Welcome to the X-Entertainment Blog

[Previous entry: "New Article: "My Demon Lover" Movie Review!"] [Main Index] [Next entry: "New Article: The Shrunken Head Apple Craft Project!"]

10/01/2003 Entry: "This week's Top 11: Spooky 80s Toys!"

This week's Top 11 takes a look back at the spookiest toy lines the 80s had to offer. You've seen most of these things before if you've been reading the site, but there's a few newbies. Everything from "My Pet Monster" to "Sectaurs." Check it 1, 2. Anyway, some random person started messaging me a little while ago, asking if I liked Soul Asylum. Wha-ha? I have criminally limited (read: bad) taste in music, but the last I heard about Soul Asylum was in 1997 when MTV listed 'em as one of their "buzz bands." So I'm just like, "yeah, Soul Asylum...what showmen!" and all that, but the guy just keeps going on and on and on as if my life would never be complete without total devotion to this band. Having already gotten involved in the convo, I didn't want to just head out and be completely rude, so I tried to change the subject. Didn't work -- more Soul Asylum bullshit. Finally, I got so frustrated that I just started making up facts about them to see if they guy would agree. "Hey, did you see that interview where Dave Pirner admitted that 'Black Gold' was really about his dying aunt?" His response? "Yeah man, all of their songs have double meanings, that's why I like them so much." I was quickly reminded why my public AIM name is so rarely used, and consigned myself back to my antisocial bubble. It's lonely in here, but at least nobody's bugging me about fucking Soul Asylum.

REPLIES: 45 comments

matt... soul asylum wasn't all that bad. somebody to shove was a great song... the rest of their stuff sucked big time.

who can forget dave's cameo in reality bites!!!

he needed a shower just as bad as the black crowes guy.

Chestnuts roasted by jessica_76 @ 10/01/2003 04:17 PM EST

Oh no no no, I actually like what I've heard from them quite a bit. It was just an odd thing to bring up. ;)

Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 10/01/2003 04:19 PM EST

i agree... of all things to speak to u about... soul asylum were in the late 90's. plus... what have they done lately??

i agree, it was odd indeed. ;)

Chestnuts roasted by jessica_76 @ 10/01/2003 04:21 PM EST

The last time I had a really messed up messenger conversation (well, every messed up messenger conversation) was with some foreign person, usually in the Middle East, who doesn't know enough English yet to really engage someone in conversation. Every time I say, I have to go now, my friend is waiting for me, they say, I like here very good, I am 15. And when I leave and come back I get a bunch of messages from the same guy asking where I am, as if he didn't get the five messages I sent saying, I have to go now. Am I just too nice a guy to not put these people on my ignore list?

Chestnuts roasted by inkmage @ 10/01/2003 05:15 PM EST

Clone Wars Animated Figures Revealed
http://www.sirstevesguide.com/news/?m=show&id=29631

Chestnuts roasted by ME @ 10/01/2003 05:47 PM EST

Hey Matt-- I've searched desperately, but I can't find your articles on your searches for bulbasaur/venosaur/ivysaur. And I really really need them.

A ffriend of mine is working for a carnival in Georgia-- and her boss is a guy named Big Daddy. I need to know if it's the same one, but without photos of YOUR Big Daddy, I have nothing with which she can compare.

No, I don't know WHY I need to know. But I need to know. -_-

Chestnuts roasted by freakachu @ 10/01/2003 06:37 PM EST

freakachu: it was Fat Daddy. The following has a pic of him--

http://www.x-entertainment.com/messages/312.html

Chestnuts roasted by inkmage @ 10/01/2003 07:13 PM EST

Fat Daddy in hot pink: http://www.x-entertainment.com/messages/267.html

Fat Daddy in black: http://www.x-entertainment.com/venusaur/part3.html

Fat Daddy as Anakin Skywalker:
http://www.x-entertainment.com/messages/342.html

Why did I just waste my time doing that?

Chestnuts roasted by inkmage @ 10/01/2003 07:18 PM EST

Thanks inkmage! :D

Chestnuts roasted by freakachu @ 10/01/2003 07:25 PM EST

One time a while ago I asked you what the point of Heart in Captain Planet. Other than that I've left you alone. At least my question had something to do with something you might have on here.

Anyway, maybe whoever it was will read this and think "wow, I'm an idiot." Yep, it's possible

Chestnuts roasted by Elliott @ 10/01/2003 07:33 PM EST

runaway train never goooin baaack... i was teetering on the brink of insanity, and Matt has pushed me over the edge. first that amazing movie review, complete with animated crotch and demon sex, and now weirdos are talking about Soul Asylum...

Chestnuts roasted by zann @ 10/01/2003 07:46 PM EST

this is off on a tangent (on the other hand what isnt on this site) but i was wondering how that fellow who couldnt get the wings on unicron got on after.

Chestnuts roasted by Scourge @ 10/01/2003 08:01 PM EST

Fans of "Megaforce" should check out "Ultraforce"
http://www.channel101.com/show.php?title=ultraforce
Fans of Jack Black might want to check out "ComputerMan"
http://www.channel101.com/show.php?title=computerman

Chestnuts roasted by ME @ 10/01/2003 09:18 PM EST

Tip on Unicron's Wings:

Adjust his planet halves so the little grey pieces they rest on are resting on Unicron's back. I'll take a picture later.

Chestnuts roasted by Onslaught Six @ 10/01/2003 09:29 PM EST

GERMS!

I even had that blue guy!

I love it when a childhood memory bitch-slaps me upside the head.

Chestnuts roasted by Lucky Cat @ 10/01/2003 09:32 PM EST

While I remember several of those toy lines well, the only ones my sisters and I ever had were MadBalls, and only then sporatically. We didn't collect them like a lot of other kids did.

Chestnuts roasted by starwenn @ 10/01/2003 09:49 PM EST

skimmed that top 11

Chestnuts roasted by dtyjj @ 10/01/2003 10:08 PM EST

I've spent a fun filled past few days enjoying movies of old: 80's movies of old. Hey Matt, why haven't you ever done a movie reveiw over Pee Wee Hermans Big Adventure? It was one of the greatest 80's flicks EVER! Or, something on the Clash Of The Titans, or the Ewok Adventures? One of the beautiful things about VCR's: they not only caught the crappy film footage, but they got the comercials as well.

Chestnuts roasted by two peep army @ 10/01/2003 10:14 PM EST

i know how its put togather i had him for weeks i was asking how the other fellow who asked about it turned out as in if he got them on after

Chestnuts roasted by Scourge @ 10/01/2003 10:27 PM EST

Here's Pee Wee on X-E:
http://www.x-entertainment.com/messages/199.html

Short, but to the point.

Chestnuts roasted by Matt (#2?) @ 10/02/2003 01:43 AM EST

I think he did something on The Ewok Adventures too. I just don't feel like searching through the archives to find it. I remember reading something about it at one point though.

Chestnuts roasted by Elliott @ 10/02/2003 04:14 AM EST

Are you interested in making a short video? I checked out what the site was about that those links I posted earlier are on. Real Hollywood types, like Jack Black, could get drunk and watch your short video and vote for you to make more.

It is run by Rob Schrab and Dan Harmon. Who were the writers of the Ben Stiller/Jack Black/Owen Wilson pilot "Heat Vision and Jack." http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0363668/ http://www.altslashgo.com/hvaj/index.shtml

Here are some links if anyone is interested in submitting.
What to do: http://channel101.com/submit.php
How to better your chances: http://channel101.com/shit.php

Chestnuts roasted by ME @ 10/02/2003 04:42 AM EST

Yeah, Soul Asylum is dead. Dave Pirner now lives in my city -- the wonderfully rancid New Orleans. I don't care much for Soul Asylum, but Pirner's laid back, acoustic solo performances in the city is pretty chill. It's also kinda bizarre to be in some hole-in-the-wall bar here, drinking a Schaefer, then realizing the dude in a cardigan next to you is the lead guy from Soul Asylum...then you realize, "Dude is just like me... just wants to get drunk in peace."

Chestnuts roasted by Nachokhaki @ 10/02/2003 10:03 AM EST

Hooray! Madballs!

I am beginning to think Matt never actually had Manglors and is just taking the commercial at its word, because those things wouldn't stay together once you ripped them apart like in the commercial. Furthermore, if you opened it in anything less sterile than an operating room, it would lose all semblance of stickyness.

Was Megaforce that movie with the dune buggies and motorcycles? It looked so cool and the hotweels toys were awesome, but when I finally saw the movie, I wanted the death of everyone involved. I was 10 and could have written a better movie based solely on those dune buggies.

Nachokhaki can I park a small motorcycle trailer in your yard for a couple of days during Mardi-Gras?

Chestnuts roasted by klatubaradanikto @ 10/02/2003 10:24 AM EST

klatubaradanikto, I'd say "Sure" but most of us here don't even have yards. In a city surrounded by a lake, a river, and swamps all around, they sacrificed yards for more buildings. Buildings that eventually get flooded or eaten by termites.

Chestnuts roasted by Nachokhaki @ 10/02/2003 10:34 AM EST

Manglors themselves didn't work quite as well as the Manglor Mountain playset -- that thing rocked.

Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 10/02/2003 10:41 AM EST

Thanks anyway Nachokhaki. I thought you might live in Kenner or Metairie or something.

Chestnuts roasted by klatubaradanikto @ 10/02/2003 10:51 AM EST

It's amazing how most of these toys were later turned into cartoons. Madballs, Monster in My Pockey, My Pet Monster, all turned into their own crappy cartooniums... What's a cartoonium?

Chestnuts roasted by Mr. Mr. Mr. @ 10/02/2003 03:28 PM EST

When I started reading the top 11, I was wondering if this toy I remembered where you built your own monsters would be included. Viola, it was mad scientist. Thank you for causing my brain not to go nuts while trying to recall exactly what it was

Chestnuts roasted by Duff1026 @ 10/02/2003 03:29 PM EST

OMFG TAHT WUZ ME ON TEH AIM I LUV SOAL ASYLRUM!!!!!!!111

Or not. In fact, I hate instant messenging total strangers. Love the site, though.

Chestnuts roasted by jordan @ 10/02/2003 05:48 PM EST

Wait jess won cottin pickin minit....

Matt was actually on his AIM name? And I missed it? And some idiot with a Soul Asylum fetish ruined my chances of actually catching Matt on AIM for the rest of time?

This cannot stand. Nay, it WILL not stand. . .Asylum Boy, your days are numbered.

Chestnuts roasted by squee4242 @ 10/02/2003 07:56 PM EST

I used to have this playset type thing when I was a kid. It was a skull thing that you would decorate with clay and fake eyes and shit like that. Anyone know what this was called?

Chestnuts roasted by Elliott @ 10/02/2003 10:31 PM EST

I think you're talking about Monster Face.

Picture: http://www.designetcinc.com/monster.htm

Chestnuts roasted by Matt (#2?) @ 10/03/2003 07:34 AM EST

From the top 11, "not to mention the famous 'Firehouse' playset, complete with that stupid pole Bill Murray crotch-slid down in the movies."

Is there another way to slide down a pole that I'm not aware of?

Chestnuts roasted by Rono @ 10/03/2003 03:08 PM EST

I'll tell you later, Rono.

Chestnuts roasted by Pole Positioner @ 10/03/2003 03:11 PM EST

That was me on AIM, Matt. I love Soul Asylum. And The Coors. And Cocaine. And Prostitutes.

"Well, you should have seen the tits on Gemini."

Chestnuts roasted by Nathan Bitner. No, seriously. @ 10/03/2003 06:22 PM EST

Monsters In My Pocket were awesome. I'd pretty much forgotten about them too, it would be really cool to see a full article on them at X-E.

I used to really like Boglins too, I had one of the originals, a smaller version of the originals and I still have a little plastic cage full of Mini Boglins in my room.

Chestnuts roasted by Method @ 10/03/2003 07:00 PM EST

It's another fine article, but I have one tiny quibble: whatever the merits of the Sectaurs cartoon were, is it fair to put much of the blame for the show's failure on bad timeslots? Just that it was syndicated, so, really, its scheduling was left up to individual stations, so some stations may have put it on at wacky times (re: 5-6 a.m.) for the kids that get up especially early to go to daycare (though I think it was aimed at a crowd older than daycare), but I don't think it was uniformly on at "bad" times... I think it's probably more that one station in any given geographical area seemed to always get the A-list toy-related cartoons (re: the Marvel/Sunbow cartoons based mostly on Hasbro properties and Filmation's He-Man and the Masters of the Universe) while the other stations fought over the scraps: cartoons based on less-popular properties or cheap TV dubs of Japanese anime like Tranzor Z (Mazinger Z).

Well, I don't recall ever seeing the Sectaurs cartoon on any of the American border stations from Burlington VT and Plattsburgh NY that we can watch in Montreal, but my brother liked the toys and did get a couple of issues of the comic. (I was always more interested in Transformers, but the flying insect "gloves" were cool, I do concede.)

Chestnuts roasted by Steve Brandon @ 10/03/2003 07:41 PM EST

Well, I based my statement partly on facts I've heard, but mostly bias because I've got the Sect toons on video and they're undeniably terrific. The quality is too shoddy for a review, but just as much effort went into Sectaurs' show than any of the other iconic 80s toons. Hopefully I'll be able to show you guys soon.

Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 10/03/2003 08:42 PM EST

Sectaurs ruled, even if the main hero did have a wussy looking haircut. But he was part dragonfly or something, so that makes up for it.

The comic was a bit of a letdown for me, since the main threat the good guys have to contend with is a red fogbank. Eight issues of them getting all spooketified� because some red fog was coming for them. Stupid ass comic.

� The word Spooketified is a registered trademark of Hellpop!, so don't use it or I'll sue the living fuck out of you.

Chestnuts roasted by Hellpop! @ 10/04/2003 11:13 PM EST

Soul Asylum were biggest in the early 90s, not the late 90s. Their biggest songs (Runaway Train *gag*, Black Gold, Somebody to Shove, etc.) came out in '92 or '93. If they were an up-and-coming band on MTV, it would have been in 1990 or so.

Chestnuts roasted by Jeremy @ 10/17/2003 11:18 AM EST

You are invited to check the pages dedicated to debt management debt management http://www.debt-management-4u.info/ bad credit mortgages bad credit mortgages http://www.bad-credit-mortgages-e-site.info/ health insurance health insurance http://www.health-insurancedeals-4u.info/ auction auction http://www.auction-e-site.info/ land loans land loans http://www.land-loans-e-bank.info/ bad consolidation credit debt bad consolidation credit debt http://www.bad-consolidation-credit-debt-e-site.info/ salomon ski salomon ski http://www.snow-ski-e-mall.info/ current mortgage rates current mortgage rates http://www.current-mortgage-rates-e-site.info/ wine basket wine basket http://www.wine-basket-cellar.info/ refinance mortgage refinance mortgage http://www.refinance-mortgage-ebanking.info/ gmac finance gmac finance http://www.gmac-finance-consultant.info/ apply credit online apply credit online http://www.apply-credit-online-e-site.info/ - Tons of interesdting stuff!!!

Chestnuts roasted by home loan calculator @ 11/05/2004 09:20 PM EST

Chestnuts roasted by home loan calculator @ 11/05/2004 09:21 PM EST

Chestnuts roasted by home loan calculator @ 11/05/2004 09:22 PM EST