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All things CollectionDX. Tutorials, help pages, FAQ and more.
Toy Summits, Art Shows, Museum Exhibits and other Otaku gatherings that aren't proper Toy Conventions.
Frequently asked questions, Tutorials, and Help
Here at CollectionDX we take pride and bringing you the very best coverage of the toy scene. However, we are not experts in every genre of collecting, so sometimes we mess up. Feel free to comment and correct us. You know you want to.
Where's the Gundam?
We are trying to fill a void with our news coverage. There are many dedicated sites that cover the latest in Gundam, Transformers, Star Wars and Girly figures, and they do it much better and much faster than we do. Why reinvent the wheel? You can check out our Newsfeeds page for the stuff that we like but don't cover.
Got a tip?
If you've got news that you want to share, use our Contact Form and select "News item". If it's relevant, we'll get it up.
Subscribe.
See that icon up in the address bar?  That's our RSS feed. You can use it to subscribe to CDX in your favorite news reader. CollectionDX offers a TON of RSS feeds for you to subscribe to. Only want to know when Chogokin, Bandai, or Popy is updated? Go their page, click the icon, and subscribe. Learn more about RSS.
Bulletins from the corporate world. Filled with marketing speak and pullquotes, they are a necessary evil in the world of toy collecting. We get a LOT of press releases here at CollectionDX, but we only post those that we think you will be interested in.
Yes, they pay us to post their news. But we only accept advertising from companies we like, so make sure you check out what our Advertisers have to offer!
Coverage that is on the fringe, all things Otaku. Otaku means Maniac - and these articles focus on things we are crazy about.
Special Features:
Anime related Vinyl records of all types: 7inch, LP and EP These are reviews that aren't toys themselves. Items in this category could be games, books, Dvd's etc..
CollectionDX travels the globe to cover the best toy shows.
 The San Diego International Comicon is one of the biggest events in the United States for Comic, Toy, and Anime fans. CollectionDX will be covering it again, with news before, during and after the convention. For more info on the Comic-Con, please visit the official site at http://www.comic-con.org/.
 The San Diego International Comic-Con is one of the biggest events in the United States for Comic, Toy, and Anime fans. CollectionDX will be covering it again, with news before, during and after the convention. For more info on the Comic-Con, please visit the official site at http://www.comic-con.org/.
You can also check out our 2005 San Diego International Comic-Con coverage here.
If you are a retailer or exhibitor at SDCC and you would like us to add your information to our coverage, contact us here.
CollectionDX will be at the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con. We'll be both covering the event and displaying goods at the CDX / Onell Design booth, #4937.
American International TOY FAIR is the largest toy trade show in the Western Hemisphere. More than 1,500 manufacturers, distributors, importers and sales agents from 30 countries showcase their toy and entertainment products. From classic toys to interactive entertainment and everything in between, we have it all! Products include: action figures and dolls, games and puzzles, bicycles, tricycles and ride-ons, radio-controlled vehicles, infant and preschool toys, cars, trucks and trains, puppets and plush, audio and video cassettes, computer software and video games, playground and sporting equipment, Halloween, Christmas, books, stationery, party supplies, and much more!
Toy Fair 2003 (0) 2003 New York International Toy Fair coverage
2004 New York International Toy Fair Coverage
 2005 New York International Toy Fair coverage
 2006 New York International Toy Fair coverage
 Every year the nations largest toy companies converge on New York City to show off the lines for the coming year. This event is not open to the public - only industry and media are allowed to attend. Once again, CollectionDX has been granted access to these hallowed halls so that we can bring you exclusive coverage of the 2007 American International Toy Fair in New York City.
Coverage for the 2007 Toy Fair Starts Feb 11, 2007. Of course if you don't want to read the articles you can skip directly to our image gallery here.
For more information, visit http://www.toyfairny.com/
2008 New York International Toy Fair
Wizard World Conventions
Trips to Japan, NYC and other Toy Mecca
Korean toy maker, famous for bootlegs of Transformers and Gundam Korean Bootleg Manufacturer Aoshima Miracle House Arii Ark Manhattan, New York based Art Asylum was founded by Digger and Donna Soldano in 1996 as a creative, design studio providing premier work service to the toy industry. In 2001, the company partnered with Adam Unger and the founders of Play Along Toys, Inc., to launch a successful boy’s action toy company that created products for major brands like Star Trek, Tony Hawk, Bruce Lee, Kiss and built the MiniMates toy brand that continues on to this day. In 2005, after Play Along’s successful sale to Jakks Pacific (JAKK) the company continued it’s progress and has moved on as a fully integrated toy manufacture. In 2006, Art Asylum will be launching with several new licenses including Speed Racer, Madballs from American Greetings, Battlestar Galactica, Clive Barker’s Jump Tribe and Advanced Play System’s Arc Tiles. Visit www.artasylum.com for more information. ArtFX -
Bandai Co., Ltd. is a Japanese toy making company. Founded in 1950, it is the world's third largest producer of toys. Since the 1980s, Bandai has become the leading toy company of Japan, and to this day, has the main toy licenses in Japan to popular properties including Godzilla, Ultraman, Kamen Rider, the Super Sentai Series (which they took part in creating), Gundam and many others.(Wikipedia)
Official Bandai Site
A leader in introducing Japanese trends to the United States, Bandai America Incorporated is a subsidiary of Bandai Co. Ltd., the third largest toy company in the world. With 30 subsidiaries in 13 countries worldwide, global interests include toys and children's entertainment, video game software, multimedia, music, full-length feature films, vending machines, trading cards and miniature collectible games, and candies. Bandai America is the master toy licensee of some of the most popular properties and brands in children's toys and entertainment, including Power Rangers, Teen Titans, Magical DoReMi and Tamagotchi. The company is headquartered in Cypress, California. Banpresto Beat (ビート) - Obscure Japanese toy manufacturer - primarily made cheap Ideon goods. Beat was likely a subsidiary of TOMY corporation. Blue Box Toys Bootleg, knockoff and unlicensed toys Bowen Designs (0) http://www.ccp.jp/ http://www.character-online.com/ Cool Rockets is a California bases company specializing in custom designed retro style science fiction rocket ships. DC Direct, DC Comics' toy and collectibles brand, manufactures and markets over 100 exclusive toy and collectible products each year targeted to pop culture enthusiasts. The toys and collectibles are highly regarded and sought after for their authenticity, quality and collector appeal. Action figures and statues form the core of the line and feature a wide array of the world's most famous super heroes including Batman, Superman and the Justice League as well as popular characters from Cartoon Network Originals. Korean Bootleg manufacturer Korean Bootleg manufacturer Subsidary of Mattel -
Gamma-Go (0) Gigabrain (0)  Hasbro (NYSE: HAS - News) is a worldwide leader in children's and family leisure time entertainment products and services, including the design, manufacture and marketing of games and toys ranging from traditional to high-tech. Both internationally and in the U.S., its PLAYSKOOL, TONKA, MILTON BRADLEY, PARKER BROTHERS, TIGER and WIZARDS OF THE COAST brands and products provide the highest quality and most recognizable play experiences in the world.
Hung Hing Toys (0) Korean Bootleg Manufacturer Candy Toy Maker Kaijuken (0) Korean Bootleg Maker Kenner Products was a toy company founded in 1947 by Albert, Phillip, and Joseph Steiner, in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, and was named after the street where the original corporate offices were located. Kenner introduced the Give-a-Show projector in 1959, the Easy-Bake Oven in 1963, and the Spirograph drawing toy in 1966. It was a pioneer in the use of television as a medium for advertising toys across the United States, beginning in 1958.
The company was purchased by General Mills in 1967.
In 1970, General Mills merged its Rainbow Crafts division into Kenner Products, bringing Play-Doh into the Kenner product line.
Kenner Products obtained the rights to produce action figures and playsets for the Star Wars trilogy from 1977-1984. After Kenner acquired the license to produce Star Wars toys when the Mego Corporation rejected it in 1976, Kenner popularized the 3.75 inch action figure that became an industry standard and continues to dominate the action figure toy market. They also produced toys related to the popular 70s TV series The Six Million Dollar Man.
One of Kenner's most highly acclaimed lines was the Super Powers Collection. These action figures were based on the famed superheroes of DC Comics. What made the line so successful was that the characters were modeled almost exactly from the style guide of the company; and also, each character performed some "action." For example, if you squeezed Superman's legs, he would throw a punch.
This set was produced from 1984 to 1986. In 1990, the company unleashed the Dark Knight Collection which was the first of their many lines based on the Batman character. This initial set was created to capitalize on the phenomenal success of the cinematic version of the character.
In 1985, General Mills spun off its Kenner and Parker toy divisions to form Kenner Parker Toys, Inc. Kenner Parker was acquired by Tonka in 1987. Under Tonka management, Kenner Products was reconstituted as a division.
Tonka (including Kenner) was purchased by the toy company Hasbro in mid-1991. Hasbro closed the Cincinnati offices of Kenner in 2000, and Kenner's product lines were merged into Hasbro's. (wikipedia) Unknown Manufacturer. LEGO Systems, Inc. is the North American division of The LEGO Group, a privately-held, family-owned company based in Billund, Denmark, one of the world's leading manufacturers of creatively educational play materials for children. The company is committed to the development of children's creative and imaginative abilities, and its employees are guided by the motto adopted in the 1930s by founder Ole Kirk Christiansen: "Only the best is good enough." Visit the virtual LEGO world at http://www.LEGO.com Locoape is a trademarked brand of Toynk Toys LLC. In January of 2006 Toynk expanded its operations by creating the Locoape brand to serve as its licensing and manufacturing arm. The world of popular culture toys and collectibles as well as that of trend fashion are major areas of focus. Additional business interests focus on the world of Halloween costumes, costume replicas and unique décor are managed under Toynk’s IncogNeato brand.
The creation, development, production and sale of high-quality products for widely sought entertainment properties and proprietary brands through a multi tiered brand structure are featured areas of emphasis. Toynk Toys LLC and its principles have built a reputation of strong vendor and licensor relationships, high ethical standards in manufacturing & service leadership. Quality and innovation of products and concepts old and new are our trademarks. Marushin (0) Originally a maker of Die Cast cars, Matcbox became the US distributor for some Voltron and Robotech toys Max Toy Company is Mark Nagata's company, named after his son Max. With a nod to the Golden Age of Japanese toys, Max Toy Co. will continue the tradition of offering classic Japanese character toys by all the best toy companies. Max Toy Co. will be producing it's own exclusive toys, both licensed and original. Visit Max Toy Company http://www.metal-box.jp/ Known mostly for making plastic cars, Spanish toy makers "Nacoral" also released at least 4 knock-off Jumbo Machinder toys, based on Mattel's line of Shogun Warriors. Their motto "Juguetes de calidad" means simply "Quality Toys". Namco (0) NHK (0) NHK Studios Japan Ningyoushi (0) A toy company from Argentina Organic Hobby is one of the largest Hobby and Toys makers/manufacturers in Japan and is also very popular for its specialty in "Anime & Manga" industry. Organic Hobby, Inc (U.S Office) is introducing these and other unique products based on J-POP culture to U.S. markets and customers. Orion (0) Korean Bootleg maker A division of Jakks Pacific Playmobil (pronounced "play-mo-beel") is a line of toys produced by the Brandstätter Group (geobra Brandstätter GmbH & Co KG), headquartered in Zirndorf, Germany.
New products and product lines developed by a 50-strong development team are frequently introduced by Brandstätter. Some of these, such as promotional products, are only produced in limited quantities. For example, Playmobil introduced limited edition sets with the logos of seven different airlines, sold only aboard flights and in duty-free shops. These practices have given rise to a sizable community of collectors. Collector activities extend beyond collecting and free-form play with Playmobil and include customization, miniature wargaming, and creation of photo stories and stop motion films. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playmobil)
Sub-company of Hasbro devoted to younger children. Poplar (0) Classic Japanese toy maker, creater of the "Chogokin" line of toys. Later folded into parent company Bandai. Red Magic is a company that specializes in Character Development.
Formerly TRIO INTERACTIVE and ITRANGERS LAB, Red Magic was established in Hong Kong in 2004. It combines creativity, design, production, retail and wholesale in one organization.
Its attitude is summed up in its motto – “Red Magic is Style”. We support all events that revolve around art direction and design, and persist in filling every facet of life with creativity. Sanzen (0) Established in 2002, this Hong Kong based toymaker specializes in 12" figures. They are best known for their Z.M.D.C. figures. Semi-Legitimate Korean Toy Maker Select (0) Seven (0) Shinsei (0) New York, Buffalo based Shocker Toys LLP, founded by Geoff Beckett in
1999 as a creative new product developer in the toy industry. This
company is transforming itself into a fully functioning new force in the
action figure business. The company’s current roster includes such lines
as GWAR, Shockinis, Indie Spotlight and their own new brands of
customizable toys. For more info visit: www.shockertoys.com
Since its inception in 1994, Sideshow Collectibles has been a specialty manufacturer of licensed and proprietary collectible products that reflect a passion toward creating unique, highly sought after figure collectibles, as well as film prop replicas and fine art collectibles. The Sideshow artisans are renowned sculptors, experienced model makers, painters and costumers, whose collaborative efforts result in intricately detailed likenesses of popular characters, including film and television monsters, villains, heroes and mystical creatures of fantasy, as well as legendary figures from history. Sideshow artisans have regularly distinguished themselves for their ability to achieve a level of authenticity seldom seen in the figure collectible arena. In 1999, Sideshow began marketing its own line of collectible and specialty products under the Sideshow brand, beginning with the Universal Classic Monsters 8" Action Figure license. Quickly recognized as a quality manufacturer, Sideshow products have been highlighted in national trade and specialty toy publications where their Action Figures, 12" Collectible Figures and polystone collectibles have been awarded 'Best of the Year' by various trade publications.
Sideshow is a current manufacturer of licensed collectible products based on the following properties: The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Marvel Comics, James Bond, Aliens, Predator, Star Trek, The Simpsons, Terminator 3, Scarface, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Universal Studios Classic Monsters, Monty Python's Holy Grail, Outer Limits, Get Smart, Hogan's Heroes, Platoon, Twilight Zone, Army of Darkness, Highlander and many others. In addition, Sideshow manufactures its own line of historically accurate 12" collectible figures under the brands: Bayonets & Barbed Wire (WWI), Brotherhood of Arms (American Civil War) and Six Gun Legends (western characters).
Sideshow manufactures products under several different brands: Sideshow Collectibles, Sideshow / Weta Collectibles and Sideshow / Morpheus Collectibles. Sideshow products are currently sold in specialty, trend, collectible and comic shops, as well as on the world wide web at www.sideshowcollectibles.com and www.sideshowfineart.com.
Sonokong is a Korean toy maker, who is the official manufacturer of Takara products in South Korea. All Sonoking Transformers, Brave series etc.. are officially licensed by Takara, and are often exact duplicates with identical quality. STIKFAS™ has come a long way. From a brief concept inside founder Ban Y J's sketch book, it is now the brand that has defined a new genre in toys with the concept of Action Figure Kits.
The debut of STIKFAS™ was through a successful co-branding in 2001 with the world's leading computer game publisher, Electronic Arts. This collaboration provided a proof of concept and Stikfas Pte. Ltd. was incorporated in August. Work begun on the first mass production model of the STIKFAS™ Action Figure Kit, which was made available to public through online sales at www.stikfas.com in December 2001.
From 2002 to 2004, STIKFAS™ was licensed to international toy giant Hasbro® Inc and this move saw a significant increase in its product range, distribution network as well as market recognition. During this period, STIKFAS™ has been the awarded the title of "Best Original Concept" in "Best of the Best 2002" by Wizard's Toyfare magazine, the industry's leading publication. That year, STIKFAS™ came in second for "Most Fun and
Innovative Toy" in a consumer's poll by Toyshop Magazine, a revoluntionary achievement for a simple plastic toy to earn its place in a category dominated by high tech electronic toy items.
STIKFAS™ debut in Japan in the fall of 2003 under the distribution of Tomy Direct Co., Ltd. In February 2005, the very first comprehensive fan book about STIKFAS™, its products and the people in the company, was published by Hobby Japan, the nation's leading hobby magazine since 1969. This publication reinforced the cult status that STIKFAS™ has in Japan.  Takara Co., Ltd. is a Japanese toy company founded in 1955. Takara merged with another prominent Japanese toy company, Tomy Co., Ltd., on March 1, 2006 with the new company making the unusual decision to adopt two different legal corporate names. In English the legal name of the company is simply TOMY Co. Ltd. while in Japanese the legal company name is the combined name, K.K. Takara-Tomy (株式会社タカラトミー ) TYO: 7867 .
Takara is perhaps best known as the company behind the transforming toys which became Transformers, after Hasbro proposed combining Takara's Diaclone and Micro Change toylines in 1984 to create the Transformers. Takara is also the originator of the hit toy lines Battle Beasts (BeastFormers in Japan), e-kara karaoke microphone, Battle B-Daman and Beyblade, all of which Hasbro also sold or distributed internationally. Takara continues to sell Microman, the basis for the hit toy line Micronauts, sold internationally by now defunct Mego beginning in the 70s and Choro-Q a mini pullback car, which has been running since 1978 and is marketed outside Japan as Penny Racer.
Both Takara and pre-merger Tomy have had strong relationships with Hasbro, which has distributed Takara's hit products such as Transformers, Beyblade, e-Kara and Battle B-Daman and Tomy's Zoids brands internationally. Although the merged company has stated that the Transformers business with Hasbro and the OEM business in general is not as profitable as direct distribution, the relationship with Hasbro on Transformers is low risk since Hasbro assumes the inventory risk internationally. This long-term relationship will certainly continue, as both Takara and Tomy have also long held the licenses to localize and distribute many Hasbro products in Japan, including The Game of Life, Blythe dolls, and Magic: The Gathering and Duel Masters trading card games by Takara and Monopoly, Furby, Super Soaker and Play-Doh by Tomy. Hasbro has also previously distributed Tomy's Pokemon toys in the US, though eventually started selling their own versions.(wikipedia)
This page will list both Takara toys and Hasbro toys that have been jointly produced by Takara.
Time House (0) Originally from Malaysia, Undoboy now resides in New York. After graduating with a BFA in Graphic Design from the Ringling School of Art and Design in 2005, he spent time as an interactive designer at Crispin Porter + Bogusky, before becoming an art director at JWT New York. 
Unifive was an independent toy company until it was bought by toy giant Bandai in 2001. It was run as a subsidary of Bandai-owned Banpresto until 2006. Unifive produced both high-end diecast toys and cheap trinkets like gashapon and trading figures. Korean Bootleg Manufacturer Unknown (0) Victora (ビクトラー) was a sub-company of the famous toy company Popy. Popy wanted to move into the cheap toy market, but they didn’t want to associate their brand name with crappy toys. Thus the sub company called Victora (or sometimes Victorer) was born.
Victora toys could mostly be found at train station kiosks, and near cash registers at stores. They were an affordable quick fix for kids, and for parents they wouldn’t break the bank. They were nothing compared to their parent company, Popy, but for what they are worth they are pretty cool.
Volks (0) Headquartered in Mullica Hill, New Jersey, Wilde Imagination develops and markets exquisite dolls and collectibles, including the new Evangeline Ghastly™ line, as well as the popular Ellowyne Wilde™ line of dolls, fashions, and accessories. -
 Yamato USA is the wholly owned subsidiary of Yamato Co., Ltd with headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. For over six years, Yamato USA has proudly served the North and South American hobby/collector markets with a wide offering of miniature collectible figures, PVC and die-cast action figures,
as well as poly-resin and PVC statues inspired by the hottest titles in Japanese anime, manga, and video game properties. Featured properties include Masamune Shirow's Koukaku-Kidoutai (a.k.a. Ghost in the Shell), Appleseed, and Intron Depot; Yasuhiro Nightow's Trigun, Nobuhiro Watsuki's Rurouni Kenshin (aka Samurai X), Kentaro Miura's Berserk, and Katsuhiro Otomo's Akira.
http://www.zaccapap.jp/
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