“The fashion house of Roen teams up with Medicom once again to create a version of Mickey that few ever get to see. In his latest Roen designed turn, Mickey gets bandaged up like a mummy but not quite all the way. Instead of a neat and concise wrapper that covers the rodent’s entire body, the bandages are loose and haphazardly arranged. Other notable features include a paintbrush in Mickey’s right hand and a tongue that hangs loosely from the Mickster’s mouth. ”
I count myself as very lucky as my local grocer Sunac Natural (located at 440 Union Ave., Williamsburg Brooklyn) always has a nice selection of various Japanese goodies. During the Summer one of my favorite treats is their selection of ice cream — in this case I got a chance to sample a box of White Rose Almond Crunch Bar which was quite the tasty treat. The nice thing about the ice cream was that each serving wasn’t super sized so I didn’t have to feel to guilty about having a little treat.
Was Back to the Future II made 19 years ago? Ouch! Well if you can’t afford to time travel you can still own a chunk of your youth for a mere $30,000 to $50,000 as the hoverboard that Michael J. Fox used in the last two Back to the Future films is now for sale on eBay:
“This is one of the hero Mattel Hoverboards used by Michael J. Fox in his most famous role as “Marty McFly” in the Robert Zemeckis classic 80s trilogy, Back to the Future. Two styles of Hoverboard were made for and employed in the film – lightweight boards of styrofoam construction and thick and durable wood-based props – this example is the latter, and is recognized as the best example of all wood Hoverboards to have survived the rigors of filming. The illusion of Michael J. Fox as “Marty McFly” hovering through the air was achieved with practical effects, with actors in rigged harnesses being “flown” via cranes, with special effects taking care of the rest.
Of the two styles of props used in the film – styrofoam and wood – the styrofoam examples in collections today have not held up as well, given the more fragile nature of the material and the abuse they endured in production. Few wood examples have survived, and the collector who obtained this specimen from the prop master chose this for his personal collection as the premiere example of those preserved following the film. It is in used but outstanding condition, and is very rare in that it is entirely complete and intact. Given the wood build and use of metal components, it looks and feels like a “real” prop. This piece has the complete fully functional and rear ballbearing-mounted footpad that rotates 360 degrees, as well as the bottom “magnet plates”. Of the two styles of stickers used for the effects, this prop has the “photoboard”-style sticker affixed. In addition, there is other textured styling and hand painting. This Hoverboard also features the hole in the top, representing where the handlebars were that “Marty” pulled off after borrowing the “toy” from the little girl in the film.”
After getting more than a little lost we caught up with our main man Patrick Ma of Rocket World. Based in San Francisco, this independent custom toy outfit just launched a very tight themed custom toy collection. The I.W.G. Astro Krieg space hunters collection is really well thought out. Patrick attributes this design to the fusion of outdoor hunting, the military, toys from childhood, and an industrial design ethos. We picked up the hippo and the bear both wearing space suits!
UNKL Toys booth: I made it to Kow Yokoyama’s signing. This limited toy is awesome. Pictured here is SUG. Also comes with a pet dog in same suit. We bought the set and MAK.Po!
Brian Flynn founder Super7 explaining the infinite line of villains portrayed behind him. Note the Cobra Commander colorway. This booth is hot! Below is a Prototype of new line by Super7 and Gorilla Supreme:
What I spotted at the Merit International booth: This piece just made it here on time! The series is called STD which stands for Slick, Toonie, and Dez.
Shown above is Kidrobot’s interpretation of Matt Groening’s The Simpsons which is due out on August 21st. There will be 24 mini figures in all but my favorites are already Itchy & Scratchy.
Based in Vancouver, Canada Joe Blow Glassworks produces an amazing line of hot glass art objects called Raygunz:
“These are blown and manipulated hot glass objects. A transparent colour is picked up on the pipe, then clear glass is gathered on top. The piece is then blown out and shaped to the desired form. Coloured bits are added. Once the bits are in place, the handle and trigger are applied to the piece, the Raygun is then knocked off the blowpipe into the annealer to cool over a fifteen-hour cycle.”
Shown above is the Hello Kitty 1seg tuner which features a 2.4″ LCD screen. The 1seg standard is a digital TV standard in Japan which is mostly aimed at mobile phones. Unlike regular TV the broadcasts can include text for breaking news and early earthquake warnings. The technology is still a bit flakey as it’s hard to use 1seg on a fast moving train, although if you’re just watching Kitty TV at home you should be fine.
I think the charm of robot tin toys is that they’re a reminder that what we think of futurism is in fact the ideas that are most likely to date the fastest. Photographed by Ed who lives in Massachusetts, USA.
“Sideshow is proud to bring you the Big Baby Life-Size Prop Replica from Hellboy II: The Golden Army. The Big Baby Prop Replica features six removable shells and a musical wind-up feature that plays the tune Lullaby and Goodnight, and comes complete with a sturdy display base. The Big Baby Life-Size Prop Replica is the perfect addition to any collection, a reflection if Sideshow’s dedication to quality.”
And while we’re on Hellboy you may get a kick out of this random quote generator that’s being used to promote the film:
Urban vinyl toys just take chances that you don’t see in mainstream playthings: For example the above toy by Tokidoki of The TIGER! is done in this amazing shocking pink which is such a wonderful contrast to the evil heart and cross bones. The above design will be on sale at the San Diego Comic Con from STRANGECo.
“The upcoming Sanrio licensed Hello Kitty ATM Bank features a flip-top lid which pops up to reveal an keypad, a digital readout, and a coin slot which accepts 500-yen coins. Since a 500-yen coin measures 2.65cm or 1.04″ in diameter and a USA quarter (0.25 cents) is slightly less than an inch in diameter, the Kitty Bank will store up to 500 quarters. Three styles are on offer for preorder and reservations are welcome today.”
…I was going to wish that they made a version just or American currency, but even then it would be a stretch to think that you would use this in the real world (aside from showing it off to fellow kitty fangurls and fanboys).
Digital archivist (and artist) Todd Franklin unearthed this amazing Felix the Cat soda bottle cap for Felix Orange Dry. It’s funny that we always associate Disney characters with early mass merchandising, but by doing that we over look the other cartoon characters who helped exploit pop culture!
“There’s a hole-in-the-wall eatery near our office building that sells four fried dumplings for a dollar. They’re greasy, glistening with oil, and piping hot. We know they’re not healthy or good for you but a buck doesn’t go far anywhere else… except there. Four dumplings is basically a relatively filling lunch for a wretched dollar.
When Bandai started preorders for the Miniature Mania Gyoza no Shogun straps on Tuesday night, we thought of that fried-dumpling-hole-in-the-wall. In Japan, gyoza are fried dumplings and the photo to the left shows six of them on a platter. Instead of wolfing it down however, you’re supposed to attach it to your phone. In addition to the gyoza strap, Bandai’s Miniature Mania set of food-themed straps include a plate of fried chicken and a beef dish. ”
Please Note: As a vegetarian I don’t approve of either the fried chicken or beef cell phone straps, and if you do order this item please inform everyone that the gyoza is in fact vegetarian — or faux vegetarian as the case may be…
With Fujiya it’s never about the chocolate itself but the packaging! What i like about this product (click on the image to see it at full size) is that not only do you get the four chocolate pencils but there’s also a nice little small button you can wear as a keepsake to show your Peko or Poko loyalty. There are twelve potential button designs that you might get, shown above is Peko-chan enjoying her watermelon while hanging out at the beach with her doggie.
