REPLIES: 176 comments
We used to cut out and make those stupid Chips Ahoy flip books, never got them to work right though. I always felt cheated by that.
Chestnuts roasted by Grey Weirdo @ 07/10/2005 06:24 PM EST
I'm sorry Camerica but you must've made up the U.S. Video Game Team. The "team" was probably comprised of Camerica employees. That company's name is synonymous crap. All the video games they made were junk. I can't believe Thor Ackerlund (1990 Nintendo World Champion) whored his image for this company. I guess being Nintendo world champion doesn't necessarily make you smart...I loved gelatin pops and i know what you mean about the lavender ones ::shivers::. Fun Fruits were a lunchtime and after school staple for me. Last but not least that picture of Jimmy Hart just freaks me out but it still reminds me of Sunday mornings watching WWF and seeing that loudmouth bastard screaming into his bullhorn. Ahhhhhh memories...
Chestnuts roasted by phunqsauce @ 07/10/2005 06:56 PM EST
I'd have to say TF, for me anyway didn't take too big of a dive after TF: The Movie. Rodimus Prime is still my fav TF figure. And let's face it, when viewed with episodes following the movie, Rodimus stands as a pretty obvious example of leaders who try, but fall flat on their face. I can relate 
TFs sitting on my shelf: Rodimus, Hot Rod, and Blaster. Kinda obvious, huh?
Chestnuts roasted by Knegative @ 07/10/2005 07:16 PM EST
I remember the WWF Bars. Good stuff, kinda surprised they still make 'em.
Chestnuts roasted by Larry @ 07/10/2005 07:57 PM EST
Awesome, a battle beast picture worthy of being my desktop background!
Hey Matt, how about bringing back the real message board that you used to have?
Chestnuts roasted by SuperRecoome @ 07/10/2005 08:02 PM EST
Battle Beasts, oh how I miss you.
I, too, never mastered the Pogo Bal. I don't remember having my own, and not too many kids let me barrow theirs because I was the "fat" kid, and they we're afraid I'd pop it.
Dang, just realized I'm still the fat kid.
Chestnuts roasted by Mad Cow @ 07/10/2005 08:06 PM EST
Never noticed that it was "wicked cool to Pogo Bal." Hhhha...so cool.
Chestnuts roasted by Mad Cow @ 07/10/2005 08:13 PM EST
Wow, that I wished that article was 10 times as long. I just don't get tired of that kind of stuff.
Chestnuts roasted by Carri @ 07/10/2005 09:02 PM EST
I totally LOVED the Pogo Bal(l). I always wanted to do that fancy jump they did on the commercial where they pulled their legs up behind them. I always was too scared I'd end up on my face.
I really miss Fruit Wrinkles and Fun Fruits as well. I too swallowed them whole, pretending I was taking my parents "grown up" vitamins as opposed to the Amway kid's ones I got instead.
Chestnuts roasted by kb @ 07/10/2005 09:12 PM EST
oh, battle beasts literaly had invaded, controled and finally ruled my room. There was more wood, water, fire and earth there than in any oldfashioned still standing rainforest.
BTW: Do you have and Pepsi fruity carbonated soda there?
Here in Spain we have Kas, which could be translated to "Fanta Competitors"...
Well they just released Batman Blast Grape Flavoured Kas! It's purple and it rocks anyones socks!!!
Chestnuts roasted by melonian @ 07/10/2005 09:15 PM EST
I had one Visionaries figure as a youngster: it was a chap clad in maroon armor and I believe that his "power animal" was a gorilla or something. Without his helmet, he looked astonishingly like Sean Connery. Freaky. When I saw that ad, I suddenly remembered another weird line of animal-related action-figure warriors: they were figures with rubber faces, and when you'd twist their waist or something their faces would take on the appearance of some kind of animal. Sadly, I can't remember the name of the line. A little help? Anybody...?
Chestnuts roasted by The Yeti @ 07/10/2005 09:21 PM EST
Now all I can think about is how much I miss Cheetos Paws. Used to eat them all the time, and haven't thought about them in years... and now all I want is for them to come back. Curses.
Chestnuts roasted by Frostor @ 07/10/2005 09:24 PM EST
I seem to remember coming across (on some random website) Battle Beasts released only in Japan that had crystal balls in their chests instead of holograms; this ring a bell to any hardcore B.B. aficionados out there?
Chestnuts roasted by Commander Awesome @ 07/10/2005 09:24 PM EST
Ah, the lost art of the full-page ad... they seem so crowded or vague these days. Definitly, the 80s were the best age for the full-page ad in kids' mags (with a small nod to the 70s). What I remember most is those cheesy Hostess Fruit Pies ads that circulated in Harvey and Marvel comics.
I always liked how those specialty mags had all sorts of filler added to them to make them seem like legit rags. I wonder how many journalism students got roped into doing the filler. I seem to remember an article for the fourth Superman movie in the He-Man mag.
Chestnuts roasted by AlphaCentaurian @ 07/10/2005 09:43 PM EST
Oh, yeah... I forgot to add:
The Muppet mag ruled
(even though they didn't print my invention in the Professor Bunsen Honeydew page)
Chestnuts roasted by AlphaCentaurian @ 07/10/2005 09:45 PM EST
Thanks for this little trip down memory lane. Sadly, I don't remember the Visionaries. It's too bad - they look totally badass.
Chestnuts roasted by Jeff Mack @ 07/10/2005 10:04 PM EST
Anybody remember an HBO special aimed at kids that aired many many years ago that showed how deceptive toy commercials were. They featured the Pogo Bal and showed how good the kids in the commercial were at hopping and doing stunts, then they would show real life footage of kids using the Pogo Bal and they could hop no more than two or three times before stumbling.
Also, I remember the Guess Who? game was featured on there too with the infamous talking cards in the commercial.
Anyhoo, I hated that special. Damn killjoys.
Chestnuts roasted by Luap @ 07/10/2005 10:22 PM EST
I have a theory that cookies and vanilla ice cream seem to always taste good together, but it's not a theory since it's true. Unless they taste bad on their own already, you're going to have good eatin'.
I remember the Pogo Bal/Pogo Ball (or a rip-off). I tried it a few times, but never did anything crazy which is disappointing to me now. I was really clumsy then and I still am today, but I usually jump up, click my heels together, and come down on unstable surfaces to see if I can do it. To accomplish that feat on the Pogo Ball would have made me the pimp of the schoolyard for at least five minutes.
Chestnuts roasted by Dr. Acula @ 07/10/2005 10:25 PM EST
I couldn't Pogo Bal to save my life back then. In fact, I still wouldn't be able to.
Chestnuts roasted by squee4242 @ 07/10/2005 10:35 PM EST
I had a WWF popsicle once,but it didn't seem to taste that good to me. Maybe becuase of the cookie/wafer part being in a freezer for awhile.
I liked the post-movie Transformers episodes and toys,probably becuase it took place in the future by then. I always liked the futuristic-looking Transformers,especially Rodimus Prime,who I never had until I got the re-issue for Christmas last year.
I remember that HBO special too Luap,especially the part where they revealed these small G.I. Joe helicopters had motors in them for a commercial,but the toys really didn't have them,so they could have the blades going real fast.
Chestnuts roasted by Overlord @ 07/10/2005 10:43 PM EST
The post-movie eps are also my favorite, but as far as public consumption went, they weren't nearly as successful. The pre-movie run was happily simplistic, with clear lines drawn and characters that didn't get lost in the shuffle. The post-movie eps were often...insane. I love 'em tho. 
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 07/10/2005 10:45 PM EST
Never had a Pogo Bal, but I also could never master one at friends' houses. Too much tilting action.
I was a big fan of the Jell-o Gelatin Pops, but I don't remember disliking any of the flavors. I think I actually got that Lego car too.
You're right - the Stripped Chips Ahoy! were not as crunch-tastic as they could have been.
Can't wait for the new Kool-Aid flavor review. I was gonna buy some crazy Spanish-language flavors at the grocery store tonight (including one called "Jamacia"
, but there was a creepy, smelly old guy browsing through them taking a really long time and I didn't feel like waiting for him.
Chestnuts roasted by Gozer @ 07/10/2005 10:55 PM EST
"Check out how Chips Ahoy fudged up their cookies."
That's how they were selling those things? Good thing I didn't read that or I wouldn't have consumed roughly 8,000 of them...
Chestnuts roasted by Cyclone @ 07/10/2005 11:05 PM EST
Ha ha! That was a good one. I love it when XE breaks it down with the old ads.
BTW, I have a ton of old ARCHIE digests in my garage. This may sound hard to believe but they were all the rage in 4th grade. The teachers had a love/hate relationship because they interfered with instruction BUT we WERE reading. I checked and I have that ad for FRUIT SLUSH.
Now here is the EXCITING NEWS for those who are interested (Matt???): I also found one that has Archie and Co. doing a
Capri-Sun ad, Sugar Bear, Coco Pebbles, TMNT NES game ad, Mr. Bubble, Captain Planet, NES ads for MAPPY, HYDLIDE, and CASTLEVANIA. Not too mention ads for Archie fan club which (sigh again), I was a literal card caring member. The picture of me with my Archie button at Disney World circa 1989 still is a total treat. I will post some of the pics of the ads if you guys want me to....
Chestnuts roasted by The Manimal @ 07/10/2005 11:10 PM EST
Oh, I completely forgot about the FruitSlush! It's been years since I've had one, and now I can remember them fondly. I'm pretty sure I can still taste the cherry ones. Those were the best- my favorite! Now I'm sad...
Frostor, I know exactly how you feel... just substitute "FruitSlush" for "Cheetos Paws" and it's the same. Those used to be delicious, too.
Chestnuts roasted by Rainbowfeet @ 07/10/2005 11:14 PM EST
Forgot to add: ALPHACENTAURIAN, I also still have 1 or 2 MUPPET mags from 1984 but the RETURN OF THE JEDI issue is sadly not one of them.
I added GARBAGE PAIL KIDS the movie to the Netflix list. I will have to make sure Mrs. Manimal and E. Claire have prior engagements that day lest they be corrupted.
Chestnuts roasted by The Manimal @ 07/10/2005 11:21 PM EST
My biggest fruit snack memory from the '80s is when the white shark was introduced to (I think) Shark Bites. Oh man - that was the defining moment of the Fruit Snack Age.
On another fruit-related note, I recently read the Ecto Cooler mystery article in the X-E archives. After buying some Shoutin' Orange Tangergreen Hi-C today, my recepit also showed the words "Ecto Cool". Can't wait to try it tomorrow.
Chestnuts roasted by Gozer @ 07/10/2005 11:38 PM EST
That article took me back a bit (some products I don't remember though...never friggin' heard of photon, nor did I know there was a garbage pail kids movie until last year)
but this site usually has a tendency to make one nostalgic, god job matt...
I got a question for you all though...back when I was a little kid in the 80's...I had a few of these toys that were skeletons of dinosaurs, but you could form them into giant weapons like catapults and other vehicles...and there were little cavemen figures that piloted them...I think they were called "bone wars" or some shit...
anyways...if you remember them...don't you think it'd be pimp as hell if they had come back?
Chestnuts roasted by Kenny/RiotEXE @ 07/11/2005 12:23 AM EST
Frostor: YES! Cheetos Paws! Man I loved those things. But I thought they still made them
I remember they made a Chester Cheeta Sega Genesis/Megadrive game. I rented it one of those times I was too sick to go to the video store but I wanted a game REAL BAD, so like the little, spoiled brat I was (and still am, by some accounts), I got my mom to rent a game for me.
That was usually a mistake unless I gave her strict instructions about what to look for and what to avoid. I don't remember much about the game, except I don't remember being too satisfied. But my mom got it for me so I didn't complain.
Manimal: HYLIDE! Oh God, what a shitty game...
I remember renting Hylide from a video store my babysitter was working for at the time. I was so psyched about playing a new RPG, I pored over the instruction booklet countless times, looking at and familiarizing myself with all the items (you see, that night my sisters and I had to spend the night at her house for some reason... I didn't mind cause I'd always had kind of a crush on her).
Well when I finally got the game home, I was shocked: the damn thing had ONE background musical theme that played over and over again, you "fought" enemies by walking into them and hoping you didn't die, and you could beat the thing in 20 damn minutes if you knew what you were doing. I tried to play it but I was too disgusted.
I don't think I ever gave it back. The video rental store went out of business and somewhere, in the back of one of my closets, is that shitty game.
I always feel bad when I think about that cause I know her pay was docked. That must be why she married that other guy instead of waiting for me!
O_o
Chestnuts roasted by Night_Trekker @ 07/11/2005 12:32 AM EST
Gaming's been a big part of my life, can you tell? :/
Chestnuts roasted by Night_Trekker @ 07/11/2005 12:33 AM EST
I see a consensus building that Pogo-Balls were impossible. My brother and sister had them and no one could make them work.
I had a regular pogo stick and was jealous of the balls. But eventually I won the pogo popularity war just because I had a toy that actually worked.
Chestnuts roasted by Carri @ 07/11/2005 12:39 AM EST
CRUNCH! (Cheetos: Official Food of Britney Spears)
Everyone at my elementary school had a Pogo Ball...they were banned though...too many PB related injuries.
Chestnuts roasted by The Cheese that goooooooooes... @ 07/11/2005 12:40 AM EST
I remember that HBO special about commercials deceiving little kids, and I know my Dad still has it on VHS somewhere, he never throws anything away. What was the name of it? Anyone remember? I will look for it next time I'm there...
Chestnuts roasted by Jalbrzikowski @ 07/11/2005 12:43 AM EST
My parents would never buy me toys like Photon or Pogo Bal, but they were always high on my wish lists as a kid. *sigh* And I really miss Striped Chips Ahoy and Cheetos Paws. Funny how one forgets about those childhood loves and desires until surfing X-E!
Chestnuts roasted by Kieran Alexis @ 07/11/2005 12:46 AM EST
Anyone remember Zap-it guns? I think they were from the same year as Pogo Ball but there doesn't seem to be much info online.
Chestnuts roasted by Carri @ 07/11/2005 01:05 AM EST
Did anyone ever notice that after awhile the Bal part of the Pogo Bal would either get really lopsided or after it took about a month of wear and tear it would pop right through the disc where your feet go? Then the illusion was ruined. The ball looked like it was just squished in the disc, but really it was shaped that way and had this little groove that would keep it in the disc. For awhile at least. I never mastered that stupid thing either, but it used to give me really bad blisters on the insides of my feet.
Chestnuts roasted by domico @ 07/11/2005 01:10 AM EST
I found a pogo ball in a goodwill a few weeks ago and was hopping all around the store until I got kicked out. I wonder if they still have it. mmmmm. fruit wrinkles
Chestnuts roasted by Lego Larry @ 07/11/2005 01:19 AM EST
Definitely one of the best articles you've ever written, Matt.
My mom actually had an allergic reaction to Paws-shaped Cheetos. We had to call an ambulance and everything. Strange thing is, she could eat regular Cheetos just fine. Maybe the Paws ones had a super-secret diabolical ingrediant or something?
Chestnuts roasted by Dean @ 07/11/2005 02:05 AM EST
Jimmy Hart's face/beard = mucho hits.
Chestnuts roasted by Review the World @ 07/11/2005 02:10 AM EST
Currently sipping Lemon-Lime Kool-Aid.
Digging it.
Realizing my life is one of controversy.
On a related note, Ep. II rocks my socks
Also recommended: Life As a House. Primo Hayden action.
Chestnuts roasted by Knegative @ 07/11/2005 02:19 AM EST
What struck a chord for me was Matt's comment on Nintento controller wires getting tripped on. Super Mario Bros. 3 was the biggest culprit here because (since using the whistles to pass the game was a cardinal sin amongst my friends) it was a game that literally took HOURS to even make a dent in. So of course, there I am on the air ship in Pipe Land just about to beat that Beethoven Koopa, when of course that's when my cousin has to take a piss. Gets up, tangles up with the wires, pulls the whole thing off the TV, goodbye Ludwig Von Koopa. It was utterly traumatizing and it always makes you not want to play again for so long cause now you gotta go through the worlds ALL over again, not cause you lost, but because of your clumsy ass cousin.
Fucking Super Mario Bros 3
Chestnuts roasted by johny p @ 07/11/2005 02:20 AM EST
My neighbor had a pogo bal. I never saw her use it much. I think it sat in her garage. I loved those wrinkly fruit snacks. I use to swallow them too Matt. I think almost everybody did.
Gozer I remember the white shark in shark bites and the pegasus in the berry bears fruit snacks too.
How I wish I could have some Paws cheetos.
Chestnuts roasted by pikachulover @ 07/11/2005 02:51 AM EST
Gozer I remember the white shark in shark bites and the pegasus in the berry bears fruit snacks too.
Heh, segregated fruit snacks. Only one company tried it--the sharks were clearly for boys ("Eat them...before THEY eat YOU!" and the bears were clearly for girls, what with "Flight, the Magic Horse!" and all. That was his name, I remember it clearly.
Chestnuts roasted by Mars @ 07/11/2005 03:15 AM EST
You said fucking a fucking lot of times.
Chestnuts roasted by Connor S @ 07/11/2005 03:15 AM EST
With leftover "Fruitslush Mush" Archie ads dancing through my brain from elementary school, no friggen wonder I was so confused as to what I was supposed to do at our Middle School dances. Oh, that and the movie "Can't Buy Me Love" where Patrick Dempsey learns how to get jiggy...
Chestnuts roasted by Yodafunk @ 07/11/2005 03:51 AM EST
2 Things:
1) I wish I had a Freedom Stick. To this day I remember my worst grounding, which came from my mom tripping over my NES cable, popping out the cart of Faxandu, killing hours of playing without a save, only to spy on the neighbors through the window.
I called her a fucking bitch at the top of my lungs. I'd do it again.
2) I want WWF Pops. Where are they in NYC?
Chestnuts roasted by Dai Shan @ 07/11/2005 04:19 AM EST
Dai Shan, that is an awesome story. Do you remember the duration?
Chestnuts roasted by squee4242 @ 07/11/2005 04:34 AM EST
Commander Awesome: What you're thinking of are the "Laser Beasts," in which the gimmick was to hold them up to the light so they'd show off their alignments through their tummy transparencies. Some lucky Laser Beasts were gifted with "SUNBURST" alignment, which was the Battle Beasts equivalent of "Gun" or "Superman" or whatever your regional instant winner was when playing rock paper scissors.
Interestingly, the Fire/Water/Wood thing came from American marketing, and the Japanese rule was originally "Autobot beats Decepticon." Now that's patently unfair!
Chestnuts roasted by G'Tron @ 07/11/2005 06:16 AM EST
What? He hasn't found the Willie Wonka snack cakes yet? (Ducks for cover)
Chestnuts roasted by Ekkostar @ 07/11/2005 06:42 AM EST
WOW, I love it. I would adore a part II. Matt you do awesome work I look forward to your updates to break up my day at work. KUDOS MATT
Chestnuts roasted by rimmie @ 07/11/2005 07:38 AM EST
I have to wonder if that wireless controller is like all early wireless technology. usually ran by infrared and if you turned about 15 degrees in any direction other than direct center to the reciever, it stopped working.
had that pogo bal, or something like it when i was a kid, i remember it popping and me falling over and doing a face plant onto the curb.
still have the scar
Chestnuts roasted by Gene @ 07/11/2005 10:16 AM EST
"Coup." You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
Chestnuts roasted by tanta07 @ 07/11/2005 11:09 AM EST
I misuse words all the time. Consider it part of the gimmick.
However, coup does = A brilliantly executed stratagem; a triumph.
And that's how I mean it.
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 07/11/2005 11:15 AM EST
To get back on subject, don't you wish, JUST ONCE, that your ice cream bar looked as pristinely perfect as the one Jimmy Hart's holding?
Mine always looked like they had been sitting in the sun for three hours, after having been run over by a cement mixer.
Chestnuts roasted by tanta07 @ 07/11/2005 11:32 AM EST
Oh, man. Those freaking white Shark Bites. I have two distinct scars that can be traced directly back to white Shark Bites. On my forearm, you can still make out my cousin's teeth marks where he bit me--about seventeen YEARS ago, mind you--because he was so terribly excited that grandma was buying us Shark Bites with the mystical great white shark pieces.
The second was inflicted only days later, when, as he smugly brandished the last white snack out of the last packet in the box, I snatched it from his pudgy fingers and scarfed it.
And so he grabbed one of those big plastic dinosaur figures, the green T-Rex with all the Stegosaurus fins on its back, and hit me across the face with it as hard as he could. And so I have a three-inch scar just under my eye.
Come to think of it, pretty much every scar on my body is his fault in one way or another. Maybe I should consider a restraining order.
Chestnuts roasted by Jedoc @ 07/11/2005 11:35 AM EST
Had a little more time to appreciate the article today unlike the rush job of last night.
Nice observation on the laser gun games crossing age barriers. While we never had one, my older brother (5 years) did see fit to come down from his lofty pre-pubescent pedestal to play Laser Tag with me and his friends.
Also, that I find that Chester Cheetah poster a little sad now since I am a parent, teacher, and geek (?). Did you notice the STAR WARS/CHESTER CHEETAH game on the website?????? Wow. Yoda tells Chester that he must destroy the DEF Star. Wow.
Chestnuts roasted by The Manimal @ 07/11/2005 12:04 PM EST
I can't read the damn article, I keep getting "Song'd". Grrrrrrr...adddsssss.
Chestnuts roasted by Jeremy @ 07/11/2005 12:08 PM EST
Oh man, the controller wires just cracked me up. It was sooo true. Me and my brother would sit - oh, roughly 3 feet away from the TV, playing our Sears rip off of Atari, and here comes mom, carrying laundry or something and boom! Atari came crashing down from the glass shelf and controllers went flying. "Aww, Mom!" would be heard simultaneously. So sad...
I had a Pogo Ball (I can't bring myself to only use one L!) too, but didn't use it much. I remember that you practically had to break your ankle to get on the damn thing.
Chestnuts roasted by Ryane @ 07/11/2005 12:08 PM EST
O, mist filled pits,
Dark, dank, unclear,
Touch all 'fore me
With frost-fingered fear!
I still have Cravex and Arzon. Arzon because his Power Staff could summon Knowledge. (A whim, a thought, and more is sought. Awake, my mind. Thy Will be wrought!) Cravex becuse Chris Latta voiced him. (Oh, how it pains me to do this, Megatron.) I also have the Decepticon Pretender SkullGrin. When I bought him, Ma said he looked like something out of the Book of Revelation. The robot designs were more like failed ideas from the Clones subgroup. I got AutoBot Pincer later (I like scorpions) and he was a even bigger disappointment, robot-wise, than Skully. Great big shell, itty-bitty robot.
Wasn't Photon riding on the fame of it's "pay a buttload of money to run around a dark room trying to snipe your friends" origins? Any one ever watch the "Photon" TV show? Live actors Chroma-key'd over miniature sets.
"Fudged-up their cookies?" Was Chef writing ad copy for them back then?
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash's totem animal is Yogi Bear @ 07/11/2005 12:11 PM EST
I've done an article on the Photon TV show. It was...interesting.
I've only played at one official Photon arena, once in my life -- the old, giant, beautiful one in Wildwood, NJ. (starwenn, ya here?) It was amazing -- with all the planks and tunnels and fog machines, the works. Even after it closed, the building remained up for several years complete with the giant "Photon" logo painted on the sign. I believe it's gone now, sniff.
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 07/11/2005 12:19 PM EST
I was actually pretty good with the pogo ball, I couldn't do any tricks or anything but I could stay on it and hop about all over the place. But one time it popped on me while I was using it, and I fell really hard and broke my wrist.
THe someobdy tripping over the nintendo thing happened to me when I was on the last state in Rampage. Even though Rampage was an easy game it took like 3 or 4 hours of pretty much almost exactly the same stage to beat.
Does anybody remember these fruit snacks where there were peices that were halfs of a whistle and you could put the peices to gether and have a semi-working whistle?
Chestnuts roasted by BrightNoah @ 07/11/2005 12:27 PM EST
Matt, after Castle Dracula burnt down, they pretty much tore down the everything on the pier, including the Photon sign. I was always amazed at how long it stayed up, even after the arena closed down. They at least kept that giant rotating sign that spinned around, advertising Castle Dracula. Only now, it advertises Burger King or something. Sad.
Chestnuts roasted by Y2JB78 @ 07/11/2005 12:36 PM EST
Y2J -- Not sure how long you've been going there, but do you remember the GIANT Castle Dracula sign that lingered on the corner of the boardwalk near the Ferris Wheel?
"MORE GHOULISH THAN EVER!" It had a bootleg Cryptkeeper. I loved that sign to death. It was the first of my fave Wildwood things to go, sadly.
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 07/11/2005 12:44 PM EST
Anyone remember centurions and How amazingly amazing and cool they were? Oh, toys had character back then...
Chestnuts roasted by Centurion EXTREME @ 07/11/2005 12:49 PM EST
Holy cow this article brings back to some memories...thank you so much.
The Fridge action figure! I sent off for that...omg it was so exciting waitign for that thing in the mail. I loved that damn figure. Unfortunately his last adventure was down my toilet.
I had a ton of Battle Beasts too. Those were cool little toys. Thanks again.
Chestnuts roasted by Maxx @ 07/11/2005 01:23 PM EST
I don't know if this is an urban legend or not, but I heard that when Chester Cheeto first came out, he had a voice remarkably like Tom Waits. So much so that Tom Waits sued (and won) to get them to stop using it.
Chestnuts roasted by Shake @ 07/11/2005 01:43 PM EST
That photon show was absolutely bizzare. Supposedly, you could shoot at targets during the show and it would register somehow. I had Lazer Tag, so I never bothered to try it.
Chestnuts roasted by klatubaradanikto @ 07/11/2005 01:45 PM EST
I totally have that formula one racer from the jell-o pop ad! Legos and Jell-o Pops rock!
Chestnuts roasted by Amber @ 07/11/2005 01:49 PM EST
There really was a US Videogame team. They made a crappy direct-to-video VHS about how to play nintendo games
Chestnuts roasted by Pigeon @ 07/11/2005 01:53 PM EST
Carri, this just screamed out at me, was it intentional? "I had a regular pogo stick and was jealous of the balls."
I wonder if Ms. (?) Gary Morin still lives at 631 Shawsheen St.; Tewksbury, MA 01876? If so, I wonder if Ms. Gary remembers reading that He-Man mag. Wellp, only one way to find out . . .
Chestnuts roasted by Pedro @ 07/11/2005 02:13 PM EST
do any one know if mike tyson punch out is on sp
Chestnuts roasted by erick @ 07/11/2005 02:26 PM EST
So WWE ice cream bars are made today? I NEED one with Muhammed Hassan's fugly mug emblazened across the delicious treat...
Chestnuts roasted by Bifflog @ 07/11/2005 02:28 PM EST
To back up Pigeon and Phunq, and lead some readers to an enjoyable, if possibly offensive NES page, check out Seanbaby.com for all your US Video Game team needs.
Matching Jumpsuits included.
Not recommended for At Work viewing.
Chestnuts roasted by Knegative @ 07/11/2005 02:39 PM EST
I must be the only one who had any Pogo Bal skillz around. Never popped on me either. I could do a trick where I'd spin the Pogo Bal, then jump on it and keep Bal'in. I didn't get a chance to try it out on our trampoline tho.
Time to go through the old magazines and VHS tapes and try to find any 80s gems...
Chestnuts roasted by germ78 @ 07/11/2005 02:55 PM EST
Kokomo is on the radio right now! Ack!
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 07/11/2005 02:59 PM EST
I freakin ruled at Pogo Ball. We used them in tandem on the trampoline. Extra air. A few broken ankles was a small price to pay for the fun.
Chestnuts roasted by meats @ 07/11/2005 03:30 PM EST
Man, I loved my Pogo Ball, never did any "wicked" tricks, but it was great to pound around on. Didn't like it as much as my swing racer, though. Anybody else remember that one?
Chestnuts roasted by Joe @ 07/11/2005 03:40 PM EST
Looks like we should get a Pogo Bal article next. Anyone second that notion?
Chestnuts roasted by Kennef @ 07/11/2005 03:58 PM EST
Ooh, what a great article. That's the kind of stuff that made me like XE in the first place.
Four stars!
Chestnuts roasted by JOss @ 07/11/2005 03:58 PM EST
I'm not really sure if people look this far down, but I'll give it a try. Loved the ads dude. Good times. I'm holding a vote on my website as to which NES Wrestling game was the best. Check it out. Star man will be there
Chestnuts roasted by Czar Matthew @ 07/11/2005 04:35 PM EST
Oh,god I miss the Photons. And that amazingly stupid Pogo Bal. Excellent article,Matt. I hope we get more of those ads.
Chestnuts roasted by St205 @ 07/11/2005 04:46 PM EST
We need to combine this http://tinyurl.com/doluk and this http://tinyurl.com/bvobv together. I know there are enough geeks here to love it.
Chestnuts roasted by RAS @ 07/11/2005 04:51 PM EST
Joe - I had a Sit n' Skate roller racer, is that the same as a swing racer? That thing rocked. It was like the bastard love child of a skateboard and a krazy kar.
I'm seconding the Pogo-Bal article motion.
And for the record I think Pogo-Baling on the trampoline is cheating. It'd bounce on that when it would otherwise scuff the foot platform on a sidewalk. That was the real challenge of the Pogo-Bal - bouncing without scuffing the platform when you landed because that's what caused us all to fall and permanently scar ourselves.
Chestnuts roasted by Carri @ 07/11/2005 04:56 PM EST
Fuck, those wrestling bars look good, and sadly, I haven't heard about them until I read the article.
On another note...don't know if it's Hasbro, but some company is bringing back the Battle Beasts things. Or something similar. In anyway, it still has the Rock, Paper, Scissors element, and it seemed like it might be a big hit, although I don't know how much kids play with toys nowadays. Damn McDonalds and their fattening foods.
Chestnuts roasted by The Cause @ 07/11/2005 04:57 PM EST
klatubaradanikto, I think you mean Captain Power: http://www.captainpower.com/
Chestnuts roasted by Hellion @ 07/11/2005 05:11 PM EST
pogo bal article would make for a great video demonstration. . .
Chestnuts roasted by kb @ 07/11/2005 05:55 PM EST
I remember "Visionairies", cool figures but bad concept.
I think Hasbro wanted to make them a sort "human transformers" but they could only transform in the cartoon, the toys themselves couldent change shape and the kids didnt like that.
Transformers Pretenders: man I remember Transformers going downhill fast after that idea!.
Anyone remember "Transformers action masters?...anyone actually WANT to remember action masters?...
And Battle beasts, I loved the designs of these little guys but I never collected them, most of my money went to Transformers.
To "The Yeti"
I think the action figures you remember were called infacables, I think they were somehow linked to the Blackstar toys but I'm not sure.
Thanks Matt for this awsome website!.
Chestnuts roasted by Plumpdragon @ 07/11/2005 07:59 PM EST
Thanks a bunch, Plumpdragon.
On another note, I myself experienced an unfortunate "video-game-cord" incident with my Playstation during college. I was playing a tag-team marathon of "Tenchu" with a Chinese friend of mine who barely spoke any English. We were tearing ass through the game -- nearly to the end -- when my roommate at the time waltzed through the room, tripped over the controller wire, and sent my precious PS careening toward the uncarpeted floor. The machine didn't break, but it did become unplugged from the wall and our game was killed on the spot. I was mad, but my Chinese friend was FURIOUS! He rose to his feet and started ineptly blurting out curse words like Samir in "Office Space". He ended up saying something like "You fuckered bitch-fuck!" It was one of the funniest displays of misplaced anger I've ever seen.
Chestnuts roasted by The Yeti @ 07/11/2005 08:16 PM EST
I remember Battle beasts...brings back a memory of my neighbours "fun room" (sounds dodjy doesnt it 
)....he was a couple years older than me and had a full set of battle beasts...until i nicked one off him mwahaha...I think it ended up in my giant tub o' lego alongside various kinder surprise smurfs and 50c TMNT plastic figures. Damn i miss that tub.
Chestnuts roasted by Mike NZ @ 07/11/2005 08:35 PM EST
Yes, Matt, I am here. I vaguely remember the Photon arena in Wildwood; my mother wasn't crazy about the fad, so we never went in, and yes, it's long gone. From the description you gave, I sure as hell wish we did now. Sounds like a completely awesome and, if nothing else, atmospheric place to waste a summer afternoon.
My sisters read comics and we all read kids' magazines during the late 80s and early 90s and were quite familiar with the elaborate full-page ads, many of which I still recall today. Of the ads mentioned in the article, I remember the one for Striped Chips Ahoy best. No, I could never get the flip book to work, either, and no, I didn't think they were as good as originals.
We were also big on Jello's heavenly gelatin and pudding pops. Oh, the summer afternoons spent sitting on the back porch under the willow tree, sucking on Gelatin Pops and hoping Dad would get off the TV in time for tonight's "You Can't Do That On Television" episode. I don't remember the lavender ones being better or worse than the others...
Unlike most kids, I was never a big fan of fruit snacks. I ate them during my childhood because my sisters and friends did, but they always seemed to pick the least opportune time to get stuck between my teeth, like when I had to give a speech or something. The Sunkist Fruit Snacks commercial with the tree and the raining snacks were classic, though.
I think we did have a Pogo Bal, though like the rest of you, I could never figure the damn thing out. I, too, was scared to death of ending up flat on my back and hearing about it for days from my sisters and their buddies.
Chestnuts roasted by starwenn @ 07/11/2005 09:33 PM EST
Your welcome The Yeti.
Here are 2 links on "Infaceables"(I spelled it wrong on the earlyer post)
http://www.virtualtoychest.com/infaceables/infaceables.html
And an dutch ad that brings back memories (I live in the netherlands)and Blackstar and Infaceables were marketed as one toyline over here.
http://www.barbiemuseum.nl/images/items/actionfigures/Ablackstar.jpg
Chestnuts roasted by Plumpdragon @ 07/11/2005 09:51 PM EST
HOLY JESUS! Thanks so much for the links, Plumpdragon! Those figures are EXACTLY what I was talking about (that "Attack Tank" looks like the most dangerous toy ever). My brother owned Iron Lion when we were younger, but I haven't seen it or any of the other figures in years. Thanks again for the violent shove down memory lane! You rock!
Chestnuts roasted by The Yeti @ 07/11/2005 09:59 PM EST
Seriously, great article Matt. I remember reading magazines on the can over and over and staring at some of those very ads. Keep it up with more of these.
Chestnuts roasted by Bryan @ 07/11/2005 10:18 PM EST
Finally. WWF Superstars that even The Mouth-of-the-South can lick.
Took me so long to catch the play on words there. I can't even begin to describe how weird that sounded at first.
And here's the flipbook in gif-form:
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y32/theimageofmyownbreast/cookie.gif
Chestnuts roasted by RewolfJ @ 07/11/2005 11:04 PM EST
HBO special: click here
Chestnuts roasted by ClOlD @ 07/12/2005 12:13 AM EST
Ugh. That HBO special sounds damn cool, but there's no way I'm going to spend $100 on that. I've already got to figure out how to bend my meager earnings to afford the $350 cost for this years' convention exclusive Transformers.
Chestnuts roasted by DarkPrimus @ 07/12/2005 01:51 AM EST
" They featured the Pogo Bal and showed how good the kids in the commercial were at hopping and doing stunts, then they would show real life footage of kids using the Pogo Bal and they could hop no more than two or three times before stumbling. "
-I thought the special looked interesting but that comment made me wonder "What if it was a guitar?"
I couldn't do Pogoball when I was 6 (I had a small one) but when I was in high school, I found my sister's big one and mastered it in a couple days. Couldn't do any tricks though.
Chestnuts roasted by springsprite @ 07/12/2005 03:56 AM EST
I can't believe nobody has mentioned Tuba Ruba. It was a tube made out of several small tubes you snapped together that you wrapped around your body from top to bottom--including around your neck or arms et cetera ; a marble is placed at the top and you girate your body so that the marble moves through the tube system and down to the bottom. Great Fun.
Chestnuts roasted by superwarrior @ 07/12/2005 06:33 AM EST
I always like it when Matt gives us "a nice, long one"
Chestnuts roasted by Traynor @ 07/12/2005 10:36 AM EST
I, uh, actually have two ActionMasters. Jazz and Rollout. What they should have done, is make 'em into Spike, Daniel, and other humans, that would have made more sense with the "partners."
Wow, we hear from a member of WWOEC. While looking up info on Arcee once, my web-wanderings led me to a SD-style drawing of her on WWOEC. I then took a look around, and found some rather "interesting" artwork there. Including Plumpdragon's. Not for the faint of heart, weak of bladder, or senseless of humor.
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 07/12/2005 11:57 AM EST
Holy shit- Thanks for the article, Matt.
VISIONARIES! and STRIPED CHIPS AHOY! 2 things that I almost forgot about have come raging back into my mind.
Now I am sitting here thinking about the Garbage Pail Kids movie...it scared the bejesus out of me. My cousins and I rented it as soon as it came out, and I was foaming at the mouth with excitement when we pushed 'play'... but I was scared of them! I had to leave the room
The worst part is, my little brother wasn't phased, and he watched the whole movie then made fun of me when it was over.
Luckily, I am also now thinking about fruit snacks, and these are happy thoughts. I am singing "its amazing fruit, amazing fruit" in my head....an old jingle, but not 80s....early 90s I think.
Chestnuts roasted by Muppet Baby @ 07/12/2005 12:19 PM EST
Wow, just wow....
Damn that article brought back a ton of memories. I'm almost misty eyed....seriously Matt, thanks. I'm always reminded of why I love coming to this site daily.
Anywho, I never had Photon. I did however, have Lazer Tag. We actually got 3 stets. One for me and 2 for my brothers. We had the vests, the helmets, even the highly coveted white rifle. Unfortunately, we were the only ones since just about everyone else got Photon since it was so much cheaper. God Damn we were f'ing spoiled...
I still remember the Saturday morning cartoon for LT and the really lousy live action show for Photon.
My middle brother used to love Visionaries. He had all of them. Kind of strange, everytime I see them or think of them, I think of my brother....ahhh....another misty eyed moment....
WWF bars never looked like that in real life...
Those fruit snacks were f'ing heaven in a tin foil pouch...
And no, no one wants to remember Pretenders...or even less the Action Masters....somehow TF's that don't transform doesn't make any sense....
In the Dreamwave comics that were published up until this year, they actually had Battle Beasts in them. (Those make me think of my youngest brother....damn...too many misty eyed moments for one afternoon)
After Megs catches a major ass whoopin' and is left to rot in space, he lands on the Beast Planet that is inhabited by those rather war like woodland creatures. Incidentally, this is where he discovers the Predacons, and tinkers with them to allow them to form Predaking....really cool little way to aknowledge that the Battle Beasts somehow tied into TF lore. I'm sure some of you are aware, but the TF's still have a huge following. just do a google for tfw2005 or tformers.com and you'll see. I actually purchased all the re-issues, including those really sick Japanese ones. It's nice to have no one tell you what you can and can't spend your cash on. And hell, if that Master Piece Optimus was made when were growing up, I bet half the kids who picked on me wouldn't have....because I would have bludgoned their asses and they would have understood why Prime was the greatest Autobot leader of all time...
Chestnuts roasted by XGalvatronX @ 07/12/2005 12:49 PM EST
it seems to me that the majority of this site is guy-oriented. have you ever considered having a female guest writer review girlie things? I know that you do your own girlie reviews from time to time, but it would be cool to hear the female perspective...
Chestnuts roasted by bitchpants @ 07/12/2005 01:09 PM EST
i know this is off topic and i apologize..
there was a product that you could hook up to your regular phone to change the ringer, maybe 5 preset sounds you could choose from. it came out in the early to mid 90's i guess. the commercial included several overly surprised kids when the phone rang. the only ringer i really remember was the "rap" one, the lyrics were:
'Pick up the phone,
I know you're at home,
Pick it up, Pick it up, Pick it up'
Does anyone know the name of this device, or at least remember it at all?
Chestnuts roasted by Hot Pocket @ 07/12/2005 01:50 PM EST
Hot Pocket -- I don't recall, but just wanted to say that questions like these are never off topic.
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 07/12/2005 01:54 PM EST
Oh my god!!! these are the best! Matt, thanks for bringing back memories of simpler times!!!!!! I love these ads! My dad knew someone who worked for the company that made those WWF cookies for the ice cream bars, and she used to give him bags of them for me and my brother, who were around 4 or 5 at the time. We had the plain cookies, and my mom used to put ice cream on them, or we'd eat them plain. I also liked when they made the ice cream bars. The toys kick some major butt!
Chestnuts roasted by Allison @ 07/12/2005 02:14 PM EST
You horsehead, you still owe my ass an upfront meeting. Particularly pissed about that fact after seeing this brilliantly fucked Atlantic City tirade.
Meet Exene and I in New Orleans next month, dick. Weird times guaranteed.
Chestnuts roasted by Mel. @ 07/12/2005 02:26 PM EST
Oh. And by the way?
Less six billion cool guy points for failing to mention that SUN BEATS FIRE, WATER AND FUCKING WOOD.
Anyone who never had one of these limited-edition BB's had a lie for a childhood.
Chestnuts roasted by Mel. @ 07/12/2005 02:31 PM EST
Oh. And by the way?
Less six billion cool guy points for failing to mention that SUN BEATS FIRE, WATER AND FUCKING WOOD.
Anyone who never had one of these limited-edition BB's had a lie for a childhood.
Chestnuts roasted by Mel. @ 07/12/2005 02:31 PM EST
One of the things i remember most about the HBO special is the crappy way they handled the R/C hovercraft. Instead of the running start seen in the Tyco ad, they just put the thing at the base of the cardboard ramp and tried to launch from there. Do it like that, of course it's going to flop over into the pool. They need to do a more curent one and challenge some adults to figure out MegaZords and Deluxe Transformers.
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 07/12/2005 02:34 PM EST
kinglash:
2 Words (maybe 3)
Binaltech/Alternators Grimlock
Ok maybe 5:
Armada Unicron
Chestnuts roasted by XGalvatronX @ 07/12/2005 02:45 PM EST
Mel scares me
Chestnuts roasted by kb @ 07/12/2005 02:49 PM EST
no one has clicked on the links I provided? I was sure people here would find it interesting. scroll up and click for fun.
Chestnuts roasted by RAS @ 07/12/2005 03:37 PM EST
Actually, I took a look. The stuff on the energy weapons is... interesting.
i seriously can't believe that that one guy called his company "Xtreme ADS" ... I mean, I can -so- clearly see that emblazoned on the side of the laser in orange and neon-green...
Chestnuts roasted by Ojin @ 07/12/2005 05:40 PM EST
Oh, and additionally? That Pogo Bal ad has to count as a classic piece of nostalgia just for the number of times it mentions the 80s -alone-.
Just in cae kids at the time didn't know what decade it was.
Weird thing, in retrospect... so much stuff from the 80s that made so much of how it was the coolest, most awesomest time ever. That kind of hyperbole isn't -supposed- to become true. ^^;
And as for the Pogo Bal itself? I never had one, but my cousins did. Same thing here... I had no idea of how to use the damn thing, other than for self-embarassment. But it -does- stick in my memory as being one of those items that could -always- be found in every toy store come summer.
No better memories than the store in the town I'd holliday in, where I used to go and basically hang out for as long as I could get away with before the owners would start giving me not so subtle looks. They thought it was bad at first, then they put in an NES running demo games, with the controller connected. Once that happened, I don't think I -ever- left. ;p
Chestnuts roasted by Ojin @ 07/12/2005 05:46 PM EST
I should mention that the Transformers Pretenders were from one of the Japanese TV series, Masterforce. Though the Japanese series (Headmasters, Masterforce, and Victory) were not brought to the USA, the toys were.
BTW, Battle Beasts appeared in an episode of the Japanese Headmasters series too.
Chestnuts roasted by Bert Raccoon @ 07/12/2005 06:51 PM EST
This is off topic but I'm curious if anyone rembembers the Yummy Awards? It was a NBC special in the 80's that aired the night before the first Saturday of the new cartoon season. It showed clips of all the new shows that year. None of my friends recall it and I just wanted to make sure I wasn't crazy.
Chestnuts roasted by Duffy @ 07/12/2005 07:16 PM EST
Quoting the ad: "Garbage Pail Kids in their First Movie!".
Does that mean they actually planned a sequel (or a dozen) for the GPK movie? Anyone know?
Chestnuts roasted by Destro @ 07/12/2005 07:57 PM EST
One thing I remember about GPK specifically was that it was drenched in bad publicity way before it hit theaters -- which is the only way it could be, since it was in and out of theaters too quick for anything else. The reviews weren't just negative: People were offended and insulted in ways that extended well past hyperbole. It didn't have a chance. Had it been successful, the backlash would've been far greater.
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 07/12/2005 08:00 PM EST
The actual Transformer Pretender toys weren’t great, but I love that art in that ad. That was totally the era for Transformers box art, the era of Pretenders and Micromasters and Clones. And the animation in the Pretenders and Classic Pretenders commercials was beautiful too. The art in the comics varied with the artist, but Jose Delbo was pretty good at drawing the Pretenders’ outer shells.
Chestnuts roasted by Felicity @ 07/12/2005 09:01 PM EST
Visionaries: Yeti, it sounds like you had Cindarr. I have a friend who is extremely into Visionaries. I’m sending him the URL of the JPEG of the ad in this article.
All my text just suddenly went underline. Weird.
I liked Action Masters, because they were (until Heroes of Cybertron) the closest thing you could get to physical versions of the cartoon characters. The original toys never looked a thing like the cartoon, except for one or two (Shockwave, the cassettes, and maybe Jazz).
Action Masters still didn’t get it totally right (the heads were too big) but they were closer, and I was never really into the transforming aspect of the toys anyway. I’m not good at spatial puzzles. I just wanted my own physical representations of the cartoon characters I loved.
Chestnuts roasted by Felicity @ 07/12/2005 09:10 PM EST
I was a big fan of Action Masters -- Soundwave and Shockwave, especially. So cool. I didn't really look at them as the cartoon/comic characters they were based on -- they were just cool "other" figures.
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 07/12/2005 09:18 PM EST
I had one Action Masters figure. Blaster. So what does it say about you if you swear loyalty to Blaster instead of Soundwave? We all know where Matt's lies. Does this mean I'm excommunicated? 
Wasn't part of the line of Pretenders dedicated to "established" characters? I remember having ones of Starscream and Bumblebee.
I preferred that version of Starscream to the original. It was much more sturdy and compact. I could take it with me.
I lost it the day I got it. It was the only toy I had to "rebuy". I've had to that much more often with albums. Suppose that's what I get for playing dj in my car and trying to drive at the same time.
Chestnuts roasted by Knegative @ 07/12/2005 10:19 PM EST
I'm going to reflect what about 50% of all people on here have said, but holy shit talk about unlocking some of those memories stored in that dark, deep abyss of my mind.
Especially the HBO special...As I read the posts about it, I thought "Hell I remember BrainGames but not this show about revealing how shitty some of the toys were!" Then I visited the link about it and voila, I recognize the dude in the screenshot.
I think we all realize how lucky we were to grow up in the decade when marketing for kid stuff started to really take off. It was an exciting time for retailers and their product providers as millions of dollars were pumped into the efforts of enticing us to buy their crap. And we ate it up with some of the best toys ever (and some of the worst!).
Ahhhh, sadly back to adult life again.
Chestnuts roasted by mtz @ 07/13/2005 01:41 AM EST
Obscure...memory...poping...hnnnmm...out...ahhh!
Yogurt covered fruit snacks. Amazing what X-E can get the mind to crap out.
Matt, we KNOW how you feel about guest writers, but bitchpants brought up an interesting thought in my mind: The only girly writer that I might be halfway interested in hearing from is your girlfriend.
She's obviously down with your whole lifestyle, at least by the looks of your closet/office (or maybe she just knows there are HUGE trade-offs to be made when you're stuck living with a cat), so...yeah. Bring on the GF if you're so inclined.
If you're not inclined, maybe you're flat...
Chestnuts roasted by Mad Cow @ 07/13/2005 02:40 AM EST
Now that would be cool if someone had the balls and the money to buy that set of Buy Me that videos and then have them available for all of us to see. That would rock!!!
Chestnuts roasted by Heathtown @ 07/13/2005 03:13 AM EST
Takara / Hasbro did make pretender versions of Bumblebee, Jazz, Grimlock and Starscream but the toys were very low quality made of very soft brittle plastic and paint that flaked of just by toughing them.
I think that around the time these were made Hasbro / Takara had no idea where to take the whole Transformers toyline and they began imitating other toys.
Pretenders imitated Masters of the universe type action figures.
Action masters imitated Mask.
Micromasters imitated Micromachines.
As a fan it was terrible to see something you love go so wrong.
But Transformers are once again going strong!, Beast wars was awsome, RID, Amada and Energon pretty cool.
Dreamwave, now sadly gone, gave us some of the most wonderful Transformers comics ever!.
The beautiful Alternators / Binaltech line gave us once again toys based on real current cars!.
And the Takara G1 reissues are (tho expensive) a collectors dream come true!
To "Kenny/RiotEXE", are these the toys you were talking about?
http://www.virtualtoychest.com/boneage/boneage.html
Chestnuts roasted by Plumpdragon @ 07/13/2005 04:51 AM EST
@Hot Pocket - I don't remember the ringtone changing device or said commercial, but you reminded me of that tape that for the answering machines that had a whole bunch of different messages on it, like "Nobody's Home" to the tune of Beethoven's 5th. Might have been some rap ones, too.
Chestnuts roasted by Jimbalaya @ 07/13/2005 07:47 AM EST
Mel is scary.
Chestnuts roasted by Traynor @ 07/13/2005 09:57 AM EST
Lifetime is going to be playing "The Golden Palace" the spinoff of the Golden Girls minus Bea Arthur, starting August 1.
Just thought some people might like to know!~
Chestnuts roasted by kidneyboy @ 07/13/2005 10:50 AM EST
We need to compile a list of toys from our childhood that we feel deserve a second chance. I say that Bone Age be the first item on the list. Anyone got anything to add?
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 07/13/2005 11:32 AM EST
My vote for toys that deserve a second chance are Stompers. Those things were great especially when you wired a 9 volt to them.
Chestnuts roasted by Tom_Slick @ 07/13/2005 12:31 PM EST
I have two votes for toys that deserve another chance. One is for Ewoks dolls, and the other is for Chubbles. Does anyone else remember them? They were stuffed animals that had a light-sensitive sensor in them, and they giggled whenever you tripped the sensor. I loved them because they wore hooded cloaks and looked cool.
Chestnuts roasted by Kieran Alexis @ 07/13/2005 01:12 PM EST
Plumpdragon:
The Binaltech\Alternators line are some really great figures, but I much prefer the Binal line due to being made out of diecast metal. Double as a throwing weapon if someone breaks into your home.
The Re-Issues (Japanese) are really nice and feature some really nice booklets if anyone is interested in spedning cash on them. Definately worth it.
The box art on most of them was done by Dreamwave. Too bad they left the way they did. Although, in some people opinions, the stories were lacking, it was great to see the TF's drawn in such a great style and color. Unlike the Marvel comics whose art I never really cared for.
There is also a movie coming out in 2007, live action, being done by Dreamworks/Spielberg/Don Murphy/Tom DeSanto/Michael BAy. Hopefully it won't suck.
For some reason, I have been unable to stop following these damn things all these years, and probably have spent more money than I should on them. Funny thing is, if anyone at work knew I collected them, they'd probably fall over in shock.
Felicity was right, the Action Master did reflect what the characters looked like on the show more than any of the toys. The Robot Master lines is a great line for anyone looking for that also, plus they transform, and even bring in some of the Master Force, Beast Wars, G1, Japanese Beast Wars, and other continuities.
It's ridiculously cool to see G1 Prime, BW Primal, and Lio Convoy hanging out. At least it is for me...
I swear, I'm not some nerdy guy who lives in my parents basement....I swear....!!!
Chestnuts roasted by XGalvatronX @ 07/13/2005 01:43 PM EST
Most of my favorite toys are still around in one form or another so I can't really think of any i'd want to bring back. I can, however, think of one i'd like to see an adult version of: sit-n-spin!!
Chestnuts roasted by bitchpants @ 07/13/2005 02:46 PM EST
Plumpdragon,
I'm not questioning you in anyway, and I appreciate the confirmation on the pretenders. Maybe I was/am just a careful kid. I'd chalk my pristine memories up to age, but I just had it in my hands like 6 months ago.
Finding the one box of TF not in storage (i.e. the one in my closet) was like winning the lottery.
Had that Starscream, Rodimus Prime, Hot Rod, and Blaster in it. Oh yeah and my die-cast original Lion Force Voltron. Booya.
Chestnuts roasted by Knegative @ 07/13/2005 03:13 PM EST
An adult version of Sit-n-Spin? Sounds naughty. Or an office chair. wheeeeeeeeee!
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash, racing office chairs like a demon on caster wheels @ 07/13/2005 03:13 PM EST
Truth be told, I didn't have very many of the "big" Transformers as a child. And what I did have came during the movie era -- Gnaw, Trypticon, Metroplex and of course, Rodimus. All very cool toys, but Rodimus held a special place.
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 07/13/2005 03:42 PM EST
Voltron should have counted as a weapon, anyone else ever been hit in the head with one? Credit the man I am today to that and various other things that have struck me. boomarangs are dangerous.
Chestnuts roasted by RAS @ 07/13/2005 04:12 PM EST
I would bring back skip-its, with a counter that actually worked. And hamburger scratch and sniff stickers.
Also, I would love to have your girlfriend write a female perspective article. Or at least, an overview of what it's like to live with a transformer/he-man obsessed 26 year old
Chestnuts roasted by kb @ 07/13/2005 04:27 PM EST
I take that back, there is something that i would bring back: the get-along gang. all i remember about it was there was a moose with a letterman's sweater and a cocker spaniel on roller skates in a cheerleading uniform. she was the coolest! i had that doll and i have to say it was one of the more finely crafted dolls of it's time.
Chestnuts roasted by bitchpants @ 07/13/2005 04:39 PM EST
KB, Skip-Its are still made. There are even cheap knock-offs of them too. In fact, I just saw them (name-brand and cheap ones)the other day while browsing the toy isle at Wal-Mart....I would have bought one but I'm not sure I could get the hoop part around my ankle anymore!
Chestnuts roasted by Marzipan @ 07/13/2005 04:49 PM EST
Skip-its are the second coming of the Late 70's Lemon Twist. Basically a big, rattling plastic lemon on the same type of shackle Skip-it uses. No counter, though. Great weapon for knocking you upside the head, too! What childhood classic toy wasn't?
Chestnuts roasted by kingklash @ 07/13/2005 05:50 PM EST
awewsome, i know know what my child gets at christmas
Chestnuts roasted by kb @ 07/13/2005 05:57 PM EST
Maybe off topic, but did anyone learn how to make greater/less than symbols by making a Pac-Man that eats the larger number?
That's how our teachers did it. They said the numbers represented power pacs and Pac-Man wants to eat most power pacs possible so he has to face the larger number.
I guess that teaching device is totally outdated.
Chestnuts roasted by Carri @ 07/13/2005 06:11 PM EST
I HAD THAT CHEETOS AD!! There was something else I wanted to say too, but I completely forgot what it was, so I'm just going to tell a Jimmy Hart story:
My Aunt took my cousin and I to see the WWF at the Niagara Falls Convention Center (Now the Seneca Niagara Casino), and the lady behind us took Jimmy Hart's glasses off his head, and put them on my aunt's chair. Hart told the security guards escorting him to the ring in his typical high pitched Jimmy Hart voice that "she stole my glasses, baby, she stole my glasses!"
And for anybody in Western New York and southern Ontario, WWE Great American Bash press conference is scheduled for Monday, 7/18 at 10AM at HSBC Arena, the PPV, of course, is live from the Arena on 7/24, and on 7/22, "Mean" Gene Okerlund, Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper are going to be signing autographs starting at 4PM at WWE Niagara Falls, located on Clifton Hill in Niagara Falls, Canada.
Chestnuts roasted by SKiTZo @ 07/13/2005 07:30 PM EST
and yes, Carri, I know what you're talking about. Pac-Man always eats the big numbers!
Chestnuts roasted by SKiTZo @ 07/13/2005 07:31 PM EST
I know. I'm like Matt's conscience--which isn't to imply that he really has one--which is why he ignores my med-addled rants.
Until he wants me to help him write the screenplay for a new Nightmare on Elm Street flick. Then we turn back into WHAM!.
Yes, with the shorts and all.
Chestnuts roasted by Mel. @ 07/13/2005 08:21 PM EST
Wow, it really is Mel. Shooting you an e-mail tonight, buddy.
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 07/13/2005 08:22 PM EST
Carri,
Not at all.
1. I used Pac-Man as an analogy for large business swallowing up small ones in U.S. History this past year.
2. I brought in my Plug-n-Play MS. PACMAN after a test and it was all the rage
3. I put a MS. PACMAN on my classroom clock.
He may be 25 now but PACMAN and his extended family are still well known among teens
Chestnuts roasted by The Manimal @ 07/13/2005 08:41 PM EST
It seems the topic tonight is about inequalities and Pac-man. I memorize a similar analogy with a gator (or croc) eating the bigger number, but I soon had to loath this analogy when I got to high school. It seems that my algebra teacher didn't like that analogy or the fact that we started getting to the negative numbers.
Chestnuts roasted by Beta-Theta @ 07/13/2005 09:48 PM EST
I have an original Fortress Maximus. I had dreams of offering it to Matt years ago, with lofty ambitions of letting him have it for below original retail if he'd throw in a peanut.
It was a nice dream.
Chestnuts roasted by Knegative @ 07/13/2005 10:44 PM EST
I don't think visionaries was ever on tv in Australia and I can't remember the toys so I looked into it and found this rather comprehensive website dediceted to them.
http://www.hannagram.com/visionaries/
Chestnuts roasted by evan @ 07/13/2005 11:39 PM EST
I hated Pogo-Bal... At recess, that's all we ever had to play with, and they were always lumpy and deflated. Bleh.
Shark Bites! I remember the "Great White" ones...there was also a kind of fruit snack shaped like fighter jets...and my personal favorite, Soda-licious.
On the Jell-o Gelatin Pops...judging from the fruit offerings from the packaging, I am going to guess that the lavender flavor is raspberry. I hate raspberry- it tastes like Burlington Coat Factory.
Chestnuts roasted by kickle cubicle @ 07/14/2005 01:12 AM EST
^^^I work at Burlington Coat Factory, it gives even the Raspberry Jell-O pop a good flavor. Pity Me...
Chestnuts roasted by superwarrior @ 07/14/2005 04:40 AM EST
You said Battle Beasts are expensive now? I went around and bought all my friends battle beasts for like 6 dollars after they thought they weren't cool anymore. So my box of like 500 assorted battle beasts is worth something? Awesome.
P.S. Some of them are missing arms. The true curse of the battle beast design.
Chestnuts roasted by Simon @ 07/14/2005 06:56 PM EST
I have some things to clear up about the Transformers Pretenders toys. First of all, they were not a pathetic attempt by Hasbro to keep the TF line alive. Hasbro never really even made the toys. Takara over in Japan did (and they're so undercredited for the fact that they essentially created the TFs and continue to design them for Hasbro. All Hasbro has rteally ever done is manufacture and market them here in North america). The pretenders were far more popular there in Japan. Hell, they even had their own series about them called Transformers: Masterforce It was all about the pretenders, who were left to patrol Earth against Deceptacons who could turn into alien-looking creatures. Shows how much Matt knows. Ha!
Chestnuts roasted by Nate @ 07/15/2005 12:34 AM EST
Oh. Somebody already mentioned it. Sorry, Bert Raccoon. You cantake all the credit. But I'm still right about the fact that the Japanese folks who brought us the TFs (it was even the Japanese company, Toei, who handled all the animation for the old TF series even though the character designs and story line were American). I'm a huge anime lover, and it always pains me to see a TF fan who hates anime. Those bloody hypocrits!! Yeah, I'm talkin to all yall!!!!!!!!!
OK, so I'm being a bastard here. Is that anything new?
Chestnuts roasted by Nate @ 07/15/2005 12:39 AM EST
Ooops. Incomplete sentence. insert "are so undercredited." at the end of that sentence about the Japanese and with all the comma-spiel about their TF contributions. Bye.
Chestnuts roasted by Nate @ 07/15/2005 12:42 AM EST
Wow that brought back good memories
Chestnuts roasted by Mercenary @ 07/15/2005 01:26 AM EST
hey gozer, if you are still here- jamaica is spanish for hibiscus! one man's decorative landscaping flower is another man's tasty sugar drink i guess...
Chestnuts roasted by Stormy @ 07/15/2005 10:29 PM EST
One of the big toys my parents bought my sister and I was the Photon set. We each had a helmet and the gun deal. She wasn't much into it, so I'd usually play by myself. We also got the three VHS tapes of missions you could go on that were different from the TV show. You were flying around and there would be a cartoon ship going by you with a flashing white light on it's bottom. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to shoot it or dodge it - I'd get hit at weird, random times anyway. No one would be on screen and I'd take a hit.
Also, I remember one of the tapes dealt with the Seers Tower - it was this gigantic building that was in ruins and you would dog fight around it. Years later, I was in school and the teacher was talking about some of the tallest building in the world and it hit me like a bolt of lightning - the SEARS TOWER!!!
That was the day I became a genius.
Chestnuts roasted by dbruce @ 07/16/2005 04:12 AM EST
speaking of gpk i was in target yesterday and noticed that there is a new series 4 set of cards out, i was unaware that they were still in print. mind ya being 30 i have my set of the originals from '85 and these hit the same concept. previous to yesterday the last time i picked some up was at a gas station in california in '89. gonna hit amazon now that i know the dvd is out...
Chestnuts roasted by danoslayer @ 07/16/2005 12:25 PM EST
...and i wish that "RAD" would hit dvd...
Chestnuts roasted by danoslayer @ 07/16/2005 12:26 PM EST
"...and i wish that "RAD" would hit dvd..."
I agree 100%. That movie rocked.
Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 07/16/2005 01:21 PM EST
Yeah...I had the "Fridge" GI Joe figure. And, yes, I actually called the 900 number (not as cool as Santa's Hip Hop Holiday line of course) so I could "save" 1 whole Fridge coupon. I remember the message was lame...with the Fridge asking some army schmo to tell the good listener his combat specialty. It was "Physical Training Instructor." The listener was instructed to write "P.T.I." on their coupons, and thus they could use only 4 Fridge points instead of 5. Ahh...marketing.
Chestnuts roasted by EmperorBinky @ 07/17/2005 10:16 AM EST
wsup yall matt is tha bomb ayt peace
Chestnuts roasted by RVD @ 07/17/2005 10:32 AM EST
Wow i have that rhino battle beast sitting over on my window ledge with the frog one on the left of the advert, and some wierd one could be a spider but he only has one arm.
Chestnuts roasted by Gorm @ 07/17/2005 12:12 PM EST
Nate: It is true that the majority of the toys from the first two years of G1 were just toys from Takara's Microman and Diaclone toylines, or from other japanese toylines. In 1985, Takara introduced Transformers in Japan, sans most of the toys from other japanese companies (except Shockwave), since you can't sell toys made by a rival manufacturer.
BUT, from 1985 onwards, Hasbro and Takara jointly developed Transformers toys for both markets. In 1987, when Hasbro cancelled the US transformers cartoon, Takara and Hasbro still developed TF toys together, but Takara began to develop TFs for their own market only.
Hasbro doesn't merely just manufacture them and market them outside of Japan, they design them and provide Takara with concepts, ideas and requirements. It is then up to Takara to interepret these concepts into a working toy, engineer and sculpt them. It has been this way since 1985.
This relationship continues to this very day with Alternators and the new Transformers: Cybertron line.
Chestnuts roasted by Fit For Natalie @ 07/18/2005 09:30 AM EST
Oh man, your disgusting chewed up Chips Ahoy sandwich thing brought back some memories for me that I had totally forgotten about. Remember the slogan that was "Betcha Bite A Chip?" Well, being of the competitive nature that I was, and still am today, I used to say "Oh yeah?" every time I ate one. Then I'd see how many bites I could take without eating any chip. Usually it was between 3 and 5. And no cheap tiny bites either.
Chestnuts roasted by Kate @ 07/18/2005 02:59 PM EST
Fir for Natalie is right. That's basically how we got the Transformers we know and love. Before, they were just nameless Diaclones and some other Japanese stuff.
Some of you guys should check out the Galaxy Force (Cybertron) line. It has one of the best incarnations of a Prime since Car Robots (Robots in Disguise) Prime.
The best part of Rad is when the guy does the faceplant off that jump. Maaaannn....I miss my GT Performer.....
Chestnuts roasted by XGalvatronX @ 07/19/2005 02:13 PM EST
P.S. Some of the pre-Transformer bots came with little drivers, that's why figures like the insecticons have little seats in them. they came from the Japanese line called Microman I believe....
Chestnuts roasted by XGalvatronX @ 07/19/2005 02:15 PM EST
Damn, I forgot about the Freedom Stick. Now I need to go through my old tapes, I know I have one with a freedom stick commercial on it somewhere,
All kinds of old memories came back. I forgot about Kung Fu, great game,
Chestnuts roasted by Quid @ 07/19/2005 07:11 PM EST
*BEASTIE BAL*
Man, I didnt have a pogo bal, but I had something called a beastie ball. It was from the makers of pogo bal, but it had a purple monster face instead of a round ball. I will take a picture of it when I raid my parents basement this weekend.
If anyone knows where I can find those WWF ice cream bars(or you want to buy my beastie bal) email me at thomas.holdren@gmail.com
T.J. Holdren
Chestnuts roasted by BackToTheFuture @ 07/21/2005 11:08 AM EST
-->> ..Gee.. i wish we had frequented the market more in the 80s for toilet paper..n' then maybe my mum wouldn't have raided my collection of 'Masters of the U.' mags.. n' i'd have Orko posters to this very day hanging on my wall instead of what's left of my dignity and my heart.. 8*(
Chestnuts roasted by ~tOkKa @ 07/22/2005 02:26 AM EST
My sister had the Pogo ball and i dont know how many times i've tried using that thing and could never figure it out. For some reason I wasnt too big into transformers, never had one. I had Ring Raiders, if anyone remembers those. They had a cartoon series for 1 or 2 seasons and had some toys.
http://www.virtualtoychest.com/ringraiders/ringraiders.html
Shows a photo of the toys
Chestnuts roasted by Zaktto @ 07/23/2005 01:34 PM EST
Grab your drink, grab your junk, grab a chair and relax -- this is a nice, long one for ya. A bunch of the 
