toy news

Once again we’re proud to welcome you to an all-new Toy News Tuesday! We’re the one weekly column right here on ScienceFiction.com where we seek out all of the awesome news you need to know about any announcements and cool happenings in the toy industry and put them all in one easy to find place for you! This week we have announcements from Mattel, Lego, and more, plus some industry news! There’s plenty to see in the toy news for the week of March 27th, 2018!


KB Toys Back From The Dead?

They say that every ending is a new beginning but rarely is that truism so literally the case. With the toy industry reeling from the recently announced closure of Toys R Us, you couldn’t have picked a better time to announce the return of KB Toys if you tried. Writing on LinkedIn, Strategic Marks founder Ellia Kassoff explained that the KB’s resurrection has been in the works for the past six months, though the announcement that Toys R Us will be closing has led them to accelerate their plans, with the goal of having the first of the revived KB locations open in time for Christmas. Kassoff also promised that the new KB hopes to take the place of Toys R Us not only in the toy market but in the job market. To that end, Kassoff has invited the 33,000 Toys R Us employees who have suddenly found themselves looking for work to forward their resumes.

TRU Exclusive Marvel Legends Find A New Home

Collectors and commentators everywhere have been fretting about the implications that the looming closure of Toys R Us has for the toy industry as a whole. Stepping away from the big picture, though, there are also some more immediate concerns, among them the question of what happens to the chain’s various exclusives. Of course, the answer to that question is ultimately going to vary on a case by case basis, but in at least one case, the answer has arrived. Originally announced as a Toys R Us exclusive, the Marvel Legends ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Scarlet Witch and Vision 2-Pack is now getting a wider release (though it’s unclear whether it’s not a standard release or if there is some sort of shared exclusive arrangement). The set is currently available for pre-order at Big Bad Toy Store and Dorkside Toys.

‘Infinity War’ Minimates Have Arrived

Avengers: Infinity War’ may not arrive for another month, but Diamond Select Toys’ first wave of ‘Infinity War’ Minimates is already here! As is often the case with Minimates, the set includes a variety of retailer exclusives, including Walgreens and sets that are only being made available through comic shops. The comic shop releases were formerly exclusive to Toys R Us. You can check out the full solicitation and images below!

The War Reaches Comic Shops with Avengers: Infinity War Minimates!

War has arrived! The first Diamond Select Toys products based on Avengers: Infinity War have reached comic shops, with many more on the way! The opening salvo is the Marvel Minimates box set, which went on sale this week, and pre-orders are now open for an assortment of Minimates two-packs. Pre-orders are also open for a variety of PVC Dioramas, action figures and resin statues based on the film! Read on for details, then reserve yours through your local comic shop or favorite online retailer! Look for more products and images in the near future!

On sale now at your local comic shop, the Marvel Minimates Avengers Infinity War Box Set includes Iron Man in his Mark 50 armor, Thanos with his Infinity Gauntlet, and two exclusive figures – Black Widow with her batons and staff, and the Winter Soldier with his weapon! The box set has a suggested retail price of $24.99.

Adding to the Avengers line-up, Marvel Minimates Avengers Infinity War Series 1 was once a Toys”R”Us exclusive, but is now only available at comic shops! Three two-packs include Iron Man with Thanos, Hulk with Spider-Man, and the comic-shop-exclusive Rocket with Adolescent Groot! Each has an SRP of $9.99. Reserve your set today with your local comic shop!

Mattel Says “Welcome To Jurassic Park!”

If ever there was a film series tailor-made for toys, it would have to be ‘Jurassic Park.’ After all, few things fire the imagination quite like dinosaurs and the series has indeed produced a plethora of cool (if not always screen accurate) toys over the last twenty-five years. And with ‘Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom’ hitting theaters this summer, that tradition is set to continue. While most of the ‘Fallen Kingdom’ toyline was announced at New York Toy Fair, that didn’t include retailer exclusives. While those have yet to be officially announced, Jurassic Outpost has released what appear to be leaked images from the 3.75 inch Jurassic World Legacy Collection, which will showcase characters and dinosaurs from past ‘Jurassic Park’ films. The line is set to be exclusive to Target in the United States, and you can check out the images below!

NECA Teases Ultimate Gremlin

After announcing it (along with a handful of accessories) at New York Toy Fair, NECA has released their latest sneak preview of their 7-inch Ultimate Gremlin figure. The photo, which was released on Twitter, showcases the still-in-development figure along with a new accessory (a bucket of popcorn). You can check out the picture below!

LEGO Enters The Grid

The LEGO Ideas fan creation system has been a gift to fans since its introduction, facilitating the production of any number of specialized LEGO sets based on an equally wide variety of properties that may not have the sort of mainstream popularity needed to support a more traditional release. The latest property to benefit from this program is ‘Tron’, specifically ‘Tron Legacy’, the 2010 sequel to the original cult classic film. For its inaugural foray into the Grid, LEGO is bringing us a set that includes a pair of the franchise’s iconic lightcycles, along with minifigures of Sam Flynn, Quorra, and Rinzler. You can check out the full solicitation and images below!

Build, play and display with this futuristic LEGO® Ideas 21314 TRON: Legacy set from Disney, featuring 2 Light Cycles, each with minifigure seats and translucent-colored light-style elements, plus a divisible TRON grid with attachment points for the vehicles. Use the grid as a display base for the Light Cycles or split it in 2 to recreate the chase scene from Disney’s TRON: Legacy movie. Alternatively, stage an Identity Disc battle between the 3 included LEGO minifigures—Sam Flynn, Quorra and Rinzler—on the grid. This construction toy includes a booklet with information about its fan creator and LEGO designers, plus the lowdown on Disney’s TRON: Legacy movie and its main characters.

*  Includes 3 LEGO® minifigures: Sam Flynn, Quorra and Rinzler.

*  Features 2 buildable Light Cycles for Sam Flynn and Rinzler, and a TRON grid/display base.

* Sam Flynn’s Light Cycle features a minifigure seat, authentic features and assorted translucent-blue light-style elements, including power stream effects.

* Rinzler’s Light Cycle features a minifigure seat, authentic features and assorted translucent-orange light-style elements, including power stream effects.

* TRON grid/display base features 2 detachable parts, attachment points for the 2 Light Cycles and translucent-blue elements.

* Divide the grid to recreate the Light Cycle chase scene from Disney’s TRON: Legacy movie, or use it to role-play the disc battle scene with the minifigures.

*  Includes Quorra’s sword.

* Accessory elements include Sam Flynn and Quorra’s blue Identity Discs, and Rinzler’s 2 orange Identity Discs.

* Attach the discs to the back of each minifigure. This construction toy includes a booklet with building instructions, information about the set’s fan creator and LEGO designers, and the lowdown on Disney’s TRON: Legacy movie and its main characters.

* Each Light Cycle measures over 1″ (5cm) high, 6” (17cm) long and 1” (4cm) wide.

* TRON grid/display base measures over 8” (22cm) wide and 3” (9cm) deep.

Mezco’s Stealth Armor Iron Man Sneaks Into Previews

Mezco’s has officially unveiled the latest addition to their One:12 Collective line! The Stealth Armor Iron Man will be a Previews exclusive and is effectively a repainted version of their prior One:12 Collective Iron Man release. Priced at $90, the figure stands 6.7 inches tall and includes a stand and a variety of effects pieces and interchangeable hands. Check out the full solicitation and images below!

Iron Man, the secret identity of Tony Stark, blasts his way into the One:12 Collective. Billionaire inventor and arms manufacturer, Tony Stark, suffers a severe chest injury while being held captive by enemy forces. Stark is forced by to build a weapon of mass destruction, but instead creates a powered suit of armor that keeps his damaged heart beating and helps him escape captivity. Later, Stark augments his suit with weapons and other high-tech devices at his company, Stark Industries; and creates the suit to protect the world as Iron Man.

The One:12 Collective Iron Man features a newly sculpted One:12 body specifically created for this figure and is designed with real metal components. His articulated visor can be worn in the standard closed position or opened to reveal the face of billionaire Tony Stark. The figure comes complete with an array of blast effects, as well as gauntlet rockets and hip rockets that can be interchanged with his hip discs. His signature arc reactor, the source of Iron Man’s power, has a light up feature (battery included).

THE ONE:12 COLLECTIVE IRON MAN FIGURE FEATURES:
A newly sculpted One:12 Collective body with over 30 points of articulation
One (1) head portrait with moveable faceplate to reveal Tony Stark’s face
Hand painted authentic detailing
Over 20cm tall
Six (6) interchangeable hands including
One (1) pair of fists (L&R)
One (1) pair of posing hands (L&R)
One (1) pair of blasting/ flying hands (L&R)

COSTUME:
Helmet with magnetic visor that can be worn open or closed
Sculpted body armor
Light-up chest arc reactor (battery included)
Metal components including:
Upper Torso
Gauntlets
Boots
Toe cap
Upper footplate

ACCESSORIES:
One (1) chest beam
Two (2) hand booster effects
Two (2) foot booster effects
Two (2) repulsor beams
Two (2) gauntlet rockets
Two (2) hip rocket launchers
One (1) One:12 Collective display base with logo
One (1) One:12 Collective adjustable display post

Each One:12 Collective Iron Man figure is packaged in a collector friendly box, designed with collectors in mind there are no twist ties for easy in and out of package display.

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