It’s been a while but I’m back again with the 6^th installment of my ongoing Action Figure Reclamation Project series. For the uninitiated, through purchase or trades I am finding the loose toys of my childhood in order to re-assemble the action figure lineup of my youth and even fill in a few wish list figures along the way. So let’s take a look at the latest batch of retro figure fun!

The Real Ghostbusters Trio

It was recently announced that Hasbro was re-producing Kenner’s classic The Real Ghostbusters toy line using the original molds and it makes me sick. “Vintage or Die” is what will be written on my tombstone. Luckily I was able to calm my troubled nerves with this trio of terror. Fright Features Ray was actually a gift from my cousin that he picked up at an antique store. Fearsome Flush was an impulse buy on ebay who was featured on the Ghostbusters episode of RD’s Retro Detention. But Granny Gross is the absolute treasure here. It’s crazy to think that a 6 year old boy would ever want a toy of an old lady in his room, but that gaping granny jaw was so hilariously freaky, it brought a smile to my face for years.

Captain Power

In a previous installment of this series I showed off my Major Hawk Masterson figure and now he has been reunited with his faithful leader, Captain Power! I never had the iconic Power On Energizer chair playset as a kid, so I had to improvise. In order to get Captain Power’s chestplate to glow with energy I would hold him up to a lightbulb and squint. But the good news was his golden armor was already shiny and made quite a statement on its own. Thanks to Chad at Horror Movie BBQ for the hook-up on this guy o the next 2 figures on the list.

Ram Man

He’s a man, who can ram, he’s Ram-Man! This stocky pal of He-Man’s actually falls into a category I call “in-action figures”. Sure his legs disappear inside his body and spring him forward as an “action feature”, but he’s about as poseable as an LJN WWF Superstars figure. A very cool design to look at, but not much fun for playtime. No wonder I waited all these years to bring him into my collection. I had his axe too, but I traded it to fellow RetroDazer, NLogan in a negotiation for some 90’s comics. I regret nothing.

Bob The Goon

Let’s be honest, only the kids who felt compelled to own the entire Batman ’89 action figure line for bragging rights bought Bob The Goon. One of these is my co-host on WIZARDS: The Podcast Guide To Comics, Michael. But now I'm in the club. Seeing him here though, this henchman of the Joker looks pretty regal. If he hadn’t met such a grisly end in the film, Ol’ Bob could have re-branded himself as Sir Robert T. Goon of the Gotham Goons and gotten an endorsement deal from some fancy malt liquor company. One can dream.

Lion-O

OK, so I already featured Lion-O in my last article about vintage ThunderCats merchandise along with his full team, but this guy deserves a solo moment in the spotlight. This is the single ThunderCats figure I had as a kid and he was enough. With that snap-on Claw Shield and massive Sword of Omens, he was ready to dish out fightin’ feline justice with ease. But the best feature were his light up eyes, which was accomplished through a ring with a battery compartment on it that you inserted into a spot on his back. I have a handful of 90’s figures with a similar light-up eyes feature, but Lion-O was the first.

Captain Planet and Duke Nukem

Another Captain makes the list, but this one was birthed from the combined powers of Earth, Fire, Wind, Water and Heart (GO PLANET!) I watched a lot of Captain Planet and The Planeteers in elementary school based mostly on the fact that power rings are awesome. Never mind the mighty mullet on this guy, he was always so upbeat when bashing environmental troublemakers like Duke Nukem. Yep, you heard right, this guy’s name was Duke Nukem. Apparently the makers of the tongue in cheek macho first person PC shooter game thought Ted Turner would sue ‘em, so they changed the spelling of their hero’s name to Duke Nukum initially, but then found out there was no trademark on the Captain Planet villain’s moniker and changed it back. Lucky for them!

Toxie

Speaking of environmental do-gooders, just look at this hideously deformed creature of superhuman size and strength, he’s amazing! Toxic Crusaders was a short-lived cartoon (based on a very R-rated film franchise), but it had a major impact on kid’s of the 90’s. I’ve been jamming out to the theme song in my head for decades and in revisiting the series recently I’ve found it actually has a very fun sense of humor to it. The figures were made by Playmates who also created the TMNT line of toys, but frankly I always felt the design of Toxic Crusaders were just a little bit cooler. So disgusting, so much neon! I personally enjoyed the splattered paint they sprayed onto each toy to give them a graffiti look and glow-in-the-dark accessories like Blobbie here. I’m so glad to have Toxie in my collection again, he makes me feel like shouting, “Hey man I’m standin’ on top o’ the wooooooorrrlld!”

I hope you enjoyed this look at some great action figures. If you got nostalgic for Toxie and Captain Planet, they will be part of an upcoming adventure on the RetroDaze YouTube series RD's Retro Detention, so subscribe today to make sure you don't miss it. So tell me, do you have a favorite figure in the bunch?