Picking Action Figures That Boys Will Enjoy

Action figures will always be particularly different from dolls. And even more different than dolls are "ride on toys" like the Kidtrax Red Fire Engine. Nearly all action figures tend to be masculine, and most dolls usually are women, but that's not the only difference. Barbie’s beau Ken wasn't designed to be an action figure, since he dons no armor, has no guns and was not designed to pummell bad guys.

Boys like to envision themselves being greater and more valiant than they are at the moment, so playing with action figures grants boys the opportunity to act out these kinds of dreams. Below we have a few of this year’s trendiest action figures, and their explanations are provided as an introduction for parents or godparents who might not be sure what to purchase for a young man's birthday or other special event.

A popular action movie generally spawns successful action figures, and the just opened Iron Man 2 fulfills that prediction. The feature film is loosely derived from the Marvel Comics protagonist, a superhero dressed in an indestructible suit of electrically charged metal. The movie character’s suit is made from exotic metals and powered by an incredibly sophisticated ARC reactor. The armor carries such a charge that excess energy must be bled off as glistening light emissions. The action figure comes with intricate details up and down his “metal” uniform and glows anytime you press the top of his head. A single “button cell” battery comes with the figure. This great detail in toys these days can also be seen in the Kidtrax Red Fire Engine, where the user can spray water.

The Star Wars Saga has supplied generations of children with galaxy-cruising role models, and Luke Skywalker stands out as the much-loved hero of the series. The Star Wars Legacy Collection consist of the characters that populate the final three parts of the saga, and the Luke Skywalker Pilot figure is central to that collection. Luke is wearing his Jedi Knight flight suit which he was wearing in the course of the battle of Hoth. Luke’s limbs are bendable, and the figure is sold fully equipped with a light saber, and a few more surprises.

G.I. Joe remains America’s first action figure, and is one of the handful of action figures that were not created from their own motion pictures and comic books. The G.I. Joe figures have changed substantially since their introduction as four representatives of the different military branches. G.I. Joe is now a team, and one of the team’s principal leaders is Conrad “Duke” Hauser. The Duke action figure was made to be fully articulated, as a result it is ideal for a lot of fighting stances, and equipped with an powerful “suction ring” as well as other armament. G.I. Joe figures additionally feature stands, so once they've won the battle they can stand at attention until the next big adventure.

All three of these figures are fashioned to be not quite four inches tall and could be bought at Wal-Mart, Toys r us, and other big stores for about $7.50. If your child desires a much larger toy, then ride ons like the Kidtrax Red Fire Engine or something of than nature would be a good option. If you intend to invest in additional fighting gear or the ubiquitous action vehicles, the charges will go up a bit.