Youtube Personal Batman Collection Video

[The Joker]

Thought this guy did a amusing video of his own personal collection of Batman merch.

[BatmanFurst]

Thought this guy did a amusing video of his own personal collection of Batman merch.

I was born a couple years after the release of the film so I never really had a good grasp on the toyline from this film. This video does a great job of laying out the different companies and figures that were a part of the merchandise at the time. Personally, compared to the Kenner line those Toybiz toys look lame. If I had received that Batmobile without the canopy I would've been pissed off. The Kenner line is an improvement in every way.

My collection is obviously tame in comparison to his. I have the Batman/Joker standees from the video, a bus shelter poster of the teaser poster, some vintage magazines, and the Funko figure. Eventually, I do want to get the Hot Toys Batmobile but it's so damn expensive.

[The Joker]

I know what you mean. There are some collectibles from Batman '89/Batman Returns I would love to own, but the price, at the very least, makes you think twice. 

One of these days, I hope I'll be fortunate enough to get the Joker standee. I had a opportunity years ago to get it, but money was pretty tight at the time, and I didn't really want to risk it just in case if some emergency might pop up. How tall are those standee's, BTW?

Yeah, the Toy Biz line does look inferior to Kenner's Dark Knight Collection line, noticeably so, but for me, the Toy Biz Batman and Joker were "my" favorites for a good long while. I already had the Super Powers Batman and Joker figures, but due to the movie, the Toy Biz figures were next level. With the Kenner DKC, I do recall being kinda annoyed with the Joker's pants being orange or kinda hot pink, depending on the figure itself. To me, it felt like a variant. And I was never big on different suited Batman, or whatever. Just give me the classic standard Batman, ect and that's it.

I also remember that Kenner Dark Knight Collection Bruce Wayne figure was rereleased under the Batman Returns toyline, because I had that one. I think the only other Returns figure I got was Catwoman. Didn't bother with the Penguin since I already had the 1989 Toy Biz Penguin, and the only real difference was the black top hat, jacket, and pants.

Which I thought was odd, but at the time, I wasn't really clued into just how much soccer moms were throwing a fit over the movie and toys.

[BatmanFurst]

I know what you mean. There are some collectibles from Batman '89/Batman Returns I would love to own, but the price, at the very least, makes you think twice. 

One of these days, I hope I'll be fortunate enough to get the Joker standee. I had a opportunity years ago to get it, but money was pretty tight at the time, and I didn't really want to risk it just in case if some emergency might pop up. How tall are those standee's, BTW?

Yeah, the Toy Biz line does look inferior to Kenner's Dark Knight Collection line, noticeably so, but for me, the Toy Biz Batman and Joker were "my" favorites for a good long while. I already had the Super Powers Batman and Joker figures, but due to the movie, the Toy Biz figures were next level. With the Kenner DKC, I do recall being kinda annoyed with the Joker's pants being orange or kinda hot pink, depending on the figure itself. To me, it felt like a variant. And I was never big on different suited Batman, or whatever. Just give me the classic standard Batman, ect and that's it.

I also remember that Kenner Dark Knight Collection Bruce Wayne figure was rereleased under the Batman Returns toyline, because I had that one. I think the only other Returns figure I got was Catwoman. Didn't bother with the Penguin since I already had the 1989 Toy Biz Penguin, and the only real difference was the black top hat, jacket, and pants.

Which I thought was odd, but at the time, I wasn't really clued into just how much soccer moms were throwing a fit over the movie and toys.

They're about 5 feet tall. In the case of the Batman one it's probably life size.

I just like that the Kenner figures actually resembled the actors as well. From what I read the Toybiz figures were just previously existing that they painted a different color.

From what I've heard the Kenner Batmissle in Box is the hardest to come by nowadays.

[The Joker]

I know the guy in the video made a joke about the height of those vintage standee's, but I didn't know they were that short! I guess I'm kinda/sorta surprised by that in a way. I have some standee's, but all of them are at least around 6 foot tall.

Back in, oh, 1998/1999-ish, my Mom worked part time at a Party City like store, and later that very year, the store had a "going out of business" sale where I was able to get two standee's. One was a Elvira standee, and the other a Freddy Krueger standee. I had my eyes on both for awhile, and thanks to the sale discounting the price, along with my mom's 10%, both were then affordable enough for me to have them. Roughly 10 years later, I bought another standee from a Blockbuster Video store (remember those?), which was an Incredible Hulk standee advertising the then-new Ed Norton 2008 movie. I think that one might be slightly shorter than 6 foot, but not by much. Pretty much got that one as a novelty as I didn't really display it all that much.

The other "standee's" I have, and again, I'll use "standee's" in quotations as they are not standee's in the traditional sense, are from a photo op/theater display for Josstice League back in 2017. I often chat with the theater manager of the local theater I go to whenever she's there, and asked if I could have just the figures in the display as the entire intact display was simply way too large for a apartment. I think, if memory serves, it was just a week or two after the movie came out, she called me up and said I could come and get them. So me and a friend of mine went there and basically dismantled the display ourselves, the 1st time I ever did anything like that, and it took roughly an hour and a few common tools even, to get it completely dismantled. My friend got Aquaman, Flash, and Cyborg. I got Batman, and wouldn't you know it, Wonder Woman. I know. Surprise, surprise! 

The Ben Affleck Batman "standee" is essentially a fold up display from around the knees up. As the bottom part is just a single piece of cardboard that would slide into the display itself. It's cool, but it kinda makes you want to get creative in how you want to display it given the limitations. The Gal Gadot Wonder Woman "standee" is more traditional in a sense, as it does stand on it's own (as long as you have it leaned up against a wall and it's about 6 foot tall), but from the knee's down, it's just two cardboard sticks (maybe a little bit thicker than a broom stick), and originally would slide into the display itself. Needless to say, this looks kinda funky given that below the knees are just two sticks, but it's easily "fixable" by simply placing something in front of that area. I guess these two would be considered "rare" by collectors, since they are just display/photo op items for theaters, and never directly sold on the market.

This is about the best photo I could find of the complete display. Which appears to be within a AT&T store.



Going back to the Toybiz figures, I believe the Toybiz "DC Superheroes" line were basically repainted sculpts of Kenner's Super Powers line, but I don't think the main Batman 1989 Toybiz line that consists of only 3 figures were repaints. I had the Super Powers Batman and Joker figures, and I recall that the Toybiz Batman and Joker were a bit thicker/heavier than the Kenner Super Powers figures. The Super Powers Joker figure being noticeably thinner than the Toybiz Joker '89 one. I'm pretty certain on that one.

[The Dark Knight]

I know what you mean. There are some collectibles from Batman '89/Batman Returns I would love to own, but the price, at the very least, makes you think twice. 

If I really want something I'll summon the courage to pull the trigger, but this is always the issue. It's not something I do often, and it doesn't become a habit. At first it hurts, for a week or so. But then you've got the item and it's forever yours. For example, having the complete set of the Matrix McFarlane toys, in mint condition and unopened, was just something I had to do.

[The Joker]

I am always cautious. Which is both good and bad. I might hesitate on purchasing stuff I want, but on the flip side, I don't exactly live paycheck to paycheck. This summer I ended up unexpectedly having to spend close to $1,000 on car repairs. Everything is good now, but that was a bit of a hit to be perfectly honest. I'm just glad I at least had the foresight to save and let my bank account build up so stuff like that isn't a major problem.

But don't get me wrong, I do splurge from time to time. For instance, keeping up with those DC Golden Age Omnibuses of Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman continues to get more and more pricey with subsequent volumes, but it's understandable. As a lot of the material in later volumes hasn't been reprinted like the earlier material that's already been reprinted in Archive/chronicles collections years ago.

[The Dark Knight]

I am always cautious. Which is both good and bad. I might hesitate on purchasing stuff I want, but on the flip side, I don't exactly live paycheck to paycheck. This summer I ended up unexpectedly having to spend close to $1,000 on car repairs. Everything is good now, but that was a bit of a hit to be perfectly honest. I'm just glad I at least had the foresight to save and let my bank account build up so stuff like that isn't a major problem.

It's interesting to talk about. I tell myself "I don't NEED this to prove my fandom. I'm a fan, have been since a child, and know this universe slantways." It's like how someone gets a tattoo to 'remember something'. I hate tattoos and I hate that idea. I don't forget anything that's meaningful. It's seared inside me.

But sometimes an item comes along that compels me to dig into my deep pockets. Buying can quickly become a trap, because it never ends. You'll never have everything and they're not going to stop making things.

Therefore you need to draw a line somewhere. Once you do something once it gives permission to do it again, which is the foundation of addiction.