The X-Entertainment Blog!

04/12/2008: The Hundred Dollar Toys "R" Us Shopping Spree: Part 3!

It's gorgeous out. Sitting inside to write about toys I bought a week ago probably isn't the best way to take advantage of this, but the joke's on you: I snapped the pictures for this entry outside.

It's time to recap the best of the rest from my $100 Toys "R" Us shopping spree, but first, some filler thoughts on the TOY INDUSTRY. It's no secret that all-toy chains like TRU have had trouble staying afloat in recent years, and it's easy to see why. They have oodles and oodles of floor space, and yet, I can't say with much certainty that they carry more "good" toys than any Wal-Mart or Target does — and those stores barely need the scant few aisles worth of playthings to survive.

We complain that Toys "R" Us isn't the same as it used to be. Well, that's kind of by necessity. They sell what sells, and if you've gotta peddle ten thousand baby strollers to keep out of the red, who can blame you? It's not the store that's changed…it's the industry. That there are still stores as large as TRU dedicated primarily to toys seems miraculous, and I can't help but feel that it won't be too many years before that particular concept goes the way of the dodo, or if you're looking for a more thematically tied analogy, the way of Tacky Stretchoid Warriors.

By and large, today's kids are far more into video games and electrogizmos than dolls made out of plastic, and they have every right to be. Today's action figures are pretty much the same action figures that I cried for when I was in the womb, but anything that runs on batteries or plug power has evolved in extreme ways. It's for this reason that I give five dollar bills to any kid I spot playing with a six-inch superhero: They're doing their part in a world that gives them far cooler options.

Still, traditional dolls and action figures will never die, for what video game or high-tech gadget could afford a person the ability to complete their home decor with a twenty-seven inch, two-headed rubber dragon?

Giant Foam Dragon - $19.99: Twenty bucks for this guy didn't seem like a bad deal, but now that I've done the math, I can confirm that he cost two thousand times more than the dragon seen in Part 2. Then again, that dragon was only about a third the size of this one, and that dragon most certainly did not have two heads. Frankly, I don't feel the need to struggle for justification when I've got a dog-sized, two-headed rubber dragon. I'll just say "you win" and go back to pretending to play cards with him.

I've yet to name my giant foam dragon, but that's less to do with a lack of love and more to do with there not being pronouns currently associated with something as insanely awesome as he is. He's gigantic, he's really detailed, he's got two heads, and he looks like he's kind of happy about all of that. Though Casa de X-E is rife with controversy over the giant foam dragon's final placement, I'm probably going to win the argument and make him a permanent couch-side fixture in our living room. My theory is that the position of his two heads will allow for easy ash tray mounting, and if you can find any legitimate purpose for a 27" two-headed dragon doll, you've done well in the world.

Pokemon Throw Ball - $9.99: I once loved Pokemon enough to warrant a Bulbasaur tattoo above my left ankle, and though time has proven that this tribute wasn't the most well-considered idea, I take solace in knowing that my legs will only ever be seen by the person who drains my blood out after I die. That said, I still really like Pokemon, and "really liking" Pokemon was good enough for me to spend ten bucks on this crappy Pikachu "Throw Ball."

Well, it's not so much that it's crappy. It works well enough, with the Pikachu doll popping out of the Pokeball like a true Pokemon warrior just a moment after it hits the floor. My complaint has more to do with the pricing. The doll is something I wouldn't have been satisfied with winning out of a twenty-five cent arcade crane machine, and I can't honestly claim that a pop-action Pokeball is worth anywhere near ten bucks. I still can't figure out how the toymakers came up with the retail price for this. Perhaps they adopted the theory that people will pay a mint just for firm permission to throw something.

Mostly, I'm just pissed that the Pikachu doll isn't wearing a red hat like the one I beat the fuck out of Samus with does.

The Legend of Zelda "Havoc In Hyrule" DVD - $5.99: Toys "R" Us's movie selection was mostly limited to newly released sing-a-longs and nursery-level action/adventures, but an aisle away from their DVD section was a pathetic rack full of obsolete titles priced to move. After moving past the 7,000 films starring Benji or Beethoven or some other well-meaning dog hero, I found this gem, featuring episodes from the terrific Zelda cartoon that was once a part of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show.

As I recall, Lou Albano stuck with the Mario cartoons from Monday through Thursday, but on Fridays, kids everywhere exploded with delight as Link, Zelda and a very nasally interpretation of Ganon became immortalized with their very own run of animated adventures. The cartoons were pretty basic and seemed to infer that Hyrule was only as large as a basketball court, but seeing the cartoon version of an Octorok was enough to make every Friday feel like a holiday.

Six bucks is pretty cheap for a DVD, but since you can buy the entire run of Zelda cartoons in a nice box set for around $20, this wasn't exactly a steal. The fact that I've owned that box set for almost a year now only makes this recent purchase even less warranted. Perhaps I was merely mesmerized by the sheer artistry found within the DVD cover art, with a lens flare effect placed upon Link's sword so perfectly that I barely even noticed that his shadow has morphed into one of the demons that dragged Willie Lopez to Hades in Ghost.

Hydronator Hydro Colorant Powder & Super Soaker Oozinator Refill Cartridge - $0.24 & $0.80: I have no use for either of these, and in the case of the Hydro Colorant Powder, I'm still not even sure what the fuck I bought. I just can't turn down anything at these prices. An extra buck was well worth the end result of a shopping bag that felt heavier and more substantial.

Further research tells me that Hydro Colorant Powder helps kids transform their water gun ammunition into dyed water gun ammunition. Considering that the back of the package offers stain warnings for everything from walls to clothes to floors to vinyl (which they misspelled), I don't imagine that these were popular artifacts with anyone except the four-year-old who did the shooting.

Oh, and aside from misspelling "vinyl," they're also of the mind that the plural form of "fabric" is "fabric's." In fact, now that I've read over the package blurb a little more closely, I'm quite positive that no paragraph anywhere has ever been worse:

Evidently, after Benji got done making all the movies that were stinking up TRU's DVD rack, he moved into the position of copy editor for Planet Toys.

Thumb Wrestling Federation "Figures" - $4.99: I thought this was a neat concept: Outfits for all of us thumb wrestling maniacs to place over our fingers. The company responsible for these did such a remarkable job with the packaging that I completely overlooked the fact that I was about to pay five dollars for two well-themed finger condoms.

They don't fit over my thumbs, which are either gigantic or merely adult-sized, but they work well enough for the much cooler purpose of masking random action figures. Here, a pair of M. Bisons entertain each other in ways far more peaceful than the ancient art of Shadowloo face-punching. Though I'd more typically prefer things to be alien-themed, I've gotta give the nod to the non-alien blue mask as the best of the two. Don't really have a reason to back that up, so maybe I shouldn't have said it. I dunno.

Star Wars "Friends of the Force" Activity Book - $5.99: Toys "R" Us's book section must be seen to be believed. The only way I can describe it is this: Picture our humble planet in the aftermath of some horrible extinction event, with the battered survivors pooling the few remaining books into a messy pile. There's no rhyme or reason to anything, and outside of Harry Potter-level fads, you'll rarely find more than a single copy of any of the books being carried. Every book is seemingly war-torn, with the battle damage ranging from light cover tears to titles that were ripped entirely in half. I liked the idea of a 400-page Star Wars activity book enough to save it from whatever horrible fate awaited.

Now that I've skimmed through its many pages, I realize that the book is far too strange to bury at the bottom of a three-part blog series. We'll have to dig deeper into this one at a later date, but here's a little something to whet your appetites:

Okay, so I'm totally familiar with these "grid" drawing lesson things, but this makes NO SENSE. The grids are of absolutely no service at all! How are they supposed to help you recreate Darth Maul? There's no symmetry, there's nothing! It's pointless! I know that I shouldn't be so upset about this, but I really wanted to draw Darth Maul and not have him come out like he usually does, which is something akin to a gelatinous black cube with a cherry on top.

I'm really tired and don't have much fuel left for an outstanding conclusion, but all told, I had tons of fun on my shopping spree and would totally do it again if I didn't feel like I already bought all of the good stuff. Oh, and as promised, here's a scan of my receipt:

Receipts are exciting. Happy SNT!

Quite the haul Matt! I may have to go pick up th Zelda DVD. As cheesy as it as I loved that cartoon when I was younger. And the spelling on the back of the Hydronator package? Priceless. I didn't realize that coloring books had gotten so expensive though.

Anybody wanna Brawl ? I asked in the last thread but I don't think anybody is readin that one anymore. Happy SNT everybody. =)

I went hunting for penny dragons at Toys R Us last night, but no luck. Although I did find a "Godzilla Pack of Destruction" figure set on clearance for $3 (originally $15), which I might go back and get.

Hee, I forgot about the guilt induced donation dollar. Great deals you got there, Matt.
I think I like the xtreem goggles best for Pikachu head adornments…I was reading Game Informer today and learned that eventually instead of getting killed in Brawl I'll be able to school you all in Dr. Mario. Revenge will be mine!
Happy SNT!

Great series, Matt! I thought of you today when I was helping my brother-in-law clean out his closet. He found a box of Tiny Toons Fruit Snacks that were dated 1993. They seemed up your ally. If you want them, let me know where to send them and they're yours. I'd be willing to throw in other random stuff we've found too. And trust me, a guy who saves Tiny Toons Fruit Snacks in his office closet has quite a lot of random stuff.

I used to work at TRU. wanna know why the book section is always such a mess? cause the people that work there don't give a shit about how good or bad it looks.
but we did get some pretty sweet discounts on the toys, so it wasn't all bad!

I'll be all up for playing Dr. Mario with you guys when it comes out. Speaking of WiiWare games coming out,I assume you guys have heard about Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People coming to WiiWare this summer,right?

I can't believe that there are TWF toys. Who knew that people would want something based on those silly sketches between CW cartoons?

Yea, the book shelf was a pain to stock when I briefly worked there. Mostly because that aisle was a mess with books put into the wrong places and other stuff.

You're right about the toy industry in general. Other than the occaisional TRU exclusive or some other rare thing only they would stock, they don't sell anything I can't get at Wal-Mart or Target and for a cheaper price usually.

The Pokeball vid was one of the funniest things I've seen in a long time. Actually, props to the guy who thought launching Pikachu's lifeless corpse from a plastic shell was going to spur the resurgence of this franchise.

so my final SNT of my 20's…im approaching the BIG 3-0 on Tuesday. I don't feel old except when I hear people refer to Ps One as their first console when they were little kids…and also that my littlelest cousin is gonna be 8 in june and I remember the day he was born…and it did'nt seem that long ago! wow!

I remember whwen I turned 18 I was afraid of automatically maturing and not liking the stuff I was into then and still am…(games, retro stuff, any kind of toys remotely fun looking) so I should be ok…wow……also everyone's like 30 is the new 20.

There's nothing quite like having a couple of kids as a good excuse to go poking around toy aisles. I love the Schliech (spelling?) figures at Target, they have super detailed fantasy figures like fairies, unicorns, dragons, griffins and whatnot, plus a series of 'real world animals'. They are all kinds of awesome.

Looks like you had a good shopping spree. Totally love the huge two headed foam dragon and the Pikachu Pokemon ball. That's something they should have made ten years ago. Because…that's awesome. It makes me miss my old talking stuffed Pikachu I had where his cheeks light up. So cool!

The Toys R Us near me closed a few years ago, was pretty sad because I had so many great memories of the store, but the last few times I went (to look for video games) before it closed was just kind of sad. It had the look of a cheap dollar store/warehouse place and everything was at random. But oh how I remember teh glory days with the ultra cool video game setups, and buying my Halloween constumes there and what not.. ah well.

right kitty cat. I hear ya there. I used to love looking at the awesome stuff in the display cases…like 500 dollar radio control Helicopters, and the Neo Geo and 3 DO systems with the one hundred dollar games. Also the talking cabbage patch kids, and Mr Game show, which i need to look on ebay and see if i can find him. And the display cases with Cricket, Teddy Ruxpin and Mother Goose. Man I was salivating with envy when this one girl in 3rd grade had a My Child AND a Cricket.

Once again, excellent finds. And yes, I too forgot about the Guilt Dollar. I'm at CVS currently and I've dealt out quite a few.

Speaking of which, whenever a reciept prints out with dozens of coupons at the bottom creating this huge ticker-tape, you'd think the customer believed they won the lottery. And some just straight up tell me this.

I'm sure that two headed dragon will really tie the room together, Matt. And do you know where the Planet Toys company is located? If its in the U.S. we'll know that our current cultural regression has reached the sub-literate stage.

I've made two trips to TRU in the past two days and I spent over $130. In my defense, one thing wasn't for me, some of it is for articles, and the rest was a pink and purple keyboard and mouse. I saw the double headed dragon, and that thing is mighty fucking hefty!

I knew I should have stayed home today. But I was all, "Nooooo I'll just go get soft ice cream and come back. It's such a nice day." Yeah. I also stopped at Wal-Mart for tomatoes and nail polish and came out another $45 in the hole.

You know what? I wish that they actually sold "Star Wars Galactic Figs". I mean I wish that wasn't an abbreviation, but rather an ill-concieved fig-snack tie-in. I'm thinking Fig Newtons died red and black would've been right around the corner.

The blogs make it seem like you bought a toy store but that receipt makes it look like you bought nothing. I don't understand what kind of perception tricks my mind could be playing on me.

I like that you compared the thumb puppets to condoms. I think I would have the same expression as that blue mask if I were a condom. It must be an unpleasant job.

Yeah very. What is the priority on MetaKnights moves? I couldn't lay a hit on you.

OMG Norbert!!!! I know exactly what you mean about the reciepts,it seems like the past couple of weeks they've been extra long,I guess because of all the "Buy this and get X Extra Bucks" deals.
Mandy-
I can't tell you how excited I was when Neo Geo games became available on Wii,and then I spent all day playing Fatal Fury,and it dawned on me that a 14 year old kid today would just laugh at it,and here I am stunned by it.

Awesome, awesome, awesome. This was a great series! I suggest doing more of this type of thing when you get the urge, Matt. Reader suggestions are always fun!

I'm now thinking of stocking up on some wii points cards so I'm ready for the wii ware channel. I'm hoping the Championship eating game is available the first day.

Found the Iron Man 7-11 cups today. Apparently, my nearest 7-11 still had the old Halo cups out and there were none of the Iron Man cups to be seen. After asking the clerk, I was told they didn't have any. Given that I had to drive 30 minutes to get there, I decided to get a Slushee only to find the Iron Man licensed AMP flavor. I talked with the clerk again and mentioned it was funny that they had the Iron Man mix in only to have the manager tell me that they did have the Iron Man cups in. He opened up a box for me and let me purchase the ones that I wanted, even though they weren't in the system yet and wouldn't be on sale until Sunday.

My day got even better when I found the HTF Iron Spider-Man Superhero Squad figure on the way home.

dude, that pokemon ball video was one of the funniest things I've seen in a while. L

You're right Matt, the action figure will never die. Earlier this evening the lady and I went out to dinner with her parents and siblings. This included her nephews, aged 3 and 6.

Since our place was the closest to the restaurant that was selected everyone came back here for dessert and drinks. The six year old wanted nothing more than to play some Xbox Live Arcade games, then eventually switch over and get down with Wario Ware on the Wii. The three-year-old, on the other hand, showed little interest in the video games and was much more entertained playing with plastic toy dinosaurs and matchbox cars.

As much as I still love video games, I still couldn't help thinking "good for him."

I'm conflicted. I'm supposed to go see Gremlins 2 as a midnight movie tonight, but the person I was going with flaked out and I don't want to drive out by myself. Then again, it's Gremlins 2 on the big screen, how can you pass that up?

Too late for an SNT survey? I've been watching Godfather I and II all evening, and it got me thinking. What are the movies that you can watch over and over and never get sick of, no matter how many times you've seen them before?

Well, for me the movies that I can watch over and over again endlessly and never ever get sick of are anything that I like. If I like a movie then I can watch it an infinite amount of times. Really.

mandy_reeves: Turning 30, eh? I can sympathize as that was me last September. All I can tell you is that, for me at least, nothing changed. I feel the same now as I did three or four years ago. You're only as old you feel. Or, in other words, you tell yourself that since I have now reached the age of XX, I can no longer enjoy _________ (fill in the blank with whatever "childish" activity you still like).

Growing up itself isn't what I would call "overrated" - forgetting what made childhood fun though, certainly is.

I like the part in Gremlins 2 when Hulk Hogan yells at the Gremlins after the screen goes blank. I was expecting Hulk Hogan to pop up when the screen went blank during the last episode of the Sopranos. That would have been better.

Gone With The Wind is one of those movies….um…SouthPark, funny girl, yentl.Anchorman…Willy Wonka(original) Hairspray(both versions) spaceballs, star wars, return of the jedi and empire strikes back, Dirty Dancing….and a ton more.

I had a list of like 30 movies typed, but somehow, through some careless keystroke combination, I triggered a Firefox help page and when I hit the "back button" all the text I had typed was gone.

I'll just say THE BURBS, since that was the first film I usually type for these sorts of lists.

I don't know if anybody was watching it or has seen it before, but a Modern Marvels on Disneyworld just wrapped up. It seems a bit dated since a quick wiki search of Expedition Everest, which was under construction when this was built, has been completed for over two years now.

Don't worry, I have a point! One of the last things they showed on this special was a walking dinosaur robot that pulls a cart. What is the obvious next step?

Movies I'll never get sick of. Well, lessee… Ghostbusters 1&2, Batman Returns, The 'Burbs, Labyrinth, Goonies, A Christmas Story, Princess Bride, Clerks, Tommy Boy, and possibly Pee-Wee's Big Adventure.

Bummer, Magic Toy

LOL Matt, Gremlins 2 is one of the greatest movies ever, isn't it? It's the moment of truth for me, if I'm going to see it tonight I have to leave in the next few minutes. Everything hinges on whether I can talk one of my roomies into coming along, because I don't want to drive home alone. It's not looking good. Oh well.
Gone with the Wind is one that I've watched a million times and still get sucked into when it's on TV. I'll never get sick of Star Wars and Who Framed Roger Rabbit either.

Matt-I answered your Kool-Aid ad question in the last post but I'll copy and paste it here in case you don't go back and read it there.

"Matt-There was a two page spread for it but it was just mainly advertising the new Slammin' Strawberry Kiwi flavor and had a contest on how you can win some great prizes. However, in the fine print for the contest, it does mention the other 3 flavors including Kickin' Kiwi-Lime, Oh-Yeah Orange-Pineapple and Man-O-Mango-Berry."

Ooops, posted a little prematurely there. I was going to add Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas too. And Shaun of the Dead, and Kill Bill. And Mystie's Princess Bride pick reminded me about Forrest Gump, but I can't say I don't get a teensey bit sick of that one sometimes.

It was hard to find thanks to Fresh Prince, but I now know why everybody is listing movies.

My picks would be Spider-Man, Groundhog Day, Blade Runner, Dumb & Dumber…. I can't really think of anything other than Fresh Prince right now.

I CLEARED THE SUBSPACE EMISSARY! someone give me ice cream… thanks. that is all.

I thought that was the 2 headed dragon, but wasn't sure. He is quite awesome, and I love him - and the equally-as-huge dinosaurs with the slee-stak claws.

I got the Pokeball with Piplup in it… and yeah, Piplup is cute and all, but it's like he's just a shell, with very little fiber filling. His head is very elongated and he's not near as cute as the beanie I have of him. But, on the Pokeball, there's a black cord to put a finger through, and when you act like you're throwing the ball, it just opens up and shoots out your pokemon, rather than letting it hit the ground, although it is more realistic that way.

That water colorant stuff made my day - I'm totally gonna see if we have anymore of those and buy one, just for the fucked up directions.

I have to agree with Jameson about the book section. 99% of the time, as long as the books are ON the shelves, no one gives a rats ass. Once in a while, if I'm super bored, I'll go through and try to straighten them up, but it's such a daunting task. I should take a picture of our book section… it's truly hellacious.

As for the movie survey, mine would be: Interview With the Vampire, Princess Bride, FFVII: Advent Children, Office Space, Sleepy Hollow, and various anime.

I know I'm forgetting a ton.

Real Genius, Planes Trains & Automobiles, Revenge of the Nerds, Overboard, Silver Streak, Halloween, Weird Science, License to Drive, Nat'l Lamppon's Vacation.
8 million others…

Lol. I… actually have three of those pokeball throw things. I bought one when they first came out because I thought it was cool. The second I got because it had Uxie (I've got about 20 of those thing off GTS for simple crap like an eevee… so I bought it more as a joke.) The last one was because it had Driftloon… and Driftloon is awesome >.>

What really made my night was those two Bison figures, though, even if they didn't come from TRU. I can never find the red player 1… just the toothpaste green player 2.

I think I am one of the few who cannot grasp the concept of Pokemon ball but my son is dying to get those weird ball things all the time.
And my ever changing list: Breakfast at Tiffany's, Real Genius (hi kidneyboy!), Back to the Future, Say Anything, Goonies, Pretty in Pink…

Why couldn't they have taken the time to give Pikachu a weebles bottom so that he'd fall out and actually stand up, instead of flopping out face first and slumping to the ground in a heap?

Also, the vast quantity of spelling mistakes in the Colorant makes me wonder whether the writer was drinking the stuff at the time. "Spary" and "Fruniture"? I want me some fruniture, sounds retro chic.

Movies I never get sick of…Clerks 2, Can't Hardly Wait, High Fidelity, The Godfsther, The Princess Bride, Men Girls…and more. I'm kind of a movie junkie.

Also, Matt, I'm kind jealous of your 8.3% sales tax…it's 9.25% down here…

There are only two movies in the world that I never get sick of and pause everytime I see them on tv. They are:

The Aristocrats- Documentary about the dirtiest joke in the world. Funniest movie I've ever seen.

SNL was hilarious last night. Especially the last sketch of the show about a paralyzed stripper. The "Amy" song sketch was good, too.

I missed SNT too, but we had some pretty ugly storms pass through the South Jersey area that interfered with my Internet all weekend. I'm hoping they're gone now.

The last time I was in a TRU was last year, when my best friend and I visited one in Albany and I insisted we stop there. Neither of us bought anything, but it was fun to walk around. I have vague memories of visiting a TRU near my aunt in the suburbs of Washington DC (where I got my beloved Roger Rabbit doll - god, I wish I still had him), and there was a toy store in the Cape May County area that started in Rio Grande and moved briefly to West Cape May before finally shutting down all together. Both incarnations of the latter were a pretty good size. I remember getting all our Jem dolls and accessories there.

Actually Matt, I've almost bought one of those Pop-Out Pokemon toys several times, but changed my mind for the same reason you mentioned. Ten bucks is just excessive for a poorly-made stuffed animal that jumps out of a plastic ball, Pikachu or no Pikachu.

"Also, Matt, I'm kind jealous of your 8.3% sales tax…it's 9.25% down here…"

Holy hell… our sales tax in Maryland just went from 5% to 6% this year, and I thought that was a rip off.

I'm totally late here ’cause I was on vacation, but from like five threads ago:

I have this glorious, absolutely glorious television special wherein 50% of the Golden Girls host the 25th anniversary of Disney World live from the park

MATT. REVIEW THIS. It sounds like the most awesome thing to ever be awesome.

To echo Vanilla Fire's sentiments, Matt is truly fortunate to only pay an 8.3% sales tax. Tennessee really sticks it to us with the 9.25%. And on top of that, there's nothing quite like owing $1,500 to Uncle Sam after finally finishing my taxes. Gah!

kb!! hi back!! long time, no…typey typey? I second on BTTF, just got done rewatching all three, except for some reason, I went 2,3,1! I don't know why, I just felt like watching the second one first.

Tapeheads anyone?
Freeway
Coming to America!
The Great Outdoors
and I can't believe I forgot Trading Places before! shame on me!

i'm at work.. so don't have time to say anything too profound.. but wanted to say that i thought this was a swell concept.. and you did a great job with it.. - not only describing the items and their significance.. but also throwing in some nostalgia from past experiances, etc. - like many of us, i was a toys 'r us kid, too.. - every other friday we'd get allowance and i recall running down the same aisle to grab a trash can of m.u.s.c.l.e. figures with my cash.. - i'd like to see the grocery store spree, too, as there's a lot of possibilites there.. - could you go to multiple stores? - ’cause the more low budget and oscure the grocery, the more likely you'll find true gold..

Um… Mandy? That press conference was canceled. Apparently Mr. Dent threw himself into a hostage situation and negotiated the release of everybody.

Magic Toy I use firefox too and that happens to me all the time. Apparently the backspace is a shortcut button to go to the previous page or to go back. Very frustrating and I do not know how to turn it off. Also in IE it does that too sometimes. Also the spacebar makes you scroll down the page which was extremely frustrating once because I found a flash game online that you had to push the spacebar to shoot and so it scrolled down to the bottom and I couldn't see what was going on. I don't know how to turn that off either.

Anyway when what happened to you happens to me (and I accidentally go to the firefox get started page a lot too) I push forward once (because I have accidentally gone back a page remember) and all that I have typed is there. That has saved my ass more times then I can count. You know me I type long winded posts all the time and this is becoming one of them. Just thought I'd help you out.

I HATE getting backspace'd in Firefox. Thankfully, it doesn't happen much anymore.

Speaking of films I don't tire of, Empire Strikes Back is on Spike right now…great SW weekend

Also, The Burbs was my first pick as well! I am forever showing that one to people.

Besides that, I would say Waynes World, Goonies, Son in Law, JFK, UHF, Goodfellas, Ghostbusters and Back to the Future off the top of my head.

willy wonka, breakfast club, fight club, ghostbusters, and donnie darko for myself…also i have recently added forty year old virgin, superbad and supertroopers to that list of "never gets old" movies.

My Movies That Never Get Old:
Blade Runner
Empire Strikes Back
Knockin'On Heaven's Door:Cowboy Bebop the Movie
Transformers The Movie
Godzilla Vs. Gigan
Godzilla Vs. The Smog Monster
Gamera 3
all the oldschool Gameras.

Hey everyone! I've read X-E for a long time, since about 2002, but the last time I posted was years ago… I would love to be included in these fun fun fun conversations

Anyway, I skim through the comments still and have seen so much talk about brawl, I finally went out and got it. So, if anyone wants to play my code is 2707-1800-5950

Great blogs, Matt! It sounds like you had a ball! It puts me in mind of my own Toy shopping spree. I won $50 in a local TV contest to spend at Children's Castle, a toy store similar to Toys R Us except that it's different. Anyway, I almost made the grave mistake of getting a skateboard, but I dodged that bullet and instead dragged my patient but exhausted mother and jealous brother around the store for 3 hours. I wanted to be sure I got the perfect items for this wonderful prize. Looking back, I definitely overthought it. I ended up getting Wrecking Crew for the Nintendo Entertainment Center, and Scare Glow from the Masters of the Universe. I regret nothing. Thanks for the great site!

Upon further reflection, it was Children's Palace, not Children's Castle. I know, I know…who cares?

-UHF
-Holy Grail
-Spaceballs
-The Simpsons movie
-The Austin Powers movies
-Transformers the movie
-Clerks
-Coming To America
-Office Space

I remember Children's Palace and Children's World toy stores, the latter is where I scored more plastic models than I could carry on my bike when the store was going out of business for around a quarter each.

I have to agree with you Matt, I think we'll see Toys R Us going by the wayside before too long, I know the local stores here in Kansas are looking pretty shabby.

I have had good luck in the past going back to the page I was on and having the text reappear, but last night it just didn't happen. Whatever I got to last night was a page I have never been to before. It was some strange Firefox "help" page. I had to hit the back button to get back to X-E, and everything was gone.

Super Mario Brothers Super Show, loved that, I think I found this site in the first place because of it.

Following in the movies line of thought…
-Holy Grail
-Life of Brian
-The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou
-Pi
…and probably more, but I just got off work. Bed.

Magic Toy They should have an option in your browser to turn those 'shortcuts' off. They have never benefited me only made the internet more frustrating. There is a myspace blog I post a comment on daily and myspace lately has been eating alot of my comments and others. Well after I posted my long comment that IMO was well written it ate it and without me noticing I went to another site and it crashed the browser. I went to the myspace blog again and my comment didn't post. I tried to remember what I said and I emulated the same post and posted again. I copied the comment just in case I had to paste it but it posted. It's frustrating because the first post is better written it seems then if you have to try to post again.

Good survey. I would have to say:
Poltergeist
The Burbs
Halloween 2
Full Metal Jacket
The Last Starfighter
Jaws
The Sandlot
Return Of The Jedi
Tommy Boy
Shaun of the Dead
Better Off Dead
……really, anything dead.

Mandy, happy early 30th birthday. It's not so bad. Thirty feels a lot like 29. Except people's eyes get wider when they ask your age.

Holy carp…Children's Palace!!! I thought no one remembered that place. In my childhood mind, CP straight WHOPPED TRU!!! Does anyone remember seeing the neon animated sign with the cardwheeling bear? Please..tell me someone remembers this!!!

I move that you name the dragon 2 names, 1 for each head. I suggest Mike and Ike, or Goofus and Gallant. The jury's still out on Dumb and Dumber.

Movies that never get old:
Star Wars
Dogma
Back to the future (series)
Ghostbusters
Shrek
Incredibles
Die Hard (series)
Alien (series)
5th Element
Freddy (series)
Sky High
Zoom
Blazing Saddles
Sons of the Desert (Pure Genius, ALL comedy comes from these two.)
Terminator (Series)

BTW is it just me or did Matt kind of stiff the girls in this little shopping spree?

Statler and Waldorf
Wayne and Garth
Powers of Pain
Power and Glory
Knobbs and Saggs
Bebop and Rocksteady
Hawk and Animal
Brothers of Destruction
Jay and Silent Bob
Jake and Elroy
Puff and Stuff
Wayne and Wanda
Abbott and Costello

Cisco and Pancho
Pancho and Lefty
Laverne and Shirley
Bert and Ernie
Ike and Tina
Jake and Elwood
Bugs and Daffy
Mac and Tosh
Speedy and Rodriguez
Tom and Jerry
Ham and X
Charles and Erik
Scott and Alex
Flap and Jack
Nathaniel and Superfly
Al and Peggy
Tooth and Claw
Peter and Dudley
Yosh and Stan
Bob and Doug
Starsky and Hutch
Simon and Simon

I don't know why, but I am getting a real kick out from the spelling of "fruniture" and "awsome" on the back of the Hydronator Hydro Colorant Powder package. I'm not the greatest speller but man, that's pretty basic.
It reminds me of engrish.com.

Cagney and Lacey
Kate and Allie
Hardcastle and McCormick
Penn and Teller
Scarecrow and Mrs. King
Larry and Balki
Snoopy and Woodstock
Garfield and Odie
Scooby and Scrappy
Magnum and PI
Knight and Rider
Ross and Rachel
Bart and Lisa
Marge and Homer
Buffy and Spike or Angel
Shields and Yarnell
Peanut and Walter
Oscar and Felix
Archie and Judhead
Hall and Oates
Hawkeye and Hot Lips

Lefty & Righty
Clinton & Obama
Stroker & Hoop
Worker & Parasite
Sam & Max
Strong Bad & The Cheat
Trogdor & S Is For Sucks
Itchy & Scratchy
Grabby & Squeezy
Impy & Chimpy
Mr. Peabody & Sherman
Freddy & Jason

How the hell did you guys miss:
Batman and Robin
Superman and Lois
Kermit and Miss Piggy
Blue Falcon and Dynomutt
Laurel and Hardy
Zan and Jayna
Abbot and Costello
Hanna and Barbera
Mickey and Pluto
Space Ghost and Zorak
Dexter and Dee Dee

Annette I effing loved sifl and olly. oh my god, how i miss those two sock puppets….they are truly missed in this household…

Man, I work for the weekend and kind of ignore the site for a couple of days and look what happens. I was gonna respond to everything in the haul, but honestly can't be bothered to now. I will say though that Toys R Us just ain't what it used to be. I too remember the days of there being a long glass case that seemed to be as long as the aisle and all you could do is put your face up to it and wish for all the electronics that beckoned inside. I remember an X-Men game for the NES that I begged my mom for back then that was in the case. I finally got it and played the heck out of that thing.

As for movies I can't get sick of: Batman (my all-time fave), Beetlejuice, Fright Night, The Monster Squad, Transformers: The Movie, Back to the Future, the first 2 Hellraisers, most of the Halloween series, and The Silence of the Lambs.

And Ecto Cooler was my favorite beverage pre-Middle School. That was probably because I couldn't find them anymore (or didn't look hard enough).

As for Transformers: The Movie, that damn near broke me as a kid. I think that's the first time I'd experienced pure, uncut hate towards anything…

so… i know this is out of the blue and all… but which sandwich won the contest from the jade blog? my vote is still for luncheon meat… was there ever a final tally? will there be an article about this?

Will batman and robin EVER get out of the riddlers trap ? Stay tuned to find out loyal bat viewers, same bat time ,same bat channel !!

Caldo, I'm curious to know exactly what specifically in the movie was the cause of such umbridled hate. Was it the unexpected cursing (such a shock to my 8 year old ears at the time)? The death of Optimus (something that almost makes me tear up to this day)? Or the use of a Weird Al song?

In other news, I just got back from a Waffle House where apparently Tracy Morgan (from SNL) was before I got there. I just missed him. He, Jake Gyllenhal, and Jessica Biel are all making a movie here in town. Apparently Gyllenhal is staying at The Hilton up the street from here. I interned at the film comission here and have worked as a PA on a lot of the movies that were shot around here, so I'm going to see what I can to do to try and get some work on this one.

I should add my answers to this survey just so I won't be racked with guilt that I skipped it.

Terminator 1 and 2
pretty much every Disney movie that I grew up watching until 2000. I think Mulan was the first movie I stopped watching every one that came out
lots of movies I was a kid
Home alone 1 and 2
back to the future 1,2,3 (I have the DVD set of those)
Return of the night of the living dead
dawn of the dead (the original)
beetlejuice
gremlins 1,2
ET the extra terrestrial
the wedding singer (abc family channel has been playing the hell out of that movie lately, I have it on VHS)
waynes world
the sweetest thing
some independent films like
kids
another day in paradise
bully
gummo
clerks 1,2
the wizard
the butterfly effect
lots of tom hanks movies like
big
splash
forrest gump

Remember those old WWF thumb wrestlers? The ones that were just flimsy, poorly painted pieces of rubber with the thumb hole in the ass, so you would have to more or less sodomize the figure with your thumb to play. Ah, those were the days.

Clerks
Clerks 2
Chasing Amy
The Good the Bad and the Ugly
Beastmaster
Conan
Conan 2
Red Sonja
Independence Day
Moulin Rouge
Terminator 2
Wasabi
The Fifth Element
Say Anything
Ferris Bueller
The Breakfast Club
Pretty in Pink
Star Wars
The Last Unicorn
Nausicaa and the Valley of the Wind
Care Bears Movie 2
Beauty and the Beast
Bambi
101 Dalmations
Sleeping Beauty
High Plains Drifter
Iron Eagle

LOLZ.
That is one smiley two headed dragon.
They actually made Thumb Wresting Federation things? I just thought it was a bad Kids WB Gimmick.
Wow.
That grammar/spelling mad paragraph just rules.
I never got those grid drawing lessons either. They always used things that were not grid worthy.

Please count me in on the Sifl and Olly crew!
I loved them- and thereafter anything insanely wacky, from Andy Milonakis and WonderShowzen to Robot Chicken and Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job!

Yeah, I liked the Muppet Babies list too. I had no idea that that many cool things happened on the show. I used to watch it all the time but I don't remember all that stuff. Maybe I should go back and check it out now.

kittymao, Wondershowen is one of the most disturbing and hilarious things I've ever seen. Tim and Eric is most of the time funny, but mostly just….uncomfortable.

I know I missed the SNT.. but I almost always do. That was a cool list, Matt. As far as movies that I can watch a million times go…

Lord Of The Rings (all three)
Back To The Future (ditto)
Star Wars (The original trilogy.. I know. Trilogy love!)
And pretty much any Wrestlemania. It counts as a movie when it's on DVD.
And by that logic, The Adventure of Pete and Pete.

Sorry for the double-post, but that was a really cool read, Norbert! Thanks for bringing back a bunch of memories I didn't know I'd lost.

OMG the paragraph on the back of the hydronator dye! I am wondering if it one of those Japanese to English translations?? Every other word was spelled wrong!! LOVE IT

Hey…scored some nice cash for my bday/wedding anniversary(anniversary is tommorow….3 years) about 250 total…and I'm not sure If the father in law is giving us anything…went to PF Changs and had a blast, got Guitar Hero 3 Wii used for 65.00 with the guitar and its the newer disc, so no worries about sending it back for a non broken one.
And I got mario kart wii pre ordered and paid off some rent with the rest…woo.

As long as you're talking about Sifl & Olly, don't forget Chester. heh, yeah, Chester, heh, he's pretty cool, yeah.
I loved Sifl and Olly. But I thought they were on DVD already. At least I thought so. And isn't there actually an unreleased third season that they filmed, but never aired on MTV?

Happy birthday mandy_is totally awesome_Reeves! And congrats on the anniversary as well! I'm jealous about PF Changs…I've only ever been once, years ago, and it still haunts my dreams…yummy!
Speaking of delicious Asian food, I went to a Songkran festival this weekend, and I picked up a jade Buddha statue. Or maybe it's "jade"? I don't know, it was only two bucks.

Happy birthday Mandy! Yay for Guitar Hero (even if I actually don't like the third one).

The decline of toy-stores is indeed a sad issue, but I can't help wondering if insane prices might be an issue.

Especially, since anybody could make (and probably have more fun making) the same thing themselves, with a few pieces of felt and some Elmer's glue.

Anyway, love the two headed dragon, and it's very cool that they had that Zelda video.

Matt - Did your TRU have the tiny 70¢ poker table keychains? Inspired by your spree, I hit a TRU and found them on the border of the game and MegaBloks sections. I was amazed; tiny little cards, tiny little chips, a felt top, and fold out legs. I'm so glad I bought one. These things are too cool.

I hope that I'm as cool as our own Mandy Undercore Cool Name Reeves when I turn 30. Happy B-day! Celebrate!

I think the ridiculous price for the thumb masks is one of the reasons, if not the main reason Matt bought them. Then again I could be wrong.

Well, Little Brother finally announced the bessed event on his MySpace. After a long, long, time of trying, recent obstacles, and other challenges, he is now a father of a beautiful baby girl. I am more pleased than punch, if that's possible. Clikityklikit my name for his page, then go to the recent post for his unbridled joy. Hooray babies!

Here's to your 3rd decade on Earth, Mandy! To many more and maybe one on some other planet.

This is a little off topic but since Matt is celebrating his victorious shop I thought I would share my own little shop victory. I had entered to win a Lovesac about a month ago and they wanted me to talk about my worst piece of furniture ever…so I talked about my stupid Papasan chair that I had. Hated that thing! Well I didn't win the contest but the Lovesac people liked my story so much they are sending me one anyway! Yea me!

Question…do any of you have a Lovesac? If so, how do you like it? I have wanted one forever so I am hoping it lives up to the hype in my head.

I don't know if anyone asked already, but are you planning another Star Wars coloring contest Matt? THat would be totally bitchin'!

Yea, it kinda slows down in the middle of the week. So lets start another survey:

What's the worst toy/video game/etc. you ever bought? The one that makes you go "What was I thinking?"

For me, I once went to Wal-Mart and they had a bin of cheap N64 games for $20. They also had a bunch of Gameboy games for under $10. So I bought the infamous "Superman 64" and "Blade" for Gameboy, two of the worst video games I've ever played.

I had heard alot about superman 64 for the longest time. Then I actually played it for the first time awhile ago, and I gotta say it's as bad as everybody says it is. As for the worst video game I ever bought, off the top of my head I would say RPG maker for the PS1. I bought it thinking it would be cool to make my own RPG, but it was so annoyingly difficult to figure out that I just gave up and never got to make my own RPG. I sold it the very next week after buying it. lol.

I'm sure there are some- or a lot, as I am known to buy first and then reason with myself- but I think they've all been pushed out of my head for space for useless animal facts.

No I didn't know that. I learned something new today. I knew dogs can't sweat though.

I'm learnin so much about critters. lol. Oh and just to let everbody know Crocs are one of my all time fav critters. They are just really cool. =)

Lobsters grow throughout their lives and it is not unusual for a lobster to live for more than 100 years. Next time you eat lobster remember you may be eating an animal older than your grandparents.

No lovesac, but I have like 8 lovescrotums…..im just kidding, i have no idea what youre even talking about….

Thanks for the well wishes….I'm just addicted right now to GH3 and Goob…that Child World video link is broke.

Batman Forever for Super Nintendo. I got it at Walmart on clearance for $9.99. I had seen an article in Nintendo power and thought it looked cool.

But the game is crap. So terrible that their own instruction manual has the WRONG directions printed for using items. So terrible that "Select" pauses the game rather than start. So terrible that every time you move into a new room, you get a "Loading" screen. On the Super Nes. LOADING? WTF???

I still have it because I swore I'd never sell any of my games…but I haven't touched it in years….

Clawful I had no idea that Lobsters could live that long. I kinda like the idea taht I have may have eaten a crustacean thats over a century old. =) Don't know why just do.

You've earned a long, peaceful hiatus after this series. I was on vacation, and one day I realized that I hadn't read how it all ended with part three of the toy spree. Imagine that - I was thinking about this nonsense while vacating.

Well Rev.BackItOnUp, like you said to me, it's not entirely unheard to think about this truely awesome site, when your not on it. =D

Muppet Babies was GLORIOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WE could always talk about THAT!!!!!!!!

Another bad purchase I made was I bought the latest version of the board game Cranium. We went through a phase in our house where we were just board game crazy. We used to play the old version and it was REALLY fun. But when I bought the new version the phase had pretty much passed and we never played it. I got tired of hauling it out and trying to get people to play it so I just sold it to a used bookstore.

Hmm, bad purchases…well, as far as video games, the worst game I ever bought with my own money was Guilty Gear Isuka. I loved X2, so I was ecstatic when I heard about Isuka. I bought it the day it came out, only to be sorely disappointed. That game just sucks. Having to press a button to turn around in a 2D fighting game? Epic failure. I traded it in for credit before too long.

I think my worst gaming purchases to date have been the Mario Party 8 with all of the mini games and the stupid Super Paper Mario one, both for the Wii. They were totally lost on me!

Side note: The company across the hall from my office (Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment) is the one creating the StarGate Worlds online game. They are apparently going to be going head to head with World of Warcraft. My husband says they are going to lose without a doubt. Really?

So my question is…which would you play? I do wonder if you have to be a StarGate fan to find the game interesting or is Stargate generic enough to find mass appeal? It was not a movie I fell in love with and not a TV series I ever got into so I am not sure.

this has nothing to do with what anyone is talking about, but i had to share… in episode 87 of dragonball z, there is a mushroom cloud shaped like a gigantic erect penis… the last time i saw this episode i was in highschool… i didnt notice it then, but that was the american edit and i guess they took it out… anyway, sorry to interrupt, please resume…

Hey Matt,
just wanted to let you know that oozonator cartridge is for a Super Soaker Squirt gun sold sometime in 2006,
its pretty cool, not only do you get an awesome pressure squirt gun, but also an Ooze shooter (hence the cartridge) stuff is NASTY!
its like a combination of Ky jelly and Methylcellulos(chines food starch) it shoots out wet but while mid flight kinda drys out to make a snotty
solid/liquid LOL if that makes any sense what so ever! anyhow i do still have one of these guns if you are intreasted in it. its friggin huge!!!!
i got it on clearance at my local target for 6.99 (orig: 25.99 or more!) so i bought 4 of them. i bought 4 because of the price and i wanted to turn one into a prop gun for a friend of mine who has a full complete Predator costume, the gun itself looks like it would have been in Predator somewhere, (i will try to include a pic).
I also found that if you tamper with the contents of the oozonator cartridge, and add food color to the substance inside it makes for great special effects…….
I have made it neon green like alien sludge\blood i used Ben nye Mass casualty Blood powder in it to make theeee most friggin awesome blood hit or splatterr EVER! chunky dark red and light reds all mixed in, perfect for simulating blowing your brains out BEst 6.99i have ever spent! its a prop! its a special effects cannon, its a squirt gun……AMAZING. like i said i have another one just sitting in a storage bin if you are interested!

I'm ashamed to say this out loud, but I actually asked for the Superman Returns PS2 game a couple of Christmases ago. By far the worst game I've ever played. The boss battle is a tornado. I friggin' tornado, and the game prompts you which buttons to hit and when to hit them to beat it. It's over in about 5 minutes and that's it…

Only that's NOT it. You watch the last cut scene and think, "Well, that's that then. I've finally beat this stupid thing." Only you haven't. Oooh, but no. Because there's actually no end to it. I flew around for another hour fighting the occasional patch of dragons and robots (for about the 4,000th time because that's ALL you do in between "boss battles") before I realized that there's no end to this thing.

My my my…Seems as though I've alot of catching up to do..
Hey Folks…been awhile.

Eh, I bought a few crappy games for the PS2… Mad maestro was really hyped but it was boring and crappy, blowout was just a $10 budget title, no clue why I bought that…

And, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. I have no idea why those games are so popular. They're really fun, for an hour or two, because I have yet to see one person actually complete missions without getting bored and driving a car through a mall, or shooting some old lady.

Bad video game purchases? I own such titles as Pac-Man and E.T. for the Atari 2600. Even the three Burger King games, despite not owning a Xbox. But, onw that may actually count as regrettable is a GB game I bought at Kmart once in the discount bin. It may be called Flying Dragon Cuff, but I can't be sure because it's all in Japanese. If I understood the language, I might enjoy it.

Fierce Almond, Yeah, I agree. I never really saw the appeal of the GTA games aside from driving around for an hour or so shooting people and stealing cars. After that, what's the point?

JoshC!, Well, it's about time you showed up! I was wondering where you were.

Hey,that E.T. game is kind of fun,you need to see the video walkthrough (on YouTube) to really grasp the concept,though.

And Guilty Gear Isuka RULES!!! Yeah,the turn-around button is kind of lame,but I got used to it quickly enough.

Hey DJ D!!
Yeah, I missed the hell outta this place.
My dog had a seizure and it was either cancel my internet for a few months or flee the country to avoid paying the Vet bills.

WOW you guys who don't see the appeal of Grand Theft Auto are definately in the minority. But eh.. to each their own i guess. I'm sure theres somethin that y'all love that I wouldn't see the appeal in. =)

Grand Theft Auto is great - if I could run over some hos with my car in real life, I wouldn't crave the satisfaction this game provides. But, I can't, so I have to scratch that itch by smiting the virtual hos.

Whats great about GTA is the AMAZING FREEDOM in the games. You can do whatever you want, whenever you want and just completely forget about the main story as long as you want. You can just do the main stuff whenever. Not to mention the very detailed damage on all the vehicles when you wreck them. There are just SO many things to do it's incredible. =D

I got a little gadget in the mail today…it allows me to download Nintendo DS games if I want…or I can make really cool homebrew web browsers or something too…Um…so yeah…I now have about 150 dollars in DS games for free. A good amount are ones I had owned and regretted trading in. some are new titles that I just downloaded because I could. lol…..

Hey Mandy, Would that happen to be one of those R4 things?
Im thinking of picking one up, Reccomend It?

yes…sort of an R4…its a different brand. I got it from one of those incentive sites, where you take surveys and get points to redeem things. It was "supposed" to be an R4 that I earned…but they sent me the low rent red headed step child version. It still does its purpose, but its a tad more tedious.

Yeah I reccomend them…but I'm not endorsing the pirating of the games….thats something you can do on your own if you wish…

Amazing Freedom in games - that is what I love best about the most recent version of my ALL TIME FAVORITE GAME - Burnout. I don't know thing one about pokemon or smashing or whatever all you kids are up doing all night with your wiis, but I can mess your shit up on Burnout. I will shunt your brains out. I will leave you a quivering mess on the floor, a puddle of shame. And then I will kiss you tenderly on the forehead before round two. And the entire game is open ended, so there's that freedom. Burnout Love.