Toy Talk
Volume XLVI
By Mark Patraw
Posted on 8/18/14
Here are another five of my recent thrift store toy purchases. When I noticed that three of this quintet happened to be Hasbro products, I contemplated changing the line-up so that everything would be from that toy company, but, I ultimately decided that it'd be better to have a more diverse mix of stuff (besides, the only "girls" Hasbro items I've acquired recently are My Little Ponies, and I just did Bumblesweet last week).
Let's see, starting down in the front, with the smaller items, and moving left-to-right, we have: a 2009 MGA Lalaloopsy Mittens Fluff 'N' Stuff's Polar Bear pet (twenty-five cents "girls" grab bag on 6/23/14); a 2010 Hasbro Star Wars: Vintage Collection "Peasant Disguise" Anakin Skywalker action figure; a 2008 Hasbro Indiana Jones Rene Belloq (Ceremonial Garb) action figure (both of which were thirty-four cents, each, on 7/14/14); and a 1994 Hasbro G.I.JOE Star Brigade: Lunartix Empire Lobotomaxx action figure (twenty-five cents on 6/21/14). Finally, the large structure in the background is a Sega Toys/Spin Master Zoobles! Razoo's Treehouse Happitat Playset along with its koala owner, Razoo (Treehouse: $1.50 on 7/25/14; Razoo: twenty-five cents "girls awesome" grab bag on 2/6/14). I bought Anakin and Belloq from the Negaunee Vista Theater thrift shop; everything else came from the Ishpeming St. Vincent de Paul Society store. 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!
Most of the time, I have the figure, but not their accessories, with this item, it's the other way around!
Here we have Mittens Fluff 'N' Stuff's nameless pet polar bear; speaking of which, I find it rather odd that she didn't give her ball of white fluff a title. Mittens is the winter-loving, blue-haired doll from MGA's Lalaloopsy toy line. The dolls are made out of plastic/vinyl, but they're molded to resemble rag dolls, because that's what they're supposed to be: rag dolls that have come to life. This animal is dated 2009, so, it's probably from one of the earliest toy assortments, back when the Lalaloopsy brand went by the short-lived Bitty Buttons moniker.
Like the dolls, the pets are sculpted to look like they're made from fabric, but, in truth, it's just hollow plastic. The overall effect is fairly convincing though, as are its "button" eyes. The tail and nose/muzzle are completely smooth, which contrasts nicely with the woven texture molded onto the rest of the bear. The creature is fairly narrow when viewed from the side, but I own quite a few real stuffed animals that have similarly thin profiles, so, that is arguably an accurate representation of how a stuffed polar bear should look. Mittens' little white buddy is 7.5 cm (3.0") wide and 7.6 cm (3.0") tall.
The polar bear doesn't have any kind of articulation, so all it can really do is just stand there and look adorable. As such, it's a nice display piece, but its play value is fairly limited, even if you do have a doll to go with it. At least its flat bottom is very stable; the toy doesn't tip over easily.
MGA's Lalaloopsy dolls are cute, but, to date, I haven't purchased any. I also like the Lalaloopsy Horses, which are essentially MGA's spin on Hasbro's My Little Pony brand, but I haven't bought one of those yet either. Well, if I ever do pick up a full-size Lalaloopsy doll, at least he or she will have a pet waiting for them!
May the Force be with you, because your fashion sense isn't!
Yet another of Hasbro's Anakin Skywalker action figures (the third one that I've boughten this year no less) has found its way into my hands. There have probably been dozens of different Anakin toys produced in the last decade-and-a-half, but this particular one is the 2010 Star Wars: Vintage Collection "Peasant Disguise" version. Given his attire, at first I thought that this might be his wedding outfit, from when he married Padmé Amidala, at the end of Episode II: Attack of the Clones, but then I remembered that he had his prosthetic right hand then, which obviously isn't the case here, so, I knew that couldn't be right (he briefly wore this ensemble when he went to Naboo earlier in the film).
Anakin's sculpt and paint are both impressive. All the folds and wrinkles in his clothing look realistic and I really like the African tribal-like pattern on his vest--the individual shapes of said design are very sharp and clean. The Hayden Christensen (the actor that portrays Anakin in Episodes II & III) likeness is very strong as well. The entire figure is pretty much a study in brown, which makes the overall effect somewhat drab, but, other than possibly adding some airbrushed shadows or a paint wash, I can't think of anything that Hasbro's artists could have done better.
Skywalker is well articulated except for one questionable choice with the legs. He's got a ball-jointed neck; pin-and-disc ball-jointed shoulders, elbows, knees, and ankles; and cut swivel joints at the mid-torso, wrists, and hips. It boggles my mind that Hasbro would give this figure all those nice ball joints in other areas and then hamper the hips with simple cut swivels like that. That being the case, you won't be getting any wide-legged, deep stances with this toy, and for a lightsaber-wielding Jedi, that's a shame. Skywalker is 3.4 cm (1.3") wide and stands 9.8 cm (3.9") tall.
My loose figure's accessories are lost who-knows-where, but a complete sample of this toy should include a beige fabric poncho, a translucent blue lightsaber, and a silver deactivated lightsaber hilt (that you could plug, via its peg, onto his belt). I have to say that Anakin's "Peasant Disguise" isn't very effective, as anybody that knows what he looks like would instantly recognize him (you've got to do more than just change your clothing if you want to go unnoticed)--he should have worn a helmet or mask, grown a beard, or something along those lines, to conceal his features.
How many Anakins does it take to change a lightbulb?
This certainly isn't the most exciting-looking Anakin Skywalker toy you'll ever see, but, other than the limited mobility of the hips, he's very nicely done. So, if you like him in this particular outfit, I'd say go for it.
Where's the sense in putting on your "Sunday Best" just to have your face melted off by the Ark of the Covenant?
This is a 2008 Hasbro action figure of the villainous Frenchman, Rene Belloq, dressed in the ceremonial Jewish robes that he wore at the climax of the first Indiana Jones film. Belloq (played by Paul Freeman) was attired in business suits for most of the movie, which wouldn't have made for a very exciting toy, so this more elaborate garb was the right way to go in my opinion.
Believe it or not, this is only the second Indiana Jones toy that I've ever owned in my entire life, and it's been almost three decades since the last one! I can remember getting the original 3-3/4" Kenner Indiana Jones action figure, when I was a kid, from the local Woolworth's store, which later went out of business when I was in the seventh grade, but that little Harrison Ford is long gone now (I seem to recall that he either got broken or lost not too long after I received him--"World's Greatest Archeologist" indeed!)
Hasbro's sculptors/painters did a really nice job on Belloq's ornate outfit. All those little 'x's are fairly crisp, and the striped belt/sash is pretty sharp too. While almost everything is done is shades of brown, there's enough variety in hue to provide good contrast. The most visually interesting aspect of his costume is the golden breastplate, adorned with twelve colored stones (meant to represent the tribes of Israel). The Paul Freeman likeness is only so-so, but given this smaller scale, it's all right.
Indy's adversary is relatively well articulated, although the rubbery robe limits what the lower body can do, as you'd expect (actual fabric would have been better for his mobility, but it probably wouldn't have looked anywhere near as good). Belloq has: a ball-jointed neck, pin-and-disc ball-jointed shoulders and elbows, rotating wrists, a ball-jointed waist, T-joint swiveling hips, and rotating ankles. There's some gapping on the right elbow joint of my Belloq figure, but the arm works fine, so that's only a minor quibble. The long ties on the back of the head are soft and rubbery too; as a result, they don't impede the neck's movement, which was a smart choice on Hasbro's part. The evil archeologist stands 9.9 cm (3.9") tall and measures 4.6 cm (1.8") wide, although, naturally, some of his stature comes from the turban.
I don't have either of them, but a complete sample should include a ceremonial staff accessory and a mystery artifact, that came in a little cardboard crate, so that you wouldn't know what it was until you opened it up (SPOILER: it's the fertility idol).
All-in-all, I think this is a very nice action figure. Belloq's outfit is eye-catching, and, other than the limited mobility of his legs, there's little to find fault with here. Even if you don't have any interest in Indiana Jones, Belloq's archaic attire would allow him to blend in with any number of fantasy-orientated toy lines (he'd make a pretty convincing priest or magician/wizard, for example, and I think he'd even work in the Star Wars or Star Trek universes).
To paraphrase Arnold Schwarzenegger, during his portrayal of Major Dutch Shaeffer, from the original Predator film: "You're one ugly mofo, Lobotomaxx!"
On my way out of the thrift store one day, I saw that the cashier was sorting out a box of toys, in between dealing with customers, and I immediately recognized this 1994 Hasbro G.I.JOE Star Brigade: Lunartix Empire Lobotomaxx action figure as it passed through her hands--I thought to myself, "I sure hope that's still here the next time I come in", and, sure enough, it was! The day that I purchased Lobotomaxx, they also had another space monster from the same G.I.JOE: Star Brigade assortment, Carcass, but the staff placed him on the "vintage" shelf and wanted seventy-five cents for him, compared to the quarter I paid for Lobotomaxx, who, unlike his apparently bourgeois cousin, had been relegated to the general toy bin. Now, I wouldn't argue that seventy-five cents was unreasonable, but it's hard to justify spending three times as much for a smaller, and less attractive, creature when you're already holding the much cooler Lobotomaxx in your hand.
Lobotomaxx is an interstellar bounty hunter (methinks someone at Hasbro had probably been watching too much Star Wars when this guy was conceived). According to his file card, he hates humans and other aliens alike, and is just an unpleasant fellow in general. Fortunately for his prey, he's not very smart, due to the loss of the top of his skull, and some of the brain tissue, during a previous battle with another one of the G.I.JOE: Star Brigade alien monsters, namely the four-armed Predacon. Normally, I'd pick on a toy company for stealing that Predacon name from Transformers, but, as that's also one of Hasbro's intellectual properties, they're entitled to do just that!
The alien creature's weird physiology is delightfully grotesque. If Cobra's colorful assortment of Vipers aren't flamboyant enough for you, Lobotomaxx should do the trick! I'm guessing that the designer(s) was mainly shooting for a reptilian look, but he also strikes me as somewhat plant-like. The legs, that bisect at the knees to become four feet, are cool, but my favorite aspect of his design are the extra pair of eyes, midway down his neck, which, strangely, the backer card's artwork omits.
Lobotomaxx originally came with a slew of accessories, all made from bright yellow plastic, but, as usual, I don't have any of them. These included five different guns, a knife, and a display stand. Brand new, all seven of those items came molded onto a plastic "tree", so you had to twist, or cut, them free. One of the neat aspects of Lobotomaxx's design is that his tail has a "hand" at the end, so he can wield three weapons at once!
Lobotomaxx's articulation is similar to most vintage Real American Hero G.I.JOEs, but, given his unusual anatomy, there are some differences. First, and most importantly, both his neck and tail are bendable, thanks to an internal wire armature. The rubbery plastic is pretty thick and stiff though, so they're not as flexible as you might expect. He's also got swiveling pin joint knees and V-cut rotating hips, instead of the usual ball joints, which I found disappointing, as they're not nearly as mobile as a normal JOE's hips, and the alien also lacks the standard O-ring waist (which, if I had to hazard a guess, is because the wire armature runs down the neck, through the body, and then out again into the tail). Lobotomaxx's arms are more typical in design, with pin-and-disc ball-jointed shoulders, cut biceps, and pin elbows. I can understand some compromises had to be made for this new body type, but, if I had my choice, I would have nixed the bendy nature of the neck and tail, given them simple cut joints where they join the body instead, and kept the ball-jointed hips and O-ring waist. Lobotomaxx doesn't have a hole in his back for backpack attachment either, but, because he has four feet, he does have a quartet of foot peg holes, double the usual two, for whatever that's worth. Obviously his dimensions will vary, depending on how you have that long neck and tail bent, but I measured him at roughly 10.0 cm (3.9") wide and 12.0 cm (4.7") tall, a size that makes him appropriately intimidating compared to the normal 9.7 cm (3.8") tall G.I.JOE figures.
I'm of two minds on Lobotomaxx. On the one hand, he's a really neat-looking creature with fun alien anatomy, while, on the other, he's an example of a G.I.JOE toy that's just too far out there to really fit in properly. Don't get me wrong, a touch of fantasy is part of G.I.JOE's appeal, but it's also possible to take things too far, and space monsters, just like the mutant denizens of Cobra-La, steps way over that imaginary line in my opinion. I guess what I'm trying to say is that, while I really like the toy from a visual standpoint, I just can't see Lobotomaxx associating with, or even fighting, the rest of my "normal" G.I.JOE and Cobra figures in any kind of believable way. To me, if you're going to do that, you might as well just throw Skeletor, Optimus Prime, and Papa Smurf into the mix too, because all bets are off.
You can only wish that you had a tree house this cool when you were a kid!
This is the 2011(?) Sega Toys/Spin Master Zoobles! Razoo's Treehouse Happitat (Happy + Habitat) playset environment. While it looked fairly complete to me in the store, I later found out that it's missing a fair amount of stuff, which is the primary reason that I'm often hesitant to invest in playsets--unless I'm already familiar with the item (having previously owned it when I was a child for example), it's often tricky for me to assess what parts, if any, are absent just by looking at it. However, I was fortunate enough to acquire the Razoo figure at an earlier date, and, to tell you the truth, I had no idea that toy originally even came with a playset until I researched this Treehouse after purchasing it. It's funny how things just work out like that sometimes.
I had been looking to pick up a Happitat environment for my Zoobles! figures for a while. I almost bought a smaller, fifty cents one several months ago, which was also shaped like a tree, but that item was very basic (it didn't have any action features beyond magnetic hot spots) and only had room for a couple of figures, as such, I decided to take a pass on that one. This Treehouse is much more elaborate and nicer looking, so my patience paid off in the long run.
Razoo's Treehouse has all sorts of interesting molded shapes and textures, and the overall organic theme is cohesive, but nearly everything is cast entirely from different colored plastics--there are almost no painted details (just some purple flowers on the green base). I particularly like the material that was used to make the leaves--it's translucent green, with embedded flecks of glitter, which looks pretty neat. The reflective mirror and two floral decals are the only other decorative embellishments.
The Treehouse measures 22.7 cm (8.9") tall, 42.0 cm (16.5") wide, and 15.4 cm (6.1") deep. Maybe I'm not doing it right, but the playset sort of folds up, and yet it doesn't. The right side rotates inwards fine, with the leaves clipping onto the purple railing on the center platform, so that it stays in place, but the left side of the environment doesn't lie flush with the main structure regardless of whether you rotate it forwards or backwards (from the design, I'm guessing that it's supposed to fold behind the main structure). There is a stress mark in the lilac plastic arch that connects the left section to the center structure, so maybe it's out of alignment and that's the problem.
The right side of the playset lacks any action features, other than a magnetic hot spot on the purple flower platform. However, I'm missing the little yellow and blue hut, that would have attached to the pivot point down at the right corner of the tree's trunk, as well as a smaller purple seat/sling thing that would hang down from the tree foliage, as such, if you do have a complete sample, this area of the playset would doubtlessly be a lot more entertaining and interactive than what you see pictured here.
Predictably, the large central structure is where most of the fun is to be had. Up at the top, amidst the foliage, there's a purple leaf cradle that can be tipped over to send its Zooble occupant, in spherical form, tumbling along the fuchsia slide, down to the second floor. Now, mine is missing it, but there's supposed to be a purple pivoting barrier that would direct the ball either onto the second floor landing itself, or, alternatively, into the yellow spiraling leaf elevator, depending on how you have it positioned. For the moment, let's say you want your Zooble to land on the platform. When it does, a magnetic hot spot will cause it to transform into animal shape, and, at the same time, activate the pop-up mirror. In actual practice, it's kind of hit-or-miss though, as sometimes the Zooble won't get good contact with the magnet and will just roll off the hot spot, or, it'll transform, but the mirror won't pop up.
Next, let's choose the other path, and direct the Zooble to land in the yellow leaf elevator. When, and if, they do (the ball sometimes overshoots and goes flying right off the playset altogether!) the elevator will automatically release, spinning around-and-around at is descends down to the first floor. At ground level, you can then push the adjacent cylindrical green button, and that will cause a small purple flower to erupt from the ground, directly beneath your Zooble, which will launch it up out of the leaf, into the air, and to the left, where it will hopefully land on the purple stump spinner, and that surface, being magnetic, will cause the animal to transform, and, simultaneously, having been previously wound like a spring, the stump will start revolving around like mad, giving the rider the time of their life! Again, this is a little hit-or-miss, as sometimes the Zooble won't make good magnetic contact, or will over-or-under shoot the target altogether, but, when it does work, it's pretty cool. And, when you can get all four steps to execute properly, one after another (slide » elevator » launcher » spinner), it's great fun to watch and reminds me a lot of the old Mousetrap board game.
The left section of the playset, while still sporting tree elements, has a lot of rock-like formations. Turning the pink flower, on the side of the aquamarine structure, causes the circular, spring-powered platform to rotate downwards, dumping any Zooble unfortunate enough to be sitting on it into the hole below (the whole affair reminds me of flushing a toilet). I don't have it, but a complete sample would include a purple angled ramp that could be placed in front of that cave opening, which would presumably result in the dumped Zooble rolling off of it and launching into the air, ideally landing onto a magnetic hot spot which would then cause is to transform.
In addition to the things that I've already mentioned above, my sample is also missing a purple tree stump table, with two attached green leaf seats, a bonfire, a basket with fruit inside, and several food items and utensils (a cup, ice cream cone, two slices of pizza or pie, a plate, a leaf spoon/ladle, and what appears to be a pile of chocolate-chip cookies). One photo I looked at online also seemed to show some kind of creature poking its head out of the hole in the trunk of the central tree (I checked, but the Zoobles themselves, at least the ones that I have, don't fit in that cavity). I won't hold my breath, but it's possible I might find some of that absent stuff in the future during one of my thrift store toy hunts. If I could only have one of the items that I'm missing, I'd definitely go with the hut that attaches to the right side of the playset, as that's the largest of the elements that I lack.
Razoo is Zooble #38 and lives in the Azoozia region of Zooble Isle. That's a tropical area, which is certainly well-represented by the creature's Treehouse Happitat. I almost reviewed this Razoo figure in a past volume of Toy Talk, but now I'm glad that I never did, as it's obviously much better to cover the critter simultaneously with the playset that it originally came with. Speaking of which, real koalas spend a lot of time up in the branches, so Spin Master's decision to make Razoo the pack-in figure for the Treehouse makes perfect sense to me.
Like all Zoobles! Razoo instantly transforms from spherical form to animal shape whenever its base makes contact with a magnetic surface (Zoobles! are the "girls" version of Spin Master's popular "boys" Bakugan toys). In addition to the usual ears and legs, Razoo has a little pop-out left arm too, with the hand giving a "thumbs-up" signal. "Petting" Razoo's head lightly, causes its noggin to bob up-and-down, and the eyes to blink, which is cute. In these close-up photos, I noticed that Razoo has some sticker residue that I never got around to cleaning off, and for that I apologize (I'm usually pretty good about cleaning up my thrift store finds when I get home with them). In koala form, Razoo is 6.5 cm (2.6") wide and 4.6 cm (1.8") tall, and, in sphere shape, the animal has a 3.2 cm (1.3") diameter.
The missing pieces are a downer, but, even as-is, Razoo's Treehouse Happitat is still a cool-looking environment with a fair amount of stuff to see and do, and, for the price I paid, not a bad value (I saw this item, brand new, for sale at Amazon for $45). I particularly like the Mousetrap-esque tree slide, revolving leaf elevator, flower launcher, and stump spinner combo (when I can get them all to work properly, one after another, that is!) I should probably get some more Zoobles! figures too, as the four I have aren't quite enough to adequately populate this forest retreat. Lately, the thrift store has mostly only had the McDonald's ones though, but those lack magnets (their transformations are button activated) and they're larger than the "real" Zoobles! figures; that being the case, they probably wouldn't work that well with this item.
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