If there’s one thing that always goes hand in hand with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle toys, it’s really weird Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle toys. The 80s and 90s saw tons of wacky TMNT figures based on everything from Star Trek, farming, sports, and literally everything in between. When the new Nickelodeon TMNT show and toys were gearing up, I knew we’d get wacky figures eventually, but I didn’t think it would happen so fast.

We’ve barely just now been able to find a steady supply of regular-type TMNT figures on shelves, and suddenly Playmates has them dressed up as Ghostbusters. They may be called Mutagen Ooze Turtles, but come one, they’re Ghostbuster Turtles, and I think that’s why I like them so much. They’re actually pretty horrible action figures. There’s barely any articulation at all.

But Ghostbusters! I’m sure Playmates was going for a more generic hazmat/Ooze-proof suit concept, but it screams Ghostbusters to me. So, until we get actual licensed Ghostbuster Turtles (why didn’t that happen in the 80s?), I’ll have to get by with Ooze Launchin’ Leo, Ooze Tossin’ Raphael, Ooze Scoopin’ Donnie, and Ooze Chuckin’ Mikey.

You’re supposed to fill their little flipper things with ooze from those awesome Ooze Canisters, but that sounds messy so I haven’t tried it yet. This first wave of wacky TMNT figures in the new line has made me realize where I’m going to draw the line on collecting with the new Playmates toys.

If the figures hit me in my nostalgia feels, I’ll probably get them. If they’re wacky enough that I can’t not get them, I’ll get them. If they’re just weird and out of scale with the rest of the figures like the Flingers, I’m not going to bother. I’m sure Playmates is insanely interested in a dorky twenty-something blogger’s reasons for buying or not buying their children’s toys, by the way.

Now, how wacky do you think the new TMNT line is going to get? Let’s think of some examples. You know we’ll get sports and music-related Turtles sooner or later, but what else? The Turtles as US Presidents? Boring Office Workers? Zombies?

The LEGO Shellraiser set is cool and all, but ever since I saw the first retro LEGO Party Wagon I’ve been dying to get an official set. The Turtles’ green and yellow van is my favorite pop culture vehicle and I’d love to have it immortalized in tiny plastic bricks. I don’t know if LEGO will ever come out with a retro line of TMNT sets, but in the meantime we can enjoy the work of talented builders like Orion Pax.

This is the second LEGO Party Wagon (first here) I’ve seen and frankly I want them both. I’d love to order kits to be able to build these myself. I don’t even own any of the TMNT LEGO sets yet but knowing I could have a Party Wagon to put my Turtles in would probably be all the incentive I needed to finally buy them.

Via FBTB

I kind of hate them. Ok, I don’t hate them, but I don’t love them. They’re the coolest Bebop and Rocksteady figures ever and they’re going to be huge and super detailed. I’ll buy at least two and I’ll spam Instagram with pictures. But I’m kind of disappointed. The promise of the Classic Collection to me was finally having figures that were screen accurate to the 80s cartoon characters. Bebop and Rocksteady are the figures I wanted to get that treatment the most, and I’ve been waiting to get a look at them forever.

I think the sculpt of the bodies is awesome, the accessories look perfect, and the size compared to the Turtles looks spot on. The heads just look wrong to me though. They’re too serious, too realistic looking, and too wrinkly. Seriously, what’s with all the wrinkles?

Bebop and Rocksteady are goofy as hell. They’re always smiling and cutting wise, and even when they’re frowning or trying to look tough they look ridiculous. Everything about these figures is awesome to me, but the heads just look weird. I’m sure it’s just me and like I said, I’ll still get them, but what do you think?

Head over to Toy News International for more photos and a video of Playmates’ booth at Toy Fair, which has some awesome new toys in the Nickelodeon line.

This news made my day. The awesome TMNT Classic Collection is getting a series two, and it’s going to be Bebop & Rocksteady. It’s kind of surprising that the next series will only be two figures, but they picked the two I wanted most. I’m sure Playmates just wants to gage how people will buy non-Turtle figures in this line before they dive in and make Shredder, Splinter, April, and Krang.

I can’t wait to see the sculpts of these figures. The classic line really nails the design, colors, and fun of the 80s show, and these two characters should look great done in that style. I hope we get some big, ridiculous guns too.

We should get to see these guys next month at Toy Fair (how I wish I was going), so we won’t have to wait too long to get a look.

Thanks to our friend Cody at Crooked Ninja for the heads up.

As if LEGO Hobbits, Super Heroes, Minecraft, and Back to the Future wasn’t enough to drain your bank account, the newest set in the high-end Creator series is the Palace Cinema, and it’s awesome. I love the marquee and I hope the letters can be easily changed, because I’ve got lots of movies to screen for my minifigures.

This LEGO movie theater fits with the other modular buildings, like the Town Hall I got in July and have only completed the first floor of. These sets are really fun (and hard) to assemble, but there really aren’t any other LEGO products like them. They’re top notch. Here are some more photos:
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