Showing posts with label Batman. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Batman. Show all posts

Thursday, April 21, 2016

My Top Ten Funko Pops!



Funko Pops. Everybody loves them. They are cool, collectible little toys that are based on the likenesses of your favorite movie, television, comic book, video game, and cartoon characters.  Well, at least that is where it starts, anyway. The list of Funko Pops are endless to the point of a series that features sports and cereal mascots. I can’t think of a single series of toys that has been as all encompassing as what Funko has pulled off with their Pop Series. There are literally thousands of characters to choose, from hundreds of different fandoms.  People have taken notice of them, too. They collect them, whether it be an incredibly varied collection of all different sorts, or a focused collection on something such as Disney characters. 

Personally, I couldn’t just stop at one type of Funko Pop, and have a pretty varied collection. In this article, I am counting down my Top Ten Funko Pops. Now, I’m not talking about all of the Pops that are out there, just the ones I happily have in my own collection, which has about seventy or so and growing (always growing). So, what’s the point of this list?  No real point, just wanted to make a list and this was as good a subject as any, so why don’t we just jump right into it?

10) Chernabog: 



There is something that is just awesome about the giant demon that looms large over Bald Mountain, reigning down death and destruction everywhere. Even more amazing is the fact that he’s a Disney character, perhaps the most badass of all Disney characters. The fact that a Funko Pop of the demon from Fantasia (of all things) exists is almost enough to put him on the list. The pop itself is a little bigger than usual, without being 6” in size, and looks sleek and fierce at the same time. His bigger head, permascowl and wings only add to his greatness.

9) Jack Burton:



 If you don't like Big Trouble in Little China then either A) you haven't seen it or B) you’re probably in the vast majority that just didn't get it. If you did see it and did get it, however, then odds are you're a fan of Kurt Russell's Jack Burton, who is recreated beautifully here in this amazing Funko Pop, right down to his awesome shirt, moccasins and mullet combo. It's a Pop that truly captures the essence of the character and the actor that played him.

8) Andre The Giant: 



Andre The Giant was a beloved wrestling icon who crossed over to pop culture in a big way (no pun intended) and this Pop shows off his larger than life presence beautifully. Andre, like Chernabog, is a bigger Pop without being from the 6" line, which is partly accomplished by his huge head. The best part though, is that this pop captures Andre’s personality better than any action figure or toy that I have ever seen of him. It's a thing of beauty.

7) The Creature from The Black Lagoon: 



Every figure from The Universal Monsters line is amazing, but when it comes to appearance, it's hard to beat out the coolest looking one of them all, The Creature from the Black Lagoon. Funko once again managed to capture everything that makes the design of this monster so iconic, from the fish face, to the webbed hands and feet, to the scales. This guy has a huge amount of love and care put into his design, and it shows.

6) Batman '66:



 There are plenty of Batman Pops out there, so you can kind of figure there would be at least one showing up on this list and here it is, Batman '66. Why did I pick this one? Well, unlike so many of the other Batman Pops out there, this one isn't as serious, and it has the classic retro Adam West look. Much like the Batman it was based on, this one doesn't take itself too seriously, and c'mon, can this Batman's cowl ever be matched?

5) Slimer:



Who you gonna call? Well, when it comes to the best Pops, you’re skipping right past The Ghostbusters themselves, and right onto Slimer.  Just look at this guy!  On screen he is about as disgusting looking a character as you can get, so it’s no real surprise he looks to be based more on his appearance from The Real Ghostbusters Cartoon than the movie. Regardless, they still took an ugly as hell character and made him look cuter then he ever had any right to be, and on top of that he’s flying. I think Slimer is the first Pop to do so, and Funko pulled it off by having him floating there with his slime trail connecting him to the floor. And that slime trail? Translucent! It’s just a thing of beauty!

4) Jason Voorhees: 



When I first started collecting Pops I knew I would have a lot of horror pops, and Jason was one of the first ones I wanted, but could never find. He was purchased for me as a Christmas gift after I had lost hope of ever getting him, while others like Freddy, Michael Myers, Leatherface and a bunch more were available. That extra bit of want puts him higher on the list for me, not to mention that Friday The 13th was my go-to horror series when I was younger. Jason also expertly conveys Funko’s abilities to take an incredibly evil character and make him look like a nice guy, despite the blood stained machete he holds.

3) Robocop: 



One of the greatest action characters of all time is Robocop, that's all there is to it. He's also one of the coolest looking cyborgs ever, with an iconic look which this Pop perfectly captures. His head is a thing of beauty, and every nut and bolt is accounted for here, including the little shock things in his feet which gives me no shortage of enjoyment. Basically this Pop is just damn cool looking, even if you know nothing about Robocop himself. I mean, just look at that gun!

2) Alien: 



The Xenomorph from Alien is a scary, slimy, gross, vile looking son of a bitch, but somehow Funko takes all that menace and still manages to make an enduring looking little guy that the whole family can, but shouldn't, enjoy. It is perhaps their greatest example of taking something horrific and taming it, all while staying true to its original H.R. Geiger design. Also, much like Jason, this was a Christmas gift of a Pop I had long wanted, but thought would always elude me.

1) Skeletor: 



Yes, Skeletor and he's number one on my list for a few reasons. First off look at him, he's a thing of beauty. Second, much like so many other Pops on this list, he is a very faithful recreation of the source material. Third, he was my first…and you never forget your first. After seeing this guy and purchasing him as an impulse buy, I thought that was it, really. Pops were not something I was all that interested in at first, but as I brought him home and put him on the shelf, I thought that it just wasn't right that he was so isolated, and thus purchased his arch enemy, He-Man, the next day. Then I purchased the set of Rocky Pops, followed by Robocop and well, that's pretty much all she wrote! After a while, I started thinking about and planning my Pop purchases ahead of time, and since then have constantly been looking to see which Pops would come out next. And it's all Skeletor’s fault, that magnificent bastard!

Sunday, July 29, 2012

Re-Ranking Catwoman

Back on January 9th of this year I put up an article called "Ranking Catwoman" which you can find here. In that article I did exactly what it sounds like and ranked the various women who have played Catwoman throughout the years from TV, movies, animation and video games and in that article I said that I would revisit that article once The Dark Knight Rises came out to put Anne Hathaway where I think she belongs on the list so lets now take a look at where she stands against the rest with the new rankings (and more pictures!)

#10 Halle Berry (Catwoman 2004)


#9 Eliza Dushku (Batman: Year One)

#8  Grey DeLise (Batman: Arkham City)

#7  Ertha Kitt (Batman 1966)

#6 Gina Gershon (The Batman)

#5 Lee Merriwether (Batman 1966)

#4 Michelle Pfeiffer (Batman Returns)

 #3 Anne Hathaway (The Dark Knight Rises)



Anne Hathaway  might be the most faithful live action of Catwoman to date all without her being called Catwoman once in the entire movie. Much like her comic book counterpart Hathaway plays the part of a bad girl who doesn't necessarily want to be bad, she just does what she has to do to get by and if that means kicking a crippled Bruce Wayne in his bad leg to steal his mothers pearls. Though when the time comes shes ready to do the right thing she is there to help out. All that said though she is still not my favorite live action Catwoman.

#2  Julie Newmar (Batman 1966)




#1 Adrienne Barbeau (Batman: The Animated Series)




Once again you can check out the original article here with details on each Catwoman.

Monday, January 9, 2012

Ranking Catwoman

When it comes to Batman there is no doubt that his perhaps greatest female foil, hell why are we playing the sex card here, there is no doubt that his greatest foil may just be Catwoman and as such just like all of his other great foils such as The Joker, we have seen a bunch of of different people take up the cat ears to cause trouble for Caped Crusader. Here is my personal ranking of the greatness of these Catwomen.

TBD Anne Hathaway (The Dark Knight Rises)



I can't say where Ms. Hathaway will land on this list yet since we are all still eagerly awaiting The Dark Knight Rises but I think that in the hands of the very capable Christopher Nolan that she will at the very least not end up at the bottom of the list. If I was to predict where she'll end up on the list, which is exactly what I'm going to do right now, then I would say she'll land right in the middle at #4. So question is who do I think she will be better then, who will she not be better then and yes most importantly where will she actually land on the list after The Dark Knight Rises comes out? Who knows, I guess I'll have to re-visit this blog entry during the summer to say where her official ranking will be. (Find out here in the follow up article)

#9 Halle Berry (Catwoman)



I may not know where Anne Hathaway is going to be on the list but I know that Halle Berry comes in dead last. Why? Any number of reasons, the terrible performance she gives is naturally the main part but the shitty costume (Which some people seem to think is sexy for some reason) and horrendous script don't help her cause either. So congratulations Ms. Berry not only to you continue to unimpress me with everything you do but you are also by FAR the worst Catwoman of all time.

#8 Eliza Dushku (Batman: Year One)



Dushku is low on this list but lets be honest here, she has only been Catwoman briefly in a animated movie that was only a little over a hour long and a short that came with it. What I saw was good but there wasn't a whole lot there to judge maybe if there was more she would be higher but as it stands shes at #8.

#7 Grey DeLise (Batman: Arkham City)


Batman: Arkham City was a damn fun game and one of the best parts about it was that you could play as Catwoman. Grey DeLise took on the role of Catwoman in this game and she did a damn fine job of it but much like Dushku there wasn't a whole lot performance wise to put her to high up on the list. That said that main reason she is above Dushku may just be because I had so much fun playing the game instead of DeLise's performance itself.

#6 Ertha Kitt (Batman 1966)



Do I give away much about the rest of this list by saying that Ertha Kitt is my least favorite of the Catwomen from the 1966 Batman series? Na I figure we knew all three of those Catwomen would be on here anyways. As for Ms. Kitt I think she made a pretty good Catwoman and might even of been higher on the list if not for the fact that the other two Catwomen from the 1966 series were so damn good that they kinda left Kitt in their dust. Maybe if Kitt was the sole Catwoman in another Batman show she would be higher on the list but as it stand she just misses out on making the top 5.

#5 Gina Gershon (The Batman)




Although not the best animated series Batman would have one can't argue that The Batman was a pretty damn solid show and worthy to be in any Bat-fans DVD collection. (note to self, buy The Batman on DVD) Naturally Catwoman has to be a part of any Batman show and it was Gina Gershon who lent her voice to Catwoman this time around and although she was only in five episodes she did a stellar job that left me and many other fans wanting much more Catwoman then what we got in this series.

#4 Lee Merriwether (Batman 1966)

The second of the Catwomen from the Batman 1966 series or more specifically the movie that came from the series. Merriweater was fantastic in the role of Catwoman. It was though this movie and due to that Lee Merriwether that I was introduced to Catwomen in the first place and what a fine introduction it was for that reason and that reason alone Lee Merriwether's Catwoman will always have a happy place in my heart.

 

#3 Michelle Pfeiffer (Batman Returns)



Pfeiffer is often times at the top of most Catwoman lists so it might come as shocking that on my list she only reached the lowly number of third place. Don't get me wrong I Pfeiffer oozed pure sex appeal and captured that part of Catwoman better then anyone else ever did. For years I wanted to see Pfeiffer return to the role and finally gave up on that dream when the Catwoman movie was announced and Halle Berry took the role, bla what a huge letdown.

 

#2 Julie Newmar (Batman 1966)



As sexy as Pfeiffer was was as Catwoman I find that Newmar was even sexier. The sexual nature of Catwomen had to be much more subtle in the series for no other reason then the time it was on TV but that was something that worked even better for the character and lets face it we all picked up on it. Newmar's look as Catwoman was also my favorite of any other Catwoman.

#1 Adrienne Barbeau (Batman: The Animated Series)



Yeah Adrienne Barbeau is the Number one Catwoman on my list even though she never once wore the catsuit on TV. Still Barbeau did more with her voice as Catwoman then anyone else did. The stories involving Catwoman in Batman: The Animated Series were closer to any other depiction of Catwoman in the comics. Barbeau's voice was perfect for Catwoman is was classy, sexy and everything that anyone would ever want Catwoman to be.


So with my opinions on which Catwoman is the best I would like to do something I have never done before and do a dedication. Yup I would like to dedicate this article to the biggest Catwoman fan I know my internet pal Mrs. Nancy Seigh, stay classy lady.

UPDATE: In case you missed it at the top of the article I have now posted my follow up article now that The Dark Knight Rises. You can check out my re-ranking of Catwoman which now Anne Hathaway right here.