Toy Talk
Volume XLIV
By Mark Patraw
Posted on 6/9/14
After much consideration, I've decided that I'm not going to do Toy Talk on a weekly basis anymore. The many hours I spend hunting for, researching/identifying, writing about, and photographing, these items has become excessive, to the point where it's taking away valuable time from other things that I'd rather be doing, so, I feel the need to cut back. I'm not going to stop buying/collecting secondhand toys altogether, I'm just going to take a more relaxed approach to it. In short, while I may publish additional volumes of Toy Talk in the future, if I do so, it'll be done on an irregular basis, whenever the mood takes me or I happen to find a bunch of good stuff that I want to share, not on a "forced" weekly schedule.
Moving along, in this chapter of Toy Talk, starting on the far left, and continuing to the right, we have: a 2007 Dreamworks/McDonald's Shrek: The Third Baby Ogre Girl talking figurine (twenty-five cents "girls" grab bag on 12/5/13); a 2009 Spin Master Liv: School's Out Sophie doll (fifty cents on 5/15/14); a 1996 Disney/Burger King The Hunchback of Notre Dame Quasimodo action figure (twenty-five cents "boys" grab bag on 12/5/13); a 1987 Tonka Super Naturals Eagle Eye action figure (Eagle Eye: seventy-five cents on 5/28/14; shield accessory: twenty-five cents on 6/3/14); and, finally, a 2011 Hasbro Transformers: Generations Backstop action figure (fifty cents on 5/29/14). If anyone reading this knows more information about any of these items, that I haven't already discussed below, and would like to share, or just chat about toys, feel free to e-mail me and let me know!
What color is the diarrhea of a baby that's already green to begin with?
Here we have a 2007 Dreamworks/McDonald's Shrek: The Third Ogre Baby Girl talking figurine. In addition to her, the assortment also included Shrek himself (I have that toy, somewhere, but, despite a search, I couldn't find it, which is too bad, because I wanted to shoot a photo of him with his daughter), Artie, Gingy, Puss-in-Boots, Princess Fiona, Donkey, Dronkey (baby donkey/dragon hybrid), and two different Ogre Baby Boys (one standing and one sitting).
I can't remember if I've ever seen Shrek: The Third or not. I know I've watched some of the films, but I can't recall exactly which ones--they all seem to blend together in my mind.
The baby looks adorable, or at least as adorable as an infant ogress can. I like her innocent, perplexed expression. The diaper has a molded, woven texture to it, but the rest of the figure is smooth, just like a baby should be. The hair, bow, diaper, and facial features are all well painted. There's a very small stray mark of color on her left hand, but it's nothing to get bent out of shape about. The only things that really mar her appearance are the obvious screw and speaker holes on her back, but, at least you don't have to look at them unless you turn her around.
Change me!
The little ogress has rotating cut joints at the hips, so you can choose to pose her in a standing or sitting pose (and she's pretty stable in either position). Other than that, she's immobile, but I do appreciate that the manufacturer provided the means for two different display options, as they could have just as easily made her a static statue instead. Fully erect, and at the tip of her hair, she's 4.2" (10.7 cm) tall.
Flipping the switch on her back to the "ON" position, and pressing the adjacent button, causes her to "speak" one of three sound clips: a burp, a gurgling giggle, and "Da-da! Da-da!" The feature works well and the samples are clear. If you had to listen to someone playing them over-and-over, it would surely drive you up the wall, but, thankfully, that's what the "OFF" position is for.
I'm not a huge Shrek fan, but this green bundle of joy looks good and her sound feature is fun. If nothing else, she's an interesting alternative to a traditional baby doll.
No, this isn't a Jenny McCarthy doll!
Here we have a 2009 Spin Master Liv: School's Out Sophie (actually, I'd guess that this figure came out after 2009, but every Liv doll's head/body I own is stamped with 2009, as Spin Master kept using the same old mold, for all five girls, over-and-over again). The theme of the School's Out wave was to show what the quintet (Sophie, Katie, Daniela, Alexis, and Hayden) do when they're not in class. In Sophie's case, she's on her way to her after-school job at the hair salon, riding her motor scooter (sold separately--speaking of which, I'm pretty sure I saw that scooter in the thrift shop one time, but I didn't know that it was part of the Liv line back then, so, I passed on purchasing it).
As usual, the basic Liv body sports a ball-jointed neck, shoulders, and waist; pin-and-disc ball-joints at the elbows and hips; double pin-jointed knees, and rotating swivels at the wrists and ankles. For a mass market play doll, Sophie is very poseable, although there are some additions that would further enhance her mobility, like rotating cut joints at the biceps and thighs. Without a wig, Sophie stands 11.6" (29.4 cm) tall.
The School's Out Sophie has lighter blonde hair (platinum-like) and less make-up, but, other than those two differences, she's nearly identical to the previous Sophie I bought (see Toy Talk Vol. XXX). I'm afraid that I don't know what particular Liv wave/assortment that other Sophie is from though.
One of the best things about the Liv line of dolls is their interchangeable wig caps. It's amazing what a difference swapping one hair style/color for another can have on a doll's appearance, as the four photos above illustrate. Now that I've finally accumulated a pretty diverse pile of wigs (and I'm always on the lookout for more), I can really take advantage of that feature.
Sophie's outfit consists of a short-sleeved top, plaid skirt, and chromed hoop earrings. The front of the shirt has a cool diamond-esque rose pattern, a large faux pink flower is affixed to the right shoulder, and the garment is sewn to look like there's a white T-shirt underneath, which gives it a layered look. The skirt has an ivory strip of material sewn on the inside to protect a doll's modesty when she bends over. Speaking of which, Sophie's body already has permanently molded white panties, so the ones on the skirt are redundant, however, some Liv doll assortments had flesh-toned panties on their bodies, instead of white, which is probably what Spin Master was thinking of. Both garments open-and-close, in the back, with velcro strips. The fit of all the articles is good and they're color coordinated, so, I have no complaints about her ensemble (and, as my last three Liv doll purchases were all wearing capris, I'm glad to get a skirt for a change). My sample is fairly complete, but I'm missing Sophie's glasses, sandals, bracelet/watch, and hair brush. I've purchased seven secondhand Liv dolls to date, and haven't gotten footwear with any of them yet!
What's that you say? How can I be missing the glasses and sandals when they can clearly be seen in the photos? Well, that's because I made her those items from scratch!
GLASSES:
Preliminary paper test pattern.
Test pattern on Sophie's head. The size checks out, so it's full steam ahead!
Wire armature with the arms of the glasses covered with strips of newsprint.
Aside from providing support and defining the shape of the glasses, said wire is what allows the arms to bend/fold.
Test fit on Sophie's head. The arms are the proper length to reach behind her ears, so all is well.
Glass frames completely covered in newsprint.
A second wire segment was added to create the shape of the bottom half of the lens holes.
Aside from some sanding and final adjustments, they're ready to paint.
Final check on Sophie's head before finishing adjustments and painting.
They're a bit asymmetrical, but the overall fit is good and she looks classier already!
After the glasses were painted, I cut out lenses from a sheet of transparent plastic and embedded them in the frames, completing the accessory.
The finished product.
SANDALS:
The first thing I did was trace the outline of Sophie's foot to make a pattern for the soles of the sandals.
The bottoms of the sandals are 4-ply thick cardboard: three layers glued back-to-back, and then the sandal straps sandwiched in between that stack and one more layer.
In order to work on the shoes without damaging Sophie's feet, I covered them in plastic and transparent tape.
That thin protective layer also ensures that there will be enough wiggle room so that the sandals won't become too tight after they're painted.
I wrapped strips of paper, from a brown grocery bag, around her feet to create the sandal straps, and then glued the soles onto those.
Here are the rough sandals on a doll's bare feet. The fit is pretty good--loose enough to slip them on-and-off, but not so loose as to fall off.
These are the finished sandals, with small decorative bows added to the front straps, just prior to painting.
The finished product.
Once again, the thrift store's pricing of Liv merchandise defies all logic. School's Out Sophie, who was in very good shape and came with her wig and most of her original outfit, was only fifty cents, yet, at the same time, the store was trying to sell a Daniela for two dollars, who didn't have a wig and probably wasn't wearing the correct clothing (weeks after I bought Sophie, that lonely "bald" Daniela is still sitting there). Sophie has some minor hot-pink staining on her feet (probably from her original sandals) and a tiny chunk of plastic missing from just above her left elbow (likely an artifact from the molding/assembly process), but, otherwise, she's in nearly flawless condition. Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful that I got Sophie for the price that I did, but I just don't understand how the store's staff came to the decision to charge four times as much for Daniela, when she wasn't as complete as Sophie. I've already got two Danielas anyway, so, unless they mark her down significantly, I'm not interested in buying her (and maybe not even then).
I really didn't need another Liv doll, but Sophie is one of my favorites, I didn't have a blonde wig, her outfit was attractive, and the price was right, so, I just couldn't pass her up. Lest you think I have no self control when it comes to Liv toys, I will remind you that I did leave the previously mentioned Daniela there.
Quit humping around and get back to ringing those bells!
It's time to examine the main man himself, Quasimodo, in all his misshapen glory! This is a 1996 Burger King toy based upon the character from Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame animated film, which, in turn, is an adaptation of Victor Hugo's original novel of the same name. In addition to Quasimodo, the assortment also included Clopin, Victor, Hugo, Laverne (previously covered in Toy Talk Vol. IX), Esmeralda (with her pet goat, Djali), Judge Claude Frollo, and Captain Phoebus.
I can't help feeling sorry for this poor guy--he's got a heart of gold, but got beat silly by life's ugly stick. The toy's sculptor(s) did an outstanding job of translating the cartoon Quasimodo into 3-Dimensional form. The proportions and details of his deformed body and face look dead-on accurate to me. Quasi's paintwork is also well done, with uniform, clean application of all the colors.
Quasimodo stands 3.4" (8.6 cm) tall and has pretty good articulation for a fast food toy, comparable to a "real" action figure of the same size from that time period. He's got rotating cut joints at the neck, shoulders, and hips. You can't do a ton of things with him, beyond making him sit or stand and raising/lowering his arms, but, for cheap Burger King fare, that's not too shabby.
Other than the excellent sculpt, the standout feature of this piece is that his moss-green shirt is made out of real fabric. While it's probably possible to get the clothing off, his hump and husky build make it difficult, so, I gave up, for fear of tearing a seam or breaking something. Burger King was also wise enough to hide all of the molded copyright text on his back, underneath said garment.
Left-to-right: Captain Phoebus (missing his shield), Quasimodo, and Laverne, all from the 1996 Burger King assortment.
While he's not my favorite Disney character by a longshot, this is an excellent rendition of Quasimodo and a well above average fast food toy. Recommended!
If this guy ate scrambled eggs for breakfast, would that make him a cannibal?
This is a 1987 Tonka Super Naturals Eagle Eye action figure. Other than the neat character designs, the main draw of this toy line was the highly-detailed holograms (which are rather tricky to photograph) that each figure, and vehicle, in the assortment sported. Even better, some of the holograms, like the one on Eagle Eye's torso, are lenticular, so the image transforms as you view it from different angles. In Eagle Eye's case, he changes from a "normal" Native American man to an eagle. The larger figures, like this one, also came with shields that featured an additional hologram (an eagle's face in this case), but they're single-image affairs, not lenticular. I never owned any Super Naturals toys as a child, but my younger brother had one of the wonderful villain characters, Snakebite.
Story-wise, Eagle Eye is one of the good guys. His powers include the ability to transform into a soaring eagle (big surprise there) and to see into the future. All of the Super Naturals spirits escaped into our world when the Tomb of Doom (which was available in playset form) was opened after many centuries. In addition to Eagle Eye, the benevolent characters/vehicles including Lionheart, Thunder Bolt (large humanoid figures), Spooks, Hooter, See-thru, Mr. Lucky (smaller ghost figures), Lion Wings (mount), and Ghost Finder (hotrod). The evil warriors consisted of Skull, Burnheart, Snakebite (large humanoid figures), Scary Cat, Weird Wolf, Vamp-pa, Rags (smaller ghost figures), Dark Dragon (mount), and Bat Bopper (tow truck).
The figure's sculpt is decent. His buckskin outfit has molded stitches, fringe, and bead work, but the belt is perhaps the most detailed object on the toy, with raised arrowheads circling it and an avian belt buckle. The paintwork is minimal, limited to just his belt, hair, and moccasins, although it's applied well with no slop or errors. I think they should have painted his hands flesh-tone, as the gloves seem out-of-place to me.
Eagle Eye only has four points of articulation, rotating shoulders and pivoting hips (the legs can only move forwards, not backwards). There's no neck joint because that would break up the torso's hologram. You can't pose him too many different ways, but at least he can sit and raise/lower his arms. Eagle Eye's mobility is definitely lackluster, but, for the time period, not unusual. He stands 6" (15.3 cm) tall.
In addition to the shield, a complete sample should also include a black-and-white feathered headdress, a brown-and-red chest plate, and a glow-in-the-dark plumed spear. That's laying the Native American stereotypes on pretty thick! Like the figure, the circular shield has some nice molded details like feathers hanging from the side and rows of horns (teeth?) on the top. And, as previously mentioned, it also sports the cool eagle face hologram on the front. I bought Eagle Eye for seventy-five cents one week, and then, the following week, I got lucky and found his shield in the toy bin for an additional quarter, bringing his total price up to a dollar. I'm pretty sure that the shield wasn't in there when I purchased the figure, as I usually do a pretty thorough job of rooting through the toys, but maybe I missed it. While I'm happy to have found the shield, at the same time, I can't help but get the feeling that I'm buying him on an installment plan when I find his accessories after the fact!
Unfortunately, it didn't last very long, but, in my opinion, Super Naturals was one of the best toy lines from the 1980s. Eagle Eye is neat, but, if I had the choice, I would have preferred one of the villains, because I (almost) always like the bad guys better. If the price was right, and they were in good condition, I'd definitely be interested in acquiring some more of these Super Naturals characters.
No poacher has ever survived trying to steal his horns!
This is a 2011 Hasbro/Takara Transformers: Generations Backstop action figure. The toy was originally released in 2005, as part of the Transformers: Cybertron line, and sported a more vibrant red, yellow, and gray color scheme [a hue arrangement which reminds me of the Generation 1 (G1) Predacon rhino, Headstrong]. According to Transformers Universe, this 2011 version of Backstop was a Big Lots! exclusive, which is interesting, as I didn't even know that Big Lots! ever got exclusive toys like Wal-Mart, Toys-R-Us, and Target regularly do.
Backstop is a powerful, elder warrior from the Jungle Planet. In his younger days, he was of the "might makes right" mindset, but, time, and experience, taught him the value of all life, regardless of an organism's strength. Along with the other rebels, he struggles to overcome the three-headed dragon dictator Scourge, who was once one of Backstop's star pupils before he let power go to his head and became the Jungle Planet's oppressor.
Backstop's robot form is very squat and bulky, which implies strength and power. Funnily enough, because of his mass and drab coloration, when I first saw this toy on the shelf in the thrift store, I thought he was a Rock Lord! I have to admit that the toy's designer(s) really didn't do a whole lot to disguise the animal shape--for example, it's painfully obvious that his right shoulder is still the rhino's head (but, as the action feature involves the animal's horns, I can understand why they did it that way). I do think it's clever how the mammal's four legs fold down and snap together to create the robot's two. In this shape, Backstop has a pin-and-disc ball-jointed left shoulder, pin-jointed pivoting elbows, and rotating cut-joints at the right shoulder and hips. Even stuck together, the four pin-jointed knees on the legs still work, but, the orientation/direction is "wrong" for a humanoid shape, so, I'm not counting them. In this mode, Backstop stands 3.7" (9.4 cm) tall.
Backstop's rhinoceros form looks even better--it's apparent that this is where most of the designer(s) attention was focused--only the robot's right hand, folded up underneath the head, is poorly hidden. In addition to all the mechanical bits and panels, there's also a pebble-like skin texture in many areas, which I like, as that's a nod to the physique of the real organism. In rhinoceros form, Backstop has a rotating cut-joint neck, multi-directional ball-jointed hips, and pivoting pin-jointed knees and tail. The beast measures 5.4" (13.7 cm) in length and is 2.4" (6.2 cm) tall.
A complete sample should include a blue Cybertron key accessory (the 2005 version's was green). Inserting said object into the back of Backstop's head causes his two horns to spring forward, impaling anyone unfortunate enough to be on the receiving end. Amusingly, when the horns are extended in animal mode, it makes him look like a portly unicorn. While I don't have the key, any number of small, thin objects can be used as a substitute (I employed the blunt end of a sewing needle; if you follow my example, take care not to prick yourself). This action feature works equally well in either animal or robot mode, which is good design.
G1's Autobot cassette tape Ramhorn has always been my favorite Transformers rhinoceros, but I think Backstop may have just taken his place!
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