do you collect any other Playmates toy lines?
 

It's pretty obvious that TMNT is Playmates greatest success, and regardless of the current state of the company, when you look back over the years they gave us some other good lines like Star Trek, The Simpsons, Skeleton Warriors, Toxic Crusaders, and Dick Tracy just to name a few. and yes, I said Dick Tracy cause it included one of the rarest commercially released toys of all time (and one of my favs)... The Blank.

So I was just wondering, does anyone collect any other lines from Playmates ?

Yeah I collect Toxic Crusaders - but not too seriously. I'm slowly working on completing the (relatively small) set MOC/MIB but I'm looking for that rare combination of excellent condition and a good bargain so it'll be awhile yet. The best & worst thing about this line is that some of the molds from TMNT were just retooled for use in this line. A classic lazy-ass move from our favorite lil' toy company.

I've thought about getting into Simpsons about a million times, but the line is just so huge and I've got enough expensive hobbies as it is. They sure would look cool displayed in my living room around the entertainment center though.

one thing that I loved about Toxic Crusaders was that most of their characters fit in with the TMNT mutants. the good thing is that the line doesn't command big bucks so it shouldn't take too long for you to get a set.

and yeah, The Simpsons stuff can be pretty expensive. that's why I only bought my fav characters, so I wouldn't have to waste dough on those insane exclusives and the rest of the line.

I collected star trek for quite some time...I may start the collection up again some day...they were really neat toys. The transporter is still one of my favorite toys of all time

I used to have all of the Playmates Toxic Crusaders figures--that line ruled, I wish I hadn't got rid of them. Major Disaster is still my favorite Playmates toy of all time.

Oh yeah... the Earthworm Jim line, The Darkwing Duck line... And of course the Simpsons and Toxic Crusaders. I gotta admit, I did like the Simpsons line to some extent... but when they gave every single character a clip board as an accessory..? They're still better than the "Action figures" that McFarline produced (You can't pose them, they're statues... they're NOT action figures. And they still gave us Rainier Wolfcastle as Radioactive man instead of a True Radioactive man figure)

EW Jim and DW Duck were great toys. I think mine are still at my parents' house somewhere. Although, I did always have problems with EW Jim, the worm part breaking.

Star Trek was my second fav line from Playmates. and I have almost every fig that I want, with the exception of that damn tri-fold Borg!!! that thing still sells for $900 bucks. it's the only piece from that line that hasn't gone down in price over the years, and Im just not crazy enough to spend that much on it... yet. and yeah, the transporter was a awesome toy, but i didn't like the transporter figs alot. and I thought that the TMNT/Trek figs could have been better. if you're going to start collecting Trek again, then nows the time to do it, cause Trek is dead. the prices on ebay are dirt cheap compared to what they used to go for.

The only reason I even bought any Playmates Simpsons figs was cause they were the only thing available to the fans since the Mattel line. I hated the fact that their legs weren't poseable. but at least most of them still looked good. I almost forgot about Darkwing Duck, I had a few of them, but I wasn't really a fan. as for Mcfarlane toys...EVERYTHING they make is pure CRAP. I'll be honest, when they started up they had some great figs, even til their 3rd series of Movie Maniacs they were still producing some awesome figs and then they (like Playmates would eventually do) just stopped caring. the last time I bought any Mcfarlane figs was in 02 and right after I opened them they broke. and I mean right out of the package, I didnt even get to remove the twist ties. Im not the only one that's happened to, but regardless, Mcfarlane is still considered a top player in this industry by a bunch of corporate idiots that kiss his ass for free crap. uh... sorry for the rant. but that's just how I feel.

I've got some Simpsons, Dick Tracy, Toxic Crusaders, and Earthworm Jim figures from yesteryear, but I don't collect them actively.

Hey S, just thought you'd like to know, someone has a mail in Super Shredder on ebay right now for a buck.

http://cgi.ebay.com/MAIL-ORDER-NINJA...QQcmdZViewItem

Ha ha, already sniping it, but thanks :)

I know, I know. I did like the Hanna Barbera Line, but I only got Hong Kong Phooey. I'm too afraid to open it, since his ears look like they'd give out if the wind so much blows on it. Their Corpse Bride and Wallce and Grommet stuff were okay, I admit... but they haven't done anything great since the Beatles, Austin Powers and Shrek lines...

I'll admit that I liked the Beatles, they were made in 99 when he was still making some good stuff. I didn't even know that they made some of those other lines though. that shows you how little I care about Mcfarlane toys. even the place where I used to shop didn't carry them cause he hated them even more than I did.

Hi, welcome to the boards Sarah.

I do have a lot of Playmates stuff from when I was growing up. Some Star Trek, Toxic Crusaders, Simpsons, a Ronin figure, Dick Tracy, etc...

In fact I just bought a whole bunch of Dick Tracy figures recently, I'm only missing Mumbles and the Blank now.

Hi Ectocooler, thanks for the welcome :)

finding a Mumbles fig should be easy, the rest of the figs from that line are usually cheap. The Blank however is very hard to hunt down. not to mention that it will cost you alot. I was lucky to find a loose one at a garage sale, even though the mask is not there, Im still glad to have it.

by the way, I really like your Jagwar sculpt :)

Mask or not, that's an incredible score! I got the others dirt cheap ($1-3 each all still brand new packaged) but I'll likely never get the Blank. I remember always wanting Blank as a small kid not knowing she was impossible to find.

You know... in the back of my mind I thought Ban Dai did the Dick Tracy figures... of course I got my circuts crossed, since they only did that dreadful NES game.

Man, no offense to anyone here, but I couldn't stand the Dick Tracy figures. I got a couple as a kid and was tremendously disappointed 'cuz in the gift-wrap I had mistaken them for TMNT.

Dick Tracy - lousy comic, lousy movie, lousy toys.

Yeah, The Blank was only available here in Canada from Sears, and it was only available through their catalog, not their stores. I managed to get a C7 carded one in a lot a few years back, but even then I paid about $200. I saw one on ebay last week with a starting bid of $300 I don't know if it sold or not cause I didn't go back and look. it amazes me that The Blank stlll goes for that much.

hahahaha I remember that game. I think I still have it.

None taken. The Tracy toys weren't the best ever, but they fit in great with the old TMNT figures as random gangsters (some even look like mobsters from the old cartoon). Never read the comic, the one in the paper is pretty lame. However the movie kicks ass! I feel it's severely underrated.

I wasn't a fan of the movie, but I think that Playmates did a great job sculpting the characters based on the film. actually Playmates always sculpted a good likeness to celebrities, in particular on their Star Trek line.

speaking of great sculpts, Im kinda shocked that no one here collects Skeleton Warriors, that line had alot of detail in their sculpts, the humans weren't that good, but the skeletons were awesome.

Yeah they are pretty cool. You'll see big MOC lots come up on Ebay all the time for pretty cheap. I've come pretty close to picking one up but there's always something I want just a little bit more.

i have a loose skeleton warrior with 4 arms :)

yeah, that's how I got them. I got a set for less than I would have paid for 2 of the pieces at retail. too bad they cancelled that line though, the 2nd series looked alot better.

I collect Monster Force, Barnyard Commandos, and I collected R.E.V. for a while.

......I didn't know... Playmates actually had other toylines... As far as I was concerned all they were were Ninja Turtles. And when the TMNT faded away in the 90's, so did Playmates and they came back when the TMNT also came back.

In recent years it seems that Playmates just stopped caring not only for the TMNT line, but the toy industry as well. the company is now nothing more than a cold empty shell compared to what they used to be. (no pun intended) TMNT is the only line keeping that company alive, and to be honest, if they don't change their direction soon TMNT could be cancelled again. and if Playmates loses their top line, they could end up being bought out by Mattel or Hasbro and then they'll be dead like Kenner. and after recently being dropped by a major seller like Walmart, things don't look good for Playmates. Im not a huge fan of the NECA stuff but Im hoping that they get the rights to produce more TMNT figs. at least that way the franchise stays alive.

Its tough because I collect so many different toys its hard to hold down a specific collection.

When I was in College I was collecting all these different lines associated with my fave movies. So naturally I had a few TMNT up there. It wasn't till I just after the CG movie came out and I grabbed the crap DVDs of the old ones (but its all we have) that I went... CRAZY and focused only on TMNT. But the odd time I do grab a fig or two from my other lines.

The only thing is I tend to buy from the Aliens and Terminator lines so not Playmates. That and star wars, transformers, He-Man, Predator, and so on, that and I am also a Toyota Land Cruiser freak so any cruiser toys I can find as well.

yeah, I have the same problem. it's hard to focus on just one line. but I mostly collect Star Wars, so everything else comes after that. but honestly, I seem to collect almost every line that was made in the 80s for some reason. I guess that I have my brothers to thank for that

ATM from Playmates Im just getting their TMNT stuff. In the past I collected their Star Trek stuff (mid 90's)....and come 2009 Playmates has their greedy little hands on Star Trek again!!

And I of course want it all!!! Altho I doubt I'll be able to afford their 12 in line ($44 each? Are they fraking insane?!) unless I can find it at discount prices like I have in the past. But their 6 in line...ooh yeah Im all over getting Zach Quinto Spock and Spock Prime (that's what some sites are calling Nimoy now) figs! Mmmm... I loves me some Vulcan. :evilgrin:

Some of the Star Trek varients sound stupid but meh...2009 most of my money will be going to Playmates...

I wish I could be excited about Trek returning to Playmates, but Im not. probably cause the movie doesn't matter to me. honestly, why does everyone keep going backwards? once George Lucas did it, everyone started doing the same thing. maybe once the new figs come out I might buy some but I doubt it. and as for the 12in figs... if they cost $44 American, then id hate to think what they're gonna cost in Canada.

i collected the playmates darkwing duck action figures, since i use to watch disney afternoon when tmnt became harder to find on tv. the darkwing duck toys were awesome because they looked 100% accurate to their animated appearances, unlike the tmnt line. but still, nonetheless, tmnt is definitely my all time favorite toy line, and cartoon.

They may well drop out of the boys toy market, but that won't mean that they will drop out of toys all together. Playmates was around for a long time before they got into action figures with the TMNT license and they will likely remain in the toy industry, just not the action figure aisle.

They're also sinking their teeth into a Rainbow Brite line for that fall, much like their Strawberry Shortcake line I presume. http://www.playthings.com/article/CA6602128.html

I didn't say that Playmates would go out of business if they lost the TMNT line, I said that they *could* go out of business. Playmates has been around for more than 40 years, and while they had a good run with TMNT and other boys lines, the company seems to currently focus more on their girls lines. which is fine, but girls today don't even want dolls. well at least not my nieces. and even if they do, they're more likely to buy something made by Mattel since they have always had the girls market cornered. lets face it, Playmates isnt exactly winning over anyone with their crappy attempt at the Strawberry Shortcake line, and even if they are going to bring back Rainbow Brite, I don't see it succeeding since some company, I forget which one, tried to resurrect Rainbow Brite a few years ago and they failed. sure Playmates is producing some disney stuff right now, and they got Trek coming back, but TMNT is still their best seller. and if Playmates loses that line, they leave themselves open to their competition, which is Mattel and Hasbro. don't get me wrong, I love Playmates, and I don't want them to fail, but Im looking at the facts, the toy industry is getting worse every year, kids today would rather play with a X-box than a actual toy, and eventually all the smaller companies will have to merge with Mattel or Hasbro just to survive.

It was a little unknown starter company called Toy Play. I'm not quite sure what else they manufactored, but it seems to be now defunct.

It can't be said it will fail. Playmates has been around forever and is a more solid company, but Rainbow Brite has always been under the radar since it was created with only 13 episodes and one movie. Unless you were a hardcore 80's cartoon fan, chances are even some people today born in the era will go "Who?"

Hey Sarah, it's great to see someone else that shares my appreciation for The Blank! I see that your from Canada and i'm curious, did you just go to Sears and buy yours off the shelf? I've heard that at the time she was very readily available at Sears and even hit clearance prices.:lol:

I don't know where you heard that, but it's not true. as I already said in this thread, The Blank was only available from Sears through their catalog, not their stores. I got a carded one in a lot a few years back, and I did find a loose one at a garage sale, I have the gun and case it came with, but I don't have the mask for it.

Okay, gotcha. Now that I think about it I may have been thinking of J.C. Penney's Redemption Data. Playmates did love making figures rare via holiday catalogs didn't they? lol. I got my Blank on Ebay from a guy in NY that traveled into Canada to pick them up from Sears. Supposedly there is a small piece of tissue paper between Madonna's face and the blank mask to keep the paint from rubbing, I think that shows the kind of quality that Playmates is capable of. Or at least used to be. Steven

Oh, and Dick Tracy is and always will be one of my top three favorite movies! I saw it on the bigscreen back in the day and fell in love with Breathless.

yes Playmates did put a piece of tissue paper between the face and the mask so the paint wouldnt rub, but I have seen carded ones that don't have that paper there. as for the Redemption Data, it wasnt sold as a exclusive in Canada, so I was able to find it at regular retail. and yes, Madonna was truly stunning in that role, she was the only thing that I liked about the movie. without a doubt, she left everyone breathless.

by the way, I know you're a Police Academy fan, so I just thought id let you know that the mail in Captain Harris fig was only available in a mailer box, and not carded. only Snack Attack House and Stakeout Sweetchuck were mailed out carded. the Snack Attack House actually made it to retail, but the Stakeout Sweetchuck didn't ever get to stores. which is why a american carded one is impossible to find. and just so you know, a proof card for Captain Harris does exist. I don't have a pic on this comp, but i'll try to find it for you. and I know they were planning to make a Callahan fig, but I don't think that it ever got past the artwork stage, as I havent ever seen a actual prototype.


edit - I just found the pics of the proof cards, Im still looking for the Callahan art though. i'll send them to you when I find them.

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...G_6984-1-1.jpg