Cars: Brad Winmiler

Following in the same vein as Monday's post, today we have another brand new Disney·Pixar Cars 1:55 scale diecast release from Mattel...Brad Winmiler! He is part of the 2016 "LA Speedway" sub-series (#8/11).

As shown in the screenshot above, Brad is another obscure race fan briefly seen at the start of the big Los Angeles tiebreaker Piston Cup race. How Mattel decides which cars to produce out of the thousands in the stands is beyond me, but hey, I'll take him!

FUN FACT: "Brad Winmiler" is another example of a car who's name was "carified"/modeled after a Pixar employee's. He is named after Pixar employee Brad Winemiller, a visual effects artist who's worked on films such as A Bug's Life, Finding Nemo, Up, Ratatouille and, of course, Cars!

I found this one at my local Target just this past week, so be sure to check yours if you're on the hunt! Best of luck out there to all my fellow Disney·Pixar Cars collectors

Monsters University: Disney Store JOX Pin

Here's a little bit of a random item, but a pretty cool one nonetheless! This Monsters University JOX (short for the Jaws Theta Chi fraternity) pin was available exclusively at the Disney Store back in 2013 around the time of the film's release. For the most part, the Disney Store (not meaning the Disney Parks gift shops but the actual "Disney Store") has stopped carrying pins of any kind for a while now, so this was an exciting exception for pin collectors at the time.

I acquired this recently as it was included for free with one of my eBay Monsters University plush purchases. It was a nice little bonus! I love when sellers throw in extra treats. This isn't something I would have gotten otherwise, but I'll take any free Pixar merch.

Of course all six Monsters U fraternities/sororities were released in this pin series, all featuring their logo and members in the same style as this one. You can view them all in THIS photo.

Want to add this pin or any of the others to your collection? Then be sure to check out current eBay listings right HERE and remember that the use of any illegal protective gel is cause for elimination from the Scare Games. ;)

Cars: Darla Vanderson

My ever growing (and never ending) Disney·Pixar Cars collection continues today with another brand new 1:55 scale diecast release from Mattel...Darla Vanderson! She is part of the 2016 "LA Speedway" sub-series (#7/11).

As shown in the screenshot above, Darla is another obscure race fan (specifically a fan of Strip "The King" Weathers) briefly seen at the start of the big Los Angeles tiebreaker Piston Cup race. How Mattel decides which cars to produce out of the thousands in the stands is beyond me, but hey, I'll take her!

FUN FACT: "Darla Vanderson" is another example of a car who's name was "carified"/modeled after a Pixar employee's. She is named after Pixar producer Darla Anderson (A Bug's Life, Monsters Inc., Cars, Toy Story 3, etc...).

I found this one at my local Target just this past week, so be sure to check yours if you're on the hunt! Best of luck out there to all my fellow Disney·Pixar Cars collectors.

Finding Nemo: Dory "Got A Problem Buddy?" Men's Tee

"You got a problem buddy? Do ya? Do ya? Do ya?" is another one of my all time favorite Dory quotes from Finding Nemo. I'm sure most of you can hear it and see it in your mind as you read this. Once again, the way Ellen delivered that line, as well as Dory's brilliant facial expression concocted by the animators, is just so hilarious to me. It gets me every time! I find myself quoting it pretty often too. With that said, as soon as I saw this Disney Parks exclusive men's shirt during our most recent Disney World trip this past Spring, it immediately went on my "must have" list!

This tee, compared to the similar "Mr. Grumpy Gills" shirt (which I showed off HERE), honestly isn't quite as soft and is not nearly as fitted. I had to go for it though for the graphic alone, which, I know, seems silly if I don't love how it fits. I guess I just loved the design too much to pass up!

If you're interested in picking this up, I ended up purchasing this at Mouse Gears in Epcot; but I also saw it at the SeaBase gift shop (over by The Seas with Nemo and Friends) and in Animal Kingdom at the Island Mercantile shop. I'm not sure if it's anywhere at Disney Springs or Disneyland, but it's possible! If you're not heading to the parks any time soon, don't forget that you can always use the Shop Disney Parks app.

BoxLunch $100 Gift Card Black Friday GIVEAWAY!

 **UPDATE 12/01/16- NOW CLOSED. A HUGE CONGRATS TO THE WINNER!**

Hey everyone! As a big thanks to all my loyal followers out there, here is my newest giveaway as promised for this Black Friday/Thanksgiving weekend. Yup, you read it correctly...One lucky winner will receive this $100 BoxLunch gift card to spend this holiday season. How cool right? A HUGE thank you to BoxLunch for sponsoring this incredibly generous gift! If you haven't yet, you need to check out their store full of pop-culture gifts and collectibles.

To enter this giveaway, just follow these three simple steps:
1.) Follow Me (@danthepixarfan) AND @boxlunchgifts on Instagram
2.) Like & Share this post on your Instagram feed with the hashtag #BoxLunchGiveaway
3.) Tag at a friend in the comments of my original Instagram giveaway post

Open to US contestants only this time.

BEGINS NOW
ENDS 11/30 at 10pm EST
Winner will be chosen at random and announced on 12/01
BEST OF LUCK!

And remember that for every $10 you spend at BoxLunch, they donate a meal to a person in need through their partnership with Feeding America...so you get something cool AND make a difference at the same time! Win win. #getsomegiveback.

Cars: Coriander Widetrack

Here we have Coriander Widetrack, one of the most recent re-releases from Mattel's 1:55 scale Disney·Pixar Cars collection! She has just started hitting store shelves (I found her at Target just a couple days back) and is part of the 2016 "LA Speedway" sub-series (#1/11). The original release for this character was clear back in 2009 in the "Final Lap Collection", so it's nice to finally see this one resurface.

As shown in the screenshot above, Coriander is briefly seen near the end of the film in the crowed right before the big Piston Cup finale race begins. She is between M.A. Brake Drumm (who is also being released this year) and the previously released Brake Boyd (seen HERE) and appears to be their "daughter"— red and blue do make purple after all ;). Why they all have different last names beats me, but it's strongly suggested they are a family.

Just like in the film, Coriander here is holding a jet toy (which resembles Stu Bop the jet from the same scene). Overall this is another well made, detailed diecast from Mattel that you (my fellow Cars collectors) will have to keep a look out for.

Best of luck on the hunt!

Cars: Disney Store 10th Anniversary Tee

To commemorate the 10th anniversary of Disney·Pixar's Cars this year (which hit theaters on June 9th, 2006), the Disney Store has recently released this fantastic Piston Cup Racing Series men's tee! Surrounding a minimal design of everyone's favorite race car, Lightning Mcqueen, you'll notice all sorts of distressed/vintage style graphics (like Mcqueen's racing number 95, his signature lightning bolts, wrenches, race flags, the Piston Cup logo, etc.). I love the deep "hot rod red" color, which is a very appropriate choice here.

The shirt also reads "The Piston Cup Racing Series—Radiator Springs—Established 2006—10th Anniversary—Lightning Mcqueen."  Finally, there is a neat distressed imprint on the sleeve with the film's classic logo along with "10 Year Anniversary." The design of this shirt is really cool and unique overall! Very sporty. I will most definitely be saving this to wear in Cars Land during our Disneyland visit this coming summer. Can't wait!

The fit of this shirt is a tad more "boxy" than I typically like, but it's not too bad. Just know it's not a very fitted cut, but it is well made and relatively soft. Retail is $22.95 (though it's currently on sale this week for just $12.00). Get it while it's available (and discounted) at your local Disney Store or online right HERE! I can highly recommend this to all my fellow Cars fans out there.

To read my thoughts on the Cars franchise (plus some fun facts), be sure to check out my post HERE from earlier this year. And did you see that amazing Cars 3 teaser trailer yesterday? If not, check it out HERE and don't forget to leave me your thoughts in the comments below.

Finding Dory: Bath Squirters (Wave 2)

Clear back in May, Bandai toys released a fun collection of cute stylized Finding Dory bath squirters. Six characters were released in individual baggies (available at Walmart and Target stores) or you could get them in two separate 3-packs (available at Toys R Us stores). If you missed it, visit my full post on the initial six (Dory, Marlin, Destiny, Hank, Nemo and Mr. Ray) right HERE. I also reviewed the bath Hank playset (with exclusive Squirt bath squirter) which you can check out HERE.

Flash forward to now. Bandai has just released a second wave of bath squirters featuring three brand new characters: Bailey, Sea Otter and Little Dory (or Baby Dory...or perhaps Toddler Dory?). I stumbled upon these at my local Target just last week!

Once again, these adorable rubber squirters are about 3"- 4" in size and are perfect for the tub or pool (or really wherever water play is happening). Just dunk, squeeze, fill, squirt and repeat! Your little ones will have a blast with all their favorite characters from the film.

Let's take a closer look out of the bags! Note- these ones did not get any kind of multi-pack release. They are only available individually.

Bailey

 Sea Otter

Little Dory 

I was so excited to have finally found these. It's fun to have additional characters added to the original assortment! Now, including the exclusive Squirt bath squirter, there are 10 to collect total. Could there be more on the way? Time will certainty tell.

If you're interested, be sure to check your local stores for availability! Retail is $3.99 each.

Finding Dory: Disney Store Destiny Plush

"It's your destiny, Destiny."

Today my Finding Dory Disney Store plush reviews come to an end with the very last one in my collection...Destiny the near-sighted whale shark! If you've been following along, you'll know that I've been reviewing the entire Disney Store exclusive Finding Dory plush assortment over the past couple weeks. If you haven't already, be sure to check out my other detailed posts featuring Hank, Mr. Ray, Crush, Jenny & Charlie, Nemo, Bailey, Baby Dory, Sea Otter, Marlin and the sea lion trio.

Did you know that Destiny plushies, very similar to this one (planned much?;), can be seen in Finding Dory? As shown in the screenshot above, you can see a child holding one when Marlin and Nemo escape the gift shop fish tank (they can also be seen in the background on display in the shop). 

Destiny is about 22" long and roughly 12" wide (fin to fin). Her sculpt is pretty cute with nicely stitched embroidered features (including the standard "Disney Store Genuine Original Authentic" patch on the underside of her tale) and is very soft. I really love the vibrant materials used to create this plush and I especially like her opened mouth and floppy tongue. As the Disney Store always says, the "magic is in the details!" Retail is $19.95.

With the holidays right around the corner, be sure to pick this up at your local Disney Store (or online HERE) before it's gone. As of today she is only $12.00, which is 40% off the original price. Not bad right?

Be sure to let me know what you think of this fun Destiny plush and the rest of the Disney Store Finding Dory collection in the comments below!

Finding Dory: Jenny & Charlie Disney Store Plush

Hey everyone! Sorry for the lack of post yesterday...between hosting some company and having to work late, it was just one of those days. Today I'm making up for it though with not one, but two Disney Store exclusive Finding Dory plush: Jenny and Charlie, Dory's parents!

Note: If you've been following along, you'll know that I've been reviewing the entire Disney Store exclusive Finding Dory plush collection over the past couple weeks. If you haven't already, be sure to check out my other detailed posts featuring Hank, Mr. Ray, Crush, Nemo, Bailey, Baby Dory, Sea Otter, Marlin and the sea lion trio. And we're not even done yet—there's still more to come!

These two are classified as "mini bean bag plush" at the Disney Store (so, unlike the other "medium core" characters I've reviewed, these ones have the plastic pellets inside; they're also smaller). They're both about 9" long and are roughly 5" in height. Each one retails for $9.95.

I think it's really cool that the Disney Store decided to release these characters, since there isn't a lot of Jenny and Charlie merch out there. Both look and feel great as usual (soft, nicely stitched, embroidered features, etc.) and feel quality made overall. Pretty good likenesses to the characters as well!

Let's take a closer look-

Jenny 

Charlie

Here's a funny story relating to these... Back before the film came out, we sold a TON of Jenny and Charlie plush at the Disney Store I work at. They couldn't stay on the shelf! The reason? Not because they were popular characters (in fact, these characters were pretty unknown at that point), but because most of the guests failed to read the tag and thought they were Dory!

I was lucky enough to get them for my birthday back in May, but they have unfortunately sold out completely in stores and on the Disney Store's website—so eBay/Amazon may be some of the only options at this point (check out current eBay listings for Charlie HERE and Jenny HERE). Best of luck! Be sure to share your thoughts on Dory's plush parents in the comments below.

Toy Story Men's Hoodie (From Boxlunch)

Reach for the sky!

Sold now at BoxLunch, here we have this very cool men's Toy Story inspired zip-up hoodie! I was absolutely thrilled to have received this recently as a gift from BoxLunch and I sincerely appreciate the opportunity I have to review it.

The quality of this zip-up is top notch. It's soft, it's fitted, it has distressed vintage looking graphics...everything I want in a hoodie! I really like how the front keeps things simple with the iconic Toy Story logo, while many of our classic toy friends populate the back. Color is heather blue-gray.

This is a hoodie that will be getting a lot of use this fall/winter. I really love it! I'm sure my fellow Toy Story fans out there will love it too. If you're interested in adding this one to your collection, be sure pick it up online at BoxLunch right HERE today! Retail is $54.90.

A huge thanks again to BoxLunch for sending this over. If you like what you see here, you'll definitely want to check out their store filled with many other pop-culture inspired gifts/collectibles and apparel. Be sure to hit them up on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook and remember that for every $10 you spend, BoxLunch donates a meal to a person in need through their partnership with Feeding America.

As they say, get some, give back! #getsomegiveback

Finding Dory: Disney Store Hank Plush

"I just want to live in a glass box alone. That’s all I want..." -Hank

Continuing on with the Disney Store's Finding Dory plush collection, here we have my personal favorite from the lot—Hank the cantankerous septopus! I don't know what it is, but I really love Hank as a character and his overall design; his bright colors, the way he looks, the way he moves, etc...not to mention the fantastic vocal performance from Ed O'Neil. There's just something very appealing about him to me, even if he is a bit cranky.

I feel like I have more merchandise of Hank than of Dory herself...and it's true. What can I say. As far as other Hank plush are concerned, there are several companies out there that produced them; but keep in mind though that this one right here by the Disney Store is, in my opinion, the best by far.

Hank stands at 9" tall and has a 17" diameter. His plush sculpt is 10/10 perfect (with nicely stitched embroidered features including the standard "Disney Store Genuine Original Authentic" patch on his side) and is incredibly soft. I love the materials used to create this plush, especially his shiny scales all over and the suction cups on his underside. As the Disney Store always says, the "magic is in the details!" Retail is $19.95.

With the holidays right around the corner, be sure to pick this up at your local Disney Store (or online HERE) before it's gone! As of today Hank is only $12.00, which is 40% off the original price.

Note: Over the past week or so, I've reviewing the entire Disney Store exclusive Finding Dory plush collection. If you haven't already, be sure to check out my detailed posts on Mr. Ray, Crush, Nemo, Bailey, Baby Dory, Sea Otter, Marlin and the sea lion trio—more to come!

My In-Depth Finding Dory Blu-Ray Review

Wow, back again for another Disney·Pixar Blu-Ray review already! It seems like I was just doing my write-ups for the Inside Out and The Good Dinosaur releases. In a way, I feel like I was just seeing Finding Dory in theaters, but in another I feel this release is a long time coming! At any rate, I'm just super excited to have this now as a part of my collection. Things feel complete.

While today marks the official Finding Dory Blu-Ray/DVD release day, the digital release has been available to own since October 25th. Since I'm a Blu-Ray collector, I was fine with holding off and waiting the extra three weeks to get my physical copy. Today I'm diving into the standard DVD+ Blu-Ray+Digital HD Combo Pack, which I pre-ordered at the Disney Store (and got a free lithograph set). I know there are other releases out there as well, such as the Blu-Ray 3D release and the Target Steelbook edition, but all the special features are the same across all versions this time around. Hallelujah, that makes it easier. 

Note: This is just my review of the Blu-Ray special features and not the film itself. Though I never got around (yet) to my review of Finding Dory, just know that I absolutely love it. It's another beautiful Pixar success in my book and a worthy followup to the original.

Alrighty, let's just get right into everything! First of all, before even getting into all the great bonus content, you'll notice the gorgeous menus. Pixar really has their Blu-Ray menu style down now; keeping it very simple and utilizing their stunning scenery as a backdrop.

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL (A CLOSER LOOK)
DISC 1 "FEATURE"- 

•  Audio Commentary (running time 1:37:02 *length of film*)- Director Andrew Stanton, Producer Lindsay Collins and Co-Director Angus MacLane have an in depth discussion about the film! I haven't had time to listen to the entire commentary quite yet, but what I've heard is as interesting as ever. Audio commentaries are my favorite part of any Pixar home video release, so I was anticipating this one a ton.

• Piper (6:04)- I literally don't think there's anyone in the world who didn't love Finding Dory's accompanying short film Piper. From the simple endearing story, to the joyous score, to the stunning animation (not to mention the cuteness of Piper herself), this film as all the makings of an instant classic, heartfelt Pixar short. Congrats to writer/director Alan Barillaro and his team!

• Marine Life Interviews (2:03)- This is a pretty funny, brand new "mini short"  with Bailey, Hank, Fluke, Rudder and Destiny all being "interviewed" about their interactions with Dory. It's very much Pixar's style, reminding me a lot of what they use to do with the bloopers at the end of some of their earlier films.

• The Octopus That Nearly Broke Pixar (9:04)- As many of you know already, Hank the septopus is said to be Pixar's most complex character to date. In this mini documentary, we get a look into that painstaking process of bringing Hank to life! 17 different filmmakers, across multiple departments, go into detail about the research that was done, the early development of the character, building the CG model, the complexities of animating the character and so on. There are a ton of interesting nuggets in this feature and it's one not to be missed.

• What Were We Talking About? (4:26)- This is another one of my favorite features. Andrew Stanton and his team talk about challenges of having a main character with short term memory loss and how the story developed into what it is today. I really enjoyed the discussion of why Dory can remember certain things and not others, which certainly clears some things up.

• Casual Carpool (3:46)- Finding Dory director Andrew Stanton, Albert Brooks (Marlin), Ty Burell (Bailey) Ed O' Neil (Hank) and and Eugene Levy (Charlie) "carpool" to Pixar in this bonus feature. I found this little snippet to be pretty funny, but it's also completely random. Though it's obviously planned and scripted (to an extent), you get a sense of casual improvisation as well. I found their banter and antics a lot of fun. 

• Animation & Acting (6:56)- An intriguing look into the voice acting/recording process! I really enjoyed seeing the passion and excitement from the actors about the characters they helped create.

• Deep In The Kelp (3:19)-  For whatever reason, Jenny Ortega (from the Disney Channel show Stuck in the Middle, which I've honestly never heard of) hosts this bonus feature. It seemed a little out of place, but I still really enjoyed the behind the scenes look into the Monterey Bay Aquarium (AKA the real life inspiration for the Marine Life Institute).

• Creature Features (3:02)-Albert Brooks, Eugene Levy, Ty Burell and Ed O' Neil share fun facts about their real life fish counterparts! It's a cute, if brief, little segment. By the way, did you catch the connection between this feature and the "Causal Carpool"?

 DISC 2 "BONUS"-

• Skating & Sketching with Jason Deamer (4:14)- Finding Dory Character Art Director/skateboarder Jason Deamer, in addition to sharing his inspiring story of how he began at Pixar in 1997, gives an entertaining look at the basics of drawing some of the main characters from the film! This is a creatively shot bonus feature with a great style to it.

• Dory's Theme (4:56)- In this segment, director Andrew Stanton sits down with composer Thomas Newman and music editor Bill Bernstein to talk about Dory's musical theme in the film (specifically the first and last tracks of the soundtrack). As a film score buff, I loved this feature. Hearing them talk about the inspiration behind her melody and the instruments used to to create its unique sound was entertaining and interesting overall (especially the bit about the abstract vocals, or "human sleigh bells").

•  Rough Day On The Reef (1:10)- This is a very brief montage of odd distortions to certain animations, which would occur during system glitches from time to time during the production of Finding Dory. Some of them are just plain wacky! I had a good chuckle at the end.

•  Finding Nemo As Told By Emoji (2:46)- This creative and hilarious retelling of Finding Nemo was released on the Disney YouTube Channel back on May 31st. This plays all the time at the Disney Store I work at, so I've seen it more times than I can count. If you missed it, be sure to watch it right HERE.

• Hidden secrets of Finding Dory (3:00)- I love how this feature dives into some of the deeper, lesser known Finding Dory Easter Eggs and hidden references! Just when I thought I had heard them all, there were some here that took me by surprise; for example, did you know Riley from Inside Out is seen at the Marine Life Institute? It's true! 

• Fish Schticks (3:34)- A collection of promotional animation toolkits featuring Dory, Marlin, Nemo, Bailey, Hank, Fluke, Rudder Destiny, Becky, and the sea otters.  Of course I would rather see more making of stuff, but this is pretty fun to watch. The musical crabs seen below was my favorite clip.

• Living Aquariums- Just like with the original Finding Nemo DVD, this Blu-Ray includes four animated "Living Aquariums". This time around we have "Open Ocean", "Sea Grass", "Stingrays" and "Swim to the Surface" (Kelp Forrest). Each one is an ambient look at some of the key locations from the film. These are perfect to just have on in the background during the day—the visuals and ocean sounds are soothing and atmospheric. 

• Trailers- Includes the US teaser trailer and three other international trailers.

•  Deleted Scenes- There are a lot of deleted scenes with this release. Probably more so than any other Pixar Blu-Ray release thus far. We're talking literally over an hour! While I won't go into detail on each one, I will say they are most definitely worth checking out. 

1. Introduction by Director Andrew Stanton (0:53)
2. Losing Nemo (5:03)
3. Sleep Swimming (3:00)- a fully animated, rendered and scored deleted scene. That doesn't happen too often in animation! I first saw this scene at the D23 Expo last year. It was cut very late in the game.
4. Meeting Hank (3:25)
5. Little Tension in Clown Town (7:31)
6. The Pig (2:05)
7. Dory Dumped (5:47)
8. Starting Over (22:16)- A look at many different incarnations of the film's opening.  
9. Tank Gang (15:55 digital exclusive*)

*To access your Digital HD exclusive deleted scene, just enter the code included with your copy into your account on the Disney Movies Anywhere site. Then just select Finding Dory from within your collection and you'll be able to view all the bonus content! Simple as that.

Additionally, when you purchase the film digitally or the Blu-Ray combo pack, you also receive a cute digital graphic novel of Finding Dory! You can redeem this from the "Unlocked Offers" area of the Disney Movie Rewards website (once you've entered your code). This will lead you to the Disney Story Central website where you can access your "digital storybook."

OK, well I think that about covers it. Phew! It's definitely a butt--I mean, "boat" load of bonus content (I hope someone caught that Finding Nemo reference). I'm not gonna lie though, I'm left just a little less satisfied here. I do wish the actual behind the scenes featurettes weren't so short. I feel like there was so much more they could have gone into. Right when I feel like any given feature is taking off, it ends. I miss the days of the full length documentaries, which are few and far between now. Overall though, I can't be greedy here and I did immensely enjoy what was included. Plus I still have half a commentary to watch/listen to!

FILM- 4 out of 5 stars
BONUS CONTENT (excluding commentary)- 3.8 out of 5 stars
IMAGE/SOUND QUALITY- 5 out of 5 stars

What are some of your thoughts? Be sure to share in the comments below!