You Want Dunnys? Check Out All of These Available for Preorder Right Now

    My head is literally ready to explode with all of the amazing Dunnys that Kidrobot is coming out with this year.  If this is what the future of this company looks like then we are in for many years of toys I desperately need.  You've got a healthy mixture of well known vinyl artists, some that are completely new to the vinyl world, and fan favorite designs that made the jump from 3 inch figures to 8 inch.  Let's get started so you can see where your money is going this year.  

    Sket-One self-produced a pretty killer version of this Sketratcha Dunny some time back and now it's getting a proper vinyl release as a 3 inch figure.  There's gonna be a chase version as well, which I'm not gonna spoil for you in case you haven't seen it.  $14.99 will get you one.  

    I can't say enough good things about doubleparlour.  Admittedly, I was a bit late to their appreciation party, but I'm trying to make up for lost time.  I'm in love with everything they do and this Dunny is no exception.  This 3 inch toy is on my must have list and at only $14.99, I won't feel guilty about it either.  

    Ever wondered what a certain famous mouse looked like when he went home, removed his kid friendly exterior, and exposed what was really lurking underneath?  Yeah, me neither, but I have no problem believing that behind that smile lies a creature that feasts on equal parts cash and children's souls.  A balanced diet is important after all.  Ron English and his sinister friend are making the jump from the Apocalypse blind box series to a full 8 inch production figure.  For $74.99 you can have him stare at you as you plan your next trip to the happiest place on earth.

    And people think that no one listens to their pleas?  Well, when your demands aren't ridiculous, this can be the result.  Scott Tolleson's Lotus Dragon was next to impossible to get as part of the Evolved Dunny series, so thankfully its 8 inch counterpart will be much simpler to obtain.  All you need is $99.99 and a bit of patience and you could have this delivered to your door in the Fall.  Go ahead and add this to my must have list.   

    This one has a special place in my heart, because I was able to not only hold the prototype in my hand, but take a picture of it that circulated pretty quickly around the internet.  I felt like a proud father.  Not only did Junko Mizuno's design make the jump from 3 inch to 8 inch, but they added some elements to it as well.  The thing is stunning in person and I've been waiting patiently to be able to get one since I first saw it in February.  

       This is what I like to see.  Someone working their butt of painting figure after figure, honing their craft, and then getting rewarded with their own production toy.  It's happened before but I feel it's going to happen a lot more now that the stable of artists Kidrobot is pulling from is pretty much endless.  Maybe I'll get my own Dunny?  I gotta make a phone call.

     Wuzone seems inspired by everyone's favorite pathologically lying puppet, but put enough of a spin on it to make it feel fresh.  I know what you're thinking, you're thinking: "How will I possibly afford all this?"  For one, don't worry, just stop paying those annoying student loans.  Secondly, this dude is priced at only $59.99.  It's like a throwback price!!!

    Sweet mother of plastic what is this you have bestowed upon me?  J*RYU has just changed everything you thought a Dunny could be.  Not only is it not character driven, but the design, and sculpting, and the detail.  I think I just got the vapors.  And to top it all off it pretty much demands to be the centerpiece of your collection as it stands a whopping 20 inches high.  Forget buying a new shelf, you're gonna need an alter for this.  Now she ain't cheap at $449.99, but I can guarantee you it's worth every penny you have to steal.  

    Each one of these, and The 13 Dunny series from Brandt Peters that I've previously written about, are all available for preorder right now from your favorite designer toy stores.  No more sweating on release day, no more pounding the refresh key on your laptop, or frantically driving from store to store, or pacts with dark forces trying to secure the one's you need.  This is a glorious time to be a collector.  

Lacking A Green Thumb? Then You Need Taylored Curiosities' Curious Lithops

     When Sharon and I bought our house I distinctly remember the garden in front looking impressive.  This was a few years ago and my memory is not always the best, but it seems that the simple act of us moving in has caused the thing to deteriorate.  My neighbor's is really impressive, and being that they're right next to one another, makes ours look even worse.  The other day I tried to go out and pull some weeds up, but they started flowering which made me doubt whether I should pull them or whether they we even weeds at all.  They have obviously been paying attention to humans and realized that as long as you're pretty you can get away with anything.  So after being punked by a bunch of rogue plants I decided the only course of action was to go eat lunch and just deal with the nasty looks we get from the people we live near.  

   

    I'm sure I would fare much better with these Curious Lithops from Taylored Curiosities.  For one, they're always gonna look like this, so the maintenance after putting them in the flower bed would be zero.  And two, they'll look good year round as they have transcended the idea of death by being made of clay/resin/other stuff that I have no idea about.  You can pick the one's you want or you can take a gamble and buy them blind boxed.  Spruce up your living space at http://tayloredcuriosities.bigcartel.com/.

    

**UPDATE**Vinyl Pulse's 10 Year Anniversary Astronaut from Itokin Park

    **UPDATE**  There's also going to be a cammo version available.  Now, camo ain't easy to paint.  You can't just wish it on there, so as a result this guy will be $45 to reflect the hard work.  But look at those results; they're totally worth it.  All the other release info is the same.  

    I met Buzz Aldrin once.  He's the only astronaut I've ever shook hands with, and that's the only astronaut story I have.  He seemed nice, and I'm pretty sure I could have whooped him.  Is it weird that I thought about whether I could win a fight against an 80 year old man, or awesome that I am willing to take on a space traveler and moon adventurer?  When you put it like that it makes me seem kind of heroic.

    Vinyl Pulse is celebrating their 10th year of writing about designer toys, which is a pretty long time when you think about it.  Some cars don't even last that long, so you gotta celebrate a milestone that big with something special, like this exclusive Astronaut from Itokin Park.  He's decked out in colors from the website and will go on sale this Friday, June 19th, at 7am pacific time from www.vinylpulse.com.  Each 3 and 1/2 inch figure will be $35 and guaranteed cute as hell.

Kidrobot To Debut Mega Man Collection With Two SDCC Exclusives

     When I was a wee little lad I used to spend a week every summer hanging out with my grandparents.  I always wanted to dig through all the stuff in their attic and garage but they were kinda reluctant to let me treasure hunt, which made me think they had some really cool things that they were not interested in sharing, like guns or a family of science rats.  They did their best to keep me occupied and from playing Indiana Jones in their house, and one of the ways they did it was by taking me to rent video games.  Now I'm gonna have to explain this to the younger folks:  there used to be a time when you had to leave your house in order to borrow video games from businesses specifically set up for just this.  Weird, right?  Well, I remember renting Mega Man 2 and desperately trying to finish it in the two days I was allowed to keep it for, but no dice.  I had to sucker my mom into renting it again for me when I got home and I blew through all the money I had to pay the late fees.  Even though it cost me a small fortune I finally finished it, and surprisingly enough, have never worked that hard at anything else in life.  All of my dreams, my potential, gone the moment I slid that cartridge back across the counter.  Hahahahahahaha just kidding, I got even more awesome from there, some would even say disturbingly so.

    According to Wikipedia there have been over 100 tiles in the Megaman franchise, and Kidrobot and Capcom are celebrating this little dude with some pretty cool toys.  Your first chance to get your hands on them will come at San Diego Comic Con where two exclusive figures will be released.  Break Man and Mega Man will be available in 7 inch versions at $49.99 each.  If you can't make it to the convention you won't miss out completely, because in September a blind box series, a keychain collection, and two other 7 inch figures of Mega Man and Proto Man will be made available wherever you prefer to buy your toys.

   

Permanent Guest from Coarse to Release June 18th

    There are times in life where jokes will not do.  Where you have to sit back, realize the story you are about to retell is already brilliant the way it is, and let it speak for itself.  Such is the tale behind this raccoon towing a fish in a bathtub.  Their story reads like one of Aesop's Fables as written by the Brothers Grimm.  I've always known Coarse created some of the most impressive pieces in vinyl that I had ever seen, but I was woefully ignorant to how much thought went into each one.  So I will humbly pause, direct you to click this link, and read the tale of these two unlikely companions for yourself.  Go ahead, I'll wait.

 

    Pretty neat, huh?  These two traveling companions will come in two equally different versions.  The black and gold "Endless Shadows" edition, and the more subdued "Promised Bliss"colorway.  Both will be available on June 18th (that's this Thursday) only through http://coarsehkg.com/.  Each set is limited to only 345 pieces and I would imagine those won't last very long.

Kyle Kirwan's Mudcat Willo for Tenacious Toys' Super Series Sunday

    Kyle Kirwan is taking resin casting where resin casting hasn't gone before.  He bought himself an RV and is gonna travel from Brooklyn to Designer Con, dropping new releases along the way like some kind of toy making Ken Kesey (though I haven't gotten word whether he's painted his magic toy bus like a crazy person or filled it with naked and stoned hippies).

   His first release will be this glow in the dark blue Mudcat Willo for Super Series Sunday from Tenacious Toys.  Hey, isn't there someone else know for making blue stuff in an RV?  Maybe I'm just imagining it.  Only 6 of these 11 inch tall figures will be available starting at 8pm eastern time tonight.  Pick one up for $100 only from www.tenacioustoys.com.  

"Blue Glow" Lolgolth Gnazgoroth Preorder from Skinner x Unbox Industries

    And you though those nasty bros from beyond the wall in Game of Thrones were brutal, what with their icy stare and army of the dead.  You think Jon Snow's not gonna send them back to whatever black hole you crawled out of?  Cause that's gonna happen.  See, raising people up from the ground that you just put there is all well and good, but the impressiveness of that is gonna wear thin once you start getting carved up with Valerian steel.  You gotta have a wow factor, like when the Wildlings got those Giants to hang out with them.  Well feast your eyes on this bad boy my White Walker friends, and have those pesky folks in Westoros cowering in their boots and unable to fight back.

    Lolgolth Gnazgoroth from Skinner and Unbox Industries has no problem inspiring fear in any one he, or it, comes across.  Now you can have one in your house that will glow in the darkest of nights, scaring the hell out of you even when you try to sleep.  Or lighting the way as you get older and can't quite hold your pee pee until morning.  I don't want to talk about it.

    This sucker is going on preorder today for $145, which is a paltry sum for the crazy detail that goes into one of these.  Seriously, I've seen one in person and was struck dumb by how intense manufacturing this behemoth must be.  Get yourself one and be amazed by its brilliance every day of your life by clicking here.

How my butt feels after eating at Golden Corral.