Open Your Toys

Well, it would have been less so if I had done this yesterday, so, of course, I procrastinated. I tried to take as much of yesterday off as I could. We didn’t do anything big. It was our first Halloween without Ms. McFavorite. She had better things to do, like hang out with her friends, go see her boyfriend, and then have a sleepover. It was like pulling teeth to just get her to sit down and watch Trick ‘r Treat (a long-standing tradition of ours) before she left. We even skipped seeing it in theaters so that we could watch it with her. We didn’t even do jack o’lanterns (that’s really how you spell that spellcheck). That’s okay; we’re still the full-size candy bar house, so giving out candy is always a blast. Kids get so excited, especially when we let them pick their favorite. I got a little too sauced, of course, and had to take a nap during Practical Magic 2. But I came back strong with Terrifier 2 and outlasted Mrs. McFavorite.

I think these toy companies are going to outlast all of us. Man, all I have seen is how people are going to cherry-pick to the extreme, only shop at Ross, or even quit collecting altogether due to the price increase on 6-inch figures. I don’t think we’ve even seen the increase at higher price points that is for sure coming. I was going to link to a bunch of these figures, but of course, there were no new announcements for Black Series, Classified, or even official Transformers. So I’ll just leave this here. At what price point do you stop collecting?

I’m about a penny away…Slick

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Usually, a multiple of 50 would be cause to celebrate. Just not feeling it this time around.

See you at 400; FYI, it will also be our 20th anniversary…Slick

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I’ll keep this one short like the show. Here are my favorites. Finally, Two Bad, but unfortunately, it’s too bad. A new size comparison shot of the Thunder Machine makes it much more appealing. I haven’t seen the short yet, but an evil Bumblebee with a fusion cannon? Yes please. And Star Wars literally had nothing except a soon-to-be stateside pair of mystery Siths.

He said Mr. E shits…Slick

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I’m watching the 1962 Cape Fear as I write this. It’s crazy how much is the same. Especially compared to the latest series made almost 65 years later. I’ve been watching a ton of documentaries and period piece shows. A lot of 70s and 90s stuff. Major themes, story lines, and most importantly, societal norms haven’t changed all that much. We like to think we’ve come such a long way when it comes to how we treat one another across the decades, but the truth is, we really haven’t. It’s not so much in your face as it was in the 50s or 60s, but it’s a lot more prevalent than it was 10 years ago. It really seems like we’re going backwards, which, unfortunately, is what I think a lot more of us want than we really ever understood.

Toy companies really seem to be following this pattern. Is that because it’s essentially just us 30 to 50-year-olds buying this stuff now? Do you ever see a kid older than 7 in the aisles anymore? For MOTU, the Creative Beast guys double-dipped on the Dino-Riders-inspired Battle Cat and Teela exclusive homage. Transformers has been going back to its 40+ year old roots for years now. The new Dramatic Capture Grimlock scratches multiple itches for us old guys. Some nostalgia is simply fixing oversights of the past. How about an O-ring Ninja Force Quick Kick or Destro? While Star Wars might have one of the most beloved histories, they are probably doing the least when it comes to nostalgia. They are really pushing hard on more current, yet much less revered sources for their toys. Luckily for them, I love this amazing Mercenary Guard Droid and STAP.

Listen…Slick

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It’s a rare Friday with some time off before a long weekend, so I said what the heck. If it’s good enough for Rebecca Black, it’s good enough for me. Watching the documentary about George Romero’s Resident Evil. Never heard of it? Me neither, but that’s the great thing about having a curator. In this instance, I’m referring to Shudder. I’m about to not renew my subscription for the first time in like 5 years. Why? The price, of course, just like everything else, is going up relatively dramatically. So, I’ll be on my own to discover new horror. Who do you use to curate things you love? When we’re young, I think it’s mostly family, then our friends. Nowadays, for better or worse, especially with highly specialized interests like ours, it’s mostly online. I think that’s what I always wanted Open Your Toys Cast to be: a curator. A curator of the four greatest action figure franchises.

This week I’m going to feature things that I love that may not be everyone’s cup of tea. In other words, a curated list. I’ve been loving Blokees, especially the Defender Series. 2.5-inch stylized building kits? Yes, please. I own very few props or role-play items. However, a bomb wielded by a hot chick in space bounty hunter disguise? Yes, please. How about a 3rd-party solid piece of plastic meant to look like the oozing slime of my childhood? Yes, please. Probably the least controversial, but still not for everyone. How about a figure of a mech suit, but finally cartoon-accurate? Yes, please.

You’re welcome…Slick

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At least at our local sports ball game, so yeah, we’re going. But I’m going to try to get this out first, so no long post this time.

Go sports ball team…Slick

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Holy moly. That was a whole lot of SDCC. Even down two regular hosts, but with one very special guest host, we barely got through the four franchises. The Other category had some great stuff we’ll get to in the next show. But, man, SDCC never ceases to impress. Of course, that’s the whole point, right? Companies supposedly plan their whole year around this event. With a small exemption for Toy Fair. But let’s be fair, it’s been going downhill for years now. What did you think? Did they blow you away? Are you getting too old for this stuff? What say you?

One thing I forgot to do as we were pressed for time was to ask all the hosts what their favorite reveal was from the show. I’ll keep mine to the four franchises as I usually do, but hopefully we can squeeze that in too on the next show. For Masters, as much as I love build-a-figures and vintage toy artwork homages, it does seem like more of the same. Their Chronicles Clawful is what really caught my eye. All I thought I wanted from Star Wars was a Rotta the Hutt in either Black Series or Vintage Collection. Well, I got both and hate the execution on both. So, even though I won’t buy it, my favorite Star Wars thing was the vintage decoed X-Wing. What’s funny is my favorite Transformer is something we didn’t even talk about. It was hidden in the official pics. Besides the Icons Decepticon symbol Megatron, everything else was pretty lackluster. Even more disappointing was G.I. Joe. I get it, they blow their load with Yo Joe June. Besides some name reveals, we really only got what is looking to be a disappointing Thundermachine.

Woo…Slick

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The news has been coming fast and furious. For the first time, I find myself glad that I’m not there. I think I have relegated myself to our nice small (80k people) local con. It is making me appreciate people like Pixel Dan even more. The fact that they’re still at it, doing walkthroughs and interviews, and literally working the entire con. Even more props to their loved ones, be it friends or family that help with all their obligations. These personalities and their support teams are the true heroes of Comic-Con.

Tons of fun stuff leading up to the con this year. Definitely my favorite was the ReAction+ Python Patrol Trubble Bubble. While something I’ve eliminated from my collecting as of late, Seekers, I would have killed back in the day for an official set of Rainmakers in a current mold. While I really wish it had the wash that the Chronicles version got, the Origins Skeletor still looks amazing. I’m a big sucker for concept stuff, so for Star Wars I gotta rep the Jazwares Micro Galaxy Squadron Concept Slave 1 (not Boba Fett’s Starship).

Next show is going to be nuts…Slick

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I can finally do something I haven’t been able to do in 15 years, touch all 4 walls of my Site B. I’ve been seriously hitting it hard for 6 months. It now contains over 30 cataloged 27-gallon black and yellows, almost 30 “sell” tubs that have been refilled for a second time, and a better understanding of the unopened cases of toys I have. This is in addition to 20 more cataloged black and yellows and 10 banker’s boxes of loose toys. I only have something like 50-60 more tubs and 30-40 banker’s boxes to go through and catalog or sell. Good times.

As we get closer to SDCC, companies are starting flex, literally. Mattel’s Gym Bro Skeletor is getting his reps in. Joe had some hits and misses to end Yo Joe! June. At least we’re finally getting a Flash. Black Series released probably one of the most perfect Clone packs ever, and it shows. It is sold out everywhere. While it’s just some teaser pics, and we’ve got better ones since, I’m excited for an official MP(G) Blaster.

Regrets, yeah, a few of those too…Slick

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We had a crazy day, so now it’s time for a lazy Sunday.

Until we meet again…Slick

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