DC Comics Super Heroes (Toy Biz) 1989 – 1990

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After Kenner’s Super Powers Collection ended in 1986, the DC Comics toy license was back up for grabs and a new company named Toy Biz happily secured those rights in the late 1980’s. Toy Biz was looking to make a splash in the toy world and what bigger way than to latch onto the biggest blockbuster movie of the year, Batman! They launched their DC Comics Super Heroes line in 1989 with three figures from the Batman movie, before releasing twelve more over the next two waves. There were also several vehicles, a Bat Cave playset and an official figure carry case. The DC Comics Super Heroes line sold fairly well at first, but just could not hold the momentum the following year.

For more information about Toy Biz’s DC Comics Super Heroes line, see bottom of page for a complete summary.

DC Comic Super Heroes: Series One (1989): Batman Movie Assortment

For the debut of their DC Comics Super Heroes line, Toy Biz released only 3 new figures in 1989, and they were all based on the Batman Movie of the same year. Included in the wave were Batman, Joker and Joker’s henchman, Bob the Goon. This first wave was among the very first action figures created by the then-new company Toy Biz.

Batman

Market Value:
Carded $50 – $75
Loose $18 – $26

Batman
Accessories: Cloth Cape, Batarang, Grappling Launcher, Mini-Comic
Years Released: 1989
Difficulty To Find: Common – Easily found on the secondary market
Notes: Batman The Movie was one of the biggest things to happen in 1989, so an action figure of the Caped Crusader just made sense. Batman features a Power Action Bat Punch, activated by squeezing his legs together to deliver a strong blow. This action-packed figure captures Batman’s iconic look from the movie, complete with his black armored costume. He comes with a Batarang, Speargun, and a Bat-Rope that’s actually embedded into his body, which enabled the figure to “fly” away from danger. There are two head sculpt variations to this figure: a rounded face resembling Michael Keaton, and a squared face with more comic accurate features.

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Bob The Goon

Market Value:
Carded $30 – $45
Loose $14 – $20

Bob The Goon
Accessories: Removable Hat, Knife, Pistol
Years Released: 1989
Difficulty To Find: Common – Easily found on the secondary market
Notes: Bob the Goon is Joker’s right-hand man and “number one guy”. His inclusion as an action figure does seem like an odd choice, especially when there were so many more deserving characters. Bob the Goon comes with an action feature that kicks his right leg out by pressing a lever on his back. Bob also includes a removable hat, knife and pistol.

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Joker

Market Value:
Carded $35 – $50
Loose $14 – $20

Joker
Accessories: Removable Hat, Cane, Squirting Flower
Years Released: 1989
Difficulty To Find: Common – Easily found on the secondary market
Notes: The Joker is knows as the Clown Prince of Crime and comes decked out with his classic purple suit and iconic white faced makeup. He did not look very much like Jack Nicholson’s movie version, but rather the classic comic look. The Joker figure comes with a removable hat, cane and an “acid”-squirting flower that’s fueled by a water tank that’s plugged into his back.

DC Comic Super Heroes: Series Two (1989): Basic Assortment

Toy Biz released 7 new figures for the second wave of DC Comics Super Heroes in 1989, and five more for the final wave in 1990. Many of the released figure were heavy on the Batman Universe, including Mr. Freeze, Penguin, Riddler, Robin, and Two-Face.

Mr. Freeze

Market Value:
Carded $22 – $35
Loose $9 – $13

Mr. Freeze
Accessories: None
Years Released: 1989
Difficulty To Find: Common – Easily found on the secondary market
Notes: Mr. Freeze is similar to his Super Powers counterpart, except this figure had no accessories. He did have a cool (pun intended) action feature where his color would change to blue when Mr. Freeze was exposed to cold temperatures or cold water.

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Penguin

Market Value:
Carded $22 – $35
Loose $9 – $13

Penguin (The)
Accessories: Umbrella, Missile
Years Released: 1989
Difficulty To Find: Common – Easily found on the secondary market
Notes: The Penguin (AKA Oswald Cobblepot) is one of Batman’s dangerous foes. Penguin uses an arsenal of different umbrellas as weapons, and even comes with a colorful umbrella that can launch a missile at his enemies.

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Riddler

Market Value:
Carded $20 – $30
Loose $9 – $13

Riddler
Accessories: Riddle Scroll x 6
Years Released: 1989
Difficulty To Find: Common – Easily found on the secondary market
Notes: The Riddler (AKA Edward Nigma) was never released with the Super Powers line, so this was a new DC figure (unless you count the bootleg Argentina version). Riddler comes with six pre-printed riddles to leave behind for Gotham’s finest to find.

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Robin

Market Value:
Carded $22 – $35
Loose $9 – $13

Robin
Accessories: Cloth Cape, Batarang, Grappling Hook
Years Released: 1989
Difficulty To Find: Common – Easily found on the secondary market
Notes: Robin, the Boy Wonder, is the trusted partner of Batman and alter ego of Dick Grayson. He lost his parents in a tragic trapeze accident that led him to being a ward of Bruce Wayne. Robin comes with a Power Action Karate Chop which is activated by a lever in his back. He also comes with a Batarang and Grappling Hook.

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Two-Face

Market Value:
Carded $30 – $45
Loose $16 – $22

Two-Face
Accessories: One Coin
Years Released: 1990
Difficulty To Find: Common – Easily found on the secondary market
Notes: Harvey Dent used to be one of Gotham’s brightest champions until an unfortunate accident left him disfigured, and turned him into Two-Face! This version of Two-Face comes with a ridiculously sized dime that’s used with his special Coin Flipping action feature.

DC Comic Super Heroes: (1989-1990): Accessories

There was lots of merchandise released with the DC Comics Super Heroes logo from 1989-1990, but Toy Biz only released a Batman Accessory Playset, Batman Projector Gun, and a couple of collectors cases to store the figures inside of.

DC Comic Super Heroes: (1989-1990): Playsets

Toy Biz released only one large scale playset for their DC Comics Super Heroes line, and that was the Bat Cave Playset in 1989. This set was actually pretty cool and a rather desired piece by Batman fans and collectors.

Bat Cave Playset

Market Value:
Boxed $200 – $275
Loose $65 – $90

Bat Cave Playset
Accessories: Rotating Computer Monitor, Elevator, Jail Cell, Trap Door, Bridge, Stairs, Platform, Handrails, Chairs x 2, Boulder, Display Drum, Sliding Door
Years Released: 1989
Difficulty To Find: Less Common – Appears less often with some hunting needed
Notes: Toy Biz released only one playset for their DC Comics Super Heroes line, and that was the Bat Cave Playset in 1989. The playset is generally considered the crown jewel of a otherwise lackluster action figure series. It was fairly lightweight, which made it easily portable. The Bat Cave itself had quite a few super fun accessories, such as a elevator for quick access to the roof, a rotating computer monitor, sliding entrance doors, a secret trap door, jail cell, boulder (above the computer), stairs, bridges, walking platforms, and footholds all over to keep your figures in place. Also, it would be a crime to not mention the eye catching artwork on the box exterior. The Bat Cave Playset can be tough to find in its complete boxed version, and is a desired piece by Batman collectors and fans.

DC Comic Super Heroes: (1989-1990): Vehicles

There were several awesome vehicles released for the DC Comics Super Heroes line from 1989 to 1990, with the Joker Cycle, Joker Van, Bat Cycle, Bat Wing and a whopping FIVE different versions of the iconic Batmobile.

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After Kenner’s Super Powers Collection ended in 1986, the DC Comics toy license was back up for grabs and a new company named Toy Biz happily secured those rights in the late 1980’s. Toy Biz was looking to make a splash in the toy world and what bigger way than to latch onto the biggest blockbuster movie of the year, Batman! They launched their DC Comics Super Heroes line in 1989 with three figures from the Batman movie, before releasing twelve more over the next two waves. There were also several vehicles, a Bat Cave playset and an official figure carry case. The DC Comics Super Heroes line sold fairly well at first, but just could not hold the momentum the following year.

Since Toy Biz was a relatively new toy company at the time, they really needed to make a splash with its premier wave of DC Comics Super Heroes figures. With the new Batman movie on the big screen in 1989, the premier wave focused on that with figures of Batman, Joker and Bob the Goon, along with several vehicles (Joker Cycle, Joker Van, Bat Cycle, Bat Wing & 5 different Batmobile versions), accessories, two collector cases and the Bat Cave playset. Seven more figures were released for the second wave a short while later, which included Lex Luthor, Mr. Freeze, Penguin, Riddler, Robin, Superman and Wonder Woman. All of the characters were true comic book icons, so you can’t blame Toy Biz for playing it safe. The third and final wave in 1990 included Aquaman, Green Lantern, Hawkman, Two-Face and three different versions of the Flash. Interestingly enough, Toy Biz did not release any accessories or vehicles for any other characters than Batman and Joker. Most figures (not all) came with some type of accessory and all figures had a unique action feature.

The packaging for the DC Comics Super Heroes figures was actually very nice with some great artwork and a memorable Copper colored theme. Each figure was on a traditional blister card, which allowed for those great packaging graphics. The figure was to the right of the card, with the “DC Comics Super Heroes” logo centered directly above. The name of each character was directly above the bubble. To the left of the blister card was a beautiful illustration of the particular character. There was a small action bubble at the feet of each illustration with each figure’s action feature inside of it. Each card back featured all of that wave’s figures and accessories, along with a small card bio of the character in the form of a newspaper. Overall, the DC Comics Super Heroes line was a bit underwhelming with their figures being the butt of many jokes, but their vehicles and Bat Cave Playset were certainly the highlight of this line.