{"id":7775,"date":"2012-12-31T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2012-12-31T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/plaidstallions.com\/reboot\/index.php\/2012\/12\/31\/the-2012-plaidstallions-retro-awards\/"},"modified":"2019-09-08T18:14:34","modified_gmt":"2019-09-08T18:14:34","slug":"the-2012-plaidstallions-retro-awards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/plaidstallions.com\/reboot\/the-2012-plaidstallions-retro-awards\/","title":{"rendered":"The 2012 PlaidStallions Retro Awards"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nAnother year has passed and it feels strange I\u2019m already typing
\nanother entry in my fake awards show. Happily, we have a lot of ground to cover
\nand things to praise this year. Also, look for some announcement with respect to
\nthe future plans on the site. (it\u2019s mostly good)<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nIt all gets underway after the jump, I promise not to sing the theme song.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

\nBest Retro Movies of 2012<\/b><\/span>
\n<\/span><\/strong>
\nI didn’t go to the movies much this year but here is what I did manage to catch.<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n
\n<\/a><\/div>\n

\nI can’t not mention TED, if only for it’s loving tribute to Flash Gordon and giving Sam J Jones a major part (playing from what I hear, a complete opposite of himself). That alone made the film for me but it was also a fun way to spend a couple of hours.<\/span><\/div>\n

\n<\/div>\n
\nThe Avengers<\/a> was something I\u2019ve wanted to see ever since I
\nwatched Reb Brown shamble on by in all too revealing spandex<\/a>, so it counts. I\u2019ve
\nseen people pick this thing apart and honestly, I pity you if you can\u2019t just
\nhave fun at a movie like this. <\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nDitto on Hotel Transylvania, the movie felt like a modern \u201cMad
\nMonster Party\u201d and my whole family loved it. It likely won\u2019t win any awards but it was a kid’s movie that I didn’t dread or regret, that is an award unto itself.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nBest DVD:<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n
<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nWarner Brothers finally releasing the Logan\u2019s Run TV series<\/a>
\nwas a big fat hairy deal for me and about 12 other people. I absolutely love
\nthis bit of bell bottom sci fi. It\u2019s not for all tastes and I\u2019ll admit I look
\nat it through rose colored lenses but I felt like it was my birthday when I saw this on the shelf at the mall.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nNot exactly DVD but the folks at Rifftrax covered two
\nabsolutely abysmal and hilarious 1970s VOD movies with \u201cThe Revenge of Dr X<\/a>\u201d (a
\nmovie that challenges you to watch it) and \u201cThe Guy from Harlem<\/a>\u201d which single handedly killed blaxploitation . Don\u2019t
\nquestion me, go buy them now.<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n
\n<\/a><\/div>\n

\n
Warner Archive always gets a mention here but releasing the Filmation Shazam! series<\/a> and the second (considerably better than season 1) season of Superboy<\/a> gets them two gold stars in my book. So much low budget Superhero goodness, I can barely handle it!<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span> <\/div>\n

\n<\/div>\n
\nSpecial Mention: <\/b>Thanks to the Burton Dark Shadows movie,
\nseveral of the big chains started selling \u201cDark Shadows Greatest Hits<\/a>\u201d DVDs, I
\nlove the original show and movie but I\u2019m not hardcore enough to buy this<\/a>, so I
\nwas pleased to be able to pick and choose some episodes.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nBest TV:<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/span> <\/div>\n
\nI was skeptical of The Black Dynamite animated series<\/a> at
\nfirst but it really impressed me with it\u2019s ability to both shock and entertain.
\nSome really clever writing on this series has kept me tuning in. My only quibble is the animation looks too slick. I think a Filmation style would have been better but it wouldn’t make the show any more entertaining.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n<\/span> <\/div>\n
\n<\/span> <\/div>\n
\nI’m not a fan of reality shows at all but I do admit I like Toy Hunter<\/a>.  Sure, a few of my friends have been on but moreover, I enjoy it for the lack of forced drama and overall positive energy. Oh and the fact that it’s a show about  vintage toys and collecting that gets it right most of the time. But for the love of Bob, please remove that giggling man from your opening credits, he makes me angry.<\/i><\/u><\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\nHonorable Mention:<\/b> I HATED<\/span> AMC’s “Comic Book Men” during it’s first season but lazily stuck around for the second. The half hour format suits the show much better and it know seems to be acknowledging it’s filler segments as staged. That honesty has made me turn around on this show.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nBest Books:<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n
\n
\nThis year saw me engaged in more books and publications than usual, two that
\nstick out are:<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nLou Scheimer: Creating the Filmation Generation<\/a> (by Lou
\nScheimer and Andy Mangels)<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\nI can\u2019t extol the virtue of this book more than I already
\nhave, it\u2019s just a fascinating story about the struggles of America\u2019s last great
\nanimation company. Mangels compiles the book as if you\u2019re sitting down in a bar
\nwith Scheimer while he tells war stores. Trust me when I say, Scheimer is a great story teller and you’d never want to leave that bar. If you\u2019re a 70s kid, you need this book.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nToo Much Horror Business<\/a> (by Kirk Hammett)<\/span><\/div>\n
\nI\u2019m a collector book junkie (and ahem\u2026.author<\/a>) and I can
\nhonestly say this ranks as one of the finest produced. This is to Monster kids
\nwhat Chip Kidd\u2019s \u201cBatman Collected\u201d is to Dark Knight fans. The beauty of this
\nbook isn\u2019t the attractive layout and lush photography, it\u2019s more in the vibe that
\nHammett is out to share his goodies and stories with the world. All too often, collectors
\nplay everything close to the chest, not so with TMHB. My dream would be see
\nthis become a best seller and have others follow suit.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
\nBest Toys:<\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nOof! My wallet hurts this year, I guess that\u2019s a good thing.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nMad Monster Party<\/a> (Diamond Select Toys)<\/span><\/div>\n
\nI\u2019m honestly not sure what to say here, I’ve wanted these
\nsince I first saw the movie in the late 70s on WGRZ (Buffalo). The figures were
\nnot only well done but very reasonably priced. I hope they sell through the roof
\nbecause I\u2019d really like figures of the other characters.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nSix Million Dollar Ma<\/a>n (Bif Bang Pow!)<\/span><\/div>\n
\nGetting a mego sized Steve Austin and Bigfoot was a big deal
\nfor me, I\u2019m a huge fan of the series and it\u2019s great to have them all interact
\nin my megoverse. Also the figures came with these Bionic sound effect key chains that
\nI\u2019ve been somewhat of a problem about. I\u2019m pretty sure my wife and\/or kids hid
\nthem.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\nUniversal Monsters<\/a> (Diamond Select Toys)<\/span><\/div>\n
\nAfter a long wait for the Creature from the Black Lagoon, we
\nfinally got him in 8\u201d scale and he\u2019s a doozy. EMCE toys<\/a> really knocked it out
\nof the park design wise, creating a new Mego evolution. The bride isn\u2019t a
\nslouch either but wow, that creature, wow.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span>
The Future of PlaidStallions (big announcement time):<\/u><\/b><\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\nOriginally, I planned the site and blog as a “five year mission” , that was before I did an action figure<\/a>, a book<\/a> (and subsequent publishing company) and a magazine<\/a>, also I’m heading towards year seven. So it’s safe to say I’m not going anywhere. I’ve got plenty left to do and say and plan to expand the site with new galleries and features in 2013.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
Regular blog postings will resume this Friday January 4th, however the PlaidStallions store will be shipping orders all week.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\nNew for 2013:<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\nPodcast:<\/b> I had a lot of fun doing the Megomuseum podcasts, so the PlaidStallions Podcast will (hopefully) be a monthly thing I do with a revolving second chair, we’ll cover different geeky and retro topics each episode. I hope to launch this in February but bear with me, I need to figure out the technical side of it all. I’m a slow adapter. More details to follow.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\nMore Books!:<\/b> Plaid Stallions Press will be announcing hopefully two new book projects for 2013 that I hope to bring to market before the end of the year. Both relate to items near and dear to this site, one will require a lot of input from you people.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
In closing, thanks so much for all the kind words and tremendous support in 2012, truly this is one of the most rewarding projects in my life and hopefully it’ll be an even more rewarding 2013.<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n

\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\nAll of our stuff is now available in one handy location.\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Another year has passed and it feels strange I\u2019m already typing another entry in my fake awards show. Happily, we have a lot of ground to cover and things to praise this year. Also, look for some announcement with respect to the future plans on the site. (it\u2019s mostly good) It all gets underway after the jump, I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"series":[],"class_list":["post-7775","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"episode_featured_image":false,"episode_player_image":"https:\/\/plaidstallions.com\/reboot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/podcastmarker.png","download_link":"","player_link":"","audio_player":false,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"dark","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"rss":{"key":"rss","url":"","label":"RSS","class":"rss","icon":"rss.png"},"rssradio":{"key":"rssradio","url":"","label":"RSSRadio","class":"rssradio","icon":"rssradio.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"},"stitcher":{"key":"stitcher","url":"https:\/\/www.stitcher.com\/podcast\/pod-stallions\/ps","label":"Stitcher","class":"stitcher","icon":"stitcher.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/plaidstallions.com\/reboot\/feed\/podcast\/default-podcast","embedCode":"

The 2012 PlaidStallions Retro Awards<\/a><\/blockquote>