Sharks! I've always been fascinated with sharks and NOT because of shark's fin soup. In shark fin soup, the fins themselves are virtually tasteless. The taste comes from the soup, while the fins are valued for their texture. The delicacy was coveted by emperors because it was rare, delicious, and required elaborate preparation. Holding both culinary and symbolic significance, the dish is popular at important occasions such as weddings, banquets, and important business deals. I am all for taking shark fin soup off the menu entirely as well as the ban of shark finning because it is a very cruel thing to do when fishermen cut off the sharks' fins and then throw the often still-living sharks back into the sea to make room for more of the valuable fins. In the ocean, the sharks either die from suffocation or are eaten because they are unable to move normally. So when we stop eating the fins, demand will drop and that will force fisherman to stop shark finning.
The term "shark" has also been used for extinct members of the suborder Elasmobranchii outside the Selachimorpha, such as Cladoselache and Xenacanthus. Under this broader definition, the earliest known sharks date from more than 420 million years ago. [source: wiki]
I got this Illuminated Shark Model with dissectible body cavity from the National Geographic shop in VivoCity. I have always liked cut-away cross-sectional view models and this great white shark toy model just fits the bill nicely. Plus it is about 1/6th scale and that suits me just fine :) You can view more picture of this 1/6th scale shark toy in my "Shark Attack" post HERE
Another 1/6th scale great white shark toy that I own is this Dr X's great white shark from the Hasbro Action Man Deep Sea Mission set which I got in 2001. Action Man Aquanaut in his dive cage is just next to the sharks. You can view MORE pictures HERE :)
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Also part of the Underwater theme is Sideshow Collectibles Deluxe 1/6th scale Sean Connery James Bond 12-inch figure from the movie "Thunderball". Bond shows off his brawny legs in his diving outfit and is equipped with Q's aquatic propulsion dive rig, dive mask, dive knife, fins and spear gun. Check out my post "Look Up! Look Down! Look Out!" for more pictures ;p
And this is the Action Man Crocodile Mission set (lots more pictures HERE). The crocodile disguise has a convenient missile launcher hidden in the powerful jaws, operated by pressing a button on its head, and the fully articulated Action Man is detachable, giving many more opportunities for creative play.
In the film "Octopussy (1993)", Roger Moore as James Bond infiltrated Octopussy's island in a miniature motorboat disguised as a crocodile.
Also found under the sea - clownfish, regal tang (Kaiyodo Revoltech Pixar Figure Collection 001 Nemo & Dory figures - seen HERE) and crabs (Playmobil 4804 Giant Crab posted HERE)
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There are also Rays (see pictures of the Playmobil 4801 Stingray / Manta Ray HERE)
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Medicom Toys Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater with fake Gavial head disguise to decrease chances of being detected in water. Figure and Croc head reviewed HERE
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Dolphins, the only other mammals besides Whales to live under water :)
1/6th scale Deep Sea divers representing the people who have to stay underwater for extended lengths of time and even work on the sea bed for salvage and recovery. One of the first 1/6th scale figures I got when I started this hobby in 1994 - Action Man Deep Sea Diver with real lead weights on his belt and shoes so that he remains submerged when placed in water (posted HERE). Then there was the Hasro released G.I. Joe "Timeless Collection - Deep Sea Diver: Danger of the Depths" in 1999 to commemorate 35 years of GI Joe. Hasbro produced die-cast parts instead of plastic pieces for the Diver's helmet and chest plate, weight belt, foot weights and hammer (pictures HERE). For me, the ultimate 1/6th scale Deep Sea Diver has to be the Hot Toys produced 1/6th scale Dark Copperhead-18 12-inch figure which came with copper dive helmet and lots of metal die-cast parts (MORE pics HERE).
Of course one cannot miss out on the scuba divers as well. Action Man 1/6th scale 12-inch SCUBA (Self Contained Underwater Breathing Aparatus) Diver or Frogman as we used to call them, came with hood, diving mask, snorkel, regulator, SCUBA diving suit, buoyancy compensator, compressed-air cylinder (oxygen tank), wet suit, diving fins, speargun and magnetic explosives. MORE pics HERE :)
Action Team Sea Wolf - what a toy :) toy companies knew how to make things FUN then. Nowadays, it's all pretty much the same boring stuff repeated over and over again. See the AT Sea Wolf submarine / one-man submersible in action HERE
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And here's a shot / picture of the "Undersea" display in its entirety. Click on the picture to get a bigger and better view.
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