Surveying the Gen X landscape and the origins of geek
These were part of a very large lot of licensed D&D items that sold on eBay, many of which allegedly came from the TSR archives. There was a third sharpener identified on the package as a Deadly Grell, but it was actually a five-headed hydra, as seen below. A similar hydra makes an appearance in the AD&D Characters Coloring Book, also from 1983. A series of “bendable monster” figures, including a Deadly Grell and a five-headed Hydra, was released by LJN in 1983-1984.
From Spain, where the animated series was very big and the kids ran around in D&D sweatsuits.
(Images via eBay)
There’s “chain mail” on the Paladin helmet! All the sets and more, including Warduke gear, appear in the 1984 Placo catalog.
The Strongheart illustration is similar to that used on Coleco’s D&D Power Cycle (1984).
You’ll have to buy it if you want better scans. I’m broke.
Related to the above: I’ll be on vacation for a couple of weeks starting tomorrow. Happy 4th!
If you find yourself in the Hall of the Fire Giant King without adequate UV protection, won’t you consider this fine pair of sunglasses with a sun visor attached? Larami made at least one other set of “Visor Glasses” for the Knight Rider license. I’m not sure how rare the AD&D set is, but it’s the only one I’ve ever seen.
(P.S. Item is for sale. Email me at 2warpstoneptune [at] gmail [dot] com if interested.)
Item is sold.
UPDATE (9/14/15): I’m adding a picture of a different set below.
The good: Warduke, Warduke’s Shield, Strongheart’s mustache. The bad: Castle. The stupid: Charmay (I don’t want to know what she’s holding). I like Garn too, but I think it’s because he reminds me of the zombies in Ghosts ‘n Goblins.
Item sold on eBay for $26.00.
A new adventure begins, this time with the creative team of David Anthony Kraft (writer) and Pablo Marcos (artist). The cover is by Earl Norem.
Kraft started at Marvel as the editor of FOOM in 1978 and had a memorable run on The Defenders. Throughout the ’80s he worked on promotional materials, coloring/activity books, and the Marvel Books imprint. He went on to found the influential Comics Interview, which ran from 1983 to 1995.
Peruvian Pablo Marcos emigrated to the U.S. in the early 1970s and got his first American comics work with Warren and Skywald publications before moving to Marvel. He is best known for penciling Tales of the Zombie and inking John Buscema’s Conan the Barbarian.
As for the story thus far in The Crown of Rulership, my only question is, why the hell is the map to the all-powerful Crown shoved in willy-nilly with all the other scrolls, and very much out in the open? Better yet, why hasn’t someone of lawful good alignment already secured the Crown, to prevent evildoers from doing the same?
More to come. The AD&D Characters Coloring Book, if you haven’t seen it, is here.
Image is via Cyclopeatron. Check out the red version, in package, at Tome of Treasures. With the exception of Strongheart, all of the art used is by Timothy Truman, as seen in The Art of the Dungeons & Dragons Fantasy Game.
The smaller Fantasy Flyers are here.
