Monsters by Innovative Kids Groovy Tubes

(Editor note: This is the final of the three Monster Toy Blog-relevant book/toy sets. Unlike the Magical Creatures and Mythical Beasts sets, I never covered this one on the FaunaFigures blog, but I’ll use the same general format) Here I am with the last Groovy Tubes set from Innovative Kids that focused on monsters, myths and fantasy (there was a Knights one…not sure if that would fit but I don’t have it). This one is just called “Monsters”, with the subtitle “The Hunt and the Capture”. Like the other sets, there is a loose interpretation of the ‘monster’–not only is there inspiration from a number of cultures, there is a range of sources including mythology, folklore, literature, and cryptozoology with the theme of a monster hunter’s guide, including where to find and how to defeat. As for the figures, they are definitely figures that represent something, but not what we’d call ‘great’. So let’s see these things, one by one (alphabetically)! As with the other posts, I didn’t bother with scale, but this time I couldn’t find the fantasy Safari toob figures, so just grabbed whatever toob figures I could find (mostly Safari, but a few New Ray and a couple similar sized figures)

Alien

Starting with a creature/figure that doesn’t usually get termed a ‘monster’ exactly, we have an alien. In the book, they refer to this as an Area 51 alien, but whatever. It’s fine as a small model of one, if a little too human. They at least gave some detail to the face and hands. Should have gone with xenomorph-inspired since it’s made up anyway, and would be more monstrous!

Baba Yaga

Next up, a witch from Russian folklore, Baba Yaga. It’s too bad they didn’t find a way to incorporate the chicken-leg house(!) It at least looks like the basic ugly witch in a pot. In the book this was one of the magic-users discussed (Faust being the other). Not common as a figure, serviceable here I guess.

Cthulu

And then Cthulu. A Great Old One from the works of H. P. Lovecraft, the figure looks more like a weird bug guy than a massive god-like giant. I think this figure really overestimated the ability of the figure makers…but maybe kids really thought it was neat? There’s probably better figures out there, especially after the Lovecraft stories seemed to find renewed popularity in the 2000s.

Demon

In the book, a few different demons are mentioned, included Japanese Oni and Russian Chyernobog. As a figure, we just get this kind of boring horned demon thing. Might be fun for an RPG with a summoned demon or something, but it’s otherwise kind of dull. Plus, they put more effort into the paint on the…cloud of figure and smoke?…than the actual demon.

Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde

Back to a literary inspiration, a kind of awkward attempt to represent Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde. If we’re being picky, on Mr. Hyde is the actual ‘monster’ (but I guess Dr. Jeckyll’s actions are monstrous or whatever?) Kind of a strange choice to create as an ‘evil man’ figure (again, Faust was right there in the book) but we’ll give them credit for a very unique approach.

Frankenstein’s Monster

Another literary monster, this version of Frankenstein’s Monster is in some ways unexpected. They didn’t go with the square-head/neck bolts from the classic movies, but more just a pale sewed-together guy. Of course, if we didn’t know who it is supposed to be…it’s more likely kids would think it’s just a guy or something.

Grim Reaper

At least for this figure, there’s no question what it’s supposed to be. Kind of a dark toy for kids (hey, it’s Death!) but certainly unique. And they honestly feel like they put a fair amount of effort into it (except the scythe blade should be angled…) Interesting choice, okay design.

Headless Horseman

More folklore, this time a figure of the Headless Horseman. I kind of feel like they really wanted to include a horse somehow. Fairly basic figure, but there’s enough detail to be clear. It’s certainly different.

Loch Ness Monster

The first cryptid in the set, we have their take on the Loch Ness Monster. It’s fine of course. The standard plesiosaur-inspiration, you’d think they would have at least exaggerated the humped back or something. Kind of generic and plain, but it’s fine. There are definitely better models of this cryptid, but kids would probably enjoy it.

Mummy

As this set seems fond of the ‘classic’ cinema monsters, they had to include a mummy. The inclusion of a sarcophagus (it’s brassy coloured on the outside) at least gives a sense of the inspiration. Kind of surprised they didn’t go with the outstretched-arms look. Seems like it’s pushing itself out of the coffin, but with the legs wrapped together like that it’ll probably just trip. They probably could have painted it to be a little more dusty looking, because it looks very fresh.

Rakshasa

And now, from Hindu mythology, a Rakshasa. A spirit of an evil dead person spreading misery to the living. Fun! But as a figure, definitely interesting. Don’t see a lot of humanoid elephant spirits as figures. And there appears to be some care taken on this figure–fair amount of detail, and more paint application than many figures.

Skeleton

Lots of undead-adjacent figures in this set (but no zombies, although they’re in the book). The cloak and weaponry belie that this figure is more than just an undead; the book refers to them as ‘raised for evil reasons. Which is why I’m thinking the Jason and the Argonauts movie. Kind of a cool model though. Might work well for a game piece or something.

Vampire

Since this figure is referred to only as ‘vampire’ it could be thought of as either folkloric or literary, if Dracula is invoked. In the book, most of the inspiration is the latter, but of course undead bloodsuckers are part of folklore as well. The overall figure is pretty traditional for Dracula, but the rough features of the face are probably meant to invoke a more generic evil monster. Overall fine, I’m sure there’s a few better vampire figures…

Werewolf

Another monster that could be considered folkloric or literary/cultural, we have a werewolf figure. There are lots of takes on werewolves, from essentially just giant dogs, to humanoid wolves, to kind of monstrous hairy people. In this case, they went with the humanoid version, which is fine. I do want to point out that in the book they refer to the ‘worldwide’ nature of werewolves by referencing a map of Europe. Kind of a weird choice. But the figure is okay.

Yeti

And our final figure, a classic cryptid–a yeti in terrifying scaring mode! On the plus side, it has the giant (or ‘abominable’) feet. Otherwise, it’s an okay representation. At least it’s clearly differentiable from a sasquatch (another cryptid in the book, but no figure). There are definitely other figure of yeti, but this one is pretty decent. A good one for kids if nothing else.

And, of course, the version that I have is the full box set of book, figures and game. As the games go, this may be one of their better ones. Or at least most clearly understandable ones. Basically Battleship with the need to spin and see if you vanquish the beast with a required weapon. You only get to use up to 7 figures on each team, so one figure always gets left out (most of the games are like this…just make a 16th figure in each set maybe?) It would be an amusing distraction for a little while I guess. I know I am kind of tough on the figures, but I really like the concept of these sets. From a toy or educational point of view, they’d be great sets to engage young people (admittedly, even the games with the animal series could have used a bit more educational aspect). Even at full retail they weren’t too badly priced (I got most of mine an clearance, even better!) It’s a shame that these are no longer made, it seems like it could be a workable concept. If you can find one, I definitely recommend picking one up.