Here There Bear Knows Kung Fu!

Our friends at Bigshot Toyworks are reaching the finishing line for their latest Kickstarter; Here There Bear, an adorable plush that can hit all the poses you could want while being the perfect travelling companion! Prototypes of the bear have been canvassing the world, meeting new fans at conventions and on street corners while stopping for those perfect artistic snaps. One such rusty colored bear hit my doorstep last week, and we've been taking on imaginary and plastic baddies ever since. 

Here There Bear Reaching It's Goal

Bigshot Toyworks is pushing hard to get the word out on their newest In-house toy creation... Here There Bear! Meant to ignite the creativity of any child, at any age, this adorable lil bear has a unique skeleton, allowing for action poses. In a universe jam-packed with action figure photographers, who would have thought to add a little plush bear to those highly imaginative scenes??!! Sometimes, it's the simplest ideas that hit you upside the head! Today, we're going to take a look at some additional photography Bigshot sent over, further tempting you to support this awesome crowdfunding project today!

Toy Fair 2025: Kaiju Crazy at Bandai

People talk about how great it must be to grow up in modern times with all forms of media at your finger tips and some of the best toys ever seen being dished out weekly, but I'd argue my childhood ruled...because of Godzilla. Every weekend I would become one with the couch and revel in the certainty that at least one Godzilla movie and one kung fu movie would be waiting for me on one of the (only) 7 TV channels available. Sure, kids can watch anything nowadays, but would they freely CHOOSE to watch men in rubber suits battle it out in tiny foam cities? Probably not. We didn't have that choice, and we have become better humans for it. Bandai, knowing full well that children who love Godzilla and Ultraman grow up to have adult money, show no signs of slowing down with their merchandise onslaught. Let's check out the latest from Bandai's Toy Fair 2025 showroom...

Playmobil Naruto Shippuden Part 2: Teacher Teacher

Greetings, weebs!! Today we head back into Konohagakure, The Hidden Leaf Village, to check out more of Playmobil's Naruto Shippuden figures. Part 1 featured Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. Our second triple feature includes Kakashi Hatake (the iconic "pervy sensei", Iruka Umino (Naruto's most supportive sensei), and Yamato..who is simply...Yamato. 

For two decades, the anime Naruto Shippuden has thrilled fans all over the world. Just in time for the 20th anniversary, the first unique characters from the popular series are now appearing in PLAYMOBIL format. With great details and authentic extras, the precisely designed figures invite to re-enact legendary scenes and invent new stories. Creative fun for anime fans of all ages.

Playmobil Naruto Shippuden Part 1: The Kids Are Alright

We get premium love from our friends at PLAYMOBIL, and that means TOY PHOTOSHOOTS!! The folks at Playmobil have always put out really impressive playsets with many a character to populate a scene and spark a tiny imagination, but when they dipped into licensed properties with GHOSTBUSTERS and HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON, hardcore collectors sat up and took notice! Now, we sit in wait every year for new license announcements, anxious to see what TV show or Movie will get Playmobilified. And really, it's anyone's guess what will come next, as they've released Back to the Future, Scooby-Doo, Star Trek and Knight Rider sets back-to-back. Unpredictability is Playmobil's best weapon! Let's face it, the company that announces a Magnum P.I. set can make anything. 

Galactus: The Devourer of Worlds Has Come

What will surely go down as one of the best action figures ever made has finally arrived at the doorsteps of die hard Marvel collectors, action figure aficionados and those with 400 bucks to blow on a once in a life time toy project. That year long gamble and half a rent check, in my opinion, is well worth it when you slide all 3 feet of Galactus out of his box and are reminded there are three Marvel Legends heralds packed right along side him. His eyes light up, his chest and head piece blinds and each finger moves in every direction an imaginative or juvenile mind could imagine. You've seen many pictures of this behemoth already, most of which depicted Galactus as a newly adopted child going on many, many suburban adventures (and conquering toilet challenges), as well as those all important video reviews, so we'll skip all that gushing and go right for the eye candy. 

A She-Hulk Toy Appreciation Post (Gallery Inside!)

The Single Green Female run of She-Hulk is one of my favorite comic runs of all time. The subject matter hits on all levels for me. You get an exploration of Marvel's New York City that goes beyond the doors of the Avengers Mansion or the Baxter Building, showing villains and heroes alike just trying to live in their respective worlds. When the full weight of the American Judicial System comes down on either side, Jennifer Walters is there to defend the superpowered in a story that is borderline genius, but more often than not, also highly comedic. The world is ridiculous, so it stands to reason it would be 100x more in the powered community. 

NECA's Halloween Kills Action Figure Gallery

It's Friday the 15th!! Yea yea..we know...wrong date for Jason but it's the RIGHT date for the return of Michael Myers!! HALLOWEEN KILLS hits theaters today and following close behind will be NECA's newest Michael Myers Ultimate 7 inch Action figure, fresh out of the fire and onto your shelf space of horror icons. 

Hasbro Re-Introduces Ghostbusters Fright Features! Image Gallery Inside

BEHOLD!! NEW GHOSTS!! As Ghostbusters fans waited for Hasbro to pump out the core characters we've come to expect from any toy line, we dreamed of what a FULLY MOTIVATED and highly imaginative company might do with the license that previous companies had not attempted yet. Would we finally get those insane supernatural baddies featured in the Real Ghostbusters cartoon series? More unexpected; might we get a series of GB troops and ghosts based on concept designs unused in past films? While anything is still within the realm of possibility if the new Ghostbusters movie rakes in that cash, one trip to the toy aisles will assure you Hasbro isn't letting this license go stale!

NECA's Halloween 2 Michael Myers Welcomes Fall

It's just a few days til HALLOWEEEEEN and all my spooky friends are losing their minds. The air is crisper, the leaves are finally starting to change color and all our favorite creeps are sharpening their..umm...tools... to ready them for the big night! There's nothing worse than a dull blade hitting bone. What you want is a smooth slice taking a limb clean off. It's a thing of beauty! One such artist is Michael Myers. We caught up with our Haddonfield neighbor to see how a master prepares for a night of mayhem...

The DC Direct DCEASED Action Figure Line... Bitey, but Not Chewy

Tomorrow is September 1st...and you all know what that means... IT'S ALMOST HALLOWEEN TIME AGAIN!!! Ok fine, we are still around two months off, but do we really need an excuse to celebrate the coming of the high holy days? The answer is NOPE!! Though we are still reeling from the untimely demise of DC Direct (the collectibles manufacturing arm of DC Comics), we were still allowed a final bitey package from our friends containing the first (and likely, last) DCeased action figures, based on the comic series of the same name and themed for YOU, the creepiest of readers, right at the start of the best holiday ever.

The Frame Up: Playmobil's Back to the Future Toy Sets

Toy collectors, especially those of us who remember the 80's-90's, are in the midst of an embarrassment of riches. Not only can we celebrate monthly drops of fantastically crafted action figures of our most iconic modern heroes, but every company out there seems chomping at the bit to perfect our childhood toy hordes and sell it all back to us. Playmobil was long known as a child-safe toy line allowing play in medieval castles, farmsteads, aquariums and the like. In the last few years, they've introduced licensed properties, most of which designed to set off your flashback spidey-senses. It's a rare moment when a company can take on a movie property and make toys that are accurate, well designed, kid-friendly and ridiculously fun. Count Playmobil's Back to the Future line among them!

Photo Set: The Four Horsies of the Pocalypse: Calamity

Bigshot Toyworks are known throughout the toy industry as top notch designers of action figures, art toys, mini figures and statues. With clients like Sideshow Collectibles, Pop Culture Shock, Mondo and Diamond Select, it's likely you own some of their work and didn't even know it. So what happens when toy makers-for-hire realize their own creations in three dimensions? Today, we take a look at one such work of art from Bigshot's Four Horsies of the Pocalypse toy project. Meet Calamity...

NECA's Street Scene Diorama: Wish Fulfilled!

In a world where Barbie gets houses, sports cars, private planes and full sets of glamping gear, the lonely 6-7 inch action figure collector is left crying in the rain. We were raised with playsets for each line we collected. Gargoyles got a castle. He-Man got a castle. Crystar got a castle. The freakin lion from Narnia....CASTLE!! Ok maybe it wasn't the lion's castle, but one of those movies got a castle and I bought the thing because...CASTLE!! I've always loved playsets, and as I grew older and shifted from going pew pew with my figures to setting them up in elaborate displays and action shots for photography, playsets became an essential tool. In the last few years, playsets have made a return with towering batcaves, turtle lairs and technological outposts from which Ben 10 and other cartoon heroes can defend the planet, but aside from these gimmick filled, cardboard enhanced, kid friendly kingdoms, there hasn't been much for toy photographers to work with. Then NECA answered the call!

Game Changer: Mattel Introduces Destructible Vehicles to their WWE Line

For toy photographers, it's a matter of "we'll take it where ever we can get it." Anyone who has been involved with toy photography for a year or more knows that the right accessories can take a shot from mundane to magic in seconds. I'll also point out that anyone out there hunting for accessories for their figures and dioramas has most likely found that the WWE line is a treasure trove of oddball items and must have gems. From busted toilets and the BEST dumpster you'll ever find, to things you'd expect like ladders, tables and chairs..and the completely unexpected like brooms and mops, weights and a mattress that looks like it came straight from a crack den..I've found some amazing accessories for many photo shoots and a great deal of them came from the land of World Wrestling Entertainment. Now Mattel has incorporated some pretty simple "destruction" gimmicks into a full size sports car toy and anyone looking for a little extra WOW in their Spider-Man vs Anyone city street battle is going to lose their minds!

Dark Horse's Game of Thrones: Ygritte

Let's dive back into Dark Horse's Game of Thrones figure series with Ygritte, the enigmatic spearwife of the wildlings whose fierce conviction would be enough to make any man of the north lay down his weapons and beg for further...debate. In the end, she will tell them plainly. THEY KNOW NOTHING!!

Ygritte was destined to be a favorite with Game of Thrones fans as her desire to be free and "no man owns me" attitude would make her a highly appealing character in a time where we find ourselves needing every warrior woman we can get in popular media. Whether captive or keeper, Ygritte consistently proves she is ultimately in control and stands as the one woman to make Jon Snow question his motives and alliances.

Dark Horse's Game of Thrones: The Hound

We continue our Dark Horse Game of Thrones figure photo series with an extremely complicated man who is first introduced as a remorseless villain, later appears to be a somewhat apathetic lackey and later still, evolves into a warrior with a dark past and more than respectable notions of honor. Sandor Clegane, also known as "The Hound", seemed to make his allegiances as a matter of survival and kept his distaste for those he served to himself. While most would dismiss him as capable of the same monstrous acts his brother (The Mountain) would enact on a whim or by command, it's become clear Sandor is more complex than any mere beast.

Dark Horse's Game of Thrones: Daenerys Targaryen

Idle Hands continues our photography series for Dark Horse's Game of Thrones figures! Today we profile the Mother of Dragons... which is only fitting on the eve of Mother's Day. Only daughter to the "Mad King", Daenerys has always been burdened with near mythological circumstance dictating her path through life. Named Daenerys Stormborn for the tempestuous weather which raged on the night of her birth. Named Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea when her marriage of convenience to Dothraki warlord Khal Drogo skillfully evolves from political maneuver to undying love and a an acceptance of power which is her birthright. Named The Unburnt when she emerges from her love's funeral pyre, unscathed, and blessed with three powerful "children", earning her the title Mother of Dragons.

Eye Candy: Mondo's Iron Giant Deluxe Action Figure

In the world of high end collectibles with your Hot Toys 12 inch figures and their freaky, posable eyeballs and your quarter scale Sideshow statues that look like they might come after you nightly between the hours of 2am and 4am... Mondo is proving you can bestow plastic with the magic power..of love. It's only with extreme love for the source material that we got a 16 inch tall Iron Giant action figure with 30 points of articulation (his freakin fingers are jointed!!), a light up head, alternate "war mode" head and gun arm and a button to push which makes the little guy bellow quotes from the movie. "Hooogarth...youuu stay...I goooo" ..oh man...crushed. Here's the promo...

Dark Horse's Game of Thrones: Arya Stark

Back into our photography series for Dark Horse's Game of Thrones figures! Today we visit with a girl who sometimes has a name and sometimes...does not. She's gone through an incredible transformation as the series marched on, always seemingly just out of reach of the comforts and safety of her old life. From the little girl swinging her sword Needle about the grounds of Winterfell to the defiant young woman who stood her ground with The Hound and earned his respect. Arya Stark has survived largely by the strength of her reserve, and sometimes, her hate, which lead her to the steps of the Many Faced God. There, she would endure humiliation, beatings and blindness to acquire the deadly skills needed to bring about the deaths of the enemies of House Stark... delivered by small, unassuming hands. It is unknown what, exactly, drives Arya these days, but it is suspected that her plans are far reaching and fairly genius. One thing is for sure, when it comes to Arya, not everything is what it seems.