A classic about trash, or is it just trash?
Toxic Crusaders for the Sega Genesis is one hell of a licensed game. This game is based on a TV show of the same name, which is based on a comic book of the same name, which is a spin-off on another comic book called "The Toxic Avenger" which was based on a cult-classic movie of the same name! So, being based on so many other things, you may immediately assume that, following the tradition of many other licensed games, this game would end up being trash (no pun intended).
You play as one of three characters, Toxie (Who you might also know as The Toxic Avenger), NoZone (A mutation of a pilot and a bird), and Junkyard (A mutation of a homeless man and a junkyard dog). There's no character select screen, so the only way to change who you're playing as is to goto the options menu at the beginning of the game and choose the player. This manages to be a little awkward.
As for the gameplay, It's a fairly standard side-scrolling brawler, much like the TMNT Arcade Game or something like Streets of Rage. You scroll to the side, and you fight dudes. Besides regular combat, you can also take down enemy helicopters and hop in them for a short period of time, which is pretty cool the first few times you do it. One negative thing about the gameplay would be how imprecise the controls are. While these games have never been too much about accuracy, this game is even MORE inaccurate. Sometimes you wonder if you're even hitting the enemy at all! It gets so bad that sometimes you're shooting at stuff off-screen! However, I somehow wasn't too frustrated by this. The enemies, while numerous, usually only take 1 or 2 hits to kill, so the imprecision of the control doesn't feel like it's limiting you very much, since the game's difficulty doesn't require precise control.
If you're playing as Toxie, you have Toxie's little pal Blobbie running around, who was also in the TV show. However, instead of being pink (like he was in the show), he's yellow here, and on the back of the box, they call him Bloobie for some reason. Anyway, Blobbie can be used in many different ways to attack the enemy, but my personal favorite is using your mop as a golf club and golfing him into different enemies. These special moves are fun the first few times you do them, but they tend to get old and repetitive after a while.
While the game isn't heavy in storyline, it does have a thin plot, taken directly from the TV Show. Aliens called Radiation Rangers are attacking Tromaville, and it's up to Toxie n' pals to stop them. I find it funny that somebody who is essentially made out of toxic waste is fighting to stop people who are trying to pollute the planet. Anyway, you fight through a variety of locations. You start in a city area (Tromaville), but there's also a park with a bunch of radiation oozing about, an alien spaceship, a level where you ride on top of a train, and more. There's enough variety in the six different levels to keep the game from becoming boring, even though you're essentially fighting the same enemies over and over.
Overall, the game is pretty fun, but if you're not a fan of the TV Show, or The Toxic Avenger, it might not do anything for you. That's not to say you shouldn't give it a shot, though. I first played this game a long time ago, long before I even watched The Toxic Avenger or Toxic Crusaders, and I still enjoyed the hell out of it. So, if you're looking for a pretty average side-scrolling brawler, and you're willing to forgive a bit of lousy controls, Toxic Crusaders for the Genesis is the game for you. Now, let's go mop up Tromaville!