Some of the best of the original Ninja Turtles toys came out late in the line. Get a load of Sumo Raphael — the Ninja Turtle with a giant gut. Full review, over here!
18
May
Anonymous asked: Do you have a copy of the X-E summer jukebox tracklist? I'm working on my annual summer playlist and that jukebox was great inspiration!
Unfortunately, that bit of history was lost, though if I spent long enough I could probably find the core files. The good news is, I do plan on doing a summer juke on the new site. If I do, I’ll have to find the old playlist anyway.
17
May
Toys “R” Us used to give away these awesome cardboard lunchboxes full of samples during the ’90s. Here’s a look at the Jurassic Park version!
TOKKA - ECKS :: UNDERGROUND ANNOTATION on Flickr.
Via Flickr:
#NickTURTLES TOKKA - ECKS :: UNDERGROUND ANNOTATION
☠ ☠
** View on t2z in proper context **
I’m a (very) longtime admirer of Tokka’s art. (Much of which is TMNT inspired, but I’d hate to call it “TMNT fan art,” as that somehow implies that it isn’t totally “his.” Believe me, nobody else makes stuff like him.)
This is just one of what must be hundreds of his pieces I’ve gushed over. Remember those times when you’d take a piece of construction paper, saturate it with every crayon and marker you had, and only when it was completely devoid of clean space, THEN try to make your statement with it? That’s the vibe most of his stuff has. <3
michaelkz asked: Would you agree that people have been too hard on shows like GoBots and Filmation's Ghostbusters? GoBots had a good toy line and Filmation's Ghostbusters was a fun kid's cartoon with a great '80s cartoon villain in Prime Evil.
YES, VERY.
And in my ancient days I was as guilty as that as anyone. We goofed on those shows because it was easy to, and because we were judging them in unfair ways.
The examples you mentioned are good ones, because both shows had similar flavors, even similar styles in some respects. There’s plenty “good” about both shows — and all that came with those shows. (Transformers never gave me a Rock Narlie, and RGB never gave me a robot devil wearing the Emperor’s Royal Guard robe. Both were GOOD THINGS.)
It’s also rooted in our childhoods. If you were a kid at that time, you were surrounded by “Transformers > Gobots” and “RGB > Filmation GB” attitudes, and probably fell right in line with ‘em. Even if those attitudes came with plenty of good arguments, liking one show better didn’t mean you had to hate the other. Maybe we didn’t know it then, but hey, we got old and wise. It’s nice to know it now.
afraid-for-me asked: Do you consider Jurassic Park a horror movie?
Gonna go with “no” on that one.
Anyone can define a genre in a way that fits their argument, but for me, no, not horror. I go on the simplest terms: Is the movie’s primary intention to be scary? Nah.
Action/adventure. But better than most other ones because DINOS.
8bz:
I’ve managed to acquire quite a pile of ancient Nintentomes™ over the years. I love looking through these things. A sign of the times if there ever was one. Before the Internet, video game tips and tricks were hard to come by. You either knew some fabled neighborhood video game wizard who was willing to pass the knowledge down, or you got your grubby little hands on a book/magazine. Knowledge is power - Nintendo Power!
All that’s missing from this photo is a big “ONE GRAND PRIZE WINNER” burst and several lines of impossibly small white text that would hopefully say something like, “You stand a very good chance of winning these many books!”
Anonymous asked: Do you still go to Wildwood occasionally? I went to Wildwood every year as a kid and always loved your write-ups; they captured the spirit of the city perfectly.
This is the year I plan to go back. I haven’t been there in a long time. Kinda afraid to see so many of my beloved hotels replaced by condos, but whatever.
Our last trip was a disaster, owing to shitty weather and the fact that we went waaaay too early in the season. Up until then, I was there every year. Need to go back!
salamandersamba asked: Have you seen the rainbow sherbet Oreos? Because I've had them. Is that a thing you'd be interested in? If so you should check 'em ooouuut!
Hah, yes. In fact…
That’s a photo from a review I never bothered finishing, because I found those cookies to be Satan-sent and wholly criminal. I guess, at root, I just don’t appreciate sherbet. Still sucked to waste such a nice photo of them swimming in cotton candy ice cream, so thanks for the excuse to use it.
savage-america asked: Honestly, what do you think of Toys R Us and toys in general these days? My peak toy-playing days were late 80s/early 90s, I've loved X-E/Dino Drac forever, and I get depressed when I see what kids have to play with these days.
Thank you!
You know, I don’t think it’s so bad right now. I remember it feeling worse ten years ago, when the number of interesting lines was low, and the number of interesting lines with any sincere push behind them was even lower. For a while, I was worried that it would just keep shrinking until retailers just said “frig this.”
But it’s seemed pretty good these past few years. The major lines with the big pushes have gotten more creative in what they offer. (Transformers especially — I had TF blindness for a few years there, but it’s hard not to notice how neat some of the newer things are.) We’ve got a good mix overall of figures in all styles and sizes.
It’s also helped that the “retro market” has become so big and/or embraced. Hell, even department stores carry bits and pieces from those assorted lines.
The rise of Kickstarter and similar sites have also paved way for smaller distributors to put out some GREAT stuff. Sure, you need to pay a little more to get at those things (in comparison to “normal toy retail prices,” I mean), but there are plenty of worth-it options. The added bonus is feeling like some kind of mutant stockholder when you take part.
So I’d say we flirted with crisis levels but are now on an upswing.
And just as an FYI, if money was no object: MOTU Classics and TMNT are, at the moment, where the best goodies are hiding.
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