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Jun 30, 2008
UNKL @ SDCC
UNKL is gearing up for SDCC (booth 4533) with quite a few new releases headlined by the Mak.Po – a collaboration with Kow Yokoyama in both Green and Orange. There’s also a new H60 edition of the SUGs and UlliGUS’s (green and blue colorways for both). UNKL’s offerings are rounded out with the new HazMaPo Fall(en) series featuring three designs (blue, green and purple). Finally there’s a mystery SDCC toy (100 pieces). Pics of each after the jump. The release days for each figure and pricing and run size info are below:
| Thursday – July 24th | Run | Price |
| SUG H60 Green | 350 pcs | $80 |
| SUG HG60 Blue | 150 pcs | $100 |
| UlliGUS H60 Green | 350 pcs | $40 |
| UlliGUS H60 Blue | 150 pcs | $60 |
| Friday, July 25th | ||
| Mak.Po Green | 400 pcs | $150 |
| Mak.Po Orange | 100 pcs | $200 |
| Saturday, July 26th | ||
| HazMaPo Fall(en) | 3 editions – 250 each | $20 |
| Secret SDCC exclusive | 100 | ??? |
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Wonder Women of America from Amos Toys
What did you do at SDCC last year? We’re guessing you bought lots of cool vinyl and spent more money than you care to admit. Russell Waterman and Ruth Wiggins photographed as many women cosplayers as possible and the result is Wonder Women of America – a new book from Amos Toys. The volume features 180 pictures of more than one hundred characters – many with accompanying quotes on the motivation for cosplaying. Fittingly, the book will be released at this year’s SDCC @ the STRANGEco booth (#4629).
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David Horvath’s Turtle
David Horvath continues to bring the Bossy Bear book characters into 3D with vinyl figures from Toy2R. First it was Bossy Bear (small and large) and now Bossy Bear’s best friend, Turtle. At 6”. Turtle will be to-scale when placed alongside the larger Bossy Bear Vinyl. Turtle is expected to drop just in time for the release of David’s second BB book – “Just like Bossy Bear”. The new figure should be quite popular especially in light of the very reasonable retail pricing of just $15. [Sources: Ugly Blog + Diamond Previews].
Huck Gee x Freshmanila - Puto Barrelman
First there was Puto. Now Huck Gee and Freshmanila look to follow their previous collaboration by fusing Huck’s design with Philippino lore. Carved out of wood by local craftsmen, Puto Barrelman is Huck’s take on the popular Barrelman souvenirs found in gift shops in the Philippines. The design of the new figure follows closely with the traditional Barrelman – so yes, the Barrel is removable and we’ll leave the rest to a future ‘reveal’.
Standing roughly 8” high, Puto Barrelman is limited to 200 pieces and will retail for 3900php ($90 USD). Included in the run of 200, are 20 special ‘Save Paete’ editions painted in the native red. The chase edition is a homage to the dying art of traditional woodworking in the Philippines and the capitol of the industry, Paete. Puto Barrelman drops @ Cuisine Embassy on July 7th, 2008 (7 - 10 PM) in Manila.
Bwana Spoons – Jelly Factory Resins
Over the past month or so, Bwana Spoons has started production on a new line of hand-cast resin figures. His new pieces are made of transparent resin, hence the Jelly Factory brand name. To date he’s dropped three Jelly Factory Releases – Killer (pink), Mountaintops (pink) and Mr. Hampstone (yellow, above). Each of these releases have been exclusive to his Skulls and Rainbones Society (SARS).
The Jelly Factory blind-box series planned for Friday (7.25) @ SDCC will be the first public JF release. While things are still in progress, it looks like the series will feature five different figures and be limited to just 50 boxes. More info as we get it. Finally, looks like SARS membership will reopen in November of this year. Click through for pics of the Jelly Factory Killer and Mountaintops.
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Jun 29, 2008
Abe Lincoln Jr. – Silver Char Pendants
Abe Lincoln Jr.’s signature Char character will soon be available as tasteful bling with the release of the Sterling Silver Char Pendant necklaces from Random Nature. The Sterling Silver Char pendant measures 1.5” x 1.1” and features 3 bezel set black diamonds – who says poop can’t be classy ?
It’s available as a Ladies’ (18-inch) or Men’s (30-inch) sterling silver necklace. Limited to 100 pieces, each neckalce comes with a silver foil pressed print by Letterpressed.com. Suggested retail for the 18” necklace is $180-$200 and $210-$225 for the $30” chain. More pics after the jump.
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Ashley Wood x ThreeA – 1:1 Bramble @ SDCC
Ashley Wood is starting to lay waste to the collectible vinyl market with his hyper-detailed visions of futuristic gritty combat. The first salvo was Bertie (WWR) produced by Bigshot Toyworks. Next, came the 1:6 scale Nom De Plume from ThreeA, Ashley’s partnership with Three Zero.
The newest weapon of destruction ? Brambleton Mk2. Judging from the pics on the blog, a 1:1 version of this beast is apparently going to be at SDCC in the IDW Publishing booth. Amazing. The big boy should be amazing promo for the upcoming 1/6 scale Brambleton from ThreeA slated for September.
Hello, Brute – A Boy Who Won’t Be Good (07.11.2008)
Schmancy based in Seattle brings to you “A Boy Who Won’t Be Good” a solo show by Jon Knox aka Hello Brute. This show will feature a few original paintings and original hand casted and hand painted resin figures whom are based off of his own characters Brute (9” Tall) and Jake (6.5'” Tall). Two of the paintings featured here are both 18” x 24” acrylic on cradled wood. A week prior to the show will be a presale on the Schmancy Blog. So anyone in the Washington area be sure to stop by and say Hello to Brute.
Schmancy
1932 Second Avenue
Seattle, WA 98101
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Coarsetoys x Vans – 1:3 Flake – Chopper
Awhile back we mentioned that Coarsetoys x Vans 1:3 Flake-Chopper edition figure previously exclusive to Vans’ Berlin store would soon be available to customers worldwide. That day is almost here… Rotofugi is taking preorders for the figure with a non-refundable deposit of $145 (half the full price of $290). In case you’re wondering – the 25” Chopper edition has also been referred to as the Butcher edition – named after the Vans Butcher Block store in Berlin, hence the butcher knife accessory. The figure is expected to ship at the end of July/early August.
If you’re not familiar with Mark Landwehr’s 1:3 figures – they’re amazing well done and at this scale feel more like vinyl sculptures than toys. Definitely a standout piece suited for the discriminating collector.
Bubi Au Yeung’s 8” Treeson
Bubi Au Yeung’s Treeson will soon be available in an articulated 8” version from Crazy Label (500 pcs, $69). As seen in TRE’s Treesonisms feature, the larger Treeson features four points of articulation (legs and arms) and a reversible tree branch w/green heart on one side. First unveiled over this weekend at Wizard World Chicago, the newest Treeson will be available for pre-sale at TTF (Crazylabel – A10 & A11) and SDCC (launch partner TBA). Given the popularity of the original Treeson, big brother should be in-demand when it drops officially in August. More pics after the jump.
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Chi-Kit Kwong’s Chi-Bo
Fresh off the announcement of the 8” Ultimate Alpha figure, Galaxy Bunch has announced their antidote to the uniformity of the platform. Designed by Chi-Kit Kwong, the Chi-bo project features a planned sixty Chi-Bots – each unique characters with their own stories to tell. Chi-Bo is a combination of the artist's first name and 'Bo' (treasure in Chinese). Quite an ambitious project – one that reflects Chi-Kit’s focus on the variations of personality -- “I believe in the significance of individuality. The individual is ultimately the most valuable and main ingredient of humanity. The characters of Chi-Bo celebrate and reflect the beauty of humor”. While all sixty characters have their individual personalities, each shares the common bonds of the Chi-Bo universe.
Prior to the August release, Chi-Bo will debut at Taipei Toy Festival and will also be shown at the Tokyo Wonder Festival and SDCC.The Chi-Bots will be released in waves – five figures + a “secret” Build-a-Figure (BAF) character. The waves will be spaced two months apart – that's alot of collecting ;-) Each of the five figures in a wave will come with a mini-comic book + a different part of the sixth figure. Collect all five figures and you’ll have all the parts needed to assemble the sixth Chi-Bot.
The Chi-Bo 'first strike' features His Royal Highness, Tall Kitty, Action Kwong, Space Funky and Teenage Trackstar (above: first row, left to right). The Miracle Shroom is the sixth BAF figure. They range from 5 to 7 inches.
The Chi-Bo world is woven through three main story-lines: The Royal Zoo, The Great China Athletic Club and the Old East Town. Each figure is drawn from one of these story-lines – whether it’s the quest for his Royal highness to reclaim his kingship, the tale of a band of ping-pong players seeking national glory, or day-to-day urban life.
Chi-Bo’s got our attention – we’re curious to learn more. It's one of the most ambitious vinyl projects in recent memory -- sixty medium size figures slated for release over a course of less than two years. After the jump -- pics of each of the first six characters + comic-book sample pages.
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Jun 28, 2008
Gama-Go’s Giant Wood Deathbots @ SDCC
So the Gama-Go x Ningyoushi Deathbot wood figs are definitely cool – though they are somewhat on the small side. That was then, this is now. Gama-Go has decided to really push things over the top with an awesome 30” hand-carved wood Deathbot produced in conjunction with Ningyoushi. Limited to just 100 pieces, this will be available for ordering at Gama-Go’s SDCC booth. Rad – should be a highly-sought after high-end piece.
Jun 27, 2008
Super7 @ SDCC
Super7 recently posted up an SDCC website (here) to help keep track of exclusives and events that are going to take place during the convention. On the site you can find pictures of some of the exclusive releases such as the Exclusive Squirm, Mummy Boy, Himalan, and Beetlar. As well as things we will have to wait to see when the time comes like the Exclusive Stomp, Zombie, Dokuwashi, RealxHead Mini Set. The site includes the planned events for each day including a Pushead and Itokin Park signing. More updates on news and information as SDCC gets closer.
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Seen: Pocket Full of Monsters – The Mash-Up
The Pocket Full of Monsters crew opened their first-ever all-crew show last night @ Munky King Melrose to a large crowd throughout the evening . Given the size of the crew (20+ easily), perhaps the large number of pieces and variety isn’t quite shocking – but it’s impressive regardless. From original paintings to photographs to sweet hand-done there’s something for almost everyone. If you didn’t cruise by the show, the surprise of the night was that PFOM member Luke Chueh rocked a painting. Not surprisingly, it sold almost instantly.
Luke is also the ‘mystery artist’ for the very cool PFOM boxed print set (4 x 6’s) which also featured prints from 2H, Angry Woebots, Mainframe, Mycryptonauts, Peekaboomonster, Phallic Mammary & Tragnark. The print sets come in sweet hand-sprayed include a bandana and are limited to 20 sets (8 prints in all) @ $300 each.
The back gallery area of Munky King is loaded with art from the PFOM crew members including a nice hanging installation of Mycryptonatus’ hand-made plush. This is really the first we’ve seen of Aaron’s work – very impressive. Dig the squarish-block guy. If you haven’t seen it before, drop by MK or check out his web site.
Finally, a PFOM show wouldn’t be complete without live-painting. The crew members spent most of the night alternating on a series of canvas panels in the gallery space. 2H was also coerced (yeah… right) into painting on a lovely lady. It’s tough being an artist ;-)
PFOM started as a simple way to encourage artists to put themselves out there and work together and has now gelled together with sweet results. We have a hunch you’ll be seeing plenty more from the crew shortly. In the meantime, click through for all the opening pics you could ever want.
Munky King
7308 Melrose Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90046
323.938.0091