What got you back into toy collecting as an adult?

[enyawd72]

I had long sold off all my toys by junior high, but still read comics. I remember seeing a print AD for the Toy Biz Marvel Superheroes in 1991 and I was absolutely thrilled. I remember rushing off to TRU and buying the entire first two series along with two carrying cases. I also remember feeling very embarrassed checking out with them, and hiding them from my parents when they came to visit my apartment.

But I loved those damn figures. Simple as they were...there's just something magical about them to me. I still have the set to this day.

[PNGwynne]

I never really stopped, but my purchasing fluctuated...Now, it's more focused & nostalgia-based.

[kingdom warrior]

I never really stopped....I bought the Marvel secret wars figures when I was in college, then an ex-girlfriend for my birthday, bought me a Mego Robin and that set me off to re buy megos, that were stolen from my childhood......

[cyberjerk]

I actually just started a year or so ago. A friend told me about the BBP! SMDM series and that led me to this forum. From there I learned about, what was then, the forthcoming FTC Batman series - which was awesome for me since I had several of these as a kid; I am thrilled to be reunited with them! I suppose the timing was really good, too, since we all know about all the cool stuff FTC is putting out now! In conjunction with this, I found a box in my parent's attic around this time with a lot of my old Kenner Star Wars stuff. While trying to a find few missing favorites of mine from the line and get some missing parts I learned about the Hasbro Star Wars Black Series 6" stuff. Between the re-Megos, the Star Wars 6", and the Mattel Batman '66 goodies I'm the poorest, yet happiest, I've been in years.

[Relic]

I had all but forgotten about Megos until one fatal day when a trip to the comic book store where I spotted a retro Mego Green Lantern. That 1 figure got me started all over again. A few months later I found a canvas bag at my parents house under the basement stairs that had 17 vintage Megos in it. I have restored and recarded all of them and added ALL of the original WGSH Megos except Batgirl to my collection. I am torn on wether to buy a vintage Batgirl, or just buy a new retro 1 and put her on a custom old style backer card.

[torgospizza]

I started going to a comic store in an antique mall, and started seeing stuff like Mego's Mxyzptlk and the Big Jim-era Tarzan from Mattel and would pic up stuff here and there. The comic store owner had a copy of Ray Castile's "In Love with Toys" he let me borrow, and that was it. Kenner bringing back Star Wars w/ PotF2 had a lot to do with it, too.

EDIT: I forgot how much eBay influenced me. I would stumble across stuff I'd forgotten about or had never knew existed. I'd say a Mego (either Tarzan or Captain America) was possibly the first thing I ever purchased off eBay.

[thunderbolt]

The Batman animated series line. Really liked the design of the characters. From there it was Famous Covers and then back into GI Joe and Mego vintage.

[cjefferys]

I never stopped collecting toys. I remember buying Super Powers figures at retail stores as a teenager and hoping I didn't bump into any classmates. Luckily a few years later, toy collecting finally became an "official" thing so the embarrassment level went down and I didn't have to hide my hobby in shame.

[kerowack]

Gi joe 25th five pack....which actually is sad because I sold that collection to start focusing on the true loves of my early childhood....Star Wars and superheroes. I find my collection looks best and satisfies me most when it's focused on to few of my loves....and not every one.

[warlock664]

I bought the Secret Wars and Super Powers figures while I was in college, but I really started collecting once I graduated and started making money. I remember first buying boxed Mego Batman & Robin from an ad in Toy Shop, and then adding Energized Bats not long after.
Once the '89 Batman movie hit, there was no turning back, I bought all the movie figures, the Batmobile, and the Batcave playset from Toy-biz. I started buying TMNT figures, and I got heavy into Kenner Starting Lineups, at one time I owned probably 1000+ SLUs, those were among the first items I sold when I registered on eBay in early 1998.

[jimsmegos]

Star Wars POTF 2... those red cards and pumped up versions got me all jazzed

[samurainoir]

I found this book at the library which got me back into vintage Star Wars figures.


The first "new" toy I bought as an adult collector was this one...


followed by this...


and then this...


and then this...

[ubermanx]

Short answer = Brick Mantooth

Long answer.

I stopped with toys right after the first wave of 3 3/4" G.I. Joes hit the shelves. I believe Clutch and the Vamp jeep were my last toy purchase specifically to play with. But I never stopped reading comics. As a result I have always had an action figure or two of comic book characters on my shelves as decoration. Sometimes one would break or I'd give it to my nephew to play with and I'd replace it with something new. I wouldn't call myself a collector at that point but there was always something lying around.

When Star Wars Episode I came out I dug out some of my old Star Wars figures and gave them to my daughters who were just the right age to enjoy them. We'd buy some of the new figures but it was short lived.

So by now the only vintage figures I have left are a beat up Boba Fett 3 3/4" and a Mego Spidey. For whatever reason I just never threw those two out. And one day I'm in Winners, a chain of liquidation stores in case you don't have one in your area. And in Winners I see a Mego-esque Shazam figure. Well the bug bit me huge. I bought all the figures I could find which I believe was Martian Manhunter, Darkseid, Black Atom and Shazam. Got them home and cracked them open. Really took me back to my early childhood as Megos were my first significant toy that I remember. A little Internet research and I find the rest of the line but of course, being in a liquidation store I knew it was cancelled.

Then I come across Brick Mantooth ... the World's Most Important Man Doll. The humour, the irony, the kitsch. The tag line "Recommended for children ages 35 and up" absolutely made me bust up laughing. AND it was from a guy in my neck of the woods. I met Samuarinoir, the real life Brick Mantooth and Cjefferys at various toy shows and it's been downhill from there

Since no one in my town carries Remego figures I started importing a case or two at a time, one set for me and a few sets to sell to friends and fellow geeks. Now I'm selling at toy shows at least once an month and having a ball doing it. Mego Meet this year was my first and I met so many great, warm and welcoming fellow collectors. It's be pretty cool so far.

- Marty

[BENDY]

kenner starting lineups in 1990 then found my old megos when I bought my house

[HardyGirl]

For me, I think it was GI Joe. When I was married, my ex and I decided we really didn't like modern day toys too much, so we decided to start getting classic toys for our future children, (which BTW, never happened). When Target had the exclusive 1st edition Duke GIJoes, we each put one on reserve. (anyone remember that you had to put your name on a list for that one?) My ex had many fond memories of playing w/ his Joe as a kid, and we thought our kids could play like that too. And I remembered my cousins in their backyard playing w/ their Joes and Tonka trucks, so I was excited about this. It was actually, kinda disappointing b/c the flocking started coming out when you pulled it out of the box. So mine sits in its box in my toyroom. I also started going to (now defunct) Rummage-O-Rama in West Allis WI, and various toy shows. I used to go to these so much that dealers would actually remember me, and put stuff aside for me. (Cool, right?) Anyway, that's my story.