DIE-CASTAWAYS

Some old toy vehicle finds from car boot sales this summer gone.

Did you have any of these?

MATTEL HOTLINE TRAINS! WOW!

Holy Moly!

If ever a toy train looked like it was the Triang SpaceX range it has to be this.

Mattel's Hotline from 1970.

I saw these on Ebay and saved the pics.

Amazing designs!

Like a train-version of the Tractor T5 as well!

How cool are these guys!

The box art recalls Hot Wheels as well.

There's a series of neat videos on You Tube all about them too!

What do you think readers?

DID YOU WATCH LEXX?

LEXX used to be on late Friday nights Channel 5.. I remember watching it after I got back from the pub in the 1990's. Friday was quiz and curry night back then.

LEXX was crazy sci-fi TV and I used to love it. Usually quite tipsy on Friday night's, it was the perfect state to be in to appreciate the zany space mayhem of the TV series.

I recall a floating head and a quote something like 'hail to the Zev Zev!' Great late TV!

Did you watch LEXX?

SUPERTORIETA

This old Argentinian comic caught my eye on Todocollecion.

Largely because of the modernity of the content.

As far as I know its from 1953!

What do you think?

ARE YOU A GROUCH?

As a kid I was in the main a happy soul. Things were good and I, no doubt like all kids, found everything interesting as I walked around with my sense of wonder turned up to full.

Now in my very late 50's I'm starting to be called something I never considered myself to be: grouchy!

Yep, people around me say I'm a grouch and I'm developing a rep, especially at work, of often being in a bad mood!

This is a shock to me as I have always considered myself to be light-hearted and relaxed. I suppose the real shock is that its the truth, I am grumpy a lot.

I can't explain this change of outlook. I think its happened over time. That childish sense of wonder has taken a pummeling and is turned way down low, apparently having been replaced with bad-tempered grouchiness.

It is concerning.

Are you becoming grouchy readers? Is it an age thing? What do you advise?

UN-MEN JIGGLERS

Kenner's Swamp Thing figures included rubber jigglers.

They were worn by the Un-Men.

These rubber jiggler heads always reminded me of the finger monsters popular when I was kid .

You can still get them today virtually everywhere.

Would finger monsters be a decent replacement for the original Un-Men jigglers if you needed one?

Waddaya reckon readers?

Did you like finger monsters?

MESSAGE FROM SPACE 1978

Courtesy of You Tube

DO YOU KNOW THE MAN-THING?

Like DC's Swamp Thing I have always admired Marvel's Man-Thing, albeit from a distance. I'm not well-up on him at all and used to get the two Things confused in my mind.

Which Thing came first? Man or Swamp?

I remember in 2005 I went to the US on holiday with friends and on one of our trips out we stopped at a comics shop in New Jersey in Cartaret I think - and bought four or five copies of Man-Thing comics in a sequence. I wanted them for my toy and sci-fi stall at a toy and comics fair that was coming up at Leeds Poly.

I may still have the comics somewhere. I'm really not sure now but it was great fun buying them at the time and I planned to man-up and make an effort to get to know the Man-Thing better.

I never did.

Did you?