Spider-Hulk, Spider-Hulk, smashes whatever a gamma irradiated spider smashes!

First, let me apologize for not posting for the whole of March. I appreciate the three of you who are still reading. That said, I'm baaaaack!

And not only am I back, but I bring you today some fun pics of one of my Holy Grails that I finally added to my collection: Spider-Hulk!

Back in 2006, Toy Biz was reaching the end of their Spider-Man Classics line. They may have also been close to the end of their license with Marvel, which ended up (and still is) with Hasbro. I'm no Marvel expert, so don't quote me on that. What I do know is that one of the last Spider-Man Classics figures Toy Biz released was Spider-Hulk. I'm pretty sure, as the story goes, Peter Parker somehow gained the powers of The incredible Hulk for a hot minute (and this is not Bruce Banner/Hulk in Spider-PJs). I've not read this specific story in the comics, but I love that Toy Biz made an action figure of this...well...incredible moment!

I saw this figure at retail back in '06 and somehow talked myself out of it. I've regretted that decision ever since, and as is always the case in such situations, Spider-Hulk became a very hard-to-get figure, and has since held a ridiculously high resale value. I've kept my eyes peeled for him for over ten years, hoping to find an economical example, but I've never seen him going for a sane and excusable price...until now!

For some reason beyond my mere human intellect to interpret,  a couple months ago a Chinese ebay seller suddenly began selling loose Spider-Hulks. The auction end prices vary, but have been hovering around an average of $25 bucks for as long as I've been monitoring. Buying loose toys from China can be a risky venture, so I had to ask myself: was it worth tempting fate to get either a) a cheap bootleg, b) a Spider-Hulk with two left feet or c) nothing at all, in an attempt to get Spider-Hulk for a fraction of what he's gone for on the secondary market for the past ten years?

Well the answer was obviously 'yes.'

I'm glad to report that I bid, I won, and lo-and-behold, a couple weeks later a beautiful loose but perfect example of Spider-Hulk arrived at my doorstep! HUZZAH!!!

Of course there are a lot of questions this figure's existence raises. Did Toy Biz have a warehouse full of these gentlemen, just sitting in crates for a decade, waiting for someone to buy them up and liquidate them on eBay? Or did toy Biz themselves, or whatever manufacturer they contracted, find a crate ala the Lost Ark of the Covenant, and after they busted them open and their faces melted off, they decided to offer them up on eBay for us True Believers who never stopped looking and hoping and praying?  Or is he coated in lead paint and was held back from retail sale for safety reasons and I'm going to die soon?

Who cares. I HAVE SPIDER-HULK!.

One last thing: You too could own a Spider-Hulk: As of press time, they are still popping up on eBay and auctions are ending between $20 and $30 with free shipping. I can't guarantee your experience will be the same as mine, but I can guarantee that this is a great price for an otherwise hard to find figure. Search for SpiderHulk and search under 'free shipping', and you should find the auctions easily enough. Good luck!

Robins of Toyriffic Past :: Robin Week Concludes

All good things must end, including Robin Week. But if you haven't had enough of that red, green and yellow kid's stuff, check out a sampling of  Toyriffic's past Robin posts!

Batman Returns Tim Drake Robin.


DCUC Robin and DCUC predecessor 6" Batman line Robin.



Toybiz Robin.

The New Batman Adventures Robin.


Redbird by Corgi.

Teen Titans Red X Robins.



DC Infinite Heroes Earth 2 Robin (with DCIH Tim Drake Robin.)

Three cheers for the original kid sideckick!

Leapin' Lizards!

I like Spider-Man as much as the next guy. He's no Batman of course. But since he's one of the top moneymaking Marvel superheroes of all time there have been a lot of toys of him and his villains over the years, and I have collected my share. I've gotten rid of a lot of them as I've thinned/refined my collection over time, but one that I have held on to is Lizard:

Dr. Connors, in an effort to regenerate his missing arm, instead transmogrified into the villainous Lizard! Rawr!

That's about all I know about The Lizard, based on what I've read in a handful of Spider-Man comics and seen in the old sixties cartoon. Dr. Connors did appear in some of the Sam Raimi Spider-Man flicks and the Lizard is supposed to appear in the upcoming Spider-Man reboot, so after that I'll know more. But let's face it, what's to know? He's a lizard-man, a werelizard if you will. Cool enough for me.

This Lizard figure was hard to find at the time. I recall only seeing this one and finding him at a Mervyns or a Sears of all places. He came with some accessories which I didn't care about and have long since misplaced. He was part of some Spider-Man-centric Toybiz toyline and not a Marvel Legend per se. Released  in 1997 these Spider-Man 6" scale figures acted as sort of a predecessor to Marvel Legends. His articulation is pretty good but his pose limits it. I'd prefer less artic and a dynamic pose over heavy aritc and a static pose. They tried to combine the two here with mixed results. The arms are great, with (then) standard shoulder rotation and bicep cuts that allow his forearms to spread out wide. But his knee and hip joints are useless with the single pose his stance allows him to take while still remaining upright. They did give him a hinged jaw which is real nice for display and play, so you gotta give 'em props for that! And his tail can rotate fully through his lab coat and be posed up or down, another nice design feature.

"Jazz hands!"

Play Mysterio For Me

If there were a country called Youlookstupidsylvania, this would be their King:

This is Mysterio. He looks like a moron. Ever see that show What Not to Wear?
This. Do not wear this. Ever. End of show.

He was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Stan Lee and Steve Ditko did drugs. Mysterio is the proof.

Don't get me wrong. I absolutely love Mysterio. I love him precisely because he looks so amazingly idiotic. The salad bowl helmet, the lantern wrist bands, the green spandex, the purple cape, the metallic golden boots. What's not to love?

This figure came out in 2005 as part of the Spider-Man Classics figure line. He looks so goofy I couldn't pass him up. He came with a cloud/smoke-like base which fired a couple missiles, but I have those packed away. Their absence in no way detracts from his goofyness. He was also later released as part of the Spider-Man Origins figure line, without the cloud base and with a more metallic paint scheme.

Mysterio has tons of articulation, as is standard for these Marvel Legends/Toy Biz figures, but it's pretty pointless and excessive for his character. Like DCUC figures, it's also worthless because his plastic cape inhibits his range of motion.

But Mysterio has another trick up his sleeve:

When you push a button on his back, a light shines to reveal his face! Keen!

But wait, there's more:


Push the button again and his head rotates to reveal the face of a monster! Yipes!

Push it once more and his head rotates to show the face of an Alien! Egads!

Let's look at that action in the dark, shall we?

Grrr!

Klaatu, barda, nikto.


Would you like fries with that?

I Love Dick

Grayson.
Chunky B over at Eclectorama posted the Toybiz Flash today, and *gasp* had the audacity to say "I usually ditch Robin and Bats teams up with Flash."

How could he?!?! The Toybiz Robin is clearly superior to The Toybiz Flash in every way! Let's take a look a the facts.

First off, Robin has a COOL action feature, which allows him to do a karate chop! The Flash has epileptic seizures. Point: Robin.

The button to activate Robin's chop is hidden under his cape. The Flash has a wind up knob (or cancerous tumor) growing out of his back. And no cape to hide it. Bonus Point: Robin.

When not activated, Robin's karate chop feature reveals his friendly nature, as he reaches his hand out in friendship to fellow superheroes and citizens alike. The Flash has two balled-up fists and some anger issues to work out. Point: Robin.

Robin also has access to all of Batman's spiffy vehicles, including the Toybiz Batcycle from 1989. The Flash runs. For fun.

In the immortal words of Pat Buttram "Run for fun? What the hell kind of fun is that?"
Point: Robin.
Let's see the Flash do THAT!

Robin was in the circus. The Flash, I dunno if he even has a job, or hobbies. He runs for fun after all. Point: Robin.

Final tally: Robin: like, a bazillion points. Flash: Zero. No need to go on. So let's take a closer look at the 1989 Toybiz Batcycle. It has a kick stand!

When you push a button on the gas tank, the side panels flip down to make little wings. Why? Who knows, I don't think it's supposed to fly or anything.

The bike was designed to compliment the '89 Batmobile and it does a pretty good job. Simple, fluid lines and lots of black. I'm sure it's pretty fast too.

But not as fast as The Flash!

Okay okay, the Flash can have one point, just so he doesn't try and outrun his tears.