Speed Racer (ReSaurus)

Speed Racer
ReSaurus
1999

I've never really been a fan of Speed Racer and personally found the show to be a little boring. However, I did take the time to watch to 2008 film on Netflix (which the below toy line has nothing at all to do with). Visually it was both fascinating and a little sickening at the same time with all its bright colors and ever shifting camera angles (especially during races). It wasn't by any means bad, but it also wasn't anything that was going to be winning any Academy Awards for best actor, director, etc. It was a popcorn flick and sadly I had no popcorn.

Speed, like so many iconic characters before him, got his start in the 1960's under the guise of Mach GoGoGo (in Japan). The character was created by Tatsu Yoshida and in his early years spent most of his time on printed paper. However, most will remember him from the forthcoming USA syndication of his 1967 to 1968 animated series which ran for fifty-two episodes.

Since his inception, Speed Racer has seen many types of mass market products. However, the first "major" toy line for the characters is noted as the 1992 line by Pangea Corporation for Ace Novelty Toy Company (which we won't be looking at today). These products focused not only on the original animated series of Speed Racer, but the highly popular New Adventures of Speed Racer - An animated series developed strictly for US (and English speaking) audiences.

The continued success and ever increasing popularity around the glove eventually lead to ReSaurus obtaining the rights for the characters and producing a series of action figures as well as the Mach 5. The series included two waves of five inch figures  which totaled eight figures - Nine if you include the exclusive Lee's Action Figure News Toy Review Racer X.

Wave One

Speed Racer*Pops Racer

Wave One

Trixie*Captain Terror

Each figure featured a tone of racing related accessories from flags, to air pumps, tools, trophies and more. The only thing the line seemed to be missing was a massive playset and a few more cars to actually play out a race.

Wave Two

Grand Prix Speed Racer*Racer X

Wave Two

Inspector Detector*The Assassin

Lee's Action Figure News Toy Review Exclusive
Racer X (Metallic)

Though the Mach 5 was the only vehicle to end up getting released, ReSaurus planned a third wave for the series which would have Racer X's car, the Shooting Star. The third wave would have also included a twelve inch Speed and Trixie. However, no new five inch figures were confirmed prior to the line being cancelled. Images can be found online of the box for the Shooting Star as well as prototypes for the twelve inch dolls.

Mach 5 with Spridle and Chim-Chim

Some consider the ReSaurus line of Speed Racer figures to be the best of any action figures created for the characters. However, it certainly wasn't the last.

Speed Racer
Toynami
2005

The 2005 Toynami Mach 5 gets an honorable mention today because the mold used for the vehicle is actually the same which was developed for the car in the above noted ReSaurus line. While the molds for ReSaurus's Spridle and Chim-Chim were also used for this particular "set", Toynami produced its own Speed figure.

There is some irony to be found with this line. If you look on secondary markets, the Toynami version of the car can sell for upwards of a hundred dollars in the box. Meanwhile the ReSaurus version sells for around thirty-five. The Toynami version doesn't seem to be any harder to find than the original ReSaurus version, so at this point I can only speculate people are paying for the brand name and perhaps don't know they're getting the exact same molded car.

As for the figures, they're readily available and a dime a dozen. Most sellers price them around $30.00 each and most buyers spend between $7.00 and $10.00 for them - Mint on card. Don't rush into this line throwing money around left and right. Wait for the right seller to come alone. Otherwise you're going to overpay.

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Duke Nukem (ReSaurus) and Duke Nukem Forever (NECA)

Duke Nukem
1998
ReSaurus

Duke Nukem began his rise to cult classic status in 1991 with Apogee Software's game of the same name. Much like the majority of the classic shooters of early PC gaming, the game started as shareware, which took off like wild fire. This first "episode" was followed up by two additional installments to round out the first game.

1993 followed with the first sequel, Duke Nukem II. All seemed well on track for the Duke series to be a hot commodity on gaming markets. The success kept coming with 1996's Duke Nukem 3D. Then like someone switching off a light switch, Duke Nukem simply ceased. Rumblings were heard throughout the gaming world as early as 1997 of a future Duke game, and even promotional material was distributed. However, years passed, and no game ever surfaced...(continued below)

A little late to the game, no pun intended, ReSaurus picked up the licensing rights to produce and distribute action figures based on Duke Nukem. The figures get high points for being fairly spot on renditions of their pixilated counterparts. Not only that, but the articulation is pretty generous - Basically put, these are excellent quality figures.

Numerous figures were planned for the series, but only six ever made their way out to markets - Seven if you include the chase variant...Eight if you include the internet version.

 Duke Nukem*Duke Nukem with Freeze Thrower

Duke Nukem had a chase variant which included a Freeze Thrower gun which was packed one per case. This chase version could also be obtained by ordering it online directly from ReSaurus. The benefit to this route was that it also included a shareware version of Duke Nukem 3D.

You have to look close to see the Freeze Thrower in the package. It is the bit of yellow plastic protruding out from the left shoulder of the artwork on the package. Oddly enough, the chase variant is the more common version being sold on secondary markets these days.

 Night Strike Duke*Battlelord

With the exception of the Previews Exclusive figure (below), the enemies are the most valuable and difficult to obtain figures - Specifically Battlelord which can reach a $75.00 price range for a mint on card version. The Octabrain and Pigcop aren't far behind at prices hovering around the $55.00 mark.

 Octabrain*Pigcop

The last figure in the series was the Previews Exclusive figure, S.W.A.T. Duke. It's not a relatively common figure, but can still be found here and there on secondary markets. A mint in package one can be obtained for roughly $45.00. This is definitely one of those buy it when you see it figures (if you're collecting them) because you don't know if you'll find it again. Of course, the same statement could be made about the "enemies" in the line as well.

S.W.A.T. Duke

Duke Nukem Forever
2011
NECA

(continued from above)...

As years continued to tick away past the new millennium, many gamers forgot about Duke. We were now in an era where Call of Duty vs. Battlefield disputes were erupting across the internet. Regardless, classics such as Doom and Wolfenstein were reemerging, reminding gamers that the games that started it all could be re-visioned to compete in today's heavily saturated first person shooter market. It was the perfect time.

Enter Gearbox Software who made a deal to complete the long awaited Duke Nukem Forever (originally entitled Duke Nukem 4ever - Appropriate being that it was the fourth installment planned in the series). Backed by a heavily marketed campaign, and a promise that the game was well worth the wait, DNF was finally unleashed on the public in 2011. Riddled with bugs, long loading times, clunky controls, offensive humor, and dated design, the game received critically disappointed reviews...(concluded below)

Duke Nukem

NECA produced a one and done figure based on Duke with their Player Select line. It's a spot on rendering of the character, and the articulation is definitely ample. Unfortunately, much like the game it found little success on the market.

(concluded from above)...

Gearbox Software made plans to reboot the DN series following Aliens: Colonial Marines. However, with the poor reviews for both the aforementioned Aliens game and Duke Nukem Forever, it is unknown at this time if those plans will proceed.

There's no doubt that Duke Nukem helped to shape the first person shooter genre into the format it is today. Unfortunately for the character, there just doesn't seem to be enough room in the sandbox (or enough desire from players) to continue his exploits. We leave off with a question to all of you. Is Duke Nukem past his prime?

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Quake II (ReSaurus)

Quake II
ReSaurus
1998

When id Software announced that it would be releasing a new first person shooter in 1996, fans immediately went nuts with excitement. Doom 2, which was released in 1995, was a critically acclaimed hit of first person shooter games. As such, fans could only imagine how id could possibly top itself. Despite raising the bar so high for themselves, the software developer not only appeased fan expectation, they far exceeded them. To date the game is considered a masterpiece in every aspect.

When the sequel was announced, fans couldn't wait to get their hands on the game. Despite being a follow up to the original title, Quake II is only a sequel in name. The scenario, enemies and themes have no continuity from the first game. None of this hindered its popularity, and the game quickly became the most online played title of 1998.

ReSaurus sought to capitalize on the popularity of the title, and released five figures based on the characters from the game. Unfortunately sales didn't reach those of the game itself. In fact, they didn't even come close. The series was discontinued just as fast as it hit store shelves.

Marine Major*Marine Psycho*Jungle Marine Athena

 

Alien Strogg Tank*Alien Strogg Iron Maiden

 

ReSaurus struggled for the next few years, releasing mostly video game based action figures, but never was able to develop anything that would help the company break into mainstream action figure production. The company hasn't been heard from since 2001 when it released its final toy line to date base on the comic book character, Bone.

Join us next time when we take a look at Underworld!

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