Early Friday morning I’ll be making the 3 hour trek to Indianapolis, IN for Gen Con, the Best Four Days in Gaming! Gen Con is THE big show when it comes to gaming conventions, and is the place where many companies release their big products. This year is no exception. This week, as I look towards the big con I’ll be sharing some of the new releases that have got me jazzed.

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Batman: Under the Red Hood, the latest release in the WB/DC Comics animated movies was released on Tuesday this week.

I honestly forgot until yesterday.  Popping into Target, they had no copies of the basic or 2 disc versions left.  Best Buy is down the street, so I went there next.  Best Buy also had very few copies left.  But I was more interested in the other items I saw…

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I just watched the new trailer for the upcoming DC Universe Online game coming to PCs and PS3s everywhere this November. All I can say is WOW. 

I would seriously pay to sit in a darkened theater for two hours of something like this. Outside of Pixar’s The Incredibles why haven’t we seen a full CGI animated feature based on a comic book property?

If you haven’t checked out the DCUO trailer yet, do yourself a favor and check it out below. You may even want to get a Coke and some popcorn first!

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It’s official. I need to find a job.

You see, I’ve been a stay at home daddy for the past couple years since closing down the comic book / game store I owned here in the Columbus, Ohio area back in October 2008. It’s the best job in the world, except the pay stinks.

Here’s my problem. Hasbro is going to own me in 2011. 

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Yesterday Mattel held their big DC/Mattel: A Heroic Partnership panel at the 2010 Comic Con International in San Diego.

Like many fans of the 3-3/4" DC Universe Infinite Heroes line I anxiously awaited news about the line. It’s been a bumpy road since the lines debut two years ago with problems with distribution, sculpting, articulation, breakage, choices in character selection, and more. Still the faithful held in there. There were still so many key moments and characters in DC Comics history needing representation in this line (ahem…Darkseid!), but going into Comic Con the future seemed bleak. Our hopes were somewhat bolstered by some comments in recent Mattel Q&As about their commitment to the 3-3/4" scale, big plans in the works, etc.

So, what was the news out of yesterdays big panel?

"Infinite Heroes will be Green Lantern-centric in 2011"

That’s it. Move along now.

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Dear Mattel,

I just wanted to say Thank You for the JLU line.  Not only is it continuing, but with the figures shown coming at SDCC 2010, you have given us almost all of our highly requested figures.  We’ve run a number of JLU Most Wanted polls at AFi.  Each year you hit a few of them at each show.  This show outdid that.  You hit almost all of them.  Plus you hit a number of Justice League related characters that were not on the show.  Many characters from the Justice Society were included in the JLU.  Here we get 3 classics who were left off the show.  And finally, you continued the program of offering us a second chance to get figures that were hard to find in previous releases.

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Okay, only a scant twelve hours have passed since the big Friday Mattel showings of SDCC 2010…and I think it’s high time I shut the hell up.

I believe I owe Scott Neitlich an apology.  I’m sorry, Scott…you have it right.  Not only that, but you took the general criticism of the "loud but not numerous" AFi faithful and applied it directly to the Justice League Unlimited line in such a way that I have absolutely zero complaints from the big reveal yesterday.  Zero.

I knew that even if the overall assortment was something I was pleased with that 100% of the want list in my mind wouldn’t be there.  I could live with that as long as a concentrated effort in what I believe the "right direction" for the line was put forth.

Oh yes…was it EVER so strongly communicated!  Loud and crystal clear.

Toyman!  Kalibak!  Killer Frost!  Parademons!  Killer MAJOR wants!

Angle Man!  Warlord!  Demos!  Naked Green Fire!  Awesome show-accurate character representation!

Golden Age Flash, Hawkman, and Green Lantern!  Animal Man!  Adam Strange!  Blue Beetle!  Inspired comic choices!

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If this is the Apocalypse, then bring it on!

The Four Horsemen, the Fab Four of the toy industry, have unveiled their latest creations on the Eve of Comic Con International. On their Fantastic Forums late last night fans were given their first look at one of the upcoming Symbiotech figures: Tygos and Tygolith. I was already excited about this line, but after seeing the images….this is going to be one freakin’ awesome toyline!

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I can’t believe it’s Comic Con time already! I can’t believe that it’s already been a year since I, along with my wife and daughter, visited that fabled city by the sea.

Last year was my first time back to Comic Con in about 5 years. In that 5 years attendance had doubled. I admit that I was completely overwhelmed by the crowds there. I’m not a big fan of crowds to begin with, so I’ve always had something of a love/hate relationship with conventions. But, last years Comic Con was rough. So much so that I declared on several occasions that it was likely my last visit to Comic Con International.

So, here we are. One year later. I’m sitting behind my computer in my home in rural Delaware, Ohio finding myself wishing I was out in my home state of California, preparing to enter the hallowed halls of the San Diego Convention Center. Yeah, I’m regretting not going. There’s no way it could have happened this year, really, anyway. Too much stuff going on around the old farm here. But, boy, I sure do wish I was going to be there.

Thank goodness for on-the-spot coverage from AFi!

So, what am I hoping to see pop up on my monitor over the next few days? 

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OK, I called it on these.  That they were coming ages ago:
Forum topic started in April 2010.

And just before they were announced, I wrote this:
Blog I wrote the day before they were announced.

These are pretty AWESOME.

(From left to right – Aquaman, Green Arrow, Hawkgirl, Deadman, Martian Manhunter, Firestorm, Hawkman, Mera)

Earlier this week, DC Direct released an image of 8 Brightest Day figures, two waves.  Today we found out who is in wave 1.

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SDCC is only about 10 days away.  I find myself day dreaming about what could be.  If you’ve read some of my other blogs you know that I see DC Direct’s 6 inch of DC characters and Mattel’s 6 inch DC Universe classics as competing for my money but complementing each other on my shelves.

= = = DC DIRECT = = =

DC Comics has launched a new batch of comics and tied others as well to their latest event, Brightest Day. 

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OK, so let’s get this out of the way: the title is misleading.

 Yes, it’s a chance to help, and it’s for a good cause, but it really is a personal request. As I have blogged before, I am an active supporter of the Colorado Freedom Memorial. This Memorial will give military families a place to pay respects to the memory of those that did not return. It will be constructed with glass panels that will reflect Colorado’s mountains and blue skies. At 14′ tall and 125′ long, the panels will be etched with the names of the over 6000 men and women who have paid the ultimate price for our freedom. Privates, Generals, MIAs, Civilians, all wars and all branches of service, honored in one place. There is NO memorial in America like it. And you can help support it. How?

The Chase Community Giving Summer 2010 program is currently running on Facebook. The program will award more than $5 million in funding to be shared among 200 charities, with grants ranging from $20,000 to $250,000. Voting ends at 11:59 PM EDT on July 12, so there’s only a few days left. The top vote-getter by Monday will receive $250,000 funding, and 199 others will receive $20,000. That would go a long way towards seeing the Memorial built.

Yes, yes, I know, this is a toy blog, and this topic really has nothing to do with toys or collecting. You’re right. But it’s the spirit of the collecting community that I am appealing to now. AFi has an amazing core group of individuals who share in a common bond, and we all can easily forget how the simplest of freedoms required heroic sacrifices. Please help me ensure these sacrifices are not forgotten by voting for the CFM. It’s free, it’s important, and it takes a few seconds. Being grateful for your Freedom is certainly worth the effort!

Cast your vote for the Colorado Freedom Memorial HERE

Colorado Freedom Memorial on Facebook

Thank you for your support!

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Depending on when you’re reading this, the motion picture The Last Airbender could prove to be the worst reviewed film of 2010. I haven’t seen it (and at the rate the horrible reviews are piling up, may never put it in my Netflix queue. Yes, life IS too short), but I have heard that it’s based on a very well made animated series, with quite a following. The fact that it’s getting devastatingly bad reviews from not just the fanboys on every nerd site imaginable, but mainstream media outlets as well, makes me beg the question once again with a major film making endeavor: how in the hell did this happen? I mean, there seems to be a mythology and story arc already in place as a shortcut, and yet it would appear this flick still comes up monumentally short across the board; acting, script, effects, pacing, etc, etc, have all been torn to bits. And it made me think of similar situations in the toy world, when the details are laid out in advance of the project and things take a particularly nasty turn for the worse.

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God bless the USA! Have a safe and happy fourth of July, everyone! Take a moment to remember the sacrifices of those who have allowed us the freedoms we enjoy today!

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A short one this time.  Stores were reducing their toy section stock after the Christmas holiday season.  I found myself in Khol’s.  They were having a massive sale.  They had 1 Batman Brave and Bold figure. Its real name is "Deluxe Villain Snare Batman", but it looks and works like a bear trap.  The real selling point was that it was $3.89.  Yeah, a deluxe figure which should have been $10 was less than $4.  The bargain was too much for me to ignore.

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