This Week In Your Plastic Crack, Action Figures and Toy Collection 26 26

[Mr.Mcknowitall]

On 6/19/2018 at 5:24 PM, sagii said:

..Snagged this one back in March. While not plastic, it is a tin toy: Made by the legendary Marx Toy co. in 1939 this is a still working Porky Pig Wind up toy (his umbrella spins). Tough to find with an original box, but i have that too.  One of many items from what i like to refer to as 'The Looney Tunery'. 

Outstanding!! I am a collector of Marx. The umbrella is usually the first to go. Great find. 

[comicwiz]

On 6/19/2018 at 2:54 PM, fantastic_four said:

Having been out of toys since the 80s until looking for some for my kids for the last few months I really can't understand this perspective aside from nostalgia.  None of the toys from my youth in the 80s had the articulation, details, or wide selection of styles of the myriad of toy models I now know are on the market today.    And that's across superhero figures, Star Wars, everything. Mego superheroes, Star Wars, and GI Joe were the figures of my youth, but subsequent generations of toys blow those all away in most ways.

For me, the vintage toys will always hold a greater appeal with their five points of articulation. For Star Wars, they pretty much destroyed the interest for me as soon as they started making every character look like they subscribed to Joe Wieder's Muscle and Fitness, and began Schwartzneggers "I drink Juice" diet. And if the roid-inspired figures weren't bad enough, They began turning action figures into an ambitious quest to achieve realism and likeness, where I've always felt that making it all about "show" and "appearance" left little room for imaginative play. The new toys are not as durable, joints/limbs all get loose from play wear very quickly, and I'm just not a fan of over-detailed figures that wobble around or can't stand up straight after a week of the kids stress testing them. They also have WAY overdone the accessories for these things. It's why so much of it still remains in their original package, and why toy manufacturers still keep putting out product, because it's not the kids playing with them anymore, it's the adults obssessing about having the perfect looking action figure. As a kid, I lost a blaster or bow from my Star Wars figures, and life would go on. Now, if Michealangelo loses one of his two nunchucks, three throwing stars, or kusarigama, it's abandoned. How many of these toys I've seen end up in the thrift store donation bags over the years.

[Yorick]

On 6/20/2018 at 3:45 PM, archiecomicscollector said:

I'm relatively new to CGC - and I need to look through the rest of this thread - but I'm a HUGE Archie fan! I started collecting Archie comics 20 years ago, when I was just 10 years old. I have nearly 2000 comics (including digests) and over 100 associated collectibles and toys in my collection. A glimpse of my collection can be found on Instagram under @archiecomicscollector. I continue to buy comics regularly, but recently my focus has been acquiring more Archie toys  

Is that Archie fabric that you are using as a back-drop for the photos?  Nice presentation!

[comicwiz]

On 6/20/2018 at 6:45 PM, archiecomicscollector said:

I'm relatively new to CGC - and I need to look through the rest of this thread - but I'm a HUGE Archie fan! I started collecting Archie comics 20 years ago, when I was just 10 years old. I have nearly 2000 comics (including digests) and over 100 associated collectibles and toys in my collection. A glimpse of my collection can be found on Instagram under @archiecomicscollector. I continue to buy comics regularly, but recently my focus has been acquiring more Archie toys  

Wow! Incredibe collection. Welcome to the boards. Love the carded Archie figures!! I've been looking for some myself. My instagram, and I started following. I'm more of an 80's toys collector, and my posts here might indicate I'm something of a Star Wars nerd, but I'm a big fan of Archie comics. My favourite thing to collect is Archie original comic art. There's a link in my sig to my CAF gallery if you want to check it out.

[archiecomicscollector]

17 hours ago, Yorick said:

Is that Archie fabric that you are using as a back-drop for the photos?  Nice presentation!

It is!  I found it at my local craft store, but they only had a small scrap - less than 1/2 yard - left. And I haven't come across it again!

[archiecomicscollector]

13 hours ago, comicwiz said:

Wow! Incredibe collection. Welcome to the boards. Love the carded Archie figures!! I've been looking for some myself. My instagram, and I started following. I'm more of an 80's toys collector, and my posts here might indicate I'm something of a Star Wars nerd, but I'm a big fan of Archie comics. My favourite thing to collect is Archie original comic art. There's a link in my sig to my CAF gallery if you want to check it out.

Thanks! Good to hear! Yes, most of my Archie collectibles are from the 1980s, and I'm always finding something new online. My latest purchase is a Archie Pencil by Number Set, c. 1987.  I'd never seen it before.  

I'll definitely check it out! I recently shared my first Archie original art purchase in the Archie Art: Any Fans and Collector's Here? message board. 

[BAT MAN]

On 6/19/2018 at 3:12 PM, F For Fake said:

This may be true when it comes to collectors, but if we're talking about KIDS and KIDS TOYS, how do they stack up? Do kids still even play with action figures? 

I think the 80's was the ultimate confluence of licenses and cultural saturation. And while some toy lines today boast features like extra articulation (Marvel Legends, for instance) with many lines, the quality isn't as good now as it was then, when it comes to materials. For instance, the die-cast metal of the early Transformers, the harder plastic used in the small Joes, etc. (I'd also take the rubber o-rings of the past, fragile though they may have been, over the articulation of Joes over the last 10 years or so.)  And in some instances, advancements were made, only to be followed by regression (thinking here of the mass market Star Wars and superhero figures which boasted the articulation of Marvel Legends style figures for a time, but which have now mostly regressed to the original 5 points of articulation of their ancient forbears.)

Transformers, GI Joe and He-Man WERE toy culture at that time. Nowadays I'd suspect video games and interactive toys are much more popular than their action figure cousins, though I'm too lazy to look up actual sales numbers. 

Also, there's the matter of price. Joes were about $3 when I was a kid. Nowadays, a 3.75 figure is $10-$15. Marvel Legends are $20. I'll let the resident poindexters work out the inflation, but I still think that we had it much better back then, value wise.

Of course, as you point out, nostalgia is a huge part of it as well. But when I look at the toy aisles these days, I am not overly impressed. Sure, there are some amazing toy makers our there for the collectors market, but when talking about what is available at the local Target or Walmart, I'll still take what I had as a kid.

Also I'm grumpy and old.

 

All experiences will vary, but for me personally the peak was somewhere between late 83 - early 85. During this time frame you were coming off the ROTJ run, Transformers exploded on the scene, MOTU was enormous, plus you had GI Joes in play along with DC super heroes, Secret Wars figures, LJN WWF, Thundercats, not to mention you had a major disruption in home gaming with Coleco Vision. 

It was such an incredible time period. I remember walking through Kiddie City and Child's World; the aisles were just filled with literally everything you would want. There was nothing in those days that I would turn down and not want to play with. I only wish I had pics or vlogs to take another stroll. 

[BAT MAN]

 

 

 

[MGsimba77]

[1950's war comics]

On 6/20/2018 at 6:52 AM, tv horror said:

A boy after my own heart Buzzetta. My father bought me one of the first Action man (G.I Joe) figures back in 1966 and I played with him for years then one day a concrete block fell on his leg and crushed it above the knee, I was heart broken. during the 70's I gave him to my nephew who lived in the same house as me and as he got his own figures mine was put aside as he was always the wounded soldier. Then one day I had the idea of giving him a new leg so we got a cheap version and chopped off his leg and then melted it on to the broken original figure success sort off as he was not great. However the story does not end there and due to Youtube I found out that these 12" figures can be repaired... he now has a new life and leg and I swear I can see a smirk on his little face. 

good story and happy ending  all my GI Joes ended up missing arms and legs and were thrown away....

[tv horror]

25 minutes ago, 1950's war comics said:

good story and happy ending  all my GI Joes ended up missing arms and legs and were thrown away....

My soldier was more that a toy he was my friend and we had some great adventures together, I even named him, he is called Scangie don't ask me where that name came from I don't know it just suits him. Thanks for the comment my man. 

[followtheleader]

12 hours ago, DC|Marvel said:

All experiences will vary, but for me personally the peak was somewhere between late 83 - early 85. During this time frame you were coming off the ROTJ run, Transformers exploded on the scene, MOTU was enormous, plus you had GI Joes in play along with DC super heroes, Secret Wars figures, LJN WWF, Thundercats, not to mention you had a major disruption in home gaming with Coleco Vision. 

It was such an incredible time period. I remember walking through Kiddie City and Child's World; the aisles were just filled with literally everything you would want. There was nothing in those days that I would turn down and not want to play with. I only wish I had pics or vlogs to take another stroll. 

We never had Child's World or Kiddie City (maybe one in Denver, but that was far away at a younger age).  Would have been cool to see at its height.

In my opinion, the problem is that we no longer see commercials for toys any longer.  It was a HUGE motivator for kids to go to a Toys R Us/etc and buy something.  

Can't remember the last toy commercial I've seen.  

Patrick

[F For Fake]

On 6/23/2018 at 10:23 AM, DC|Marvel said:

All experiences will vary, but for me personally the peak was somewhere between late 83 - early 85. During this time frame you were coming off the ROTJ run, Transformers exploded on the scene, MOTU was enormous, plus you had GI Joes in play along with DC super heroes, Secret Wars figures, LJN WWF, Thundercats, not to mention you had a major disruption in home gaming with Coleco Vision. 

It was such an incredible time period. I remember walking through Kiddie City and Child's World; the aisles were just filled with literally everything you would want. There was nothing in those days that I would turn down and not want to play with. I only wish I had pics or vlogs to take another stroll. 

Aw man, we had Children's Palace, and it was amazing, just floor to ceiling packed with the best toys ever. Eventually it closed and we got Toys R Us. I remember going to TRU for the grand opening, and they had a parade with Geoffrey and He-man and all sorts of characters marching through the store. I'm sure my memory is colored by the fact that I was a little kid at the time, but I just remember how HUGE and LONG those aisles were, and how they were totally stacked with Joes and Transformers and so much more. Even though my local TRU underwent several transformations before inevitably closing, I still remember the precise location of all of my favorite stuff, and the exact path I would walk through the store to get back to the action figure aisle, through the video games, past the bikes, to the right and back. So many great memories.

[F For Fake]

On 6/23/2018 at 11:25 AM, DC|Marvel said:

 

 

 

Beauties. Mirage was my first Transformer, but Prowl followed very soon thereafter, and was my long time favorite.

[MGsimba77]

[GeneticNinja]

On 6/23/2018 at 10:07 PM, followtheleader said:

We never had Child's World or Kiddie City (maybe one in Denver, but that was far away at a younger age).  Would have been cool to see at its height.

In my opinion, the problem is that we no longer see commercials for toys any longer.  It was a HUGE motivator for kids to go to a Toys R Us/etc and buy something.  

Can't remember the last toy commercial I've seen.  

Patrick

 

I never knew Lionel had their own toy store called Kiddie City according to wiki. I need to search and see what that looked like as I know I owned a Lionel train when I was young. It was a big deal with lights, steam, and metal tracks compared to the plastic of the slot racing toys. Even though those were cool, I want to find the one that could race up a wall and glow in the dark.

Those old toy stores were the place to go. I don't think it ever got old for me until the early to mid 90s. These days there are probably no toy commercials because there are no good cartoons. Or at least no good cartoons with good toys. There is a new Voltron cartoon which I heard is good. But it doesn't have that new, fresh look like the old show. For adults unless you really want small figures just for nostalgia, I think it's all the collector's high end toys. I still see a lot of good new toys for vintage and at times modern updated cartoons or anime coming out of Japan. But I assume those expensive toys don't get that many commercials in Japan either.

 

17 hours ago, F For Fake said:

Aw man, we had Children's Palace, and it was amazing, just floor to ceiling packed with the best toys ever. Eventually it closed and we got Toys R Us. I remember going to TRU for the grand opening, and they had a parade with Geoffrey and He-man and all sorts of characters marching through the store. I'm sure my memory is colored by the fact that I was a little kid at the time, but I just remember how HUGE and LONG those aisles were, and how they were totally stacked with Joes and Transformers and so much more. Even though my local TRU underwent several transformations before inevitably closing, I still remember the precise location of all of my favorite stuff, and the exact path I would walk through the store to get back to the action figure aisle, through the video games, past the bikes, to the right and back. So many great memories.

 

For me at Toys R Us it was the video game aisles first. They were usually on the far left side of the store. I think the wall had board games and the right side were the consoles in the glass cases. The games were the next aisle over. After that it was the action figures and vehicles. Those were three or maybe four aisles to the right at almost the rear middle point of the store. G.I. Joe, Transformers, M.A.S.K, etc. The bigger toys like the Aircraft Carrier had a ticket and people were always looking at the box art which was hanging up.

 

Too bad this stuff wasn't well documented like just about everything is now with cell phone cameras. I wish I asked to keep one of those video game tickets. That was something cool going to the area after the register and seeing all those new games lined up. Now places like Gamestop actually have the nerve to sell people opened copies as new. And every Gamestop I used to visit was a mess compared to the neat and orderly Toys R Us aisle and game storage area.

 

Back to figures, I don't like the Star Wars Prequels but for people that do, Hot Toys seems to be doing some of their best work on the Prequel characters. Check these out.

http://www.hottoys.com.hk/search.php?searchMode=license&txtSearch=&chkLicenseItems[]=Star+Wars+Episode+II%3A+Attack+of+the+Clones&chkLicenseItems[]=Star+Wars%3A+Episode+III+Revenge+of+the+Sith&chkAdvAll=y

If they make an Episode 2 Mace Windu or a few of the better designed Jedi, I might have to consider getting a couple of those.

[tv horror]

3 hours ago, GeneticNinja said:

I want to find the one that could race up a wall and glow in the dark.

A train that drives people up the wall...That's usually a job for relatives!  I never heard of that train can you remember what it was called?

[BAT MAN]

As I alluded to previously for some reason there was a level of fascination I had as a kid just staring at these toys on the shelves or holding them and wondering. I guess in a way it spoke to my imagination. As I got older in particular with MOTU and TFs by 1984/1985 there was almost reluctance I felt quite often opening them and in the case of MOTU destroying the bubbles/cards.  But in hindsight its amazing what a difference a little tape can make.

SEALED vs. NOT-SEALED

 

[UnboxingTreasures]

5 hours ago, DC|Marvel said:

As I alluded to previously for some reason there was a level of fascination I had as a kid just staring at these toys on the shelves or holding them and wondering. I guess in a way it spoke to my imagination. As I got older in particular with MOTU and TFs by 1984/1985 there was almost reluctance I felt quite often opening them and in the case of MOTU destroying the bubbles/cards.  But in hindsight its amazing what a difference a little tape can make.

SEALED vs. NOT-SEALED

 

More accurate would be if you can find completed auctions with those type differences. These are just seller prices that might not ever be met.

Edited June 27, 2018 by NamesJay

[F For Fake]

On 6/26/2018 at 4:36 AM, GeneticNinja said:

 

I never knew Lionel had their own toy store called Kiddie City according to wiki. I need to search and see what that looked like as I know I owned a Lionel train when I was young. It was a big deal with lights, steam, and metal tracks compared to the plastic of the slot racing toys. Even though those were cool, I want to find the one that could race up a wall and glow in the dark.

Those old toy stores were the place to go. I don't think it ever got old for me until the early to mid 90s. These days there are probably no toy commercials because there are no good cartoons. Or at least no good cartoons with good toys. There is a new Voltron cartoon which I heard is good. But it doesn't have that new, fresh look like the old show. For adults unless you really want small figures just for nostalgia, I think it's all the collector's high end toys. I still see a lot of good new toys for vintage and at times modern updated cartoons or anime coming out of Japan. But I assume those expensive toys don't get that many commercials in Japan either.

 

 

For me at Toys R Us it was the video game aisles first. They were usually on the far left side of the store. I think the wall had board games and the right side were the consoles in the glass cases. The games were the next aisle over. After that it was the action figures and vehicles. Those were three or maybe four aisles to the right at almost the rear middle point of the store. G.I. Joe, Transformers, M.A.S.K, etc. The bigger toys like the Aircraft Carrier had a ticket and people were always looking at the box art which was hanging up.

 

Too bad this stuff wasn't well documented like just about everything is now with cell phone cameras. I wish I asked to keep one of those video game tickets. That was something cool going to the area after the register and seeing all those new games lined up. Now places like Gamestop actually have the nerve to sell people opened copies as new. And every Gamestop I used to visit was a mess compared to the neat and orderly Toys R Us aisle and game storage area.

 

Back to figures, I don't like the Star Wars Prequels but for people that do, Hot Toys seems to be doing some of their best work on the Prequel characters. Check these out.

http://www.hottoys.com.hk/search.php?searchMode=license&txtSearch=&chkLicenseItems[]=Star+Wars+Episode+II%3A+Attack+of+the+Clones&chkLicenseItems[]=Star+Wars%3A+Episode+III+Revenge+of+the+Sith&chkAdvAll=y

If they make an Episode 2 Mace Windu or a few of the better designed Jedi, I might have to consider getting a couple of those.

Yes, that is exactly the layout I recall. Into the store past the party supplies and junk toys like rubber snakes and such, around the corner and then the first "main" aisle was floor to ceiling board games, the consoles in the cases on the right (I remember staring at Nintendo's Robby the Robot every time I went in!) then the next aisle over was the game slips, and I think the next aisle past that was bikes?