Mutagen Men Toycast

The MUTAGEN MEN explore the toys of the past, present, and future. We are: Eric "Toys and Tomfoolery" Setzke Dustin "The Dragon Fortress" Verburg Luke "Video Dracula" Jones

Episode 050: Our Favorite Toys with Special Guest Jake 12/09/2025

Episode 050: Our Favorite Toys with Special Guest Jake Our 50th episode! Today we bring back the ever-popular Jake Setzke, the Funny Prince himself, to talk about five of our favorite toys from each of our collections. From Transformers to Masters of the Universe to Exosquad and beyond, this special extra-long episode covers nearly every corner of the action figure universe. Join us /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/39333995

Episode 049: Robotech 11/03/2025

Episode 049: Robotech Launch all Valkyries! In this week's episode of Mutagen Men we climb aboard the SDF-1 to face down the Zentraedi and the other marauding aliens facing the world of Robotech, which featured a mashup of three different classic mecha anime TV series. Airing in the 1980s and later on Toonami in the 90s, the show was a gateway into the wider world of mech anime and featured a landmark toyline from Matchbox as well as a host of merchandise produced by other companies in the years following. Join us as we explore the varied corners of these lines and try not to talk too much about Harmony Gold! Follow along: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/38900625

Episode 048: Zoids 10/20/2025

Episode 048: Zoids Build, customize, and mobilize! In today's Mutagen Men we travel to the distant Planet Zi, a world of mechanical life-forms known as Zoids, machine-like animals modified into piloted war machines. Dating back to the 1980s, Tomy and other companies have been producing Zoids model kits near constantly in the decades between, including several forays into North America. These model kits feature intricate robotic animals - mammals, reptiles, dinosaurs, and more - overloaded with weaponry and piloted by tiny plastic soldiers. Despite its depth and longevity, Zoids remains a fairly obscure toyline. Join us as we climb into the cockpits of our Strikezillas and ponder this mystery! Resources: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/38675265

Episode 047: More Glyos 09/29/2025

Episode 047: More Glyos Welcome back to the world of indie toys! In today's return to the boundless rabbit hole of the Glyos System Series, we explore one of its largest realms: SpyMonkey Creation's Battle Tribes, and its spin-off series, ManOrMonster Studio's Warlords of Wor. These lines feature miniature fantasy and sci-fi figures taking heavy inspiration from Masters of the Universe and pro wrestling toylines, with every figure including a variety of head, outfit, and accessory options. Join us as we discuss favorite tiny barbarians, orcs, wrestlers, and dragon men, and touch on many corners of the wider Glyos world! Resources: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/38384800

Episode 46: All About Teela 08/25/2025

Episode 46: All About Teela Mattel's Masters of the Universe toyline is full of colorful characters with fantastic powers and incredible action features. One of the oldest is Teela, the warrior goddess, sorceress, barbarian warrior, and only female figure in the first wave of toys. Teela appears in nearly every iteration of Masters of the Universe, her snake staff ready to fight back the hordes of Skeletor. In today's episode we explore the many toys of Teela, starting in 1982 and journeying through the latter years of Classics and into the Super 7 era. Join us! /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/37942460

Episode 045: Transformers Micromasters 08/04/2025

Episode 045: Transformers Micromasters Micro size has the power to surprise! Today we journey to the twilight years of Hasbro's classic Transformers toyline, when Hasbro was struggling to boost a waning audience with lots of new ideas. In 1989, one of those new ideas was Micromasters: a subline of tiny Transformers scaled to compete with Galoob's Micro Machines. We explore the patrols, the squads, the battle stations, the combiner transports, and beyond. So grab a handful of tiny Autobots or Decepticons and join us! Follow along: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/37657275

Episode 044: Mega Man Toys 07/16/2025

Episode 044: Mega Man Toys Get equipped with mutagen! It's time for another look into the history of video game tie-in toylines, now featuring everyone's favorite super fighting robot, the blue bomber himself: Mega Man. We discuss our personal histories with this long-running game series and dive into several toylines depicting Mega Man and his endless battle against Dr. Wily and his army of themed robot masters. /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/37429130

Episode 043: G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra 07/03/2025

Episode 043: G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra Strap in and journey with us to the year 2009 when Paramount and Hasbro released the first of several barely-remembered live-action G.I. Joe films: The Rise of Cobra! While the movie is perhaps best left in 2009, the accompanying toyline remains one of the best of the property's long and storied history, and may also represent the last time G.I. Joe had relevance as a property marketed primarily to children. So grab your Delta-6 Accelerator suit, weaponize the warheads, and join us for a deep dive into this often-overlooked toyline! /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/37277700

Episode 042: Jurassic Park 06/17/2025

Episode 042: Jurassic Park One of the biggest blockbusters of the 1990s, Jurassic Park was a media extravaganza, featuring tie-in comics, games, and of course, toys. The classic Kenner JP line is deservedly beloved, featuring four-inch renditions of the famous movie characters as well as a legion of articulated dinosaur figures packed with action features like DINO DAMAGE. Today we get out our trowels and dig up the bones of the original Jurassic Park toyline, then explore several of the spin-offs and sequels. And that's chaos theory! /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/37042910

Episode 041: Mighty Max 06/02/2025

Episode 041: Mighty Max By popular demand, we're kicking off season three with one of the greatest toylines of the 1990s: MIGHTY MAX! Billed as "Polly Pocket for boys," Mighty Max featured tiny, palm-sized playsets called "DOOM ZONES" filled with all manner of monsters, robots, demons, and aliens. Highly inventive, filled with color, often imitated but never surpassed: join us to find out why Mighty Max captured our imaginations. Resources: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/36797230

Episode 040: Hobby Burnout 01/16/2025

Episode 040: Hobby Burnout Have you ever burnt out on a hobby? Rising prices, completionism, fandom drama, and other factors can wear down the fun factor of the hobbies we love. In the final episode of Mutagen Men Season 2, we discuss times we've burnt out on our hobbies, how it happened, how we recovered, and how we take steps to avoid it. Join us! /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/34883040

Episode 039: More X-Men 12/03/2024

Episode 039: More X-Men We return to one of our earlier topics: the Uncanny X-Men! We dive back into the Toy Biz and Marvel Legends world to discuss the X-Men movies, X-Men '97, X-Force, and the many, many action figures that spun out of these beloved properties. Join us for a discussion of Marvelous proportions! Excelsior! /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/34266285

Episode 038: All About Starscream 09/27/2024

Episode 038: All About Starscream "Conquest is made of the ashes of one's enemies!" Who said it? That's right, Starscream, the original Decepticon air commander and one of the most famous and popular Transformers of all time. Today we explore the early history of Megatron's screechy lieutenant and several of the toys that represent him through the 1980s and 1990s. Join us and follow along at TFwiki: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/33228712

Episode 037: Kenner Aliens 09/02/2024

Episode 037: Kenner Aliens SEND IN THE MARINES! It's time to head back into space and explore another R-Rated film franchise with a bestselling children's toyline from the 20th century! This time, we explore Kenner's beloved Aliens toyline of the early 1990s, which featured a menagerie of xenomorph designs original to the line as well as space marine figures, playsets, vehicles, and, of course, goo. We discuss our childhood interactions with Ridley Scott's and James Cameron's groundbreaking movies as well as how the xenomorphs fit into our own toy boxes. Join us! Follow along on Figure Realm: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/32856082

Episode 036: GoBots 08/04/2024

Episode 036: GoBots Mighty Robots, Mighty Vehicles! In today's episode we explore GoBots, one of the most famous competitors to Transformers in the 1980s. Though it was often treated as a knock-off of Hasbro's famous and long-lived toyline, GoBots arrived first. We discuss what gives this line its reputation and whether it really deserves while visiting many of our favorite residents of Gobotron along the way. Join us! Follow along: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/32426757

Episode 035: Playmates Star Trek 07/23/2024

Episode 035: Playmates Star Trek Today, the Mutagen Men seek strange new worlds on the edge of settled space! Welcome back to the 1990s, where toy aisles were overflowing with Kirks, Spocks, Picards, Borgs, Ferenghi, and many more 5" citizens of the galaxy, all competing for space in your toy collection. We beam ourselves up to the Captains' Couch to discuss the highs and lows of Playmates' trailblazing Star Trek series, one of the first action figure toylines marketed to both kids and adults. Join us! Follow along here: Or here: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/32264997

Episode 034: Dragon Ball Z with SECRET Special Guest! 07/01/2024

Episode 034: Dragon Ball Z with SECRET Special Guest! NEXT TIME ON DRAGON BALL Z: The Z fighters are faced with their greatest challenge yet - finding good action figures of themselves! Join us as we talk about one of the most legendary manga and anime series of all time, and its rocky road to producing articulated toys of Goku, Vegeta, Frieza, Cell, and the rest of your favorite Saiyans and their adversaries. We talk Toonami, Irwin, SH Figuarts, Dragon Stars, and more, all with a secret special guest! Join us! /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/31971402

Episode 033: Microman 06/17/2024

Episode 033: Microman Welcome to Micro-Earth! In today's episode we journey back to 1975 to explore one of the greatest Japanese toylines in history: MICROMAN. We explore the tangled, interconnected pathways of G.I. Joe, Transformers, and Micronauts as they intersect with the world of the Spy Magicians, the Acroyears, the Gunrobos, and the rest of the tiny cybernetic visitors to our planet. Follow along at micromanforever.com! /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/31761753

Episode 032: Toy Biz Spider-Man 05/24/2024

Episode 032: Toy Biz Spider-Man It's time for more Toy Biz! We return to the 90s to explore the spiritual successor to Toy Biz's smash hit X-Men line, the Spider-Man line which tied in with the similarly beloved animated series. Grab your favorite Spidey and get ready to battle Venom, Carnage, Doc Ock, Smythe, Kingpin, and a whole army of Spider Slayers on the mean streets of New York. 'Nuff said! Follow along at Figure Realm: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/31455747

Episode 031: Masters of the Universe (1982) 05/06/2024

Episode 031: Masters of the Universe (1982) We're going back to the 80s this week to visit perhaps the most iconic toyline of the decade, Masters of the Universe! We share our childhood memories of playing with He-Man, Skeletor, Moss Man, Tung Lashor, and all the other weird denizens of Eternia and Etheria scavenged from friends and siblings in the post-MOTU 1990s. So pick up your Power Sword and Havok Staff and join us! /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/31131863

Episode 030: Toy Industry Talk With Special Guest Jesse DeStasio 04/15/2024

Episode 030: Toy Industry Talk With Special Guest Jesse DeStasio We welcome a new guest onto the show: industry veteran and indie toy rock star Jesse DeStasio! Jesse is an artist, musician, and videographer, but in the hobby he's known as the co-creator and co-host of Toy Pizza YouTube channel as well as the co-creator of and mastermind behind Knights of the Slice, an independent, Glyos-compatible action figure line. We chat with Jesse about designing toys for Jazwares, marketing his own creations to the indie realm, the status of the toy industry now, the role that nostalgia plays in how we enjoy our toys, and more! Knights of the Slice on the Glyos Wiki: Action Figure of the Millennium Patreon: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/30817363

Episode 029: Return to Lego Space 04/01/2024

Episode 029: Return to Lego Space We just couldn't help it! With Lego Space making waves in 2024, we had to return to our favorite classic Lego theme, warping to the end of the golden age of the classic themes in the late 90s, the rise of Star Wars, and the intermediate return of the theme throughout the 2000s and the 2010s. We discuss UFO, Roboforce, Insectoids, Life on Mars, Mars Mission, Space Police III, and others along the way! Follow along at . /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/30615023

Episode 028: Kenner's the Real Ghostbusters 03/18/2024

Episode 028: Kenner's the Real Ghostbusters WHO YA GONNA CALL? By popular demand, the Mutagen Men strap on their proton packs to bust all the Dracula Monsters, Eye-Poppin' Ghosts, and Stay-Puft Marshmallow Men in New York City. Kenner's The Real Ghostbusters was one of the most beloved licensed toylines of the 1980s, featuring both a range of fantastic action figures, ghosts, and vehicles, as well as role-play items like proton packs and PKE meters. So pour yourself a tall class of Ecto Cooler and join us! Follow along at the Ghostbusters wiki: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/30408423

Episode 027: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012) 03/05/2024

Episode 027: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012) It's time to get rocked with the shell-shocked pizza kings! In our second dive into the world of the Ninja Turtles, we visit the CGI New York City of 2012-2017 and feature one of the longest-running Playmates TMNT lines since the original 1980s series. One of the best iterations of green machine was also paired with a great toyline full of colorful mutants both familiar and new. So put in a pizza order and join us! Booyakasha! Follow along at the TMNT toys museum: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/30246643

Episode 026: All About Roadblock 02/19/2024

Episode 026: All About Roadblock It's time to return to the world of G.I. Joe with a new style of episode! This week we focus in on a single character: the G.I. Joe Team's most famous heavy machine gunner and gourmet chef, Roadblock. We start with his debut in 1984, and proceed through the 90s with each version of Roadblock seen in the classic A Real American Hero toyline. So quit messin' around and check out this sound! Follow along at yojoe.com or 3djoes.com. /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/30006473

Episode 025: Transformers Generation 2 02/06/2024

Episode 025: Transformers Generation 2 THIS IS NOT YOUR FATHER'S AUTOBOT! The Mutagen Men return to war-torn Cybertron to discuss the age of the neon Megatron, the talking Optimus, the chrome Bumblebee, and the birth the ball joint. Transformers Generation 2 has the reputation of a lost chapter, a quickly-cancelled failure swept aside by later, better-known revivals of the 1980s toyline. Does G2 deserve this reputation? Join us as we metamorph into big bat battlin' dudicuses and find out! Follow along at TFwiki: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/29825603

Episode 024: Batman (1989) 01/22/2024

Episode 024: Batman (1989) Where does he get all those wonderful toys? In our first exploration of toys from the DC Comics universe, we visit Gotham city by way of Tim Burton, Toy Biz, and Kenner. We start with Toy Biz's abortive attempt at Batman action figures and continue into the early Kenner era with their immortal Dark Knight Collection. So load your spring-action crime-catching claw and crank up your Batmobile to blast it through a pile of styrofoam blocks! Follow along: Toy Biz Batman at Figure Realm: Kenner Dark Knight Colleciton at Figure Realm: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/29602598

Episode 023: Z-Bots 01/08/2024

Episode 023: Z-Bots Galoob's Z-Bots were one of the many Micro Machine-adjacent lines that took over toy aisles in the 1990s. This line featured dozens and dozens of vibrantly colorful fighting robots that featured claws, teeth, wings, guns, missiles, and nearly everything else you could imagine. We shrink ourselves down and join the war between the Z-Bots and the Voids. Join us! Follow along at the Micro Machines Museum: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/29396138

Episode 022: Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers 12/28/2023

Episode 022: Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers In 1993, the Super Sentai phenomenon teleported to the U.S.A. in the form of Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, transforming the landscape of children's television, and, of course, the toy aisles, forever. In today's episode we talk about how Zordon morphed our childhood in radical ways through Bandai's localized version of its long-running tokusatsu toyline. We talk Zords, Morphers, Rangers, Evil Space Aliens, and of course, Putty Patrol. Join us! Follow along at the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers toy guide: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/29250823

Episode 021 Toy Biz Marvel Legends With Special Guest Dan Larson 12/11/2023

Episode 021 Toy Biz Marvel Legends With Special Guest Dan Larson Dan Larson of Secret Galaxy joins us as we time travel back to the genesis of the 1/12 scale action figure craze and revisit Toy Biz's original Marvel Legends line. Before HasLabs, before the MCU, before build-a-figures, there was a humble toyline that dared to dream of a world where super-articulated comic book icons were standard. We explore the good, the bad, and the ugly of this era. Excelsior! Resources: /episode/index/show/5ac3fc69-7ac7-4df5-8310-3b366413c6cb/id/29011573

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