Hake's Shopping Spree

My first entry for the League of Extraordinary Bloggers: Most of these are for sentimental reasons.

Go on a fictional shopping spree at Hake’s current auction #209 to make your collection a little more amazing.

THE INCREDIBLE HULK" BOXED MEGO ACTION FIGURE.

I had this as a kid after my godmother grabbed it for me while I was shopping with her. It was out of the package and thought we would be busted for stealing it. I tried to put it back. She diligently paid for it and I still remember to this day.

GI JOE 12" VINTAGE TRAINING CENTER IN BOX WITH BOXED MAN OF ACTION FIGURE.

My brother and I had this when we were kids. Hours and hours of entertainment.

STAR WARS EARLY BIRD PACKAGE WITH RARE LUKE SKYWALKER WITH DOUBLE-TELESCOPING LIGHTSABER.

Who wouldn't want this.

STAR WARS - IMPERIAL TROOP TRANSPORTER" BOXED BATTERY-OPERATED VEHICLE

One of my favorite Christmas presents of all time.

IDEAL KNIGHT OF DARKNESS ACTION FIGURE IN BOX

I remember getting this "cheap knock off" for a friend for his birthday. But to this day, I still remember it - it looked so cool.

Bonus - I set a limit of 5, but then couldn't resist.

STAR WARS: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK - IG-88 LARGE SIZE ACTION FIGURE

Never had it.Always wanted it. Saw a friend get it for a birthday gift. Was sad to see the 12 inch line stop back in the day, but happy what has happened since with Kenner, Hasbro, and Sideshow.

MARX WYATT EARP PROTOTYPE FIGURE

I still collect some playsets and loved Tombstone with Kurt Russell...so a prototype Wyatt Earp would be pretty damn cool.

As for other League members.

Glad I saw someone else grab the Ideal Knight of Darkness.

http://aeiouwhy.blogspot.com/2013/07/league-post-return-to-hakes.html

"Awesome crap." I love it.

http://shezcrafti.com/a-bunch-of-awesome-crap-id-buy-from-hakes-if-i-wasnt-broke/

http://brandedinthe80s.com/11435/down-with-opp - Scout Walker rocks!

Basement Battlefield

Just a rainy day, and we decided to have a basement battlefield with a variety of toys and playsets. Obviously, the biggest one is the Marx Navarone playset. Also on the battlefield is the cave/mountains from Marx Dinosaur Playset, the Land of the Jawas base, legos, clay, styrofoam, and even Kenner Droid Factory parts.

Ah, the good old days.

First Toy Photo Ever

I've been scanning old photo albums lately, when I came across the first photo I ever took of my toys. I shot the photo of an old camera I bought at a garage sale for $1. It was about the same time as GI Joe: A Real American Hero figures came out in 1982.

It was just a simple photo of my first three figures - Short Fuze, Stalker, and Snake-Eyes. Short Fuze's head was cut off. The shadows are horrible.

But hey, it was the start of something fun.

Gentle Giant Yoda and Sideshow's Yoda Hut

I have been waiting for Gentle Giant to release their 12" vintage style Yoda for awhile now....why? Because the Sideshow Yoda's Hut has been sitting in my garage for almost three years. My daughter was playing with her dollhouse in the basement, I was reading, and she looked over and asked me. "Daddy, when are you going to open the big Yoda Hut?"

I said "why not right now!" Glad we did. That thing is impressive. Heavy, solid, expertly crafted. Lots of accessories...pots and pans, firewood, snakes and other assorted denizens of Dagobah. Also, a battery operated fireplace that glows. 

Some of the interior photos were taken by my daughter. She loved setting it up...even more than her Fisher Price house. She's been trained well in the Star Wars universe.

NECA Predator Series 8 - The Arrival of Dutch

While some have claimed that the NECA Predator line has jumped the shark (and I agree to an extent), NECA made true believers of us again by finally grabbing the likeness rights to Arnold Schwarzenegger so they could make his Dutch character from the first movie, 25 years later.

Series 8 includes the Jungle Extraction Dutch, in the long sleeve tan utility shirt/jacket, the Jungle Patrol Dutch with vest, and the Hunter Predator.

Great sculpting, including a cigar in the mouth for Ahnold!

Worth the wait? Wish it didn't take 25 years, but awesome!!!!! How about the rest of the squad? Mac, Blaine, Billy?

Jazwares World War Z Figures

First of all, if you haven't read World War  Z by Max Brooks, do it, now! One of the all time best. And don't just think it's about zombies. I've read it three times and listened to the abridged and unabridged audio book a few times.

Second, if you have read the book, and are hesitant to see the movie, go see the movie. Just accept the fact it isn't like the book...or think of it as the early days of the great panic, and enjoy some popcorn entertainment.

Third, if you collect action figures and love zombies, and love World War Z, the four produced by Jazwares are great for adding to a zombie horde, just aren't the greatest if you are trying to recreate the movie or the book.

Only two have been released in the first series - Civilian Zombie and Special Forces Zombie. The next two are due around August and include Gerry Lane and Paramedic Zombie. Gerry Lane looks nothing like Brad Pitt - guessing if Jazwares is making the figures, cost was already a major factor. They are up and coming, but nowhere near NECA or McFarlane. The Gerry Lane figure comes with a Lobo which is cool. I don't recall seeing a paramedic in the movie.

Anyway, the Civilian zombie is shirtless. The Special Forces zombie is pretty cool in that you can exchange the head with a helmeted version, and remove the boney leg for a whole leg so you can have zombie and non-zombie versions. The Special Forces zombie doesn't come with any weapons other than the pistol molded in with the tactical vest.

The articulation isn't bad. Something about how the legs joints doesn't look right...almost like the characters are wearing Depends. The waste articulation is pretty good. They are definitely 6 inches tall so it would be hard to get them to assimilate into a McFarlane Walking Dead horde. The paint job seems too bright.

I won't complain too much, or else I would need to follow my own advice - you don't like how a company does something, build your own.

Not sure how sales will be on the figures. The movie has done rather well and there are already hints for a sequel. I don't care about the non-Brad Pitt figure of Gerry Lane. I would have loved if they did a figure of Segen though, the female Israeli commando who travels with Gerry. She was bad ass. Captain Speke would have been another good one, with more realistic special ops uniform than this one.

Anyway - I am glad I purchased the first two, will purchase the other two. Really doubting any more get produced beyond that from Jazwares. I had high hopes because their Mortal Kombat line is awesome.

A Toast to Toys and Bacon and GI Joes

I discovered a fantastic blog last week: www.toysandbacon.blogspot.com. It is a great assortment of posting about cooking, vintage (and new) toys, especially GI Joe : RAH and Masters of the Universe Classics (MOTUC). I have enjoyed catching up on the entire blog which has been around for a few years. It also took me down a trip on memory lane on my own collection of GI Joes. Also made me pull out the Mark Bellomo The Ultimate Guide to GI Joe 1982-1994.

The 1982 Joes came out right as I was moving away from toys and getting interested in other things. I did grab a few assorted figures and vehicles. Loved the first series. Short Fuze was my first figure because I couldn't find Stalker or Snake Eyes. Those two came next. Loved the HAL, the MOBAT, and Polar Battle Bear.

By the time the 1984 series came out, I was done collecting but still loved the look of the figures, and also kept reading the comic books. I always wanted to get that first new group - Gung-Ho, Snowjob, Airborne, and Doc when I read about them in issue 11 of the comic book.

I loved the olive drab first series. Not sure I would have kept up as uniforms and vehicles got more colorful. The olive drab vehicles also looked so real.

The three figures I did pick up - Tunnel Rat, Beachhead, and Snow Serpent - were just too cool to pass up even if I didn't collect anymore.

My wishlist that I picked up years later as an adult collector - the Wolverine and Toss n Cross (I was a combat engineer in the army). One of these days I'll grab a WHALE, Whirlwind, Dragonfly and maybe even a USS Flagg.

In honor of Toys and Bacon's 100 best GI Joe list, here is my list of 25, and I included modern versions as well.

1. Tunnel Rat
2. Beachhead
3. Snow Serpent
4. Snake Eyes
5. Stalker
6. Short Fuze
7. Courtney Krieger (Hannibal three pack)
8. Steeler
9. Mutt and Junkyard
10. Doc
11. Gung Ho
12. Airborne
13. Pilot Scarlett
14. Trip Wire
15. Firefly
16. Alpine
17. Iceberg
18. Wild Weasel - great comic issue of Wild Weasel and Ace in a dogfight
19. BBQ
20. Cobra Eels
21. Grand Slam - just because the HAL was so cool
22. Scarlett - GI Joe Renegades moden figure
23. Air Tight
24. Rock N Roll
25. Low Light

Honorary Mention - The Fridge - just because I am a Bears fan!