Contest > The Wyld Hunt (Deadline extended!)

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We’ve all gone through it–that one figure we wanted more than anything but had to search high and low, for weeks or even months, before we found it. DCUC fans do that every week, but it’s not a new phenomenon–it’s been going on ever since the days of Mego’s World’s Greatest Superheroes and, of course, Star Wars.

I have a few tales of toy hunts, but none more memorable than the Great Turtle Hunt of 1989. For Christmas that year I wanted nothing but Ninja Turtle action figures. Of course, that was the year every kid my age wanted Ninja Turtle action figures, so they were virtually impossible to find. My parents, having become very familiar with the difficulties of finding popular toys around the holidays (thank you, Cabbage Patch Kids!) decided to be proactive. So one day in October that year, my father let me skip school and he and I drove all across Massachusetts, hitting every big retailer and toy store we could find. We found a few random Turtles here and there, but finally, at the gift shop of the now-defunct King’s Castleland in Whitman, we found the mother lode. When we got home, they were quickly swept into hiding until Christmas morn.

So here’s the deal. Hasbro has graciously donated a prize pack, seen above. To win it, all you have to do is post a comment below telling the story of a toy you had to hunt for. It can be a long tale or short, funny or tragic, ending in victory or defeat–anything. When the contest ends, I’ll choose whichever story I think is the best and send along the prizes to the winner.

The rules:

  • All entries need to be received by Friday, March 19 at 5pm Sunday, March 21 at 11:59pm.
  • Everyone gets one entry, so make sure to pick the best story you’ve got.
  • Contest open to U.S. residents only. I’m sorry, but international shipping is way too expensive these days.
  • Contest not open to my friends, family or Power Pals–sorry guys! Gotta be impartial on this one.

Comments now closed (25)

  • Back in 1996, I wanted to make my son's Christmas really special, especially after I missed his karate exposition. I knew that all he wanted for Christmas was an action figure of his hero, Turbo Man. Unfortunately for me, it was Christmas Eve, and every store was sold out of Turbo Man figures. I had to travel all over town and compete with everybody else, including a deranged postal worker, con-artist Santas, the police, and almost every parent in town. I finally gave up hope and joined my family at the department store parade, as I promised my son I would do. Through another series of strangely humorous and coincidental events, I stumbled into a preparations room and was mistaken as a live action Turbo-Man stuntman in the parade. Dressed up as the "real" Turbo-Man, I used the opportunity to present the coveted Turbo-Man figure to my son in the crowd and revealed myself as his father. But the little bastard gave the figure away to the deranged postal worker to give to his kid. All that freaking work for nothing! Christmas spirit my ass.

  • @Howard Langston: You won hands down…

    My entry is way less cool than that.

    The ML Sinister six Box Set was a pain in the neck to find. Went to every Walmart, KB toys, TRU, every place were ML were sold for 3 months. I had given up on it. One day I was looking for Custom fodder at a store that normally does not have any ML. (Usually most of the toys are knockoffs or VERY OLD toys that have been warming pegs since 92'.) To my surprise they had the Sinister six ML set AND the X-Men ML set on clearance…

    (I scored a 2k3 TMNT Sewer playset from them last June.)

  • During the revival of TMNT, I got really into the toys. While they weren't the best toys out there, there was something I loved about being able to search for that one ninja turtle I was after. Sure, a few years ago my psychiatrist said it was a futile attempt at me trying to relive my childhood since it started the same time my parents got divorced.

    Growing up I had a lot of the Turtles' toys, but I only had one Foot Solider which always bothered. It bothered me more when his arm snapped off so every fight began with Leo chopping off his arm. This lead me down a terrible path of always wanting army builders. So when the new TMNT figures had Foot Ninjas, Foot Techs and Elites, I knew I needed 4 of each to fight the turtles on my shelf.

    So I went out to do my weekly rounds (back when I used to do those), the snow was just dusting so the weather wasn't too bad but it was during that magical time between Thanksgiving and Christmas where all parents are desperately searching for that one toy their kid wants (or thinks they want). I wasn't really after any figures in particular, just doing the browsing.

    I thumbed through Wal-Marts selections of TMNT figures and found the last piece I needed: My Fourth Elite Guard. He was packed one-per-case, so you had to show up at the right time to get him. So I took my loot and went over to the Marvel Legends to see what else was there. That's when a little kid sprinted down the aisle with his dad trying to keep his composure (and track of his son).

    The kid made a beeline towards the ninja turtles and began ravaging the section, casting aside all of the turtle variants that had piled up. His dad tried to be helpful and asked which one he wanted while holding up the nearest Leonardo, clearly hoping that was the one his son was after.

    "Not Leo dad!" The kid said, "I'm after the elite, the one with the hat and the cape!" He continued to search while his dad tried to find the elusive figure – the same one in my hand.

    I knew I had two options: walk away and keep the toy to myself or give it to the kid. I knew that wasn't really a decision and walked over. "This the one you're after?" I asked the kid as I showed him the figure.

    "YEAH!" He screamed, grabbed it and showed it to his dad like he had just found some buried treasure. "THIS ONE DAD!" He then turned to me and said, "thanks!" before his dad gave me look that was a cross of "why is this teenager in the toy aisle/is he some creepy pedophile/thanks." I ended up leaving the store empty handed that trip, but I think it was worth it.

    As a collector, I think it's important to remember that you'll always get a second or third chance to stop by the store and find that holy grail you're looking for that week. But the kid, going toy shopping is an experience that's unrivaled in youth. I still fondly remember going to Ames, Bradlees and Toyland (it looked like a castle) to find new toys.

    But that single time of seeing the look on the kid's face made me realize that as much as I enjoyed having a toy on a shelf, that's nothing compared to the joy the kid is going to get out of the same toy.

  • 1996 and I was a full hard core Nerd for Star Wars. I became obsessed with Star Wars Power of the Force figures. The one guy I couldn't find for the life of me was Lando Calrissian. Remember that one? It was the one who was ripped even by that lines standards. Lando has a six pack for pete's sake.

    All spring I searched every store in Southeastern Massachusetts looking for that Colt 45 drinking mythical figure. I found plenty of guys from that line Hoth Han, Dagobah Luke Yoda but no Lando. I finally did get him later that summer at this Sci Fi convention in Boston. It was also my first exposure to toy scalpers. $20 but I didn't care because I finally got Lando!

    The next week the Wal-Mart in my hometown got tons of him in and they sat on the shelves.

  • I don't remember the year, around 1988, my dad took me to the local department store (Sun-Sea if you have ever been to Okinawa) to look for a treat for good grades or something. There on the top shelf was the brand new Overlord figure. Being such a large figure it was quite pricey so my dad said we would come back and get it the next day. So we came back and it was gone and never showed up again. As a consolation my dad purchased a Scorponok that ended up being a damaged and incomplete one that someone had returned.

  • I'm not sure whether or not I'm considered a "friend," especially since some of my stuff got posted here, but I figured I'd just post this tale for what it's worth (and I REALLY had to pick and choose).

    I have been collecting Star Wars toys since I was about three years old, so in 1995, even though I was only 12, I knew I'd be delving into the line full force. Sure, there were some initial frustrations (Leia was surprisingly easy for me, Lando was surprisingly difficult). But overall, everything was relatively easy to get. Then came the exclusives.

    In 1997, Kenner gave a 12" exclusive figure to virtually every store imaginable. Heck, SERVICE MERCHANDISE even got the AT-AT Driver! They all had one thing in common: they were all nearly impossible to get. Keep in mind, I was 14 when these hit, so I was not of the age to be able to drive around and hunt for this sort of thing. My parents were always good about hunting for stuff, but since these all hit close to the holidays, they wanted to keep everything a surprise until Dec. 25th.

    I was HOPING that on Christmas morning, I'd be getting all of them, including the best one of all, the Han in Hoth Gear with the scale Tauntaun. At the time, a 12" figure with that kind of effort put into it seemed absolutely insane. It was also the piece that commanded the most money. It retailed for $50, but scalpers tended to charge $150 to $200, and considering it was around the holidays, they usually could get it, so it was me and my dad versus the scalpers at the peak of their sleaziness.

    So I didn't get it under the tree in 1997. And since they were seasonal exclusives, I wondered whether or not I'd be able to find them at all after Christmas. And as much as I wanted it, my dad wanted it more, just because he always felt like he could find what I was looking for, and this time, he just couldn't, no matter how hard we tried.

    On March 18, 1998 (yes, I remember the EXACT DATE), we got a call from a family friend who had just left my local Toys R Us in Deptford, NJ. He said they had six of them right at the front counter as you entered the store. This was at about 4:30 PM, and my dad wasn't home from work yet.

    When he got in the door, I excitedly told him that we had on good authority that the 12" Han with Tauntaun was in stock. My dad said, "Quick, let's go!" Now, here's where the story gets crazy: My dad is an absolute stickler for doing the speed limit. He loves cars, but he works with auto insurance, so he tries to make sure he's never the one behind an accident. The speed limit on the main highway leading to TRU was 55 mph in 1998. My dad was doing 70 mph. It was the only time I have ever seen him do that much above the speed limit, and it was to make sure we could get this Han and Tauntaun exclusive. And we did.

    I have packed away a significant portion of my Star Wars collection, and I'm beginning the process of opening most of it to condense space (especially since I don't think the difference in value would be much of anything…allthough that's not was everyone was thinking in the late 1990s). However, that piece is still on display in my old bedroom at my parents' house. It's not going anywhere. To me, no other piece epitomizes the hunt for NEW stuff quite like that one.

  • I know I'm not eligible for this contest, and I've told this story before, but I always enjoy recalling it. Its not quite as epic as Poe's Turtle hunt, but still cool nonetheless I think). It was sometime in 1991 and the new TMNT II Secret of the Ooze figures were out. My mother took me to the now defunct Child World at the Westgate Mall. I was looking for Super Shredder, Tokka, and Rahzar, but unfortunately there weren't any out on the pegs. My mother went and asked if there might be any cases out back. She got some stock answer, "We can't bring any new product out until there's room". So she and I rearranged the products so that it created a big gaping hole in the TMNT section. My mother again went to the manager and again asked if they could bring out some cases, which this time they did, and I got my Super Shredder, Tokka, and Rahzar!

  • I was really little (like 3 or 4) for this Christmas and big into the original Star Wars figures. At that age, to me, the main characters were Luke, Leia and Vadar. I had Luke and Vadar, and at least one version of Leia, but the one I HAD to have was the version from A New Hope, or as I called her "Princess Leia in the white bathrobe." 'Cause it looked like a bathrobe, and I was 3, what did I know?

    My dad worked as an admissions counselor for New Paltz college (still does, actually!) but when I was little, that job involved traveling all over New York State doing recruiting. He not only stopped in every conceivable place that might sell toys in the entire Empire State, he had every admissions counselor he knew from every college in New York out looking, too!

    In the end, my parents found her in catalog 4-pack (JCPenney's, I think). She came with Han and I don't remember the other two characters. I don't remember how excited I was that Christmas morning, but I remember opening the small vertical box. Maybe it was a mailer box, I dunno.

    I wish I could say I still have "Princess Leia in the white bathrobe," but she and all my other Star Wars figures ended up at garage sales so I could get money for whatever the next figure craze was.

    As a kid, I was elated at having the one figure I "had to have" in my collection. All these years later, it's the tireless (and probably mostly thankless) efforts put forth by my father that make me smile at how lucky I was to have such devoted parents.

  • When I was in high school, the nearest comic shop was 80 miles away. (Fortunately, so was the nearest McDonald's, so it was pretty easy to convince my friends to come with me!) At the time, I wasn't yet buying toys again, although I may have picked up Robocop or a Batman; but then I saw ads for a Nightcrawler PVC figure. He was my favorite character even then, and I was dying to get it. After skipping school one fine afternoon, driving entirely too fast down the highways of my homestate with a car full of stupid teenagers, I get to the comic shop…where all the Nightcrawlers are gone. I got an Iron Man. It wasn't a consolation, it's a reminder.

    It would be a good nine or ten years before I'd finally get a Nightcrawler PVC off eBay. He's not articulated, the sculpt and paint would seem shoddy and amateurish to you now, and even with a tripod stance he still tips over. I have two, and can't describe how glad I am about that.

  • I don't have any childhood stories, but I do have a recent one. Back when DC Universe Classics were first coming out, I was doing my rounds looking for Marvel Legends. At the time Marvel Legends was all that I collected. I happened to see that the Target I was at had a full case of Wave 2. I called my buddy up to see if he wanted Harley Quinn and I ended up purchasing it for him. I noticed the Classic Aquaman and thought to myself that he was well sculpted, but who really wanted Aquaman? Aquaman was lame. A couple months down the road DCUC Wave 3 Hal Jordan was my gateway drug into the DC line. I also began reading more DC and discovered that I actually thought Aquaman was cool. I begin to see if I can find Wave 2, only to discover it's now taken on a mythical quality. What I saw at that Target might as well have been an illusion. It was the one and only time I ever saw an Aquaman on the shelf, classic or modern. This was in March, I believe. It was reported online that one case was popping up here, one case there. I hunted everywhere, hoping it would be my Target, or my Wal-mart, that would get that one random case in. I eventually did get my Aquaman, as a Christmas gift from the same guy I bought the Harley Quinn figure for, almost nine months later. Perhaps it was karma for finding him Harley, the only figure he wanted from the line. Nine months is the longest I've ever single-mindedly hunted for a figure.

  • My toy hunt stretches years, just about five in fact. I believe the year was 2005, and as I browsed the acton figures at Suncoast, something caught my eye. A Movie Maniacs RoboCop. The violent and funny RoboCop film has always had a special place in my heart, but has been underrepresented on my toy shelf. Most of RoboCop's action figures have been too small and crappy or too big and expensive. This Movie Maniacs version was just right. And for a McFarlane figure, super articulated! Just $11, but I did not have the money on me. I promised to come back. Of course, when I did he was gone. Over the course of the next few years, I checked every comic and specialty shop I came across. I monitored eBay. There they were always available, but always very expensive, even loose. Then this past Monday, I won a Movie Maniacs RoboCop for $26. A bit of a markup, but after all this time… it is on its way to me right now. I've got a place of honor on the shelf cleared off for him.

  • I live in Canada so I don't qualify, but I'm telling this story, anyway. Back in 2006 was not into toy collecting, yet, but that all changed at Wizard World Chicago that summer. I came across the Mattel booth and immediately started to drool over the display case with the newly packaged DCSH series 3 Batman. For the next month I stalked my local TRUs multiple times a week, but the pegs were glutted with DCSH series 2 Bizarro and Supergirl. It was not entirely frustrating as I was starting to collect JLU figures, so I was picking those up from time to time. By late August, American collectors reported a bountiful number of sightings, but we usually get toys a month later. I was concerned as our retailers are known to skip the waves late in the year. In early September, took a Friday off work and decided to make the long drive from Toronto to visit my folks in Ottawa for the weekend. Along the way I made a pit stop at a mall in the little city of Belleville. I noticed a TRU, so I popped in. My eyes widened and my heart started to beat faster as I was surprised to see 2 fresh cases of DCSH series 3 on the pegs. They had just arrived from a truck the night before. I was so caught up in the euphoria that I picked Azrael and Mr. Freeze along with Batman. And thus began my collection of DCSH and DCUC figures. We never did get DCSH series 4 up here, though.

  • Back when DC Superheroes first came out I was searching everwhere(in Georgia) for the Superman figures. My buddy was scouring the retail stores in Kentucky. For some reason neither of us could find the black costumed Superman ANYWHERE. One day my wife and I were in Big Lots and we hit the MOTHERLODE. We found every figure in that particular wave plus two of the coveted black costumed fella. Being the friend that I am, I picked up an extra for my buddy and shipped it to him in Kentucky. About two weeks later he calls me and says he sent me pictures of his latest custom. I checked it out and was appalled… My much searched for Supes was now a Captain America! I was not pleased.

  • i possibly qualify as a "friend" since we're both OAFEs, and i honestly dont need the toys in the prize pack, but i'd still like to share if that's ok.

    even though scalping is bigger today, it was so much harder to find toys when i was a kid. all you had to go on was a commercial or a back of a package to tell you what toys were coming out. you never really knew when or where or if they'd be exclusives or canceled or what. this was before the internet was so ubiquitous.

    i think the worst case of this was when my brother and i collected playmates's dick tracy line. we had just about every figure, save for the blank (who of course was the coolest looking character). we never did get him/her (and i'm sure my parents tried) and it was only several year later while perusing a toyfare that i discovered the blank was actually a sears exclusive, and at the time the toyfare was publish the figure actually was supposedly valued at $100.

  • "I WANTED THE BEST… BUT I DIDN'T GET THE BEST…"

    In 1978, I was 5 years old. Thanks to an older cousin, I had become a diehard KISS fan. When Mego's KISS dolls popped up, I HAD to have them. My paltry allowance would not be enough for me to purchase one (at least not for several weeks), but Christmas was coming. My parents made it a personal crusade to find me a set of all four dolls as the ultimate Xmas gift. That was the problem.

    "All four" was nigh-impossible, as Peter and Ace seemed to be in much shorter supply than Paul or Gene. In fact, I don't think I ever saw a Peter Criss in the wild… and he was my favorite at the time (little kids and drums, I'd imagine. Plus, Gene scared the crap out of me). Mom and Dad meant well, but their desire to obtain a full set meant they did not purchase any of them. That Christmas was still amazing (what with all the great Star Wars goodies), but I, to this day, have never owned a Mego KISS figure. McFarlane's first series in '97 was a good substitution, but the originals are still the coolest.

  • i remember when the blue marvel legends cubes were showing up in wal-marts. I searched high and low for 2 weeks before i even came near one. I have 8 wal-marts within my general hunting zone and i found my first cube at the closest wal-mart only to just find aoa sabertooth and wolverine. While those aren't the worst finds , they sure were not kitty pride or thor. One day after work im walking towards my car and out of nowhere it came to me , like my spider sense was tingling. The giant man series was at the bowleys quarters wal-mart..this one was easily 40 minutes from my job..but i had to go. Determined..i drove there and low and behold..kitty pride , lemony sentry , thor..everybody i needed

    except aoa crispy wolverine

    that guy i never found…and to this day im still so angry that i paid 30 dollars for a calf..the fact that i had to finish a baf with a variant still pisses me off way more than paying 28 dollars for a motuc figure or wal-mart dcuc waves

    so my story is both sweet and sour

  • Hi, you might remember me as the guy who created the jack-o-lantern headed assassin in the "create a Poe Ghostal MOTUC character" contest. Anyway…

    My entry for this contest was not a toy hunt in the traditional sense of the expression, and at the time I did not even realize I was hunting for toys. I was hunting for my Easter basket!

    The year was 1978, I *think*, so that would have made me 5 years old when I had not only the greatest toy hunting experience of my life, but pound for pound, also one of my happiest moments and fondest memories.

    The tradition in my family was for my parents to hide Easter baskets for me and my sister to find on Easter morning. On this particular holiday, we were visiting my grand-parents, which added some spice to the race, since there were new and unknown places to hide the loot.

    I spent the morning tearing around my grandparents' house like my heels were on fire, digging around in closets, cabinets, and exploring their nightmare-inducing basement.

    Little did I suspect that when I finally got around to checking the most obvious places last, I peered into the cubby hole behind the tv set to find THE MOTHER-LODE…In a moment akin to Indiana Jones gazing upon his precious fertility idol for the first time, this was it! What would turn out to be the "Rosebud" to my own personal Citizen Kane…

    Staring back at me from the plastic green grass of an enormous Easter basket were the carded visages of Darth Vader, Han Solo, Chewbacca, a Sandman, Luke Skywalker, C-3PO, Princess Leia, Obi Wan Kenobi, R2-D2, and a Jawa. Like almost all kids who grew up during that era, I was obsessed with Star Wars. My eyes were probably bugging out of my head like a "Big Daddy" Roth Rat Fink illustration, and adrenaline shot through my body as I leaped straight up into the air upon the realization that these treasures were mine! It was a moment of pure, unadulterated joy for me.

    I spent the afternoon in my Grandpa's garden, admiring the sculpts (laughable by today's standards!) and creating adventures for my new found friends. It was awesome and I still remember it vividly, as if it happened yesterday.

    Now that I am in my late thirties I try not to over-analyze my passion for collecting toys, instead preferring to simply enjoy the hobby, but perhaps it has something to do with that magical Easter morning back in 1978, when I was a 5 year old boy having fun.

  • I was a young lad, when the mystifying Power Rangers showed up on TV and toy shelves, never really was into the brand new stuff since I watched TV on Channel 32 ( the Spanish channel) and they always got their shows late ( I guess they had to dubb the show) Anyway out of the blue, on a random like any other day my friend "Beto" showed up with The Red Ranger with Transforming action. This is literally the greatest toy I have ever seen in my life.I asked him where he had bought it, he said Walmart. We played we our usual toys like normally and went on through the day. More and more this toy seemed more valuable when from Red Ranger the toy would magically turn into Jason. I begged my mother for days for it. She finally bulged when she saw my A's in my report card. The first day we went out for it we found nothing which wasn't too bad. I figured it was only the most bad-ass toy so every kid went to go buy it at the same time. I think I liked the Red Ranger the most at this point, So if we did find the I would get the red one. We looked high and low whenever my mother had
    a chance, (not many). Meanwhile "Beto" found the even more awesome Green Ranger. I was left with a heart broken that day, I asked him again and he said downtown. So that's where our next hunt was at.We found the guy scalping them; bought he only had yellow rangers left and they were loose. Granted from when I first saw them probably 2 months had gone by. I bulged in and made my mother buy it. for another month (possibly 2 weeks only time seems like forever when your a kid) I had to pretend this was a different color…
    My uncles came to visit us on a Sunday, from Juarez( I know it was a Sunday because that's the only day the would cross the border.)And we went to walmart, I went to the toy aisle with both my cousins…and guess when yeah It was the BLUE ranger. I begged my mother tried everything you know the tantrum. And my uncle agreed to buy it. I never saw or looked for those toys again after I bought Billy. Even when I opened it I didn't look at anything else but the toy and well apparently they had a temp. tattoo because mine got soiled on to the kitchen table. From then on till this day Blue is my favorite color. Why be the cool Jazzy Jason or Terrific Tommy when I can be better than getting a girl Billy. Wow Nerd moment and end.

    In my latter life, i have encountered these figures, granted there probably a re-release or not deluxe because they only come with their gun and not their special weapon or the tat, but i get reminded that whatever you can't find almost always it gets re-released.
    I still have this figure, so I will never for the hunt that us as collectors go through. Mind it its all broken missing a leg and forget about the transformation apparently you can put them in water because of the springs.

  • It was 2004, and what a summer that was. I was living in St. Petersburg, FL, had just graduated college, and was taking some time off, enjoying a little break from coaching K-8 summer tennis for six weeks. After what seemed like an eternity of waiting and dozens and dozens of nothing but ML5 Sabretooh on the pegs, ML6 hit. Well, most of it. I only found Wolverine, Cable, Juggernaut, and Punisher. No Phoenix or Deadpool to be found. I hunted all over Tampa Bay, down into Sarasota, and across into Brandon for those two figures. I never saw them.

    2004 is also when Hurricane Frances came. My parents on the east coast had a nearly direct hit by the storm. My mother and grandmother came to stay with me while my father stayed at the house. I tried to be the comic relief. I had all my Marvel Legends lined up ready to face off against Supreme Hurricane. It wasn't too much help comforting nerves, but as many of us know, time flies by a little faster with action figures in our hands.

    With that storm behind, I kept looking for the last of ML6. Nothing. A month later, Hurricane Jeanne hit, in the same area, right over my family once more. Cleanup had been fairly easy the last time, just some toppled trees and various wind litter. Not this time. Jeanne tore the pool screen and the metal supports with it. Trees were uprooted. Power lost, and the smell. I won't remember the smell.

    After the storm hit, I took a week off from work to return home and help my family recover. No electricity, no water, no open stores, and a county curfew. I knew it was going to be horrible, so I again brought a backpack of Marvel Legends figures to kill the time that wasn't spent hauling wood, metal, or whatnot off the property.

    The week over, wary, exhausted, but happy that things were slowly getting back to normal, I stopped by a Walmart prior to getting back on the road back to St. Pete. I really only needed some toothpaste and a snack, but I took a quick glance in the toy section.

    Deadpool and Phoenix were sitting on the front pegs. They weren't a reward, or a thank you. I knew I had to go back and help. They reminded me that when you do the right thing, the things you want have ways of revealing themselves to you…

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