Monday, November 30, 2015

Candie Bolton x Toy Art Gallery Have Something Massive Planned for 2016



    I don't usually write about toys that are in production unless they have a release date and pricing info.  I'm one of those people that if I fall in love with an object I don't want to know that it's coming one day because I want it right then.  But I've seen pictures of this thing pop up online a few times and it is so different from anything out there I had to heap a bunch of praise on it while still in its clay form.  

    Candie Bolton and Toy Art Gallery are going to release this beauty known as Bake-Kujira.  Scheduled to release in early 2016, this 11 inch tall figure is the representation of a phantom that comes into existence whenever a human kills a whale.  If Captain Ahab had thought this would be the result of his triumph, Moby Dick would have been a mere pamphlet about how everyone took up bass fishing.  

    Until it is officially available for purchase you will have these few images to stare at and wonder just how amazing it's going to look all painted up.  In my mind it is glorious and I've already ordered it.  



The Dream Big Friends Kickstarter from Bigshot Toyworks is Live!



    There's nothing that pulls on your heartstrings quite like little dreams.  I just finished reading a book and all one of the characters wanted to do was grow up and work in an office.  Oh, you mean like the first office on the ocean floor or something right?  Nope, just an old boring office with a fax machine that makes a hideous noise and a copier that eats toner like a Christmas ham.  Mind you the girl was a clone who was only around so her organs could be harvested to keep regular folks alive, but still, have you heard of a dream that was smaller than that?  It depressed me.

    Yuna has much bigger dreams, specifically that she wants to own a commercial rocket company and to visit Mars.  And she loves cats, which makes her pretty awesome in my book.  She is the brainchild of Bigshot Toyworks and the folks behind Uglydolls, Sun Min Kim and David Horvath and is intended to fuel a child's imagination through focusing on the world around them.  And yeah, it's a little different than the stuff I normally write about, but I have two nieces and I'd rather them grow up and feel that anything was possible rather than be consumed by whether their make up looks good or if their clothes are on trend.  

   Yuna needs your help though if she is to inspire girls around the world.  Right now there is a Kickstarter campaign to help fund the production costs needed to make her a reality.  For only $40 you can get one of these 10 inch dolls featuring real clothes and her little cat buddy, Kamata.  There are other reward levels as well that include button packs and graphics for your wall and every little bit goes towards making this happen.  They have a lot of money left to raise so visit this link, pledge what you can, and give girls out there a positive roll model to look up to and dream with.  




Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Behold the Bath Toy of Madness: Dthulhu




   I was totally in the shower today, thinking that our bathroom decor needed an update.  We were going with a woodland theme because of how the bathroom was when we moved in, but things just haven't come together the way I had hoped.  Our fake taxidermied deer head/toothbrush holder keeps falling from its suction cup on the mirror, and our pine cone soap dispenser took a flying leap from the counter after being helped by an anonymous cat paw.  And do you even realize how hard it is to find plastic squirrels that you can mount to the wall so it looks like they're in mid chase?  The fates are working against us on this one.

    Maybe we should take things in a whole new direction and build our design around this mighty Dthulhu!!!!  This rubber ducky has been consumed by the spirits of the Old Ones and is hell bent on wiping out mankind....one bubble bath at a time.  Now you're not gonna find anything like this in stores, as he will only exist if you support the Indiegogo campaign to bring him to a state of vinyl being.  Check out this link, get some killer rewards, and prepare your tub for the madness that will ensue!  Oh and there's only a few days left to make it happen, so stop your deciding and start your buying.
 
    

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

My Designer Con Review as a Non-Attendee




    I didn't go to Designer Con and I've actually never been to Designer Con, but that doesn't mean I am any less qualified to talk about it than someone who was there.  This is America, and I'm gonna excercise the crap out of my freedom, and let me tell you, I'm feeling pretty damn free right now.  It may have something to do with the fact that I spent my Sunday at a gun show, which is about as much freedom as you can pack into the National Guard Armory in Philadelphia.  I mean it's an entire event that celebrates one of the most controversial amendments in the Bill of Rights.  It couldn't have been any more American if there was a bald eagle grilling hot dogs at a Lynyrd Skynyrd concert.  I had never been to a gun show before, and it was by far an interesting experience, as I doubt anyone at Designer Con was asked if they were carrying a concealed weapon as they entered.  I wasn't, but I wished I had planned ahead and brought a machete or something, just so I could have said "oh, you mean my little friend Tito Santana?" as I pulled said machete from my jacket.  That probably would have given the ticket people something fun to talk about at dinner.

    I felt like I was in California right with you though, as I scrolled through the many pictures on Instagram, jealous of all the amazing toys I was seeing.  My favorite photos are always the ones that people take showing off what they bought.  Not just cause I like to pick out the things I also would have tried to own, but because I'm always impressed by the shear amount of money spent.  We're talking legit mortgage payments worth of toys. With that in mind I really want to start commenting on their photos, asking where they work and if they're hiring, because I am obviously doing something wrong career-wise.  I need to up my disposable income game, so any tips would be greatly appreciated.

    When there were actually people in the photos I saw they all looked happy, so I'm going to go ahead and say they were having a good time.  When I was daydreaming about being there (on Saturday mind you, cause you don't daydream when you're surrounded by live ammunition as I was Sunday) I pictured myself equally as happy, so I declare the convention a good time which is probably enhanced by actually attending.

Monday, November 23, 2015

Medieval Spawn Resin Statue from McFarlane Toys




    A few years ago Sharon and I decided we were gonna go to the Renaissance Fair in Lancaster.  We're all into Game of Thrones and Lord of the Rings, so we thought it could either be really cool or we would be horrified and have funny stories to tell afterwards.  So there we are, speeding down the Pennsylvania Turnpike, when we see a sign with a giant cow on it advertising German food and an antique market.  We glanced over at each other, mouths agape, and to this day have never made it to the Renaissance Fair.  We keep trying but find ourselves unable to pass that exit.  It is probably as far west as we will ever get in that state, because not only do we stuff ourselves with the most delicious beef you have ever tasted, but the antique shopping is prime.  

   Now if I was guaranteed that I would see stuff like this roaming around, I might be willing to ease up on the brakes on keep driving.  I bet the ending of Braveheart would had been a lot different if Spawn had been the lead character instead of that wussy Mel Gibson.  And it would have been a lot shorter, because they would have taken one look at this dude, turned right around, and fixed everything he was upset about.  The whole mess could have been resolved in the span of a commercial break.  

    This resin statue from McFarlane Toys stands a whopping 17 inches tall, comes with two different heads, and is sure to make your cats think twice about holding Wrestlemania in your living room at 3 in the morning.  Preorder one of these highly detailed beauties now from this link.