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Rating Condition for Golden Girl™ Toys

What's Covered on This Page?

1.) Grading the Condition of Your Mint-In-Box Items

2.) "Ideal" Mint Condition for Loose Figures

3.) Site Menu

Item Condition

I decided to include some information as a guideline for grading mint-in-box figures. I've never read a guidebook on action figures, but in looking over a large set of Golden Girl figures mint-in-box, I think there are some features you want to be aware of when describing the condition of your item.

Grading the Condition of Your Mint-In-Box Items

Figures | Fashions

Figures
	The Box: The first major aspect of the mint-in-box figure is the box itself. The box measures approximately 12.2 inches (31 cm) long including the (3.5-inch) title flap, 7.1 inches (18 cm) wide, and 1¼ inches (3.2 cm) deep. Look for wear, creases, bends, marker marks, punctures (such as from staples), and obstructive pricetags, pricetag residue or damage on the title flap. Also look for damage to the hangloop at the top center of the flap. Corners are susceptible to wear, too. The body of the box is also prone to wear, obstructive pricetags, pricetag residue or damage, and marker marks. Check for torn, yellowed, or detaching cellophane. Check for creases, especially the edges around the box window. The very top of the box, where the box meets the title flap, can often warp and bow, as can the bottom edge of the box. The box should be very firm and even, without dents. Check for bowing or warpage from water damage and moisture. Corners are susceptible to wear, too. Lastly, the sideflaps that close the box can come open if the adhesive deteriorates with age. Check these sideflaps for stress marks, as evidence of prior tampering. Other damage I've seen to boxes includes stains, fading to the coloring of the box, crushing, slicing with a box-cutter blade, adhesive tape residue (on store returns), and major tears.
The Contents: The second major aspect of the mint-in-box figure is the contents themselves. Figures are held in place with three twist-ties, one around the neck, and one about each ankle. The arms are posed straight down, at the waist. For the Guardians, the hair is pulled through a hole behind the figure and tied with a rubber band. Kroma, Wild One, and Dragon Queen have special holes for their hair. Vultura's hair fans upward and is folded back behind her. Moth Lady's hair (and the back middle section of Dragon Queen's hair) falls down her back, underneath her cape. Wild One's hair is tethered with off-white ribbons (small black ones are used for Dragon Queen's ponytails). Wild One's cape (U.S. version) is folded like a triangular napkin behind her back. The shield should be centered firmly in the semicircle window next to the wording, "gemstone shield" (English-language boxes). Check if the shield is broken or loose inside the box. If the figure itself is loose inside the box, or it has obvious damage from playwear, or you can see the accessories (like a weapon, a belt or a headpiece positioned on the figure), then the item has been removed from its box and handled. You should also take note of the condition of the figure itself (see my "common problems" section), particularly in the case of a flaking cape, green knees or bracelets / boots that are turning green. Ideally, (that is, by my standards) a figure should be positioned carefully, not haphazardly, in the box, and with the cape as open and unwrinkled as possible.

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Fashions

The same guidelines as for grading figures apply to grading mint-on-card fashions. To keep this section brief, I'll offer a summary. The card measures approximately 12.2 inches (31 cm) long, 7.5 inches (19 cm) wide, and the blister is 1 cm deep. The backcard should be firm and unfaded. Corners are susceptible to wear. Also, look for creases, tears, warping, obstructive pricetags or pricetag residue, punctures (such as from staples), cutting around the edge of the card (as to allow it to fit into a small container), or other damage. Look for damage to the hangloop, and marker marks (front AND back of card!). For the blister, look for yellowing (common for open-hook cards!) and cracks or crushing (common once the blister has begun to turn yellow), especially severe damage that might affect the contents inside. As for the contents, check for flaking lamé on metallic clothing pieces, fading, snagging and missing pieces.

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"Ideal" Mint Condition for Loose Figures

I wanted to include a section contrasting the "ideal" mint condition for each figure, against the problems common to each one. Figures which have preserved their "factory-mint" looks are rare and valuable. Few figures, mint-in-box or loose, maintain such ideal condition, as these figures are so prone to deteriorate over time. One general trait common to all "ideal" mint condition figures, is that the capes, hair, and paint has a sheen that is second-to-none. It has to be seen in person to be fully appreciated.

Golden Girl
has gold dot earrings and silver mascara underlined in gold (the gold paint used for her earrings and mascara almost always fades to brown or evaporates completely). Her boots and bracelets are a warm gold. Her outfit is all-gold except for the green "gems" around her neck.

Common Problems: Her shoulder joints tend to be tight, because of her torso mold. Sometimes her head can get soft with age. Oddly, her cape is more resistant to flaking than any other gold lamé cape.

Jade
has green teardrop earrings and green mascara arched in white. Her boots are white with green "gems" below the knees. Her bracelets are white, with green "gems." Her armored briefs are a lime green color which often fades slightly to yellow.

Common Problems: Her hair tends to get brittle and shed. Her left leg is usually the first one to get broken.

Rubee
has red "claw"-shape earrings and red mascara arched in white. Her eyebrows are gold (can fade to brown or, more commonly, can completely fade away). Her boots and bracelets are a warm gold. Her bracelets have red "gems," as does the necklace and midriff of her outfit.

Common Problems: I've only encountered one Rubee who still had untarnished gold eyebrows, and her head split open. She sometimes comes out of the package with mediocre-condition hair (frizzed and lackluster).

Saphire
has blue "claw"-shape earrings and dark blue mascara arched in white. (I've seen some Saphires whose blue mascara is bordered in white, and some where the white arch does not actually touch the blue.) Her boots are dark blue, highlighted in gold, as are her bracelets.

Common Problems: The blue paint used for Saphire's and Vultura's makeup, often fades to a light periwinkle. I haven't seen much else that's specific to Saphire, but one of mine has the worst case of green knees I've ever seen.

Onyx
has gold teardrop earrings and gold mascara arched in white (the gold almost always deteriorates over time). Every stud of her armor, bracelets, and boots is gold (usually this rubs off or fades away), and the armored arch over her right shoulder is edged in gold. Her irises are red (and often fade to orange or yellow).

Common Problems: I have one Onyx with bowed legs, that seemed to come from the factory that way. Also, her right leg is often "looser" on her body than the left; the left leg can be a tight fit on her torso mold.

Prince Kroma
has brown brows, skintone-painted lips, and silver boots and bracelets.

Common Problems: Like Jade, just about every loose Kroma I've seen had broken legs. Like Moth Lady, his colorful lamé cape is less likely to flake off than the gold ones, but it's not immune.

Dragon Queen
Dragon Queen's earrings pose one of the most common puzzles of the vintage collector hobby. The vast majority of Dragon Queen's to survive today will appear to have no earrings whatsoever, or traces of bluish-green ones. That green tint is the biggest clue that originally the earrings were gold, but discolored over time or else completely evaporated. Occasionally the earrings will fade to a brown color, however, the rare ideal is still gold teardrops. Dragon Queen's hair is crimped and parted into three sections--the front two ponytails are fastened at the base with short black ribbon. Her bracelets are gold, as is her snake belt and the oval (with the red dragon) below her neck.

Common Problems: The vinyl used for her head is guaranteed to get soft and squishy over the years. Be very careful! She's fragile! The white color can also get dingy, and her hair can lose its crimp or become dull and brittle--most loose Dragon Queen's I've countered were missing countless plugs of hair, especially in the back.

Moth Lady
has purple teardrop earrings. Her purple boots are highlighted in black, with a red "gem" below the knee. Her hair is crimped and two-toned. The purple under-layer, is full-length. The lavendar crest is much shorter, about neck-length. She has red irises (which often fade to orange). She has wings that can be damaged or lost, and the three petals of her cape which are stitched together at the base, can become detached.

Common Problems: I can't believe my best Moth Lady has a green spot on her forehead, of all places! Her hair can lose its crimp or become dull and brittle. Some were made with defective hip joints, making one leg dangle from the socket.

Vultura
has white "canine tooth" earrings. Her mascara is dark blue (can fade to periwinkle), underlined heavily in white. Her boots are navy blue, lined with red "gems." Her bracelets are gold (like all gold paint used on these figures, this area is prone to deterioration). Her hair is dark blue and curly, with three white streaks.

Common Problems: The blue paint used for Saphire's and Vultura's makeup, often fades to a light periwinkle. The white streaks in Vultura's hair can turn ivory and ratted, and the blue hair can either completely lose its curl or it can get matted up like nobody's business!

Wild One
has a face tattoo shaped like a "%" in reverse. Her left eye has silver mascara with a streak of gold just over her eyelid (this gold streak usually evaporates). Her earrings are a silver and white "dot-and-tooth" pattern, with the outer edge of her ears lined in silver. Her hair is parted in two halves, and tethered in off-white ribbon. Her torso is sky blue (often yellows with age). Her studs are gold, and her eagle feathers are white tipped in black. Her right kneeguard is brown, and her boots are khaki brown (like gold paint, this can discolor to a green tinge).

Common Problems: I've seen "soft head syndrome" in several Wild Ones. In fact, her head has a tendency to get "old-vinyl" spots (discolored areas where old vinyl that was mixed in with new vinyl loses its dye color), leaving pale yellow spots over her face. Other figures may develop a green or dark brown spot somewhere on the face (e.g. Onyx, Moth Lady). Wild One's boots also can become soft and make it difficult for her to stand up.

Ogra
has thick black brows and a beard, and pointed ears. He has red irises (these often fade to orange). He sometimes has skintone-painted lips. His boots and bracelets are black.

Common Problems: Primarily susceptible to paint-wear and hair loss, like Dragon Queen. Oddly enough, his leg joints tend to break far less frequently than Prince Kroma's.

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Golden Girl and the Guardians of the Gemstones™ is the property of Lewis Galoob Toys, Inc. & Leisure Concepts, Inc. © 1984.
Artwork excerpted from Golden Girl and the Guardians of the Gemstones by Billie Randall, illustrated by Aristides Ruiz © 1985.
This website is the result of my hard work and therefore its content and all original images are the property of Tchakani © 2004, 2005.