There’s a lot going on this week in toys with a few items making their way back in and some new product appearing for the first time. We should be getting some of the Previews Exclusive DC POP Vinyl figures back in- specifically Batman, Deathstroke, Harley Quinn and Wonder Woman. We also have the entire spectrum of Rainbow Batman POPs available courtesy of Entertainment Earth as well as the Previews Exclusive Superman POP figure still in stock for you DC POP fans. On the Marvel side of things, the Juggernaut bursts onto our shelves again with the reissue of the always impressive and massive Marvel Select figure of the unstoppable X-Men villain. We also have fresh stock of the Avengers Marvel Legends Thanos Build-A-Figure Series which includes movie versions of Cap, Iron Man and the Hulk along with the Jessica Drew Spider-Woman and first time figures of Hellcat and Batroc.
We should be getting a brand new assortment of Star Wars Black 6″ Series which is slated to include IG-88, Commander Cody and my most anticipated- Princess Leia in her Boushh Disguise. I already talked about Boushh in a previous column, but she is so much closer now and I am definitely excited to add her to my collection. Fans of another space epic should be on alert as we get our first figure from the brand new Funko 6″ Legacy series based on Joss Whedon’s “Firefly” dropping this week. Previews and Funko have teamed up to bring us the Jayne Cobb in hat figure based on Adam Baldwin’s memorable appearance from the episode “The Message.” The rest of Funko’s lineup will include Captain Malcolm Reynolds, Kaylee, Zoe and Wash.
In comics this week- highly anticipated book will drop on Wednesday courtesy of Brendan Fletcher and Annie Wu comes the all-new “Black Canary” title. If you have been reading Fletcher’s “Batgirl” title you have some idea of what awaits Dinah Lance’s character in this new title. Dinah is now the lead singer of an all-female band christened “Black Canary” and as the group tours they have to deal with danger at every turn. As a fan of “Jem and the Holograms” as well as all-women groups like the Bangles and the Go-Go’s, I am curious to see where DC takes this new rocker version of Black Canary. DC is also issuing last year’s Paul Dini written, Joe Quinones illustrated Black Canary and Zatanna: Bloodspell Graphic Novel in paperback this week. Highly recommended.
As I teased at the end of last week’s column- I went to FlameCon at the Grand Prospect Ballroom this past Saturday to check out the first Comic Con expressly for an LGBT audience and to meet Mark Patton, who portrayed Jesse Walsh in the second installment of the A Nightmare on Elm Street series. FlameCon was fun- it wasn’t your typical convention with vendors selling old comics in long boxes or old toys. If I could compare it to anything it was probably most like an expanded Artist’s Alley with an LGBT focus. Comics creators including Phil Jimenez, Steve Orlando and James Tynion IV were also there to meet fans. It was also cool because I got to run into some friends I hadn’t seen in a while along with several customers that shop here at the store.
I am a huge A Nightmare on Elm Street fan despite the fact that Freddy Krueger used to scare the heck out of me when I was a kid. I first saw the original “Nightmare” when I was at a horror con in NJ in 2006 and was hooked. I quickly became obsessed with the movie and started going to cons to meet the actors from the series with a focus on the original film in the series. I didn’t start watching the sequels until I’d met Robert Englund at Monster-Mania in 2009. “Elm Street 2” isn’t my favorite of the sequels but I feel it is a solid entry and Freddy is still frightening in it. Mark Patton is great in his role as the tormented teen in “Freddy’s Revenge” who gets possessed by the evil dream demon and starts killing for him. I took the opportunity to meet him at FlameCon since “Elm Street” actors don’t come around these parts super often and I am glad I did. Mark was a gentleman and posed for pictures and signed autographs. I got a normal picture with him as well as a picture where he is ‘killing’ me with Freddy’s glove. 
I didn’t stay for the horror panel which was standing room only but I am sure he had great stories to tell about acting in the film. I do wish there was a wider variety of characters available as figures from the “Elm Street” franchise as most toy companies seem interested in only making different versions of Freddy Krueger as opposed to making figures of Nancy Thompson, the Dream Warriors, Alice, and Jesse whom all have their fans. Hopefully we’ll get other characters from “Elm Street” one day, I personally want a non-bathtub version of Nancy and a punk Taryn from “Dream Warriors.” Around Halloween time I will put out my ranking of the films in the series.
That’s all for this week!
Next week: Playmates’ Star Trek: The Next Generation line and how it got me into the series and Star Trek in general.