Here we have another re-release of both Transformers the Movie (TFTM) and Revenge of the Fallen (ROTF) toys - Voyager Optimus Prime & Deluxe Premium Bumblebee!  I think most fans and collectors are not so keen about this Shanghai version of Voyager Optimus Prime, but for those who still have not gotten their Deluxe Premium Bumblebee, this is your chance!  You can then give away the Optimus Prime to your kids, nephews and nieces etc., LOL!  Original posting of this 2-pack found on tfw2005.com.  Happy toy collecting!

Detailed photos of Deluxe Battle Blade Bumblebee toy from Hasbro’s 2010 Hunt for the Decepticons (HFTD) toyline are available online now!  This Movie Bumblebee’s new Camaro mold features a new transformation pattern, a battle axe on his arm, a cannon, plus a flip down visor like a knight! 

I agree with many online fans’ feedback that this is probably going to be the most ‘movie accurate’ Deluxe Bumblebee figure made. He even has 2 hind toes on his feet!  You can view his toy photos at tformers.  Like all the Transformers Movie Deluxe Bumblebee figures that came out before him, this Battle Blade version will be part of my collection when he arrives at our local departmental stores!

US My Little Pony Fair 2010 Exclusive Pony

We’ll probably call her Kiwi Pony, since she has the colors and designs of kiwi fruit slices on her body!  The US My Little Pony Fair 2010 will be held on 17-18 July, at the state of Kentucky, which is also the home of the famous Kentucky Derby! 

Yeah, I know Singaporeans mostly remember the fried chicken brand, but for horse lovers like me, we know that that Kentucky is also the location of some of the most famous thoroughbred racehorse stud farms in the US. 

Plus there are the Keeneland Yearling Sales (yearling racehorse auction) and the Churchhill Downs Racecourse (home of the Kentucky Derby) there.  Haha, I used to be so into horses before I went into toy collecting many years ago!  Hence I still remember all these horsey info!

Anyway back to the Kiwi Pony topic, I’ll be getting her online from MLP Arena with the other local pony collectors, like we always did in previous years.  I am so looking forward to July 2010 to get my Kiwi Pony!

The annual mega toy event in the US - the San Diego Comic Convention (SDCC) 2010 will take place from 22 to 25 July 2010.  Each year, toy companies, toy merchants, toy collectors, comics and movie fans etc. will gather there to admire, buy, sell, trade toys, as well as obtain the latest press releases of various collectibles toys to be released to the market. 

At every SDCC, special exclusive toys from many toy companies are available for sale directly from their exhibition booths.  Long queues will form at the most popular booths for toys that will eventually end up with collectors, mostly through online auction sites like ebay, or through collectors’ toy shops that manage to secure them.  Sometimes if there are excess stocks, certain SDCC exclusive toys may become available at departmental stores many months after the SDCC.

Locally, many collectors’ toy shops make their own arrangements every year to bring in SDCC exclusive toys for their customers here.  For last year, Toy ‘R’ Us Singapore brought in lots of Hasbro SDCC exclusive toys and sold them during the Singapore Toy Games and Comic Convention (STGCC) held in August 2009. 

The excess stocks were subsequently spotted at some departmental stores over the next several months that followed.  At the beginning of this year, the last of the remaining SDCC exclusive toys (e.g. G.I.Joe The Rise of Cobra) finally went on clearance sale at departmental stores and sold out or were returned to Hasbro Singapore.

For this year, many local toy collectors are feeling cautious and decide not to be too hasty in buying SDCC 2010  exclusive toys at inflated prices anymore.  They have learnt their painful wallet lessons from seeing their precious SDCC 2009 exclusive Hasbro toys selling for less than the retail prices of normal store version items from the same toylines.  Such are the ‘perils’ of toy collecting that every collector experience from time to time.  Everything we do in life is a gamble, even our toy hobbies!

I haven’t been checking out the Singapore Toy Games & Comic Convention (STGCC) 2010 official website for a very long while.  They have updated their website and we finally have the dates for the STGCC 2010.  This shall be the 3rd year for the STGCC and the dates are getting later and later with each year.  

In the 1st year, the STGCC was held in June 2008.  Then in the 2nd year, it was held in August 2009.  For 2010, it shall be pushed back even further to December, reason must have something to do with their collaboration with the New York Comic Con (NYCC) 2010, to be held from 8-10 October 2010.

Well, the good news is that most toy collectors here would likely have gotten their year end bonuses to spend on more toys for Christmas!  The main downside is that I doubt many toy collectors can wait up till 6 months later to lay their hands on the San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) 2010 exclusive toys, that will be available from late July 2010.  

For last year, many SDCC 2009 exclusive Hasbro toys were available for sale at the STGCC.  For me, I shall acquire my yearly SDCC exclusive My Little Pony from my regular local toy shop soon after their annual visit to the SDCC in the US.  I have seen the unofficial photos of that pony online already and she’s now on my toy want list for 2010!

Meanwhile, happy waiting for all the major toy events in the US and Singapore! 

He’s here!  He’s finally here in Singapore - the last most coveted Doraemon Pig Lucky Charm Toy from McDonalds’ Doraemon Zodiac Lucky Charm Toys set!  He was part of the toy rage here about 3 months ago.  This little piece of “pork” has been sighted at a McDonalds (McDs) outlet in Orchard Road today!

The better news is that this time, there is no need to make any food or beverage purchase before you are entitled to buy him.  You can just buy him over the counter for SGD 2.00 each!  I believe this is a first time for McDs in Singapore that you can buy their toys over the counter outright.  In the US, you can normally buy their Happy Meal toys or other promotion toys only without having to buy any McDs items. 

This little Doraemon piggy was left out of the original 12 Chinese Zodiac animal characters and substituted with a Doraemon Cupid toy by Singapore McDs in January 2010.  A lot of local collectors were not pleased and made known to Singapore McDs that they want this little porker to complete their Doraemon Zodiac Lucky Charm toys set.  It’s the “completist” collectors’ mindset, that everything they collect must be in complete sets, LOL! 

Hence Singapore McDs invited its customers to vote on their website on whether to bring in the pink piggy.  The expected available date for this last member of the Doraemon Zodiac animal characters was announced as sometime in April 2010.  Now that he’s here on our shores, go and grab him while stocks last!  I’m sure he’ll sell out very fast because the price is so affordable!

You can also read LEon’s blog posts on this Doraemon porky topic at Open The Toy.

Happy collecting of Doraemon Pig Lucky Charm Toy! 

My Little Pony Friends - Wave 5 (SGD 10.90 each)

More variants of the core 7 My Little Pony characters are now available at local departmental stores.  Happy My Little Pony collecting!

A friend highlighted to me that there are 3 different variants of 3.75-inch War Machine action figures from Hasbro’s Iron Man 2 movie toyline, spotted at mass retail here in Singapore.  I suppose it’s the same in the US and other countries.

Hasbro’s toy factories have done it again.  So that means that many toy collectors are currently fretting over which is the movie accurate version to collect and which are the ones to disregard.  For the little kids, they may not notice the difference.  So far from what I observe on the retail pegs, any version of these War Machine action figures sell out very quickly here.

The best way to find out which War Machine variant toy has the most “movie accurate” colors, is to go and watch the Iron Man 2 movie that is scheduled to screen in Singapore cinemas from 30 April 2010.  Happy waiting for the movie!

Variant 1 - Red eyes and red arc outline on chest with white numbers printed on armour.

Variant 2 - Blue eyes and blue arc outline on chest with white numbers printed on armour.

Variant 3 - Blue eyes and blue arc outline on chest without white numbers printed on armour.

Happy Iron Man 2 movie toys collecting!

Another new toy from Hasbro’s upcoming 2010 Transformers Hunt for the Decepticons (HFTD) toyline is Legends Ravage!  This character is based on the 2009 blockbuster Transformers movie sequel - Revenge of the Fallen (ROTF), which made over USD 700 million worldwide last year.  This source photo is from Seibertron.com.

Just take a look at his detailed toy photos posted at Seibertron.com.  He looks so adorable in those pictures, that I can’t wait for him to arrive at local mass retail!  Isn’t he such a cute little kitten?   His jet mode is also nicer looking than his ROTF Deluxe version.  

I also like that they pose his toy next to the tiny Mikaela figure (comes with Skids and Arcee from the ROTF Human Alliance (HA) toyline).  They look so in scale with each other!

Happy HFTD Legends Ravage toy admiring!

Above source photo from Seibertron.com

These Transformers Revenge of the Fallen (ROTF) Leader class 2-packs used to flood our local departmental stores just early this year.  Now they are gradually disappearing from most retail stores as they are popular with both kids and collectors alike.  Just today, I spotted slightly over 10 pieces (most in rather battered packaging) at an OG outlet.  The price there is now at SGD 159.90, down from the original retail price of SGD 199.90. 

However I believe that many of those discounted pieces there could have their battery operated functions exhausted by now from over fiddling by children and shoppers.  So do check if the figures in the box set you are buying are still in working conditions.  After all, you usually don’t get a discount for no reason.

Happy tail end of ROTF toys shopping!