Like most geeks I lived vicariously through the toy bloggers snapping photos of figures and sets unveiled at the recent Toy Fair 2014 in New York. Seeing all the new stuff is the next best thing to having them in your dirty mitts. At the same time, there is a price to be paid for this early access to new toy images.

It’s a phenomenon I like to call Toy Spoilers. Because of the toy industry’s necessary lead time for Toy Fair and the crucial holiday season, we see toy versions of movies still months away from hitting the big screen. While a LEGO Ghostbusters set or ReAction Back to the Future figs now won’t take anything away from these classic franchises, seeing all of Grimlock (or God forbid, an all-new character) ahead of his debut in the next Transformers film very well can.

A toy spoiler doesn’t even have to be a spoiler in the traditional sense. The toy con just turn you off the eventual film. Allow me to better explain with a personal anecdote. Growing up I was an enormous G.I. Joe fan. I loved the figures, the vehicles, the comics—even the humorously non-violent cartoon series. I was all geared up for the live-action adaptation back in 2009. I was the movie’s key demographic that the studio was counting on. I was excited until I saw the toy version of Cobra Commander. As you probably know, he was a radical departure from the iconic bad guy we all knew. It was so shocking for me that I soured on the film completely. In fact I still haven’t watched the movie or its sequel.
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As toy fans, there’s something magical about constructing dioramas. We arrange our precious collectibles in such a way to tell a story or simply showcase them. Often they’re done for our own enjoyment but all fans can appreciate the really elaborate creations. I used to think I had a knack for building such scenes. After stumbling upon the work of artist Bobby Sussman, I can easily say he’s a master at this toy-based specialty.

For almost a full year Bobby has been recreating the 1980 Star Wars film The Empire Strikes Back with action figures and handmade sets. He then captures the scenes with his trusty iPhone 4s and posts the photo collages to Instagram. I caught up with Bobby via email for an interview about his process and the inspiration behind this project.

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The other day I realized why I don’t really buy action figures anymore. Nobody seems to sell 6″ action figures anymore. What gives? I’m not a huge fan of the Star Wars scale (as I call it), or 3/4″ action figures. They’re too small and the detail looks horrible most of the time. I like old-fashioned 6″ action figures.

With a huge blockbuster event like the Avengers on the big screens, I almost couldn’t reist picking up some movie tie-in toys until I found out that most stores are just selling the little guys. Luckily, Wal-Mart is selling some exclusive 6″ Avengers action figures soon that don’t look that bad. If you get them all, they connect at the base to form a circle. The odd thing is, Black Widow isn’t represented, while Loki is. I felt like Black Widow was surprisingly well-written and badass in the Avengers, and she definitely deserves a toy in this line.

The Hawkeye/Jeremy Renner head scult is pretty dead on, and the Hulk looks awesome. Only Thor and Iron Man have sculpts carried over from previous toy lines. Even without Black Widow, I think I’ll try to track these down for my shelf. You can check out more photos over at Super Punch and Marvelous News or check out Avengers toys on Amazon.

Make sure to subscribe to the site via RSS or by email to get more updates like this. We should have reviews of these Wal-Mart exclusive Avengers action figures soon!

I don’t get too excited about retro TV shows getting the big Hollywood reboot these days, but these new toys from the A-Team movie are looking pretty incredible. They’re coming out with 3.75″ and 12″ action figures, but I think most people are going to be interested in the awesome van pictured above. It’s been a while since I’ve bought any toys from a new movie, but I could totally see myself getting the van and the A-Team to go on a shelf in the office.

What do you think?

Via Toy News International