Feb 10, 2008

TDJ007 - Bones Power Ranger figure by Bandai

"He's so gruesome and ugly, just what I wanted" - Rita Repulsa

As a rule, I'd say the Power Rangers have the most underrated villain figures of any toy line. I'm not trying to directly knock the standard "good-guys" that each new incarnation of the brand sees, I'd just like to give props to the figures that are over-looked by being released in a line that, for the time being, isn't widely considered a collectors brand.

I have to admit that I'm not that familiar with the Power Rangers line, or characters - the show was just making it big in the states when people my age were getting to that awkward stage in their life where toys are no longer as important as the clothes you wear and how your hair looks. It's obvious by the feather in his hat that Bones is still in that part of his life...



Speaking of Bones' life, I'm not sure exactly how they mean this, but his bio card found on the box states that his age is 1 Eternity. They either mean that it's been a VERY long time since came into existence or that he will be in existence for all time, all the times, every bit of the time. Either way, that's not as impressive as his weight, he's a slim 21 kg (46.297 lbs). This must be a direct result of the "intergalactic diet gone haywire" that is also mentioned on his bio. The figure was released in 1993 by Bandai in what I believe was the first wave of Power Ranger figures on this side of the globe.



Bones first appeared in the second episode of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, "High Five" in 1993. He was created by Finster to battle the Power Rangers for Rita Repulsa. He saw his end when the Yellow Ranger, Trini, tossed his head into a pit of lava. Bones was also featured in the Power Rangers video game for Super Nintendo. Having never seen any Power Rangers episodes that I remember, I don't actually know what Bones would sound like, but I imagine it's a cross between Bill Cosby and Aaron Neville. I'd also like to think that he talks constantly about the deal he got on cookware while in Chinatown.


"They were just giving it away!"

The figure stands about 9 1/2 " tall and comes in a box with a plastic window in the front so you can see the toy along with the background image of Rita Repulsa. The back of the box also shows the other four Evil Space Aliens that were released in this line. Even though I really like the figure itself, I really like how he looks in the box, and after taking him out for this review - I've put him back in his packaging for display. If I had more of these Evil Space Alien figures, I'd definitely have them out of the box displayed together.

I first considered picking up this figure about a year ago when I saw it at a flea market in St. Louis. He was only ten dollars still sealed in the box, but for some reason I passed on him, only after checking with my friend Steve how much they were going for on eBay. I don't think they were going for more than that - apparently the Power Rangers craze gave an over abundance to the amount of the toys that hit the shelves and ultimately the secondary market that they're in now.

A few months later, but again in St. Louis, I broke down and picked him up at the Toyman Toyshow. Luckily, he was just ten dollars again. The dealer had a few other boxed Power Ranger figures, but Bones was the only one that I really felt like picking up at the time. Usually it doesn't work out that well. Normally I'll see a figure that I like and pass on it at a reasonable price like ten dollars, then obsess over not picking it up and either end up spending way too much for it at a toy show or online.

He's remained in his package pretty much in storage until this review. I did have the box displayed at work for a while, but every few months I have to purge the toys that I've brought in to work in order to make room for newer ones.



But Bones was totally worth it. He's creepy enough, not even knowing that there was once a full grown adult wearing a life size version of him while doing fake-fu with a bunch of teens in tights. The fact that his "bones" resemble muscle mass, and the detail on his teeth make this a very eerie figure to have attempting to steal your dreams. His only articulation is in his arms at the shoulder and his legs at the waist. It looks like his torso is supposed to move at the waist and his head should have movement at the neck, but neither moves enough to count. Even where he does have articulation it's very limited, the arms only go up and down - when his arms are up he looks like he's surprised (or is acting surprised) when you walk in, catching him in the act of decapitating satanic hand puppets. His legs are no better, as the restricted movement really only resembles an individual leaning back to have a pelvic exam of some sort.

Bones comes with an awesome pink cape (to compliment his black top hat w/feather) and a sword that fits either in his right hand or the clip on the left side of his belt. I don't really like how the figure feels, it seems as though a lot of play would wear him down, probably not a good design for a figure in a toy line adored by millions of kids. While on the subject of toy lines that make kids go insane, I feel this is a good place to mention that Bones absolutely hates Pokemon, especially Charmander. I don't get it either.

Find Bones on eBay here and for sale here.

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Liz: I refuse to review this Kirk Douglas figure.

Sam: That's it?! I could've done that!

Liz: No you couldn't have.
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Plastic/Material – 2/5
Poseability – 2/5
Packaging – 5/5
Design – 4/5
Playability – 2/5
Price (value) – 5/5
Overall – 3/5














1 comment:

Crowley said...

I just bought a Darth Vader figure that needs to be reviewed for it's suck.... I'll do a guest review.