Posted By Dan Greenfield on Jul 10, 2020 | 2 comments

It’s JOE SHUSTER DAY! He created Luthor with Jerry Siegel too!

Superman co-creator Joe Shuster was born July 10, 1914 — 106 years ago! This year we have a triple play for you: 1) the TOP 13 JOE SHUSTER SUPERMAN STORIES — RANKED, by writer Fred Van Lente (click here); 2) a peek at a new Superman collection coming soon from DC (click here); and 3) this INSIDE LOOK at The Toyroom’s custom Mego-style Lex Luthor’s Lair playset, the perfect counterpart to the Fortress of Solitude set we showed you a few months ago.

So let’s get to it, shall we?

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You could make a very strong argument that the one action figure Mego should have made in the ’70s was an 8-inch Lex Luthor. To this day, that’s a mind-boggler. I mean, I know they wanted to get more bang for their “fat body” with Mr. Mxyzptlk, but not giving Superman his greatest foe is downright bizarre.

Anyway, these days that’s all changed. There are multiple Mego-style Luthors out there in the 8-inch scale — and now you can also get his lair, thanks to custom-shop The Toyroom.

Dig this:

“I had originally worked on a Luthor’s Lair back in 2011 and it was going to be a triangle box in format,” said The Toyroom’s Anthony Durso. “Unfortunately, the source for the plastic vinyl material closed shop and it was never produced. The new set basically carries over everything that was in my original designs, with a few items added to fill out the format. It’s heavily inspired by the design of the Silver Age Luthor’s Lair, with the artwork coming from a variety of sources, the majority being Curt Swan. A redrawn (fleshed out) Neal Adams’ Luthor from the cover of Action Comics #466 graces the front.”

“In canon, shaking the hand of the Julius Caesar statue opens a secret entranceway to Luthor’s Lair, which includes his Hall of Heroes, Communications Room, Remembrance Room (where he keeps track of all the time Superman has kept him in prison) and his workbench (which is filled with gadgets, gizmos and Kryptonite lifted right from the comics),” Anthony, who is a 13th Dimension contributor, added.

“While most people probably prefer the Super Powers-era Power Suit Luthor, my tastes are more toward the Bronze Age Legion of Doom-era battle suit,” Anthony said. “I did, however, include the chest gear of his Power Suit at the workbench as a work-in-progress that foreshadows the direction ol’ Lex is heading.”

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A few thoughts:

— As I noted above, Anthony also makes a Fortress of Solitude set. Click here for an INSIDE LOOK.

— In addition to these displays, The Toyroom’s sets currently include: The Batcave/Wayne Foundation (click here), the 1966 Batcave, the 1966 Batgirl apartment and changing room (click here), the 1966 Batman movie United Underworld HQ (click here), the Joker’s Ha-Hacienda (click here), the Riddler’s hideout (click here), Wonder Woman’s Paradise Island (click here), Wonder Woman’s TV series IADC headquarters (click here), the Green Lantern HQ on Oa (click here), Aquaman’s Aquacave (click here), Captain Marvel’s Rock of Eternity (click here), the JLA Satellite (click here), the JSA Brownstone (click here), the Super Friends Hall of Justice (click here), the Super Powers Hall of Justice (click here), the Hall of Doom (click here), The Fantastic Four’s Baxter Building Lab (click here), Iron Man’s Armory (click here), the X-Men’s Danger Room (click here), a Star Trek: The Animated Series Enterprise (click here) and a Scooby-Doo haunted house — with more to come.

— And as I always feel compelled to point out, I don’t make anything from this. I just love showing it all off. Each set — including case, artwork and complete assembly — is $85 plus shipping. Contact either thetoyroom@yahoo.com or you can message Anthony, who also owns Retropolis Tees and is a 13th Dimension contributor, through Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

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MORE

— INSIDE LOOK: The ‘Mego’ HALL OF DOOM Playset You’ve Waited Decades For. Click here.

— INSIDE LOOK: The ‘Mego’ JUSTICE LEAGUE SATELLITE Playset You’ve Waited Decades For. Click here.