Welcome back for an all new weekly edition of Toy News Tuesday! The one weekly column right here on ScienceFiction.com where we bring you all the news you need to know about any announcements and cool happenings in the always amazing toy industry! Things are finally calming down now that SDCC has ended, with many companies having made most of their big announcements at the convention itself. Still there’s always plenty going on in the collectibles industry! Let’s check out the toy news for the week of August 5th, 2014!
Guard Your Minimate Galaxy
With Marvel’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ blowing up the box office this past weekend, it comes as no small surprise that the team over at Diamond Select Toys and Art Asylum are providing fans with some awesome new Minimates based on the characters of the film! Depending on where you’re shopping, you can complete your very own Minimate team of the Guardians, as well as some of their villainous foes! While it is considered one complete set, there are several Minimate figures that are retailer exclusives, making this set a little more difficult to complete! Toys R Us will carry three two-packs of characters and will have Yondu as an TRU Exclusive, while specialty retailers (comic shops) will have four two-packs available and have both Gamora and Nebula as exclusives! The full release from DST is below:
One of the most highly anticipated Marvel movies to date, Guardians of the Galaxy, is in movie theaters now, and response has been so great that a sequel is already in the works for 2017! The newest series of Marvel Minimates based on the film is getting a great response as well, and it is currently available in Toys “R” Us stores and on toysrus.com, with an exclusive Minimate not available anywhere else!
Three two-packs are in Toys “R” Us stores now, as well as on Toysrus.com:
– Star-Lord and Ronan
– Drax and Groot (with Rocket micro-figure)
– Yondu and Sakaaran Trooper (Toys “R” Us exclusive)Later this month, comic shops and specialty stores will get their own assortment, with two exclusive two-packs of their own:
– Star-Lord and Ronan
– Drax and Groot (with Rocket micro-figure)
– Gamora with Nova Corpsman (specialty exclusive)
– Nebula with Sakaaran Trooper (specialty exclusive)
Funko Announces Pocket POP Keychains
Never one to just settle down and accept that they are already producing some of the most popular collectibles on the market, Funko recently announced a whole new (well, kind of) line of product that is coming our way soon! With their new Pocket POP Keychains, Funko is releasing miniaturized versions of some of their most popular POP! Vinyl figures in keychain form! Now you can take your favorite POP! Vinyl figures with you everywhere you go in a new smaller pocket sized format! The first wave is set to include Batman, Harley Quinn, Rick Grimes, Daryl Dixon, Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryan, and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!
NEW STUFF!! Pocket Pop! Keychains are collectable miniaturized Pop!’s. Each Pocket Pop! Keychain is 1.5″ inches tall and comes on a key ring. These collectible Pocket Pop! Keychains have all the same features as your standard Pop!’s, but are shrunk down to fit comfortably in your pocket! So… who’s going to add a Pop! of cuteness to your keys?
Monstrous New Wave of POP!
On top of the announcement of their new Pocket POP Keychain collection and the various SDCC announcements last week, Funko also released a first look at their new wave of POP! Vinyl figures based on the classic Universal Studios Monsters! This new set includes Dracula, The Wolf Man, The Mummy, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Phantom of the Opera, Frankenstein’s Monster, The Bride of Frankenstein, and the Metaluna Mutant! These guys should be coming out just in time for fall in late September!
Funko is bringing the legendary Universal Monsters to life in a new Pop! series! Dracula, Frankenstein, The Bride of Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, The Mummy, Creature From the Black Lagoon, and Metaluna Mutant are all creepy cute!
Poison Ivy Sprouting at DC Collectibles
The fans have spoken, and DC Collectibles has replied! A few months back, DC Collectibles asked fans to vote for the character they’d like to see get an all new New 52 styled action figure of, and now she has arrived! Who, you ask? Why fan favorite Batman villainess Poison Ivy! This brand new figure premiered live at SDCC a last week, but DC Collectibles has just recently released this official promo image of the figure, which is expected to hit shelves next summer!
‘The Walking Dead’ Series Six Shambling Forward
The crew over at McFarlane have released some brand new images of the figures that will be a part of their upcoming ‘The Walking Dead’ Series Six! This particular wave of ’Walking Dead’ figures is based on the hit television series, rather than the comic books that the show itself is based on. McFarlane handles the toylines for both the comic and television versions of ’The Walking Dead’. This particular wave of figures is set to include characters like Hershel Green, Carol, Rick Grimes (updated for Season 4), The Governor (with long coat), Abraham Ford, and yet another Zombie for your collection! These are expected to his shelves this October!
(via TNI)
Godzilla ‘85 Evolves at NECA
With their continued commitment to putting out some of the best toys on the market, the team at NECA recently released a new freshly updated head sculpt for their upcoming Godzilla 1985 figure! Just before SDCC, NECA released a first look at the figure to a rather sizable backlash from fans of the franchise regarding the quality of the figures head sculpt. It looks like NECA started over fresh with this one and in this reporters opinion, really nailed the head sculpt the second time around! There’s a comparison shot below of both the old and the new head sculpts, which do you prefer?
(via AFI)
Mattypalooza Reveals
With all of the news that poured out of SDCC last week, it’s not hard to have missed a few announcements here and there from some of your favorite toy companies! The team at Matty Collector recently updated their Official Blog with more direct information regarding much of the collectibles and subscriptions being offered that were announced during Mattypalooza at the convention! Here’s the full run down from Matty Collector:
2014 Masters of the Universe® Minis
These little figures (with the collect and connect Minis Castle Grayskull®) have caused a big commotion. We’ll have lots of options for fans to fill out their collections:Purchase upcoming individual 2014 Packs as they become available at our regular monthly sales in August, October and December.
Catch Up Bundle: Purchase a bundle of 2014 Packs 1, 2 and 3. Figures include Mini He-Man® & Mer-Man® (February), Mini Skeletor® & Moss Man® (April), and Mini Scareglow™ & Stratos® (June).
Think Ahead Bundle: Pre-order a bundle of Packs 4, 5 and 6. Figures include Mini Faker® & Man-At-Arms® (August), Mini Zodac® & Beast Man® (October), and Mini King He-Man® & Clawful® (December). Bundle will ship in December when the final 2014 Pack is released.
The Full Minis Bundle: Pre-order both bundles, including Packs 1-6! Both bundles will ship in December when the final 2014 Pack is released.
All details coming soon to MattyCollector.com!2015 Club MOTU™ Minis
Fans love these little guys so much that we’re offering a new Minis sub for 2015 (and our first Minis gal). The sub will include a total of six 2-packs, plus a sub-exclusive Minis diorama of Snake Mountain™. Shipping approximately every other month, the first two Packs were revealed:
Mini She-Ra® & Horde Trooper™ (January)
Mini Jitsu™ & Mekaneck® (March)
We’ll have all the subscription details on MattyCollector.com, so keep an eye out.2014 Club MOTU™ Giants
Faithful recreations of the vintage MOTU 8 back figures in 12” scale, they come with weapons, armor, a twist waist, rubber band legs, and are packaged on an oversized vintage-style blister card. We’ve already revealed the first two 2014 Giants figures, and the final two were revealed at the panel:
Giant He-Man® (September)
Giant Skeletor® (October)
Giant Stratos® (November)
Giant Beast Man® (December)
We’ll have all the subscription details on MattyCollector.com, so check back right here.2014 Updates
Entrapta™ arrives with a re-release of the “Great Rebellion” sticker sheet. (September Club Etheria™ figure.)
Eldor™ arrives with new logo stickers for “Evil Warriors” and “Heroic Warriors.” (October Club Eternia® figure.)
Tung Lashor™, one of the last remaining vintage Snake Men®, arrives with staff, crossbow and alternate “tongue out” head, recreating the vintage action feature. (November Club Eternia® figure.)
Arrow™ from the POP show was shown with removable wings to create both the animated and classic looks. (November Club Eternia® variant.)
Mermista™ includes interchangeable mermaid and “human” bottom half, and arrives with a stand, seashell horn and shield. (December Club Eternia® figure.)
Gwildor™ arrives with the Cosmic Key™. (November Club Eternia® holiday item.
Galactic Protector She-Ra®, an all-new design created by the Four Horsemen, arrives with her shield, sword, pistol, removable holster and goggles. (November Club Etheria™ figure.)
The highly anticipated Spinnerella™ features a ridiculous amount of deco to ensure the pieces of her trademark skirt are double sided and awesome! (December Club Etheria™ figure.)The 2015 Club Eternia® first quarterly item is a 200x-style 2-pack with Snake Armor™ He-Man® & Battle Armor® King Hssss™, arriving with a 200X Power Sword®, snake staff and shield. (February)
The MOTUC traveling convention item is Skeletor’s Hover Robots in a pack of three with interchangeable arms. Comes with stands and “battle damage” sticker sheet.
A mysterious wing was also revealed… (March)2015 Updates
2015 Club Eternia® Subscription
All Toy Lines Must End! It’s official… 2015 will be the final year for the Masters of the Universe® Classics line. As we bring this epic 7-year journey to a close, we’ll be releasing final figures, accessories and extras that fans have been waiting for, including:
Club-exclusive Oo-Larr® from the 1982 mini comics. He arrives with an alternate vintage-style He-Man® head and, in a first for any MOTUC figure, bare feet!
Shipping with Oo-Larr® is the next mini comic, “The Fall of Eternia: Homecoming!”
Lizard Man with a Filmation sword for Skeletor® and his Diamond Ray of Disappearance. (January)
Silent but deadly Ninja Warrior with an alternate unmasked head, a sword, nunchucks and crossbow. (February)
Fan choice Huntara™ with double laser swords and a stone axe. (March)
That wraps up this week’s Toy news Tuesday! What do you think about the new items announced this week? Do you plan on picking up anything we mentioned in this week’s column? Is anyone else glad that we’ve got a whole year to go before the SDCC Insanity kicks in again? Are there any lines or brands you’d like to see more coverage of? Let us know in the comments section below! Until next week, happy toy hunting!
