Titan Vinyls - LADIES OF STAR TREK!

Star Trek: The Original Series - Chapel, Rand, Uhura, Vina - Titan Vinyls 2017

It's been a while since I've purchased or reviewed any Star Trek merchandise. But the upcoming waves of figures from Nacelle Toys have me excited and looking back to what I already own. I realized that I never posted these fun super-deformed vinyls from Titan. I've have them for nearly 9 years and I love how odd they are. I also love that they included so many of the women from Star Trek: The Original Series. I will always loved the TOS episodes most and the trifecta of Uhura, Rand, and Chapel bring me a lot of joy. Nacelle's announcement of all three ladies in Wave 3 of their new Star Trek is a gift. I'm still feeling loss over the cancelled Diamond Select/Art Asylum figures of Rand and Chapel... 17 years ago (I can hold a grudge). I kind of miss these Titan Vinyls. Somewhere I have Ghostbusters and Edwards Scissorhands ones too. They remind me a lot of the KidRobot Vinyls (of which I have many). Let's check out the ladies of Star Trek: The Original Series below!

Hocus Pocus - THE SANDERSON SISTERS!

Funko Minis - Disney's Hocus Pocus - Five Below Exclusive - Funko 2025

Hocus Pocus is a movie that was almost completely off my radar until very recently. It was released in 1993, when I was in high school, but I was only vaguely aware of it. I gather that it flopped at the box office but gained a massive cult following through continual airing on the Disney Channel and Freeform in the three decades since (neither of which channels I has access to until the last 5 years or so). I even worked at video rental stores for many years and we just didn't stock it. I was forced to watch it a few years ago for the first time. This was by friends who had a deep nostalgia for it from their childhood. Without that wistful slant, I honestly wasn't a huge fan. It was very over-the-top and silly with caricatures I found too childish (and I am very immature). But that said, I was glad to finally see this cult hit. I loved the colorful design of the Sanderson Sisters as well as the actors playing them. I've wanted to add them to my collection in some way, but none of the product so far felt quite right. 

POP Funko - MELANIE DANIELS!

POP! Movies #1788 - Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds - Melanie Daniels - Funko 2025

The Birds had a powerful impact on me as a child. My Dad loved Alfred Hitchcock and we would always tune in to his (often wildly inappropriate for kids) films when they aired on TV. The Birds was always my favorite. But ironically. this was because I loved birds so much. You might think that a bird lover would hate a movie where all the birds are portrayed as violent unpredictable antagonists, but I was fascinated. I also loved the open-ended mystery of the attacks (fun fact: years later they discovered that the real-life incidents that inspired the film were caused by toxic algae). But when I was a kid, I was left wondering if my birds might suddenly attack me, too. The star of the film was Tippi Hedren (mother of Melanie Griffith and grandmother of Dakota Johnson). Her character, Melanie Daniels, was beautiful, smart, and mysterious and really made the movie great. In 2008, I missed out on a Barbie of The Birds. This Funko Pop 17 years later finally let's me add a piece memorabilia to my collection. Let's check her out below!

POP Funko - HALLOW'S EVE!

POP! Marvel #1560 - Marvels Strange Tales - Hallow's Eve - Funko 2025

I'm a spineless weakling. I broke my Funko Pop collecting parameters by picking up a modern character. I typically try to limit all my Pops to nostalgic Comic, Movie, and TV characters from my 1980's youth. But I have a strong fondness for Halloween and this time two years ago I fell head over heels for the new Spider-Man villain, Hallow's Eve. So when I saw this Pop in Gamestop last week, I couldn't resist. Hallow's Eve is a longtime civilian character in the Spider-Man universe. Janine Godbe was simply Ben Reilly's love interest for nearly 30 years of comics before she was swept up in a storyline involving Limbo and the Goblin Queen, and emerged as Hallow's Eve. I would describe her as a sympathetic villain and a great lead character. She has a bag of cursed masks that imbue her with the traits of that mask character, often with corruptive effects. Her stories are a lot of fun and I can't wait to start re-reading her TPB tonight, it's my annual October tradition. Let's check out Hallow's Eve below!

POP Funko - TRON'S YORI!

POP! Movies #1855 - Disney's Tron (1982) Vinyl Figures - Yori - Funko 2025

When most people hear about modern movie sequels or reboots of classic pop culture films, there is a mixed bag of reactions. There is always an initial pang of nostalgic excitement, usually followed by the creeping dread that these things very rarely turn out well. But a third reaction I always have is speculative excitement about the potential classic product to ride the wave of renewed media interest in the property. When I first heard about Tron: Ares a couple years ago, my overriding reaction was that we might finally get more Yori products. Tron is a classic movie from my youth. It was one of the only VHS rentals my siblings and I could agree on. We frankly didn't understand the plot too well, but the visuals were mesmerizing and we loved it. The token female character, Yori, has been criminally under-merchandised. While the male characters got multiple vintage (and modern) toylines, Yori didn't appear in plastic for 20 years with a small Kubrick figure, and then another 20 until the next (Super7 ReAction). 

Kamen Rider - CRANE ORPHNOCH!

Kamen Rider 555 - Rider Kaijin Series #05 - Crane Orphnoch - Bandai 2004

Kamen Rider 555 is the 13th installment in the Kamen Rider series from 2003. The villains of this series are the Orphnoch, a mutated evolution of zombie-like human monsters with animal or plant characteristics. Several of these Orphnochs retain their human morality and work to protect humanity. The Wolf, Horse, and Wildcat Orphnochs are the main characters of the series, but Crane is a major recurring "good" character with a seemingly massive fanbase (if the merchandise and subsequent CCG and videogame appearances is any indication). I've always been really drawn to the Kamen Rider monster aesthetic... especially when there is a strong animal theme. I bought this figure blindly back in 2004 and only worked to learn about her later. The Orphnochs have an added appeal of being a monochromatic gray/stone palette which looks awesome in group scenes. There are quite a few females represented, but Crane was always the standout to me. Let's check her out below!

POP Funko - SPINNERET!

POP! Marvel #1293 - Entertainment Earth Exclusive - Spinneret - Funko 2023

I've been collecting toys for a long time and sometimes I get cocky thinking I can predict release and distribution patterns. But I'm often wrong. When this Spinneret Funko Pop was announced last year, I knew I had to get her. I've slowed down my Pop purchases a lot, but Bat-Family and Spider-Family females will always have a place on my shelf. The problem was that this was an online exclusive, and I am very picky about paint, especially with Spider-characters where web patterns tend to get sloppy (I had to order eight Spider-Woman Pops back in 2018 before I got a good one). But Spinneret was exclusive to Entertainment Earth, which I've noticed has a relationship with both FYE and Go! Calendars and Games, where you can almost always find EE exclusives (in limited quantities) in person. So I waited. And waited. Eventually she sold out on the EE website and eBay images were annoyingly all solicit renders. I thought I was screwed. But luckily I found a ton of her from vendors at NY Comic Con 2024.

POP Funko - SCREAM!

POP! Marvel #1026 - GamerVerse Spider-Man 2 - Scream Symbiote - Funko 2024

Ever since the first Venom movie came out in 2018, I have been hoping for Scream to hit the silver screen. There was a cameo tease of a yellow symbiote specimen, but it seems like it just wasn't meant to be. However, 2023 saw the release of Spider-Man 2 by Insomniac Games for Playstation which featured Scream in a pretty prominent role. This wasn't her first appearance in a video game (in fact, I believe it's the sixth), but this was the first significant boss fight appearance. significant enough to inspire merchandise. This design of Scream is slightly altered from her traditional Donna Diego look. Most notably, her face and hair are now a deep ruddy color (as opposed to the black face with bold streaks of yellow in her hair). At first, I didn't like the change, but it quickly grew on me. And I like that the symbiote looks different when bonded with different hosts (the video game features a new host for Scream). I'm hoping her newfound fame inspires a new Legends figure. But in the meantime, check out her Funko Pop below!

Trollify - BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN!

Trollify by Good Luck Trolls - Frankenstein & The Bride - Kidrobot 2023

I have had a long fascination with Trolls. When I very young in the early 80s, my parents had a puzzle with a collage of vintage toys pictured on it. Buried in the heap was an image of a Troll doll from the 1960s. I was obsessed and would ask every adult I knew if they had Trolls when they were kids. Believe it or not, the toy line was a scarce thing then and the license was in a sort of hibernation. In the 90s, they came back in full force. They were everywhere and unavoidable. However, I did not like these at all. They had neon hair, they wore human clothes, and they had gemstones embedded in their bellies. The folklore-ish aspects we gone. The earthtone palettes, woodland aesthetic, and overall connection to nature were replaced by whatever trending fad the manufacturers could think of. My original childhood intrigue was rekindled in 2013 with the Zelfs line and ever since then I've been really appreciative of all the modern Troll spinoffs and homages. And these Trollify figures are a great example.

Saban's Little Mermaid - HEDWIG!

Adventures of the Little Mermaid - Collectible Figures - Hedwig - Toy Group 1991

I love a good sea witch. There is something so captivating about a mer-creature with villainous intent that it trumps all my other vampy character obsessions. An interesting thing about all the various interpretations of The Little Mermaid in popular culture is that the antagonist is always a fairly unique creation. In Toei's 1975 film, she is a very creepy-looking stingray. In the 1989 Disney film, she is voluptuous baudy octopus. And in the 1991 television series, Saban's The Adventures of the Little Mermaid, she is a crone named Hedwig with a mermaid-like tail that has dragon (or eel-like) details. I think she is a fun variation. I especially love that she rides on the back of a stingray and has fingers that magically grow into long tendrils. I believe this 1991 "collectible figure" from The Toy Group is the only time she was merchandised. She is made from a dense, but pliable, plastic similar to a floating bath toy. While I would have loved an actual action figure, I doubt the animated details would have been captured so well.

Saban's Little Mermaid - MARINA!

Adventures of the Little Mermaid - Collectible Figures - Marina - Toy Group 1991

I am a big fan of The Little Mermaid. I love mermaids in general, Hans Christian Anderson's folktale, and almost all interpretations of the story in popular culture. But, oddly enough, I'm not a huge fan of the Disney version with Ariel. I don't hate it or anything, but it's pretty far down my list. My favorite is the 1975 anime film by Toei Animation. It's well-animated and sticks to the original story. A close second though is Saban's Adventures of the Little Mermaid from 1991. The story is more cutesy and the animation isn't as refined, but there are a lot of notable similarities, mostly in the little mermaid herself. In both versions, she is a young blonde mermaid named Marina drawn with an anime influence. In the 1975 movie, she is topless with strategically flowing hair. But in the 1991 show, she has scales that continue up her torso in a design I find very appealing (the Disney seashell bra always seemed silly to me... and uncomfortable). I love Marina's two-tone green tail especially (but I could do without the little earrings).

POP Funko - SPOILER!

POP! Heroes #505 - Batman: Joker War Zone - Stephanie Brown - Funko 2024

Stephanie Brown needs so much more merchandise. I have high hopes we'll be seeing this new design in the McFarlane DC Multiverse line soon. The recent Cassandra Cain Target Exclusive figure was branded with the Batgirls comics title (which is a current ongoing series featuring Cass and Steph patrolling the city with Babs in their earpiece). So my hopes are high. But in the meantime, Funko has graced us with both ladies in their Pop line for Batman: The Joker War Zone (a 2020 comic that first focused on these two teaming up). Having Cass and Steph in Pop form really expands the Funko Bat-roster. My wishlist is now only an unlikely Kathy Kane Batwoman, Bette Kane Bat-Girl, Helena Wayne Huntress, and Bluebird. And that's a very short list for me. This design of Spoiler is an interesting blend of her traditional Spoiler costume with her Batgirl uniform, but I like it a lot. FYI In the Batgirls comic, Steph (wearing this same outfit) now goes by Batgirl. Let's check out Spoiler below!

POP Funko - CASSANDRA CAIN BATGIRL!

POP! Heroes #501 - Batman: Joker War Zone - Cassandra Cain - Funko 2024

It has been five long years since Funko has had a new comic-based DC Bat-character that got me excited. Back in 2019 they released a Batwoman and Huntress that gave me high hopes that we'd finally start seeing all the cool Bat-family characters that had been ignored up till then. But my hopes were dashed. There was nothing for years. I was still happy to get live-action versions of Catwoman, Poison Ivy, and Batwoman, but the comic stuff was always my favorite. In 2020 there was a comic (that I haven't read yet) called Batman: The Joker War Zone that featured Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown teaming up on a side adventure. I always liked their friendship dynamic ever since Cass handed the Batgirl mantle to Steph way back in 2009. And I've been enjoying the current ongoing title, Batgirls, featuring Steph and Cass patrolling the city (with Babs in their earpieces). But this Joker War Zone story is what cemented their adventuring partnership and inspired these long overdue Funko Pops. Let's check out Cass!

POP Funko - STAR SAPPHIRE!

POP! Heroes #456 - Star Sapphire - NYCC / Entertainment Earth - Funko 2022

Star Sapphire is a character that has undergone a lot of characters transitions. Her costumes, human hosts, allegiances, and power sets get revamped and retconned every few years. I always enjoyed this character as a cool pink female version of Green Lantern, but I honestly never fully invested in her because I thought the costume was embarrassingly skimpy and clearly catering to the lustful male gaze. Scantily clad female superheroes, especially when their outfits defy the laws of physics, rarely make it into my collection. I had accepted that Star Sapphire would always find herself excluded. But one of the great things to come out of 2011's New52 reboot at DC was that Star Sapphire finally had a costume that both looked cool and wasn't composed of hot-pink pasties.  Aside from a couple Heroclix pieces, this NYCC Exclusive Funko Pop is the first time we've seen this costume in plastic. I hope McFarlane is taking notes and prepping a Multiverse figure as we speak. Let's check out Star Sapphire below!

POP Funko - ARCEE!

POP! Movies #1374 -  Transformers: Rise of the Beasts - Arcee -  Funko 2023

I've been wishing for a Funko Pop of Arcee for a while now. A simple goal I have for a lot of my collections is to assemble a complete "Ladies of the 80s" lineup. It's fun to see which collectible line will give me that roster the fastest. Mini-Mates, Super7 ReAction, and Super7 Ultimates are all top contenders. But I think that Funko may have them all beat. So far we have She-Ra, Cheetara, Jem, Pizzazz, Scarlett, Baroness, Jun the Swan, Sorceress, Evil-Lyn, and even Thundarr's Ariel. (I don't have Rainbow Brite or Strawberry Shortcake, but they should be included). I still hope for a traditional animated pink Arcee Pop but this Transformers: The Rise of the Beasts cinematic version is a great stand-in. It's was exciting to see her on the big screen and I love how much merchandizing momentum she is getting (hopefully with a renewed focus on the classic design as well). There have been more and more G1 Transformers characters getting the Funko treatment so my fingers are crossed that second Arcee isn't far behind. 

POP! Masters of the Universe - SORCERESS (TOD)!

POP! Television #993 - MOTU - Sorceress (Diamond LACC Exc) - Funko 2022

The Masters of the Universe collecting community seems to love character variations. Excluding more modern iterations, the vintage characters alone typically have three potential design options: toy design, animation designs, and mini-comics design. The mini-comics always appealed to me the least of the trifecta. I can't help but think that printing limitations played more of a factor than true artistic intent. But it makes for some fun variants. Teela in pink armor doesn't appeal to me at all - it seems to clash with the palette of Eternia (perhaps if she visited Etheria I would be more accepting). However, the 1984 mini-comic The Temple of Darkness featured an all-white Sorceress that I really liked. The toy interpretation of  translucent plumage just adds to the appeal (in one panel of the intro comic, she appears as a translucent vision). This glittery white ("Diamond") Sorceress Pop was exclusive to the Los Angeles ComicCon in 2022 with the LoungeFly backpack bundle. Let's check her out below!

POP Funko - SHE-RA (GOLD)!

POP! Retro Toys: MOTU #38 - She-Ra (Gold WonderCon Exc) - Funko 2022

I'm not usually a sucker for metallic repaints. I tend to like bright saturated colors that mimic animation or comics, and metallics often dull that vibrancy. However, I've found it interesting that when it comes to She-Ra, I definitely prefer her "metal" pieces to be painted metallic gold rather than a literal translation of the orangey-mustard color from the screen. This recent repaint of the POP! Retro Toys She-Ra is a perfect example. The original release from 2021 had cartoon-accurate mango-orange armor, but in execution the color just blended in too much with the yellow of her hair and the light tone of her skin. But this WonderCon 2022 exclusive repaint looks so much better. The intended contrast and weight of the armor is there and is very impressive. This Pop came with the expensive LoungeFly/Funko exclusive She-Ra backpack. The bag is very cool and high quality. I was hesitant to make such a large purchase (I got her slightly cheaper on eBay) but I think it was worth it. Let's check out She-Ra below!

Funko Gold - TLC!

Funko Gold: TLC - T-Boz, Left Eye, and Chilli Vinyl Figures - Funko 2022

Funko has a lot of product lines that are completely off my radar. At times it's been pretty overwhelming. The current line that I keep seeing and overlooking is the Funko Gold line of vinyl figures. They are unarticulated, stand about 5" tall, are pretty naturally-proportioned (for Funko), and they feature a blocky aesthetic in the facial features and hands. The reason I didn't pay attention, though, was because of the subject matter. The figures all seemed to be of celebrity athletes and musicians. There are very few real people I would like to have represented in my collection - I steer towards ridiculous characters with outlandish costumes. So I knew in the back of my head that I could potentially partake in this line with the right female musician with the right iconic look. Then after a few years I spotted these TLC figures from their Waterfalls video. I have a personal connection as I jokingly sing this sing with the wrong lyrics more often than I care to admit. I think it's funny, but I'm probably being very annoying.

Marvel Gallery - FIRESTAR!

Marvel Gallery - Vinyl Diorama Series - FireStar - Diamond Select Toys 2021

Diamond Select Toys has been really impressing me with their Marvel Gallery line. Previous PVC statue lines (mostly from other companies) have typically been too stylized for my tastes. Or sometimes, the sculpts just aren't there for me. But the DST Marvel Gallery (and DC Gallery) statues have the design and sculpt quality of the high-end polystone statues, but at a price point that is far more palatable. I also love the character choices. It seems that all my favorite characters are added to the roster one-by-one. The designs are essentially classic, but there is always a slight redesign. In the case of this Firestar statue, her boots and gloves extend almost all the way up her limbs, which seems like a unique choice for this particular product. But I like it. A few short years ago, I only had one lonely Firestar product in my collection. It was just a simple Toy Biz Medusa repaint, but I was ecstatic. Flash forward a few years and this Marvel Gallery statue is the 13th item on my Firestar shelf. Here's to many more!

POP Funko - SPIDER-WOMAN!

Marvel POP! #1020 - Spider-Woman (Mattie Franklin) - Amazon Exc Funko 2022

Mattie Franklin has a very interesting history. She was introduced in the Spider-Man comics just a few months after Mayday Parker debuted in 1998. But it wasn't until May of 1999 when she donned a costume and was introduced as (the third) Spider-Woman. Her powers came about via ritualistic magic, and origins like that never seem to turn out well. It's almost as if there is karmic retribution for achieving powers unnaturally. Mattie's stories took some pretty macabre turns later on, but for the majority of her 18-issue solo series she was a fun character who constantly had new costumes and shifting power sets. The Funko Pop costume is one of her later looks from issue #12 onward. It was at this point when she absorbed the powers of Charlotte Witter and was able to grow organic spider legs from her back. She has has an understated presence in the Marvel Universe since her series ended. And aside from two HeroClix figures, this is her first time in plastic. Let's check out Mattie below!