A is for All Hallow's Eve

So All Hallow's Day must be the 1st of November? Which makes sense as the Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) is traditionally the 1st/2nd of November, although, apparently - depending on the church calendar (?) - the 31st of October can fill in, as can the 6th of Nov., or any other day between the two . . . a bit like Easter then!

 

But in America, the sweet, chocolate and toy fest chose a more rigid 31st, and that's what is slowly ingraining itself into the UK, courtesy of godless marketeers! I just wish we'd get more figures, and less straight-to-landfill-on-the-first nylon and rayon, LED-wired crap!

Although all the above is a bit of a legal technicality, as it's only just gone midnight, I'd suggest All Hallows Eve is a good twelve to eighteen hours away!

This was shot back in February, and may have been a purchase from the Clapham Junction shop I visit every Toy Fair evening, on the way home, but it might have been a donation or in a  mixed lot, I really can't remember, just a [-nother] stretchy skeleton!

 

The recent parcels from Jon Attwood had several Halloweeny things in them, among which were these superb novelty jumpers! Technically I should only collect full-figure jumpers, but once you have a few, they get a momentum (and zone within the archive) of their own, so gratefully received, and the bat is a whole bat, if hideously over-fed! One feels there's probably a pumpkin somewhere?

 

We looked at the left-hand one on ITLAPD, but I thought it also belonged here, and if I don't include the crown it will probably never be seen, and, well, Halloween is for dressing-up, why not a barbie princess! Jon repoted these were from Rinco.

 

These might also have been Rinco, Jon got them at the same time/from the same place, horror-themed erasers and/or halloweeny subjects. Although, I don't consider black cats to be anything other than normal!

My first purchase this year was a few weeks ago, it's Claire's, who have their own chain of stores for women's accessories, but this was in a supermarket, only I can't remember which one, Morrison's I think? Glow-in-the-dark skeleton earrings, too cool for seminary school!

These only came in a few days ago, courtesy of Peter Evans, about 40/45mm, and I don't know anything else about them, semi-rubbery and they would go well with the based ones Dolgen and others have been issuing these last few years at this time, but they are better sculpts, both a higher level of detailing and more realistic.

 

Peter also sent this peachy little undead parachutist fellah! Brilliant!

 

These were in The Range, and appear on the receipt as 80 Toy Spiders which is a commendable level of accuracy! We looked at some similar ones a few years ago and on that occasion all but two went to charity, this year I kept two of each, and the rest have gone to Blue Cross.

 

They have the type of bread-bag closure I used to use as Thunderbird 2 when I was a kid! Like last time, I'll cut the rings off and add them to the spider master-collection. I think the previous lot were in two colours, while these were 20-each of four.

ITLAPD - is for Incredibly The Lad Acquired a Plethora of Desperadoes!

AHH-Harrr! Mee'arrties! Anotherrrr Int'ernationaaal Talk loik a poirate day be upon us arrrlll, and despoite the storrm-clouds outsoid, we be ready with a foin selection o'piraty plaaasstik!

To be honest, each year I wonder if there'll be enough to find for the next year, but it always seems to accumulate through the year, along with donations of both figures and images the supporters of the blog always contribute. As has become the norm in the last few years, we'll start with the odds and sods.

This was the ITLAPD 'seen elsewhere' image about three years ago, I think we saw them in detail last year, so it's just a Picasa-clearing box-ticker and colourful bunch of Hong Kong's finest Marx knock-off cake-decorations!

 

I think these were all in Chris Smith's Spring parcel, and are a right old collection of ner'do'wells, the smallest is a rather large pencil-top, the three to the left are probably all from 'big-box' infant toys or play-sets, while the lady is from the Webbs 'Supertoy' sets.

 

These two went to Charity with Chris's blessing, after I'd shot them for this post, and a couple of close-ups were also taken, the Disney mark might be 'Store' or licence, but I think he's Peter Pan, not PotC?

 

These are a real find!  A bit crappy, quality-wise, but growing on me, and we saw them before, a year or so ago, unbranded here, but under Kipp Brothers in the 'States, I now have more poses, and a branding! The axeman with cutless from last time is missing, so it looks like an eight-count on the total poses?

Jemark Pirates are the local mob, and I think these might have come from Peter Evans a while back? Standard rack-toy import fare, probably more likely found in party-shops? We have a large party-shop in Farnborough, and I check the Clapham one every January as regular readers will know, but they neither, ever have figures in their pirate sections!

 

Upper shot here is another lot of recent or contemporary rack-toy types, and it's proof that it'll be years before I have all or most Pirates, and yet the same exercise can be done with Romans, clowns, elephants . . . Nobody can ever have everything!

Below is a probably French figure, around 60mm I think, I forgot to measure him! More chalkware than some olin-composition, maybe pumice? He needs a bit of surgery on his right forearm, but is fortunately the kind of pink-shade you mix from red & white, so a mend will be well hide'able when I get around to it!

A mixture of figures which have come in over the last 12-months from all sources, on the left a PZG copy of Marx's Captain, two shots of a nicely painted, flamboyant chap from Cane, channelling Captain Harlock and a couple of small Vinyl oddities around 40mm, which might be from a board game?

These have all come from Jon Attwood, in two or three parcels with some Halloween stuff also from the same importer, who in this case is Rinco, and he got them as a job-lot from a closed-down beach-shop/kiosk. Erasers (halloween) and rings (here) and in over-moulded rubber, and a pirate theme!

These (upper shot) are currently in Poundland, and many thanks to Peter Evans for announcing them on his Faceplant group, I actually got a bunch of other things, but thought the three 'PLDZ' Hidden Garden naval items were piratey enough for this post!

 

While below the new resin treasure chest joins several others and a couple of piles of loot, again, all come in, in the last 12-months. The little green one looks familiar, but I can't place it and the large one with a base is a Disney Pirates of the Caribbean piece.

 

The small, odd shaped pile of plunder may be from something like Mighty Max (?), while I think the other is out of the top of a larger treasure chest I may already have, or still be looking out for?

 

These were a charity-thing, I think (apologies if you sent them?) and will be from a smaller 'big-box' play-set aimed at younger kids. I suspect the blue chap is a revenue-man, but not depicting a Brit . . . Spanish or generic 'toy town'? Fun, anyway!

Finally, three cannon; one from Technolog I believe; the grey one, a little PVC one which is Toy Major's design and might be an earlier one from the skeleton warriors sets? The red one is from a current rack-toy set (marked 'China') but I don't know which one yet!

 

Two shots of a home-painted Kinder pirate, who will need to be stripped-clean at some point, and a pair of the Papo 40mm's, a set which is still notable by its absence from the Blog in its entirety . . .Maybe next year?