Under the Radar: Play Arts Kai Solidus and painted Meryl

13 hours ago - 11:25 PM on 01.28.2012   |   Brian Szabelski

Popping up recently on Hideo Kojima's Twitter feed was this image of the Play Arts Kai Meryl Silverburgh figure ... albeit with a nice coat of paint. The color palette looks pretty good, an the paint and sculpt job combo does an OK job of masking some of the figure's joints, I think. No word yet on when to expect Meryl, but it will probably be sometime around the third or fourth quarter of 2012.

Also, you'll find in the gallery pictures of the unpainted Play Arts Kai Solidus Snake, which I believe may have been mentioned but wasn't pictured. The photos are a few weeks old at this point, and also come to us via Kojima's Twitter feed, but it's a great looking figure so far!

Android Series 3 on the way

17 hours ago - 8:00 PM on 01.28.2012   |   Brian Szabelski

Since DYZplastic's Android Series 2 figures sold so well ... why not make Series 3? That's exactly what's going to be happening this year, featuring another round of 3-inch Android vinyl figures. Along with returning artists Gary Ham, Scott Tolleson and Andrew Bell, the Series 3 line-up adds kaNO, Huck Gee, Sket One, MAD, Kronk and Kelly Denato.

Expect to see Series 3 drop in the second quarter of 2012. Anyone considering picking these up based on the names announced alone?

Love Heart Cavey is all love and hearts

18 hours ago - 7:00 PM on 01.28.2012   |   Natalie Kipper

Next month is February and that means Valentine's Day is swiftly approaching. Do you have a gift for your special someone? Or for those of us without a valentine, how about a sympathy snuggle-buddy? For either situation, Holly of Hey Cavey has got you covered with her latest plush: the Love Heart Cavey. The little sweetie is covered in pale pink fleece, speckled with red, blue and pink hearts. And as a special Valentine's Day treat, he comes with a package of Love Heart candies, straight from the UK. Share them with your valentine. Or with Cavey. He loves you, too.

On Thursday, Feb. 2nd, at 8 p.m. London time, the Love Heart Cavey will be for sale at the Cavey online shop. The Love Heart Cavey is limited to 75 handmade pieces and each costs £16. You can also follow Holly's countdown to the Cavey's release on her twitter feed. 

Velocitron, Grody Shogun bring Karoshi to Toy Art Gallery

19 hours ago - 6:00 PM on 01.28.2012   |   Brian Szabelski

As Toy Art Gallery's Blamo show winds down, they're preparing for an invasion next weekend. An invasion of kaiju, that is, in the form of Karoshi, a show featuring the works of Velocitron (a.k.a. Ricky Wilson) and Grody Shogun (a.k.a. Luke Rook). Expect to see new and old pieces from both artists, as well as perhaps a few mash-ups and collaborations between the two.

Karoshi opens on Feb. 4 from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. Pacific at Toy Art Gallery (7571 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, Calif.), running through the end of the month. Kaiju fans in Southern California would do well to check this out. 

[Image via Kaiju Korner]

Under the Radar: Max Toy Co.'s Azumanga Daioh figures

19 hours ago - 5:30 PM on 01.28.2012   |   Brian Szabelski

File this one under "Never saw it coming;" lurking on the Max Toy Co. blog was an image showing off some Azumanga Daioh sofubi figures that Mark and co. made for Treasure Festa in December. The foursome features Chiyo, Kami Neko, Chiyo-chichi and Yamamaya, and they actually look awesome in sofubi.

The bad news is these will be event-only exclusives. In other words, if you're not there or have a proxy there, you can't get one. I assume that's due to the usual one-day licensing that goes with Wonder Festival and similar events, but man, do I want these. 

Andre the Giant headlines MattyCollector's Jan. 30 sale

20 hours ago - 5:00 PM on 01.28.2012   |   Brian Szabelski

MattyCollector will be having a WWE Legends sale on Tuesday, Jan. 30, and for their 2012 WWE Legends line, they're debuting with one of the biggest legends of all time ... literally. Andre the Giant will be available when the sale starts at 9 a.m. Pacific, noon Eastern for US$20. Mattel says he might be their biggest figure they've ever made, and he comes with the original/best-looking WWE Championship (which he tried to sell to "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase after winning it from Hulk Hogan in 1988). 

Also on sale will be the SDCC 2010 exclusive of The Undertaker in his Wrestlemania XV attire (US$25); the two-pack of The Rockers (US$30); and both the new Deluxe (US$15) and Superstar (US$12) figure stands. The next WWE Legends sale is in April, and that one will include the next WWE Legends figure: Diamond Dallas Page. I'll be buying that one for certain!

Hot Toys teases an Avengers movie Nick Fury

21 hours ago - 4:00 PM on 01.28.2012   |   Brian Szabelski

Hot Toys already posted a teaser to one of their new licenses for 2012 when they revealed Tom Hardy's Bane from The Dark Knight Rises. But that wasn't the only license they picked up or the only teaser they've revealed. Also up on Hot Toys' Facebook page was this teaser of Nick Fury from the upcoming Avengers film. And you know what that means, right? Yes: a Samuel L. Jackson Hot Toys figure. This is going to be one bad*** mother****** of a figure.

No word on when to expect Nick Fury or the rest of the Avengers now that Hot Toys has the license, but stay tuned to Tomopop; we'll bring you the latest news as we have it!

Gaming Heads calls for Team Fortress 2's Medic

22 hours ago - 3:00 PM on 01.28.2012   |   Brian Szabelski

Well, well: Gaming Heads has been quiet lately, but just recently, they posted a teaser showing off their next Team Fortress 2 statue, the Medic. The image in the gallery is the only info we have, but considering the history of the line (along with my own deep knowledge of TF2 after pouring over 1,200 hours into the game), let me make the following educated guesses:

It'll be 12 inches tall, and I would expect that there will be BLU and RED versions, along with an exclusive version of each. If I can speculate a bit, the regular version will be what you see above with the Medi Gun, while the exclusive version will probably come with the Kritzkrieg, though there's a chance they could go with the Quick-Fix as well. And considering they use the game files for the design ... I'm betting the final version looks like this.

We'll see the full Medic statue on Tuesday, when pre-orders open at 8 a.m. Pacific (11 a.m. Eastern, 4 p.m. GMT). I'm still holding out a bit for the Spy or the Pyro, but I know I won't be able to resist picking one up eventually.

Find the Penguindrum with a Himari gallery

10:00 PM on 01.27.2012   |   Emily Smalara

One of the sleeper hits of recent anime seasons, it's easy to overlook a series with a name like Mawaru Penguindrum. If you did, however, you'd be missing out on a truly great experience, thanks to characters like Miss Takakura here. Or, perhaps, the Princess of the Crystal, given her current garb of penguin hat.

While I can't say I'm happy to see her traditional sexy thigh-highs go in favor of Wave's swimsuit-centric Beach Queens, I do think they did a great job capturing the feel of the character all the same. The black one-piece fits her well, and has a nice sheen to it to add a bit of nice detail.

Though she might look a bit loli for some, I'm a big fan, and if nothing else she's definitely a very unique figure in the line up thanks to her charming penguin cap. Of course, also included is one of the Penguin trio, because really. Why not? Pre-order information for both the Princess and her normal Himari form is found right over here, and you can get a nice look at the former in this gallery.

[via Akiba Hobby]

Pre-order Ruri Aiba, BYOS

9:00 PM on 01.27.2012   |   Emily Smalara

That's "Bring your own sunglasses", folks. Despite Ruri Aiba's fairly subtle hair color in her source material of Sacred Seven, Wave's Beach Queen release has cranked things up to eleven. Perhaps due to the typical bleaching effect brought on by extended sun exposure, Ruri's hair is now blindingly brilliant, nearly requiring a set of shades should you choose to look directly at her.

Jokes (mostly) aside, I'm a bit curious regarding this Queen in general. She doesn't quite seem to fit the original art style, and the swimsuit itself seems to be a bit of an odd choice, with the blue clashing with her sunny hair.

It isn't a bad release, just a bit of a confusing one, though I suppose that fits Sacred Seven itself to a tee as well. In that sense, she's a perfect release! So, fans, what are you waiting for? Get your pre-orders in! She'll be available in July for the usual low price of around ¥3,800.

[Pre-order at Hobby Link Japan | Hobby Search | AmiAmi]

Miura Azusa pre-orders make fans burst into song

8:00 PM on 01.27.2012   |   Emily Smalara

Ahh, Idolm@ster. With still no sign of any international release, fans will have to take solace in the occasional PVC release that shows up now and again. Most recently, Wave has managed to break free from the Beach Queen mold to bring us this version of Miura Azusa, featuring her shorter hair and costume from her split-off group Ryūgū Komachi.

Fortunately, for those like me, Wave's seen fit to include her older, longer hairstyle as well, which I find a big improvement--surprising no one. She's quite cute in either form, however, and makes me continue to pine for an English release no matter how much Namco refuses to want my money.

That done, pre-orders are open now, and she'll be available this September for ¥7,800 should you choose to hop on the bandwagon.

[Pre-order at Hobby Search | AmiAmi]

Watch this Rufina gallery take wing

7:00 PM on 01.27.2012   |   Emily Smalara

In case you've forgotten about our coverage of Kotobukiya's gorgeous Rufina releasing soon, we're here to refresh your memory with this gallery--just in time for her release in a month! Of course, you'd be hard pressed to find any figure from the Shining series that isn't a sight to behold, but this one certainly takes the cake.

Rufina is ready to take flight with book in hand, modestly yet attractively attired in her pale pink dress that suits her near-Easter release rather aptly. There really isn't anything I don't like about this figure, but the wings in particular really make her stand out from the rest. I think Koto's outdone their usual excellent Shining work with this one, and she looks to be a must have for any fan.

Pre-orders can be found in our previous look, but in the meantime you can tide yourself over with this flood of new images.

[via Moeyo]