F For Fake

@greggy is the only "market report" I trust. If he's buying stuff that's not on my radar, it is then added to my radar. Never fails!

Another scammer tastes the justice of the CGC Boards! They always get their man. I'll never understand the people who try to take the ethical shortcuts. It's always going to catch up with them. It's so much more work to be dishonest, I don't get it.

Thanks! Yes, they are much lighter/flimsier for sure. And not just the figures. In handling these I've been very cautious because it feels like bubbles are extremely thin and may pop right off of the card. Unfortunately none of this stuff was built to last.

Thanks! The Topps set I still great, particularly the subset of stickers. They're not too terribly expensive either, to for it!

Yes, Psych Out is a Euro figure. No as pricey as Outback, but still nice to have. And yeah, he cut me a sweetheart deal on the set, so I was super stoked to get the complete Skystriker. Thanks can't believe how prices have gone up on some of this stuff.

Thanks! And yeah, Zartan is great! As a kid I thought it was so cool that you got the figure, and you got a vehicle and accessories too, plus he changed color in the sun! What's cooler than that when you're 7 years old?

And last but certainly not least, my remaining toy grail! Earlier in the year, I picked up the Alien Blaster set, which was my #1 want. Now I have my #2, a complete Kenner Alien! These aren't actually rare (you can find several on eBay on any given day) but they ARE tough to find in really nice shape, with the instructions and a decent box at a price that isn't more than my monthly mortgage. This one fit the bill. I was very surprised to see it. Got it from the same guy I bought the Jaws from. Just such a lovely piece. A lot of the time you find these with cracked (or missing) domes, chrome on the teeth is chipped, or limbs have fallen off due to the string inside breaking. But this thing is cherry. So gorgeous. The box is fair, but it's all there and solid, so I'm pleased. The poster/instructions are similarly nice. And there you have it! I spent way too much, but I'm very satisfied. Thanks for reading!

Next up, the Jaws Game! I had this as a kid, and have been looking for one for a while. They aren't hard to find, but are tough with all of the accessories and a nice box. This one has all of the junk parts, minus the hook. The shark itself isn't perfect, but nice enough. But the main reason I bought it was for this snowy white box. It's gorgeous.

And that's it for Joes, but the fun doesn't stop. Next up was my favorite surprise haul of the con. Not the most valuable, but the most fun! So, there was a table set up in the hallway, and I saw that he had a Toy Biz DC Super Heroes Mr. Freeze figure for sale. Now, I'm one of the few weirdos that really like this line, and Mr Freeze was the last figure I needed. He's not valuable or hard to find, I just never felt like spending the $15-$20 to buy one. I ask the guy "how much?" and he says "$5". SOLD! Then I notice on the floor a box with a Justice League Watchtower, with the box, and a big bag of JLU figures. I tell him I'm interested. He says he's not sure how much to ask. In my head I'm thinking I'll offer $100 based on what I can see, but he says "$50" so I say SOLD! And then it gets better! Once I get it home, I realize that not only is there the Watchtower, and the bag of figures, but inside of the box there are THREE more bags of figures...AND a Javelin 7! I'm pumped. But it doesn't stop there! Last night I'm finally getting it out so I can see if the playset is complete, and when I remove the Javelin 7 from the box, I find there's a collectors case in the back, with even MORE figures! This box is like a Bag of Holding! It seems to hold an infinite amount of toys! So, last night I finally got it all set up and organized, and I'm stoked. I got the Watchtower, the Javelin 7, and FIFTY TWO figures, all for $50! And the fact that it was 52 figures exactly made it seem like it was a sign from the toy gods that I'd done well. I got the Watchtower set up, and am happy to report that it is complete except for a single small clip at the top which connects one of the rocket firing cannons. I can live with that, considering the rest of the haul. The batteries were completely corroded and exploded, but after some work with an exacto blade and sandpaper, I got the electronics working again! This thing is so cool. The thing is, about three weeks ago, I sold the bit of JLU stuff I owned because I figured I'd never have a chance to dig further into the line. Who new I'd pick up an instant collection less than a month later? I'd picked these up intending to sell, but I think they're in the permanent collection now. The first pic is exactly what I saw in the box, before i knew what wonders awaited.

Up next, some weird random stuff. I love the odd non-toy licensed stuff. The Colorforms are nearly complete, I think it's missing the monkey but is otherwise all there. Also got this board game for $10. And then there's the kite. Isn't it glorious? For $20, I had to have it. How often do you see epic Joe battles between Sci-Fi and Storm Shadow depicted on a kite? Practically never, I'd guess. Same guy also had a 1983 unused paper tablecloth that I've never seen. I didn't bite at $30, but now I really wish I had.

Oh, I almost forgot, I picked up my buddy's set of Tiger Force figures, to complete my set. A few accessories missing, but they're all in pretty decent shape.

Next up, Joes I actually bought at the show! Not pictured are a handful of loose figures I bought to go with the complete accessory sets I already owned. Jinx, Dial Tone, Torch, nothing fancy. I did get this nice complete Mutt with the full cardback. Mutt was the very first GI Joe I ever bought, at the Thornberry's Toys at Jefferson Mall. I wanted him because he came with Junkyard, and I thought that was so cool! My second Joe was Major Bludd (so he'd have a bad guy to fight) and the third was Zartan! I'd had Zartan on my list for a while. I wanted him complete, and I wanted a box. The box didn't have to be perfect, but I wanted one. Ended up buying the only one for sale at the show for a decent price. I was also looking for Serpentor in similar shape, but didn't find one.

All right, at long last, I'm ready to share my KYGiJoe fest haul! I'm sure you were all waiting with bated breath. Probably couldn't sleep well either, could ya? As always, expect several long-winded posts. Feel free to skip to the pics. SO, did I go to a toy show during a pandemic? The answer is yes, and I'm not proud of it, but here's why I went: 1. The organizers promised strict safety guidelines, including limiting entrance to half of the room capacity, mandatory masks for vendors and guests, hand sanitizing stations, and all of that stuff. And they stuck to it. It was all very well organized and they had full buy in from vendors and guests. 2. While this is a terrible thing that continues to rage on, our state has done relatively well from the onset, and our numbers are much better than neighboring states.The risk was relatively low. 3. We'd already paid for the table! So, we sucked it up and set up at the show as planned, and feel like it was all handled really well. I'm fully aware that it wasn't perhaps the smartest choice, and I've placed myself back in self-quarantine for two weeks since we returned. So let me say that I'm not advocating for attending public gatherings, I don't think it was the smart move, but it's the move I made, so I'm living with it. My anxiety since we returned is such that I probably wouldn't make the decision to go if I did it all over again, but the truth is that everything is probably just fine. So, public service announcement and justifications out of the way, let's get to the toys. One of my oldest and dearest friends is a hardcore Joe guy, has been collecting pretty much his entire life. He has a more or less complete set of every figure and vehicle produced between 83 and 91 or so, with a select few pieces from the later years. He moved into his new house a couple of years ago, and finally finished setting up his dedicated GI Joe display, which is like a mini-museum. But part of that process was deciding to let go of most of the stuff he'd picked up post 91, including the 25th anniversary figs, and lots of other random stuff. So we decided a long time ago to get a table, and he'd sell off his extras at the show, and whatever was left would go on eBay. I split the table with him in order to get the early admittance to the show, and have a nice spot to stash my buys. I brought a few token things for sale. I sold about $63 of stuff Saturday. He made about $4k. He was happy. Before the show started, I picked up a bunch of his later stuff. I'd been picking at it slowly over the last few months, but this weekend I went ahead and picked up one last chunk. His prices were already well below market value (he just wanted the stuff gone) and he added a "best friends since we were 12 years old discount", so I got this stuff for a song. He knows he can come visit it whenever he likes. First up, a complete set of the 1997 and 1998 TRU packs. No vehicles and no Stars and Stripes set, but everything else is here, and they are sharp. I always enjoyed this line. The 97 series had some cool re-decos, but the 98 series are some of the best repaints they ever did in the line. The Cobra Polar Force, Navy Assault, and Oktober Guard sets are particularly rad. Next up, I picked up a smattering of his 25th figures. I'd already bought several over the last few months, so I went ahead and added more to the stack, including all of the convention exclusives and the Doc mailaway. I still don't love the body styles of these figures (those long, skinny torsos still look weird to me) but there's no denying that they look pretty neat on the card, particularly the foil ones.

That's a big monkey!

Never get tired of seeing this!

All of this stuff ties my head in knots, to the point where it all seems so abstract that I start thinking about how money doesn't even really exist, it's just a series of 1's and 0's that we all agree mean something. And I'm not even stoned!

Yeah, that really, really bothered me for a long time. Ended up selling them off when they started doing the Omni's. I THINK with the latest omni we're now caught up on the material covered in the archives, right? I think that brings us up to the stuff covered in the Superboy and the LoSH deluxe hc's. What I'm REALLY waiting for is the Grell and Cockrum stuff!

I'm going to send a sternly worded email demanding that we be included in these decisions!

Stan Lee was a glory hog hack. Steve Ditko was a crank. I know which one would probably be more fun to hang out with at a party, but I'd trust what the other one says a lot more.

Yeah, it's crazy how crazy that makes me ha They may do just that, I think they updated Justice League 1 and Flash 1 when they reprinted them, didn't they? I guess they think the uniform look turns people off, I guess if the volumes look more individually exciting they'll sell better? I dunno. To me, I think it's pretty clear that the buyers for these things are the hardcore nerds who want a full set, and like the look of a standard trade dress on their shelves. At least I know I do!

Yes, this is it precisely. I like that Archie book, but I liked the $250 more. I'd also like the Alf and Rifleman, but like I said, I'm holding off for a dollar bin find on Alf, and I'm hoping to dig Rifleman out of a toy mall for $10 at some point. Seems like I always run into beat up westerns and tv books at those places.

To Mountains of Plastic! That's just how everything sorta came to rest as I got it into the house, and I haven't had a chance to dig back into it yet. Tonight is the night!

You definitely see Duke! And yes, good eye, that's the Basilisk, although he's an innocent bystander, I didn't pick that up at the show. He's a victim of relocation as I prepare a new spot for my vehicles. That is the Justice League Watchtower, and its acquisition is a pretty good story! Details as soon as my boss stops giving me work to do. The nerve!

Yes, the newest volume follows the trade dress of the latest volumes. It looks nice, but I still don't know why they abandoned that original Gold/Silver/Bronze trade dress midstream. It wasn't beautiful, but it was uniform. Now the series are a mishmash of designs. Drives me nuts! This is the cover, btw. (Picture is not mine.)

Yeah, I couldn't find it on there last week on what should have been release day according to their schedule, then it popped up later in the week. I need to get it but even at 1/2 off it's still $75. A bargain for sure, but I've been spoiled by all of the $125 MSRP Omni's that go on sale for $58 or thereabouts.