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Sunday, July 25, 2021

Disney·Pixar 2021 Luca McDonald's Happy Meal Toys—Complete Set of 8! REVIEW

Hey all! Welcome back to the blog. A few weeks ago I uploaded my video review of last month's Disney·Pixar Luca McDonald's Happy Meal toys and have been meaning to get blog post up here as well. Tonight I'm finally getting to it! This is a pretty awesome and (surprisingly quality) set of toys for being Happy Meal toys and there's a lot of play value here. I've seen it first hand since my 19 month old son (who loves Luca) absolutely loves these and plays with them in the bath, pool and around the house every single day! They're hard plastic, so they're sturdy and resilient when played with and are a nice, decently big size perfect for toddler hands. Some pretty impressive sculpts to boot (again, for McDonald's toys).

The characters available in this collection are: #1 Luca (Sea Monster), #2 Monalisa, #3 Alberto (Human/Sea Monster Color Change), #4 Giulia Marcovaldo, #5 Alberto (Sea Monster), #6 Machiavelli. #7 Luca (Human/Sea Monster Color Change) and #8 Massimo Marcovaldo. I love the variety of characters here, especially the inclusion of Monalisa. The best part is they're all some kind of water toy, each with a fun little gimmick (which I demonstrate in my video below).

A huge thanks to "ScottsTikiRoom" on Instagram for reaching out to me and hooking me up with this full set! That was extremely kind and generous and we appreciate it so much.

And here's my video showing off all the action! Each toy falls under the category of either wind-up swimmer, water squirter or color changer. 

Even though the Luca toys are no longer available at McDonald's, you can still track them down on eBay (direct link HERE) as there are plenty of current listings. If your little one loves Luca (or even if you're an older collector), I can highly recommend these. I'm not usually one to collect many Pixar Happy Meal toys, but since there really aren't many Luca toys out there in general (and these are so different compared to any others considering the water play aspect), these were a welcome addition to my collection.

Let me know your thoughts below! Did you pick any of these up?

Friday, July 23, 2021

Disney·Pixar Toy Story 2021 Hallmark Keepsake Army Men Recon Plan Charlie Ornament—with SOUNDS!

Ho ho ho! Merry Christmas in July, everyone. Tonight I’m taking a closer look at the brand new 2021 Magic Sound "Recon Plan Charlie" ornament inspired by the classic army man birthday party reconnaissance scene in the original Toy Story. This was released just a couple weeks back—on July 10th to be exact—as part of Hallmark’s Keepsake collection.

Like a lot of you I'm sure, I look forward to Hallmark’s yearly Keepsake ornaments release every July (and then again in the fall) mainly to see what new Disney/Pixar ones get made. Even though my wife and I don’t really put many (if any) Pixar ornaments on our actual Christmas tree (as I've mentioned here before), there are some like this one here that are SO cool that I can’t resist getting them even if it’s just used as a display piece on one of my Pixar shelves. And what’s really fun for me is that Hallmark’s keepsake release always seems to happen when we visit my in-laws in Maryland every July and, since they have a hallmark right down the street from them, I’ve made it a tradition to pop over there to document all the new Disney Pixar ornaments in person and snag a fave or two. And that's exactly where I picked this one up! Good memories.


The ornament is all plastic and, while the green army men are pretty much perfect and look just as they do in Toy Story, you probably already noticed that the baby monitor itself is only INSPIRED by the one seen in the film and isn’t completely accurate (due to rights issues with Playskool, I’m sure). It’s like the Hallmark team was tasked to come up with a generic design that captures the overall vibe of the monitor seen in Toy Story without totally replicating it and I think they did a really good job. I honestly didn’t even notice right away and then I was like...wait a second. The main differences are this monitor doesn’t have the gray speaker area, the little red right is on the opposite side, there’s no blue tip on the antenna, the blue power on-dial has been replaced by grey button and obviously it doesn’t have the Playskool logo.

Now for the best part—press the grey button on the side to hear the sounds! There are five phrases from Sarge, who's audio is taken directly from Toy Story (hear it all in my YouTube video below). The ornament requires two LR44 button cell batteries, which are included but not installed.

As far as size, the baby monitor itself measures 5” tall (that’s including the antenna), the crouching army man is about 2” tall and the standing one is close to 3” tall. So yah, even though the army men are basically movie scale (or even bigger), don’t expect the monitor to be movie scale cause it’s definitely not even close. This is a relatively small ornament. Overall the sculpt is awesome for what it is as it really captures the moment, the sounds are fantastic and I highly recommend picking this up for your Christmas tree or as a display piece for your Toy Story shelf. 

Retail price is $19.99. You can pick this up at your nearest Hallmark store or online HERE while it's still available! I highly recommend it. What are your thoughts? Did you pick this up for your collection?


Monday, July 19, 2021

Luca Deluxe Figurine Set REVIEW (Disney Store/ShopDisney)

Hey everyone, happy Monday and welcome back to the blog! Today I'm sharing some quick thoughts on this absolutely stunning Disney·Pixar Luca Deluxe Figurine Set from the Disney Store (ShopDisney). If you've followed my content for a while now, you know I'm pretty big into collecting Disney Store's figurine sets (at least the Pixar themed ones)—even if, at least in the past, some of the figures haven't been the most quality when it comes to their sculpts or paint (they have been getting better though so I'll give them that). Honestly most of the figurine sets these days have been pretty impressive and I appreciate that the Disney Store has been improving them over the last few years, at least with the Deluxe sets, but this is the best one in ages—no question! 

This is probably my second favorite Pixar Deluxe Figurine set ever following the original Up one from 2009. Each character's likeness is spot on, the sculpts are extremely well made/well designed overall and the paint application (at least on mine) is very consistent and on point. My favorite aspect though is how all the sea monster characters' bases are translucent swirling ocean water. It's super creative and magical! My hat goes off to the designer of this set.


There are nine figurines included with this set and it's a fantastic selection of characters: Luca (sea monster), Alberto (sea monster), Luca (human), Alberto (human), Giulia, Massimo (with Machiavelli), Ercole (on his vespa), Daniela (Luca's mom) and Lorenzo (Luca's dad). Really my only slight complaint (which isn't even really a complaint, more of just wishful thinking on my part) is that I wish that Uncle Ugo was included. He would have looked great in this style (he totally would have been a mostly translucent PVC) and there isn't a single figure of him out there. His absence is certainly not a deal breaker though. Ciccio and Guido would have been amazing to see as well, but I know only so many figures can fit in one of these sets.

Take a close-up, detailed, 360 degree look at each figure in my video review below! Figures stand [up to] 4 1/4'' H and, while they don't have any articulation, they're still perfect for play or display.

This set retailed for $26.99 at the Disney Store and ShopDisney.com, but it has unfortunately already sold out. I'm shocked it went that fast! I'm not sure if it will get restocked, but keep your eyes peeled. All in all, this gets a 10/10 from me. What do you think?! Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below and stay tuned for more from my Pixar collection every week.

Saturday, July 17, 2021

Pixar Luxo Ball Silk Tie— Disney Parks / ShopDisney

From ShopDisney (also available at the Disney Parks), check out this awesome yellow Pixar inspired Luxo Ball Silk Tie! This was a Father's Day gift from my wife and 18 month old son last month and I couldn't be happier with it. It's fun, yet subtle and minimal—just how I like it! If you're interested in adding this to your Pixar/tie collection, it's currently available on ShopDisney.com HERE for $44.99.

Here are all the official "magic in the details" from Disney Store's site: 

Animate your outfit with our Pixar Ball silk tie featuring a single color rendering of the famous sphere woven into a solid background. You're sure to have a bounce in your step knowing you've completed your look with this stylish necktie.

Created especially for Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort

  • Silk necktie
  • Allover Pixar Ball design
  • Tuck loop

  • 100% silk
  • 3'' W x 58'' L
  • Imported

Monday, July 12, 2021

Toy Story "THE CLAW" Inflatable Pizza Planet Space Crane Ball Pit (Disney Store/ShopDisney)

The claw is his master, the claw decides who will go and who will stay. Check out this crazy cool inflatable Toy Story inspired Pizza Planet "The Claw" Space Crane Ball Pit from the Disney Store (ShopDisney.com)! This was given to us as a gift earlier this year from one of my old Disney Store cast member friends/coworkers and we finally took the time to inflate it recently for my son Aidan to enjoy in his new playroom. He loves the Toy Story aliens and "the claw" scene in the original film, so he was incredibly excited to see this all blown up. 

This thing is pretty huge, measuring at 60" tall x 36" deep x 42" wide. It comes with 100 bright green balls (very lightweight), which may sound like a lot, but really isn't once you put them in the ball pit area. The 100 balls don't even cover the bottom of the rocket, but I expected that. If you want to fill it up to be more of a true ball pit, I'd suggest picking a bunch more up on Amazon. We left it as is right now, since my 18 month old doesn't know any different. He thinks it's awesome! Maybe we'll add more when he's a little older, but for now the amount it comes with works just fine. The original retail price was $49.99, but it ended up getting some pretty deep markdowns in the end.

 
I used a basic electric pump to blow this up (any one you'd get to pump up a pool float) and it was quick and simple! In the end it look less than 15 minutes. Other than the main rocket (which has several inflation valves), there are five other pieces to inflate and assemble (so six pieces total in the box total): the four fins (that velcro on) and "the claw" hoop to toss the balls through (which also uses velcro to attach). 

Check it out in more detail below! The Toy Story Alien costume sleeper/hat set my son is wearing was also from ShopDisney thanks to another Disney coworker friend of mine, but has since sold out.


 
Aidan loves the wall of Aliens!

This really is a super neat item and it's been fun seeing Aidan enjoy it so much. I know it didn't originally get the best reviews, but really no complaints from me! It works just as intended, I just feel it could have included maybe 100 more balls just to at least cover the bottom of the bit area. I don't think I would have picked this up on my own (just cause it's so big and we don't have very much space), but it's so great to have as a gift! I'm sure it will be a hit for years to come. 

Unfortunately this isn't available at the Disney Store or ShopDisney anymore, but keep your eyes open online as it may pop on Amazon or eBay every now and then. Let me know your thoughts down below! Did you pick this up for your little one?

Saturday, July 3, 2021

Toy Story Evil Dr. Porkchop & Rocky Gibraltar—Mattel 7" Scale Pixar Action Figure Collection

 
Two exciting figures, one review—Today I'm finally taking a closer look at the new for 2021 Evil Dr. Porkchop and Rocky Gibraltar action figures that were released earlier this year as part of Mattel's ever-expanding Pixar 7" scale figure line! First things first, I have to give another huge thank you and shoutout to my friend hayleytoystory on Instagram for sending these over to me all the way from the UK. Since these two characters are STILL only available in the UK for whatever reason, I really appreciate the help. Hayley picked them up at Smyth’s Toys, but I'm sure they're sold elsewhere there in the UK as well (it doesn't say they're Smyth's exclusives; let me know if you've seen them anywhere else). I honestly thought for the longest time that these two would eventually come to the US and I held out hope all year, but ultimately I didn’t want to risk them selling out or getting even more rare then they already are at this point; so I decided to just pay the extra money and had them shipped to me from overseas. Let me tell you though, it was so worth it! Both of these are amazing figures and probably some of my favorites that Mattel has done so far.
 
Hamm as Evil Dr. Porkchop is such a fun and unique figure. I love how his sculpt is him sitting upright just as he is at the beginning of Toy Story 3 when he's piloting his spaceship—his pose and facial expression are right out of that moment! He's 6" tall, has a little articulation in his arms, his head can rotate all the way around and his cork can be removed (however, this figure doesn't come with any plastic coins like the 2019 7" scale Hamm did.
 
EVIL DR. PORKCHOP
 
Alrighty, moving onto Rocky Gibraltar now! Oh Rocky, how fans have wanted a full scale replica of you for over 25 years and... this still isn't it, but it's the closest we’ve gotten. First things first, Rocky’s posability is awesome. He has all the points of articulation he has in the film—all the working joints are here. We’re talking the ball jointed shoulders, the elbows, the wrists, the waist (can't be spun all the way around), the legs, the knees and his head of course (which also doesn’t turn a full 360 degrees, just side to side). Now as far as his likeness, I’d say it’s SO close to being absolutely 100% perfect. He’s just missing a little red paint above his boots, but other than that his face and overall sculpt is insanely spot on. And again just to be clear, this Rocky is not intended to be a full-scale movie accurately sized replica, so don’t expect that or you might be disappointed. Mattel produced this Rocky to be in scale with their specific line of 7” action figures and he stands just under 7” tall. However, this is—I believe—the biggest Rocky toy out there (it’s certainly bigger than Mattel’s small Rocky figures from years ago), so if you do just want a really good Rocky to fill the hole in your full scale Toy Story collection, this is your best option right now even though it’s technically too small. 
 
ROCKY GIBRALTAR

Well I think that about covers it! These are two phenomenal figures and I can’t recommend them enough if you’re able to get your hands on them through help from a friend in the UK, eBay, Amazon, or however you might go about it. And who knows? Maybe these will finally get a stateside release as well. Time will tell. You can see them in even more detail in my video review below, so be sure to give that a watch (like and subscribe too if you enjoy my content ;). 

Let me know your thoughts and any questions you might have down in the comments!