New Atomic Apemen From White Elephant: Just Bought

[Dan2Dan]

Made aware by the Toy Ventures Weekly a few days ago, I just went to the White Elephant Toyz website and bought two new figures from their Atomic Apemen line that are available for the first time today, I believe: the Nova-esque Aurora, and the Mego Soldier Ape-esque Mongo. (I also bought one blank body for a custom.) These will go so well with the two Atomic Apemen I already bought from them in previous years. (One is a glow-in-the-dark ape scientist, and the other is wearing a "Conquest"-evocative green jumpsuit, armed with an uzi.)

I believe the ape heads are an homage to some AHI bootlegs from the 1970s maybe? Despite having been a huge Mego PotA fan as a child in the 1970s, I don't believe I ever saw those knock-offs. ("Astro-Apes"?). The ape head sculpts are kind of 'awkward,' but I find them alternatively 'endearingly so' and 'menacingly so.' So I'm a fan.

Man, I really wanted to buy a Tura Satana figure as well. But that would've pushed my order total over $100, and that was a psychological barrier I couldn't bring myself to cross today. Next time I will finally buy one!

(Among the other new figures available tonight, I'm not sure I totally understand the Swamp Monsters in "Menudo" t-shirts of assorted colors. That feels like an inside joke I'm maybe on the outside of. But that's awesomely oddball, nonetheless! I certainly remember "Menudo on ABC" on Saturday mornings in the early 1980s!)

I have really, really liked every figure that I've ever bought from White Elephant Toyz: Super Joe and Atomic Apemen and otherwise. So I am really thrilled to be so thrilled tonight about another purchase from them.

I was worried as I went to their website that these new figures would be over $30 each (given inflation, and tariffs, and all the rest), as I have found over the last 6 months to a year that, for myself, that's my personal 'price Rubicon' where I begin to have buyer's remorse on action figures. So I was very happy that the new ape was $29.99 and the new Nova-esque female was $26.99 (plus $10 shipping, but I'll allocate that mentally mostly to the blank body).

[apes3978]

I believe the ape heads are an homage to some AHI bootlegs from the 1970s maybe? Despite having been a huge Mego PotA fan as a child in the 1970s, I don't believe I ever saw those knock-offs. ("Astro-Apes"?).

Yes, the heads are based on the AHI "Action Apeman" figures.

The "Astro-Apes" were yet another, separate knock off.

[apes3978]

One thing, the ape head they're using for these figures does not look good as a blonde, at least to me anyway: https://www.megomuseum.com/rise-of-t...elephant-toyz/

[ODBJBG]

I think the yellow are the least visually interesting, or the least successful and sort of a classic look good kind of way. But I also think they are very applicable to the wacky knock off look for apes as well.

[Dan2Dan]

I think the yellow are the least visually interesting, or the least successful and sort of a classic look good kind of way. But I also think they are very applicable to the wacky knock off look for apes as well.

I totally agree that this ape head (in, to my mind, pretty much every color) captures fantastically the gonzo wackiness of the 70s knock-off inspirations. The yellow-headed one wearing the blue shirt is also pictured on the baggie header cart art the figures come with. That art seems to my eye to evoke both the packaging art for the 1970s PotA Halloween costumes, as well as the 1970s PotA cartoon. With specific reference to that White Elephant Toyz card art, I think that yellow-headed figure looks really cool. (That said, I didn't order one of those.)