Weirdo Toys

Archive for the ‘Gross’ Category

Free Madballs!!

Wednesday, March 4th, 2009

Madballs Sick Toys

You read that correctly. I’m giving away fourteen (14) “Madballs: Sick” toys to you lucky Weirdo Toys readers. You don’t even have to pay shipping or anything.

To make it easier for myself (and some lucky readers), the first ones to comment on this blog entry, specifying which Madball they want, will get one sent to them. Of course, this will only work while the toy supply lasts. Only one ball per household. (I can’t believe I just wrote that sentence.)

Madballs Sick Toy

If you’re not familiar, the “Madballs: Sick” series of Madballs, they are rubber, bulging, oozing, grosser versions of the traditional, sculpted, foam rubber versions.

So, here’s what you have to choose from:

Madballs Sick – Series 1

Slobulus: ~~3 Balls available~~ none left

Bash Brain: ~~3 Balls available~~ none left

Skull Face: ~~2 Balls available~~ none left

Madballs Sick Series 2

Blech Beard: ~~3 Balls available~~ none left

Freaky Fullback: ~~3 Balls available~~ none left

There is one catch.

With your comment, you have to tell me how you first discovered the Weirdo Toys blog. I’m just curious. If you don’t do that (or haven’t read this far) you will be disqualified.

(Also, be sure to thank OldMan for his generosity. Without him, this giveaway wouldn’t be possible.)

Good luck all

• Buy Madballs on eBay!

Posted in Giveaways, Gross | 36 Comments »

Gross Out Gang – Roll Call!!

Sunday, November 23rd, 2008

Great news!! (for me anyway)

I’ve managed to get my hands on some carded Gross Out Gang (GOG) figures!

(Click to enlarge)

You remember the GOG don’t you? (I’ve only written about them a hundred times.) I wrote about them when I discovered their toyline, their vintage toy ad and when I actually found the whole gang. Hell, I even started this blog with one of the figures.

So, I guess the gang holds a little piece of my heart.

Anyway, there are 3 main reasons why it is good to get these packaged figures:

1. Closure. I’ve finally learned the names of the three previously unidentified GOG members. If you recall from one of my previous entries, I was missing the names of the “Lips Kid,” “Nose Kid” and “Pie Kid.” Well I’d like to officially introduce you to Blow Hard, Nose Ark and Fat-so.

(Click to enlarge)

Pretty bad eh? Punny and non-PC. Awesome. No way they’d make a toy of a fat kid nowadays and call him “Fat-so”. I sure do miss the 80s.

2. Surprises. I finally have access to the cards from the figures’ packaging. I didn’t know what to expect. As a service to you, the reader, and anyone else in the history of the world who has lost nights of sleep contemplating what was on the back of the Gross Out Gang card, I will share with you.

(Click to enlarge)

First we get a goofy Gross Out Gang Membership Card, and it’s been signed by Egg Brain himself. The President of the GOG!

Gross Out Gang - Membership Card

Second, we’re introduced to the bully character, Airhead. Too bad they didn’t make a figure of him to be the villain in the toyline.

(Click to enlarge)

Third, we get a horrible, but still charming origin story. Looks like the GOG were a bunch of social rejects that were constantly picked on by “Airheads” (or jocks). Luckily, Egg Brain had a device that accentuated the very traits that made them rejects in the first place, giving them “Exagapowers,” so now they are gross freaks and proud of it.

I’m warning you – don’t read it.

(Click to enlarge)

Fourth, we get a GOG lineup with short bios for each character briefly explaining their gross “powers.”.

(Click to enlarge)

3. Obsession. I get my hands on “virgin” Gross Out Gang toys. Untouched by anyone for over 20 years. Freshly unsealed GOG figures smell nice, fresh and plasticy. Since I can’t really demonstrate their fresh scent, I’ll just give you a rundown of this poorly planned toy package artwork.

(Click to enlarge)

As you can see, the only way to get an unhindered view of the Gross Out Gang background and story is to open the package. Which is great, because I wanted to do that anyway.

What the hell. The front of this package may be one of the most poorly-planned toy package designs ever. First, the logo/name of the toyline is blocked by the figures, but to top it off, there’s a huge freakin’ paragraph telling the story of the GOG… on the front of the card. How challenging are they trying to make this for the costumer? As you’re perusing the toy aisle, they hope you read the 124-word paragraph that is actually overlapped by the figure and the card bubble? It seems like the package was designed by some guy at Skilcraft before he knew the size of the toys. Oh well.

(Click to enlarge)

Read Their Amazing Story!

They’re gross… they’re nauseating… they’re totally disgusting! They’re the Gross Out Gang and they’ve banded together to fight for justice in the name of the underdog. They couldn’t care less if anyone makes fun of them. They laugh in the face of indignity… they sneer at insults… they stand up to abuse. Nobody’s perfect, but the Gross Out Gang carries it to extremes. Why not join in their fun… collect the entire series and laugh along with them. To be a member of this elite gang of super heroes, you’ve got to look yourself squarely in the eye without a mirror, and say “Im a decent, respectable human being in spite of my imperfections.” Maybe there’s a little Gross Out Gang in all of us.

That’s pretty touching actually. The toys are goofy and gross, but I like the message to kids that you can be proud of your differences. I’m thinking a modern toyline wouldn’t even approach the subject of human frailty, insecurity, and the sometimes awkward individuality. Stand up for yourself and disregard any kind of insults you may get from other punk kids. We were all underdogs growing up. I know you all were. You’re reading a toy blog for Christ’s sake.

Gross Out Gang - Comic

I only got four “fresh” GOG figures, and their cards are all beat up. I don’t mind. But I’m still on the lookout for the Nose Ark figure with his nose crutch. I want that crutch

So, now I have some GOG duplicates. Maybe I’ll sell them or use them for future toy trades or something. Anyone out there interested?

Posted in Goofy, Gross, Human?, Superhero, Toy Packaging, Ugly | 7 Comments »

Hokuto no Ken Revolution – Exploding Member of Zeed

Wednesday, October 1st, 2008

Hello again. Sorry I haven’t had a new toy up in a while. I was away on vacation, and now I’ve finally gotten around to bringing you more weirdo toy goodness.

Speaking of weird, here’s a little something i recently ordered from Japan. It actually arrived a couple of weeks back, but I’m just now getting around to posting it. Sure, this guy doesn’t look too much out of the ordinary, but wait until you discover his little “secret.”

(Click to enlarge)

So, what we have here is the second in a new series of Hokuto no Ken – Revolution figures. In America, Hokuto no Ken is better known as Fist of the NorthStar. This character is a apparently a member of the gang called Zeed (some bad guys from the series).

I am vaguely familiar with the Fist of the NorthStar series, but I’ve never been a fan of it. In fact, the only first-hand knowledge I ever had of the series was gathered in the old days of my playing Game Boy as a kid.

Fist of the Northstar Gameboy game

I had the mediocre Fist of the NorthStar fighting game. It was a pretty dull experience, but I really loved drawing the characters from the game booklet.

Well, if I knew then what I know now, I would’ve been even more disappointed in the game. From what I’ve recently gathered, Fist of the NorthStar is a Manga and Anime series that takes place in a post-apocalyptic world overrun by a bunch of bullies trying to take advantage of the weak and innocent. That’s where the main hero, Kenshiro, comes in. He’s your iconic, mysterious wanderer who comes into town, seeks out the trouble, and like most kung-fu movie heroes, he kicks ass.

Fist of the Northstar Manga and Anime

Well, maybe it’s not “ass kicking” as much as it is “face punching.”

Fist of the Northstar Anime

You see, Kenshiro has a gift. He can pummel the crap out of these bad guys which initially shows no effects… but a few seconds later, the bad guys’ bodies realize they have just been clobbered… which usually results in a spontaneous and gratuitous explosion of gore.

Check out this clip. It should make things a lot clearer for you.

That is where this toy’s secret comes in. Not only is he a decently poseable, post-apocalyptic gang member of Zeed…

(Click to enlarge)

… but he’s also a recent victim of Kenshiro…

(Click to enlarge)

… which means he has an awesome-exploding-transformation action feature. Now kids can reenact the brutal demise of this Fist of the NorthStar baddy. Good times!

(Click to enlarge)

Rewatch that video clip, and pay attention at the 2:08 mark. I looks like a Zeed member explosion in action.

Isn’t this disgusting?

I love it.

Look at the details on this guy –

(Click to enlarge)

- splattering blood and flailing spinal column

(Click to enlarge)

- separate, broken ribs

(Click to enlarge)

- flying intestines

(Click to enlarge)

- punched-in head w/ brains oozing out

It doesn’t get any better than that.

Lemme share just a few more things. Like I mentioned before, this toy is a Japanese import, but I think it’s coming to the U.S. soon. If I’m not mistaken, it will be available Dec. 30, 2008 (I couldn’t wait that long. Plus, I wanted to show you guys).

(Click to enlarge)

Once I received the toy, I was pretty excited. the figure is smaller and more light weight than I expected. I think it’s about 8″ tall with several swivel and ball joints. The figure has a bunch of hinges too which are made to be loose. They come apart easily, but I think it’s just a safety precaution, so we don’t end up breaking the toy while transforming it. The figure also comes with a support stand (which i didn’t wanna use) and a bloody axe accessory.

(Click to enlarge)

One of the coolest things about the import is the box. It’s covered in a bunch of “gibberish” I don’t understand, but it looks cool. Plus, the box is re-closeable, which is great. Hopefully, the American release will do something similar for those that are “hard-core collectors” or whatever (I wasn’t really that worried about it).

So there you have it. The world’s first exploding action figure. It’s kind of like combining the fun of Transformers with the gore of McFarlane Toys figures. There should be a whole toyline of figures like this.

Transforming mutilation. That’s a bit sick isn’t it?

Posted in Bizarre, Cartoons, Comics, Gross, Human? | 10 Comments »

Madballs: Head-Popping Action Figures

Tuesday, August 5th, 2008

So, it all started around November of last year when I was writing my Anniversary Madballs post. While searching online for various tidbits about the origins of Madballs, I came across a bunch of Madballs paraphernalia and other toy images, but I was quickly overcome with excitement when I discovered these guys.

(Click to enlarge)

They look like awesome little Madballs action figures… and upon further reading, I soon confirmed that they are Madballs Head-Popping Action Figures released in 1986 by AmToy. These 4 inch figures have spring-loaded heads/necks. With the flick of a trigger on their backs, their heads go flying.

They look this cool AND their heads pop off? Wow!!

(Click to enlarge)

Ya know, these may be the only worthwhile spin-offs of the Madballs brand. I don’t really remember seeing these things as a kid. I just had a couple of the original Madballs. I never took it to the extreme of wanting any of the spinoff toys and other random Madballs products (luckily for my parents).

It only took one look at them, and now that I had discovered these things, my obsession began. Not only do they encompass the great “grossness” of the original Madballs, but they’ve been taken a conceptual step further – these heads now have bodies which further illustrate their unique personalities (and maybe a hint at their origins).

As I searched online and at various toy shows, I soon discovered that these things are fairly hard to come by… especially if you want any of the Madballs figures with its corresponding head. And not only that, but most of the old ones I found have major paint flaking, damaged necks and broken triggers, so the heads wouldn’t stay attached or even launch anymore.

Freaky Fun for Everyone!
(Click to enlarge)

Well, as you can see, my patience and persistence (with the help of eBay) have prevailed. I am now the proud owner of a complete set of the ever-elusive Madballs Head-Poppers. They’re not all in perfect shape, but I still love ‘em all the same.

(Click to enlarge)

Let’s meet the gang, shall we?

Wolf Breath – The original dog face, this guy’s breath could stop a clock!
(Click to enlarge)

Slobulus – A gruesome drooler with one eye dangling for gross fun!
(Click to enlarge)

Screamin’ Meemie – A crazy baseball with a ghastly grin!
(Click to enlarge)

Dust Brain – A dried up mummy head who’s not too tightly wrapped!
(Click to enlarge)

Lock Lips – A creepy creature with locked-lipped feature!
(Click to enlarge)

Bruise Brother – A real tough cookie who’s a regular crumb!
(Click to enlarge)

Horn Head – A one-horned cyclops with a ring through his nose!
(Click to enlarge)

Skull Face – A mask of bone, teeth and frightening delight!
(Click to enlarge)

Oculus Orbus – A big, bloodshot eyeball to freak out your friends!
(Click to enlarge)

It’s great seeing the cartoony grossness of this set. I think the modern politically-correct children’s toys makers would never have allowed these “cute” kids toys to have open, bloody wounds or torn flesh with exposed rib cages and spines. That’s just genuine, vintage 8os grossness. MMM-mm.

(Click to enlarge)

So, I have a goofy story to share. As as I searched and slowly gathered the Mini Madballs figures, I soon discovered the “holy grail” of the set – Horn Head. Apparently he was an exclusive figure that was included with the Mad Rollercycle. You thought finding good Madballs figures was a challenge? Try finding a Mad Rollercycle complete with a Horn Head figure. The Rollercycle is usually by itself or comes along with a headless or “wrong-headed” Horn Head.

(Click to enlarge)

Well, just a few weeks ago after some super-laborious web-searching, I came across a Dutch website where a seller was actually offering a Rollercycle with Horn Head. What luck! But wait. There was only one problem. I couldn’t understand a single word on the website. Luckily, with the help of Babelfish Translator, I quickly had the site translated. It was broken English for sure, but it did allow me to at least locate the appropriate links to contact the seller.

So, being the desperate man that I am, I composed a message to the seller, asking how much the toy is and all that jazz. Now remember, the site was Dutch, so chances are I’ll have to make contact writing in Dutch… and that’s exactly what I did. I translated my message hoping whoever read it could make enough sense of what I’m sure was a horrible translation. I also made sure I attached my original English message (you know. .. just in case). With luck on my side, the seller wrote back. He was in Belgium and could understand English (YAY!), and he still had the toy available for me to order (YAY!x2).

So, here it is in all of it’s ugly-clunky glory.

Mad Rollercycle
(Click to enlarge)

(Click to enlarge)

The Mad Rollercycle is basically a motorcycle-steamroller combo. It comes equipped with a catapult to launch the various Madballs mini-figures’ heads. There’s also a basketball goal if you feel like shooting a few Madhoops. Last but not least, there’s the little skull-topped gear shifter. Pushing it forward or backward activates a small mechanism in the backs of both seats which presses the triggers on the backs of the Madball figures – sending their heads flying.

Honestly, the whole thing seems like a half-hearted attempt ot just make more money on a crappy, arbitrary Madballs vehicle. Even on the packaging, you can see they slightly attempted to create a story for these guys. They’ve even been specified as GOODBALLS and BADBALLS (I’m telling you, it feels good to know a skeleton and a mutilated, rotting-flesh zombie are a couple of good guys).

Just a side note: Doesn’t the figure on the Mad Rollercycle box look a lot different than the actual Horn Head toy? I’m glad the toy didn’t turn out to look like the prototype.

(Click to enlarge)

Wait!

It’s not over yet.

You think everything you just saw was cool?

You aint seen nothin’ yet.

Imagine the coolness of these figures….

Now imagine the coolness of these figures packaged in Japanese, super-unbelievably-awesome, super-well-illustrated-and-designed re-closeable boxes.

Did they look something like this??

(Click to enlarge)

That ultra web-scouring I mentioned earlier brought me to a nice fellow toy-lover who somehow got a hold of these beautiful things (thanks for the photos Kelly. You’re the best).

If anyone has any of these Japanese Madballs Head-Popping figures he’d like to get rid of (or any other photos to share), you better email me right now!

1986 Amtoy Madballs 6 Figure Set

US $102.50 (4 Bids)
End Date: Friday Feb-10-2012 18:00:38 PST
Bid now | Add to watch list

Death before Dishonor Terror Madball Trapped Under Ice Bitter End Lockin out

US $10.00 (1 Bid)
End Date: Friday Feb-10-2012 12:31:17 PST
Bid now | Add to watch list

Terror trapped under ice lockin out madball rival mob biohazard merauder

US $10.00 (0 Bid)
End Date: Friday Feb-10-2012 12:29:05 PST
Bid now | Add to watch list

Posted in Gross, Monsters, Ugly, Used & Abused | 26 Comments »

Ed Roth’s Rat Fink (and friends)

Sunday, May 18th, 2008

Weeks ago (April 12 to be exact), I made my way down to Athens, Georgia for the annual “mini-comic and zine explosion” known as Fluke. It’s a fun little show hosted at a small bar downtown called Tasty World. At its core, Fluke is a small gathering of people that are passionate about comics, art and the like. I try to make my way down there every year with my buddies from Wide Awake Press, and this year was just the same. After a quick look around the bar and some good (and bad) comics one can get bored easily.

Luckily, just a couple of blocks away lies a store full of comics, toys and all kinds of quirky goodies (junk) you can imagine. The place is Bizarro Wuxtry, and it’s always a joy to visit, because you’ll always find something odd to capture your interest. Whether it’s classic horror comics, cool new toys or some old ALF bubble gum cards, you’ll always discover something new (even if it looks like the piles of junk are untouched year after year). And of course, the most iconic part of the store is its owner, Devlin, in his trademark Bizarro t-shirt.

Bizarro Wuxtry

Bizarro Wuxtry store photos courtesy of Taylor Vandiver (thanks Taylor).

I dropped in and looked around as always. Climbing over piles, delicately moving between shelves and cabinets doing my best not to knock anything over. I didn’t see much of anything that I cared to get (or didn’t already have) when out of nowhere stood this shrink-wrapped stack of Rat Fink toys. They looked liked they’d been sitting there for ages. The packaging looked stained and bleached (probably because it was set up near a window).

The toys are a series of Rat Fink figures based on the infamous characters and illustrations by Ed “Big Daddy” Roth. These things were made in 2000 by Japanese toymaker, Planet Toys (the same folks that brought you that Zowroku toy). So, I’m not even sure if these things were widely available in the U.S.

Here’s a look at the toy packaging.

(Click to enlarge)

Luckily, as you can see, the sun bleaching and stuff had no effect on the toys. They look as good as new.

Rat Fink
(Click to enlarge)

It’s Rat Fink. What else can I say (well, he kind of looks like a really screwed-up version of Mickey Mouse)? He comes with a bouquet of flowers and an interchangeable hand holding a brush. I’m not “in-touch” with the whole hot-rodding scene (or any automotive scene for that matter). I’m not quite sure what relevance these flowers have, but I do know the paint brush is for detailing his car.

Surf Fink
(Click to enlarge)

This bug-eyed surfer-bum is fairly poseable, but what good is a poseable surfer if the surf board is stuck in his hand? My favorite part of this Surf Fink is probably his big, crinkly neck and back. It also looks like he suffers from a really bad skin condition. Gross.

Oh, and the back of his shirt reads “Surf-Fink San.”

Crazy Girl
(Click to enlarge)

(I tried to put her hand on her hip as shown on the package, but I felt like I was gonna break it.)

Imagine being served by this ugly-ass waitress. Complete with bulging, bloodshot eyes, snaggly teeth, grey skin and stitched scars. Crazy Girl (shouldn’t that be “Waitress Fink”?) is dressed in the classic diner waitress uniform which is great, but she’s wearing rollerblades which feels a bit out of character and out of time. She also comes with a tray with interchangeable items. She can serve you a hamburger, hot dog and a drink or the ever-popular 8-ball burger.

Her hat reads “Crazy Girl,” and the back of her shirt reads “Harvey’s.”

Beast
(Click to enlarge)

This guy is probably my favorite of the bunch. He’s just a total freak. He has a gnarly mouth full of teeth… and five tongues… covered in blood. That’s pretty good on its own, but combine that with blue skin and the four long eye balls hanging out of his eye sockets and you’ve really got something. He’s also got the awesome ability to rear his head back and open his huge mouth.

It looks like he’s just wearing a regular ol’ tank top, shorts sandals and a big iron cross, and the back of his shirt reads “Irresistible Beast.”

(Click to enlarge)

If you’ll notice the toy packaging pictured earlier, each toy is marked with a sticker designating a “Special Figure Included.” Well, behind the “8″ in the faux 8-ball on the card there’s a mystery figure. This got me psyched, because I was imagining even more cool little creatures inside those little bubbles.

Well, it turns out, they’re not that great. Sure, this little winged eyeball creature is cool and all, but to get the same damned one with each toy is disappointing. Why not do a unique toy with each character? There was only one difference with the toys – Rat Fink’s little character was yellow. Pretty crappy huh?

I’m not sure what this creature is or what its relevance to Rat Fink characters are. Anyone have any insight?

Posted in Art, Gross, Monsters, Ugly | 13 Comments »

Archive for the ‘Gross’ Category

Free Madballs!!

Gross Out Gang – Roll Call!!

Hokuto no Ken Revolution – Exploding Member of Zeed

Madballs: Head-Popping Action Figures

Ed Roth’s Rat Fink (and friends)

Pages

Connect with Weirdo Toys

Recent Posts

Archives

Categories

Toy Sites Worth Checking Out

Friends of Weirdo Toys

Meta