…and we’re back! Boy, that commercial seemed like an eternity, eh? Wait, what? It really HAS been over 5 months since the last highlight? Wow…I’ve been a supreme slack-ass, for sure. Well, rest assured loyal readers (reader?) that one of my (few) New Year’s resolutions is to blog more…to the tune of once a week at least, and to start things off I’m "debuting" a vintage piece that has previously not shown up on the collector’s market…the Playful Super Amigos Shazam!
Let me tell you how excited I was to have the opportunity to purchase this for my collection…well, yeah. THAT excited. I mean, think about something you were *really* excited to find…like REALLY excited. Well, go beyond that by a factor of 10. Yup, THAT excited. I know, I know…"Shaddap, Chip and make with the actual review already, willya???" Okay, here we go!
There he is, in all his glory. One thing that astute Super Powers collectors will notice right off the bat is the fantastic presentation the carded figure makes due to the different artwork used for the card. One thing Pacipa and Playful did right with their Super Amigos lines to differentiate them from the regular US releases was use other images from the DC Comics style guide for some of the characters. In Shazam’s case this works so well that in my opinion it’s far better than the US release, which was basically just a horizontal flip of the Superman card artwork’s pose. It suits the character perfectly with a more "majestic" stance instead of flight.
A closer look at the artwork. I think it’s the billowing cape that really offsets the card as a whole. Just fantastic, and a nice surprise that they made this figure with the different art.
…and now to the ugly : the figure itself.
He looks…weird. Odd. Strange. Crappy in quality. So crappy, in fact, that I’m not going to waste many more words in describing how crappy he actually is. When they don’t have chrome to throw all over a figure the crudeness kinda shines through, eh? I think the problem for the most part is the paint work on the face.
Even looking past all the paint rubs on the bubble, the fact that his left eye and eyebrow are thicker than his right all while he’s smiling out of the side of his mouth kinda creeps me out a bit. He looks like a distorted Quagmire reflection in a fun house mirror. I’m going to stop now because I have to try and get some sleep soon.
You know, I’m starting to think "Con mi potente punetazo!" means "I have the potential to creep you out with my crooked smile! Muah-hah-hah-haaaaaa!" Yeah, it’s about time to wrap things up. 
Here’s the back of the card, which pictures all of the Super Amigos released by Playful. Why they chose these characters I have no idea, as it seems to be just a random assortment across all three US waves.
As I stated to begin with, one of my New Year’s resolutions has been to blog more, and as the Toy Karma Gods have decided once again to start shining their wonderful light on me I’ll definitely have more to write about. Look for another Super Powers highlight soon, and thanks for reading!
Peace,
Chip
WELCOME BACK CHIP!!!
AS always, this was a new one on me. I can’t wait to see the next one.
Wow what a find – and the card art is really terrific.
“Con mi potente punetazo”= With my powerful punch. I always like seeing super-hero phrases in other languages. I used to read Mexican reprints of American comics and expressions like “My Spider-Sense is tingling!” sounded so cool to me in Spanish. Anyways, great blog Chip!
Great blog Chip! Love seeing Super Powers! Shazam (I prefer this name to Captain Marvel, though it usually refers to the wizard) is one of my favorite Super Powers figures. Is the cape on this version different as well? In any case, thanks for the blog!
Wow, an actual new discovery… Super Powers never cease to amaze.
Great stuff, Chip, keep ‘em coming! We want MORE reviews and more photos!
I can never see enough super powers stuff. Thanks, Chip!
That is beautiful. Well, the card, anyway. The figure is totally hideous.
Keep an eye out for another one for me, will ya?
hey chip great read as allways ,he should look great with all those super amigoes i sold you last year ,any word on the stuff you say you posted to me on the 29 th of november,as they havent arrived and you didnt send me the tracking number ,sorry to bring it up here ,but ive had no replys to my emails to you for over 2 weeks you said you were going to check it out ,then nothing ,no word at all,so glad your ok ,and back on the toy hunt and finding greatstuff like this guy cheers
Glad to have you back, Chip. Slacker indeed-NOT. Love these.
Character selection is always a big question with any toy line.
My Guess?
1. Batman was tied up license wise. And the rest of his ‘family’ as well. Notice no Robin, Joker, Penguin, Mr. Freeze, or Riddler.
2. We get the other 6 main SF heroes from the Challenge series = Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman.
3. Green Arrow and Plastic Man did each appear in one episode of the SF show.
4. Shazam had his live TV show.
5. We get 2 of Superman’s best known villains.
Makes some sense to me.
Batman, Robin, Penguin, and Riddler were all produced as Super Amigos. Check out one of Chip’s past blogs for pictures of these guys: http://www.actionfigureinsider.com/blog/chipcataldo/the-super-powers-highlight-colleccion-super-amigos/
What ep did Ollie appear in?
for some inane reason, I remember the name of the Plas ep, which is included on the dvd that just came out, but I don’t remember Ollie or J’onn/Fate/Tornado ever appearing as opposed to Atom, who did appear on occasion, but never got a figure.
and Chip – was the US cape looking like the card back? because that sorry scrap of cloth on that figure HAS to be mentioned!
Oh man, what a mug on that one! Looks like he just got punched by Doomsday or something. Thanks for highlighting this guy, Chip!
These came out in 1989?
no wonder the thing was only a foreign release for it shows that the company really was playing fast and lose with duplicating super powers. glad you found one of your desired pieces even if it gives new meaning to ugly figure and was n’t that the line that had a riddler as repainted green latern figure in it