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Toy Fair 2009: Diamond Select Toys

Pete Vilmur | February 16, 2009

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We have to admit that Diamond Select’s quarter-scale series just keeps getting better and better. The sculpting is extremely accurate and the clothing really steps up the quality factor on these sizable additions to the Star Wars collecting hobby.

We were able to sneak a peek at some upcoming entries from this quickly-growing series, two of which really impressed me — Mace Windu not only looks spot on to the character’s appearance in the films, his robes look in-scale as well, not an easy accomplishment when it comes to mimicking the natural folds and wrinkles of fabric. Diamond’s red-robed Palpatine also knocks one out of the park, with a very rich feel appropriate for his royal Imperial status. Again, the larger scale and talented designers have made the fabrics appear true to scale, which really enhances the appeal of this line.

Check out a few photos from Diamond Select’s showroom at Toy Fair here

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Toy Fair 2009: LEGO Star Wars and Clone Wars

Pete Vilmur | February 16, 2009

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There was a lot to soak in at LEGO’s booth this year with both the Star Wars and Indiana Jones LEGO properties going strong, and we snapped a few pics of some of the great pieces you’ll be seeing later this year.

Easy stand-outs were the Venator-class Republic Cruiser, which had so many moving-opening-separating parts that it made our heads spin — and of course Anakin’s Y-wing Starfighter, the coolest ship (in my opinion) to emerge from The Clone Wars series. A close second is the new Republic Attack Shuttle, which should be reaching store shelves now. You can check out these and more in our Flickr series here.

Stay tuned for an update on LEGO Indy merch, and be sure to check out our continuing photo coverage of this year’s Toy Fair!

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Toy Fair 2009: Uncle Milton Loves Star Wars

Pete Vilmur | February 16, 2009

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One of the booths we were anxious to check out at Toy Fair this year was Uncle Milton’s, due in no small part to the Force Trainer toy we reported on a few weeks ago with a follow up interview last week.

I actually got to test The Force Trainer for myself, and have to admit it does take some mental concentration — or perhaps lack thereof — to make the ball float. The key is to clear your mind to let the (Alpha? Beta? Gamma?) waves build up and register on the headset. So, actually thinking of nothing is the way to go. Not as easy as it sounds, it is. But great fun — and a great way to compare your Force ability to that of your busy-minded friends (who would perform poorly without turning down the mental processing a notch).

In addition to the Force Trainer, we found a bunch of other cool Star Wars toys heading our way from Uncle Milton, and were lucky to get our hands on their press release for some descriptions. Check out the images and descriptions after the jump!

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Toy Fair 2009: Hasbro Action Figures

Pete Vilmur | February 15, 2009

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We start our Toy Fair coverage today with a peek inside Hasbro’s showroom at New York’s Toy Fair, currently underway beneath brilliant blue skies and near freezing temperatures!!

We’ll start by sharing the new Star Wars action figures they’ve got lined up for this year, which include several characters new and old from both the filmed saga and The Clone Wars. Some great additions here, especially from The Clone Wars line — Jabba the Hutt, Padme, Jar Jar, and Goldie the notorious astromech droid, to name a few. As for the classic, we were happy to see a little Ugnaught love coming from the Hasbro galaxy this year!

For Expanded Universe fans, check out the fantastic Lumiya complete with changeable head and lightwhip! A lot to look forward to from Hasbro this year, especially with new episodes of the Clone Wars adding fantastic new characters and vehicles to the line with each episode. Speaking of new vehicles, stay tuned for Hasbro’s big BIG release for this year with one of the few Star Wars vehicles that actually uses, yes, wheels (gasp!!).

Click here for our full photo coverage of the 2009 New York Toy Fair!

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He’s No Guac to Me Dead

Pete Vilmur | February 4, 2009

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Latimes.com reports the winners of Guac Bowl 2009 today, an annual event that attracts entries from guacamole aficionadoes. While “He’s No Guac to Me Dead” didn’t take this year’s Best Presentation Trophy (that went to an entry titled “Ms. Guac Man”), we think Rob Saccenti’s Han-in-carbonite creation is definitely double-dip-worthy.

From the story:

Saccenti once again wowed spectators with “He’s No Guac to Me Dead,” a life-size replica of Han Solo encased in carbonite and guacamole, but the only trophy his Guac Solo came close to winning was the Icarus Award.

Check out the full story and other winning entries here.

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Rare Hungarian Star Wars on Ebay

Pete Vilmur | January 27, 2009

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When it comes to Star Wars posters, sometimes bizarre is better. This recent eBay auction for a rare Hungarian Star Wars poster, which depicts a strange grill-mouth Vader with sword-wielding dragon, recently sold for nearly $700. Not bad for a film whose title most of us probably can’t pronounce (”Csillagok Haboruja”).

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Obama Action Figure Duels Vader

Pete Vilmur | January 21, 2009

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We’re not exactly sure if this is an officially-licensed Presidential action figure or not, but the fact that it’s posed with none other than Darth Vader makes it too irresistible — not to mention timely — not to mention here. Lucas must have been on to something when he singled out Obama as a modern-day hero-in-the-making last June.

Check out more pics of this striking figure apparently from Japan.

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SOURCE: BoingBoing.net

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Empire Billboard Fetches $14K on eBay

Pete Vilmur | January 15, 2009

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There used to be a day when you could hardly give billboard posters away — they were too large to easily display, and mounting them archivally on a roll of linen was cost-prohibitive. But, like many things, Star Wars seems to have changed the rules on that. Perfect example was a recent eBay auction for a rare Empire billboard poster which yielded 10 bids reaching $14,000, quite a respectable sum for any Star Wars poster.

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Boba Underoos Fettch $100 on Ebay

Pete Vilmur | December 19, 2008

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You know when fans bid up a set of 1980 Boba Fett Underoos to $104 that the galaxy’s baddest bounty hunter has still got it. For that price, the underwear better be really fun to wear!

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Found on eBay: African Ewoks Poster Art

Pete Vilmur | December 12, 2008

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We caught this item on eBay a few weeks ago and thought it was pretty cool. According to the seller’s description, movie posters in some West African regions hand-painted oversize movie posters back in the day in order to travel with the film as it toured several theater venues. From the description:

The artist had the freedom to add or change scenes seen or not seen in the film in order to make the poster more attractive!…These posters were rolled or folded and easy to move around with the mobile Cinema…The profits of the mobile Cinema operators were also reduced and they were not able to afford the “expensive” talented artist to paint their signboards anymore!

This artwork is actually based on a similar poster used internationally for the video release of Battle for Endor in 1986, although in this instance the artist’s sense of proportion appears a bit skewed (we’ve heard of strong-headed heroes, but big-headed?). Gladly, the piece was successfully sold to one lucky bidder who might want to proudly display it over the living room sofa.

Or not.

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