Figuratively speaking

Time to pop back on the Net and find some really cool stuff that will occupy your time when you're supposed to be working. What crazy stuff will we find this week? Let's find out!

Playmates Toys - www.playmatestoys.com - No, this isn't a site for Playboy's playmates special toys, it's the official site for Playmates: the official company of The Simpsons Interactive figures. I have plugged this site before, but it needs to be hyped up once again. Playmates have revamped their entire site and if you're a collector of Simpsons figures like I am, then you'll definitely have to check their comprehensive list and pictures of Simpsons merchandise. Even though I own 90 per cent of this stuff, it's nice to be able to sit and look at the visual guide to remind me about how cool this stuff looks out of the packaging. I'm not taking mine out until I have a nice, huge basement or room to display this stuff, so it's nice to dream. It's unfortunate that the Simpsons line is now finished, but Playmates has many other cool licenses to choose from as well. LONG LIVE TOYS!

Art Asylum - www.artasylum.com — This toy company is getting more popular every minute. With their diverse licenses, there's probably something for everyone. The one thing that Marvel fans and fans of Japan's Kubrics love about Art Asylum is their line of Mini Mates. Mini Mates (and Kubrics) are more or less detailed figures that look like those little guys that come with Lego sets. These little 2-inch figures are great for collectors that don't want to take up a lot of space with collectibles featuring their favourite licenses. One hot license that Art Asylum has is the Lord of the Rings series. Check out the site for the Mini Mates featuring Frodo, Aragorn and even Sauron! Boo-yah!

Wrestling Figures — www.wrestlingfigures.com — I really didn't expect this edition of “web links” to have such a strong toy theme, but oh well…onto more great toys courtesy of Wrestlingfigures.com! If you want older and new figures, play sets, and exclusives, this is your one stop place. For you fans that can't stand the new WWE product, go here to check out and order the WWE Collectors Series, which features awesome new sculpts of Bret Hart, old school Hunter Hearst Helmsley (when he was a rich snob) and the first new Ultimate Warrior figure in years! Remember how cool the Ultimate Warrior was? He was my fave for many years. Actually, you can see what he's up to nowadays at http://www.ultimatewarrior.com. His rants about the state of wrestling today and the politics of the WWE are simply a great read!

To order a limited edition Pete Wilura action figure, email popeyepopsolive@hotmail.com