The Scream of 31 Days of Toy Terror: Kroenen from Hellboy by Mezco

    While currently Mezco is mostly known for One:12 Collective and the Living Dead Dolls, there was a point in time where they released an eclectic mix of action figure lines based on their own unique properties as well as film and comic based lines. One of my favorite properties Mezco worked with is Hellboy. They did action figures for both of the Guillermo del Toro films and a decent range of action figures based on the Mike Mignola comics as well. Today's installment of The Scream of 31 Days of Toy Terror features Karl Ruprecht Kroenen, a surgery addicted Nazi with a clockwork heart. Kroenen was one of the most interesting villains in a film filled with interesting looking villains and Mezco put him in the first series and the 1.5 series. I've never been able to get my hands on the 1.5 Kroenen but I did manage to track down a series 1 Kroenen about a decade or so back. He's a really creepy figure, plus he gives you an evil, occult, piece of trash Nazi for Hellboy to fight. Ready for a really creepy and evil installment of The Scream of 31 Days of Toy Terror? Then join me after the break...

Action Figure Review: Tomatohead from Fortnite: Legendary Series by Jazwares

    Series 2 of Jazwares' Fortnite: Legendary Series figures began shipping early last month and, oddly, not every figure seemed to be released at the same time. DJ Yonder came out first with Tomatohead and Leviathan shortly after. Jonesy and Abstrakt showed up near the end of September/ early October and, as of now, Valkyrie is nowhere to be found. Weird, huh? I've been seeing cases at Wal-Mart that have DJ Yonder, Tomatohead, Leviathan, and Jonesy, but no Abstrakt. Anyways, Tomatohead. Yup! These guys just get stranger and stranger. Apparently an employee of a pizzeria (maybe a delivery person?), Tomatohead's real name just might be Uncle Pete. He's well armed for sure, and makes another really out there figure for this collection. Ready to check him out? Then join me after the break...

The Scream of 31 Days of Toy Terror: Saurod from Masters of the Universe by Mattel

   Most folks would not consider 1987's Masters of the Universe to be a standout in horror cinema. Or sci-fi cinema. Or any cinema, really. Yeah, the movie just ain't that popular. It has flaws, no doubt, but I do really like the movie. It scared me as a kid, however. Skeletor really did. Frank Langella is awesome in the movie and, fortunately, Super7 is finally working on an action figure of the character for the Masters of the Universe Classics line. There are some other cool creature designs for the film, too, and one of those is Saurod. Played by Pons Maar, Saurod is one of the new Evil Warriors introduced in the film (part of the "Curious Quartet") and one of the few figures from the film to get an action figure in the vintage MOTU toyline. For being a movie made for the purpose of selling toys, Mattel sure didn't put a lot of effort into giving the film a robust toyline. Blade, Gwildor, and Saurod were all we got. Since I like the movie, love MOTU and Saurod, and love going off the beaten path for 31 Days of Toy Terror, today we're checking out my original childhood vintage MOTU Saurod figure. Enjoy!

Action Figure Review: Red Hood from DC Essentials by DC Collectibles

    Today I'm reviewing an action figure from... DC Collectibles? Yes, that's right: DC Collectibles? Man, where have they been? The last time I reviewed a DC Collectibles figure was January of 2019. If you looked at the toys I had on preorder a few years ago you would probably have seen a huge percentage of it was from DC Collectibles, but over the past few years they've been marching towards irrelevancy. Over the past few years they've cancelled way too much of the product they solicited and now they're mostly releasing their DC Essentials line. The DC Essentials line has been out for a couple of years now but it's mostly been characters who have had multiple releases. Of course, when I saw that DC Essentials was putting out a Red Hood I had to preorder him. Jason Todd is one of my favorite DC characters (he's easily my favorite "Robin") and there was never a great standard Red Hood. The Red Hood and the Outlaws figure was pretty good but he had those weird arm blades that Red Hood barely ever wore in the comics, and the Arkham Knight Red Hood is incredible but he's definitely not a traditional version of the character. This guy was going to be my stand in on my Mattel shelf...but guess what? Mattel went and released an actual Red Hood in the last series of DC figures they're putting out after having the license for 19 flipping years (they released this version, too, but it's not his most well known look). So that's how I ended up with two Red Hood figures within one week. We'll start with checking out DC Collectibles' Red Hood, and I'll probably get to Mattel's later this week or early next. Let's check out how ol' Jason is faring after the break...

The Scream of 31 Days of Toy Terror: Spawn from Spawn: The Movie by McFarlane Toys

   I'm sticking with the 1990s for today's installment of The Scream of 31 Days of Toy Terror, more specifically the year 1997. Whether you were a toy collector or a comic fan, Spawn was a big deal that year. While today superhero films are essentially a genre of their own, it's interesting that so many of the comic movies in the late 1990s and earlier 2000s were essentially horror films. The market for comic book films themselves just wasn't as receptive then as it is today so studios used comic books with a horror basis to get crossover appeal. Bring in both comic fans and horror buffs. it worked for awhile and did lead to some petty solid films like the Blade trilogy, Hellboy, Constantine, and, the subject of today's review, Spawn. Spawn might not be the best of movies but it was kind of cool for the time. The toys were also pretty remarkable. Around 6 years ago in a review of the Jessica Priest figure from the film, I spoke about receiving this figure of Spawn for my fourteenth birthday from a friend. I've always held on to him; while I've never been a huge Spawn fan, I've always loved this toyline. Let's take a look at a representative from the horror/ comic surge of the 1990s after the break...

Action Figure Review: Modulok D from Masters of the Universe ReAction by Super7

 Today I'm checking out the third and final figure from Super7's PowerCon 2019 offerings for the Masters of the Universe ReAction line and this time it's Modulok with both heads and all four legs. Super7 called this version of Modulok version D which was a little odd as version A and version B had been released, but we had no version C. Version C, which is a slight variant of this release, has actually been released as a NYCC 2019 exclusive, along with a Top Toys variant Modulok with green arms. This version, however, it based on the vintage Modulok figure from Mattel. While Modulok could have an endless number of combinations, this version shows a pretty standard look: Two arms, four legs, a tail, and two heads. It's not a perfect recreation of the vintage toy but it's fairly close and definitely makes for an interesting retro styled action figure. Let's check out Modulok D after the break...

The Scream of 31 Days of Toy Terror: Velociraptor from Jurassic Park by Kenner

   The 1990s aren't always remembered as one of the best times for horror cinema but they definitely had their moments, particularly in regards to creature films. While it's usually remembered as more of a sci-fi adventure film, Jurassic Park definitely scared quite a few folks and absolutely borrowed plenty of key elements from the horror genre to thrill audiences in 1993. I was 9 when the film came out, so I feel like I was the perfect age for Jurassic Park and thus I also had lots of the Kenner action figures. Kenner managed to combine evergreen appeal of dinosaur toys with the frenzy of a Steven Spielberg summer blockbuster to create an incredibly popular toyline! This Velociraptor is one of my original Jurassic Park toys and she's getting a spot on The Scream of 31 Days of Toy Terror! Enjoy one of the best onscreen menaces in all of cinema...