Welcome back subscribers. It’s Easter Sunday 2024 and what better time to share a flash memory of my comics collecting heyday.. hope you enjoy!
Happy Easter Satellite subscribers. I had no intention of writing this morning however while read my Twitter Pal Dave’s blog this morning I ran into a comic I have always had a particular fondness and memories of! As it is Easter Sunday as of this writing I’ll quickly share this story if for nothing else than to preserve my memory.
Part of growing up for me were weekly trips to the grocery store with my Dad! Thursday which must have been payday we’re guaranteed trips to the local Co-op or the new Sobeys store in Clarenville and always scored me an action figure or a comic, or two.. sometimes three!! I was lucky! Not only picking out great food like C3POs cereal (Spoiler.. it sucked) but I always got a “treat”.
I am in this pic! I could not find a picture of the Handy Andy store but I did find the Handy Andy dory used in the Clarenville Day festivities!!
I recall a weekend, it was particularly sunny so it was definitely summer. It seemed to be early in the day and my father needed to go to the local Hardware store called Handy Andy in my hometown of Clarenville, NL Canada. Andy’s was overlooking the water and on the corner of a turn at the beginning of Clarenvilles “Lower Road”. It was originally called Handy Andy Associate store and was located on Marine Drive in Clarenville Newfoundland my hometown! It sold camping and fishing gear, bikes, and automotive parts. I can still smell the bike tires!! It was filled with bikes, camping stuff, and seemingly endless Bike tires.. I cannot downplay that smell! It was here I got three of my favorite comics and my official introduction to Captain Carrot!
I LOVED this book!! Fun memories triggered here! I bought this at the afore mentioned Hardware store on a trip with my Dad at the age of 7! I had ONLY seen Captain Carrot in ads in comics and that DC insert up to that point, so I remember it was a huge deal!! They had a small wooden book shelf about mid store that housed a few car magazines, some decently sexist magazines of hot women, and in the middle of all that issues of Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! They clearly didn’t rotate their magazine because there were three consecutive issues there that day and I begged my Dad to get them and of course he did!
This one sat around my house for eternity. My copy is respectfully battered and sitting in a box in my parents basement. I just felt the urge to preserve this memory!
Here are the other two that ended up leaving Handy Andy with me that day! Thanks Dad!
Well with that out of the way, go read my pal Dave’s blog post which triggered this memory in my mind! Enjoy! Tell him Hero sent ya!
When someone says the term Marvel Comics, my mind instantly goes to one name. Stan Lee. He was the ultimate pitchman. He made you believe that anyone could be a hero. When he spoke, people paid attention. His bombastic verbiage and his ability to speak were unmatched. His delivery was as masterful as any salesman, television.evangelist, or carnival barker. Anyone can sell a car, but when Stan Lee sold you something, you walked away believing that you had the best, most exciting car you ever drove. There is a section of comics culture that tries to dimisnish Stan’s contributions. Who created what? Was it all Jack Kirby? Was it Ditko? Fact is, no matter what the reality is, the single figure you associated with Marvel and their hero’s was Stan. He was the Walt Disney to the Disney company! The Steve Jobs to Apple. Stan made his characters much more than comic book fare.. he made them feel real.. he made them OUR heroes. Marvel with Stan at the helm was the peoples comics company, and our minds went to worlds we could not even imagine. This was the wonder of Stan Lee. His impact is as much alive today as ever before. His life’s work is on every TV, movies screen, toy shelf , video game, and merchandise stand you can see. Stan Lee created a cultural phenomenon, and his legacy is the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Stan sowed the seeds of the biggest cinematic film series ever created, and it started as a result of Stan Lees’ masterful salesmanship. If you ever wondered how it began, pull up a seat as I tell you a tale of the beginnings of how we got here.
Stan Lee was an aspiring writer who ended up working in the comics industry. Lee made his way from office flunky to editor in short order as his predasessors were either fired or quit leaving Stan the last man standing in the office, and he took his new position of authority dead serious. Stan found himself in a position where he was now dictating many creators who were many years his senior. The content produced was not creatively satisfying for Stan. As a writer himself, he knew the quality of output he was making was schlock, and his work doing romance or funny animal stories was leaving him creatively bankrupt. Stan was tired of working for Martin Goodmans comic book company and was planning his exit. As fate would have it Stan discussed his dismay with his wife Joan. She urged him to write one more story the way HE would have wanted to write it!
Lee was open his entire career about wanting to be considered a serious author one who would write the next big American novel and comics were considered disposable entertainment, “kids stuff” that wasn’t considered high calibre professional works. When Joan suggested that he write a book “his” way …and…he did.
Stan’s way…would become the Marvel Way, but no one knew it at the time. What even was the Marvel Way? It didn’t exist, but Stan was about to make it up. Stan did something other companies at the time didn’t do. He grounded his heroes and stories with a sense of everyman reality. He just didn’t write a story of a man from another planet with unlimited powers and an indestructible perfect human. Stan saw fault in this. Superman, for example, was perfect. Many kids could never be Superman. Of course, with perfection comes story limitation. If you are writing about an invincible hero who is the strongest, fastest, and most good-looking guy out there, the story gets cold quickly. Where were the interesting flaws? Where were the real storytelling aspects real people could relate to?
Stan took the concept of the Everyman hero with real issues and problems and thrust them on paper as a dysfunctional four member super team where nothing was perfect, but the stories were boundless. The team had relationship drama and infighting, and some characters battled with the idea of even being a hero in the first place. That creation was The Fantasic Four, and it was considered the day one creation point for modern Marvel writing and the launch pad for the Marvel Universe. His “last” comic book, written in collaboration with the brilliant co-creator Jack Kirby, was The Fantastic Four, which launched the Marvel Age of comics and sparked a steady stream of new concepts and characters, Thor, Black Panther, and The X-Men. Stan had a keen eye for the culture at the time and realized early on that they might translate easily to other media. Boy, would he be right! Stans vision for his heroes would be the starting point for how comic books’ transitioned from print to film and television, merchandise and beyond the scope of his wildest dreams but for our purposes we will focus on the very beginning of the tradition from the comics page to the small screen.
In 66, Lee contributed to Grantray-Lawrences The Marvel Super Heroes animated series while still working at Marvel in a multitude of roles such as editor, art director, and writer! Lees work on the shows was invaluable as he helped shape stories written ironically by him and authors and co creators like Jack Kirby, Spider-Man co-creator Steve Ditko, and more. even though Goodman negotiated the deal with Grantray-Lawrence Lee would be the one moving the various parts to get the projects green lighted and Marvels Superhero’s would no longer be relegated to the comic book page but now for the first time would be seen in living color and action on our TV screens! The seeds of the MCU were planted here..
Heroes included Captain America, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man, Thor, and Namor as the main characters of the series. Each character had their own miniseries or show that repurposed stories from recent Marvel comics.Some would say the “animation” was crude.I always loved the show. The fact that the cartoon looked just like a comic book gave it the charm that I loved! The producers literally took comics panel directly from the comics and literally particularly animated portions of the picture to show motion or action. The closest thing I can compare it to would be a modern motion comic.In order to give the impression of animation and some lip-syncing, the animation typically consisted of photocopied images taken directly from recent issues of the comics featuring the different characters, or even from early issues of The Avengers. While not technically groundbreaking from an animation standpoint, the fact remained that Marvel now became part of homes all across the nation. The competition was paying attention and producing cartoon fare of their own, but something was different. The mood was changing. Marvel not surprisingly won over devoted followers with the television series and its iconic catchy theme songs for Thor, Captain America, and Iron Man had all of us singing along.
1967 gave us the FANTASTIC FOUR animated series from Hanna Barbera Which heavily adapted Lee and Kirby’s Fantastic Four work.
Characters like The Mole Man and Galactus debuted! If you haven’t seen the show It featured an amazing episode detailing Dr. Doom’s origin story. Hanna Barbera with master artist Alex Toth reimagined concepts like the Skrulls and the Silver Surfer but the fact remained despite Lee not being directly involved many of the stories were based on the early Lee and Kirby Fantastic Four issues.
Stan knew he had something here. This is when Marvels ultimate pitch man went to work and chased further applications for his characters and pushed forward for more..
Although not directly involved, Lee’s influence on the 1967 Hanna-Barbera Fantastic Four animated series could still be felt because of the material the creators adapted. Key antagonists from the episodes included The Mole Man and Galactus and Dr. Doom’s origin story received an entire episode. While they were reimagined by Hanna-Barbera and comics legend Alex Toth, the Skrulls and the Silver Surfer also made appearances. Many of the stories were based on the early Lee and Kirby Fantastic Four issues.
Of course, then there was the grand daddy of them all the legendary Spider-Man series from 1967. Produced by Gantray Lawrence and later Kratnz films Spider-Man is considered Marvels most iconic early animation achievement. This show was in constant rotation at my house. It aired practically every day. It was a fixture on Saturday mornings in key time slots on Canadian television. It was a staple of Canadian early weekday mornings before school!
Spider-Man’s adventures were comfort food for me, and any episodes featuring members of the Sinister Six were always my favorites. From the simply irresistible theme song of the series to the outlandish tone and scope of the 6 showed fans what made Marvel different from its distinguished competition. Peter Parker Spider-Man real life identity battled taking care of his aging Aunt May while trying to hold down a job as a photographer for the Daily Bugle, the pressures of school, women and everything a real life teen of the era would go through. It lasted three very distinct seasons, each one particularly the third season wildly different in tone and budget. Spider-Man became the beloved signature hero of Marvel comics at that point and forever linked to Stan Lees’ career from that moment forward. With minor success in the animation department, Lee had visions that Hollywood would be their next stop.
THE INCREDIBLE HULK, SPIDER-MAN, AND DR. STRANGE APPEAR ON TV IN THE 1970S.
Stan’s ambitions took him outside of the office on a tour circuit. Whether it was speaking engagements at university’s, publicity events Stan was in full steam pitchman mode. Lee’s personality was the reason why Marvel landed in areas where you would never see comic book related fare. Stan was THE living and breathing symbol of Marvel comics, and he loved and soaked up that attention in pursuit of making this company more than a magazine with cool colors and pictures. Marvel invaded toy shelves. Marvel Blacklight posters adorned many kids’ walls, and the Mighty Marvel Marching Society was even spinning on vinyl on record players of the time.
When Lee took over as publisher of Marvel Comics in 1972, he largely delegated writing and creative work to a new group of authors, illustrators, and editors. Lee found himself guiding the Marvel heroes through Hollywood as the characters started to emerge in the uncharted territory of live action, even though he continued to be involved in some creative aspects of the business, such as the daily Spider-Man comic strip.
All roads led to the first live action show for Marvel comics. The genesis for the MCU was here. The beginning of a multi-billion dollar media franchise began unsuspecting one winter evening, and the world was ready. The Incredible Hulk made its television debut in November of 1977 with a two hour pilot airing on CBS. The show featured Lou Ferigno as Hulk and the incredible Bill Bixby as his alter ego Bruce Banner. The show was a ratings success and aired from November 4, 1977 –May 12, 1982.
“In the TV series, Dr. David Banner, a widowed physician and scientist who is presumed dead, travels across America under assumed names and finds himself in positions where he helps others in need despite his terrible secret: Following an accident that altered his cells, in times of extreme anger or stress, he transforms into a huge, savage, incredibly strong green-skinned humanoid, who has been named “the Hulk”. In his travels, Banner earns money by working temporary jobs while searching for a way to either control or cure his condition. All the while, he is obsessively pursued by a tabloid newspaper reporter, Jack McGee, who is convinced that the Hulk is a deadly menace whose exposure would enhance his career.”
Stan Lee was elated about the Hulks’ success! Lee himself had become larger than life. He was now being recognized in places outside of the comics bubble and was comics’ first version of a rock star and became a traveling media liason! Lee was great at one thing, selling an audience on whatever he was selling. Bombastic, sweet, energetic. He always presented a fun, uplifting persona and was a person you wanted to be around.
He also stood for something. He believed in inclusion and peoples rights. He championed the voices of the common man, and that appeal made him larger than life.
His voice for me is what always sets the tone. The cadence, the inflection, and the delivery. Hearing Stan’s voice open, many of my childhood cartoon shows or VHS tapes were always like comfort food. He treated his Mighty Marvel Marching Society like a club you HAD to be in with him. It was the cool place to be! Marvel was cool because of Stan. He spoke literally to kids and teens of all ages and put their stories on the page.
You related to Stan and his characters because they were based in reality. Peter Parker had girlfriend issues…didn’t we all at one point! The Hulks Bruce Banner had an inner monster he had to control….like many of us. The Fantastic Four were a family that fought, broke up, lived lost, and loved together. Stan made us believe, and for those few minutes reading those comic pages, we were along for the ride and part of something special.
Does it matter who created what? Who’s name is ahead of another for creating part of a character? Sure it does for some reasons but no one can contest that the reason that Marvels characters live forever on screens, phones, merchandise and in the modern lexicon is because Stan Lee invited us into that house and we grew up there and never wanted to move out!
Thank you Stan Lee, for allowing me to be a kid no matter what my age. Thank you Stan Lee, for giving me a playbook on how to deliver motivating and powerful speeches. Funny enough, when I tell stories to my kids, there is a part of me that steals Stan’s delivery everytime!!
Thank You Stan for creating a world where my family and I can spend together and create memories because that’s what it’s all about.
Raise a glass to Stan Lee on his birthday. You will always be “The Man”..
Here’s to Stan..
Excelsior!!
Hey… I usually wrap up a “Till next time Satellite Subscriber’s”… which, of course, is ripped off of Stan’s method of assigning his readership a tagline, but I had to share some personal Stan related fare!!
My wife took this picture for me on the Hollywood Walk of Fame during a recent trip. Stan was one of one of the very short lists that I requested a picture of his star!!
During that very same trip, my wife also snapped this wonderful plaque from Disney Land California, and the words say it all.
For Christmas, I also got a few Stan Lee related items!! I finally got a fresh copy of How To Draw Comics The Marvel Way!!
Okay… now you can go!! Till next time, True Believers!!
For more Stan Lee related content, check out a few pieces written and created by a few friends of mine!
Hey Satellite Subscribers!! Here is some very special content for audiophiles out there! The Post Halloween edition of The Superhero Satellite Podcast is here!! While this is not officially the 4th episode this special episode is an information packed episode covering Marvel’s Ill fated STAR Comics Imprint! Plus we cover an issue of its single claim to fame..Peter Porker The Spectacular Spider-Ham!! All this and more right here on SHS!! Enjoy!
While you are here…check out the rest of the Super-Blog Team-Up Goes To Hell event by checking out a blog or a podcast that may be new to you or maybe and d favorite!! Tell em Hero sent ya!
Between The Pages Blog – Hostess Comic Book Ads Were Hot Stuff
*ATTENTION HEROES* The Satellite has sustained excessive battle damage on its latest journey into retro..our travels to 1987 has created a wormhole in the space-time continuum and we seem to be temporarily displaced. Ensign..bring up coordinates.
Ensign: It seems our coordinates have taken us not back in time Captain but rather years into the future..its 2147..and it appears we are being attacked by machines known as “Bio Dreads!!
Bringing up Shields..activate Satellite Tactical Systems ...It seems the damage sustained will not keep us in orbit long..we need to land Earthside and find the one human who can help us.. Dr. Stuart Gordon Power.Sending a team down to locate the Doctor and get the technology to repair our hull..take care Heroes..Suit up…POWER ON!!
Transmission Date: Oct 24 2014
In 1987 our version of the future was your regular idea of flying cars and robots. The world had advanced as far as 8 Bit graphics on a Nintendo system in your living room so the flying car and robot society were only alive in our biggest fantasies. Yours truly was a big fan of “The Future” so Movies like Back To the Future, Star Wars, RoboCop, and Terminator were enough to fuel this 13 year olds mind. So in 1987 when I caught wind of Mattel’s new line of Futuristic action figures calledCaptain Power and The Soldiers Of the Future I could hardly wait! I had bins of figures from GI Joe, Star Wars and Go-Botsthat these new toys would be a much welcomed addition to the collection. I had gotten my first taste of this new line of Toys on the back of my favorite literary companion..The Comic Book.
The Toyline and commercials teased that the Toys would be interactive like nothing else ever seen. With select toys from the line, many proud owners could play along with a VHS tape bundled with the Toy and could purchase others to continue the fun. The big drawing card however was the kids could play along with the Television series!! Thats right. If you owned the Captain Power X17 Power Jet or its arch nemesis The Phantom Striker you could engage with the television by shooting at glowing markers on the screen. The catch was..THE TV SHOT BACK!! Certain parts of the show especially the end credits enemies fired bright blasts at the viewer that triggered the sensors on your toy and your toy “EXPLODED”…well at least your action figure in the cockpit would be ejected! This was revolutionary and I wanted these toys!! I had to find out all about this show! As mentioned many times on this blog..Canadian TV networks did not carry many U.S. shows but us Canadians finally hit gold as Captain Power was actually a Canadian made series!! Saturday Afternoons on NTV The Cap and his Soldiers of the Future aired!!
So it would be in the afternoons of 1987 I managed to tune into Captain Power and the Soldiers Of The Future a series created by Gary Goddard/ Tony Christopher for LandMark Entertainment Group. The series itself actually went two seasons for a total of 22 episodes which in its day was pretty remarkable in the waning days of Saturday Morning cartoons. The show was a visual spectacle that meshed live action with some of the earliest computer generated animation!! The result was ground breaking!!
“Captain Power And The Soldiers Of The Future Earth, 2147. The legacy of the Metal Wars, where man fought machines—and machines won. Bio-Dreads—monstrous creations that hunt down human survivors…and digitize them. Volcania, center of the Bio-Dread Empire; stronghold and fortress of Lord Dread , feared ruler of this new order. But from the fires of the Metal Wars arose a new breed of warrior, born and trained to bring down Lord Dread and his Bio-Dread Empire. They were “Soldiers Of The Future”–mankind’s last hope.”
Yes a show set in the future about a group of futuristic soldiers fighting a dark enemy who use sophisticated machinery to take over earth!! Great idea right!! Sure was..however it may have been over the heads of its audience at the time. The Saturday Morning generation was still alive and well and kids still rose from their bed early to catch a virtuoso of cartoons for almost 7 hours on the Week. While we dug into Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Alvin and The Chipmunks NTV gave us the post apocalyptic Captain Power.
It was not standard Saturday Morning uplifting fare..instead we got a dark, brooding violent futuristic drama. The reaction was mixed even at times downright HOSTILE. Many kids who flocked to toys stores gathered around the screen and played along with the show loved the product! However parents groups sought to get Cap and friends off the screen ASAP! The violence on the show was pretty excessive for what people were used to at the time. My thoughts? It was perfect! The insertion of CGI really added a layer of novelty to the show. Computer Animation was in its infancy and seeing animated characters and effects blasting back at you on my 32 inch TV was epic!
No great Sci-Fi show can be considered great unless it has a great foil..a BadGuy! Lord Dread fit the bill! He was Captain Powers version of Darth Vader! Part machine..full fledged madman Dread literally attempted to merge himself with technology in his quest to take over the world like any good Superbad would do! In my own opinion the casting for Dread was curious as I always felt he simply looked like the proverbial Old man! Most scenes with Dread were mostly non action scenes of Dread in his chair giving morbid speeches and cursing Captain Power for foiling his latest efforts of world domination. Dread action figure looked far superior to the live action version. Check out the pic above as the Bio Dread Empire looked great in their action figure likenesses as well!!
Former college of Dr. Power closest associate, Dr. Lyman Taggart(David Hemblen), became impatient with the slow pace of the project and hooked himself up to the system, bringing the supercomputer to operational status. With the new opportunities offered by the human-machine combination, Taggart becomes obsessed with the precision and “perfection” of machines and convinces himself that merging human consciousness with mechanical bodies is the next step in human evolution. OverMind achieves self-awareness and shares Taggart’s beliefs as they take over Bio-Mech armies throughout the world and attack humanity in a conflict known as the Metal Wars. (Credit Wikipedia)
The shows superbads Lord Dread had 2 completely CGI counterparts the first of which was called SOARON who was a “An arrogant, crafty and intellectual warrior whose total confidence in his flying skills is completely justified. Merciless and cruel by nature, Soaron – who stands just under 7 feet tall – enjoys the sport of war and is fond of playing cat and mouse with enemies.Soaron has a mainframe designed for speed,agility and firepower. His arsenal includes the Digitizer, Photon Blasters, Reflexor Missilesand Implosion Bombs. Soaron can deploy enough firepower to destroy a small city !” (Credit: http://www.captainpower.tv/soaron.html) Soaron was the Winged Bird Like Sky Sentry who was the most prominent of the two CGI henchmen however if you had the toy his blasts were very bright making certain his shots connected with your ship in some form or fashion!
Both Soaron and Blastaar worked together, but dis not see eye to eye despite their programming. Soaron the higher powered of the two often reminded Blastaar of his inferior build there was a clear rivalry between the two. As action figures both were standout parts of the collection and had some of the most unusual molds of the bunch! More over these characters represent a very early look into CGI as we would come to know it today! Many may site these as crude examples of animation but in 1987 this was THE FUTURE!!
Back to the show itself…it lasted one single season as mentioned before, landed a very handsome 22 episodes before ceasing production. The airings on my local television network NTV were not consistent and the time slot changed several times during its run even moving the show to 6:30 evenings. The shows production was seemingly doomed from the start as parents groups lobbied for the shows cancellation due to its gritty violent nature. Looking back this was truly not normal Saturday Morning Cartoon suitable. Most of the shows had an alarming amount of warfare, laser fights and even a death of a core character Corporal Jennifer Pilot Chase in the final episode of the show! Satellite Video screen please..show our viewers the archival footage..
There were adult themes everywhere and what was intriguing was the series had mapped out a second season , one that would never see production and its a shame.The mystery second Season according to head writer of the show in an interview would have seen the Captain relinquish his leadership to Hawk only to go on a revenge mission to avenge the death of Jennifer Chase! Several new characters would have been introduced to the show including a new female to replace Pilot named Chris “Ranger” O’Connor, who was to be a new love interest for the Tank Character. Another character who had been introduced earlier in an episode of the show was set to join the team an appropriately named Chip “TNT” Morrow.
The series even had a planned ending in which Captain Power and Lord Dread (Who sees the error in his ways!) both agree that Overmind, the controlling force over all Bio-Dread tech has a hidden agenda that involves even the destruction of Dread himself. Uneasy allies come together to save humanity once and for all and end the wars! Sounds too good! Sadly it was not meant to be, ratings sharply declined and the toy fad died fairly quickly. With no episodes left to run and production of the interactive VHS tapes over with the Toyline fell apart as well. The show which attempted to capture two audiences both young and old had done an incredible job of NOT garnering either! The show, as mentioned earlier was lobbied against so many kids were simply not allowed to watch. As for the parents or adults, statistics showed what was obvious to us all in that few adults want to watch a show that kids used toys to play along with. Captain Power was a show that literally managed to alienate both target audiences! The shows production costs had ballooned to 1 Million dollars per episode which did not compute with networks who fueled their Saturday Morning Line Ups with cheap animated cartoon shows that produced a much more cost-effective yield. The times in the 80s, plus its target audience was all wrong and Captain Power would abruptly go offline. Captain Power was one of those shows that many remember however due to the fact it was so different from anything on TV at the time. and many collectors are still on the hunt for Captain Power memorabilia! We here at the Satellite love toys as you know..so lets all take a look at the backbone to the show..the awesome friggin toyline! First the core characters..The Soldiers Of the Future!!
Captain Jonathan Power (Dunigan), Inventor of the incredible Power Suits, a One man war machine and natural leader of the team!
Major Matthew ‘Hawk’ Masterson (Peter MacNeill), The winged soldier who assisted the team in air strikes! Also if a second season had been issued would have taken the leadership position in the Soldiers of The Future!
Lieutenant Michael ‘Tank’ Ellis (Sven-Ole Thorsen), My personal favorite outside of the Captain. Tank was the muscle of the team. Ground assault unit.
Sergeant Robert ‘Scout’ Baker (Maurice Dean Wint), The “Breaker” (GI Joe Reference!!) of the group..espionage and communications.
And Corporal Jennifer ‘Pilot’ Chase (Jessica Steen), tactical systems expert. and the only character to DIE officially in the final episode of the show!
My main concern with the figure line was that the figures themselves were not as durable as you would think. The pin connection used for joints were notorious for breaking so it was not uncommon in this time to have one or two Captain Power toys with a missing forearm.
The toys standout as they looked amazing compared to any figure on the shelves at the time in 1987. They toys fit directly in line with popular action toy-lines of the day such as GI Joe and Star Wars but had a unique design that just stood out! Each toy were suited up with a shiny plastic armor! The figures literally jumped out at you on their card! Each of them had a completely different design and didn’t rely on the clone moulds like GI Joe toys utilized as a cost cutting measure. Each one had awesome armor, were fully articulated (No swivel armed grip sadly!) and of course came with great weapons! My favorite was the gold armored Captain Jonathan Power toy..this one stood out like a gem in the collection with his flashy gold armor and seemingly a semi automatic weapon!!??! Of course what good was old John without his ride..Ladies and Gentlemen..
THE POWERJET-XT-7
I loved the PowerJet XT-7 so much..it was my drawing card to the show honestly..I wanted to shoot the screen and defeat Lord Dread myself! If only Star Wars had X-Wings like this with an interactive Death Star…but alas I was left with the good Captain..In truth I would love to tell the readers of my enjoyment opening the XT-7..however I would never own one…Instead..I had THIS..
The redheaded stepchild of Power Jets..
LORD DREADS PHANTOM STRIKER..!!??
Yes, the wonderful folks at our local retail store did not have a passion for replenishing stock at key holiday times leaving this bad boy in stock while everyone wanted the PowerJet. That said our household had a toy that could finally interact with the TV screen! Both ships had the EXACT same function so that alleviated some of the disappointment. I fondly remember stocking that black badass ship with its required batteries and waiting for the show to come on!! Of course it would be a couple of weeks before the show would air due to Captain Powers random schedule and holiday preemptions. So as it would the stars would align one Saturday afternoon and I slapped on the good Captain…..and it was horrible. The light sensor technology was the same style used on Nintendos light gun games of the day where bursts of light dictated your enjoyment and playability. So depending on a variety of factors from room lighting to the contrast on your TV the toy may or may not work. As well..you truly never ever got any true sense of victory as the show rolled on despite you hitting all targets dead on..yet your character somehow ended up on the floor very easily. It was like the game cheated. Large blasts from the show, usually from that cheap skate Soaron, would easily be considered a hit towards your ship with no way to dodge without covering up your sensor on your ship! Facts are facts though..the toy did what it was supposed to do..it was just very deceiving in its delivery. I want to be clear though..Captain Power toys were great..heres a few more!
The Power Energizer!! The Beacon of hope for Captain Power..basically it managed to shine a light through the good Captains chest. The central Power Battery for Cap! I had this as a kid..not sure really what I ever did with it!
The Trans-Field Base Station! Never had this in my collection but darn sure looks great! Lord Dread should be concerned!
The “Trans-Field base sets sure looked like they were pillaging you for every dime! Any Soldier Of the Future needs a gigantic Computer Station right in the middle of the Battle Field!
Dread Fights back with the ultra cool INTERLOCKER!! If you didn’t have a show to watch you could battle your Captain power toys and blow each other to smithereens with toys like these..all light sensor enabled!!
The Captain power Power Base!! Had no idea this even existed. The stores in my area did not carry such a thing!! Seems cool though!
The Power Base exposed. Looks pretty cool plus has the interactive light cannon that the ships had so this Power Base looks like a winner! Anyone have this as a kid?
The Whole Collection looked great when presented together!!
Is it me or was the Bio-Dread army seriously misrepresented in the toy line?
Late entries in the line brought these very cool co-play toys and one smaller Cap vehicle! However many areas did not get these items shipped so many fans never saw these particular pieces!! Love Tanks blaster!!
The Blastpak 1200?
An addition to the team was Scout baker. This second series figure is one not often found in childhood collections and is in fact considered one of the most forgotten figures!
If its obscure Captain Power merch you are looking for..there were none rarer than these toys. This pic is from a 1988 Toy catalog and featured some very rare Captain power Merchandise including the Sky Bike, Dread Commander and Dread Trooper, and Bio Dread tank!!
Captain Power merchandise expanded beyond the toyline…but just barely. It is one of the most fondly remembered toy lines to barely break the surface with extra merchandising outside of toys. There were Captain Power lunch boxes..comics, and of course a video game!
All hail the Captain Power Comic from Continuity Comics in the late 80s which featured probably the best Neal Adams art you will ever find in a licensed book!!
One would be remiss to forget the VHS collection that worked hand in hand with the Captain Power collection. These movies were filled not with an incredible story but mostly a lot of blasts and interactive material to play well with the vehicles!
One would not dare go to lunch without THIS awesome Captain Power Lunch Box!! I am sad to say I never had this gem!!
In the madness of the 80s technological revolution we were playing the NES or The Sega Master system..The Captain Power Video game never made it to those systems instead in a highly unusual move Captain Power was given to the dying Commodore 64 PC as a Video game? I am sad to report that not only is this game rare but boy did it suck..dont take my word for it..check it out!
This encapsulates the bulk of the Captain Power material that was ever made available and I must say I surprised myself with some of the merchandise that actually existed! If this is your first time seeing Captain Power in any form then you are in for a treat! For the long time fans I hope this whet your appetite for a good stroll through memory lane. A cool place to check out some of this merchandise is through friends of this blog, New Wave Traders! Mike and the folks there love to buy and sell all things Retro , so if you like toys video games, accessories, and other cool stuff like Captain Power merchandise just go and visit their website below! Tell em Hero Sent ya!
It appears our systems are back online team..Lord Dread is still at large but we will have to leave this mission in the hands of our friends the Soldiers Of the Future…its back to our time. Buckle in heroes..its time to go home..
“It was 1980 something and it was awesome!” Truer words were never spoken and they represent a big reason I do this little personal blog, the Super-Hero Satellite. Most of my growing up happened to thankfully occur in the 1980s! It comes as no surprise that things like Comics, TV, Toys, Wrestling, and Movies are all things celebrated on ABCs TV Sitcom The Goldberg’s would spark this guys interest!. Heck this entire blog is a love letter to all those things! The show details the trials and tribulations of The Goldberg family as it all plays out in 1980 something and is a semi autobiographical story of the real life Adam Goldberg (who happens to be the shows creator!) and his family! The show of course takes liberties and with real life history and even gives the Goldberg family a fictional sister that technically didn’t exist in real life but in general many of the situations depicted in the show happened to a degree in real time..in the 1980s! It goes without saying that our journey today finds us in very familiar territory back in the best decade of them all..the 1980s! Power Gloves on heroes, put The Karate Kid in the VCR, GI Joe’s on deck..today we talk all about a show that I NEED everyone of you reading this to check out..THE GOLDBERGS!!
The 2013 Fall TV season was about to begin and I was getting ready with my usual fare to begin watching such shows as Agents Of Shield, The Blacklist (Which held my attention for two episodes), Hostages (My wife watched an episode and told me to watch and I was lost after 20 minutes and gave up), and Bates Motel! During the hype for all these shows ABC was sneaking in very light promotion for a sitcom called The Goldbergs. First watch of the commercial it held my interest. Second viewing I was hooked..and as the commercials began to build my anticipation I was ready for this new show about a family in the 1980s! Hell I was a child of the 80s and this looked like something I could relate to.
Anyone who knows me knows my passion for the show The Wonder Years, a lighthearted family drama about a boy growing up in the 60s and seeing the times change through his lens! It was a life changing show for me! I in no way even for one second felt The Goldberg’s would be able to replicate those emotions in me. I actually missed its debut episode on September 24, 2013 on its first airing but managed to catch the last 10 minutes of the show much later the next morning. I programmed it into my PVR and decided to give this show a shot. Second show airs… I miss it AGAIN but my PVR was there to save the day!
I sat and watch the second episode entitled “Daddy Daughter Day”, The Father , Murray Goldberg lost touch with his ‘little girl’, Erica, once she started growing up. Murray takes her to the roller rink to try and rekindle their daddy-daughter relationship. Also Adam goes shopping with his mother much to his dismay and embarrassment! This episode was funny but absolutely had not found its legs. It was full of 80s visual references but that’s about it. I enjoyed it enough to keep watching. It was refreshing. I had not truly enjoyed a sitcom in many years. Somehow this show won me over. The reviews that were coming in were not flattering but damn it I liked the show and it did not deter me! The cast was pitch perfect! Interesting and unique the TV family seemed to gel seamlessly!
Adam was exactly me in the 1980s. Look at his list of likes! This kids was ME!! TV Adam is played fantastically by Sean Giambrone. The kid has a certain vulnerability and ability to garner sympathy for his plight. Not since Fred Savage played Kevin Arnold in The Wonder Years has a kid been able to generate real emotion in a comedic sitcom. Sean could easily have been a real kid in the 80s and does not look one bit out-of-place on the show. From his incredible Toy collection consisting of GI Joes, Star Wars, Transformers and He-Man the shows creator ensured that TV Adam was well stocked in 80s memorabilia. His TV counter part consistently sports a new classic retro 80s shirt in every episode! Adam plays a wide variety of classic Nintendo games from The Legend of Zelda 1 & 2 , to Punch out and everything in between! He is an avid movie watcher like I was growing up with a passion for Indian Jones and Tron! Plus he video tapes everything with his camcorder! Like us all struggles to fit in at school and has few friends except a girl named Muscles Mirsky and the girl next door, Dana! The Adam & Dana dynamic is very enjoyable. Adams intense shyness around Dana and his overwhelming desire to impress her is personally the center of the show! we get to see the first dance, the first kiss and Adam stumbling through it all! Read all about the rest of the cast at the end of this post!! Where do I start watching you may ask..I missed season 1! Well The Satellite is here to help..here’s your Goldbergs starter kit! Heres some must watch episodes and some quirky hidden facts you may have overlooked that add to the enjoyment of this great new show!
The Super-Hero Satellites Top Five Episodes Of the Goldberg’s!
5. Episode 16 : Goldberg’s Never Say Die! This fun episode was one of the shows attempts to catch a few viewers with a gimmick episode.. and it worked! This show was unabashedly based on the classic 80s kids adventure film The Goonies!! Adam like this author, LOVES the movie the Goonies so much so that when his families jewellery goes on the missing list, he bands together The Goldberg’s version of the Goonies with each one playing an exact version of one of the Goonies! Sister Erica, Brother Barry and his friends Emmy, Muscles Mirksy, Dana Caldwell and Chad Kremp go on a treasure hunt very similar to the actual film! Fans of movies grab this show..super fun!
4. Episode 14. You Opened The Door. Many of us remember our first dance. In this episode Adam asks for his Mothers help in preparing for his first dance! This episode Beverly teaches Adam dance moves, buys them matching Mother and Son matching dance suits to wear to the dance, and Beverly becomes a one woman dance machine as she owns the school dance! Not only funny this episode is amazing as it finally develops Adam and Danas relationship as Beverly struggles to let her boy grow up! Very Wonder Yearsish..but that’s what makes it so good! Wendy McLevon Covey plays the crap out of this character and owns this episode!
3. Episode 22 A Wrestler Named Goldberg! The Wrestling Episode! I always wondered when the Goldberg’s were going to address the popularity of Professional Wrestling in the 80s and sure enough I was not disappointed. Adams likeable loser brother Barry is tired of being rejected by the fairer sex when he discovers the key to a woman’s heart is a school letterman jacket by way of joining the schools wrestling team! Barry’s view of High School Wrestling is jaded by what he watches on TV, the WWF Then The World Wrestling Federation!)! References are all over the place to Hulk Hogan, George The Animal Steel and Jimmy SuperFly Snuka! The power of the final scene where Barry storms into the gym after being embarrassed earlier by his mother is electric! Wrestling fans rejoice our sport is covered with passion and the fun we all know it presents! Oh yeah..its also the Return Of The Jedi episode!! AWESOME!! Finally dedicated to the late Ultimate Warrior..all in one show!! WTF?? How is this not number one??
2. Episode 11. Kara-Te Somewhere along the lines the Goldberg’s stopped being a 80s sideshow with a bunch of nostalgic memorabilia strung all across every scene and grew a heart.Once again the focus seemingly is on Brother Barry but this show end up being all about Sister Erica overcoming her people phobia! Barry’s constant need for attention brings him to the talent show at his school where Barry intends on showing his skills or lack there of , in Karate! Adam revels in his big brothers exploits as he prepares to show the world that Barry is a fighting machine. In the sub story Erica, at the constant prodding of her live in GrandFather rescues the day by blowing the roof off the Talent Show by playing guitar to a Pat Benetar song! The type of show that makes you want to stand up and cheer on the cast! Loved, loved , loved this episode!
1. Episode 23 Livin On a Prayer. Talk about saving the best for last. This show shows great maturity and all characters are in full stride on this episode. Indeed you’ve come a long way Goldberg’s. From episode 1 to the season finale, The Goldberg’s has changed all for the better! In this episode Brother Barry’s never-ending quest to become popular leads him to throw a house party when his parents are invited to a reunion banquet . As you can predict things go array as Barry’s invite of the school bombs with sister Erica and best friend Lainey step in to rescue Barry’s party. Barry’s attempt to win over the schools hot girl actually works when with a little help from all Goldberg’s Barry is given his 10 minutes of fame and rocks the television screen with the party we wish we were all invited to in the 80s with a hot crowd and the golden strains of Bon Jovi roaring full tilt! The episode was so good you could end the series here and it would be okay! Oh yeah..Barry gets his girl!! Unreal! The show ends with the famous line..“It was 1980something..and it was awesome!”Indeed! Perfect 10/10 for this episode!!
You know what else…oh yeah this show is PACKED with awesome 80s nostalgia in every scene. Pause the Goldberg’s tape in your VCR (See what I did there!!) In the background you will see tons of 80s toys, posters, games, retro furniture, music the whole nine! It is a completely immersive 80s experience in every sense.
Things to look for: 5 Things you may have missed while watching The Goldberg’s.
1. Adams T-Shirts! Creator Adam Goldberg intentionally dresses TV Adam with the best retro theme Tees for the show, from the rare Cobra Kai Tee shirt, to Spielberg’s Amazing Stores shirt to retro 80s cartoon favorite Space Ace!! They are all there be sure to look for em! “Sweep The Leg!!”
2. Erica’s 80s poster collection and serious 80s attire! Shots of Erica’s room are filled with retro 80s music posters from Bon Jovi , to White Snake all the way to Duran Duran! It’s a virtual band showcase in the background! To Acid washed Jean Jackets to mood rings Erica is the 80s girl from head to toe!
3. The MUSIC!! Say no more. You m,ay not have missed this but pay attention to how the music is used in the show! Each episode is led by an amazing hit from the 80s. Music was a big part of the 80s and is a big part of the Goldberg’s! The Goldberg’s Facebook page and Twitter accounts are always beaming with shots of the music played on the show!. The Goldberg’s get musics context right and use it exactly at the right time!
4. All those wonderful Toys!! Thank the creator! Adam Goldberg slams the background of this show with a visual wonderland of the BEST 80s toys out there! G.I.Joe’s, Transformers, Masters Of The Universe and Star Wars fill up young TV Adam Goldberg’s universe. What TV show does almost a complete episode on the rare GI Joe U.S.S. Flag! The Goldberg’s take it on fearlessly. The shows creators know EXACTLY what was hot in the day and have unbelievably mint condition versions of these great toys!
5. Movies ,Movies, and More Movies!! TV Adam is a fanatic for movies and several episodes are dedicated to his love of Movies. Episodes have great subplots about movies such as Return of The Jedi, Indiana Jones, Poltergeist, The Goonies, Say Anything, and my favorite..TRON! What TV show on the air dresses their child actor in a homemade TRON suit and light bike! The Goldberg’s dares go there!! Whether its lining up to see the “last” Star Wars movie, or raiding the video store for some Indy movies this show does movies RIGHT!
Goldberg’s was on the cancellation fence early on in its life but has since been solidly renewed by ABC for a second season. The show built a show the old-fashioned way one show at a time..one fan at a time. Even a scathing article by Rolling Stone calling The Goldberg’s one of the years top 5 worst shows. The article sparked some noise online but it was clear the author was not in a position to make an informed opinion on the show. This however seemed to pump fan support to the show! Facebook and Twitter came to the shows defense and somewhere along the way The Goldberg’s found its audience. Hey Rolling Stone!! Kiss our 80s asses!
Creator Adam Goldberg and The Cast of the show are very accessible on Twitter! The show has swapped nights as well..sometimes the kiss of death for TV shows unless you land in the middle of ABC hits Modern Family and The Middle! Season 2 will no doubt be a huge win for fans of the show and I feel the best is yet to come from The Goldberg’s! So now that you know the show..search it up in your area, find it online, watch it on your phone ,watch TV however you watch TV. Do you and your family a favor and take them back to 1980something and enjoy!
If you have enjoyed this post feel free to leave a comment or contact me straight up on Twitter @charlton_hero and join the conversation on #SuperHeroSatellite or #SuperBlogTeamUp
Satellite Extra: Meet The Cast!
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