New Figure: Zollmen x OSM Astro-Nautlius

After the program of giant-size The Outer Space Men vinyl figures at pretty fair prices seems to have ended, we now have the reveal of the 50 piece 2024 ZOLLMEN X OSM ASTRO NAUTILUS BULLMARK SOFUBI figure.  It's a 12-inch figure styled to look like the Bullmark releases, which is good.  It's limited to 50, which isn't great.   It's $400, so I won't be buying one - on my browser it's a white price on a white background, so you won't be able to see it unless you highlight it or add to cart.

It's due around March, and will probably be one of the lowest-run items in the license.  It's super cool.

Review: The Outer Space Men Bluestar Glow-in-the-Dark Blue Gamma-X Action Figure

As one of the second year prototypes from the 1960s, most people didn't get any flavor of the figure that would become Bluestar Gamma-X until about 10 years ago. He's neat! Peak midcentury design with nifty b-movie antennae, clamp-on armor, and a couple of blasters make for a notable figure. You can get him in green, a painted version, or a white version - but the blue one is pretty spectacular. The blue back armor is glow plastic with a painted blue interior! It's striking, to say the least.

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Review: Outer Space Men Bluestar Maximilian Gravity Action Figure

 Having launched at a surprisingly fair (if not cheap) $15, Bluestar Maximilian Gravity is kind of a fascinating figure. (The Cosmic Radiation Zero Gravity [FOTD #2,310] was $25!) As of my writing this there have been four versions of this mold - or rather, this head - and three of them glow in the dark. It's a little silly, but I'll allow it. The first ones were called "Zero Gravity" and now they're being sold as Maximilian Gravity.

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Review: Outer Space Men Bluestar Colossus Rex Action Figure

I swore off completism until a 40% off sale hit the same week I got a little something extra in a paycheck. I'm not made of stone. The Bluestar Colossus Rex normally goes for $30, which was too much for me to pounce on in early 2022. But $18? With the rest of the line, also mostly 40% off? I can do that. At this point I recognize that what I'm paying for is a big wall of glowing blue plastic more than an action figure I'm going to cherish in and of itself, but I was surprised to see that this guy delivered more than Cosmic Radiation Colossus Rex [FOTD #1,546] in new colors.

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Review: The Outer Space Men, LLC Outer Space Men Cosmic Radiation Terra Firma Action Figure

I slowed my roll reviewing the glowing The Other Space Men figures because we got a lot in short order. Too many, you might say, since she's still available for retail price and that retail price was on the higher side of things. Cosmic Radiation Terra Firma shares parts with Luna Eclipse - and functionality, there really wasn't a good reason to do both - bringing you what may well be the epitome of midcentury adventure and space fantasy during the space race. We got a really great Infinity Edition Terra Firma [FOTD #944] way back in 2014, and we've also got an orange Alpha Phase one, a white Beta Phase Whitestar figure, a couple of custom Galactic Holiday figures, and I assume a complete run of unreleased Bluestar Terra Firma sitting in a storage space somewhere in New York as I write this.

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July 4 Weekend Glyos Codes for Outer Space Men and Rocom Mighty Maniax

What could be more American than buying a bunch of stuff over July 4 weekend? If you're a Glyos fan, you've got two pretty decent sales this weekend to exploit.

At Rocom Toys, you can get 20% off an order of $50 or more when you pick up Mighty Maniax Glyos figures.  They said it on Instagram, it must be true.

Also, The Outer Space Men have what may be the best coupon in years - 40% off most items when you enter OSMJULY4 in the shop.  (I went ahead and picked up all the Bluestars I missed so far.)  It was also shared on Instagram.

The Outer Space Men Bluestar Astrodite Now Available

Better late than never. The 2022 ASTRODITE BLUESTAR was posted to the Outer Space Men Shop on June 8, 2023.  She's a surprisingly cheap $15.  (If they lowered the prices on the other figures to $15, I think I'd order 'em all and complete my set - I only have the first four so far.)   She looks good, order her here.

Review: Outer Space Men Cosmic Radiation Astrodite Action Figure

I love glow figures, but too much of a good thing is possible. Cosmic Radiation Astrodite stayed in her baggie since I got her in 2018! White Star is still bagged, but I opened Astrodite Infinity Edition [FOTD #2,025] immediately. She's good! But the allure of repaints diminishes as time goes on - especially when it's a repaint of a figure you have to look like another figure you have. I'd love to see more variations on this mold, and while glow is exactly the kind of thing I want (and bought) she's just another glowing figure on a shelf of glowing figures. Excellent, but not special. 

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Review: Outer Space Men Galactic Holiday Darkoneth of the Voidrillion Command Cthulhu Nautilus Action Figure

 You never know how time will change your favorites! This was the last of the four "Galactic Holiday" figures I opened from the 2022 series. Galactic Holiday Darkoneth of the Voidrillion Command Cthulhu Nautilus is a redeco of the somehow still incredibly striking Outer Space Men Cthulhu Nautilus Action Figure [FOTD #2,015] from 2018. The metallic skin, gorgeous clear blue eyes, striking metallic blue costume, and shiny gold trim made it a perfect figure right out of the gate. We weren't subject to Alpha Phase prepaints, it was just blammo - here is a stunningly weird statement of space toy awesomeness, and it was a then-whopping $35, and I still love it. But we later got a green version from Onell Design, a plain white version, green and blue glow versions... and none of them were as impressive as the original, although that green one is a personal favorite. This purple alien one looks like some amazingly weird late-1980s toy (or bronze-age comic nightmare) and the colors drastically change the look and feel of the figure. It's kind of amazing how the Glyos figures, thanks to their ongoing repaints, can highlight different aspects of a toy and make you see a figure you have in a new light.

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Review: Outer Space Men Galactic Holiday Voidrillia of the Voidrillion Command Luna Eclipse Action Figure

I like this Galactic Holiday Voidrillia of the Voidrillion Command Luna Eclipse because her colors don't match any other human action figures I have in my toybox. She stands out. This 3 3/4-inch scale repaint of a resculpt turned out well, but according to Matt Doughty has some design connections to Queen Kirallius [FOTD #2,186], the figure from early 2020 that you regret missing. As a repaint of the original Luna Eclipse [FOTD #2,371], she has pretty much the same form factor. You can swap arms between bent and straight, she has a backpack, and there's a removable helmet with an opening visor. The figure one-ups the previous releases by adding a pair of blasters from the Cyclops action figure and a wild paint job, but you lose the glow-in-the-dark elements. Win some, lose some.

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Time to Clean Your Outer Space Men?

 If you're a fan of the 2010-present The Outer Space Men action figures (with Glyos), it might be time to give them a good look.  Mine have mostly been content to sit on a shelf for a few years, and I'd pull out some of the painted or glowing ones to shoot photos - but it turns out, they were quietly molting when I wasn't looking.  If you look at packaged Mystron Infinity Edition figures on eBay, if the photography is recent, you'll notice some telltale glistening on some parts.

If you have 2010 or 2011 clear figures, or the painted Mystron, give them a look.   Mystron's black painted wings, gargoyle gun, and tail have gone sticky for a lot of fans - you can wash them with warm water, soap, and maybe a very soft toothbrush or cloth.   Meanwhile, it seems all of the clear (non-glow) figures from 2010 and 2011 are a little sticky - so your Alpha Phase, Beta Phase, and Galactic Holiday figures of Inferno, Metamorpho, Xodiac, Astro-Nautilus, Mystron, Alpha-7, Electron+, and Commander Comet could use a bit of a hosing down.

Further, any Galactic Holiday figures with vac-metal parts that aren't silver or gold may be discoloring the PVC of the figures.   If there are Glyos pegs or closed fists around a vac-metal red/blue/green/etc. part, check around the hands or sockets.  Alpha-7 and Gemini seem to be fine since there was no tight grip there, but I've definitely noticed some discoloration around the fists of Galactic Holiday Mystron, Cyclops, and others as I start to see who needs to be scrubbed a bit.

The same is true for a lot of Glyos figures from 2010-2011 - check your Pheydens, Sarvoses, Callgrims, and so forth just in case.  Plastics sometimes molt a bit, or off-gas, or shed some sort of oils with time.  It's good to check them regularly to see what, if anything, needs to be wiped down.  I've got an old Kenner Bossk figure that seems to have extruded some of the yellow dye from his suit recently!

Review: Outer Space Men Galactic Holiday Cobaltus of the Voidrillion Command Colossus Rex Action Figure

I have plenty of The Outer Space Men figures. I really didn't need this Galactic Holiday Cobaltus of the Voidrillion Command Colossus Rex but, also, I did. These guys are a lot of fun to mess with thanks to their accessories and how they scale with a lot of my favorite childhood figures... plus they look like they could have and indeed should have been in the background of 1970s space comic books. Mr. Rex was based on a bendy figure from Colorforms from 1969 who was big and green and had a mace. In 2013, the very first pull of the mold came out and the manufacturers added an armor, a big axe, and a shield along with alternate hands. It was a lot of plastic, and the hefty Jovian stands five inches high.

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Review: Galactic Holiday Voidrillion Command Orbitron Action Figure

I feel kind of silly that I still get really excited for new The Outer Space Men figures. If I'm getting a new head or an all-new paint job, it's difficult for me to be cynical. When the quartet that includes Galactic Holiday Voidrillion Command Orbitron dropped in December I went from "Well I skipped wave 2 and beyond for Bluestar" to "Get my wallet" in about 4 seconds. They're weird magical beings. I shouldn't spend too much time being concerned about this, I'm just going to throw on a Les Baxter record and write about the silly space man.

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