1976 Action Figure Explosion!

I got this catalogue just after Christmas, and I wanted to close the year with the single reason I had to have it. This glorious page of plastic joy.  I never saw this page as a kid, but wow, that’s how the inside of my brain looked when I was five. 

This page, with it’s triple threat of Kenner Bionic Man, GI Joe Adventure Team, and Big Jim’s P.A.C.K hit me like a gut punch but in a good way, more like a “gut hug?” is that a thing? 

I enjoyed the book even more when I found the other page with my sixth birthday present, the GI Joe Capture Copter, which also was the “Monster Squad Copter” with my Lincoln Monsters. 

Not to mention the Sky Dive to Danger set, another birthday present and my vote for the single greatest GI Joe set ever.

1976 Action Figure Explosion!

No Offense to fans of Johnny West but I have almost no memory of the toy line. It’s probably because of stuff like Remco Star Trek and the amazing Lazervette had all of my attention and well kind of still do…. 

Happy New Year!

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The post 1976 Action Figure Explosion! appeared first on PS.

1976 GI Joe Adventure Team Catalog PageOver the weekend, a friend asked me to help him with toy research, which meant going through my catalogue collection.  That sort of activity is always welcome here as I get to thumb through some favourites from childhood. In particular, the 1976 Simpsons-Sears catalogue. In Canada, Sears partnered with a Canadian firm called Simpsons, and it remained dual-named until 1984. 

I had this catalogue as a kid, and as I’ve discussed, they’ve fascinated me since I can remember.  This page of GI Joe Adventure Team, well it’s technically the Super Adventure Team by this point is one so deeply ingrained in my consciousness it gives me endorphins looking at it.

Though many have decried this era as a low point for GI Joe, I counter with the thought that it depends on how old you were. This version of GI Joe was “My Era” because I was five, and trust me, I loved it. Here are my reasons for it:

1976 GI Joe Adventure Team Catalog Page

Mike Power: The Atomic Man was added to GI Joe a year earlier and was a hit. Yes, he was a Bionic Man Knock Off but I still played with him even after getting the real deal from Kenner. He was a cool concept and those clear arms were super neat. We won’t discuss how he runs with one “Atomic” leg.

As big of a departure Mike was for GI Joe, it was nothing compared to what Hasbro had planned for 1976. 

BulletMan, the Human Bullet, had a bad rap in GI Joe collector circles for decades, and it’s so unfair. I LOVED this character and was so excited about what was next with GI Joe. I was superhero crazy as a kid and they obviously didn’t have to be comic book based for me to fall in love with it. However, to be fair there is one character I didn’t get behind.

The Intruder was a really out-there concept and one I’d love to know more about. Joe’s first real enemy seemed to be more of a minion than an evil mastermind. The Intruders probably needed a leader of some sort, it would have helped. However, the Intruder has one great defence, it inspired some amazing vehicles like the Capture Copter (which I got for my 6th birthday) and the Big Trapper, which is wonderful.

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The post GI Joe Memories from 1976 or I love Bulletman appeared first on PS.

It seems fitting to end a month of Wish Book pages with what I consider the greatest one ever. From Monkey Wards 1976, the Mego Superheroes battling the Lincoln Monsters.


It’s not my favourite because of childhood (we didn’t have Wards in Canada) but when I was a teen tracking down my childhood monster friends, I could never find them. In the pre-internet days of collecting, I’d plow through toy shop or comic buyers guide and get people trying to sell me AHI and Mego monsters but I knew they weren’t right. 

Then I started buying old catalogs from a collector (that’s a story in itself) and bam! first page I opened, there they were. That was 1989, it only took me 23 years to finish the set….

More on the Lincoln Monsters:

The post Greatest Catalog Page Ever (to me) appeared first on PS.

This is another personal favourite and should come as no surprise, I like monsters. This page with personal favourites the Remco Monsters and my personal “White Whale” Gre-Gory brings a tear to me eye…

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The post Monsters For Christmas appeared first on PS.

Seeing as it’s Christmas eve, I’m going to hurry up and do a few of my favourites before I shut down for the year. This piece featuring Hasbro Super Joe (an underrated line IMHO) features Shogun Warriors Godzilla, for no good reason but it totally works. This is what I miss about catalogs….

More on Hasbro Super Joe

Super Joe Gallery

The post Super Joe meets Godzilla appeared first on PS.

The post Christmas Cowboys appeared first on PS.

It’s true, I loves me some GI Joe. While I have no room to put it all, I sure like to window shop.

The post A little more Kung Fu Grip Love appeared first on PS.

This page is from the 1975 Eaton’s catalog and I’m pretty sure I burned it into my brain that year. Joe’s world (and packaging artwork) has always captivated me and 1975 was a super special time for me…mainly because I was five.

Atomic Man was a childhood favourite of mine (though the appearance of Steve Austin did diminish Mike’s appeal) and Sky Dive to Danger (the set where Joe lands into a giant spider web) will forever be my favourite GI Joe set of all time.

The post Atomic Joe Love appeared first on PS.

The post Vintage Barbie Love appeared first on PS.

I would feel remiss if I didn’t extend the Bionic Monday spotlight to the Bionic Woman, a show my sister watched loyally (I’d watch the Fembot ones or when Steve did a guest star/crossover). While I personally never had any of this stuff, I remember how big a deal it was on the playground.

The post Bionic Monday! appeared first on PS.