REVIEW: Stay Puft (2016)

With the new Ghostbusters movie coming out, you better believe the merchandising we're gonna receive is going to be pretty awesome. I mean, we're looking at a LOT of fun stuff. We're getting Slimer and Stay Puft shaped marshmallows, ECTO COOLER will be back at the end of this month, plush characters, new Hot Wheel cars, clothes, and more! It's great! But my favorite kind of merchandising that's being released? Other than Ecto Cooler, I gotta say it's the action figures themselves. Pretty good sculpts of the actresses, sure, but the true MVP of the new Mattel line is definitely an old favorite. The true mascot of Ghostbusters (sorry Slimer!), STAY PUFT!


There he is! Oh yes! This thing is awesome! Standing at 6 inches or so in all his adorable, happy faced, marshmallow goodne...hey...wait a minute...



"BALLOON GHOST"? Oh. Ok. Well...this is awkward.

Ok, I'm being dramatic for the sake of blogging. I did notice this in a friend's Instagram photo and it gave me pause for about 2 seconds. Then I realized there's gotta be a reason for calling him a Balloon Ghost, so I'll wait for the new movie to truly judge this wording properly. In fact, NOT knowing why he's called the Balloon Ghost makes me even more interested int his movie!




So, the sculpt is pretty spot on. It's kinda hard to not be able to nail down Stay Puft. He's pretty simple. I mean, come on, he's a giant blob of fluff in a sailor outfit. It's not like you're creating a Predator figure. Although, now I really want a Stay Puft/Predator hybrid. Make it happen, NECA.

Now, I know a lot of figures have been released with his angry facial reaction, a red variant, my gosh, there was even an angry burnt one. But for me, I love the happy Stay Puft. It's just so pleasant! Tell me I'm wrong! You can't look at him without smiling. You're smiling right now! So in turn, it may truly be the loving toy in history.

So, his sculpt aside, which Mattel hit that out of the park, his articulation is also pretty nice to see considering some only had shoulder articulation. I love the Real Ghostbusters but Kenner's articulation across the board at times would rival a rock. Thankfully, Mattel knows the deal and we got leg joints and shoulder joints. And oh, hey, you can move his hands too!




Neat!

Is your Stay Puft tired? Give him a seat with his awesome leg articulation.

That last sentence stunk, I'm aware. In reality, I just wanted to take a photo of Stay Puft sitting and post it. He looks too adorable. He looks like he's waiting for the ice cream man!


Worth it.


Now, while in the movies and cartoon, Stay Puft was at least the size of 15 Giant Gonzales's, this seems to be more of the scale with older Real Ghostbusters as well as the new "Mini Busters" which seem to be an inch small, gumball prize-like mini figurines.

Could this be a spoiler?



So his size works well, all things considered. I seriously can't help but think that Mattel had both young, new fans and collectors of the old Kenner line in mind. I'm sure it's not true but it's still a possibility in my head.



Now that we've established the sculpt and height, why else should you buy him? He doesn't have any accessories, he's got some good articulation, and...duh...he's iconic enough to get an instant buy. It's not like you DON'T know who he is. He's one of the most recognizable faces in cinema! Come on! You know what you're getting out of this. You're getting Stay and Puft. Done. But wait...there's more...




Yup. You press a button and he lights up. That's a pretty nice bonus if you think about it. Not a lot of new add-ons to this character that can make him new and unique, but in my opinion, this is just perfect. You can now sleep easy knowing you have a Stay Puft nightlight.

And yes, you're darn right I had to take a picture of this in the dark. It looks even cooler!




So yes, this new Stay Puft Balloon Ghost may not be a Marshmallow Man, but I couldn't love him anymore if he was! He is certainly a very welcome addition to any Ghostbusters collection. Also, if you're like me and didn't have the original Stay Puft, you have a chance to rectify that without paying 40 bucks for a beaten up, marked up, and yellowed. No, you can just drop 10 bucks and get yourself a brand new one! So pick one up today, bring him home, have him meet your pets and have him live in your pantry! It'll be your new best friend and guardian of your old cereal!

-Chad

PS: I was gonna do a dio-story to accompany this blog entry, but it turned into me just goofing off with Stay Puft, Ghostbusters themselves, the Firehouse and Ecto 1. So here's the photos I was ready to throw out. Enjoy!


"I see that Graham Cracker in your pantry. Oh, you sexy thang!"



"Wassup MTV? Welcome to my Crib!"



"Off to Hersey's in Time Square! Twenty bucks a pound!"

"Allright, now say "Ghostbusters Extreme!"



KNEEL BEFORE ZO...STAY PUFT!

HIP HOP HORRAY!

"You're standing right now with nine delegates from 100 gangs. And there's over a hundred more. That's 20,000 hardcore members. Forty-thousand, counting affiliates, and twenty-thousand more, not organized, but ready to fight: 60,000 soldiers! Now, there ain't but 20,000 police in the whole town. Can you dig it?"

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