Thursday, October 30, 2014

TOY NEWS FOR 10/30/2014 - DIAMOND/MARVEL SELECT - CARNAGE

Diamond Select has released the official image of their upcoming Marvel Select Carnage figure which includes a secondary head showing Cletus Kasady's face beneath.


This figure has a release date of March for $24.99

TOY NEWS FOR 10/30/2014 - MAX FACTORY - FIGMA - METAL GEAR SOLID: SONS OF LIBERTY - SOLID SNAKE

When it was first released, Metal Gear Solid was a game changer for the video game industry. Subsequent games, while still amazing and each improving upon the next, still haven't personally captured my imagination like the original did.

Touching on the figure here by Figma, this might be my favorite looking Solid Snake from MGS yet.

He comes with everything Snake needs-- his M1A1 rifle (complete with firing effect), two pistols, ledge-gripping hands, the (of course) carboard box and a cigarette! He also includes two different heads.

What more could you ask for in a Snake figure?!










Price and release date to be announced.

TOY NEWS FOR 10/30/2014 - NECA - DEVIL MAY CRY - DANTE

As shown at NYCC, NECA will be producing a deluxe figure of Dante from the Devil May Cry video game series. Here we get a look at a few official images of the figure.




The figure is expected to be released in March for around $29.99

TOY NEWS FOR 10/30/2014 - NECA - PLANET OF THE APES - GORILLA SOLDIER 2-PACK (TOYS R US EXCLUSIVE)

NECA has released a wonderful grouping of photos showing off their upcoming Toys R Us exclusive Gorilla Soldier 2-Pack from the classic Planet of the Apes film.










These will be hitting TRUs in November.

TOY NEWS FOR 10/30/2014 - PLAYMATES - TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES - LEONARDO 3-PACK (TARGET EXCLUSIVE)

This 3-Pack would be much cooler if Playmates wasn't such a cheap company.

I hate to be down on any toy manufacturer, but as I've mentioned in the past, the huge difference between Playmates' promotional [prototype] images (mainly in paint apps) and the final product is so jarring that it just cheapens any excitement I could possibly ever have for their retail figures.

When I see what Playmates could be giving us (via their own promotional images) and then see the cheap, minimally articulated figures that end up on the shelves, it breeds a bit of contempt, I believe.

But, like most companies, they could care very little about collectors and aim their products squarely at children and parents who will buy these figures regardless.

Now that my usual Playmates rant is over (BTW, I loved Playmates in the 90's! They were, for a time, my favorite toy company) you can take a look at these images of Target's exclusive Leonardo 3-Pack. The set includes a remake of the original 1988 release, the new comic inspired figure and the more current Nickelodeon inspired version. So far, it looks like Leo is the only figure with this set, but I'm sure if it sells well, the others will follow.




Apparently, these are hitting toy shelves right now.

TOY NEWS FOR 10/30/2014 - SIDESHOW COLLECTIBLES - STAR WARS - 1/6 SCALE LIKE SKYWALKER IN X-WING GEAR (RED FIVE PILOT)

It's a bit strange the two cooperative companies have now become competing companies with the same license-- Star Wars.

Sideshow started their 1/6 scale line many years ago, and their figures have continued to improve greatly over time, but now Hot Toys has [re]entered the fray with their own 1/6 scale line. I wonder what the internal conversations within Sideshow are about that decision. Is it a good thing for them, or is there resentment? Either way, I think it's a great things for collectors.

With this new "Red Five" Luke, Sideshow shows the massive improvements they've made in their 1/6 scale figures over the past few years. The likeness is near spot on and the suit look fantastic. The figure looks so good that it should stand beside any and all upcoming Hot Toys Star Wars figures with no problem at all.














Luke is currently available for pre-order on Sideshow's site for $239.99 with a release date of October 2015.

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

TOY NEWS FOR 10/29/2014 - HOT TOYS - STAR WARS - STORMTOOPER COLLECTIBLE SET and STORMTROOPER (SINGLE)

Awesome, Hot Toys! Keep it coming with these Star Wars figures!

Personally my hope is that Hot Toys will go through the entire main cast of A New Hope before they either start skipping around to the other films or do any secondary characters like Cantina creatures.

These Stormtroopers are definitely a step in the right direction, though.

You have two buying choices-- you can either get the "Collectible Set" which includes two Stormtroopers (one taller than the other) and some exclusive pieces, or you can pick up the single release.

This is a tough decisions for me because I'd really prefer two Stormtroopers (I definitely want at least two!) of the same [taller] height. If they're still clones then they should be identical, right?

 I'm loving his line and can't wait to see what they do next!! (Please make it ANH Luke, Leia, Ben of Vader!!)


















The two Stormtrooper set will be selling for $399.99 and the single release will be $199.99. Both are set for a August 2015 release date and are available for pre-order at http://www.sideshowtoy.com right now.