So, the new Indiana Jones DVDs are out, ‘The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’ is due out shortly, and I don’t know about you, but I’ve become an IndianaJonesophiliac. He’s the oldschool action hero that we’d all love to have dinner with - as long as it wasn’t chilled monkey brains or ‘snake surprise’.

Action heroes like Indiana make awesome action figures, but the rights to make action figures based on the Indiana Jones films have been tied up for years now, and the only figures being made were exclusive to the Disney Parks. For us commoners who didn’t have regular access to the various Lands of Magic, we were simply outta luck. Recently, in a herculean push behind the newest Indiana Jones movie, many companies are cranking out the neat IJ products - not only from Crystal Skull, but from all of the previous films. My personal favorite stuff from the new Jones merchandise empire are Hasbro’s tiny 3.75” tall figures.

Because of the size of the new IJ line, Indiana Jones can comfortably hang out with the plethora of Han Solos and Darth Vaders that Hasbro has previously released in this scale. No, figures of this teensy size do not get an astounding level of sculptural detail or articulation. In fact, they’re pretty rudimentary in comparison to what action figures have evolved into since the original Star Wars lines, but it’s that simplicity that charms me. That, and the whole set can fit into a very small box.

The first group of figures has been released, and it consists of characters from ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ and ‘Crystal Skull’, but as I’m not about to invest in ‘Skull’ before I see it firsthand, I’m focusing on the collection of RotLA figures. This set of singly-packed figures includes 2 variations of Indiana Jones, Marion Ravenwood, Sallah, Belloq, a Cairo Swordsman, the Monkey Man spy, and a German Soldier. Three deluxe packs include an Arab-costumed Indiana Jones with the titular Ark, another Marion Ravenwood with a Cairo Warrior, and a pair of generic German Soldiers. Collectors are scooping up these German Soldiers in both singly-packed and double packed forms, since the enemy threat in the IJ films was rarely about skill, but about the sheer quantity of baddies that Jones went up against. He went through Nazis like tissues on a day with an especially high pollen index. That’s a nerd simile if I ever heard one.

This selection of characters is great, though the German Soldiers lack the swastika armbands that they all bore in the film. Of course, this is all done in the interest of respect and good taste, and these ARE toys, so I can live without a picture-perfect recreation of the film. I’d like to eventually see the big, bald German Mechanic and a few of the creepier Germans, like Toht (with an alternate melty head) before the line fades away. As an added bonus, every figure comes with a mystery relic in a sealed cardboard mini-crate. Collect six of these and their accompanying stickers and you can mail away for a bonus skeleton figure from ‘Crystal Skull’. At the moment, the appearance of the figure is still a total mystery.

This small scale enables toy companies to make vehicles and playsets that can be relatively in scale with the figures, whereas such a thing would be almost impossible with larger figures. Indiana Jones can ride a horse, and German Soldiers can ride motorcycles and be loaded into army trucks.

Collectors complain that the figures are not perfect representations of their characters, but one has to step back and realize that pores cannot be sensibly sculpted into a head smaller than a fingernail. I’ll admit that I was completely uninterested in this line until I bought them, got them home and started opening them up. I don’t really need action figures so realistic that I’m uncomfortable getting changed in front of them. Right now, the intent of the figures is enough to be satisfying, and they’re definitely close enough to their intended characters to remain really fun. Standing them up across my desk filled me with a mild glee, and bought back memories of playing with the original Star Wars stuff - back when it was okay to imagine a hero’s chiseled face onto a plastic lump instead of going onto message boards to complain about it.

Check out the collection in our Community, and keep an eye out for the upcoming ‘Last Crusade’ and ‘Temple of Doom’ figures!

While watching the amazing Indiana Jones trilogy, I’ve realized that Indiana Jones and myself have a lot in common. We’re both part-time teachers, we’re both accidental lotharios, and we’re both collectors. Unfortunately for me, the similarities end there. While Indy’s weapon of choice is a well-aimed bullwhip, mine tends to be a well-timed barb in a blog somewhere. One of these things will save your life. I’ll let you figure out which is which.

With ‘Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’ coming out in just a few days, the nerd-world (or ‘nerld’, as I’ve come to call it) has gone Indy crazy. I admit, the fervor was so infectious that I found myself scooping up Indiana Jones action figures this weekend without even remembering the details of the films. Plus, who can resist ANY action figure of either Harrison Ford or Jonathan Rhys-Davies? Not me, sir. Not even if the likenesses are barely there.

To herald the arrival of the new Indy film, Paramount is re-releasing the original IJ trilogy in a handsome boxed set, including 1981’s ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’, 1984’s ‘Temple of Doom’ and 1989’s ‘Last Crusade’, all presented in Widescreen format and packaged in three space-saving slim cases. For a DVD collector, space is a premium. Those Xena : Warrior Princess sets are huge, and very necessary, because I’m a lonely guy, and Amazons are comforting.

This set, ‘The Adventure Collection’, comes with a handful of new DVD extras. All three come with unique introductions by George Lucas & Steven Spielberg, and all three include the exact same trailer for the upcoming ‘Crystal Skull’, and the same LEGO Indiana Jones video game trailer & playable demo (which is playable on PCs only, and unsuitable for my Mac). These repetitious extras could have been dropped for some deleted scenes, or at least segments of the documentaries included with the 2003 boxed set, which are absent here. It’s all about the vintage, behind-the-scenes stuff, folks. How else are we going to live vicariously?

What we DO get are all-new mini-documentaries, two of which are special effects demonstrations - my favorite. There’s a reconstruction of the ‘melting face’ scene in ROTLA, as well as original construction footage, and a whole segment about the creepy animals used in the Trilogy, from snakes to bugs to rats, explaining (of course) that most of them are completely harmless, but a bit skeevy nonetheless. We’ve seen the actors talk a million times - show me the animal handlers and guys who make jello faces that explode! That’s exactly why I watch Mythbusters, and that’s what I love about these extras.

We’re also given one set of storyboards for each film, which is like the comic that the art team draws out to map out the film - another thing that’s easy to relate to and appreciate, but probably isn’t for everyone. There are photo galleries and sketches and models used for each film, and a mini-documentary about the wide range of exotic locations used throughout. Did you know that ROTLA was filmed in the exact same place in Tunisia as Star Wars : A New Hope’s Tattooine scenes? That’s a true story. Of course, we also have the cast reminiscences, contextualized by the arrival of the new film. I’m skipping these for now, because I want my Crystal Skull experience to be spoiler-free.

I can’t say that I ever appreciated the trilogy as much as it deserved, but I’ve now become an avid fan. It’s pretty astounding how often Raiders is referenced in pop culture, from melting faces in Scrubs to about a million scenes in Family Guy, most episodes of Duck Tales, and even a notable ‘Bart steals Homer’s penny jar’ scene in The Simpsons. Anyone who’s ever run from a huge boulder, or grabbed something from under a quickly descending door, or been chopped to bits by a plane propellor. It’s all there. There’s also the inherent appeal of the dual-personality thing that pervades so many superhero comics - Indy’s an awkward, regular guy when he’s not wearing the hat, but he’s one heck of a hero when he’s got it on.

I’m primed for the new movie with all scales of action figures, a fair knowledge of the films, and a sincere hope that George Lucas won’t stupid it up with quippy lines and butt jokes. You know, pull an Episode One. The set is due out in about a week, on May 13th, and if you don’t already have ‘em, it’s a pretty iconic addition to your movie collection.

So, as Toy Fair 2008 ends, I come to you with my report from the first day of the Big Event. On Saturday, February 16th, Hasbro hosted their ‘Collector Event’ in their rented showrooms near the Javits Center in NYC, and preceded that with a handful of powerpoint presentations at The Times Center regarding their upcoming and continuing toy lines. We got free popcorn and water, and afterwards, we even got a cookie. Which was delicious - even if it was printed with the Hasbro logo. If Hasbro tastes like sugar cookies and white chocolate, feed me more.

Sure, ToyFair hadn’t even really started yet, but Hasbro likes to get ‘the nerd herd’ out of the way. It goes something like this : they shuffle us into a maze of displays, we crowd like so many camera-wielding lambs to slaughter, and we struggle to get suitable shots for our own sites around the wide stance of that annoying guy from that Transformers fan site. Seriously, guy, you don’t need 15 shots of Optimus Prime’s nostrils. I’d just like one of his chassis, please. The difference between nerds and lambs, though, is that lambs have a sense of direction and are soft, whereas nerds depend entirely on their elbows to make their oblivious treks right smack into your nether regions.

Can you tell that I was more than a little perturbed by the claustrophobia of the showroom? To top it all off, one of the new American Gladiators was standing in the doorway to greet us. You know, pecs bigger than your head, glistening, making us all regret every decision we’ve ever made in our nerd-lives, called something like Kickface or Hemorrhage or something such. I’m much more of an American Gladiola.

But I digress. For the first half of the afternoon, no recording devices of any kind were allowed. We sat in a comfy theatre as toy planners and execs told us about Hasbro’s’ plans for 2008, all revolving around their “boys’ properties” of Spider-Man, Iron Man, The Hulk, Star Wars, G. I. Joe, Transformers, Marvel Comics, and Indiana Jones - all of which have a movie or TV show of some sort coming out this year. The great things about Hasbro’s properties is that Hasbro capitalizes off of them in as many ways possible - so while the Iron Man movie might be hot, they’ll use this momentum to delve into Iron Man comics and fan-favorite history stuff to make more products that collectors AND casual fans would love to see on a toy shelf for different (and still all valid) reasons. G. I. Joe fans will see classic stuff revisited, and Indiana Jones fans will see figures from ALL of the Indiana Jones movies - not just the new Crystal Skull one.

Now listen up, collectors - there’s a lot of dates I’m going to drop on you for when you can find these toys, and what you’ll be looking for.

- IRON MAN will see seven basic 6” scale figures, which will arrive on shelves on March 22nd, preceding the movie release, scheduled for May 2nd. Expect a ‘first appearance’ Mark I Armor, a Mark III armor, and Titanium Man, among other action-featured Iron Men - as well as a funky Iron Man roadster, ‘cause every hero needs a vehicle. Especially when they can fly. The movie’s designs are based on the comic cover artwork of Adi Granov, which is a great nod to the comics themselves. There will also be a beautiful, deluxe 12” figure, and at least two sets of Superhero Squad figures - which are 2” tall, kid-friendly, cartoonish plastic hunks of neatness. These will be Iron Man related, but not movie-centric at all - including Hulkbuster, First Appearance, Silver Centurion, War Machine, Unmasked and other neat armors. Keep an eye out for an additional Iron Man armor included with the Hulk Superhero Squad packs!

- THE INCREDIBLE HULK MOVIE will be the kind of movie that says, “You know what? We never made that Eric Bana one. Let’s start over & do it right!” The toys will drop on May 1st, and the movie is released on June 13th. The 6” scale movie toys seem to be a whole lotta very similar Hulks with action features, an Abomination figure (not shown at Toy Fair), and a few army guys - nothing incredible. What collectors SHOULD take note of is the ‘Marvel Legends’ style figures that’ll be coming out at this time also - again, not movie-centric, but very much related to Hulk comics. The first wave will include Savage She-Hulk (pictured at left), Wendigo (a more accurate one than the other Marvel Legends one), Absorbing Man (returning, after being impossible to find a few years back), and ‘The End’ Hulk. A second wave will come shortly after this, and if you collect all eight figures, you can build a genuinely huge Fin Fang Foom figure - the dragon that fans have been clamoring for for YEARS. I’m psyched. (One will also be able to get all 8 figures, along with Foom, in a ‘Collector’s Box’ at San Diego Comic Con this year). As mentioned earlier, there will also be at least two Superhero Squad packs, all comic related, including Green Scar, Silver Savage, and a few other Hulks.

- SPIDER-MAN is getting a new animated show on Saturday mornings, and Hasbro’s toys will release on March 1st, capitalizing on that great animated style that I recently wrote about. While there’s no new Spider-Man films on the immediate horizon, Hasbro will be releasing a ‘Spider-Man Classic’ line, which will feature comic characters that we haven’t seen yet, including Tarantula, which will drop on August 1st. All of these are 6” scaled, so everything is compatible with everything else, as Hasbro’s learned their lesson from the ill-fated 5” Spider-Man line of late last year that no one seems to be buying.

- MARVEL LEGENDS are going to have an odd year, with only 2 waves of single-packed figures this year, which run from 5 to 8 figures per wave. No figure or Build-a-Figure plans were revealed for these, but the year will also see eight 2-packs, which makes up for the figural absence otherwise. These will include Ultimate Nick Fury & Ultimate World War II Captain America, and Elektra & Ronin. Fans will note that these are all new, current characters that are important to current storylines, and even better, Marvel Legends will start coming with relevant accessories again, including alternate heads and hands. An Elektra with a Skrull head? YES PLEASE - but it all still means that we’re going to be shorted on buildable, huge figures.

Also planned for 2008 is a San Diego Comic Con exclusive 3-pack under the ‘Savage Land’ theme, which includes Shanna the She-Devil, Ka-Zar and Zabu. I hate the sound of the word ‘exclusive’, I hate that San Diego gets almost all of them, and I hate trying to find them for fair prices - but at least HasbroToyShop.com has offered these to online buyers in the past.

- SUPERHERO SQUAD will see, in addition to the aforementioned Hulk & Iron Man packs, twenty-four more 2-packs, and eight more 4-packs, which will include Hobgoblin, Psylocke, Shang Chi, Nighthawk, Carnage, Ares, and other figures that are so obscure it’s ridiculous and awesome. The new MIGHTY MUGGS line, which feature generic, cartoony, urban vinyl-styled bodies done up in different decos, will have 16 new marvel figures this year, including Thing, Doctor Doom, Hulk, Venom, Iron Man and a bunch of other good choices. SDCC will have an exclusive (shudder) Iron Man Movie figure.

- MARVEL UNLEASHED, a line of extra-sized, super-articulated, premium figures will see four more waves, starting with Iron Man. These can be equated to ‘a step up from regular action figures without breaking the bank’. MARVEL TRANSFORMERS will also begin, mixing Hasbro’s properties up into a myriad of neat things. They start off with an Iron Man and a Hulk that turn into vehicles, Transformers-style! And speaking of mixing properties, there are strong rumors of a Star Wars-scaled Marvel figure line… and who doesn’t want to see Darth Vader and Doctor Doom duke it out?

As big a nerd as I am, my knowledge of G. I. Joe and Transformers is next to nothing, so I regret that almost all of the information about these two properties went right over my head, not knowing many names or which toys have come before. I can mention that a second Transformers movie is starting to film (though no toys were shown), a kid-friendly Transformers cartoon is starting up (with a few figures shown), and a G. I. Joe movie has also started filming. I also went out after this presentation and bought my first three Joe figures. Note, please, that every company I’d talk to this weekend had their own 3.75″ scale line brewing, and ergo, everything would be compatible with the tiny Joes.

- INDIANA JONES promises to be a hot property, with Hasbro delving into every IJ movie, answering fan pleas that have echoed annoyingly for years. On May 1st, all of the toys are going to appear. We have an initial offering of seventeen 3.75” (or ‘Star Wars’) scale figures, with plans to expand the line into at least twenty-nine figures by the end of the year. There’s a lot of lost time to make up for, and they’re doing it well. Each figure will come with a ‘relic’ from one of the movies, amassing a great little treasure trove. There will also be a 12” line, more Adventure Heroes (much like the oft-mentioned Superhero Squad), a ‘Taters of the Lost Ark’ Mr. Potato Head, more Mighty Muggs, and even a classic mail-in program for every line. One can collect 4 proofs of purchase to earn an Adventure Heroes Indy on his horse, a 1/6th scaled Ark, or a 3.75” scale mystery figure that was not revealed to us due to its importance in the new movie.

And finally STAR WARS! As if there wasn’t already an information overload, there’s a ton of SW stuff coming. On July 26th, ‘The Legacy Collection’ will drop, which will include Stormtrooper helmet packaging and will include 30 figures. One week later, The Clone Wars Animated figures will happen, on Clone Trooper helmet packaging - so that fans can distinguish between the two. This will include 23 figures. All of these will include bonus parts to build a few Droids similar to R2-D2 and C-3PO.

These early offerings will include an ‘Episode Six Deleted Scene’ theme, with our classic Star Wars heroes in desert gear for the first time. Now, most exciting for me out of all of Toy Fair was catching a glimpse of Yarna D’Al Gargan (pictured above) - one of Jabba’s Palace dancers that was never made into a figure, and who was featured more prominently on the screen than 90% of every other Star Wars character ever made. The reason that she’s never been made is her semi-controversial feature of ‘having six breasts’, but FINALLY. Finally we can complete out Jabba’s Palace cardboard dioramas with Yarna.

Beyond these basic offerings, there will be comic 2-packs, with characters from throughout the non-canon history of the Star Wars comics, including Cade Skywalker, Darth Talon, Dengar & Fenn Shyshd. There will be four ‘Evolutions’ themed 3-packs, including a trio of Rebel Pilots from Episode 6, and a triple-pack of a Padme Amidala from each movie that she appeared in. And the line extends into even more Mighty Muggs and ‘Galactic Heroes’ - which are the same thing as ‘Adventure Heroes’ and ‘Superhero Squad’.

And, of course, Hasbro had a large Cloverfield Monster on display. For many people, including those who saw the movie, this is the first clear image that they’ve ever seen of The Monster. I’ll refrain from spoiling the movie for you by posting a picture here, but CLICK HERE if you’re curious and want to know more. It’s 14″ tall, touts 70 points of articulation, and comes with a handful of accessories. Itis currently available for purchase through Hasbro’s website and nowhere else.
The showrooms were packed with nerds who had no awareness of anyone who was standing around them, and I was inadvertently groped a handful of times. And I do mean ‘handful’. Hasbro, I love you, but you need bigger showrooms - especially when your sweatiest clientele will all be meeting there at once. I had a claustrophobic moment or two, which prevented me from seeing half of the showroom. You’ve shown me that I’m not elbowy enough to be a ‘reporter’, that toys turn grown men into animals, and that it’s going to be an expensive year. Stay tuned for more Toy Fair this weekend!

For now, CLICK HERE to see a full gallery of Hasbro images, and enjoy!

In Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, a young boy-scout Indy confronts plunderers about a golden cross, and later meets the same men over the same cross. His logic, flung at the plunderers twice, is “that belongs in a museum!” In each of the Jones movies, Indy is after a relic of some sort, fighting off others in pursuit of the same item, but his reasoning isn’t much more noble from the perspective of the rightful owner of a relic. Whether the object is pursued by a private collector or a museum, it is being taken out of its context and moved to a new place. This same dilemma exists for collectors: you may want a rare or valuable item, but how right is it to own the item?

Extreme cases, like grave-robbing, plundered items, or items pertaining to unpleasant historic events, are generally frowned upon, even though there’s a market for them. A Nazi memorabilia seller had a case in a local antique mall, which got a moderate amount of frowns and an equal amount of interest. One day, a buyer by the name of Marilyn Manson stopped by, while in town for a performance, and bought a big chunk of what the seller had. I personally would hope that Manson has an honest interest in history, but judging from his music it’s likely his morbid facination is deliberately morbid and expressly offensive. On one hand, it’s probably better he bought them than a neo-nazi looking for ties to his beliefs, and I’m sure Manson will spend the money on proper care and restoration for the items, but wouldn’t a museum or WWII collector be a better buyer?

Recently, a clock was sold to a collector. Not particularly remarkable, except that the clock is a 15-foot tall historic icon. The storefront that the clock has guarded for decades is going to be renovated, and it’s new front doesn’t include the clock. The collector is going to take good care of the clock, much better care than the clock has recieved in recent years, and better than it will get with the next owner. However, the city preservation board believes the clock should remain where it is due to it’s iconic nature. On one hand, the clock risks destruction or neglect if it’s left in the hands of an owner who doesn’t want it, but the collector will remove the clock and take it to his collection. Towns all over are confronted with similar problems: sustaining a city’s history, but not impeding progress. They can set up clubs to teach children about history, but with local museums underfunded and incentives for developers to replace history with modernism, what would be a better place than in a loving collector’s archive? The original environment, however, might make the item more relevant, if not more valuable to the people who appreciate it. An iconic pussycat neon sign adorned a downtown Fargo bar and greeted generations of Greyhound bus riders as they disembarked, but when the building was torn down the sign was bought by a collector. Last I heard, it’s on a pole in the middle of a farmstead in rural North Dakota. It’s better than the sign scrapyard (which, incidentally is on 2nd Ave S and 15th Street, and appears too well guarded for casual browsing), but wouldn’t a local historical museum have been more appropriate?

My wife and I attended an auction a few years ago for a disbanded church; it was a very rural area, late in the day during the week, so we expected some good deals on religious items. One such was the baptismal font: bidding started low, and we were doing well, but it became clear from overhearing the discussions in the audience that the other bidders were members of the church trying to save items with emotional significance. Even though it might have been a ruse to keep us from bidding, it worked and we bowed out. However, what would have been a better destination for the font: the home of a member of the church, or a collector interested in Methodist iconography, or another church in the process of being built? We did buy a stained glass window and a number of dishes with the church’s logo on it, and all went to loving collectors; the window, in fact, went to a man building a new home, and he planned on installing it in a stairwell.

Collectors are always on the lookout for the rarest, the most valuable, and the one with the best story behind it, whether it’s a South American golden idol, the Ark of the Covenant, an original painting, or the desk Ann Landers sat at, but they often overlook the right option in favor of their own desires. A wise collector might find it best to ask themselves: What would Indiana Jones think?