Beetlejuice (Shish Kebab)
Beetlejuice (Kenner) - Series 1
Rated 3.00 stars by Karl T. Face
Let's see if I can get through this without saying it three times. Beetlejuice was a huge part of my childhood. The movie, the cartoon, the toys. I adored all three aesthetics, each with their own charm. The toyline (outside of role-playing toys) was the most simplified of the bunch. Shish Kebab Beetlejuice is one of several variations on the Ghost with the Most, most of which corresponded to the film somewhat. This particular outfit, with the cap and long coat, is his "tour guide" look, from the scene where he stabs Barbara with several spikes and then dances into a brothel. Y'know, for the kids to play with. It's all been smoothed over, of course. No badge on the hat, a rather bland sculpt. The face is decently Keaton-ish for the era, smiling with his tongue waggling about. Looks real...[See More]

Mantor and Raplor
Sectaurs (Coleco) - Beasts
Rated 4.00 stars by Karl T. Face
It's that time again: old c-list toys for the win! Mantor is the designated lore repository of the story, a master of both martial arts and infodumping. Former advisor to the king, he's gone rogue along with the rest of the main cast, in hopes of heading off a war the authorities refuse to address. As a Keeper, he also knows how to operate the Hyves, should they find any; given that the last time they were activated, they turned everything into bugs, I'm not sure how far to trust hundreds of years' worth of oral history in regards to super-science instructions. I can see why the Keepers have to operate in secret. Having said all that, this guy stands out for a few reasons: nobody else is rocking a half-monotone color palette, nor a full beard. The exoskeleton is a delightful metallic...[See More]

Geocron (Infernac Universe)
Transformers - Legacy - United (Hasbro) - Core Class
Rated 4.00 stars by Karl T. Face
Haha, geological cycle. I wasn't into the Infernac figures when they started out- and, frankly, they didn't grow on me much. This was a cheap impulse buy, though, so here we are. Starting with 'bot mode as packaged, we have a pretty decent little rock duder. The smattering of robot bits among the stone are mostly a metallic purple, while the upper limbs, wheels, collar and "tail" are a somewhat darker, more metallic brown. The head is a delightfully simple rock face, like a minimalist Jack o' Lantern sculpture come to life. Or an animation cel, since it's based directly on a rock monster from the Headmasters series. Apart from the backpack, kibble is limited to some Arcee-esque shin wheels. Said backpack is my main gripe here. The front wheel fork (and half the cowling) hang off quite a...[See More]

Kane
Masters of the WWE Universe (Mattel) - Wave 6
Rated 4.50 stars by Karl T. Face
May as well review something spooky this month. Kane appeared in the 90s, which is a vibe all its own. A bit of a cartoon, he was Undertaker's brother, left deformed and mute by a house fire, but with ill-defined fire powers. Over time, he used a voice box, then regained his speech, lost the mask, and quietly dropped the supernatural angle to good effect. This appears to be his recent retro look, mapped onto Origins Roboto. And you know what, it works. The greebles are unpainted (no doubt to preserve the color balance as much as the budget), and end up looking somewhat like athletic support devices. Sci-fi devices. Helps balance out the human torso. The head is new, of course, and looks great. The hair is translucent yellow, so the unpainted parts really stand out. This guy can in fact...[See More]

Powerpinch
Transformers - Beast Wars (Hasbro) - Basic Series
Rated 3.50 stars by Karl T. Face
This is what it looks like to be a winner and a loser at the same time. An early toy-only minion, this guy's only real personality trait is "cartoonishly evil". And as far as the beast mode goes, this is pretty good. It's a fairly good, if squarish, representation of an earwig, with defined segments, accurate mouthparts,and only slightly exaggerated cerci. The majority of the toy is cast in translucent green plastic, but it's so dark as to appear almost black in indirect light. The legs, face, and pincers are a nice Halloweeny orange. All in all, slightly evocative of a decaying leaf pile. Articulation is limited to a pair of hinges in the tail, enough to curl the pincer forward, and the pinchy pinchy action (lever-driven). Transformation is somewhat like a typical car, oddly- fold out...[See More]

Psycho
Toxic Crusaders (Playmates) - Basic Series
Rated 3.75 stars by Karl T. Face
Bet you didn't see this review coming. The Evil Advisor is a pretty common trope in fiction, doubly so if the person they're advising is also evil. What set Toxic Crusaders apart is that Psycho, here, can actually tell the future, but the heroes' tactics are invariably so ridiculous that Dr. Killemoff assumes a bad reading every single time. No wonder this poor guy never seems to have much enthusiasm. As was the house style at Playmates, while the toy looks like the character, it's somewhat extreme by comparison, with plenty of fun details. His double chin is spattered with red goo, chunks of green slime cling to his clothing, and his fully sculpted bellybutton is nearly lost in the folds of his stomach. He's got a slightly dazed look on his face, for whatever reason. Said face has lumpy...[See More]

Tombstone
Rock Lords (Tonka) - Evil Rock Lords
Rated 4.00 stars by Karl T. Face
I actually have a piece of the rock this guy is based on. Tombstone is a typical overconfident evil henchman of the 80s variety. He's got style, at least. Carries a scythe and all. This toy doesn't, but we'll come to that. This fellow basically has a little snake head on a long neck, spindly arms, and a beefy torso. Some damn big boots, too. And yet, it feels fairly cohesive. The "robot" parts are a sort of lime green. The deep green and uneven sculpt of the rocky areas are true to prasiolite, which I assume is the "quartz" listed on the package. Articulation, as usual, is a mixed bag. The hinges knees and swivel/hinge hips are decent enough, but the head only has vertical movement, and the shoulders and elbows are both ape-arm hinges, which is a pretty useless combo. The weapon here is...[See More]

Air-Raiders - Battle Squad
Air Raiders (Hasbro) - Soldier Assortments
Rated 4.25 stars by Karl T. Face
Many 80s toylines were a gimmick first and a story second. It worked for a lot of them, but there were casualties. As I've said before, this was a small-scale army builder type of line, and there were often empty seats on the vehicles regardless. Once again, we have four troops and an officer. The grunts are tan, with orange torso armor. Said armor is intricately plated, almost buglike. A few hoses snake in and out, and there's a pistol holstered on the waist. The arms are fairly plain in the hands and biceps, but the bracers are a mass of greebles. The legs are also basically spandex above the knee, but the "boots" look like futuristic sneakers with leather leggings and heavy braces on the ankles. The helmets, meanwhile, are oh so pulp: almost a HALO jumper sort of thing, but...[See More]

Tyrants of Wind - The Enforcers
Air Raiders (Hasbro) - Soldier Assortments
Rated 4.25 stars by Karl T. Face
Air Raiders. Quite the obscurity these days, it was mostly just 5 issues of a comic I've never seen anywhere, and a gimmicky toyline. But it had a lovely swooping aesthetic, rather like pulp sci-fi art, with oddly detailed figures. And the best part was, there were troop builders. The Enforcers are the rank and file troops of the Tyrants of Wind, who tyrannically rule a large colony on an otherwise airless planet. They're totally brainwashed, and live to subdue, terrify, and enslave. Our daring rebels have their work cut out for them. And what figures they are! In simple blocks of desaturated purple and grey, without a lick of paint, they still look great. A visored helmet tops a knight-like environment suit with heavy gauntlets, thick boots, and concave pauldrons. Bits of hose peek out...[See More]

Sgt. Hacker vs. Scalpel
G.I. Joe vs. Cobra (Hasbro) - Spy Troops
Rated 4.25 stars by Karl T. Face
Sometimes the also-rans are also worth it. What we have here is a pair of characters that were present in the current comics, but pretty much disappeared shortly afterward. The Spy Troops line was plagued with odd proportions, ugly action features, and some fairly hilarious disguises. But even those have their uses. Opening with Sgt Hacker, ostensibly the meat of the set. He's the tech guy, that's about all there is to him. He's got a wee little torso, but everything else is in proportion. It pretty much goes away if you put him behind the wheel of something, or just have him crouching over an access panel. I always appreciate some nice plain colors in this line, and while we get a fair amount of highlights in blue-gray and two blues, he's still very plain and utilitarian. Apart from the...[See More]