In this episode of the 1995 Batman podcast Drew takes a look at the recent bidding war that's been erupting between Paramount and Netflix to purchase Warner Brothers and what that could mean for a future Batman Forever: Schumacher Cut release.
Here's the Daily Mail article that Drew talks about if you want to read it for yourself.
And if you want to mailing a letter asking for the Schumacher Cut, send it to:-
Warner Bros. ATTN: Mr. Michael DeLuca, Ms. Pamela Abdy 4000 Warner Blvd Building 168 Burbank, CA 91522
I’ve finally put together a proper look at the Toyz Trubo Studio Two-Face figure after sitting on my shelf for a year or more.
In the time, it's taken to review it, another unlicensed company, Mars Toys, actually released (from the looks of it) a superior figure called Dual Face. Maybe I'll trade this one for that one at some point in the future.
Anyway, the Toyz Trubo figure is 1/6 scale, very much playing in Hot Toys territory, even if it doesn’t quite hit those heights.
The quality is pretty decent. I picked this up second-hand, and while the box and accessories feel a bit budget, the core figure is better than I expected.
The main head sculpt is solid (let's ignore the alternate smiling one), the suit pops nicely, and it scales well on the shelf with my other Forever figures. The accessories are okay but the guns feel a little small.
If that Mars Toys one hadn't come out I would whole heartedly recommend this one. As it stands now, the Toyz Trubo one is the 2nd best 1/6 scale figure and maybe that's appropriate given Harvey's obsession with the number two.
With Christmas just around the corner, now seems as good a time as any to do a commentary for Batman Returns.
Of all the Batman movies, this is the one where my opinion has changed the most over the years. I used to like it quite a bit as a teenager but recently I've found more and more issues with it. I don't have any problem with Tim Burton changing the origins of Catwoman and Penguin - making them more animalistic - but I do find the tone very off putting and the story a bit of a jumble of ideas.
It's also a shame that Batman/Bruce Wayne has so little to do in the film. It's really Penguin's story - featuring Batman here and there.
Anyway, give the commentary a listen and... come what may... Merry Christmas.
It's amazing how much merchandise has come out related to the two Schumacher Batman films in the last few years. It's easy to overlook or miss stuff.
Luckily, I saw these Blokees figures pop up on eBay and snatched them up immediately. I thought they'd take an age to arrive from China but they took only a couple of days.
They are basically little blind box toys that you fit together (not unlike a capsule toy). Like a lot of merchandise that's come out recently, almost all the modern movie Batman and vehicles are covered. Weirdly, they included Adam West but skipped over George Clooney.
Still the Kilmer figure is cool and was fun to put together. I don't know about the Batmobile. It's kind of small and hardly any detail.
Well, we did audio commentaries for the two Schumacher Batman films so it made sense to keep going and do one for 2005's Batman Begins - a film that celebrates its 20th anniversary this year.
Both Drew are a little muted on our love for this film. Lots of complicated feelings. As much as we respect Christopher Nolan - we both find his movies a little robotic and cold at times.
One interesting thing I've never really talked about is how I actually got to go to the set of this film as an extra (sadly I didn't get in front of the camera) but I did get to have a good look at the sets contained inside Cardington Hangars. To hear more about this and other topics, go listen.
Here's the second part of my look at the Spin Master figures - this time looking at the Riddler and Two-Face.
Like the Batman and Robin ones, these are just repaints of the old Kenner molds with some very slight changes and no accessories.
There's some good points - such as the Riddler now having the "Box" on the TV screen strapped to his chest and Two-Face's suit being split round the back as well as the front. But they aren't really enough to justify buying the figures again if you already own the originals.
One notable difference to Two-Face is the gun is removed. I assume this is a decision made to avoid controversy. Guns are being removed from lots of DC toys at the moment. Even the recent McFarlane figure didn't come with one.
It's a shame they didn't do a little more extra sculpting. The burned side of Two-Face's face could have easily been redone to make it more in line with the movie.
All in all, the Spin Masters figures were a little disappointing. I'd give them a skip unless you're a super fan like me. Shame they didn't do something a little more innovative and fresh with the licence.
In this episode of the 1995 Batman podcast Drew gives his thoughts on the Robin costume in Batman Forever.
I've got to say I really agree with him that it's a shame they made Chris O'Donnell such a fantastic suit and then barely showed it off in the film. And when it was on screen it was mostly obscured by tight close-ups or hazy green lighting from Claw Island.
I really wish they had stuck with the suit a little longer in Batman & Robin rather than transitioning straight into the Nightwing inspired one.
Thanks to Mark Hickman for sending over these photos of a section within the GamePRO Batman Forever: The Official Players' Guide book by Corey Sandler that show some of the behind the scenes of the stunt performers and costumes that were used in the film.
The Robin one is particularly interesting as this was featured in the Genesis and SNES versions but for the PC version they actually redid Batman and Robin using the movie suits.
While I was doing some research on the game (I've got to cover it at some point) I also discovered these neat maps of all the levels. Crazy how linear they look when they are lined up like this.
A few articles have popped up recently promoting Chris O'Donnell’s new TV series 911: Nashville. Naturally, some interviewers have taken the opportunity to revisit his time playing Robin in the Batman films.
One interview, published on People’s website, included some interesting comments from Chris about working with Val Kilmer. In this episode of the 1995Batman podcast, Drew dives into the article and shares his thoughts on what Chris had to say.
These Spin Master figures were a really pleasant surprise when they got announced at the start of this year but unfortunately (unlike the Batmobile) they ended up being out of reach for everyone outside the US due to them being exclusive to Target stores.
They still are exclusive but some have trickled through to online sellers and often they go for stupid money considering they retail for $8.99. I've seen people on eBay sell them for as much as £30-40 each!
Luckily, I managed to find a few at a much lower price. I actually ordered the whole line from a toy seller who had to cancel the order because they'd sold out of everything except the Batman. Bless them, they sent me that one for free.
Anyway, to the figures themselves, they are kinda fun but also kinda disappointing. These almost the exact same molds at the Kenner ones. The Robin I don't mind because I really like that Hydro Claw Robin it's based on.
The Batman one is based on Blast Cape Batman with a slight tweak in that his arms can go out as well as up and down.
As someone pointed out, it's a little difficult to understand why you'd make these figures given that the originals are all on eBay for very little money.
What really disappointing is that Spin Master did a great unique Batman Returns figure. I wonder why they didn't do new molds for this? Maybe it was a cost thing - cheaper to reuse and approve existing molds?
As you can tell from this video, I'm a little more excited about the box artwork than I am for the actual toy.
And apologies, I got a little carried away when I said Batman "doesn't have a gadget like this in the film" - it's obviously based on the grapnel gun he uses in the opening bank heist to winch the vault back into place.
I was too old to get any of this branded dress up stuff at the time. I was 11 when the film came out. It's kind of nice to go back and pick it up now. I was very surprised that the thing is built more for a full size adult hand than it is a kids.
In a follow-up to this post from June, Drew Griffin is back to talk more about the Schumacher Cut that he was fortunate to have seen at a secret screening.
Lots of interesting topics and thoughts in this video such as: why the Warner Brothers sent a cease and desist and stopped the Cinefile screening and what it will take to make this version of the film releasable.
In this episode Drew and I take a look at and discuss all the deleted scenes that are currently available on the DVD and Blu-Ray releases of Batman Forever.
This seemed like a good follow-up considering we just finished the Batman Forever commentary.
Once again, this figure came out a while back but I'm only just getting around to reviewing it now. There's been such an avalanche of Schumacher Batman figures coming out it's difficult to keep up with it all.
When I finished reviewing the Batman Forever figures from McFarlane earlier this year, I said at the time I hoped they'd do something else and sure enough they have.
It's not the Panther suit but I can live with that. Instead they've made the white suit (or Final Suit as it's labelled) Riddler figure sporting his look from the end of the film.
I guess this was an easy one of them to do. The body looks to be the same as the original Riddler - only now in a pearlescent white with little bits of glitter inside. The head sculpt is new and although it's not the best work McFarlane have done, it's a step up from their first Riddler figure.
The green cane with the skull completes the look nicely. You get two extra hands which is cool but I would have loved a little throne to sit him on. Oh well.
Hopefully we might see one more Forever figure before the middle of 2026 when McFarlane loses the DC licence.
These figures actually came out a while back (last year) and I was going to give them a miss until I found they cheap from an American seller. Buying all three at once meant the shipping was reasonable.
I don't know much about Iron Studios other than they produce some high end statues and prop replicas. These are more their fun, cheap side.
I really dig the designs. Much more than Hot Toys comparable Cosbaby line. They are still cartoonist but a little more realistically proportioned.
The Riddler stuck out to me because it reminded me of those Guesser figures that Nygma has all around his apartment and work station. Nice to see the idea come full circle.
The Batman figures is my least favourite but I do love that they went to the effort of making an replica of the clock riddle rather than just have a green envelope (see Funko Pop and Cosbaby figures).
The Robin one is definitely my favourite thiugh. I never tire of seeing that suit. I looks so great, even at this scale. And the idea of having him hold a batboat and batmobile is so great considering how he treats them both in the movie.
