It’s hard to explain to a civilian (thank you Kerry for finally coining a term to those outside of the geek community) the feeling you get when you finally get your hands on something you have spent hours and gas money looking for. It’s a feeling of accomplishment. It’s a right to brag to your friends. It’s physical proof that you are better than most people at finding things no one gives a shit about. That’s why I am excited to bring to you, Additions to the Nerdorium!
I have collected toys and action figures for the better part of my adult life. Lucky for me my job allows REQUIRES me to spend 30+ hours a week in America’s number one chain store. Being a vendor for a large sales and auditing company is a blessing is disguise. I have been able to snag many figures straight out of the box before they even hit the shelves. Is this awesome? Yes. Is it costly? I will allow all of the bills I get with LAST NOTICE plastered across the front to serve as proof. Finding a figure that is one of a set in a chain or comic store is awesome, but no longer the thrill it once was. Now a days you can check the availability of specific figures on the websites of all major stores. If your local store is worth a dick, they can probably order it for you. This is like shooting Aqua Men in a barrel.
The feeling you get when you open a box containing something you ordered isn’t the same as stumbling upon something you didn’t even know existed. How excited were you the last time you were going through discount bin and found your favorite toy from your childhood? Or the one you never had that would have completed the set? These are the finds that make collecting fun. Of course I will occasionally post photos and updates about toys that are more common because wheres the fun in just talking about things only I have? I want to be able to share my collection and finds with anyone who loves figures and toys as much as me.
Marvel Select Deadpool and Nightcrawler
Deadpool – This Marvel Select figure stands 7 inches tall and is part of the new series of Marvel Select figures. There is an older version of this figure from an earlier series that goes for a lot more than I paid for the new one. The figure came with a sturdy and awesomely detailed display stand. Of course he comes with some awesome weapons. I’ve got him rocking the sais. Because in my heaven Raphael and Deadpool are best friends. He also comes with a rad machine gun and two pistols. The two pistols fit comfortably into the holsters on either side of his utility belt. This figure is pretty easy to obtain. Ebay has a ton of them. I suggest hitting up Amazon if you can find him in stores. I think the average one goes for about $25 after shipping. I paid $20 for him at The Great Escape Cards and Comics store here in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
Nightcrawler – This is also a Marvel Select figure but unlike Deadpool, it is from the older Marvel Select Series. I wish I hadn’t opened this one. I’m pretty sure lost the piece needed to complete the Galactus figure that buying all the characters from this series would have built! I think he came with the leg or the mid section. Somewhere in my bins of toys there just may be a large purple crotch floating around. This guy didn’t come with any accessories because Nightcrawler doesn’t need any. Try to dispute me on this. TRY ME! I wasn’t able to find any of these figures on Amazon. There are a few on Ebay. Unfortunately, none of the ones I found were still in their cases. I contribute this to people’s need to build a giant Galactus. I can’t say I blame them. An old roommate of mine had a complete Galactus figure and it was glorious.
Why are these figures awesome? My girlfriend Emily actually found the Nightcrawler for me years ago when we were doing one of our routine late nite Wal-Mart trips. I of course was dragging her through the toy aisles to take a gander at the new Star Wars figures when she exclaimed, “Hey it’s that one you like!” At first I was sure she was talking about Wolverine. He’s the easy go to for girls looking to find common geek ground with their up until them virgin boyfriends. Her enthusiasm may have been fake but her attention to a small detail of something I may have said in passing was spot on. It was in fact “that one I liked.” Nightcrawler has always been my favorite Marvel character hands down! His appearance in X2 is what makes that movie the best of the franchise as far as I’m concerned. I guess in my ramblings about how awesome the movie was she picked up on my enthusiasm for the purple smoke popping mutant with the most.
Emily has since contributed a lot to my collection and never really given me shit for a habit I hid from her for a long time. OK, I didn’t hide it. I just didn’t lead off a lot of our first conversations with my whining about how our KB Toys never had shit. We’ve been dating since KB Toys were a thing. For those of you bad at math, we will have been together 10 years in December. So I figured (no pun intended) that it would be nice to make my first post about the first figure my lady helped me find.
I know there are fellow nerds out there who attach moments and memories to some, if not all, of their collectibles. I look forward to hearing about them. Please leave comments!!