Comics Corner: The Amazing Spider-Man 80

 

Title: The Amazing Spider-Man
Issue Number: 80
Release Date: January 1970 

Highlights
  • Chameleon returns for an all new crime caper
  • Peter and Gwen reconcile over Peter's mistake that she was dating Flash Thompson
  • Chameleon makes the mistake of disguising himself as the one person Spider-Man would immediately notice was a fake - Peter Parker
Low Points
  • None
Oddities
  • None
Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)







Click "
HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.


Comics Corner: The Amazing Spider-Man 79

 

Title: The Amazing Spider-Man
Issue Number: 79
Release Date: December 1969 

Highlights

  • Second appearance of the Prowler
  • Spider-Man defeats and unmasks Hobie, but lets him go with the chance to change his ways
Low Points
  • None
Oddities
  • Interesting blurb at the beginning of the issue where Marvel announces the story arc was initially planned to be three issues, but has been condensed into this final second part because they promised to no longer have continued stories in multiple issues
  • The Prowler thinks he's killed Peter Parker, and is upset about it, but his plan to clear his name is to capture Spider-Man and turn him into the police - How exactly does that clear his name of a murder charge?
Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)



 




Click "
HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout

 

There's a new G.I. Joe game in town, Operation Blackout. For $39.99 or $49.99 (deluxe edition) you can either download or purchase a physical copy for Xbox One, Playstation 4 or Nintendo Switch.

The game features iconic Joe and Cobra characters, such as, Duke, Snake Eyes, Scarlet, Roadblock, Destro, Cobra Commander, Baroness, Storm Shadow and a handful of others. However, that's where all the good things I can say about this game end.

The controls are absolutely terrible. Despite saying the game features an auto lock system, I didn't experience any sign of this. In fact, when I read it after playing part of the level, I found myself saying, "There's a lock on system? Is it on?" It was, it just stunk.

The enemy AI is generic in all basics of the term. For the most part, they all look the same, with only the slightest of variation in design very sporadically sprinkled about. They're also dumb as rocks. You could literally walk through this game if you wanted to.

Unfortunately, the CPU AI on your team isn't any better. Each level involves two Joe or Cobra characters working side by side to complete the mission. However, if you utilize the CPU as your partner, it will contribute nothing. To get around this, you can play co-op. However, only via couch co-op. Online co-op is nowhere to be found, and in this day and age of gaming, this is inexcusable. Especially in a game designed to be played as a team.

While I've only played the first level so far, the level design was so on the rails that I felt bored with it. It features game play, and quite frankly, graphics, straight out of the Playstation 2 / Xbox era. It was so dull that by the end of the mission I could care less about playing any further.

As I scrolled through the bios of the characters, I noted that each one had multiple weapon and body skins which could be unlocked either by finding hidden collectibles, game progression or completing certain levels with certain characters. Here in lied another problem. Many of the skins involved completing the same levels, just with a different Joe or Cobra. Ugh. The game doesn't feel worth playing once. I certainly don't want to do it twice!

If this were a twenty dollar budget game, I could potentially see some value here. However, at $40.00, or more for the deluxe edition, this game is nothing short of a complete rip off. I don't recommend this game to anyone. Not even hard core G.I. Joe fans. The only thing I think this will do is disappoint you. I know it certainly did me.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Comics Corner: The Amazing Spider-Man 78

 

Title: The Amazing Spider-Man
Issue Number: 78
Release Date: November 1969 

Highlights

  • First appearance of the Prowler
  • Spider-Man tells us that the mystery of the petrified tablets is over - Thank goodness!
  • Origin of the Prowler, Hobie Brown
  • Peter thinks Gwen has lost interest in him and is seeing Flash Thompson, even though she's really meeting with him to ask about Peter
Low Points
  • Very stupid origin story - Window washer turned super villain so that his real identity self can pretend to find the loot and be a hero - Yet oddly still a good story to read
Oddities
  • None
Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)



 




Click "
HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Comics Corner: The Amazing Spider-Man 77

 

Title: The Amazing Spider-Man
Issue Number: 77
Release Date: October 1969 

Highlights

  • Appearances of Lizard and Human Torch
Low Points
  • Human Torch is in full annoying mode in this issue. He won't take the hint that he's not wanted or needed
  • Average book at best
Oddities
  • In the middle of the fight Human Torch really thinks that Lizard is just going to stand there while Spider-Man explains to him why he doesn't want the Torch to interfere?
Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)


 





Click "
HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

I Guess It's Free...A Snake Supreme Cobra Commander Update

 

As you may recall from my original review post on the G.I. Joe Classified Snake Supreme Cobra Commander, I mentioned the figure arrived broken, and that I had contacted Hasbro Pulse about it before even removing it from the box.

For a quick refresher, the problem was the plastic chain draped across the figure's chest. It arrived broken.


Though I got an auto response from the site ensuring me that despite high volumes of e-mails and calls that someone would get back to me, nobody ever did. I was left in limbo to wonder if a live person had even seen my correspondence.

Well, it's a good thing I paid with PayPal. Because while Hasbro decided it wasn't worth their time to respond, PayPal did. After filing a dispute and going through the normal process of them reaching out to Hasbro, and waiting for a response, they gave me a full refund. I guess Hasbro didn't feel it was worth their time to respond to PayPal either.

At the end of the day, my figure is still broken, which wasn't the desired outcome of this. I didn't want the figure for free, and it does me no good in the long run. Either way, I have to replace it - Apparently at scalper rates now.

It would have been ideal for Hasbro to contact me and arrange for a replacement, but I guess they had no interest in doing so. Even as of today I've not heard from anyone. Ultimately, this is a lesson learned that their customer support simply doesn't exist, which is obviously a problem if you're going to buy from them.

The lesson to take away from this post is that if you're going to buy from Hasbro Pulse, use PayPal. It's the only recourse you're going to have if and when you run into a problem with what you receive.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

G.I. Joe Classified: Profit Director Destro

 

Profit directing ain't easy. Unless of course, you're Destro. Then you have money to burn.

I'd be lying if I said I was excited to have another Destro so soon in the G.I. Joe Classified series. While I have a special place in my heart for the gold headed version of the character, as the 1988 Iron Grenadiers version was the only Destro I had as a kid, I would have preferred Hasbro's efforts be put into a character not already introduced into the series. Especially sine this particular figure is just a repaint.

But, before I get into that, let's start with the packaging.

Though in line with the overall design of the packaging to date, Profit Director Destro's box features a gold foil shimmer to it. Since the figure costs $5.00 more than your average Classified figure, I'm guessing this is where your money goes. Disappointing to say the least. If I'm going to pay more money for a toy, I'd like it to be for the contents inside. Not the box itself.

Still no sign of any new characters on the back. As such, we're still limited to the crumbs that Hasbro will throw at us. I said it before, and I'll say it again - Why the secrecy? Not everything has to be a big announcement event. Just show us on the back of the card what we can expect this year.


Profit Director Destro isn't part of any particular wave. He's more so a one-off release. However, number wise, he is respectfully labeled fifteen. This puts him after the Amazon exclusive Arctic Mission Storm Shadow, but before the recently announced Cobra Infantry, Zartan, Firefly and Viper, which we still don't know the numbers for.



With exception of a paint job, and a couple new accessories, Profit Direct Destro is the exact same as the figure we originally got. However, it's worth noting that the figure is based on the run change version, which removes the circle from the top of the figure's head.

Paint wise, the design is based on the variant version of 1997's Destro V5, which fans have come to dub Pimp Daddy Destro. Much like that character, Profit Director Destro is decked out in that red and leopard paint motif. It's unique, I'll give it that.





Accessories wise, Destro comes with the same pistol and case that came with the original release. While the pistol is the same color it's always been, the case has been changed from black to gold. It's an unfortunate aspect, but the red Cobra logo on the case has been painted over in solid gold as well. I think that would have looked really nice in contrast with the case color. It also would have made it "pop" more.

The final three accessories are all new to the figure. These are his purple tinted shades, a burning wad of cash and a leopard cape. The cape fits snug over the shoulders of the figure, and the glasses, while easily knocked off, fit perfectly over the bridge of the nose and top of the ears.

When decked out, Profit Director Destro definitely looks cool. But again, did we really need a second version this soon? I'm also not big on the price hike for the sake of shiny packaging. However, with that said, overall, it's an awesome figure and I totally dig it.

Now if you want to give me more variants, bring on the Cold Slither Drednoks! But until we get those, what are your thoughts on this updated version of Destro?

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Retro Spins: Cocktail



Whatever happened to Elizabeth Shue?

Tom Cruise is electrifying as Brian Flanagan, a young, confident and ambitious bartender who, with the help of a seasoned pro (Bryan Brown - Gorillas in the Mist), becomes the toast of Manhattan's Upper East Side. But when he moves to Jamaica and meets an independent artist (Elizabeth Shue - Adventures in Babysitting), their vivid romance brings a new perspective to the self-centered bartender's life. Sizzling with high-powered performances and a #1 hit soundtrack, the box office blockbuster Cocktail has it all! - Back of the original VHS

The soundtrack for Cocktail stands out like a sore thumb on a shelf - but in a good way. It's bright blue back ground and neon pink outline can't help but get your attention. Now if only we could get Tom Cruise off of it, it could almost be the perfect design.

What put this album on my radar was the two tracks, Kokomo from the Beach Boys and Don't Worry Be Happy by Bobbie McFarrin. These are two staples of the late 80's, but not top rankers on my personal favorites 80's music list.

Truth be told, it's not a bad album. It has some decent tracks on it and I ended up adding a few of them to my iTunes and iPod mixes. Obviously two of them I've mentioned above. The other two are Oh, I Love You So by  Preston Smith and Tutti Fruitti by Little Richard. Overall though, I didn't hear anything I hated.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Serves You Right, Scalper!

 

I don't make it a habit to take pleasure in someone else's misery. However, when I come across a scalper trying to make a quick buck on collectors, I'll take those victories when I see them.

One such incident occurred today, when I came across the listing of ebay user, steelcountry1. Ol' Steely here had a set of the wave two G.I. Joe Classified figures, Cobra Commander, Gung Ho and Red Ninja, and was looking to do a little flipping on ebay. Unfortunately, what he didn't take into consideration was the luck of the draw when it comes to listing items as an auction, and not a buy it now.

This particular ebay seller's listing ended at the total sale price of $61.99. Yup. Just a whopping dollar ninety-nine above retail, give or take a few pennies. Mind you, that's before taxes, ebay fees, PayPal fees, and a big ol' F U for being a scalper.

Let's look at this from a bigger picture. Scalpy here paid $19.99 per figure, a total of $59.97 for all three. He then paid out an additional 9% for Huntsville, Alabama sales tax in the amount of $5.40. Right there, that's a grand total of $65.37. While ebay will charge the buyer sales tax, none of that will go back in the pocket of the seller. So right off the bat, he's down $3.38 for his sale.

Now take into consideration that ebay is going to charge him around 10% for the privilege to sell on their site. So go ahead and deduct an additional $6.20 from that final bid price. He's now down to $55.79!

Don't smile yet. It gets better. Now tack on the 2.9% plus thirty cents per transaction fee PayPal is going to hit him with. Mind you, that fee is based on the $61.99 selling price. Not the selling price less ebay fees. That's another $1.80 plus the thirty cents, for a total of $2.10 in fees!

Let's add all that up. Starting with the sale price we have $61.99, less ebay fees of $6.20, less PayPal fees of $2.10, equals $53.69.

M'k, now let's take retail price of $59.97 and add our $5.40 in sales tax for a total of $65.73. Now the real basics of it come together. $65.73 total out of pocket expense versus recouped money of $53.69 after fees. Total loss to the seller is a net of negative $12.04.

Love it! Take that, scalper! That's what you get for inserting yourself into a hobby you have no vested interest in beyond trying to make a few bucks - Which you failed spectacularly at!

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero File Cards - 1983 (Hasbro)



G.I. Joe File Cards
Hasbro
1983

We continue our year end wrap up with a look at the 1983 file cards for G.I. Joe. If 1982 was the foundation the empire was built on, the 1983 would stand for the year that Hasbro made the iconic change to their figures which would become a staple throughout the remainder of the line. I'm talking about the swivel arm.

Not only did Hasbro introduce this new point of articulation into the newly produced figures, but they had the foresight to revisit the 1982 line, update every single figure and re-release them. As many of you know, these reissued figures are referred to among collectors as wave 1.5. Because there were minimal, if not no changes to the file cards for these figures, their file cards have not been included here. Please reference the post on 1982 for those.

G.I. Joe also saw a boost in popularity thanks to the 1983 mini-series which aired consecutively over  the week of September 12th. Though it was simply titled G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, the series has since become known as The M.A.S.S. Device. The cartoon introduced children of the 80's to all sorts of new characters and potential adventures. Many of which are featured in the file cards, which we should take a look at.












Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

80's Rock Loses Another Legend - R.I.P. Eddie Van Halen


Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Retro Spins: "Weird Al" Yankovic - UHF



"Weird Al" Yankovic's feature film, UHF, was set to put Orion on top. Instead, they would eventually file for bankruptcy. That's what happens when you release you movie in the summer of 1989 to contend with the likes of Batman, Indian Jones and the Last Crusade, Ghostbusters II, Honey I Shrunk the Kids and Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. Oops. For what it's worth, I think the film is a timeless classic.

George Newman ("Weird Al" Yankovic) is a daydreamer whose hyperactive imagination keeps him from holding a steady job...until he becomes the general manager of Channel 62, a local television station his uncle wins in a poker game.

Unfortunately, the station is about one week away from bankruptcy. In a moment of desperation, George makes janitor Stanley Spadowski (Michael Richards) the star of a dull children's show and stumbles onto a ratings goldmin...who else would treat lucky kids to a drink from a high-pressure fire hose? "Stanley Spadowski's Playhouse" is just weird enough to attract an audience!

Before long, endless reruns have been replaced with bizarre programming that could only have come from one place: George Newman's unique imagination. Shows like "Wheel Of Fish," "Name That Stain," "Conan The Librarian," "The Wonderful World Of Phlegm," and "Raul's Wild Kingdom," where poodles learn to fly from third story windows!

But as Channel 62's ratings start to rise, so does the wrath of TV mogul R.J. Fletcher (Kevin McCarthy), who wants to buy the station and turn it into a parking lot.

Can Channel 62 come up with the money it needs to stay on the air? George Newman's imagination is the only place to find out! - Back of the original VHS

Part soundtrack, part studio album, all what you would expect from the likes of "Weird Al" Yankovic.

As I grew older, I went from a fan of his music to someone who actually despised his work. I would tell people things like, "All he's doing is stealing other people's hard work and putting silly words in it." Which I suppose to an extent is still factual.

However, it finally dawned on me what the real problem was. It wasn't that I had stopped liking "Weird Al". Instead, it was that I had actually stopped liking current music. As a result, his "new" music wasn't resonating with me because I already disliked, or in a lot of cases as of late, didn't know the songs he was parodying. With that said, I actually do prefer his original material to that of his parodies.

Upon returning to the era of his music I knew and loved, 1983 to 1989, I was actually able to rekindle my appreciation for his work. A lot of this was helped by his movie, and to an extent the soundtrack to, UHF.

As I mentioned above, this album is a mix of both soundtrack and studio album. It features, well, I guess all of "Weird Al's" contributed music to the movie, as well as some of the commercial breaks from the film - Such as Gandhi II and Conan The Librarian. Additionally, you get all new material in the form of tracks such as Spam, Generic Blues, Isle Thing, and my personal favorite, The Biggest Ball Of Twine In Minnesota.

UHF is by no means his best material from the 80's, but it's certainly a solid entry. Overall, I'd still rather just watch the movie than listen to the soundtrack. But, that doesn't mean the soundtrack doesn't entertain all the same. It's just more fun to watch "Weird Al" Yankovic's shenanigans than listen to them.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero File Cards - 1982 (Hasbro)



G.I. Joe File Cards
Hasbro
1982 - 1983

If you love G.I. Joe, want to read all their file cards, and get fully engrossed in the characters of the vintage 80's line, then oh boy, have I got a treat for you. For the remainder of the year, each weekly post will consist of all the file cards from the vintage Joe line, taking you from its inception in 1982 though it's final 1994 series. It doesn't get any better than that!

Of course, if you don't like anything about what I said...Well, Retro Spins are on Tuesdays and non-Joe based posts will return in January of next year. Sorry.

Here we go!

1982 was the wave that started it all. Those classic straight arm releases, that while not for me, are iconic staples in many vintage Joe collector's sets. You get essentials like Scarlett, Snake Eyes, Stalker, Breaker, Rock 'n Roll, Cobra Commander and his Soldier and Officer.

That's not to say that secondary characters such as Zap, Flash, Steeler and the rest of the characters that make up the first wave don't deserve a nod of approval for being the foundation in which the empire was built. All and all, the 1982 wave is a beautiful thing!

So let's dig in to those fantastic file cards and learn all we can, shall we?







Thirteen against three. What terrible odds for Cobra. It was always something that bummed me out, even as an adult collector. The Cobra figures never amassed the sheer volume of Joe based characters. However, what they lacked in volume, they made up for in quality and uniquness.


Are you excited for more? Tune in next week for 1983!

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.