Toy Story: Buzz & Woody Deluxe Light-Up Figurine Sculpture

 To Infinity and Beyond!

Here we have a very, very special piece in my collection that I've been looking forward to posting about for some time now. This amazing deluxe figurine [statue] of Buzz and Woody blasting off was released a couple years back. I first saw this at the 2015 D23 Expo in the Disney Dream Store (seen in my post HERE, just scroll down a bit) and I was in awe. I was super tempted to buy it, but I could not justify the high price tag.

This is a very large (about 14"H x 12"W x 13"D), hand painted, highly collectible piece made of a poly-resin material. Original retail was $175.00. It wasn't until last year (with the help of an extremely good discount) that I was able to get it. This showed up on the disneystore.com last winter and I ended up paying around $70.00 for it– a price I could not say no to. I then waited and received it as a gift for my birthday last May.

And the coolest part? This lights up! Just hit the switch on the back and the lights on Buzz's wings glow vibrantly, while his jet pack contrail on the back glows softly and changes colors (from blue, to green, to yellow, etc.). It's soothing like a night light. Note: requires two AA batteries.

My connection with this statue goes even beyond the fact that I'm a mega Toy Story fan. This was designed by one of my favorite Disney artists, Ron Cohee, who I actually had the opportunity to interview back in 2014 (which you can read HERE).

Just look at the details! Even down to "Andy" on Woody's boot. The design of this figurine is out of this world. The look, the make, the paint app...everything about this was crafted to perfection.  

As you can see on the bottom here, this is an official "Art of Disney" product made exclusively for Disney theme parks. It was part of the commemorative line of merchandise released in honor of Toy Story's 20th anniversary in 2015.

Here it is lit up! This photo does not do it justice in the slightest, but I wanted to give you an idea of what it looks like. I hope to get a brief video up soon as well.

And last but not least, I included the photo of me holding it below so that you could get a sense of this thing's pretty massive scale.

I also wanted to note that there was a limited edition bronze variant of this statue made as well (only 60 were distributed). You can view my photo of it HERE at the D23 Expo.

I believe this has since sold out at the US Disney Parks (correct me if I'm wrong), but it's still available on the Disney Store's UK site HERE. You can also find it on the "Your WDW Store" website HERE or on eBay using this direct link.

I seriously cannot recommend this piece enough to all you Toy Story mega fans out there. If you have the opportunity to snag this, do it! This sculpture would no doubt be a prized centerpiece in anyone's collection.

Cars 2: Grem with Helmet & Acer with Helmet

Hello friends and fellow Pixar fans! Since my schedule didn't permit me to post yesterday, I thought I'd make up for it by posting not one, but two cars today as featured in this 2-pack from last year...Grem with helmet and Acer with helmet from Cars 2! These are 1:55 scale diecasts from Mattel and are numbers 7/8 and 8/8 of the 2016 "Oil Rig Getaway" sub-series.

Though Acer with helmet was already released clear back in 2012 (in a movie moments 2-pack with Professor Z, as seen in my post HERE), this is the very first release of Grem with helmet. It's a tad annoying I had to pay for a 2-pack here to get only one car I needed, but I guess this isn't the first time that's happened. I'm used to it. ;) They sure know how to get ya! For those of you that missed Acer with helmet back in the day, this is a solid re-release for you.

As shown in the screen shot above, both of these characters can be seen wearing their helmets during the opening scene of the film; right as the lemons and combat ships pursue Finn Mcmissile after his daring oil rig escape.

Let's take a closer look!

Acer with helmet seems to be the exact same release as the 2012 version. If there are any differences, they're too small for me to tell.

These are still popping up at Target stores periodically, but they're definitely at the end of their run. Be sure to snag them if you see them! If you're having trouble tracking them down, you can always check out eBay HERE or Amazon using the direct link below.

Happy hunting!

Toy Story: Disney Parks Wind-up Figures

Available now exclusively at Disney Parks, here we have an adorably goofy set of four Toy Story inspired wind-up toys featuring Buzz Lightyear, Woody, Alien and Jessie! The designs are odd for sure, but they have a quirky charm to them. I enjoy collecting old school/retro tin toys and wind-ups (mostly for the simplicity) and these reminded me of that style. Since I'm nostalgic for old toys and Toy Story, I couldn't help but pick these up.

These plastic figures are just under 4.5" tall and include a traditional wind-up key on the back. Twist the key a few times for some fun, dance-like motions! Each character moves their hips, arms and head back and forth repeatedly. It's pretty cute—my four year old nephew had a huge smile on his face when I showed him these.

Check them out in more detail below!

Woody Wind-Up

 Alien Wind-Up

 Buzz Wind-Up

 Jessie Wind-Up

The best part of these is seeing them in action; so I included a brief YouTube video below! If you're thinkin' these are pretty cute and would like to add them to your collection, look out for them during your next Disney Parks visit. OR you can call the Disney Parks Merchandise Guest Services/Mail Order Hotline at 877-560-6477. They should be able to help you out. Retail for each character is $9.99.

Note- Though not available currently, these do show up every now and then on the Disney Store's website (that's where I got them) as well as the Shop Disney Parks app. Keep your eyes peeled!



What are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments below and be sure to come back daily for more from my every expanding Pixar collection.

Toy Story: Mattel "Minis" Blind Packs (Series 3)

Continuing on from last night's Mattel Toy Story "Minis" blind packs series 1 post (be sure to first catch up with that one HERE), today we have series 3! Since several of these characters are repeats from series 1 though (namely Woody, Buzz, Jessie, Alien and Rex), I will only be addressing the new characters.

Note: If you missed it in my post last night, I mentioned that series 2 was harder to come by and had a much smaller distribution. For some reason, it skipped right to a third series in my area— however a second series was available some places and can be seen in this photo HERE. I'm still looking to add that black and white Jessie to my collection (which was the only new/unique character in series 2).

I was so thrilled to stumble upon this set at Walmart about a month ago and was excited to see that so many awesome new characters were added to this collection! This series adds seven previously unreleased characters to the lineup: Slinky, Wheezy, Green Army Man, Hamm as Evil Dr. Porkchop, Buttercup, Bo Peep and [the"special edition"] black and white Woody's Roundup Bullseye (which follows the special edition black and white Woody from series 1)!

Once again, these are MINI figures; like seriously mini. They stand just over an inch tall, are made of hard plastic and have very limited articulation (as in most of their heads and turn, but that's about it). Retail price for each figure is $2.88.

Let's take a closer look at the cuteness!

Slinky

Wheezy

Green Army Man

Hamm as Evil Dr. Porkchop

Buttercup

Bo Peep

Black & White Woody's Roundup Bullseye (Special Edition)

I can't say it enough—these are extremely adorable figures. I hope they keep on comin'! The sculpts are great, the paint jobs are extremely decent and they're a blast to collect. If you're trying to get them all without any repeats, I have a few hints. Hint #1: there are little holes under the bag's flap on the back where you can see colors if you look close enough. From there it's pretty easy to determine the character. Hint #2: Each character has a specific code on the back unique to that character. Find all the different codes and you'll have all the different characters! Pretty simple.

These have been showing up at Walmart stores nationwide since the beginning of the year. If these interest you, head to your local store soon to check for availability. Snag them while you can! All you Toy Story fans out there will love these.

Which character are you hoping to see made in a future series (assuming this line will continue on)? Shout it out in the comments below and be sure to check out my video unbagging below! Feel free to like and subscribe :)

UPDATE: See my post on SERIES 4 HERE! 

Toy Story: Mattel "Minis" Blind Packs (Series 1)

The Toy Story "Minis" collection from Mattel began last Summer with the Toys R Us exclusive 10-pack which I wrote all about HERE. Right around the same time (maybe a little after), the same exact figures started showing up at Walmart stores in blind bags beginning with/dubbed as "series 1".

Though series 1 mostly just consists of repackaged figures from the Toys R Us set (as seen on the back of the package below), there is one awesome addition: a "special edition" black and white (Woody's Roundup) Woody figure! Of course that was the only one I needed from this initial blind bags series since I had all the others. And here he is! I was able to track him down a few months back.

Again with these, when they say mini, they mean mini. Woody here, like the rest of the characters in this line, is just over an inch tall. His head can move slightly from side to side (his waist can also be twisted) and his hat is removable.

Now over the last month or so, series 3 of these blind bag figures started showing up at Walmarts around the country (which I'll be showing off in tomorrow's post). But wait...what happened to series 2? A second series did in fact happen (you can see an image of the package online HERE—notice that it includes a special edition black and white Woody's Roundup Jessie), but the series had a much smaller distribution for whatever reason and was much harder to come by. I still need to find that black and white Jessie (some do pop up on eBay every now and then), which was the only new character unique to series 2.

Anyway—be sure to stay tuned for tomorrow's series 3 post, featuring a bunch of awesome new characters to collect. A video unbagging will be up soon as well. Until next time!

UPDATE: Here's a link to my series 3 post! I've also added a video unbagging below.

Cars 2: Alexis Wheelson

Tonight I'm taking it easy with a simple post since I've gotten hit with yet another really bad cold...and when I want to keep it simple on here, I post a car! You know how it goes.

Here we have another Cars 2 character from last year that I got late in the game—Alexis Wheelson! She has been showing up at stores (I found mine at Target) since around mid December and can still be found pretty easily. Alexis is a deluxe sized Mattel 1:55 scale diecast vehicle and is #6/6 of the 2016 "Paris Parts Market" sub-series.

As shown in the screenshot above, Alexis Wheelson is briefly seen in the streets of Paris when Mater and Finn arrive at the car parts black market (right next to Justin Partson); a funny and clever little sequence! Characters like this are great for scene building.

I love getting unique cars like this. There definitely isn't any other like it in my collection. As usual, Mattel did an awesome job with the sculpt (especially with all those tires/rims in the back) and paint detailing—just check it out for yourself!

 

Be on the lookout for this one in stores now or check eBay or Amazon for their current listings. Best of luck out there! Be sure to let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Toy Story 2: "Round Up Gang" Deluxe Fine Art Print (By Noah)

By renowned independent licensed artist Noah (yup, just Noah), in partnership with Disney, comes this fantastic new Toy Story 2 inspired deluxe print— "Round Up Gang" featuring Woody, Bullseye and Jessie! Admittedly this is a bit different than the art I usually gravitate towards (as it's more realistic as opposed to "cute-tified" and/or stylized), but I was really drawn to this design. I feel Noah's style fits perfectly with this scene; the image he's created here has a lot of charm and very much captures the heart of the film.

I really love his use of warm sepia tone colors and textures to give it that vintage, western look. Noah's ability to blend airbrush and traditional painting techniques so flawlessly impresses me to no end. And for the price, I couldn't miss out on a deal. This matted 14'' H x 18'' W deluxe paper print is only $39.95, which is a very affordable price for fine art. I look forward to getting this in a nice frame to complete the look! A big thanks to my wife Brita who got me this for this past Christmas.

Let's zoom in a bit to check out that great detail...

This is available exclusively at Disney Parks, but I have good news to those who don't have an upcoming trip planned. "Round Up Gang" is currently available for a limited time on the Disney Store's website! You can pick up this deluxe paper print HERE ($39.95, as mentioned) OR, if you'd like this print to come framed, they have that option HERE ($160). If you're looking to go a bit higher end, you can get also get it as a giclée rolled gallery wrapped or framed canvas HERE (price ranging from $175-$525).

Noah is an extremely talented artist with a wide range of works (just check out his Disney prints alone to see what I mean). The story he shares about his journey to becoming a successful artist, as well as his impressive portfolio of work, is just incredible! I would highly recommend learning more about him on his website HERE and be sure to follow him on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

I look forward to keeping an eye out for what Noah does next. Do you have a favorite design of his? Shout it out in the comments below!

A Bug's Life: Figural Mugs (By Applause)

Around the 1998/1999 time frame, sometime near the release of A Bug's Life in theaters, Applause Inc. (a now defunct toy company) produced this cute set of three figural mugs based on characters from the film: Flik, Heimlich and Princess Dot!

These are just a smidge over 3" tall (however I'm not sure how many ounces they hold), are made of a sturdy PVC plastic material and have articulated antennae. They are noted as "top rack dishwasher safe" but not microwave safe.

I spotted these recently while browsing eBay and thought they were just really fun looking display pieces. My A Bug's Life collection is pretty small, so I'm always on the look out for any of the unique/interesting "vintage" 90's products I missed out on back in the day. These made the cut!  Unfortunately at this point though, I have no way of knowing where these were originally sold.

As stated in a couple of posts ago, I love A Bug's Life—no matter if it's "lesser Pixar" (which I absolutely don't believe) or just plain forgotten by many. I'm thrilled to have any new merch from the film (well in this case it's old, but new to me) and think these will look great amongst my other figures and collectibles.

If this is set is of interest to you, be sure to crawl over to current eBay listings HERE!

Cars: Wilmar Flattz

From the original Cars, here we have the newly released Mattel 1:55 diecast of Wilmar Flattz! This is one of the very first 2017 cars released thus far and is part of this year's "Race Fans" sub-series (#7/14). Though Wilmar has been available in the past (right around the 2009/2010 time frame) this is the first release of this character featuring fixed, non-lenticular eyes.

As shown in the screen shot above, Wilmar is one of Mcqueen's fans seen in in the crowds during the film's opening race (specifically right after Lightning blows a tire). This diecast captures her worried expression accurately!

I found this one at Target a couple weeks back, so you might want to check your local store for availability. If you're not having any luck, you might want to check out current eBay listings or Amazon using the direct link below. Best of luck my fellow Cars fans!

Oh and random note- just 139 days left until Cars 3!

Lifted: Mr. B Plush

Disney·Pixar's hilarious short film Lifted, directed by veteran sound designer Gary Rydstrom, was released theatrically with Ratatouille in 2007. If you've seen the short, then you probably recognize this guy— Mr. B, the film's jaded human abduction examiner. This Mr. B plush toy had been available for years exclusively at the Pixar Studio Store in Emeryville, CA (open only to Pixar employees and invited guests), but at this point I'm not sure if it's still kept in stock there. Either way, this is an extremely rare item that I had been trying to track down for some time. Needless to say, I'm so thrilled that this treasure is finally a part of my Pixar collection!

This one does pop up on eBay pretty regularly, but the price is always incredibly steep (even too steep for me to pay for just a plush) and/or the plush is discolored or worn. Listings for this typically sell between $75 and $100 (sometimes more), so I always had a hard time justifying getting him. That leads me to the best part of the story...just last week a listing popped up for, get this: $15.00-Free Shipping-Buy it Now. No joke. I snatched it up as fast as I possibly could.

Other than the fact that the one I have here is missing its original tag, this plush is in near perfect condition. I absolutely love it! I especially love how big and hefty it is, measuring at about 17" tall and 11" wide. He's also weighted down nicely (feels like there's mini beans inside) and sits great on his own without the need of additional support.

Stu, the teen alien seen struggling with his human abduction test, was also made into a plush sold only at the Pixar Studio Store. I was lucky enough to get him about three years back (see my original post HERE). Here they are both together at last!

It's always so exciting to get merch based on any of the Pixar shorts since there's not much of it out there. Be sure to check out the other Pixar short film plush I own such as: the aforementioned Stu from Lifted, Gopher from Boundin', Alec the bunny from Presto, Bambino from La Luna, Bird from For the Birds, Sanjay from Sanjay's Super Team and the Jackalope/lamb 2-pack from Boundin'. Now if only I could get my hands on the Knick Knack snowman plush and the brand new Piper plush sold only at Pixar...
 
What do you think? Shout out your thoughts in the comment section below!