Over the years, the San Diego Comic-Con has grown from a modest meeting of comic book collectors to one of the biggest entertainment industry events of the year, and it’s now an essential promotion opportunity for any geek-friendly movie or TV show. But at its core, the SDCC is still focused comics and collectors; although their presence on the convention floor may be waning a bit, the comics and collectibles vendors and manufacturers are still the main draw for many attendees. There are a lot of collectible toys and such that are being manufactured in limited runs, and we’re going to take a look at the coolest movie toys available at this year’s Con.
Princess Leia Character Key
Acme Archives has this latest installment of their Character Key series, an look at what a cartoon version of the feisty princess might look like. Inspired by Genndy Tartakovsy’s Clone Wars cartoon, the fine folks have been exploring animated versions from the original Star Wars film. According to Acme, only 750 will be made, and getting a copy will set you back $35. For more info, click
here.
Friday the 13th Jason Voorhees Bust
Busts are a classic example of the type of collectible some folks just don’t get. To be clear, they aren’t toys, but rather character sculpture for people that aren’t at all afraid to display their geek cred.
Action Figure Xpress has created this sharp Jason Voorhees bust (with a removable mask, no less) that’s priced at $60. AFX has only made 500 of these, and if you hit their both at the right time, you can get one signed by C.J. Graham, the man who played Jason in Part VI (Jason Lives). For more info, click
here.
The Incredibles: Family Matters limited edition hardcover
It should come as no surprise that Pixar’s animated feature about a family of super heroes should get spun off into a comic book series. Dark Horse had been the first publisher for printed adventures of The Incredibles, but now they’ve jumped over to Boom! Studios. Boom! has put together the 4 issue series called Family Matters into this $50 hardcover book, with a cover drawn by Hellboy creator Mike Mignola.
The Princess and the Frog limited edition fine art print
Disney hasn’t released a traditionally-animated film since 2004’s disastrous Home on the Range, and it took Pixar animation honchos John Lasseter and Ed Catmull’s influence to reopen the 2D animation department. That means both the hopes and expectations are high for Princess. You can expect Disney’s merchandising department to capitalize on some folks’ fierce loyalty for their animated features, and this print (also by Acme Archives Ltd.) is a classic example of that. You may think $79 is a bit steep for what’s basically a movie poster, but since it’s signed by the cast, it’s probably going to wind up being a hot item on future eBay listings.
Buzz Lightyear action figure
Mattel has made this first ever 3 3/4″ Buzz Lightyear action figure, which will initially only be available at SDCC. It comes in a cool spaceship box, just like in the movie, and it’s pretty articulated. And if you can’t make it to Comic-Con, don’t worry, you can order this figure online at
MattyCollector.com beginning in August.
Runaway Brain Mickey Mouse
If you’ve never heard of it, Runaway Brain is a 1995 Academy Award-nominated short film, released in front of A Kid in King Arthur’s Court (we hadn’t heard of it either). It was basically a Frankenstein-type story involving Mickey’s mind being switched with a monsters’, and turning the normally friendly mouse into a violent, drooling beast. Sideshow Collectibles knows that there are a lot of people out there that will shell out crazy money for anything Mickey, which is why this figure (that basically looks like a zombie Mickey Mouse) is priced at a whopping $149.99.
Hellboy and Golden Army Soldier
Based on the Golden Tomato-winning Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Mezco’s line of 3 3/4″ figures have been pretty popular with collectors. Hellboy comes with a base to stand on, and his infamous Samaritan sidearm. The mechanical soldier figure is scaled to the rest of the line, making him stand pretty tall at 7″. The two figures will be sold together at Mezco’s booth for $30.00.
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra 12″ Baroness Special Edition Figure
Baroness has long been a fan favorite, and no matter how the movie turns out, you have to admit Sienna Miller looks sexy in patent leather. Hasbro has used Miller’s likeness for this 12″ action figure, which is being sold at this year’s Comic Con for $29.99. Not only does it come with a slick Cobra recruiting poster, you can take her out of the box (blasphemy!) and start some catfights with that goody-two-shoes Barbie.
Star Wars: Smiling Luke Action Figure
This one might only appeal to the real Star Wars geeks out there. Luke was obviously pretty happy to fly an X-Wing, and that happiness will be forever immortalized in this exclusive action figure. Now, every time you put him in the cockpit of a ship, he’ll be having the time of his life! The good news is that the price is the same as most of the rest of Hasbro’s increasingly impressive Star Wars action figure line, $9.99.
Ghostbusters Angry Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man Bank
What do you get for the kid that has everything? How about an angry marshmallow man? It’s only $20, and at 8″ tall, it’s the perfect height to terrorize any of your 3 3/4″ Star Wars or GI Joe action figures. A giant, rampaging marshmallow man might be just the thing to wipe that silly grin off of Luke’s face. And did we mention it’s a bank, too?
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