One of my favorite exclusive freebies I got while attending the 2022 D23 Expo a couple of weeks back is this Elemental (Pixar's 2023 theatrical film) poster that was given to everyone who was at the Studio Showcase Day 1 Panel ("Celebrate the Magic of Disney and Pixar")! I absolutely adore the look of this film so far and I love how the concept art featured here on this print is pretty minimalist, yet still so stunning and imaginative. I wonder who it's by? The poster is pretty big, measuring 18.5" x 27 in size.
The same art was also on a big promo wall at the Pixar booth there at the expo, seen below.
And here's a quick video, just so you can get a sense of the sheen that was added to certain areas of the print. So great. Let me know what you think down below and I'll catch you all in my next post!
My D23 Expo haul continues! Today I'm sharing the D23 Expo 2022 exclusive Funko Soda Frozone vinyl figure—inspired by The Incredibles, of course— that I picked up at the Funko booth while attending the convention a couple weeks back. Unfortunately I didn't get the limited edition chase (which includes some ice coming out of his hand), but regardless, I was happy to snag this common one before they sold out there.
And good news! Funko also released this online, so if you couldn't make it to this year's expo, no worries. And double good news, it's still in stock as of this write-up! You can purchase it on the official Funko Shop website HERE for $15.
What do you think!? Did you get this figure as well? Were you one of the lucky ones to get the chase? Let me know down in the comments! And be sure to stay tuned right here for more blog posts and video reviews coming real soon.
Pro tip: At the D23 Expo Pixar booth—no matter what year you attend—they're always giving out fun, exclusive freebies there to take home. Some are easy to get, some are more spontaneous giveaways you kind of just have to be in the right place at the right time for. The later was the case regarding this Elemental concept art print that was being handed out on the last night of the expo! I just happened to be standing near the Pixar booth when I saw the Pixar folks starting to give these prints away and I could tell they had a very small amount of them to hand out...SO you know I ran right over and got one and it happened to be one of the very last ones! It's those kinds of little magical moments that make going to the expo worth it for me.
Elemental, Pixar's next film, hits theaters June 16th, 2023. What are your thoughts on the film? Based on what was shown at the D23 Expo 2022 and the beautiful concept art revealed (like what's featured here in this print), I'm incredibly excited. It sure has the potential to be another classic!
Happy Monday, everyone! Here are a few D23 Expo 2022 exclusive pins that were given out at the Pixar booth (yes for free!) that I just wanted to quickly share and document here on the blog. First off, above are the two Elemental pins (Wade & Ember), promoting Pixar's next theatrical film Elemental (releasing June 16th, 2023). These were a little harder to get since I feel they were a bit more limited and went quickly, but I was lucky enough to obtain the very last Wade pin they had. As far as Ember, I missed out on her—BUT a huge thank you to my friend Josh (aka "Pixar Freak") who was nice enough to give me his! It was totally unnecessary, but incredibly kind nonetheless and I'm still so super grateful. It would have been weird to have one without the other, I will say!
The Toy Story inspired Woody pin below was another freebie given out and I absolutely love the design of it. I'm not sure who the artist is behind any of these pins, but if you know, definitely shout it out down in the comment section.
So it's been a long time since I picked up a new Pixar inspired tee. Honestly, I have SO many and there just hasn't been a design I've see that's been a "must have" in a quite a while—that is until just last week when I purchased this Pixar logo t-shirt featuring the iconic Luxo Jr. and Pixar ball! This just felt very unique and "me" and I couldn't resist getting it.
I found this at Knick's Knacks at Disney's California Adventure (I'm not sure where else it might be sold) and ended up paying $26.93 for it. It's soft, fits well and I highly suggest picking it up as well if you're visiting DCA anytime soon!
Let me know what you think down below and I'll catch you right here soon in my next blog post.
Here's something I grabbed at this year's D23 Expo last week! I absolutely love all the
characters, references and hidden details included in this D23 Expo 2022
exclusive art (given out to D23 Gold Members for free) celebrating 100 years
of Disney magic. The artist behind this print, Eric Tan, did an absolutely phenomenal job and I know the task he was given to do this was no small feat. I’ve looked at this a lot and I’m still noticing new
things—so impressive! What’s your favorite detail?
*The print is 13x19 in size for anyone wondering.*
Hey all! So I just got back Anaheim, CA where I not only attended the 2022 D23 Expo, but was also grateful to have fit in a quick visit to Disneyland & California Adventure as well thanks to my friend Josh aka Pixar Freak! And even though I didn't come home with anything very exciting from the actual expo (Pixar merch was both VERY lacking AND lackluster this year), I did pick up a couple of cool new items from the parks—one of which was this really neat new Coco inspired alebrije Dante novelty straw/figural clip which just dropped earlier this month! Without Josh's help, I wouldn't have known about this; so again, I'm very grateful to him for not only getting me into the parks, but letting me know that this was out AND where it was available to buy.
I couldn't resist it (as well as a delicious refreshing horchata beverage) since firstly: it's super cute and unique and secondly: I've already collected several other Disney Parks novelty straws in the past (like theLuxo Jr.Toy Story alien and Ratatouille ones), so I knew this one would fit right in with the collection.
You can buy this right now at both the Cocina Cucamonga Mexican Grill in California Adventure AND the Rancho del Zocalo Restaurante in Disneyland (Frontierland) for $7.99.
Let me know your thoughts down below! What do you all think of this one? Will you be picking it up?
Hey everyone! Wow, crazy I'm back here on the blog after all these months—I know. I have had SO many blog posts I've wanted to write here over the last year or so (and I do miss it), but it turns out there just aren't enough hours in the day. Who knew?
After deciding last spring (2021) that I was going to put all my efforts into pursuing YouTube full time, writing/filming/editing/uploading my video reviews daily has taken every spare second I have (outside of my other home and family responsibilities, of course). As such, my written reviews have—unfortunately—had to go on the back burner, at least for now. So yah, I'm still creating content, my Pixar product reviews have not stopped, it's just I've switched over to video format for the time being. If you're interested in following along with my reviews there on YouTube, be sure to check out my channel HERE and feel free to subscribe! Any support means a ton.
Anyway, for today's post I just wanted finally jump on here and share that update with you all (since I know a lot of my long-time readers have wondered where I've been) as well as show you this fantastic Disney Parks exclusive Pixar Luxo Ball beach towel before the summer is over! I received this as a birthday gift over a year ago and meant to post this last summer—that's how behind I've been here.
You know I love collecting anything and everything Pixar ball related, so this was a must have as soon as I saw it was hitting the Disney Parks! The towel is pretty huge (5 ft in diameter) and is just simply awesome for literally any Pixar fan young or old (even my 2 1/2 year old son Aidan loves it as you can see). I absolutely recommend tracking it down! I'm not sure if it's sold at the parks at this point, but it's pretty easy to find currently on eBay (that's where I got mine; see current listings HERE) for around $30.
Let me know what you think down in the comments and/or any questions you might have! Have you picked this up for your collection? Looking forward to hearing from you below. Hope you all have an AMAZING last few weeks of summer and I'll catch you in my next blog post / video review!
Hey everyone! Today I'm thrilled to finally be able to talk about the new "Alpha Class" Series of Disney·Pixar Lightyear figures coming soon. SO I had seen these images floating around for a while, but I didn’t have enough info to report on them in full, BUT as of the Lightyear toy launch this past Sunday, we now have every detail we need to get us all super pumped thanks to Amazon listings.
So the news you were all hoping to hear is...yes these Alpha Class figures ARE in fact part of Mattel’s 7” scale action figure collection! Back when Mattel’s 5” scale Lightyear collection was announced, I know a lot of you (myself included) were disappointed that the Pixar 7” scale collection that we’ve been collecting for 3 years now seemed to have been over just like that and replaced with the 5” figures. But now we have confirmation that the 7” scale collection is continuing on through this Alpha Class series for Lightyear and is in addition to, not replaced by, the 5” scale figures. So great that we get the best of both worlds.
What’s really cool about the Alpha class figures is that they’re not the basic $10 Pixar 7” figures, but are more in line with Mattel’s more premium style 7” scale figures geared more toward slightly older kids and collectors—very similar to the collector centered Pixar Featured Favorites line I’ve been reviewing on my YouTube channel. And at a retail price of $21.99 each, they’re the exact same price point as the Featured Favorites as well, so I see what they’re doing here (these are basically Featured Favorites for Lightyear in a way).
Anyway, within this Alpha Class series we have four figures, at least for now. I have no idea if additional characters will be made, but if this is it I’m happy we get at least the films four main characters: Space Ranger Alpha Buzz Lightyear with Sox, Zap Patrol Izzy Hawthorne, Zap Patrol Mo morrison and Zap Patrol Darby Steel.
BUZZ LIGHTYEAR & SOX
MO MORRISON
IZZY HAWTHORNE
DARBY STEEL
ALISHA HAWTHORNE & BUZZ LIGHTYEAR (XL-15) 2-PACK
And how cool and sleek are the window boxes they come in? I love that they're totally designed with us collectors in mind. Wow, amazing work
Mattel team. They just keep on bringing it. Each of these figures will
have premium detailing, plenty of film inspired accessories, and some
incredible articulation (24 points each to be exact which is a pretty
insane amount of posability),
Now for anyone here interested
in pre-ordering any of these, I’ll drop the Amazon links to all four below. I’ll warn you though, only three are actually
available to pre-order right now. Darby Steel isn’t available to
pre-order quite yet, but keep on checking using my links below. At least there’s a listing for her up, so that’s a
good sign.
Anyway, how happy are you that Mattel is continuing their Pixar 7” scale range
with Lightyear after all? If only Mattel had done the Turning Red toys,
we would have 7” scale figures for almost every single Pixar film so
far. Oh well, maybe we’ll get those in the future but now I’m just happy
the line is continuing on with Lightyear. Raise your hand down in the
comments if you’re gonna pick these up! You know I did.
Calling all Space Rangers! A couple weeks back, LEGO officially revealed their first four Disney·Pixar Lightyear inspired sets—which you probably have seen by now—but if you haven't by chance, here they are! Even though I already did a video reveal of these last month, I wanted to document the news here on the blog as well.
You can find all the official listings (with many more images) on LEGO.COM HERE. So what do you think?? Which set is your fave and what else do you hope gets made? Let me know down in the comments and I'll catch you all in the next post.
BREAKING Lightyear merch news! The first wave of Disney·Pixar Lightyear Funko POP! figures have been revealed as of this morning. Now I'm sure more will be revealed down the road (some main characters aren't represented here, especially Buzz in his Alpha suite which we know has to be coming), so stay tuned for more soon. Let me know your thoughts down below!
Which characters would you like to see get made? I'm sure we're in for a bunch of retailer exclusives!
BUZZ LIGHTYEAR (XL-01)
BUZZ LIGHTYEAR (XL-15 with SOX)
IZZY HAWTHORNE (JR. ZAP PATROL)
SOX
ZURG
BUZZ LIGHTYEAR (XL-01)— GLOW IN THE DARK AMAZON EXCLUSIVE
Attention Pixar fans! In case you missed the news, Disney·Pixar’s Turning Red debuts on all
major digital platforms April 26th and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD on
May 3rd—just in time for Mother’s Day! The home entertainment release
will include seven deleted scenes, three featurettes and audio
commentary with Director Domee Shi.
You can find the full list of bonus content below. Will you be picking up a copy? You know I will! Even though it's included on Disney at no additional charge, I'm still a sucker for hard copies (Blu-Ray for me)—especially when it comes to Pixar home releases. Gotta get my fill of bonus material and I'm so happy a director audio commentary is included this time!
Bonus Features
Audio Commentary –
View the film with audio commentary by director Domee Shi, producer
Lindsey Collins, and director of photography Mahyar Abousaeedi.
Featurettes
Life of a Shot –
Domee Shi and members of the crew describe the many-layered process and
artistry involved in creating the hilarious Red Peony scene – from
observing red pandas in a zoo to creating a storyboard to finalizing the
animation and background lighting.
Build Your Own Boy Band
– Step backstage to learn how 4*TOWN came to animated life. From
creating each band member’s persona to writing and producing the songs
to fine-tuning the details of their stadium performance, the filmmakers
reveal how they designed the ultimate boy band.
Ani-Mei-Tion –
Because Mei’s heightened emotionality is central to the story, it was
important that her look and movement reflect that energy. Learn how
Domee Shi led the animation team to incorporate hints of expressive
anime to create Mei’s lovable, dynamic character.
Deleted Scenes
Deleted Scenes Introduction – Director Domee Shi introduces scenes not included in the final version of Turning Red.
Intro Meilin – In
this alternate opening, Ming and young Mei have their portrait taken in a
studio…but Ming has her own specific vision for the photo.
Taming The Panda –
Under her mother's guidance, Mei learns techniques to control her
ability to magically turn into a red panda...to varying degrees of
success.
The Debate – Mei runs for class president against frenemy Tyler, and the speeches get a little out of hand.
Fei And Christina Hang – Mei (formerly Fei) shares a banana split while having a heart-to-heart with Aunt Christina.
4*TOWN Dilemma – Mei scores tickets to her dream concert, but her strict mother won't let her out of the house. What will she do?
Roping In Leo – Pleading with Leo for help with getting out of trouble, Mei learns a couple of his closely guarded secrets.
Easter Egg - Robutton Deleted Scene
– An alternate ending in which Mei, finding herself sitting next to her
4*TOWN dream-idol Robaire on a flight to California, has some feelings.
Hey everyone! Over the past few weeks, I've been revealing Mattel's exciting new line of toys inspired by Pixar's upcoming film Lightyear on my YouTube channel, and figured I should finally consolidate all the images (separated by category) here on my blog as well!
First there's the 5" scale action figure line (Zurg and Zyclops being taller of course, but in scale with the 5" human figures), then the large scale figure line (which are around 12" except for Zurg who's 13.75" tall), then the Imaginext line (love them), then the Alpha Class Series (7" scale figures marketed to collectors), then the Hyperspeed Series (a micro collection of vehicles with tiny figures) and lastly the there's the Feature Plush/Role Play/Games category.
Most of this line will be dropping next month (an April 2022 release, though I don't have an exact street date), while some will be available later in the fall. It's so exciting that we're just mere weeks away to seeing store shelves covered in this awesome merch! Enjoy and don't forget to let me know all your thoughts below—What are some of your favorite/must-have items? Update—Available now as of April 17th!
P.S. All my Lightyear toy reveal videos are linked below (which include more details), so be sure to check those out as well.
