line was called Fuerza T or T Force. (For a complete list of characters follow that link and go to the bottom of the page).

And here's the deal, I got seven of the eight figures, and in a recent trade I got a character I already had. This one:



He's called Pantano (Swamp)and is basically a Beastman repaint (in black) with glow in the dark paint in the eyes and teeth, the bio in the card says that he lives in swamps, lakes the bottom of the ocean and quick sand pits (?). He eats carrion and makes his weapons with bones and seaweed (?).



He was given Mer-Man's armor in dark green and also Mer-Man's infamous "Corn Sword" in the same color.

OK, so now you know the prize, lets get on with the contest. Here are the rules:

1) Using parts and accessories of the vintage MOTU line, create a new character. You can draw it, customize it or photoshop it. I don't mind.
2) Give your creation a name (it doesn't have to be a Typical MOTU Pun Name, but that could help). Also give him a short bio, something like the all that crap you've read above.
3) Send your creation, name and bio to funforfreak@gmail.com
4) If you win, take a pic with the toy or with the toy added to your collection.
5) You have a month, the contest will end in the June the 3rd, in June the 5th the winner will be announced.
6) If you have any doubts feel free to comment or send me an email.
7) If you have a blog, feel free to share this contest and also participate in it.

And now for my part:

The toy that I'll give away is the same you see in the pics, is MOC but has a little damage in the bottom of the bubble (but, hey, it's free!). I'll send this toy to wherever in the World the winner is. After the announcement of said winner I'll send him/her an email to ask for the specific details of their location.

I think that's it.

Until next time. Start creating and good luck!

Ninja Turtles and the Indiana Jones Terminology

I've heard several collectors use of the term "Holy Grail" when talking about an item they really want. A figure/statue or whatever that for some reason, a ridiculous price, a lack of availability - like an exclusive wave, Mattel - or just plain bad luck, they can't get. And I like the idea of different collectors having their own, personal Holy Grails.

But I also like to use that term in every single line I collect. I believe that every line has not only its Holy Grail, but also its Ark of the Covenant and three or more Sankara Stones. Every line has a figure that's more difficult to get (sometimes impossible) than the others. For example Hal Jordan would be JLU's Holy Grail, Volcana the Ark of the Covenant. And Big Barda, Obsidian and Deadshot (previous to the re-relase) the Sankara Stones.

Well, sometime ago, I was lucky enough to find an auction on ebay for a lot of Ninja Turtles figures, in that lot there was the Holy Grail, the Ark of the Covenant and one of the Sankara Stones of that line. I was missing those three. So I went for it... And won!



True, with that lot I got several figures I already have and a lot of variants I don't want. But I'm going to try to sell those to get back some of the money I spent. It's a good deal. Even without that, the money I spent in the whole auction was less that the money that costs just to get a MOC Holy Grail.



This is Scratch, he was released in 1993 and, as any vintage TMNT collector will tell you, he's the Holy Grail of the collection. A MOC version goes for 350, maybe 400 bucks on epay. I got mine for waaay less.

Without the fact that he's one of the rarest figure in the line (since I don't want them, I'm not familiar with variants, so there maybe some figures that are harder to find, but not the ones I want), the toy itself is average. Not the greatest Playmates figure at all. He's pretty dynamic and the expression of the face is very well done, but if you consider the rest of the line he's just OK.

Still, every time I see my TMNT display with Scratch in it I do a little jump of joy... My dog thinks I'm nuts.

And speaking of dogs...



Hot Spot was also released in 1993, I guess that by then the Ninja Turtle madness was starting to wind down and Playmates made less of these, I don't know.

In terms of availability he is the Ark of the Covenant. The figure is fun, but again, not the greatest figure. I like how he was sculpted with a bone in his mouth, like he was chewing on a toothpick or a cigar (I doubt it, since he's a firefighter after all, and they don't smoke, right?)



And finally this is Sandstorm (from 1992). I must admit that this one was just a bonus for me. I called him a Sankara Stone, but that is relative. He's not that hard to get in the US and not near as expensive as the others. But it's incredibly hard to find one in Argentina (the only one I've ever seen here had no arms, so someone replaced them with the arms of Mon-Star from the Silver Hawks... Really).

In a strange turn of events, he's the best figure of the three, the sculpt is really dynamic, as usual, one foot has mutated and the other one hasn't. like Scale Tail, he has a different body structure than the regular figures, with a hump and all.

These figures are in perfect shape and still are a great example of the fine job Playmates was doing in the 80s/90s: Great and original sculpting, original not reused body molds, vibrant colors, silly puns for names. What's not to love?



Until next time. Now, go and boil your bottoms, you sons of silly persons! (I had to quote Monty Python and the Holy Grail somewhere on this post right?)