TOY TALK with $1 HULK featuring Denny "The Toy Bro" DiGregorio

10 Toy Photography Accounts to follow on Instagram

Well, well, well. Look who we have here? If it isn't Hoard World The Blog. Come crawling back to the blogosphere did we? Yes indeedy, Steve Macreadie.

Just like Harrison Ford, Ridley Scott and Dave Chapelle, sometimes they come back to their old shit.

Sometimes they shouldn't have. Sometimes it's alright. You can decide what this is for yourself. I'm not your real dad.

Once you've figured all that out, you can come with me on a journey to the magical world of instagram.....

Masters of the Universe Classics Light Hope Figure Review (Mattel)

This review was originally published way back in November 2014 on Doomkick.com. It was written specifically for the Doomkick site so may contain specific references to the site etc. Due to the age of the article, some of the information contained within may have dated somewhat. This is the very last of my guest reviews on other sites to date. With the exception of the little piece I contributed to Dinosaur Dracula a billion years ago, all my off-site work has now been republished right here on Hoard World! Yay! You can check out the originally published version of this Light Hope review at the Doomkick site here. Thanks for reading!

Light Hope. Yes. That guy. One of the three extra special BFFs along with Madame Razz and Kowl who knew She-Ra's secret identity. Also pretty much one of the hardest characters to ever make an action figure out of.

Because he's just a beam of rainbow-esque light (see above). You know?

Unless you do something almost cool but mostly awful like NECA's "Lightning Gremlin" action figure, you're really up Snake Mountain without a power sword when it comes to making an action figure of Light Hope.

Yet they did. And here he is.

Zombie Superman Knock-Off Review (Unknown)

The review included in this blog entry was originally published way back in July 2013 on ThEpicReview.com for their Resident Evil Zombie Celebration Week. It was written specifically for ThEpic Review site so may contain specific references to the site etc; For example my mention of whether Zombie Supes is "epic" or "great" or "good" towards the end is a reference to ThEpicReview's ratings system. Due to the age of the article, some of the information contained within may have dated somewhat (like there aren't as many of these knock-offs floating around on eBay as when this was first written). You can check out the originally published version on ThEpic Review's site here.

Marvel Select Marvel Zombies Colonel America Review (Diamond Select)

The review included in this blog entry was originally published way back in July 2013 on ThEpicReview.com for their Resident Evil Zombie Celebration Week. It was written specifically for ThEpic Review site so may contain specific references to the site etc. Due to the age of the article, some of the information contained within may have dated somewhat; although this figure came out in 2007 so was already practically a billion years old before it was "reviewed" in 2013. Much like most of us wish George Lucas hadn't, I have also made a handful of changes and edits to this piece; so this is a"Special Edition" if you will. You can check out the originally published version on ThEpic Review's site here.

Return of the Living Dead Tarman Action Figure Review (Amok Time Toys)

The review included in this blog entry was originally published way back in July 2013 on ThEpicReview.com for their Resident Evil Zombie Celebration Week. It was written specifically for ThEpic Review site so may contain specific references to the site etc. Due to the age of the article, some of the information contained within may have dated somewhat; for example the film 'Warm Bodies' is not recent. You can check out the originally published version on ThEpic Review's site here.

Masters of the Universe Classics Eternos Palace King Randor Review (Mattel)

The review included in this blog entry was originally published way back in June 2013 on Poeghostal.com. It was written specifically for Poe Ghostal's site so may contain specific references to the site etc. Due to the age of the article, some of the information contained within may have dated somewhat. For posterity (in case Poe's site ever goes offline forever) I have included screenshots at the end of the article of a selection of the 20+ comments I received for this guest review; to date, still a comments record for anything I've written. Booooooo. You can check out the originally published version on Poe Ghostal's site here.

Masters of the Universe Classics Spirit of Hordak Review (Mattel) / Vale Earl Norem 1924-2015

The review included in this blog entry was originally published way back in October 2013 on Poeghostal.com. It was written specifically for Poe Ghostal's site so may contain specific references to the site etc. Due to the age of the article, some of the information contained within may have dated somewhat. For example, obviously since the Spirit of Hordak chase figure came out, we've had Loo-Kee and Kowl as well as the recent Spirit of King Grayskull (Which I still don't have! OMC*). This version contains slightly different wording as well as many new links that were originally removed from the final version by the editor. You can check out the originally published version on Poe Ghostal's site here.

Before we begin this recycled review, I'd just like to pay tribute to one of the greatest illustrators who ever walked the Earth: Mr. Earl Norem. Along with the likes of William George and Alfredo Alcala, Earl Norem was an integral element of the Masters of the Universe mythos in its illustrated form. Aside from MOTU however, he was just an all-round wonderful artist. I was literally only just looking at some of his brilliant work and reading the interview with him in the recent Masters of the Universe Art Book a few days before he passed. Here's some footage of the man himself hanging out with Stan Lee at a con a few years back. Rest in peace, Earl Norem. You will be sorely missed but thankfully your decades of amazing work will be with us for generations to come.

VALE EARL NOREM 1924-2015

*Oh My Crom!

Masters of the Universe Classics Hordak Review (Mattel)

This review was originally published way back in April 2013 on Doomkick.com. It was written specifically for the Doomkick site's 1st Anniversary celebrations so may contain specific references to the site etc. Due to the age of the article, some of the information contained within may have dated somewhat. Although this piece was actually published before my "Mosquitor" guest review on Poe Ghostal's site, it is still chronologically (in terms of the order I wrote them) the second guest review I ever did. You can check out the originally published version (that comes with an introduction from Hoard World's "management") on the Doomkick site here.

Hi. I'm Hoardax.

Yes, the Hoardax. Maybe you've heard of me or maybe you've heard of me!

This isn't about me today, though. That was just a formality to set my new audience at ease. I am completely out of my comfort zone. Normally, I'd be talking to the legion of Hoard Worlders over on my Facey B page or on The Blog - to rapturous applause, often a standing ovation.

But today, I talk to YOU - The Doomkickers. Be gentle with me, won't you? Like many artists, or siblings of Evil Dictators who have become estranged due to a conflict of interests (He wanted to murder everybody all the time; I enjoy collecting nice things and sharing my love of said things with the world via the internets), I am very sensitive.

NEW YORK TOY FAIR REVEALS: NECA 8-BIT VIDEO GAME FIGURES - MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE CLASSICS - BATMAN THE ANIMATED SERIES - MARVEL LEGENDS - KOTOBUKIYA SUPER POWERS - BIF BANG POW 3.75" FIGURES - MEZCO 1:12

I weep both tears of happiness and sadness at the New York Toy Fair reveals.
Happiness at the beauty of the nice things.
Sadness at probably only ever seeing about 14% of them in real life and owning about 8% of those. 

Is it that time of year again already? It seems like only yesterday that I was ogling a sample of 2014's New York Toy Fair wares!

Well, it is. It is that time of year. And what a year Toy Fair 2015 has turned out to be!

There was soooooo much stuff displayed this year that it literally gave me anxiety. And I didn't even attend Toy Fair! Frankly, I blame the internet.

While many reputable sites have beautifully delivered massive amounts of footage and pics direct from Toy Fair already, here on Hoard World, I'm borrowing a mere selection of those very same pics and showing you the stuff that I am personally excited about. Ya dig?

Let's start right away, shall we?

Masters of the Universe Classics Mosquitor Figure Review (Mattel)

This review was originally published way back in May 2013 on Poe Ghostal.com. It was written specifically for Poe's site so contains many references (and links) to his other reviews. Due to the age of the article, some of the information contained within may have dated somewhat.  This is the complete, unabridged version. You can check out the slightly edited version on Poe Ghostal's site here.

The latest addition to The Mighty Horde's army is Mosquitor The Evil Energy Draining Insectoid, who was released last December. He sold out reasonably quickly after he went on sale but has since turned up on Mattycollector for sale as excess Customer Service Stock. Which has also sold out. If you missed out, there's a pretty good chance he's still floating around on eBay for prices somewhere higher than Chief Carnivus or Dekker but much less than Whiplash or Beastman.

To my knowledge, Mosquitor never made an appearance in the Filmation cartoon or the 200x version. He did, however, get his own front cover fighting He-man in one of those Marvel Star Comics of the late 80s. Issue 8, I believe it was.

As such, we've never really known that much about him. All we know is that he's one of The Horde, he has a Mosquito head and he sucks blood. Oh, and that he's actually FEMALE thanks to The Fwoosh and their magnificent, fact-based logic.

It's well documented that Mosquitor is Pixel Dan's favourite MOTU character EVER. This was irrefutably proven once and for all by this video where Dan's celebration of finally receiving a MOTUC version results in a Kafka-esque Metamorphosis....and Gangnam Style Dancing. These days it's hard to even think about Mosquitor without thinking about Pixel Dan. (Or do I have some kind of problem?) In fact, Poe talked to him just the other day about the concept of a Toy Fan's favourite obscure character being called "My Mosquitor."

The "My Mosquitor" definition revolves around a "guilty pleasure" character that isn't popular with everybody. Now, there's a chance Pixel Dan might read this but this isn't why I'm saying what I'm about to say.....

WHO DOESN'T LOVE MOSQUITOR? Seriously. I want a show of hands.

He/She is a MOSQUITO-headed vampire that SUCKS BLOOD! The vintage figure had a blood-pumping chest action! Are you kidding me? That's objectively the best thing that ever happened.

But is the MOTUC re-imagining of Mosquitor a piece of black plastic recycling? Let's find out.

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO HALLOWEEN ON HOARD WORLD? aka PLEASE READ MY GUEST POST ON DOOMKICK.COM

Behind-the-scenes pic from my guest review of Bob Hope's lesser known relative and She-Ra's BFF Light Hope over at Doomkick.com

Hi everybody!

My reasons for writing you all today are two-fold.

Firstly, I just thought I would let you know that my guest review of Light Hope has gone up and is ready to peruse at your leisure over at the Doomkick site!

If you've never been there before, then now is a good time to start. It's a lovely place. I highly recommend it.

You can read my guest review right HERE.

Secondly, even though Halloween has clearly come and gone, it would be remiss of me not to share with you how it all went down on Hoard World. It was pretty wonderful you guys.

Two of these things are not like the other.

WHY I SOLD MY BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA ACTION FIGURES.

I make no secret of the fact that I help support my addiction to stuff by selling my other stuff. It's the circle of life. And in a real world scenario where you have finite space, the reality is you just can't keep everything. That's just how it goes, bro.

We've been through this before but this is called Hoard World for a reason. I have a problem. Or had a problem. Or am getting better at least with incremental amounts of small yet important progress.

Two years ago when I started Hoard World, never in a million years would I have thought I would ever sell my Big Trouble In Little China figures. Never. They weren't for sale. At any price. The fact that 10 years into the action figure series' existence they had become quite rare and incredibly sought after perhaps further cemented my resolve in a reasonably unhealthy way.

The Hoardax of yesteryear would rather have been buried with those figures than let anybody get their greasy mits on them. Besides that, it proved that I was a true fan of John Carpenter, Kurt Russell and the major motion picture Big Trouble In Little China, right? Only a true fan would have bought the Jack Burton figure the day he was released! Only a true fan would have picked up David Lo Pan and Egg Shen a little while after on a discount table for $10 a pop because the figures were a massive commercial failure and the toy company that released them was never heard from again.

All wrong. (Except for the part about the discount table, the massive commercial failure and the toy company never being heard from again. Those bits are fact.)

But even though we can all agree my Elitist Fan Pride was misplaced and whether you own hard to find licensed merchandise of a cinematic/televisual/animated/musical/comicbook property is no indication of how much you love something (although obviously it can be),  why then did I end up selling my Big Trouble In Little China figures?

SPOTLIGHT ON: INTERGALACTIC SKELETOR aka SPACE SKELETOR! aka NEW ADVENTURES SKELETOR by MATTEL

Intergalactic Skelly just flew into Hoard World and boy are his intergalactic arms tired!

You know, in all the years I've been doing Hoard World, I don't think we've ever done an actual spotlight on a Masters of the Universe Classics figure. Sure, there's been lots of pictures of them but never a focus on a single figure release. Well, maybe it's time to do more of that.

"Welcome to the Galaxy, bonehead."

The idea of Space He-man or Space Skeletor is a strange one (even though it makes perfect sense to yours truly) and something that never quite gelled with the children of 1989 or even the adults of the 2010s.

BRING YOUR MAN-E-FACES TO WORK DAY ON HOARD WORLD!

So there I was. At home. It was September 2nd. Just trying to do a nice, honest day's work. Taking pics. Listing on eBay. Being excellent on social media. That sort of thing.

That's when it happened. This guy (I think his name was "Manny") turns up. No hello. No nothin'. And he just won't leave me alone. He doesn't say a word. He just stands there. Watching me. Hugging me. Posin' for pics like the one you just saw.

AN OPEN LETTER TO JEFF WADLOW - DIRECTOR OF THE UPCOMING MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE FILM.

Jeff Wadlow (Writer/Director of Kick-Ass 2, the upcoming X-Force film and allegedly the new He-man film).
Pic Source: Celluloid & Cigarette Burns.

I don't expect that Mr. Wadlow will ever see this (however, I plan on immediately tweeting this to him after I publish it....so, who knows?) but I do think that if there was ever a director on Earth who was directing a Masters of the Universe film who might actually read this, it's the one who turned up to SDCC 2014 and chatted to MOTU fans about the Masters of the Universe movie.

Previously here on Hoard World, I have dream cast the new Masters of the Universe film if you haven't read that yet (Jeff, you can take a look too, if you like pal) but this will indeed be the first time I have directly addressed a current director of the new Masters of the Universe film using the magic of the internets.

Ahem.

Here goes...

WHAT HAS HONG KONG PHOOEY DONE FOR ME LATELY? aka HOW TO KENNY ROGERS.

The answer is: Not enough.

Sometimes you have to be Kenny Rogers.

You have to Kenny Rogers the heck out of an aspect of your life.

And that can be a gamble.

But knowing when to fold 'em. When to hold 'em. When to walk away. And when to run, is how you be Kenny Rogers successfully.

And sometimes you have to be Kenny Rogers about something. You have no choice.

The time for me to be Kenny Rogers is NOW and that "something" I mentioned earlier is my vast collection of things I quite like.

SPOTLIGHT ON: HUGGINGTONS TWISTED TOYS PART TWO featuring THE SAVAGE BOBBY PIN! (RAGE BEAST EDITION)

Note: The Filmation-style MOTUC Trap Jaw in this photo shoot was created many years ago by Hunter Knight Customs. P.S. I love the way The Savage Bobby Pin is packaged.

Yesterday (hopefully) you read about Frankentrooper and PINCER M.D. in part one of our Spotlight on Huggingtons Twisted Toys.

Today I bring you another fantastic piece of Toy Art in the conclusion of our very special Spotlight on Huggingtons Twisted Toys.

Huggingtons Twisted Toys is the brainchild of artist J-F Tranquille (you can check out his new blog that goes behind the scenes of his work HERE) who is based in Melbourne, Australia and has had displays and exhibitions of his art, sculptures and toy creations all over town (most recently, and most often, at the awesome Art Boy Gallery).

All of the independently produced Toys you see in this Spotlight are either available to purchase now (or will be very shortly) from the Huggingtons Twisted Toys Storenvy.

Let's get started, shall we?

SPOTLIGHT ON: HUGGINGTONS TWISTED TOYS PART ONE featuring PINCER M.D. & FRANKENTROOPER.

Note: The Filmation-style MOTUC Trap Jaw in this photo shoot was created many years ago by Hunter Knight Customs.

It's been far too long between pop cultural drinks here on Hoard World.

To be fair, while I frequent the Facey B often, and update The Hoardstagram so regularly that one magnificent Hoard Worlder instituted the catchphrase "Hoard World: Bringing you toy insanity on a daily basis!", I have been rather lax with The Blogging and such.

Until now.

And golly gee willikers is this a doozy!

For today I bring you TWO fantastic pieces of Toy Art in Part One of our very special Spotlight on Huggingtons Twisted Toys.

Huggingtons Twisted Toys is the brainchild of artist J-F Tranquille (you can check out his new blog that goes behind the scenes of his work HERE) who is based in Melbourne, Australia and has had displays and exhibitions of his art, sculptures and toy creations all over town (most recently, and most often, at the awesome Art Boy Gallery).

All of the independently produced Toys you see in this Spotlight are either available to purchase now (or will be very shortly) from the Huggingtons Twisted Toys Storenvy.

Let's get started, shall we?

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE DAY 2014: THE CLIP SHOW

We hadn't really planned on doing anything for MOTU Day this year. Never say never.

FOR THOSE WHO CAME IN LATE.......

MOTU Day is April 28th or so it was decreed back in 1987 by Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley.

He might not have meant for anybody to celebrate it in 1988 or ever again, but it's still an absolute fact.

This actually happened.

It doesn't matter that it was created for the sole purpose of promoting the POWER TOUR that was running through LA at the time - if it was good enough for Mayor Tom Bradley and the fine people of Los Angeles, it's good enough for you.

MOTU has an actual day. (See: Los Angeles Times Article April 23rd, 1987 to read it transcribed in print)

So it was declared, so it shall be done. Forever and ever.  He-men.

The oversized He-man and Skeletor heads in this pic are actually vintage pencil toppers, in case you didn't already know. I just shoved them on top of their Classics counterparts. 'Cause I'm an artist.