One of Todd Waters’ customized Anton LaVey “Illegal Mego” action figures.
Michigan native Todd Waters started collecting action figures made by toy giant Mego in the 1970s when he was just a toddler and simply never stopped. He and his brother were so obsessed with the action figures put out by Mego that they started tricking out their own characters together as kids. In a 2007 interview Waters recalled that his very first custom figure was Spider-Man which he customized with ripped clothing and a removable mask which he still owns.
Eventually, Waters learned to sew which allowed him to make more creative costumes for his action figures, which he also hand-paints. After clicking through Waters’ Flickr, I was delighted to discover the wide variety of action figures he has made that include some cool, fringe characters such as two different versions of Anton LaVey, the supernatural “Brother Voodoo” from Marvel Comics, and his self-proclaimed favorite, a customized “Dr. Zachary Smith” as played by actor Jonathan Harris in the vintage television series, Lost in Space. As I’m sure you may be wondering, yes, Waters does occasionally sell his figures—but only does so to raise the funds to create more of his wacky custom treasures. If you’re interested in trying to acquire one of Waters’ unique figures, he can be contacted via his Flickr page.
“Man-Thing” figure. “Man-Thing” made his first appearance in the Marvel comic ‘Savage Tales’ in 1971.
“The Son of Satan” figure. “The Son of Satan” made his debut in 1973 in ‘Ghost Rider’ #1.
Waters’ adorable “Vampirella” action figure.
“Brother Voodoo.” Mr. Voodoo appeared first in thecomic ‘Strange Tales’ #169 in September of 1973.
“Nightmare,” the mortal enemy of “Doctor Strange” and “Ghost Rider.”
Another one of Waters’ Anton LaVey figures.
Waters’ awesome figure for “Cain” a central character in the ‘House of Mystery’ comic series that got its start back in mid-60s.
“Barbarella.”
“Jack Torrance.”
One of Spiderman’s enemies, “Kraven the Hunter.”
A figure of actor Chris Elliott as his character “Chris Peterson” from the short-lived, totally awesome television series ‘Get a Life.’
“Dr. Zachary Smith.”
The evil “Mephisto” the underworld nemesis of “Silver Surfer” who first appeared in Marvel comics in 1968.
An Aleister Crowley figure by Waters.
Previously on Dangerous Minds:
‘21st century bastard’: Asshole action figures for the ‘darkest timeline’
‘The Dark Crystal’ action figures coming in October!
‘The Warriors’ action figures: Nunchucks, chains and knives included!
Classic rock, punk, Hip-hop and New Wave action figures
Highly detailed action figures of King Diamond, Alice Cooper, Lemmy, Mad Max & more!