Star Wars: The Force Awakens (12/18/15)

[karamazov80]

Here's the pic I deleted. I was reminded of it because the kid in Jedi's picture is the same shade of blue as the Jedi shirt I was wearing here (and of course, because I was one of those kids):

This also may help explain my passion toward the new Superman movies For those of you who are lifelong Star Wars geeks, the Snyder films are in many ways equivalent to the prequels in my mind, when it comes to this character.

Those were circa 1984-86

On another note, Disney Store has lots of Star Wars stuff for 25% off today, including several of the die cast figures.

 

[Khev]

For those of you who are lifelong Star Wars geeks, the Snyder films are in many ways equivalent to the prequels in my mind, when it comes to this character.

Well that's perfectly understandable. For years I was in denial about how bad the prequels were, simply because I thought that six films was all we were ever going to get and I didn't want to foresake half the saga. Luckily that's no longer a concern.

Those pics are awesome, I wish my parents took pictures of me with something Star Wars related as a kid. I lived and breathed those films but you'd never know it from my meager vintage photo record.

 

[karamazov80]

Sadly, many of my childhood pics were lost when Rita flooded my parents' house about 10 years ago. But they still have a LOT. My dad was a photographer though, so he was always taking pics. In addition to those, I've got pics of myself wearing a Hulk shirt, and a M.A.S.K. shirt! I've even got me dressed up as Superman for Halloween, with red undies on the outside, and cowboy boots.

 

[IrishJedi]

Great pics, Kara!

Here's a couple of mine...

So late 70s, early 80s.

 

[karamazov80]

Very cool, I'm usually also wearing those socks in my vintage pics

Where did you see guys dressed up like StormTrooper and Vader? I know they had toy store promotions, but it looks like that's just at a playground.

Also, that's quite a Christmas haul!

 

[IrishJedi]

Very cool, I'm usually also wearing those socks in my vintage pics

Striped tube socks, FTW!

Where did you see guys dressed up like StormTrooper and Vader? I know they had toy store promotions, but it looks like that's just at a playground.

Believe it or not, it was at the playground at my church (St. Joseph's Catholic in Marietta, GA) in August 1977.

Also, that's quite a Christmas haul!

Yeah, whenever my partners say anything about my nerdy collecting habits, I just present that photo (or one like it) and say, "You're fault".

Actually, there is one I've been trying to find for years that is a pile of G.I. JOE RAH toys from Christmas '84. Must find that one.

 

[karamazov80]

I've got one with the Hall of Justice in the background, but I haven't found any good pics of me getting the Skystriker, which was my major childhood Christmas GI Joe haul.

Similarly for me, all my current collecting habits, and the thousands upon thousands of dollars I've spent on this hobby, is really all aimed at trying to recapture the feeling of opening those presents on Christmas day (or oddly for me, Easter day) as a kid. And of course it's never quite the same, but it's my "Rosebud."

 

[IrishJedi]

I've got one with the Hall of Justice in the background, but I haven't found any good pics of me getting the Skystriker, which was my major childhood Christmas GI Joe haul.

Similarly for me, all my current collecting habits, and the thousands upon thousands of dollars I've spent on this hobby, is really all aimed at trying to recapture the feeling of opening those presents on Christmas day (or oddly for me, Easter day) as a kid. And of course it's never quite the same, but it's my "Rosebud."

Same here, man. Every now and then one of those feelings will come right back to the surface. I'm enjoying re-collecting the original 12 Star Wars figures as 1:6 Hot Toys and Sideshow figures (REALLY hoping a Death Star Commander is coming). This new resurgence in DC Super Powers and Marvel Secret Wars stuff is hitting me in all the right spots, too. The truth is... I never really stopped loving all of the things I did as a kid. I just add to the list.

 

[karamazov80]

 

[a-dev]

I have zero photographs associating child-me with Star Wars or with Terminator. Maybe one or two with He-Man and Transformers....neither of which I continued collecting through adolescence and into adulthood.

 

[rushmore223]

Really cool pics guys! Reminds me of my own childhood. As a kid, I think virtually every gift I got from the age of 6 or 7 on was Star Wars, there were very few toys in that line that I didn't have. Oddly enough, one of the few toys I never got is what I blame for fueling my 1:6 obsession in my later years, I so wanted the 12" Fett (and IG-88) but sadly my parents could never track one down. Around the age of 12 is when I decided I was "too old" to buy toys anymore, so I missed out on a lot of ROTJ stuff. Wonder what my 12 year old self would think of the 44 year old he became.


Edit - sadly, my family also lost many of our photographs when our basement flooded.

 

[a-dev]

I only decided I was too old to ''play'' with toys anymore - around 13 or 14. At no point did I ever stop buying them though. I pushed through the embarrassment of carrying my toys up to the cash register.

 

[rushmore223]

I only decided I was too old to ''play'' with toys anymore - around 13 or 14. At no point did I ever stop buying them though. I pushed through the embarrassment of carrying my toys up to the cash register.

I decided to "grow up" too early apparently. The last figure I bought as a kid was Prune Face (aka Orimaarko) but I remember seeing some of the stuff i missed later on and kicking myself.

 

[a-dev]

I decided to "grow up" too early apparently. The last figure I bought as a kid was Prune Face (aka Orimaarko) but I remember seeing some of the stuff i missed later on and kicking myself.

Nah you probably did it better. I actually don't think my case is something to be proud of.

 

[rushmore223]

Nah you probably did it better. I actually don't think my case is something to be proud of.

. But we pretty much ended up in the same place, didn't we?

 

[cerealkeller]

Here's a couple of me with my Star Wars shirts. Lifelong obsession. I was 4 when I saw Empire in the theater, saw it before Star Wars. But I can never remember a time in my life that Star Wars wasn't a part of it because I had 2 older brothers who were fanatics also.

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[cerealkeller]

Also if my sister knew I put that picture of her on the internet she would destroy me....


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[karamazov80]

That shirt with the X-wing fighters flying out of Vader's helmet is awesome. Somehow a kids' shirt is way cooler than the Force Awakens poster.

 

[Khev]

Same here, man. Every now and then one of those feelings will come right back to the surface. I'm enjoying re-collecting the original 12 Star Wars figures as 1:6 Hot Toys and Sideshow figures (REALLY hoping a Death Star Commander is coming). This new resurgence in DC Super Powers and Marvel Secret Wars stuff is hitting me in all the right spots, too. The truth is... I never really stopped loving all of the things I did as a kid. I just add to the list.

Preach on brother. In some ways I do feel like SW continues to transport me back in time to my childhood but on the other hand I'm not sure that childhood is something that I ever left.

Similarly for me, all my current collecting habits, and the thousands upon thousands of dollars I've spent on this hobby, is really all aimed at trying to recapture the feeling of opening those presents on Christmas day (or oddly for me, Easter day) as a kid. And of course it's never quite the same, but it's my "Rosebud."

Yes, my Easter basket of 1979 was my first big "haul." Among the fake grass and candy were Kenner's Darth Vader, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Princess Leia, Hammerhead, Greedo, and a Jawa. I didn't get a Luke until my birthday that same year (X-Wing version) along with the X-Wing itself. That toy was so state of the art with the push button R2 that would make the tiny dot light up with sound.

For Christmas that year I got a Big Trac which served as the Imperial ground transport that Luke always had to destroy and then a ROM Spaceknight figure. My parents took a pic of me holding ROM which is one of like two vintage Christmas photos I still have.

 

[Khev]

That shirt with the X-wing fighters flying out of Vader's helmet is awesome. Somehow a kids' shirt is way cooler than the Force Awakens poster.

OT: Great movies, great marketing, very low end figures (Kenner 3.75 and 12 inch)

PT: Crappy movies, great marketing (trailers, Struzan one-sheets), so-so merchandise

TFA: Great movie, great trailers, not so great posters and toy packaging but awesome Hot Toys figures

Hot Toys is finally bringing OT figures up to today's standards now we just need Hasbro to go back to "The Vintage Collecton" packaging to get TFA figuers on those beloved cardbacks.