Wow Action Girls! Pop Star Duo! (2002)
For some collectors (and especially customizers) of small scale GI Joes, Lanard’s Wow Action Girls! series is highly sought after. The line was a godsend for those looking for figures, accessories and vehicles that just hadn’t been replicated by Hasbro. Stylistically similar to the o-ring figures of the 80s and 90s, the toys were produced with an array of accouterments that would make even Barbie (had she been 4 inches tall) sit up and take notice.
The Wow Girls, as they are usually known, are a kitsch lover’s dream. There’s more sparkle and gaudy color than you could ever ask for. I daresay that these figures would look right at home among the current trends of custom resin art figures. Just look at the silver glitter splatter deco and the gold scooter for the gal on the left. It’s a thing a beauty. This set, titled Pop Star Duo! (Lanard really likes to add exclamation points to its product, if you hadn’t noticed) provides quite a few amazing 1/18 scale props. The guitar and mic stands would be perfect for a customizer looking to start their own version of Cold Slither. The aforementioned golden scooter would be a perfect fit for Big Brawler–his own version of the RAM cycle.
Today was my daughter’s third birthday party, and we gave her a pair of the Wow Girls sets that I’d found at the annual Lanard warehouse sale. The girls don’t pop up all that often, and we thought that she’s old enough to play with 3 & 3/4 inch scaled action figures, so now they belong to her. Her brother already has a sizeable collection of GI Joe and Star Wars figures, and now Jenni-Ri is on her way. She’s already one to appreciate the fabulous, and this WOW Action Girls! set certainly fits the bill. While she was opening other gifts, some of which caught her attention for a couple second before it was on to the next, the Wow Girls stopped her in her tracks for a bit. I don’t know if it was the glamour and glitter, but she seemed interested in her introduction to action figures. My job is done here–welcome to our world, Jenni!
You should check out Kenner’s Glamour Gals line from the early eighties. Very similar to this as a roughly four inch Barbie. The jewel of the line, though is the Ocean Queen. A three foot long ocean liner and I can tell you from personal experience (my sister had it) that that thing was fun! I never had the Joe aircraft carrier, but I had plenty of adventures with that ship.
That Wow dolphin could be a mate to Deep Six’s eco killer dolphon maybe? Ha
Awww! Thanks for the daily dose of adorable!
Best post ever! My wife had Glamor Gals & Dazzle Dolls as a kid. My 5 yo daughter happily confiscated Covergirl, Baroness, & Lady Jaye when she was 3.5 – congrats on passing the torch as well! 🙂
These are great! The one on the right looks like Satin from Pyramid of Darkness! Maybe there’s a good Mara, Selena, & Honda Lu West in the line as well 😉
Wonder if the gold plastic will suffer the horror of “Gold Plastic Syndrome?” Odd and rather disapointing the colours don’t match the photos on the back of the packs…
Great custom potential there. When Toyfare magazine did an article on sporting action figures back in 2002, they used one of those figures as the bases for a Marie Lou Reton figure
Congrats on your daughter as well. I remember the first post you did about her when she was born
You know, you could probably swap the blonde’s head and put it on the ’83 Cover Girl’s body to make a Cover Girl that looks 1. actually pretty and 2. closer to the MASS Device version of my favorite female Joe member.