Horrible Adorables' Familiar Friends Custom Toy Show at Woot Bear

     I can't tell you the last time I went anywhere that wasn't work or the grocery store.  Actually, I can, as it was in March just before the pandemic hit hard.  My wife and I went to the art museum and thinking back on it now it's one of the things I miss doing the most.  I miss being inspired by what's in front of me and I miss seeing the possibilities of the creative mind other than on the internet. If you happen to be in the San Francisco area you can experience art again in person courtesy of Horrible Adorables and a ton of great custom figures.

   This Saturday August 1st, Woot Bear will be hosting the Familiar Friends custom show.  Utilizing the figure of the same name, tons of your favorite toy artists have lent their talents to reinterpret this magical vinyl toy.  You'll see work from Adrienne Slane, Andrea Kang, Angela Oster, Beanie Bat, Big C, The Bots,  Brett Manning, Ciou, Defectivepudding,  droolwool, Eimi Takano,  Elisabeth Holmes,  Erin Lagace, Frank Montano,  Owlberry Lane, Igor Ventura, Jellykoe, Jeremiah Ketner, JFO,  Joe Somers,  Johnny Draco, Jon-Paul Kaiser,  Kyle Kirwan,  Lana Crooks,  MJ Hsu,  Muju World,  Mumbot, OddFauna, PlushPlay,  Sad Salesman,  Small Thicket,  Theresa Hawkins, Tripper Dungan, valleyDweller, Vanessa Ramirez, and Victoria Rose.  And this will also be the first chance you have to purchase Jinxie the Fire Familiar and take super cute Instagram photos before anyone else.

    The show opens Saturday from 5-8pm, so pick out your nicest face mask and head to Woot Bear.  If you can't make it in person you can check out https://wootbear.com right now to preview all of the pieces from the show.

Tenacious Toys Exclusive Northern (Black) Lights Edition Nordic Lucky Cat from The Toy Viking

    With all of the past Nordic Lucky Cat releases I kept the inspiration strictly to Viking lore, but with the new Northern (Black) Lights edition, I wanted to bring in some outside influence to the color choices. This set of ten figures features the first ever triple marbled colorway, orange, yellow, and pink which are staples of psychedelic art. Oh, and they're black light reactive too, so just imagine how trippy a little Viking cat will be when you've partaken in the Devil's Lettuce, thrown on some Pink Floyd, and are vibeing out with the ghosts of your ancestors. It's the closest you can get to Valhalla without the messy business of being killed in battle.

 

    This signed and numbered run is limited to 10 figures, hand casted in resin by DuBose Art. Each one stand four inches tall, comes in a hand stamped cloth bag, and can be yours for only $40.  They can only be had from Tenacious Toys this Friday, July 31st at noon eastern time. 

www.tenacioustoys.com

Electro-Gore Fly Custom Figures from Plaseebo x Evil Dave

      My wife has been incredibly susceptible to insect bites this year, so much so that she had to cave and buy a spray repellent.  I on the other hand have gone relative unscathed and was bragging about it when karma sent a little retribution courtesy of a hungry fly.   We were doing our daily walk around the neighborhood when what looked like a housefly landed on my arm.  No big deal, right? So I ignored him until he rammed his evil hypodermic of death into my flesh.  It stung like the dickens and I swatted at him with lethal intent, but he was too quick for me.  I figured he learned his lesson and realised I was not to be messed with until he returned and did it again.  Over and over this persistent spawn of satan bit me for the two blocks it took to return home.  And he's still out there, lurking and waiting to feast on my obviously deductible blood until the end of time.  For all of you gun people, which type do you think is best for me to cap his ass?

    Evil Dave's Gore Fly vinyl toy is thankfully not life size, because if flies were this big the world would belong to them.  And if that thought wasn't horrifying enough, Plaseebo ratchets up the scare factor of anything he customizes.  So not only do they look frightening , but the also glow with the souls of the prior humans they've fed upon.  There are four different versions of these bad boys and if you want to own one you have until tomorrow (Friday July 24th) to enter the lottery for a chance to purchase.  Here's all the pertinent info you need:

USD $300. + $20. for US shipping OR $70. for world-wide shipping.

To enter lottery, please send the following to:   bob@plaseebo.net 

1.  Name

2.  Shipping Address 

3.  Country

4.  Telephone Number

5.  PayPal Email Address

6.  Instagram ID

Lottery winners will receive notification email by July 25th. Figures will ship upon receipt of payment due by July 27th.

Namakubi With Sword Vinyl Figure from Magitarius

     I've contemplated many things in life, some if which I've shared with you over the years, others which I keep to myself to avoid the white van and straight jacket response they may warrant.  One thing I've never thought about was what it would take to plunge a sword through the top of someone's head so it resembles a cocktail olive.  It's something you see from time to time in traditional Japanese tattooing, but now I'm wondering how much force it would take to actually do that.  I guess depending on whether the head were still attached to the body would be a huge factor, and whether you could build enough downward thrust.  The skull is hard, but certainly not hard enough to stop a sharpened steel object, and everything inside provides about as much resistance as Jell-O that's lingered a while on a buffet.  So if it were detached, and you had something soft underneath the head to not impede the sword's forward path, I'm thinking it would be rather easy to impale some craniums and create a display that would keep aspiring thieves away from your home.   Guaranteed more effective than any "Beware of Dog" sign.

    Magitarius have created their own grotesque ode to these tattoos in soft vinyl with the first version available in blank flesh color.  I mean, if you were going to release a version that wasn't Maggot White or Blood of Thy Enemies Red, flesh would be the way to go.  Produced by Squibbles Ink, these will be on sale starting tomorrow, July 17th, at noon eastern time exclusively from https://www.magitarius.com.  Imagine being able to take care of the decapitation enthusiast on your Christmas list already!!!!



    

The Monsters Art Mini Series from Pop Mart x how2work

   Right before the pandemic crippled the United States, my wife and I had started taking advantage of the Philadelphia Museum of Art's pay what you want Sundays.  They do it the first one of every month and we were using them as a way to not only see the special exhibits, but the areas of the museum we usually neglect over our favorites.  We made it two months in a row before everything got locked down and on the second visit we were able to see a woodblock print by one of my favorite artists, Edvard Munch.  It was part of a smaller exhibit that they rotate out frequently, allowing their massive stock of undisplayed work to get a little attention.  Which then led us to wonder about the security measures that must be in place to protect such valuable work and how they stored it all in the first place.  As we sat in the Cheesecake Factory gorging on the best chain restaurant food in America we debated whether it was similar to our basement, where things started to form their own little piles with promises to "put them away later"  before one day you're overwhelmed to the degree that you just ignore that you have a basement until you really need that one thing that's down there somewhere, at which point you go to the store and buy another one because it's easier than to face the shame of what your laziness has created.  This is why I have to buy a new pair of gloves every winter.

    I am utterly in love with this series and somehow I must obtain the Munch and Magritte figures. Pop Mart has just released this mini series entitled The Monsters Art, in which How2Work's well known characters take on the personas of famous pieces of art.  They're the perfect little companions for your next museum visit (whenever that may be) and are available starting today by visiting this link. 

Lil Alex Mini Sofubi from Frank Kozik x Blackbook Toy

 
    During this pandemic we have all had to adjust our lives significantly to stay healthy.  For my wife and I, that means if they're not paying us or it doesn't involve buying groceries, we're not going.  In turn, that's amplified our interests in other things.  We've gotten really good at gardening and we take walks around our neighborhood every night.  Seeing a squirrel or rabbit now has us Crocodile Hunter-level excited and we will watch the most common animals like we just landed on Madagascar.  I can't tell if we've hit the adorable phase of middle age or if we've taken a sharp turn into weirdo territory.

 On our walks all of the rabbits we encounter seem to have much better attitudes than Lil Alex.  Frank Kozik's A Clockwork Orange inspired figure has been shrunken down but is still chock full of the ultra violence.  Blackbook Toy made the popular sofubi smaller, added a ton more articulation for maximum posing ability, and also made it ultra affordable for all of us ballers on a budget.  The first versions are being offered in either black or clear, with an option to purchase a set.  They're accepting lottery entries until July 12th, so if you find yourself unable to live without em, here's what you need to do:

Please send email to 

info at blackbooktoy.com

(Please change at to @)

*Email Title: mini Alex Lottery entry

*Name

*Address(Don't forget to include your country and zip code)

*Tel

*Item name (You can enter only once per item. You can enter all items in a mail)

*Instagram, Facebook, Twitter(if you have. If we can't contact you through email, we would contact you through these SNS, so preferable.)

1person/household can order 1pc for each item at maximum.

Only winner would be a receiving email and PayPal payment request on July 16th(JP time).

Payment must be made in 72hours.

If we couldn't confirm payment by deadline, you would be banned from our online shop and lottery forever

Ragnar Vinyl Kaiju Kickstarter from Last Bastion Studios

    The only Ragnar I've ever known is the one made famous by the Vikings tv show.  Oddly enough he met his end after being thrown in a pit of slithering reptiles, though I doubt it is anything more than coincidence that the second Ragnar I know happens to be a turtle.  Or is it part of a deeper conspiracy involving the Illuminatti and the Reptilian Elite who secretly control the worlds oil and Mountain Dew reserves?  If you never hear from me again, you have your answer. 

   Ragnar the vinyl toy is a young Kaiju just trying to find his way in the world, which involves you helping him become reality.  Last Bastion Studios have a Kickstarter going right now to help fund production of this guy.  You can check out this link to become part of his story by backing it at various reward levels.  The project is very close to meeting its funding goal, so check it out and support if you can.

Puck Little Painter Tenacious Toys Exclusive from Chris Dokebi x Strangecat Toys

      I grew up in the sticks of Virginia, which meant that my exposure to graffiti was limited to insults about someone's sister, usually followed by a phone number.  Thus my pivitol years of artistic taste building involved monsters, horror movies, and heavy metal album covers.  So I generally don't get excited by a toy holding a spray can, cause to me that just means that there's some outdoor furniture that needs a recoat or we're about to deface something out of spite.

    So I see this little dude from Chris Dokebi and Strangecat Toys and I think he looks kinda cool.  His name is Puck, who was also the best cast member ever on The Real World, and evidently he's a little Korean folklore goblin that goes around causing mischief and I'm more than cool with that.  I can totally picture him elevating the derogatory graffiti I know into high art while still maintaining its poignant commentary.  That is true art.

   As you can see he's all decked out in blue which does indeed indicate that he is an exclusive for Tenacious Toys.  You can buy one today (July 3) at noon eastern time for $75 by checking out www.tenacioustoys.com.

Evil Ape Fink OG Preorder from MCA x UVD Toys

   I was first exposed to the work of MCA during the closing of Tower Records.  Amid the bins full of picked through magazines and cds was a box of small figures know as Qees.  I'd always been a figure collector, but this was my first exposure to the world of designer toys and I was instantly hooked. I ended up buying a handful of them, including his tribute to David Bowie's Alladin Sane.

    That was longer ago than I'd probably care to think, but it's kinda cool that MCA's designs have literally been in my collection since the moment it started.  Now UVD Toys is taking me on a walk down memory lane with his latest figure, the Evil Ape Fink.  This 4 inch dude looks completely whacked out of his gourd, which is also part of his charm.  I used to work with someone kinda like that, who was pretty useless when it came to doing actual work, but whose life was so chaotic you couldn't wait to hear what nonsense they were involved in the night before.  Jerry Springer could have built a season's worth of shows around their bad decisions

    Preorder your OG version of this figure today for only $60 by visiting www.uvdtoys.com.