TMNT Wingnut custom LEGO minifigure:: Another Random Toy Pic

I didn't actually set out to make a TMNT Wingnut LEGO minifigure. I merely swapped heads between a Vampire Bat minifigure and a Batman minifigure for kicks. The minifigure sat around the house like this for a while, until one day it dawned on me how much he resembled the original TMNT Wingnut action figure:

Okay, so it it's not an exact match, but for a kitbash LEGO minifigure, he's pretty darn close!

The Mighty Mutanimals!

I recently found some Mighty Mutanimals comics at the Flea Market and was impressed by the insanity of those early nineties Archie comics that took the TMNT and supporting characters and, well, pretty much went as looney as they could with the storylines presented therein. Seriously, that stuff is plain nuts!

The Mighty Mutanimals are a groups of, well, mutant animals that have all sorts of weird space adventures saving the world while flying around in a giant talking cow's head and stuff like that there. The team in the comics included two characters that never made it to toy form: Jagwar, a Brazilian Jaguar-man, and Dreadmon, a Jamaican wolf-man. The team also consists of the four individuals you see above, who did make it to toy form during the classic TMNT Playmates action figure run.

I've had most of these guys in my TMNT collection for some time now, but after reading their mad-cap adventures I wanted to get the whole gang together (or at least all the gang that made it to toy form!) 

My team collection was missing Ray Fillet (aka Man-Ray in the comics) for a long time, but a recently completed trade with Derek of Goodwill Hunting for Geeks finally netted him for me (get it? Netted - Because he's a fish!?!? HAHAH!

Mondo Gecko is also a member of the Mighty Mutanimals. I had this guy with his skateboard a while ago, but I think I got rid of him. Thankfully I found him again and although he doesn't have the skateboard he was released with, I did have another TMNT skateboard just lying around for him to borrow.

Probably my favorite member of the Mighty Mutanimals is Wingnut and his partner Screwloose. Wingnut's wings and belt are removable, and often lost when you find him second-hand. His partner Screwloose is also an integral member of the Mutanimals and not just a throw-away accessory. So even though I see incomplete Wingnuts at the Flea Market from time to time, this was one I had to have complete. A few years ago I bought this guy MOC off eBay and tore him open immediately. He's such a cool Batman analogue. The comicbook version of Wingnut looks very different from this guy, and honestly I much prefer the toy version. I'm sure there were copyright concerns, or they just wanted to move this guy's characterization further away from the visual Batman joke he is in his toy form.

And last but not least there's...hey...where'd he go?

Oh, apparently Leatherhead was in need of some dusting.

Lastly but not leastly: Leatherhead! In the cartoon, Leatherhead was a villain. In the Archie comics, he began as a confused 'villain' manipulated by Shredder et al into battling the Turtles, but soon became a heroic force for good and joined with the Mighty Mutanimals. I have always loved this Cajun Gator-man; he's such a fun toy with his alligator like posture and chomping maw. I much prefer considering this guy a hero and not a villain. The Mighty Mutanimals are glad to have him in their ranks!

Well there you have it, my Mighty Mutanimal collection. If you want to read a bit more about the Mighty Mutanimals and how they nearly became a cartoon, check out TMNT Entity's blog post, which includes proposed animation designs and some cool looking villains and vehicles that would no doubt have eventually become toys had the cartoon come into existence.

Mondo Gecko Redux - Like, Totally Tubular, Dude!

Just a tad over five years ago I posted pics of my first Mondo Gecko action figure. I think I ended up giving that figure away, because I haven't seen him in many many moons. However I did just find another Mondo Gecko at a thrift store this past weekend!

My first Mondo Gecko was in better condition, and I had his skateboard too. This one isn't in too bad shape, just a few spots of paint scraped off. He also came sans his board, but fortunately I have a few TMNT accessories lying about, like the sewer lid shield I gave him.

I also have a random TMNT skateboard and it works quite well for old Mondo here.

Mondo Gecko is so very nineties and I love him for it. He's all neon colors and rat-tail and...Misfits bangs?...and other junk. I also recently read some Mutanimals comics and thought he was pretty fun in those, so I am glad to have added him back into my collection - especially since he only cost me 30 cents!

My intern decided to take control of the photoshoot. Apparently my pics weren't gnarly enough, dudes and dudettes.

"I'll show you how Mondo Gecko attacks some bodacious grindage, daddy!"

"This hill looks sufficiently hilly."

"Gleam that cube, Mondo! Woooohoooooooo! Christian Slater ain't got nothing on you"

And after taking over Mondo Gecko, my intern took over my camera! I won't bore you with the dozens of pictures of the carpet and her feet - but she was able to capture this shot. Who needs instagram filters when you have a toddler?

RAD!

Late Night with David Leatherhead

Leatherhead is another recent flea market acquisition that set me back about a dollar and has quickly become one of my favorite toys ever! I found mine sans accessories but including his belt. Not too shabby!

This guy is just so much fun to look at and play around with! The detailing on his sculpt is top notch. He's covered with gator goodness from head to toe, and has a hinged jaw to boot!

I really appreciate the attention to detail in Leatherhead's design, which is true with most first run TMNT toys. They all just oozed (pun intended) personality and charm!

Leatherhead is a mutated back-swamp swamp-billy, so in addition to his alligator choppers he even has a pair of buck teeth up front! I love it!

I also love the fact that he is designed to stand with the posture of an alligator. Most TMNT toys stood upright regardless of what animal they represent, but Leatherhead was designed to stand low against the ground like an alligator on two legs, which makes him pretty unique among the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle crowd.

"Hey, you aren't Killer Croc!"
"But you is breakfast, I guarontee!"

Like a Bat Outta' Hell

I didn't collect TMNT figures when they first hit the scene back in the late 80s and early 90s. The only one I ever bought "new" was Slash, (who ironically I have since lost and no longer have in my possession.)

I have, however, picked up quite a few over the years from secondary sources, and my collection has recently grown by leaps and bounds. Since I get so many from garage sales or the swap meet, they are usually incomplete - missing weapons or a belt here and there, and I am generally fine with that fact as long as the figure itself is in good shape.

But one specific character has tempted me for a while, and an incomplete version just wouldn't do. So I went to eBay recently and for a very good price (cheaper than most current toys on shelves now) I grabbed him mint-on-card and immediately tore him open when he arrived!

Who is this mystery TMNT I speak of? Without further ado...I present...Wingnut!

A face only a mother could love.

Wingnut is so freaking cool! Get a good look at this crazy not-Batman! Wingnut came in under my radar (ha ha) when released in 1990; a time when my collecting jones was focused full-force on toys from the recently released Batman movie. But Wingnut is a Batman parody! How did it take me so long to discover him?!?!

When I did recently start looking at TMNT characters and learned about Wingnut's existence, finding him wasn't too difficult. He pops up all the time at the swap meet. However he always, and I mean always, appears sans wings.

Now, a belt, or a gun, or even his sidekick I can miss, but a bat ain't shat without his wings!

So I finally went the eBay route and got one complete, and I am stoked at my newest not-Batman figure!

Speaking of his sidekick, here's the mosquito Screwloose. Wingnut and Screwloose are, according to their bio, previous residents of the planet Huanu. Huanu was destroyed by Krang. Wingnut and Screwloose somehow escaped the destruction and ended up on Earth to fight the good fight.

I've even stumbled onto a loose Screwloose (ha ha) at the swap meet before, but passed on him at the time, not having a winged Wingnut (the wordplay just writes itself.) That's the type of collector I am.

But now, thanks to eBay, I can finally stop looking (which means I will probably find a complete Wingnut as early as this weekend.)

A complete Wingnut comes with two removable "Plasma-Propelled Bat Wings," a "Utility Bat Belt," a "Blood-Burstin' Bat Bomb," a "Bat Gun," and his sidekick Screwloose.