Professor Edward C. Burke (London after Midnight)
Universal Monsters (Neca) - Ultimate Collection
Rated 4.85 stars by RMaster007
If you've never heard of London After Midnight, that's because there's no way to see it now. An old horror/mystery film from the 1920's, the film was lost to a vault fire a few decades later, but many an enthusiast has taken to preserving what's available of the film and keeping the story of it alive. NECA is also one of those people, but they're keeping it in the minds of classic horror fans not through stories and screencaps, but through action figures. The packaging design is similar to the Universal Monsters we've been seeing from NECA, with old poster art on the front and photos of the figure on all the other sides. It's not designated as part of that line, however, since the film was distributed by MGM, not Universal (plus I think it's public domain now). The figure and most...[See More]

Tombstone
Rock Lords (Tonka) - Evil Rock Lords
Rated 4.00 stars by Karl T. Face
I actually have a piece of the rock this guy is based on. Tombstone is a typical overconfident evil henchman of the 80s variety. He's got style, at least. Carries a scythe and all. This toy doesn't, but we'll come to that. This fellow basically has a little snake head on a long neck, spindly arms, and a beefy torso. Some damn big boots, too. And yet, it feels fairly cohesive. The "robot" parts are a sort of lime green. The deep green and uneven sculpt of the rocky areas are true to prasiolite, which I assume is the "quartz" listed on the package. Articulation, as usual, is a mixed bag. The hinges knees and swivel/hinge hips are decent enough, but the head only has vertical movement, and the shoulders and elbows are both ape-arm hinges, which is a pretty useless combo. The weapon here is...[See More]

First Turtles (Eastman & Laird)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Mirage Comics (Neca) - Basic Series
Rated 4.65 stars by RMaster007
As I've brought up already, this year is the 40th anniversary of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and whilst a huge franchise spanning comics, film, animation, and video games, it started off as mere sketches done between friends. Playmates gave us a set of Turtles based off Peter Laird's original group drawing, but NECA went one step further and gave us a two-pack of both Kevin Eastman and Laird's "first" turtles. This was an SDCC exclusive available through both the show and NECA direct, so unless you got them then, eBay's your only option now. As a convention exclusive, NECA had to do something special with the packaging, hence why in addition to the usual Mirage line graphics and trapezoidal shape, there's also a slipcover. The front of the cover depicts Eastman's renditions of this...[See More]

Original Sketch Leonardo
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Classic Collection (Playmates) - 40th Anniversary
Rated 4.15 stars by RMaster007
In 1984, up-and-coming comic artist Kevin Eastman sketched up a goofy drawing of a ninja turtle, which led to his friend Peter Laird doing his own version, ultimately leading to them starting their own comic book. What was supposed to be a one-shot turned into a long-running comic series, and it wasn't long before it became a global franchise and pop culture phenomenon. Now it's 40 years later, and Playmates has been celebrating the anniversary with plenty of re-releases of figures and vehicles from the original toy line, alongside some new products, such as a set of turtles based off Laird's initial group sketch. In contrast to the usual cardback, Playmates put these figures in window boxes, likely due to them being more orientated to collectors than kids (still says 4+ on the box). The...[See More]

Earl Sinclair
Dinosaurs (Neca) - Ultimate Collection
Rated 4.75 stars by RMaster007
Being a toy collector isn't easy at times, with how hard things can be to track down in-store (prefer that over buying online most of the time). The NECA Dinosaurs Earl Sinclair is an example, as I had a lot of trouble finding the regular version, but thankfully a trip out of town by the folks let them get him for me. Earl Sinclair is your usual sitcom patriarch: dopey and self-centered but mostly well-meaning. His design invokes this, with a soft, fat face and a friendly expression for (what he thinks is) a mighty megalosaurus. Eric Barnett did the sculpt, as with Baby, and it matches the puppet/suit used in the show well. The paint and wash are clean, and texturing is subtle but there. The alternate "talking" head is good, with eyes looking off to the side, and as the box shows, it was...[See More]

Air-Raiders - Battle Squad
Air Raiders (Hasbro) - Soldier Assortments
Rated 4.25 stars by Karl T. Face
Many 80s toylines were a gimmick first and a story second. It worked for a lot of them, but there were casualties. As I've said before, this was a small-scale army builder type of line, and there were often empty seats on the vehicles regardless. Once again, we have four troops and an officer. The grunts are tan, with orange torso armor. Said armor is intricately plated, almost buglike. A few hoses snake in and out, and there's a pistol holstered on the waist. The arms are fairly plain in the hands and biceps, but the bracers are a mass of greebles. The legs are also basically spandex above the knee, but the "boots" look like futuristic sneakers with leather leggings and heavy braces on the ankles. The helmets, meanwhile, are oh so pulp: almost a HALO jumper sort of thing, but...[See More]

Tyrants of Wind - The Enforcers
Air Raiders (Hasbro) - Soldier Assortments
Rated 4.25 stars by Karl T. Face
Air Raiders. Quite the obscurity these days, it was mostly just 5 issues of a comic I've never seen anywhere, and a gimmicky toyline. But it had a lovely swooping aesthetic, rather like pulp sci-fi art, with oddly detailed figures. And the best part was, there were troop builders. The Enforcers are the rank and file troops of the Tyrants of Wind, who tyrannically rule a large colony on an otherwise airless planet. They're totally brainwashed, and live to subdue, terrify, and enslave. Our daring rebels have their work cut out for them. And what figures they are! In simple blocks of desaturated purple and grey, without a lick of paint, they still look great. A visored helmet tops a knight-like environment suit with heavy gauntlets, thick boots, and concave pauldrons. Bits of hose peek out...[See More]

Sgt. Hacker vs. Scalpel
G.I. Joe vs. Cobra (Hasbro) - Spy Troops
Rated 4.25 stars by Karl T. Face
Sometimes the also-rans are also worth it. What we have here is a pair of characters that were present in the current comics, but pretty much disappeared shortly afterward. The Spy Troops line was plagued with odd proportions, ugly action features, and some fairly hilarious disguises. But even those have their uses. Opening with Sgt Hacker, ostensibly the meat of the set. He's the tech guy, that's about all there is to him. He's got a wee little torso, but everything else is in proportion. It pretty much goes away if you put him behind the wheel of something, or just have him crouching over an access panel. I always appreciate some nice plain colors in this line, and while we get a fair amount of highlights in blue-gray and two blues, he's still very plain and utilitarian. Apart from the...[See More]

Mad Hatter (Alice in Wonderland)
Disney (Super7) - Ultimates
Rated 3.75 stars by RMaster007
With Super7's now-ended Disney Ultimates line, they sought to represent some of the company's most popular films, including Alice in Wonderland, which was fortunate enough to get two representatives in one wave. I got Alice months ago for a discount, and even by Super7 standards, she was poorly-made. The Mad Hatter was released alongside her, and I recently got him for cheaper through eBay, so it's time to see if he's any better. One thing I'll credit Super7 for is that they gave all of their Disney Ultimates a unique package. The Mad Hatter has a wider than average box, as to fit all his accessories, but it's designed to resemble his huge table, complete with various silverware and lantern lights, while the slip cover has a swirly green checker pattern. Even though there's very few tape...[See More]

Donald Duck
Disney (Beast Kingdom) - Dynamic 8ction Heroes
Rated 4.35 stars by RMaster007
The one stuck with all the bad luck, cranky and mischievous Donald is the opposite of the more happy-go-lucky Mickey, and has much more personality to him. My favorite incarnation of him comes from the old newspaper comics, and if you haven't read those, I recommend checking them out. Donald's received a couple figures and other merch over the years, including Beast Kingdom's Dynamic 8ction Heroes figure. I've seen plenty from the line, but Donald's the first one I got in-hand, mainly cause I was able to get him on discount. The packaging is simple in graphics, having an illustration of Donald's head on the front of a blue box. Inside is a thick paper insert designed after Donald's shirt, and below that is a tray that holds all the contents in. It's easy to open it up and take everything...[See More]