Wrapping Up Christmas 2022

Now that I am a parent Christmas is mostly all about making the kids happy and helping Santa get them the toys that were on their list. There is nothing like seeing their little faces light up on that special December morning...even if it's at 4am. I guess that's karma, but every year I still look forward to unwrapping my own gifts from my kids & wife. They always do a great job of getting me some sweet presents and this year they did not disappoint. I know it's a little late but let's look behind the wrapping paper and see what goodies were under the tree for me in 2022!

NECA Black & White Shredder figure

I received the NECA set of 4 Black & White Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles years ago as a birthday gift from my wife, so when I saw that NECA was releasing a Black & White Shredder to compliment those previous TMNT figures, I immediately added it to my "Want" list! Unfortunately, NECA made getting this figure a bit of a hassle. These were part of the "AutoT" series of figures. In order to get your physical Shredder, you needed to go to Walmart, find the AutoT package, buy the code, go to a website, enter the code and then wait weeks for NECA to send you your figure. Pretty convoluted, but well worth the wait. This figure is amazing, and I was happy to finally receive it on Christmas morning. One cool thing about the AutoT experience is the fact that everyone has the chance to receive an autograph from TMNT co-creator, Kevin Eastman. I did not get one of these randomly packed autographs, but hey, at least there was a chance.

Playmates Toon Turtles 4-Pack

I never had these Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles figures when they were first released back in the 80's. By that point I had already amassed several variations of each Turtle, so getting these was not high on my priority list. Man did I miss out! I love the action features on these figures and the retro packaging really takes me back to perusing the toy aisle at our local department store, Toys R' Us, Child World or KB Toy store. The commercial for these toys really shows how cool they actually are! You can view that below.

It was another great Christmas filled with family, fun and of course presents. I hope you all had an AWESOME holiday and look forward to the new year. Thanks for reading!

Toon Turtles!

 These Turtle boys are finally all together!

WINNER! WINNER!

 Look what came in the mail! Thanks again Grouchy Godzilla!! These are Awesome!

April Victorious!

 Was just playing Turtles with my twins and in this strange universe Megan Fox aka "Weird April" has defeated everyone!!

AXN Foot Clan Figures!

 Saw these at Walmart yesterday. They are pretty damn cool. The inclusion of the video games codes was the cherry on top of this foot flavored sundae!

Ninja Turtles x Stranger Things

 I'm really kind of digging these! Already have my sets on Pre-Order.

Another Weekend Antique Excursion!

A few weeks ago I met up with a friend as we went on the hunt for retro treasure at one of our local antique malls. I enjoy going to these kinds of stores, because you'll never know what you're going to find. Most of the time the cool stuff that I like is way over priced, but it's cool to know it's out there if I really want it. There were a ton of booths to go through. Some of them did have some great stuff, but nothing that I really collected. Below is a cool TMNT item we found this time around...AGAIN!

Playmates TMNT Leatherhead Action Figure: $75

This figure was released in 1989 as part of the extremely successful Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line of toys by Playmates. My brother got this toy when it came out and it was one of our favorites. Who wouldn't love an evil mutant alligator? Leatherhead has been a part of the TMNT universe since his first comic book appearance in the Mirage published "Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #6". Although his appearance and origins have varied from series to series, Leatherhead has always been a staple in TMNT lore.

Work Pays Off!

 A co-worker gifted me these vintage TMNT figures! I work with some decent people!!!

The Hunt Continues!

 DANG! No Fugitoid!!

Desk Work

 I've got nothing today, so here is a shot of some random stuff that sits atop one of my desks at work. ENJOY!

TMNT Flash

 Always wanted one, now I've got one!

Perler Splinter

 Sat with my son when he was working on a Perler Bead project and put together this representation of Splinter!

New Additions to the TMNT Collection VI

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are probably my favorite characters from my childhood. Close by are the Masters of the Universe, Thundercats and Ghostbusters, but none of those stand up to my passion for collecting all things TMNT. Recently, I've been scouring the internets for any great deals I could find on merchandise featuring the Mean, Green Machine in an attempt to recoup some of my childhood collection. I did find some more cool stuff that I would like to share with you. Hopefully it brings back some great memories from that time in life where animals in bandanas were everything to us. Here we go!

Culture Fly Meltz Michelangelo Ice Cream Vinyl (2021)

I had been wanting one of these collectible ice cream vinyl figures for quite a while. I thought it was the perfect way to display one of my favorite childhood frozen treats without any of the mess! These were on sale at the Culture Fly website and I had wanted to get the vinyl of my favorite Turtle, Donatello, but they were sold out!

I ultimately decided on getting a Mikey since he was the last TMNT frozen treat that I had ingested. Pretty close resemblance to the real thing, huh?

Henry Gordy International TMNT Watergun (1988)

Here is another one of those rack toys I have talked about. I wasn't actively seeking this water gun out, but it came with the TMNT Flash Gun I had wanted. Not a bad throw in though! Still love the crude, early TMNT artwork on the packaging. I like the looks of the Shredder on this one!

Henry Gordy TMNT "Puffy Stickers" (1988)

These stickers may be one of my favorite items in my Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles collection. Me and my brother would beg my Mom for any spare quarters she may have had in her pocket book any time we went to the local A&P supermarket. Usually she would break us each off a quarter if our behaviors were good enough during the shopping trip. It was a great way to make sure we were on our best behavior and while she was checking out, we were checking out the machines at the front of the store. More often than not, we would spend those quarters on globs, mini football helmets or those tiny, translucent Masters of the Universe figures. Then Turtlemania hit and we pumped quarters into those machines for the chance to get a complete set of these very TMNT stickers! So many great memories are attached to these pieces of sticky perfection!

Playmates TMNT Donatello Transforming Playset (2016)

I never had any of these Mighty max style playsets from the Nickelodeon show, but I saw this in a bin at my local Goodwill for $2 and since it was a depiction of my favorite member of the Green Machine, I picked him up. He now sits on one of the desks in my office as a proud member of my TMNT collection.

IDW Usagi Yojimbo Comic #20

This was a book that I had wanted, but my local comic shop didn't order any shelf copies. I searched ebay for copies, but most were out of my price range. Finally, while purchasing some My Little Pony comics off the IDW website, I saw this book for sale at the shelf price of $3.99. The reason I wanted this book is because it introduces a new recurring character to the Usagi Yojimbo story by the name of Yukichi Yamamoto. Yes, it is the second print, but I'm glad to have this book in my collection. I know it's not technically a TMNT book, but Usagi is a friend of the TMNT and that makes him part of the family to me!

Thanks for checking out some more great Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles items from my collection. I hope you enjoyed it.

Mezco TMNT

 DANG! These look incredible!

Goodwill Hunting 2/18/22

 Been a long time since I last went to my local Goodwill & thrift stores. Went today and it was sort of a bust. Only pick-up was this Donnie TMNT figure. Oh well!

TMNT Pops at Target!

 Some pretty neat finds at Target today!

12 Years Ago at Christmas...

 12 years ago this is how I decorated my office for the holidays...

My Faves: Figure Collection #12

I have a fairly big collection of loose figures from the 80s & 90s. The collection keeps expanding so right now, I would like to share a few of my faves with you at this time. Here we go!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Hot Spot (Playmates, 1993)
I bought this figure off the shelf in the early 90's and honestly had no interest in opening him up. You see, I was on the verge of my teens, so I didn't really play with toys anymore, but I still loved and collected TMNT stuff. He sat sealed in his packaging for a few years before my younger brother convinced me to open him up so he could play with him. I played the part of awesome older brother and opened Hot Spot. Years later I would find out that he is one of the rarest TMNT figures around. DANG! At least my brother and I had fun playing with him and he is still in my collection.

Puzzle Time!

 Found this cool looking TMNT puzzle at the Dollar Tree today. Will probably let the kids give it a go!

Hot Spot!

 A few childhood toys. Nien Nunb was my favorite Star Wars figure and I am still kicking myself for opening Hot Spot!