The Shadow 1994 Kenner

The Shadow was born in the pages of 1930's Pulp Novels before being adapted to various media entertainment including radio broadcasts (Famously performed by non other than Orson Welles) as well as the more modern Comic book format and black and white movie serials of the 1940's. It was quite a long wait for The Shadow before getting the feature film treatment and had created quite a legacy and inspired the creation many similar characters, among them Bob Kane's Batman.


The superhero genre had been given an overhaul in Hollywood after the success of Tim Burton's Big Screen Batman movie in 1989 and so the time felt right for Pulp classic character despite younger audiences lack of awareness of him. Director Sam Rami had originally sought to bring the Shadow to a modern audience but problems attain the licence prevented that for happening so instead the director opted for an original story that borrowed elements of The Shadow entitled Darkman released in cinemas in 1990 proving to be something of  a hit and has since become a cult favourite!
1994 saw the eventual release of the official Shadow feature starring Alec Baldwin along with an impressive supporting cast of highly regarded performers in what was a fun but hugely flawed end product. Audiences were kinder perhaps than critics, who felt the movie to be "forgettable" despite being visually distinctive, but ultimately preferred some of the other offerings from that year including another Comic Book creation The Mask  (which also had a toy line provided by Kenner!) starring Jim Carrey whose popularity was beginning to reach massive heights at the time.


Perhaps it was the lacklustre appetite for the movie that saw the mediocre sales of Kenner's Tie-In Toy line which had been fairly decent if not anything special. To this day the toys aren't particularly sought after (Aside for some of the vehicles) which is a bit of pity as they really aren't a bad little set! Here we will look at several figures released n the line: 

Transforming Lemont Cranston: The mysterious vigilante known as The Shadow has gone by many different pseudonyms over the centuries in 1930's new York he is Billionaire playboy Lemont Cranston who uses his wealth and influence to help aid him in his crime fighting operations!  The film opens in Mongolia where Cranston has become the evil and corrupt Ying-Ko a brutal warlord  in Mongolia Before being  kidnapped by agents of the mysterious TULKU who then begins to restore Cranston's humanity and teaching him the ability to "cloud men's minds" using psychic power in order to fight evil in the world before returning to his Native New York to take up the Mantel of The Shadow!

In this 1994 adaption of the Pulp classic Alec Baldwin is tasked with playing the duel role of Cranston/The Shadow and he does so with real enthusiasm and relish, he particular has the right raspy vocal talents to pull off the scenes where The Shadow is only heard! Its a great performance in a flawed but fun film and Kenner have done a really nice job of capturing Baldwin's likeness particularly in the days before digital scanning of actors features was possible!
The rest of the figure is decent but really lacking detail and is awkward to pose, what's really great about this particular figure is that he can "transform" into his alter ego by pressing down the head into the body and clipping on various pieces of armour to create...... 

...The shadow! or at least a variant of the Shadow, this particular figure is designed to have  more armoured looked with a sort of gas mask covering the lower half of his face rather than the trademark red scarf!

The extra pieces have some nice detailing and are very effective when placed on Lamont! Also as an extra feature The Shadows eyes light up when a light source passes through the clear red plastic placed inside the  hat

All of the extra pieces clip on and fit nicely and give a great overall look even if it is  a little far off his on screen appearance, he comes with a silver-lined fabric cape attached to the chest piece, attachable glove pieces  and two pistols!

Shiwan  Khan: Former student of the Tulku Shiwan Khan possesses even greater powers than his adversary Cranston  having successfully resisted redemption and so remained evil. Khan is the last descendant of Genghis Khan is set to fulfil his ancestor's goal of world domination!

You really don't get the sense of Khan being a powerful mystical being from this figure even when adorned with his gold coloured armour and snake staff! There really isn't much resemblance between this figures design and the look of the character on screen but despite that he has a pretty decent head sculpt complete with "real hair"! 

Khan also comes with a Snake (Python) Staff and a dagger with an evil face etched into it that come cast in the same colour plastic as the removable armour pieces. Interestingly they both have an action feature where the mouths can be moved up and down to give the appearance of coming "Alive"! 

Dr. Mocquino: The Voodoo master is one of The shadows deadliest foes from the original pulp magazine series. He posses a hypnotic power capable of turning mere men into loyal zombie minions forming his own cult of faithful followers and worshipers of Voodoo rites! 

 Though this is a very nice looking and well made figure he has nothing to do with the movie itself as he appears no where in it! Even his design differs greatly from his comic book appearances! despite all of that this figure is probably the nicest one in the line and even has some very interesting and nicely detailed accessories such as....

....This tiny "voodoo doll" of the shadow! Which is a nice added little bonus making the only figure in this line which has very little to reference  !

One of the Shadows many abilities is that of invisibility! he is "The Shadow" after all and toy manufactures usually achieve this particular effect but casting a figure in clear plastic! Which means there is little to no paint applications to speak of but there are some nice sculpting details to add more dimension to an otherwise plain looking figure! 

The figure also comes with his trademark cloak and pistol as well as a detachable chest piece! He also has an action feature which you can activate by squeezing his legs together, his right arm raises his gun and his left arms lifts his cloak to his shield his face!

As shown above each Action figure has its own unique art design on the packaging!

The packaging also comes with full instructions with picture demonstrations!




The Shadow was a decent attempt at bringing the influential but long since relevant Pulp Magazine character to modern audiences. Much of the Shadow's legacy can be found In Bob Kane's Batman, which audiences identify much stronger with, and so it can be argued there isn't really any need for The Shadow any more he certainly isn't the household name that many other superheroes are! With that said there is much to like to about the movie including a solid ensemble cast including the fabulous Sir Ian McKellen, Peter Boyle and of course star Alec Baldwin  who makes for a very effective Shadow! 
Kenner's Toy line isn't a failure either but is maybe a little generic and uninteresting compared to some of their better licences with only a couple of the figures produced really worth recommending! Still fans of the movie and/or The Character in general will probably want to pick these up as there is very little alternative available! 


Full figures available:  


-Shadow: Lightning Draw
-Shadow: Ambush
-Shadow: Ninja
-Lamont Cranston: Transforming
-Shiwan Khan
-Shiwan Khan: Battle
-Dr.Mocquino
-Mongol Warrior
-Deluxe Shadow: Bullet Proof


Vehicles:
-Shadow Thunder Cab
-Shadow Mirage SX-100
-Shadow Nightmist Cycle
-Shiwan Khan Serpent Bike

Dick Tracy 1990 Disney/Playmates toys

Any movie released in the summer of 1990 would have had to try and match the mammoth success of the previous years "Batman" and Dick Tracy (another 30's era comic book character) seemed like the perfect candidate for the task. Though Dick Tracy isn't quite the household name Batman is the original comic strips were some of the most popular of their time featuring a collection of kooky bad guys Batman would be proud to add to his own rouges gallery! In order to insure Tracy was a hit Disney ploughed almost as much as it cost to make the movie into the promoting of it  in what was at the time one of the biggest advertising and merchandising  campaigns  in movie history! When tallied up with the overall budget and compared to the movies box office takings made for a slightly disappointing gross despite a decent performance in cinemas and generally favourable reviews. In the end Warren Beatty's Dick Tracy is still one of the most visually impressive and colourful comic book movie adaptations ever produced and though often overlooked in favour of some of the more recent big screen offerings DT is possibly one of the most faithful and unique entries in the genre.  


Its a similar story when it comes to the action figure line produced by Playmates, the toy company best known for their Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, who designed the Dick Tracy figures in that familiar TMNT style bringing the movie designs and the original Comic strip artwork together in a single figure!
14 figures were produced in total but only 13 of those were widely released with the 14th figure based on the mysterious "The Blank" held back as it was packaged with a removable mask revealing his secret identity which therefore would spoil a much guarded and highly teased twist for cinema goers! By the time the figure was due for release the toy sales had plummeted and so the figure only saw a very limited run in Canada when it was finally released and as a  result "The Blank" is now one of the most highly sought after and rare action figures ever produced! 
Here we will look in detail at some of the figures available from the line:    

Dick Tracy: Very much the "straight man" in a world of bizarre and grotesque villains, Tracy will do anything to bring these slimy scum bags to justice! Adorned with a bright yellow overcoat and fedora Tracy has his own brand of policing and he will risk everything to bring down the evil crime boss Big Boy and his gang even his own reputation!  

Playmates were still fairly new on the block when they released these Dick Tracy figures and as such felt the need to keep these figures in line with what they had already produced, namely the iconic TMNT series, which explains why the figures appear dwarfish in stature with large heads and in squat positions! but like those earlier Ninja Turtles figures DT features some nice detailing bright colour schemes and bold expressions that perfectly show off some of the great character make up designs from the movie. Tracy here is more "normal" looking perhaps than the others yet doesn't quite look the spit of Warren Beatty who played him in the movie still it is recognisably DT even if the figure isn't supplied with the iconic yellow trench coat!

Big Boy: Power mad Big Boy Caprice dreams of a world without Dick Tracy around to meddle in his affairs! After having successfully pocketed all of the crime bosses in town and with the D.A on his payroll Big Boy is almost untouchable if not for copper Tracy breathing down his neck and the mysterious face-less crook "The Blank" stirring up trouble!

The award winning make up job for the Dick Tracy movie still stands out as one of the best and most creative in the prosthetic make up field all of which make for interesting and quirky action figures! Al Pacino goes full OTT in his portrayal of Big Boy giving Jack Nicholson's Joker a run for his money and even earning an Oscar nomination for his efforts!and despite being buried under all of that glorious make up Pacino still shines right through as perfectly captured in this playmates figure which comes with a Gun/Holster and money bag accessories!  

Flattop: Big Boy's right hand man Flat Top is as loyal a henchman as they come and as a result does most of his boss's dirty work! He along with Itchy even manages to get one over on Dick Tracy on numerous occasions. In the comic book Flattop is one of the most frequent adversaries and one of the best liked amongst fans!

Flattop is easily one of the most recognisable Dick Tracy villains and his look in both the movie and the action figure is consistent to the numerous other incarnations of the character I'd say his look here however leans slightly closer  to the comic book incarnation as opposed to the film  version he even has a different attire here than what he wears on screen (which was inspired by early production photos) Flattop comes with A Tommy Gun and Bullet cartridge holster along with a unique accessory which appears to be a noose!

Pruneface: Along with Lips Manlis Pruneface is one of the city's most prolific and powerful mob bosses! After Big Boy eliminates former boss Lips and takes over his empire he presents an unrefusable offer to all of the Mob Bosses in Town: combine forces or face the same fate as Lips! Though Pruneface finds himself in a somewhat uneasy alliance he and Big Boy are ultimately united in their hate for Dick Tracy!

Prune Face stands out as one of the most gruesome looking figures in the bunch incredibly even more so  than he appears in the movie! he comes with a dynamite plunger and Tommy Gun/Bullet holster accessories!

Itchy: Another member of Big Boy's Gangster entourage Itchy works closely with Flattop assisting in the various crimes set out by their boss! Cackling and wise-cracking his way through various criminal activity's until the final show down with Dick Tracy sees Itchy scratched out!  

Itchy here bares a strong likenesses to his on screen counterpart and even has some extra details to emphasise his name sake (IE the scratch marks on his arms) He comes with a lead pipe ready to put the frighteners on some poor old store owner who isn't quick enough with Big Boys cut of the profits!

Influence: One of Pruneface's  main henchmen Influence joins Big Boy's ranks along with his former boss when all of the city's mob are brought together in a bid to finally take total control!

Influence is featured sparingly throughout the movie itself despite being a pretty popular character in the comic books and even appearing in some of the early black and white serials of the 40's! this figure does a decent job in capturing the characters likeness and even gives him a touch more personality by adding various little sculpted details on his suit such as a spider and syringe!  

Mumbles: Having worked closely with Big Boy Caprice during the time they worked for Lips Manlis Mumbles quickly joined Big Boy's ranks after the murder of Lips and the take over his night club! Though Mumbles loyalty was eventually tested when he was arrested and integrated by Tracy!

This is one of the nicest looking figures in the line and, though it might not be readily apparent at first glance, there is certainly more than a hint of Dustin Hoffman (who played the role) in the face sculpt! 

Shoulders: Bruiser and enforcer to boss Lip's Manlis Shoulders find himself at the wrong end of a Tommy gun when Flattop and itchy turn up uninvited during a  game of poker where fellow gang members Rhodent, Little face and The Brow are also taken out as part of Big Boy's take over from Lip's!

 Shoulders appearance in the movie is very brief to say the least though he is featured heavily throughout the original comic book run. This figure does a nice job at capturing the more subtle makeup design work done on shoulders I feel, though the accessories are pretty much as the same as several other gangster figures in the line but seeing as his screen time is so limited it is just nice to have a figure based on him at all!

Sam Catchem: The only other "Copper" in this line is Tracy's most trusted and loyal fellow detective Sam Catchem who even after Tracy is Framed for murder by the mysterious "man without a face" stands by his fellow officer of the law!

Sam has some really nice sculpted details on his shirt with a camera and police badge visible though throughout the film he is usually seen with his orangery/Brown overcoat  here however he has a more relaxed appearance with his loosened tie and rolled up sleeves and comes armed with a Gun/Holster and Baton similar to Dick Tracy.The face sculpt is also very nice capturing his on screen likeness rather well as well as adding some extra details such as the bullet hole's on his hat!

Steve The Tramp: The only Bad Guy in the line who isn't a part of either Lips, Big Boy or Pruneface's organisations! Steve is the Fagan like street tramp who uses orphaned children to do his bidding within the petty crime circuit but a brief encounter with dick Tracy soon puts an end to his

Steve The Tramp is probably the best figure in the whole set despite only appearing on screen for mere seconds, the figure was hugely controversial on his initial release causing the figure to be pulled from store shelves prematurely due to complaints of insensitivity towards homeless people. Of course the bio on the back of the packaging didn't help matters describing Steve as an "ignorant Bum" who would "use and abuse any young, helpless prey" (the full Bio card can be viewed bellow) Steve also came with three accessories A Trash Can Lid, Knife and Plank of Wood, apparently the weapons of choice for a homeless thug! The figure is very nicely detailed and brightly coloured and what's more if you don't much care for Dick Tracy he will fit in perfectly with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line of figures!     

Each figure came with a short comic book story drawn in the style of the movie to give you a flavour of the character!

each figure came with a cut out and keep Bio card designed to look like a police file on that particular villain.

Finally we have the full list of figures that were available including the extremely rare "The Blank"!

These figures, as with the Movie itself, are hugely underrated in my opinion and the stick these toys get for being "ugly" is largely misguided. Fans of Playmates TMNT and Toxic Crusaders lines will find much to love in the Dick Tracy series of figures which are very collectable and quirky if nothing else. The highlights of the series are most certainly some of the more bizarre looking characters including the elusive "The Tramp" and the extremely Rare "The Blank" figures! With good general likenesses that lean more towards the comic book iterations and a decent selection of accessories despite some repetition these figures are a whole lot of fun!


Also available in the line:


-Dick Tracy
-Big Boy
-The Brow
-Rodent
-Pruneface
-Shoulders
-Flattop
-Itchy
-Lips Manlis
-Influence
-Mumbles
-Sam Catchem
-Steve The Tramp
-The Blank


Vehicles:


-Big Boys getaway Car
-Police Squad Car

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey 2012/The Desolation of Smaug 2013 The bridge direct

With Peter Jacksons Oscar wining blockbusting trilogy, based on the works of author J.R.R Tolkien, still unchallenged as the most epic and awe inspiring fantasy Movie series of all time it was no surprise that the first book in Tolkien's Lord of the rings series The Hobbit ( There and back again) would eventually find its way to the silver screen. At first the Movie adaptation was to be helmed by director Guillermo del Toro but he soon dropped out to make way for Peter Jacksons triumphant return! Unlike the previous Trilogy which was based on three books the Hobbit only had a single novel from which to make three full 3 or so hour movies the second of which entitled "The desolation of Smaug" follows directly on from the events in "The unexpected Journey" continuing on Bilbo Baggins adventures across middle earth only this time he faces a deadly foe in the form of Smaug a ferocious Dragon who has taken possession of the lonely mountain and all of its gold! It is an event that is very briefly mentioned in the very first movie of the series "The fellowship of the Ring". Here we will look at the Gandalf and Bilbo/Gollum 3.75 inch figures released to tie in with "The Desolation of Smaug" in 2013 (These figures were previously released for "The Unexpected journey" the previous year and had just been repackaged for the second movie):

Legolas: The elven warrior was a trusted ally to the Fellowship on their quest to destroy the one ring and was invaluable in the fight against the armies of Mordor, and as it turns out he was also a big part of the action in the Adventures of Bilbo Baggins post the original trilogy Fans of the original novel will note that Legolas doesn't actually appear at all in the Hobbit book at all (at least he isn't mentioned by name) but it seems there was room for a ass-kicking Elf and their is only one guy for the job! 

Legolas Greenleaf is one of the nicer looking figures in the set with a strong resemblance to Actor Orlando Bloom and some very nice intricate paint details on his attire and weaponry  (see bellow) His costume here differs from what we saw in the original LOTR Trilogy so this Legolas should stand out from the other toy incarnations that came out for those movies

What really sets this figure apart from the others is his awesome range of accessories including his trusty bow and duel knifes plus his quiver with arrows which unfortunately are just sculpted in and are non removable!

Grinnah the Goblin: Making a brief but memorable appearance in the unexpected journey Grinnah is the chief  interrogator of Goblin town leading the captured Band of Dwarves to the Great Goblin King for punishment!



The Goblins are quite grotesque looking characters and this figure does a pretty good job at conveying with Grinnah here, this is a very nicely detailed sculpt with the flesh painted details really making him appear quite life like!

Accompanying the Goblin are three separate pieces all cast in the same brown plastic with some slight paint detailing added for realism two strap type items that are very tricky to keep from falling from the figures shoulders and his whip for beating your dwarf figures with!

Thorin Oakenshield: Dwarf warrior Thorin is slightly bad tempered and hot headed and despite his size when it comes to battle he is as skilled and capable as any man,elf or wizard! Thorin when met with tragedy in his family sets out for vengeance earning his title Oakenshield for his courage in battle against the evil Goblin leader Azog!

It is hard to find fault with this series of figures they all seem to be very nice representations of the characters they are based on and in this small scale is great to see so much detail in the paint applications and sculpting and Thorin here is no exception, he comes in slightly shorter than say Gandalf and Legolas but is slightly taller than Bilbo and Gollum which is perfect as he is a Dwarf after all! Again there is some nice little touches here that really helps to sell the character likeness such as the small grey streaks in the hair!

Completing Thorin is a nice selection of weaponry including two swords including the Orcrist along with a scabbard and a removable Oak shield that attaches to his left arm. All are very nicely sculpted and painted but it is a shame that he doesn't come with an axe as he wields one in the movie!

Gandalf the grey: The first (and last time) we saw Gandalf in his Grey variation was back in 2001's "The fellowship of the ring" from whence on he was known as Gandalf The White! So it is great to see the Wizard back in his scruffy Grey robes complete with Hat and scarf. As mentioned in the introduction this is a repackaged "The Unexpected Journey" Gandalf figure with the only difference being the packaging in which it is encased. Gandalf as seen here with all of his accessories stands slightly higher than the average 3.75 inch figure when the tip of his hat is taken into consideration. He holds his accessories well and can even clutch his sword when it is sheathed in the scabbard which detaches from the hip, the scarf is also detachable and the hat removable all of which fit nicely n his person.

A better look at Gandalf's head sculpt reveals a very strong Ian McKellen Likeness with a very nicely sculpted beard and hair which has light grey highlights to add an extra dimension though because of the length of the beard and hair the head movements are a tad restricted!

Gandalf is supplied with some very nice accessories including his staff, Hat, sword, Scabbard and scarf all of which have nice little minute details that are all the more astounding when you consider the size of these things! All the accessories are screen accurate and are what you would expect the character to be equipped with. All in all Gandalf is a very impressive figure who is a perfect example of what can be achieved in the smaller 3.75inch scale; a fantastic sculpt with appropriate accessories and paint applications that haven't been lazily applied!

Radagast The Brown: Only the third wizard to appear in the entire series and he is certainly the scruffiest and most eccentric of the trio who much prefers the company of woodland creatures to that of his Bipedal allies. Though the characters appearance is only fleeting in the original source material his inclusion somewhat makes up for the fact that he was omitted entirely in the first three movies.    

As played by Dr Who legend, Sylvester McCoy, Radadgst is one of the more memorable new additions to the franchise and as such it is nice to see that the action figure captures the character likeness so well, though he looks a little less ragamuffin like than his on screen counterpart! still there are plenty of nice little details (including bird poop highlights in his beard) and some intricate paint applications bringing the figure to life! 

The only two accessories that the figure comes with are his trusty staff and hat both of which are cast in brown plastic and look fantastic when placed on the figure

Bilbo Baggins: The shire Hobbit boasted of his many adventures in the first instalment of the Lord of Rings and now we are able to actually witness them! Though this time it is Martin Freeman starring as the hairy footed half man and in the Desolation of Smaug he will face his greatest foe yet, a huge dragon with a penchant for gold!
Here is Bilbo with all of his accessories clutching his small elven sword. Though his scabbard is non-removable the other accessories can be placed on and taken off him including his rucksack and water container his vest is also removable. Bilbo is much smaller than the Gandalf figure (being that he is a Hobbit and all) standing at  around the 2-3inch mark!

He has very nice detailing on his clothing with very few paint applications to speak of other than the hairs on his feet,his eyes and eyebrows and the silver tip of the scabbard all of which are painted very neatly! one point of contention is the face sculpt which is very soft looking and while some of martin freeman can be detected it isn't as strong as the image on the back of packaging might suggest!

Bilbo only has three accessories if you don't count the vest and necktie and these are A rucksack type item a drinking flask on a rope and his elven sword, these are all nicely sculpted with some paint applications, the sword is particularly nice looking with some markings on the blade! All of the accessories are accurate to the character as portrayed in the films and all fit will onto the figure.  

Gollum: Originally appearing in the first trilogy in the series Fan favourite Gollum is a feat of technical genius thanks to the talented folks at WETA and the awe inspiring performance from Andy Serkis merging to create one of cinemas greatest characters! Gollum is one of the few characters from the original three movies to make it into the Hobbit prequels as in the original novel 

Gollum is one the smaller figures in the line and as such is more delicate looking with his thin spindly arms and legs and as such is very limited in articulation when compared to Bilbo. He has no accessories to speak of but that is made up for in his very nicely sculpted features and realistic paint applications to resemble skin lacerations and other similar detailing  

The Hobbit may not be quite as fresh and awe-inspiring as the original Lord Of Rings trilogy was but there is no doubt that the three newer entries have plenty to offer fans who have been left with a huge hole to fill since the original series ended ten years earlier! This obscure little toy company have provided a toy line worthy of the epic adventure series and have even in some ways bested the offerings from Toy Biz who provided the action figures for the previous three movies! Bridge Direct have gone all out to give fans 3.75inch scale figures of their favourite middle earth characters to add to the ever growing numbers of action figures produced in this scale (including lines from Marvel and DC)
with generally good likenesses, great articulation and a nice selection accessories these figures make a fine addition to any action figure collection!




Figures in the series:


The Unexpected Journey:


3.75inch


-Bilbo Baggins
-Thorin Oakenshield
-Gandalf the Grey
-Legolas Greenleaf
-Grinnah the Goblin


2-Packs


-Bilbo Baggins and Gollum
-Fili and Kili The Dwarves
-Balin and Dwalin The Dwarves
-Legolas and Tauriel
-Fimbul the Hunter and Warg
-Thorin and The Goblin King


6inch


-Gandalf
-Bilbo
-Thorin
-Legolas
-Tauriel


The Desolation Of Smaug:


3.75inch


-Bilbo Baggins
-Thorin Oakenshield
-Gandalf the Grey
-Legolas Greenleaf
-Azog
-Radagast
-Mirkwood Hero Pack