Funko POP Constantine DC Super Heroes 255 (Free Comic Book Day Edition)

If you've read my posts for a while, you'll know that I'm an avid collector of all things Hellblazer.  So when Hellblazer main character John Constantine started showing up in both the TV series Legends of Tomorrow and in the DC Animated Universe, I naturally readied myself for a stream of new merchandise.  And while there's certainly been some (as my archives can attest), there hadn't been a Funko figure until just a couple of months ago.

It was much to my irritation that the figure ended up being released as a limited run edition of 20,000 (sold in comic shops on Free Comic Book Day, 4 May, 2019), because while I'm happy with my one Pop of Constantine, with a minor paint job, the design would also be perfect as Pete Wisdom (a Marvel Comics character with a similar style but with black hair and coat).  And while I'd be happy to customize a regular release, the idea of paying extra for a limited run figure just to turn it into something else just isn't something I'm comfortable doing.

But either way, let's take a look at this one!

Retro Week: Happy Valentine's Day from Tenderheart Bear

Since I've done the traditional collage of action figure couples and doll couples in years past, I thought that this year I would mix it up by sharing a 1980's Care Bear (in both his plush and figure forms) who is covered in hearts!

SooSoo Toys Paranormal Detective (John Constantine by another name)

Being unboxed today is a non-licensed (but clearly brand-inspired) figure from SooSoo Toys. SooSoo Toys produces 1/6th scale multi-jointed action figures (the same scale as both the similar style Hot Toys figures and standard Barbies). Their bodies general have between 15 and 17 points of articulation, generally come with multi-piece fabric outfits, and retail in the range of $130-$160 USD.

The figure I bought is named "Paranormal Detective" but is clearly meant to be the DC Comics character John Constantine.  The box art and head sculpt are very clearly designed to resemble Matt Ryan, the actor who plays the character on the TV series "Legends of Tomorrow" (and who played him in the short-lived series "Constantine" and who voices the same character in the animated films "Justice League Dark" and "Constantine: City of Demons"). If you've followed the blog for a while you'll know that I'm always drawn to Hellblazer/Constantine collectibles.

DC Comics Bombshells The Batwoman from Funko's Rock Candy line

Being unboxed today is the final figure that I mentioned in my "incoming toys of 2018" summary, A vinyl figurine of Batwoman (in her DC Bombshells form) from Funko's Rock Candy line.

The Rock Candy line is a series of 5 inch/13cm character figures which are more detailed and more proportional when compared to the Funko Pop line. T line was originally dedicated exclusively to female characters (at launch the tagline was "“the most powerful women around" and consisted of superheroine and Barbie characters). The line has since expanded and some recent releases in the line have been male. Each single-piece figure comes with a clear circular stand.

I mentioned the DC Bombshells version of the DC Universe characters when I reviewed my Tonner Batwoman Doll, but for those who are unfamiliar with the sub-brand, these are essentially 1940s-style pinup versions of the characters.

The figures are generally offered for sale at prices between $10 and $15 USD.

Let's take a closer look!

Season's Greetings!

Wishing all the best to you during the 2018 holiday season! 🎄

The vintage wind-up toys are celebrating with one of Santa's elves. 

Out of the Box: Kotobukiya ArtFX Star Wars Poe Dameron & BB-8

Up for today's unboxing is the two figurine set of Star Wars' Poe Dameron and BB-8 from Kotobukiya's ArtFX line.  I've had mixed experiences with Kotobukiya's figurines. I loved the single-piece figure of Tali from Mass Effect from their Bishoujo line but was disappointed by the assembly-required Hawkeye from their Marvel Now line which fell apart within hours of opening it.

I've been cautiously enthusiastic about the Star Wars line: the amount of detail on this figures is impressive, but the fact that they have the same multi-piece construction and magnetic base as my Hawkeye figure worried me.  But then a sale + a gift card overruled my caution and I brought this one home.

The PVC figures are 1/10 scale and are labelled as a "model kit" rather than as a statue or figurine, which I found interesting.  While the Poe figure does require assembly, BB-8's head and body are held together via magnet, which worries me (I can imagine it falling off and getting lost easily).

2017 in Review

Happy New Year! It might be a little late for that, but since it's still January I feel like I can still sneak it in.😉

I'd gotten out of the habit of blogging regularly last year, but I'm hoping to get back into the routine of posting at least twice a month for 2018.  I'm already getting off to a slow start since the month is already half over, but hey - better late than never, right?

As with 2016, I'd planned to spend 2017 streamlining my collection. And while I did buy fewer dolls and figures overall, I also only sold three dolls (and zero action figures) over the course of the entire year (down from the 18 figures and three dolls that I sold in 2016).  But enough about the numbers, let's take a look at the toys who entered and exited over the year!

Photos after the cut:

Out of the box: Funko's X-Men Mystery Mini Professor X

Back in April I picked up one of the little Funko mystery boxes from their X-men line. I photographed the unboxing and promptly forgot about both the figure and the photos. But now that they've turned up, how about a quick photo post (a final photo set from my old back garden too)?

Unlike some of the other franchise mystery minis that Funko has produced, the X-Men figures are extremely simple. Since I'd picked up one of the much more detailed Fallout figures immediately prior to this one I was disappointed with it, but for anyone who appreciates a more stylized figure this might well be a winner.

As is standard for Funko's Marvel-license products, this figure is a bobble head. And as with most of these style of figures, that wobbling head is the only point of articulation.

Discount Shopping Adventures, May 2017

It's been a while since I checked out the local discount chains (in this case Tuesday Morning and Big Lots), so last week I decided to pay them a visit.  I took some photos of the toy aisle offerings and thought I'd share them with you guys!

Doll shelf at Tuesday Morning: Fashion dolls and play doll outfits.

A Random Kristoff Sighting

While I was walking the dog yesterday, I came across a random mini figure of Frozen's Kristoff lying along the road in two pieces.  Naturally I took a photo, so now we have a sequel to The Lonely Doll Shoe and The Random Green Army Man.

I left him where he was in the hopes that whatever child dropped him might come back and take him home.

Yet Another John Constantine Mini-Figure

I was reading comic book reviews when I noticed a mention that an animated film version of Justice League Dark had been produced. Being a bit of a fan of the comics, I went to check it out - and discovered that the deluxe edition came with a vinyl figure of John Constantine. So of course I bought that one. Let's take a look!

2016 in Review

January already! Even allowing that I was away from home for three months at the end of the year, I still can't believe how quickly 2016 seems to have flown by!

Since we're now into the first week of 2017, it seemed like a good time to look back on the dolls and figures that entered and exited the posse.

The biggest group of arrivals came over the summer, when I went on a bit of a playline-size buying frenzy:

Ellowyne Wilde Cinnamon, Capratina Diya, Wellie Wishers Aslyn,
H4H Surjan (the lone older purchase), Corelle Cecile, and Las Amigas Carol

Retro Week: ToyBiz Psylocke in the Snow

Betsy, waist-deep in snow.

I've been saying that I'd get around to doing a few retro week posts for a couple of months now, but it took being snowed in to get to it!  Out of the basement today is Psylocke from ToyBiz's X-men Classics with Light-Up Weapon series from the 90s.  Amazingly, her batteries aren't dead!

It's all photos from here!

The Canadian Tire Wow Catalogue's Toy Section

It's been ages since I've posted now - I'm still staying with my mother as she's recovering from surgery (and thanks to everyone who sent her well-wishes! :)) - I did manage to fit in a holiday in during November (which will soon be highlighted over on Project Evil Bunny), but instead of going home, I cam back to Toronto. And since I'm here, I thought it might be fun to share the toy pages from the annual Canadian Tire Wow Catalogue (90% of which isn't toys, so just a few photos here).  So here they are!

The Front page

A Quick Update

I haven't posted for a month so I thought I'd pop in quickly to say a quick hello. I've been out of town (my mother had surgery last month and I've been staying with her as she recovers), so I haven't had time to post with my usual frequency - and that's aside from the fact that my collection is back home!  I have been trying to keep up with everyone's new posts, although I haven't been able to comment as much as I'd like.

While I'm here, I thought I'd show two new additions of mine. The first are some fast food toys: the McDonald's Happy Meal Toys of the month include figures of the DC Super Hero Girls, and I've picked up two of them, Supergirl and Bumblebee.

Bumblebee and Supergirl: They're not as detailed as the standard figures,
but by fast food toy standards, they're decent.

And then just the other day my mother surprised me with a gift: the new limited run Hudson's Bay Company Barbie!

HBC Barbie. I'm not usually an in-box collector, but I love this
packaging so much that I haven't been able to bring myself to
unbox her yet!

The back of the box.

I probably won't be back to posting regularly until November, but hopefully I'll have the opportunity to squeeze in a retro week post or two.  I hope October is treating you all well! :)

Upcoming posts for August 2016

ME Minimates, SDCC Monster High, Carpatina Diya

August has been a rainy month here, so I haven't been able to take many photos, and that's translated into my not posting very much lately. I wanted to make a quick post to say hello though, and I do have three new arrivals coming soon, and hopefully the weather will give me a chance to share them.  The three in question are the Series 2 Mass Effect Minimates (which were available as a set this time versus the old blind bags), Monster High's SDCC exclusive Hexiciah Steam (I won't be getting Robecca as I'm splitting the set with someone else), and the newest Carpatina doll, Diya.

Hope your summer (or winter for the southerners) has been fabulous, and if you're following the Olympics, I hope your favourites have been doing well!

Random Toy of the Day: Batgirl (DC Super Hero Girls)

Since I've already reviewed the Bumblebee figure from this line, I don't have much to say about Batgirl here, but I did want to share a photo of her today.

Batgirl reads Batgirl.

Hard to believe that it's August already - I hope you're all having a good summer (or winter, for the folks in the southern hemisphere)!

Random Toys of the Day: Heroclix Midnighter, Apollo and Jenny Quantum

Apollo, Jenny Quantum, Midnighter

A while ago I realized that I've never shared any photos of my Heroclix game pieces outside of a few background appears in size comparison shots, so I thought I'd start to remedy that and take a few of them outside from some photo time.  They're fairly straightforward, so I won't do a full review, but I still wanted to give them some attention.

Heroclix figures are usually around 3cm in height, making them between 1/43 and 1/45 scale (also known as model railroad scale). The game that these pieces are used in is a grid-based board game - there are hundreds of game pieces available from dozens of different franchises. While I'm not a board game person, the variety of character figures that are available means that I have picked up several none-the-less.

Out of the Box: Titan Vinyl's Mass Effect Mystery Minis

L-R: Wrex, Kaidan, Liara

A year after unboxing Titan's Dragon Age Mystery Minis,  I'm looking at some Titan minis from another Bioware franchise, Mass Effect.  The figures I'll be looking this time are my favourites from the original game: Liara, Wrex and Kaidan (although he's called "Kaiden" on the packaging).

Having learned from all the duplicates in my Game of Thrones blind box collection (all of which have now been sold, luckily), I decided to trade the element of surprise for the certainty of character and picked up these three pre-opened on eBay.

The Random Green Army Man

In what could be a sequel to The Lonely Doll Shoe, on today's morning dog walk we had another surprise toy encounter: this time a green plastic army man figure standing atop the dog bag dispenser.

The army man on his throne.

I wondered how he got here. Did a child leave him behind on the ground where he was discovered and then put on top of the box so that if the owner returned they'd find him more easily? Was some other toy blogger doing a photoshoot and accidentally left one of their subjects behind? Is he part of someone's scavenger hunt? Was there an artist hiding in the bushes taking photos of the people who stopped to look at him?