A bit of news here, and something I've been meaning to touch on.
First off, stop all the presses, Target is running an amazing sale this week, good at both their retail locations and target.com. Buy any two Ever After High, Monster High, or Barbie dolls, and get a third free! Also, the same with selected video games--buy two, get one free. This is an amazing pre-Black Friday sale, and I'll be stopping by to take advantage of it, since I got a gift card last week!
It's hard to keep up with announcing anime merchandise, because there is just so much out there, and unless you utilize a site like CDJapan or HobbyLinkJapan, you simply won't be able to get any. (Save for finding it at a convention or a specialty brick-and-mortar shop.) And there are so many shows with a plethora of merchandise that you could easily make an entire blog devoted to the subject. I worry sometimes about whether anyone thinks I'm biased towards certain subjects, since there is an entire world of merchandise news that I don't mention here. So! If you're hoping to see more news about anime merchandise, I have a few links to push your way:
- Anime News Network - This is an awesome website for anime news in general, but they report semi-regularly on merchandise being created in Japan.
- There are any number of quality anime retailers out there offering legitimate products. Sometimes if I am curious about what's out there, I'll browse through their new arrivals sections. Just a few to look at: JList, CDJapan, HobbyLinkJapan, AmiAmi, YesAsia, PlayAsia
- There are also lots and lots of informative Facebook fan pages that keep up-to-date with product information. One of my Favorites is SailorMoonCollectibles, which religiously posts pictures and info about new Sailor Moon products. I, however, don't cross-post most of the information because most of the time these products are Japan-only and either require a deputy service to order, or end up selling out so quickly that it's not worth posting news about, because it would get people's hopes up.
It's just hard to figure out sometimes if the things I'm posting are too narrow in interest. For example, if I really wanted to become an informational haven, I'd be continuously cross-posting NA anime and manga releases, video game releases, news on every piece of merchandise related to those topics (including figures), all NA toy releases, plus patterns and how-to manuals for various crafts. But I post just a few things here and there. I guess what I'm saying is that I hope people understand.
This is basically "The Hobby Haven: Where Miss Scarlett posts about the various things that interest her and hopes that people find some of the information useful."
Anywho, Bandai has announced at their Tamashii Nations a little while ago that they will be manufacturing Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Chibi Moon Sailor Moon S.H. Figuarts. They are also manufacturing Figuarts Zero statues for Sailor Moon Crystal, plus a line of super-deformed non-posable "Buddies" figurines. The latter seem to be more of a budget line, for fans who want to dip their toes into figure collecting, but who don't have deep pockets. I'm still disgruntled that Pluto was not announced. Since we are getting Neptune and Uranus early in 2015, I am assuming Tuxedo and Chibi will be released more towards the middle half of the year, and Pluto perhaps afterwards? I'll be getting Tuxedo but skipping Chibi because I was never fond of her. Yes, I am continuing to buy Figuarts despite my vocal criticisms of them. When you get one that works--and for a decent price--they're awesome. You just have to be vigilant in finding one that didn't get mangled in an assembly line.
I should mention that there is also quite a bit of legitimate Bandai Sailor Moon merchandise available on Amazon. You can pick up the 5 Inner Sailors' Figuarts ZERO figures as well as the Proplica (a portmanteau of "Prop Replica") Moon Stick and Cutie Moon Rod. These are, however, more expensive merchandise, and each of the above-mentioned items easily goes for $80-90 apiece at least.
Also, the Ever After High Dolls Facebook fan page posted dozens of Amazon links to upcoming Monster High and Ever After High merchandise! We're talking the new playsets, some associated merchandise, some new lines, and a re-issue of some of the MH "Original Ghouls." The new lines seem to be a mixed sort; there are quite a few budget lines (like Glass Lake and Geek Shriek). At least they're trying to promote some of the lesser-utilized characters. I think I might be picking up the re-issues of Original Frankie and Clawdeen. I got into Monster High way late, so I never got them.
I think I'll wrap it up here, mainly because I need to grab some lunch. I'll see you all later!
