Monday, February 12, 2024

Inhumanoids: Redsun

The 80's was home to several great toylines and one such was Inhumanoids. Released by Hasbro in 1986, this series of toys features so truly crazy toys. Supported by a short lived animated television series, there was one series of figures released and it featured a varied sizes of toys. The Mutores were heroic creatures that aided the human Earth Corps. One such species of Mutores were the living trees, the Redwoods. Three different toys were released, all the same mold, just in different colors: Redwoods, Redlen and Redsun.


These chunky action figures feature four points of articulation (it's limbs...get it?). The figures are relatively light for their size, each standing at about 4 inches give or take. There are two gimmicks included, the first being light piping. 


Located on the top of the figure is a section of green plastic that helps illuminate the eerie looking green eyes of the character. Shine some light directly into this plastic and you'll get some remarkable results!



The other gimmick is that the figure can "grow". The center of the figure is segmented into three sections. Gently pull up on the figure to reveal each section. Fully extended the figure essentially doubles in height, measuring nearly 8 inches tall.

A lot of the Inhumanoids toys are rather simple figures and I don't think they have aged that well (minus the three large 14" tall Inhumanoid monsters), but I found the Redwood toys to be a little more entertaining. Finding boxed specimens on the secondary market can be challenging and when you do find one be prepared to pay, but if you can settle on a loose figure they aren't as hard to find or as expensive.

Saturday, February 10, 2024

Transformers Legacy United: Magneous

 



One of the greatest things with the Legacy line of Transformers is the sheer variety of characters, or even new characters such as Magneous. Part of the new Infernac Universe, this rocky character draws references from both the Headmasters cartoon series from Japan as well as the Rock Lords from Gobots lore. The latter is one of the reasons I grabbed this figure. If the word Infernac rings a bell, it's because its from a past Hasbro property, Inhumanoids. While not everything has to connect in some way, I've always thought Inhumanoids was already loosely linked to the world of Transformers thanks to the old Sunbow cartoon with appearances by the report, Hector Ramirez.


At first glance this figure does resemble a Rock Lord character, which I'm sure is something the designers were going for. However it you look a little closer, you can see parts of the alternate form, which is essential a rock on wheels. Magneous is an Amorizer, which means you can deconstruct the figure into smaller pieces that can be attached to other/larger Transformers and used as armor. This is the same concept as Weaponizers and Fossilizers. Now if you are looking for what the armor pieces look like when disassembled, I'm going to disappoint you because I don't care for this feature so I've skipped it.


I love the headsculpt of Magneous, the darker colored face plate and the small yellow eyes. The uneven shards on the forehead are also a nice touch.


Magneous can wield his own parks as weapons. The top of his vehicle mode doubles as a shield for defensive purposes. Offensively he wields a pick axe weapon. I do have to admit that he looks pretty menacing all armed up.




The alternate mode is that of an armored truck. If it weren't for the defined windows on the cab, it would be a little harder to make out what the vehicle mode is. The rocky detail, the shading applied looks fantastic. This makes me think how great a modern, proper Rock Lord character could look.

With the Armorizers not having a traditional transformation and with Magneous being a new character, I can see how not every fan/collector would like this figure. I for one however am impressed and I can't wait to see more characters from the Infernac Universe in the near future.

Monday, February 5, 2024

Auto World: 1984 Dodge Caravan - Release 1, Version A


Mighty Minivans series
1984 Dodge Caravan
Release 1, Version A

Limited Edition

Premium Facts...
* This is the first release of our all-new
1984 Dodge Caravan casting!

* Lee Iacocca headed up 
the Caravan project,
helping revive Chrysler from
financial peril. In the first year
alone, over 209,000 units were sold.

BL4/3558
Beige Crystal Coat