The Muppet Show: Miss Piggy action figure review by Andrew Lenahan

The Muppet Show: Miss Piggy action figure review by Andrew Lenahan

Figure: Miss Piggy and Miss Piggy - Electronics Boutique exclusive hair-down variant (AKA Glamour Piggy)
Property: The Muppet Show
Series: 1 (25th anniversary)
Keywords: Miss Piggy, Muppets, The Muppet Show, Jim Henson, Frank Oz, The Muppet Movie, The Muppets Take Manhattan, The Great Muppet Caper, Muppet Treasure Island, Muppets From Space
Company: Palisades Toys
Release year: 2002

Series Overview:
Originally released to coincide with The Muppet Show's 25th anniversary, Palisades Muppets series are among the most ambitious action figure lines of the modern era. With plenty of variants and exclusives to keep collectors happy, and generally awesome sculpts and accessories galore, this will likely be remembered as one of the truly great toy lines.

Character Overview:
Miss Piggy is the sort of character who you either like or find incredibly annoying. Of course, the same could probably be said for any Muppet, or even for Muppets in general. She's the second best-known Muppet besides her unrequited love interest Kermit the Frog.

Action Figure Sculpt and Paint: 7.5
Though certainly not a bad sculpt by any means, Miss Piggy came out before Palisades' Muppets had fully hit their stride. Instead of the textured skin seen on later releases, Miss Piggy has smooth skin which doesn't look as Muppet-y. Her head looks huge in proportion with her body, which in turn seems rather thin. She does have some nice details, such as a set of pearls, a ring, and a thin line of eye shadow. The normal Miss Piggy comes dressed in blue with her hair up, while the variant version comes with her hair down (as seen more often in the show) and a blue dress.

Articulation: 7
Miss Piggy may have been known for her kung-fu prowess on the show, but her action figure can barely stand properly without its base or other support. She does have nine points of articulation, though: neck, shoulders, bicep (top of gloves), right elbow, waist, and hips.

Accessories: 9
Palisades Muppets figures have some of the best accessories in the business. Miss Piggy's main accessory is a very large vanity table with mirror... it's taller than she is! It truly is a wonderful accessory, with decorative finials on the ends of the mirror supports and front legs. It even moves... in two different ways! The mirror swivels, and the drawer on the front actually works! She also has a little handheld mirror with a "P" monogram on the back. Finally, she comes with a black base. The variant Piggy also has a feather boa made with real feathers! Also, the variant has different colorations of the table and mirror accessories.

Packaging: Average
The first series had standard cardboard & bubble packaging. This would improve with later series.

Overall score: 8
A good figure with great accessories, Miss Piggy was a strong sign of the good things that were to come from this legendary toy line. If you have a choice, I recommend the variant Piggy, with better hair and one extra accessory.

Availability:
At this point it is unlikely that many early Muppets can still be found in stores. Try eBay.

Mum and Mollie the kitten

Madeline and I are in Pennsylvania again this weekend, and this time we've come bearing gifts. As a special Mother's Day surprise, we brought one of Ann's new kittens for Mum, who obviously needed one. The one we picked out was a sweet little girl with a tortoise-shell coat. She's beautiful.

I'm pretty sure it was love at first sight, and Mum chose the name Mollie (not to be confused with Molly, the wood shed kitten from 2002). She picked out that name in a bit of inspiration after looking at a Mollie Katzen cookbook. Mollie is a sweet little kitten who loves to cuddle. I hope they'll be happy together for many years to come...

Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith: Darth Vader's Medical Droid AKA Chopper Droid action figure review by Andrew Lenahan

Figure: Darth Vader's Medical Droid AKA Chopper Droid
Property: Star Wars
Series: Revenge of the Sith (Episode III)
Number: III-37
Keywords: Droid, Medical Droid, Darth Vader, Sith
Company: Hasbro
Release year: 2005

Series Overview:
After a small four-figure preview set, the Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith action figure line was expanded in April 2005 with many more figures. A departure from the simpler retro feel of the previous series, the Sith line features cutting-edge packaging and an emphasis on playability, accessories, and action features.

Character Overview:
Also available in LEGO form, this droid performs the necessary cutting to change the wounded Anakin Skywalker into Darth Vader. Oh, come on, it's not exactly like some big secret.

Action Figure Sculpt and Paint: 8
I've always really enjoyed Star Wars droids, not because they're cool and sleek, but because they're clunky and functional. Somehow, something like a Power Droid, a boxy, slow-witted walking battery, seems much more realistic than Optimus Prime or Star Trek: The Next Generation's Data the android. A power droid or Vader's medical droid seems only just beyond the reach of current science, which is why they seem so fascinating. This droid is definitely more function than form, being basically a tripod with some machinery on top. As figures go, it's certainly a challenging sculpt, and I don't envy whoever was charged with the task of transforming this thing into action-figure form. They did a good job though, with plenty of detail both in the sculpt and paint. There are tubes, wires, and lights aplenty, plus little tanks of colourful unidentified substances. One thing I noticed is that the eyes seem much brighter orange on the photo than on the figure, where they're dark red.

Articulation: 8
Darth Vader's medical droid has a turning head, and bends at the shoulders, elbows, waist, and all three hips. This is much better articulation than most droids get, and any more would probably have just made it harder to stand up. Speaking of that, he stands easily if the legs are at a reasonable angle.

Accessories: 5
The good doctor loses some of his credentials in this category. The only accessory is a base, which is the same molten-lava one offered with several other figures, including C-3PO. While I tend to like bases, just one accessory and it isn't even unique to this figure? Not cool.

Packaging: Above Average
All the Revenge of the Sith preview figures are packaged in very cool oval-shaped bubble, with a menacing Darth Vader-above-molten-lava background. The packaging is slightly hard to open, but gone are the annoying twist-ties which have plagued Star Wars figures since the late 90s. There's also a little colour pamphlet with ads for more Star Wars toys. Overall, the packing is well above average for an action figure.

Overall score: 8
Let's face it, folks... if you want play value, action features, or impressive accessories, this isn't the droid you're looking for. But it's yet another extremely cool droid figure, and that, my friends, is nothing to complain about.

Availability:
Darth Vader's medical droid seems to be one of the harder-to-find Revenge of the Sith action figures, at least as of this writing. You can try ordering him from Amazon.

Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith: Polis Massan figure review by Andrew Lenahan

Figure: Polis Massan (medic)
Property: Star Wars
Series: Revenge of the Sith (Episode III)
Number: III-39
Keywords: Polis Massan, medic, alien, Paul Masson
Company: Hasbro
Release year: 2005

Series Overview:
After a small four-figure preview set, the Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith action figure line was expanded in April 2005 with many more figures. A departure from the simpler retro feel of the previous series, the Sith line features cutting-edge packaging and an emphasis on playability, accessories, and action features.

Character Overview:
Although my first instinct was that this was a figure of a character by the name of Polis Massan, it turns out that Polis Massan is actually the name of its species, which makes this figure an army builder of sorts. Polis Massans are apparently very skilled in the ways of healing and medicine. I also suspect that the Polis Massans might be an attempt to add a "cute" character to Revenge of the Sith, though hopefully one more tolerable than the oft-maligned Jar Jar Binks.

Action Figure Sculpt and Paint: 9.5
I'll say it right off: I really, REALLY love this figure. There's an enormous amount of detail here, especially in the complex texture of its blue clothing and greyish armour. There's plenty of other details to the outfit, like metallic buckles, pouches on the utility belt, and some sort electronic device on the wrist (calling Dick Tracy?). This is an excellent sculpt, one of my favourites in the Revenge of the Sith action figure line so far.

Articulation: 9
Want more good news? All that detail doesn't even detract from articulation! This Polis Massan has a ball-jointed head, ball-jointed shoulders, turning elbows, wrists, waist, and even (here's one we don't see very often) ball-jointed ankles! It all makes for great posability and... he even stands well!

Accessories: 8
Polis Massan has a total of four accessories, which puts him in the high end of Revenge of the Sith figures, though none of the accessories are as cool as Yoda's cannon or the clone pilot's missle-firing satellite dish thingy. The main accessory is a base, which is another version of the molten-lava base seen with C-3PO and Darth Vader's medical droid, but repainted so it's grey and dull. There's also a small pistol-like device, which has a holster on the figure's hip if you want to store it. Polis Massan also has a head-mounted device which looks like those headsets that super-hardcore online gamers wear, but it's probably really a light source for operating or something. I think the figure looks better without it. Finally, he comes with a... um, I don't know what it is, exactly. It's gray and very tiny, and pretty much guaranteed to get lost. It might be an electric toothbrush, but Polis Massan doesn't seem to have a mouth.

Packaging: Above Average
All the Revenge of the Sith figures are packaged in very cool oval-shaped bubble, with a menacing Darth Vader-above-molten-lava background. The packaging is slightly hard to open, but gone are the annoying twist-ties which have plagued Star Wars figures since the late 90s. There's also a little colour pamphlet with ads for more Star Wars toys. Overall, the packing is well above average for an action figure.

Overall score: 9
Polis Massan is probably my second-favourite Revenge of the Sith figure so far (after the awesome Wookiee Warrior preview figure). With a fine sculpt, great articulation, and a nice array of accessories, I give Polis Massan a hearty recommendation.

Availability:
Polis Massan seems to be one of the harder-to-find Revenge of the Sith action figures, at least as of this writing. You can try ordering it from Amazon.

Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith: a bust, figuratively speaking?

With a huge amount of positive buzz, there's a good chance that Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith will be the biggest film event of the year. The matching Revenge of the Sith action figure line should well be the biggest toy event of the year, too. However, within the past week I've seen some signs that the toys might not be living up to expectations.

Namely, there's already some discounting going on of the Revenge of the Sith action figures, even before the movie is out in theatres! It's up to 25% off in some places. I certainly don't recall that happening with many other action figure lines of the past. At a local Suncoast movie store, for example, their small stock Revenge of the Sith action figures were a full 25% off. Oddly enough, the same Suncoast had the R2-D2: Beneath the Dome DVD at 75% off, or just $2.48. Toys R Us and Amazon.com have their basic Star Wars figures at just $4.99 each, considerably lower than the $6.00 or so they were originally. Discounting action figures is nothing new, but right before the launch of the movie? Why?

One possibility is that the figures just aren't moving quickly enough. The Episode I: The Phantom Menace figures and Episode II: Attack of the Clones figures did respectably, but perhaps not as well as was initially expected in either case (it's not uncommon to see Episode II figures still sitting on the pegs at K. B. Toys, 3 years after its release). While there will always be diehard Star Wars fans who want one of each figure, the new figures aren't really seen as investments anymore, as very few of the figures of the past 7 years or so have appreciated much in value. Also, it seems that unlike the previous two, Revenge of the Sith doesn't bring many new characters to the table. This can cut into casual purchases, as parents may figure that if Junior already has an Episode II Obi-Wan Kenobi figure, he doesn't need the slightly-different Episode III version as well.

Of course, it's possible that the Revenge of the Sith toys will ultimately be seen as a success, but it's also possible that they'll still be sitting on store pegs, collecting dust, three years down the line. It's up to you, dear reader, to decide the ultimate fate of Star Wars' four-inch final curtain call.

The Lord of the Rings: Smeagol action figure review by Andrew Lenahan

Figure: Smeagol / Gollum
Property: The Lord of the Rings
Series: The Two Towers and The Return of the King (same figure released in both packages)
Number: 81112
Keywords: Smeagol, Sméagol, Gollum, Andy Serkis, J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, bearer of the One Ring, creepy little dude
Company: Toy Biz
Release year: 2003

Series Overview:
When Peter Jackson's film versions of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings were universally recieved as among the most critically-acclaimed and commercially-successful movies of all time, an action-figure line to go along with them seemed inevitable. Marvel Comics-owned Toy Biz was chosen for the task, with somewhat mixed results. Although fairly detailed, these are certainly mass-market figures. Note that these should not be confused with the other line of Lord of the Rings toys from a few years earlier, which were unrelated to the movies.

Character Overview:
Often cited as a good example of how an all-CGI character should be done, Gollum / Smeagol (voiced by 24-Hour Party People's Andy Serkis) is a pathetic creature who once posessed the One Ring and was corrupted and twisted by its power. He has since lost it, and would do anything to get it back.

Action Figure Sculpt and Paint: 7
Though rather unfortunately made of soft rubber (see Articulation, below) rather than plastic, Smeagol is a decent likeness. His face is far more benevolent-looking than the scheming Gollum, and he has a fair amount of detail as well. His paint job is good, with appropriately dirty bare feet and glossy paint used to make his eyes shine.

Articulation: 2
Now for Gollums big problem: he's not really an action figure, he's a bendy. For those lucky enough not to know what a bendy is, it's a soft rubber figure with a wire frame inside... unlike true action figures, which are generally plastic and articulated at the joints. A good example of a bendy is Gumby. The main problem with a bendy is that, contrary to its name, it removes all hope of realistic articulation from a figure. It is impossible to make Smeagol crouch or stoop, which is how he's normally posed in the movies. He only looks right standing straight up, which he didn't do in the films. He also cannot stand without his base or some other support.

Accessories: 8
I often say that if a figure is only going to come with one accessory, it should be a cool base. Fortunately for Smeagol, his oneaccessory is a base, and it is indeed pretty cool. It's a jutting rocky ledge with a tree and some vines for detail. It also talks, saying two phrases: "Good Smeagol" and "Nice hobbits" (though according to the packaging it should be "Nice hobbitses"). I believe it's also in Andy Serkis' real voice. The button to activate the speech is rather cleverly hidden as a small rock, and the speaker is nicely tucked under the ledge, pretty much invisible unless you lift it up.

Packaging: Average
The Lord of the Rings basic figures come in a fairly elaborated windowed package which is an interesting variation on the traditional card/bubble concept. However, the packaging is also far too bulky for the figures. On the plus side, there is a bit of information about each character on the back, and instructions for the figure's features.

Overall score: 4
If you absolutely, positively MUST own a Toy Biz Smeagol / Gollum figure... you still shouldn't buy this. They also made a far superior articulated plastic version of Gollum, which is recommended far more highly than this. This is of interest only to rabid Lord of the Rings completionists.

Availability:
As of this writing, Smeagol should still be in stores. If you really want him, Amazon has him at a discount [link].

Star Trek: The Next Generation: Captain Picard in duty uniform action figure review by Andrew Lenahan

Figure: Captain Picard in duty uniform
Property: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Number: 6942
Keywords: Captain Picard, Jean-Luc Picard, Patrick Stewart, Star Trek, The Next Generation, TNG, ST:TNG, baldy
Company: Playmates Toys
Release year: 1994

Series Overview:
The Star Trek action figure line by Playmates represented something of a turning point. Although clearly a mainstream toy line sold in toy stores, they were distinctly geared toward collectors as well. This was done in several ways: a lack of action features, a tendency toward obscure characters and variants, and (most noticably) each figure was individually numbered. While the numbering proved only to be a passing fad, the "plaything vs. collectible" issue remains a central point in the market today. Physically, these 5-inch figures are similar in size, quality, packaging, and style to Playmates' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line.

Character Overview:
The human captain of the Federation starship USS Enterprise, Captain Jean-Luc Picard is the central character of Star Trek: The Next Generation. He has the strength of character to make his huge crew respect him, his enemies fear him, and the ladies swoon when he's around. Of course, the baldness might have something to do with that last one.

Action Figure Sculpt and Paint: 7
Captain Picard comes decked out in his duty uniform, the outfit which he wore most often on the series. The sculpt is decent, with some attempts at detail such as wrinkles at his knuckles. The high-gloss plastic Playmates was using at the time means that the entire figure is very glossy, like Picard just fought the olive-oil monster of Tyranus VI or something. Paint isn't terrible but is probably the low point for this figure, with sloppy applications on serveral areas of my review figure. Worse yet, even the main uniform colour seems off, being far more purplish than the deep blood red from the series.

Articulation: 8.5
Although standards have since risen somewhat, the Playmates Star Trek series were among the most articulated of their day. Captain Picard moves at the neck, shoulders, bicep, elbow, waist, hips, and knees. He is easy to stand with his knees slightly bent, but won't stand at all with his knees completely straight. A base is provided, so this isn't much of an issue.

Accessories: 8
Captain Picard comes with five accessories, a strong showing indeed for an older figure. There's a "Starfleet Monitor", basically a little computer console with a sticker screen. He also has a simple mug from which captain Picard famously drank his "tea, Earl Grey, hot." There's a Tricorder portable computer thingy, and a Type II phaser, which is silver and moulded with a red (set to kill) beam shooting from it. The phaser beam is not removable from the phaser, but you could cut it off if you're desperate to have a peaceful Captain. Finally, the worst accessory is the base. It's shaped like a Starfleet communicator badge and has a little sticker with the character's name. Unfortunately, it's very poorly designed. The foot peg is in the very centre, so there's no sensible way to position the figure so it looks right.

Packaging: Above Average
Playmates' Star Trek: The Next Generation series used very similar packaging to their Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles figures, with a fairly standard setup of a card and a plastic bubble. What scores higher marks is the card back, which provides a file with quite a bit of character information and an actor photo. In addition, there's a little guide to what all the accessories are... too bad other series didn't steal that idea!

Overall score: 8
Although Playmates made a number of different Captain Picards, including Picard as the Borg Locutus and Picard as detective Dixon Hill, this is probably the best Picard to get if you want one for display purposes due to its high recognisability. Though not quite a spectacular figure, he's certainly a decent one, and of one of sci-fi's truly great characters. If you've ever wanted a tiny Captain Picard on your desk, go ahead and make it so!

Availability:
Playmates' Star Trek: The Next Generation series is long out of production and probably virtually impossible to find in normal toy stores. You could try specialty toy stores which sell old figures, or try eBay. This figure does not seem to be particularly rare.

Virginia Beach This Weekend

To all my readers: sorry about the less-frequent updates this past week. Things have been very busy. But I'll have some quality action figure reviews up next week, I promise.

This weekend we're off to Virginia Beach. Should be fun. As usual, I'll have the camera with me, and I'll fill you guys in on Monday. See you there... uh, here.

Pool of Radience or something, I suppose.

Well, after quite a lot of talking about it, I finally have a pool, of the non-Olympic-sized variety. It took a few days to really get it working, but by Monday it was fully swimmable. It also comes with a little filtration droid thingy with hoses for arms which doesn't work properly and looks like something imported from Lars' Moisture Farm on Tatooine. Pool ownership is either awesome or a massive pain in the arse, depending on who you ask. It's probably too early to predict how fun our pool experience will be, but one thing is quite clear: the cats are fascinated by what looks like the Biggest Water Dish Ever.

Erasure Show Erased in Washington DC

Well, the Erasure show we were supposed to see at the 9:30 Club in Washington DC didn't happen. Erasure didn't show up, and rumour has it that the reason is because singer Andy Bell has the flu. Bell was diagnosed with HIV / AIDS years ago, so getting the flu is a pretty big deal. Our thoughts and prayers are with Andy Bell, and we hope for his speedy recovery and a quick return to the stage.

The show has been rescheduled for June, so no real harm done. Bit of a disappointing evening, but it does leave us with something else to look forward to.

We're going to see Erasure tonight!

Me and Madeline will be attending the Erasure concert at the 9:30 club in Washington tonight. Although I've been into Erasure for quite a long time, this will be my first time seeing them live (I have plenty of live Erasure CDs, DVDs, and VHS though).

If any of you aren't aware of Erasure's recent activities, they're certainly not candidates for the Where Are They Now? file. Though they did have something of a stumble with a long hiatus after Cowboy in 1997 and the dreary hitless album Loveboat, their recent cover album, Other People's Songs, was a huge hit in Britain. Another greatest-hits compilation CD and DVD called Hits! followed, and their newest album Nightbird has also achieved success with the singles Breathe and Don't Say You Love Me.

So, after this triumphant comeback in recent years, and with Erasure's longstanding reputation for putting on a great show, I have complete confidence that tonight will be one to remember. Expect a full report tomorrow morning, my friends.

The Shawshank Redemption & Mobile Movies for the Mad

I love The Shawshank Redemption. In all seriousness, it's one of my all-time favourite films (in my top 5, at least) and I think everyone should see it. Why, then, am I slagging off its most recent re-release? Read on, dear readers, read on.

First off, I'm not talking about last year's liimited theatrical release. No, The Shawshank Redemption has the rather dubious honour of being the first full-length movie to be commercially released on cel phones, courtesy of Nokia, Grenada Ventures, and Rok Player.

What's not to like? Take the price, for starters. Though several online news sources say the movie is supposed to cost £16.99, Rok Player's own online store has it at £19.99. For our friends across the pond, this translates to about $38.00 in American money, a preposterous amount of money to see a movie. Now, it's true that the UK things tend to cost a bit more, but this is still well out of proportion. According to Amazon.co.uk, you can buy a normal DVD of The Shawshank Redemption for £12.99, or a 3-disc special edition for £15.99. Those are the new prices, both DVDs can be bought used for quite a bit less. Who in their right mind would pay £20 to watch a movie on their phone when they could get a full DVD for £7 ($14) less?

Then there's the ergonomics of the thing. I can understand the concept of mobile video content to some extent. Watching the latest Kylie Minogue video might make a 4-minute wait for the bus more bearable, for example. But watching a two-and-a-half-hour epic like The Shawshank Redemption on a tiny mobile screen seems like a labourious task, even for serious fans of the film.

Will such lengthly mobile content ever take off among consumers? Only time will tell. But with a price point much higher than the better-looking and -sounding DVD of the exact same film, my guess is that Rok Player will find few takers. One of the most serious marketing mistakes is releasing a product without asking that all-important question: "Who in their right mind would buy this?"