#MoeMonday 5/31/10

Almost into June.  #MoeMonday (#MM) for this week is an angelic summer moe girl.  The weather here in NY is getting to where beach weather is not too bad..though Long Island beaches for years have been as toxic and dirty looking as the currently oil-filled ones of Louisiana -_-..yeah don't give into the Hamptons hype..Long Island is as dull as it comes.  A trip to the Bahamas sounds very good by now.

FUNimation up for Sale?!

Don't fret people, there is a good reason why FUNimation might go up for sale.  Unlike the relatively resent news that 4Kids is trying to get bought, sold, dismantled, due to money issues and their past sins against the anime world, Funimation might get put up on the auction block because it's gorwn well for parent company Navarre Corp. and they feel it's time to leave the nest for a brighter future.  As per ANN and mania.com, Navarre will use the help of the investment bank Houlihan Lokey to create the sale next quarter.  Navarre owns the Starz and Encore networks and feels FUNimation is too different than their other properties.

I actually own Navarre stock (for the partial ownership of Funimation no doubt) but due to this news.. I'll sell and follow wherever FUNi goes next.  Now if only I win the upcoming powerball lottery..I'd have a shot at adding them to my anime empire.

...in due time...in due time.

#FanServiceFriday 5/28/10

#FF, #FanServiceFriday is back with a Moe maid image that is worth the one week gap.  Got to love the artistic beauty of anime art.  The art that was recently stolen in Paris is chicken scratch compared to this.

Black Rock Shooter Animation Ver. Figure

 I've been bombarding you all with figures but this one is the main news of the day for lots of anime figure fans.  The long awaited Black Rock Shooter: Animation Ver. Figure by Good Smile Company is finally up for pre-order.  She's a stunning 1/8th scale figure of  Black Rock Shooter carrying the Rock Cannon in an action pose.  From what I can tell of the case sizes Good Smile Company is allocated for us anime stores...it's going to be much like the very first BRS figure...a 1/8th scale figure with a huge display box.

This is one of those figures that ill surely run out of pre-order reserves across the net.  We took the liberty of making sure to ready a bunch for all of you but even so, her preorder reserves are bound to run out fast...and last I checked, the original figure is priced at whopping $300 0_0


Pre-order her here or give us an email pre-order request and we'll hold one for you once they arrive around October or November. 

I so need to set up some space for this one...

Touhou Project: Sakuya Izayoi Figma Figure

You'd think I'd leave today without talking about the other figma figure that was announced last week? Granted I've been blogging lots lately about figures. I should add some relevant anime news in here as well ^^;;;.

Anyways, some of you are familiar with Touhou Project and some of you probably are familiar with the rarity of the Touhou Project figures. Sakuya Izayoi, be it this new figma figure or the soon to be released Nendoroid figure are not your typical anime figures.  Anime figures are rare and limited edition to begin with, but these are only available at select stores in Japan.  Thanks to my connections though...I am able to nab a few for my store ^^.  The price range sadly can't be the regular rate for a Figma figure but like the other Touhou figures, people on ebay will price hike them to about $200 -_-  I won't do that, so check out her pre-order page and grab one before you are trying to buy a $200 one that might not even be legit :-/ 

(One really cool feature about the Sakuya Izayoi, she comes with emotiocon stickers that you could use with other figmas and make some really funny scenes ^^)

Figma Yuu Kawamura

 

Last week lots of great anime figures got announced and to continue showcasing these figures; here's the very cute Figma Yuu Kawamura.  The "cooking is so fun" meme seems to run through my head when I see her ^^;;  She'll come loaded with lots of cooking accessories that you can use to create many poses and scenes.

Max Factory is set to release her some time at the end of summer and probably into November for us here in the US (...-_-)

For pre-orders, you know where to go.  More pics below

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Iron Man 2 Figures

Last week Danielle and I joined the masses and saw the Iron Man 2 movie.  Of course, we loved it.  I'm not a huge American comic book fan (obviously I'm all for the Japanese manga side of things), but the whole Avengers hinting looks rather exciting.  I won't give out a spoiler for those who have yet to see the movie...but be sure to sit through ALL of the credits.

As with the Hollywood way of things, it's time to talk about the Iron Man 2 merchandise; the high end figures made by anime figure creators Kotobukiya and others to be exact.

I'll be stocking 4 figures from the movie and though I'm not the big US comic fan...I'm so tempted to keep them.

The first being the Mark VI Iron Man Fine Art figure by Kotobukiya.  This one will eat up your wallet at about $180 but this 1/6th scale piece lights up at the base and no doubt will be great for bragging rights.

The next figure is by One 2 One; The Mark VI Super Deformed Statue.  He lights up and is about a 1/5th-1/6th scale.  He doesn't look posable but it's still a very neat piece.  Like all of the other figures I'm blogging about here, it's a bit pricey at about $150 but if you are a fan, you probably won't care too much ^^;;

 

War Machine made his movie debut in Iron Man two and naturally Kotobukiya made a high end, 1/6th scale replica.  Like the Mark VI figure, this one lights up but will be a little easier on the wallet at around $135. There is a cosplayer out there that made a really good War Machine costume with a rotating gun and all.  Supposedly though, the guy is an ego maniac who doesn't share the costume making skills.

 

What blog post by me would be complete without some hot or cute girl figure to show off?  Also up for pre-order is the Iron Man 2 - 1/6th scale Black Widow Limited Edition Figure by Hot Toys.  She's a posable, 1/6th scale figure that will run you a whopping $200.  A nice addition to a collection indeed ^^

   

Check out more images and details in the store and expect these come the end of the summer/year.

Is The PVC in Anime Figures Toxic?

Polyvinyl chloridem, aka PVC, is a substance used in not just anime figures, but in many items from siding, fencing, computer cords and wires, as well as various car parts.  Today CNN put this scary and rather misleading article on PVC right slab on their from page.  There are truths and some exaggerations in any scares about PVC.  Let's clear the air about it.

A while back I posted an article about poisonous bootleg anime jewelery, complements of China and the anime bootleg capital of the world, Hong Kong.  Those items had very high levels of lead and other chemicals, but even with their high levels, the only way to get poisoned would be to keep the items in your mouth for a descent period of time...though some people do put necklaces and such in their mouth as a nervous tick and is indeed a health issue to worry about.  Either way, those items have thankfully been banned at the dismay of  the Hong Kong bootleggers.

But what about PVC figures?  Well, polyvinyl chloridem, when created or burned, creates toxic byproducts in the form of dioxins.  In other words, in order for that cute Nendoroid figure to suddenly turn into a little chibi bringer of cancer and death...you have to practically burn it and inhale the gas.

I'll be frank, I'm an anime store owner and this news could effect my business (as well as countless others)..but only if people take it the wrong way and get freaked out by it.  There is much fear out there over everything we use, eat and interact with.  Did you know that your water bottle seeps out a bit of oil toxins from the plastic it's made out of?..or that your iPhone probably is sending out microwaves that can be harmful if you hold it against your head 24/7?  PVC, like any building material needs to be treated as such, a building material.  Those who make it need to keep themselves safe from the toxic byproducts of it's creation and us consumers...should never take the material, burn it and inhale their fumes. 

Just have some common sense... don't suddenly think your computer mouse, the siding on your house, and your anime figures are out there to kill you. The fast food we all put in our mouths here in the US is far more toxic than some cute anime figure girl...1) because we are not suppose to eat PVC and 2) because our fast food has become far too abundant and socially acceptable to just intake with no remorse.  Now if a factory making PVC doesn't get rid of the toxic byproducts in a correct and safe manner and they let the toxins cause say an anime figure to be toxic at the touch (or smell) than those factories need to be shut down and those products recalled.

Bleach Figures

Square-Enix last week announced they are expanding their Kai figure line to the hit series, Bleach.  The first set of figures look pretty descent. for those who aren't familiar with the new "Kai" figures, they basically are upgraded versions of Square's already popular Play Arts line.  These figures will run you a bit more money than the Play Arts figures at around $45 but that's still a very good deal considering the price of most 1/8th scale anime figures nowadays (damn US dollar losing to he yen -_-)

The first Bleach Kai set includes Rukia (with Kon), Hitsugaya, and bankai form Ichigo.  I'm a fan of all three but Ichigo seems to be my fave of the three and will probably decorate my work desk come November when they arrive state side.

Of course, you can view them, pre-order them in the store ^^  Hopefully Square-Enix keeps up this line. The FFXIII Kai figures turned out great (particularly Lightning).

Here's some more pic of them...check out more on their product pages

Little Busters! Alter Figures

At the end of last week, these two lovely Little Busters! figures were announced for pre-order, Kudryavka Noumi (for re-sale actually) and Sasami Sasasegawa.  Their release dates seem to vary from September to November.  I'd aim for the later since us anime retailers in the US still get the short end of the stick -_-  They retail for about $90...a bit much for 1/8th scale figures but with Alter behind these, you know the final product will practically be identical to the production images you see here.

Go ahead and pre-order them from the store section...while reserved quantities last.

#MoeMonday 5/24/10

Another Monday and thus another #MM, #MoeMonday.  Check out this very moe and chibi image of Little Busters! Kudryavka Noumi.  Her figure by Alter just recently got announced for re-release so expect to see more of her soon ^^

Everybody Draw Mohammed Day

  

 In complete protest of religious idiocy, terrorism, crimes against women, stupidity, the banning of parts of a South Park episode and for the loved ones my friends lost on 9-11...I present my entry in Everybody Draws Mohammed Day!

Listen, I'm not against religion nor if you are indeed a good Muslim (despite popular opinion and the acts of a good chunk of the ones who go public...they DO exist),  you can believe in magical cupcakes for all I care.."to each his own" as the statements says. Hey, us anime fans would love to believe that magical transforming girls are real and I can't tell you how many times I wish I could shoot a Kamehameha or equivalent energy blast from my hands to protect loved ones and undo some wrongs in the world.

What I'm saying is that we anime fans follow some pretty interesting/odd stuff and would love to live in a world that some of it is true.  One might say that us anime fans are a religion of Japan, martial arts and well-done art fanatics...but their is a line between beliefs and forcing those beliefs on others.  We don't go around saying "you MUST believe in Goku or burn in hell!" akin to what Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, and Islam are long guilty of.  Laws aren't based around our obsession with anime.  We don't endorse laws saying "You MUST read manga on Friday nights or go to jail/get fined" Yet, last I checked....the Christian religious nuts on this part of the world still have a law in Tennessee that states it's illegal for a woman to buy a hat..without her husband's permission.  I cringe at the stupidity of seeing women having to wear burkas and any subjugation or embarrassment of women.  Places like Turkey, practically the rest of the Mideast and India still have this ridiculous "women are less than men" mentality with forced marriages where the men are the main factors of these life changing decisions. I won't go into the fact that since these arranged marriages usually involve "almost" relatives... it's creating a huge amount of genetic deformities (particularly in the more populated and conservative parts of India) ..for god's sakes... marry someone a bit different than you..it only makes for a healthier future generation!

Ok, I'm going a bit off track here but what I'm saying is that this is the modern age and for humanity to move forward, we have to stop letting religious stupidity hinder civil rights, expression and science.  If you are say, a Scientologist who believes in ancient aliens.. "to each his own"..just don't create a pyramid scam, mafia system that's out there to grow and gain followers forcefully (a sad truth to that religion).

 The main point I'm getting at is that religion should take a note from us anime fans.  Keep your stuff out of politics and out of laws.  Keep it to your group and do things for the public, for the sake of being good.  Don't be like the church that goes to a poor country, feeds the hungry...then shoves a bible in their faces to "save the heathens"  We anime fans have our conventions, our rabid fans, and our sense of differentiation and identity from the rest of the world.  It's ok to be part of a group that thinks alike, we humans are social beings and it's better for our health to be with like minded people, but radicals like Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, Pat Robertson, Hilter, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Osama Bin Ladin represent or have represented the worst of our humanity on each angle and should never be followed/ taken seriously.  One could argue from historical records that Mohammad was simply a rich guy with all the time in the world and while on an opium high, thought of the Qu'ran as the divine "second edition" of the Christian Bible..which in itself is just a rehash of every previous religion.  Heck, when ever in humanity's history have popular dogmas, trends, stories, shows, fads NOT been from some pre-existing item created from another.  If you adore the guy, great...just learn to take a joke.

To all of those who oppose basic freedom, expression..SCREW YOU!!  The new world order of the internet community won't take such crimes against humanity..anymore!

also...learn to take a harmless joke.. such as this post.

Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu: Himeji Mizuki Figure

Yesterday Good Smile Company announced the pre-orders for this very pretty figure of Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu's Himeji Mizuki.  I've not seen the series but this figure has me interested.  Check out her main page on Good Smile and if you want to pre-order her... you know where to go ^^

#MoeMonday 5/17/10

#MM, #MoeMonday this week is a cute pic of Super Mario Bros. Princess Peach with some of the Super Smash Bros. characters like Kirby, Meta Knight and Pikachu ^^

#FanServiceFriday 5/14/10

After a long time not posted...here's this week's #FansServiceFriday post.  It's still rather cold here in NY (although it's May -_-) Hopefully the warm days where this is image is more applicable..will be soon.

Bakemonogatari: Senjyougahara Hitagi Figure [Good Smile Company Ver.]

This figure has been anticipated for some time now and as of today (ok, yesterday in Japan ^^;)  pre-order reserves have begun for this awesome Senjyougahara Hitagi figure.  Good Smile just keeps making these eye popping figures but you'll have to wait till around October or November before you can get your hand on this one.  It'll be an interesting piece to display and hopefully all the accessories will stay in place ^^;;  (better yet, would be cool if they are functional).  I keep hearing of Bakemonogatari and I must take the time out to see this series.

Check out some more images below and of course, here's the link to pre-order her or you can simply email us if you want one and I'll hold her for you ^^