Imaginext Darkseid, Parademon and Blind Bag Series 2 Kingdom Come Superman

A recent trip to Wal-Mart yielded the Imaginext Darkseid/Parademon two pack and the DC Blind Bag Series 2 Kingdom Come Superman!

This new Darkseid release from Imaginext is their second Darkseid release and far superior to their first. Not only is the new release based on Darkseid's classic look (while the first release was based on the less awesome New 52 Darkseid design) but for reasons unknown to anyone who has ever read a DC comic book, their original Darkseid release was a bit on the Smallseid. In fact, I hated this guy so much based on scale alone that I completely dodged him at retail, and only own him because I found him for fifty cents at the flea market.

The new Darkseid is both classically designed and slightly oversized, which makes him formidable without being overly large.

Darkseid is anticipated to play a big part in the upcoming Justice League movie (or at least it's ongoing series) so Imaginext is getting ready by releasing this figure now, and they have also including a Parademon along with him (which have appeared in the Justice League trailers.)

The Parademon (called merely a 'minion' on the Imaginext packaging; perhaps ParaDEMONS aren't kosher kid toy fodder?) is also classically designed, based on his classic comic book appearances and not on the modern comics or movies. Sadly the quality control on this set is pretty low, I saw multiple sets with extremely shoddy paint apps on the Parademon before I finally nabbed this set. And even this one, the best I've seen, has major over-spray paint issues.

That said, he's a Parademon and ideally I'd like a handful of these army builders, so I'm ok with an imperfect version now in the hopes that I get a few more in the future.

Kingdom Come Superman is part of the DC Blind Bag Series 2 wave. The first wave was Batman-centric and has been hard to find in the US (mostly being found in K-Marts and Barnes and Nobles) while Series 2 has had a wider release (I've seen them at both Wal-Mart and Target.) At first I didn't think I needed another Imaginext Superman, but the Kingdom Come 'S' symbol coupled with the grey hair makes this one a must have! He's now my 'go-to' Imaginext Superman, replacing the battle damaged Superman that came with Doomsday.

As usual., Imaginext has an embossed number on the back of their blind bags, taking the guess(squeeze) work out of finding the figure you want.

The DC Blind Bags Series 2 codes are as follows:
Kingdom Come Superman: 90
Brainiac: 89
\Aquaman: 95
Unmasked Black Manta: 96
John Stewart Green Lantern: 92
Sinestro: 91

There was only one other in wave 2 that I couldn't live without, to be posted about later!

"What the hell are you supposed to be?"

Random Toy Pic :: The Doc Ock Is In

Doc Ock via Playskool. I've always been a fan of Doctor Octopus. I remember seeing him on the cardbacks of my Secret Wars action figures (I had Doom, Iron Man and Wolverine) and really wanting to add him to my modest collection. But alas it never happened.

This kiddie Playskool version of the good Doctor is tops, I love his mechanical arms, they give this guy a literal extra dimension that makes him stand out against the other heroes and villains in the line. Of the few Playskool Marvel figures I own, this guy has fast become my favorite.

The Force is Strong With Playskool

Ever since my oldest daughter saw The Force Awakens she's been a huge Star Wars nut. And I couldn't be prouder! I never thought I'd regret thinning my Star Wars collection down a few years back, but now I really wish I still had all those Force Awakens and prequel action figures for her.

Thank goodness for the Flea Market, where I can still find her all sorts of fun Star Wars goodies from every generation!

This last weekend I scored for her a POTF Hoth Luke, a handful of Playskool Star Wars figures, and a  Sandtrooper from the earlier Super Hero Squad styled Star Wars Playskool line.

I love the little chibi R2-D2, and I'm tempted to keep the general Kenobi figure for myself. But since I've already been giving my daughter all the figures I had from these lines, I probably shouldn't start backpedaling now.

Random Toy Pic :: Spider-Man is a Jerk

"I'ma let you finish, but Rocksteady is the best Rhinoceros themed villain of all time!"

Happy Father's Day!

Happy father's day to all the dads out there! Enjoy your day. Enjoy your toys. Enjoy your kids. Enjoy your kids' toys.

Playskool Star Wars Landspeeder

"Hop in, I know a place where they totally serve our kind!"

I found this Playskool Landspeeder at a local children's second-hand store. I only own Yoda and Darth Vader from the Playskool Star Wars Jedi Force line that this vehicle comes from, but neither were on hand for the photoshoot, so I slipped the Imaginext Killer Croc into the driver's seat. He makes a passable Star Wars alien.

This little Landspeeder, originally released in 2011, totally takes me back to my late seventies childhood. It's pretty similar to the Kenner Landspeeder with three wheels underneath. Unlike the Kenner version, this one's wheels do not retract. But it does have a 'pull-back' feature, which is almost as fun! Also, there is no hood/trunk compartment in this one like in the classic Kenner version.

This is the first Jedi Force vehicle I've acquired, but hopefully it isn't the last. Ironically, the Landspeeder was also the first Kenner Star Wars vehicle I ever owned, way back before I can even remember NOT owning it! Amazing how cyclical life can be sometimes, isn't it?

Rescue Bots Optimus Prime

"Cuteness is the right of all sentient beings"

I first spotted this Transformers Rescue Bots Optimus Prime figurine over at Battlegrip. Non-transforming and possessing limited articulation but as cute as all hell, this small almost Imaginext sized Autobot is a must have for any G1 Optimus Prime fan!

Newly released by Hasbro and Playskool as part of their Playskool Heroes Rescue Bots series, what I didn't realize until I found mine is that he is available individually bagged, (the set shown at Battlegrip includes a useless-to-me human figurine.)

I found this guy at Toys R Us last night. Bagged (but not 'blind-bagged,' you can see the figure right through the front window!) each bagged figure cost $2.99.

Chase the Police-Bot, Heatwave the Fire-Bot, Optimus Prime and Bumblebee are all part of this release. They're all cute but only Optimus Prime had to go home with me. If Bumblebee looked more G1 than Bayformer, I'd have grabbed him too. Here's hoping for more classic characters in the future!

Prime is articulated at the neck, 2 points at each shoulder, and one point for both legs (they move in unison.) He also has a wrist joint at his hand and saw-blade.

The saw-blade is very cool, giving Prime a weapon/tool without creating a separate piece for little kids to lose. At first I thought I might be disappointed in the saw/lack of a gun/left fist, but it has grown on me and I actually think it's a super cool weapon - especially in case of a zombie outbreak...

"Lock and load and prepare to roll-out!"

Here's Prime with Double-Barrel Carol to give you an idea of his size, and to serve as a portent of things to come!

To be continued...

The Captain and Tennille Wolverine

"Hey Wolvie, check it out...I'm wearing America's hat...aka Canada! HAHAHA!"

Another set of figures I bought myself for my birthday are these Playskool Captain America and Wolverine figures. These figures are Hasbro/Playskool's answer to Mattel/Fisher-Price's Imaginext line, and sadly they just don't live up to Imaginext.

I really wanted Cap and Wolvie here after picking up Spidey and Gobby a while back. While I'm glad I have them, Imaginext has set the bar high enough for me to be mildly disappointed too. First off: scale. Cap is much smaller, proportionally, than Wolverine. That ain't right! I could get over the height issue, though, if it weren't for the fact that Wolvie's head and feet are also scaled differently than Cap's. It's like they were sculpted by different people in different rooms.

Wolverine is the best of the two, although the paint apps are slightly shoddy. Minor issues, but Imaginext figures are so clean and shiny, so it's pretty obvious these Playskool heroes are a little sub par in comparison.

Cap is really bad, paint-wise. His cheeks and right eye are just plain sloppy. None of the lines/breaks in paint/plastic are clean or straight. He is a cute little figure though, and the fact that Playskool has sculpted details like his chain-mail and stripes etc is cool, as some of these details could have just been painted on or ignored entirely. His shield is sculpted on, which is okay and understandable for a pre-school action figure.

I'm loving all the Imaginext super hero themed figures, and will gladly chase after third and fourth tier characters and costume re-paints of guys like Batman if they keep it up. But I doubt I'll get too excited about more Playskool Heroes now that I have the big guns (Cap, Wolvie and Spidey) if the QC doesn't improve immensely.

"Nice claws."

Your Friendly Neighborhood Playskool Heroes

Holy heroic confusion, Batman, could this really be? Has Spider-Man joined the ranks of the junior JLA?

Well, sort of. You see, Hasbro/Playskool, not to be outdone by Mattel/Fisher-Price, has itself just released kid friendly action figures/playsets ala Imaginext's DC Super Friends line.

Sporting the same type of articulation as the later Imaginext releases (in other words: shoulders, head, hips and wrists,) the first run of these guys (according to the back of the box) includes two-pack figure sets with the likes of Captain America and Wolverine, Hulk and Thor, Iron-Man and Dr. Doom, and the set I picked up; Spider-Man and...

Green Goblin!

Green Goblin has a non removable pumpkin bomb in his hand, and comes with a glider that he can ride - held on by the peg on the glider and the hole on his foot.

'Outta the way, runt. This gliding greenbean is mine!'

'Take your time, Birdman. I prefer to tussle with (Cat) women anyways.'

Almost exactly like the Imaginext superheroes, the Marvel Playskool Heroes figures are a little smaller and 'slighter,' if you will, when played with...I mean compared against...the DC Super Friends Imaginext figures. Which actually works perfectly for a character like Spider-Man who is himself a teenager, and will probably work well with Wolverine too, who is supposed to be short. These guys were at Toys R Us in the preschool toy aisle next to the Imaginext stuff. They are $6.49 for a two pack at my TRU, not a bad deal for two figures, but you know as time goes by Spidey and Iron-Man are going to be packed in with everybody and you'll probably eventually have ten of each! Regardless, I REALLY wanted Captain America and Wolverine, but for some reason that was the only set shown on the box that they didn't have on the shelf.

There are also a couple vehicles which come with different versions of their respective characters - the Iron-Man that came with a car was quite different than the one from the two-pack, while the Spidey that came with a Spider-copter only differed slightly (the spider-symbol may have been the only difference in fact.) At least they are giving us adult collectors...I mean 'kids'...yeah, kids...something unique right out of the gate. That's cool.

On the package it also says to check out www.playskoolheroes.com, but as of this posting there is nothing there but an announcement page.

Oh and one more thing: Playskool / Hasbro - if you are listening...the times they are a'changin' - don't wait until this toyline has been out for years before you give kids a female in the line. Bring them early and bring them often. I promise you won't regret it!