Upside-Down Glow Demogorgan [Stranger Things/Bandai]

Zombie Boy Will Byers was just heading home after playing some Dungeons & Dragons with his friends one night when he was kidnapped by the Demogorgan and taken to the Upside-Down. Stranger Things is one of my favorite TV shows and with it's final season drawing near, now feels like the perfect time to look at more of the various toys I've acquired since it premiered. You all know how much I love my sofubi and nobody does it better than Bandai.

This Demogorgan figure is part of a Stranger Things series from Bandai that came out a few years ago. It's 7" tall with excellent sculpting and paint with articulation in the shoulders. Did you take notice of the figures name? Yes, there was a regular and glow in the dark version... that's the one we're looking at right now! The glow is a specifically spooky blue color that I wish shown up better in my pictures (I tried) that really invokes the visage of those Upside-Down scenes. Bandai really nailed it with this figure. They normally do, but this time they went a step above. Hey... has anyone seen Barb?

(Scare) Glowing with Evil

Scare Glow is one of those MOTU characters I just can't get enough of. Sure, I like scary things, but he's got a charm to him outside of that. In a line where the bad guys are usually pretty gnarly monsters... a freaking skeleton wearing a purple cape is just *chefs kiss*. If Skeletor wasn't already a grim reaper type. having an outright ghost in the Evil Warrirors is a great touch. Not to mention his awesome glow in the dark gimmick... I always fall for that. This Origins version of him was another of my Christmas gifts from the Mrs. She has a knack of getting the ones I can't normally find.

Scare Glow is your typical MOTU Origins figure, a complete update of a classic MOTUF figure with modern articulation and the interchangeable parts to allow for customizes easy access. He's compatible with vintage vehicles and newer ones. Origins is such a neat line. A key difference in other of his figures, Scare Glow has a plastic cape. The Original has cloth and the Masterverse has a mixture of plastic and cloth. I'm pointing this out mostly because it looks like cloth and feels like cloth... but is some sort of plastic/vinyl material. I do like it better than a cloth cape, but worry that it's additional weight will put too much strain on the string around the collar.

You guys know I'm hurting for it to be Halloween time (which it will firmly be in a few months, but still), so Scare Glow is just the toy for such a hankering. Just like the vintage toy, Origins Scare Glow is literally a Halloween decoration made into an action figure. I'm not being silly old me here, just look at this thing! Everything about just screams spooky season. He looks like something you'd pin to your hoodie in October (or December, yolo). While it may not reflect well in the picture, the Scythe of Doom's bright green is so bright, it might as well be the glow stick Scare Glow is carrying while trick or treating... aside from already glowing in the dark.

When you got the (Scare) Glow

Here to ring in Halloween is Scare Glow, the ghost of Skeletor! Not Skeletor's actual ghost, but a ghost under his service. Glow in the dark skeletons are a staple of the season and this phantom is exactly that! I've briefly talked about Scare Glow and his demonic friend before, however today we're taking a look at his Masterverse representing the spooky one's appearance in Revelation. This is the standard retail version available at regular retail, however there is a SDCC 2021 exclusive version with slightly different paint in cool evil book packaging. They are ultimately the same toy, I just thought pointing that out would be appropriate.

Appropriate is the word for Scare Glow at Halloween. Like i said, he's a glow in the dark skeleton wearing a Dracula cape while caring a scythe. Why a bigger deal isn't made of him this time a year I'll never know. Just picture it, an orange version with a black cape! Really, why Mattel doesn't have a Halloween edition MOTU toy each year is perplexing. I mean, the bad guys are literally walking Halloween decorations and the play sets are haunted houses. Yo Mattel, next time you need a fans input hit me up. 

*sigh, they won't*

Light your Night with Fright!

I'm not sure if you've noticed, but I love Halloween. One particular thing (among many, many, many things) I enjoy about the holiday is the little weird oddities. Take the picture above. That's a Fright Light pin. What's it for? Well, you pin it on your shirt/jacket to spread some Halloween cheer. You can't always wear a costume... you might not always want to wear a costume. But something like a Fright Light on your hoodie let's folks know you're up to something spooky.

Fright Lights came in a variety of spooky shapes, the one pictured is a pumpkin (duh), but I've seen skeletons, Frankenstein, and I swear a witch. There was probably others, but that's what I remember the strongest. There was a little switch you could flip to make the eyes light up... and you probably didn't leave it on for long as to not drain the batteries before the end of the season. They also glowed in the dark, because everything should really. Real ones know. Little things like this man... I just love. I can (and do) look at pictures of them all the time... and all year. The packaging alone... just look at it. That should be in a museum, it's high art! I have a real love for Halloween packaging and the Fright Light card is a solid example.

Glow Stick Magic

It never fails. Every year the same old trick or treating safety tips. For the most part, it's good advice. There's a lot of bad people out there and you could find yourself in a lot of danger. Or could have a really bad accident. Now admittedly, it's night, and most people aren't used to seeing kids walking down the road. However, it's also an old as dirt holiday and nobody driving now doesn't know what goes on on Halloween night. I don't know, but somehow the act of wearing a costume renders you invisible to anyone behind the wheel of a car.

Reflective tape is always a good idea. Stick some of that on yourself and car lights will reflect. Usually quite obnoxiously and hard to not see. I was always a big fan of the glow stick. There's nothing cooler than a glow stick. So getting the chance to carry one was hard to pass up. Even better, tie some yarn around it and let it dangle like some creepy spirit orb. To everyone else you've just got a pink stick hanging off some string. However, in the moment, it's some kind of spooky magic.

Not As Brightly Lit: Plastic Vampire Fangs

Like pumpkins and spider webs, nothing say's Halloween as much as a pair of plastic vampire fangs. This week, Rob talks about the holiday stand by and it's many uses.

F Is For Firebot

The Letrabots are a blind bag line of transforming robots who as their name would suggest, turn into letters. I've seen other letter based robots come in sets and really have no clue what line those belong to. I was at Target, saw the box, and grabbed a pack. Firebot comes from the series 'COMBO BIG ROBOT ADE' as this team combines into a larger robot named ADE (I know).

This series is specifically a glow in the dark series, I don't know if the other series by Cicaboom feature this, but I'm game to try their other sets if I can find them. They're pretty neat looking in an old school kids meal way. The combination aspect is motivating me into trying to complete the set more so than the toy. The figure is pretty neat, but an end result to completing the series is a plus.

Firebot is a little bot who turns into a capital F. His included card has reversed colors than the actual toy and I'm not sure of that's a case variation (one proper colored, one reversed per case) or just a production change. Despite being a simple little toy, his transformation is a little more involved that I expected going in. There's actually a swiveling part in between his torso and legs which has you doing an additional twist to put everything into place. It's not super complicated, but I didn't see it coming.

I didn't take a picture of the extra bits in the bag. One is a hand and the other is part of a gun for ADE. Firebot is ADE's left arm and I swear the combiners name is going to give me a coronary. For a basic little toy, it's pretty neat. I can't tell if there's a code system or not for the baggies, but there is little peep holes which may or may not be any help. I guess I could feel what letter is in each one, I just grabbed one blindly and got Firebot here.

Micronaught Aliens commercial

If the latest episode of Transform Squadron didn't make it clear, I just might have some affection towards things that glow in the dark. I also have an affection towards Micronauts/Microman thanks to Transformers. I also wish my brain glowed in the dark. Thinking about it... it might just at this point.

Transform Squadron-Episode 2

Transform Squadron Episode 2- Great Value BotCon

On this episode, Rob discusses Microman soft vinyl, Walmart Transformers reissues, and Bumblebee movie Energon Igniters Power series figures. Also, Rob asks the immortal question, just what do you call the glow in the dark color anyway?