I’ve made an appearance on Kornercast, the podcast of PGPoA pal Kastor’s Korner:
We discuss all sorts of toy-related topics, from the Buzzlords to G.I. Joe Classified.
Thanks to Kastor for having me on! Be sure to visit his site.
Category: Shameless plug Page 1 of 7
Last fall, I visited the Boston Museum of Science. One of my favorite exhibits they have there is this little glass display filled with the odd collections of Massachusetts residents. There are porcelain dogs, dolls, Hot Wheels cars, coins, you name it.
I took down the contact info for the display and sent them an email asking if they’d be interested in displaying some of my Godzilla toys. I got an almost immediate response and within a few weeks, my Godzillas were being viewed by thousands of visitors every month.
I posted this on a local Facebook group for my town and the local town magazine got wind of it and decided to profile me. To my surprise, the interview went fairly in-depth, giving a good look at this one particular corner of my collector madness.
You can read the article here. If you’re reading this post sometime after summer 2020, then congratulations! The world didn’t end. But what I was going to say is you’ll have to click on “Editions” to find the May 2020 issue to read the article.
I’ve been remiss in mentioning a couple of gigs I had recently. Topless Robot contacted me to put together a list of the best action figures of 2013:
TR’s Top 10 Action Figures of 2013
I always have a hard time putting together this kind of list because I really only collect a few lines (seriously, I think a lot of you would be surprised by how few figures I actually own – it’s a lot compared to a layman, but on the small side compared to your average collector). So this time I solicited some help, and the comments seem fairly positive about my choices. One thing to mention is I did try to enter a last-minute draft update where I swapped out Springer for Masterpiece Soundwave, but somehow it didn’t make the cut when the list went live.
I also did the whole best-toys-of-the-year thing on a podcast with OAFE.net, along with my old OAFE-mates Rustin Parr, yo go re and Shocka. You can listen to that here.
Do your Evil Warriors find themselves looking up helplessly as Stratos soars off into the blue? Do you find your stormtroopers’ aim a bit too good and think they need the challenge of balancing on a gravity-defying disc while pursuing their foes? Then you need Joe Amaro’s patented Hover Disc!*
The secret to the Hover Disc are its three Oppositive Graviton Hemispheres, which negate the very force of gravity itself! Choose from two stylish colors, gray or black. Optional foot straps keep you safe and secure as you soar through the sky.**
Available November 2013 for a mere $20 apiece, Joe Amaro’s Hover Discs will guarantee your troops’ total victory!***
*Patent pending.
**Foot straps not yet an option.
***Total victory not guaranteed.
There’s just one week left to go on the Kickstarter for CoolandCollected.com‘s magazine, aptly titled Cool & Collected. The premiere issue – if the magazine is funded – will contain a feature article from yours truly on the long history of Boba Fett action figures, right up to and including Star Wars Black.
As of this writing, the magazine less than $500 away from its target. Here’s some of the content the first issue will contain:
- CT of NerdLunch has written a thoughtful piece on why we collect the same thing, over and over again.
- Kevin Decent of Team Hellions gives a rundown of the most sought-after Spider-Man comic books.
- And Jennifer Smith, author of the upcoming book The Back to the Future Almanac: 1955-2014, offers advice on taking your collection to the next level with movie props!
And there’s more! Contributions from pop culture experts such as:
- Howie Decker, Under Scoop Fire
- M. Carrigan, The Surfing Pizza
- John Sholtz, The Batcave Toy Room
- Rich Delligatti, The Nerd Nook
- Cody Mix, Crooked Ninja Turtle Gang
- Todd Sheffer, Hakes Americana & Collectibles
I’m a terrible salesman, and I know that. (Odd, in that I come from two generations of great salesmen.) But I think it would be totally awesome to get this magazine off the ground, as it looks like a lot of fun. There’s been a void in my life since ToyFare closed, and maybe, just maybe, Cool & Collected can help fill it. Plus it always gives me a kick to see my writing in print. Hey, I’m only human. So here’s that link again: Cool & Collected: The magazine for pop culture collectors
I was a guest on CDX’s Youtube show this week, part of a promotion for the Super Review War. If you’ve ever wondered what I look or sound like, here’s a chance for nearly a full hour of that – or for however long you can stand it.
We spend some time discussing the reviews, as well as some other toy news and tidbits. I had a lot of fun. Check it out and let me know what you think.
Photo by JediCreeper
Topless Robot asked me to write up a quick list of the best action figure reveals from Toy Fair so far. I included a few things that were announced prior to Toy Fair but are basically part of the whole event.
As you may know, Rob Bricken, whom I feel honored to consider a friend, recently left Topless Robot to become a senior editor at io9. But before he left, I managed to sneak in this as one of my final(?) lists – one that’s very near and dear to my heart. It’s a list of the worst examples of Toy Aisle Trolls I’ve ever seen.
Ten Terrible Cases of Toy-Aisle Trolling
Be warned – this list contains more profanity as usual, as I tend to get my dander up when dealing with TAT, as you know. Yeah, I said dander.
Man, when it rains it pours here on PGPoA, doesn’t it?
Anyway, I’ve got yet another list up at Topless Robot:
The 10 Best Spawn Creature Figures
I’ve got a new list up at TR:
The 10 Greatest Giant Movie Monsters of All Time
The nerds are arguing about it already, which honestly is at least half the point of these lists. Have at it!