Sleepover Retro Countdown Show – Episode 105

Top 10 Action Figure Playsets

This week, Rob and Guido head straight to the toy aisle and argue over what really makes a great playset. Elevators, trapdoors, laser games, falling chandeliers, questionable scale, and at least one monorail all come into play. From childhood grails to deep cut oddities, this countdown is all about big plastic worlds that took over our living rooms and imaginations. Bust out the figures and watch your step. Something is always about to fall apart. 📼🧸

Topics & Timestamps

00:00 Welcome to the Sleepover Retro Countdown Show

01:30 What counts as a playset and the rules for this list

05:10 #10 vs #9 battle begins

14:45 Micro Machines and the power of tiny detail

22:30 Turtles sewer hangouts and scale problems

32:10 Snake Mountain, skull faces, and electronic voice tricks

41:20 Phantom of the Opera and the loosest definition of playset

49:40 Mighty Max goes big with Skull Mountain

58:30 Thundercats Cat’s Lair and laser tag dreams

1:08:20 Eternia enters the chat

1:18:10 Final showdown and crowning the winner

1:28:00 Wrap-up and childhood repair memories

The Top Ten Countdown

#10 She-Ra Crystal Castle

Pink, impractical, and beloved. Fur rug included, somehow always missing.

#9 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Technodrome

Iconic villain HQ with a rotating eye and wildly questionable scale.

#8 Star Wars Micro Machines Royal Guard Playset

Tiny throne room packed with figures and big Return of the Jedi energy.

#7 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Sewer Playset

More hangout than battlefield, complete with periscope fire hydrant.

#6 Phantom of the Opera Playset (McFarlane Toys)

A falling chandelier earns it the playset title. Barely.

#5 Masters of the Universe Snake Mountain

Purple menace with trapdoors and voice-modulating chaos.

#4 Thundercats Cat’s Lair

Massive, cartoon-accurate, and armed with infrared laser battle tech.

#3 Mighty Max Skull Mountain

Big skull energy with traps, fireballs, and Rube Goldberg mayhem.

#2 Masters of the Universe Eternia

Three towers, a working monorail, and an entire plastic kingdom.

#1 G.I. Joe Terror Drome

Cobra’s ultimate HQ with launching jets, prison cells, and room to actually play.

Available On

The Sleepover Retro Countdown Show is available on all major audio platforms and on YouTube for video.

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Retro toys, action figure playsets, 80s toys, 90s toys, VHS nostalgia

#RetroToys #ActionFigures #ToyCollectors #SleepoverRetro #BeKindRewind

Episode 104 – TOP VIDEO STORE MEMORIES + INTERVIEW W/ ALEX ROSS PERRY

In this special episode recorded live inside the Sleepover Trading Company store in Catskill, NY, Rob and Guido kick things off with a fast, nostalgic Top Video Store Memories Countdown before Rob sits down with filmmaker and video-store historian Alex Ross Perry to talk Video Heaven, clerk mythology, physical media, and how a decade-long research project became the definitive on-screen story of rental culture.

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Guest Bio: Alex Ross Perry

Alex Ross Perry is a director, writer, and producer whose work spans indie drama, experimental nonfiction, and deep-cut media archaeology. He made his feature debut with Impolex (2009), followed by acclaimed films including Listen Up Philip (2014) and Her Smell (2018), the latter named one of the AV Club’s Top 10 Films of the Year.

In recent years, Perry has created the ghost-concert film Right Here, Right Now, the experimental Pavement biopic Pavements, a segment for V/H/S Halloween, and his sprawling three-hour found-footage documentary Video Heaven—an epic built from 180 film and TV clips that traces the rise, mythology, and disappearance of the American video store.

He is also a former clerk at the iconic Kim’s Video in NYC and a lifelong student of physical media culture.

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Mini Countdown: Top Video Store Memories

Rob’s Top 3

3. Warner Bros. rental-only clamshell cases — those oversized, color-banded boxes that dominated shelves.

2. Hobgoblins + the infamously angry note — warning future renters of its… quality.

1. The Requiem for a Dream race — sprinting after school to snag the single copy before anyone else.

Guido’s Top 3

3. Being allowed to wander the aisles alone — early independence among the shelves.

2. Bootlegging beginnings — two VCRs, swapped labels, and a budding archivist.

1. The previously-viewed bargain bin — weekly treasure hunts that sparked a lifelong collection.

Keywords: retro video stores, VHS rentals, Video Heaven documentary, Alex Ross Perry interview, Kim’s Video, physical media, analog nostalgia, video store culture

#SleepoverTrading #VideoStoreMemories #VHSlife #AlexRossPerry #VideoHeaven #RetroMovies

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Available on all major podcast platforms + full video on YouTube.

Episode 103 – Top Ten Cartoon Theme Songs

This week on The Sleepover Retro Countdown Show, Rob and Guido crack open the cereal boxes and dive into a neon-soaked battle of animated earworms. From the synth-sweet heroic blasts of the mid-80s to the chaotic sing-along charm of the 90s, the guys sort through ten iconic cartoon themes pulled straight from the analog vaults. These are the songs that got you out of bed on Saturday mornings, blasted from living-room floor consoles, and rewired a generation of kid brains for maximum hype. Grab your Walkman, pop in a fresh tape, and relive the era when a theme song could sell an entire universe.

Guido arrives armed with Gummi Bears, Jayce, Jem, He-Man, and She-Ra; Rob counters with Muppet Babies, Space Ghost, Animaniacs, G.I. Joe (the movie version), and the indestructible TMNT anthem. Round by round, they negotiate, duke it out, and slowly carve the perfect ten-track playlist of cartoon greatness.

Final Top Ten – Cartoon Theme Songs

1. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987) – Chuck Lorre & Dennis C. Brown
2. She-Ra (1985) – Shuki Levy, Haim Saban, Erika Scheimer & Noam Kaniel
3. G.I. Joe: The Movie (1987) – Rob Walsh & Jon Douglas
4. He-Man (1983) – Shuki Levy & Haim Saban
5. Jem and the Holograms (1985) – Ford Kinder & Anne Bryant
6. Animaniacs (1993) – Richard Stone
7. Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors (1985) – Shuki Levy & Haim Saban
8. Space Ghost (1966) – Ted Nichols
9. Muppet Babies (1985) – Hank Saroyan & Rob Walsh
10. Disney’s Adventures of the Gummi Bears (1985) – Michael & Patty Silversher

A Saturday morning mixtape for the ages — crunchy cereal not included.

Keywords: cartoon theme songs, retro cartoons, VHS nostalgia, Saturday morning TV, 80s animation, 90s animation, TMNT theme, She-Ra theme, He-Man theme, GI Joe movie theme, Jem intro, Animaniacs theme, Space Ghost opening, Gummi Bears Disney, Sleepover Trading Co, Video Visions, retro podcast, analog culture

#CartoonThemeSongs #RetroCartoons #80sCartoons #90sCartoons #VHSNostalgia #SaturdayMorning #TMNT #HeMan #SheRa #GummiBears #Animaniacs #SleepoverRetroCountdown #SleepoverTrading

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The Sleepover Retro Countdown Show streams on all major audio platforms and on YouTube for video.

The Sleepover Retro Countdown Show — Episode 102

Top 10 Horror Movies That Imprinted On Us

“Imprinted” = the flicks that burrowed into our brains and never moved out. Rob & Guido set loose a grab bag of VHS-era chills: Universal classics, SOV weirdness, slasher meta, camp royalty, and one Dan Aykroyd fever dream you swore you imagined. Favorites? Not the point. Lingering impact is the law. Pop in the tape, adjust the tracking, and let those late-night TV memories crawl back in. 📼🩸

00:00 Cold open → Rules of engagement (genre is what we say it is; “imprinted” = lived-in memory)

04:10 First battle (10 & 9): Transylvania 6-5000 (1985) vs The Invisible Man (1933) → camp laughs vs. Universal gateway horror

14:25 Shot-on-video detour (8 & 7): Sledgehammer (1983) vs The Gate (1987) → dreamy SOV vibes vs. first real-deal kid-scary

27:40 Cable-TV fever (6 & 5): Nothing But Trouble (1991) vs Child’s Play (1988) → Channel 11 oddity vs. Chucky’s ever-growing universe

41:15 Anthology showdown (4 & 3): Creepshow (1982) vs Elvira: Mistress of the Dark (1988) → comic panels & creatures vs. camp queen coronation

55:05 The final cut (2 & 1): Scream (1996) vs Psycho (1960) → meta high-school terror vs. Hitchcock’s blueprint of dread

01:07:30 Final standings + sign-off (and a reminder to rewind)

1. Psycho (1960)
2. Scream (1996)
3. Elvira: Mistress of the Dark (1988)
4. Creepshow (1982)
5. Child’s Play (1988)
6. Nothing But Trouble (1991)
7. The Gate (1987)
8. Sledgehammer (1983)
9. The Invisible Man (1933)
10. Transylvania 6-5000 (1985)

“We’re treating genre as a vibe, not a police report.”

“Universal monsters = perfect gateway horror—black & white, 70 minutes, beautiful.”

“SOV oddities feel like dreams you taped off TV at 2 a.m.”

“Chucky isn’t just a doll; it’s a world—queer lens, deep lore, running gags.”

“Scream weaponized the phone. Psycho taught the class.”

horror movies that imprinted, VHS nostalgia, Universal Monsters, shot-on-video horror, Sledgehammer 1983, The Gate 1987, Elvira Mistress of the Dark, Creepshow anthology, Child’s Play Chucky franchise, Nothing But Trouble 1991, Scream 1996, Psycho 1960, retro horror podcast, analog cinema memories, late-night TV movies

#SleepoverRetro #VHSNostalgia #HorrorCountdown #UniversalMonsters #Elvira #Chucky #Creepshow #Scream #Psycho #AnalogForever

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The Sleepover Retro Countdown Show is on all major audio platforms and on YouTube for video. Be kind—rewind your childhood. 🎃✨

The Sleepover Retro Countdown Show — Episode 101

Top 10 Halloween Things (where “Halloweeniness” is the law)

A candy bar battles a radio channel. A claymation castle squares up against vintage wax. Two movies duel. And at the top? The undefeated king of spooky vibes. Rob & Guido rank the Top 10 Halloween Things across five categories—Movies, Music, Candy, Decorations, and TV Specials—judging not by “best” but by pure Halloweeniness. Put on a scary shirt, check your candy, and crank the Carpenter. 📼🎃

00:00 Cold open → The rules of Halloweeniness (five categories, three rules)
03:05 Candy vs. Music → Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups vs SiriusXM’s Scream Radio (ephemeral channels, trailers, creepy SFX stories)
13:42 TV Special vs. Decoration → Claymation Comedy of Horrors (1991) vs Gurley Halloween candles (ghosts, witches, haunted house smell-memory)
24:58 Movie vs. Movie → Trick ’r Treat (2005) vs The Rocky Horror Picture Show (parties, costumes, background bangers)
38:20 Candy vs. TV Special → Hershey’s Crackle vs Buffy the Vampire Slayer S2 “Halloween” (becoming your costume, peak Buffyness)
51:10 Music vs. Decoration → John Carpenter scores & Lost Themes vs Russ Phantom of Lights candelabra (six pumpkins, green candles, perfect centerpiece)
01:03:00 Final standings + sign-off (and a gentle Be Kind, Rewind)

1. John Carpenter’s Music (scores + Lost Themes)
2. Russ “Phantom of Lights” Halloween Candelabra (’80s, purple cloak, six pumpkin holders)
3. Hershey’s Crackle (fun-size legend)
4. Buffy the Vampire Slayer — S2 “Halloween” (they become their costumes)
5. Trick ’r Treat (2005)
6. The Rocky Horror Picture Show
7. Gurley Halloween Wax Candles (witches, ghosts, haunted houses)
8. Claymation Comedy of Horrors (1991) (Will Vinton vibes, Frankenstein’s castle)
9. SiriusXM Scream Radio (scores, sound FX, classic trailers, short stories)
10. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (the orange-wrapped gold of the trick-or-treat bag)

“We’re ranking Halloweeniness, not favorites.”
“Scream Radio disappears November 1—ephemeral = extra spooky.”
“Buffy’s ‘Halloween’ is peak teen limbo: too old to trick-or-treat, not yet at the wild parties.”
“Gurley candles smell like pre-pumpkin-spice autumn.”
“Carpenter isn’t a song—it’s an atmosphere.”

Halloween top ten, VHS nostalgia, vintage Halloween decorations, Gurley candles, Russ Phantom of Lights, Trick ’r Treat 2005, Buffy Halloween episode, SiriusXM Scream Radio, John Carpenter Lost Themes, fun size candy ranking, claymation Halloween special, retro pop culture podcast, analog Halloween vibes, video store nostalgia

#SleepoverRetro #HalloweenCountdown #VHSNostalgia #JohnCarpenter #Buffy #RockyHorror #GurleyCandles #TrickRTreat #VintageHalloween #AnalogForever

Follow @SleepoverTrading • Visit SleepoverTrading.com • Check out the store!
The Sleepover Retro Countdown Show is on all major audio platforms and on YouTube for video. Be kind—rewind your childhood. 🎃✨