[elbe]

I just wanted to say that I first of all I think that the site Toyark is pretty cool. Here you get to share a lot of appreciation for things you collection that other people may not understand.

Case in point I just brought the Marvel Legends Wolverine action figure and I finally found the Red Ranger Legacy collection from Walmart (as seen in the attached thumbnails) and these particular figures make the point of why I got into collecting in the first place.



In these two thumbnails are a comparison. What you see there are two figures I actually owned when they came out: The first Toybiz Wolverine action figure and the first red power ranger (when you press a button the head flips around).

Back then, I wasn't too fond of these figures, but its all I had growing up. Fast forward to today and now look at these figures... they are so detailed and the articulation is SOOO much better it's amazing. I suppose its a long winded way of saying these are the action figures that I always wanted as a kind but took 20+ years for us to get to this point.

So I think in some way, I am fulfilling a duty for my inner child, lol. It is like now that I can afford it, I wanted to buy some things I would have loved as a kid growing up and then I look at some of these figures knowing I will pass this on to my kids some day.

Well anyway as a comparison it just makes me understand how far toys have come since I had them when I was a kid. I was curious, or wondering what were some of the reasons some of you got into collecting action figures?

[En Sabah Nerd]

I would have to say I started collecting on account of how many Star Wars toys I had as a kid. Whenever I played with them I was always sorta interested in looking over the sculpts and seeing how progressively the toys looked better and moved more and more. I had an easy time transitioning from kid who played with toys to guy who collects them because even when I stopped playing with my Star Wars I still bought many new ones (until the Phantom Menace 3D re-release killed the line in my area for like two years).

[RolandofGilead]

I played with a bunch of different action figures as a kid, but let most of them go when I grew older. Years later, while my wife and I were dating, we both were into Batman the Animated Series. One day we found some action figures while at Target and were so impressed with how much they looked like the cartoon, we grabbed them up. It then became a thing. We would store hop looking for all the rest of the Batman villains. For me it was the first time I had stepped foot in a TRU since my mom had to drive me there. Soon Star Wars returned, and later GI Joe, and it became ingrained in me to seek out new toys all the time.

Great fun then, but these days, all my toys come from online. It seems stores no longer carry what I collect.

[SpasticPlastic]

I had nearly every Masters of the Universe and almost every G.I. Joe Real American Hero toy while growing up. Once I discovered girls had squishy parts, I got rid of everything. (Sad to say, literally hundreds of Joes and vehicles just handed over to a kid that destroyed them all in a matter of weeks.)

Flash forward a bunch of years and it was McFarlane's Tortured Souls line that got me buying toys again. Those things are works of art. After that I was rabidly seeking out any and all Horror figures I could find. Then, DC Direct released the Hush line, and it's been an addiction since, making me not only get every single release after, but hunting on the web for all past releases. Up to when DCD became DCC, I had every figure they ever released minus a handful. (Wasn't too keen on the Planetary line). Add in a rabid obsession with all things NECA, starting with, I think, the Hellraiser line. I stopped getting McFarlane stuff when they stopped making 6-7". Still kinda bummed they didn't finish the Zodiac line...

[Augustus_Cole]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SpasticPlastic

Once I discovered girls had squishy parts, I got rid of everything.

lolol....awesome...

[Dr Kain]

I didn't want to give up buying toys of things I liked, but I got too old to play with them. :-p I don't care for statues and busts because I like to be able to change the poses of my figures.

[warmachine6]

no idea , i did remember having 1 or 2 spiderman figures ever since i was a kid , think it hit me when i saw the tobey spiderman movie, i remember getting it i think for christmas ... anyway i dunno some how lost track and went on a lego addiction, then grew out of it, though i still have them.
Then started with a black spider-man figure, then i must of found out stuff online as you do , and thanks to ebay i got more and more.. I just enjoyed getting my favorite characters and being able to pose them around its still awesome but one day i shall stop when i have all the classic characters i know of which maybe the fantastic 4 ...and future x-men waves. But hasbro may suprise us as well as marvel , they know how to make their movies...

[CxGVoodooDoll]

I think for me the older I have gotten, the more appreciative I've become.

[Startaiger]

Mc Farlane Toys back in the 90's. "It's all Todd's fault!!"

[elbe]

At this point if I could I would start a Hot Toys collection, but its SOOOO expensive, but that's like the ultimate improvement over anything I had growing up, lol

[Lazer]

Had probably a truck load of TMNT figures growing up. I dabbled in He-Man and Thundercats and Transformers but didn't dedicate nearly as much time seeking out those as I did anything TMNT.

Dropped the hobby around the time the X-Men cartoon went off the air, I only collected the core characters from the series and with all my turtles it sat in a trunk until my first nephew was born. He inherited tons of 80's and 90's toys and played with them to death. Around the time super articulation showed up on toys I started seeking out some of the characters I was fond of.

Sure enough my nephew is almost out of high school and I am at least knee deep into 6" Black Series, various DC Universe Batman/Superman stuff, and I got pretty into the Neca 7" movie horror characters. (99.99% of all my McFarlane figures fell to pieces except for that ridiculously cheap af The Maxx figure) so I was glad Neca came to the rescue and fulfilled my dream of having super poseable Aliens and Predators.

Not gunna lie though, I did pick up the random figure over the years but I never collected entire lines of any brand or stock up on tons of any single character. Whatever caught my eye in the moment probably came home with me. And I am grateful that TMNT stayed up to date cos' my nieces are pretty heavy into getting those, along with turtle vehicles.

Figures were just a good source of happiness and I haven't hardened one bit, regardless of the scalper culture entailed in chase collecting, I'm a open and play with or display (I don't play with them anymore I like to pose them and leave them alone). So while my collection never really grows, I pass down stuff every now and then like Marvel Legends so that they don't go to waste if my nephews or someone really wants a figure on the shelf. A good reason to stay in the game and keep collecting.

[BlackRazor]

Quote:

Originally Posted by En Sabah Nerd

I would have to say I started collecting on account of how many Star Wars toys I had as a kid. Whenever I played with them I was always sorta interested in looking over the sculpts and seeing how progressively the toys looked better and moved more and more. I had an easy time transitioning from kid who played with toys to guy who collects them because even when I stopped playing with my Star Wars I still bought many new ones (until the Phantom Menace 3D re-release killed the line in my area for like two years).

Same here & then GI Joes came along in the same size so it was natural they could fight.

To me the 3.75 size is perfect, you can set up big battle scenes & with all the choices now, some very realistic looking little action figures.