Evening everyone! Let me start off by wishing everyone a Happy Belated Thanksgiving! I was absent last week for the holiday and I hope at least one of you took notice! But, I’m back! Once again as always Thursday Night Highlight comes to you by Esbjo_Figs on Instagram! That contest I mentioned a few weeks ago is now in progress and it ends on Monday so don’t forget to get those last minute entries in. There will be multiple mystery prizes all Funko related. Just a way of saying thanks for the continued support and appreciation of this little hobby of mine. That’s www.instagram.com/esbjo_figs look it up! Let’s get started!
“That one walker you don’t want to run into.”
Prison Glenn Rhee (#151), Prison Yard Rick Grimes (#67), Biker Daryl (#96), Tyrese (#152) all from the Pop! Television line. Black Lantern Reverse Flash (#68) from the Pop! Heroes line *Also a Hot Topic Exclusive*. Let me start by saying that someone didn’t think the Walking Dead line was going to be as popular as it is. They shouldn’t be mixed in with the television line. I think Daryl Dixon alone has enough Pop variants to warrant his separate line. Pop! Dixon. Any who. The second I got the Flash this immediately came to mind. You’re in the zombie apocalypse and for the most part you can out run any member of the living dead, but what if the fastest superhero suddenly got infected with the virus? If you follow my Instagram you’ll find that I’ve watered down Daryl’s line for this photo. Could our group of survivors figure out a way to make it out of this scenario?
“Rise”
Bane (#20) from the Pop! Heroes line. This is a re-creation of the movie poster for the Dark Knight Rises. I’ve always wanted to do something special with my Bane pop as he was one of the first Pops I actually ever got. It was a birthday present from my mother-in-law. So see? Not all in-laws are THAT bad. I saw recently a number of these pops were discovered in a vault in Duckberg (I’m dating myself with that. If you got the reference kudos!) and if you were one of the lucky ones to score Bane at retail (or a little above) then good for you! He’s still one of my personal favorites and I hope I did him some justice with this photo. After you finish reading this column then you have my permission to browse elsewhere.
“This is OUR year!”
Tom “Terrific” Brady (#5) from the Pop! Football line. Finally we end with this shot of Tom Brady from the New England Patriots. I posted this photo in the group and it was met with controversy. Not much of a surprise as anything related to the Patriots usually is… unless of course you’re a fan of the team. The Patriots are on fire this season, but that’s no different from the last few years. Sure they lost to Green Bay last week, but the game was very close and the Patriots weren’t playing to the best of their abilities. I’m not here to make excuses because Aaron Rodgers is one heck of a quarterback so credit where it’s due. When Funko announced the NFL pop line I was over the moon excited for it. Just like when they announced the WWE line. This is how Funko reels you in and never let’s you go. How could you turn down your favorite things in vinyl form? I just wouldn’t trust someone who said they could. Tom Brady will go down, like it or not, as one of the best quarterbacks to play the game. He has three Super Bowl rings, a slew of achievements and accolades, and he used to own a mansion with a moat! So whether you like the Pats or not you still can’t deny the facts. This could be your teams year, this could be the year Peyton Manning decides to show up in the playoffs, but for now I’ll leave this here and say this is OUR year! …and if it isn’t I’ll be man enough to make a picture with ya know… whoever won. In a few months.
So that’s it for tonight! I hope you enjoyed the pictures (yes even the last one) as much as I loved taking them. I have a number of other photos over on my… what’s that word? Oh yeah Instagram. Maybe you guys should make a game out of this. Every time I mention Instagram take a shot… of kool-aid, or soda. Pepsi is my drink of choice. Don’t forget to follow me over there, look me up on the Funko Trading Facebook group where I post other pictures that don’t make it here over the course of the week. Have a great night, be kind to one another (Seriously guys…), and Free The Pops!
Matt Norris