Thursday, March 29, 2012

Justice League Unlimited Green Arrow & Batman


I feel a little guilty about showing you some action figures I bought last week, then writing four posts on things I found last year, but this is my toy box and we'll play with what I want to play with  :D  But seriously, I'd been watching episodes of that great Justice League Unlimited show on you tube this week, and realized I'd not shown you these two up close. The TV show that ran from July of 2004 to May of 2006 was under my radar at the time, but I've come to appreciate it since my interest in comics was renewed 18 months ago. The scope of characters featured is pretty large for such a short running series- I counted about 136 on Wikipedia, and the Mattel 4" series of action figures features even more... and I think they are still making them! The final sets will be released this autumn as MattyCollector exclusives, but their staying power is paralleled only by the Batman the Animated toy line! If any of you kids have a big collection, please share a link in my comments- we'd all like to see what you have  :)



The styling of these toys are so much fun! Simple in articulation, most of these were "five point gang". like your old Kenner Star Wars figures. The toys look like exactly like the animated characters from the show, their chunky, exaggerated features & bright colors appealing to the eye. Really fun! Ollie came with an arrow which I forgot to photograph, but he can't grip it, nor does it fit in the bow- still it was nice they included it. I also like the packaging on these- again, simple but splashy and inviting. These toys remind me a lot of the Batman: The Brave & the Bold action figures- FUN and made for play! I can definitely see why they have such a dedicated fan base.

I had paid little or no attention to Oliver Queen/Green Arrow in my youth, which is odd because I was such a big Batman fan, and they are both rich vigilantes with no real super powers. The Brave & the Bold, indeed!



This blue/grey Batman I got loose on eBay quite some time ago- he didn't come with any accessory- the same Batman was packaged with a Wonder Pig, and in a 3-pack with Amanda Waller & General Eiling, in a 3-pack with Deadman & Superman, and countless other 3-packs and 6-packs as well.




The Dark Knight with a couple variants I have mint on card...


Ollie with two other Mattel Green Arrows I have mint on card...


Batman and Green Arrow with Superman and Green Lantern:


*List of JLU figures at Cool Toy Review, many with pictures!
More Later- Make It FUN!

Monday, March 26, 2012

History of the DC Universe Superman as Nightwing & Brainiac by DC Direct


This Series 4 Superman as Nightwing and Series 3 Brainiac conclude the reviews of  DC Direct History of the DC Universe action figures I got from Mike's Comics'N Stuff last year. While I photographed the two previous parings recently, these photos were shot around the time I got these, so it was fun to look at them again. This Golden Age pairing may be my favorite of the six I have, for both their history & novelty.


 
If you aren't familiar with the origin of Nightwing: before Dick Grayson (aka Robin the Boy Wonder) assumed the alias, Superman (his favorite superhero) used the moniker as a vigilante in the Kyptonian city of Kandor. Shrunken down & stored in a bottle by Brainiac, Superman fought crime alongside Jimmy Olsen, who assumed the persona of Flamebird. Without the superpowers our yellow sun provide Superman, the duo used jet belts to get around. No, I'm not kidding... I've not yet read this far out adventure, but it's hallowed classic.


Nightwing Superman wasn't even mentioned in History of the DC Universe, but he is the kind of footnote that's quirky enough to deserve reference. Let's face it though, the existence of this obscure character in plastic form proves we live in The Golden Age of Action Figures. And DC Direct nailed it, as you can plainly see, right down to the arrangement of nodules on his jet belt. The inside of Nightwing's cape is black, and like the Superman from this line, the weight of it causes upright issues. You must either lean him against something to support his weight, or hunch him over with his non-descript, black disc base pegged to the hole in his right heel.



Yes, this Silver Age version of Brainiac is dressed like he's on his way to a tennis match at the country club with his boyfriend, but he looks very much like Curt Swan's version which debuted in 1958. His raygun also looks comic accurate; he holds it well enough, though his hand isn't sculpted particularly well for the task like some action figures are now. He looks pretty hilarious by today's super villain standards, but makes a great pairing with Nightwing. Brainiac is most often depicted as an extraterrestrial android, and is the longtime nemesis of Superman. Possessing a "12th-level intellect", his advanced understanding of mechanical and bio-engineering, physics, and sciences, as well as knowledge of countless alien technologies are a few of the powers attributed to him. 


Brainiac is an interesting character who has gone through a lot of transformation since his introduction. The character was in his robot incarnation during Crisis on Infinite Earths, but a year ago I also read Geoff Johns' Superman: Brainiac (DC, 2008). While I still have not read any of the other New Krypton related books,  this book tells the story of  the citizens of Kyrptonian city of Kandor freed, Brainiac having shrunk it many years ago. The artwork, featuring a very Chris Reeve-looking Superman was totally awesome! See the suggested reading order of the New Krypton series by Saranga over at New readers... start here! Definitely on my list of things to read  :)

History Brainiac with Robot Brainac and New Krypton Brainiac:



* See my post on History of the DC Universe Captain Atom & Black Lightning!
* See my post on History of the DC Universe Superman & Martian Manhunter!

More Later- Make It FUN!

Friday, March 23, 2012

History of the DC Universe Superman & Martian Manhunter by DC Direct


Related to my last post on Captain Atom & Black Lightning, we'll continue here with two giants of the Justice League from DC Direct's History of the DC Universe Series: Series 4 Martian Manhunter & Series 3 Superman!

Like a lot of DC Direct figures, these are based on art from a specific story or artist, in this case the great George Pérez. Published in 1985 to coincide with DC's 50th anniversary, Crisis on Infinite Earths and the following History of the DC Universe book were a testament to Pérez's incredible talent, featuring every single character DC owned.  Marv Wolfman radically restructured the DC Universe's continuity in Crisis, and though planned as an epilogue to be included in that very book, History was published separately in 1986 to summarize the DC Universe's "new history", or continuity. Crisis on Infinite Earths was a lot of fun, but I found History to be hubristic and pointless. Planned to have included more characters than any DC Direct line ever, featuring characters from a variety of teams and eras as well as some renegade solo characters, DC Direct discontinued after only 4 waves/16 figures. 



You probably recognize this Superman from the banner I've been using at the top of the Super-DuperToyBox blog. One of my favorite Superman figures, his bright colors and styling remind me of Chris Reeve quite a bit- the Superman of my childhood. Visually, this is fits my ideal expectations for the Man of Steel: the classic insignia on his chest, repeated in yellow on the back of his long flowing, red cape, blue eyes and spit curl perfectly coiled above his brow, and twin peak boot tops. He reminds me a lot of the Mattel Chris Reeve Superman I bought awhile back. This is the Bronze Age Superman of the 70's and 80's. The gloss of the plastic without any shading, washes, or drybrushing will turn some people off- it looks like a toy, and I kinda like that about these  :)



While the Capt. Atom & Black Lightning from this line had limited poseability, the caped figures have a really hard time standing due to the weight of their capes. Yes, they came with a non-descript, black disc base, but Superman here gets little support from it. When this line of figures was produced in 2009, DC Direct had begun to add points of articulation, but non of it functioned well- in Supes case, it doesn't even help him stand better. The cut forearms & shins don't do anything radical, needing ankles to assist the latter, and the swivel chest that barely moves is somewhat of a mystery- it doesn't ruin the figure for me, but it seems pointless. He has a great ball-jointed head however, adding a lot of personality, and the cut waist joint on these is a welcome addition. 


With two other DC Direct Supermen: Justice Kingdom Come Superman and New Frontier Superman... 


While this Martian Manhunter doesn't look like George Pérez's heavy browed version, he's pretty cool and aesthetically unique among my collection. I'd be willing to bet that head is from some previous Lex Luthor character. If you have read this blog for any amount of time, you know my enthusiasm for the Justice League's other alien, J'onn J'onnz. You've seen this figure in several posts of mine, including but not limited to: The Stranger, More Martian Literature! , and Martian Nativity.  I'm fascinated with this alien who came to Earth, finding it's tragic inhabitants endearing and worth protecting, sometimes from themselves.



The wierd and nearly useless swivel chest/abdomen joint disturbs J'onn's deco on the abdomen, where it goes from sculpted chest harness to only painted across his obliques. Kinda weird, but not terrible a couple steps back. Oddly, he didn't get any kind of sculpt on the belt buckle like Supeman, but the paint application is clean. His boots swivel at the top, which is less distracting than Superman's cut joints at the shins. Missing is J'onn's trademark, and often exaggerated high collar. I wonder if this disappointed fans upon his release, but to me he's just another variant among the many Martian Manhunters I own, who look largely similar. I'm prone to appreciation of a reimagined character.

Like Superman above, Martian Manhunter had upright issues. You must either give them something to support their weight, or hunch them over grotesquely with their non-descript, black disc base pegged to the hole in their right heel. Somewhat unfortunate. Sure, I was able to get them to stand for this photo session, but I'm a pro  :D   Feel free to try this at home, they're fun!



 History Martian Manhunter with two other DC Direct Martian Manhunters: a bulky JLA Classified Martian Manhunter from 2006, and friendly, diminuitive  New Frontier Martian Manhunter I reviewed recently...


What a cool pair of DC Heavyweights these two make, perhaps the most powerful of them all!



* See my post on History of the DC Universe Captain Atom & Black Lightning!
* See my posts on DC Direct Crisis on Infinite Earths DC Direct Monitor and Anti-Monitor, Battle Armor Lex Luthor, & Robot Brainiac!
* Visit the DC Direct Action Figure Archive!
More Later- Make It FUN!

Thursday, March 22, 2012

History of the DC Universe Capt. Atom & Black Lightning by DC Direct


I bought six of these History of the DC Universe figures from Mike's Comics N' Stuff out in Anaheim about a year ago, opening them soon after, but never got around to photographing them all. Digging through the vault recently, I resolved to do that, so here we are  :D

Like a lot of DC Direct figures, these are based on art from a specific story or artist, in this case the great George Pérez. Published in 1985 to coincide with DC's 50th anniversary, Crisis on Infinite Earths and the following History of the DC Universe book were a testament to Pérez's incredible talent, featuring every single character DC owned.  Marv Wolfman radically restructured the DC Universe's continuity in Crisis, and though planned as an epilogue to be included in that very book, History was published separately in 1986 to summarize the DC Universe's "new history", or continuity. Crisis on Infinite Earths was a lot of fun, but I found History to be hubristic and pointless. Planned to have included more characters than any DC Direct line ever, featuring characters from a variety of teams and eras as well as some renegade solo characters, DC Direct discontinued after only 4 waves/16 figures.  



In Crisis on Infinite Earths, this earlier version of Captain Atom (Allen Adam) was retconned as an Earth-4 resident, and member of  the Sentinels of Justice along with fellow heroes Blue Beetle, Nightshade, and The Question. Allen Adam was working on an experimental rocket that accidentally launched into space,   exploding in the upper atmosphere. Miraculously, Capt. Adam was able to reform his body when he returned to the ground, gaining atomic abilities such a flight, superhuman strength & durability, and energy projection blasts from his hands.


From DC Wikia.Com: "Adam and his fellow Sentinels helped fight the Anti-Monitor and his minions during the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Following the Crisis, Adam helped Superman and Firestorm on a mission before he was erased from existence, replaced by the New Earth version of Captain Atom."  Anything can happen in comics!


Like Black Lightning, Crisis on Infinite Earths was my first and admittedly sparse experience with any version of Captain Atom. I picked this Series 4 Captain Atom up mostly because his colors and design appealed to me, not because he's a favorite character. The hands on these look somewhat large, and the texture/colors look really plastic without any wash or drybrushing, but I like how these really look like a toy. They really have their own style. The eyes, face, and hair are beautifully decorated, and while simple, the chest insignia and belt are flawless- really clean. His forearm swivels aren't the cleanest, but it's not a glaring issue a step back. There's a vestigial seam around the shoulders that doesn't belong but doesn't look terrible, as well. I say he's FUN  :D

Like Michael Crawford said in his review on the Series 1 Batman from this line, while DC Direct added new points of articulation with this line, but none radically improving poseability: "...the pin knees, cut forearms, swivel chest and cut shins are pretty much a complete waste, since there's little you can do with them to improve or gain any new poses."  Fair enough. The swivel chest that barely moves is somewhat of an anomaly- it doesn't ruin the figure for me,  it seems pointless. He does have a pretty good ball-jointed head though! I've read somewhere (?) recently that DC Direct is contractually obligated to this limited articulation- I don't know if it's true, but I wonder if that has anything to do with Mattel's relationship with DC Comics. Regardless, I'm fond of this superhero fellow and his Silver Age looks!


Perhaps even better is this righteous Series 2 Black Lightning- his skin tone is beautiful, complimenting the great sculpt on his exposed chest, neck & face. Just great! His closely cropped Afro really gives him a 70's vibe to me, outfitted in his debut outfit here. The lightning pattern paint apps are pretty clean, and the white portions of his outfit and mask painted in a pearlescent finish- snazzy!

Black Lightning saved some citizens from a collapsing building and helped create enough electricity to push a teammates through a temporal barrier to ten billion years in the past to defeat the Anti-Monitor in Crisis on Infinite Earths, and given brief mention in association with the Outsiders in History of the DC Universe.


Created in 1977 by writer Tony Isabella & artist Trevor Von Eeden, Jefferson Pierce was one of the first major African American heroes appearing in DC Comics. Often operating as a member of Batman's team of Outsiders, Pierce was first portrayed as having no real powers, a belt that allowing him to generate a force field and project electrical bolts, but was retconned as a metahuman who can create intense electromagnetic fields used to stun opponents, stop projectiles, and achieve limited flight. The gold medal-winning Olympic decathlete once kick started Superman's heart after a near fatal dose of Kryptonite, and has become a formidable hand-to-hand combatant under Batman's tutelage.



I had a ball shooting these two action figures! Their relative simplicity done in old-school, broad strokes, and bright, comic colors appeal to me greatly, having grown up in the 70's & 80's. You won't get nearly as diverse posing options as with a DCUC, but that didn't stop me from taking too many pictures of them  :D



























* See my posts on DC Direct Crisis on Infinite Earths DC Direct Monitor and Anti-Monitor, Battle Armor Lex Luthor, & Robot Brainiac!
* Visit the DC Direct Action Figure Archive!