03 October 2009
06 September 2009
Turning to Hollywood Tie-Ins, Lego Thinks Beyond the Brick
New York Times piece on Lego, which has been doing very well compared to other toy companies in the past few years.
19 May 2009
03 April 2009
19 February 2009
I scream, you scream, we all scream. Especially Alan Moore.
I scream, you scream, we all scream. Especially Alan Moore.
I for one love all the merchandising they’ve done for Watchmen. The further from the point it gets, the funnier it is. Hey kids, a Comedian action figure! Find a friend who owns a Sally Jupiter doll and play rape!
11 November 2008
19 September 2008
Assorted Things that Never Became Posts
I’ve started to write a few posts over the past few weeks and have lost interest in all of them before coming to a version I wanted to publish. When Twitter lets me say it in 140 characters, why write a whole post?
So here are a few seeds that never grew to full posts, in no order whatsoever.
Politics: Sarah Pailin really worries me. I fear she’s like George Bush in not understanding the nuances and constitutional effects of various positions, like that it’s okay to go aggressively after criminals but still offer them trials. John McCain is making me like him less than I used to, especially with the dirty campaign he’s running. Lies I can understand, all politicians lie, but voter suppression is unconscionable.
Toys: my favorite Batman action figure is from the Hush series that came out a few years ago based on Jim Lee’s art. This week I bought the All Star Superman toy based on Frank Quitely’s art, and I love it. It’s not the definitive Superman, but I like having one of Quitely’s drawings come to life on my desk. (The definitive Superman is, I think, the 1984 Hasbro one that looks like Christopher Reeve. I have that, too, but the cape has faded to magenta.) I’d like a definitive Tim Drake Robin in his most recent red and black costume, but none of them come out just right, and depending on how RIP comes out he might not be Robin anymore.
Star Wars: I rewatched all six movies recently. I’ve been wrestling with a post about the prequel trilogy that I can’t seem to turn into prose that’s worth reading. Summary: I think Episodes II and III would be pretty much fine if a better actor had been cast as Anakin. I think Episode I looks like they filmed Lucas’s rough draft before he took out all the obviously unworkable brainstormed ideas like midichlorians. The overall framework of the film is fine, but you need to fix a few things like make Anakin older, make Jar-Jar a real character, and make the story fit into the trilogy instead of just being the one where Obi-Wan meets Anakin and nothing else important happens.
Comics: All Star Superman makes my heart pitter patter and fills me with hope for mankind, similar to the Juno afterglow. That and Casanova are the two best things to come out in the past year.
Books: I finished George R.R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire and am eagerly awaiting the next one. I finished ‘salem’s Lot and am reading The Stand. After that I have a ton of things I want to read and have to keep reminding myself to just enjoy the thing I have in my hand right now.
Movies: Pretty excited about Quantum of Solace.
TV: The shows I’m most pining for to return are Pushing Daisies and 30 Rock. Lots of others of course but those are the standouts. I’m not watching Heroes, Smallville, or Terminator anymore. Fringe hasn’t wowed me but I’m willing to give it a few more episodes.
Apple: I’d really like the AppleTV/iTunes to be a viable competitor to broadcast cable, but the money doesn’t add up. I’d like to see them allow rentals of TV on a full season basis for a sharp discount.
IGN: The Top 10 Batman Toys
For my money (literally), the Hush Batman that they rank #6 is the best Batman action figure I’ve found. I have no use for variant dolls like “Green Lantern Batman”.
26 June 2008
17 June 2008
18 April 2008
Lego Dawn of Man
The 40th anniversary of 2001: A Space Odyssey happened when I was in California. Here’s a Lego rendition of The Dawn of Man.
28 June 2007
Plastic duck armada is heading for Britain after 15-year global voyage
Plastic duck armada is heading for Britain after 15-year global voyage
“For the past 15 years Curtis Ebbesmeyer has been tracking nearly 30,000 plastic bath toys that were released into the Pacific Ocean when a container was washed off a cargo ship.”
09 February 2007
The Complete Guide to Marvel Legends
The Complete Guide to Marvel Legends
Pics of all the toys in this line.
23 January 2007
Toys
Something the internet has never been very good at is selling toys. If you want a specific action figure, it’s kind of hard to find it. The big stores you’d think of, Amazon, Toys ‘R’ Us, Target, etc. don’t provide very comprehensive selections, or they don’t keep toys in stock very reliably. Usually you have to turn to collector’s sites which charge twice the list price for the toy just so that it can have a guaranteed mint on card status. But what if you don’t care about the alleged collectors’ quality? What if you want to actually open up the toy and play with it?
Anyway, I’m having trouble finding Marvel Legends’ new Ultimate Iron Man toy (review/pics). I already have an Ultimate Captain America who sits on my desk at work, and I’d like an Iron Man to match. I can keep checking at Target and other toy stores, but it’s annoying that I can’t just buy one from an online store for the price I’d pay in person.
18 October 2006
28 August 2006
bwtf.com: Ben's World of Transformers (Generation One)
bwtf.com: Ben’s World of Transformers (Generation One)
Pics of just about every classic Transformer ever released.
19 March 2006
17 December 2005
Popular Toys of the Last 100 Years
Popular toys of the last 100 years
Neat article, but putting it into slideshow format is infuriating. I’m lazy, sure, but not so lazy I can’t click “next” for myself when I’m done reading.
06 October 2003
I Like Toys
Chris Din delivers some of the best news I’ve ever heard: KB Toys has lost a lawsuit and is putting the entire store on sale! From the official announcement:
Defendants will distribute the Net Settlement Fund by providing a discount at the cash registers of all KB Toys, KB Toy Works, KB Toy Outlet, Toy Liquidator and KB Toys Express stores nationwide, including Guam and Puerto Rico, equal to 30% off all qualifying purchases of $30 or more during October 8-14, 2003. This distribution (the “In-store Distribution”) will be done without requiring a request of any store customer and will be separate and apart from, and in addition to, any previously planned promotional events for 2003. Defendants will not advertise or otherwise promote the distribution in advance of the In-store Distribution. Signs detailing the terms of the In-store Distribution, however, may be displayed in or around the stores during the In-store Distribution and up to 48 hours in advance of the In-store Distribution.
And I get paid this week!