Here are some of the toy and toy-related news I've collected from around the Internet:
Gundam Café
I want one here in the Philippines so bad. Images and information are from Gundam Dot Info.
And yes, folks, they have Gundam-themed food.
HGFC 1/144 God Gundam
Interesting in that it's final attack can be loosely translated as Apocalyptic God Finger of Love. Images and information are from Bandai Hobbysite and Amiami.
HG00 1.5 Gundam
The Big Bad of the series has been given a "In better times..." makeover. Images and information are from GToy Blog.
SD Sangokuden
If I remember right, this one is called the Shin Toutaku Zaku. Those are very....suggestive energy blasts there, sonny. And that's a ZZ Top Beard, there. All SD images and information are from The World of 15CM and Below.
This one is what I am planning to get. It's called the Shin Ryofu Tallgeese. He's so cool, his horse turns into a motorcycle, and he's got one more unit that I think turns into a flying platform. If that's the horse, too, then by gum, I'd want more of the horse than the rider!
I do believe that part of the platform seems to be a BIG F-ING SWORD.
From Ngeekhiong.Com:
Bandai Demands 4 Million Renminbi from Pirated Gunpla Manufacturer and Seller in China
Just a little bit of update on Bandai's legal case against the pirated Gunpla manufacturer and seller in China mentioned two days ago.
China Finance Online reported this morning that the total amount of compensation Bandai is demanding from the two defendants is 3.69 million Renminbi - about USD $540,000, which should be a combined amount for the two companies.
No other new details available in the report. The first defendant, the pirated kit manufacturer's arguments that the work was done by another company they contracted, and that they did not know that the product is copyrighted by Bandai - the same argument used by the second defendant, the seller are being repeated in the report though.
Information is from China Finance Online. The same report is also up on Yidaba Industry News and Sina Finance (All reports are in Chinese).
I seriously think that it was about time this happened. China is in a Catch-22 situation. If they recognize Bandai's claim, then it can open the floodgates to other cases. If they ignore it or let the home-grown pirates win, it also sends a chilling signal to the rest of the world. They'll have to weigh between their booming present economy, and possible future repercussions that can bring them down. It will be interesting to watch.
Star Wars
For all you Star Wars fans out there, here are the latest rumors and news for upcoming merchandise, from YakFace:
July, 2010:
Jabba´s Throne Room
August, 2010:
Anti-Hailfire Squad Battle Pack
Droids and Clones Battle Pack
Holocron Heist Battle Pack
Battle of Hoth Battle Pack
Mandalorian Trooper´s (Death Watch) Battle Pack
Legacy of Boba Fett
Legacy of Grievous
Legacy of Anakin Skywalker
September, 2010:
ARC Troopers Battle Pack
Cad Bane and IG-86
Senate Commando Captain
Macross
From the looks of it, This new version of the VF-1J (Hikaru Ichijo) Valkyrie unit is trying to strike a brilliant balance between the animation and poster art and the fact that it should be a very poseable, transforming toy.
Images and information are from GA Graphic.
The fighter mode looks spiffy.
Of course, the crowning glory of any Valkyrie toy must be the Gerwalk mode, and I have to admit, this looks good. And I guess it's a shoe-in that Strike and Armor add-ons are on the way.
DC Comics
Looks like the DC Universe is getting its fair share of action figures. I've noticed though, that they're a curious mix of classic originally non-DC characters, New Gods and variants. Images and information are from Cool Toy Review.
Assorted
There's been a whole new boom in generic (if you can call it that) mecha kit accessories, and these new weapon sets from Kotobukiya are amazing:
The first set is something like how the Japanese would think Klingons think about Japanese weapons.
The last time I saw a weapon like this, it was in a movie called Brotherhood of the Wolf. Video games also tend to have much love for whip swords. But a mecha-sized whip sword? Yes, please, with some sugar on top.
Now, I've read in TvTropes that sometimes, the more impractical a weapon is, the more cool it becomes. Well, this shotgun qualifies. It's a shotgun you can set up with a scope and a silencer. And it's mecha-sized! Huzzah!
Search Amazon.com for gundam
Search Amazon.com for macross
Search Amazon.com for star wars
Search Amazon.com for DC Universe
Search Amazon.com for Kotobukiya Weapon