With as much writing talent in my body as Vin Diesel has the ability to convey depth in his onscreen characters, I present to you the Fast Five, err, Fantasy Five Jakks Pacific lineups I could have gone for in the year 1996.
“I could have gone for”? Eh, no one will notice.
Now, this is assuming that all things happen as per usual for the company’s wrestling figure line in ’96 – Superstars Series 1 and 2 goes off without a hitch and the Razor-Diesel, Bret-Owen, and Shawn-Vader exclusive 2-packs reach out to the collectors market.
Also, I primarily focused on the members of the WWF roster from a five-month period, January to May 1996, in order to keep with the release schedule of Superstars Series 1.
I’ve decided to break my ideas up into separate categories, or assortments, which play on the existing “Superstars” theme of the 1996 packaging.
Beginning with “Rising Stars”, a line featuring up-and-coming WWF Superstars with a select number of jobbers thrown into the mix to appease collectors, Jakks Pacific offers an alternative to the established names like Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels on store shelves.
WWF Rising Stars Series:
Series 1 (Fictional Release – Summer 1996)
”The Ringmaster” Steve Austin
Ahmed Johnson
Hunter Hearst Helmsley
Barry Horowitz
”The Portuguese Man O’War” Aldo Montoya
Savio Vega
Would it have been a colossal failure? You betcha.
I can just picture the shelfwarmers arm-in-arm on the pegs now, but the bigger question would be is there any differentiation in the figure’s sculpts?
As you know, many of the earlier BCA figures re-used sculpts to cut costs. Does that mean Austin, Johnson, Helmsley and Vega wouldn’t have looked the way they did in their respective debuts from Superstars Series 3 to 5?
For argument’s sake, we’ll just assume Jakks knows what they’re doing at the time and releases each with their own custom sculpts where applicable (heads and torsos especially).
You can already tell this will be a FANTASY post then, right? Good, let’s move on.
My next lineup will cover the “Classic Stars” then-currently employed by the company. There aren’t many that qualify as legends returning to the ring in 1996, but here are a few I’ve brought together.
WWF Classic Stars Series:
Series 1 (Fictional Release – Summer 1996)
Jake “The Snake” Roberts
Rowdy Roddy Piper
Jerry “The King” Lawler
The Ultimate Warrior
Luke Williams (One-half of The Bushwhackers)
Butch Miller (Other half of The Bushwhackers)
The latter three were still technically active at the time and they fit the bill as legends in the industry, however Roberts, Piper and Warrior all received significant exposure in their roles with the WWF in 1996.
Roberts and Warrior would probably be the most in-demand, but Piper, Lawler, and The Bushwhackers each had their own fan bases and could easily make the crossover to Jakks’ BCA style.
Next, as a pre-cursor to both the Tag Team and 2 Tuff series of double packs released from 1997 to 1999, I offer up a serving of “Superstars Tag Teams” using the same carding as the exclusive 2-packs.
WWF Superstars Tag Teams Series:
Series 1 (Fictional Release – Early Fall 1996)
The Bodydonnas (Skip and Zip)
The Smoking Gunns (Billy and Bart Gunn)
The Godwinns (Henry O. and Phineas I. Godwinn)
Owen Hart and “The British Bulldog” Davey Boy Smith
The former and latter two listed represent a transformation of the WWF’s tag division from 1995 to ’96 and beyond; once again providing a variety of names from which collectors and casual fans can choose to expand their collections.
Finally, my submissions to the world of mailaway exclusives would include these two recognizable faces from the first half of 1996.
WWF Superstars Exclusives:
Singles (Fictional Release – Early Fall 1996)
1-2-3 Kid loses the inaugural “Crybaby Match”
Kid gets his own exclusive singles figure on Superstars carding complete with removable diaper!
That should satisfy all the theorists that believe he was originally supposed to be included in Superstars Series 1 (and was replaced by either Undertaker or Goldust, supposedly).
Double Pack (Fictional Release – Early Fall 1996)
Vader splashes Gorilla Monsoon in an iconic segment on Monday Night RAW
Vader comes equipped with his mask and red/black attire and Monsoon appears in a dark suit.
Here we get the Mastodon in all his glory opposite the very first Jakks figure of then-storyline WWF President Gorilla Monsoon to replicate their RAW encounter.
Not to mention, this would also be the first Jakks ringside/personnel figure prior to 1997’s Ringside Collection series featuring the likes of commentator Vince McMahon, Sable, Sunny, and the generic Referee.
It’s no Shawn vs. Bret circa WMXII’s Ironman Match as far as potentially-awesome 2-packs go (and I don’t know why Jakks never commissioned this as an exclusive in ’96), but Vader’s moment was as memorable and shocking as anything from that year (well, except for Hogan’s mega heel turn, but still).
I do think Jakks could have broke some new ground by offering 3-packs (Bret vs. Shawn with Earl Hebner) and 4-packs (throw in Shawn’s manager Jose Lothario to the mix) as Toys”R”Us or Kay Bee Toys exclusives, but that might be jumping ahead a bit much for Jakks’ first year with the license.
Regardless of whether any of these ideas could have come to fruition, it never hurts to fantasize every once in a while about the BCA line’s unlimited potential.
Until next time, thanks for looking and have a nice day!
- Alex
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Looking back at Edge's BCA figures
In the wake of last Monday's retirement announcement, Edge's pro wrestling career has been contemplated over by both fans of the current and past generation(s).
I haven't seen many retrospective accounts on Edge's pro wrestling figure career, though, so I thought...well, there must be a reason for it.
Maybe everyone has better things to do than chronicle a person's representations in plastic form?
Do I? Hmm, I'll get back to you on that one.
Now, as it pertains to Jakks Pacific's BCA figure line, Edge was not a Superstar (forget about being "Rated R", the closest thing to that would be Al Snow's figure controversy).
He wasn't even a main event talent at the time, but he was making strides in the tag team division and as a former Intercontinental champion.
For the sake of formalities, here are all of Edge's BCA figures that I have added to VJB's official checklist.
*Note: The photos are above the descriptions, so the list begins with Superstars Series 7 Edge and ends with Backlash Series 4 Edge.
Considering the fact that most of these were repaints and only two had significantly different parts chosen (Backlash Series 3 and 4), it's surprising that there are only three straight re-releases from that list.
Superstars Series 7 3-pack (BJ's Exclusive)
Deadly Games Series 3-pack (BJ's Exclusive)
Signature Series 4 3-pack (KB Toys Exclusive)
Edge's debut BCA figure, alongside Val Venis and X-Pac, from Superstars Series 7 was released in January 1999 and his last came as late as the summer of 2001, July to be exact, when Backlash Series 4 reached KB Toys stores.
A two-and-a-half year (1999-2001) BCA figure run pales in comparison to his actual WWF/E in-ring career which lasted nearly 13 years (1998-2011).
However, we were treated to several different colored attires and one repaint that stands far above the rest.
As I did in reviewing Owen Hart's best BCA figure, I will rank Edge's best and worst figures from this particular time period.
The scores might seem low for some people, but I find that Edge's earlier figures suffer from inaccurate reused parts.
You should be able to recognize them from HHH's figure mold introduced in Superstars Series 6, and I can't just pretend that the thick sculpted belt and knee pads don't exist under a new paint application.
It's easy to see then why his last two figures, Backlash Series 3 and 4, turn up at the top of the list for their ingenuity.
Okay, they have recycled parts too, but these figures actually make sense, unusual as it sounds for two end-of-the-line, throwaway repaints from the Backlash series.
So, here is my ranking of the best Edge figures (1-best, 7-worst), as listed above.
I haven't included in that list the three re-releases from the store exclusive 3-packs.
Here's to a long and well-deserved retirement for Edge, and thanks for all of the memories!
Until next time, thanks for looking and have a nice day.
- Alex
I haven't seen many retrospective accounts on Edge's pro wrestling figure career, though, so I thought...well, there must be a reason for it.
Maybe everyone has better things to do than chronicle a person's representations in plastic form?
Do I? Hmm, I'll get back to you on that one.
Now, as it pertains to Jakks Pacific's BCA figure line, Edge was not a Superstar (forget about being "Rated R", the closest thing to that would be Al Snow's figure controversy).
He wasn't even a main event talent at the time, but he was making strides in the tag team division and as a former Intercontinental champion.
For the sake of formalities, here are all of Edge's BCA figures that I have added to VJB's official checklist.
*Note: The photos are above the descriptions, so the list begins with Superstars Series 7 Edge and ends with Backlash Series 4 Edge.
- Superstars Series 7 (Edge's debut figure)
- Deadly Games Series (a.k.a. Shotgun Saturday Night Series 3)
- Don't Trust Anybody (DTA) Tour Series 2 (Walmart Exclusive)
- Signature Series 3
- Signature Series 4
- Special Edition Series 5 (KB Toys Exclusive, Signature Series 3 re-release w/o jacket, not pictured below)
- Backlash Series 1 (KB Toys Exclusive)
- Backlash Series 3 (KB Toys Exclusive)
- Backlash Series 4 (KB Toys Exclusive, not pictured below)
Considering the fact that most of these were repaints and only two had significantly different parts chosen (Backlash Series 3 and 4), it's surprising that there are only three straight re-releases from that list.
Superstars Series 7 3-pack (BJ's Exclusive)
Deadly Games Series 3-pack (BJ's Exclusive)
Signature Series 4 3-pack (KB Toys Exclusive)
Edge's debut BCA figure, alongside Val Venis and X-Pac, from Superstars Series 7 was released in January 1999 and his last came as late as the summer of 2001, July to be exact, when Backlash Series 4 reached KB Toys stores.
A two-and-a-half year (1999-2001) BCA figure run pales in comparison to his actual WWF/E in-ring career which lasted nearly 13 years (1998-2011).
However, we were treated to several different colored attires and one repaint that stands far above the rest.
As I did in reviewing Owen Hart's best BCA figure, I will rank Edge's best and worst figures from this particular time period.
The scores might seem low for some people, but I find that Edge's earlier figures suffer from inaccurate reused parts.
You should be able to recognize them from HHH's figure mold introduced in Superstars Series 6, and I can't just pretend that the thick sculpted belt and knee pads don't exist under a new paint application.
It's easy to see then why his last two figures, Backlash Series 3 and 4, turn up at the top of the list for their ingenuity.
Okay, they have recycled parts too, but these figures actually make sense, unusual as it sounds for two end-of-the-line, throwaway repaints from the Backlash series.
So, here is my ranking of the best Edge figures (1-best, 7-worst), as listed above.
- Backlash Series 3 - 19/25 (The tights design is phenomenal).
- Backlash Series 4 - 16.5/25 (Sure, it's primarily a Slammers Patriot body, but it fits Edge better than a bulky HHH figure).
- Signature Series 3 - 15/25 (The best of the bigger Edge figures using HHH's sculpt, except with Razor legs).
- Backlash Series 1 - 14.5/25 (The random black vest is a welcome addition, and it's not far removed from the #5-7 figures).
- TIE. Deadly Games Series, Signature Series 4, and Special Edition Series 5 (same as Signature Series 3, just without the signature vest) - 14/25
- Superstars Series 7 - 13.5/25 (Edge's debut figure is simple and seemingly effective, but there are better repaints).
- DTA Tour Series 2 - 13/25 (Backlash Series 4 has bleach blonde hair and this one is almost a dark red - huh? Some of the paint apps only make the head sculpts look worse, if that's possible).
I haven't included in that list the three re-releases from the store exclusive 3-packs.
Here's to a long and well-deserved retirement for Edge, and thanks for all of the memories!
Until next time, thanks for looking and have a nice day.
- Alex
Monday, April 4, 2011
Catching up with Terry Lattimer, the man behind BCA
I've found Terry Lattimer.
Okay, well, technically he found me (via e-mail).
Regardless of who found whom, I was able to get in touch with the man himself and he was so gracious to respond to my inqueries.
I'll paraphrase what he wrote in passages below, but first I must thank him once again for coming across this blog and taking the time to share some of his story with yours truly.
Terry's association with Carl Macek provided him the opportunity to design Jakks Pacific's first line of action figures.
"Jakks wanted something unique," Lattimer said.
It was Terry's long-time interest in seeing the Barbie doll joints scaled down to an action figure that bore the creation of a new style for Jakks Pacific.
Not only would it have no visible joints, but Lattimer's proposal included an added feature of a ratchet click sound to represent, you guessed it, everyone's favorite "Bone Crunching Action."
That Terry Lattimer is a sick, twisted guy, what with the bones crunching and breaking underneath the surface of these new action figures, but that's why we love his work. And, apparently, so did Jakks.
Jakks loved his proposed "gimmick" feature so much that his team, affectionately known as the "Band of Mercenaries", were given the go-ahead to begin the design process.
"This was my first [action figure] line that I designed and sculpted," Lattimer said.
With the first series in production, Terry found that the Hong Kong manufactures re-sculpted everything 2-up (a term used for the hardcopy model cast twice the size of a regular figure) and then reduced it by 50 percent for the actual mold.
Terry emphatically states this whole process made no sense to him, especially considering the licensing approvals they had received for the sculpts in the United States.
"Sculpting 2-up of your own original a/s sculpt is a challenge for the sculptor/artist that did it," Lattimer said, "to have a sculptor with no pop-culture/WWF/action figure 'knowledge' results in a ridiculous counter-productive procedure."
As a result, Terry's original prototype casts and sculpts were exactly that, prototype casts and sculpts, since they were not adhered to for the actual final product.
For example, the bridge of Superstars Series 1 Diesel's nose was a gross miscalculation that caused Terry to protest at the time (although things got better between he and Jakks).
"The final product made him look like he had a broken swollen nose!" Lattimer said.
After working on the first three Bone Crunching Action Superstars Series assortments, Terry's good fortunes took him elsewhere, but he returned in time for the rise of the Attitude Era with the likes of Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, and D-Generation X.
Terry says he had a fun time during the height of the WWF phenomenon at the turn of the century.
"[The WWF's] popularity was spreading across demographics as everyone seemed to appreciate 'what the WWF was doing' with the (now much missed) 'rude, crude attitude' with arguably the coolest group of wrestlers (and personalities) ever," Lattimer said.
In that span of time, roughly three years, Terry and his fellow excellent artists (consisting of a Master Molder, Master Painter, Master Accessories Sculptor, and Master Genius Sculptor/Designer), with the assistance of the product manager at Jakks, produced 40 lines for the company.
Impressive as it sounds, but to hear it from Terry directly is enough to make you want to salute the guy.
"For a solid three years starting from around BCA's first series ('95-'96), we were on constant deadlines - designed and sculpted from 10 a.m. to 5 a.m., crashed for five hours, and then up and at it again - seven days a week, 52 [weeks] a year, really," Lattimer said.
Still, those early WWF action figures were good times for Terry, and even he thinks their goofiness added to their charm!
"I look back on them fondly, as well as that era," Lattimer said, "It was a wild, creative, lucrative ride. Good times!"
For what it's worth, Terry says he and his team accomplished a feat of being the only group of five people within the last 20 years to create, design, sculpt, and prototype multiple action figure lines.
I'd say that's worth a damn good amount.
Until next time, thanks for looking and have a nice day!
- Alex
P.S. If you like Independence Day the movie, actors Bill Pullman or Will Smith, or incredibly talented dudes who are mesmerized by alien space crafts, check out this story written by Terry Lattimer of his experience working on the ID4 figure line:
www.authorsden.com/visit/viewshortstory.asp?id=33810&authorid=55689
Okay, well, technically he found me (via e-mail).
Regardless of who found whom, I was able to get in touch with the man himself and he was so gracious to respond to my inqueries.
I'll paraphrase what he wrote in passages below, but first I must thank him once again for coming across this blog and taking the time to share some of his story with yours truly.
Terry's association with Carl Macek provided him the opportunity to design Jakks Pacific's first line of action figures.
"Jakks wanted something unique," Lattimer said.
It was Terry's long-time interest in seeing the Barbie doll joints scaled down to an action figure that bore the creation of a new style for Jakks Pacific.
Not only would it have no visible joints, but Lattimer's proposal included an added feature of a ratchet click sound to represent, you guessed it, everyone's favorite "Bone Crunching Action."
That Terry Lattimer is a sick, twisted guy, what with the bones crunching and breaking underneath the surface of these new action figures, but that's why we love his work. And, apparently, so did Jakks.
Jakks loved his proposed "gimmick" feature so much that his team, affectionately known as the "Band of Mercenaries", were given the go-ahead to begin the design process.
"This was my first [action figure] line that I designed and sculpted," Lattimer said.
With the first series in production, Terry found that the Hong Kong manufactures re-sculpted everything 2-up (a term used for the hardcopy model cast twice the size of a regular figure) and then reduced it by 50 percent for the actual mold.
Terry emphatically states this whole process made no sense to him, especially considering the licensing approvals they had received for the sculpts in the United States.
"Sculpting 2-up of your own original a/s sculpt is a challenge for the sculptor/artist that did it," Lattimer said, "to have a sculptor with no pop-culture/WWF/action figure 'knowledge' results in a ridiculous counter-productive procedure."
As a result, Terry's original prototype casts and sculpts were exactly that, prototype casts and sculpts, since they were not adhered to for the actual final product.
For example, the bridge of Superstars Series 1 Diesel's nose was a gross miscalculation that caused Terry to protest at the time (although things got better between he and Jakks).
"The final product made him look like he had a broken swollen nose!" Lattimer said.
After working on the first three Bone Crunching Action Superstars Series assortments, Terry's good fortunes took him elsewhere, but he returned in time for the rise of the Attitude Era with the likes of Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, and D-Generation X.
Terry says he had a fun time during the height of the WWF phenomenon at the turn of the century.
"[The WWF's] popularity was spreading across demographics as everyone seemed to appreciate 'what the WWF was doing' with the (now much missed) 'rude, crude attitude' with arguably the coolest group of wrestlers (and personalities) ever," Lattimer said.
In that span of time, roughly three years, Terry and his fellow excellent artists (consisting of a Master Molder, Master Painter, Master Accessories Sculptor, and Master Genius Sculptor/Designer), with the assistance of the product manager at Jakks, produced 40 lines for the company.
Impressive as it sounds, but to hear it from Terry directly is enough to make you want to salute the guy.
"For a solid three years starting from around BCA's first series ('95-'96), we were on constant deadlines - designed and sculpted from 10 a.m. to 5 a.m., crashed for five hours, and then up and at it again - seven days a week, 52 [weeks] a year, really," Lattimer said.
Still, those early WWF action figures were good times for Terry, and even he thinks their goofiness added to their charm!
"I look back on them fondly, as well as that era," Lattimer said, "It was a wild, creative, lucrative ride. Good times!"
For what it's worth, Terry says he and his team accomplished a feat of being the only group of five people within the last 20 years to create, design, sculpt, and prototype multiple action figure lines.
I'd say that's worth a damn good amount.
Until next time, thanks for looking and have a nice day!
- Alex
P.S. If you like Independence Day the movie, actors Bill Pullman or Will Smith, or incredibly talented dudes who are mesmerized by alien space crafts, check out this story written by Terry Lattimer of his experience working on the ID4 figure line:
www.authorsden.com/visit/viewshortstory.asp?id=33810&authorid=55689
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