2011 Year in Review

Although TRON:  Legacy came out at the end of 2010, a second wave of die-cast vehicles from the movie hit stores at the beginning of 2011.  A third wave was announced, but never materialized to my knowledge.  A green Light Cycle was packaged with the Blu-Ray when it was released in April.

In January, Johnny Lightning released a '69 Pontiac GTO similar to the car featured in 2004's The Punisher (complete with bullet holes) thus continuing their trend of releasing "unofficial" Hollywood cars.  The '69 Charger from Death Proof followed in April, then a 1971 Chevelle SS from Mad Max, and a 1981 Chevy Malibu from The Dukes of Hazzard.  JL also released several VW Buses sporting decos from various cars from film and television.

On January 14, Seth Rogen's version of The Green Hornet arrived in theaters to mostly poor reviews.  Although it was great to see the Black Beauty on the big screen, well, let's just say Seth Rogen is no Van Williams.

In February, Mattel continued its line of die-cast vehicles based on characters from the Toy Story movies.  Six new characters showed up in stores throughout 2011, bringing the total to 14.

At the K-Mart Hot Wheels Collectors Event in February the Back to the Future Time Machine showed up in cases for the first time.  It later showed up at other stores and was quickly snatched up by eager collectors.

Not a lot of Batman product was released in 2011, but one of the few pieces that DID arrive in stores was one of the most difficult to find:  the Hot Wheels Color Shifters Batmobile (right.)  I got one as a gift in February, but didn't actually see one in stores until DECEMBER!

In March, I took a long overdue trip to Hollywood with my buddy Marv.  Despite heavy rains most of the time, I can't believe how much we squeezed into the week we were there.  We visited movie studios, famous locations and saw a BUNCH of cars from television and film, including the original 1966 Batmobile.  I went on my own personal Back to the Future tour, visiting Marty's house (right), Doc Brown's mansion, and the Twin Pines Mall.  The trip was one of my biggest highlights of 2011.

In April, GreenLight continued its foray into Hollywood die-cast cars when dioramas from Animal House and Apollo 13 hit stores.  I loved the Animal House diorama featuring the '65 Corvette, but the Apollo 13 set was a bit of a head-scratcher.

Also in April, I discovered the Arkham Asylum Batmobile, released as part of the Hot Wheels main line, at my local K-Mart store.  This particular version was based on the popular Batman: Arkham Asylum video game.  Early versions had no logo in the top left corner.  The logo was added onto later releases.

Later in April, Mattel solicited online orders from members of the Hot Wheels Red Line Club for a unique "retro" version of Ecto-1 from Ghostbusters for $15 apiece plus shipping.  The car arrived eight months later, just in time for Christmas!

The summer movie season got off to an early start in late April with the release of Fast Five, the fifth installment of the Fast & Furious franchise.  Thanks, in part, to the addition of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson to the cast, the flick enjoyed an $86 million grossing weekend, and went on to earn over $200 million, making it the highest-grossing film of the series.

In May, Hollywood Die-Cast.com received its THREE MILLIONTH visitor in its eighth year of existence.  It was such a huge milestone!  My thanks goes out to each and every one of you who have visited this site.  It's become such a huge part of my life.

On May 13th, I attended the Motor City Comic Con in Novi, Michigan.  I got to meet several of my childhood idols, including Susan Olson & Mike Lookinland of The Brady Bunch (pictured above.)  I felt like they were family and really enjoyed chatting with them.  Both signed my '71 Barracuda from The Brady Bunch.  I also collected signatures from Dirk Benedict (The A-Team) and Cindy Williams (Laverne & Shirley.)  It was a GREAT day!

On May 16th, more than a month before the movie arrived in theaters, toys from Pixar's Cars 2 officially hit stores (even though some were put on the shelves a week or two earlier.)  Initially, nine singles were introduced, quickly followed by six more.  In addition to singles, there were Deluxe characters, two-packs, gift sets and more!  Each store seemed to have its own exclusive.  Unlike the FIRST Cars movie, however, toys from the sequel never did seem to catch on.  Only a few new characters worked their way into the line throughout the rest of 2011, usually included in multi-car gift sets, forcing parents and collectors to buy the same characters over and over again.  The movie was released on June 24th to mediocre reviews.  Although it ranked 7th for the year, it was Pixar's lowest earning film since 1998's A Bug's Life.  Personally, I found it enormously entertaining, but most people I talked to who saw it said they were put off by Mater being featured so heavily. 

On June 25th, one day after Cars 2 hit theaters, K-Mart held its SIXTH Cars Collectors Event.  Lightning McQueen, The King, and Chick Hicks were offered with rubber tires for the first time, and three racers from Cars 2 were offered with rubber tires.  A second event was held in October and seven more World Grand Prix racers were released with rubber tires. 

Green Lantern arrived in theaters on June 17th to mostly poor reviews.  It went on to gross $116 million in the U.S. and ranked 21st for the year.  Mattel hopped on the green bandwagon and released a few items tied into the movie.  Hal Jordan's orange '71 Challenger was offered as part of the Hot Wheels main line, with a more detailed version released as part of the Garage line.  Two different green Challengers were released as part of the Color Shifters line, but apparently, only in Canada.  Collectors were also able to find the Energy Track playset (above, right.)

On June 30th, the third installment of the Transformers franchise arrived in theaters.  Transformers: Dark of the Moon went on to be the second highest grossing movie of the year, behind the final Harry Potter movie.  Personally, I found the third movie to be the best of the series, despite the absence of Megan Fox. 

In July Hallmark stores unveiled their Christmas ornaments.  Included for the first time was a musical version of the 1966 Batmobile.  Unfortunately, in my area, they were almost IMPOSSIBLE to find.  Eventually, I did find one, and ordered two more that arrived in October.  Will they go on to increase in value over the years?  We'll just have to wait and see.

On July 22nd, my favorite movie of the year arrived in theaters.  Captain America: The First Avenger was a fun, action-packed film that told a terrific origin story, and featured incredible action sequences, including a James Bond-like motorcycle chase (pictured above.)  Cap ranked 10th for the year, grossing $176 million domestically. 

In July, pop culture fans flocked to San Diego for Comic Con.  Among the exclusives offered there was a spectacular diorama featuring the DeLorean Time Machine from Back to the Future.  It was tough to come by, and now can only be had on eBay for around $50 bucks. 

In August GreenLight followed up its Hollywood dioramas by releasing individually packaged cars from various TV shows and movies.  The best of the first wave were cars from The Blues Brothers.  A second release arrived in stores in November and rumor has it that a third release will hit stores in early 2012. 

In August I saw the riveting documentary Senna, about the short-lived career of Brazilian Formula One racer Ayrton Senna.  Using archival footage, the movie has all the twists and turns of a fictionalized drama, and an ending that may bring tears to your eyes. 

On September 17th, K-Mart held yet another Hot Wheels Collectors Event.  Included in the cases was the Hot Wheels version of The A-Team Van.  I walked out of the store with several in-hand.  They've since began showing up at other stores, but have been relatively difficult to find.

Also in September, my SECOND favorite movie of the year arrived in theaters.  Drive stars Ryan Gosling as a Hollywood stuntman/mechanic who moonlights as a getaway driver.  Carey Mulligan is lovely as his love interest.  In classic Film Noir fashion, a simple heist unravels quickly and the twists and turns will have you on the edge of your seat.  And you won't be able to get that hypnotic soundtrack out of your head.  If you haven't seen it yet, check it out on DVD.  Just keep in mind that there are some moments of ultra-violence that may be a little unsettling.

In October, Hasbro continued its Transformers Speed Stars line, this time branding it with the Dark of the Moon title and introducing some new characters and series. 

And just in time for Halloween, Mattel continued its "Nostalgia" series by releasing a set of cars based on DC comics heroes and villains.  WalMart offered an exclusive Batman boxed set, which I have YET to find, by the way.

In December I discovered that Sun Star had released a 1:18 scale '55 Pontiac Star Chief based on the car that appeared on fourth season of I Love Lucy.  During that season, the Ricardos and the Mertzes drove across country to Los Angeles where the gang enjoys some Hollywood hi-jinx.  (These are my all-time favorite episodes of I Love Lucy.)  My sisters surprised me by giving me the 1:18 scale car on Christmas morning!

And finally, in December, I found a few new Cars 2 items.  Pictured at left is a tribute to Cars director John Lassetter.  John Lassetire is Jeff Gorvette's pit crew chief.  I also found Pope Pinion and his Pope Mobile, which is hysterical! 

Also in 2011 a few major announcements has me all excited for 2012.  First, Mattel has announced they will continue the 1:50 scale Batman line, including the Bat-copter from the 1966 movie!  It was also revealed that KITT from Knight Rider will be included in the 2012 Hot Wheels main line.  We can also expect some pretty exciting movies next summer, including the third entry of Christopher Nolan's Batman series.  The Dark Knight Rises will arrive in theaters on July 20th!   I hope everyone has a great 2012!