Help Save the Coney Island Mermaid Parade

    Normally, I wouldn't involve myself in what you do with your money.  But after seeing a certain business solicit for donations to put on an awards show as a way of further advertising their brand and the products they sell, I got kinda peeved.  So in light of that I thought I would tell you about an organization that really needs your help in preserving an American tradition and is even willing to give you cool stuff for your money.

    Coney Island is one of the coolest places I've ever visited in this country.  Sure there are tons of amusement parks and boardwalks that you can visit, but none of them have the unique vibe that Coney Island possesses.  The moment you arrive you feel like you've stepped into a world that is separate from anything else you've ever experienced.  It's hard to describe unless you've been there, and I'm finding it hard to put into words just how inspiring of a place it is.

    Like most of the coastal towns where I live, Coney Island was hit really hard by Hurricane Sandy.  With the help of generous volunteers they have slowly been able to rebuild but their budget has been depleted by the cost of repairs and the fact that the Sideshow and Museum haven't been open to patrons.  This has put the annual Mermaid Parade in jeopardy.

    For 30 years the parade has been a staple of this Brooklyn community and you can help keep it going.  A Kickstarter campaign has begun to help raise money and every donation is rewarded with things ranging from your name on a Thank You banner in the parade, to buttons, an event print from Frank Kozik, to actually riding in the parade in your own personalized port-a-potty.  Check out their page here and be part of preserving one of the things that makes this country great.  Plus, I've never been to it before and I really want to go this year.  

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/377116752/save-the-coney-island-mermaid-from-extinction

SDCC Exclusive Boba Fett from Hasbro

    Do you think anyone would jump bail if a guy looking like this might show up to your door and freeze you in a block of carbonite?  I don't think so.  But I would totally watch a show about it.  It would be an improvement from that guy with the poofy mullet and his inbred looking kids.  Who could take him seriously?  I can imagine Boba Fett ringing your doorbell and as soon as you open it just shooting you in the face.  TV could be so much better.

    Hasbro has started a new line of Star Wars figures called The Black Series and basically that means they're big, full of detail, and come in fancy packaging.  Boba Fett and his Han Solo accessory will be an exclusive to this year's San Diego Comic Con.  The figure is 6 inches tall, comes with a few weapons and jet pack, and is a bargain at $45.  I expect to see a bazillion of these on eBay the moment they go on sale.  

R2-A6 Flash Drive from Mimobot

    You remember R2-A6 right?  He was R2-D2's weird cousin with the lisp.  Mimobot created this limited edition flash drive to celebrate Star Wars Day, which I realize was this past weekend but if you want timely news you're better off with CNN.  I had things to do.  They only made 1000 of them and they can still be found for sale at www.mimoco.com.

Parasite Animals Pre-Order from Kikkake x Lulubell Toy Bodega

    How great are these?  The best things you've obviously seen all day would be the correct answer.  These Parasite Animals have been around for a little bit, but now we can get them in America without having to pay crazy shipping prices!  Take the money you would have spent on having them mailed to your house and buy more toys!!  Look how much better your life just became.

    Kikkake had this brilliant idea of taking cute little critter and planting them on top of a skull.  He could have stopped there, because it was already gold, but then he made some killer packaging for them with this bear that is all like "rawr, I'm gonna eat you and stuff cause I have glowing eyeballs".  And then it was the best thing ever but he wasn't done.  He then made a plastic puddle of blood that you can prop em up on for that extra gory effect.  Take my money now!

    You can preorder these guys right now from Lulubell Toy Bodega, who always have the craziest stuff I've ever seen in my life for sale.  And it always sells out (like those Siccaluna Bunnies.  I will never get to own one of those), so stop reading my gibberish and go and buy all of these.  

http://www.lulubelltoys.com/

Look at all the colors you could get!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Where are the cats by the way?  Get on making some kitties Kikkake!!

Octovox from Alto x Creo Design

    The octopus is a fascinating creature.  They have 8 crazy arms that can do 8 crazy things al at once and they're smarter than any member of the Kardashian family.  So how come more people don't utilize them in toy design?  Alto and Creo Design are going to be releasing their take on everyones favorite cephalopod this summer with Octovox.  He's got the same crazy angular look that their other work has featured and I believe his color variations were inspired by different types of music.  I'm guessing that because he has a massive amount of speakers coming from the back of his head.  And it looks like he's giving us the double middle finger.  Sassy octopus.  

Chocolate Brown Helper Dragon from Tim Biskup x Rotofugi

    Today my stomach is waging war on the rest of my body.  I don't know what I did to piss it off so much, but it is angry.  This has nothing to do with this toy at all, I just thought I would take advantage of my public forum to complain and gather sympathy.  Ok, moving on.

    This is the latest, and possibly last, color of Tim Biskup's Helper Dragon from Rotofugi.  Why would I say such a thing?  Cause they're making a new mold for their Roto-a-Matic machine that will debut in the summer.  What could it be?  Nobody tells me anything, so your guess is as good as mine.  But while we wait you should buy this.  It's only $6 and available now at www.rotofugi.com.  

Super Series Sunday from Taskone x Tenacious Toys

Fact: Electric Mayhem was always a better band than Nickelback. Fact: The noises my stomach makes after eating bad lunch meat is more listenable than Nickelback. But we're not here to debate whether or not a certain group of Canadian musicians should be treated as terrorists, we're here to talk about these toys.

Taskone and Tenacious Toys are releasing three more figures in their ongoing Pillaging Pop Culture/Super Series Sunday collaboration. Get one blind box for $40 or all three figures for $100 starting tomorrow at 4pm Eastern time.