The page dedicated to MPC ALIEN model kits has expanded since first it was published little more than a week. So it’s time to announce an update. Response has been very good and welcome with some great samples of the assemble kit being added. Take this superb example by Rainer Engel:
Yep. That’s the MPC ALIEN kit; and it sure has been put to some fantastic use. This item and others have been added to the expanding article; which is becoming lengthy and has now been divided into two separate pages.
Page 1 is dedicated to production variations of the kit.
Page 2 contains image galleries featuring assembled versions by various modelers.
I would like to thank the following people whose images appear in this article with their kind permission: Baptiste Coudert, JoAnne Esposito, Old Dogs Trading Post, Sabers, Ingo Siemon, Rainer Engel, Evan Wardwell, Lou Fusco and Terry Jones.
If you would like to see your assembled MPC ALIEN kit (regardless of your modeling skills) appear on page 2 of this article, please contact me. Credit will be provided.
-Windebieste.
Unlike in the US where Kenner ALIEN toys are constantly appearing and being sold, these things appear on the UK service about once every two weeks or so. They’re common; but infrequent. This one is complete; and that’s a good thing. On the other hand, complete doesn’t mean perfect. This sample does have one obvious issue of broken dorsal appendages hanging off its back. Two of them have come free and now floating inverted. It’s an easy fix, if you are prepared to disassemble the toy. Which isn’t hard to do. Other than that, it looks good. It will probably have other signs of wear and the dome looks straight.
The unusual thing about this listing is simple. This isn’t anything unusual. At all. I know this declaration may appear to have all the qualities of an oxymoron; but it’s true. While this old battered box lacks various features of the front window, the top (and its accompanying window) along with the red insert card (Not to mention the complete absence of the ALIEN toy that should be inside.) it really is a ballpark figure for this piece of packaging.
Also of great significance, the addition of this item marks the end of all the vintage items associated with the release of the 1979 Kenner ALIEN action figure I wanted to include here. It’s taken me a long time – four and a half years – and this stage, Phase One, is now complete. Phase Two of HIDEOUS PLASTIC, which has already been well underway for a long time now, is about to move forward. That’s going to be a lot of fun, too. It will also take many years to complete but with this MPC item out of the way, it’s time to forge ahead and leave 1979 behind. What does Phase Two comprise? You’ll have to wait until April 26 to find out.
Hachette’s ALIEN project is a weekly (or monthly?) part works subscription from the publisher. This first issue includes a number of goodies including the first piece, the upper skull, orbits and maxilla of what will become a half scale (four foot tall) replica of the Alien, complete with electronic and motorised parts. Swoon. I’ve been keeping an eye on this item for a while now. I don’t know if an English version will become available but let’s hope so. It looks like many other print goodies appear to accompany this wonderfully ambitious product.
It’s a great article and the tongue in cheek delivery serves to highlight how ludicrous this toy was for children. As these toys were released in October 1979, can you imagine the letters to Santa that would never have been written? “Dear Santa. I just want one thing for Christmas this year. Can I please have an over-sized, ugly as sin ALIEN doll based on a face ripping space monster that shreds people to pieces that appears in an R-rated movie I am too young to see. I promise to leave it in the unopened box so it will be worth a fortune in forty years time. Love, Jimi”.
These severed arms aren’t hard to fix but it will never be fully original condition as the extant anchors found inside the old toy will remain permanently severed even after the arms have been restored to the figure. I’ve repaired more of these things than I can count. That’s true, actually; and I have more to reassemble, too. I own boxes of parts of these things. Boxes. So, I have had a lot of practice in this regard. 
Pre-order is now available for US$19.96 (plus postage) and packs of four ALIEN Easter Eggs are expected to arrive on April 1. Each egg will contain two random Aliens inside, making a total of eight lurid coloured critters per pack. 
Nonetheless, US$200 it is. I’ve seen them sell upwards of US$100, anyway. That’s not uncommon, actually. Since these things are only going to become more scarce as time passes by, eventually a price tag of US$200 isn’t out of the question. Think of it this way, though; the price tag on this item isn’t so much as setting any precedents here – it’s merely ahead of its time. The day may yet come when US$200 for one of these old double sided sheets will be the price you can expect to pay for one. It’s just a matter of time.
Nonetheless, the action figure itself is a decent sample. A little wear here and there is present but he’s otherwise straight and complete. That’s always welcome, an indication the item is in good shape. There appears to be no missing parts, like many of these old toys often suffer from. That puts him squarely in the US$350 to US$450 mark, alone. Without the box. 
There are so many problems with these items, it’s not even worth listing them. Significantly, there aren’t enough parts between them to assemble a complete sample. You’d still be missing a right arm and the head dome. Though, disassembling them to build as complete a sample as possible is a viable option. However, for the cost of such an exercise, for US$400 you can purchase one in perfect condition and maybe score a box as well.