Polly Pocket Collector The Addams Family Compact

 Since I didn't get around to doing a Holiday Haul post, there will likely be scattered posts here and there about some of the gifts I got. Here's one of my favorites that Mrs Dex got me: The Addams Family Polly Pocket Compact.

 

 

Obviously, this was put out to capitalize on the Netflix Wednesday series but I'm glad they didn't brand it that way and used Addams Family instead. I love the show and feel it does a great job of being Addams-y, but this gives me more of a classic Addams vibe.

 

 

 

The sides of the box have some very Addams artwork.

 

 Unfortunately, the way they pack this in the box, it would be next to impossible (or require an exacto, steady hands, and patience) to extract it without ruining the packaging. I just can't bring myself to "open" it and destroy the background! That also makes it ridiculously difficult to photograph well due to all the plastic.

 

The main members of the family are all here. Staying true to their cartoon roots, Pugsley is blonde. As you'd expect from Polly Pocket, there's all kinds of little play features. Behind Gomez is a giant Venus Flytrap that opens and next to Pugsley is a coffin that you can stuff a figure into. 

 

There are a few spots within the playset with little holes so you can stand a figure at those locations. This feature is probably something common with Polly Pocket sets but I've never owned one and am too lazy to look it up.

 

 Here's Wednesday and even a tiny Thing that can clasp on to someone's arm. The top level has a crystal ball, a suit of armor that opens to fit a figure, and a piano. The lower level has a bookcase with all sorts of fun stuff and it opens to reveal a "passage" to the garden. One of the things I love about the background are the little portraits of Uncle Fester, Lurch and, Cousin Itt.

 

 The lid of the compact has a cool lenticular portrait of the family...

 

 that turns them to skeletons when you move it!

 

If you want to see much better photos (or pick one up), head over to Mattel's website.

Wednesday The Card Game

Step into the woeful game of Wednesday, where darkness reigns and colors cause allergic reactions. To prevent breaking out in hives and having the flesh peel off you bones, you'll use your innate selfishness and stubborn tendencies to collect Deliciously Dark Cards and repel horrible Putrid Color Cards.

 

Wednesday The Card Game is the first orignal game based on the Addams Family inspired Netflix series. There is another card game called Wednesday: Creatures & Outcasts that will also be releasing soon. Whether it turns out to be good or bad, I can't pass up any game based on the Addams Family!

They did a fangtastic job with the packaging. Fans of the show will instant recognize her dorm window that contrasts her personality with that of her roommate, Enid Sinclair, who is just as much into the colorful as Wednesday is into the drab and dreary. 

 

Monthly Media Recap - January 2023

Welcome to the first Media Recap in the far flung future of 2023! January was shockingly packed with a lot of movies for me. As always, movie titles below are Amazon affiliate links. And hey, Valentines Day is coming up so buy your sweetie a new horror flick! Or you can just use the link on the right to buy anything else.

Series

Wednesday (2022, Netflix)

A little late on the train but I mostly loved it. I feel it captured the "Addams vibe" very well and it was fun seeing that the family exists in a world where there are supernatural beings. I saw a lot of complaints that the show was like a CW show but what would you expect from the two guys that basically created the CW DC universe? Can't wait to see what the next season brings! RIP original Wednesday, Lisa Loring. I was hoping she would show up at some point.

 

That 90s Show (2022, Netflix)

I enjoyed this a lot more than I expected. Aside from Kitty and Red, they limit the original character appearances and establish a new group of kids pretty well. Thankfully, they're not bashing you over the head with 90s culture. One thing I'm not a fan of is the 90s-fied version of the theme. If you liked the original, you'll probably like this too.

Halloween with the Addams Family (1998)

Not to be confused with the 1977 made for TV movie Halloween with the New Addams Family, this Halloween episode was the first of a new series launched in 1998 after the success of the movies. Although this is a new series and cast, the pilot episode (along with several others) recycled storylines from the original 1960s Addams Family series.

Until I watched the horrible The New Addams Family movie last month, I wasn't even aware of this live action reboot. I've watched a handful of episodes and while the comedy doesn't feel quite right sometimes, it feels a lot more Addams than that movie did. The gentleman playing Gomez has said he modelled his performance on John Astin's and he's definitely doing his best impression!

Speaking of Mr. Astin, he pops up in a few episodes as Grandpapa Addams!

Wednesday, who returns from the movie, and Pugsley have bigger roles than they did in the original series. They're also a bit darker than they were on the original show and that's totally fine with me! If you've ever seen the Charles Addams cartoons, you know they're a little edgier than their TV counterparts were.

One thing I'm not a huge fan of with this series is that they changed the theme song! 

Who in their right mind would do such a thing?!?!

If you want to check out this version of the Family, it looks like the entire 65 episode run has been put together in a YouTube playlist. And if you'd like to watch the original Halloween with the Addams Family episode...enjoy!

Click below to visit the main Countdown site to see all the participating blogs.

Monthly Media Recap - September 2022

The Countdown to Halloween starts tomorrow, so the monthly recap goes up a day early. As usual, links below are Amazon affiliated and will drop some pennies in my coffers for your order. The holiday season is coming up fast, go buy stuff!

Be sure to swing by tomorrow for details on the annual Halloween contest!

Movies

Out There Halloween Megatape (2022)

The sequel to the WNUF Halloween Special! I ordered this as soon as it went up but never got around to watching it. Luckily, creator Chris LaMartina is taking it on the road and I got so see it with an audience. I don't want to give anything away about it but I will say it's a blast from the 90s past! Highly recommend seeing it in a theater (or at least with a group) if you have the chance.

Rating: 9/10

Hellarious (2019, Amazon Prime)

With a title like this, I completely expected this to be another bottom of the barrel Amazon horror offering. Maybe it was my low expectations but I was very pleasantly surprised! There's no wraparound with this anthology, just seven, some funnier than other, horror shorts. Quite a bit of it felt like a weird Goosebumps for adults by way of Troma. I don't think it'll make anyone's "best of" list but I had a good time with it.

Rating: 7/10

 

Funko Soda - Doctor Strange & Gomez Addams

Up until this weekend, I had only owned a single Funko Soda...figure? Piece? Not sure what you'd actually call these. It says collectible on the can but that doesn't sound fun. Anyway! I decided to pick up Strange this past weekend and just couldn't let him leave the store alone.

One of the reasons I don't have many Soda figures is that they're not as ubiquitous as the Pops. You can find Pops almost anywhere and I've only ever found the Soda in one store, Newbury Comics. This is a New England chain of stores that started out selling comics (surprise!) and music. Now they carry all sorts of pop culture stuff. Think Hot Topic without the goth.

Monthly Movie Recap - October 2019

Here we are folks!

As usual, I'm posting the October recap on Halloween in case you're looking for something to watch after the kids have gone to bed. As I'm writing this Halloween morning, we're predicted to have some rain tonight which may (may!) keep me from Salem. So if you've got any good suggestions for something spooky to watch tonight, let me know in the comments.

Streaming

American Horror Story 1984 (FX) - Okay, so not really streaming but how could I not mention this? They are absolutely killing it (and lots of people!) this season. I wasn't sure where they were going to go after the first half but it's looking pretty interesting.

Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge (1985)
I had to rewatch this to prep for the below movie. I tried to revisit it with an open mind and while this isn't my favorite of the series, I don't think it's as bad as a lot of people do. Sure, it doesn't "fit in" but it could easily have been an average 80s horror flick if it was released by itself. Now that I'm older and more aware of the not so subtle subtext I have a bit more appreciation of the story they were telling.

Rating: 5/10

Scream, Queen: My Nightmare on Elm Street (2019)
I now have a whole new appreciation for Nightmare 2. Whether or not you like that movie, I highly recommend this doc about its star. Mark has had quite the life and his is a great human story. Plus, there's a cast reunion and some behind the scenes stuff.

The Addams Family (2019)
I should have tempered my expectations from day one but I hard a hard time not getting excited about the Addams Family returning to pop culture. Maybe it wasn't the movie I would have made but I enjoyed it! The Addamses have plenty of time to be themselves and that's really all I want.

Rating: 7/10

Girls with Balls (2018, Netflix)
After figuring out the dialog/lip sync wasn't matching up because this was dubbed in English, I settled in for some dumb fun. It's about a 60/40 mix (dumb/fun). I mostly kept me entertained and I'll bet it's the best movie you'll see this year about a girls volleyball team being terrorized in the woods.

Rating: 5/10

The Barn (2016, Amazon Prime)
The trailer absolutely sold me on this one. If you're up for an 80s retro horror flick, this one has you covered. Despite the low budget, bad dialog (intentional?), and not so great dialog looping, there is something about it I just love to bits. The baddies are great even if the Miner isn't as "Halloween" as the other two.

Rating: 6/10

The Terror of Hallow's Eve (2017, Rent on Amazon)
Another 80s style throwback. It reminds me of the Full Moon movies I used to gorge myself on, you know back when they put out fun stuff that didn't involve weed? The "bullied kid gets supernatural revenge" story may not be original but the way it's carried out, and the fantastic practical effects, make this one you should put on your watch list!

Rating: 7/10

Halloween with the New Addams Family (1977)
You can read my thoughts on this in yesterday's post. Or don't, maybe the less said about this the better.

Rating: 2/10

Haunt (2019, Rent on Amazon Prime)
Had to squeeze at least one more in before October ends and I really liked it! There's not a lot of gore but it's got plenty of suspense and that perfect level of physical horror that makes me squirm in my seat. The bad guys are so well designed, I want action figures!

Rating: 8/10

Month

New: 7  Rewatch: 1

Year to Date

New: 62  Rewatch: 3

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

If you check out the other Countdown to Halloween bloggers by clicking below, a ghost may follow you home!

Halloween with the Addams Family

Who better to spend Halloween with than the Addams Family? The answer is both nobody or anybody depending on when you visit them. Let me explain...

Released 55 years ago today, "Halloween with the Addams Family" is the seventh episode of the first season of the classic TV series. Hijinks ensue when a pair of robbers try to hide out from the police in the Addams' home on Halloween night. As you might expect, they have no idea what they've gotten themselves into!

Released 42 years ago today, "Halloween with the New Addams Family" reunites the cast in color for a made for TV movie when some crooks come up with a ridiculously convoluted plot to steal the family's riches. Whoa, hold up! "New" Addams Family?!

I had a hard time making it through this one and couldn't do it in one sitting. It just doesn't feel like the Addams Family I know. Sure, it's in color but the characters feel off even though all the major players are back. It feels more like any Saturday morning kids' show in the 70s.

We're introduced to Gomez's brother, Pancho who has the hots for Morticia (I mean, I don't blame him!) but she continues to let him smooch her hand and arm with verbal warnings while Gomez is away. I wouldn't think she'd stand for it for a second.

Then there's Wednesday Jr. and Pugsley Jr. who don't really do much. The crooks have a pair of strong men that look like they're cosplaying Rocky from Rocky Horror, barely dressed with metallic shorts.

While it was good to have the gang back together, it never feels quite right. One thing I did really like about this is the family tradition of trimming the scarecrow on Halloween night with the youngest child getting to put the head on top, like a Christmas tree star.

And if you don't have a lot of time, you can just do The Lurch. This was the best quality video I could find online so I apologize for the text on screen.

If you check out the other Countdown to Halloween bloggers by clicking below, a ghost may follow you home!

Addams Family Novels

While digging up the Addams Family tree, not only did I discover a few comics but also a pair of books published in 1965 based on the TV series.

The first is simply titled, The Addams Family and you can get a used copy on Amazon for just under $10. I got lucky with the one I ordered. Considering the book is almost 55 years old, it's in excellent condition.

The cover says it's a novel but there isn't really an ongoing story through the book's nine chapters. Each chapter is a self contained story, like an episode of the show. Most interesting to me were the opening stories which detail the Addams moving into their new home and meeting Thing.

This gag may be familiar if you've seen the new animated movie.

Believe it or not, Thing is not a proper member of the Addams family. At least in this book's canon, he was already living in the house when they moved in. Throughout the family's history, some relations aren't consistent between all their appearances, such as which side of the family Fester and Grandmama are on.

In addition to novels and short stories, the author wrote a few plays with names like Dracula, the Musical?: Book, Music, and Lyrics and The Pinchpenny Phantom of the Opera. Even though these works were 20 years after this book, it's clear he always had a special sense of humor.

And then there is the final chapter, which is only a few pages. It finds Gomez talking with Morticia about their cousin Charles and wondering if they should have let him depict their family in his cartoon. Moricia then surprises Gomez by telling him she's gotten them a deal for a network TV show!

If you're a fan of the TV series and just can't get enough Addams, I highly recommend picking up a copy. While it may not exactly capture the personalities of the live action characters, I think the writing perfectly captures that Addams attitude and humor.

The second book is titled The Addams Family Strikes Back and was also published in 1965.

This book seems to be a bit more on the rare side than the first as the cheapest copy I've managed to find was $30! I do love them but that's getting a bit pricey for a paperback for me.

Most of the info I can find about it is from the wiki page for the Addams Family.

"The Addams Family Strikes Back by W.F. Miksch tells how Gomez plans to rehabilitate the image of Benedict Arnold by running for the local school board. The tone and characterizations in this book resemble the TV characters much more closely than in the first novel. Cousin Itt appears as a minor character in this story, but as a tiny, three-legged creature rather than the hairy, derby-hatted character seen on television and in the movies. The novel was published in paperback form by Pyramid Books in 1965"

If you check out the other Countdown to Halloween bloggers by clicking below, a ghost may follow you home!

Addams Family Comic Books

With the Addams Family being around as long as they have, naturally they've made their way into just about every type of media. After their 1972 appearance in the New Scooby Doo Movies (which you can watch here), they were spun off into their own animated series. In 1974, Gold Key released a series of comics based on the animated series.

 

 The animated series was quite a bit different from the live action show as you can see. For starters, their appearance was more like Charles Addams' original cartoons than their live action counterparts. The family was often on the road in an RV that was part house/part vehicle. They also had a few more pets with them like Ali the alligator and Ocho the octopus.

But if you were looking for more Addams adventures, you'd be a bit disappointed. Each issue of the comic was based on an episode of the animated show. Now this was still the early 70s so a comic where kids could experience their favorite TV shows or movies again wasn't all bad.

Although the show went for 16 episodes, the comic only lasted for three issues. Today, in near mint condition, each issue can fetch over $100, with issue #1 going for slightly more. But thanks to the wonder that is the internet, you don't have to shell out $300+ dollars to read these. If you click on each cover, you can drop these into your digital trick or treat bucket.

If you check out the other Countdown to Halloween bloggers by clicking below, a ghost may follow you home!

Addams Family Funko Pops

I don't have anything against the Munsters but I'm an Addams man through and through. I feel like the Munsters get all the merch love but that's going to change! Whether or not the new animated movie is worthy of the Addams name remains to be seen but if nothing else, it's getting some new merch out there for the fans.

 

This black & white set of Gomez and Morticia is only available from Entertainment Earth.

When I first saw there were Pops coming based on the TV series, I wanted to get them all. But now that I have these two (the only B&W ones) it puts me in a pickle. If I want to get the whole family, do I only get the rest of them in color or do I need to get Gomez & Morticia in color as well? I mean, it will look a little odd to have just the parents in B&W wouldn't it? If the whole family was available in color and B&W I'd easily choose to get them all in B&W. Ah, the conundrums of being a collector.

You may notice the lack of two important family members on the back of the box: Lurch and Thing. They're supposedly only available from Funko-Shop online but I have yet to see them. There's also a Walgreens exclusive Uncle Fester with light bulb and a Gomez chase Pop of him with a sword.

As usual, Funko did an amazing job on these. The tiny details like Gomez's pocket square and jacket buttons as well as Morticia's jewelry and "spider leg" dress are all spot on.

Of course we probably wouldn't be getting these right now if the movie wasn't coming out. Naturally there are movie inspired versions of them as well.

Even though the animated versions are based on the original comic strip appearances, I'm probably going to pass on these. If I get any, it would be Gomez and Wednesday.

If you check out the other Countdown to Halloween bloggers by clicking below, a ghost may follow you home!

Countdown to Halloween 2019

Happy October!

October means the Countdown to Halloween is here to haunt you! If you're not familiar with the Countdown, it's a blog event where several spooky minded people blog about Halloween and related things all month long. And when I say "all month" I'm talking every single day! So if you love Halloween, you're in the right place.

To give you a little preview of what to expect this month:

Sunday! Sunday! Sunday! 

Changing things up a bit this year as Wednesday used to be the day for Halloween Hot Wheels. This year, not so many Hot Wheels and a lot of Wednesdays didn't make a good fit so they're racing over to Sunday.

Addams Wednesday

With a new animated feature coming soon, there's no better day of the week to talk about my favorite fictional family.

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday

The Halloween Web series of interviews is returning for its sixth year and I'm very excited with this year's line up. I've got some great people that you won't want to miss. These will be spread out over the month. In fact, I may have "overbooked" the interviews and had to give up another "theme" day so I can talk about other stuff.

If you check out the other Countdown to Halloween bloggers by clicking below, a ghost may follow you home!

The First Day of Creepmas

Welcome to the first day of Creepmas 2017!

 While I am joining in the festivities this year, it will be in a limited capacity. As you're reading this, I'm at DisneyWorld! I just didn't have time to prepare enough posts while I'm away so there will only be a couple of new ones. But I will be keeping things going on the social media by with links to posts of Creepmas past.

If you stumbled in here and don't know what Creepmas is, click below.

League Post - Return to Hake's

For this week's League of Extraordinary Bloggers assignment, we're going shopping again! 

Go on a fictional shopping spree at Hake’s current auction #209 to make your collection a little more amazing. 

Surprisingly, I didn't find a lot to get excited about this time around. Sure, I wouldn't say no to any of the vintage Star Wars toys, especially that Early Bird Kit with the double-telescoping Luke figure (it's not as dirty as it sounds, really!), but those would be more for displaying in their sealed glory than anything else.

 If I'm adding to the collection, it has to be something special. 

An Interview with the View-Master Master

A few weeks ago, The League of Extraordinary Bloggers assignment had me go on a mythical spending spree at Hake's Americana. One of the items I picked out was a lot of View-Master reels, because one of them featured the Addams Family.

Shortly after, Shawn from Branded in the 80s pointed me to a fantastic View-Master site called View-Master World which has scans of the same reels and lots more. Not only does he scan and digitally master the images, he also includes the text from the accompanying books.

I exchanged a few emails with the man behind the curtain and ended up selling him an older Red Riding Hood set of reels I had. Because I really dig his site and the effort he's putting in to preserve these pieces of pop culture history, I did a little interview with him.

Click through to read it.

League Post - Hake's Shopping Spree

The League of Extraordinary Bloggers challenges me to a shopping spree!

You have very deep pockets but your shelves are bare. Go on a shopping spree at Hake’s Americana and Collectibles to make your place a little more awesome.

The challenge is that I'm limiting myself to three things.
There's so much cool stuff but where to start?

Naturally, my first search was for Star Wars items. While they have some vintage (and by that I mean truly vintage from the 70s/80s) carded figures, they're not doing much for me. But this...

Alien auction

I know this 18" tall guy is on a lot of collectors' lists and with a box in decent shape? Ohhh yeah! This was made by Kenner in 1979 and probably the first action figure from an R rated movie. Had I seen this on the shelf back then even without any idea about the movie, I would have been clamoring for it. And then it would have been inflicting untold horrors on my Star Wars figures with its snapping jaws and glow-in-the-dark brain.

And I was still browsing the Space/SciFi stuff when this next piece screamed at me.

Strato Gun auction

This gorgeous piece of retro goodness is actually a cap gun! I think it was a law before that whole "orange cap in the gun barrel" thing that all toy guns containing metal had to shoot caps. I absolutely love the retro future scifi aesthetic and I would get a nice custom stand/case to show this off.

I also did a bit of poking around for anything Halloween or Creature from the Black Lagoon related but nothing really grabbed my attention. But I did find some sweet Viewmaster reels.

Viewmaster auction

I'm scooping up this lot just for the Addams Family one. I don't give a bat's ass about Dark Shadows and I'll probably only keep the Munsters ones if they have Uncle Gilbert.

As Shawn points out in the comments, the Munsters and Addams Family images can be viewed at View Master World. Head over there and check the bottom of the page to see what else they have.

What Other League Members Are Buying
Branded in the 80s beat me to some amazing prototype figures
Superman and Dino-Riders go home with Robot's Pajamas
Henchgirl might be a crazy cat lady in the making

Bah-Da-Da-Dum (snap-snap)

My dream adoptive family came in to town this weekend, so of course I had to see them! Let me tackle the controversial question up front: I'm an Addams man, through and through.

To be honest, I've never watched an entire episode of The Munsters start to finish. The parts I have seen, I enjoy but if I have to choose in a gang war, color me Addams! A couple of guys sitting behind me were talking and trying to figure out who they were going to see on stage before the show started, getting confused between the two families.

From what I've read, the musical is supposed to be more based on the original New Yorker cartoons than the TV show which is something I don't understand. When you say Addams to most people, they will likely think of the show or maybe even the movies. Only the die-hard members of the Family will think of the cartoons. As you'll see, having expectations of the TV show causes a lot of my issues with it. Maybe it was having the tickets for almost a year and the building anticipation but there were only a few moments where it felt like I was truly at home with the Addams Family.

Before I start ranting about my issues, let me say that I did enjoy the show overall and it was a fun time!

League Post - Hollywood Memorabilia

Cool and Collected strikes again with a new League of Extraordinary Bloggers assignment.
In case you're not familiar with this weekly blog-fest, check out the details.

This week's topic:

You have an unlimited budget and space is not a problem. What piece of Hollywood memorabilia would you want hanging around in your batcave?

Wow, that is a tough one! Would I go all out and have my house be the piece of memorabilia?

The Addams Family house would be a great place to live!

And there are so many things from my almost life-long love of Star Wars! How about a Mos Eisley Cantina party room/home theater? A life size Millennium Falcon as a guest house?

I've been collecting Star Wars things for many years, so it's not like I don't have any replica Star Wars items already. And even with no restrictions, I think I'd want something not so big.

That's about the right size! It doesn't even have to run. It can just sit there and be awesome! While it may not have the nostalgia-cool of the iconic lightcycles from the original Tron, I like this version better. It's still very close to the original design and yet not as modern as the ones seen in Tron: Legacy. It was kind of a shame to hear it described as "the fastest thing on the Grid" but never see it in real action.

Now that I think about it, the set of Flynn's Arcade would be pretty cool to have....

[cue Journey's Separate Ways]

Here's a few of my fellow Leaguers wish lists
Monsterfink's Midnight Spookshow (Universal Monsters)

Branded in the 80s (Star Wars)

Tupa's Treasures (Goonies)

Flashlights are Something to Eat (Mister Rogers)

That Figures (Doctor Who)

Matt Can Draw (Time Bandits)

Happy 100th, Charles Addams!

What a wonderful surprise to wake up to this morning! The Google Doodle today is honoring the 100th birthday of cartoonist Charles Addams, creator of my favorite TV family.

Google Doodle Jan. 7, 2012

While mostly remembered as the creator of the Addams Family, Chas also had a number of his illustrations printed in The New Yorker. He always had a dark sense of humor and delighted in the macabre. One of his early jobs was working for True Detective magazine where he was hired to retouch corpses in crime scene photos to remove the blood from them. He thought they looked much more interesting the way they were! In addition to his delightful sense of humor, Addams was also a collector of medieval arms and armor having a particular fascination with the crossbow.

Charles Addams

It's a rare occasion in life when you discover an artist that you really connect with, someone whose work you look at and think that they would be someone who "gets you." So I am more than honored to add this post to all those celebrating what would have been Charles Addams' 100th birthday.

Even though it's his birthday, here's a little something for you!

From Famous Monsters of Filmland #145, 1978