The Great Star Wars Fan Poll

Hopefully by now you’ve read and loved ToyFare #146 and you’re asking yourself, “Hey, where can I vote on all those Star Wars fan polls I read about?” Well, here’s the link!

For those of you who haven’t read the issue (for shame), we contacted Hasbro, Diamond Select Toys, FunKo, Kotobukiya and Gentle Giant about letting you, the fans, decide which characters they should pick for their next products. So let your voice be heard!

–TJ

Why didn’t anybody TELL me Twisted ToyFare vol. 10 is out?

Holy crap! So TTT volume 10 was supposed to ship at the end of July, but apparently Diamond got in early and just decided to ship it out to comic shops a couple of weeks ago. So if you haven’t seen it at your LCS yet, make sure you ask for it by name!

Here’s what you’ll find inside:

TWISTED TOYFARE THEATRE 10
We’re finally graduating into double digits with the mind-shattering tenth 104-page book full of the funniest award-winning “TTT” comic strips from ToyFare magazine! Whether you’re a die-hard Twistie (which we just decided our fans are called right this moment) or a drooling noob, this book’s got something for you!

PLUS:
o “TTT” STRIPS!
“Twisted ToyFare Theatre Volume 10″ is guaranteed to be the only place where you can see Megatron detained at the Mexican border as an illegal firearm and new Decepticon leader Starscream facing a massive walkout!

Plus: Captain America gets killed, and it’s up to his non-threatening sidekick Bucky to replace him…if training to be a badass (and dressing like one) doesn’t kill him first!

Master Chief and 300 Spartan warriors do battle against the God-King Mario. Can they defeat his army of turtles, mushrooms and different types of turtles?

Spider-Man gets unwillingly recruited into a cosmic police force. Stallone and Schwarzenegger wreak bloody vengeance on Steven Seagal and Jean Claude Van Damme. And Chewbacca’s son Lumpy shoots Princess Leia.

Mark Hammill says, “If there’s a more outrageous, consistently funny comic strip out there, I’d love to see it.” Are you gonna tell Luke freakin’ Skywalker he’s wrong?

o THE OFFICIAL HANDBOOK OF THE “TTT” UNIVERSE
Just to prove that we are paying attention to this crap. Get your fill of the most obscure ephemera about your favorite “Twisted ToyFare” characters!

o CUSTOMIZING 101
Find out how to make your OWN Megos with our intrepid customizer, Vince Callaghan!

Definitely pick this one up, and let us know what you think!

ToyFare # 145: On sale 7/8!

Holy moley, wouldja look at that cover? But that’s nothing compared to the great stuff (G.I. Joe-related and otherwise) that lies inside! To wit:

• Our second annual DC Universe Classics fan poll! Who will join The Question as the next fan’s choice winner? Heck, who’s even nominated? Read the issue to find out!

• An interview with G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra screenwriter Stuart Beattie and another interview with actors Sienna Miller, Channing Tatum, Marlon Wayans and Rachel Nichols!

• An interview with the Joe toy team, including a look at the upcoming movie Destro and Cobra Commander figures!

• Secrets of the Joes revealed from Joe historian and author Mark Bellomo. How does G.I. Joe owe its existence to Donald Duck?

• A talk with the team behind the upcoming Joe video game – what secrets does it have in store for old-school fans?

• A G.I. Joe-themed price guide, complete with the return of sequential Big Shots!

• Twisted ToyFare Theatre: Part 2 of the epic showdown between nature’s deadliest enemies – Ewoks and Stormtroopers!

• A look at the brawlers who make up Jakks Pacific’s eagerly anticipated UFC line!

• Customizing 101 – how to customize your MiniMates!

• A brief chat with Hard Hero about their upcoming Thundercats statues and busts!

• Plus tons more toys in Incoming, the usual great sections and, of course, ROM and Kate Plus Eight!

Shocker SDCC Exclusive Emo Kid Mallow!

In ToyFare #145 (on shelves July 8th!) you can get a look at Shocker’s new designer Mallow toys, but only as a computer image (damn deadlines). Anyway, Shocker just sent us these images of the aptly dubbed Emo Kid Mallow which will be an exclusive at SDCC where the entire line will be launched.

Tonner’s SDCC Black Canary

Hey Gang, the folks over at Tonner passed along this awesome image of their San Diego Comic-Con Black Canary exclusive. Notice the sexy new jacket and boots!

Keep coming back for more views of Tonner and other SDCC exclusives!

Toy news out of Wizard World Philly!

If you missed Wizard World Philadelphia this weekend, you missed…well, this:

• The ToyFare Hall of Fame welcomed its second class of inductees! Randy Bowen delivered a video message (and some Ozzy), while inductees Tim Bruckner, Jesse Falcon and Aaron Archer (on behalf of Transformers) were on-hand to pick up their trophies. Speaking of trophies…check out that $#%!! On the left you’ll see last year’s original trophy, sculpted by the inimitable Tim Bruckner. On the right, this year’s trophy, sculpted in tribute to last year’s by the dream team of The Four Horsemen and Clayburn Moore!

• Speaking of Jesse, he and David Vonner and Scott George from Hasbro world-debuted three new Marvel Legends: modern Madrox, X-Force Warpath and Lady Bullseye! All three will be part of upcoming two-packs.

• Speaking of The Horsemen, they were on hand to show off some new prototypes, including the world’s first look at fully-painted Teela from Masters of the Universe Classics.

•Speaking of Hall of Fame inductees, one of last year’s honorees, Randy Falk, ran down some exciting new license announcements for NECA, including one video game line that’s sure to get everyone talking: Bioshock! Big Daddy toys, y’all!

• Speaking of (last time I’m using that gag) just about ALL those guys, they were on the Big Toy Industry panel on Friday night, which is a totally unique opportunity to hear legends from all corners of the industry rap about what’s going on in the toy biz right now. If you want to hear how the economy is affecting your favorite lines, or where guys like Jesse and the Horsemen think innovation will take the toy industry in the next 25 years, you can head to this dude’s blog and download an audio file of the entire panel. I highly suggest you do.

• Fans also got a look at some upcoming MiniMates art courtesy of Diamond Select Toys, a sneak-peek at the second and third series of Indie Spotlight toys courtesy of Shocker Toys, and the huge announcement that Tonner Doll got the license they were born for: Lord of the Rings! Budding artists also got master classes in sculpting from Robert Tonner and Tim Bruckner, and budding customizers got a schooling on our very first Customizing 101 panel with Matt “Iron-Cow” Cauley, Pierre “Airmax” Kalenzaga and Bobby “Bobby T” Torres. Seriously, it was so friggin’ educational I think I earned a new degree just moderating it.

Big thanks to all the fans who came out, all the toy industry pros who made it great, and DJ Skeletor, who put on the single most evil karaoke night I’ve ever had the pleasure of getting gonged offstage during. Thanks, guys!

Full Harold Ramis Interview Now Up!

Hey Gang, hopefully everyone’s enjoying the recently released ToyFare #144, we had a lot of fun putting that bad boy together. And personally, I had a lot of fun interviewing comedy legend Harold Ramis of Ghostbusters, Animal House, Year One and just about every other really funny movie from the 80s. We were only able to squeeze a small portion of the interview into the magazine, but head over here for the whole thing. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed working on it.

–TJ

ToyFare # 144: On sale 6/10!

It was 25 years ago this year…that just about everything that was cool in the ’80s happened!

ToyFare’s celebrating with a special issue dedicated to how friggin’ awesome 1984 was, and our cover features the poster-boys of ‘84 awesomeness, the Ghostbusters!

Here’s what you’ll find between the covers:

• ToyFare’s own lucky duck TJ Dietsch got to interview Harold “Egon” Ramis about the Ghostbusters toys and video game, and his new flick “Year One”! Plus, an interview with the makers of the aforementioned Ghostbusters video game, which we’re totally jazzed to play!

• 1984 mini-features on Super Powers, Voltron, Ninja Turtles, Terminator, Secret Wars and the year’s best films!

Plus, non-1984 stuff:

• If you follow me on Twitter, you already know we’re world-debuting DC Universe Classics Question in this issue! And hey, there’s a new wave of DC Direct JLA Classified in here that I’m pretty sure is brand-new as well!

• Get to know the inductees into this year’s prestigious ToyFare Hall of Fame at Wizard World Philadelphia!

• Twisted ToyFare Theatre: The Troopers are back, and this time they’re running afoul of the universe’s deadliest killers…the Ewoks!

• Plus, more Incoming, San Diego exclusives, Big Shots and all the other goodness you’re accustomed to!

ToyFare’s on Twitter!

Or, well, I’m on Twitter at any rate.

Just in time for #followfriday, add me as a friend on your Twitter account! In celebration of this exciting new technology I’m discovering after Oprah and 98% of the free world, I’m announcing which DC Universe Classics figure we’re going to be debuting in ToyFare #144 on my Twitter account (twitter.com/aclincorp) right now! Check it out, and welcome me to 2008!

The Greatest Letter Ever

We get a lot of great letters here at ToyFare and Wizard. Some of them are interesting or heartwarming, and some of them are just…interesting.

But one letter has been hanging on ToyFare’s door as long as I’ve been here, and it’s one of the only things from the old office I made sure to take with me and hang up when we made the move to New York City recently.

Behold:

When this letter first arrived it was pure white, and as far as we can tell it turned hot pink over time out of pure awesomeness.

In case you can’t read, it says:

Dear ToyFare,
I’m familiar with Mattel’s “Masters of the Universe.” It originally ran from 1982to 1987, and now the Four Horsemen have revamped it for a new generation. The line won’t be released until mid-June 2002, not July or August, but mid-June. “Masters of the Universe” is a concept everyone can relate to. It’s definitely the best!

Your pal,
Philip

P.S. Is He-Man really a magician?

Well, we never took the time to answer this letter, so let me just say: Philip…He-Man is whatever the hell you decide he is. Rock on, buddy!