Confessions of an #ActionFigure Collector
#TalkNerdyToMeLover's @SnogVlog
It’s the curse of a nerd the obsession we all talk about the need to collect things. In my many years on this earth I have accumulated many things but none give me the uber butterflies like my Buffy the Vampire and Horror Movie action figures. When I was little my mother made sure that I had all the girl essentials, Barbie dolls, Strawberry Shortcake, Smurfs, and Cabbage Patch Kids but I never had GI Joe, He Man, Transformers, and Star Wars, that was saved for my younger brother and I would always want to play with his toys. When I was old enough to get into collecting I started small usually just novelty toy here and there but then I went all out and began on my horror movie figure journey.
It all started with a boxed set of three figures the Monster Classics the Wolfman, the Mummy and Frankenstein this set is gorgeous in all black and white it's perfect for any collector and was a gift given to me as a birthday gift. What I really loved about this set was the box had a window where you could view the figures without removing them so the flap would lift up to reveal them. Many of the figures I collect come from the McFarland collection he does a great job of capturing all of the monsters, slashers, and boogeymen you see in movies. So far I've collected Freddy Kruegar, Michael Myers, The Thing, The Fly, Jason Voorhees, Leatherface, Norman Bates from Psycho, (my pride and joy) among a few others. Some people pay top dollar for these figures I know the Psycho one cost me a pretty penny and I was only able to find it online and randomly in a shop in New Hope, Pennsylvania.
I have been a HUGE fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer ever since the television show began and followed its progression from a running joke to a ratings gem for the network. I was not only impressed with the actors but the writing was top notch it drew me in and made me a life long fan when I got my first figure that’s when the bug was planted and I haven't looked back. The big sellers for Buffy are of course the Halloween episodes which were wildly popular each character comes dressed in their episode costume so Military Xander, Bunny Anya and Fiesta Giles will fetch you big bucks if you plan on selling on Ebay. As a favorite of mine I even went out and bought a glass curio cabinet to display them proudly and have gotten much flak from friends about the dorkiness of it all. It's been called the "Chic Repellant" as well as many other unflattering terms but I look at it as just another cute little quirk in my list of cute little quirks that make me, me.
In my many experiences with online dating my favorite interaction came with a lovely lady from www.okcupid.com, we have since become friends but at the time she had a lot to say about my little hobby. I remember her advice to me was that I put the figures away because no woman would be interested in dating a girl who displays action figures in her bedroom and also I'd never be allowed to display them in "our" home. My ex had a similar idea of how "our" home would look obviously the figures would be taking a permanent trip to casa de Rubbermaid. I know our fearless leader Ms. Jen Friel can attest to this, a nerd must love us for who we are or leave us but chances are there's a million other people out there just like us.
As Nerds we all are made fun of on a daily basis for some thing we do that is what others consider out of the norm or not "cool," we see it a different way we take things we love and expand on them. Diehard fans such as Trekkies can sometimes take things a bit over the edge but its all in the name of fandom and the love of stories, and ideas from visionaries. Movies and stories like Star Wars, Star Trek and Lord of the Rings were made with the intent of creating new worlds, new cultures, and languages. As any fan knows these books, movies and television shows are well thought out, inventive, creative and sometimes so detailed and specific it's almost impossible to imagine someone could have that much of an imagination. In some cases as in LOTR and Buffy these other worlds have languages, mythologies, and societal hierarchy they are new worlds and its something to really marvel at. You may mock Sci-Fi but you cannot deny the fact that these writers and creators do have a sense of genius about them and are on higher plain imagination wise than the average person. I am fascinated by creative people including artists and I always find it amazing how they can take a blank canvas and make something beautiful out of it. They see things that the average person does not they see life where there is death and beauty where others see ugliness. While I could go on and on about writers and artists this article is after all about an action figure collecting junkie, me.
While collectors have always been seen as some sort of junk addicts it has become a multi million dollar industry and with the invention of Ebay it has allowed anyone and everyone to sell their stuff online. Ebay is the virtual version of the old fashioned garage sale where people can outbid one another on the price of Elvis salt and pepper shakers, (name this reference for a Banana) or snatch up Michael Jackson's iconic glove. Collecting is just human nature we hold on to things that invoke memories of our childhood or a happy moment in our lives and true that within the wrong hands collecting can become a sickness as we've seen in Hoarders but we're usually just harmless geeks. The truth is a true collector won't care if these items are really worth anything because most fans are collecting for the sake of having these prized possessions not for the monetary value they may hold.
Regardless of what you, your friends, your girlfriend, or your dog may think action figure collectors definitely have their shit together in fact most of the time we know exactly what we're doing and how much our stuff is worth. I've known people who have paid for their weddings or college educations based off of items they collected throughout the years. So next time you're thinking of calling us Nerds or Chic Repellants remember we will own you one day ...
#JustSayin
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