Movie Star Splinter

One of the greatest comic book movies of all time was the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie released in 1990. The budget was a fraction of what even the cheapest action movie costs these days, let alone a summer comic book blockbuster, but it was incredibly true to the (at the time limited and undiluted) source material, well acted, well choreographed, well designed (Jim Henson's Creature Shop's involvement cemented that fact for all time) and In my honest opinion it still holds up to this day in every way.

At the time of the movie's release I was aware of the Turtles from a comic book perspective but did not partake in any other Turtle media. I went to see the movie and absolutely loved it, but beyond comic books I didn't pay much attention to Turtle-Mania until years later. In retrospect I wish I had, having grown since then to greatly appreciate the awesomeness of Playmate's original toyline.

One of the highlights of the original TMNT movie was the full puppet Splinter the Rat. Like Yoda before him, puppet Splinter was able to portray on the silver screen majesty and comedy and pathos in equal measure. He was also a better actor, producing more honest emotion than many real living people in the business. Again, all credit for this fact goes to Jim Henson and crew. Pure, unadulterated geniuses, one and all.

I'm lucky to have an original Splinter action figure from the first wave of TMNT action figures, and while this 1992 'Movie Star Splinter' is a shade of what the actual movie version of Splinter represented, he's still a fun variant I am glad to now add to the handful of Splinter action figures I have amassed to date.

Movie Star Splinter is flocked (ala Mossman or Panthor, for you readers of the MOTU generation,) which is kind of cute and a neat contrast to the rubbery build of the movie Turtles that were also intended to reflect the 'lifelike' movie aesthetic. He also comes with a...wait for it...ratty (haw haw) robe which is held down by a plastic 'rope' belt. Because he is a mutant rat who lives in the sewer, natch! He doesn't shop at Jos. A. Bank fercryinoutloud!

Movie Star Splinter is in pretty good condition considering he was another Flea Market find from the bottom of a random pile of junk. His head sculpt definitely has more personality than his original figure does, and I like the ratty robe. Were I a kid, I would prefer this guy over the original Splinter, but as an adult collector I can appreciate each for their individual strengths.

Random Toy Pic :: Day Out With Daddy

When I purchased the Toddler Turtles at retail my oldest daughter was a wee toddler herself, and she loved playing with these little guys.

She played with them so much in fact that over time (and a couple moves) I lost all their weapons, and a couple of the turtles themselves!

Over the years I was able to reacquire all the brothers and two of the four weapons (still need Raph's sai and Leo's sword) and now my youngest daughter is a toddler and, wouldn't you know it, she loves these little guys too!

I've learned my lesson, and the weapons I do own are kept apart from the figures. And when I come home from work I try to gather them all together so I know where they are (at least until I leave for work the next day!) and they don't end up separated and unaccounted for or worse: stepped on!

My daughter likes to play with toys that have parent and kid pairings (like her large Piglet and small Piglet - one is the mom or dad and one is the kid) so of course I had to get the Turtles' actual dad in on the fun! Beforehand she was using the grown Turtles as each Toddler Turtle's parent (dad Raph and kid Raph, mom Leo and kid Leo etc etc) but that's just silly. Everyone knows a Toddler Turtle's dad is a rat! And besides, the older Turtles are only Teenagers themselves - I don't want to encourage teenage pregnancy!

Master Splinter

I see naked Master Splinters with various levels of wear at the flea market quite often. They vary from decent shape to chew-marked with missing limbs to everywhere in between. I generally pass them over if they're robeless, but found a real nice one the other day at the flea market and since I was already bundling a handful of figures together I decided to add him to the pile.

I was pretty sure I had a spare robe and was 100% sure I had a spare belt from a previous TMNT accessory acquisition, so I figured it was worth a shot to try and get him back to his non-HBO level nudity basics.

Fortunately I did in fact have an original robe, so here he is all dressed and ready to hang out at the Playboy mansion.

I didn't really look Splinter over too closely when I found him, beyond confirming he was in darn good shape. So I was really excited to discover he is the first-release 'soft-head' version! As you probably know, when the original TMNT toyline was first released waaay back in 1988, Playmates had manufactured the first wave of figures with cheaper rubber heads, not knowing if the line would succeed. Once they realized the hit they had on their three fingered hands, they started making the figures' heads out of a more solid plastic.

I already own a Master Splinter, but he's the 25th anniversary re-release, so I am overjoyed to now have a fully clothed original in my collection - and a soft-headed original to boot!

Flea Market Finds

Took my intern to the Flea Market yesterday, and even though the pickins were pretty slim (did everyone think it was going to rain or something? Because it didn't!) we came away with some fun stuff for CHEAP!

For five bucks we came away with an original '88 soft-head Splinter (fortunately I have his robe and belt from a previous flea market TMNT accessory haul), a Space Usagi that will be going to a fellow toy blogger in a trade, Masters of the Universe Roboto, Hero World Cyborg, a TOMY wind-up Donald Duck, a traveling Smurf with bindle, a DUPLO goat and an Imaginext ankylosaurus.

A silly assortment of bits and bobs that made for a day full of fun for my intern and I!

He's a Radical Rat :: Nickelodeon TMNT Splinter Action Figure

This fellow here is the Nickelodeon Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles iteration of Splinter: father of the Teenage Mutant ninja Turtle brothers.

I found this guy at a thrift store and paid fifty cents for him, so mine is missing the walking stick he was originally released with. I replaced it with a much cooler katana (whose origins are a mystery to me) I found in a playmobil lot I picked up at a garage sale.

I didn't originally feel the need to own this guy, but for fifty cents I couldn't pass him up.

I don't know that I would pick him up if I had to pay full price. His Nickelodeon animated design is a bit on the bland side and lacks the charm of the goofy-looking original Splinter action figure. And he certainly could have benefited from the inclusion of a few weapons; the original came with a sweet hidden sword in his cane, a bow/arrow, and a couple throwing stars.

Giving him this katana does help.

Also, as a rule, a soft-goods robe would have been preferred over this molded plastic outfit. It limits the movement of his legs, although Splinter probably isn't going to be twisted into a bunch of acrobatic poses anyways.

I'm sure Splinter is still plentiful on store shelves, and a new 'Dojo Splinter' (with removeable helmet), which I think looks pretty cool, has just been released. Had I only been given the chance to own one of them, I would probably opt for Dojo Splinter as he has a little more 'oomph' than this bland Splinter. But I am also a purist and like to have 'original' versions of main characters, so if I would have owned that one first I would have probably then felt the need to track this guy down too.

So I guess the moral of the story is that I am glad to have this Splinter and any fifty cent action figure is better than no action figure at all.

Splinter Taught Them To Be...Garden Greens?

Out Garage Sale-ing today and came across this statue cemented into a home's landscaping:

Master Splinter? I was tempted to ask the homeowners if they were Ninja Turtle fans but decided against it. They probably would have looked at me as if I were crazy. Yeah, I'm not the one with a Ninja Rat in my driveway! (But I totally would be if the wife let me.)

Despite all my rage, I am still just a rat in a cage!

Reports are coming in from all over geekdom (ironically, not one single solitary reporter is wearing a low neck yellow jumpsuit...except me) about the recent acquisition of all things TMNT by Nickelodeon.

Of course, the first "guy" to acquire the ninja turtles was none other than Master Splinter himself!

This Master Splinter is the re-released Playmates action figure from last year, part of the TMNT 25th anniversary commemorative release. Like Leonardo, I found Splinter at Ross for $3.99. Unlike Leonardo, Splinter does not come with a DVD episode of the original cartoon - only the four turtle releases appear to have that addition.

Splinter has a small star shaped "scar" painted on his cheek. I don't recall how that fits into the cartoon or comic version of Splinter, but I do remember Splinter losing an ear to Shredder in the movie before his owner was massacred and before he mutated into a humanoid rat. I guess that is what the scar is meant to represent.

Like all of the original TMNT releases, Splinter comes with a rack of nifty ninja weapons. And a cane. But that ain't no ordinary cane!

It hides a sword! Damn that's cool. The weapons and accessories really added to the greatness of these original TMNT toys. Sadly they are also the hardest parts to find still with the figures, which is part of why these re-releases are so welcome in my collection.

The bow/arrow combo came apart from the rack - attached to the rack were the two cane pieces and two throwing stars. I only removed the cane/sword, as the throwing stars are sure to be lost, even by me.

"First Disney/Marvel, now Nickelodeon/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. 2009 is truly the year of the rat!"