Jingle Belle: The Homemade's Tale

Santa's rebellious daughter, Jingle Belle returns in this 2018 one-shot from IDW Publishing. Paul Dini crafts a beautiful story that builds upon the lore of Santa Claus.

Every year after Santa's annual run of toy deliveries, a mysterious woman scours the globe.

But this person isn't giving out more presents. Instead, she's looking for homemade toys that were rejected by their owners, offering them the companionship and love that they should have received on Christmas morning. 

The idea is a lot like the Island of Misfit Toys first visited in the 1964 Rankin/Bass holiday classic, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Only, this is for toys that were lovingly made by children and parents to be rejected for more illustrious presents such as a video game console or snow skis. 

Let me tell you that this story started out pulling, no tearing, at the old heartstrings. When that first toy gets overlooked by a sibling who'd much rather spend time in front of the hottest new video game of the year, I almost wanted to cry. But I didn't, because of the mystery woman who rescued the handmade horsey with such affection and then is welcomed by a sack full of fellow toys with such camaraderie, it dried those tears. Though it was still very sad.

You think that it's Jingle Belle who's rescuing the rejected toys. The twist was interesting and believable. It didn't feel like a cop out and it definitely wasn't a clone of the Island of Misfit Toys plotline from Rudolph. Sadly, it also felt like the end of Jingle Belle's story.

Things really seemed to wrap up nicely in a big shiny package with an even nicer bow. Especially for Jingle. Santa's got a new assistant with his deliveries. There's a new holiday tradition that guarantees no toy mass produced or one-of-a-kind goes unloved ever again. However, it's been 6 years since this book debuted and unless Paul Dini just all of a sudden gets a tremendously awesome idea that builds further upon that extremely happy ending, I doubt Jingle and her friends are ever coming back to comic book store shelves.

A perfect ending for a bittersweet story. I'm just not ready to say goodbye to this wonderful world created by the creator of Harley Quinn. Ooooo- that would be a fantastic idea! A crossover starring Jingle Belle and Harley. Oh, the holiday chaos they'd create. 

See! I just figured out how to bring this universe back without taking away from the ending! Please, Paul Dini - make this happen!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Gross Point #7

This Christmas themed issue was one of those books that I had never heard of before but came across in my research on Christmas and holiday themed comic books. The premise is that a father with the last name of Pickett, gets a job in the town of Gross Point and moves his wife and kids to the weirdest burgh in all the 50 states. 

In this issue, the dad's boss has created a Christmas wish-list for himself. Any employee who doesn't make a purchase from it will find themselves unemployed. The gift Mr. Pickett buys ends up being like $10,000! The fam can't afford that! And with the industrial sized nose trimmer being engraved, it cannot be returned. Thus, Christmas is cancelled!

There's a backup story in this issue as well. It's not Christmas themed and it requires readers to have some prior knowledge of events that took place in previous issues. Here, Mrs. Pickett gets a new job as a tour guide of a toy factory. Things seem to be going okay until they're hexed with a voodoo curse and doomed to act out the actions of the newest set of toys being played by a focus group of destructive youngsters!

Let's go back to the main reason I bought this issue: the holiday themed hi-jinx. For one thing, I hated it. Throughout the story, there's a large tower in the center of town where people are continuously throwing themselves off of and committing suicide. Profiting off of this is a noted psychiatrist named Dr. Goodbai. Assisting him are several beauties who are persuading citizens to give into their holiday depressions and end it all.

It no way is suicide light-hearted. My best friend killed himself. It was one of the worst weekends of my life having to comfort his wife, claim the body and make burial arrangements. Nobody should ever have to go it alone. Nobody should ever have to experience all that. 

Now there was an element of the Christmas yarn that was pretty funny. The two kids in the Pickett family experience what life would be like for their parents if they weren't born. Turns out, it would have been fabulous! That ironic twist on It's A Wonderful Life was funny. But it could not excuse the plethora of jokes about suicide.

This 1997 book was published by DC Comics. I'm wondering why it wasn't published by their Vertigo imprint. This sort of edgy stuff seems to fit right in with titles like Preacher and Hellblazer. If you added some swears and maybe a little more T&A, Gross Point might have flourished as a Vertigo title. What was DC thinking publishing an ongoing series that had nothing to do with superheroes or an established licensed franchise?

I guess I'll keep this book since it is a holiday book and I might one day need this for research purposes. But it's definitely not one of my favorites.

Not Worth Consuming!

Rating: 3 out of 10 stars.

The He-Man Effect: How American Toy Makers Sold Your Childhood

Box Brown explores how corporations have manipulated our fandoms in this 2023 non-fiction graphic novel. While Brown explores the affects of propaganda on the American populace during the two World Wars, his focus is on toys because many of those psychiatrists who used science to ideally heighten pro-American sentiments ended up being hired by advertising agencies after the conflicts. In between the first World War and the attack on Pearl Harbor, women were the primary targets of those advertisers. However, with the baby boom after the fall of Japan, companies were made aware of a brand new untapped market: children.

It turns out that our tiny undeveloped brains cannot tell the difference between the fictions of a TV show and the commercials that fill in gap time. So when a kid sees Superman telling kids that Wheaties is the only cereal for him to eat, they believe that in order to be just like the Man of Steel, the kiddies need to eat Wheaties too! This blending of the two types of media got so bad that restrictions were made by the FCC, thanks to a bunch of angry moms, that prohibited children's programming from being essentially a 30 minute commercial for products. There were a few exceptions like Sesame Street, which was considered educational for children and being on public television, never ran commercials. It's also why during the 60s and 70s, that TV shows like Laugh-In, which was clearly for more mature audiences could appeal to children on lunch boxes and trading cards. It wasn't considered kids programming, so those shows could license out products meant for kids. It also explains why the 1970s was the best decade for cartoons.

This all changed in November, 1980. Ronald Reagan became President and he appointed those to head the FCC who opposed the restrictions on advertising to children during the Saturday morning cartoons and after school programming. Mattel was about to launch a new toy line that promised to rival Kenner's Star Wars behemoth, Its main character was called He-Man. However, capturing the imagination of the youngsters who would demand mom and dad buy it for them would be no easy feat without able word of mouth and frequency on the airwaves. With FCC deregulation of kids programming, Mattel was able to produce an animated series that would essentially be a 22-minute commercial for the Masters of the Universe toyline. 

Thanks to the series produced by Filmation, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe became a cultural touchstone for children in the mid-1980s. I should know, I was on of those kindergartners who started to drop their Star Wars figures and instead pickup a He-Man and a Skeletor figure. I still love the original He-Man series. I've bought massive omnibuses containing the entire run of mini comics inserted with each action figure. I also have a book devoted to the seldom seen newspaper strips. I'm currently on the hunt for the comics produced by Marvel imprint, Star Comics, without going bankrupt doing so. 

While my love for He-Man hasn't diminished reading this historical account of pop culture in the 20th century, I am chagrined to see how much I have been manipulated by Mattel, Kenner, Hasbro and the likes. Eternia's Prince Adam doesn't say 'By the power of Gray Skull. I have the power.' to become He-Man, though it helps. That was an ear worm planted by toy designers to trigger something in our little pea brains to want to consume more Masters of the Universe merch! The same goes with 'Yo, Joe!', 'Thundercats, Ho!' and so many other catch phrases of my childhood.

I'm almost mad at Box Brown. I've enjoyed a lot of his previous works. But with The He-Man Effect, I feel like he exposed the man behind the curtain. There was just a little too much of Adam Ruins Everything that destroyed some of the magic of my youth. The book does explain very well why we get upset when our favorite childhood franchises are rebooted or made 'woke' with diverse casting changes or switching genders of characters. But what I'm most upset about is that these toy lines and animated series that were bright spots to a childhood fraught with bullying and abuse, weren't there to make me happy and secure. They were created to make people rich. Thanks to Box Brown, the truth about my childhood heroes is that they weren't there to protect me. They just wanted my money.

Worth Consuming, but man does it hurt.

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Monster High Halloween Special #1 (Family Comic Friday)

Based on the popular Mattel toy line, IDW presents an All Hallows Eve spectacular starring the students of Monster High!

Principal Frankenstein feels like Halloween is a great time for the students to unwind and blow off some steam by celebrating the human holiday known as Halloween. To do this, the staff of Monster High has put on a Halloween carnival, complete with rides, games and a haunted maze. While waiting to learn who won the costume contest, some of the students decide to explore the labyrinth of corn. At first, it appears to be a basic maze filled with corny frights. However as the students wander further into the field, they begin to experience their deepest, darkest fears. Soon, it becomes eerily certain that something is seriously wrong within the dark passageways of corn.

I'm not familiar with Monster High in the least aside from anything I might have seen in stores. I didn't know that the Mattel franchise was still a thing. I couldn't tell you the last time I had ever seen a kid wearing something with Monster High on it. But I love Halloween specials and the guys at my local favorite comic book store ordered it for me and I needed something to review for this week's Family Comic Friday. 

I thought the art was good. The characters looked like the few toys that I've seen in the past. The beginning and middle of the story was pretty good. Having teenage monsters face their fears in a corn maze was wicked fun. It was a pretty creative plot device if you ask me. I thought the ending was going to end predictably with the student who designed her own costume going to win the costume contest. However, it really didn't feel like this story actually ended at all.

The story concludes with at least 1 student still trapped in the maze. The students can't find them and Frankenstein is freaking out over the disappearance, claiming this has happened before. But when was that? The narrator recites some Halloween poetry, none of which had anything to do with the missing student, and then there's closure with a 'the end' posted on the back right corner of the page. Personally, I hate cliffhanger endings, especially if I don't already have the next issue to immediately follow-up on. However, I would rather have that than leaving everything dangling without a promise of more to come.

Ideal for fans of Monster High. While not rated, those with children aged 9-13 should have no issues with the contents of this book. This special is a fun way for those looking forward to Halloween to wait for it through reading. I just wish for a better ending. A definitive ending. Not the lackluster stoppage that leaves the reader wondering 'What next?'

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus by L. Frank Baum

A while back my wife and I partook in a novel Advent activity. We took turns reading The Autobiography of Santa Claus by Jeff Guinn. It told of a number of historical characters that helped give rise to the modern day legend of Santa Claus. I understood the relevance of Clement Moore, the author of the epic poem A Visit From Saint Nick. I even understood why President Teddy Roosevelt was included what with his influence on the popularity of the Teddy Bear and the story of how one of his sons wanted a live Christmas tree but Roosevelt being a stanch conservationist was against it. Those figures were ones I understood why they were considered great allies of Kris Kringle. For the life of me, I couldn't figure out the addition of L. Frank Baum.

Baum is most famously known for writing The Wizard of Oz and its subsequent sequels. I had known from a hard cover graphic novel I found at a local thrift store that Baum had penned a short story farce called A Kidnapped Santa Claus. But surely this wasn't enough of an influence on Father Christmas to warrant him inclusion into Santa's life story. 

It's actually this short novel, published in 1902 that made L. Frank Baum one of the utmost contributors to the modern Santa Claus. It tells of how a neglected little babe is found by faeries, raised to respect the magical creatures of nature and makes it his life goal to gift all the children of the world with gifts every Christmas Eve. 

In this story, there's no living at the North Pole. The names of his reindeer are vastly different from Dasher, Dancer, Prancer and the rest. Heck, Santa isn't really even a jolly old fat man. Though he does eventually grow a beard.

Clement Moore's 1809 poem which is now colloquially known as 'T'was the Night Before Christmas', did introduce St. Nick to the United States. But other than that poem, little was really known about the Yule time gift giver in America. Baum noticed this and sought to create an origin story that took away any religious references and replaced it with a more pagan beginning with the baby being blessed throughout his life by mystical woodland beings. 

The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus does take a lot of elements from Clement Moore and gives a backstory to them, which humanizes the character instead of canonizing Claus. Take the origin of the stockings. According to the Catholic Church, the real life influence of Santa was one who placed a dowry into the leggings of a trio of young poor girls, that were drying by a fire. In Baum's story, the accidental placement of some gifts into some wet socks ends up becoming a real time saver for Claus, who has only 24 hours to deliver toys around the world annually. Things like how parents use Santa as a threat to keep naughty children in line, how he becomes deemed a saint, and his relationship with Christmas time are all out of necessity or word of mouth. Anything remotely religious is not tied in with the 'true' story of Claus.

Maybe that lack of Christianity is why Signet books chose storyteller Max Apple to write an afterword about this book. Apple is Jewish and admits that as a child he hated Santa because Christmas being a gentile holiday makes the character unapproachable for him and other children of the Tribe. Max Apple writes that if he knew that Baum's Santa was created as being the most furthest religious character imaginable, other than Wiccan or pagan, the writer would have delighted in annual visits from Santa Claus as a lad.

It was an enjoyable read. Definitely a different sort of holiday character from what Coca-Cola and Rankin/Bass have created over the past 100 years. Speaking of Rankin/Bass, this story was made into that stop-motion production company's last original work in the mid-80s. No wonder some segments of this book seemed familiar to me despite having never read the book. And if the chapter in which Santa is kidnapped by evil creatures who hate children seems familiar, that's because Baum recycled that story into A Kidnapped Santa Claus, which is a far more bleaker romp that this book.

A short enough read that families could break this down into chunks over the course of a frosty December. Some of the language is a tad outdated. But it's something the whole family can enjoy just once or as a new holiday annual tradition.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Torsobear, Vol. 3: Back on the Blocks

I waited a year to read Volume 2 of Torsobear because the story I had begun was such a gut punch of a story. Innocent and sweet looking toys doing very nasty things. It was definitely something that I needed to recover from in order to continue.

While Volume 2 was nowhere near as good as the opening salvo, it continued to be a story that made the reader feel uneasy. Only this time I wasn't going to wait another year to finish the storyline.

Ruxby is back on the force. Only now he's doing crowd control with SWAT as Toyburg has descended into chaos. In the fallout of the Torsobear/Copycat killings, Mayor Huntington has turned the city into a police state, arresting innocent people while the real Copycat Killer pulls the strings literally from behind the curtains. 

There's also unrest in the lands across the Lemonade Sea. Only now this struggle is over class warfare as wealthy toys get richer while the poorer, less advanced playthings get poorer. 

I really didn't like this final volume. Sure, the Copycat Killer storyline gets really confusing and meta. Yet if the various writers and artists behind this project would have just stuck with that plot, things would have been okay. Instead, a lot of space in this book was wasted on what felt like a play date version of Les Mis. If the creators had wanted to do a follow-up volume of the class warfare struggles that occurred at the same time as the events in Toyburg, I would have been good with that. See, Volume 3 also finally reveals what happened in the Saturday Morning War which essentially led to the formation of this vast play-land. Spending time on the secondary plotline took time away from the origin story that was needed because if you look in the background, the Copycat Killer was there involved in the war. His motivations are overlooked because the creative team decided to throw 'a batteries not included' version of The Communist Manifesto into the mix.

Torsobear was a large project that came about thanks to crowdfunding and a lot of word of mouth. It's been about 5 years since this third and final volume was published. Those behind this project are probably done with Toyburg. I, the reader am not. There was so many questions left unanswered. While I in no way want to undo the happy ending, I want more answers. What was Copycat Killer doing in the Saturday Morning War? How did the Mayor come to power? What role did Hazbrow play in the war? And who killed Strax Power?

Maybe a companion piece could be forthcoming. I could see a story where as the citizens of Toyburg re-build, they uncover clues that reveal the answers to my questions and more in flashback. It could work. 

Thankfully, if a Volume 4 ever comes to fruition, it will probably be a couple of years before it comes out. GOOD! Parts of this story freaked me the Hell out. When Copycat paints a demonic set of teeth over the crescent moon, it reminded me of the frightening moon that hangs over Christmasland in Joe Hill's NOS4A2 and the graphic novel companion piece, Wraith. 

The artwork was superior once again. So many freaking awesome Easter eggs! Some great parts that were crowded out by a tangent that was unnecessary. I'm just so disappointed in how an idea with great promise fizzled at the end.

Not Worth Consuming!

Rating: 3 out of 10 stars.

Torsobear Vol. 2: All Stitched Up

Though Volume 1 of Torsobear is just as gritty, shocking and violent, that magic was just absent from this follow-up.

The town of Toyburg is still reeling from the Torsobear murders. Detective Ruxby Bear has just nabbed a copycat killer. Only the facts and the evidence just doesn't add up. Unfortunately, he'll not be able to continue he's investigation, as Dectective Ruxby has been arrested for a crime he did not commit.

Now incarcerated in the roughest prison in the land, Ruxby is behind bars with many of the felons and cons that he put there. Constantly having to watch his back, Ruxby tries to solve both his framing and the copycat killings from his jail cell. But when the copycat killer sneaks into his cell, Ruxby now has to face the fact that the mastermind behind all of this is in the penitentiary with him.

Meanwhile on the outside, Ruxby's old partner, Officer Hazbrow, is now the chief of police. He too wants to help his old friend exonerate himself. However, the mayor of Toyburg has forbidden the TBPD continue with the investigation, declaring the Torsobear murders and copycat killings closed. But when the son of an old police mentor of Hazbrow comes asking for help finding his old man, Hazbrow begins an undercover sting that could send not just Toyburg but the entire region of play-lands into civil war.

I love the varying artwork. It's great seeing bad boy versions of your favorite toys. Every page is a feast for the eyes. If you love Easter eggs, be sure to bring your basket with you when reading this book.

Volume 2 is also told in anthology form. The backstories of several of the inmates and prison guards is more interesting than Ruxby's time in jail. To be honest, the hero doesn't belong in prison. He needs to be on the mean streets of Toyburg solving crimes. Hazbrow's story is interesting but that's because the law man is in his element. This volume sets up the Volume 3 finale. Unlike with the first volume, I won't be waiting a year and a half for that book. I just hope the ending returns to that level of wonder that Volume 2 was missing.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Super Powers Mini-Comic Collection, Volume 2

This fan made edition from Trident Studios contains all of the mini comics issued with the 11 figures released by Kenner in the Super Powers Collection, Wave II. This book is very heavy on characters from Jack Kirby's Fourth World along with several superheroes who made their toy debut in 1984-85. On the side of the angels, Firestorm, Dr. Fate, Red Tornado and the Martian Manhunter were released for the first time ever along with Green Arrow (who debuted in the 70s thanks to Mego). The New God Darkseid lead an army of villains that included the demented Desaad, bumbling brute Kalibak, the energy-draining Mantis, the immortal Steppenwolf and army fodder Parademon. 

Series Two of the Super Powers Collection is a fan favorite mostly because of its connection to comic book legend, Jack Kirby. It's a thing of legend that one of the few times Jack Kirby was properly compensated for previously licensed work was for the re-designs he made on Mantis, Steppenwolf and Parademon. Kirby also reworked the design of Darkseid's estranged son, Orion, released in 1986's Series Three to much controversy. But that's a story for another day...

Of course to a 7-8 year old Madman, all of the villains of Super Powers were considered all-new characters. I knew who all the heroes were thanks to my dad's comic book collection. But I had yet to be properly introduced to Kirby's Fourth World. Thankfully, each action figure came with a mini comic to help explain a little bit of the motivation of Darkseid, which when you think about it is fairly simple- total world domination.

The Anti-Life equation, Highfather and New Genesis, and the whole truce in which Scott Free and Orion were switched at birth aren't covered at all in the minis. In fact, Darkseid is kinda a weenie in this series of 16-pagers as his Omega Beams don't incinerate anyone. They just send you to limbo. 

You won't see the Series One villains in any of these books either. The minions of Apokolips act alone. But I think if Darkseid had recruited at least Lex Luthor, Brainiac and the Joker into his plans, the lord of Apokolips could've at least conquered the entire Eastern seaboard.

One of my all-time favorite characters is Firestorm. So getting to revisit his adventures in mini-comic form was pretty cool. The inclusion of Red Tornado, GA and J'onn J'onzz to the line-up were no-brainers as they had all been members of the Justice League at some point. But Dr. Fate doesn't really make any sense being here. Fate has always been a member of the Justice Society and stuck on the parallel Earth designated #2. Did the JSA lend Fate in some sort of cross-dimensional trade in order for the Justice League to have a magical warrior to fight against Darkseid's forces? 

Series Two was the last series of the Super Powers Collection to be issued with mini comics. Was the omission a way to cut costs? The inclusion of Cyclotron and Golden Pharoah, two all-new for the toy line heroic characters were definitely produced to avoid licensing fees to creators. So it's possible. But with the inclusion of Orion and Mister Miracle in wave 3, a chance to better introduce the Fourth World characters to children through mini comics was sorely overlooked. I think had mini comics been released with the third wave, a fourth and fifth wave of characters, which were in the planning stages, would have become a reality.

Since Kenner is defunct and DC doesn't seem to have any plans to release the mini comics officially in some collected form, I'm glad I found this offering by Trident Comics. Over at Etsy, they've got a couple other editions of mini comics that were released with popular toy lines of the past. As long as there doesn't appear to be any direct conflict with copyright, I'll be adding one or two of those other books to my collection sometime soon.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Super Powers Mini-Comic Collection, Volume 1 (Family Comic Friday)

I'm not one for buying bootleg material. If there's a legitimate version of something, I will buy that version and not the knock-off. If I have to wait to buy it used or at a steep discount to save money, I'll do it. But if the original owners go out of business or just never cash in on the copyright (I'm looking at you George Lucas with the Star Wars Holiday Special), then if something is fan made, then I have no ethical qualms buying it. That's the case with the book I am reviewing today... 

One of my most beloved memories of my mom is her taking me to K-Mart just to find the new Super Powers action figures. The store only had Robin and Aquaman. But oh what a start! To my absolute delight, both figures came with a 16-page mini comic! A toy AND something to read??? Yes on both!

Years have passed and the quest of finding the 12 minis that came with the original line and the 11 of Series II has been on my to-do list for decades. I've never come across any in person unless I plopped out $50 to $100 on one of the figures mint on card. While online shopping, I've seen the minis for sale just by themselves. But it's not worth a $20-35 dollar per mini comic price tag. Needless to say, DC has never stopped to take the time and collect these in some sort of collection.

About 2 months ago, while on Facebook, the metaverse itself made a suggestion of joining a group of like-minded Super Powers fans. A fan of the art of Jose Luis-Garcia Lopez and Dick Giordano, who did much of the packaging and figure design, I've enjoyed joining this digital time capsule of Kenner/DC. Recently, one intrepid member asked if the minis had ever been collected to which someone responded that they thought there was something 'fan made'. 

Well, the prospect of such a volume peaked my interest and I went to etsy and later eBay to which I found this book. Published by Trident Studios, this pocket-sized collection is a beaut! All of the books come from the publisher's personal collection of minis collected when they were a child. They did an amazing job keeping the books in great shape. Only 1 page looked smudgy. (Doing some quick math. 12 books times 16 pages... roughly 192 pages. I'll take it!)

The likes of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman take on the dastardly quartet of Lex Luthor, Brainiac, The Penguin and The Joker in a dozen stories. Just who were the authors and illustrators of these minis have become the subject of much debate as DC and Kenner didn't give any sort of credit to the art team behind these comics. The stories are a little clunky as it's hard to tell a full-fledged story on a sheet of paper roughly 2.8" x 4.25". But the art is of that unparalleled 80s era DC style! 

As I mentioned, the mini comics really were minis. However, these books are slightly larger (about 20%) than the original. Thus is due minimum requirements of the printing and binding. Whether this determination was made by Trident Studios or publishing contractor is unclear. I was afraid that the books were going to be massively large thus hurting the visual quality of the originals. But the slight increase does nothing to hurt the eye appeal!

It's always great when the older generation gets chance to share their toys with the next. It's even better when you get to share your books! Up till now it has been darn near impossible and totally expensive to share the Super Powers mini comics from the 80s with the children of the 2000s. But now grandparents, guardians and parents have a chance with this vibrant collection from Trident Studios!

A second volume featuring the Wave II collection of mini comics is also available. Check etsy and eBay for your copies!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Torsobear, Vol. 1: Yarns From Toyburg

Imagine a gritty crime noir, similar to Chinatown. Only it stars a variety of stuffed animals and toys. 

Someone is dismembering the teddy bears of Toyburg. A team of a rookie cop and a harden veteran are on the case. Together, the duo will come across perverts, dope fiends and a dame to die for. But the players are all stars from your favorite toy store. And that touch of innocence makes the events that take place just a bit more uneasy.

I got this book as part of a grab bag from Source Point Press. Holy cow- is this an interesting, but odd book. There's basically 2 parts to this volume. The first part is the hunt for the teddy bear killer. The second is a mish-mash of short stories, sketches and other bits and pieces that you might find in an artist's sketchbook. 

So what I am thinking about this section is that it's the origins of Torsobear. Unfortunately, this is a pretty incoherent collection of work. I'm not sure what is canon and what is just the riffs of an artist practicing on some rough drafts. Regardless, I'm intrigued by this bizarro world and I want to know how the story plays out.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Classic Toys from a Madman's Youth: Advent 2019 Day 25

Merry Christmas everyone!

It's the final day of Advent 2019! As promised I present to you my favorite toy from Santa. Actually it's a whole grouping of toys and I almost didn't get them that year!A little backstory on that.

It's December of 1980. I wanted to find my dad's comic book collection. So I went into my dad's study and opened his closet. There hiding everything was this beautiful Empire Strikes Back sheet that was hanging down like a curtain! I was in awe.

Yes- I still have the sheets!

So I tore it down, only to find my dad's closet was filled with Star Wars toys! So I grabbed something and ran to my mom in the kitchen and asked if I could have whatever it was I found.

Needless to say, my mom freaked out. She called my dad thinking Christmas was ruined. Anyways, they decided to let me have whatever the toy was thinking that I would forget about the rest in the closet- which I did. Sorta...

So let's jump to Christmas Eve. That day it actually snowed. So much that it was considered a blizzard in my state of North Carolina. We all ended up staying at my Grandmama's house for some reason. But it didn't mean that my mom got off from work. Being a nurse, someone came in a big four wheel drive thing to take her to and from. But I got to stay at my Grandparents house for Christmas. And I had snow cream and hot weenies (spicy BBQ hot dogs) for the first time ever!

What made a great Christmas even better was when I got home a few days later, my floor was covered in toys from the ice planet of Hoth! There was an AT-AT, a snow speeder, Luke and Han on Taun-Tauns; one of which had a slit in which to keep Luke warm. Plus there were several Hoth base play sets! Oh- and a Wampa!

Empire Strikes Back being the first movie I remember going to see in theatres (I had been taken to Star Wars when it first came out, but I was too young to remember!), and after having an awesome ESB themed 3rd birthday party the month prior, this just seemed to be the best Christmas ever. Plus, there was still snow outside. So I got to recreate scenes from Hoth in the snow!

Almost 40 years later and I still am in love with Empire. It's my favorite movie! I feel like I am on Cloud City every time I drive into a brilliant sunset. My Yoda impression is on point! And Hoth is my happy place! I love the cold and as I fall asleep, I imagine I am in a research station on that frozen planet. Man, you cannot tell my joy on those rare times it snows.

I think these toys are my favorite because Christmas of 1980 truly was a magical holiday. Nothing seemed to go wrong at that time. Sadly, as I got older, those yule tide's were more bitter as my family struggled with divorce, health issues and life in general.

But hey- this is a happy time! So as my final Advent present for you this 2019 Christmas season, here's a great video in which somebody turned the Battle of Hoth in a Christmas Parade massacre! It's great!

Enjoy and Merry Christmas!

Classic Toys from a Madman's Youth: Advent 2019 Day 22

Tonight marks the first night of Hanukkah. As with every Advent that contains an opening eve of those eight crazy nights, I devote today's post to my Jewish princess. Today, I am talking about one of my wife's all-time favorite toys: The Emergency! Board Game.

Based on the TV show of the same name, this 1973 board game was produced by Milton Bradley. The board was a winding maze of roads that lead to various locales. When you landed on certain spaces, you drew a card it which the 911 dispatch told you of an emergency. 

A child is choking at the park!
An elderly gentleman is having a heart attack at the apartments!
A woman has gone into labor at the super market!

With your miniature fire truck playing pieces, you used a spinner to race to the scene and then make it to Rampart Hospital as soon as possible. Once the patient was safely taken to the emergency room, you were to head back to headquarters for your next adventure. The first squad to complete 3 rescues won the game!

My wife had this game as a little girl because Emergency! was her favorite TV show. I think if you asked her now, it probably still is. Unfortunately, for one reason or another, she lost the game. 

Years later, I found her a copy of the game for sale on eBay! I think I got it for her for Christmas. I'm pretty sure I did. I might have gotten it for Valentines. Or our anniversary. Or her birthday. Or just because I love her. Maybe Hanukkah? Nah! I would have gotten her gelts for that. 

Anyways, you can be sure that as soon as she opened her present, we had to play the game. As board games go- it's a pretty simple game with a Candyland premise. But when it comes to board games from the 1970s- being based on a franchise product, the Emergency! board game was really good. 

Board games based on TV and movies from 1960-1989 often are not fondly remembered for being player friendly. The artwork on the box is memorable. The board might be pretty awesome. But game play is often confusing, difficult or boring. Sometimes all three! Case in point- the Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four game. Oh my god, was that one of the most headache inducing games based on a licensed product ever!

As my Advent gift for you today, here's a tour of the actual L.A. station in which Squad 51 was based out of on the 70s series. Be sure to note that a rerun of Emergency! plays on the TV in the lounge. It's very meta!

Enjoy!

(Note: I realize that for a Hanukkah post, I have included images based on Christmas. Do you know how impossible it is to find Hanukkah images of the TV show Emergency!? If you are a fan of Roy and Johnny and you have the skills to make some sort of Jewish holiday themed Emergency! images, please share them with me and I'll replace them holiday pics I put up in this post!)

Classic Toys from a Madman's Youth: Advent 2019 Day 21

Nowadays, the crafting of action figures has become an art form. But back in the 70s and 80s, there were action figures based on iconic characters. Growing up, they seldom looked anything like the characters on the screen. That all changed with Kenner in 1984 as a superior toy line, that brought the characters on paper to life, debuted. 

For today's Advent, I'm talking about Super Powers!

I remember the day I discovered this iconic toy line. I was watching a rerun of Super Friends when a commercial for Super Powers came on TV. It was a mix of cartoon and reality as Superman punched out a wall  and Batman did too! And there were villains! (Oh, how I love baddies!) I was instantly hooked and I had to have it!

Somehow, my mom decided we needed to run to K-Mart and get me a couple of those figures. Normally, she'd poo-poo such an idea. But on this day, she was all for it. 

Unfortunately, Batman and The Man of Steel wasn't at K-Mart that day. Instead, my Justice League was first comprised of Aquaman and Robin, the Boy Wonder. But that's okay. As by Christmas of 1984, I was leading all of the heavy hitters including Green Lantern, Hawkman and The Flash. Oh, and Firestorm! My favorite!

Look folks, if you are to ask me if I am a DC person or a Marvel guy, I am going to answer DC. I love any and all super heroes. But I grew up on DC! And a lot of that is thanks to two men- Dick Giordano and Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez. These two amazing artists had created the DC style guides which were used to instruct licensing companies how DC Comics wanted their characters to look like. And Kenner got it right with the Super Powers line! These heroes looked like they had come right from the comics I adored so well!

Each action figure came with 2 unique features. First of all, each figure had a distinct 'power action.' For example, if you squeezed Red Tornado's arms, his lower torso would spin around like a cyclone. 

The other feature of a Super Powers action figure was my absolute favorite. The mini comic! Every figure came with 4-inch tall 8-page comic book that starred the character whose action figure you bought. The mini books are the rarest thing for fans to locate. They often either got lost or destroyed or thrown away. I've been asking for years for DC to reissue these as a collection. But my pleas always seem to fall on deaf ears. 

One of my favorite Christmas gifts from the Super Powers line wasn't the toys! It was the case that you collecting them in! Yes, the Super Powers carrying case was that awesome! The case has 2 lids that opened on both sides like a book. Inside both lids were several 4 panel strips that revealed the secret origins of all your favorite super heroes. I read and re-read those so freakin' much. 

As my Advent gift for you today, I want you to enjoy those awesome commericals as much as I did. It's kinda long, but it's every commercial from Super Powers' 1984-86 run. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I have!

Classic Toys from a Madman's Youth: Advent 2019 Day 20

There's a great debate about today's featured franchise. Is it a Christmas toy? Is the movie today's Advent is based on a Christmas movie? No- I didn't get Die Hard toys as kid. I'm talking about Gremlins.

In 1984, my parents took me to see Gremlins. It's about a young man named Billy whose father gives him a mysterious creature called a Mogwai. There are 3 rules of care for the Mogwai that Billy names Gizmo-

1. Don't get them wet.

2. Don't feed them after midnight!

3. And whatever you do, don't expose them to sunlight. It will kill them!

There's a fundamental flaw with one of these rules- the not feeding them after midnight thing. See, if you feed a Mogwai after midnight, they turn into a reptilian Gremlin. But what time zone does this apply to? Billy's dad buys Gizmo in San Francisco but he heads east to give his son the creature. Won't that mean that if it's midnight in New York, that you still have 3 hours in which you can feed Gizmo without the penalty? Gizmo's owners infer that the creature is from China. So, wouldn't the rule be to not feed a Mogwai after midnight in Beijing?

Then there's also the whole when does after midnight stop being after midnight. Can you feed a Mogwai at 5am when the sun comes up? When you are a kid, things like that don't seem so complicated. It's all left to a sense of innocence and wonder. Leave it to turning middle age to screw that all up.

Okay- I've ranted enough. Needless to say, I feel in love with this movie. Whether it's a holiday movie or not (I think it is), I always get in the mood to see Gremlins right around Christmas time! One reason is because in the Christmas of 1984, I got a ton of Gremlins toys.

Of the ones I remember fondly were a set of PVC figures of Gizmo and his arch-enemy, Spike. Then there were the Colorforms. I had the regular set, but I really wanted that Deluxe set with almost 3 dozens Gremlins clings! I did get the Rubn'Pay set in which you transferred images to a colorful snow scene with the aid of a coin.

Another item I fondly remember from Christmas of '84 that was Gremlins themed were a series of books with record based on the movie. They were from McDonald's. Over the course of 5 weeks, I would go with my mom to get a Happy Meal toy in order to receive these audio treasures. 

Man, I wish I had a record player again!

Lastly, if you were in love with Gremlins you had to have a Gizmo doll. There were several versions of this toy. Some, like mine were just plush and stuffed. But there was a really expensive one which was electronic and it hummed and cooed. Again, these were pricy and my folks didn't shell out the big bucks for that. 

Side note: In honor of the film's 35th anniversary, the previously mentioned toy has been re-released at Target. This one also dances along with making noise. It's only $25.99 and while I'd love it, I'd rather buy more comic books for that cash instead.

Okay- I've really rambled on on this Advent. So let's wrap this up quick. For my present for you today, here's a reading of The Gift of the Mogwai, the first part of that 5-part series from Mickey D's. Sorry it skips! And pops! But it's still a fun adventure to listen to!

Enjoy!

Classic Toys from a Madman's Youth: Advent 2019 Day 19

For Today's Advent I'm focusing on another toy that some might consider a flop- but I was a big fan! 

Silverhawks!

For some, this follow-up to Thundercats was a one-hit wonder. It was about a group of bionic police officers who operate in outer space. Led by Commander Stargazer, the Silverhawks were a rag-tag bunch recruited to bring down the intergalactic mob boss, Mon*Star. Characters included Bluegrass, a singing cowboy pilot and the copper plated Kidd; a robotics whiz who only spoke in beeps and whistles. (As you could probably tell, those two were both my favorites!)

Many considered Silverhawks to be Thundercats in space. Yet that's just not true. While I liked Thundercats visually, the stories were pretty complicated and hinged on ancient prophecies. Plus, it was done as a serial in that if you missed and episode, you were sunk!

Unlike Thundercats, which lasted from 1985-1989, Silverhawks ran for only 65 episodes in 1986. For many, Silverhawks was lame. But I was a huge fan of that show to the point that in the Christmas of '86 I wanted any and everything Silverhawks while all of my friends wanted Thundercats!

The Silverhawks figures were embossed with this shiny metallic paint, which were very pleasing to the eye. Each good guy came with a weapon-bird: an android bird that doubled as a tool for offense or defense. Made by Kenner, the sculpts were far superior to those of the first wave of Star Wars figures. But unlike those action figures, the Silverhawks were at all not durable.

The Silverhawks figures were designed for one to squeeze either the arms or legs in order to make their wings detract or perform some some sort of kick or karate chop. However, I think the type of plastic used for metal painted action figures was different from other forms of molded plastic because these guys broke all the time. It must have been a design flaw by the Kenner design team because the metallic Brainiac figure from the Super Powers line was also very fragile. Stoopid android arm snapped clean off!!!

Anyways, it wasn't just the metallic figures that broke. Mon*Star had a feature in which when you squeezed his legs, his chest would open and an uglier version of the baddies' head would flip out. The chest plate kept snapping off. But unlike the metallic finish figures, the hinges would snap off. However, if you didn't have a collector's case, you'd have to hunt for Mon*Star's chest plate each time you wanted to play with him.

One aspect of the Silverhawks that was of high quality was the comic book series from the Marvel imprint, Star Comics. The series lasted 7 issues, which doesn't seem like alot. But when you take into  account that some Star Comics titles were cancelled after only an issue or two due to poor toy sales- seven issues of Silverhawks was the equivalent of a James Michener epic! And yes- I am constantly on the hunt to add these books to my collection! The Silverhawks comics- not the collected works of Michener.

I'd love to share with you an episode for an Advent. But Youtube makes you pay for those. So, as my Advent present for you today, here's the opening theme song. Enjoy!