Nostalgic G

Happy Three Kings Day...

2011-01-06T05:39:00.001-08:00

Today, people all over the world celebrate the arrival of the three wise men at Bethlehem to worship baby Jesus. This is the last major event of the Christmas season. Unfortunately, not a lot of people in the U.S. outside of the Latin communities are very familiar with this celebration of the epiphany.

Three Kings Day, celebrates the Biblical story of the three kings, Gaspar, Melchior and Balthazar, who followed a star that led them to Bethlehem, where they brought baby Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. The journey is believed to have taken 12 days, beginning on Dec. 25 and ending with their arrival on Jan. 6.

On the eve of Three Kings Day, children leave a shoebox filled with grass, sometimes accompanied by a glass of water or freshly polished shoes, under their bed or by the door to help the three kings and their camels along on their journey.

When children wake up on the morning of Three Kings Day, the grass and water will have been replaced with candy and small gifts, believed to have been consumed by the three kings and their camels. Family and friends will then gather for a feast and to sing the rosary and songs.

Happy Three Kings Day!

Toys 'R Us Christmas clearance starts today...

2011-01-02T01:41:00.000-08:00

Toys 'R Us yearly Christmas items blowout sale starts today. All Christmas themed items, from Candy to Figures and everything in between will be markdown to 75% off. This is the time when I always pick up more Peanuts and Rankin Bass Holiday figures and playsets without having to pay the ridiculously high prices. If you've been wanting to pick up some holiday items that were originally too expensive now's the perfect time. You can display them in only 11 months!

God bless us everyone...

2010-12-25T00:35:00.001-08:00

As Scrooge’s nephew, Fred, explains in A CHRISTMAS CAROL, nothing about Christmas can be separate from "the veneration due to its sacred name and origin." This is what gives meaning to Scrooge’s resolution at the end of the story: "I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year."

If there’s hope for mean old Scrooge, Dickens is saying, there must be hope for each of us. Or, as Tiny Tim would put it, "God bless us, every one!"

Merry Christmas to all! Thanks for visiting the Nostalgia Factory!

Remember the night: An overlooked Christmas Classic...

2010-12-22T18:18:00.000-08:00

When we think of classic Christmas movies we tend to remember It's a Wonderful life, White Christmas, A Christmas Story, and the many film adaptations of A Christmas Carol. Those are all beautiful stories brought to the screen in timeless productions that we revisit year after year, but there are so many other lovely Christmas films out there that for one reason or another have been forgotten over the years. A film no one ever really talks about when reminiscing about their favorite Holiday movies is one that I believe should be re-examined and every one who hasn't seen it should really do themselves a favor and check it out this Christmas season. I'm talking about Preston Sturges' Remember the night.

The film is a prefect combination of genres, working both as a touching drama and a heartwarming romantic comedy. The film Features a clever screenplay by the great Preston Sturges, and stars Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray in their first film together.

The story revolves around an Assistant District Attorney (MacMurray) who falls in love with the shoplifter he is supposed to be prosecuting (Stanwyck). Feeling sorry that she will have to spend Christmas in jail awaiting trial, he bails her out and takes her to her childhood home in Indiana. After seeing how cold and unwelcoming Stanwyck's mother is, he takes her to his own mother's home, also in Indiana, where Stanwyck is bowled over by the love and affection she encounters. Hanging over both their heads is the realization that they still have to return to the city to resolve the trial. The film was originally released in early January, 1940 to positive reviews. The New York Times raved, "A memorable film, in title and in quality, blessed with an honest script, good direction and sound performances...a drama stated in the simplest human terms of comedy and sentiment, tenderness and generosity... warm, pleasant and unusually entertaining."

Stanwyck and MacMurray would team up on-screen three more times, for Double Indemnity (1944), The Moonlighter (1953) and There's Always Tomorrow (1956).

The performances by both lead actors are fantastic. By the end of the picture we have truly fallen in love with Stanwyck and want nothing more than for her to finally find happiness.
The ending is very unique for a film taking place during the holiday season. Its not a happy joyful celebration like the ending to It's a Wonderful life and A Christmas Carol. What it does offer audiences is a message of hope and a reminder that we can always change for the better.

I really love this film and I was really happy to discover it's been released on DVD as part of the TCM archives collection. If you haven't seen it tune in this Friday at midnight as it airs on TCM as part of their Christmas Classics line up. You'll be glad you did.

All new PEANUTS special coming to DVD...

2010-12-22T18:12:00.000-08:00

After many years without any new Peanuts specials, Charlie Brown and the gang return in Happiness us a warm blanket -- a new direct to DVD animated film from Warner Premiere.
The DVD will be available next spring. For those keeping count this will be the 45th animated special based on the tales of the peanuts gang by Charles Schultz.
Here's the description for the special straight from Warner's press release:

"Linus is pushed to his limits when he learns grandma is coming to visit and plans on ridding him of his childish security blanket. As grandma's arrival looms closer the Peanuts gang tries to help Linus learn to cope without his fuzzy crutch. Lucy is particular eager to cure Linus' dependency using her own psychiatric techniques, and while Charlie Brown tries to help he just doesn't have the heart to see Linus suffer. All the while Snoopy is constantly agitating matters because he wants the blanket for himself. In the end, insightful Linus points out that everyone has their own type of "security blanket" and in life a little security is a valuable thing".

I for one can't wait to see this. The DVD will also come packed with some extra features including:

Deconstructing Schulz: From Comic Strip to Screenplay - How the Peanuts comic strip was made into a movie

Happiness Is...Finding the Right Voice - Meet the stellar voice cast

24 Frames a Second: Drawing and Animating a Peanuts Movie

Deleted Scene featuring an introduction by Director Andy Beall

TRON LEGACY: Quorra and Light Runner from Spin Master...

2010-12-20T19:56:00.001-08:00

Spin Master's impressive TRON LEGACY toy line continues to expand with a new assortment of characters and vehicles. This second wave includes the character of Quorra, a sort of daughter to Kevin Flynn inside the computer world.

Quorra is surprisingly well played by Olivia Wilde -- an actress I'd never heard of before. The action figure is one fans have been hoping to get since the first wave was announced and she'd been left out. She's finally starting to show up on pegs at Target stores in the West Coast. I just picked one up and since I now have the driver to the Light Runner I went ahead and picked up that really cool wave 1 vehicle at Toys 'R Us, where it's on sale for $14.99 at 25% off.

The Light Runner is a great vehicle. In the film it's the only land vehicle equipped to handle the dangerous terrains off the TRON CITY Grid. The Spin Master toy is made of really glossy and heavy die cast metal with some plastic pieces. The cockpit opens up to sit two figures.

The entire top, front, and back of the vehicle light up. It looks beautiful once you put two figures inside and light them up along with the vehicle. The light runner also has two pop up blasters in the front of the vehicle. The front wheels have a very cool mechanism which allows them to rotate up in order to go over obstacles on the terrain sort of like it does in the film when Quorra drives it up some rocky mountain paths in order to make her way to Kevin Flynn's hidden safe house.

I highly recommend this vehicle at the $14.99 sale price. The more of these TRON toys I pick up and the more time I spend playing around with them the more I like this line.

As part of the new wave 2 assortment Spin Master will also be releasing a one man light jet which looks darn awesome. I'll post pics and a review as soon as I get my hands on it.

TRON LEGACY at Disney's El Capitan Theater...

2010-12-18T23:12:00.000-08:00

TRON LEGACY rocks! The film is everything I hoped it wold be. Not only is it a fast paced, action packed adventure film which utilizes the latest in 3D technology to dazzle audiences but it's also a loyal and worthy successor to our beloved 80s cult classic. We get to revisit old friends and are treated to a story that not only entertains -- but just like the original, contemplates some very powerful and interesting ideas.

I just got back from seeing it at Disney's landmark El Capitan theater in Hollywood and already I feel like seeing it again. The folks at Disney sure know hot to put on a show and they've really pulled out all the stops for TRON LEGACY.

The theater lobby has a cool display of props from the film including Sam Flynn's lightcycle and the digitizer which scans users into the grid.

Just before the movie starts, audiences are treated to an exhilarating laser light show featuring the music of Daft Punk and nearly 360 degrees of laser beams. At one point all of us in the audiences were surrounded by an overhead grid of laser, fog and light effects.

The sound system at the El Capitan is one of the best of any theater in the United States. When you combine all the firepower that system packs with the throbbing sounds of Daft Punk's score to the film the combination is mind blowing.

Even a gigantic identity disc the size of a wall appears on stage followed by another array of dazzling laser beams and lights.

When the laser show came to an end every single person in the audience was totally psyched for the film, which delivered in every aspect.

I can't express how much fun it is to see a film with all the showmanship that the El Capitan adds to the presentation. It's a true experience. Too bad other theaters around the country don't do anything close to this in order to turn the movie going experience into a major event for fans.

After you exit the theater the El Capitan gift store is packed with overpriced TRON LEGACY items. The prices are ridiculous, specially when you take into account Toys R Us' current sale which has all the toy and collectibles produced by Spin Master at 25% off.

Surprisingly people were actually buying up stuff at these overblown prices.

The theater also hands out the pop corn in reusable TRON LEGACY buckets which are a cool collectible and you can use them to eat pop corn during your movie nights at home. A nice souvenir you get to take home. Although with the overblown prices the theater's concession stand charges you pretty much end up paying for the stupid bucket.

If you haven't done so already head on out to your local theater and check out TRON LEGACY in glorious REAL-D 3D or IMAX 3D.

TRON LEGACY: 25% off sale at Toys R Us...

2010-12-18T22:27:00.000-08:00

If you're looking to pick up some of the cool toys from Tron Legacy head on over to your local Toys 'R Us where starting tomorrow the entire assortment from Spin Master's TRON LEGACY line will be on sale at 25% off. Happy hunting!

Mattel Ghostbusters collection...

2010-12-15T23:19:00.001-08:00

After many months of painfully going through the process of purchasing action figures from the scumbags at Matty Collector an theyir dumb ass website, I've finally completed my collection of Ghostbusters figures from the new Mattel "adult collector" line.

I only wanted the 4 'busters in their uniforms from the first flick, none of those stupid ass re-releases with different outfits or accessories for me. The figures look great and have tons of articulation as well as some highly detailed accessories. Mattel did a stupendous job on these but at $31.50 a pop (including shipping and handling charges) I ended up paying over $150.00 dollars for 5 action figures which in retrospect feels a bit like rape.

The greatest thing Mattel did on this line is the opportunity for fans to finally have a highly detailed version of the ghost containment unit. You can get it by purchasing the Walter Peck action figure, which is pretty much a reuse of the sculpt for Mattel's Movie Masters Two Face figure from The Dark Knight. They did go through the trouble of sculpting a new head to go along with the reused body and I must say the likeness to "dickless" is pretty accurate.

I couldn't justify spending $31.50 for a Walter Peck action figure so I told myself I was buying the ghost containment unit and getting a free Walter Peck figure. Sometimes you have to play mind-games to justify some of the stupid ways we toy collectors burn our money.

Other figures such as Ray and Egon come with pretty cool looking mini ghosts that you can pretend to capture with the ghost trap included with the Winston action figure.

All in all Mattel did a fine job with this line. I hope they keep up the good work and offer some of the other cool characters from Ghostbusters such as Lewis Tully and maybe even Janine.

Here's a look at some more pics I just took. Enjoy.

Pursuit of Cobra Awesomeness...

2010-12-08T21:54:00.001-08:00

Surprisingly, the Toy makers at Hasbro continue to impress me. The new Pursuit of Cobra line has actually been a pleasant surprise to me. When I first heard of this line and saw some of the early prototypes I was rather disappointed, I mean how much better can they make Zartan look the 20th time or snake eyes the 100th time. It just didn't seem that appealing to me to see the same characters again redone over and over, specially after Hasbro had done such a great job at re-imagining them while at the same time staying loyal to the original looks of the characters with their 25th anniversary line.

Turns out Hasbro's toy magicians still had some surprises in their hat, specially when it comes to the new vehicles. Let's take a look at my two favorite vehicles from the new line and the best looking figures from the Pursuit of Cobra assortment which in my humble opinion are Spirit and the wicked cool Jungle Viper.

One of the most impressive vehicles in the new assortment is the new HISS TANK. By now I've lost count of how many Hiss Tanks Hasbro has released since the 80s but this one features the most different and daring design of them all as well as a pretty cool action feature. The new Hiss Tank can carry 2 figures and can transform from scout mode to attack mode by the push of a button. Once transformed, the cockpit and missile launchers elevate a couple of inches off the ground giving the vehicle a meaner battle ready look.

The design of this new Hiss Tank is pretty sleek and in my opinion should've been used in the terrible Rise of Cobra movie rather than those dull black Hummers. This is what a kick ass vehicle for action figures is all about. It takes me back to the glory days of the line.

The Joes have a new ride to meet the Cobra threat and challenge the HISS TANK with the new 4X4 Vamp -- a redesign of a fan favorite from the original vintage line. This new take on the Vamp is sleek and powerful, it reminds me a lot of the Argo All Terrain Vehicle from Star Trek Nemesis. I like it a lot. It can fit up to 10 Joes and maybe even more if you remove the missile launcher in the back and use that cargo space for extra troops.

The vehicle has some fun features including a grappling hook and retractable winch, two missile launchers, weapons, gasoline tanks, and multiple ports throughout the chassis to snap in more weapons. This is the kind of vehicle I loved as a kid. The interior is very detailed, specially the dashboard, and the figures fit perfectly in the seats which is usually a problem in many vehicles for other action figure lines.

I'm amazed at the level of detail Hasbro keeps putting into their vehicles. Just when you think they've done as much as can be done they go ahead and release vehicles like the new VAMP and HISS to surprise you once more. Both vehicles come with driver figures including a new version of Clutch with the VAMP.

The VAMP looks rugged and ready for tons of action. Kids can have plenty of fun with these bad boys out in their yards. They both offer multiple play possibilities and the paint scheme and stickers on the VAMP make it look even more realistic. I highly recommend picking this one up.

Of all the new figures in the Pursuit of Cobra line it's Spirit: Iron Knife that takes the prize for the Joes and the Jungle Viper for the Cobras. Both figures are highly detailed and come with a truckload of accessories. Not just crap, but really good looking weapons which fit perfectly with each figure's personality and the environments they are meant to be used in.

SPIRIT is a Toys 'R Us exclusive, and one of the few TRU exclusives worth picking up in years as they're usually pointless repaints. The Jungle Viper is pretty easy to find at any store that carries the G.I.Joe toys. Once you attach all the cammo gear to the figure it becomes one of the most unique looking action figures I've seen in years

Those of you looking for a good deal on the HISS TANK check your local Ross Store. These just started showing up for $11.99, way less than the $24.99 MSRP. I picked up the last one on the shelf at my local Ross in the west coast but reports have been coming in from all over the country so keep an eye out!

Hot Wheels Ecto-1

2010-12-07T19:49:00.000-08:00

I'd been looking for this ECTO-1 from Hot Wheels for months now as it's a pretty good looking interpretation of the GB's ride. It's pretty hard to find in stores and I got fed up with digging through hundreds of Hot Wheels cars on the pegs of every store I walk into. So, after experiencing a temporary lapse in good judgment I went ahead and bought it from a seller on fleabay. I paid way more than these things go for in stores plus some ridiculous shipping and handling charges. One of my New Year's resolutions for 2011 is to stay away from picking up stuff on fleabay that's hard to find in stores. I have to stop encouraging the scalpers.

The ECTO-1 looks great but for some reason the scumbags at Mattel have made it rather limited and to make things worse the few that do make it to the pegs usually get snatched up immediately by scalpers. It's crazy how this thing is nowhere to be found in stores, yet there's TONS of them on Fleabay.

This one's part of the 2010 Hot wheels assortment so since the year is coming to an end and the 2011 line is already starting to show up on the pegs I figured the chances of finding this one in stores are even smaller now. It's also been the same way with the Silver Delorean and some of the Batman Hot Wheels. Mattel knows fans are gonna want to pick these up right away so they made a smaller amount of them to drive the market wild.

If you find it in stores pick it up as it's one of the better looking Hot Wheels movie vehicles since the 1989 Tim Burton Batmobile released two years ago. It's got plenty of detail and makes for a great little display piece. I also finally completed my set of Mattel 6 inch Ghostbusters figures from Matty Collector. I'll be back later in the week with some pics and my thoughts on that really awesome line of figures.

You will each be given an identity disc...

2010-12-03T22:32:00.000-08:00

In the TRON universe Identity Discs are an important element of any program, these discs hold all the data which define who the programs are as well as their functions and are also used for combat on the game grid. We continue our look at TRON LEGACY toys from Spin Master with two more superb offerings: the Sam Flynn identity disc and the deluxe collector's edition of the disc.

First up let's look at the basic identity disc role play toy. Made of hard plastic, its the perfect toy to reenact your favorite battle from the TRON films. This baby flies pretty far and looks just like the Sam Flynn disc in the film. It's made to withstand a lot of action so you can pretty much go out and throw this baby in your yard all day long. It can bang up against trees, walls and your best friend's butt and be ready for more.

I was surprised at how well engineered these discs are since they look just like the actual props but fly like a really well made Frisbee. I highly recommend picking this one up and stepping outside with a bunch of friends to fly it around. Lots of fun! I got mine for 8 bucks and some change at Toys 'R Us which is a pretty good deal for a pretty sophisticated looking Frisbee which also doubles as a cool collectible.

If you make your way to the outdoors toys section of the stores a good Frisbee will run you more than 6 dollars so for about two bucks more you get a kick ass TRON LEGACY collectible which can also give you some solid hours of outdoors fun.

For those of you interested in a more high end replica without breaking the bank the Spin Master Sam Flynn Deluxe Disc is the perfect choice. Beautifully designed and with really impressive lights and sounds features this disc makes a perfect display piece next to any of the more expensive prop replicas being sold these days from your favorite films and TV shows. If you turn off all the lights and activate this baby you'll be really impressed at how beautiful this thing looks lit up.

I turned off all the lights in my living room and started throwing around this thing while lit up. It looked amazing and my dog went nuts for it. The package clearly says it's not meant for throwing since it's rather fragile as it has some electronic components inside for the lights and sounds features, but it just looks too darn good while lit up for me to not try and fly it around. I recommend you're very careful if you do try that. This version of the disc is also motion activated so if you pick it up and bang it against the palm of your hand the lights and sounds rev up. This one comes with a small plastic stand with the TRON LEGACY logo so you can display the disc up on your shelf. I picked up this version on sale from the weasels at Walmart for $19.95 and took advantage of their online deal for an extra 5 dollar gift card which they offered with most TRON LEGACY toys a couple weeks ago, so in the end I only paid $14.95 for it. A pretty good deal considering almost all the other retailers are selling it for $24.95. I Highly recommended picking it up.

Toys for Tots Time...

2010-12-03T19:13:00.000-08:00

Many of us are very fortunate to have everything we need and so much more this Holiday season. There are many families that won't be able to put toys under the tree this year, but we can all help out. You can buy new toys to donate or give extra packaged items from your collection. Please help bring some joy to a child in need this Christmas. If you want to learn more about the Toys for Tots campaign or to find a drop off location in your community please visit their site now.

TRON LEGACY: A tale of two Flynns...

2010-12-01T22:09:00.000-08:00

By now all the TRON fans know that the story for the upcoming sequel TRON LEGACY focuses on the search for Kevin Flynn by his son Sam. Apparently Kevin has gone missing and has been tr aped somewhere inside the Grid for decades. As part of Spin Master's TRON LEGACY toy line we get a new Kevin Flynn figure and one of his son Sam. Let's take a closer look at them.

Regular readers of this blog will by now have noticed that I'm really into this new TRON LEGACY toy line. The light up features and the impulse projection technology on the figures as well as the highly detailed vehicles and role play items have really impressed me. Unfortunately I think Spin Master messed up big time on the Kevin Flynn figure. First off the face sculpt is terrible and the figure looks overweight. Neither body nor face sculpt come close to getting the look of the character right. The light up feature is used poorly since I don't think Kevin's robe lights up in the film and worse of all because the figure is white there is a crazy amount of light spill on the figure's chest.

I could kind of tell this was the case just from seeing the figure in the packaging but since this is the only figure currently available in the line based on the Jeff Bridges character I decided to pick it up anyhow. I got it at Toys 'R Us for $7.99. I would never pay the $10.99 or $11.99 price other retailers are asking for it. Online it's going even higher than that since apparently this is the short packed figure in the assortment.

I've only seen it twice in stores and while there's a good amount of the other characters on the pegs there's only been one Kevin Flynn figure at the two stores I've seen it. So when I found it cheap at Toys R Us I decided to pick it up.

The Sam Flynn figure is pretty awesome and really well sculpted and made. The light up feature on this one works beautifully and with barely any spill since the figures is made in black plastic. I really like it a lot and it fits in perfectly on both lightcycle vehicles. so far I haven't been able to get the Kevin Flynn vehicle into his lightcycle. The cockpit won't close. the freaking figure is too thick. I guess this version of Kevin has been pigging out these last two decades inside the electronic world.

Both figures come with really great accessories such as the identity disc and the baton which launches and controls the lightcycles. Spin Master has done an awesome job with this entire line so I can forgive them for messing up one figure. Unfortunately it's the figure of the most important character in the film and the TRON mythos. Hopefully this will be corrected and we'll get a better looking Kevin figure in a future wave. Here's hoping sales are good this Holiday season so we can get wave 2.

TRON LEGACY boutique at Toys 'R Us...

2010-12-01T21:28:00.000-08:00

Every couple of months Toys 'R Us puts up a big section at the front of the store full of merchandise for whatever hot ticket movie is hitting theaters. In past years Star Wars, Star Trek, and Harry Potter have had "mini boutiques" by the store's entrance. Now the time has come for TRON LEGACY to be featured.

All the Spin Master toys are up as well as other items like Tron folding scooters, race tracks, and even the Marvel comic book adaptation. Toys 'R us has the best prices on all the TRON merchandise, for example the core action figures are being sold at places like Target for $11.99 while TRU has them at just $7.99 each. If you've been wanting to get your hands on this now's a perfect time since once the film comes out a lot of this stuff will likely be flying off the shelves. Happy hunting!

Store sighting: Empire Strikes Back Vintage 9 pack...

2010-11-30T23:50:00.001-08:00

The very limited and highly anticipated Target exclusive Empire Strikes Back vintage 9 figure set has hit store shelves. I just saw a good quantity of these tonight at my local Target. These are reissues of figures I already own so I decided to pass on it. If you don't have these individual figures already it's a pretty good deal for 9 figures in cool retro packaging for $49.99. If you can't find it on the shelves at your Target store it might be in the stockroom. Jut punch in the following DPCI number on any of the store's price scanners: 087-06-1620. Happy hunting!

TRON LEGACY: Movie theater premiums, Coke Zero, etc...

2010-11-29T22:23:00.000-08:00

As we get closer to the December 17 release of TRON more movie theaters are starting to gear up with tons of cool promotions. My local AMC theater is giving away some really cool TRON LEGACY cups with the purchase of a large soft drink. The cups are meant to promote the film as well as the upcoming video game and the promotional tie in between Disney and Coke Zero. The coke cups should be available at all AMC theaters nationwide. You can also download a really cool TRON LEGACY / COKE ZERO app for your iphone right now for free.

The El Capitan theater in Hollywood will be giving away reusable plastic TRON LEGACY popcorn buckets to patrons who purchase pop corn during all the TRON showings from December 17 to January 20. I can't wait to see the film on opening weekend at The El Capitan, as they always do they'll be having some extra attractions for movie goers including a laser light show before every screening and some cool props on display in the theater lobby including a life size mock up of the new Sam Flynn lightcycle. Celebration Cinemas and Imax will also be having TRON popcorn buckets starting on December 1. You can refill your TRON buckets twice per visit at the theater. I'll have a full report from the TRON LEGACY opening weekend at the El Capitan theater as well as pics from any props on display.

If you hear of any other cool theater premiums or promotions for TRON LEGACY let me know in the comments section!

TRON Lightcycles from Spin Master...

2010-11-28T23:55:00.000-08:00

I still remember watching TRON for the first time as a kid on a Sunday evening during The Wonderful World of Disney back in the mid 80s. I was 2 years old when the film first came out in theaters so I didn't get a chance to experience it until its T.V. debut. To this day I still remember the thrill I felt watching the lightcycle chase scene. It was so visceral, exciting, and just plain fun that I kept replaying it in my head and trying to recreate it with my G.I.JOE motorcycles and Star Wars speeder bikes.

I had no idea back then that TOMMY had released a series of TRON figures and lightcycles so I was never able to get them. By the time I saw the film any toy merchandise had long been off the shelves. With the upcoming release of TRON LEGACY we've been treated to some superb toys from Spin Master. I was expecting to be completely disappointed by this toy line given Spin Master's less than impressive track record until I picked up their Impulse Projection figures a few weeks ago and reviewed them for the blog. Those were so impressive that I decided to give the rest of the line a try. I couldn't wait to finally pick me up some lightcycles. I'm glad to report that I'm really happy with these vehicles. Let's take a closer look at them.

To start off the packaging is pretty cool. Spin Master goes with the now standard window box packaging but they make it more exciting by adding cool artwork featuring the lightcycles in action right under the window area. Back in the 80s a big part of what made us pick up a toy and beg our parents to buy it for us was the very imaginative and exciting art that covered these boxes. Sadly those days of elaborate package art are gone so it's really nice to see Spin Master make an effort to make these boxes look as exciting as possible.

The Sam Flynn bike box has a pretty cool gimmick at the bottom with two holes that serve as viewers giving you a 3 dimensional image of the bike in action. Again, this is the sort of thing that makes a kid pick up an item at a store and really get excited about playing with the actual toy by seeing it in action in an imaginary scenario. Kudos to Spin Masters for having this idea and incorporating it into what is already a pretty darn impressive and creative packaging job.

The toys themselves are beautiful and loads of fun. They're jam packed with features as well as some really cool looking lights and sounds features. It's been a long time since I was this excited over a toy line based on a movie, specially when dealing with a company that's not really known for producing great looking toys that can also be considered highly collectible.

The Sam Flynn bike is a sleek and attractive vehicle and the Spin Master version captures it's essence perfectly. There's multiple ways to activate the lights and sounds features. My favorite function makes the engine sounds rev up as well as all the lights as you roll the bike on a flat surface. Also, once the wheels roll, the engine mechanism in the mid part of the bike's body begins to turn. A great detail which adds more realism to the toy. From certain angles this lightcycle looks like a futuristic version of the Bat Pod from The Dark Knight.

The TRON LEGACY figures fit perfectly on the bike. It comes with a plastic, non articulated rider figurine which you'll want to remove, strap to an ESTES rocket and launch as soon as possible since there's not much use for it. The only good thing about the included rider figure is that you can remove the helmeted head and put it on your regular articulated Sam Flynn figure's body.

The bike also has "working" air brakes which add more play features. Not just a great toy but a beautiful display piece as well. I could never afford anything that company's like Hot Toys put out but with this bike I can have a pretty detailed replica which I can also play with for less than 20 bucks. Not a bad deal at all!

There's also a CLU lightcycle which is a slightly different version of this bike designed to look like the one used in the film by Jeff Bridges' evil computer program-counterpart. That bike is only currently available at Walmart. There are rumors that Spin Master will begin to ship it to every other retailer that carries the line with their wave 2 assortment.

The Kevin Flynn bike is a new deco on the classic TRON bike we all love from the original film. With a very modern white and black color palette, reminiscent of an Apple Ipod or Macbook, the bike modernizes the look of the classic film's design.

With an opening cockpit and an interior that actually has some details on the control areas this updated lightcycle is perfect for fans of the original TRON. Like I mentioned before I never got to pick up the original TOMMY bikes so this one was a must have for me.

The bike looks really beautiful when lit up. The design is really simple, yet clean and elegant. I love toy vehicles with cockpits that open up and can house action figures. They're a lot more fun to play with. I was able to fit my Sam Flynn figure inside perfectly. Once you get your figure inside the bike lights up on each side, specifically the area surrounding the wheels as well as through a series of small openings between the cockpit and the wheels.

I found myself racing these babies down my table and doing wheelies with them immediately after opening the boxes and feeling like a 6 year old kid again. What more can you ask of a toy than that? Plus, if you're not the type to play with your toys then you still have a beautiful yet inexpensive display piece. Spin Master has really hit the mark with these cycles. I can't think of any kid out there who wouldn't be able to get countless hours of fun out of these.

The Kevin Flynn lightcycle is priced about 5 to 10 dollars less than the Sam bike so it does not include any sound effects, it only lights up. I would've liked for it to also have sound effects but it's not something that ruins it. I still think it's a great piece. They probably wanted to have a lower price point vehicle and had to sacrifice the sound feature in order to hit the price mark.

If I had to choose between lights or sounds I'd go with lights so I'm glad Spin Master made this decision. I still haven't seen any footage of this bike in action in the film so I'm not sure how it ties into the storyline, but regardless it's great to get a new version of a beloved classic vehicle.

Right now you can pick each one of these bikes for $14.95 and $19.95 respectively from most retailers. A lot of stores and websites are offering deals for Cyber Monday including Toys 'R Us online where you can pick them up for 20% off.

I'm really enjoying these toys and finding myself pleasantly surprised by Spin Master's efforts. Check back later in the week for more reviews of other TRON products from this truly impressive line.

TRON week is coming...

2010-11-27T01:35:00.000-08:00

As you can see from the blury pic of my desk I have a lot of TRON stuff to open up, read, and play with. I've been swamped the last few days and haven't had a chance to go over all the great TRON items that are starting to hit stores. Next week in honor of the original 80s classic and the upcoming sequel I'll be blogging about TRON every night. Toy pics and reviews, book reviews, and an in depth look at the making of the original film with many rare photographs I've been scanning from my vintage magazines and books collection. END OF LINE.

Home Alone merchandise flashback...

2010-11-26T02:45:00.001-08:00

It's sort of become a tradition for my friends and I to watch Home Alone on Thanksgiving evening, or at least have it playing in the background at our yearly get together. Tonight we upheld our tradition. After watching the film again I started thinking of the Super Nintendo video game based on the first film which I got for Christmas the year it came out. Then I thought about all the stuff that came out during the release of the second movie which led me to the brilliant conclusion that I should write about all those goodies on tonight's Nostalgia Factory post.

As a moderately budgeted family comedy Home Alone was not expected to be the gigantic financial success it went on to become. So when 20th Century Fox made preparations for the film's release they didn't have anything to draw in major tie in and merchandising partners to produce items for the film's release. Once the film opened to big numbers at the box office the story changed and THQ quickly drew up a deal with the studio to produce toys and games based on the hit movie.

These days THQ only focuses on Video Games but back then the company would produce board games, dolls and many other items. After all THQ stands for Toy Headquarters. The offerings from THQ included the video game for multiple platforms which for a quickly put together movie tie in game was not terrible. I spent many long hours playing the SNES version back in the day. Also available from THQ was a Screaming Kevin figure. The figure was about 9 inches tall and would play back an electronically recorded scream. The face looked just like Kevin's from the film's classic after shave scene.

THQ also put out a 17 inch doll with a really impressive likeness to Macaulay Culkin. The doll would play back multiple lines from the film once someone would pull the chord on the back. The outfit and the head sculpt were really good on this doll. It was like staring at a mini Kevin McAllister. The face was just adorable and to this day I think it's one of the best likenesses ever captured on a toy doll. Remember this is way before the days of Tonner's collectible dolls and this was merely a play item not a high end collector's piece. I really love how the doll had the Home Alone logo on the left sweater sleeve, just to make sure if someone didn't recognize the character they studio could still get a plug for the film.

THQ also came out with a pretty lame board game. It's very difficult to capture the kinetic fun and all the gags from the movie on a plain old dice and board game like this one. If they really wanted to make a board game in the spirit of the film they should have come up with something along the lines of Mouse Trap -- a game where you have multiple pieces which allow you to build booby traps right on the game board. This game was a major missed opportunity.

Also after the film's release multiple companies produced t-shirts, posters, pins and other items utilizing imagery from the film's promotional campaign.

For Home Alone 2 things were much different as Fox now had a sequel to one of the highest grossing comedies of all time on their hands. Multiple companies lined up to try and get the rights to produce all kinds of merchandise for the film. THQ was again selected for the games based on the film and Tiger toys came in to produce a series of electronic gadgets and games as part of a line of products centered around an item which would actually end up as a key prop on the film. Like most major movies the film also got a novelization courtesy of Scholastic books.

THQ produced a follow up video game for the SNES and various other consoles as well as a much improved board game, this new electronic version utilized voices and pre-recorded dialogue to help move the game along. It was a better concept than the original almost generic board game, but still not able to capture the fun and the spirit of the films. It seems like such an easy idea to create a booby trap focused board game to tie into the films, but on two occasions THQ missed their mark on this.

Tiger Toys, best known for their line of handheld electronic games, produced their typical black and white, squiggly line, static background electronic handheld game for Home Alone 2 but they also created the key prop for the film and an item many believed would go on to become the most coveted piece in every kid's wish list: The Talk Boy.

In Home Alone 2 we see Kevin utilizing the Talk Boy to pull off a couple of fast ones on the adults. When I first saw the movie I thought it was one of the coolest things ever. It just looked amazing. Unfortunately after closer inspection you'd realize it was nothing more than a Walkman with the ability to record and slow your voice. I wonder how many kids did go on to blackmail their sisters after recording them with the Talk Boy while they fooled around with their boyfriends.

Tiger promoted the item heavily. The commercial would play multiple times during all the afternoon kid shows as well as on Saturday morning. I'm pretty sure the Talk Boy was also featured on that year's Toys R Us big toy book. Not only did Tiger make a big hoopla about the item being used in the film they had so much faith in the product they made multiple versions of it including a pink one for girls aptly named Talk Girl.

Tiger also applied the same concept to a series of pens as part of their Talkboy F/X line. After the movie had come and gone and kids everywhere had forgotten about Kevin's handy talk boy, Tiger kept trying to squeeze some juice out of this line by producing the Talk Boy in multiple colors and adding more items to their Talkboy F/X line. Even though there was no Talkboy pen in the movie they marketed it as a Home Alone 2 item. Later releases in the Talk Boy line such as the Talk Boy Shock Rocker, dropped the Home Alone logo from the packaging completely since Kevin never used a shock rocker version of the Talk Boy to record his own gangsta rap tunes in the film.

The Home Alone 17 inch Kevin doll was re-released with different clothes now sporting Kevin's backpack and his New York threads.

THQ wasn't satisfied with just their electronic board game so they put out yet another almost generic standard board and dice game just as atrocious as the one from the first movie.

Raisin Bran had some games inspired by the film on the back of select boxes of cereal too.
I found it odd that none of my friends remembered any of these items whenever we'd talk about Home Alone. The first two films have gone on to become modern Christmas classics and are loved by people of all ages. You'd have to be a real Grinch not to love these movies. So if there's a major Home Alone fan on your gift list this year you might wanna track down some of these vintage items on Ebay. Happy Hunting.

Charlie Brown's Christmas Tree...

2010-11-25T01:01:00.000-08:00

It's odd that a symbol for speaking up against the commercialism of Christmas has actually become a mass produced item which pops up every holiday season in most stores. The pathetic little Christmas tree that Charlie Brown picks out at the tree market, for which he's made fun of by all his friends, has become an iconic image that millions have come to associate with the beloved character of Charlie Brown, his struggles and everything he stands for.

We finally picked up the decorative replica of this little tree after seeing it in stores every Christmas season. It's a reminder of one of our favorite Holiday traditions, watching A Charlie Brown Christmas with our loved ones and smiling with great joy as Charlie Brown and the Peanuts gang make us laugh, cheer and stop to remember the true meaning of the season.

I'm glad that in a society which continues to try and veer away from the true meaning of Christmas we have a yearly reminder of what we should actually be celebrating thanks to good old Charlie Brown and this beloved television special.

As dinky as the little tree is it's one of the most beautiful ornaments you could put up this holiday season. Plus it's much cheaper than any tree at the lot. There's a lot of fun to be had with this little tree specially if you have any Peanuts figurines. We placed some of them under the tree to add to the fun.

I'm a big Peanuts fan so when the fall begins I have 3 great Holiday specials to look forward to. I also took out my skating Snoopy plush that my brother gave me for Christmas almost ten years ago. Another great Holiday souvenir which has a lot of meaning for me, just like the little tree had for Charlie Brown.

Mtv's Thanksgiving '97...

2010-11-24T02:48:00.000-08:00

On November 27, 1997 MTV aired a special Thaksgiving show featuring america's sweethearts Beavis and Butthead. B&Bs final episode was set to air the folowwing night on the network so this was a perfect opportunity for MTV to promote the boys' final episode the day before the series finale. So watch now as Kurt Loader tries to teach the boys the true meaning of Thanksgiving.

New Peanuts Christmas items at Toys R Us...

2010-11-23T00:08:00.000-08:00

Forever Fun, a company which has changed its name multiple times in the last five years has a new assortment of Peanuts toys and accessories for this Holiday season. Every year they offer a nice batch of poseable figures, mini figures and Christmas tree ornaments celebrating the classic Christmas special featuring good old Charlie Brown and Company.

This year the assortment of poseable figures is back with new accessories as well as a new build a tree promo which basically steals the idea of DC Classics' buid-a-figure line by having each figure come with a bonus piece which once put together makes a big Christmas tree.

This year's mini figures set focuses on the Christmas pageant nativity scene. Two new play packs featuring poseable figures of Linus & Sally and Lucy and Charlie also focus on the nativity scene by including the characters dressed up and accessorized as Mary, Joseph, Angels, and baby Jesus (Woodstock). Also in this year's assortment we get a couple of deluxe scale figures featuring snoopy as a snowboarder and Charlie Brown with new Holiday inspired accessories such as a giant candy cane and boxed Christmas gift.

The Peanuts decorative blocks from last year are back in two different sets of 5 or 9 blocks. I always wait 'till after Christmas day to pick these figures up since Toys 'R Us marks them down drastically starting on December 26. These have become a Holiday tradition at our home as we put together a different scene featuring Charlie Brown or the Rankin Bass gang under our tree every year.

K-Mart stores also have some exclusives from A Charlie Brown Christmas this year also from Forever Fun. I'll share some pics of those as soon as I make my way to my local K-Mart.

Hasbro Return of the Jedi vintage assortment - Pt 1: Rebel Commando and Wicket...

2010-11-20T00:32:00.000-08:00

Back in the days of the original trilogy Kenner released an incredible amount of figures, vehicles, playsets, and accessories so incredibly awesome that to this day many of those items are better than anything produced in recent years. Some of the molds for the vehicles were reused countless times for the modern era line which kicked of in the mid 90s and is still going strong. Unfortunately the last couple of years Hasbro had seemed to run out of ideas on how to bring back a sense of excitement to the original trilogy product line and I truly lost interest in Hasbro's Star Wars offerings. Most of the Clone Wars stuff is just terrible and it seemed to become the focus of Hasbro's product output. Fortunately this year Hasbro has gone back to the original trilogy characters and vehicles in a big way in order to help celebrate the 30th anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back. To end the year a third wave of vintage figures has just started to show up on the pegs based on Return of the Jedi.

The last two Vintage waves were pretty mediocre, but Hasbro has finally improved things with this Jedi wave. The figures look better than anything we've gotten from Hasbro since 2008's Legacy collection. Two of my favorite figures got the vintage treatment in this wave: the rebel commando and Wicket W. Warrick. I just picked these up this week at Walmart which has all the vintage package figures on sale for $6.99.

When the first Star Wars film came out I wasn't alive yet. During Empire's release I was merely 3 months old. When Jedi hit theaters I was 3 years old so this was my introduction to Star Wars. I loved Wicket and the Ewoks (still do) and the first Star Wars action figures I ever owned were from this movie. The rebel commando was on of my favorites and as much as I loved that figure back in the day this new vintage edition from Hasbro puts the original figure to shame. The sculpt and articulation are fantastic. Paint job is pretty awesome and all the accessories including the helmet, holster, backpack and trench coat are top notch. There's so much play value added when figures come well accessorized. I really wish the original line from our childhood had as many weapons and accessories as we're able to get with the new figures. Back then we'd get one weapon or accessory per figure and some figures wouldn't even come with any at all.

For the $6.99 sale price these figures are a great deal. I think their regular price of $9.99 is a rip off. I might pay that price for these ones but most of the other figures in the previous waves are reissues of figures we've gotten before without any improvements at all so to have to pay nearly 10 dollars for them just because they come in a vintage looking card is rather ridiculous.

Wicket is super awesome and for a small Ewok figure he's surprisingly articulated. The face sculpt is the best sculpt I've ever seen for an Ewok figure. Again, Hasbro has done a great job with the accessories, not only do we get his wooden staff, we also get a nice pouch for him to put his berries or whatever he picks on the forest and an extra hood in a different style and color.

If you already have a Wicket figure you can put his green hood on and use him as a different background Ewok which is pretty cool if you're trying to build an army of furry, adorable Ewoks.
I was rather disappointed with the Empire vintage wave, but this Jedi wave has restored my faith in Hasbro. Unfortunately the other waves hitting shelves next are based on episodes 1,2, and 3. I have no clue why they would put those figures out again but this time on "vintage" packaging from the 80s. Those figures are not part of the vintage era. To me it just seems like Hasbro is looking for an excuse to get more figures out again from recent years and justify an MSRP of $9.99 so I feel like every time Hasbro does something good like this Jedi wave they go and do 3 stupid things in a row like they're about to do with the upcoming waves.

The rest of this current wave from Return of the Jedi also includes Jedi Luke and Admiral Ackbar. I'll be taking a look at those two figures in a future post.

TRON LEGACY: Impulse Projection Technology Figures...

2010-11-16T16:47:00.001-08:00

With the upcoming release of TRON LEGACY on December 17, Spin Master has unleashed a massive assortment of toys based on the upcoming sequel to the cult classic 80s video game adventure flick. Spin Master is known for cheapo toy lines such as last summer's M Night Shyamalan Crap Fest The Last Airbender. I'm happy to say this new line of Tron figures could be the toy line that changes everything for Spin Master. I'll go into more detail on the other pieces in the line in future posts. This time around I'll be focusing on the totally radical Impulse Projection Technology figures.

Four figures are now available as part of this 7 inch line including Clu, Sam, Rinzler and a Blackguard. There's also a 12 inch Sam figure with the same features and even more lights. I picked up the 7 inch Clu and Sam figures last week and haven't been able to stop playing around with them. The impulse projection technology makes it possible for an image of the character's face to appear inside their helmets when it lights up and you can actually see the figure appear to speak. Unlike other licensed toy lines to utilize voice features Spin Master actually included the lines from the film as voiced by the actors. So when the Clu figure "speaks" you actually hear Jeff Bridges' voice not some impersonation of his voice like Hasbro did for those Phantom Menace Commtech Chips back in '99.

I truly feel like this is a new chapter in action figure history. This feature is truly something we have never seen before in any line of figures. Those Visionaries figures I loved so much back in the 80s don't even come close in terms of cool factor, and technology to these Tron figures. Back in July Disney and Spin Master made a big announcement about this toy line and one of the key points they focused on was the new technology that would be introduced to action figures with this new line. At first it all seemed like a silly feature that would never look good when it was first announced at Comic Con, but once you get the figures in your hands and activate their features they truly seem to come alive and. The feeling of motion as well as the changing features and expressions on the facial projection is pretty convincing.

When I was growing up back in the 80s we never had anything like this. I wonder how much a feature like this would've rocked the very foundations of our existence if we'd gotten figures with impulse projection technology back in the day. The kids these days who've never experienced the world of Tron are in for quite a treat when they see the new film and decide to ask Santa for some of these figures. Lucky bastards.

The upper body on each figure also lights up. There's a pattern of lights that follows along from the chest to the waist making it appear as if their suit's functions have just gone online. I keep pushing the activation button and staring at these babies over and over again and still I can't find anything that gives away the gimmick. The toy gurus at Spin Masters have really proven themselves with these figures.

A lot of folks out there have been wondering what's the secret behind the illusion. If you have some extra dough burning a whole in your pocket and decide to pick up some extra figures you could crack some of these bad boys open and find out for yourself. What you'll find inside each figure is a ring lined up with some pretty powerful, small LED lights. Right above this ring there's a second ring lined with really small pieces of film which contain the images of each actor's face with different lip and mouth movements. Once you activate the figures a pattern of lights emits from the LEDs pushing the different projections up to the inside of the helmet in a succession of quick bursts which give the illusion of movement.

Each figure is really well sculpted. The light and projection feature obviously takes precedence here so the articulation has to suffer for that. The figures don't have as many points of articulation as say a MOTU classics figure, but it doesn't really matter. You still get more articulation than any action figure from back in the 80s or 90s and the projection feature is way to cool to complain about anything else.

The figures all come with their own identity disc which attaches quite nicely to their backs just like they do in the new movie. Clu also came with a kick ass light Katana and Sam comes with the launch baton used to activate and control the lightcycles. The baton also attaches to the side of his leg.

In order to get the level of detail and cool features that Spin Master was able to bring to these figures they worked closely with the folks at Disney's licensing division in order to better match the story and character elements from the film to the line of toys. For that same reason Spin Master toy makers have recently stated that as cool as the impulse projection technology is they do not plan to incorporate it into any other lines in the near future. The concept matches perfectly with the Tron line and to start putting other toy lines out with this feature would diminish the coolness and uniqueness of this line.

I for truly hope sales of the line are strong enough to allow Spin Master to go into production on a second series of figures. Already there have been rumors of a Quorra figure and other cool accessories for a follow up wave.

Each figure sells for $14.95 at most retailers, but you can take advantage of a great deal the slimeballs at Walmart are offering to get them for less. If you go to the Walmart website now you can buy the figures for the $14.95 price but you get a 5 dollar gift card which you can apply to the second figure. You buy a second figure and you get another 5 dollar gift card that you can apply to the third figure and so on.

I'll be back throughout the week with more TRON coverage. So stay tuned...

Target and Toys R Us Star Wars merchandise reset...

2010-10-14T16:39:00.000-07:00

Both Target and Toys R Us are celebrating the 30th anniversary of EMPIRE and the new season of Clone Wars with major resets to their shelves in order to focus on new Star Wars products as well as great deals and exclusives. The Target reset takes place on the 17th of October but most stores in my area already have everything up. I was able to pick up their exclusive vintage packaging Rebel Snowspeder and the Attack & Defense of Hoth battle packs. You can also get Saga Legends and Clone Wars action figures for 5 bucks a piece 'till Sunday.

Toys R Us also has a great display at the front of the store and they have the exclusive vintage packaging Snow AT-AT from Empire available.

For Tron fans a lot of merchandise from the upcoming TRON LEGACY is popping up at both Target and TRU. I found some Target exclusives at my local store too.
Happy Hunting!

Hardee's: Your Ghostbusters 2 Headquarters...

2010-03-18T19:01:00.000-07:00

The Summer of 1989 was a big one for movie fans. With such major releases as Batman, Star Trek 5, Indiana Jones and the last crusade and Ghostbusters 2, it almost felt like every week during the summer there was a major event taking place across cinema screens. Fast food restaurants got in on the action with major promotional campaigns which tied-in to some of these big films. Two fast food joints that were relatively new to the movie tie-in world ended up acquiring the license for two huge films. Batman was picked up by Taco Bell and Ghostbuster 2 was snatched by Hardee's. Hardee's truly pulled out all the stops with a campaign that featured in store premiums, specialty food items and T.V. & print ads. The restaurant chain even produced a Ghostbusters themed commercial advertising their line of Ghostbusters soundmakers toys. More on the sound makers fiasco in a moment. The commercial aired constantly during the tie-in promotion which ran from June 26 to July 23.

Kids could get a special meal at Hardee's with a Ghostbusters 2 lunch box and for an extra $1.79 they could also get one of four electronic noisemaking toys meant for kids to scare away ghosts. After a few weeks of selling these toys Hardee's started receiving complaints from angry parents whose kids had mutilated the toys and swallowed the small battery inside the casing. After more than 15 cases of kids swallowing noisemaker batteries, on July 14, 1989 Hardee's corporate offices announced, in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Safety Commission, that it was voluntarily recalling all Ghostblaster toys which by now had been in distribution at over 3,100 of the chain's restaurants.

Due to the recall these toys are hard to come by these days and can go for more than 50 bucks for a set on ebay when they do show up. Adult collectors were also able to get a sweet looking 32 oz. Ghostbusters 2 cup at all participating restaurants until the promotion came to an end on July 23. In my opinion the Hardee's GB 2 cup is one of the best looking movie themed cups ever offered at a fast food place. Another great item offered at Hardee's during the promotion was the Slimer sundae which was covered in a green slime-like syrup which actually tasted like bubble gum.

I really miss the days when fast food chains went all out with big promotional campaigns for the major summer movies. They still do it today but not as often. Two great examples from recent years include the awesome Burger King Star Trek promotion from last summer and 2008's Burger King Indiana Jones' campaign. In future posts I will be taking a look back at other major fast food movie tie-ins from the 80s.

Mexican HE-MAN Bootleg...

2010-03-18T18:11:00.000-07:00

During a recent search for vintage Masters of the Universe items on ebay I came across the following aberration worse than anything ever summoned from the depths of Snake Mountain.
It seems back in the 80s someone went through the trouble of putting together a boootleg line of Masters toys and role play accessories down in Mexico.

I found a great deals of images from the He-Man figure as well as the weapons and mask set. Here are some of the worst ones. Enjoy...

This is one scary ass looking He-Man mask. It doesn't even seem to come with anything to hold it up to your face.

I love how they ripped off the artwork from some of the early Mini Comics to use on the cheapo cardboard top.

The weapon (whatever the hell it is) looks like something similar to what Hordak would have, not He-Man. Feel free to comment and let me know if you've seen these before or any other example of Mexican Amos del Universo bootlegs.

Rocketeer Kids Pizza Pack

2010-03-15T01:16:00.001-07:00

I don't know if Pizza Hut is still doing this but back in the early 90s they used to have kids meals with promotional tie ins. Over the years they put together a lot of fun items for these kids meals based on such hot properties of the time as Star Trek: TNG, Fox Kids' X-Men animated series, and The Rocketeer. Today I'll be talking about the Rocketeer Pizza Pack offered at Pizza Hut restaurants in the summer of 1991.

The kids meal included a small personal pizza in a Rocketeer themed pizza box along with a drink in one of the most amazing cups ever offered at a fast food joint. The cup, made from really solid plastic (I still have one in perfect shape) featured the Rocketeer mask on the front with a lid in the shape of his helmet. The sculpting on the helmet lid is pretty impressive. This is probably one of my all time favorite fast food premiums.

As if the awesome cup wasn't enough you also got a Rocketeer Times booklet with awesome artwork and games inspired by the film and comic book series. My favorite images in this booklet are the blueprints for the Rocketeer jet pack and helmet. Rounding out this incredible kids meal package is a Rocketeer cardboard glider you could put together. You could get all this for the ridiculously cheap price of $2.99. These days you can't get a kids meal anywhere for such a low price, let alone one that includes such cool premiums.

Nostalgic G's Collection Part 4: TMNT, Rocky, Superheroes and more...

2010-03-11T00:12:00.000-08:00

In this fourth installment of My Collection I'll be sharing some more pics from my Superheroes collection, Rocky, Ninja Turtles, and video game characters figures. Make sure to check out all 4 previous installments by clicking on the "my collection" category of this blog. Enjoy.

More Superheroes...

Rocky

T.M.N.T.

Video Game figures, and more...

Behind the scenes look at Double Dare...

2010-03-08T16:54:00.000-08:00

Here's a one hour special released on home video in 1989 giving kids the inside scoop on the making of the greatest game show ever to hit the airwaves, Double Dare!!!
The special even shows Marc Summers and the show's announcer, Harvey, making their way through the obstacle course. Great 80s nostalgia!!!

John Hughes tribute at the Academy Awards...

2010-03-08T16:52:00.001-08:00

The best part of the night!
Here's the video. Make sure to check it out before the bungholes at ABC and the AMPAS raid youtube and take it down.

Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves Sword and Dagger...

2010-03-05T02:26:00.000-08:00

If there was one thing I loved playing with during my childhood it was role play weapons, especially if they were based on those used by my favorite film or T.V. characters. In the summer of 1991 when the Kevin Costner Robin Hood film was released we got treated to a pretty cool toy line from Kenner. Although mostly consisting of toys created by recycling existing figure body molds and accessories the line turned out pretty good. One of the few items in the line that was not put together from previously released toys was the set of Robin Hood's sword and dagger. Being a fan of the film, and a nutcase for swords I quickly convinced my Mom to buy it for me. I'm not really sure what store we found it at. For some particular reason I remember picking up the Sherwood Forrest play set and the bola launcher at Toys R Us, but I have no recollection of where I got the weapons set. The Robin Hood sword and dagger ended up becoming my favorite set of toy weapons, even beating out the Thundercat's Sword of Omens and He-Man's Power Sword. The reason for that was that these weapons were made from some of the strongest and thickest plastic ever used for a toy weapon.

I used to love going into the yard and swinging this sword. It was so strong I ruined a ton of tree branches in the process. The set also came with a sheath to store and carry this tool of justice in. Another thing I used to love doing was to throw the sword into the ground with all my strenght and see how deep it would penetrate the soil. After a while the tip of the sword became pretty dirty from all the soil and grass. I really had a ton of fun with this set. If you combined it with any toy and arrow set from your local toy store you'd have the perfect gear to hand out some justice in Nottingham castle. I really don't remember what happened to the sword or the dagger. I wish I still had it since it seems to be pretty rare. I've been having a tough time tracking a mint in box set on ebay. I think the reason there's not that many of these around is because shortly after its release it made the top of a yearly list of dangerous toys compiled since 1971 by an attorney from Boston called Edward Swartz. I've never seen another role play weapon as sturdy and cool as this one in the last 19 years, and its all probably Edward Swartz fault.

BBC Robin Hood toys!!!

2010-03-05T01:12:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite shows in recent years was the BBC version of Robin Hood. I'll admit it got off to a rough start but halfway through the first season the show started to hit on all cylinders.
The stories were a lot of fun and they were able to put a new spin on the classic myth. I just found out that at some point around the show's second season an European toy company known as Vivid Imaginations put out a line of toys based on the show. Unfortunately the line was never distributed at retail in the U.S. It took some time but I was able to create a list of all the items released as part of this toy line. Lets take a look at everything.

ACTION FIGURES

The heart and soul of the toy line, as is usually the case, was the action figure assortment based on some of the show's main characters. Vivid Imaginations put out a total of 5 action figures. These figures measured 5 inches and came with a nice amount of accessories.

The line included Robin Hood, Little John, The Night Watchman (Marion's heroic identity), Guy of Gisborn, and the Sheriff of Nothingham. The likeness and sculptin on these looks pretty good, especially for a line of figures from a company most collectors have never even heard of.

The company also released 2 packs of figures and a horse. So far it seems like the only releases for these sets have been Robin and the Sheriff.

Two exclusive figures of Maid Marion and Robin were included in the Sheriff's castle play set. The figures could only be obtained as part of the set. To me it seemed odd that they included the Marion figure in the castle and the Night Watchman as a regular release. I think it should have been the other way around.

12 Inch Figures

12 inch versions of Robin Hood and the Sheriff were also released. There might have also been a 12 inch Guy of Gisborne, but I have not found any images or proof of this figure yet.

Accessories, play sets, and more

In my humble opinion the crown jewel of this toy line's other offerings is the amazing looking Sheriff's Castle play set. Out of all the play sets I've seen released in recent years this thing is one of the best looking ones. Lately it seems like the word playset has become a foul word for toy makers. Nowadays most companies stay away from designing and releasing play sets for their action figure lines. The glory days of the play set are long gone. And since the late 80s the quality of play sets has truly gone down and year after year it becomes even rarer to see companies putting out things of this nature.

I really think Vivid Imaginations has done a great job with this set. The amount of detail and features is great. Plus you get the 2 exclusive figures I mentioned earlier.

The set features opening doors and gate, a working zip line, two highly detailed levels, a dungeon with manacles, trap door, tower, and more weapons for your figures. The set consists of three sections which seem to fold for easy storage or transportation kind of like the old Castle Greyskull play set. In fact this set reminds me a lot about that now classic 80s play set. This is the kind of toy I would have gone nuts for during my childhood. I really wish there was a way to get our hands on it here in the states without having to import it from England.

The Robin Hood toy line continued the tradition set forth by the great lines of the 80s by also including an assortment of role playing toys. Kids can get their own Robin Hood sword as part of the line's dress up set which includes the legendary hero's sword and a jacket just like the one worn by Robin on the show.

An electronic bow and arrow set was also released as part of the role play assortment.

Vivid imaginations expanded the line to include puzzles and it seems they even had plans at one point to put out a board game, but I did not find any more info or details on that.

I must now return to ebay to see if I can get my hands on any of these. Any readers in England or other territories where the line hit retail are welcome to post their thoughts or comments on the line and if you have any of these figs lying around let me know.

G.I.JOE: The best and worst of 2009...

2010-02-18T00:42:00.000-08:00

2009 was a great year for G.I.JOE. Unfortunately the thing that caused many of the great toy releases for the year was also one of the worst creations ever in the history of the beloved toy franchise. Its no secret that the feature film G.I.Joe: The Rise of Cobra was laughable and a gigantic disappointment to JOE fans everywhere. I won't go into detail about it in this post, but you can read my review written during the film's opening weekend here. The great thing to have come as a result of Rise of Cobra was the amount of merchandise we got featuring our beloved characters both in their new film incarnations and their classic 80s look. Those of us that were terribly disappointed with the film's ridiculous story and character treatment got a great reminder of what made G.I.Joe great to begin with in the IDW comic series G.I.JOE Origins written by the man who single-handedly created the Joe characters, situations, and universe we grew up loving -- Mr. Larry Hamma.

The story in Origins would've made a kick ass film as we get introduced tho our favorite Joes during their first mission which actually takes place years before the team's official formation. The book features great character development, a storyline that actually makes sense told through compelling scenes featuring great drama. The story also features a great hook as the Joes try to makes sense of the mystery behind a very dangerous man known only as Chimera, who has been using his substantial wealth and power to begin a radical movement which could put the entire nation at risk. The story opens in the state of Texas where things don't go well for the FBI and CID as the man takes out every one who tries to go after him. The FBI wants a picture of the man posted on the wire immediately. They soon find out from CID that it would be useless since the man recently underwent plastic surgery in order to drastically change his look. The information came from a tip by an Army Ranger (Snake Eyes) who was also in the same clinic and recognized the man before he had his surgery. Soon after the surgery the clinic gets blown up, obliterating anyone who knew and any record of what he now looks like.

So begins this new take on the Cobra mythos and the Joe team, with a storyline that makes a great deal of sense for our times. That is the secret to this book's success. Unfortunately the filmmakers (led by super hack Stephen Sommers) went in the completely opposite direction by creating a completely unbelievable story filled with weak, one dimensional characters. I highly recommend you pick up the G.I.JOE: Origins trade paperback .

Those of you craving a G.I.Joe animation fix can pick up the G.I.JOE Resolute DVD which contains all the episodes of the awesome JOE miniseries written by Warren Ellis and originally airing on the cartoon network. Resolute is completely loyal to the Larry Hamma JOE mythos and a heck of a lot of fun to watch. The storyline is better than anything we ever got in the 80s cartoon and the visuals are astounding. A total step in the right direction for G.I.Joe on T.V.
Hopefully Hasbro will continue to produce animated programming with the same sensibilities and respectful treatment of the characters as Resolute.

Another great thing to come from Rise of Cobra was the introduction of a new JOE character that totally rocks. The weird thing is we don't get to see this character in the movie, but it was introduced in the movie era comic line and the figure was released as part of the movie toy line.
Apparently Hasbro developed the character exclusively for the Rise of Cobra video game.

This new character, known as Agent Helix is completely shrouded in mystery offering a great deal of potential for future stories. Helix was part of a government funded program which altered her to include a type of human programming known as Total Organic Battlefield Awareness Total Organic Battlefield Awareness. This allows her to have a heightened sens of awareness which combined with expert battlefield and weapons training allows her to detect the presence of every single soldier in her vicinity as well as the weapons they are carrying down to the last piece of ammo.

The comic book gives us an example of her abilities brilliantly through perfectly executed panels of action sequences where we not only get to see what is happening around her, but we also get a sense of what is going on in her mind as she picks up all this information from her opponents. The comic book one shot is a fun read and I'm hoping we get more Helix stories in the future so we get to understand her better as well as learn more of her past.

The Helix action figure is just as great as all the others in the Rise of Cobra line. Packed with lots of accessories and highly detailed this figure does not disappoint. I still can't believe how such a terrible movie can led to the production of such an awesome toy line. The Rise of Cobra toys totally blew me away. Expecting them to be just as bad as the film I was really surprised to discover a toy line packed with detail, amazing accessories and some of the coolest vehicles in recent years. Toy lines these days really fall short in the vehicles and play sets department, but Rise of Cobra really shines when it comes to vehicles and we also got a huge play set to go along with the line -- the mobile pit.

One of the best choices Hasbro made was to incorporate the RHINO vehicle from the short lived direct to consumer line of recent years into the Rise of Cobra line. This vehicle was a lot of fun and highly detailed, but unfortunately fans were never able to pick it up in stores before. In 2009 we finally got to see it in store shelves as a Target Exclusive. I really love this vehicle since it reminds me a lot of the APC troop carrier vehicle from the film ALIENS.

The vehicle offers a lot of play options and the center top section can be removed to turn into an attack chopper. It can accommodate a bunch of figures in the 2 cockpits and a lot more in the troop carrying area in he rear.

When it was first released it had a pretty high price at Target stores, but most locations have lowered its price to $24.99 by now. My local target still had a good amount of these on sale last week. You might still be able to pick it up on sale.

I actually like the RHINO better than the mobile pit play set, which by the way has also been marked down and can still be found for about half its original price at Walmart and Target stores.

COBRA also got some cool vehicles to add to their fleet. The Steel Crusher APC totally looks like something that could've been released as part of the early 80s line. Although its based on a HUMMER truck it does remind me of the earlier vehicle releases from the 80s such as the Cobra Stinger , but with way more accessories and cooler play features.

My favorite of all the new Cobra vehicle is the gunship. Its a pretty close replica of the vehicle seen in the Eiffel Tower sequence, but it can also be used perfectly with the 25th anniversary line figures or even the 80s figures.

I really love the passenger area in the back and the opening side door.

The ship comes with a pilot figure which is supposed to be firefly. This makes no sense t me since Firefly is not in the film and this figure looks nothing at all like it could be an updated version of Cobra's favorite saboteur. They should've just called him something else.

With the exception of Cobra Commander all the Cobra figures in this line are top notch. I really like the Destro figure and his neo-military / dictator type uniform, which by the way he never wears in the film. This is a cool updated look for the character unlike the ridiculous looking Cobra Commander figure, which looks just as dumb as the character's storyline in the film.

All the Cobra figure come with a ton of neat accessories, but the Barones and Storm Shadow come with the best batch of them. Baroness comes with the MARS nanomite case and missiles plus a pretty cool drop line like the one she uses in the film to exit from the gunship. Storm Shadow comes with ninja gear as well as the nanomite missile launcher. Now let's talk about the JOES.

The Joe team figures features some of the most realistic likenesses I have ever seen in a movie based toy line. Hawk actually looks like Dennis Quaid.

The Scarlett figure is hands down one of the best looking female action figures ever relesed by any toy company. She absolutely looks just like Rachel Nichols. Hasbor reallt did an amazing ob at capturing the actresses facial features.

The 25th Anniversary line continues...

In 2009 Hasbro remained loyal to the G.I.JOE 25th anniversary line with more figures and vehicles to please fans of the original 80's line. One of my favorite vehicles from my childhood was reissued -- 1984's sky hawk.

The classic skyhawk was re released as the Ghosthawk with a new version of lift ticket, who was originally included with 1986's Tomahawk chopper.

Rounding out the best G.I.JOE items for 2009 are the assault on Cobra island and deffense on Cobra island figure sets. Both sets include 25h anniversary modern era sculpts of classic Joe and Cobra figures including two of my all time favorite Joes -- Wet suit and Hit and Run.

These two set are just amazing and us hardocre 80's Joe fans were really pleased to see Hsbro do its best to please those of us who have stuck with this amazing toy line for more than 25 years through thick and thin. There you have it the best of G.I.JOE for 2009. YOJOE!!!!!

A major award?

2010-02-17T23:55:00.000-08:00

I have to start off by saying how much I love blogging and the entire Geek blogs community. I really wish I had more time to post articles more often. Blogging offers us a chance to share our memories and our creativity with others who have many things in common with us. I'm really glad I started doing this and I'm specially glad I've gotten to interact with so many cool people thanks to this blog. Today I was very excited to discover I have received an award from our good friend Chunky B over at the eclectorama. I want to thank him for this recognition and for letting me be a a part of the 2009 Spockcation. Soon I will be passing on the award to some of my other favorite blogs so stay tuned for that. Your blog might be a winner!

LEGO Hoth Battle

2010-02-14T01:06:00.000-08:00

I've never really talked much about Legos in any of my previous posts so I thought I'd start doing so since I have been playing with Legos from a very small age and in the past couple of years with the introduction of more sets based on some of my favorite movies like Indiana Jones and Star Wars I've started to get back into them again. For my first official Lego post I'll be taking a look at some of the Lego Star Wars sets you can use to recreate one of the coolest scenes in The Empire Strikes Back.

This year is the 30th anniversary of what is perhaps the finest film in the Star Wars saga and most of the Lucasfilm licensees will be celebrating by offering tons of new Empire merchandise like the upcoming definitive book The Making of The Empire Strikes Back by J.W. Rinzler and Hasbro's ESB vehicles and vintage style action figure line. Over the years Lego has offered multiple sets featuring vehicles and play set pieces from ESB. In this post I will be utilizing pieces from 3 of those sets to recreate the battle of Hoth.

With each new wave released Lego Star Wars sets get even more detailed and intricate. Every new set continues pushing the limits of what can be achieved with Legos. With the exception of the Clone Wars line I think all of Lego's Star Wars offerings are truly superb. I will be doing more dioramas and reviews on future Lego Star Wars sets as well as a couple of flashback reviews on their now canceled Indiana Jones line. But for now let's turn our attention back to The Empire Strikes Back. The sets I'll be using for this diorama are set 7749 Echo Base, set 7666 Hoth Rebel Base, and set 4500 Rebel Snowspeeder. Now lets re-live the Battle of Hoth Lego style:

Yes, but will it fly?

2010-02-05T23:41:00.001-08:00

In the summer of 1991 Disney released the film The Rocketeer, based on Dave Stevens' short lived comic book series. My mom took me to see the film on opening weekend and I was immediately blown away by it. It had everything I loved: planes, plenty of action, and a superhero that reminded me of Commando Cody. I was in nirvana for those 2 hours. Soon I wanted to get my hands on every single piece of Rocketeer toys or collectibles out there. Unfortunately due to the film's poor reception at the box office a lot of the merchandise based on the film was released in small quantities or cleared out of store shelves soon after the film's release. Imagine how surprised I was when on a Saturday afternoon visit to my local comic shop I looked up to the top shelves where they usually stacked up the action figures and model kits to find a flying replica of the amazing Gee Bee plane piloted by Cliff Secord in the film. I immediately grabbed it and was able to convince my parents to buy it for me. I couldn't wait to get home and put this thing together so I could fly it just like the awesome image depicted on the back of the box.

First release of the Gee Bee featuring painted on detail.

Second release of the Gee Bee with only a decal sheet and no paint work.

The plane toy was made by Spectra Star, a company known for a wide range of outdoor play toys including yo-yos and kites, many featuring characters from popular movies and shows. The plane was made out of vacuum formed plastic, with injection molded landing gear, wheel pants, wheels, engine cowling and a rubber band powered propeller; it had a wingspan of around 16 inches. As soon as I got home I put all the pieces together and installed the rubber band powered motor. Afterwards all you had to do was turn the propeller so the rubber band would coil up inside the plane. After the band wouldn't turn any more you would let go of the propeller and it would start spinning. Then all you had to do was lightly throw the plane in the air and see it fly. Unfortunately once I let go of the plane it would just drop like a shoe. If you'd throw it with a lot of force it wouldn't even glide it would just flip around tumbling through the air as if you'd just thrown your cat across the room. I was deeply disappointed.

I thought my plane was defective, but since I was such a fan of the movie and the Gee Bee I wanted to keep it as a display piece even if it didn't fly. Weeks later I thought maybe the rubber band wasn't powerful enough to drive the propeller so I decided to rig the thing with one of the mini motors from my Hasbro Record Breakers toy cars. That didn't work either and I ended up causing a lot of damage to the plane's fuselage attempting to install the motor and the electronics to make it work.

Recently I discovered I wasn't the only child who went through this major disappointment. Apparently Spectra Star had a lot of problems in producing this item. The first batch of planes they made was fabricated in the U.S. and then hand painted in Mexico. The process proved too expensive for the company so the second batch of planes released didn't include any painted on detail. They were packaged unpainted with a cheap decal sheet. The flying problem was there from the start and it was something all of these planes had, but Spectra Star had to release the planes in time to coincide with the movie's theatrical run so they went ahead and released the planes anyways.

After getting multiple complains about the item Spectra Star released the second batch of planes with a label on the package warning kids that this was nothing more than a replica model which did not fly. Unfortunately the version I bought did not have this decal so I was under the impression from the beginning that this thing was meant to fly, forcing me to spend a lot of time trying to figure out what might have been wrong with mine and eventually trying to come up with a solution which did not work at all and made me ruin the plane.

Maybe in the future some toy company will get the rights to The Rocketeer and release a better version of this thing, because it is one cool looking plane, and the movie has a huge cult following. I just wish Spectra Star had been honest from the beginning and not fooled so many young kids like myself back in the day. They went out of their way to promote the plane's ability to fly, glide, loop and dive on the packaging, and the back of the box goes on to explain in detail how to make the damned thing fly, which is nothing more than a bunch of nonsense. Hopefully someday we'll get a working flying replica of the Gee Bee from The Rocketeer released and I won't have to bitch and moan about this matter anymore.

Patrick Stewart in A Christmas Carol...

2009-12-24T08:32:00.001-08:00

If there is an actor that truly understands Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol its Patrick Stewart. After having played every single role in the text for more than ten years every Holiday season on Broadway, Stewart starred in one of the best film adaptations of the text in 1999 for the TNT cable network. I've never had the opportunity to see Stewart's one man show but those who have seen it say it's quite an intelligent and powerful performance. Last night I saw the movie version again. I hadn't seen it since it first aired ten Christmas seasons ago and I had forgotten how great this production is. Stewart is amazing as Scrooge. The scene were he has to witness his younger self letting the love of his life walk away is truly remarkable as we see Stewart powerless to change his past and painfully reliving one of the biggest regrets of his character's life. The film is full of great moments just like that one. It truly is a joy to watch Stewart take Scrooge through all three phases of his life and his final redemption in the end.

Over the years critics have called Stewart's one man show of A Christmas Carol the best expression of the text ever short of hearing Dickens himself during one of his public readings during his lifetime. Back in 1993 Stewart won an Olivier Award for his performance of A Christmas Carol in London's West End.

Here's a review of the show by theater critic Charles Spencer :

"The show offers a chance to see a great actor at the very top of his game, completely in command of his material (he adapted the piece himself) and spinning potent theatrical magic out of thin air. He clearly loves Dickens, and he beautifully conveys that love. More importantly, he takes a story that is often regarded as twee and sentimental and finds its darkness as well as its radiant light. A Christmas Carol may be a short book: Stewart leaves no doubt that it is also a great one. He comes bustling on to the stage with the energy of a man who can't wait to get started, dressed in a modern suit and a shirt, and starts arranging the few props - a lectern, a stool, a table - which together with a few lighting effects are all he needs to bring the story to thrilling life.

You notice at once that there aren't many actors left like Stewart these days, actors who can speak with such exemplary power and clarity. When he declares: "Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, Scrooge! A squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner", every word, every syllable, is made to count. He relishes all the glorious energy, flavour and humour of Dickens's prose, and Scrooge suddenly seems to stand before us in all his grotesque glory.

He has the perfect face, too. When he smiles, Stewart can look genuinely benign. But when he scowls, that shaved head, ascetic face, those hooded eyes and cruel mouth can seem unforgettably sinister. The famous "Bah, humbug!" becomes a growling rumble of festering malignity. But he also captures the character's terror, and the final glorious melting of his frozen heart, with equal, high-definition precision.

In the course of the show, Stewart plays some 40 characters, ranging from the falsetto innocence of Tiny Tim to the disgusting squalor of Old Joe, the greasy rag-and-bone man in his filthy lair. Has the ghost of Marley ever seemed more pitifully sad, the joy of the Cratchits' Christmas celebrations more touchingly merry? I beg leave to doubt it. Stewart also proves a virtuoso when it comes to pace and mood. There are rapt passages here when the whole audience seems to be holding its breath as Stewart lays bare the darkness of Scrooge's soul and the terrible urgency of turning it to the light. But then he will suddenly relax into humour and vitality, picking up the narrative thread, barreling through the action and imitating the chimes of the bells ("Ga-doing, Ga-doing") with almost childlike enthusiasm.

There's a particularly extraordinary passage at the end, when Scrooge finds himself safely back at home after gazing in horror at his own tombstone. Suddenly the most ghastly choking noises start emanating from Stewart, and for a moment I feared the actor might be suffering a seizure. In fact, it is just the sound of Scrooge learning how to laugh again, and he laughs until he cries. This is a show that unerringly finds the heart of Dickens's Christmas message about the joys and responsibilities of our common humanity."

There is an audio recording of Stewart's one man show available from amazon.com and other online sellers. For those of you who have not seen the TNT film you can check it out right here via Youtube.

The Island of Misfit Toys in new Verizon Commercial...

2009-12-23T20:02:00.000-08:00

I love all the Rankin / Bass animated Christmas specials, in fact just last night my brother and I were watching The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus. Imagine how happy I was to see a new commercial paying homage to these beloved specials. Verizon Wireless has a new commercial showing the Iphone getting banned to the Island of Misfit Toys due to AT&Ts lack of good nationwide coverage. The commercial has the same look and feel as Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and all the other Rankin / Bass Christmas classics. If you haven't seen it on T.V. check it out now via Youtube.

TMNT 25: Party Wagon Reissue...

2009-12-21T18:42:00.001-08:00

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles debut in the pages of Mirage Comics' independently produced and distributed first issues of TMNT. To commemorate the event Playmates Toys reissued a couple of the action figures from the first wave of TMNT action figures, as well as the first ever vehicle in the line, the Party Wagon.

The packaging is almost an exact replica of the original box. Playmates only added the new TMNT 25th Anniversary logo and updated trademark and copyright info.

The actual toy is just as awesome as the original with all the features and accessories from the earlier release. My brother and I had the original when we were kids and got a lot hours of fun out of it. We played with it so much we destroyed it during the many battles the Turtles endured against The Foot Clan. We were really happy to see this again in toy shelves. Although it was tough to find and we only saw it at a couple of Toys R Us stores and in very limited quantities.

Inside you can pack in all the turtles. Two in the front and up to four more figures in the back. It comes with the same accesories as the original with the exception of the belt used to hold your figure in place on the door seat which springs open when you lift the top of the vehicle. It really doesn't make any sense to eliminate that piece from this re-release since it's neccesary to hold the figure in place and it's such a small thing for Playmates to reproduce. I really can't think of any logical explanation for its removal. Other than that I have no other complaints about this vehicle and if you're a long time TMNT fan I suggest you pick it up online if you didn't get a chance to get it in stores.

Now let's take a look at a couple more shots of the Turtles and the party wagon in action...

I'm not sure if Playmates has any plans to continue this line like Hasbro did with the G.I.Joe 25th anniversary line after the anniversary celebration. There are so many great figures and accesories they could re-release like the sewer playset or the Turtle blimp. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for more classic TMNT toys in 2010.

A look back at The Bishop's Wife...

2009-12-20T01:19:00.000-08:00

"Tonight I want to tell you the story of an empty stocking.

Once upon a midnight clear, there was a child's cry, a blazing star hung over a stable, and wise men came with birthday gifts. We haven't forgotten that night down the centuries. We celebrate it with stars on Christmas trees, with the sound of bells, and with gifts.

But especially with gifts. You give me a book, I give you a tie. Aunt Martha has always wanted an orange squeezer and Uncle Henry can do with a new pipe. For we forget nobody, adult or child. All the stockings are filled, all that is, except one. And we have even forgotten to hang it up. The stocking for the child born in a manger. Its his birthday we're celebrating. Don't let us ever forget that.

Let us ask ourselves what He would wish for most. And then, let each put in his share, loving kindness, warm hearts, and a stretched out hand of tolerance. All the shinning gifts that make peace on earth."

- David Niven as Bishop Henry Brougham (1947)

With those beautiful and eye opening words comes to a close one of the most charming Christmas movies ever made. The Bishop's Wife was produced in 1947 by legendary film producer Samuel Goldwyn. The film tells the story of an angel named Dudley (Cary Grant) who is sent to answer Bishop Henry Brougham's prayer for help during the Christmas season. Bishop Brougham (David Niven ) has been having a tough time after leaving behind his modest church and middle class community to help build a cathedral in a wealthy part of town. Once there his new tasks and responsibilities begin to take priority over his relationship with his loving wife, Julia (Loretta Young), while also putting his values to the test. The film is now a well loved Holiday classic and was nominated for multiple Academy Awards including Best Director (Henry Koster), Best Score (Hugo Friedhofer ), and Best Picture (Samuel Goldwyn).

Not many people are aware of the difficulties producer Samuel Goldwyn faced in bringing this classic to the screen. After having spent a million dollars in principal photography Goldwyn shut down the picture unhappy with the results its original director, William A. Seiter was getting. Early audiences who got a preview disliked the film so much that Goldwyn called in the great Billy Wilder and frequent collaborator Charles Bracket to do an uncredited rewrite of the script. In the original version of the film the role of the bishop's wife -- Julia, was played by Teresa Wright, Dudley was played by David Niven, and the Bishop by Cary Grant. Goldwyn replaced Wright with Loretta Young and switched the actors on the two main roles. It has been reported in many books and articles over the years that Grant was quite reluctant to go with the switch and play the role of Dudley. I'm glad in the end he decided to go along with the changes since his portrayal of Dudley is truly remarkable.

Grant plays the role of the angel with a great deal of charm and passion. He never lets the fantastic and sometimes larger than life characteristics of such a role get in the way of allowing genuine emotion to pour through. The role of Dudley turned out to be one of his most remembered performances in a very impressive career. Watching Grant's angel as he helps others see the better in humanity and as he performs all his life changing miracles is a real treat. You find yourself smiling through most of the film thanks to the joy his character brings to so many people in the Bishop's life. For a story with such a powerful message the acting and the treatment of the material is done in a very subtle way and you never truly feel you've been hit over the head with a life lesson. This is largely accomplished by the wonderful actors and the sharp writing. Near the end we discover that Dudley's mission of becoming involved in people's lives without ever being able to get emotionally attached is one of the toughest tasks ever and we are treated to a heart-wrenching scene were the angel is tempted by the power of human desires.

This type of conflict has been explored with various degrees of success in many other films including Wings of Desire, its remake City of Angels, and the remake of The Bishop's Wife: 1996's The Preacher's Wife. The Bishop's Wife is the best by far, thanks in great part to Cary Grant's interpretation of the angel, which is never one dimensional or flat. Dudley not only affects the lives of the Bishop and his wife, he pretty much has a positive impact on everyone he runs across -- from a cab driver who's lost faith in humanity, to a college professor who doesn't really believe in anything other than what he can find in a textbook. By the end of the movie the Cab driver has experienced the joys of new friends and the Professor has realized there are bigger things in life than those we can understand and so he joins the others for Christmas mass for the first time in a very long time.

The film' supporting cast is very impressive. Sylvester -- the can driver is payed by James Gleason and together with Loretta Young and Cary Grant he shares one of the most beautiful looking Christmas sequences in any film as the three go ice skating together during an afternoon of playing hooky. Monty Woolley as Professor Wutheridge has some incredibly poignant moments throughout the film. His character of the non-believer who ends up believing helps cement the themes of the story and gives it even more heart.

Hugo Friedhofer's score is another great element that helps make this a perfect film. The film also features the Robert Mitchell boys choir. Friedhofer, fresh off of scoring another classic, The Best Years of our Lives, does a great job of bringing the holiday season to life through his music for The Bishop's Wife. There's a beautiful melody in the film's third act that plays a key part in the life of one of the characters and the scene in which Dudley plays the melody on a harp is one of the many musical highlights of the film. The score features many cues that can be listened to as part of any Christmas play list, its just full of beautiful music. In 2002 the folks at Screen Archives finally released the entire score on a 25 track CD with great liner notes and beautiful photographs throughout the album booklet.

Along with Frank Capra's Its A Wonderful Life, this film does a great job of exploring the true meaning of Christmas and for that it will forever remain in the hearts of those who understand what it is we truly come together to celebrate in this joyful season. I really recommend everyone to watch it at least once during the Holiday season.

Avatar delivers...

2009-12-19T01:08:00.000-08:00

Just got back from AVATAR at Universal Studios Hollywood and I must say you need to see this movie in IMAX 3-D, it's mind boggling. I truly felt immersed in the world James Cameron has created thanks to his ability to mix performance capture technology, CG, and live action to perfection. Combine all that with 3D imagery on an almost 8 stories high screen and you have a movie watching experience unlike anything we've ever seen. The screenplay does borrow a lot from previous stories and films such as Dances with Wolves, Aliens, and even a bit of Star Trek: Insurrection, and some of the characters would've benefited from a little more back story and development, but we have never seen this type of story told on such an epic scale. Let's face it James Cameron is not the greatest screenwriter in the world, but he is a damn good director -- he can keep things visually exciting, kinetic, and compelling without loosing track of the story he's trying to tell. It was also very satisfying to get a brand new score from one of my all time favorite film composers: James Horner -- who's been responsible for such classic scores as Aliens, Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan, Willow, and many more. And I'm happy to report there is no Celine Dion song in this one.

Cameron has put together a really solid cast for Avatar. Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana deliver some great performances even with all the limitations of acting in a motion capture rig. I was also very happy to see Sigourney Weaver in a James Cameron film once again and her role is pretty significant. Early word on the film made it seem like her part was close to that of a cameo, but that is not the case at all. She plays a key role in the film and has a lot of screen time both playing her human character -- Dr. Grace Augustine, and her Na-vi Avatar. Seeing this made me crave a Weaver / Cameron Aliens reunion more than ever. She's still great and I for one hope to see more of her in big event movies like this one in the near future.

I think we have some very exciting years of movie watching coming up if this motion capture technology continues to be employed and pushed further by the right filmmakers. There's a lot of cool Avatar toys out there as well as a great book called The Art of Avatar detailing the design process for the film. I have ordered some of these items but have not received them yet. I'll chime in again with reviews for those once I receive them.

Nostalgic G's Collection - Pt. 3: Star Wars

2009-12-17T23:16:00.000-08:00

In the previous installments of this series of posts I went over some of the pieces I have displayed from my Star Trek collection, my Sci-Fi Collection, and my DC Superheroes collection. Now its time to go over my Star Wars display. Star Wars is one of the collections I have the most items in, though I mostly collect the Hasbro and Kenner stuff. I would say the stuff on display is only about 1/4 of my entire Star Wars collection. Most of the newer stuff I have had to pack aways since I ran out of room to display Star Wars stuff a long time ago. I'll update this post when I rotate the items in the display in the near future. Now let's take a look at the most recent display for Star Wars.

Holiday Movie Review - Planes, Trains, and Automobiles: Those Aren't Pillows Edition

2009-12-17T02:45:00.003-08:00

This year we finally got a Special Edition of another one of John Hughes Holiday Classics: Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. I love this movie and the new edition finally includes some decent enough special features. My only complaint is that Paramount chose to release this great film on DVD only, completely ignoring the Blu-Ray fan base. Last year we got new editions of two other Paramount comedy classics with new special features: Coming to America and Trading Places, for those releases Paramount put out the Blu-Ray editions simultaneously. So it really doesn't make any sense to have this film as a DVD only release.

John Candy was a wonderful actor and seeing this film again reminds us of how his talents truly went far beyond comedic acting. In the midst of all the mayhem there truly are some memorable, tender, and touching moments in this film and Candy is the heart of each and every one of those. A few weeks ago I talked about how much I love National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, another one of Hughes Holiday pieces. What both these films do so well is combining moments of extreme comedy and totally over the top gags with heartwarming moments of true human emotion, things we can all identify with such as Steve Martin's desire to come home to his family for Christmas and John Candy's need to hold on to the first true connection he's made with another human being since the loss of his wife.

Steve Martin who was once known as the "wild and crazy" guy is able to play the straight guy here to perfection with incredibly precise comedic timing. We truly get a clear sense of the rage building up inside turning this laid back individual into a ticking time bomb. By the time the bomb goes off in the brilliant scene at the car rental office when he tells the lady at the counter how desperate he's become by dropping the F-Bomb close to 40 times in less than 3 minutes we truly can't wait to see how far he'll go to get home and how much crazier he'll get before making it.

The reveal of Steve Martin and John Candy walking down the street together with the big trunk immediately after Candy's confession about the loss of his wife brings more joy to me than any film released in recent years ever could. I truly believe they don't make movies like this anymore. John Hughes ability to make everyday life such and adventure and to perfectly balance comedic mayhem with human emotions was a true art form and no one these days comes close to what he was able to do back in the day. The closing scene of the film is very emotional and to see the longing for family in John Candy's eyes is truly heartbreaking. A very unexpected but very touching and endearing finale to a tale about the most hellish odyssey two men could ever share.

The new DVD offers a couple of extras including a short tribute to John Candy cobbled together from old cast and crew interviews. The best of all the new features is the footage from the film's original press conference back in 1987 which Paramount put together on a huge airport terminal set on on the studio lot. We get to see some great interaction between John Hughes, Steve Martin, and John Candy as they share the stage to answer questions from the press. If you're a fan of John Hughes you know that as the years went on he rarely did any more interviews so this footage is a great find. There have been rumors floating around for years regarding an extended cut of the film since it was reported that Hughes shot over 600,000 feet of film, almost twice the industry average. According to Hughes there was a 3 hour cut of the film early on which he put together from tons of improv material Martin and Candy performed on set but it is locked away in a Paramount vault, and unfortunately none of that footage is included in this edition with the exception of a single deleted scene. The film was a critical and financial success. The film became one of the most successful comedies of the decade grossing over $150 million dollars from a modest $15 million dollar budget.

If you've never seen this film before or if its been years since the last time you saw it do yourself a favor and pick this DVD up. You'll be glad you did and you might even think twice about leaving town this Holiday season.

Family Ties Season One Christmas...

2009-12-17T01:37:00.000-08:00

Originally airing on December 15, 1982 "A Christmas Story" was the show's first ever Christmas themed episode. A blizzard forces the Keatons to spend Christmas at home instead of going on a ski trip. Elyse's gift to Steven, an album filled with old photos, sparks a series of flashbacks to the birth of their three children. We soon discover that Alex was born in Africa in 1965 as the Keatons were in the country doing work for the Peace Corps. Another flashback sequence reveals the Keatons at the hospital for Jennifer's birth on election day in 1972. When Nixon wins the election we see a very young Alex celebrating through the halls of the hospital. The episode also features Peter Jurassic from Babylon 5 in a guest role. Here it is in its entirety.

Nostalgic G's best of 2009...

2009-12-15T01:04:00.000-08:00

In a couple of weeks I'll be posting my first ever "Best of" list. The list will consist of my favorite collectibles, toys, movies, TV shows, and even food items for 2009. Lets take a look at some of the categories.

- Best Film
- Best Event
- Best Hangout Spot
- Best TV Show
- Best Album
- Best Blu-Ray release
- Best Book
- Best Comic Book
- Best Toy line (Movie based)
- Best Toy line (Retro)
- Best Action Figure
- Best Vehicle
- Best Playset
- Best Accessory /Role play item
- Best Lego Set
- Best Collectible
And more...

Rankin/Bass production of The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus finally comes to DVD

2009-12-13T01:47:00.001-08:00

One of the most requested titles in the Rankin / Bass collection of TV specials is finally out on DVD through Warner Brother's Archive Collection DVD on demand service. You can order it directly through the WB online store or via amazon.com. I just placed my order so I don't have it yet but I'm glad to finally be able to see this one again. My brother has a VHS recording of the version that has aired in past years on ABC Family as part of their 25 days of Christmas line up, but it was edited down for broadcast and its missing an entire musical number among other trims. The special aired for the first time on CBS on December 17, 1985. I'll have a full review of this disc as soon as I get to watch it. The special will also be airing again this year on December 22 on ABC Family. Or if you don't mind seeing it in a small screen with low resolution you can watch it on youtube thanks to a brave soul that uploaded it recently.

Shatner and Palin together at last...

2009-12-12T02:57:00.000-08:00

Over the past few months William Shatner has been showing up on The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien to read comments from former VP candidate Sarah Palin. Tonight "the Shat" was back, and to everyone's surprise Palin came out to read excerpts from his autobiography "Up 'till now". This truly is "must see T.V."

ABC screws over good ol' Charlie Brown...

2009-12-11T02:30:00.000-08:00

This past Tuesday was the annual broadcast of A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS on network television. For the past couple of years the rights to the Charlie Brown Holiday specials have been owned by ABC. These specials have brought joy to millions of families for over 40 years and what does ABC do to celebrate it? They come in with their greedy little network executive hands and start whacking off scenes from this classic in order to fit more commercials into the half hour. Even more annoying is all the time they dedicated to promoting their new brainless Disney CG special "Prep and Landing" - which being as humble as they are they already started describing it as the "soon to be a classic" special. I just saw this open letter sent in by an annoyed viewer to ABC and I thought it was a perfect comment on this sad attitude from a major network towards such a classic as A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS. Here it is in its entirety:

TO: ABC
FROM: Leon Lynn
RE: Desecration of “A Charlie Brown Christmas”
12/8/09

Dear ABC,

How could you?

For years and years I have awaited the network broadcast of “A Charlie Brown Christmas” as the true herald of the holiday season. I brought my kids up with the same tradition — one which has been made no less special for us by the fact that they happen to be Jewish.

Tonight we sat in horror and watched what you have done to the single greatest cartoon ever made. How many minutes did you cut out of “A Charlie Brown Christmas” so you could run more commercials?

Gone was Sally’s materialistic letter to Santa, which finally sends Charlie screaming from the room when she says she will settle for 10s and 20s.

Gone was Schroeder’s miraculous multiple renditions of “Jingle Bells” from a toy piano, including the one that sounds distinctly like a church organ.

Gone was Linus using his blanket as an improvised slingshot to knock a can off the fence no one else can hit, complete with ricochet sound effect.

Gone were the kids catching snowflakes on their tongues and commenting on their flavor.

Gone even was poor Shermy’s only line. He thought he had it bad because he was always tasked to play a shepherd. He had no idea.

And why were all these classic scenes cut? To plug more ads into the show, of course. To sell burgers and greeting cards — and to relentlessly plug the insipid-looking new Disney “soon to be a classic” show immediately following. (I didn’t watch the new show, by the way. I was laid far too low by what had just happened.) Cramming all of these ads into the 30-minute broadcast of “A Charlie Brown Christmas” required major edits to a cartoon that has spent 44 years now trying to remind us that Christmas is supposed to transcend crass commercialism.

Do you have no sense of irony?

A couple of weeks ago I noted that you can now buy a plastic replica of the pathetic little real-wood Christmas tree Charlie Brown brings home from the tree lot otherwise monopolized by shiny fake trees. I thought we had sunk as low as we could. Obviously I was wrong.

Oh, and by the way: The sound was half a second behind the picture: They were not synched properly. I thought this was pretty sloppy for a major TV network, but I was willing to look past it. What I cannot look past is the chopping to bits of a genuine classic, not just to pump more ads at us, but in direct conflict with the message that has made it a classic.

When I was a kid, the annual broadcast of “A Charlie Brown Christmas” was a holiday unto itself. It was the only time we ever saw ads for Dolly Madison snack cakes, for one thing. But more importantly, it actually framed the coming holiday for me in a meaningful way.

The shepherds in their fields had no corporate sponsors. Nobody had bought the naming rights for the manger. The infant Jesus did not have an endorsement deal lined up with a particular line of swaddling clothes.

Instead he came, the story goes, to preach universal love, and the abandonment of false ideals like the acquisition of gross material wealth in favor of something far more valuable.

You have not just lost sight of this, or turned your backs on it. You have stomped it into the mud.

You should be ashamed of yourselves.

But I bet you aren’t. I bet you’re way past that.

Count my family out for next year.

Sincerely,

Leon Lynn

Christmas comes but once a year...

2009-12-10T22:27:00.000-08:00

Here's another one of my favorite Holiday shorts. Produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount on December 4, 1936 Christmas comes but once a year features the character of Grampy from Betty Bop fame in a rare solo appearance. We had this as part of a Videotape my Mom got us featuring some of the classic public domain Christmas shorts. We used to watch it multiple times during the Holidays each year. It's a lot of fun and quite touching, plus the song is very catchy. I still can't get it out of my head after so many years. Hope it makes all of you feel like running out and donating some toys to Toys for Tots. Enjoy...

Amazing He-Man art...

2009-12-10T22:07:00.001-08:00

This is some of the most incredible He-Man art I have ever seen. It was made by Croatian artist Stjepan Šejić. A while back there was a rumor on the web that he had put these pieces together for the Warner Brothers live action film from the director of Kung Fu Panda. But that is not the case. Check out all the pieces here.

Hardrock, Coco, and Joe - The Three Little Dwarfs

2009-12-10T02:29:00.000-08:00

Here's another Christmas classic from my childhood. This short would air together with Suzy Snowflake every Holiday season on The Bozo Show. It was also produced by the folks at Centaur Productions and Wah Chang provided his stop motion animation talents to this one just as he did on "Suzy". Hardrock, Coco, and Joe are three of Santa's helpers who ride along on his sleigh every Christmas eve. The short has become a true Christmas classic and a tradition on Chicago's WGN-TV since its introduction on December 18, 1956 on the "Garfield Goose and Friends" show. At two-feet-high, Hardrock drove Santa's sleigh while Coco navigated and Joe tagged along for fun. To create the animated short Hill & Range Songs hired Centaur Productions. The company was established in the early 1950s by the great FX artist and sculptor Wah Ming Chang (Star Trek, Fantasia, Pinochio, Planet of the Apes, Land of the Lost) and George Pal, the legendary producer of the Pupetoons and such film classics as The War of the Worlds and The Time Machine. These animated shorts are simple, beautiful, and timeless. We have to remember that these were produced long before the folks at Rankin / Bass studios perfected the techiniques for use in many other TV specials, and without the resources of theatrically released stop motion features such as the ones being made by Willis O' Brien and Ray Harryhaussen. Helping Santa spread some Holiday cheer here's Hardrock, Coco, and Joe...Enjoy.

Here comes Suzy Snowflake...

2009-12-09T02:32:00.001-08:00

Back in the early 80's I used to love watching The Bozo Show every morning. Once I started school it was tough to tune in since I wasn't home anymore, but during the Holiday season I always looked forward to Christmas break so I could stay home and watch Bozo every morning. Every Holiday season us Bozo fans were treated to a couple of Christmas shorts as part of the show. One of my favorite ones was Suzy Snowflake. The short was based on the song made popular by Rosemary Clooney which was originally recorded in 1951. That same year the short was produced by Centaur Productions. One of the coolest things about the Suzy Snowflake short is that the stop motion animation was created by the great Wah Chang, one of my all time favorite FX artists, whom I have talked a lot on my Star Trek blog since he is responsible for the creation of most of the props and creatures from the Original Series including the Tribbles and the Gorn suit among many others. In this animated short Norma Zimmer was Suzy's voice and the song was sung by The Norman Luboff Choir, a premier studio group who recorded with well-known artists, such as Frank Sinatra and Harry Belafonte. So here it is for your Holiday enjoyment, a true classic: Suzy Snowflake.

Toys for Tots 2009...

2009-12-09T02:04:00.000-08:00

Many of us are very fortunate to have everything we need and so much more this Holiday season. There are many families that won't be able to put toys under the tree this year, but we can all help out. You can buy new toys to donate or give extra packaged items from your collection. Please help out in bringing joy to a child in need this Christmas. If you want to learn more about the Toys for Tots campaign or to find a drop off location in your community please visit their site.

Nostalgic G's Collection: Pt. 2 - Sci-Fi & DC Superheroes

2009-12-07T23:38:00.000-08:00

On my previous collection post I went over my current Star Trek display. Now it's time to take a look at my displays for various other Sci-Fi collectibles as well as DC Superheroes. As I mentioned last time I don't have room to display everything so this is only what I have up right now. In the coming months I will change up the display and update these posts.

ALIEN / PREDATOR

STARGATE

'

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE

DC SUPER HEROES

Stay tuned for Pt. 3 featuring Star Wars, Pt. 4 featuring Marvel Super Heroes, Rocky, and Ninja Turtles, Pt. 5 featuring Indiana Jones, Pt. 6 featuring G.I.Joe plus much more.

A Gumby Christmas Carol...

2009-12-06T05:09:00.000-08:00

1995 Power Rangers Christmas...

2009-12-06T05:00:00.001-08:00

From the Power Rangers third season here is the Christmas episode "I'm dreaming of a White Ranger". This was the last Power Rangers episode to have the title Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. This was due to a plot that was done in episodes prior to this episode's airing. Following this, the title would change to Mighty Morphin' Alien Rangers, then Power Rangers Zeo for the next season. The episode features Kimberly, the original Pink Ranger, where prior episodes featured the new Pink Ranger, Kathrine. This was the second Christmas special featuring the Power Rangers. The first was a direct-to-video special called Alpha's Magical Christmas in which Alpha 5, learns about Christmas through other children across the world.

He-Man She-Ra Christmas Special...

2009-12-06T00:33:00.000-08:00

From 1985 here's the prime time Christmas special featuring He-Man and She-ra.

80's Toys R Us Christmas Commercials...

2009-12-03T23:33:00.000-08:00

TMNT: We Wish You A Turtle Christmas...

2009-12-02T20:48:00.000-08:00

If you thought the Star Wars Christmas Special was the most atrocious crime committed in the name of Holiday cheer, think again. Back in 1994 the folks at Family Home Entertainment -- the company responsible for releasing the Ninja Turtles Cartoon Episodes as well as the first couple of theatrical films on home video, decided to put together a Christmas Special featuring the Turtles with a production budget of about 19 dollars and 95 cents. This special featured the worst looking turtles costumes ever used. These costumes are even worse than the ones from the FOX live action Saturday morning show. The masks are just as terrible, and the lip movements never really match the dialogue. The 25 minute special has been bashed for years by TMNT fans all over the world and here's your chance to join in on the hating. Here it is in all its glory:

Christmas Music Videos: 80's Edition...

2009-12-02T20:00:00.000-08:00

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation: 20th Anniversary Celebration...

2009-11-30T23:35:00.000-08:00

Let me just start off by saying I love John Hughes, his wonderful nostalgic and heartfelt writing has been missed by many of us since his retirement from the film industry well over 15 years ago. Sadly he passed away earlier this year, but he has left us with an incredible legacy of films and stories. One of those great gifts he left us is the Holiday Classic National Lampon's Christmas Vacation, which first unspooled in theaters across the world 20 years ago today. The film was the third installment in the highly profitable "National Lampoon's Vacation" series. The story for this particular installment first appeared in National Lampoon Magazine in December 1980 with the title "Christmas '59". John Hughes wrote the screenplay based on his original magazine story.

The movie debuted at #1 at the North American box office grossing $11,750,203 during its opening weekend. It went on to gross a total of $71,319,546 in the U.S. during its theatrical run. The movie also went on to make more than $35,000,000 in video rental profits and tons more money from countless TV broadcasts every year during the holiday season. The title song of the same name was written for the movie by the husband-wife song writing team of Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, and performed by Mavis Staples. The film also featured many more great Christmas songs including Ray Charles' classic "That Spirit of Christmas", which is featured in the film's most heartwarming moment as Clark sits down to enjoy some films of past Christmases with his loved ones. Unfortunately there was never a soundtrack album widely released, but 10 years ago 20,000 soundtrack CDs were issued to commemorate the film's 10th anniversary. These were sold exclusively at Six Flags Magic Mountain, which doubled for Wally World in the original National Lampoon's Vacation.

Chevy Chase is at his best in this film as patriarch Clark Griswald, who after one disastrous trip after another decides its best to stay home this time and host the family for the holidays. It wouldn't be a good Chevy Chase movie without Chevy experiencing some hardcore pain, and in this one he gets a lot of hurting both physically and emotionally.

As is the norm in any Griswald family event Clark takes things to the extreme -- he daisy chains over a gazillion Christmas lights, brings in a Christmas tree bigger than the room causing plenty of property damage in the process to both himself and his obnoxious neighbors, leaves a fiery trail behind during a sleigh ride, and wraps things up nicely by having a meltdown after realizing the perfect Christmas Vacation he longed for and worked so hard to prepare has turned into a nightmare of apocalyptic proportions.

Chevy gets a lot of help in the comedy department during this installment from actors William Hickey and Mae Questel who play the roles of Uncle Louis and Aunt Bethany. They basically steal the film from right under Chevy's nose. To make things even worse for Clark -- and better for us -- Randy Quaid reprises his role of Cousin Eddie, who in this installment gifts us with such classic scenes as the emptying out of his RV's septic tank right in front of Clark's home and the Christmas Eve kidnapping of Clark's boss -- played by the always funny Brian Doyle Murray. The film is full of stupidity and non stop laughter from beginning to end. It also features some of the funnies tlines from any comedy film in the past 20 years.

To celebrate the film's 20th anniversary Warner Home Video has released a new Ultimate Edition of the film on both Blu-Ray and DVD. Both versions come in a collectible tin filled with movie inspired collectibles. Unfortunately the 20th Anniversary discs of the film are the same as the previously released Special Edition including the same old special features.

Inside the collectible tin with the disc you'll find a few stocking-stuffer sized gifts including a collection of four holiday coasters with photos and quotes from the film, one of which features Aunt Bethany. For any hard core fan of the film an Aunt Bethany coaster is truly a dream come true. The Blu-Ray edition includes a small replica of the moose glass used in the film. Unfortunately the mug is so small that it barely even qualifies as a shot glass. You also get a Christmas Vacation pin, a box of powdered snow and a Santa hat. If you still don't own this classic interpretation of Holiday Mayhem then I recommend getting this new ultimate edition. If you have any of the previous versions the lack of new special features doesn't justify the double dipping. Unless you really must have that Aunt Bethany coaster.

As far as Christmas movies go this one takes the prize for most demented and most fun.
The film manages to successfully switch gears from crazy physical comedy bits to heartfelt moments between these now beloved characters. And that is a testament to what made John Hughes' comedy writing so great and memorable. It wouldn't be Christmas eve at our house without a screening of this great film. What more could you ask for on Christmas than sharing laughter and smiles with all your loved ones?

NATIONAL LAMPOON'S CHRISTMAS VACATION GIFT GUIDE:

If you have a fan of the film on your Christmas list you might want to consider getting him one of these cool gifts:

- 20th Anniversary Edition Blu-Ray

- National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation T-Shirts
(Various styles to choose from, available at Kohls.com)

Cousin Eddie's RV Collectible Tree Ornament
(Featuring lines from the film, available at Hallmark stores nationwide)

Under the Christmas tree...

2009-11-27T00:02:00.001-08:00

Every year my family and I like to put together a display under the Christmas tree. Over the years we've had displays such as a nativity scene, and even an entire holiday village with a working train. My two favorite ones from recent years have been our Charlie Brown Christmas display and our Rankin / Bass Christmas specials display. Here's a look at them.

A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS DISPLAY (2006):

RANKIN / BASS CHRISTMAS DISPLAY (2007)

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving...

2009-11-26T09:33:00.001-08:00