1974 Chemtoy Batman

This is one of those vintage Batman toys that, on it's face, is pretty lame but still holds a special place in my old toy collecting heart.  This is Chemtoy's Batman figure from 1974.  I don't call him an action figure because he has zero articulation.  He's just a cheapo, single-pose figure that probably cost less than a dollar.

I had one of these when I was a kid in the 70s.  I had him about the same time that I got my first Mego Batman.  So, it's safe to say that this guy didn't get much play time.  I'm guessing he was an impulse kind of buy while I was out shopping with my parents.  You know, that kind of thing where you beg for something, anything, just so you didn't have to go home empty-handed? I'm still dealing with these impulses, today… maybe some therapy is in order.  Ahem… anyway, over the years, I've kind of developed a kind of love for this little ugly figure.  It's kind of become one those nice, warm little toy memories from very early childhood.  

Check out the sharp detailed paintwork on the calves.  Impeccable.

 So, I picked one up recently to reintroduce him to my Batman collection.  In the pictures, I know the figure's a little beat up.  However, take note of the exquisite craftsmanship that has gone into the paint details.  It really doesn't get much better than this.  I've included a shot with other Batman figures for scale and to help avoid anyone confusing this with a Hot Toys Batman figure.  

Sometimes, nostalgia can be much stronger than common sense.  I think that's something that all collectors can relate to, to some degree.

DC Direct Batman Year One DVD Maquette

In the mid-80s, Frank Miller reinterpreted Batman for a new age in the Dark Knight Returns.  While DKR tells the story of the end of Batman, Miller soon returned to write Batman Year One… a retelling of Batman's genesis.  Both stories have gone down in Bat-history as being some of the very best Batman stories and both can also be partly credited for the direction that the Bat-films took when kicking off in 1989.  With the 2011 release of DC Animation's Batman Year One DVD, DC Direct produced this statue to coincide with the DVD release of the film.  Not much merchandise, at all, was released with the film but we did get this beautiful statue from DC Direct.  The look of the statue is based on the animated version and not the comic (expertly drawn by David Mazzucchelli). However, the animated film somewhat closely followed the look of the comic.  So, in a sense, we get a look close to the comic but sort of "once removed."

I was very pleased when this statue was announced as the look of Batman in Year One is one of my very favorite looks for the character.  His costume is simple but sleek.  I'm a fan of several of Batman's looks but I tend to prefer him in a simpler, more classic style of costume.  This statue depicts this type of costume very well from the understated creases in his shorts to the amazing look of his cape. 

The sculpting on this statue (sculpted by Derek Miller) completely nails the look of the animated character from the Year One animated film.  He looks tough but sleek and his cape seems to have a life of its own.  The way this statue's cape billows, creases, and flows is truly something to behold, in person.  

This statue stands at about 10 inches tall.  So, he's bigger than your average DC Direct maquette and quite a bit bigger than the scale typically used for the Batman Black and White Statues.

There is absolutely nothing I'd change about this statue.  I think it's "spot on" and a great addition to anyone's statue collection or Batman shelf.

1966 Batcopter by Hotwheels

If your a batman collector a big part of your collection are the Bat vehicles.

This last year, 2012, Hotwheels released several of them.

Today I want to show you the Batcopter.

Mine is on one of the shelves in my Batroom.

 Here it is in it's natural environment.

This is a really nice replica I only wish I would have had it when I was a kid!

The first time I ever saw the Batcopter was in the Batman movie they made in 1966.

I didn't see the movie until it was on television in the 1970's though.

Before the movie the only vehicle I had seen Batman in was the Batmobile and I was totally fine with that.

The 1966 Batman movie gave us more vehicles to drool over though.

I did not know what I was missing? 

Yes! Of course Batman needs more tools to catch criminals.  

I love the paint on the front that lines up perfectly with the wings on its sides.

I am sure this struck the criminals with fear when they saw it in the air.

You can never have enough bat symbols!

I mean really I do love everyone of them!

No matter how many new bat vehicles they make I know I will like them but the color scheme from the 60's will never be beat.

Black with red is Batmans colors in my mind.

More please.

Brian B

Batman Basketball

What says Batman more than a Batman basketball?
It is a perfect item for me since I live in the heart of basketball country, Indiana.


I had posted earlier about another unusual item, The Batman Hoosier Cabinet , so this fits me perfectly.

I got this sometime while The Batman series was running on television which was from 2004 -2008.
This Batman was a bit shocking to me at first because they had departed from the square chin Batman to a more pointy chin character.

I ended up liking the show really well and also liking the way they whole show was styled.



The series also made the news for its interactive toys.

When Batman would use Wayne Tech devices in the show the toys at home would interact with the television program. (Pretty cool and scary at the same time. I hope The Joker never gets a hold of this technology!)

I am pretty sure that if you were playing basketball while the show was on you would never miss a basket.

I have no idea what a FOTOBALL is.
Google has no idea either.

To my credit I never used the Wayne Technology to win a game I depended totally on my Hoosiers skills.

This ball was bought just to look at.

Batman, Green Lantern and Martian Manhunter looking at the Bat-Basketball.

This Bat-item is not in my Bat-room but is instead in our game room. (Xbox mostly)



Brian B

Kenner Dark Knight Collection Catalog

When Kenner took over the Batman movie toy license in 1990 from Toy Biz, it was a very welcome change. It's not that I hated the Toy Biz stuff. It's just that it was pretty clear that things could have been done better.... and Kenner delivered.

Kenner used to pack these cool little catalogs in with their larger toys like playsets and vehicles. This one is kind of an "all-purpose" catalog that shows several toy lines (as you can see by the cover of the catalog, above). I still can't believe that Kenner produced a childrens' Robocop toy line... those films were pretty hardcore and deserved the R ratings that they had. At any rate, I thought it would be fun to show these very first Batman movie toys from Kenner's catalog.

Here's the first wave of figures and couple of cycles. Kenner liked to reuse molds from older toy lines and retool them a little bit for new ones. Batman's cycle uses a mold from the Robocop line and I believe Joker's does, as well.

The figures were pretty much all-new. They were based on the Super Powers Batman body but were obviously retooled for this line. I have to give them credit for producing pretty decent masked and unmasked sculpts of Michael Keaton.

Here are some vehicles. The BatJet was originally seen in the Silverhawks line of toys... and I believe the Batcopter is a "repaint" from the Super Powers line. However, the Batmobile and Batwing are all-new sculpts and are fantastic toy-counterparts to the "real" vehicles from the film.

In this page, you can see that Kenner reused a portion of the Star Wars Laser Rifle for the Sonic Neutralizer weapon.

Lastly, I love this kids' costume on this page. That would be a neat set to have in a Batman collection.

Can anyone else hardly believe that this toy line was released over twenty years ago?!!

Justice League Batman Alarm Clock

A few weeks ago, my 12 year-old son walked into my studio and plunked this down on my desk. "You want this?" he asked. "Uh... yeah, are you done with it?" I asked back. Apparently, my son is now too old to have a Batman clock in his room. How Serendipitous! ... because I happen to be the exact age to have one of these sitting on my drawing desk!! Amazing.

So, this cool little item is now in my possession... waiting for the day when my son might want it back. If he doesn't, that's fine, too.

At any rate, this is one of those items that sort of flies under the radar of most Batman toy collectors. At least, it did with me. I didn't even know these existed until my son got this for Christmas, a few years back. It's always fun to have this kind of stuff around to complement the mainstream stuff. This has a copyright date of 2005 but I can't find a manufacturer marked on the clock, anywhere. The middle of the screen says "Hero Tactics." Perhaps, that's a clue to the manufacturer.

Enough of all that, though ... this is one cool alarm clock. It's Justice League branded but is definitely a Batman clock, if I've ever seen one. I just love the look of this thing... from the cool, retro-looking base with the bat-speaker, to the plastic figure of Batman, to the cool view-screen behind him. I like how this kind of looks like Batman is standing in front of the Batcomputer down in the Cave.

Aside from being an alarm clock, this unit also lights up and has several spoken phrases. Just press button one, two, or three and the corresponding panel lights up and a narrator's voice comes booming from the Bat-speaker.

Button 1) "Batman, The Dark Knight, stands guard over Gotham City and when duty calls, the world's greatest detective joins forces with the heroes of the Justice League to protect the World."

Button 2) "Copperhead's venom can incapacitate even Superman, but rare is the time a snake can get so close to the Man of Steel."

Button 3) With Superman's strength, Batman's skill, and the Flash's speed, even a brute like Solomon Grundy can be defeated.

Can you believe I just dusted this thing before taking photos?

Now, that's a fun Bat-clock that's worthy of keeping track of Bat-time on my desk.

Kenner Super Powers Batmobile

This is Kenner's first in a very long line of toy Batmobiles. In 1984, Kenner had begun to produce DC characters in their, now famous, Super Powers line of toys. Vehicles soon followed to complement the figures and add play value. For many subsequent years, Kenner would go on to produce many Batmobiles and vehicles for all four of the first Batman movies. They also produced several nice Batmobiles to accompany various animated television series based on our favorite Caped Crusader.


I recently picked this toy up to fill a long-time hole in my Batmobile collection. Although, I have many of Kenner's toy Batmobiles, this one has been on my "want list" for quite some time. I don't know why I waited for so long! This is a fantastic toy!

Sturdy and packed with features, this Batmobile exemplifies all that a Batmobile toy should be. Although, the styling and design of the car is very 1980's and right in line with the look of Batman's ride, at the time, this car still looks great and would still be a unwelcome sight to Gotham's underground.

There's just something so cool about the "comic book" colors on this car.... bright blue body, orange bubble windows, and bright yellow headlamps. With Batman and Robin seated inside, this car takes on an even more colorful, fun look. The Super Powers line was the last toy line to present Batman and his world in a classic, colorful way that would disappear for quite some time with the merchandising and release of the first Batman movie in 1989. Although I enjoy the dark, black, and brooding Batmobiles that have been released over the years, I also enjoy this more colorful take on the car.

It's interesting to me, also, that the 1966 TV Batmobile was still influencing the look of Batmobile design during the 80s, as evidenced by the split, bubble-top cockpit on the Super Powers Batmobile.


Aside from rolling and making a "whirring" noise as it rolls, this toy includes three main features. On the front, there is a spring-loaded battering ram that pops out with the press of a button in the cockpit.

Also, on the hood, is a set of retractable headlights that can be raised or lowered with a yellow sliding knob that juts from the dashboard.

Lastly, there is a pair of scissor-like graspers that pop from the rear of the car to capture criminals... as Robin is demonstrating in the photo.



I'm not sure why I held off so long on picking up one of these. I guess part of it is due to the Super Powers line being released between my childhood and the start of my collecting Batman stuff as an "adult" around 1989 (although, I did pick up a lone Super Powers Batman figure when this line was still on toy shelves). It fell into a historical gray area for me, so to speak. However, I couldn't be happier with this version of the Batmobile. It's just plain fun and very cool-looking on the shelf... a great counter to all the all-black Batmobiles I've got hanging around.