Bucky O'Hare Boss Fight Studio

Small Soldiers Gorgonites

He-man Masters of the Universe Classics

Usagi Yojimbo

Zodiac Toy Stores

Zodiac Toy Stores were a chain of toy stores in the UK that were very successful in the 1980s but unfortunately quickly went out of business in 1990. As a child I would be in heaven every weekend when my parents would take me to my local Zodiac, which I only knew as 'the He-Man shop'. 

 The wall of Masters of the Universe toys seemed as if it reached the ceiling as I stood in awe at all the new characters for me to choose from.

 For a more in depth look at Zodiac toy stores and their history go to https://zodiactoys.wordpress.com/

Captain Simian and the Space Monkeys

 Captain Simian and the Space Monkeys premiered on September 7th 1996 but ended after just 26 epsiodes on June 21st, 1997. The cartoon series followed the adventures of Captain Simian and his crew: Gor-illa, Spydor, Dr Splitz and Shao Lin as they travel the cosmos in their ship the Primate Avenger to protect the universe from the evil Lord Nebula, a half human, half black hole villain who wanted to become a complete black hole to swallow the universe.
The series featured some nice animation for the time and pretty funny writing. Often referencing pop culture movies such as Alien and Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

Mattel released an action figure line to accompany the animated series in hopes of catching the same success the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles had. Though like many before it such as Bucky O'Hare, Street Sharks and Biker Mice From Mars it failed to attract the level of fandom the TMNT had. In fact of all the Turtle wannabes, the Space Monkeys feared the worst and it seems to be a nigh on forgotten show with no DVD release and only fuzzy VHS copies of episodes online. A shame as the cartoon and toy line were both good quality and deserve more of a fan base.

Super Looney Tunes - Bugs Brigade International.

 The Super Looney Tunes were released with McDonalds happy meals back in 1992, amalgamating the Warner Bros cartoon characters with DC superheroes. The set of four was made up by Bugs Bunny as Super Bugs, Daffy Duck as Bat Duck, Porky Pig in drag as Wonder Pig and The Tasmanian Devil as Taz-Flash. 

The gimmick of the toys was that you could switch them from the regular characters of Bugs, Daffy, Porky and Taz to their superhero identities with snap on outfits. 

The Looney Tunes comic at the time featured strips about the Super Looney Tunes naming them the Bugs Brigade International. 

TerrorTeds Werebears Artwork

Beasty Bears

Werebears had been a successful toyline in the UK during the 1980s and moving into the 90s so Hasbro Toys in the USA decided to sub license the concept and re-brand it Beasty Bears for the American market.
The Beast Bears had slightly more simplified designs compared to the UK counterparts that all had unique features from each other. One Werebear had just one fang, one had no teeth and another wore a jumper. The Beasty Bears however all shared the same basic design, the only difference between them being the color scheme. All but one reused the names from the Werebears. Howler, Grizzler and Fang. Gums as a name would not make sense for a bear that still had all it's fangs so instead the final Beasty Bear was called Snarly.