Frank Kozik x Rotofugi x Squibbles Ink Exclusive "Jerome" for SDCC

    I'm probably going to get hit for telling this story, but it makes me laugh every time I think of it, so a black eye might be worth it.  Don't say I've never bled for my art.

    We live a short drive from Wildwood, NJ , which is somewhat akin to purgatory by the sea.  See, people with kids a who are really afraid of germs go to Ocean City, while those of us that like to people watch and aren't concerned about catching a criminal record go to Wildwood.  Obviously the wife and I gravitate towards the latter, so every summer we get excited to almost get run over by the tram car and watch silly tourists have their food stolen by seagulls the size of golden retrievers.  Once while walking down the boardwalk my wife grabs me by the arm and has a concerned look plastered across her face.  I thought maybe she lost her wallet, or left her phone in the car, but I never could have expected what she told me:

"My mole fell off."

    After taking a moment to process what I just heard, she showed me a mark on her shoulder that had once housed the now absconded mole.  Evidently the strap of her purse had acted like a makeshift saw, cutting that sucker at the root and separating it from the rest of her body.  I knew I couldn't miss an opportunity this, as how many times will skin imperfections find themselves flying off my wife's epidermis?  I told her that I saw something drop from her shoulder but just thought it was a piece of lint from her tank top and it landed in a woman's ice cream as she passed by us.  

   The look on her face was a mix of horror and hilarity as I tried my best to convince her that some stranger was ingesting and oddly shaped and textured sprinkle even as we spoke.  I even pointed out the lady that was turning into an unwilling canibal courtesy of her frozen treat.  "I wonder if she's going to wake up tomorrow with a craving she can't explain to ingest every blemish she see." Sharon wasn't buying it and I ended up with a bruised arm for nothing but even now it still makes me laugh.  

    I don't think there are any moles hidden in Jerome's swirly little head, but he does like to smoke so you may find a stray ash or two.  Frank Kozik's ice cream bro will be making his debut at San Diego Comic Con courtesy of the folks that produced him, Rotofugi and Squibbles Ink.  But fear not those of you who crave nicotine-addicted dairy products, for there will be an online release to follow shortly after for those of us not at the convention.    

    

Enter Skeletor's Lair at Super7 San Diego During SDCC

    Is Super7 going for some Guniness World Record to have the most San Diego Comic Con Exclusives ever?  Not only have they loaded up their booth inside the convention, but they're utilizing their retail space in the city for a whole different event entirely.  Skeletor's Lair is taking over their store with the best Masters of the Universe exclusives you've ever laid eyes on.  But you can't just walk up to the door and be let in, that would be too easy.  You gotta score yourself one of these special tokens from either Super7's booth #4945 or Mattel's #3029 for admission.  Once inside you're gonna probably loose your mind and need medical attention after seeing what's available to purchase.  Here's part one of my rundown for you.  

    You could buy all of these M.U.S.C.L.E. inspired figures and because they're so small, convince yourself that you need way more stuff.  And then you'll get back to your hotel room, open em all up and have a ton of toys to spread out on the bed and roll around on like Scrooge McDuck.  Not that that's exactly what I do after a long day of shopping at a convention and after I confiscate my wife's phone to ensure there is no photographic evidence of it.  

    You wanna get fancier with your He-Man collection?  Then you're gonna need these exclusive resin He-Man and Skeletor resin figures from Amanda Visell.  Both were hand cast and painted and are extremely limited/more awesome than anything you currently own.  

                                         

    Let me tell you something.  If you wanna know what's something people are going to be nuts for during and well after the conventions, it's these four figures you see here.  Super7 not only caused a frenzy with their Alien prototype set, but they created a whole new series of action figures that are available just about everywhere.  If you're a collector that is also interested in watching a toy's value grow, these are a no brainer.

    How has this never existed before?  Whoever made this happen is a genius and I want one pretty badly.  This official Moss Man Chia pet is limited to one per person, but I would need two of them because you can't not grow the thing.  But then it would kill me that I didn't have one mint in the box because yeah, I'm kinda weird like that.  Now I have a headache.  

    You know what makes these test shot figures great?  The shear size of them.  I'd fill my house with giant sized Skeleton figures no problem, which may be why I have to take medication to be a functioning part of society.  

"Cosmic Beast" Manotaur from Rampage Toys x Imps and Monsters

    Whatchu know about a Manotaur?  That dude's head is straight on fire!!!  How nuts is that?  Maybe not as nuts as your Uncle Carl, who truth be told no human being should ever be left alone with, but pretty nuts regardless.  Could you ever have a bad hair day is your hair was one big flame?  It would constantly change so before you could even think to get upset it would be different.  Problems like this are why I don't get anything done.

    Rampage Toys and Imps and Monsters are proud to present to you this insanely awesome Cosmic Beast Manotaur.  Only 10 of them were made and they are available right now by visiting http://www.impsandmonsters.com.

Exclusive Germ S005 [ROACH] from Ferg x Rotofugi for SDCC

    I used to sell home security systems in Philadelphia.  Unfortunately to do that, you have to actually go into people's homes, which can be more of an adventure than you ever bargained for.  Now don't get me wrong, I am a sucker for a good estate sale, but those people are dead and someone at least put a little bit of effort into making the house more presentable and less of a death trap.  I'm talking literal death, not that figural nonsense either.

    My salesman days involved entering a lot of homes but one I will never forget, mostly because I wake up at least once a month in terror from the nightmares it still induces.   My boss was with me for this appointment and when we walked in he just looked at me like this was gonna be a bad one.  We sit down on the couch and the entire time we're talking it sounds like the drywall is gonna get up and walk right out.   Then we started to see them on the floor, these brazen little critters that couldn't have been less afraid of two dumb human beings.  We were both ready to get out of there and thankfully the customer balked at the price so we took that opening, said our goodbyes, and itched for weeks afterwards.  

   I've been lucky enough to not encounter another roach infestation in my life, but I'd be willing to fill my house with these instead.  Ferg is dropping these exclusive Germ S005 [ROACH] dudes through the Rotofugi/Squibbles Ink booth at San Diego Comic Con.  There are only 100 of these available at $150 each.  Read up on www.rotofugi.com for the pertinent details so you don't miss out.  

Sextopigon "Dark Void" Edition from Skinner x Unbox Industries Releases Today!!!!

    Stare, stare into the appropriately titled "Dark Void" edition of the mighty Sextopigon.  His skin is the night sky, his blood the fading light of long dead suns.  Will he foretell your future?  Will he be the last thing you see before your death?  Will I continue to be so dramatic?  Who can say for sure, but you can get one of your own soul priests from Skinner and Unbox Industries when they go on sale today at http://store.unboxindustries.info.  The time of your demise is set at 22:00 BST.    

SDCC Exclusive Snybora from Chris Ryniak x Squibbles Ink x Rotofugi

    Doesn't this dude look like he wants to strike up a conversation with you?  Like at any moment he will start waxing poetic about how this season of True Detective is way better than the first one because the dialogue, while still seemingly written by someone on mushrooms, has the benefit of not having to be delivered by that stoner in the Lincoln commercials (he's not up on famous Hollywood actors).  Oh, and he absolutely has a British accent, as he was Oxford educated, but doesn't like to talk about it to avoid being labeled a snob.  

    Chris Ryniak's Snybora is going all exclusive for San Diego Comic Con in this sweet green paint scheme.  This pretty little lizard man bro will be available at Rotofugi and Squibbles Ink's booth #5248 for $35 each.  Buy me one and I'll let you decide where he's gonna live in my house.  You have no idea what a big step that is for me and my OCD.

Exclusive "Glow In The Dark" Lavabear from Nathan Hamill x 3DRetro for SDCC

    I've often wondered what it is my cats are up to at night while my wife and I are attempting to sleep.  I say "attempting" because we are usually woken up every hour by one of them needing attention, or so catastrophic noise from another part of the house.  They are so loud that if someone broke in they would probably get half of our stuff out the door before I realized it wasn't just another kitten stampede.  I'm gonna be heated if I wake up and I can't watch Wendy Williams talk smack on people while I eat my cereal!

    One of the things I've wondered is how they react to the shear amount of toys in the house at night, especially the glow in the dark ones.  It's gotta be kinda freaky to be walking along, doing your cat thing, while all these little plastic figures are glowing all around you.  Maybe they think they're witches and are performing elaborate, albeit, noisy rituals to stop them from casting spells.  Or maybe they just don't give a crap one way or the other and are just having fun being as destructive in the dark as they can be.  It's probably that last one.

   Nathan Hamill and 3DRetro are bringing an exclusive Lavabear to San Diego Comic Con that will glow in the dark and may or may not interest your cat.  The cool thing about this is that it doesn't have that sickly white coloring that most toys do that glow in the dark, so it looks just as nice in the daytime as it does while you're stumbling around with a baseball bat at 3am to protect your television from what may or may not be a prowler.  Only 75 were made and Nathan will be around to sign them on Saturday, July 11th from 2:30pm-4pm at the 3DRetro booth.  

Amanda Louise Spayd's "Belfry" Debut Release This Friday

    Did you know the Philadelphia Zoo is the oldest zoo in America?  You can stick that factoid under your hat and use it the next time you're on Jeopardy.  Just don't forget me when you win that cash.  I'll take my cut before taxes, thank you very much.

   The point I was attempting to make about the zoo is that my wife's favorite part is the right by the front gate with the fruit bats.  These things are huge, like Chihuahuas with wings, and they're beyond fascinating to watch.   I like watching them eat, and listening to kids that come by when one of the bats has flipped right side up to relieve himself.  Actually, anytime an animal at the zoo is using the restroom or trying to have relations with his cage mate and there are kids nearby you'll hear the most hilarious stuff.  One time we were there and the giant tortoises were feeling rather amorous and this little girl, who couldn't have been more than 6, yells out to them 'slow it down turtles".  Her father was trying so hard not to laugh in front of her horrified mother, so I'd like to feel my laughter made up for it.

    Ok, enough zoo talk cause now I wanna go.  Let's get back to what is pictured above there, which just happens to be Amanda Louise Spayd's latest resin creation "Belfry".  This little resin bat is so cute I could spit!  He's making his debut tomorrow (Friday the 2nd) at 2pm eastern time only at http://mandilouise.blogspot.com/.

Metallica's Kirk Hammet Bringing Exclusive Toys to SDCC

   

     Kirk Hammet is living the life you wish you had. He's the lead guitarist in the biggest metal band in the world, he surrounds himself with every iconic horror movie prop he can get his hands on, and...and...what other proof do you need?  Oh, he has his own horror convention and his own toy company, which will feature some exclusive releases at San Diego Comic Con.  Not only will you get a sweet figure out of the deal, but buying one of them will give you the opportunity to meet the man himself.  If you're real nice he may help you figure out why you just can't quite nail the opening to "Master of Puppets."  But probably not, though.  

    Take a look at this graphic for more info on the people he's sharing a booth with including Nuclear Blast Records, Stern Pinball, and JSR Merchandising.  I want those Metallica and WWE pinball machines.  And that GWAR shirt.  And the toys.  I just want everything!

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Kamakiri (Mantis) Ningen from Blobpus x Dream Rocket

    I get that doing lotteries for popular toys is a decently fair way of selling a limited product while being able to weed out known flippers, but like any gamble it sucks when you don't win.  Which is why I limit my gambling to crane machines and skee-ball.  None of that casino nonsense for me, I'll stick to my carney games where the stakes are low but the prizes are much better than mere cash.  You can always make more money, but you can't always get another giant stuffed banana dressed as a Rastafarian.  Every time you see that beauty sitting in the corner you'll be filled with a renewed sense of pride, while everyone else who sees it will wonder why you brought that thing home instead of leaving it at a rest stop where it "obviously belongs."  Playa haters.

    Blobpus is forgoing his usual lottery sales for this release and instead ensuring that everyone who wants one of these crazy Mantis figures from Dream Rocket can get one.  You have until July 6th to order one, at which point he will paint them all up and ship them out in December.  Get complete details by visiting http://blobpus.blogspot.jp/.  

Mr. TMNT by Dead Greedy x DKE for SDCC

     We are all lucky enough to live in a time when if you're not happy with anything about yourself you can just go ahead and change it.  Through the miracles of modern medicine and sometimes just through sheer willpower/not telling the truth, we can transcend just about anything we see as an obstacle.  

    Who knew that deep down Mr. T had always identified as being a Ninja Turtle?  There's got to be a Diane Sawyer special any day now so we can hear his side of the story.  But until then we'll have to speculate that as a child he had an almost unnatural attraction to opening manhole covers, speaking like a surfer from Venice Beach, and craving only pizza for every meal.  The other kids thought he was nuts when he carried a little rat friend around, telling them all that he was his martial arts teacher.  But now Mr. T can live out his life the way he was always meant to, and to commemorate this occasion you can own one of these figures by Dead Greedy.  They will be available at DKE's booth at San Diego Comic Con for $55 each and are limited to just 25 pieces.    

Super7's Truckload of Exclusives for SDCC

    A visit to Super7's booth at San Diego Comic Con could drastically change the landscape of your collection/ability to retire one day.  But fear not, because if you start right now you may have just enough time to get a few new credit cards in the mail so you don't have to worry about picking and choosing the toys you want.  You max those babies out, then get another credit card with a sweet no interest balance transfer deal and you are practically making money as you shop!  Not really, but it does take the sting away when you think of it like that.  Behold all that could be yours:

    

Kaiju Rhaal One-Off's from Gorgoloid Dropping Tomorrow Night

    Man these dudes are frightening!!  Is this some mad science experience gone wrong?  A genetic mutation?  What all those supplements from GNC will eventually do to people?  The questions are endless, but the supply of one-off Kaiju Rhaals from Gorgoloid is anything but.  The magic number for these spectacular brutes is 6 and coincidentally enough they go on sale tomorrow (Friday, August 26th) at 6pm pacific time only at http://www.gorgoloid.com/.  Pictured are two of my favorites.  

Kidrobot Returns To Conquer SDCC

   Last year, Kidrobot decided to skip San Diego Comic Con.  Maybe someone ate some bad takeout, or maybe they just couldn't find anywhere to park (I've heard that's a nightmare) but it doesn't really matter what the reason is, because this year they're storming the place like Ragnar and company stormed Paris.  Probably with more showers and less bleeding, but who can say for sure.  So hang onto your britches while I give you the rundown of everything I know about what's they have planned.  

   You see those prints up there?  Of course you do, it was one of those rhetorical questions and you actually didn't have to answer out loud, though I appreciate your enthusiasm/willingness to have your family think you're nuts.  The release of these three prints will coincide with Brandt Peters, Frank Kozik, and Scott Tolleson making appearances to hang out with you lucky convention goers.  There are less than 200 of each print, and they will be $25 each.  That is unless you're super dedicated and one of the first 50 people in line for each artist's signing, then you'll get one absolutely free.  That will leave some funds for you to get exactly two bottles of water from one of the food carts.  You know what, screw that, use it to buy toys.  You can always drink from one of the bathroom sinks.  

    If you're a Junko Mizuno fan and you haven't found a mule to get you that pretty little lady on the right, I would start calling friends ASAP.  Anyone and everyone will have the opportunity to own the original colorway of this 8 inch Dunny (on the left, sucka) but if you wanna taste of that Berry Chocolate flavor, you're gonna need to be at the convention or have a stand in willing to help you out.  She's a thing of beauty and from what I understand very limited.  $100 will get you one and trust me, that's a bargain when you see one for yourself in person.

    What time is it?  Well, it's quarter after three, I don't know why kids are always asking that.  You know you got a phone you little brat, so peel your eyelids off of Instagram for a second to check.  Oh, they're talking about the cartoon?  That's way less weird.  Finn and Jake want to do some adventuring all up in your house with these two exclusive releases.  Sure, you might already have these in their original color schemes, but I know the completest in you is ready to pull your very soul out of your ears to add these to your collection.  I feel you, I'm getting a little twitchy myself just by thinking of all the new Dunny releases, and I just want you to know I'm never gonna not encourage your obsessions.  toy obsessions anyway, not those one's involving Betty White ya freak.  Each figure is gonna sell for $49.99.

    I've already told you about these Mega Man exclusives but I'll be damned to be called anything other than thorough with this post.  They will be $49.99 each.  

    There's two things my wife is terrified of: slugs and ticks.  One time when we were digging for fossils in a creek (you didn't know I was so interesting did you?) I found a leech on a piece of wood.  I'd never actually seen a leech in person, so in my excitement I wanted to share it with the person I love.  After a few vague threats I chose to forget, she informed me how a leech was nothing more than a slug/tick hybrid and what on earth would make me think she wanted to see it.  It was a long drive to the Cheesecake Factory let me tell you.  

    If all slugs looked like the ones from Best Fiends I bet she'd be more receptive to their company.  The great thing about these too is that they will release online at Amazon and shop.bestfiends.com at the same time the release at comic con, so nobody will miss out.  If you're at the convention you will have a chance to win some prizes and meet the lead character artist for the game, Miguel Francisco.  This will happen on Saturday, July 11th from 9am-noon and this fancy screen print is one of the things you could walk away with:

    Those in attendance will also be able to take advantage of pre-releases for upcoming toys, including Frank Kozik's Baby Huey and Wuzone's debut 8 inch Dunny.  Here is the signing schedule for Kidrobot's booth # 5645, that way you can be the most prepared and stuff.

Thursday, July 9th

Junko Mizuno 1pm-3pm

Scott Tolleson 4pm-6pm

Friday, July 10th

Junko Mizuno 1pm-3pm

Frank Kozik 4pm-6pm

Saturday, July 11th

Brandt Peters 1pm-3pm

Chris 51 4pm-6pm

   

     

Star Warhol by Killer Bootlegs x DKE for SDCC

    Oh man, I love when I unconsciously stumble upon a theme.  Let's see, we got Star Wars presented in an unexpected way, a DKE exclusive for San Diego Comic Con, and......ok, that's about it I guess, but a theme it is indeed that runs through both of my posts today.  Now let me tell you about my drive  home from work last night.

    Just as I'm leaving to come home (which is the only time bad weather seems to happen) the sky turned black and began to rain.  Then I got a notice on my phone about a tornado watch.  No big deal I thought, I'll just take off now and hopefully out run the bad stuff.   That is not at all what happened. The wind picked up tremendously, pushing my small car all over the road, as pieces of tree branches and road signs fell into the road.  I get stopped at what turns out to be the last working set of traffic lights and as I'm sitting there a group of power lines start shooting sparks into the air.  The rest of my hour and a half drive consisted of crossing a mud-filled median to the opposite side of a highway and thus around a group of fallen trees, and trying my best to avoid numerous power lines as they danced like electric eels on the blacktop.

    The moral of the story is I could have used an R2 unit to help me navigate the treacherous conditions.  All I had was an IPod, Amon Amarth's "Twilight of the Thunder God" (which seemed appropriate) and the will to not die.  I don't know if Killer Bootleg's Star Wars/Andy Warhol mashup could have helped, but the most intelligent soup can in the galaxy probably would have had a few helpful tips. Or he would have just beeped at me and smelled like tomatoes.  DKE will be offering 50 of these for sale at their booth during San Diego Comic Con and at only $75 each, they probably won't last long.  

Django Uncloned Heirloom Edition from Robin Van Valkenburgh x Good For You Toys x DKE for SDCC

     I think that is longest title I've ever written for a post.  I seriously got winded by the end of it and blacked out a little.  I gotta work on my cardio if I'm gonna tackle a title of that magnitude again, cause I'm not trying to embarrass myself in front of you folks.  TMZ ain't getting a picture of me drooling on my keyboard and shakin like Courtney Love in church.

    I bet you never thought you'd want to collect ceramics as bad as you do right now.  It's cool, life is weird like that.  And Robin Van Valkenburgh ain't exactly reproducing those creepy clowns that filled your grandma's house.  Nope, we're talking crazy stuff, like this Django Uncloned figure in collaboration with Good For You Toys.  Only 20 of these space cowboys will be available from DKE's booth #5045 at San Diego Comic Con for $110 each.  Get yourself one and blow a stranger's mind when they're perusing your estate sale.  

Trouble Trouble from Dabs Myla x Munky King at SDCC

    Did you watch the MTV Movie Awards?  Yeah, me neither.  I would much rather remove one of my eyes with a spoon than watch just about anything on that channel.  Ok, I do get a kick out of True Life, and for some reason I can still be suckered into watching the Real World for some reason, even if it's just in hopes that the house catches fire with all of them in it.  So let me revise my previous statement:  I would rather remove one of my eyes with a spoon than watch MOST of the programming on MTV.  Sometimes you just gotta slum it.   Then I found out Dabs Myla designed the set for the Movie Awards and I was mildly tempted to watch it, but then I also realized that still photography is a thing and I could enjoy their work without having to risk hearing a Kanye West song.

   The couple create artwork that practically begs to be made into toys, yet this is surprisingly their first foray into the vinyl world.  Munky King will be debuting this delightful stick of dynamite and his stressed out match friend at this year's San Diego Comic Con.  If you can't make it to the show because you're busy auditioning for Teen Mom 8 don't worry, they're gonna be available later on at https://www.munkyking.com/.  

Preorders for "Cestoda" from Miscreation Toys x Toy Art Gallery Happening Now!

 
    Did you watch True Detective last night?  I liked last season but good Lord have mercy I am loving this new one.  Last year my wife and I coined the term "Haunted Bayou" which we determined was our favorite genre.  This year we have invented "California Noir", which we now think may be our newest favorite genre of television.  We had another term involving the Appalacians but I can't remember it right now so it probably wasn't nearly as impressive.  We've just realized we prefer stories that are set in certain parts of the world, and our country is so drastically different that particular areas lend themselves to better story telling than others.

    Cestoda from Miscreation Toys x Toy Art Gallery demands a setting in which he can cause the most destruction, so you can't tell a story about this guy in Oklahoma.  He's gotta have some huge body of water to rise up from and a packed city with lots of people to eat and structures to destroy.  Could you imagine him just stomping around in a barren field, bored out of his mind and forced to hear about high school football?  Nobody wants to watch that movie.

    You could make this behemoth the story of your own home movies as he is available for preorder right now.  You could get a red one, a grey one, or buy em both and start your own giant monster wrasslin league.  They're $175 each and available only from www.toyartgallery.com through July 2nd.