For years, we had a strict No Action Figure rule in our house, after I went a little nutty in the 90s. It wasn’t my fault, I swear! But come on, if you’d told me as a kid that one day I’d be able to buy incredibly detailed and accurate toys based on anything I wanted, my head would have exploded. So I got the Tom Strong action figures, the Madman, Mage, Hellboy, you name it. I finally crossed the line when I bought the entire range of Austin Powers figures, and that’s when the rule went into effect.
And things were fine for years. The better part of a decade, in fact. But then Georgia came along, and as she’s gotten older she’s come to like a lot of the same geeky things that I like. So when the Secret Saturdays toys hit the shelves, or an amazing line of Batman: Brave and the Bold action figures is released, well, I’m just buying them for her, aren’t I?
But I’ve still kept up my end of the deal, and only bought things that are essentially for Georgia (but that she and I both get to play with, naturally). Well, I did get the reissue of the Mego Captain Kirk last year, and the anniversary editions of the real GI Joes (you know, the Adventure Team era). But otherwise, I’ve kept on the wagon.
Then Mattel announced their line of retro “Mego-style” 8-inch DC Comics action figures.
I couldn’t help myself! I just couldn’t. I mean, look at them!
Now, like any geeky kid growing up in the 70s, I probably had just about every Mego superhero toy at one point or another, but with the wear and tear I put on them, none of them survived. In fact, the only Mego stuff I have at all from my childhood is a naked Captain Kirk, a few of that smaller scale guys and a Batmobile, and a Flash Gordon (with playset) that I picked up much later in life at a flea market.
These “retro” figures aren’t exactly Megos, but they’re pretty damned close. And they are a lot cheaper than buying the original toys at collector’s prices.
So now Superman, Green Lantern, Sinestro, and Lex Luthor have taken their place alongside the other bits and pieces I have on my office shelf. (As you can see, the reason I bought the reproduction Mego Captain Kirk was so I could steal his clothes and give them to my 30-plus year old naked Captain Kirk. Let the repro be naked for a few years, the old guy has earned a little dignity.)
