Posted by Ben Huber on Jan 14, 2012 in
Hobbies and Collections,
Videogames

If you’re a Persona fan, Bandai’s D-Arts series probably just made your day: take a look at this stellar figure of Thanatos from Persona 3. They did a great job replicating him in plastic, especially the coffins and chains above him. There’s not a whole lot of extra features listed for it, but when the figure looks this good, I’m sure I need them. If you’re looking to pre-order him, be sure to do so soon. Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Persona 3
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 30, 2011 in
Hobbies and Collections,
Videogames

Given that it’s Metroid’s 25th anniversary this year (poor Samus gets overshadowed by Zelda), it’s great to see somebody else giving our favorite video game bounty hunter some love. If you’re more in the mood for something sexy, Good Smile is releasing a 1/6 PVC of Zero Suit Samus in June 2012. More interested in functional? Max Factory is bringing a figma of Samus in her trademark outfit sometime in 2012. Both of these figures are fantastic, so no matter which one you get (or both!) you can’t go wrong. Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Metroid, Nintendo
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 25, 2011 in
Comic Books,
Hobbies and Collections

If you’re looking for the ultimate gift for the Spider-Man fan in your life, this may just be the ticket. Sadly, it doesn’t come out till the second quarter of 2012, but this Black Suit version of Spider-Man from Spider-Man 3 is one of the best Spideys I’ve seen. The joints are all hidden under the fabric of the suit, which looks fantastic. Not only that, the sculpted head of Tobey Maguire is up to the usual Hot Toys standard of ‘looking almost as real as the person’s actual face.’ Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Hot Toys, Spider-man
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Oct 3, 2011 in
Dr. Who,
Hobbies and Collections

Feast your eyes on Big Chief’s Doctor Who Limited Edition Eleventh Doctor collectible figure. From the sculpt itself to the accessories, it’s about as high-end as it gets — I’d even say it’s almost on par with some of the Hot Toys figures we’ve been seeing recently. Of course, it’ll cost you about as much as one too. A special signature edition of the 1:6th scale figure retails for roughly $265 without shipping, while the less expensive limited edition will run for only $233. Both of them should be hitting the market around December or early January. To make up for that asking price, the signature edition includes a plaque hand-signed by Smith, while both figures will come with several interchangeable hands, and numerous accessories like the Doctor’s invitation to Lake Silencio, a sonic screwdriver, and more — sorry, no fez or stetson. The signature edition will be incredibly limited in supply as only 250 units are being produced. Ironically, the limited edition may not be so limited in number. If you want to get yours hands on one, head over to the official Big Chief website and sign up to pre-order yours today. Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Doctor Who
Posted by Linda Yau on Apr 25, 2011 in
Fandom,
Hobbies and Collections

There are a lot of people that can call themselves an otaku, but branding, up to designing a personal mascot is definitely something that can be done if a person is quite serious about this niche hobby. Meet Otaku Dan, a blogger who I know who has one cool mascot, and interesting blog entries to share. Here are some of his opinions, and thoughts from an email interview. Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Anime, interview, Photography
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Mar 15, 2011 in
Hobbies and Collections

As far as toy makers go, Hots Toys has a reputation of being among the best. The company may charge us an arm and a leg, but their attention to detail is second to none. Each figure they produce is painstaking crafted with photorealism in mind, making them frighteningly accurate. One could easily find themselves confusing a photo of a toy for the real thing — their 2009 The Dark Knight Joker comes to mind. They recently unveiled two new designs for their Bruce Lee line, and both are absolutely stunning. One features Lee in casual attire, the other in a suit. While neither figure are available for preorder quite yet — they’re scheduled for Fall — the Enter the Dragon version will available for preorder on April 1st.
Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Bruce Lee, Hot Toys
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Feb 10, 2011 in
Cinema,
Hobbies and Collections

Last weekend marked Tokyo’s 2011 Winter Wonder Festival, a show dedicated specifically Japan’s booming toy market. There, skilled artisans are allowed to sell their custom garage kit models while companies like Kotobukiya and Max Factory show off their upcoming product lines. One of the more popular lines would be Max Factory’s Figmas. The big selling point on these figures, in addition to being incredibly affordable, is their small joint sizes, allowing for good amount of articulation. They also tend to come with interchangable parts — such as heads, or arms – and accessories to match each figure.
Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Robocop
Posted by Michael Sacco on Feb 6, 2011 in
Comic Books

Well, ComicsAlliance hit the jackpot here — sometimes you just find something so ridiculous it makes Electric Superman look like a good idea. A reader sent them concept art for an unreleased 1985 superhero action figure line from Kenner, only these aren’t just any action figures. These are grim, bizarre “anti-hero” versions of five beloved DC Comics heroes. Well, four beloved heroes and Firestorm, anyway. Each has a “Road Warrior” version, which is pretty much exactly what it sounds like; Batman’s Road Warrior outfit, for example, is straight out of Mad Max, with a helmet that looks suspiciously like Humungus’, and knives for ears. The other variations are “futuristic” and “robot” versions, which can get downright bizarre when you’re dealing with someone like Cyborg, who is already half-robot to begin with. Wonder Woman probably gets the worst treatment of the bunch. Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Batman, DC Comics, Superman, Wonder Woman
Posted by Gia Manry on Jul 10, 2010 in
Star Wars

As a Japanophile of some record, when I first heard the words ‘Super Shogun Stormtrooper,’ my first mental image was of the samurai Darth Vader swag and costumes I’ve seen around over the years. I further extrapolated that a Super Shogun Stormtrooper would be something along those lines: a Japanese-inspired Stormtrooper redesign. How cool is that? Might go nice in a glass cabinet, right? Geeky, but with a bit of class!
I was so, so wrong. Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Toys, Vintage Toys
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jun 30, 2010 in
Hobbies and Collections,
Star Trek

Diamond Select recently announced the latest individual additions to their “”Series 5″ Star Trek: The Original Series action figure line. This time around, Kirk sports his seemingly comfortable season 3 Green Dress shirt –I’ve always suspected it was a result of Shatner complaining about the standard tunics being way too stuffy. He’ll be joined by Scotty, whom I believe was previously released as part of a Spock/Scotty two-pack, and a random Romulan officer, all of which should retail for about $15.99 each. Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Star Trek