#2: Back To The Future Hot Wheels - Time Machine Hover Mode

Remember a couple months ago, when it was the day that Marty McFly arrived from the past? Back to the Future mania was at its highest point in years, and a lot of companies were cashing in. Mattel was no exception, and they released a new version of Doc Brown's DeLorean, this time with the wheels in hover mode. Unfortunately I was never able to find one in a store, but luckily James was able to. This is my favorite version of the DeLorean, so I'm glad I was able to get one. Although the wheels are folded down, there are smaller and functional wheels on the bottom of the car, so it can still roll along a flat surface.

#12: LEGO Cuusoo - Back to the Future DeLorean (21103)

As a big fan of Back to the Future, I was really excited when LEGO announced that they would be making a DeLorean set through their Cuusoo program. When the final product was revealed, I was kind of underwhelmed. Eventually, I broke down and ordered one. I'm still a bit underwhelmed by its appearance, but it is still pretty cool. It's a DeLorean, after all. Mostly my dissatisfaction is with how blocky the hood is. I've seen pictures of alternate builds of the set that look better, so I may look into that. There are some nice touches, such as a flux capacitor and a time circuit display on the dashboard, and I liked the way the big black exhaust vents (or whatever those are) on the back were made.

Besides the DeLorean itself, the set includes minifigures for our two main protagonists, Doc and Marty. They are wearing their 1985 outfits, from the scenes leading up to Marty's trip back to 1955. They both have double sided heads, with happy expressions and worried expressions. Marty also gets a skateboard.

The cool thing about this set is that it doesn't just represent the DeLorean from the first movie, it includes parts to make the DeLorean reflect its changing appearance through the series. To reflect its 2015 upgrades, the wheels fold under and there are clear blocks to stand it on to give it a hovering appearance. There's also a Mr. Fusion unit that attaches. This is my favorite look, so this is how I'll be displaying it.

To reflect the DeLorean's 19th century fixes, the wheels swap out, and the hood mounted panel can be put in place.

There are also two license plates, the DeLorean's original 1985 "OUTATIME" plate, and the 2015 barcode version.

Time travelers' convention.

#85: Back to the Future 2 Minimates - Mini-time Machine with Marty McFly

I'm away from my apartment for a few days, so although I have other toys to blog about first, I will be posting these out of order since I won't have them in front of me until I get back. So I stopped at a Toys R Us and they had a few of these on the pegs. If you've been following this blog long enough, you may have noticed that I'm a fan of Back to the Future in general, and DeLoreans particularly. I don't have any BttF Minimate sets, so I figured this would be a good one to pick up.

There are a few different versions of the DeLorean, and they each come with a different Minimate. This one comes with 1985 Marty, in what I consider his standard outfit. The colors are a bit off from the standard release, and the vest is more red than orange. So it doesn't look quite as authentic. Most of the BttF Minimate sets are harder to find these days, so while this Marty isn't perfect, it's good enough for me.

The DeLorean itself is super-deformed, so while it's still recognizably a DeLorean, at the same time it looks really weird. The doors open, so Marty can sit inside. Also, there was a sticker sheet. On the outside there were headlights, taillights, and a license plate. No big deal. But on the inside, there are stickers for the flux capacitor, the time circuits, some for the dashboard, and an instrument panel. These are pretty evil because they are small, as is the space available in the car's interior. Unless you have the fingers of a child, you'll have a difficult time getting the stickers in place. I've been to four different Toys R Us stores in the past few days, and I've only seen this at one, so it may not be easy to find.

#53: Hot Wheels - Back To the Future Time Machine

A while back, Mattle put out a Hot Wheels DeLorean (then re-released it in two more versions, gold, then black). Naturally, I bought it (and the gold version, because that's just crazy). If it wasn't for Back to the Future, maybe I wouldn't even know what a DeLorean is, but I do think they're really cool looking cars, even if they aren't time machines. But of course, Mattel now has the license for Back to the Future toys, and the first one we get is the most obvious choice. Surprisingly, this isn't just a re-release of the previous DeLorean model with some plastic bits added on the back. The body itself has been re-sculpted to include the various pieces of equipment that Doc Brown added to the the sides of the car. Even the underside is a completely different sculpt. It's s very well detailed little car, from the DMC logo on the front to the classic OUTATIME license plate on the back. Now how long until we get versions from the second and third movies? It's a safe bet I'll buy those, too. Thanks to James for finding this and picking it up for me.

#105: Entertainment Earth Exclusive Back to the Future II DeLorean

Arguably the coolest fictional car ever, Doc Brown's time traveling DeLorean is probably the best advertising the DeLorean Motor Company ever had. Too bad they had ceased production by the time Back to the Future was released! This recent release by Diamond Select comes in two varieties. The regular release is the DeLorean as it appears in the first movie, and the Entertainment Earth exclusive version represents its appearance in the second movie, complete with Mr. Fusion, a barcode license plate, and hover conversion! There is a switch on the bottom that moves the wheels into their flight positions. There is also a button that activates lights and sounds. Among other things, the flux capacitor and time circuit displays light up. There is even tiny, very hard to see writing on the displays. Great attention to detail here. It's very accurate to the real thing, and as far as I can tell all it's missing is the DMC logo on the front, which I suppose they weren't able to license.

When I pre-ordered this half a year ago, it was listed as being 1/18th scale, but it turned out to be 1/15th scale. This means that Star Wars figures look a little small next to it, but they can still sit inside it. It's a little cramped in there since the steering wheel is kind of close to the seat, but they can sit there.

All in all, this is a very cool version of the iconic time machine, and it's a nice bonus that so many of my figures are sized well to sit inside it.