Debs – Page 13 – Vintage Action Figures

Thunderbirds are go! It’s their evil nemesis The Hood!

Every great cult television show – and naturally, tie-in toy line – needs a dastardly foe who will try his utmost to ruin the plans of the good guys and prevent the heroes of the show from stealing the limelight through their daring deeds. Last time we looked at Captain Troy Tempest, the handsome hero from Stingray, so I thought it might be fun to follow that up with a villain from another absolute classic Gerry and Sylvia Anderson marionette TV show – The Hood from Thunderbirds.

Thunderbirds, alongside the two feature length marionette movies Thunderbirds Are Go and Thunderbird 6, is quite possibly the most popular of all the Supermarionation shows, even inspiring a live action feature film in 2004.

Captain Troy Tempest from Stingray by Matchbox

Stand by for action! It’s Captain Troy Tempest from Stingray!

As promised in my last post, here’s another vintage action figure found at a flea market on my recent trip back to the UK, and like the Doctor Who collectible featured last time, this is a piece of UK television memorabilia from another cult show – Captain Troy Tempest, James Garner lookalike and the dashing hero of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s marionette masterpiece Stingray. The voice actors may have all been American – a ploy to ease overseas sales of the show – but the rest of the production was entirely British.

Set in the year 2065 at the headquarters of the World Aquanaut Security Patrol (WASP) in Marineville, the ‘Stingray’ of the title was actually a state of the art submarine piloted by none other than our Troy here. First transmitted on ITV way back in 1964 and 1965, it may be hard for the younger generation of kids who have known nothing but CGI, to really appreciate the impact of those shows.

Delete! Delete! Delete! Armed Cyberman from Doctor Who

After a couple of weeks in the UK visiting friends and family and I have just returned to Rome with a fresh hoard of flea market and thrift store vintage action figure finds! By pure chance, on this trip to Blighty I also happened upon some quintessentially British action figures too, which I’ll share over the next few blog posts.

When the BBC revamped their cult sci-fi classic Doctor Who show in 2005 with producer and writer Russell T Davies at the helm, the series – along with spin-offs Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures – was filmed on location in and around Cardiff. I was staying with my sister just outside the Welsh capital city for much of my visit, so was extra delighted to score this fabulous 12-inch Cyberman action figure in the spiritual home of Doctor Who!

Web Climbing Spider-Man from Spider-Man 2 movie

Web Climbing Spidey from Spider-Man 2

One of the action figure previews to generate a major buzz and lengthy blog posts all over the Internet during the recent San Diego Comic-Con was the all new Hasbro Spider-Man with sparkly metallic finishes. It will be released to coincide with the 2012 reboot of the Spider-Man movie franchise – The Amazing Spider-Man – which sees the very talented Andrew Garfield with the unenviable task of taking over a role that Tobey Maguire played so nerdily well in the Sam Raimi trilogy. In my book, however, there’s simply no such thing as too many Spider-Man movies, or action figures for that matter, so until the Garfield figure hits store shelves, here’s a look at some official movie merchandise by Toy Biz from the 2004 Spider-Man 2 movie – the Web Climbing Spider-Man.

Cap-Firing RoboCop by Kenner!

When an uber-violent hit movie garners an adult-only viewers certificate as well as its cult following, it would be reasonable to assume that toy makers looking to score with a tie-in action figure or toy line targeted at kids would be facing a problem – R-rated action figures?! When RoboCop hit the big screen in 1987 and went on to become both a critical and commercial success it was nevertheless accompanied by a successful merchandising campaign aimed at kids way too young to have seen the movie!

Farewell to Harry Potter…! Expecto Patronum Deluxe Action Figure

Whilst fans have been gathering for days in London’s Trafalgar Square to see the stars of the final Harry Potter movie Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows:Part 2 walk up the red carpet for the film’s premiere, I thought it might be fun to take a look back at a Mattel action figure release from 2004 – the Expecto Patronum Harry Potter issued as part of the Deluxe Wizard Collection.

8 inches tall and solidly built, this figure was part of the final action figure set to be released by Mattel before NECA took over the franchise. It was also one of the first Harry figures to depict an older Daniel Radcliffe and Mattel did an excellent job of creating a movie-likeness of the actor as he appeared in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, with enormous attention to every last detail – even the soles of his shoes have carefully detailed tread.

Jack the Daredevil Sport Plane Pilot from the Fisher-Price Adventure People

If vintage action figures and toys can indeed be viewed as part of the cultural record of earlier decades, then for me personally, no figures scream “1970s” louder than those wonderful Fisher-Price Adventure People! Available for about a decade from 1975 onwards, more than 70 different figures were eventually released – mostly, but not exclusively, male figures sporting stylish flared trousers, like this very early Jack the Pilot here, date stamped 1974. These solidly built 3¾ inch figures were aimed at encouraging kids’ interest in exciting jobs and played on the intrinsic glamour of adventurous or dangerous occupations – years before Village People took YMCA to the top of the charts the Fisher-Price Adventure People already had a Construction Worker, Biker, Cowboy and Policeman on the team!

Captain America by Sideshow Collectibles and Hot Toys

Chris Evans as Captain America by Hot Toys!

Well, it looks like Hot Toys and Sideshow Collectibles have done it again folks…just when you thought their movie likenesses couldn’t get any better, they have upped the ante once more with a brand new and highly collectible Captain America 12-inch action figure specially crafted on the image of Chris Evans as he appears in this summer’s hotly anticipated Marvel Comics blockbuster Captain America: The First Avenger movie. Whether you specialise in vintage action figures or modern collectibles, this post is dedicated to a must-have item for all Captain America fans!