Caught in a Web (Wizard #53 - January 1996)

This post isn't related to toys or video games but sometimes I do lean into comic book content a bit. I was looking for something on Spider-Man to tie into the new Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man animated series that debuts today on Disney+. Since I didn't have time to browse all of my video game magazines in search of Spidey game reviews, I turned to Wizard magazine in hopes of finding something related to the web-slinger's 1994 animated series. What I came across was an article covering the super hero's doomed James Cameron film, the then upcoming season three of the aforementioned 1990's cartoon, and brief discussions of past live-action shows in the U.S. and Japan. The article also mentions a Venom film in the works that never happened, at least not in the '90s. Although Spider-Man appears in a number of my blog posts, the only previous post dedicated to the web-head is for the Hot Wheels: Spider-Man's Web of Terror set. There is also a ToyFare article post that features Spider-Man but it's primarily about Toy Biz's marketing.

ToyFare Marketing 101: Singular Sensation (Spring Special Edition 1997)

While this article from ToyFare magazine revolves around the Toy Biz Spider-Man action figures from the 1990s, it can apply to any action figure toy line (especially those based on a cartoon) as it discusses how a company chooses which characters to manufacture. Any time this subject comes up I think about Kenner's Batman: The Animated Series toys which is mentioned by the Toy Biz rep. I stocked both Batman and Spider-Man toys when I worked at Toy Works from 1994-96 and Batman always stood out because customers would ask about villains and we rarely had any to sell. Being a Batman fan and collector back then I can recall that each box we received had 24 figures and the assortment was typically 20 Batman, 2 Robin, and 2 villains. There were also cases that were all Batman, namely Lightning Strike Batman which we received a lot of. As Toy Biz states in the article, the hero is what kids know best and what they want, and they are the primary customer so it's better business to make many different versions of the hero than more villains. It is surprising though that it is so skewed toward one character because kids need a bad guy for Spider-Man to fight, or many bad guys to battle, one for each of their Spider-Man variants.

Year 5: September Update

Another month is flying by rather quickly and I suppose I don't have a lot to talk about though there were some more gaming events with new announcements. The reason I uploaded another video on the blog's YouTube channel for a Sega Master System light gun game this month is I want to get rid of my old tube TV as it's quite bulky and I rarely touch it. The only other platform I own a light gun for is the Saturn but I've never actually used it, and I think the only game I have that is compatible with it is Virtua Cop. Back in 2019 I posted about the Aladdin and Lion King game compilation and now there is an updated edition coming to stores on November 9th that adds The Jungle Book and the Super Nintendo version of Aladdin to the collection.

Sony held a "PlayStation Showcase" event on September 2nd where it announced a sequel to Spider-Man and another new Marvel title from Insomniac Games that stars the X-Men's Wolverine. These games are at least a couple years away though and exclusive to the PlayStation 5. Aspyr Media is remaking BioWare's Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and it will be a console launch exclusive on the PlayStation 5 which means it will likely get to Xbox at a later date (it doesn't have a release date yet). This isn't a remaster, it's a full remake of one of the best Star Wars games and certainly one of my favorites.

Marvel's Spider-Man 2

Nintendo just streamed a "Nintendo Direct" video presentation this past Thursday with a variety of things shown, including a new Kirby game for 2022 and the addition of Nintendo 64 (N64) and Sega Genesis games to the Switch's online service, plus N64 and Genesis gamepads will be available for the Switch. The video also unveiled the voice cast for an animated Mario Bros. movie that will hit theaters in late 2022. A couple of the actors featured are Chris Pratt as Mario and Jack Black as Bowser.

Kirby and the Forgotten Land

That's about it for this month's update. Thanks for stopping by!

-Jonathan

[YouTube] Ben Cooper's Marvel Comics "Action Figures" (1970s)

https://youtu.be/OdyBD6WRtAk

This is a look at four Marvel Comics "action figures" from Ben Cooper, Inc. (1937-1992) which is a company best known for manufacturing Halloween costumes. I put action figures in quotes because they are molded rubber and aren't poseable; you really can't do much at all with them other than hang them on something. Ben Cooper did call them action figures though as Plaid Stallions has an image of a 1979 retail display box that referred to them as such. The four Marvel characters I have appear to be the full 1979 assortment but Spider-Man first released in 1973 alongside The Incredible Hulk and D.C. Comics' Batman and Superman. An eBay seller has the 1973 display box that calls them "Heroes of Action" and the side of the box mentions that they bounce on a string. 

I'm not sure if there were any other comic book characters in this toy line, however, Ben Copper also created a variety of monster toys in the same format. In the photos (and video) you'll notice the strings are missing from my Spider-Man and The Thing, there are spots and other marks on them, and The Thing's leg is damaged. I had some trouble getting good photos as the colors look slightly off to me under natural light which is what is used for the photos below. I'm not a fan of using my camera's flash but I did I use it for the group photo above to try and get a more accurate representation. 

Spider-Man

Doctor Strange

The Thing

Red Skull

[YouTube] Colorforms

https://youtu.be/dGTGypYd7-c

Colorforms were created in 1951 by Harry and Patricia Kislevitz of New York. If you're unfamiliar with Colorforms, they are a toy where users build a scene with plastic pieces that stick to a plastic-coated cardboard background. In 1957 the first set to feature a licensed character was released; that was Popeye and many, many more followed. Colorforms boxes are usually around 8" x 12" while there are some larger deluxe sets and other variations. The Colorforms brand has changed hands a few times and is currently owned by 9 Story Media Group.

All the images below basically show everything you can see in the video so if you just want to see the sets you can skip the video. Also, there are a couple repeats as I've shown The A-Team and Batman Colorforms previously though I did take a new photo of each. One thing I forgot to mention in the video was Presto Magix. Although it is best known for its products where you use a pencil to permanently attach pieces to a scene, it made a similar product to compete with Colorforms. Presto Magix had some great licenses too, like Star Wars and Transformers.

Booklets

Dress-Up & Traditional Sets

Stand-Up Play Set

I do have a few unopened sets from the '90s as well that fit into some of my collections. Ren & Stimpy is a bit odd for myself to own since I've not seen much of the show but I did read a few issues of the comic book. The others are comic book related as I did collect Batman and X-Men things during that decade.