Broadening my doodling horizons by continuing to make my way through Marvel's finest lineup.
Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.
Showing posts with label Hulk. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hulk. Show all posts
Comics Corner: The Incredible Hulk 1
Title: The Incredible Hulk
Issue Number: 1
Release Date: May 1962
Highlights- First appearance of Bruce Banner / The Incredible Hulk, Betty Ross, Thunderbolt Ross, Gargoyle, Igor Drenkov, Dave Anderson and Rick Jones
- Banner's assistant, Igor, intentionally doesn't relay the "hold fire" request as Banner rushes out into the field to save a young teenager from the blast area
- Gargoyle discovers Bruce Banner is the Hulk
- Bruce Banner changes Gargoyle into a man
- Death of Gargoyle
- Nothing but a cliche USA vs. Russia story
- Bruce Banner changes into the Hulk when the evening comes - What, is he a werewolf?
- Original Hulk is a grey dry dog poo color
- Incredibly boring story
Oddities
- Thunderbolt Ross yells at his daughter in front of all the men in the room, "You keep out of this Betty! This is MAN TALK!"
Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.
Energized (Remco)
Energized
Remco
1978 - 1979
There have been a ton of toys produced based on Marvel and DC Comic heroes. It seems like just about every toy company out there has produced some form of plastic item showcasing any one of the number of iconic characters from comic pages. As such, it's not surprise Remco got their chance in 1978 with their Energized line.
The concept for the figures was pretty simplistic with each of them featuring some form of motorized aspect in conjunction with a "string". For Spider-Man, Green Goblin and Batman this feature was designed to showcase the character climbing. Superman's feature was flying, and Hulks feature was pulling a stone wall down. Like we said, simplistic - But it works well for what it is. These are by no means bad figures.
Energized Web Climber Spider-Man*Energized Spider-Sense Spider-Man
Energized The Green Goblin*Energized Hulk
Energized Batman*Energized Superman
If you couldn't tell by how Spider-Man got two figures (as well as a villain), and everyone else got one, Spider-Man was definitely the focal point of the line. This concept was hammered home by the only vehicles and accessories released for the line being all Spider-Man based.
Energized Spider-Copter
Energized Spider-Man Accessories
In addition to the above, we've seen catalog photos of an Energized Spider-Man Command Center. However, we have never actually seen the physical toy. It's possible this item was never released.
Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.
Silver Age (Toy Biz)
Silver Age
Toy Biz
2000
When one collect's Toy Biz Marvel lines, it's key to be thorough and educated in all the various subsets that plastered the market between the 1990's and 2000's. There are so many teeny tiny lines that got folded into the mix that it can quickly become a daunting task just to compile a list of everything to determine what you want to buy.
Today we're looking at the Silver Age line. These figures hit the market in 2000, and were only made available via specialty shops that ordered from the monthly catalog, Previews - Thus the "Previews Exclusive" logo at the bottom of the packaging.
We'll take a moment to discuss the various ages of comic books for those not familiar with them. Though the dates themselves have been argued among collectors, Overstreet appears to have come up with a widely accepted name for them. They are as follows;
The Golden Age - 1938 to 1945
This is the age that gave birth to the super hero, and ushered in the iconic characters such as Superman, Batman, Human Torch and Namor. A good majority of these stores focused on WWII related topics.
The Atom Age - 1945 to 1956
When America became infatuated with the atom, this ushered in The Atom Age of comics. Super heroes were out. Science Fiction and Horror were in. This era issued in the birth of the Comics Code due to the graphic nature of many of the books, as well as their "adult" content.
The Silver Age - 1956 to 1970
Probably the most popular era of comic books to many collectors, The Silver Age was the epic period of Jack Kirby and Stan Lee. Essentially, it was the birth of the Marvel Universe.
The Bronze Age - 1970 to 1984
Anti-heroes, and in general, darker and grittier books were ushered in with The Bronze Age. Though the anti-hero wasn't created in this era, it was certainly defined. Characters such as The Punisher left their mark in many of the titles encompassed in the Marvel Universe.
The Copper Age - 1984 to 1992
This was the era of many independent publishers trying to break out into main stream comic book publishing. One of the most popular for this era, and the perfect example would be Eastman and Larid's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
The Modern Age - 1992 to Current
Artists of this era found that they themselves had appeal to comic collectors, and not necessarily just the characters they were currently working on. The result of this was the birth of companies such as Image Comics, Top Cow, Etc. This era was also burdened with the chase cover variants which eventually led to the implosion of the comic book market.
Though a new era has yet to be established, many comic collectors feel that around 2004 a new era was ushered in. This shift in comics was basically a result of incentive covers that publishers were pushing on the market. These limited edition covers (some as scarce as 1 in 5,000) became more so coveted by collectors than the actual stories contained within the pages of the books. If we had any sway in the market, we would definitely push for 2004 to Current to be labeled as "The Incentive Era".
The point to all of this is that the characters portrayed in the line below are based on comic characters from that particular era of time. So no, you won't find your Wolverines or your Punishers in this series. Instead, what you will find is;
Captain America
The Incredible Hulk
Spider-Man
Gwen Stacy
Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.
The Incredible Hulk - 1996-2004 (Toy Biz)
When it comes to characters like The Incredible Hulk, you either love him, or you hate him. At least with the people we have come across that is the case. There just doesn't seem to be a Hulk size amount of love going around for the large green lug. Though the fans whom follow him, follow him loyally, thus TRUE Hulkimania has been swinging strong since his very first appearance in issue number one of The Incredible Hulk in May, 1962.
Since then the character has seen some major overhauls both in physical and mental stature, and been memorialized on film several times over from movies to TV shows.
But, more importantly, since the days of Mego, The Hulk has been getting his fair share of representation in plastic. Today we're going to look at a few of those series which were produced by Toy Biz between 1996 and 2004.
Toy Biz had already found great success in the toy isle with its release of the Marvel Superhero and X-Men line, and was dominating sales continually with more lines based on Marvel's comic greats. It was only natural that The Hulk would get his chance to shine in a series of his own.
The line launched in 1996 with what was respectively known as Series 1. Six figures were produced, though half of them were simply variations of The Hulk himself.
The series did well enough to spawn a sub series entitled Transformations. The set included four figures, which once again dedicated half of them to variations of The Hulk. The Transformation figures were released in 1997.
It's uncertain if the remaining figures released in 1997 were a part of the initial line of toys, or a series unto themselves. The first new line of toys were released under the guise of "Outcasts", and the package was completely redesigned, thus adding to the confusion as to whether or not this was a new line, or a continuation of the prior one.
Five figures were released, with two being variations of The Hulk.
Also in 1997 was the release of the Crash and Smash line. The packaging resembled those of the Outcasts line, and once again five figures were produced (which once again two of which were The Hulk).
The Hulk took a long hiatus shortly after the Crash and Smash figures were released, and didn't return until 2004. With even greater detail, a changed up packaging, and a whopping five variations of The Hulk (out of only eight figures) between the two series produced.
In 1996 ToyFare magazine offered an exclusive She Hulk figure dressed in her (New) Fantastic Four outfit. Though unlike most special offers where one need only send in a handful of proof of purchases, an order form, and a check for postage, ToyFare gouged collectors by demanding a year long subscription to their magazine for the figure. To add insult to injury, if you were already a subscriber to the magazine, you were not eligible to get the figure unless you cancelled your current subscription, and re-subscribed.
One playsets was (re)produced for the line, the Electronic Rage Cage. I don't know what Toy Biz thought was so amazing about this playset, but no matter what line of toys were produced for The Hulk, you could rest assured that a Rage Cage was not far behind. This is the second of four different ones that have been released to date.
Hulk toys have been in abundance these days, especially with the release of the two movies. Though for some reason, they come and go relatively quickly, with the majority of them ending up in the clearance bins. Like we said when we first started this post. You either love him, or you hate him. So we suppose it's best to produce small lines that fans can get their "fix" off of, and quickly move on, releasing new lines periodically to keep them coming back.
Toy Biz has done an excellent job over the years giving the Green Guy his fair share of time in the spotlight.
Join us next Monday for our look at Garbage Pail Kids - Cheap Toys!
Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.
Marvel Superheroes (Toy Biz)
Toy Biz originated as a small company in Montreal, Qubec. However, by 1988 it had reincorporated itself into an American Company, where it became a major producer of toys based on Marvel Comic superheroes with its first line of toys of the same name.
Marvel Superheroes was a brief toy line introduced in 1990 by Toy Biz which would later spawn individual sub set lines based on Marvel characters such as Spider-Man and the X-Men. While the series didn't take off as it was initially anticipated to, it opened up several doors of opportunity in the world of franchising toys based on comic book series. Doors which have allowed companies like McFarlane Toys and Top Cow to raise the bar in quality and standards, and continue to push the world of comic book based action figures forward.
Series 1
The series had a strong launch, consisting of eight of the most well known, and at the time considerably popular characters in the Marvel Universe. With multiple points of articulation, in both the arms and legs, and also neck, the figures allowed for posing the figures for collectors, while at the same time being very "playable" with by children. The attention to detail was superb, and the figures themselves left little to nothing to nitpick about in terms of quality and accuracy.
The package art left little to desire. The dull gray/silver backs with light blue banner certainly wasn't eye catching to the average toy isle lurker, and the artwork while representing the characters well was simply plain. About the only thing that would catch your attention was the accurate to the comic title logo for each character. Sadly, this dull design would stay for the entire series' lifeline.
Quiet laughable was Toy Biz's attempt to incorporate vehicles and playsets into the line. While the playsets had a certain amount of appeal to them, the vehicles were simply jokes. Introduced in the first series were Captain America's Turbo Coup, and Spider-Man's Dragster. Needless-to-say, these vehicles didn't fly off the shelf, and offered nothing more than a frown to fans of these classic heroes.
However, with that said, it was only 1990, and toy collecting had yet to explode into the hobby it is today. You have to understand that Toy Biz was marketing directly to children as it was yet unknown that the majority of collector's were, or rather would be adults.
With sales of the first series picking up rapidly, Toy Biz launched a second series literally right on its heels. Before most people had even accumulated the first eight figures, another seven were made available. However, by now the line was shifting drastically towards being a Spider-Man series, and less about the Marvel Universe as a whole with four of the seven new figures being related to Marvel's Wall Crawler, two alone being variations of him (making a total of 3 Spider-Man figures since the series launch).
My personal favorite, The Punisher not only got his first figure by the second series, but Toy Biz also produced a pretty acurate rendition of his van, and the only vehicle in the series to really be relatable to the actual figures themselves.
Two more playsets were also released, the large "Attack Tower", and the much smaller Hulk Rage Cage, which included a variant figure of The Incredible Hulk from the first series - Essentially it was Hulk with a yellow shirt.
Series 3
The largest series in the line, series 3 saw a release of ten new figures. While Toy Biz continued to capitalize on the ever growing popularity of Spider-Man with children by releasing yet again two more Spider-Man figures (now a total of 5 in the series), the also surprised fans by releasing the entire Fantastic Four team, and a fan favorite, but still unknown to the mass population, Deathlok. The Silver Surfer figure was also unique, because this re-released figure now sported a shinier chrome look, as opposed to a dull silver plastic.
It was around this time that Toy Biz launched a spin off set, The X-Men (not pictured), and sales of the Marvel Superheroes series began to decline. Whether or not it was due to the popularity of the X-Men figures being larger than this series, or if the series had simply run its course is unknown to the general public.
Fortunately by this time Toy Biz also ceased production on vehicles and playsets - possibly due to failed sales of the prior releases, or simply to cut costs in production.
Series 4
Some argue that there were four series of figures, while others are adamant that there are five. Personal, I go with four, though it is interesting to note that the Venom figure in this particular set has a very different hole punch in the package from the other three figures. So, who knows, perhaps it is five.
The fourth series consisted of only four new figures, while several from the first and second were re-released. While the toy line in and of itself was dwindling in sales, it is arguable that the re-release of older figures as opposed to focusing on more new ones is what killed the franchise off once and for all. Though it is possible that Toy Biz was prepared for this and was simply re-releasing these figures to push out back stocks onto the market as opposed to having storage in a warehouse which would simply be destroyed (recycled, melted down, pick your choice word) if it remained unsold.
Unimpressive was that three of the figures in this series were nothing more than touched up/altered figures to make newer variations of prior released figures, and a repainted Captain America to make U.S. Agent.
By 1994, Marvel was in full control of the toy isle with no less than six different toy lines. Sadly though, with sales falling each month in the Marvel Superheroes line, Toy Biz called it quits, and focused their efforts on other Marvel related products.
Still, what a great series this was. With accurate sculpting, beautiful attention to detail, and characters that are simply loved by everyone, this series was a true treasure to toy collectors around the world. It paved the way for most super hero franchises today, while at the same time staying as memorable as yesteryears great super hero series like Super Powers and Secret Wars.
Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.
Secret Wars (Mattel)
In 1984, Marvel Comics began its legendary Secret Wars limited series. Destined to stretch across the entire year in 12 monthly installments, this limited series was to set the stage for several future "crossovers" and special events. The series drew together heroes and villains from the far reaches of the Marvel Universe. Most fans either loved or hated this new experiment; few were ambivalent.
Secret Wars was not Marvel's first effort in the realm of the limited series crossover, but while the relative merits of the series, and its sequel, are certainly debatable, the release of Secret Wars in May of 1984 was extremely well-received by comic buyers. Each issue sold nearly three quarters of a million copies. Written by then Editor-In-Chief Jim Shooter, Secret Wars was an event that helped to define the direction of the Marvel Universe for years to come.
The figures were Marvel's answer to Kenner's DC Super Powers line also launched in 1984. The Secret Wars figures were articulated only at the shoulders, hips and neck and had no special "action feature" (Super Powers figures had both knee joints and built in action features).
All figures came with "Secret Shields." The Heroes came with round shields and the Villains came with square shields. These shields came with a series of two-sided inserts that changed the scene when tilted. With a few notable exceptions, the most figures came with few other accessories and the accessories that were present (e.g., guns) were reused frequently.
Not Shown - Marvel Super Heroes 3-Pack with Captain America, Spider-Man and Iron Man, and Marvel Super Villains 3-Pack with Doctor Doom, Magneto and Kang
Despite the series shortcomings, Secret Wars remains a fan favorite, and in 1984, they were the only game in town for Marvel Comic fanatics. While many of these figures were destined for better versions in later lines, the Secret Wars figures represent a nostalgic era for Marvel toys. It was the first real marriage of Marvel comics and toys. Not too shabby.
"Secret Wars II started the very bad trend of needing to read the tie-ins to get the complete story. In the first Secret Wars you could just read the 12-issue main series to get the whole story. The other titles just showed the heroes getting taken away from Central Park on the last page of one issue and then they arrive back the next issue with unexplained changes (Spidey's black costume, Fantastic Four - Thing + She-Hulk. It made you want to read Secret Wars to see what happened. Secret Wars used the long-standing titles to promote the series where as Secret Wars II (and most modern events nowadays) use the event title to boost sales of the long-standing titles." - Reddit user c_is_for_classified
Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.
Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)