Okay, I won’t lie: as a Batman purist, I couldn’t stand Battle for the Cowl or anything that came with it. Not the constant presence of Damien Wayne, not even the Black Casebook. Nothing.
I’ve never liked opening the world of the Dark Knight to too much ridiculousness or soap-opera style death and undeath (except in the case of Ra’s al Ghul, of course). But despite my feelings on the matter, Morrison continues to push ahead with all this and DC Direct has released the first series of non-Batman Batman figures under the name BATMAN REBORN, where everyone who isn’t Bruce Wayne gets a shot at being Gotham’s protector.
Sigh. At least the sculpts are done well. They all stand about 6 inches tall and come with relevant accessories. They do not, of course, come with the 3-D glasses that the Harvey-Dent-as-Batman costume would seem to demand!
Personally, I tend to think that when former Robin/Spoiler Stephanie Brown’s action figure look is the least garish of all the options, it’s time to bring back Bruce! …Or maybe just Darwyn Cooke. He could fix this.
To be quite honest, I didn’t get any of my Tribble-awareness from Star Trek. I first learned about the furry little creatures when I was a very young child playing the Apogee DOS game Crystal Caves. They spoofed the Trek aliens in the first game, which detailed Mylo Steamwitz’s “Troubles with Twibbles”…
From there, I would learn about the past and the exciting story of Tribbles, which are best explained by a look at the wiki:
“Fictional animals in the Star Trek universe who first appeared in the episode titled “The Trouble With Tribbles”. They are depicted as small, soft, and gentle, and as producing a soothing purring sound. These traits are said to endear them to most sentient races which encounter them, with the notable exception of Klingons, who consider tribbles to be “mortal enemies” of the Klingon Empire, as stated in the Star Trek Deep Space Nine episode “Trials and Tribble-ations”.
And now you can own a Tribble of your own, complete with that soft purring sound! Or, if you’re worried there might be trouble about, you can set it to “agitated mode”, which’ll alert you to the presence of any Klingons–you never know!
The Tribbles come in random colours and you can order the 6-inch furball right here or by clicking the pic! They’re the latest addition to the line of Star Trek accessories that already includes Phasers and Tricorders.
You can also check out a ton of figures, vehicles and sets in CmdStore’s full Star Trek toy collection.
We at CmdStore only deal in licensed products and in making sure that our customers only get the best products they’re looking for. There are a lot of cheats and knock-offs out there and we make sure that we don’t emulate them. It probably helps, of course, that we’re geeks ourselves and thus want nothing to do with cheap imitations.
But that doesn’t mean that we can’t occasionally enjoy a rip-off. Because I recently saw some videos over on Youtube that are absolutely terrible and very much unlicensed but also hilarious. They’re cheap Brazilian knock-offs of real Disney, Pixar or Dreamworks films: the aim is to rush the movie into production so that it hits theatres before its quality counterpart. They usually just base the plots of the films on the trailers for the real ones, so you never know what to expect.
Two of my greatest fictional heroes are detectives: Batman and Philip Marlowe, Raymond Chandler’s protagonist from his incredible mystery novels. I started out by reading The Long Goodbye, which remains my favorite of the Marlowe novels–or just one of my favourite novels, period.
I’ve researched Chandler, now, watched the movies based on his writing and even picked up a copy of the graphic novel adaptation of Playback when I was at TCAF. In other words, I am always on the look-out for anything and everything Chandler.
Which is why I was thrilled to read the synopsis of HBO’s Bored to Death… Novelist Jonathan Ames reimagines the detective genre for the Internet age in his offbeat comedy for HBO, Bored to Death. His writer protagonist, also named Jonathan Ames (played by the superb Jason Schwartzman), seeks some action in his life after a bad breakup and many nights with the bottle and weed. Lost and looking for connections, he decides to be the Philip Marlowe of Brooklyn, placing an ad for his detective services on Craigslist.
I quickly sought out the first season and was rewarded with a show that was hilarious, brilliantly-crafted and genuinely engaging. The three leads are absolutely perfect for their parts.
You can grab the whole first season on Amazon (it returns next year for a second outing) or take a look at the book that started it all!
Zhu Zhu Pets are the hottest 2009 toy out-selling everything else in the universe. Get an additional 15% off your purchase when you spend over 20 dollars (before shipping charges) at Cmdstore.com. Simply add the items you want to your shopping cart and then proceed to checkout using the coupon code: cyber15. Then click the apply button and your discount will be given. Coupon expires Monday, 11:59pm on November 30th, 2009 so hurry to take advantage of this limited offer.
CmdStore.com is one of the retailers able to offer the season’s number one hot toy, Zhu Zhu Pets, with every accessory possible still available for sale through the site! Cmdstore has been in business for over 16 years and is an accredited member of the Better Business Bureau Inc (BBB).
Here are some other Zhu Zhu Pets articles you might be interested in reading:
The term Cyber Monday refers to the Monday immediately following Black Friday, the ceremonial kick-off of the holiday online shopping season in the U.S. after Thanksgiving Day. Whereas Black Friday is associated with traditional brick-and-mortar stores, “Cyber Monday” symbolizes a busy day for online retailers. The premise was that consumers would return to their offices after the Black Friday weekend, making purchases online that they were not able to make in stores.
Is Cyber Monday really the best single day for online retailers? For us, it ranks #5 however I did some research online and it appears that Cyber Monday average ranking is #10. We actually sell more on the day before Cyber Monday….Sunday. Sunday is the day to go online to buy what you couldn’t find at the stores. I have noticed most online retailers are offering discounts and free shipping for Friday and Saturday only. Have fun shopping online!
Looking for Zhu Zhu Hamster Pets? We have a selection of Zhu Zhu Pets and related merchandise to satisfy your needs. Zhu Zhu Pets are the hottest 2009 toy out-selling everything else on the planet.
No need to be scared of fraud or scams. Cmdstore is a trusted retailer in business for over 16 years. We have two retail brick and mortar stores and an online store that has been operating since 2001. Cmdstore.com is a proud accredited member of the Better Business Bureau Inc (BBB) so you can always buy with confidence. Please check it out by clicking the BBB banner to view their status.
So check it out over at CmdStore.com. It’s the perfect time to fill out your collection, find that one toy you’ve been missing, get through your gift-giving list or just go all-out and snag yourself some pre-Christmas swag!
Coupon Code: cmdblog15
Expires: Monday, 11:59pm EST, November 30, 2009.
Spend over $20 on any In-Stock items
(Does not apply to pre-order items or gift certificates)
Just add the items you want (make sure you spend over $20 bucks before shipping) and apply the coupon code before completing the checkout. See you there!
It’s friday afternoon and we don’t wanna work….so time to surf YouTube and spend a few hours entertaining myself. When my music alarm clock woke me up this morning….I had this tune in my head. While working out at the gym, I was humming it. While eating Dim Sum at the restaurant, I was humming it. While taking my afternoon lunch crap in the can, I was humming it. While drinking a cup of Tim Horton’s coffee and surfing the web (instead of working), I was humming this tune.
What is this tune, you ask? Enjoy….
Are you looking for music figures like Beatles, Guns N Roses, or Elvis…..you can find them at www.cmdstore.com
Found this interesting article….By Mae Anderson, AP Retail Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — When Lori Fowlkes first saw robotic Zhu Zhu Pets toy hamsters in September, she remembers her kids started jumping up and down and saying “Please! Please! Can we buy them?”
Seeing a fully stocked shelf, she decided to hold off until Christmas.
That was “before I knew that the hamsters would soon be off the shelves and more scarce than an H1N1 vaccine,” said Fowlkes, 32.
Now she can’t find them anywhere.
Zhu Zhu Pets, which retail for about $10, are this year’s bona fide must-have toy, following in the footsteps of past crazes for Tickle Me Elmo and Cabbage Patch Kids. On resale Web sites like eBay and Craigslist, they fetch $40 or more. Vital accessories as the hamster car and funhouse are sold separately.
By many counts, the toy is an unlikely hit. They’re in a field crowded with toy pets. The hamsters, which scurry around, make noises and drive cars don’t always work the way you expect and have a limited range of action.
“Honestly, I don’t really get it,” said BMO Capital Markets analyst Gerrick Johnson. “But I don’t need to get it for a toy to be hot.”
The toys do have several factors that make them compelling, Johnson said: fun accessories and scarcity — sometimes when something is hard to obtain it makes people want it more. And they have one big thing going for them in tough economic times: They’re cheap.
“The last couple of years the robotic pet has been very popular, but those have been very expensive,” like Hasbro’s $250 robotic dinosaur Kota the Triceratops, he said. “But here’s a version of a robotic pet that only costs $10.”
Hasbro’s line of lower-priced Furreal Friends robotic animals have not hit the same chord, perhaps because they still cost more, are immobile and don’t have any accessories.
Zhu Zhu Pets, aimed at 3- to 10-year-olds, have rushed in to fill the void. But unlike past “It” toys made by large manufacturers like Mattel’s Tickle Me Elmo and Tiger Electronic’s Furby, Zhu Zhu Pets are made by tiny Cepia Inc. of St. Louis, with just 16 employees in the U.S. and 30 in China, making their success even more unlikely.
CREATION OF A CRAZE
Just six years old, Cepia previously worked on an electronic dispensing device for consumer products before turning to toys and its only other product, a line of light-up bears called Glo-E Bears.
The company was started by toy industry vet Russ Hornsby, 56.
The success of Zhu Zhu Pets wasn’t entirely accidental. After being inspired by classic robotic toys, like the barking puppy dog who flips, Hornsby created a prototype. Stores in Phoenix were used as a test bed in May.
The company got the word out with a savvy mix of local cable ads and parties thrown by “mommy bloggers.”
Hornsby said he was hoping to sell three to four pets per store per week, but was secretly hoping for eight. The result, Hornsby said, was exponentially higher, though he wouldn’t say how much.
“The rate was so astonishing everybody had to go back and pinch themselves,” Hornsby said. Toys R Us pulled all of the test data to make sure it wasn’t being manipulated, Hornsby said.
That gave a running start to Cepia’s national rollout in August.
Ads on cable stations Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network and Disney XD have proved to be catnip to kids.
“My daughter saw a commercial for them on Nickelodeon or one of the kid channels and instantly wanted it,” said Tara Purdy Callender, 21. Her daughter’s 6th birthday is on Nov. 25 and “all she wants is Zhu Zhu pets,” lamented Callender, whose search has been fruitless so far.
KEEPING UP WITH DEMAND
For parents, the hamster hunt is intense. A Facebook fan site tracks parent’s search for the toys. Hornsby said he recently got a call at 4 a.m. on his cell phone from a mom asking for hamsters. Calls have also been received at the store’s Chinese base from parents trying to go straight to the source.
“They’re calling because they’re upset and they feel we’re not doing a good enough job getting merchandise on the shelves,” Hornsby said.
But with retailers being extra cautious with orders this year following the dismal holiday season last year, the maker has had to scramble to make enough to catch up to demand.
Toy analyst Jim Silver at Timetoplaymag.com said it was late fall by the time Cepia and retailers realized how popular the toys were, and by that time it was difficult to increase production.
“You can’t just go to China and flip a switch,” he said. But in the past three months, the company has added three more factories in China.
“We’re all working so hard right now to try to fulfill this,” Hornsby said. “Retailers are airlifting in millions of products,” a rare and expensive move for stores.
Even if the product remains impossible to find for the holidays, the craze sets Cepia up for a strong 2010. Hornsby estimates the company will sell $100 million in Zhu Zhu Pets by the end of the year. It’s always hard to tell how long a toy will stay hot, but based on bookings, he says that will grow to $350 million to $400 million by the end of next year as production ramps up.
Financial analyst Johnson agreed 2010 will be big for Zhu Zhu Pets.
“I don’t know what Chinese New Year is coming up, but as far as toys are concerned next year will be the year of the hamster.”
Click Image to Buy Zhu Zhu Pets:
Here is a cool video clip of children playing with Zhu Zhu Pets:
As fans recently learned, the Nightmare on Elm Street Reboot stars WATCHMEN’s Jackie Earl Haley as the new Freddy Krueger, taking over from Robert Englund, whose absence is surely going to weigh heavily on audience’s mind no matter how good Haley’s performance. Besides a brief glimpse in the trailer, it’s been unclear just what the new Freddy would look like. And the truth, revealed by Figures.com via NECA, is here in this upcoming Freddy Figure!
It’s definitely a difference, but I’m thinking I like it: over the years, the Freddy Krueger ‘brand’, as it were, has become a true cult hero, but also a bit of a joke as he takes on unlikely foes and becomes more and more ridiculous. The new Haley Krueger definitely has a stranger stare, less of a smile and a creepier, more realistic burn-victim look, which makes him at once more accessible and more horrifying. Of course, it’ll come down to the acting in the end and as we’ve already seen from a number of shows, JEH isn’t low on talent. We’ll just have to wait and see.
But while we’re on the topic, here’s a link to our selection of non-JEH Freddy Krueger figures from NECA. They’re all awesomely detailed and you should definitely pay special attention to the newest item, a 12-inch deluxe Freddy in real fabric clothing: lift his shirt up to reveal the souls of his victims in his chest!
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