Big Bad Bruno Blog!

Collecting the Toys

I may be nearing the end of my Beetleborgs collection. I don't know why I didn't collect them when they were in stores back in the '90s. I looked at them every time I went to KB Toys. They were so shiny! I wasn't really into the show. I guess I convinced myself I didn't need them. (In addition to not really having much of my own spending money.)

At some point in 2005, I decided that yes, I did need some Beetleborgs in my collection. I did mention how shiny they are, right? They also don't really make toys like those anymore. All of the Beetleborgs were chrome and they came with lots of accessories. There were lots of bad guys. I mean really, look at how many monsters were made! There were three seasons of MMPR, a movie, MMPR 2010, Legacy Line/20th Anniversary, etc. and after all of that, you still can't have a set of Zedd, Rita, Goldar, Finster, Baboo, & Squatt in the same scale (and of course some putties). That's assuming you don't count ZEO, Turbo, & Space, where Zedd & Rita continued to stick around with their crew.

Beetleborgs had a figure of Flabber and all of the Hillhurst monsters, as well as a Hillhurst playset! We got Vexor, Typhus, Noxic, and Jara (and Scabs), as well as various monsters-of-the-day (& Shadowborg). They released the Beetle Battle Base. Each DX A.V. came with a little Beetleborg figure (which also fit in the Beetle Bonder - and yes, same one used on the show!). Gargantis was also able to walk (on six legs). He was like the Beetleborgs version of Titanus. Gotta love walking Ultrazord things!

Beetleborgs on DVD (sort of)

I was very excited to hear Beetleborgs was getting a DVD release. I watched the complete first season, followed by the first half of Metallix, only to find out the sales were so terrible, the final volume wasn't coming out. I eventually got a Netflix subscription to finish Metallix (which sadly doesn't even have a proper ending). I hear a lot of people say they don't care about the DVDs, just watch it on Netflix. Most people don't realize it probably won't be there forever. When the contract expires, that show will likely vanish into a black hole and that'll be that. Eventually, it'll be lost.

It was a very fun stupid show. Like the toys, they don't make shows like that anymore. And even at the time, there weren't many shows like it.

I tried to make a petition video for the final volume of BeetleBorgs (& VR Troopers):

Shout! Factory actually did reconsider but decided to give VR Troopers another shot, since of the two, that was selling better.

You can't buy the DVDs in stores. Sales were so bad that no store wanted them on the floor. Website only. Best Buy & Walmart could at least order it at the store and either ship it to your home, or to their store to pick up. Many people claimed to have trouble ordering things online, which in 2013/2014, I just find very hard to believe. If you can go to a store and buy a DVD, why can't you go to the same store to order it, and then pick it up there next time? (Or have it shipped to your home to avoid a 2nd trip?) I'll never understand that, but anyway, it looks like Target currently has the lowest prices for DVDs, if anyone wants to buy them (or you can always do your own search):

Beetleborgs Season 1 Volume 1
Beetleborgs Season 1 Volume 2

Beetleborgs Metallix Season 2 Volume 1
Beetleborgs Metallix Season 2 Volume 2 (Only available on Netflix)

For people who are still waiting on a box set, or Blu-ray release, this was never announced or hinted at. Certainly not happening. This is the only way to get Beetleborgs on DVD.

On Location

I've always enjoyed visiting filming locations. Both Power Rangers & Beetleborgs filmed in Fillmore & Santa Paula, California, along the Fillmore & Western train tracks (and even on the trains a few times).

Mia and I always enjoyed going to that area and riding the vintage trains. Recently those wonderful old trains ran into some trouble and now face eviction after more than 20 years of service. After I read the article, I saw on their Fillmore & Western website that they were granted another 90 days to run their weekend scenic excursion rides, so Mia and I hopped on that:

More information about riding the train

The petition to keep the trains running

So, not a lot of luck for Beetleborg related things I guess. :(

I do hope people will sign the petition for the train and buy the DVDs to support that, and future releases. I guess I'm old fashioned, but even in the digital age, it's nice to have physical copies of certain things. As for the toys, Figuarts is releasing Blue & Shadowborg soon, and the other toys are usually pretty easy to find on eBay, and at Power Morphicon (which is August 22 - 24, 2014, get your tickets now!).

I think that's all I wanted to say about that. Thanks for reading, and below are some photos taken in Fillmore & Santa Paula when Mia and I took the train (click on any of the images to see a larger version):