SPIKE JONZE’s forthcoming “Where The Wild Things Are” film marketing blitz is easily the most welcome merchandising moment in recent years. Kicking off the collecting onslaught is MEDICOM TOY’s excellent KUBRICK set depicting Max and his merry band of monsters alongside an amazing 12″ REAL ACTION HERO version of Max in his fuzzy suit and crown. All figures hit shelves in October when the movie— based on Maurice Sendak’s seminal children’s book of the same name—drops in theaters…

Just when the innovation level of the vinyl toy market hit an all-time low alongside the economy, MARK RYDEN and TAKASHI MURAKAMI have unveiled killer new signature figures to inject some much-needed vitality into the genre. Coming soon from LONG GONE JOHN’s secretive NECESSARIES TOY FOUNDATION is the first vinyl toy from master painter MARK RYDEN. Long ignoring the world of toys—and rightly so—Ryden has finally teamed up with his most avid art stalker to release this diminutive version of his multi-eyeballed pink totem pole that originally appeared in (and derives its title from) the painting “YHWH,” that first appeared in his 2004 “Wondertoonel” show. With an expected release date of Summer 2009, young art goths in search of this Holy Grail best start camping out at your neighborhood toy stores now. Meanwhile, Takashi Murakami’s “Inochi” figure, produced by Japanese toy giants MEDICOM and based on the artist’s character who has appeared in a series of hilarious and surreal Japanese TV Commercials and as a life-sized sculpture in his traveling “© Murakami” art show, has just hit shelves as part of a new exhibition at the artist’s own KAIKAI KIKI gallery in Tokyo. With doors open to the public on Saturday, The show made available five Inochi figures in as many different colored outfits in an edition of 200 pieces each that retailed for a whopping $1,500 USD. In the words of Murakami’s camp: “Fashioned with an astounding attention to detail, the Inochi action figure is a small-scale replica of the original sculpture, created by world renowned toy manufacturer Medicom Toy. Like its larger counterpart, which was subject to over six years of work before reaching completion, the action figure has been in planning for nearly three years. The result features a level of perfection that exceeds that of a mere toy and accords it the status of a work of art. The figure also comes with costuming, in the form of Inochi’s school uniform and rucksack, both of which are removable. Each figure will be available with costumes in 5 colors, identical to those worn by the original, and also as a special set of 5.” Read the rest of this entry »

Los Angeles fashionista and collector MIGUEL DE LA BARRACUDA has teamed up with vinyl toymakers MINDSTYLE to create an extremely limited edition colorway of Hong Kong design king MICHAEL LAU’s new STANLEY KUBRICK pack and MICHAEL JORDAN figures available only at his Hollywood BARRACUDA shop. Produced in the ultra-desirable white colorway the late, great director’s legacy deserves, the KUBRICK PACK ($300 USD) includes characters from the signature movies, “A Clockwork Orange,” “2001: A Space Odyssey,” and “Full Metal Jacket,” while the MICHAEL JORDAN figure (in blue and black shirt colorways, $150) pays ultimate homage to the greatest player the game may ever see. All are available in-store now and can be ordered for overseas delivery (323 852-7179). Don’t sleep. HAVE A LOOK: Read the rest of this entry »

T9G, Marion Peck, Mark Ryden, and Tim Biskup are all nerds…

Masters of vinyl toydom TIM BISKUP and Tokyo’s T9G teamed up to blow minds of Japanese collectors with their “T x T Project” of collaborative vinyl toys and new paintings from Mr Biskup that opened last weekend at STITCH GALLERY. Cobbling together new toys mad scientist style using the best parts (giblets included) from their own respective signature artist toys, the dynamic duo gave frenzied onlookers a glimpse of how cool the modern world of vinyl toys could be if places like Kid Robot didn’t actually exist. Needless to say, the pair’s legion of devoted fanboys and girls lined up for blocks to get a glimpse at the neon colored spectacle and snatch up newly released colorways of the pair’s new collaborative production toy “Rangeas” which sold out instantaneously. Also of note was the sneek peek look at the new prototype of T9G’s version of Tim Biskup’s iconic “Helper” toy set to be released this spring. HAVE A LOOK: Read the rest of this entry »

Otaku toy collectors are rejoicing at the upcoming joint show at Tokyo hotspot STITCH between TIM BISKUP and mad scientist Japanese designer T9G (Ta-Ku-Ji) whose wild remixes of each other’s iconic figures are poised to single-handedly breathe new life into the slumping vinyl toy genre. Dubbed the “T x T Project,” the show will also feature a colorful array of brand new Tim Biskup Kaiju paintings alongside the release of several incredibly rare production vinyl toys and art prints created especially for the occasion. The jump-off is February 6th, frequent flying toy nerds best cash in their miles now. HAVE A LOOK: Read the rest of this entry »

Ron and his McBuddy rule Hong Kong with an iron fist and an army of undead Charlie Browns…

Making the rounds in old Hong Kong this week was Supertouch’s own RON ENGLISH who hit up the island for the official debut of two of his new toy projects: his ABRAHAM OBAMA bust and SMILE figure. First up was his “Smile” reception at GARAGEWORKS GALLERY, where faithful HK hipsters turned up in droves to get a close-up glimpse at the New Jersey bad boy’s brand-new vinyl reworking of old Charlie Brown’s familiar grille. Moving along, it was off to the MINDSTYLE TOYS world HQ for the debut of Ronnie’s timely Abraham Obama bust, a figure that must surely have HK residents scratching their heads in bewilderment. Dropping worldwide just in time for inauguration day, American fans can get ahold of the very elusive silver colorway exclusively at LA’s hipster hotspot BARRACUDA, while supplies last. HAVE A LOOK: Read the rest of this entry »

 
Toys are dead, skating’s not!… 

ART BASEL might seem like the most unlikely place for a toy release, but in honor of legendary skatepunk artist RICHARD SANCHEZ and the new art book, “Punk is Dead, Punk is Everything,” the new SKATE BAT toy based on his vintage black & white artwork is being debuted at the “Kill Your Idols” punk installation space in Miami’s design district. Created by Kill Your Idols Toys, the 7” tall figure will be released in this original monochrome colorway in a ridiculously small run of FIVE pieces total starting Thursday, December 4th, while a second colorway will be released in a larger run in Spring 2009 at yet-to-be-announced retailers. The venue is located at 3852 N. Miami Ave in Miami’s Design District so diehard collectors best start lining up now. Like, RIGHT now. HAVE A LOOK: Read the rest of this entry »

Hong Kong Sneaker and vinyl fetishists were on cloud nine last week when hoometown art hero MICHAEL LAU opened his “Crazy Force 1” art show at MICHAEL GALLERY. A collaborative project between the seminal toymaker’s “Crazy Children” series and NIKE SPORTSWEAR’s “1World” Air Force 1 program, the show featured a shoe box-like interior printed with Lau’s “padded cell” print with artwork by Lau visible only through Swoosh-shaped cutouts in the wall. In the far corner of the room stood the artist’s life-sized “Crazy Force” character solo in a corner. Of course no proper collab would be complete without to-die-for limited-edition product and Lau did not disappoint in offering fans a signature Nike Air Force 1 sneaker with an upper constructed of his quilted “padded cell” leather and a pocket-sized version of his “Crazy Force” character. Needless to say, supplies sold out in seconds and Lau’s reputation as the king of the game remained undefeated. HAVE A LOOK: Read the rest of this entry »