Radioactive Man and Fallout Boy

Shown above is Radioactive Man and Fallout Boy from the latest series of action figures put out by McFarlane Toys to tie into the The Simpsons Movie.

Found via Toy News International.

Manga Coffee: Seichi no Kohi

This may be the best fanboy invention since they put comics on the back of cereal boxes:

Manga-illustrated coffee
a hit at Tokyo exhibition venue

“A manga-illustrated canned coffee product that went on sale during the Comic Market (Comiket) 72 convention in August has turned out to be a hit among visitors to the Tokyo Big Sight exhibition venue. The “Seichi no Kohi” (sacred-site coffee) features two manga-like designs. One shows a girl carrying a bag along with another girl wearing glasses and carrying a thick book, resembling one of the official Comiket guides. The other shows a cosplay character in a sailor-type school uniform. The product was conceived by Big Sight Service, a company that operates stalls at Tokyo Big Sight, where Comiket is held.”

TV Guide Magazine Tunes Out

It looks like good old TV Guide will cease to be published as a magazine, alas the company will live on but the publication will fade into history. As a fanboy this is rather sad for me as TV Guide has such a rich history of featuring all sorts of cool shows on their covers, making the back issues very collectable. Shown above are covers for Star Trek, Superman, the Six Million Dollar Man, Lost in Space, and Land of the Giants.

Update: This turns out to be a false alarm as it turns out that TV Guide will continue to kill trees! Thanks to the Minimalist Weblog for the update.

Anime Virtual Dress Up Dolls

Cartoon Doll Emporium which is a web 2.0 “virtual dress up doll” site just added an anime section. When you’re done dressing up your own virtual anime diva, you can then post your well attired anime artwork to your own blog or MySpace account.

Although what I liked best about the site is that it allows members to upload their own fan art, and thus allows you to create your own virtual dress up dolls. While some of the results may not be as slick as a professional artist, I admire the effort and energy some of the community members have put into their work. In fact got a kick out this Hamtaro entry which is very cute.

The Most Dangerous Toys of All Time

There’s a great article at Radar magazine on the top ten most dangerous toys of all time. My personal favorite is the Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab Kit:

“Honey, why is your face glowing? In 1951, A.C. Gilbert introduced his U-238 Atomic Energy Lab, a radioactive learning set we can only assume was fun for the whole math club. Gilbert, who Americanmemorabilia claims was “often compared to Walt Disney for his creative genius,” had a dream that nuclear power could capture the imaginations of children everywhere. For a mere $49.50, the kit came complete with three “very low-level” radioactive sources, a Geiger-Mueller radiation counter, a Wilson Cloud Chamber (to see paths of alpha particles), a Spinthariscope (to see “live” radioactive disintegration), four samples of Uranium-bearing ores, and an Electroscope to measure radioactivity.”

Kewpie Anime Dolls

Shown above is the Kewsion Kewpie line of anime hero cell phone strap figurines. The series features characters from well known anime shows from Astro Boy to Gatchaman (Battle of the Planets here in the US). You can order the series from Strapya World:

Kewpie as Your Anime Hero, Kewsion Phone Straps

So for those who are asking, just what exactly is a Kewpie? Kewpie dolls and figurines are based on illustrations by Rose O’Neill that appeared in Ladies’ Home Journal in 1909. These illustrations, which incorporated words and pictures with the recurring Kewpie characters, are considered to be early versions of the comic strip medium. In Japan Kewpie is the name of a Japanese food manufacturer, famous for its popular brand of Japanese mayonnaise which features a Kewpie doll logo.

Homer Simpson Talking Shower Radio

The industrial design of the above radio is sheer Simpsons genius! You control the volume and station tuning controlled by turning Homer’s eyes. Press Homer’s right ear and he will give you one of the six phrases, such as “That tickles!” and “Okay, quit admiring yourself and towel off”:

Homer Simpson Talking Shower Radio

Found via GeekAlerts.

No Match for the Kung Fu Grip

This photo made me smile because I loved playing with G.I. Joe and watching Godzilla flicks as a child. Photo by Jason, around the web as TCM Hitchhiker.

Death Note Misa Mascot

For me the hallmark of a cool anime goodie is that it looks good to mundanes even if they know nothing about the show that the goodie is associated with, so the Misa Amane Mascot Cell Phone Strap (shown above) caught my attention right away. It has that wonderful goth feeling to the mascot, yet that smile gives it that nice sense of humor. If you want to adopt mascot Misa if you go here:

Death Note Misa Doll Mascot Cell Phone Strap

Canned Ramen

Now you don’t even have to add water:

Canned noodles emerging as hit product in Japan

“Canned noodles are emerging as a hit product across Japan following last year’s rising popularity of canned oden in Tokyo’s Akihabara district. Kyoto-based vending machine manufacturer Fujitaka was the first company to come out with canned ramen. In May this year it began selling Sapporo-style noodles, which gained huge popularity, mainly in the Akihabara district.

In June, the company added hiyashi-men (chilled noodles) to its lineup of canned products. The noodles are made from konnyaku to prevent them from going soggy when they soak up the noodle soup. Since no hot water is needed they can be eaten straight away.”

Full Metal Bender

Here’s an must own item for every Futurama fanboy:

3″ Mini Die Cast Bender

“To celebrate Bender’s awesomeness, we bring you this tiny, shiny version of the future’s favorite robot. At just slightly over 3″ tall, this effigy is just like Bender – all metal! In fact, he’s die cast and nickel plated. His head turns around (full 360 °) so he can look at, glare at, or target anything you want him to. Everyone needs a little Bender now and again. So grab one now, and celebrate the secret desire to become a folk singer in all of us. Each Bender is just over 3″ tall, made of all metal (nickel plated!), and has a rotatable head.”

Happy Tree Friends Mimobots

Shown above are samples from the Happy Tree Friends Mimobot Series 1 collection (Mimobots are USB harddrives in case you didn’t know) which just came out, pretty cute no?

The Hello Kitty Car

Shown above is the Mitsubishi i Princess Kitty which features a Hello Kitty design motif (click to see all the detail at full size, trust me it’s worth it):

Mitsubishi i Princess Kitty (Hello Kitty)

“It was bound to happen sooner or later… and after ANCEL and DAMD’s pimp of the Mitsubishi I, here’s the Hello Kitty version of our beloved Kei-Car. Don’t panic though, because only one of these will be sold! If you want to see this car irl, jet over to Japan because it will be on display in a big Japanese store between July 25th and 31st.”

Read more…

Hello Kitty Cat Clothing

I don’t know why they didn’t think of this sooner! Now you can now buy a Hello Kitty outfit to humiliate, err “dress up” your cat. But I have to admit that there’s something very cute about the photo above, although I can only guess at what poor neko is thinking.

Orguss: Model Kit Ad from 1984

Shown above is an ad for toys and model kits from the classic anime series Super Dimension Century Orguss which was featured in the January 1984 issue of Animedia magazine.

Read more…

Paripo Umachoko

The typography on this package design is A+ in my book! Having the eyeballs on the letters P reminds me of something that designer Paula Scher might create. I was also impressed that the treats inside tasted rather good, the outside had a crisp feeling to it which was a nice contrast to the sweet chocolate goo inside. How often do you get to have a good typography and chocolate experience for $1.89?

Muppets Move to Atlanta

It’s funny before this I never heard of the Center for Puppetry Arts, but it sounds like they’ll be worth a visit for fanboys traveling to Atlanta:

Retired Muppets Will Move to Atlanta

“Time’s fun when you’re having flies, Kermit the Frog once said. And how time has flown: Kermit, or more precisely one of the many puppets that have played Kermit, will be retired to Atlanta on Wednesday, part of a major gift being made by the Jim Henson Foundation.

The flippered phenom, who began life as a scrap of fabric cut from a green coat discarded by Jim Henson’s mother, will be presented to the Center for Puppetry Arts here. He is a symbol of a large gift of Mr. Henson’s work that will be donated to the center and exhibited in a planned Jim Henson Wing, said Cheryl Henson, president of the Jim Henson Foundation.

Ms. Henson, Jim Henson’s second-oldest daughter, and Jane Henson, her mother and Mr. Henson’s first performing partner, expected to be in Atlanta on Wednesday to announce the gift: 500 to 700 puppets, including some of the first Muppets built; props; scenic elements; posters; sketches; and drawings that Mr. Henson created for shows like “The Muppet Show,” “Sesame Street,” “Fraggle Rock” and “Sam and Friends” (where the Muppets first appeared). Cheryl Henson has also pledged $1 million of her own money to the center.”

Hello Kitty Robot

Danger Will Robinson! This Hello Kitty Robot looks like it might chant “Cute! Crush! Destroy!” It’s also going to cost Kitty fanboys and fangurls a pretty penny too, each robot is $6,299.99 (but they are available for presale right away):

Hello Kitty Robot

“Hello Kitty had release this fabulous Hello Kitty Robo. This robot can communicate with your using the Hello Kitty’s voice. It can chat with you in 3 different situations: 1 As a close friend; 2 With the family; 3 Guessing game. This is a perfect robot for whoever does not have a lot time to stay with child. Hello Kitty Robo can help you to stay with your child to keep them from being lonely.”

Found via GeekAlerts.

Tastes Like Chocolate Tree Stumps

Shown above is the playful package design for Bourbon Kikori No Kirikabu which are cookies with a chocolate coating shaped to look like tree stumps. To be honest the cookies didn’t taste that great, but I love the look of all of the cute little illustrated creatures that adorn the box art:

Amazing Chinese Film Posters Collection

Shown above is a poster for the 1962 film the Bride Napping which I found at shaolinchamber.com, an amazing where they have a great Chinese poster collection online (with a special focus on the Shaw Brothers).

My favorites at a glance are (some slightly NSFW) Divorce Hong Kong Style, the Human Godess, Girl with the Long Hair, Adultery Chinese Style, and of course Oily Maniac (a horror film from 1976).

Special thanks to Chris Liendo for the tip!

1966 Flocked Batmobile

Shown above is a 1:18 1966 Flocked Batmobile limited edition made by Hot Wheels, if you’re lucky enough to be at Comic Con at the end of July. They’ll be selling about 100 a day for $300 each for a few lucky fanboys.

Oscar Goldman (Exploding Briefcase Included)

It’s funny on the Six Million Dollar Man I never recall Oscar Goldman sporting a tacky leasure suit, although the saving grace in this 70s attired action figure is that at lest he’s allowed to have an exploding briefcase! I guess there are advantages in being the Six Million Dollar Man’s Boss…

White Rose Vanilla Crunch

This is how I’ve been keeping cool through the last week! Shown above is the packaging of White Rose Vanilla Crunch, which is pretty much ice cream on a stick with bits of chocolate. They’re smaller than American ice cream treats, but if you’re counting calories that’s a good thing. The inside contents don’t look quite as good as the packaging, but they do taste great on a hot Summer night.

Space Race Card Game

The above illustrations were rediscovered by digial archivist Paula Wirth, they’re from a card game called “Space Race”. The set was published in 1969 but I wonder if the art work isn’t from an earlier time as it does have a late 50s feeling to it. The illustrations shown above are ‘Lost in Space’, ‘Lost on the Moon’, ‘Repairs in Space’, and ‘Danger – Comets!’