Before I discovered skateboarding twenty-five years ago there was BMXing, and before BMX, like every other young boy of every generation, there was action figures. I loved me some Star Wars and GI Joe figures. I was crazy-insane over creating an imaginary world with my toys to escape my tragic home life. I begged, borrowed and stole to get as many figures as possible -- I actually own the 7-foot long GI Joe Aircraft carrier, the U.S.S. Flagg, and I'm refurbishing it into a coffee table.
As I got older the toys were left behind for a skateboard and I never really looked back until a year or so ago when my 3-year-old started pulling out my old spaceships and tanks. I was instantly transported back to a time of pure innocence and fantasy. We began spending countless hours creating hilarious and absurd adventures for Han Solo, Snake Eyes and all their friends.
My son also has the skate bug. He butt-boards around the house and his ears are tuned to stop him in his tracks at the faintest sound of urethane on black top.
At the turn of the century some company made action figures of Rob Dyrdek, Danny Way and a few other guys. My good friend and editor of Big Brother magazine, Dave Carnie, used the dolls to make an ongoing comic strip at the back of the magazine. I remember him giggling uncontrollably in the studio while he was shoot the dolls. Now, seeing my son's love for action figures and skateboarding I wish I had saved those dolls Carnie used to shoot for Big Brother.
Enter the hardest working man in skateboard -- Rob Dyrdek. If you're unfamiliar with Mr. Dyrdek then you probably live under the sea. He is, perhaps, the most recognizable mainstream face in skateboarding. Dyrdek has had numerous hit MTV shows, owns Alien Workshop and created the Street League contest series, (as seen on ESPN2), to name just a few of his accomplishments. Most recently Dyrdek released a 7-inch tall Street League action figure line sold exclusively at Target (MSRP $12.99). Reigning Street League champ Nyjah Huston, 2011's champ Sean Malto[, Australian technical machinist Shane O'Neill and the biggest smile in skateboarding, Mikey Taylor, are the initial characters in the September launch.
Manufactured by Ronin-Syndicate Toys the dolls look spot on and a million times better than those generic, non-descript skate dolls from a decade ago. I immediately contacted Street League to get myself -- I mean, my son -- a set. I felt like a kid at Christmas when they arrived, ripping into the UPS box like it contained the cure for bad ankles.
It's been weeks since the toys arrived and my son and I haven't stopped playing with them. My son especially likes to make Mikey Taylor ride on the back of our dog like in "The Never Ending Story."
I figured rather than write an actual review of the dolls, (and go into long, boring detail about all their points of articulation), I would instead just play with them and film one of the many story-lines that my son and I have come up with. I hope you enjoy because these toys really are a ton of fun and we had a blast making this.
Thanks to Street League for the toys and for all the riders for being good sports.
