When I first started collecting toys as an adult, I found myself combing over toy database websites and imagining what direction my fledgling hobby would take. A lot of the female-centric sites naturally focused on dolls. I knew early on that soft goods costumes and rooted hair were too much for my OCD brain, but a few properties still managed to intrigue me. One of my favorites was Celestra: Queen of the Transforming Dolls. This is quite possibly the most earnest attempt I've ever seen to merge the "boy" and "girl" aisles that were so hopelessly separated back in the 80s. This line is literally tiny dolls that "transform" into robots, cars, and spaceships. The execution isn't perfect; the faces and hairlines are a tad frightening, and they are essentially simple shellformers. But I love the effort and the unique snapshot of mid-80s toy politics. Bionic Six, She-Ra, Golden Girl, Robotech, etc were all working to blur those gender lines and it was terrific. Let's check out Celestra below!
UNITING ALL WOMEN OF PLASTIC
Showing posts with label Vintage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vintage. Show all posts
Sunday, March 20, 2022
Monday, April 6, 2020
Talbot Toys - NABISCO DOLLS!
Many years ago my collecting hobby went off on a tangent and I got really interested in PVC figurines and vinyl advertising collectibles. It was a frustrating side-hobby because products like these were rarely meant to last a lifetime, production quality was often haphazard, yet conversely there is a really competitive collecting market. I still have a ton of Smurfs, California Raisins, and Campbells Kids, but my desire has dwindled. However, this current quarantine has inspired me to open some long-neglected boxes in my basement and led me to re-discovering these amazing Nabisco Doll gems. In many ways, these are way outside my typical interests (they're cutesy and doll-like), but on the other hand hand I love food mascots, retro stylings, and odd designs (the decision to put cookies on their heads is so bizarre to me). They have have minimal articulation (shoulders and neck) and their slightly larger than similar products of the time, but overall I'm kind of obsessed with them. Let's check out the Nabisco Girls below!
Wednesday, June 12, 2019
3.75" Fortnite - CALAMITY & DARK BOMBER!
I must admit I was a little worried about the 3.75" Fartnite (I'm leaving that typo - you're welcome) figures from Jazwares. The first wave didn't move nearly as well as I had expected. I actually don't know any sales numbers, but the figures have been warming the shelves since before the holidays. Jazwares has a history of ending toylines too soon. Their Hanna-Barbera and Assassin's Creed lines showed so much promise, but only ever saw a single wave. And their Sonic line lasted years, but still ended abruptly. So I was expecting a similar pattern with Fortnite, but it turns out they definitely had a second wave in the works, as well as a surprise 6" line that just recently hit the stores (I can't wait to see if they include any female characters in the future). I don't totally love the execution of these two 3.75" females in this newest offering. Dark Bomber is a simple repaint of Brite Bomber and Calamity has a costume that creates a lot of bulk and immobility. But these issues seem kind of universal in this scale. Let's check them out below!
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
The Buggy Ladies of GLO FRIENDS!
I know a review like this won't be everyone's cup of tea, but the mantra of this blog is "Uniting All Women of Plastic", and that means all. I'm aware that the vast majority of my readership is anchored in the superhero arena, but I'm hoping that there's just as much interest in the awesome nostalgic 80's properties out there as well - because I'll be sure to pepper reviews like this in every few months. In 1982, Hasbro created a plush toy sensation in the form of Glo Worm. The "Glo" brand immediately took off and soon spawned a series of books, cartoons, and a popular line of small glow-in-the-dark figures called Glo Friends. I think every child of the 80's had at least one of these. They were the default stocking stuffers for years in my family, but I eventually melted or destroyed them all. In 1986, these figures hit the market under the new-ish Hasbro subsidiary, Playskool (although some of the packaging still lists the maker as "Hasbro Preschool"). There were 28 figures in all. Let's check out my favorite three below!
Thursday, October 3, 2013
Vintage Goodness: Voltron's HAGGAR THE WITCH!
I can still remember my first reaction to Voltron like it was yesterday. I grew up in the boonies with three staticy television channels. One year we all spent the Summer with my Dad on an army base. There we had an apartment with air-conditioning and cable (both were luxuries I didn't know existed). I remember eating cereal on one of the first mornings there and my Mom turned on the TV in the middle of an episode of Voltron. I was instantly intrigued. Multi-Colored heroes who rode gigantic robot cats?! A princess who is friends with a bunch of alien-looking mice?! Blue-skinned bad guys in space?! and.. wait.. what? The lions are assembling?! This can't be. My 7-year-old mind was blown. I became obsessed and was showered with Voltron toys that Christmas. I won't even mention my reaction when I discovered Vehicle Voltron either. Haggar was the typical cackling evil sorceress I had come to expect from my villainy. Truly a classic 80s baddie. Let's check her out below!
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Vintage Goodness: HOT LIPS HOULIHAN!
M*A*S*H was an unavoidable part of growing up in the early eighties without cable (or Satellite Dish as it was back then). The show ran from 1972 to 1983 and its finale became the most watched television episode of all time. Early on in the show's career, there was a series of Mego-type dolls released for the show, but it wasn't until many years later that Tristar jumped on the fledgling 3.75" figure bandwagon and released this series, just a year before the long-running show concluded. Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan was the primary female character on the show throughout its run, so luckily she was a shoe-in for inclusion in the toy line. The character was played by Loretta Swit (who I actually met once!) The likeness is actually very good for an early-80s figure in this scale. Of course, I think it's a little odd that they made figures of television shows like this in the first place, but I think it's great that classic TV culture can be represented in my collection. Let's check out Hot Lips below!
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Vintage Goodness: The Women of BIONIC SIX!
It's amazing how well a family theme can work in a superhero genre. The Fantastic Four and Power Pack have proven that it's a recipe that can work, yet somehow it's rarely ever explored. The Bionic Six is yet another of the great 1980's toy-centric cartoon properties. The general premise is that the Bennett family (Mom Helen, Dad Jack, Biological kids Meg and Eric, Adopted son J.D., and foster kid Bunjiro) are all exposed to dangerous alien radiation and must undergo bionic enhancements to save their lives. This treatment gives them each unique super-powers and inspires them to form a superhero team, the Bionic Six. The main villain, Dr. Scarab is the brother to Professor Amadeus (who had infused the Bennett family with their bionic enhancements). LJN is a company that had some of the coolest licenses in the mid-80s: ThunderCats, TigerSharks, Photon, Dungeons & Dragons, etc, etc. They definitely did a fantastic job with their Bionic Six line. Let's check out the figures below!
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Vintage Goodness: SilverHawks STEELHEART!
SilverHawks was one of those fantastic late-80s properties that combined toy and cartoon culture and became an instant hit. Rankin & Bass created SilverHawks as an outerspace counterpart to ThunderCats. (Rankin & Bass also developed 1987's TigerSharks, which is a personal favorite of mine, but unfortunately produced no female action figures). The SilverHawks were a team of cybernetically-enhanced heroes in the galaxy of Limbo who fought against the evil Mon*Star (yes, he has a star instead of a hyphen). SteelHeart is the codename for Emily Hart, the sole female of the group and twin sister of Will Hart, aka SteelWill. She is the technician of the team and is often seen tinkering with their spaceship(s). All the SilverHawks have cybernetic wings, facemasks, and a robotic bird companion. Unfortunately these figures don't display their masked variations, but all-in-all, they are some of the best 1980s cartoon-based toys out there. The likenesses are great, the action features make sense, and the sheer playability is amazing. On to the review!
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Vintage Goodness: Eagle Force's GOLDIE HAWK!
I have a great love for the 1/24 scale toys of the 80's. M.A.S.K. and Dino-Riders always led the pack with the most prolific series' and by far the most females (see my previous posts on the Women of M.A.S.K. and the Women of Dino-Riders), but every once in a while I will stumble across a long forgotten (to me at least) figure series and discover a gem. Mego's Eagle Force consisted of 18 figures standing about 2.25" tall. They are all military themed and feature metallic gold uniforms. Goldie Hawk is the only female of the group and she's actually pretty easy to get your hands on. The Eagle Force toys were some of the very last figures produced by the trailblazing company, Mego, before they shut their doors in 1982. The toy line was extremely popular and was reproduced by Ideal in the early 80's under the name "Strike Force." I would wager that the success of these small-scale specialized military figures helped inspire the scaled-down 3&3/4" GI Joe series a few years later. Let's check out this gilded beauty!
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Women of Halloween Part 9 - SHAYA!
The Power Lords' Queen of Power, Shaya, from Revell 1982
The Power Lords are just about the creepiest toy line I can think of (Pulsar is a close second). I remember as a kid everytime my parents went into our local Rea & Derick drugstore, I would race my brothers to the meager toy section. There we would try peek in through the sides of the Power Lords' plastic packaging to see the characters' gross alter-egos (sculpted on their backs) . I know they are intended to look like alien forms, but to me they looks like raw exposed muscle. I was disgusted, I was appalled, but mostly I was intrigued. Looking back now, these toys are quite genius. Every single one has some kind of duality feature, whether it's as simple as a head that spins to expose a second face, or in the case of the two main characters, Adam Power and Shaya, an entire body transformation completed in a surprisingly simple way; by turning them around.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Women of Halloween Part 7 - MYSTERIA!
Would you believe this is the only toy I own with rooted hair? I loathe rooted hair more than sun-faded plastic and missing accessories! Do I reject all toy lines with rooted hair? Absolutely not. She-ra and Golden Girl paved the way for girl adventure toys. Not to mention the amazing three ladies in this very Ghostbusters line. What I hate about rooted hair is its sloppy, frazzled appearance, its penchant for collecting dust, and its allusion that all female figures must make some concession to doll-status (only allowing them one foot in the door of the action figure arena). Maybe some people would only buy a toy if you could dress it up and make it pretty, but I know they completely missed their mark with me because I was cursing up a storm as I brushed her hair in preparation for these photos. Actually, I may just customize her with some sculpted hair ..hmmm. Anyway, back to the lady of the hour, the lovely Mortici.. Mysteria! I never caught wind of the Addams family inspiration until years after I was watching Ghostbusters after school. To my naive eyes, she was completely original. She was the most vain, wicked, silly, sophisticate in the Hauntquarters. So clearly I was enamoured.
Saturday, September 1, 2012
Vintage Goodness: The Women of DINO RIDERS!
My parents didn't buy me many toys as a child. We weren't poor by any means, but I have three siblings so hand-me-downs were a way of life for us. As a result, I was endlessly coveting my young classmates with all their shiny new toys and I would beg to run errands with my mom just to escape her grasp for a moment to gaze in wonder at the toy aisles. The build-up of this little story is that I have a very fond memory of finding a Dino Riders toy in my elementary school playground. He was a green lizard-man with a gold-plated chest and a clear dome over his head. I know I should have taken him to the lost-and-found box in the office.. but if you could have just seen that gold armour glinting so magically in the sunlight, you would have secretly slipped him into your overall bib too. Dino Riders were awesome little toys with weaponized dinosaurs and warring alien invaders.. it was weird and brilliant and is one of the more recognizable toy franchises of the late 80's.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Vintage Goodness: The Women of M.A.S.K.!
Vanessa Warfield and Gloria Baker in all their 80's Glory from Kenner
For me, the 1980's are defined by toys and cartoons. I was seven years old when all the 80's greats were at their prime. M.A.S.K. was right in there with the best and was extremely popular for a few years between 1985-1988. We had quite a few figures and vehicles around the house (mostly my brothers' however) and I have very fond memories. At the time M.A.S.K. was created, it was presented as a sort of hybrid between G.I.Joe and Transformers. The basic premise was two opposing forces (M.A.S.K. and V.E.N.O.M.) each had a team of drivers/pilots who had transforming vehicles. Like a motorcycle that transforms into a one-man helicopter, or a racecar that pops out some fins and becomes a speedboat. The drivers all had intricate masks that enabled them to control these vehicles. It was pretty genius and had some great characters and awesome toys.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Vintage Goodness: MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES!
1988 G.I.Joe knock-offs from Berchet of France
I first discovered Mission Medecins San Frontieres ("Doctors Without Borders") on yojoe.com many years ago in their "Not G.I.Joe" section. The information on that site was basic, but it prompted me to do some research and discover the rest of the line. It was a LONG time before I finally was able to get the two females of the set. I didn't pay much for them, roughly $2.00 each (plus crazy shipping from France), so I don't think they're excessively valuable or anything, but I rarely see them on ebay. If you're into G.I.Joe bootlegs, especially ones with original sculpting details, this is definitely a series you should be hunting down.
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