We Had That

Star Wars: Mobile Laser Cannon - MLC-3 Mini Rig (Kenner, 1981) I loved Kenner's Star Wars figures the minute I first saw them!  I picked up every different figure that I could get my hands on from the first couple of waves.  By the time The Empire Strikes Back action figures were arriving in stores in early 1980, Star Wars figures had become the main toys that I played with and I was very excited about the new toys and the new movie.  After seeing The Empire Strikes Back, I was even more excited! The MLC-3 with rebels in Hoth gear! I loved the scenes on the ice planet Hoth and wanted any figures that related to that part of the movie.  I also really wanted a Snow Speeder...and anything else from Hoth...but mainly a Snow Speeder!  Unfortunately, the prices on toys was going up because the cost of plastic had been rising.  I was super lucky to get the Snow Speeder for Christmas, but there were so many Hoth related vehicles and playsets that I couldn't get the...

G.I. Joe! Cobra Infantry, Code Name: Viper (Hasbro, 1986) When the first wave of the G.I. Joe relaunch in 3 3/4" scale arrived in stores in 1982, I thought they were the most amazing action figures that I had ever seen!  I wanted every G.I. Joe figure that I could get my hands on and even to this day, that first wave includes some of my favorite figures!  As subsequent waves arrived, Hasbro offered more and more toy awesomeness with a few clunkers here and there.  But mostly, the figures that arrived each year gave me plenty of opportunity to add to my G.I. Joe and Cobra armies! My childhood Cobra Viper.  I would have liked an army of them! When the fifth wave was released in 1986, there were a couple of figures that didn't appeal to me at all, but there were also a few that I just had to have!  The Cobra Vipers were on the short list of my personal favorites from this wave!  I thought these guys were so awesome looking that I wanted a few of them.  Al...

Phantom Starkiller: The Cosmic Ghoul Warrior! Near the end of 2019, I picked up a few random Super7 ReAction figures which included an awesome yet mysterious green, skeletal creature.  After some quick research, I learned that he was called Phantom Starkiller!  At the time, I didn't look up much more than the name, but I did notice that there were several color variations of the figure.  Over the last few months, I had become more curious about this random mystery guy, so last week, I really started digging in and researching the history of this dude.  It turns out that the character first came into existence back in 2013 as a very limited run (25 pieces) custom figure created by Peter Goral under his "Killer Bootlegs" company. Phantom Starkiller (Super7 - 3rd Edition "Lich Green" 2019) In July of 2013, Killer Bootlegs released a San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) limited edition run of 25 "Phantom Starkiller: The Cosmic Space Ghoul Warrior" 3.75" action ...

My childhood R5-D4 (Kenner, 1978) Even though I know my family saw Star Wars in the theater, I was too young to remember that experience.  However, I vividly remember the first time I saw Star Wars figures in the hands of another kid in my neighborhood on the way to school.  I wanted Star Wars figures of my own so badly that it was painful having to wait until the weekend to go to the store.  I remember getting my first four figures with amazing clarity, which is surprising considering that event took place decades ago.  Over the next few months, I was able to get all of the first 12 figures and they were easily my favorite toys in the late 70s and early 80s. Death Star Droid and R5-D4 from the 2nd wave of Star Wars figures (Kenner, 1978) Apparently, I wasn't alone in my love of these toys!  These awesome action figures sold so well that Kenner quickly decided to add another 8 figures to the line.  My favorite of the new eight was the Luke Skywalker in his ...