Mattel ComiCon Exclusives Edition

Game Reviews - E3 2011 - AOTS Exclusive

So Mattel has unveiled their ComiCon exclusives for this year. The above clip showcases some of the bigger name items. I like the massive movie version of Kilowog from Green Lantern, but since I don't plan on buying any other GL movie figures and I already have the comic version of Kilowog... PASS!

The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man seems really neat and CHECK OUT that amazing diorama! But I'm not that into Ghostbusters, so PASS!








Not a Voltron Fan, although I'm glad to see a Voltron figure that looks like the cartoon. The movie version is going to look all shitty and busted like the movie Transformers, where you can't tell who's who or who's good and who's evil, because they all just look like walking wreckage. Plus... the Voltron movie is set on EARTH! Um, have fun with that.



The big DC Universe Classics exclusive is Swamp Thing, a character who was off-limits to Mattel before, because Swamp Thing was technically a Vertigo character, belonging to their mature readers imprint. But they just re-introduced him into the DC Universe proper. It's a nicely made figure. The endo-skeleton joints are truly innovative. But I just plain don't want a Swamp Thing figure. If he were a mass-market figure, I'd pass, just like I have with Jonah Hex and The Metal Men. Just characters, I don't really care for and have no need to own, ESPECIALLY at inflated eBay prices.

They didn't mention this. It's a Back To The Future "secret" vehicle... um, is there more than one vehicle in BttF? Also, Mattel, maybe don't label your "secret vehicle" image "Delorean.jpg" Just sayin'.



The He-Fans (yeah, that's really what they're called) are pissed that Queen Marlena and Cringer weren't presented in the Attack of the Show clip. He-Fans are ALWAYS upset about SOMETHING. They're the needy, clingy girlfriend of nerdom. Mattel has continuously said they can't make toys based on the characters as they were depicted on the animated series, only in print materials that Mattel produced in the 80s. Yet... here these two are, looking like they stepped right off the TV screen. Except, I don't recall Marlena (He-Man and She-Ra's mom) ever slingin' a sword or doing anything action-oriented. I swear, all she ever did on the show was sit on that throne. Which, ironically, she can't even do as a toy, as her "dress" is molded rubber that fits over her alternate look, her astronaut suit:
Oh that's right! You forgot about that, didn't you?! Marlena was a human from Earth on the cartoon! She went into space, got sucked through a black hole and wound up on Eternia where she landed King Randor and became a queen! She's like the galactic Kate Middleton! Love the retro bubble helmet!

These are two characters that I think most fans never thought they'd see, the inactive Queen and cowardly Cringer. Fun choices for the fans, but I'm not breakin' my bank for them.

Last year, they did a Polly Pockets set with Polly and her pals dressed as Wonder Woman, Batgirl and Supergirl, which was super cute, but I just never really pursued it. Like it was cute, but obviously not cute enough that I bothered trying to acquire it. Once again, this goes back to the eBay thing. I'd buy it for whatever price they sold it for at the con, but I'm not paying more than that for it. This year, they are offering Polly, et. al. as She-Ra, Catra and fan-fave Frosta. Once again, supremely cute! But like $50 cute? Not so much.

I'd totes get this Frankenberry Hot Wheels car. I love cereal mascots!










This is the lamest exclusive they are offering, a Carol Ferris Barbie from Green Lantern. And I have ALL the DC heroine Barbies, but I don't want this one. LAME! Couldn't they do Barbie AS a Green Lantern? Or Barbie as one of the female Lanterns like Arisia or Boodika? Or better yet, Star Sapphire? Even a Ken as Hal Jordan Lantern would have been nice. This is just... off. Too drab and boring for any fan of Barbie's. Not "super" enough for comic book fans. I just don't know who this is aimed at.


The last DC Universe exclusive, is Superboy from the Young Justice cartoon series, in his Cadmus white suit, in his incubator tube. I'm on the fence about the YJ toy line. I feel like I already collect so much stuff, I don't know that I want to add a whole new line. And plain white suit Superboy just isn't that enticing. If it had been Aqualad, I'd have been all over that. Maybe even Robin, but Superboy is the most unlikeable member of the team, so far and he isn't even drawn as looking all sexy like he is in the comics, so... yeah, PASS!

And so, we come to my one MUST HAVE exclusive, Monster High's Ghoulia Yelps dressed in comic-inspired attire! I actually am ever-so-slightly surprised they didn't do another gray-scale doll like last year's Frankie Stein, which they poorly didn't promote at all, so most fans didn't even know that it was available until after they'd bought their limit of Mattel product! So the SDCC Frankie from last year was going for like $100 on eBay and FUCK THAT! Recently, the price has dropped significantly, because I think most Monster High fans felt the same way I did about it, "$100 for a doll I already have, just in black and white?! Foo' please!" But... dammit, Ghoulia is without a doubt my hands-down FAVE Monster High character and this is a NERDIER version? MUST!! HAVE!!!

Wonder Wednesday 03-31-10

First off, I just realized that Cathy's and my birthdays this year fall on Saturdays, so look out! I'm envisioning something along these lines:

Who's down? Everyone from that video is invited, except Lindsay! Keep your sorry ass far away! Ahem, anyway... on to this week's Wonder Wednesday! Today's feature is Oracle.Whom... you probably know better as Batgirl!Originally, Batgirl was created to spark interest in the waning Batman TV series in 1967.
Yvonne Craig portrayed the high-kicking heroine, roaring into action on her lavender, lace-trimmed Batgirl Cycle. (On the show, all her gizmos were referred to as "Batgirl this" or "Batgirl that" to differentiate them from Batman's devices which were simply "Bat this" or "Bat that." I guess Batgirl's were made out of estrogen or something.) In addition to her defining role as Batgirl, Yvonne Craig also played another 60s icon, the green slave girl on Star Trek:She even had her own theme music! Check it out:

I also distinctly recall seeing this commercial when I was a kid:

In the comics, it was explained that Barbara Gordon, Commissioner Gordon's librarian daughter, had fashioned a feminized version of Batman's costume for a costume gala, but en route, Barbara stumbled upon her father's attempted kidnapping by the villain Killer Moth. Leaping into action, Batgirl saved him and in the process, became smitten with the thrill of crime fighting. She never made it to the costume gala, but instead decided to adopt the Batgirl identity full-time. The Dynamic Duo became the Terrific Trio.Batgirl was an instant star and quickly joined Batman and Robin in a flood of merchandised items.The first Batgirl doll was made by Ideal in 1967 for a line referred to as the "Super Queens" which also included Wonder Woman, Supergirl and surprisingly, Mera, Aquaman's wife. (Maybe not THAT surprisingly, as Mera did appear on Aquaman's Saturday morning cartoon series.) The doll isn't completely accurate. Most notably, she has black hair, rather than red. These dolls were a huge flop. Little girls didn't want super hero dolls and little boys didn't want dolls period. Therefore they are incredibly rare today, selling in the thousands.With Batman in syndication, constantly luring new children into the colorful and exciting world of super heroics (including ME!) Batgirl easily became one of the most famous female heroes in the world. But sadly, the 80s were not kind to the female heroes. Supergirl died and Batgirl was crippled when The Joker shot her, lodging a bullet in her spine.Barbara, now confined to a wheelchair, immersed herself in computer technology and became the super hacker Oracle, supplying Batman and other heroes in the DC Universe with any information they require. Most notably, she operates with Black Canary and other female heroes as the Birds of Prey.
Oracle is easily one of the best-written and developed heroines in all of comics... which is why DC has kept her in that role, despite the fact that Batgirl is far more iconic, especially among non-comic readers. They have attempted to introduce two new Batgirls to fill the role. First, assassin Cassandra Cain:And more recently, Stephanie Brown, the daughter of minor Batman villain Cluemaster.Neither have any hope of ever becoming as popular and iconic as Barbara, though. The new Batwoman was an attempt to at least put a redhead back in a batsuit.But despite her comic being (in my opinion) the BEST comic out there, she's Batwoman, not Batgirl and it's Batgirl that's the icon.

But the fact that technically Barbara Gordon is no longer Batgirl hasn't stopped her from appearing in pretty much ANY series of licensed DC merchandise. Her image has emblazoned dozens of tee shirts and twice now, she's been included as part of Mattel's Barbie line.First she appeared in a sparkly black and blue uniform, reminiscent of the shimmery purple suit that Yvonne Craig wore on TV. This doll was part of a series along with Supergirl and Wonder Woman (and later Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn and Catwoman). This Batgirl was also issued in a boxed set with her Batgirl Cycle, sadly sans lace trim.And more recently, an adult-skewed collector's doll was issued, wearing a black leathery uniform, with metallic gold and black cape. Once more, Wonder Woman and Supergirl appeared in this series, along with Black Canary.

For some reason, Batgirl's uniform seems to be the most diversely interpreted of the heroes. Some see her outfit as being black on black, citing the fact that her cape and cowl are rendered in the same midnight blue as black hair is in comics and her bodysuit is typically colored darker than Batman's. However, others (myself included), see her costume as more literal to the comics, blue on gray. That is how Tonner interpreted it when they issued their recent collector's doll:
Then again, on TV, her suit appears all purple!Originally, it was supposed to be the same color as Batman's cape, but it didn't quite turn out that way, allegedly because the costume designer was colorblind!
So, despite the fact that her career as Batgirl seems to be gone for good in the comics, she still remains one of the most famous and recognizable female heroes outside of comics and that fact doesn't appear to be changing any time soon!

National Women's History Month Edition Part 1

Right on the heels of Black History Month in February, comes National Women's History Month in March. Is it me, or are February and March the two WORST months of the year? They're like the Antarctica of months! Also, will we eventually get months dedicated to every minority? I'm declaring May national Mixed Race Gay History Month. Along those lines, I got my first "What do you want for your birthday?" inquiry last night from David, but when I replied, "An iPad," that didn't seem to be the answer he was hoping for. He was probably assuming I'd ask for like a pot set or something HORRIBLE. Boo practical gifts! BOOOOOO!

OH! But quick aside: I've decided that I will no longer be listing myself as "Mixed Race" or "Biracial" or my favorite, "Other." I have decided that from now on, I will be known as a "Cocktail."

Cheers!

So anyway, in honor of Women's History Month, as with MLK's birthday, I will be writing some blogs to honor some of my favorite females. Unlike the MLK blogs, though, I won't be setting a specific number or doing any sort of countdown. And, as is usually the case, on April 1st, I will think, "Aw dammit! I forgot all about ______!" 'Tis always the case. I also thought this would be a good time to pay tribute to some of the characters that I personally love but maybe don't get the love from others, as I would see fit. And there is no one better to salute first than...Black Canary, a.k.a. Dinah Lance, is significant to me because I feel she has always been this close to being a big name like The Flash, Green Lantern and Green Arrow, but she always seems to just miss the boat. Next to Wonder Woman, she is the longest running solo female super hero, and yet she so rarely gets the glory. But as you will see, she has grazed greatness on numerous occasions.Debuting in 1947's Flash Comics#86, in the Johnny Thunder strip, Black Canary is initially thought to be a villain, only to later reveal that she was a hero working undercover. Very soon after, Johnny Thunder and his strip vanished from the pages of Flash Comics to be replaced by Black Canary!
Her early adventures are the very definition of formulaic. In every adventure, she winds up getting bonked on the head, to awaken, tied up or similarly imperiled. Whereas, Batman had a fully stocked utility belt from which to pull gizmos and gadgets, as you can see, Black Canary wore no belt, so instead, she concealed some sort of gimmick in the clasp of her choker. And wouldn't you know it?! She always managed to pack EXACTLY what she needed, be it a gas pellet or a small razor, in order to escape JUST THAT predicament! So maybe she was also psychic to some degree. In one early adventure, she is also shown to be able to communicate with birds, but she's never done it since, so let's just pretend that didn't happen. Otherwise, she didn't really possess any super powers, other than her quick wit and hand-to-hand fighting ability.
To pour salt on poor Johnny Thunder's wound, not only did she usurp his strip, she also replaced him as a member of comics' first super team, The Justice Society of America!When super heroes went out of vogue, Black Canary "retired" along with her cohorts, only to resurface alongside them when they were revived years later in the pages of the Justice League of America.She continued to make guest-appearances in JLA until 1969, when the creators of the Wonder Woman comic decided to revamp WW, removing her powers and star-spangled costume, making her a plain-clothes, kung-fu kicking spy, a la Emma Peel from the TV show The Avengers. Needing a token female in the Justice League, Black Canary came out of retirement and returned to crime fighting full time.She also suddenly developed an actual super power, her sonic Canary Cry, strong enough to smash through a brick wall! Soon after joining, she began dating Green Arrow, a liberal crusading hero. Embracing modern times, Black Canary became the epitome of a modern, liberated woman. She remained a steadfast part of the team, even after Wonder Woman returned to her super powered state and rejoined.

However, by the early 80s, people started wondering how it was that a heroine who'd debuted in 1947 still seemed so young and vivacious. In Justice League #219, it was revealed that the original Black Canary had retired and later died and that the heroine in the Justice League was actually her daughter.She continued appearing as a member of the Justice League and even starred in her own features from time to time. Her biggest break,came when she appeared as one half of the crime-fighting team the Birds of Prey, working with former Batgirl Barbara Gordon, as the computer ace Oracle.
The Birds of Prey series ran for years and is due to return in the coming months, following a break, during which time Black Canary co-headlined a book with her new husband, Green Arrow and served as the leader of the Justice League.Many "household names" in the world of comics, are such because they managed to appear outside of comic books in other media. Sadly, writer Darrell McNeil stated in one article, that he'd actually prepared a script for the second season of Super Friends which would have teamed Black Canary with Wonder Woman to rescue Lois Lane from a Ghost Ship, but the day before he submitted the script Hanna Barbera cut off submissions! So while Green Arrow and others made the ranks of that animated series, she did not.
However, all was not lost in the late 70s, as Hanna Barbera filmed a two-part live-action version of the Super Friends to air in prime time. Since Wonder Woman was already starring in her own hit TV series, her character was not available for these two shows. As she'd done almost a decade earlier in the comics, Black Canary once again replaced Wonder Woman in the JLA's ranks.Portrayed by an actress listed only as Danuta, this was my first ever exposure to Black Canary and I was captivated by the idea of a new hero I'd never heard of!
Her depiction was very close to the comics, she drove a motorcycle and possessed sonic powers. (She is shown smashing a wall with them in the opening credits.) However, they are altered on the show, as she simply yells really loudly. In one scene, she yells to inform the rest of the heroes of where to rendezvous to catch the super villains. The two-part series, entitled Legends of the Superheroes aired in January of 1979, and is vividly remembered by many adult fans today, despite never again airing. (Ahem, bootlegs, ahem.) In Florida, Sea World featured a water skiing Super Friends-inspired show, which featured not only Black Canary, but Aquaman's wife Mera! I never got to experience this... hell, I'd never even HEARD of it, until Plaid Stallions started amassing a gallery of pics from it!Sadly, that was it for Black Canary in other media for over a decade. The next live action depiction was... kinda on a live-action TV series loosely based on the Birds of Prey comic in 2002. Rachel Skarston played "Dinah." In a later episode, Dinah revealed that her mother had been the super heroine Black Canary, played by Aunt Becky, Lori Laughlin.However, this Black Canary's true name is Carolyn Lance. (In the comics, both mother and daughter are named Dinah.) On this series, the original Black Canary had sonic powers and the younger Dinah possessed some strange psychic ability and never went by a code name. The show only lasted one season.Roughly around the same time, the producers of the Justice League animated series crafted an episode entitled "Legends" which was supposed to guest-star the original Justice Society of America. Unfortunately, due to events in the script, DC Comics would not let the Society appear, so the producers altered the original heroes into alternate versions.
The original Black Canary became Black Siren instead, a very un-liberated heroine, which rankled the feathers of modern heroine Hawkgirl in the episode.Finally, Black Canary proper made her animated debut on Justice League Unlimited in 2004, voiced by Marina Baccarin.More recently, she appeared in the fan-favorite "Mayhem of the Music Meister" episode of Batman: The Brave & The Bold and recently returned in the episode "The Golden Age of Justice" where once again it is explained that she is the daughter of the original Black Canary. (Once again, in a flashback scene, the original BC is shown to have the second's sonic powers.) Grey DeLisle voices Black Canary on this series.
And finally, a new live-action Black Canary appeared in a semi-regular role on Smallville, portrayed by Alaina Huffman.
Perhaps most significantly, Black Canary was immortalized in Mattel's recent line of Barbies dressed as the heroines of the DC Universe. This doll made headlines when ignorant parents protested this high-end collectible doll, thinking it was a child-aimed dominatrix doll. Parents who join parents' groups are stupid! Who buys a kid a $50 doll? If you do, you deserve it if she winds up working on a pole.
So, while she may not be a household name yet, she's come a long way... and it's long overdue, in my opinion!