Who Wore It Best? Inferno (2010) plus The Human Torch and Firestar

It seems like a good time for The Outer Space  Men to put on costumes for Halloween!

While there's not much news going on in The Outer Space Men line these days, there's still plenty to like - old figures can be had for varying levels of "not bad" on eBay if you're lucky, and they're still one of the more fun lines to play around with if you have more toys.  I started picking up some of Hasbro's Marvel Legends 375 figures - the "Kenner" branded ones from 2020-present - and was thinking "hey, there's a photo I would like to see."

 The Inferno Alpha Phase and Beta Phase figures were red and yellow respectively, so I swapped some parts around to give you this no-doubt thrilling photo.

It's worth noting that the Inferno figures - from 2010, so they've both just turned 12 - are starting to feel a tiny bit tacky, a little sticky, as often happens with some plastic figures as they age.  Usually as they off-gas or whatever mold release oils work their way out, you might get some sticky or slick old figures - especially 1980s or 1970s Kenner figures.  I've generally found wiping them down with a damp cloth makes them feel like new again and so far, I've never had to go back and do it a second time.

Also, hi to Gary and Mel, everybody hopes you're all well and maybe working on some other cool thing to share with us if you're so inclined some day.

Cosmic Radiation and White Star - More Preview Pictures

We got sent a dozen more pictures by The Outer Space Men's own Gary Schaeffer!  Check out more shots of Astrodite, Luna Eclipse, Zero Gravity, and Cthulhu Nautilus.

Here are the new Astrodites.

The Lunas Eclipse.

 

All the Zero Gravity:

 

And Cthulhu Nautiluspodes:

 

Gamma-X Glows Crazy at Star Trek Mission New York - On Sale Friday Online

UPDATE! We now have confirmation it will go up for sale on TheOuterSpaceMen.com August 9 at 9:00 PM Eastern.

 If you're in New York City right now, the Outer Space Men team has a booth at Javits Center for Star Trek Mission New York.   There, you can pick up the new Colossus Rex 2.0 ($30, review next week) and/or Cosmic Radiation Gamma-X ($25, review the following week).   You might be asking "Well, is it worth it?"

Yes.  Absolutely yes.

To the right, you'll see two Gamma-X figure.  On the left is the bone-colored 2014 Infinity Edition version, sold carded by the Four Horsemen for $26.   To the right, the 2016 convention bagged exclusive which glows like crazy.

I put both under a black light bulb to charge them up, and the difference is pretty striking.  This is an unmodified photograph, with no adjustments to the brightness settings.   If you love things that glow, get the new one this weekend and/or if/when it shows up for sale on TheOuterSpaceMen.com.

Overview: The Killer Xodiac

Xodiac!   Man of Saturn, born of Outer Space!   The Outer Space Men had a significant number of repaints, most of which were interesting, and also there was a White Star version.   The only one you don’t see in the above photos is the Galactic Holiday variant - there was a gold accessory version (pictured) and a silver accessory version which I do not have.  I hate that kind of variant, but hey, if you’re sellin’ I’m buyin’.

This is a remake of another figure from 1964, which was a bendable figure like Gumby and Major Matt Mason.  The newer, smaller figures from The Four Horsemen (and the Glyos factory) can pop apart at each joint, allowing you to swap arms, legs, heads, and other pieces to your liking.  It’s fun in practice, great for customizers, but if you’re just a guy with a lot of toys it isn’t terribly useful in the long run.   But if you ever wanted to see what someone looks like with mismatched pants?  It’s handy.  It doesn’t hurt anything.

With 9 distinctive mass-produced versions (plus a weapon variant) Xodiac has more variation going on than pretty much everybody.   At Comic-Con in 2010, he was one of the first four figures with his clear neon orange Alpha Phase release.   I have a hard time picking a favorite, as there are so precious few action figures which include the planet Saturn impaled on a stick for my amusement.

They all more or less share the same name, but the gold one - pictured above carded with the original name - was christened “Goldiac” by the creator, Mel Birnkrant.  He’s notable in that he has a beard that is painted a unique color that does not match his skin.   He’s Xodiac’s pop.  

Also interesting, Xodiac’s weapon received a semi-late change before production in 2010.  The butt of the gun is actually a Glyos peg, whereas the mechanicals for it (seen here with the PMS colors: http://database.glyos.com/2011/08/xodiac-glyaxia-command.html) show it rounded off.

Now if you want my sentimental favorite, that’s Glyaxia Command Xodiac.  The Glyos people were kind enough to give me an early look at it at SDCC 2011, and I was kinda ridiculously giddy to have it.   The figure also sold out almost immediately - not unusual for an Onell Design drop, as they cultivated a fanbase who shows up on time to buy.  Just tell them where to go, they’ll be there.
Anyway - Xodiac got a lady friend, the horrifying Horroscope, in 2013 and 2014.  The head looks more like  triple-eyed Cthulhu, with tremendous breasts and a booty to match - just like you want from the alien space creature of your nightmares, envisioned through the prism of Harvey Kurtzman’s cartooning.   She only got three figures - a clear purple one, a White Star one, and the fully-painted one.  I kind of hope they do more.

Want more Outer Space Men reviews? http://www.16bit.com/fotd/land-outerspacemen.asp

Overview: Astro-Nautilus Thus Far

More Outer Space Men!  I haven’t done an updated complete group shot in a while - maybe I will if we get another Astro-Nautilus - but these shots cover the major bases.  The four-armed creature from a planet associated with a god of the sea, Astro-Nautilus was one of the most memorable figures from the original line-up.   If you saw pictures of the original bendable toys, you didn’t forget this one.

Each tentacle on the 3 3/4-inch scale alien is two pieces, and each leg is three.  The pieces all rotate and allow for mixing and matching.  The designer Mel Birnkrant incorporated a couple of loops on the staff, allowing a tentacle to slither through on the giant 1960s bendy figure as well as the modern action figures pictured above.

Like many figures, many Outer Space Men from the modern incarnation are more popular (and tougher to find now) in their “regular” incarnations, with the lower-run, often 300-piece exclusives slowly declining in price while their painted peers go up. Later waves are particularly pricey now, and from the look of things this week’s new Orbitron Diversus edition might be as low as 100 pieces.  (We don't know, but it sold fast.)

What’s really amazing was the price range on these guys.  Most of them started at $10 - a  bargain!  As time went on, prices went up.  The largely unadorned white one was part of a big boxed set of 8 figures for $115, which makes it a little over $14.   The black suit one was sold first at a gallery show I was at for $125  with an art print and only 4 figures, or about $30 depending on what value you put on the art print.

I took the above photos in numerous places for several reviews over many years, and they’re pretty inconsistent.  However, you’ve now seen every modern era Astro-Nautilus save for the gold staff variant of the red one, which I do not have.  If you like space toys whose designs largely hail prior to the moon landing, these are some you should absolutely look up - along with the Marx Mystery Ship and of course Mattel’s own Major Matt Mason.  After the moon landing, space toys were a tough sell without a major media tie-in.   Thanks for nothing, New Frontier.

Here’s a review of the White Star one: http://www.16bit.com/fotd/130801-white-star-astro-nautilus.asp
Here’s a review of the Cosmic Creators Four Horsemen edition in green: http://www.16bit.com/fotd/130124-osm-4h-cc-astro-nautilus-neonautilus.asp
If you want more reviews, here’s a list:
http://www.16bit.com/fotd/land-outerspacemen.asp

Outer Space Men 2014 Cardbacks Backsides

Source Horsemen posted the backside of the 6 new Outer Space Men figure packages for your viewing pleasure!  Check out the bios and artwork, some of which you may have seen on Mel Birnkrant's own pages over the past couple of years.

Outer Space Men - New Carded Sample of Horroscope

The Four Horsemen posted another Infinity Edition carded figure!  A carded sample of Horroscope has been posted for your viewing pleasure along with the promise of shots of the other ones over the next few days.

Outer Space Men - New Carded Sample of Ohprometam

The Four Horsemen posted that the new Infinity Edition carded figures - that is, the painted ones - are moving along nicely!  A carded sample of Ohpromatem has been posted for your viewing pleasure along with the promise of shots of the other ones over the next few days.

New Infinity Edition Packaging Revealed

In case there was any doubt, the Infinity Edition of this year's six figures is moving ahead - it won't be here in time for Christmas, but this post shows packaging samples (with white figures inside) of Ohprometam, Jack Asteroid, Colossus Rex, Terra Firma, and Gamma X.  This completes the original 1960s character run, and may or may not conclude the new run - there are other characters on deck, so we'll probably know more in February.

Click here to see more at Source Horsemen.

Cosmic Creators Outer Space Men 2013 - Arriving

They're here! I was lucky enough to get the box today - as usual my postman neither knocks nor rings the bell, but throws down the box as hard as possible so I can hear it in another room.  Courtesy of the top-notch packing job from TheOuterSpaceMen.com, this new Cosmic Creators Outer Space Men Mel Birnkrant Edition came through perfectly - with a bonus mug, to boot.

According to the forums, some figures have alternate Commander Comet helmets (purple on one side and blue on the other) so that may be a variant to watch for.  Everything is coming up sunshine, and it's worth noting the weapons are that shiny vac-metal we all love and not the duller gold paint!  At press time I have yet to open mine, but I got set #111.  Each has Mel Birnkrant's signature and is hand-numbered.

It's also worth noting that Alpha 11 is cast in a clear colorless plastic and is painted - just like Metamorpho from the "2.0" line.

TheOuterSpaceMen.com still has 19 sets available at press time.  For $20/figure ($80/set) I can safely say it ain't bad - especially since unpainted figures creeped up to $20 earlier this year.

Reviews and more images should go up in the next few days, for the seven people who read this blog.  (Tell your friends!)

New Outer Space Men Painted Photos from Mel Birnkrant

It's time for finals! Already!   The great Mel Birnkrant reached out to the blog to say howdy and share links to dozens of new photos and stories about the upcoming and presumably close-to-final Outer Space Men action figures.

Jack Asteroid, Terra Firma, Gamma X, Colossus Rex, Ophrometam, and Horroscope are all shown in hand-painted, beautifully photographed glory. 

No word on release dates or upcoming prices, but for those of us itching for a closer and clearer look at these figures, well, it's certainly a great way to wrap up the week.  Check 'em out!

Quick Overview: 2013 San Diego Comic-Con Exclusive Outer Space Men Alpha Wave

They made it! They weren't available until Friday, but the latest Outer Space Men did indeed show up and reviews will start popping up on this very blog this week - we're just getting back from the show so there's a lot to unpack.  Here's a quick rundown.

- The set of 6 was $120, making this the most expensive Alpha wave yet at $20 per figure.  Last year's was $50 for 3 figures, or $16.66 per figure.
- This was the first Alpha Phase to not come with any bagged figures with stapled header cards.  All came in sealed bags inside a small white box.
- The box has no individual figure names on the outside.
- The sets were mispackaged with my sample - the figures came in the opposing boxes.
- The flags are not well made. The stickers keep coming unglued - you can squeeze them together but they begin to separate.  Expect to reglue or replace them within a few months to a year.
- The Outer Space Women have difficulty standing due to their poses.
- The Outer Space Women cannot sit with their legs at a 90-degree angle.

Overall it's a nice wave - Colossus Rex is the clear winner (literally) and will be reviewed here on Tuesday.  Gamma-X is quite good, but cannot sit with his armor attached.  The Jack Asteroid and Terra Firma helmets are three-piece contraptions with flip-up visors.  Ohpramatem and Horroscope share a bunch of parts, and the transforming head gimmicks work great.  Horroscope has a two-piece head that separates at the tentacles. And I got work to do so more later.

Outer Space Men SDCC Exclusives Finally Revealed

Update: The figures did not arrive on Thursday, and we were told to come back Friday. For the curious, I picked up my White Star set without a hitch.

After some delay, 6 new pictures and some news got posted to SourceHorsemen.com!   Horrorscope (pictured) looks great, and due to a delay the figures are expected to go on sale after noon on Thursday (today).  I of course shall be there.

Click here to see everything.

Outer Space Men: Carded Samples of Cylcops, Gemini, Orbitron

The Four Horsemen posted samples of the long-awaited third batch of carded Outer Space Men action figures to their blog!  No prices were listed, but they did confirm pre-orders would start after Toy Fair (which kicks off this weekend) with delivery in or around March 2013!  Click here to check them out.

Outer Space Men 2.0: Inferno Action Figure

Of the four 2.0 releases of the Outer Space Men figures, Inferno is unquestionably the most compelling.  Along with Metamorpho, these two look significantly different, particularly when compared to the original 2010 release.

Previously, Inferno was cast in silver plastic and painted in the colors you see, with an opaque flame, gun, and head.  This time around the figure is a mix of silver plastic and clear yellowish orange plastic.  Take note of the feet, hands, gun, chest, chest jewel, head, helmet, and flame as all of these are actually painted clear yellow, while the other body parts are opaque silver.  Because of the high quality paint job, it's actually really hard to tell these are different colored plastics unless you shine a bright light through them.  If a tiny little bit of light didn't peek out through the chest, I'd never notice!

If you ever get the chance to buy these individually, get Inferno first.  The clear red, plus the clear areas on the back of the torso and helmet allow light to shine through so even packaged collectors can enjoy the new lighting feature.   The set of four 2.0 figures is $50 at Store Horsemen.

Overall I'd say the set is an improvement, although perhaps not one enough to warrant another $50 on the set.  If you were dragging your feet before, or missed the first round, these are probably the best ones to get.

One final note-- series creator Mel Birnkrant himself posted a confirmation that the 2011 figures of Mystron, Electron+, Alpha 7, and Commander Comet would not get a 2.0 release as the originals were already more or less perfect.  (I agree.)

Outer Space Men 2.0: Astro-Nautilus

Of all the 2.0 releases, Astro-Nautilus is one that seems the least changed.  Go ahead, take a look.  That's the problem when something looks perfectly fantastic the first time.
 

On the left is the original 1.0 version, on the right is the new 2.0 version.  Can you tell the differences?  They're quite subtle, and unless you put them side-by-side you may not notice.  (Or I didn't notice, anyway.)  The original 1.0 version from 2010 has slightly pinker skin, the 2.0 is more purple.  The staffs seem basically the same at first glance, but it turns out the new one is a little more vibrant.  Also, the space suit is different as the metallic bronze color is much shinier and more glossy on the 2.0 release.

Since the packaging is identical and the figures are nearly so, get either. Or both.  2.0 seems to be just barely more in line with the original figure from Colorforms, but this is one of those differences that your wife will mock you for if you dare try to point it out.  (Maybe I speak from experience, maybe I don't.)  I like 2.0 best.

Outer Space Men 2.0: Xodiac

The Man from Saturn gets an update, and Xodiac has been given a minor tweak to his accessories.  The original figure was pretty fantastic and, I would've assumed, flawless.  Nothing really beats that metallic blue suit, but it turns out that the accessories were not quite the right shade relative to the original.

The revised 2.0 figure has candylike clear red accessories and a bright orange helmet.  The 1.0 release has pink accessories, and a yellowish green helmet.   The 2.0 figure more precisely matches the photography on the packaging, though, and it seems a smidgen less sparkly than the eye-catching original, although they may be 4% more vibrant.

Surprisingly, it seems the 1.0 accessories more closely match the original bendable figure while the 2.0 helmet seems to be closer in the pictures.  I say "seem to" because I've only seen the original Colorforms figures in person but once at Futuretro in New York last February.  I'd say the 2.0 is, overall, better but you might not notice the difference at first.

Outer Space Men 2.0: Metamorpho Action Figure

Here's one of the two most-changed figures in the Outer Space Men 2.0 lineup.   Metamorpho was originally sold in a very light grey color, while the intent was to have more of a white which helps the face pop and glow and all that jazz.  Also, the weapons have clear orbs at the end rather than opaque pink ones.  How did they pull it off?

Simple-- the entire figure is cast in clear colorless plastic, painted white and black as appropriate.  Even the head is clear plastic, with 2 of the 3 heads seeming to be more lively than the original.  The red ape-like face still looks great, but the eyes seem to shine and sparkle more on the 1.0 release.  There's also a weird sparkling quality on the 2.0 figure that's tough to describe, although I assume it comes from the painted clear plastic. 

The white really does make it look like a different figure more in line with the coloring on a Stormtrooper or Clone Trooper from Star Wars, while the light grey looks more or less like it's own thing.   Because I dig this line too much, I decided I needed both.  If you don't have either release, I'd say get whichever is cheaper for you.   (Unless, of course, you're buying these for kids, in which case go with 1.0.  If 2.0's paint scrapes off, the exposed plastic will be clear.)

Outer Space Men Cosmic Creators: Four Horsemen Edition

If you're looking for something new, the last couple of months have been fantastic for Outer Space Men fans!  Pictured above are the recently delivered Cosmic Creators Four Horsemen Edition figures which debuted at their show in New York last year... which I swear I never saw there.  From left to right are Neonautilus, Megamorpho, Glowdiac, and Phospherno in colors which, depending on whom you ask, recall Major Matt Mason's alien buddies or Transformers Generation 2.

Either way, I think they're pretty fantastic.  The clear green accessories are similar in color to the Alpha Phase 2012 figures, and while the previous Cosmic Creators and just-released 2.0 figures look great in person, these neon-ish releases are unquestionably different from the last ones.   You really won't see anything else like this out there right now.

Since I'm off doing convention coverage this week, we'll be posting some automated updates looking at the 2.0 releases starting tomorrow.   I gotta say, like the first batch of Cosmic Creators, these are more expensive and worth it.  If you love you some Outer Space Men, and I do, so I'm pretty happy right now!

2012 Alpha Phase Outer Space Men Arriving, Pheyden

 As Mel Birnkrant himself might say, "THEY'RE HERE!"  My very own box of 2012 Alpha Phase San Diego Comic-Con 2012 figures showed up on my doorstep Saturday, containing yellow Gemini, a pink (almost Nonilla Pink to you Glyos fans) Orbitron, and the massive blue Cyclops.  It's worth noting both Cyclops and Orbitron are much larger than the usual figures in this line, and the nearly $50 set is made a little less painful when you realize each figure has a high piece count and is nearly 100% new parts.  The Four Horsemen didn't skimp on these, Cyclops even comes in a box!  He's just that big.

I should note, in case some of you were wondering "So where are MY figures?"   I ordered the 2.0 figures and Four Horsemen Cosmic Creators series as well, neither of which have shipped to me, although a few people have reported getting 2.0 sets.  As such, sit tight, things are moving along still.

A big surprise to me was to finally see Cylcops up close, he has removable armor and a little surprise under it.  The head of Pheyden from Onell Design's Glyos line can be seen on his chest, and the real surprise is that this may not be a coincidence.

Mel Birnkrant has the only Outer Space Men page you should read (thank you for reading this one, by the way) and on it he has some interesting annotations on Cyclops which, I assume, you may have read.   Mel says:

"...Meanwhile, Matt [Doughty of Onell Design] called me one day, and we got into a conversation that lasted all afternoon.  We began to discuss the Cosmic Connection and the almost spooky affinity that he feels for the OSM.  And he pointed out something to me that I find rather uncanny!  THE EMBLEM ON CYCLOPS’ CHEST IS “PHEYDEN”!

"So, we agreed that to ask Eric [Treadway of The Four Horsemen] to be aware of that, and subtly bring the image out.  We went back and forth with sketches and discussion and both did drawings.  I soon realized that they were unnecessary!  In the end, I simply copied the photo of the emblem and in 2 minutes on Photoshop added two lines to represent the teeth and two dots to indicate small balls for eyes. Another solution was to just add the teeth lines and let the negative space and the shadow it creates, imply the eyes.  Subtle and more secretive; the more I looked at it, the more I liked it best.  It allows the viewer to see and experience what Matt saw.  The teeth alone are all it needs.  Eric agreed!  To the uninitiated, this will just look like part of the 45 year old design, which, indeed, it is!  But this really establishes a connection with Pheyden, originating somewhere, out there, beyond the Milky Way!"

So there you have it! Another Easter Egg in this great line.  We'll be reviewing the new guys in Figure of the Day on 16bit.com and posting them here as well, so stay tuned as we get to them in the coming weeks!  As always thanks for reading and for your patience on our getting to all the awesome new stuff.