11 Comic Books and Other Things

Recently, a new comic shop opened in my area.  This is not to be confused with another comic book shop that opened in my area in the last year or so.  That was a different comic shop, where I’ve heard stories of the store’s owner and bad business.  I got ripped off by him, but we won’t get into that.  The new store is nicer and the guy(Eugene) who runs the place is a cool guy who interesting to speak with.  The name of the shop is Empire Ray Gun Company.

All of the comic books you are about to see are not in mint condition.  But that’s okay.  All of the comics in my collection are of varying degrees of condition.  The primary reason to be into comics is to actually read them.  And that’s why I bought these.  And for the old-school ads from my childhood.

I got the Robin II issues because these were a big deal when they came out.  Holograms were one thing in card form, but when you put them on a comic cover, you got a kid’s interest.  This was also in the time of “gimmick” covers.  Every comic company was putting out glow-in-the-dark covers, foil covers, embossed covers and foil-embossed covers.  But the cover of the first issue is so awesome, and it was a four issue mini series, so it was worth the price.  I got these books for one dollar each, which is awesome.  But he didn’t have issue 2, so I won’t be able to read this anytime soon.  You’ll also see Johnny the Homicidal Maniac #7, Roger Rabbit #2 and Transformers #2.  JTHM is a great, dark comic(this was the only comic that cost cover price).  I loved Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, so I don’t see why I wouldn’t like the comics.  The old-school Transformers comics were a favorite of mine back in the day.  Plus it’s the second issue!

I have always been more of a fan of the old Mirage TMNT series, but I like all TMNT related literature.  The issues from Archie Comics was done in the same vein as the tv show, so it’s a give in why they would produce comics that were more like the popular cartoon.  The main reason I bought the Thor(I have nothing against the series or character) comic was because there are moai on the cover.  And I got the three issues of “Peter Porker, The Spectacular Spider-Ham”, because I was(and still am), a huge fan of the character and series, and these were issues I didn’t have.  I would love if Hasbro made a Marvel Universe figure for Spider-Ham(are you listening, Hasbro?).  And as I said earlier, the ads in these comics are great.

On my way home from work on Friday, I spotted a little “flea market” shop that was open for business in my area.  It was a small locally owned establishment, and it was very small(like a big shed).  I decided to check it out.  I didn’t find too much, but the owner was a nice guy and his prices were pretty good as well.

Cheech and Chong’s Up in Smoke is they best movie they made.  It is hilarious and very quoteable.  I don’t know if I’ve seen The Freshman.  But the dvds were $3 each or two for $5, so  I had to find another movie, and I didn’t see anything else interesting.

I don’t have any setimental attachment to Exo Squad and the bubble is wrecked beyond repair, but I couldn’t say turn down a 17 year old action figure for 3 bucks!  It’s a cool looking toy, and I had to buy it.  He kept on trying to get me to buy a box of the baseball cards you see pictured.  He said he must have 50 sealed boxes.  I’ve curbed my trading card collecting, and baseball isn’t my sport.  Before I left, he just gave me a set for nothing.  From what I’ve heard this set contains both Ken Griffey Jr.’s and Randy Johnson’s rookie cards.  Not too bad.

I haven’t been to any garage sales recently, but I haven’t seen any either.  I did spot one Saturday moring as I was giving a friend a ride home, so I just had to stop.

And Stimpy here, was the only thing that caught my attention.  I loved Nick Toons back in the nineties, as there were so many great ones.  Ren & Stimpy and Rocko’s Modern Life were my two favorites.  Of couse him in his original box was a deciding factor in my purchase.  The woman selling it had it marked for $6 but she said I could take it for $4, and it even works!  Not the best deal for a yard sale find, but definitely a fair price.

And lastly…

An old-school talking Pee-Wee Herman doll!  My friend Mike surprised me by giving this to me on Saturday.  He had him sitting in his man-cave, and knew I’d appreciate it.  The motor in his voice box is messed up, so he talks like a chipmunk, but that’s fine.  Maybe there’s a way I can fix that?  I now know that these dolls have bendable legs, which makes it great for display(but he’ll have to be stored away for now).

Pee-Wee’s Playhouse Playset

Well, this is a first for me.  This marks the first time that I have purchased an action figure playset.

While growing up, my brother and I had tons of action figures for many lines, but we never had the playsets to go with them(well, we did get the wood beetle playset from Battle Beasts.  But that was the only one).  Now, they weren’t essential, but they would have added a bit of credibility to our play sessions.  So it wasn’t a big deal that we never got any playset for our action figures.  And in the eighties, we had a lot of great playsets.  We had Castle Grayskull(Masters of the Universe), Cat’s Lair(Thundercats), The Sewer Playset(Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), The Hyve(Sectaurs)…and the seven foot long USS Flagg(G.I. Joe).  Now all of these playsets(and many others), are all very nice and would make a great addition to any collection.  But out of all the playsets that were released when I was a kid, this was the one that I wanted the most.

I ended up scoring a specimen that included the box it originally came in.  The price that I paid would have been fair if I only got the playset and the box.  But also included, were all but 3 figures from the whole line! 🙂 🙂 🙂

So let’s meet the gang.

From left to right-Reba the mail lady, Pee-Wee Herman, Miss Yvonne and Ricardo.  The two humans I don’t have are Cowboy Curtis and the King of Cartoons.

And every other character, except Conky!  We have Randy, Jambi, Chairy, Globey, Magic Screen, The Puppetland Band(Dirty Dog, Chicky Baby and Cool Cat), and Pterri.

It even came with Pee-Wee’s Scooter(which was included with the set when it was released), and his helmet.

The box is a little over two feet long, and the Playhouse itself is just a few inches shorter.

And as you’ll see in a moment, when you unfold it, it’s even bigger.  I had a lot of fun photographing this.  There is a lot of stuff from the show built into this, and we’ll check it out first hand.

The first thing you’ll notice is the trademark door.  That is a friggin’ awesome door!(there’s a great article over at X-Entertainment regarding the playhouse.  It’s actually one of my favorites.  Check it out here.)  To the left of the awesome door is Mr. Window, who has a lever to make it looks like he’s talking.  And to the awesome door’s right are the dancing flowers that also have a lever to move them side to side.

There’s Clockey and the two talking fish.  Clockey has movable hands(but it’s one piece, so they move simultaneously), and the fish sticker is lenticular, which gives the illusion of movement.  So, so, awesome.

The refrigerator and freezer doors open to reveal the anthropomorphic food we’d see whenever Pee-Wee opened the fridge or freezer.  On the show, they were brought to life with stop-motion claymation.

They even built in Floory.  It all would have added to the realism.

The table(which Globey is sitting on), and bench were also included.

Other accessories were the purple island couch, the t.v. set and platforms for Jambi and the Puppetland band.  Other things of interest include the Cowntess, the little statue Pee-Wee would turn to open the secret wall compartment that housed his scooter as well as the opening wall itself.

This gets a 10 out of 10 in my book.  Matchbox did so many things right with this.  There were other characters on the show, that didn’t get the action figure treatment.  But a gentleman by the name of Ben Zurawski made a custom set of the rest of the cast, including, Mr. Kite, the dinosaur family and Roger the monster.  He also made Magic Glasses and Picture Phone.  You can read about all of them here.  For now, this will be displayed in it’s box, because I don’t have enough room to display it in all it’s glory(the figures will be displayed, of course).  And who doesn’t love old-school packaging anyway?  With any luck, I’ll find the three figures I need, and have my first complete action figure line(that’s kind of cool).

I was out and about in town today, and I stumbled into the local Dollar General.  9.5 times out of 10, I’ll end up walking out empty handed, unless I happen to be thirsty, in which case, I end up buying a drink.  But there was a sale, with me getting both of these for a total of $5.40(that’s with tax).

They’re “Legends” class, but they’re also 25th anniversary(that was 2 years ago).  These will stay sealed, just like the other two 25th Anniversary Mini-Cons that I have.

A few days ago, I ended up buying 11 comic books.  I have bought maybe, 5 comics in the last 5+ years.  I’ll tell you the story in a few days.  We’ll talk comics.

Movie Battle vol.1

OK.  So, I was trying to think of a subject I could talk about here.  I figured I would entertain you with an alphabetical movie face-off of my collection.  If I haven’t seen the movie, it will not be eligible for the battle.  I have a few movies I have bought and just haven’t got around to watching them.  Some of the movies are my fiancee’s, and I haven’t watched(I have watched some of her movies).  I’m so bad at getting around to watching movies.  I have like 4 movies I borrowed from one of my friends, and I still haven’t watched them over a year later.  Some of the titles you will love, others you might hate.  There might be some that you think “why does he own that?”  And others you will refer to as classics.

This will be the first of a hopefully ongoing series.  In each volume of this series we will pit 2 movies(which I’ve seen and own) head to head.  I will discuss memorable scenes and/or quotes, and give a letter grade, to determine a victor.  Understand this is my opinion, and I fully expect some of you to disagree with me in my choices.  I am hoping I will spotlight some of your favorite flicks as well.  There will be six matches this evening, for a total of one dozen movies.  “Let’s begin, shall we?, Shall we?!”  100 points if you know what movie that line is from.

Let’s meet the combatants for the first match.  In the red corner we have 8 Heads in a Duffle Bag.  And in the blue corner we have 3000 Miles to Graceland.

Now, before we get to the mini review for each film, let me inform you that the review will represent what I remember.

8 heads in a Duffle Bag-  Joe Pesci is a mobster, who has a duffle bag  with 8 decapitated human heads in it.  The reason he has these heads is for evidence that he killed these guys.  Then, we have a couple going down to Baja, and the man of the couple mistakes Joe Pesci’s bag as his own…you know, the classic “mistaken luggage movie plot”.  The man discovers that he has the wrong bag when the dog pulls a head out of the bag.  He does a good job from hiding it from everybody, but every time he tries to dispose of the bag, something foils his attempt.  Joe Pesci needs those heads or he’s a dead man.  Hilarity ensues.  Grade-  C+

Memorable line-  I can’t remember any dialogue from that movie.

3000 Miles to Graceland-  Kevin Costner and Kurt Russell are part of a small band of thieves who rob a casino dressed as Elvis impersonators during a huge Elvis convention at said casino.  One gets shot during the getaway, and Kevin Costner basically puts him out of his misery.  Mr. Costner then procedes to try and eliminate the rest of the crew so he doesn’t have to share the score with anyone.  He succeeds in killing 2 of the remaining 3.  Kurt Russell doesn’t go down like a bitch.  A lot of bad-ass shit goes down between the two.  In the end Kurt Russell and a smokin’ Courtney Cox live happily ever after.  Grade-  A

Memorable line-  “What’s the smartest thing to ever come out a bitch’s mouth?”  “Einstein’s cock!”-  David Arquette

Winner-  3000 Miles to Graceland

Our next match-up is a doozy!  Coming to the ring first we have…American History X.  And following that entrance, we have Anchorman-The Legend of Ron Burgundy.

American History X-Derek Vinyard’s(Edward Norton), father is a firefighter who is killed in the line of duty.  Derek believes that his father died because of minorities.  Derek becomes a skinhead and rises through he ranks quickly.   His younger brother Danny(Edward Furlong) emulates his brother and wants to be like him.  Derek ends up in prison and while in there, he realizes how wrong he is about everything.  Meanwhile Danny is becoming more heavily involved in the skinhead lifestyle.  When Derek is released from prison, he makes it his duty to try and reverse his brother’s thinking.  It ends up being to late, as Danny is shot and killed in a school bathroom.     Grade-  A-

Memorable line-  This movie rings so true.  I don’t think that there is a true memorable line, but rather, a memorable message…Life is too short to hate.

Anchorman-The Legend of Ron Burgundy-  Will Ferrell is Ron Burgundy, the hottest anchorman in town.  A woman(Christina Applegate) is hired to the station and Ron tries to bed her.  She wants to be a co-anchor but Ron doesn’t believe that is a position for a woman.  Eventually Ron gets fired and is all depressed.  In the end he saves the day and gets his job back and gets the lady.  Grade-  A+

Memorable line(s)-  “LOUD NOISES!”  “I DON’T KNOW WHAT WE’RE YELLING ABOUT!”-  Steve Carell

Winner-  Anchorman-The Legend of Ron Burgundy

Our next contestants are…Austin Powers:The Spy Who Shagged Me and Back to School.

Austin Powers:The Spy Who Shagged Me-  It’s been a long time since I saw this one.  But we were at Big Lots and it was only 3 bucks.  How could I say no?  We all know this is a spoof on the James Bond series.  Mike Myers plays our hero, Austin Powers and his nemesis, Doctor Evil.  As I said, I haven’t watched this in forever, and the only thing I can tell you is…that mini-me makes his debut as well as Fat Bastard.  Right?  Austin stops Doctor Evil from destroying the world and saves the day.  Grade-  C-

Memorable line-  “Yeah baby!”-  Mike Myers

Back to School-  Thornton Melon(Rodney Dangerfield), is a self made millionaire, with his “Tall and Fat” stores.  His son, Jason is in college and is stressed out, and wants to drop out.  Thornton doesn’t like the idea of that , and being that he never went to college, he decides to enroll himself, and encourage Jason.  Being that Thonrton is a millionaire, he is the life of the campus.  The dorm he, along with Jason and his room mate share is top notch.  The place is the size of 3 dorm rooms and has a hot tub.  Thornton parties hard and pays to have experts do his assignments.  Jason begins to resent his father because he is not working for this achievement, he is paying for someone else to do it.  Thornton gets the message loud and clear.  He studies and memorizes hard-core to pass  a final exam and not get expelled.  He succeeds and Jason is once again a proud son and now a graduate.  Grade-  A+

Memorable line-  “Say When.”-  Girl in hot tub, pouring champagne, “Right after this drink.”-  Rodney Dangerfield

Winner-  Back to School

This next match is scheduled for one fall.  Starring John Travolta, we have Be Cool.  And starring Michael Keaton, we welcome Beetlejuice.

Be Cool-  John Travolta is a music producer and…okay I’ve seen this twice and while it’s a good movie I can’t remember much more than an all-star cast.  Dwayne Johnson, a.k.a.-The Rock does an awesome job as a gay siger/diva.  In my opinion he makes this movie.  Rounding out this A-List cast is, Uma Thurman, Andre 3000, Cedric the Entertainer, Vince Vaughn and a cameo from Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler.  Grade- B

Memorable line-  John Travolta(Chili), looking at man’s chest hair,  “Is that chest hair real?”, “Yes.” says the hairy man.  John Travolta then grabs him by that hair and throws him across the pawn shop.

Beetlejuice-  The yuppie Maitlands die on their way home from their hardware store, and end up in limbo.  A new family has purchased the house and are gutting it and making it their own.  The Maitlands try their best to scare the new family away, but humorously fail.  They end up seeing a commercial for “Beetlguise” and enlist his services.  Beetlejuice(Michael Keaton), wreaks havoc and turns everything upside down.  In the end, they get rid of Beetlejuice and the 2 families, alive and dead, learn to live together.  Grade-  A+

Memorable line-  “Ya bucha losers!”, “You’re dealin’ with a professional here!”-  Michael Keaton

Winner-  Beetlejuice

Only two matches to go!

Facing off in the squared circle, we have…Big Bully vs. Big Money Hustlas

Big Bully-  When David Leary(Rick Moranis) is in grade school, a moon rock is brought in to the school for a display.  Rosco Bigger(Tom Arnold) stole it and David ratted him out.  He was arrested and he moved.  I’d say it’s about twenty years later, and David starts a teaching job in his old Minnesota school.  Little does he know, his childhood bully is a teacher at the school as well.  The battle pretty much starts out where the childhood rivalry left off, this time a little more adult like yet just as immature.  Everything gets settled, and we have a happy ending.  Grade-  C+

Memorable line-  Another I haven’t seen in a while.  But, c’mon!  It’s got Rick Moranis in it, you can’t go wrong.

Big Money Hustlas-This is basically a spoof on 70s blaxploitation movies and police dramas.  If you aren’t a fan of the ICP(I’m down, but we won’t get into that.), you probably won’t like this movie.  Sugar Bear(Shaggy 2-Dope) is the top cop on the streets.  He’s a hero in San Francisco, and now he’s come to New York to help rid the city of Big Baby Sweets(Violent J).  As expected in this comedy, the good guy wins and saves the city.  There were a few other celebrity cameos as well.  We had Fred “Rerun” Berry, Rudy Ray Moore(Dolomite), Twiztid, Myzery, Harland Williams(his role was big, he was a main character), and Mick Foley.  All in all, a fun movie.  Grade-  C+

Memorable line-  “I’m inna ape suit!”  “Means I don’t give a fuck!”-  Violent J(Ape Boy)

Winner-  Draw

Our last match on the card tonight is………..Big Top Pee Wee vs. The Boondock Saints.

Big Top Pee Wee-  Pee Wee now lives on a farm in the country.  He has a talking pig named Vance, he’s a brilliant botonist and he’s dating the town’s school teacher.  A circus is traveling through town and runs into problems, so Pee Wee agree to house them until they are back on track.  The grumpy townsfolk are in an uproar to get the freaks out of town.  Pee Wee makes a strange potion that turns the people into little kids that end up loving the circus.  He gets the foreign girl from the circus and they live happily ever after.  Grade-  C

Memorable line-  “Mmm.”  “Egg salady.”-  Pee Wee Herman

The Boondock Saints-  Two holy brothers rid their Irish neighborhood of gangsters and criminals.  I don’t want to give anything away here folks.  Watch the movie, you won’t regret it.  Willem Dafoe does an excellent job here.  Grade-  A+

Memorble line-  “I can’t go and buy a pack of smokes, without running into a guy you fucked!”-  Funny Man

And there you have it.  The first of many alphabetical movie battles.  There are a few that were skipped over because, I’ve either not watched them or have seen them once, and don’t remember much about them.  These are the ones that didn’t make it this round.  300, ALF Tales(animated fairy tales), Alfie, Almost famous, Backyard Wrestling:There Goes the Neighborhood Collector’s edition DVD, Big Momma’s House and Black Snake Moan.

Like I said, this is the first of many.  I hope you have enjoyed it so far.