Pixar Business Pen Set (Disney Store)

Early this year, the Disney Store and ShopDisney.com released a pretty exciting and unique array of Pixar related items—one of which being this "Pixar Business" Pen Set of 8! I enjoy seeing some of Pixar's less represented films get some love here, including Wall·E, Monsters Inc. and Ratatouille (as well as all three Toy Story films)! Whoever thought of putting the names/logos of iconic businesses seen in Pixar films on pens was genius. They know us fans go crazy for this kind of stuff. And we did, hence the fact that these sold out relatively quickly in-store and online.

You probably recognize all these Pixar businesses, but here's a rundown for you just in case: Al's Toy Barn (Toy Story 2), Buy n Large (Wall·E), Monsters Inc., La Ratatouille (Ratatouille), Sunnyside Daycare (Toy Story 3), Pizza Planet (Toy Story), CDA (Child Detection Agency; Monsters Inc.) and the Tri-County Landfill (Toy Story 3).

The packaging is great all around, especially on the inside where you'll find a subtle Pixar ball printed behind the pens. I will say though, it's odd that on the back of the box (and along the sides) they included all the logos of the Pixar films represented here on these pens except for Wall·E.

The pens themselves are plastic (very lightweight) and measure about 5 1/2'' L each. Original retail price for this set was $9.95. They certainly aren't the highest quality, but they write and work just as they should! Yes, a tad novelty, but they look amazing and all the logos and vibrant colors are so appealing. I'll actually be bringing these to my job soon to display (and use) on my desk, in a Pixar mug of course. It'll be fun to bring some Pixar into the workplace! It's perfect that these are "business" related.

Can you name any other Pixar businesses they they could have included? I was thinking of Insuricare from The Incredibles, Harryhausen's from Monsters Inc., Poultry Palace from Toy Story Toons: Small Fry, Dinoco from Cars, the Marine Life Institute from Finding Dory, Eggman Movers from Toy Story and, if you want a real deep cut reference, Brang from Inside Out.

Let me know all your thoughts down below! Did you pick this set up for your collection?

Toy Story 4: Boys' Duke Caboom T-Shirt (From Target)

CABOOM! If your little guy is already a fan of Duke Caboom (the most spectacular daredevil Canada has ever seen), you'll most certainly wanna snag this Toy Story 4 Duke Caboom boys' tee available at Target now! My nephew Noah loves the character and the film isn't even out yet (kudos to the marketing team). He had to get this shirt to wear to the theater on opening day and I just had to document it here. Figured some of you may be interested!

There are a ton of Toy Story 4 kids' tees out there (especially at Target), but this one is a real stand out. Such a fun and colorful design. You can pick this up currently at your local Target or on their website HERE for $10.99. Sizes range from XS to XL.

Which new character are you most excited to see in Toy Story 4? Duke? Forky? Ducky? Bunny? Gabby Gabby? Giggle? Benson? So many good ones. Let me know all your thoughts down below!

Toy Story 4: Pixar Studio Store Exclusive Woody & Forky Tee (Art by Jeff Pidgeon)

For those who enjoy seeing my Pixar Studio Store exclusive t-shirt collection, I have one more for you—and this just be my favorite one yet! Here we have a Toy Story 4 inspired tee featuring a silhouetted, minimal design of Woody and Forky holding hands. I love their friendship already and I know it will be a special part of the film! The awesome art here is by Pixar veteran Jeff Pidgeon, long time Pixar story artist and voice of the squeeze toy aliens. Original retail price was $17.

NOTE: As a reminder, the Pixar Studio Store is only accessible to Pixar employees and their families/guests and is not open to the public. A big thanks to a friend of mine who was kind enough to send this to me!

This black, men sized shirt has a Toy Story logo style "4" on the sleeve and "Pixar Animation Studios Emeryville, CA" on the back near the neckline. Very classy. And unlike the last one I got (which you can view HERE), this one has that athletic fit that I prefer! The fit is perfect and just how I like my t-shirts (more narrow, less boxy). I'll be wearing this one a ton, I know it already.

I'm super grateful to have this shirt as part of my collection! What are you thoughts? Shout them out down below.

Lastly, I just wanted to say only 19 DAYS until Toy Story 4! That is just nuts, after all these years of waiting. This is also a great time to make the announcement on here that this Friday (June 6th), I'll be heading to Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL for the Toy Story 4 press junket for social media influencers! We will be having a private screening of the full film on Saturday, as well as a celebratory lunch and dinner in the parks, viewing a showcase of the latest and upcoming TS4 products, attending an after hours experience in Toy Story Land and so much more. I will be in the parks from Friday to Sunday, so if anyone will be down there at the same time, let me know and we can meet up! Be sure to follow along on my adventure on Instagram (mostly through stories) and Twitter. I could not be more honored, grateful and excited!

Follow me on Instagram @danthepixarfan

Toy Story Figural Bag Clip Mystery Pack Collection (from Monogram Collectibles)

Monogram Collectibles makes the cutest 3D foam figural keyrings and bag clips out there, so you can imagine my excitement when they revealed that a full set of Toy Story characters was on its way! This is Series 22 of their Disney blind bag assortments and I could not be more excited to share each character with you today in more detail. A HUGE thank you to Monogram for sending this case my way to unbox and review! 

There have been other Toy Story characters released in past Disney series, but this is the first series dedicated entirely to the TS films. Here's the breakdown of other TS characters released over the years and their corresponding series:

• Buzz Lightyear (Series 4)
•  Woody and an Alien (Series 5)
• Lotso, Jessie and Rex were in (Series 6)
• Hamm, Wheezy and Army Man (Series 8, which I purchased and reviewed HERE)
• Zurg (Disney Villains Series)

And if this wasn't exciting enough, a Toy Story 4 specific series is right around the corner as well! I'm hoping to get that collection to share with you as soon as it hits (no release date yet). 

Anyway, onto this series as there's a lot to dive into! 11 characters to be exact (nine commons and two exclusives—Exclusive A and Exclusive B, which are only one each per case)...

Here we have: Buzz Lightyear as Mrs. Nesbit, Woody (with Bo Peep's kisses), Bo Peep, Jessie, Bullseye, Buttercup, Trixie, Slinky, Mr. Potato Head, Baby Face (Exclusive A) and a Glow in the Dark Alien (Exclusive B). Each figure is about 2.5" tall.

And here's my full case breakdown for anyone interested:

• Buzz Lightyear as Mrs. Nesbit (x2) 
• Woody (x2)
• Bo Peep (x3)
• Jessie (x2)
• Bullseye (x3)
• Buttercup (x3)
• Trixie (x3)
• Slinky (x2)
• Mr. Potatohead (x2)
• Baby Face (x1)
• Glow in the Dark Alien (x1)

Take an up-close and personal look at each character below! These are some of the cutest renditions of these characters that I've ever seen; this company has such a unique and iconic style. I absolutely LOVE what they did with Woody by giving him that smug face and Bo Peep kiss prints (straight from the end of the first film). There have been a lot of products of Woody since 1995, basically every variant you could ever think of, but I believe this is the first to utilize this idea/movie moment. Way to go Monogram! So clever.

I also love how Mr. Potato Head is featured here, since you don't get much of him outside of the actual Potato Head toys from Playskool (because of rights issues)—he might actually be my favorite with Woody with kisses and Slinky rounding out my top three! How could I really choose though, they're all amazing. You can't go wrong with anything Nesbit Buzz related! And Sid's iconic mutant toy Baby Face? Seriously amazing! Another unique choice of a character you rarely see. Lastly, I couldn't not mention how cool the glow in the dark alien is. That one is a must!

Buzz Lightyear (Mrs. Nesbit)

Woody (with Kisses)

Bo Peep

Jessie

Bullseye

Buttercup

Trixie

Slinky

Mr. Potato Head

Baby Face (Exclusive A)

Glow in the Dark Alien (Exclusive B)

These can mostly be found at stores like Hot Topic and BoxLunch, as well as online shops like Amazon and Toy Wiz. Walmart's website has them as well, but I'm not sure if they can be found in actual Walmart stores. Retail price ranges anywhere between $4.99 and $6.90 each.

Finally, you can check out my full blind bag opening video below on my YouTube channel! Be sure to give it a watch and a big thumbs up if you enjoy it. Feel free to subscribe while you're there! ;) Which character is your favorite design? Have you picked any of these up yet? If so, who did you get? Can't wait to hear all your thoughts down below.

Thank you again to Monogram Collectibles! If you like what you see, be sure to follow them on Instagram and Twitter for all their latest reveals and updates.

Toy Story 4: Hallmark Itty Bittys Assortment *PAGE UPDATE!*

To my surprise, Bo Peep is part of the Toy Story 4 Itty Bittys collection after all! Hallmark hadn't sent me this one (I assumed I had received the full set), so I had no idea she existed until I found her at my local Hallmark last night. She looks SO cute and I'm so glad she was included in this lineup. Bo Peep lends herself to this style perfectly, so it definitely would have been a missed opportunity! Love her cape, staff and flower brooch details.

I've updated my original Toy Story 4 Itty Bittys post with new photos and links to buy, which you can check out HERE. Scroll down to the bottom of the post to see some of the Toy Story 4 Itty Bittys baby items I found as well! So much cuteness.

Toy Story 4 LEGO Sets—Duke Caboom's Stunt Show & Carnival Thrill Coaster!

For the first time since 2010, Toy Story LEGO sets are back—this time around inspired some of the most memorable moments and characters from Toy Story 4! The biggest difference this time around is that rather than these being your standard LEGO sets (7-14 age range), these are all part of the new "4+" collection (previously known as "LEGO Juniors"). That just means they have less pieces, are a bit less intricate and a bit easier to build; but the designs are still very appealing, cute and classic LEGO! They're perfect for kids who have outgrown Duplo sets but maybe aren't quite old enough for the more involved builds.

My nephew Noah (my little Pixar fan buddy) just turned six, so he is the perfect audience for these. For his birthday last month, I got him the "Duke Caboom's Stunt Show" (set 10767) since he's already obsessed with that character. The "Carnival Thrill Coaster" (set 10771) was gifted to me by LEGO (a huge thanks to them) and so I'm thrilled to review that one here as well! Noah, my other nephew Cade and I had a fun time building these a couple days ago at my sister's house.

Let's take a closer look! Both of these sets took only about 15 minutes to put together.

DUKE CABOOM'S STUNT SHOW

This one is honestly my favorite of the all TS4 sets released. It's just super cool looking (can't go wrong with an Evel Knievel style ring of fire) and I love the colors! The Duke mini figure is spot on too. This set also comes with Woody, a couple smaller stunt cars for Duke to jump and some barrels to round out the scene. Retail is $19.99; 120 pieces total.

CARNIVAL THRILL COASTER

The "Carnival Thrill Coaster" set is really cute too, but it doesn't scream Toy Story to me—yet. Maybe it will once I watch the film and see this coaster in the context of the carnival scenes (wonder if it will be featured prominently or just in the background?). This one is a lot of fun though, purely for the track system and how the caterpillar coaster can ride smoothly around and around. I like the little details as well, such as the camera (we all love roller coaster photos!) and the revolving turnstile.

This set comes with Buzz Lightyear and Alien mini figures, is 98 pieces and also retails for $19.99.

You really can't go wrong with either of these or any of the Toy Story 4 sets in general! They all look great. In addition to these two sets, you can also find: "RV Vacation", "Buzz & Woody's Carnival Mania" (which features attractions I actually recognize from the trailers), "Buzz & Bo Peep's Playground Adventure" and "Woody & RC". You can purchase any of them using my direct affiliate links below!

Have you picked up any of these sets? Do you have a personal favorite? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments.

follow me on Instagram @danthepixarfan

LAST CHANCE! Pre-Order Doc's Ornament Valley Mechanical Clinic Precision Series Playset Today

UPDATE: Extended through 6/4/19! Let's make it happen!

In 2015, Mattel introduced the Disney·Pixar Cars Precision Series—a collection of highly detailed diecast vehicles and playsets "geared" toward adults and more serious Cars collectors. It was a dream come true for us fans. We would finally be getting the entire town of Radiator Springs in playset form after a decade of waiting—all with movie accurate lighting effects and details! The line started with Flo's V8 Cafe and then introduced new buildings year after year since: Fillmore's Taste-in, Sarge's Hut, Mater's Junkyard, Sally's Cozy Cone Motel, Luigi's Casa Della Tires, Lizzie's Curio Shop and Ramone's House of Body Art. This year, we were suppose to get Doc's Ornament Valley Mechanical Clinic...until we didn't.

When I visited Toy Fair in NYC back in February, a representative of Mattel told me [bluntly] that the line had been cancelled. WHAT!? With only three sets to go before completing the town (Doc's Clinic, the Piston Cup Racing Museum and the Courthouse), how could they? I was shocked. After being dedicated to this line for almost fours years and close to $1,000 spent collecting it, I could not be more bummed. I knew other fans would feel the same way, so I spread the news with hope we could do something about it.

Flash forward a bit and Mattel goes ahead and gives us collectors one last chance to save the line. On April 24th, they announced a crowed funding campaign of sorts. If they could receive 3,000 pre-orders by 5/21 (today), Doc's playset would go into production by next fall. If the set failed to acquire the needed amount of supporters, the line would be toast—bye, bye. No more. Finished.

Today is the last day and, unfortunately, the set only has 686 of the needed 3,000 backers. I know this post won't help much (if at all) at this point, but I wanted to share my thoughts and give it one last shot. If you have yet to pre-order one for your collection, you can do so on the Mattel Shop website HERE for $129.99. Note: You will not be charged unless the playset reaches the goal.

Check out the amazing prototype photos of this set below. It would have been absolutely AMAZING. The building has both Doc's clinic and his garage, detailed exactly as it appears in the film. It looks like these photos will be all we ever get of it though, so I guess we just have to soak in what could have been! Maybe, just maybe, one day Mattel will revisit this collection and produce the last three sets. We can only hope!

Have you backed this set yet? If you haven't, there's no time to waste! Again, pre-order HERE and let me know all your thoughts down below. Eight out of the eleven sets guys...we were so close.

#SaveRadiatorSprings