P R O M E T H E U S 2

P R O M E T H E U S was on UK TV again last night and I had to watch once more. For me its one of the most exciting films ever made and - one of the most important. 

Like Tron Legacy, the new Godzilla and the upcoming Star Wars flick, there are sequels and there are the true sequels [OK, Godzilla is a remake BUT it is THE remake]. Prometheus is such a sequel.

Whatever comes after these films will be dangerously cold seconds and Directors attempt resequels at their peril. So I was amazed to find out from Bill that Ridley Scott is making Prometheus 2 [ P2 is not to be confused with Neill Blomkamp's ALIEN 5].

Now because I love Ridley's xenomorphestra I was interested to see what P2 might look like so I shaked and baked a little online.

The new film will be called ALIEN: PARADISE LOST, continuing the classic literary theme but also linking it back to the original trilogy. Alas, I can't help thinking its a little clumsy.

I personally think U N B O U N D would have been a better title, carrying on from Promethius. Or maybe just  P A R A D I S E  harking back to the one-word titles of A L I E N and Prometheus itself. But what do I know? If I knew anything I'd be making a sequel to a groundbreaking blockbuster prequel myself! ha ha.

Anyhoo, should you wish to open the dark vase of God Knows What and peer into the reactive mists of Ridley's new acidic vision then go to the website here, where you will hear a rousing score befitting such a cosmic epic.

However, for my money, Ridley could do no better than reusing the grand score and visuals from Gerry Anderson's concept footage for E T E R N I T Y, which now I look at it, would have made a great name for Prometheus 2! Click here on You Tube and turn off the adverts and annotations for the full uncluttered experience.

I wonder of we could get Ridley to make PROJECT   S.   W.   O.   R.   D: The Movie? ha ha.

Any thoughts on P2 or ALIEN or anything xenomorphic readers?

PROJECT SWORD TOYS RARITY SCALE

After 7 years of blogging and 15 years before that discussing Project SWORD online I thought it would be interesting to take stock of the relative scarcity and commonness of Project SWORD toys. 

A bit of fun and not really scientific either, I thought I'd do a scale of sorts. I'll just cover proper toy vehicles and not die casts, paper models, plastic kits or miniatures. No books or comics either.

Here is my take based on the number of existing examples of the toys known to me [i.e. examples with me or fellow collectors, seen on ebay and other online evidence of numbers]:

RAREST

0. Century 21 Moon Base Set - no known examples

0. T in a Circle/ Century 21 Moon Bus with T emblem on nose - no known examples

1. SL Task Force 3 - 1 example

1. YT White Space Bird Probe Force 3 - 1 example

1. Century 21 Yellow and Purple Probe Force 3 - 1 example

1. Durham Green Space Glider [loose] - 1 example

1. Carded Japanese Scouts 2 and 3 - 1 example each

1. Carded Tarheel Task Force Force 2 and 3 - 1 example each

1. Blue Tarheel Task Force 1 [loose] - 1 example

1. Gold Task Force 3 [brand unknown] - 1 example

1. Century 21 Scout 1 complete with radar - 1 example

2. Hover remote controlled Probe Force 3 - 3 examples

2. Century 21 Scout 3 - 3 examples

2. Century 21 orange Space Glider - 3 examples

2. Tomy Interplanetary Apollo Saturn Rocket - 3 examples

2. YT Silver Space Bird PF3 - 3 examples

3. Century 21 Nuclear Ferry - 5 examples

3. Hoover Booster Rocket - 5 examples

3. Mego Space Tract and Day-f-Ran Space Glider - 5 examples

3. Italian de-Tarheeled Moon Ranger - 5 examples

3. Hover Space Glider - 5 examples

4. Century 21 Cape Kennedy Set - 10+ examples

4. Century 21 Scout 2 - 10+ examples

4. Tarheel boxed Project SWORD of any kind [not including rare branding] - 10+ examples

4. Hover and NaSa Probe Force 1 and 3 - 10+ examples of each

4. T in a Circle Moon Bus and Moon Prospector - 10+ examples of each

4. Chibi Bichi Moon Prospector - 10+ examples

4. Sears Rocket Base Apollo Saturn - 10+ examples

5. Century 21 Apollo Saturn and Zero X - 50+ examples

5. Century 21 Probe Force 2 - 50+ examples

6. Century 21 Moon Ranger, Dyna Soar, Task Force and Probe Force 1 - 100+ examples

7. Century 21 Moon Prospector, Moon Bus and Probe Force 3 - 250+ examples

COMMONEST

Views/ comments/ additions/ removals welcomed!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY THUNDERBIRDS

Today is Thunderbirds'  50th anniversary.

Many happy returns International Rescue.

JAPANESE SPACE CRAWLER

From my favourite Japanese You Tuber.

Anyone know the kit's name?

CENTURY 21 OX BOX SHOCKS

Blimey, look what was happening inside my Zero X toy box!

LOFT PROPERTY: MORE OF MY OLD TOY SALES

Some more of the old toys I found at car boot sales and sold on Ebay back in 2009. By that point I had been Ebaying for 9 years, after the online site arrived here in the UK in 2000. I miss those heady days of scouting for toys and excitedly listing them when I got back. I stood at toy fairs too with any better quality stuff I had.  I only sell the odd item nowadays on the Bay. Do you sell old toys readers?

NO TOY WEAPONS? WHAT DO YOU THINK?

When you travel to Europe you will see many safe toy shops, particularly in Germany.

When I say safe I mean that there are no military toys. I was going to say weapons but that's not true, as we shall see.

The de-militarisation of play appears to be a backlash against violence and violence in childhood. If I consider my own childhood in the Sixties UK it would have meant no Action Man, no Johnny Seven, no Secret Sam Attache Case, not to mention countless other toys.

Safe play focuses on constructional and educational toys. Fantasy comes in the form of generic historical characters: Cowboys and Indians, Pirates and Knights in Armour [ hardly bloodless epochs].

As such, some 'fantasy' weapons are allowed; bows and arrows, cutlasses and swords, but not in all safe toy shops.

I'm sure the removal of militarised toys isn't new and the debate over the origins of violent play has raged forever. Just think of the furor caused by Video Nasties in the 80's. Shop keepers were imprisoned!

In contrast, here in the UK we have some action dolls in the toy shops emulating the real Armed Forces here. Like Action Man did back then. In fact these new figures could actually be marketing for the Armed Forces! I'm not sure this is quite right either.

So what do you think readers, remove all toy weapons from the hands of our kids?

DOLL JETS

Here's the Action Man jet Paul mentioned. I never had one of these babies I don't think. It must have been huge!

I did have the large truck and a jeep.

Oddly enough I have two Barbie jets in the loft. They are ginormous! There's even a working microphone! Keep meaning to put them on a car boot stall I have now and then buy they're so damn big!

pics; ebay

WATER ON MARS!

I saw the news today. Oh Boy!

Evidence of water on Mars! I had to check it wasn't April Fools! I was and still am excited. Life's great liquid on the Red Planet and our nearest neighbour.

Fabulous!

THE ACTION MAN RACING CAR

Picture: Oocities

We don't talk about Action Man much on this blog for some reason but he was a major part of my childhood. He was easilly as important to me as Major Matt Mason, if not moreso.

I had tons of Action Man stuff in the Sixties. One of my favourite vehicles was his green racing car seen here in a catalogue.  I can see ol' Ach in his formula One togs and helmet zooming down the hall of our house, the longest straight run of floorspace we had.

A classic plastic toy and a big hardy one, so its strange that in all my 25 years of car boot sales I have never seen one for sale. 

Did you have one readers?

KNIGHT TERRORS: FIGHTING MY SIBS WITH PLASTIC SWORDS

Around the late Sixties my indoor battles with my two brothers went ballistic. We got tooled up. Out went socks stuffed with socks [although they would re-appear] and in came weapons. These were weapons for kids and included artillery and small hand arms.

But the first flush of weapons came in the mid Sixties and were medieval; bows and arrows, maces, swords and knight's armour. These were classic toys which are mostly still available, fitting as they do, like Pirates and Cowboys and Indians, in the unlicensed sweep of human history. Often these toys were bought on our superb Summer holidays at Butlins holiday camps.

Me and Aunty Terry, Butlins, circa 1965

Inspired by my Marx Noble Knights, I would don my silver plastic knight's helmet, silver breastplate and circular shield and looking like the heroic Ivanhoe I was reading about at the time, I trundled off, plastic broadsword in hand, in search of damsels in distress and older brothers I could pester! These broadswords were quite hefty affairs with a ridged grip, thick T-bar style hand guard and a wide two-edged 36 inch blade. I loved sliding it out of the equally chunky scabbard attached to my belt and spinning the sword around in my hand like a gunslinger!

I tended to spin the sword on approach of my hapless prey, usually one of my annoying siblings and with the timeless, although somewhat historically incorrect battle cry of 'Geronimo' I would strike like a Knight's Templar! The broad bladed weapon would produce an incredibly satisfying plastic 'thwap' sound on my brother's backside as it struck true, to which I would shout 'Cry God for Harry!', which I'd seen on the cover of my Mum's novel.

My brother would shout 'You little bastard!', promptly turn and try to grab me Kendo Nagasaki-style. Forsooth, I was long gone and well on my back to yon jousting yard! Actually I was on my way to one of several hiding places scattered around the house, where I could regroup. Both of my brothers knew my hiding places so to call it a game of hide and seek would be disingenuous to that classic pastime. No, this was more like Seek and Destroy and I knew a good drubbing was but a rusty cutlass away! My only reason for hiding was to gain some time and choose a new weapon stashed there, one which was suited to hand to hand combat in close quarters.

If I was feeling brave and masochistic I would, when found, deploy a toy dagger with a retractable spring-loaded blade for effect. It was great fun especially if I was hidden in the double door blanket cupboard, which was huge and shelved. the shelves were so big and strong that I could climb them like a ladder and lie on the top one, bedded down on sheets and pillows and close the doors from the inside. When the door creaked open I would plunge the toy dagger in my brother's shoulder. 

He would shout 'Dammit!', to which I would follow up with the second of my arms, a brown plastic mace complete with knobbly bits on the business end. I loved this thing and clubbing either of my older brother's over the head from my crow's nest ranks highly on my best feelings of all time list!

Like any knight errant worth a maiden's hanky I had weapons aplenty in my junior armoury. The wide broadsword was my blade of choice but I also had short black medieval dirks with grips and scabbards encrusted with plastic emeralds. For a more sophisticated look I would brandish a toy rapier, foil or epee, all long thin swords complete with curled guards and black shiny scabbbards. Gently hawling one out would inevitably lead to me bellowing 'En Guard' like D'Artagnon in the Three Musketeers.

I also had a plastic axe for leaving a bruised line on my siblings' backs, which would guarantee a long and painful trial by combat for me. Ideally I would have liked larger shafted arms like a halberd, poleaxe, pike or a lance. A life size toy horse , which could gallop would have been cool too! 

I know I had a bows and arrows, a spear and a horn but these represented another epoch entirely and one which would be a stepping stone to a full-scale ballistic toy theatre of war, the Wild West.

Scratchbuilt Spacex Explorer MEV2 by Kevin D

left: new 2015 scratchbuild, right: original 1970 toy

Hi, Just finished my scratchbuild of the Spacex Explorer MEV2. 14 down, one to go! Take care, Kevin

WHAT DO YOU DO ON SUNDAY MORNING?

I've always found Sundays a strange day, sandwiched as it is between Saturday and the dreaded start of the working week. The odds are stacked against it being a barrel of laughs.

However, Sunday mornings do hold a kind of quiet aura about them. Maybe its because people sleep in and there's no traffic? This would explain the quiet. I personally think the aura is greatly improved by the smell of grilling bacon!

So, as you can tell, my Sunday mornings these days comprise of simple stuff: hot tea first, some blogging and ebay surfing and then eggs and bacon to kick start my sluggish frame!

By the time I chew the final mouthful I usually have the dog pawing at my leg and a hoover pipe in my hand! Or is it the hoover pawing....

So what you do on Sunday mornings readers?

KATE RUSBY: ANGEL OF BARNSLEY

Just been to see folk singer Kate Rusby in concert at Wakefield's beautiful Unity Works venue. To take us out of Saturday and into Sunday here's one of her most gorgeous songs, The Wild Goose, sung in her fabulous Barnsley voice [courtesy of You Tube]. Enjoy.

BARBIE STAR TRAVELER

I used to love buying and selling Barbie and Sindy stuff. It sort of made up for all the times everyone told me as a kid that I mustn't play with dolls 'cos I was a lad! I was already playing with Action Man, Matt Mason, Tommy Gunn and Captain Laser! They were dolls!

Besides the super exciting episode with the rare dress that I've blogged about before another favourite find was a complete Barbie Star Traveler Motor Home as pictured. There wasn't a box - but that was OK. All the tables and chairs were there. 

As soon as I saw it at the car boot sale I just had to ask 'How Much is the big van?'. The answer was £2 I think and before you could say Sindy's knickers I was walking off with my own Star Traveler!

Probably more exciting than the purchase itself is getting home and checking stuff over. I love that and this baby took some checking. With the help of the net I was able to check off every part. Aaah. The simple joys of life.

I've heard that Barbie and Ken drove off in their Star Traveler and are somewhere in the Plastic Rockies now! No doubt Big Jim will be along soon to crash the party!

Have you bought anything big and collectable readers?

Need for Speed

My latest consignment of vintage motor vehicles just arrived this morning, courtesy of Kinder Eggs once more! The final red variation was kindly sourced by Woodsy, at a german car boot!

THE FAB TOY COLLECTION OF DANIEL GENIS

Fellow collector and Anderson fan Daniel Genis from the US of A has kindly sent me some pics of his collection, which he's happy to have blogged. Daniel has put this lot together in just 12 months! 

He has managed to find loads of die-cast Dinky Gerry Anderson toys like the Armoured Command Car, MSV, FAB1, SPV and many many more, which can't have been easy in the States.

Daniel is just starting to repair some of them as well. He tells me that none of his American friends have heard of Gerry Anderson. Well, we have and your'e in good company here! Enjoy!

You can read about Daniel on his own site www.danielgenis.net