Jurassic Park - LEX MURPHY!

Jurassic World: Legacy Collection - Kitchen Encounter Pack - Mattel 2022

When you watch Jurassic Park, it's easy to focus completely on the dinosaurs. But I was surprised to recently learn that there is only 15 minutes of dinosaur time in the entire movie. What makes the movie so engaging are the human characters. And when you think about those really iconic scenes like the raptors fogging up the glass, the Brachiosaur eating the tree, or the water rippling as the Tyrannosaur approaches, the young characters Lex and Tim are right in the middle of the action. That's why it is so surprising that we haven't seen these two characters in toy form until recently. Tim was released in a big set last year, but Lex just appeared for the first time last month - that's 29 years after the movie hit. On a side note, Ariana Richards plays the lead love interest in Angus, one of my favorite movies from my high school years, so I will always be a fan. The actor likenesses at this scale are never spot-on, but I think this figure captures the spirit of Lex well. Let's check out this long-awaited figure below!

Tom & Jerry - TOOTS!

Tom & Jerry the Movie - Friends & Foes 4-Pack - Toots -Moose Toys 2020

Tom & Jerry has a very nostalgic place in my heart. It's not necessarily because of the cartoon either. Sure, the episodes were perpetually on TV and I watched my fair share as a child, but my stronger connection comes from one of my first collecting hobbies, PEZ dispensers. I started collecting PEZ dispensers when I was a little kid in the late 80s. The rush of collecting was incredible, because they cost 75 cents and they were everywhere. And with no internet or news sources, everything was a surprise. You'd walk into the drug store and find the Flintstones, then go to the supermarket and find the Smurfs, even the arcades and stationary stores would carry them. It was heaven. Eventually I got a PEZ book and discovered that PEZ USA had different dispensers from the rest of the world (PEZ Int'l). And the current popular line just North of me in Canada was MGM characters like Tom & Jerry, Droopy Dog, etc. It took me years to get them and they are burned into my psyche as rare and desirable characters.

The Women of INDIANA JONES!

Marion Ravenwood, Willie Scott, Elsa Schneider, and Irina Spalko - Hasbro 2008

The fourth movie in the Indiana Jones series, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, was pretty much a dud.  I personally loved it, but the box office numbers and diehard fans didn't share my appreciation.  One positive thing that definitely arose from that film, though, was a major resurgence of Indiana Jones merchandise in the toy aisles.  In one short year we received figures based on each film in the series (and in multiple formats, too!)  Just like the famed "Bond Girls," the women in the Indiana Jones films are really integral parts of the plot.  Whether they play a vile villain, a tough ally, a devious double-crosser, or a typical damsel in distress, each character is very memorable and really set the tone for each movie.  It was hard for me to get on board with collecting these figures when they were first announced because I knew Hasbro would never produce all four ladies, right?  Wrong.  Each of the ladies received a 3.75" action figure as well as a 2" figure in their Adventure Heroes line (not to mention all the Lego minifigures produced).  Let's take a look at all these amazing figures below!