The nightmare is finally
over.
Fans around the world were dancing in
the streets a few months back, when McFarlane Toys
finally—finally—put the longest-standing rumor in toy history to
rest. Yep, the company was really, truly making an action figure
based on the most beloved Bruce Campbell character of all time:
Charles Travis from Congo.
No, no, no. Of course it was Ash, that
tortured jamoke from the Evil Dead trilogy. And it was about damn
time.
I’m the letters column guy over at
ToyFare: The Toy Magazine, America’s number one (yay!) action
figure rag. For going on three years now, I’ve sifted through
thousands of letters and e-mails each month, trying to gauge what
our readers like, dislike and desperately want.
And for those three years, our readers
have desperately wanted Ash. Well, that and a Lara Croft figure
made out of "bouncier" plastic. But mostly Ash.
I don’t want to get too deep into the
mechanics of the toy industry here, and I’m sure you’ll thank me.
But we’re living in something of an action figure nirvana these
days; every character from every entertainment property under the
sun is cramming toy, comic and hobby store shelves. Want a Speed
Racer figure? You got it. Need that really fat X-wing pilot? He’s
yours.
It’s rare to get a consensus among our
readers. Basically, they want everything. Right now. That’s what
made the overwhelming clamor for an Ash figure so notable. They
had to have that toy, dammit!
Every few months, I’d check in with
McFarlane Toys, hoping for Ash news. And every few months, I’d get
nothing. It was even more frustrating for McFarlane’s
communications director, Steve Hamady, since for every Ash letter
I’d get, he’d get three.
Realizing that he’d never have any
peace until McFarlane Toys finally made that Ash figure, Steve
asked me to print in ToyFare his plea for even more Ash requests.
If he got enough of them, McFarlane would have to make Ash, and
then Steve’s private little Ash hell would end once and for
all.
It must’ve worked. Either that or
company prez Todd McFarlane, best known for creating Spawn and
dropping $3 million on rare baseballs, must’ve caught Army of
Darkness on cable one night and said, "Hey! Let’s make a figure of
that guy!" Todd’s impulsive that way.
If I’m making it sound like this whole
Ash ordeal has been a thorn in my side...nah. I understand where
all the enthusiasm is coming from. Sitting in the theater watching
AOD for the first time, seeing Ash in the pit leaping for that
chainsaw—well, I hadn’t felt that way since the Star Wars movies.
And being a Michigan boy, "This sweet baby was made in Grand
Rapids, Michigan," carried a lot of weight with the crowd that
night. It was a brand of goofy, kinetic fun I haven’t seen
since.
According to this very Web site, Evil
Dead 4 is a dim hope after AOD’s box office performance. Stupid
studio executives. I’m the ToyFare letters guy, dammit, and I’ve
done the research. I’ve got the papercuts. There isn’t a guy
between the ages of 15 and 35 who hasn’t seen Army of Darkness by
now. I know. I’ve read the mail.
Speaking of mail, it’s time for me to
head back to the toy mines. My thanks to Bruce and Craig for
letting me contribute here, and my thanks to you for
reading.
Oh, and about those Jack of All Trades
figures? Please don’t ask me.
