Imaginext Bat Tech "The Batman" Batmobile

I was on the fence about getting this Imaginext Batmobile for a few months. I saw it on Amazon and thought I'd make a commitment or not if/when I saw it at retail. Then I found out it's an Amazon exclusive, so I had to decide if I was willing to buy it sight unseen.

Well obviously I finally (bat)caved. And I'm happy I did!

This Imaginext Batmobile is obviously inspired by the new Batmobile appearing in the movie The Batman. It's not a straight riff, though, and I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. It's nice to see something with some originality, but I'd also like to see a cartoony yet more direct interpretation of The Batman Batmobile. 

There are some design choices that make this Batmobile a bit of a mash-up. The turbine barreled front end is an obvious '89 Batmobile component and doesn't really fit this overall design. It does light up and fire a bat signal shaped projectile though, so if you're into that kind of thing then this might be a 'plus' in your book.

In fact, the more I look at this Batmobile, the more I feel like it's as if the '89 and The Batman Batmobiles had a baby.

The rear flame element also lights up, and spins when the Batmobile rolls.

I'm usually anti-noise when it comes to toys, as they're generally loud and obnoxious, but I will say that this Batmobile sounds GOOD! The beefy roar of the engine is like music to my ears and was obviously something they paid attention to when they pulled their inspiration from the sound design in The Batman.

This Batmobile comes with a Bat Tech Batman, whos chest lights up via a lightbulb in the driver's seat. I don't like this Bat Tech stuff but it's their current go-to feature so if it keeps the line alive I guess we'll suffer through it. It doesn't come with Spider-Man but his Spider-Buggy ran out of gas so Batman is giving him a ride back to Queens.

This Batmobile is larger than most Batmobiles Imaginext has made, but it's also a two seater and that's always good. It's around $31 on Amazon right now (there was a four dollar coupon that brought the price down a bit) so it's also not "cheap", and the price is probably due to the noise and lights, which I could do without but whatyagonnado?

All in all, I'm glad I have it. I don't buy every Batmobile Imaginext makes, but I really like the movie inspired Imaginext Batmobiles, so my collection would have been incomplete without this one.

Bootleg Batman / Secret Wars Captain America Mash-up Action Figure

At the San Jose Toy Show I attended a couple months back, I came across this terrible yet awesome bootleg Batman action figure. Obviously based on the Secret Wars Captain America action figure design (The pirate boots are a dead giveaway!), they added Bat-Ears...

...and even left behind the Captain's ears! Bootleg Batman is made of solid rubber and is smaller in scale that the original Secret Wars action figures. His paint is pretty terrible but honestly that's probably exactly how good it was the day this guy rolled out of the Mexican Bootleg Batman Factory. I'm actually shocked that he still has his cape and that it is in one piece, and not torn or missing, as it's a pretty flimsy piece of vinyl and could easily have torn at the neck or wrists in the however many years this guy has existed.

My Intern can't stand to look at this guy any longer. Show's over folks, nothing else to see here!

Damian Wayne Batman BootLEGO minifig

Batman Issue 666, cover date July 2007, introduced us to a dystopian future wherein Bruce Wayne's son and current Robin Damian Wayne had adopted the mantle of the Bat after his father's death. And now, then years later, those crazy Chinese BootLEGOers have made him into a minifigure!

Instead of wearing a cape, Damian Batman wears a trench-coat with a massive collar. Because DYSTOPIAN FUTURE!

This minifig also has a little cloth collar piece, and comes with your basic grapple-hook/gun. Damian Wayne Batman is a gorgeous minifigure, and a neat Batman AND Robin variant that I'm willing to bet the farm will never be a part of an official LEGO playset. I got him off eBay as usual, and I got him for less than a buck, shipped from China! Madness!

BootLEGO Jokers HA HA HA HA!

"The pen is truly mightier than the sword. But I left my pen in my other coat."

The BootLEGO makers are at it again, putting out incredible minifigures you didn't know your life was so empty without until you see them!

Jack Nicholson's 'mime' Joker from the 1989 Batman movie! You really get the impression when looking at this minifigure that this is how The Joker would have looked had Tim Burton not held back a bit on his first Batman outing. The minifigure came with a standard LEGO Joker hairpiece but there's no point in having that piece when you have the top hat! He also came with a sword, I assume since LEGO doesn't make a feather quill.

The BootLEGOers often go further than one would think they need to, considering the fact that they are making these figures illegally and selling them for pennies. Mime Joker is no exception, as he includes tails for his fancy coat!

Another BootLEGO Joker new on the scene is Bat-Joker!

Bat-Joker comes with a grappling gun/hook, two faces printed on his head (under the cowl he's Leto Joker, complete with 'Damaged' tattoo on his forehead.) and printing details galore all over the minifig. Another BootLEGO I couldn't live without!

You can find these guys (and more) on eBay for waaay cheaper than your official LEGO minifigure. I'm not saying you shouldn't be buying official LEGO minifigures, you should, but when things like these don't exist in any official form, well, a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do.

Bootleg Funko POP Batman

I found this bootleg Funko POP Batman at the flea market and had to have him in all his cheap knock-off glory!

Funko POP!? More like Funky POOP! HAW HAW HAW!

Packaged in a simple little generic re-sealable bag, the vendor had a single Batman, Spider-Man and Captain America available. They were only a buck each, and I really should have bought all three, but with Christmas just past, and having already procured a handful of 'unnecessary' toys that I'd have to try and explain to the Mrs...well, I settled on bagging Batman alone.

Because Batman.

Unlike actual POPs, this bootleg is simply hollow plastic, and not made of vinyl.

He's flatter than a standard POP, and but for the cape, would be a single piece (unlike POPs who have movable heads.)

The bootleg is smaller in scale than your average POP as well. And obviously the paint apps are as ghetto as you can get (you should have seen the Captain America. I know, I SHOULD HAVE BOUGHT HIM TOO! And Spider-Man. I swear if I see them again I will.)

For all his flaws, well, bootlegs are supposed to be flawed aren't they? It's part of their charm. It's neat to see the iconic Funko POP aesthetic in bootleg form and I'm glad to have discovered this silly little Batman to add to my collection.

LEGO Batman Movie Blind Bag Minifigs In Stores NOW!

The LEGO Batman Movie Blind Bag Minifigures aren't officially scheduled for release until January, but word got out a couple days before Christmas that Targets across the land were letting them hit shelves. I ran out and, via the squeeze method, found my two 'must-haves' and grabbed a couple more to surprise myself, and boy is this a great series! I'll be collecting them all at a relatively liesurly pace now that I have the two I couldn't live without. Who are those two? Read on, true believer...

I ended up with Red Hood and Nurse Harley (my must-haves) as well as James Gordon, Calculator, and Pink Batman! As with all LEGO blind bagged minifigures, there is a dot-code on the back of the packages, but I find that frustrating and unreliable, and simply squeeze the packages to find the piece or pieces unique to a specific figure. For Red Hood I felt for that massive dome, and for Harley those pig-tails are unmistakable. We'll look at those two last, and SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS: If you don't want to know who Red Hood is under his red hood, then turn away before you get to the bottom of the page!

First up is Calculator. I like this guy because he's a great unexpected villain, who ever would have expected a Calculator minifig? My only gripe is that his visor says 07734 instead of 58008. I'll have to make a custom visor methinks.

Under the visor, Calculator has a sinister grin MWAHAHAHAHAAA! To find Calculator via the squeeze method, feel for that massive backpack/shoulder-piece and confirm via the helmet or the little square piece that makes the 'calculator' portion of his chest-piece.

Commissioner James Gordon is great, and the first Gordon minifig I have in my collection. An integral part of any good Batman story, James Gordon was long missed in my minifig world. Gordon comes with a Joker 'wanted' poster and your generic LEGO walkie-talkie part that's been around for decades. Feel for those to confirm you have yourself a Jim.

Fairy Batman. Of all the bat variants in the LEGO Batman movie entourage, this one has to be the best. One word: Tutu. Feel for that, the wand and/or the wings to be sure you have this wonderful pixie-Bat. Bonus: a pink cowl to re-create that episode of the Adam West series about the radioactive cowl.

HHHEEELLLLOOOOOOO NURSE! I'm sure it comes as no surprise that I needed the Nurse Harley minifigure the most. I adore the LEGO Batman movie Harley Quinn design, that hair is amazing!

The nurse hat is removable too!

Finding Harley is all about feeling for the hair. The 'clipboard' piece will further confirm you have the crazy candy-striper in your grasp.

Lastly...SPOILER WARNING IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW WHO IS UNDER THE RED HOOD'S HOOD IN THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE!!!!!

Okay, you've been warned...

The LEGO Batman blind bagged Red Hood is a thing of absolute beauty. The perfect little classic Red Hood, he has that wonderful dome, a bow tie, a red cape and a couple uzis.

Red Hood is even wearing a tuxedo. I wouldn't have thought in a million years LEGO would have any reason to make a classic Red Hood! I can't wait to see what part, if any, he plays in the movie. Flashback perhaps?

And underneath that hood hides...

HHHARRRRLEEEEY!!!!!!

Kidding, kidding.

Under the Red Hood hides...

...Red Hood. More questions than answers here. Will Jason Todd Red Hood be in the LEGO Batman movie, and will he be dressed as classic Red Hood? Only time will tell.

Regardless, the Red Hood is (Harley Quinn not withstanding) the best of the LEGO Batman blind bag series in my humble opinion. Feel for that dome, you can't mistake it for anything else in the series.

That's all for today, kids. I'll be grabbing more myself in the future, but I'm glad I won't feel any pressure or jealousy as I read about others finding them, and I won't be sad if I come across an empty or overly picked over box at the store.

In the meantime I bid you all 'happy hunting'!

Matchbox Sky Busters Batman v Superman Batwing (with special guest star The Bat)

With the 'gotta know it now' attitude of the internet, and all the world's toy knowledge contained therein at my fingertips, few toy releases sneak up on me anymore these days. So imagine my shock to discover the Matchbox Sky Busters Batman v Superman Batwing the other day just chillaxing on the pegs at Toys R Us.

The Sky Busters line are larger than your standard Matchbox/Hotwheels vehicle. Scale is of course all over the place as the vehicles are generally the same size regardless of vehicle type (a 747 is about the same size as a Cessna) but if you were to set this Batwing next to the Hotwheels version of the Batman v Superman Batmobile, you're probably in a pretty close ballpark for matching scale of the two vehicles.

Not only did I have no idea this thing existed or was set for release, but I didn't learn about it before actually seeing it in the wild, which is a refreshing change of pace as it means I did not spend any sleepless nights praying to the toy Gods that I'd find it on my next toy hunt. Nor did I have to put out the TAPB (Toy All Points Bulletin) to my fellow toy collectors to be on the lookout for me!

Not a bad looking Batwing, it looks like an actual bat as it hangs from a cave ceiling.

The Batwing is only die-cast on the top of the fuselage. The rest is plastic. It feels lighter than I expected it to be, but it still makes for a sturdy feeling toy vehicle. I think Toys R Us is charging $3.99 (or was it $4.99?) for these things, which is a fair price given the scale. The Batwing has landing gear which is permanently extended but the wheels do roll.

The Batman v Superman Batwing is undeniably recognizable as a Bat-vehicle and a fun addition to any collection or for any fan of The Batman, regardless of their thoughts on the movie itself.

The last time I was caught so unawares by Matchbox was when they released The Bat from The Dark Knight Rises. So I couldn't resist busting out The Bat for this photo shoot.

The Bat was and is an ugly thing that looks nothing like any proper Bat-vehicle, but I suppose it's become an icon in it's own right at this point.

As dumb as it looks, I am glad I found The Bat on the pegs back when it was released and am especially glad that the Matchbox Sky Busters line has actually continued with the Bat theme. Would it be too bold of me to hope for an '89 Batwing, or perhaps a Batman Animated Batwing in the Sky Busters line-up sometime in the future?

Random Toy Pic: Who Knows What Evil Lurks in the Hearts of Men?

The shadow knows!

I was digging through some older Batman stuff  that's been boxed up in the garage for a while and came across one of my all time favorites. I couldn't resist taking this shadow picture of him - such crisp sharp lines!

In case you're wondering who this gentleman is...


Crimson Patrol Batman, from the 2006 'The Batman' toyline.

They didn't go full Azreal with this one, as it's simply Batman in CalTrans orange under that helmet (slow for the cone zone!) but still, what an awesome homage! I remember being shocked when I saw this guy on the shelf, I couldn't believe The Batman line was referencing the Knightfall storyline.

Suicide Squad Movie Novelization

I really enjoyed the Suicide Squad movie. It was a lot of fun and while certainly not perfect, it totally delivered for me. I mean come on, has geekdom gotten so glossy-shiny-Disnified that it has forgotten it was born and raised on imperfect movies, cartoons, etc?

Listen, if you didn't like it, you're right for you. But I not only loved Suicide Squad for what it is, but I also love it for the experience it gave me, and for the almost out-of-body time-travel experience while watching it with my 14 year old daughter. Bear with me, this post does come around to the novelization. I promise.

As a DC geek the idea of a Suicide Squad movie with the likes of Deadshot, Harley Quinn, and Killer Croc among others had me at 'Harley Quinn.' I have been excited for this movie since day one. My daughter is also a geek like her daddy, so she pretty much gets excited about the same things I do and we try to see all the superhero and Star Wars and similar movies together (yes, I sat through Divergent.) But my daughter doesn't live with me full time, so often we don't see a movie together on it's opening night, or one of us may have seen it already when we get the chance to see it together a week or so after it's released, or we rent it. Fortunately our summer schedule worked out so that we were able to see Suicide Squad on it's premiere date, so we got tickets for the first showing on Thursday night.

We were both excited to see it and that was great, but as the release date approached I watched something happen to my daughter that pulled me back to when I was 14 and Burton's Batman hit theatres.

Before Batman was released in '89, I knew about Batman and superheroes and comics and all that stuff, but I wasn't a Batman fanatic yet. Then I saw the movie (an imperfect movie too) and it changed my life. Big words I know but hey, it's 2016 and I'm 41 and I'm writing on a blog that's devoted to toys that are mostly Batman themed and about to tell you about the Suicide Squad novelization so...yeah. you could say it had an impact on me.

Anyways, in '89 as the Batman movie approached I read about it in movie magazines and bought merchandise and comics and the novelization and had high hopes for the movie. I saw it about 9 times in all in the theatre by the end of that summer, and the rest is history.

Back to 2016 - as Suicide Squad approached, my daughter, very familiar with all the characters from years of cartoons and comics exposure but not a fanatic for any of them, began to focus her fandom on Katana. She started asking about Katana toys, she got a Katana Funko POP, she wants to be Katana for Halloween, she re-read a bunch of our comics that star Katana, she drew pictures of Katana. I watched as she went from someone who just thinks this stuff is cool to a real Katana fanatic. And it was like looking in a time-mirror. I saw me at 14, and how incredibly cool it was to see Batman brought to life on the big screen, 'real' and 'serious' and blockbuster sized! Suddenly it's 2016 and here is my daughter getting to see Katana as no one has ever seen her before and she's as excited as any proto-geek finding their idol.

It's a moment that we all had at least once, and maybe we remember and maybe we forgot, but how often does one get to have an almost out of body experience and see it from the perspective of our older self as if we are watching our younger self as it happens, again, for the first time? I suppose being a parent means this type of thing can and maybe will happen and can take many different forms, but here it was happening in correlation to the Suicide Squad and of all things, Katana.

So to cut to the chase, we saw the movie, my daughter loved it, I loved it, Katana was awesome and I'm so happy for the experience we were able to share over a silly superhero(villain) movie.

And now to the point of the post: The Suicide Squad novelization. My daughter and I were talking a few days before the movie about how it was 'in my day.' In my day, we didn't get the DVD/BLU-Ray three weeks after the movie hit theatres, or get to watch clips online, or get to buy merchandise off eBay until we were drowning in it ten minutes after a movie was announced, or even have an internet for that matter. We had to wait until a store stocked something, anything, if it stocked anything at all. We read movie magazines and stared at little black and white behind the scenes photos for hours. We might have had a poster, or a newspaper clipping taped to our wall. If we were lucky there was an action figure line and maybe it made it through one release of five figures and a vehicle. And we had to wait months if not years to rent a VHS to see the movie again (if we're not talking about the pre-VHS days, which was also 'in my day.')

And we had novelizations. THAT'S how we revisited our favorite movies in my day!

Not only did we revisit movies through their novelizations, but due to publishing/editing/release schedules, sometimes we'd get a super cool exclusive scene or two in our book that never made it on to the movie screen. Novelizations were the 'director's cut' or 'extended version' of our childhoods. AND WE LIKED IT!

My daughter got excited about the idea of reading a novelization of Suicide Squad. So naturally, we hopped online (hey, it's 2016, not 1989!) and found out a novelization for Suicide Squad did indeed exist...but wasn't set to release until the Tuesday after the move came out!

Tuesday finally arrived, and my daughter is spending this week with her grandparents (my parents) and thankfully, since they are my parents, they know how important this kind of thing is. So when the book came out my Mom called around and they traversed three cities to find a copy (FYI: In 2016 it isn't as easy to get a movie novelization at a physical store as it was in 1989. Hell, for that matter it isn't as easy to find a damn bookstore in 2016 as it was in 1989!). In the meantime I called my local bookstore and they brought in a copy for me as well. My daughter is now about twenty chapters in and I'm about ten (hey, I have to work!) and it's already delivered on the extra scenes, AND it's written by Marv Wolfman!

The last time I bought a new movie novelization was in 1989. I was 14 and the novelization was for the Batman movie. It's 2016, I'm 41, my daughter is 14, and we're both reading the Suicide Squad novelization. Who says you can never go back?

Happy Independence Day!

Happy 4th of July from DC's Trinity, Imaginext and Toyriffic!

66 Batman BootLEGO Minifigs

Since the 66 Batman Batcave LEGO set is priced way out of my range (and I wouldn't know where to display the thing if I did buy and build it) I did the next best thing and bought a set of eight 66 Batman bootLEGO minifigs off eBay for about a buck each!

As great as the character selection is with this set (it lacks a Riddler, but otherwise has all the minifigs from LEGO set 76052) the quality of these bootLEGOs is relatively low. Not low enough to pass on them for around a buck each, but not the best quality bootLEGOs out there by any means. There's lots of plastic 'flashing' and many paint apps don't line up. A couple of the figures' feet' barely lock into the base (or other LEGO pieces) and there's been some plastic stress marks show up on pieces that fit tightly together. Also, as happens with many bootLEGOs, once I had Batman's cowl in place it's pretty permanent. So he does have two expressions, but it's going to be a task getting the cowl off to turn his head around. That's ok, as I picked the expression I liked best first. I've learned what to expect with bootLEGOs!

Robin has two expressions too, and fortunately his hair pops off easy enough to spin his head around. Unfortunately...

...the paint apps are not too clean and it looks like he may be missing a tooth or something.

'The umm, ahem, blue phone, sirs.'

Alfred is a welcome addition tot he set, the first minifig Alfred I've ever owned, LEGO, bootLEGO or otherwise.

Alfred also has two expressions and, inexplicably, a translucent blue phone. But who cares, he's awesome!

Adam West's Bruce Wayne. Keen!

Brucie also has an alternate expression.

Burt Ward's Dick Grayson.

And alternate expression.

Catwoman. She looks more like Lee Meriwether to me, but who can say.

Catwoman's alternate head is a masked face! 

Cesar Romero's Joker!

With mustache and yellow teeth!

This Joker's alt expression is classic Romero! I love it!

Burgess Merideth as Penguin! Penguin only has one expression, but he comes with a bootLEGO umbrella so I guess that makes up for his lack of a cigarette holder in his mouth.

The best part of having Bruce and Dick minifigs is being able to make maskless Batman...

...and maskless Robin minifigs!

Even Alfred got in on the fun...

Umm...err...ahem...nevermind, nothing to see here. Goodbye.