Indiana Jones and the Staff of Ra

Indiana Jones and the Staff of Ra

Ravenwood Coins prop replica - Kenner vintage figures

Indy is right up there with Ghostbusters and Batman 89 for me, yet he has never had as much merch.  Outside of a renewed interest in the franchise with the release of "Crystal Skull,"  finding Indy stuff is a crapshoot at flea markets.  It only half sucks, as the fun of finding a diamond in the rough outweighs the bad.  One of these recent diamonds was a metal, full-scale replica of the headpiece to the Staff of Ra that some friends (and fellow Indy fans) pointed me towards.  

Ravenwood Coins on facebook produces limited runs on smaller challenge coins which look and feel fantastic, but I was all about the bigger one.  I've been looking for a good replica for some time, weeding through the various 3-D printed ones.  Nothing has even come close to this one in accuracy and quality.  It's heavy, shiny, and doesn't require any finishing.  I still need to find a chain for it, if I wanna be all Marion-like.

It may sound a bit pricey at $85 shipped, but I guarantee you will not be dissatisfied.  If Ravenwood Coins offers these again and you consider yourself any kind of Indy fan, jump on it.  It's beautiful!  Please check out their page for other goodies, like the challenge coin version and mini Grail Knight shields.

Throwing in a couple of other Indy "artifacts" with this review...I recently picked up a vintage Kenner Indy and Cairo Swordsman at a local toy shop for $5 together.  I think the guy assumed they were some of those Funko ReAction figures...barf.  It's one of the best conditions I've seen an old Indy figure in.  He came with his gun (usually lost to time and couch cushions) and both thumbs (these have become brittle with time and wear.)  His whipping or quick-draw action works, too!

Through an Indy autograph page, I picked up a Young Indiana Jones poster signed by the youngest Indy, Corey Carrier.  This was the first signing for him at a Chiller Theatre convention in NJ.  Members of the Fortune and Glory page were nice enough to take picture orders for those at a distance like myself.  Thanks for the opportunity to add this to the collection, Josh Clark!  There are some good folks out there in this fan community, but steer clear of the Raider.net...there are some real uppity jackasses in those parts.

Not new, but recently displayed:  a Jim Steranko autograph, a Crystal Skull art print, and a limited edition, signed artifact poster (all proceeds went to help American Veterans) by Matt Busch.  I also picked up Bottleneck Gallery's limited prints from Karl Fitzgerald. (Still need frames for Temple and Crusade.)  The adventure continues...more Indy stuff to come! (I hope...)

Spectral Ghostbusters

Spectral Ghostbusters

Diamond Select - SDCC/Gamestop Exclusive

In what very well may be the last Ghostbusters figures from Diamond Select Toys (Hasbro now has the license), we get a nice box set with a bunch of repainted/retooled figures.  The latter is not an entirely bad thing, as the Spectral Ghostbusters are from one of the most memorable episodes of the Real Ghostbusters series (linking directly to the movie, explaining the uniform changes and Slimer's inclusion in the group).  And Diamond went the extra mile in molding their parts in translucent green plastic.

 

They look pretty slick in more ways than one.  Not only are they hauntingly see-through, but they have glow-in-the-dark "vapor" lines running here and there to make them really pop.  There is also Stay Puft Marshmallow Man residue painted here and there on the jumpsuits (seriously, watch the episode).  I'm not sure it should be on the packs (Peter wasn't supposed to incinerate those), but I'll allow it.  Each Buster comes with a trap and green proton stream.

Speaking of marshmallow residue, you also get a repainted Stay Puft figure with a new, angry face.  I was not happy with this inclusion, considering I already had beef with the first release.  (Who needs another diminutive Stay Puft?)  They should have just thrown the angry head in as an interchangeable bonus and shaved $10 or so off the complete price.  At least the terror dog is nice and RGB appropriate.  One pops up briefly here and there, specifically in one of the intros, though the blue coloration is not explained.  I guess the translucent nature of the figure may not be accurate, but it beats a straight up repaint.  He comes with the same alternate set of horns as the first release.  Great...how am I going to get another blue terror dog to display those?!

The set comes in a great big, window display box with some animated series artwork.  It went in the trash, but it was worth noting that it made a nice presentation.  Is it worth $120?  Only for completists, and I would have been more happy with a set of the 4 GBs for $80.  It was first available at San Diego Comic Con, but immediately showed up at Gamestop.  If you're on the fence about it, I imagine this will hit clearance sooner or later. 

As I mentioned before, this may be a fond farewell to Diamond Select.  Even with some quality control issues here and there, they blew Mattel out of the water with character selection and the massive dioramas.  Hasbro may be able to top them with scanned likenesses, but I doubt we'll ever see anything like that temple diorama again.  I wish DST had a wave of two more to offer some RGB baddies (Boogieman, please) and some missing ghosts from the movies (Scoleri Brothers), but all in all, I enjoyed what they brought to the table.

Please enjoy these past DST Ghostbusters reviews:

Ghostbusters Figures and Temple Diorama

Ghostbusters II Figures

The Real Ghostbusters with Firehouse Diorama

Ghostbusters UNO

Ghostbusters UNO

Mattel

Took 'em long enough to rectify the mistake...whoops, Mattel made Ghostbusters 2016 UNO cards before the one and only Ghostbusters!    It plays the same as the original, save for the new "Cross the Streams" card that I'm not sure adds that much to the game.  Oh, well...the pictures they selected look nice!

Even Janine gets some love here!  The Louis with coffeepot shot is my favorite. ("Yes, have some!") I like the "spooked" Ray on the "0" card, but feel that this number should have been reserved for Walter Peck.

The pictures selected for the special action cards are even better.  "Skip" turn on Gozer..."Reverse" on the librarian...hah!  The wild card, which I forgot to take a picture of, features the Ghostbusters "hands-in" after surviving Gozer's earthquake.  The cream of the crop though is the "Draw Four" card, with all four heroes in one of the best promotional shots ever.

I found this deck at Gamestop for about $6 (while buying an Ectotron/Ghostbusters t-shirt, I might add).  If you like UNO and Ghostbusters, you should have no problem justifying this checkout lane, impulse purchase.

1989 Batarang and Grappling Gun

1989 Batarang and Grappling Gun

full-scale, 3D printed props

Thanks to 3D printing, Etsy is now as dangerous to me and my wallet as Ebay!  Simply search for a random movie or pop culture item in their search bar, and you can bet there will be at least a dozen or more items that have been brought to life for those of us who are less than skilled prop and costume builders.  I stumbled on these 1989 Bat-props while searching for 3D printed Ghostbusters prop parts.  The Machine knows what I like!

They've still got that 3D printed texture to them that a light sanding or paint coat might help with, but from a distance of two feet or more, they look pretty darn neat.







The gun comes in two pieces that can be assembled and disassembled easily.  The piton requires some assembly with its barbs and could use some glue for permanency.  I was surprised by the folding metal hinge for the handle...great detail, sturdy, and works great.  It could benefit from some paint and weathering but, all in all, not bad for $30.

The batarang is equally as sturdy for a homespun prop.  Lightweight, but not fragile.  They had a more expensive, folding option, but I'm happy with this static $20 model.  I will at least need to add silver paint to the bottom tips of the wing for screen accuracy.

So, if you love Batman 1989 like I do, and want some decent props that wont break the bank, I recommend these.  Though don't stick around Etsy for too long...one thing quickly spirals to the next:  "OOO a noisy cricket from MIB!  And an arm mounted proton pack!"  $$$

Slim Jim Macho Man

Slim Jim Macho Man

Mattel - SDCC Exclusive

Now this is one piece of 90s nostalgia I could not live without!  Slim Jim turned the already awesome Macho Man Randy Savage into a Kool-Aid Man ("Oh yeeeeah!") type spokesman, crashing through walls to dispense meat sticks and combat hunger at the drop of a hat.  The bonkers commercials were a great fit for Macho Madness.  So good, that if you watch a certain sequence of them together, it looks like a murderous decent into madness for the sake of snack treats. 


























Killing Shakespeare:

Terrorizing the elderly:

Beating on kids:

Finally brought to justice:

Alone with the madness:

And now we have a figure to commemorate it all!  This was a San Diego Comic Con exclusive (*throws up in anger), but was pre-sold on Entertainment Earth before the show.  I was lucky to get one before he sold out.  It comes in a snazzy Slim Jim replica box (another package I am forced to keep.)

The figure is a bunch of reused parts from other Macho releases, but features a new paint job and two plastic Slim Jim box accessories.  It's rare to get a MM fully decked out from head to toe with hat, glasses, and tassels galore.  Everything looks great, but I have one gripe with the hat.  It's a bit small on the head they used, which is one of the newer scans.  It's not terrible, but even looking at the picture on the back, that hat should be riding lower on his head. 

Even with reused parts and an ill-fitting hat, I won't pass up a Macho Man figure.  Yes...that goes for WCW era, too.  In fact, one MM I want the most:

If Mattel can get me that truck in figure form, all past SDCC transgressions will be forgiven.  Even the Gleek fiasco.