Experienced collectors and casual dabblers in horror memorabilia have one thing in common: they love discovering really cool toys, figures, games or other treasures that they never knew existed, or that were believed long lost since their childhood. It often becomes an expensive obsession: for example, my quest to find a Kenner 1979 Alien toy in decent condition (I did!) led me down side-roads to items I'd long forgotten (like the old Alien board game, another of my precious finds). It's a fun hunt – if an often expensive one – and we'd like to help you in your quest with this new feature series.
Images and info: SOTA Toys and Jeff Saylor at Figures.com
Our first entry is this impressive Mega Scale 18” rendering of the title demon from Stan Winston's 1988 cult classic Pumkinhead, produced in 2006 by SOTA Toys as part of their Now Playing series. Other studios have had a go at this beast, including a 9” figure in 1999 by McFarlane Toys and a very short run of movie maquettes from Sideshow Toys that ran for a crushing $850 a pop. But the SOTA version is a real beauty, and retailed for $70 (not cheap, but a bargain compared to $850).
Sculpted by the distinguished Jean St. Jean Studios, this figure is nicely detailed, on a scale that allows more intricate touches than the 9” figure (both are shown below for comparison); the paint job emphasizes Pumpkinhead's deathly pallor and purple veins (although some fans complained about them being a little too purple), and he's fairly smoothly poseable (much like the NECA 18” Alien, another one of my prize pieces).
While it's hard to find at retail, this figure isn't so rare as to be unattainable, and can even by found for around $100 on ebay. Happy Hunting!
