SoftoyHobby Archives

MAN-E-NEWS// Kikkake’s “Rolly Poly the Bomb” first release announced…

Teased here just a couple of weeks back, Kikkake‘s latest sofubi series “Rolly Polly the Bomb” will be making it’s debut online this week! Drawing inspiration from the classic “Weeble” roly poly toys of the 1970′s, the series is set to feature 3 different ball-shaped designs; reoccurring characters the Iron Monkey and Clown, alongside new addition, the Iron Skull, each standing at around 3″ tall and coming weighted on the bottom in a similar way to the Weebles to produce that awesome rocking action. Making their first appearance in both unpainted orange and green/blue colourways, the Bombs will be touching down in the Kikkake store this Thursday, July 10th at 11pm Japan time for just 3,500yen ($34) each…

MAN-E-NEWS// The SDCC exclusive “NekoFukuro” stackable sofubi from Jeff Soto x Blackbook Toy

The guys over at DKE Toys come with the first Japanese soft vinyl figures to feature in their already impressive line-up of SDCC exclusives, proudly presenting Jeff Soto and Blackbook Toy‘s NekoFukuro! Featuring an ingenious stackable design, the stunning 2-faced head sculpt stands at around 6″ tall- an impressive 12″ stack when both “Pink” and “Blue” hand sprayed versions are displayed together! Limited to editions of just 30 pieces in these initial SDCC exclusive colourways, the NekoFukuro’s will be up for grabs at the DKE booth (#5045) for $80 a piece once the con doors open on July 23rd…

MAN-E-NEWS// Cave Bear: Infected Yoka “Blue/Pink” from Scott Wilkowski…

Scott Wilkowski has resurrected one of his first very skeletal creations for the release of an all-new colourway, proudly presenting the “Blue/Pink” Original Cave Bear: Infected Yoka! Utilising Adfunture‘s classic 3″ platform toy, the sleek looking bear features a bright pink skeleton this time around, coming incased in a deep blue translucent resin. Available in strictly limited numbers through the artist’s site right here, the “Blue/Pink” Infected Yokas will set you back just $80 each plus shipping…

MAN-E-NEWS// Ron English’s “Status Factory” at Toy Art Gallery…

Pop Surrealist Art legend Ron English will be heading to Toy Art Gallery for a special one-day only toy release and book signing this Sunday, July 13th! On hand at the Melrose gallery location from 2-4pm, Ron will be unveiling his latest collaborative toy projects with the gallery, Modzilla and the Urban Bigfoot, as well as signing his new retrospective book, Status Factory. Standing at a monstrous 13″ tall and coming with an unparalleled 20 individual parts, the Modzilla is set to come in a number of hand painted one-offs from Ron, whilst the 7.5″ Urban Bigfoot, based on the artist’s massive 2013 mural in downtown LA, will also be available in very limited numbers with a full release planned soon. Joining both the sofubi figures and new book, Ron will also have a number of other items up for grabs at the event, including the pictured life-size fibreglass Little Bigfoots, the debut of the first in a series of Ron English x TAG produced jewelry, as well as a collection of twelve unique Temper Tot prints and more. Those unable to attend the event can expect any leftovers in-store the following Monday…

MAN-E-NEWS// Radioactive Uppercut’s “X-Ray” and “Pink Eye” 8-Ball preorders announced…

Piggy-backing the recently announced “Moltuss” 8-Ball colourway, John Santagada over at Radioactive Uppercut has just revealed that the awesome soft vinyl figure will be making an appearance in not 1, but 2 new translucent colourways this week! Titled “X-Ray” (crystal clear) and “Pink Eye” (trans pink), the pair have been left unpainted for the release, coming complete with a GID eyeball that has ingeniously been inserted into the head cavity. Due to go up for preorder via the Radioactive Uppercut store over the next few days for a limited 2 week period, expect both X-Ray and Pink Eye 8-Balls to come in at around $40-$45 each plus shipping…

MAN-E-NEWS// Broken Pigeon’s SPACECASE resin figure for SDCC ’14…

DKE Toys continue their onslaught of handmade-focused releases for this month’s SDCC with the latest exclusive reveal from the camp, the SPACECASE resin figure from Broken Pigeon! Lovingly kit-bashed from a variety of vintage action figures, the 4″ tall oddball has been cast up by BP in a translucent blue resin for the release, coming with minimal hand painted detailing and a control panel seemingly embedded in the chest. Limited to an edition of just 20 pieces, each coming packed on a classic blistered card back designed by the artist, SPACECASE will be up for grabs at the DKE booth (#5045) for $65 a piece once the con doors open on July 23rd…

MAN-E-NEWS// The GID Kaijin Gentleman sofubi from BLObPUS x Hinomaru-Ya…

BLObPUS has just revealed that the latest version of his collaboration with Hinomaru-Ya, the Kaijin Gentleman, is now up for grabs via lottery through his blog right here! Cast up in a mix of GID and clear vinyl this time around, the sofubi mini has been treated to simple silver, white and black sprays, coming complete with removable top hat and multi-coloured brain insert. Priced at just 5,500yen ($54) plus shipping, interested parties are going to need to send over their name, address, telephone number and Paypal address to shopping@blobpus.jp before the lottery closes on Friday, July 11th…

MAN-E-NEWS// The “Axe of Gold” action figure playset from Bigmantoys x Rampageo Industries…

“In a world where Gods, monsters, and men battle endlessly by sword and by spell, might can only be achieved through allegiance… Joining forces with a powerful beast named Battle Beak, a sword wielding barbarian they call The Battle King must fight all who challenge him- in a quest to posses the great Axe of Gold! Whoever may hold this weapon, will be granted the favour of the Gods and become ruler of all…”

Neo-vintage resin action figure makers Bigmantoys and Rampageo Industries are teaming up with one of the most elaborate 5.5″ scale releases to date, proudly presenting the Axe of Gold playset! Heavily inspired by 16 bit gaming, MOTU, and all things barbarian, this first wave consists of an originally sculpted mount (Battle beak), dwarf, and accessories sculpted, and produced by Bigmantoys, as well as a companion barbarian rider “Battle King”, using a Realm of the Underworld buck with kind permission from Zoloworld and painted with the finest Monster Kolor Paint by Rampageo Industries. In an interesting twist to the release, both artists will be releasing region-specific versions of the set through their stores, with Bigmantoys offering up a green version of the dwarf with a joint of meat accessory in the UK, and Rampageo a blue dwarf with potion in the US. Priced at a very reasonable $110 plus shipping, both versions of the set will be touching down in their designated stores (BMT/Rampageo) via pre-order this Friday, July 11th…

MAN-E-NEWS// The “Guzo Kaijyu” 4th Edition Instagram lottery from Leo Sofvi Bouya…

“Is man merely a mistake of God’s? Or is God merely a mistake of man?” -Friedrich Nietzsche

Leo Sofvi Bouya has just announced release details for the fourth edition of his hugely popular Guzo Kaijyu! Standing at an impressive 10.5″ tall, the “idol monster” was inspired by the above passage from Friedrich Nietzsche’s “Twilight of the Idols”, featuring a unique blend of classic kaiju and ancient deities wrapped up in one huge, must-have figure. Coming cast in a dark chocolate brown vinyl with an exquisite assortment of metallic sprays and hand painted detailing (we’d expect no less from one of Medicom’s chief colour designers!), the run has been held back strictly for Instgram users this time around- and luckily for us, International applications are welcome! Interested parties are going to need to give Leo a follow right here if they’re not already, and then send their name, postal address and Instagram user name to leosofvibouya@gmail.com with the header “Guzo Kaijyu”. Closing July 10th at 23.59 Japan time, successful applicants will be expected to pay 20,000yen plus shipping soon after…

MAN-E-NEWS// The Lady Lizard resin figures from Peter Kato…

Previewed here just yesterday, Peter Kato very kindly gives us the full lowdown on his latest batch of resin figures dropping this week, the Lady Lizards aka the Lizzies! Digitally sculpted by Peter at his Broklyn-based studio, the 3.5″ tall reptiles consist of 5 separately cast, multi-tinted and interlocking parts, with each coming assembled, hand painted and packaged in a custom box with a TBC accessory. Produced in a mix of complimentary aqua greens and blues for this first release, the limited batch of 15 figures will be touching down in Peter’s online store this Thursday, July 10th at Midnight EST for just $35 each plus shipping…

MAN-E-NEWS// Scumbags and Superstars’ Madball-styled “Melting Man” figure revealed…

The guys over at Scumbags and Superstars have just revealed that their second toy will finally be up for grabs soon, the Madball-styled Melting Man! Based on the original S&S t-shirt and patch design by Sexual Youkai, the stunning head sculpt appears to be the same scale as the original 80’s monster/gross-out balls, coming in at a hand-sized 3″ wide. Presumably due to be produced in a soft vinyl over the coming months, we’ll be keeping you guys updated with any further developments once we hear anything…

MAN-E-NEWS// The Hü, Lü and Blitzwolf GMK action figures from Mutopia Toys…

Weird Luke over at Mutopia Toys has just unleashed the latest wave of Gowanus Mutant Kommandos in-store! Joining the recently released Hü Mungus, another 2 mutated freaks join the fray; a completely re-sculpted Loathsome Lü, coming equipped with “the thickest skull in show business” plus a huge knife, and all-new character Blitzwolf, a half Nazi zombie, half werewolf whose been decked out with a knife, hairy hands and a takeout box of beef chow mien! Towering over your GI Joes at a massive 4.5″ tall, each hand cast and painted resin figure comes packed in a resealable bag with header. Available for $18 each, or just $50 for all 3, the GMK action figures can be found in the Resin Trash Distro right here…

MAN-E-NEWS// Dave Bondi’s Astronocchio resin figure at SDCC…

“This is the story of Astronocchio – The real boy who wanted to be a robot… He sought the wisdom of Krishna, Buddha, and the God of Abraham. They told him to forsake all desire to see the truth. It was revealed: suffering and happiness, love and hate, compassion and cruelty, all manifesting at once in the great catostrophic being. He was no longer human. His finger pulled the trigger, but it was someone else. He had become the perfect killing machine…”

Dave Bondi is the latest artist to be announced in DKE Toys‘ exclusive SDCC line-up, bringing with him his latest resin creation, Astronocchio! A hilarious mash-up of Disney’s Pinocchio and Tezuka’s Astroboy, the originally sculpted figure stands at around 5″ tall, coming hand cast by the artist in a bright “retro” red resin with black hand gun accessory. Limited to an edition of just 25, each Astronocchio is packed on a blister card with vintage styled cut-out illustrations on the back. Priced at $65 a piece, the figures will be up for grabs at the DKE Toys SDCC booth (#5045) when the doors open on July 23rd…

MAN-E-NEWS// New resin mini figure from Peter Kato revealed…

Peter Kato has just unveiled an all-new resin mini that’ll be touching down in his store next week! Featuring a slick, stripped back design akin to dutch artist Parra’s bold sculptural figures, the as yet untitled lizard creature stands at around 3.5″ tall, coming cast in 5 separate multi-tinted parts. Due to be touching down in the artist’s store next Thursday, July 10th, expect the full lowdown on the release over the next couple of days…

MAN-E-NEWS// Retroband’s SDCC exclusive “Toxic Timmy” Retroband Kid mini figure…

DKE Toys have just revealed yet another must-have exclusive they’ll be bringing along to SDCC on July 23rd, the Toxic Timmy mini figure from Aaron Moreno aka Retroband! Inspired by his recent “Crawling Dead” TAG Gallery submission of the same name, this 2″ tall mini interpretation of the radioactive mutant is due to be the first figure in the artist’s all-new upcoming series, Retroband Kids. Sculpted, cast and hand painted by Aaron, Toxic Timmy comes mounted on a on a traditional 2.5″ X 3.5″ trading card, featuring the original art on the front, plus additional back art from Gabriel Hernandez aka Worthy Enemies. Limited to just 50 pieces, Toxic Timmy will be available exclusively from DKE Toys’ SDCC booth (#5045) for $45 a piece…

MAN-E-NEWS// Shirahama Toy’s marbled b/w Rotten Rexx micro-run…

James Groman‘s hugely popular Rotten Rexx figure is set to make its next appearance as a micro-run courtesy of Shirahama Toy! Limited to just 5 pieces due to the amount of material involved in producing the gargantuan 13.5″ tall beast, Rexx has been cast up by Lulubell Toys in a mix of black and white marbled vinyl this time around, coming with subtle hand painted detailing from Shirahama’s Dennis. Priced at 25,000yen ($245) plus shipping, interested parties are going to need to keep a close eye on the Shirahama store right here for the drop…

MAN-E-NEWS// Makori and Lampu sofubi re-release from Shimomoku…

Originally making an appearance at Design Fiesta 39 back in May, a number of Shimomoku‘s unpainted Makori and Lampu colourways are due to see a re-release on the Jungle store this Saturday, July 5th at Noon Japan time! From what we can make out, there will be a total of 4 Lampus (orange, pink, green and blue) priced at around 1,100yen ($11) and just 1 Makori at 2,100yen ($21). Fortunate for us in the West, overseas orders are welcome, so be sure to head over at the alloted time to bag yours!

MAN-E-NEWS// Eric Nilla’s Rimfire, Sophia III and more dropping this weekend (07/05)…

Having revealed both the SPIRAL ZONE Monoseed II (Rimfire) and Sophia III Blaster Master keshi over the past couple of weeks, we’re very happy to announce that both will be touching down in producer Eric Nilla’s store alongside a whole host of other custom keshi this Saturday, July 5th! Here’s a quick rundown of what to expect on the drop…

SPIRAL ZONE Monoseed II (Rimfire)- Hoping to right one of the few wrongs of the original keshi series, Eric Nilla has teamed up with Sanjeev over at Brown Noize Productions to produce one of the only Spiral Zone vehicles not to make it into keshi, the incredible Rimfire! Digitally sculpted at BNP, the wonderfully detailed piece features a 5-part interlocking design, coming complete with driver and standing officer. Cast up by Nilla in a flesh tone, keshi-style rubber, pricing and edition size on these are still to be confirmed.

Sophia III Blaster Master- Taken from the hard-as-nails NES game of the same name, Sophia III is yet another jaw-dropping collaboration between Nilla and BNP. Featuring a whopping total of 8 interlocking parts and 6 points of articulation, this will also be available in a flesh-toned rubber. Pricing and edition size have also still not been confirmed.

UoV II: Chaos Dimension- Featuring both Venus Maneater and Satyrant from the recent Universe of Violence reboot, the pair of keshi-scaled figures have been designed and sculpted by Justin “MetalMonkey” Gaze. Cast up in a limited store exclusive flesh for this release, expect the pair to come in at around $10-$15 each.

Fisto and Jitsu MOTU keshi customs- Having already recast a number of the original super-rare MOTU keshi to instant sell-out success, Eric returns with 2 new additions for the collection, Fisto and Jitsu! Meticulously recreated in flesh rubber (complete with original, untouched weapon sprues!), expect the pair to come in at around $15 a piece.

Other- Whilst not pictured, Eric has mentioned that a number of other figures will also be touching down in-store at the same time, including a fresh batch of Nama Niku’s Chopper Manzilla, plus Rampage Toys’ Nekos Fortress customs. Keep an eye on Eric’s Instagram feed right here for an exact drop time later on today…

MAN-E-NEWS// Designer Toy Awards 2014 nominations open…

It’s that time of year again… nominations for the fourth annual Designer Toy Awards are now open! Running until July 15th, organisers Clutter Magazine are looking for you guys to nominate your favourite artists, toys, brands, stores and, of course, blogs, ahead of the first round of voting later in the month. So what are you waiting for? Head over to the DTA page right here to register and have your say now- just remember good old Man-E-Toys and The Disarticulators when you do it, OK?!!

MAN-E-NEWS// The Truffle Corrington resin figure from UME Toys…

Artist Richard Page has been plunging the depths of the undergrowth in search of the latest addition to the UME Toys family, the adorable Truffle Corrington! Sprouting up to to just under 6″ tall, this fun-guy (sorry!) has been sculpted, cast and painted by Rich, featuring a unique design whereby the mushroom capped head balances freely on the body base for optimum poseability. Due to be making its debut at the upcoming Cardiff Tattoo and Toy Con on July 19th for £57 each, those unable to attend the event will be glad to know that a limited batch will also be available as part of a simultaneous web release in the UME Toys store right here…