Wastelands Radio Show - Episode 56 - The Toxic Crusaders

May 15, 2021 by adam lewczuk in podcast, music, film, collectables, art

WASTELANDS - An Australian B-grade, Punk Rock, Street Trash online radio show hosted by long time partners in slime Adam (085c3n3) Obscene and Mark-O-Mark, pondering punk oddities, b grade movies and trashy treasures.

Wastelands Radio Show - Episode 56 - The Toxic Crusaders.jpg — Episode 56

The Toxic Crusaders

In this episode Adam and Mark revisit Tromaville and talk about the 1991 animated series and Toys aimed at children, loosely based on The Toxic Avenger films. It features Toxie, the lead character of the films leading a group of misfit superheroes who combat pollution - the Toxic Crusaders.

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The Toxic Crusaders followed a trend of environmentally considerate cartoons and comics of the time, including Captain Planet and the Planeteers, Swamp Thing, and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures. As this incarnation was aimed at children, Toxic Crusaders is considerably tamer than the edgy films it was based on (although it nevertheless contained many adult-oriented jokes that would go over most children's heads).

Thirteen episodes were produced and aired, with at least a few episodes airing as a "trial run" in Summer 1990 followed by the official debut on January 21, 1991.

Playmates Toys, the same company responsible for Ninja Turtles action figures, released a line of similarly styled Toxic Crusader figures in 1991. The majority of characters featured bright neon colours and glow-in-the-dark accessories. TV commercials for the figures used the tag line "They're gross, but they still get girls!" A total of nine characters as well as some rather unorthodox vehicles saw toy shelves. Similar to the Ninja Turtles' Retro mutagen Ooze, Playmates also marketed a canister of slime labeled Toxie's Toxic Waste. A toy line principally conceived by Aaronian and the design team at Troma and Pangea Corporation, some of the toys came packed with "Toxic Tips," which instructed kids how to make messes in their homes and otherwise muck up the environment.

In 2020 Super 7 released a 7 inches tall Toxie, modelled on the original Playmates figure from the classic animated series , its features multiple points of articulation, and includes a wide selection of accessories including a glow in the dark blobby.

Toxic avenger movie - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgXtR-Tk0ZA

Toxic Crusaders episode - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vT_gn9ETWbo

Toxic crusaders playmates tv commercial - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5ctZSbfvH8

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Episodes new and old can be found on Stitcher Radio, TuneIn, Mixcloud, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Vurbl, podbean, or where ever you get your podcast fix. Just search Wastelands Radio Show. or go to - www.wastelands.com.au

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Wastelands Radio Show - Episode 42 - Fiend

November 19, 2020 by adam lewczuk in art, film, music, podcast

In this episode Adam and Mark discuss the 1980s Don Dohler schlocker – Fiend. Listen in as they talk about the first time they watched it, digging it out to watch again, how after several attempts to re-watch it, it almost broke Adam and how they both have developed a new appreciation for what Don Dohler was trying to achieve as an independent D.I.Y film maker.

Fiend is a 1980 American B movie science fiction horror film directed and written by low-budget filmmaker Don Dohler, shot in Perry Hall, Maryland and starring Don Leifert, Elaine White, Richard Nelson, and George Stover. The film had U.S. theatrical release in September 1980.

Watch Adam and Mark in the Flesh record the show on YouTube here

Check out Don Dohlers YouTube channel where you can watch Fiend - here

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Instagram - @wastelandsradioshow
Facebook- @wastelandsradioshow
YouTube – search wastelands radio show

Web- www.wastelands.com.au
Email- wastlandsradioshow@gmail.com
Episodes new and old can be found on Stitcher Radio, TuneIn, Mixcloud, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Play or where ever you get your podcast fix. Just search Wastelands Radio Show. or go to www.wastelands.com.au

Wastelands Radio Show - Episode 37 - Lostener Request - Slipstream

October 15, 2020 by adam lewczuk in art, film, music, podcast

In this episode Adam and Mark, at the request of long time lostener Baron Von Borg, dive head first into the 1989 b-grade craptacular mess that is Luke Sykwalker (Mark Hamill) from Star Wars, come back movie – Slipstream.

In the future, natural disasters (earthquakes, floods) have ravaged Earth, leaving a world where pockets of communities live within canyons while a violent wind known as the "slipsteam" is the only means of transport, via airplanes. Matt Owens the poor man’s Snake Plisskin played by Bill Paxton is a nomadic bounty hunter who kidnaps a prisoner Byron played by Bob Peck of two violent law officers, one of which is Luke Skywalker, so he can claim the bounty for himself. Traveling across the wind swept landscape, Matt and Byron become best mates and are relentlessly pursued by the officers, and Matt finds Byron isn't what he appears to be (he’s a robot) as they travel from community to community and encounter pockets of strange societies that live beyond the slipstream lead by Sir Ben Kingsley and Hagrid.

Slipstream from the Studio el obscenito VHS vault

Unfortunately, the film has its problems. The plot suffers from some cheesy moments, the music is overbearingly loud, and while it is well orchestrated and very majestic, it's often a bit too majestic for what's going on. There are also some long scenes that could have been shortened or even cut to the benefit of the film. Not to say it's BAD, it's just that half of it is 10-minute montages of gliders flying around. However, the performances by Hamill and the Peck the convict save it from all of the WEIRD choices made by the director and scriptwriter. For example...is this an action movie, or a story of a man's journey of discovery? I don't know, but love scenes in museums with montages (again) of stuffed animals with quick cuts to long focuses on Christmas lights don't give me any better of an idea. Still, it's while just to see Hamill looking cool. Director Steven Lisberger, who did Tron, stated that this movie is like a conventional road movie, but instead of cars, people are in airplanes. Says it all really!!

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Social handles -
Instagram - @wastelandsradioshow
Facebook- @wastelandsradioshow
Web- www.wastelands.com.au
Email- wastlandsradioshow@gmail.com
Episodes new and old can be found on Stitcher Radio, TuneIn, Mixcloud, Spotify, Apple Podcasts. Just search Wastelands Radio Show. or go to www.wastelands.com.au