Space Force

Space Force

Amazo Toys - Kickstarter exclusive

Taking the wacky proposal of a US Space Force to the extreme, and partnering it with some good old 80s, Cold War nationalism equals the most bananas 3 3/4 inch figure line in a long time.  Trump and Obama combine forces against Putin and the Russians in the re-ignited space race for Mars!  

Sure, the inclusion of recent political figures, even the Space Force notion, have become more than dated since the inception of this Kickstarter project.  (It took almost two years for them to get to my door.)  But the imagination's the limit with all the extra incentives that were unlocked.  I bought in for the historical heads alone. 

The gamble paid off, because the new Indiana Jones movie will focus on the space race in the late 1960s.  I have no idea if we'll see Indy in a space suit, but...

Hey, that "Nick Fury" looking guy also kinda looks like Charlton Heston!  And they included a damn, dirty ape headsculpt as well!

Chuck's not the only undercover actor here.  This "Russian" guy with the cigar looks an awful lot like Arnold Schwarzenegger!  And that "Rasputin"? A very specific "John Wick" Keanu Reeves!

Anyway, back to Indiana Jones and the Lost Cold War Adventures...

Einstein and Tesla...alive?  A meeting of the minds!

Hearing problem, comrade? 

I said, "I LIKE IKE!"

Alt-Right fantasy?  Or a glimpse of things to come?  

As for a more plausible future, I hope some of the locked campaign items make it out with Fresh Monkey Fiction's Eagle Force figures (exclusive to Big Bad Toy Store).  I love the Ghost of Ronald Regan head, but would love even more to have one fleshed out along with other presidents:

Silly, but damned if I don't want a beefy, gun-toting Super Mario, too!

More Mario Kart!

More Mario Kart!

Hot Wheels - Mattel

Mattel has cranked out several more waves of Mario Kart Hot Wheels since my initial review.  They haven't quite hit the whole racer roster yet, but if it did stop here, I'm glad we got Donkey Kong, Wario, Waluigi, Toad, and Koopa Trooper joining the fray.

While the standard karts get a pass for repeating molds, the biggest disappointment in this set is seeing Waluigi in the Badwagon.  So many other kart options, and they go with one that is so specifically Bowser.  I guess I should just be happy no one is on a motorcycle.  No bikes in Mario KART!!!  Toad's Sneeker is the most unique in the set, but im partial to Koopa Trooper in his Circuit Special.  If you have the need for speed, KT never lets you down!

There are a few Yoshi color variants out there (a black one is part of a multi-pack of cars I already have...lame), and I passed on Tanooki Suit Mario...but I'm calling this done until I see some Shy Guy love.  Well, maybe Birdo...and Bowser Jr...a box set of Koopa Kids would be nice...Anyway, these have started showing up at Walmarts recently.  No more Target exclusives!  Yay!  Target needs blue-shelled in the worst way!

Mario Kart Hot Wheels - Part 1

Jumanji Part II

Jumanji Part II

Lanard Toys

I'm all caught up with Lanard's cheap-but-awesome-looking Jumanji offerings!  

Captain Marvel Shazam finally found his Tawky Tawny.

Catman could barely wait to take a cruise in on his new Jag.

The Penguin added a new, fine feathered fink to his aviary.

Wolverine already had a beastly encounter in our last review, so why not have the Hulk tangle with some wolves in the wild instead?

The hippo and elephant scale better with 3.75" figures, like the included Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson Smolder Bravestone figure.  Pity about the size, but my Indiana Jones figures needed a good ride to Pankot Palace anyway.

The rhino works fine with 6-in figures, but since I had the Indy figures out, I decided to make a bonkers pitch from "Indiana Jones and the Monkey King" a reality.  I guess I still need to get on making that three-story monster tank?

The hippo is the hardest one to fudge in any scale:  slightly too big here, still out of scale there.  It may be the head that's way out of proportion.  Maybe the cartoony, oversized noggin would work best menacing Explorer Mario? (Or is that you, Jack Black?)

I had to buy another rhino as part of the set to get the vulture and wolf, but I still think it's worth it.  Can one have too many of any of these critters?  The set came with another Smolder Bravestone and a Jumanji jeep.  The Rock fits in well with Lanard's Rampage sets, his GI Joe movie counterparts, and any bizarre Indiana Jones 5 concept they are probably pitching at Disney right now.  Keep the animals coming, Lanard!

Check out my previous Jumanji review here!

Mario and Cappy

Mario and Cappy

World of Nintendo - Jakks Pacific

The World of Nintendo line has cooled as of late, which is a shame since it's the kind of line every kid in the 90s dreamed of.  It's also a shame that it's become less the World of Nintendo and more the World of Mario.  Good thing we love that plumber so much!  I haven't played Mario Odyssey, but I hear its a must-have for Nintendo Switch.  The gimmick of this game is that Mario's hat is a sentient being that he uses to overcome obstacles.  Even if I don't ever get around to the game (Switch holds little appeal to me, and I still feel burned by the failure of the Wii U), we've got the best Mario action figure variant ever!

It's the first sans-hat Mario figure!  Well, action figure...I have a vintage PVC figurine without a hat and a creepy looking doll where the hat is removable.  Anyway, this is Mario without his hat as we have seen in Super Mario 64, Smash Bros, and now Odyssey.  I won't say Cappy is removable, as its not really meant to sit on Mario's head with the sculpted features of his hair.  You can get it to sit on top in a few ways, but it doesn't look natural. Oh well, Mario's hair looks great anyway!

This Mario also features a new pointing hand and some realistic detailing on his overalls that set him aside from previous variants.  As a plus for customizers, I have seen online that the hat-less head and hands can easily be modified to fit the superior-articulated SH Figuarts Mario.

I do wish it had a regular Mario "M" hat as well,(maybe the metal hat from Mario 64, too) but this is still a unique take on an old character that is worth having in the lineup.