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Our pal Sunny from CoolThings went to the Toy Fair 2012 in New York and snapped this photo of a very cool Star Wars LEGO set featuring Jabba the Hutt. That must be one big brick! Link - Thanks Sunny!
See also: Star Wars items from the NeatoShop
The highly-anticipated Lord of the Rings LEGO line was unveiled at a party in conjunction with the International Toy Fare 2012 in New York. Or, at least most of the sets. The Hobbit set is still under wraps. But representatives from TheOneRing.net were there and took pictures. The sets themselves, which feature Lord of the Rings minifigures, are expected to be introduced in stores starting in June. See more photographs in their report. Link -via The Daily What Geek
This video introduced me to Jaimie Mantzel. He not only builds toys, he builds everything else! The top comment at reddit tells more about him.
This guy is a complete and total bad-ass. Seriously. (He’s also nearly constantly manic too, but I digress.)
He has this giant tree-house he built in the middle of the woods by hand which he actually lives/lived in. When he realized he needed a lumber mill to build a giant workshop to go along with his tree house in the woods, he made one himself, with two tires, a motor, and some aluminum poles (no joke).
Why did he need a giant workshop in the middle of the woods, you ask? To build a working life size version of this robot of course! And he did it using 99% junk yard scrap MacGyvered together (like everything else he does). He also wore chain-mail while doing all this to ‘stay fit’.
He has a video blog with tons of videos on YouTube. This guy is so interesting he has caused countless people to spend 10+ hours watching his videos in a single sitting (myself included!). Just look at the other comments here and you’ll see how common an occurrence this is.
P.S. Almost forgot! His “tree house” has a giant trampoline in one of the rooms integrated into the floor (one of those giant backyard ones).
P.P.S. He also somehow convinced his lady-friend to move out into the middle the woods and into his tree-house with him while he did all of this.
Anyway, this toy does not yet have a name, but he is working with a toy company to eventually produce it. -via reddit
The iconic weapon wielded by the main character(s) in the Portal video game franchise is about to become a reality thanks to the team at Neca, makers of fine replicas and awesome action figures.
This 1/1 replica looks so good that your fellow cosplayers will be sooooo jealous when they see you sporting this bad boy! And the quite affordable $208 price tag makes it perfectly accessible to all who want to strap this sucker on during playtime.
You can see lots more pretty pictures of this cool life-size replica at the link below. I predict a flood of Portal cosplayers will be in attendance at Comic-Con this year, and every one of them will have one of these strapped to their arm. The world could use a few more Portal costumes, and about a thousand less anime cosplayers!
Hooters, the chain restaurant that is built around showing off women’s *ahem* assets, is getting an extremely unlikely crossover in their Japanese restaurants as they introduce Hello Kitty elements just in time for Valentine’s Day.
Apparently, the Japanese don’t feel like characters intended for children should be kept separate from adult and sexually suggestive merchandising, which makes me wonder-where do they actually draw the line?
And were those Hello Kitty “personal massagers” I saw online actually licensed by Sanrio? Ewwwww!
Come for the reference to popular building bricks LEGO, stay for the graphic animated violence that makes bricks fly like never before. LEGO Captain America may be the most badass incarnation of the Marvel Comics character ever created, and that’s saying a lot since he’s been kicking tail in the comics since the 40s. Warning: Scenes of intense violence against toys ahead!
–via Comics Alliance
I have dubbed this ultimate gamer geek accessory the Forearm Guard Of (Dice) Rolling, but creator Dia calls it the Dungeons and Dragons Dice Gauntlet. It’s a hand made leather cuff that contains a LilyPad setup inside which automatically rolls a die, from d4 to d20, then presents the result on the screen. And the fun part is-you can make one for yourself, because Dia has included detailed, step-by-step instructions at the link below.
So now, when you roll a natural 20, you can hold your arm aloft and yell like a true Barbarian, for the proof is right there on the screen! Seriously though, hang on to your dice because you don’t want the Dice Gauntlet to crap out on you when you’re about to go heads up with a Beholder.
Link –via Topless Robot
This seems like a good idea when you’re at the drawing board, but watching the final result is akin to being inside a slowly spinning centrifuge, and made me feel a bit woozy. And since this is the second video made with the GoPro attachable camera and a hula hoop I’ve seen in the last year, I can’t help but think that the people making these videos must have something against people with motion sickness, or else why? WHY? I can’t see straight….
Maybe this technique will be used if they ever decide to make that whirling dervishes biopic they’ve been talking about for years, or if some studio picks up Merry-Go-Round: The Musical, but otherwise let’s just leave the camera mounted on the tripod and refrain from making the viewers sick from now on, okay you hula hooping sadists?
–via TDW
When you actually believe that The Muppets movie might be pushing some sort of communist, anti-oil agenda on our kids, you’ve got problems, but when you are called out by Kermit and Miss Piggy, two fleece-skinned superstars that aren’t afraid to tell it like it is, your claims start to look like utter hogwash. Watch as my favorite frog (sorry Frogger!) and pig (sorry Babe!) put the commie claims to bed via press conference.
–via Comedy Central
Mr. T has never looked so cute, and I guess he likes him some tea time! Created by artist Matt Jones, Mr. Tea comes complete with gold sugar cubes, gold stir stick and a slick black gold teacup, perfect for entertaining the favorite fools in your life.
It’s a vinyl figure for those who demand class and sophistication from their toys, and those who have some kind of A-Team home decor thing going on at their pad.
Link –via Best Week Ever
What, me worry about DC Direct’s upcoming crossover action figure line, which features MAD Magazine’s gap toothed spokesman Alfred E. Neuman dressed up like DC’s most beloved superheroes?
No way, because these figures look awesome, even if you’re not a fan of the freckled face chuckle head.
And this is one of those creative and funny crossovers that makes me wish they would create a comic book series, The Many Faces Of A.E. Neuman perhaps, to go along with the toy line. Now that’s what I call a mind bender!
Photo: Sergey Teplyakov/vkontakte
Russian police does not take kindly to protests, even those carried out by toys and dolls:
Police in the Siberian city of Barnaul have asked prosecutors to investigate the legality of a recent protest that saw dozens of small dolls – teddy bears, Lego men, South Park figurines – arranged to mimic a protest, complete with signs reading: "I'm for clean elections" and "A thief should sit in jail, not in the Kremlin".
"Political opposition forces are using new technologies to carry out public events – using toys with placards at mini-protests," Andrei Mulintsev, the city's deputy police chief, said at a press conference this week, according to local media. "In our opinion, this is still an unsanctioned public event."
Link - via Metafilter
This incredibly cool sculpture is brought to you by the twisted mind of Ron English, an artist known for warping iconic figures into ironic statements (see Fat Tony and Dead Mickey), and who previously brought us an Obama-Lincoln mashup that was all the rage a few years back.
This time, Ron has brought us Obama hulking out, as he prepares for the upcoming election by saying “You vote for me or OBAMA SMASH!”
With a soggy and totally psychedelic style to his character renditions, it’s no wonder that Edwin Vazquez and his eye catching artworks have become a popular part of publications such as MAD magazine and Bongo Comics. Trip out on the drips, and some sweet tattoo inspired pieces, at the links below.
Link –via ComicsAlliance
DC Comics has been making some ambitious moves lately, from a logo re-design to a 52 title relaunch, but their newest move should prove to be most heroic-a charity called We Can Be Heroes which will raise money to benefit humanitarian efforts in Africa. Here’s the dollars and cents of it all:
Donations of any amount made at the We Can Be Heroes site will reportedly be matched by DC Entertainment 100 percent, with 50 percent of branded “We Can Be Heroes” online merchandise sales being donated to the fund (unless you buy in Maine, Massachusetts and Alabama). Between these and other efforts, DC says that its three WCBH partners will receive a combined total of at least $2 million over the next two years.
Caped superfolks in print are fine, but stepping up to the plate and making a difference in the real world is truly noble indeed!
Link –via ComicsAlliance
In the Western tradition, it has always been about Barbie. Venus? Actually Barbie. Mona Lisa? It was Barbie. The model for the Statue of Liberty? Barbie. So French artist Jocelyne Grivaud created many Barbie images as great artists should have composed them. Content warning: nudes.
Link (Google Translate) -via Flavorwire
Movies aren’t the only entertainment medium fond of ripping off ideas, video games have been ripping each other off from day one. The games on this list compiled by Dorkly are made up of familiar games with a slightly different look, proving that imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but it generally doesn’t help you sell your product.
From Super Mario Bros. to Street Fighter, to (relatively) newer games like Team Fortress and Grand Theft Auto, no popular game is safe from copycats, yet sometimes a rip-off game takes on a life of its own and makes it big. So, should we hate on imitators, or enjoy the way they lampoon the big names in the industry?
If you’ve ever found yourself wondering “What’s the deal with cosplayers?” (hopefully in an internal voice that sounds like Jerry Seinfeld), then you should find this video informative and enlightening.
And, while the girl featured in the video can only speak out of personal experience, the sentiments expressed seem to be echoed by her fellow cosplayers, at least according to their comments and posts across the Interwebs.
So, did this video give you a better understanding of cosplay culture, or simply make you dislike the whole thing even more?
–via Geeks Are Sexy
In China, copyright violations and giant robots go hand in hand, and apparently one of the best birthday gifts you can receive is a starring role in this creepy knockoff of the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam SEED.
With the cast from Monsters Vs. Aliens cast as the villains, and the creepy birthday boy piloting the giant Gundam mechanized armor, it’s so cheesy that the MPAA are likely to turn a blind eye to their unlawful use of these character likenesses *cough**yeah right**cough*
–via Kotaku
The team at Exploding Rabbit have a gift for any fan of classic Nintendo games, and/or those looking to kill some time online with a really fun retro side scroller- Super Mario Crossover, a custom Super Mario Bros. game that allows you to play through as one of eight playable characters!
You can play as Link from The Legend Of Zelda, Samus from Metroid, Bill Rizer from Contra, Mega Man, even Simon from Castlevania, just to name a few.
Just think how fun it will be to smack Koopas around with a whip, or shoot Bowser in the face when he least expects it, all the while taking in the classic video game soundtrack slightly re-imagined. It’s like the NES threw a party, and you’re invited!
Link –via ComicsAlliance
This impressive tablet-style unit is called the ePawn Arena, a digital tabletop gaming unit which debuted at CES 2012. It’s billed as “the next level of Dungeons and Dragons style gaming”, but I think they’re missing the obvious potential as a never ending variety of board games ready to be loaded up and played, after the table’s been cleared, of course.
Who needs all those heavy boxes, full of game boards, cards and supplements, when you’ve got this sleek number just waiting to be loaded up with all the board games you’ll ever need?
Link –via Geeks Are Sexy
This is not the sort of place you’ll want to take your grandma for lunch, this is the Capcom Bar, a themed restaurant which will feature food and desserts styled after video games. Video games and food-two great things that go great together!
So, there’s Resident Evil brain cakes, Monster Hunter well done meat, and Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney make-it-black-and-white seafood cream pasta, all of which can be enjoyed while playing an assortment of Capcom’s video games and enjoying the festive atmosphere of Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Apparently there was a group of Canadian moralists who fought against violent, corrupting influences on children in the early 90s, and made their message known in a propaganda film entitled Not Just Fun And Games.
These squares despised toys, and had an awful lot of bad things to say about our beloved Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, probably because their fathers never bought them that G.I. Joe doll they always wanted.
Why pile on more hate for the poor mutants, morality police-haven’t they been through enough? I mean, they already live in the sewer, what more do you want?
–via The Daily What
Who knew that pokeballs, the devices used by the characters in the anime series Pokemon to capture their little critter pals, would be so beautiful in real life? Created via photo manipulation by DeviantARTist wazzy88, their elemental contents look so real, like they could burst out at any moment in a surge of bling. No wonder Pokemon don’t mind being trapped inside those things for hours on end!
Link –via Rampaged Reality
These awesome sculptures are obviously inspired by toys, yet their style and subject matter would be lost on children. From a Kim Jong-Il potato head to a Virgin Mary shaped jet, Stephen Ives celebrates childhood in a decidedly adult manner.
Some look like toy mods, others are sculptures which are styled after plastic toys, and all have a unique style that is playful with serious undertones.
The only thing I don’t like about these sculptures is the fact that they haven’t been made into vinyl toy versions, because I want them all for my collection!
Link –via Super Punch
What do old school tabletop gamers, people who have recently discovered pen and paper roleplaying games, and those who are sick of paying a monthly fee for their MMO and/or want to actually see their fellow players sitting across from them have in common? Wizards of the Coast want you to help them develop the fifth edition of Dungeons and Dragons.
Straight from the dragon’s mouth:
Liz Schuh, head of publishing and licensing for Dungeons & Dragons spoke with the New York Times about their new venture. The game “is a unique entertainment experience because it’s crafted by the players at the table, and every gaming session is different,’ said Schuh. “We want to take that idea of the players crafting that experience to the next level and say: ‘Help us craft the rules. Help us craft how this game is played.’”
I am an avid tabletop gamer, and I’ve been playing games like Dungeons and Dragons since the eighties, so I can see how player input could be invaluable to the process of creating a new edition of their game. But is it really necessary to keep updating the game, when preexisting rules can be adapted? What do you guys think — is this a necessary update, or a Kraken sized advertising campaign?
Link –via The Mary Sue
How did Rod Gillies accomplish this feat? He used LEGO bulldozer treads to operate the scrolling skyline. They alternate between one and two-brick widths to give the assembly flexibility.
This guy may look like he owns a windowless van, and hangs out near elementary schools, but he actually has other plans for children- he wants to sell them overpriced robotic toys.
Called Cubelets, they are a set of modular robotic cubes which can be combined into simple robots, and cost a whopping $25 apiece.
All kidding aside, this is a great idea for a product but seems extremely overpriced, and they should definitely consider hiring a spokesman who doesn’t look quite so creepy. Besides, who really needs these when there are so many cool motorized LEGO sets available?
–via Geekologie
The Coast Guard received a distress call about a body spotted floating off the coast of Old Portsmouth, Hants, and when they arrived they found that it was a creature from another planet!
What they had actually discovered was a life-sized replica of everybody’s favorite turtle-esque alien E.T., which had been stolen from the home of Margaret Wells over a year ago.
The replica was custom made by Margaret’s daughter, and what the person who stole E.T. intended to do with him is anybody’s guess. But since he washed up on the shore we can only assume that he owed money to some very bad people. Margaret’s response:
“He has lost a finger and looks a bit roughed up. But he has a smile on his face,” she said. “I always knew E.T. would come home.”
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It’s every pilot’s worst nightmare, yet most flight schools spend only two days on the topic: flying sharks. The pilot of a passenger jet flying into Christchurch, New Zealand spotted a flying shark Air Swimmer toy moving through the air. At least, we’re assuming — perhaps unreasonably — that it was just a toy. Anyway, the pilot radioed into local air traffic controllers to alert them:
The fish out of water was identified as a remote-controlled, helium-filled shark that has topped must-have present lists this Christmas.
The 1.44-metre-long Air Swimmer toy has a radio receiver attached to its underside and can be operated by remote control over a range of 15m.
Designer-developer William Mark Corporation warns that the shark is for “strictly indoor use only”.A spokeswoman for air traffic control company Airways, Monica Davis, said a pilot had reported the shark and its location about nine kilometres from the airport at 2pm on December 26.
Link -via Dave Barry
