2025 A.D. A brand new Nintendo console is just a bit over two weeks away, DK finally has a new 3D game coming after 26 years, and there are still zero signs of alien dog police chiefs that trap criminals in tiny cards. Sometimes ya gotta take the good with the bad, I suppose. Here's all the swag that I've accrued in this first chunk of the year. Read on and let it distract you from the fact that cops STILL don't fight space aliens with cannons that transform into robot dogs. What kind of 2025 even is this???
$60 Amazon Gift Card
groove onn. Wireless Earphones
Starting with a holdover from Christmas, my parents went to see some family friends of ours for New Year's and brought back some gifts from them! Always helps to have a set of a back-up headphones/earbuds for a rainy day, and these wireless ones are of really nice quality. As for the Amazon card, I quickly spent it on these next few items:
Duck Dodgers: The Complete Series (Amazon)
First up, Duck Dodgers is one of my personal favorite Looney Tunes spin-off shows, so I've had my eye on this Complete Series Blu-ray for a while. However, I hadn't bought it yet mostly because I was waiting on a good deal. (The almost $40 MSRP was a little bit more than I wanted to pay for it.) Luckily, though, that Amazon card made snagging it at a barely discounted price much easier to swallow. Now I can finally give this show a rewatch 20+ years later!
Fabric Wall-Hanging Banner (Amazon)
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Sonic & Shadow Enamel Pin Set (Amazon)
Next, after watching a YouTuber that I follow spotlight some recent additions to his pin collection, I started thinking about the ones that I owned. Pins have never really been something that I've actively focused on collecting, yet I quickly noticed that I'd actually built up a modest collection of them over the years. (Mostly courtesy of video game special editions and other random freebies.) I'd been storing most of them in a box without even removing them from their original packaging, so after watching that video, I figured that it'd be nice to finally, y'know, DO something with them. So I ordered a small fabric banner to display them all on. I also grabbed a rad Sonic 3 pin set that was also featured in that video so I could immediately add to it. After both arrived and I dug my scattered pins out of hiding, the end result was this:
Gotta say, they look pretty nice all together like that. It makes me excited to add to the collection in the future.
Symbiote Spider-Man 2099 (Amazon)
This was the last thing that I scored with my Amazon cash. I'm always up for a new Peter David-penned Spider-Man 2099 story, and this one being a direct follow-up to his original 90s run made it an absolute no-brainer to add to my shelf. (This mini-series is also going to be included in a future Peter David Symbiote Spider-Man Omnibus, but the other stories in that don't really have anything to do with the 2099 one other than the fact that they also involve the Venom symbiote. The other ones are also drawn/traced by Greg Land, so I'm perfectly content with just having Miggy's portion in my collection.)
DC Versus Marvel: The Amalgam Age Omnibus (Cheap Graphic Novels)
Complementing the first DC Versus Marvel Omnibus that I got for Christmas, here we have the second, collecting the ridiculously fun 90s Amalgam stuff! I still haven't gotten around to reading either, so I'm really excited to finally experience these two great tomes of comic crossover history, complete with a MASSIVE amount of bonus material. Once I do, I'll be good and ready for the duo's NEXT clash.
Jakks Pacific Sonic Forms Pack (Target)
Time for some fresh additions to the Jakks Sonic shelf! This Sonic Forms pack was one of the rare instances of new stuff from the line being made available for retail online, so I quickly took advantage and snagged it from Target's site.
While Super Sonic is solid (if a bit top-heavy) and Grind/SOAP Shoes Sonic is disappointing due to loose joints, the Werehog is AMAZING. Despite owning every previous plastic iteration of him, I dare say that this is the best take on him yet. His expression and hand poses are much more dynamic (making him look pretty darn close to his official Sonic Channel artwork), he has a ridiculous amount of movement for such a chunky design (HE SOMEHOW HAS ANKLES), and best of all, you can actually pose him around a decent bit without his legs breaking off! He definitely exceeded my expectations, and was pretty much worth the price of the pack by himself. A nice addition to the shelf.
PowerA The Legend of Zelda - Master Sword Defense Nintendo Switch Slim Case
Bioworld Super Mario All-Over Print Backpack
Here are some goodies that my parents picked up for me while thrifting: yet another cool backpack option for travel and another Switch case that I'm currently using for extra game storage. Nice to get a practical item every now and then.
Roy amiibo (PNP Games)
Took advantage of an amiibo sale at PNP Games and was able to pick up Roy for around OG retail price. The only Fire Emblem amiibo that I owned previously was Marth, so with Roy's addition, the Melee roster comes one step closer to being complete on my shelf.
Funko POP! Plus Space Ghost with Shark (Amazon)
Funko POP! Games Fuecoco (Amazon)
Here's a very eclectic duo of POP! vinyls that I pre-ordered, consisting of my favorite goon Fuecoco and Space Ghost WITH OLD KENTUCKY SHARK!!!
Yeah, as a HUGE fan of Space Ghost Coast to Coast (RIP George Lowe), as soon as I saw that Funko were not only finally putting out a POP! specifically based on that show rather than the OG SG, but ALSO one referencing one of my favorite episodes (the delightfully bizarre "Kentucky Nightmare"), I knew that I HAD. TO. OWN. IT. Just the fact that friggin' OLD KENTUCKY SHARK NOW HAS OFFICIAL MERCHANDISE consistently makes my brain explode whenever I think about it. (Much like Old Kentucky's does to attract mates or giant killer bees.) As for SG himself, funnily enough, despite lugging around a ridiculous shark, this C2C version actually looks WAY better than Funko's previous take on him! (It's mainly the eyes. The old one had the stock POP!-style eyes, whereas the eyes on this one are much more accurate to Space Ghost's normal design, giving him a more distinct, faithful look.) That brings the Space Ghost C2C crew members on my POP! shelf up to two! (I got Zorak back in 2018.) Now I just need to get around to scoring that Moltar that they released through their crappy NFT system on eBay!
Turtles of Grayskull Leatherhead Figure (Walmart)
I had to pre-order him from Walmart three different times (the first I had to cancel to swap out a dead payment method and the second I canned because it showed zero activity even past the original ship date), but I FINALLY have the only other Turtles of Grayskull figure that I absolutely NEEDED: Leatherhead! HE'S SO SICK! (My favorite parts are his HUGE tail, two different hat options, and articulated jaw!) Very happy to have the crossover versions of both of my favorite TMNT characters. (The other being Slash.) Almost enough to not be slightly bitter about the fact that they put him on clearance the day AFTER I finally got him in. Almost.
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (Wii U) (Mercari)
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (3DS) (Mercari)
Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games (Wii U) (Mercari)
Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games (3DS) (Mercari)
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (DS) (Mercari)
Found some decent deals on Mercari, so I decided to finally complete my Mario & Sonic collection. (The news from last year about the series apparently being canned gave me the itch to check out the parts of it that I had previously skipped.)
Also grabbed both Nintendo versions of ASRT because Sonic Racing CrossWorlds being announced got me in the mood to replay it. (Unlocked all the characters and console mods on 3DS, but the Wii U version will have to wait, as I got the PC version for like five bucks right after ordering it and I've been playing THAT like crazy.)
Unlicensed Geno Plush (eBay)
Ordered this guy off eBay from a Chinese seller and after a bit of touch-and-go related to the extremely flip-floppy decision-making of the current administration, I thankfully got him in without issue. As a huge Super Mario RPG nerd, I am GIDDY BEYOND BELIEF. IT'S GENO! HE'S HERE!! I HAVE HIM!!! I'M JUST LIKE GAZ!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! *phew* Anyway, for an unlicensed plush, he is INSANELY detailed and high quality. If you've ever wanted Geno in plush form, you really can't get much better than this. (Aside from Ninty and SE finally getting off their butts and licensing a legit modern plush line, of course.) Suffice it to say, I am VERY happy with him, and I immediately gave him a place of prominence on my game shelf.
Diamond Select Darkwing Duck and Negaduck Deluxe Figure Box Set (WITH FUNCTIONING NEGADUCK!!!) (Big Bad Toy Store)
HE LIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVES!!!! Yeah, if you've been following me for a bit, you might remember back in 2024 when I bought one of these Diamond Select Darkwing Duck figure sets and quickly had my dreams shattered by Negaduck's arm immediately breaking when I tried to articulate it. Since then, I've sent multiple emails to Diamond in an attempt to get a replacement body for him. Well, the first time that they sent one, it was lacking the peg for attaching his head to his body, meaning that while his arms were in one piece, he was now permanently headless. I sent another email Diamond's way and they told me that I'd have to wait for them to get in more replacement bodies that actually HAD the peg installed. Well, I waited. And waited. And waited. AND WAITED. After months of nothing, I got back in touch with them in February, asking just what the hold-up was with that body. Well, they gave me some bad news: they wouldn't be receiving any additional replacement bodies and their web store was currently sold out of the DW set, so they couldn't even issue me a full replacement anymore. The only thing that they could offer me were reward points for said store.
It was irritating, to say the least. I got jerked around by them for an entire year, and for what? A second, perpetually headless Negaduck figure and a few reward points that wouldn't even fully cover a purchase? I figured that my only chance of having an intact Negsy figure now was to simply purchase another set at full price from a different retailer. It sucked, but what option did I have left? It had been over a year since I originally got the thing in from Big Bad Toy Store, so they probably couldn't help me, could they?
...or could they?
So yeah, figuring that I had nothing left to lose in this situation, I sent BBTS an email to see if they could possibly provide me a replacement set. I had absolutely ZERO hope that it would amount to anything. Then, I got a reply:
H-h-h-holy crap. Were they actually going to...help me out? Even though it had been so long since I got it in? I was FLOORED. Sure enough, I got the credit, ordered a new set, and now I have a functional Negaduck! (I warmed up his joints with my space heater this time around before working them. I REALLY didn't want this to happen all over again.) Not only that, but I also had an extra Darkwing that I could turn into a disguised Negaduck using one of his alternate heads! It was like a bonus for all of that crap that I went through! Needless to say, HUGE thanks to Big Bad Toy Store (and especially Barb, the very nice representative) for going above and beyond with their customer service. One of my favorite cartoon villains is finally revving up his trusty chainsaw on my shelf and I have you guys to thank for it. You've earned a customer for life. As for Diamond Select Toys, thanks for nothing. (It's really no wonder that their company is apparently going under.)
Jakks Pacific Fang Figure (Entertainment Earth)
Yet another Sonic figure! Entertainment Earth had Fang here for retail, so I jumped on him. (Despite their shipping prices being ridiculous.) As soon as I got him in, I immediately equipped him with an extra gas gun from my replacement Darkwing set. It honestly makes for a pretty nice alternative to his signature pop gun and he looks really cool wielding it. Really jazzed to finally have this guy in plastic form. Bring on Bean and Bark!
Cloud (Player 2) amiibo (Gamestop)
Shulk amiibo (Target)
Ganondorf amiibo (Target)
Saw that Gamestop had Cloud's Player 2 variant in stock, which inspired me to fill a couple more holes in my amiibo collection. That officially adds both Cloud designs, Xenoblade representation, and one more face from Melee's roster to my shelf. (Only missing Sheik and Young Link now.)
TY the Tasmanian Tiger: Bush Rescue Bundle (Switch) (Woot)
I'd never experienced the TY the Tasmanian Tiger series before, but when I saw that Woot had a physical bundle of the first, second, and fourth games down to 20 bucks, I jumped on it. I'm always up for more 3D mascot platformers, and I had a lot of fun playing through TY 1 and 2. (Still working on TY 4.)
Courage the Cowardly Dog: The Complete Series
Godzilla the Series: The Complete Animated Series
My favorite cousin couldn't visit for Christmas, so we had to delay exchanging gifts with her until everyone's schedules lined up. (Which turned out to be in late April.) She blessed me with some fresh additions to my home media collection. The Courage set will look nice on the shelf next to the Scooby crossover movie from a couple years back, and I'm really looking forward to giving Zilla Jr.'s series a full watch. (The '98 Godzilla/Zilla design is unironically my favorite Godzilla look. IT'S JUST SO RAD!)
NECA TMNT (1987 Cartoon) Ultimate Shredder (Target)
I usually only go for my absolute favorite characters when buying figures from NECA's various TMNT lines (especially in the case of the massive '87 cartoon line), but when they released an Ultimate '87 Shredder as part of Target's Haulathon event, I couldn't help myself. I'd never owned a cartoon-accurate '87 Shredder before, and the Vacation Bebop and Rocksteady that I got for Christmas REALLY needed their boss.
He turned out super rad, with a good amount of articulation, tons of accessories (including an alternate unmasked head and Eye of Sarnath-equipped helmet), an awesome, VHS-style box, and a sculpt that makes him look like he popped right out of the cartoon. Only minor bummer is that one of his shoulder pads quickly popped off, but it still sits on him fine when he's just chilling on the shelf. (I need to get around to supergluing it.)
Donkey Kong Country Returns HD (Woot)
I was originally going to wait until my Birthday to get DKCRHD, but Bananza's reveal put me in a real "OH BANANA" mood, and I wanted to play some DK NOW. Luckily, Woot had it down to 40 bucks, which I further discounted using one of their in-app offers, meaning that I was able to score it for over $20 off! (I also ended up actually getting the version with the ESRB rating on the box, which isn't a guarantee with first-party Nintendo games sold by Woot, so that was a nice surprise.) I've already 200%ed it, by the way. I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND IT. STAGE 4-K AND SOME OF THE BOSSES ARE ABSOLUTE HELL IN MIRROR MODE.
Olimar amiibo (PNP Games)
Zero Suit Samus amiibo (PNP Games)
One more batch of amiibo courtesy of another PNP Games sale. This one completes my set of Metroid characters and finally adds Pikmin rep to my shelf. Now I'm only three figures (Sheik, Ike, and Lucas) away from a complete Brawl roster!
Yu-Gi-Oh! Early Days Collection (With Quarter Century Secret Rare Harpie's Feather Duster) (Woot)
Finishing things off with another Woot deal! Got the recently-released Yu-Gi-Oh! retro game collection for just a little over 30 bucks. I didn't get my preferred art for the Harpie's Feather Duster promo card (I already owned a HFD with this art), but I'm psyched to start digging into this little compilation. (I'm most excited to play the formerly-Japan-exclusive Monster Capsule GB and replay the Sacred Cards duology.) I hope they eventually put out a collection for the early Playstation games!
That wraps things up. I'm headed to Florida for a vacation next month, so I'll check back in with you guys in July and show you the treasures that I was able to score there. See ya then!
