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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Emily the Strange (Toynami)

Emily the Strange
Toynami
2005

Much like our prior post on Mr. Bacon, Emily the Strange is a character that was developed as a mascot, and transcended into her own iconic character which has numerous fans around the world. Since her inception, Emily has been featured on clothing, skateboards, stickers, stationary and more-  To and include a comic book from Dark Horse Comics.

Emily was created in 1993 by Rob Reger for use in his own company, Cosmic Debris Etc., Inc. These days, the company seems to focus strictly on developing merchandise based on the character. However, it doesn't appear that much has been done with her since 2013.

In 2005, Toynami produced a figure based on the character. It was sold mainly at specialty shops, and noted bookstores such as Borders and Barnes and Noble. Two variant figures were also produced - One featuring the character with her arms crossed, and the others with her arms down. They did make these two figures unique by way of giving each one their own name which was printed on the package.

Problem Child

Armed and Dangerous

Bendy Emily

You can typically pick these figures up for around $10.00 each on secondary markets. However there are a few sellers out there who ask as much as $50.00 for them. Obviously these sellers don't end up selling the figure to anyone.

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

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The Herculoids (Toynami)

The Herculoids
Toynami
2003

Though The Herculoids originally aired in 1967, most children of today remember it more so for its 1981 iteration of episodes from Space Stars. Space Stars featured four segments which included, Space Ghost, The Herculoids, Teen Force and Astro and the Space Mutts.

The Herculoids was about a family; Zandor, Tara, his wife, and Dorno, their son. Interesting enough was that Dorno never referred to his parents as mom or dad, but rather by their first names. The show also featured the creatures; Zok, a flying space dragon, Igoo, an ape made of rock, Tundro, the ten legged rhino, and the two protoplasmic characters Gloop and Gleep. Together, The Herculoids defend their planet from both local and foreign menaces.

In 2003, Toynami released three multipacks which encompassed all the characters from the series. A treat included in the box was the fabulous background diorama which when combined spelled out The Herculoids.

Zok and Zandor*Dorno, Gleep and Tundro

Tara, Gloop and Igoo

 

These sets weren't too easy to find back when they were first released, and have since then only gotten more scarce.

 

Hanna-Barbera Hi-Adventure Heroes

Hi-Adventure Heroes

1976

 

The Herculoids also enjoyed a short lived stint in the pages of Hi-Adventure Heroes comic book title, Hanna-Barbera Hi-Adventure Heroes.

 

Hanna-Barbera Hi-Adventure Heroes

Join us next time when we take a look at Dick Tracy!

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Dynomutt and the BlueFalcon (AKA Dynomutt and the Blue Falcon) (Toynami)

Dynomutt and BlueFalcon
Toynami
2003

Make no mistake, Dynomutt was the star when it came to the duo of him and BlueFalcon.

The character first made his debut on the segmented show, The Scooby-Doo/Dynomutt Hour. With popularity soaring off into orbit, after just two months the show was tweaked to add an additional half hour, and became the 90-minute Scooby-Doo/Dynomutt Show which is how it remained until the series end in September of 1977.

Dynomutt's claim to fame was that he was essentially a robot dog with extendable limbs a la the yet to be introduced, but probably inspired Inspector Gadget (1983) character. The character also had the ability to produce a seemingly infinite amount of gadgets and tools to help in any scenario. Dynomutt was the ultimate swiss army knife.

Though the Scooby-Doo/Dynomutt Show came to an end in 1977, the character was far from done with the Saturday morning cartoon scene. He would have a recurring role in Scooby's All-Star Laff-A-Lympics (1977-1978), and Scooby's All-Stars (1978-1979). During 1978, the character also returned in syndiacation under his own bannered show, Dynomutt, Dog Wonder.

In 2003, Toynami provided fans a great opportunity to get their hands on figures of the Hanna-Barbera dynamic duo. This very limited two pack came and went in the blink of an eye. It was sold out before many fans even knew it existed.

Dynomutt and the BlueFalcon Deluxe Box Set

While not necessarily common, this can still be found on select secondary markets, but don't expect to get one if you're not willing to drop some cash. Mint in package sets have sold for $130.00 to $150.00.

***BONUS***

Hanna-Barbera's Dynomutt
Marvel Comics
1977

Dynomutt and BlueFalcon weren't just limited to the cartoon scene. In 1977, Marvel Comics produced a fun read for fans in the six issue run of Hanna-Barbera's Dynomutt.

Join us next time when we take a look at !

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Birdman and Avenger (Toynami)

Birdman and Avenger
Toynami
2003

The question of the day - Is Birdman more popular for his superhero adventures, or his attorney at law years?

Birdman got his start in 1967 when creator Alex Toth produced a series for Hanna-Barbera known as Birdman and the Galaxy Trio. The series ran as a Saturday morning cartoon until 1969, and featured three segments, two for Birdman, and one for The Galaxy Trio.

After the Saturday morning cartoons ended, Birdman went somewhat dormant. Though the cartoons were aired in re-runs, the character never really garnered as much popularity as it did in its original run.

Fast forward to 1992.

Cartoon Network hits the airwaves with its channel dedicated strictly to showing cartoons. It's every kid and kid at heart's dream come true station. With it came all the great cartoons that many adults grew up with such as Looney Tunes, The Flintstones, and yes, even Birdman and the Galaxy Trio. Sadly though all these great shows helped to put the Network on the map, the heads of the station soon started looking at new concepts for shows, and slowly started dropping these classics from their daily lineup.

Soon shows such as Dexter's Lab, The Power Puff Girls and I Am Weasel were the headliners for the network, bringing in a new era of animation for kids. Though many of these new shows took off in popularity, the classic characters wouldn't be forgotten. Instead they would be retooled to incorporate them in to all new concepts such as Space Ghost Coast to Coast, The Brak Show, Sealab 2021 and Harvey Birdman Attorney at Law. These new concepts/shows were met with praise from fans of the characters, and also new fans who tuned in each week.

Though many young adults of this era may only know the characters for their latter iterations, we old timer's had the privilege to see these characters develop from their origins to who they are today, and though we (maybe not all of us) can appreciate these new versions for what they are, still have a certain fondness for who they were.

Toynami gave us a bit of that nostalgia in 2003 when they released a two pack of the original Birdman and Avenger in a deluxe box packaging. The only downside to this was that they did it in an incredibly limited run. This left many fans unable to find them on store shelves, and scalpers running rampant on secondary markets.

Birdman and Avenger

 

These days it's still not easy to find this set, and those selling them on sites such as ebay are trying to sell them for around $125.00 to $150.00. Ouchy! However, $60.00 to $100.00 seems to be more around the actual amount that people are willing to pay for this.

 

***BONUS***

 

Hanna-Barbera Super TV Heroes

Gold Key

1968

 

Between the three year run of the animated series Birdman and the Galaxy Trio, Gold Key comics launched a series entitled Hanna-Barbera Super TV Heroes which ran for seven issues. Each issue consisted of four to five stories, each focusing on a different character/team.

 

 

 

 

Don't start seeing dollar signs if you're looking to buy or sell these books. While you would think that such a classic comic book with all these fantastic characters would put you in a mansion (seller) or the poor house (buyer), the truth is that you can nab up each issue in near mint condition for $15.00 to $20.00 each. Even better is that they're all pretty readily available from comic book dealers who specialize in 1960's/1970's comics, and even on ebay. Though when it comes to comic books we highly suggest buying from reputable dealers who let you inspect the book prior to purchase.

 

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

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Thundarr the Barbarian (Toynami)

Thundarr the Barbarian
Toynami
2003

Thundarr the Barbarian is one of those cartoons you either love or hate. Personally, we're not fans. However, when it comes to toys, Toynami did an amazing job of capturing not only the likeness of the characters, but also incorporating a sort of nostalgic feel in them through the paint jobs and overall design.

Thundarr got his moment in the animated spotlight in 1980 as a Saturday morning cartoon from production company Ruby-Spears Productions. The character himself was created by Steve Gerber. Though the series ran for two seasons, only twenty-one episodes were produced.

Fans were pleased to see the entire trio of the main line up produced. This meant in one fell swoop they could have their entire series from the starting gate regardless of whether or not villains were produced - Which they weren't.

Ariel*Ookla

 

To coincide with the figures, Toynami produced a convention exclusive version of Thundarr. The figure is the same sculpt as the retail release but includes a sword which more acurately depicts the glowing effect from the television series.

Thundarr the Barbarian*Thundarr the Barbarian (2003 Toynami Convention Exclusive - Limited to 1,000)

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

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Futurama (Toynami)

With the success of The Simpsons, Matt Groening and David X. Cohen pitched the idea of Futurama to Fox. It was a series that followed the adventures of Philip Fry, a 20th century pizza delivery man who is accidentally cryogenically frozen, and thawed in the 31st century. In the show, Fry works for his distant relative Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth as a delivery man for Planet Express along side his new friends, Bender, Leela, Zoidberg, Amy, and Hermes.

The cast includes such notable names as Billy West (Ren and Stimpy), Katey Sagal (Married...With Children), Phil LaMarr (Madtv), Lauren Tom (King of the Hill), Tress MacNeille (More animated movies and shows than we could ever list), and John DiMaggio as the voice of Bender (and also Marcus Fenix from the Xbox 360 exclusive series Gears of War).

The series ran from 1999 to 2003, then was dropped. The show was immediately picked up by Cartoon Network, and ran in syndication from 2003 to 2007. When their contract expired, Comedy Central not only picked up the rights to run the show in syndication, but also the rights to produce new episodes. The show was recently renewed for its seventh season on the network.

In terms of action figures based on an animated television show, the 2007-2009 Toynami series of Futurama toys is one of the best we've ever seen. Not only are the figures meticulously sculpted to match their animated counterparts, but the packaging is one fine piece of colorful eye candy. Each small box is uniquely designed to coincide with the figure inside.

Unlike most toy lines, Futurama's was not broken down by any particular series, but rather by year. Tonami would announce what figures they were producing in any specific year, and then proceeded forward. There were no waves, or series numbers.

While there was certainly room for the series to grow, in its three year span Toynami made sure to produce the majority of major players in the series, though they didn't steer too far from this path to produce many secondary figures.

An interesting aspect to the series mimics one as seen in the recent Hasrbo Star Wars line where with each figure you purchase you receive one part for a robot. There were three robots that could be completed by purchasing every figure - Robot Devil, Roberto and Robot Santa. A better sculpted, and more durable Robot Santa would become available later as an exclusive, but this would remain the only way to obtain the Robot Devil and Roberto figures.

The full list of basic figures include;


Amy (2009)
Bender (2008)
Calculon (2008)
Chef Bender (2009)
Captain Yesterday (2008)
Clobberella (2009)
Fry (2007)
Hermes (2009)
Kiff (2008)
Leela (2008)
Mom (2009)
Nudar (2008)
Professor Farnsworth (2009)
Super King (2008)
Zap Brannigan (2008)
Zoidberg (2007)

 

There were five exclusive packs produced for the series;

Fry and Leela (San Diego Comic Con 2009)
Santa Bender and Robot Santa (San Diego Comic Con 2008)
Zoidberg - Mating Season (San Diego Comic Con 2007)
Glorious Golden Bender (San Diego Comic Con 2007)
Zoidberg - Mating Season - Blue Variant (Toyfare 2007)
Destructor and Gender Bender (San Diego Comic Con 2013)

There were also small "Tineez" figures produced that while they have the same type of packaging are not considered to be part of the set. We won't go into those here.

The secondary market has been incredibly kind to these figures. Depending on the character, one alone can set you back a hundred dollars, with the majority selling for between fifty and sixty dollars each. This is excellent news for secondary market dealers, and a nightmare for buyers. But, no matter how you look at it, that's an impressive price increase in a series that ended only a few years ago.

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

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