My first-ever TR list is up–check it out:
Necroreviewicon – The Book of Dead Reviews
A compendium of my reviews of horror- and Halloween-related toys. I’ll add any new reviews I do this month as we go along.
Paxton and Henriksen: The Terminator, Alien, and Predator Death Trifecta
If you were a kid in the 1980s with a love of science fiction and action films, you had it made. The combined awesomeness of the Alien, Predator, Terminator and, to a lesser extent, Robocop franchises constituted the best run of bad-ass sf action to date, and all four are still bringing in money in some way or another.
With the exception of Robocop, director John Cameron had at least a minor contribution to each franchise (he suggested Stan Winston add mandibles to the Predator creature design), and directed the first two Terminator films and Aliens. Since Cameron pretty much made the careers of Bill Paxton and Lance Henriksen, it’s no surprise they had roles in several of these movies. But both actors also share a very special distinction–they’ve both been killed by a Terminator, an Alien, and a Predator. (more…)
Things I Want Toys of > The Monster Squad
I can’t recall whether I saw The Monster Squad (1987) in the theater, but something makes me think I did. Even as a kid I thought of it then as a sort of store-brand Goonies, albeit a very fun, entertaining, and surprisingly violent one. Except for the infamous “Wolf Man’s got nards” line, I more or less forgot about the film until I saw it in 2004 while visiting a friend (thanks, Rustin—always the classy host!).
The Monster Squad is a kids’ horror film featuring what are traditionally thought of as the Universal Monsters: Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster, the Wolfman, the Mummy, and the Gillman (a.k.a. the Creature from the Black Lagoon). However, unlike other monster mashes like the recent Van Helsing, The Monster Squad wasn’t a Universal film; Universal only owns the trademarks to the character names (meaning you can’t call your movie just “Dracula”). In the case of Dracula and the Monster, the novels are long out of copyright; while the Mummy, the Wolfman and the Gillman are just generic monsters (though I do think they’re on shaky ground with the Gillman, given how much he resembles the Black Lagoon creature).
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Contest > Z.O.M.B.I.E. Apocalypse!
Want to win some Z.O.M.B.I.E.s?
October Toys and Poe Ghostal’s Points of Articulation present the first annual PGPoA Halloween Sweepstakes!
It begins…
Obviously I stayed home today. It feels sort of surreal, sitting here writing a blog entry with all that’s going on…and wondering how long anyone will even be able to read this. How long will the electricity stay on? How long can people like me hide in their apartments and hope this thing blows over?
It kind of reminds me of The Stand. That novel scared the hell out of me. The idea of a superflu—it really wasn’t that far-fetched. Well, clearly. Not that this is a flu. The flu doesn’t make people…eat people.
The TV’s out except for WLVI 56, who are still broadcasting from their news station. I remember back when they used to have the Creature Double Feature in the ’80s. I wish they’d never canceled that…what the hell am I saying? I think I’m in shock.
Anyway, they had some fat bearded guy on, a scientist I guess, who said “every dead body that is not exterminated, becomes one of them. It gets up and kills. The people it kills get up and kill!” Thanks for the tip, fatty. Most of us already figured that out.
I guess it started a couple days ago, somewhere in Russia I heard. But it’s spread like wildfire.
God, there’s a bunch of them walking up the street right now. What I wouldn’t give for one of those assholes who always rips up the street in a pick-up. Mow those things down.
I might post again, if the power’s still on. And if they haven’t…I’m in a basement floor apartment, strong windows, strong doors. I can probably hold out for a while…
Welcome to October at PGPoA!
OK, I had planned on doing tomorrow’s posts today, but got sidetracked by the Mattel Q&A and other stuff.
As you can see, we’ve done some temporary remodeling around here to celebrate Halloween, my second most favorite holiday. And we’re not done yet–there’s more to come, but it won’t start quite yet.
Before I go any further, let me thank Red Kryptonite for her excellent artwork, and Webmaster OB1 for implementing the new design. PGPoA wouldn’t exist without the two of you.
For the rest of October, I’ll be putting up Halloween-themed posts related to horror toys, movies, comics, and other stuff. You’ll probably also get more than one mention of The Worst Witch…just humor me, please.
I’ll also be running PGPoA’s first-ever officially sponsored contest, complete with horror-themed prizes.
Keep an eye out…hanging on your cheek by a thread, preferably.
ToyFare #135, Blackstar, and the Alien Demon
A few of you have remarked on the little pale green goblin who appeared on the menu a few weeks ago. Yes, he’s from the old Blackstar line, and yes, there’s a reason he’s there.
In this month’s ToyFare #135, which hits newsstands today, there’s an article by yours truly about the Blackstar toy line. I decided to make sure I had a Blackstar character on the menu to commemorate the occasion.
For those who aren’t familiar with Blackstar, it was a cartoon show that predated Masters of the Universe by a year or two and was produced by the same company, Filmation. The two shows have a lot of similarities: both feature a barbaric hero in a land of science and sorcery who battles a demonic overlord.
Blackstar carried the Starsword, which was one half of the “Powerstar”; the other half, the Powersword, was controlled by his foe, the Overlord. This is similar to what the early MOTU media (comics and storybooks) depicted, as He-Man and Skeletor both had half of the Power Sword–which is why the original figures came with those two half-swords that could be put together.
I don’t remember ever watching Blackstar as a kid. I don’t think many kids did–it lasted only one season, and the toys came out years after the show was cancelled, as Galoob tried to capitalize on the success of MOTU. (more…)
Mattel Q&A Round-Up > Sep. 1
Skeletor – new MOTUC pics
He-Man.org has posted new photos of the Masters of the Universe Classics Skeletor. I love that the vintage Skeletor in the last photo is all dusty–looks like most of my vintage figs.
My one concern about this figure: I hope the loincloth is flexible, so Skel can sit on a throne or in a vehicle. King Grayskull’s loincloth is made from very stiff plastic (hold the giggles, please).