With another Festival of Fear/FanExpo come and gone, there are no doubt many collectors out there trying to make room in their homes for the ghastly goodies they picked up at the show this year. Whether it be movies, masks, action figures or posters, it can become (and I speak from experience here) increasingly challenging to create space to display each new addition. Personally speaking, I promised myself not to spend too much this year and limit myself to just a few items. And I stuck to that by only picking up two bobble heads, a movie (VHS tape) and a couple of repro lobby cards. Now, while I won’t bother going into the tape or cards, I feel I have to show off these fantasic bobble heads - inspired from what is probably the greatest  TV show of all time: The Twilight Zone!

 

“You’re traveling through another dimension, a dimension not only of sigh and sound, but of mind. A journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. That’s the signpost up ahead. Your next stop … The Twilight Zone.”

I can practically hear Rod Serling reciting those words when I look at these little beauties. Produced by Bif Bang Pow! these approximately 6 inch high wobblers are based on two of the series’ best episodes: “The Invaders” and “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet.” Sporting a great amount of detail in the sculpting, the figures also employ a “black and white” paint scheme, and I have to say that I absolutely love the effect – especially on the Gremlin figure, which appears to be rendered in several shades of grey.

One of the first things you notice with these, apart from the monochrome paint scheme and beautifully designed packaging art (featuring a great image of Serling on the front) is just how heavy they are. They are actually quite weighty and I’d guess they’d do some damage if they fell on a foot, child, pet, etc. So, it’d probably be wise not to display these close to the edge of a shelf.

With the Gremlin wobbler, you have the airplane wing acting as the main base and not only is the outer part of the plane nicely scultped and painted - but the inside of the airplane cabin is also rendered in loving detail – curtains and all. I wonder if William Shatner saw these at the con while he was there? And furthermore, I wonder if anyone got him to autograph one of them?

This little fellow from “The Invaders” also features amazing detailing and sits on a great little base adorned with the show’s famous logo. It looks pretty darn close to the ones featured in the episode – so much so that you can almost envision poor old Agnes Moorhead fleeing in terror from it.

These aren’t the only Twilight Zone wobblers available, however. The first wave in the series – released late last year was comprised of not only our little friend from “The Invaders,” but also the Mystic Seer from the episode “Nick of Time” (again starring Bill Shatner as a man addicted to using a novelty fortune teller device in a cafe) and an awesome rendition of little Talking Tina from “Living Doll.” In that truly creepy installment, Kojak himself, Telly Savalas saw himself menaced by a pint-sized, pigtailed little piece of plastic that threatened to kill him. The wobbler even talks and says some of Tina’s famous lines, including: “My name is Talking Tina and I am going to kill you.”

 

The second wave in the series was just recently released and includes the Gremlin as well as a wobbler of the man-eating alien The Kanamit (bearing an awesome resemblance to actor Richard Kiel – otherwise known as supervillain Jaws from the Bond flicks) from the episode “To Serve Man.”  Looking back on it now, I wished I had actually picked up the others in the series.

For those who aren’t  into the B&W look, the bobble heads have also been released in limited edition “colorized” versions as San Diego Comic Con exclusives – which can now be found on eBay and retail sites like Entertainment Earth. Personally, though, I prefer the monchrome editions, and having always seen the characters in B&W in the TV series – I just can’t seem to envsion them in bright, garish hues.

Additionally, those Twilight Zone fans out there might be happy to know that Biff Bang Pow! is also releasing a series of Mego-inspired 8 inch dolls of several characters (including a bespectacled Burgess Meredith from “Time Enough At Last”, complete with books) – all of which will feature real clothing and in the case of the Gremlin – real faux fur!

Guess I’m going to have to make some more space on my shelves ….