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Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 309What do you think being released nowadays will increase in value 600-700% in 20 years? Anything? With Transformers improving their engineering constantly, I can’t imagine any of the new Studio Series will. With Star Wars losing a ton of interest, I don’t think anything they put out in the mainline will ever increase that much again. Especially with offerings like we got in the latest Fanstream. Don’t get even me started on the new Thundercat MOTU crossovers. What about indy toy makers? Mythic Legions has some high-dollar pieces, but even with the fire Fresh Monkey Fiction is putting out, a...2025-02-022h 24Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 308Too busy motivating. I’ll catch you next time.2025-01-232h 05Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 307Here are some of my most anticipated toys from this show. Hopefully, I can take care of business to be able to afford them. First, Black Series Visions Ronin figures? Yes, please. As much as I really, really want Crystal Ball in Classified, it’s more because of the goofiness from a collector’s perspective. Nostalgically speaking, Law and Order is who I am really looking forward to. As one of the last “animal guys” I bought, he holds a special place in my heart. Again, a huge nostalgia-based want that is finally going to be satiated, Origins Rio Blast is comin...2025-01-052h 28Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast Commentary - He-Man and She-Ra: A Christmas SpecialWell, it's a wonderful time of the year, everyone has lots of fun. You mean they get in fights?2024-12-241h 36Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 306Talk about over-saturating the market. Transformers are coming fast and furious, but the Missing Links can’t come fast enough for me. New Classified is coming too fast in my opinion, but Slice and Dice are welcome additions. While traditional Origins has been relegated to Mattel Creations exclusives, they have found a new niche, concept figures. What’s the easiest way to tell we’re getting too much product? Four words, Shadows of the Empire.2024-12-102h 27Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 305The most whining this time around can be attributed to MEGA’s new G.I. Joe offering. While excellent in execution, the price is about twice what it should be. We whined for a couple of years about Transformers not making the Toy Hall of Fame. Our cries have been heard and silenced. I’m sure some Star Wars collectors will find some reason to whine about the Phase 1 Clone Trooper Super Battle Droid 2-pack, but to me, it’s perfect. People always whine about exclusives, but the only MOTU news this week is just that, and the character is ideal...2024-11-242h 26Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 304Cons had a big presence on our little show this week, including TFCon, MCM, 1027, and more. Mastermind Creation’s new Devastator won big against Hasbro’s. The biggest baddy for Joe has finally come to fruition. Star Wars had its own new big bad added to its Black Series line. Meanwhile, the only Masters news was there would be a con four months from now.2024-11-102h 49Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 303Hasbro represented at New York Comic Con. Well, kind of. I think Joe stole the show again with the absolutely amazing Snake Eyes and Polar Bear. The only real stand-out for Star Wars was the Revenge of the Sith carded Black Series Commander Cody. Transformers was pretty light too, but Mandalorian Crossover N-1 looked alright. Mattel was a no-show, so the only booth repping Masters was Mondo. Not a lot of surprises, but their Faker v2 looks nice.2024-10-283h 01Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 302I have to admit I totally forgot to post this episode. All of my reminders and tracking methods failed me. I didn’t even notice until I was adding the episode for tomorrow. Mrs. McFavorite and I have a big date night tonight, so I have to make this quick.2024-10-192h 10Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast Commentary - The Transformers: The MovieRoll out!2024-10-031h 36Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 301I’m really lucky the big four are pumping some great mass-release toys. I’ve been hot and cold on New Eternia, but loving the Roboto. I missed Cosmos the first time around. I will definitely enjoy opening him at a $25 price point instead of $70-80. Speaking of great, I am so happy to see Shadows of the Empire in the Black Series. We’ve talked about Dial Tone a couple of times now, but the Classified team did not disappoint.2024-09-263h 12Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 300Something that’s definitely manageable for collectors are kid’s meal toys. Looks like Transformers One is not going to disappoint. Classified continues to manage their assets correctly, including the amazing job done on this Dial Tone backpack. The least manageable scale, in my opinion, is 12 inches. But the Jumbo 14.5-inch IG-11 is pretty dope. Since there was no MOTU toy news, we’ll have to settle for the announcement of Camila Mendes as Teela. Let’s hope that Amazon manages to finally get this project out the door.2024-08-302h 16Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 299We had a few instances of this over the last couple of weeks. The Once a Man SDCC Cobra Commander sold out way too fast, twice. Mattel’s new Snake Lair looks like it might be going back to the drawing board. When will these companies learn that we don’t all want $500 toys? The Four Horsemen put out one of their lowest-priced Mythic Legions figures to date, which also turned out to be one of their most popular figures, selling out much faster than most anticipated. The Origins concept figures Lord Gr’Asp and Terroar found a new home at BBT...2024-08-152h 35Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast Commentary - G.I. Joe: The MovieNow I know, and knowing is half the battle. G.I. Joe!2024-08-081h 50Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 298Since I’m behind on getting these posted, I’m going to skip the insight into my life. That’s usually the first paragraph of each post. However, I will say what my favorite things were from each franchise. While the Rattler is amazing and already backed, my favorite Joe item is a Transformer. I’m very excited to see the crossover line continue with Kup as the Triple T with Slaughter and Leatherneck. For Transformers, Hasbro finally came up with a good reason to combine Dinobots. The Dinoking box set looks like it will be a lot of fun. I missed...2024-08-083h 19Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 297It’s going to be one of those weeks. So, I’m going to bow out of writing this time around. We have tested our technology for doing the G.I. Joe: The Movie commentary, and we’re going to do it live. Listen to our next show for details.2024-07-222h 54Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 296Indie companies have been flexing their expertise as of late. No longer relegated to just making 3rd party add-ons, these companies are now direct competitors to the big boys. Ramen’s new modular tank is simply amazing. Longtime Transformers 3rd party company Fans Hobby comes in swinging with a new Sky Hawkesque vehicle. Companies are even picking up new licenses like C.O.P.S. n’ Crooks. Some of the best stuff is comimg from forgotten trademarks that have been reimagined.2024-07-093h 00Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 295It was pretty easy to pick the four biggest news stories for each franchise this week. These aren’t always the best or my favorites, but most of the time, they are. The HasLab Cantina is amazing, but is it what people really want? It will probably fund, but definitely not with any unlocked tiers. Classified collectors have spoken, and they want vehicles. I know I really want the Cobra Stinger. However, how many can you have at this scale? Here’s one primarily for me. At the opposite end of the scale, I’m loving these Transformers Blokee deskbots. Lastly...2024-06-222h 03Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 294I think toy companies are doing a pretty good job of learning from their past. There are always exceptions, but overall, I feel they’re heading in the right direction. Star Wars has been doing a good job rereleasing in-demand figures. Since Toys are now being collected primarily by adults, nostalgia reigns supreme. Toy companies keep pumping out updated engineering on toys we loved, like Origins Nightstalker and Missing Link Bumblebee and Cliffjumper. Hasbro, in particular, has discovered by just changing the scale you can get everyone to buy figures like the Cobra Trooper again.2024-06-111h 47Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 293It seems impossible. It never is.2024-05-312h 43Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 292I think toy companies need a little humility. Not so much because they’re not making amazing things, more so because they’re making too much amazing stuff. Robosen has taken the world by storm. Their newest, Megatron, looks amazing, but who is collecting these things? Star Wars is getting a little more exciting as of late, but that might be because I love the Retro and Micro Galaxy Squadron lines. I think I’ve mentioned new MOTU x TMNT in every post in the last 6 months. Finally, Classified just keeps chugging along.2024-05-132h 25Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 291I’m not really feeling writing right now, but I’ll be back. You keep doing you.2024-04-281h 59Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 290The big four have set some pretty high expectations in the last couple of weeks. The Masters fall products look amazing. The Masterpiece Powermaster Optimus Prime looks great, but if Takara Tomy has done anything, it has set the expectation it will be pricey. I’ve got high expectations for the new Jazwares Vault regarding Micro Galaxy Squadron. Its first release is beautiful. My favorite expectation Hasbro set was the Name-Only reveal of Once a Man Cobra Commander.2024-04-122h 53Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 289It was a great couple of weeks of announcements and streams. The Transformer’s team showed off a bunch of stuff we already knew about, but seeing the new Cybertronian Wheeljack was amazing. The Master’s team showed off an impressive New Eternia Horde Trooper. Star Wars came in strong with their Imperial March. Probably my favorite thing was finally getting Captain Enoch and his Night Troopers. While there were no official reveals for Joe, Lenny and Emily still name-dropped one of my favorite Joe for the Classified line. None other than the Barbecue, uh, I mean, Blowtorch.2024-04-033h 04Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 288Let’s get this paddy started!2024-03-172h 54Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 287Let’s look at pre-orders this time around. I would definitely wait on the new TVC Clone Wars 4-Pack to save some money. I don’t think any of these Amazon multipacks have ever sold out before hitting ridiculously low prices. So glad I don’t do 1:6th scale. I’m not sure I could JOMO this amazing FigZero Snake Eyes. Something I probably would have FOMOed if I hadn’t missed it was the Target Exclusive Sla’ker. It combines two of my favorite characters in perfect harmony. I have allowed myself to pre-order all the Dr. Wu micromaster-scale G1 bots. I d...2024-03-033h 02Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 286If you don't know I write a post for each episode, but only copy the second paragraph here. You should read the whole post. Here's the second paragraph for this episode... No funny or clever tie-ins to collecting this time; besides maybe, there's always a lesson to learn. Have you learned your lesson? Do you have a lesson to teach others? Don't hold back. Instill your knowledge of history in the younger generation. Do whatever you can to make sure history does not repeat itself.2024-02-172h 38Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast Commentary - Batman (1989)Na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na2024-02-142h 17Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 285Toys continue to just get better and better. Man, have you seen the Classified Vamp in hand? What about the new Black Series Droideka/Destroyer Droid? Hoowee! Never thought I would say hoowee for an Orko, but Mondo’s has earned a hoowee! And one for my boy, Mr. Mark Haddock, this Legacy Gears. Hoowee!2024-02-042h 12Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 284I love supporting Kickstarters because they are really a day-at-a-time kind of thing. The latest Roboskull update shows how amazing this thing is going to be. Hasbro keeps finding a way to get more money from their molds while enticing us with one new thing. I’m still excited about their possible new Transformers Selects multi-pack. When there’s no great toy news, I’ll take some media news any day. The latest Masters of Universe Revolution trailer is great, especially its background music. And, while it is probably late to take advantage of the original fan fair, I still welcom...2024-01-192h 28Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 283I’ve talked about change, motivation, and getting things done too much. It’s time to put up or shut up.2024-01-062h 44Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 282Toys are getting a little messy. You have what seem to be hits like the MOTU x TMNT Crossover that keep gaining steam. But then you have what we feel are flops like the Hiya Joe line and their new Gung Ho. Some are inadvertently messy, like making a 5 PoA line out of figures that were originally 5 PoA. I’m looking at you Phantom Menace Retro Collection. Some have got to know, right? Unfortunately, not the Transformers team. Or, maybe they do?2023-12-263h 09Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 281Something equally well-received as the HISS is the latest Figura Obscura from the 4Horsemen. Received not nearly as well, but still generating some excitement are the new O-ring Joes from Super7. I’m not sure Joe collectors will be so happy when they are $20+. Something that really impressed the crew this week was an intensely beautiful, or ugly, depending on your view, Threezero’s MDLX G2 Megatron. Not sure if it’s the piece or it’s ridiculous edition size of 50 worldwide. Something that obviously didn’t get a great reception was Hasbro’s Selfie Series; may it rest in peace.2023-12-122h 19Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 280No clever segue way this week, just the coolest stuff. The MOTU x TMNT crossovers have got us all excited. The revelation of the new Triple T in the Joe x TF crossover line sounds promising. Think Classified is killing it? The leaked listings prove that they are. While none of us collect Hot Toys, the new Ahsoka is yet another thing of beauty.2023-11-292h 38Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 279Can you feel the frustration with collectors nowadays? It’s either pricing, availability, or too much product. Almost everyone I know is cutting back or quitting altogether. It’s not stopping these companies. We still haven’t got our first big Classified vehicle. We just got done funding our second big vehicle, now we have a third coming our way. Transformers continues with a bevy of new exclusives. Same with Star Wars, but I ain’t mad at this EU Black Series multi-pack. While, still available, and relatively reasonable, it’s gotta be the price on some of these Power-Con exclusives...2023-11-132h 16Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 278I meant to save a bunch of time and do a really well-thought-out reflection of our 15th Anniversary show. Well, you see how well that worked out.2023-11-043h 00Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast Discussion - 15th anniversary(mic drop)2023-10-153h 21Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 277Hasbro Pulse Con was kind of meh this year, but it’ll be an easy field to pick my favorites from, so here we go. Believe it or not, I think the weird rock truck was my favorite Transformer reveal. I still have no intention of picking it up. I’m a sucker for the Old Republic, so the TVC HK-47 and Jedi Revan 2-Pack was easily my favorite Star Wars reveal. I think Joe continues to kill it. It seems so much so, people are getting burned out on the whole line. I’ve always been a huge Big Boa fa...2023-10-042h 29Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 276All of my favorites from this show you can put off. None of them are really required for any sort of collection. As much as I love Lady Slither and her articulated tail, do we really need her? I almost wish I had collected the Holiday Black Series figures from the beginning, especially because the latest batch is just killing it on a bunch of different levels. Another Transformers crossover to take or leave popped up as well. It looks great, but do you really need it? I don’t think anyone needs G.I. Joe ReAction figures, but the Su...2023-09-162h 12Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 275Why is it that I am constantly laboring on Labor Day? We just spent 3 hours doing yard work. That was after camping for the second time in so many weeks. Setting up and tearing down camp is always crazy laborious. The one thing I can skip is writing about it. Now you don't have to read it, win-win.2023-09-042h 45Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 274The way people collect can be equally as diverse as the way people choose to camp. And just as with camping, there’s no really right or wrong way to do it. I think this year’s Power-Con demonstrated this. The big two, Hasbro and Mattel, were nowhere to be found, but in their place was an amazingly diverse group of indy toy makers. The Four Horsemen had an extremely impressive setup highlighted by their amazing life-size Ogre. Fresh Monkey Fiction showed off some great new entries to the BBTS-sponsored Monster Force line. Mondo continued their stellar reputation with a floc...2023-08-162h 06Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 273With so many amazing reveals, this quick list shouldn’t be too hard. For Star Wars, the second wave of ROTJ figures is simply amazing. I think most Joe people would say the Vamp stole the show, but for my money, I’m all about the Pulse Con Exclusive Crimson Strike 3-Pack. I don’t think I’m in the minority when saying the new Studio Series Ultra Magnus is pretty damn impressive. Finally, while I’m really sad to see MOTU Origins become an exclusive line, the new animated line looks amazing.2023-07-313h 11Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 272No time for the usual. SDCC is on fire and we’re going to do an impromptu show tomorrow to yak about it.2023-07-223h 09Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 271I don’t even know how to start this post. Unfortunately, we are dealing with the loss of our amazing Ruthie Goosie. She has been the backbone of our family for over 15 years. Through everything we have gone through, she has always been there for all of us. Especially as we are still experiencing some ups and downs, her presence is missed so much. It’s not even the big things, it’s the smallest of things. Things like not having to rearrange pillows on the couch so she can have a couple of places to choose from or having her ho...2023-07-123h 09Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 270Sound quality and host quality aside, at least the content was amazing. We talk about the launch of the new HasLab Classified Dragonfly. Mondo absolutely killed it with their V2 Skeletor. The new TBS Endor Rebel Trooper is perfection. But, why so pricey, especially for an army builder? Probably worst kept spoiler in recent times gives all of us Transformers fans a glimmer of hope of something we’ve always wanted.2023-06-232h 52Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 269I feel great about all the new Joes we’re seeing, but that’s because I’m a sub-team whore. I know everyone is loving Classified, but is that because they also love these sub-teams or are they just caught up in the hype? Those with a Sail Barge should be super-happy with the new Droid Factory R2-S4M. I love that we’re getting a new screen-based character from ROTJ. While it makes me happy to see any brand I love utilizing graffiti, not quite sure the Amazon Battle in Brooklyn makes me as happy as it should. The perf...2023-06-102h 52Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 268Toy life is heating up. Transformers made some interesting announcements at their recent livestream. Loving the deep-dive on the Evolution line. Scrap-Iron is hot, but is he over-hyped? I’m really cold on the Masterverse Whiplash, but some may dig it. Some may be cold on the politics, but I’m absolutely loving the Pride mechs.2023-05-261h 46Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 267It was one of those weeks. A lot of bad habits and not nearly enough good. I’m going to keep this short so I can get onto my good habits. However, I want to check in with everybody. Are your good habits winning? Are the bad habits creeping in? Either way, just keep on truckin’ and remember shit happens when you party naked.2023-05-163h 08Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 266I think the Joe franchise survival instinct is kicking in with them trying to secure Michael Keaton for yet another reboot of the Joe cinematic universe. The Transformers team instinct is hopefully going to kick in when it comes to the Deathsaurus package artwork. Star Wars is doing pretty well with their Mando Mania, but I’m concerned that they’re doing too many of the same characters. Masters just continues to kill it. Even its partners are turning out gold.2023-04-302h 37Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 265No time to talk, we have a very special guest star making an appearance at Casa de McFavorite.2023-04-182h 53Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 264Nothing too exciting for Joe besides some new listings. We’re getting the inevitable repaint of the Volvo Prime. I really dig it but had no idea this thing was so small. While not crazy about the uncanny valley Luke in The Mandalorian, all the new Luke toys are very welcomed, including the new Training Luke. Saving the best for last was all of the MOTU Reveals. I mean, come on.2023-04-022h 57Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 263All these companies have to do is what they’re doing. They are killing it, but is it too much? How many Classified Joes did you pre-order in the last couple of weeks? How about 3rd party Transformers? Maybe a couple of new Origins figures? FOMO finally got to me and I had to grab the new mini Lego Super Star Destroyer.2023-03-183h 22Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 262Amazing toys that I don’t want also feel good. Kind of like this Mondo Trap Jaw. Or, the possibly leaked Mandalorian Starfighter. While I love the tractor for the Armada Prime, I definitely do not need it. A Classified Dragon Fly probably would have been needed, but we’ll never know.2023-02-282h 31Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 261Joe absolutely killed it this time around. While Snow Job is one of my favorite characters of all-time and they did justice to him, the Classified Scrap Iron is a thing of beauty. There were some great reveals at the latest Star Wars Livestream, but I think I gotta give it to the Revenge of Jedi Darth Vader. I’m glad to see the masses will be getting access to an amazing Snake Horde Trooper. However, nothing can touch the Cybertronian Jazz I have been waiting almost 4 decades for.2023-02-203h 15Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 260Shopping is one thing I haven’t been doing. However, I have been adding things to my JOMO (Joy Of Missing Out) list like crazy. Including a bunch of canceled pre-orders, I have over 60 toys on there right now. We’ll see if I still want them in a year. Some things I can’t wait to get to buy from this show are as follows. What looks to be a Target Collectors’ Con exclusive, the Python Patrol Crimson Guard is beautiful. I can’t believe I have to wait a year to play with the new Legacy Tarn. I guess I’ll...2023-01-312h 54Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 259Here are my most important reveals from this show. For Transformers, the Furai Soundwave. While I cherry-pick ReAction, who doesn’t want Duke with a lightsaber or Snake Eyes with a trident? No Star Wars toy news this time, but I’m loving these Bad batch posters. Finally, Frog Monger sparked our JOMO (Joy of Missing Out) conversation. That still didn’t keep me from ordering three.2023-01-162h 13Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 258No time for diatribes today.2023-01-023h 04Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 257Depending on how you view it, collectors should be feeling like they’re on top of the world. Have you seen the Classified Checklist? Did you see that over 15,000 people want an obscure Japanese cartoon character? Who wants tiny little stuff like 1:100 scale Star Wars brought back from the ’90s? I do! I can’t even keep up with all of the new Origins and Masterverse, but that’s just Two Bad.2022-12-182h 57Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 256A lot of people aren’t the biggest fans of these carded Black Series figures. But, I love them, including the next wave of ROTJ figs. At least they give people another chance at some figures they may have missed. If you were like me, you missed the Origins Camo Khan. Let’s hope we get another shot and that great international variant. People had plenty of chances to vote for the Cobra Tacticition. I voted like 5 times. Glad to see my choice won. Finally, we didn’t think it would happen, but the Death(a)saurus killed it. Not only p...2022-12-042h 18Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 255We once again had some amazing stuff. However, not too much for the big four. Probably the most exciting was from Mondo. Their Panthro, uh, I mean Panthor is amazing. Also, listen just for our discussion on their Anti-Eternia He-Man. It’s a classic. Less amazing, but something I am really digging right now is the vintage carded Black Series figures. Gamorrean Guards are a focus 🙂 While most people probably don’t share my excitement for the relatively coming soon now Transformers movie, I look forward to seeing monstrosities like this Rise of the Beasts Standalone standee. In no news ain’t n...2022-11-212h 55Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 254I don’t think Mondo has faced much rejection in it’s storied history. Everything they do from posters, to wax, to what is possibly the best Battle Cat ever made seems to sell out. Well, except for their puzzles and tikis. Beyond product drops, I think the most immediate response you can garner is after a con. While at the con, people are all excited, but let the dust settle and you get some real reactions. Even after a second look, Star Wars killed it at MCM. While the announcements were light for Joe, Femtroopers and Shadow Tracker were crow...2022-11-072h 09Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 253It’s been a helluva 2 weeks.2022-10-242h 56Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 252Instead of my four favorite things from the show, I’m going to speculate on what will be worth the most money in 5 years. If it makes it all the way, the 31-inch Agora Model Prime is going to be worth a ton. However, it’s going to cost a ton too. Maybe we should be looking at increase in value. Since I wholeheartedly believe Pops won’t be worth much in the coming years, the Gamestop Exclusive G.I. Joe box will most likely lose the most value. I don’t have a lot of experience with multi-language packaging like Big...2022-09-263h 02Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 251Luckily with toys, we primarily worry about fan service. Man, this time around I think we got some great service. The G1 Jetfire Deco Valkyrie from Kitz Concept is amazing, if not pricey. Any toy based on McQuarrie concepts is going to be a favorite with me. Same thing with MOTU mini-comic homages, especially those of one of my favorite characters. I can’t think of better fan service than farming out your license so fans get even more product. Are you in on the HIYA Exquisite Mini Joes?2022-09-123h 07Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 250How could I cut a whole line when they keep rockin’ stuff like we saw this week? Upon further review, there really wasn’t anything that amazing this time. And yet we still managed to talk for over 2 hours. Maybe it was because we had the triumphant return, for at least one episode, of past host and resident curmudgeon, the one and only, Lotus Stark. It was so great to have him back on. It truly felt like a full house.2022-08-292h 17Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 249While not necessarily retro, with a trip to the happiest place on earth on the books, the new 4-pack DroidFactory exclusive has 3 of my favorite Halloween-themed droids. And if Halloween isn’t nostalgic for you, I think you did it wrong. Think they’re not targeting us, the Classified Checklist from the last 3 years says differently. I always preferred some articulation in my retro, but the MOTU Little People are still killing it. Lastly, Micro Machines are back and now finally in G1-style with a Prime Playset.2022-08-153h 01Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 248Pretty easy picks this year for top reveals. I always love me an origins story. Gotta get another Pax, but a good Alpha has been a long time coming. I think it’s safe to say Classified Serpentor stole the show. Well, maybe not if you’re a MOTU fan. That Eternia, am I right? Star Wars was a little lack-luster, but I’ll take another Credit Collection wave.2022-08-012h 07Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 247Glad I don’t want to order too many of Super7’s Joe exclusives, but their ReAction set with Snake Eyes and Shipwreck in Cobra disguise and Cobra bot is amazing. Much less amazing was the TFCon 3rd Party Panel. I was all excited because I thought a Planet-X Snarl was something I needed, turns out it was Fansproject I’m missing. The MEGA Snake Mountain is a hot item, but I’m glad I waited on it. While Star Wars had a lot of great reveals, none were more exciting than me as a Black Series Stormtrooper.2022-07-183h 11Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 246These toy companies have been busy to varying degrees of success. The HasLab HISS killed it! Now bring on more stretch goals. I cannot wait to see the new Star Wars Micro Galaxy in stores. Especially the Troop Transport. However, the “new” Transformers Crossovers have a lot to be desired. Mattel tried to pull a fast one by putting the new Mega Construx or now just MEGA Snake Mountain on Mattel Creations. Not only is the going to be a mass release, but the Creations orders are still just pre-orders.2022-07-043h 03Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 245I have been so lazy the last few days. Not really feeling doing the whole writing thing. I need to catch up on real life.2022-06-202h 16Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 244I am still a sucker for repaints, but I have grown to really love drastically different designs of a character. No longer does a chromed Stormtrooper matter, but a concept design-based reimaging of characters like the Black Series Concept Obi and Vader, a yes, please. No thank you to black Primes, but hell yes to a minor retool to homage a vintage character like Ransack. Even new characters like Kol Darr, do not hold as much sway compared to getting 200x designs in Origins. So maybe it is more connection and its derivatives more than anything. Not worried about the...2022-06-063h 08Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 243In hindsight, what is truly amazing about the toys we talk about? Considering we talk about franchises that have lasted over 40 years, it could be said almost anything. However, we sure have a lot to bitch about, and for good reason. These should be better. So instead of featuring my favorite things from this show, let’s talk about the worst things from this show. The new “no plastic” packaging is the death of carded figure collecting. Ducks? We don’t need no stinkin’ ducks, especially Transformers ducks. I love plastic model kits and a $100 6-inch scale vehicle sounds amazing. That is un...2022-05-232h 58Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 242Lately, I’ve found myself supporting things I would not have in the past. As companies finally figure out that we will shoulder more cost we’re getting larger, more exclusive, and deeper cuts. Not to mention the proliferation of 3rd party non-Transformers projects. If you’re not careful you can “support” yourself into a corner. What about a third 3rd party Bantha? Or, a four-foot Metroplex? The latest Kickstarter ninjas could definitely use your support. Lastly, Hiya has my support for their 7″ Godzillas.2022-05-092h 58Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 241Third-Party definitely influenced Hasbro with those ankle rockers. During these Transformers Fan First events, they are constantly touting those things. What happens when a 3.75 vintage line influences a vintage-style 3.75 line? A whole lot of people that do not care about the new wave G.I. Joe ReAction figures. With the new Silverhawks Ultimates getting more obscure, they’re starting to lose a little luster. Finally, I try multiple times during the show to get people to buy discounted Star Wars Legos.2022-04-252h 25Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 240I think people were happy, for the most part, with the Fan First Star Wars event. Especially us, who love the EU and Disney’s new version of it. Something, that now in hindsight, might receive a little criticism is the Commander Class Motormaster that was leaked. Two things that received overwhelming praise and minimal feedback are Classified Dr. Mindbender and Mega Contrux Zombie He-Man. I think the only criticism we received live, was from opener-extraordinaire, AAA. He complained there was too much packaging. That was quickly categorized as opinion.2022-04-113h 06Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 239I’ll tell you what will always put a smile on my face, the Horde. That’s what made the new MOTU reveals so exciting. I’m not a Bot Bot guy, but an Autobot symbol and a cat lady? Yes please. The new GameStop exclusive Republic Commando Fixer is truly a Gaming Great. See what I did there. The thing I think that made me the happiest, another wave of Joe Ultimates. While pricey, these things really make me smile.2022-03-282h 53Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast Discussion - ValueWhat started off as a discussion on the soaring prices of toys turned out to be more of a referendum on value. What value to find in your toys? Are they investments, just for fun? Are you like me, it’s a hobby and I love them. If I or my family get some money for them in the future, great. Cliff drops his thoughts on why he canceled tons of his pre-orders. In the end, I frantically try to show what things cost ten years ago. Then I go on to demonstrate what a bad manager of money I am2022-03-211h 55Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 238Really not feeling writing right now and this is something on my to-do list. Going to keep it simple. Peace.2022-03-142h 56Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 237That Joe 40th stream was amazing. Especially the digital reveals. The Insectitrain is one of my favorite Transformers concepts ever and we might get it in legends-scale. If you’re a fan of reissues, you can now get some minty assassins. The Saurozoic Warriors aren’t Masters, but I love them like they are.2022-02-282h 49Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 236As it should be, the Fan First days continue to be the highlight of toy reveals nowadays. These replacements for Toy Fair and SDCC continue to produce at least one or two gems each time. For Transformers we got our first official looks at Leader Sludge and a new Junkion. For Star Wars, the Nightbrother was dope, but what was really interesting was their “Pipeline” reveals. With so much Twilek love in Book of Boba, I’m glad to see Aayla Secura finally coming to the Black Series. The big news Joe-wise was the tease of Hiya securing a license to mak...2022-02-143h 07Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 235The Joe Fan First thing was pretty great. Lotsa repacks, but hey at least they’re “vintage packaging” 🙁 Since there is hardly any MOTU news nowadays, let’s go with these amazing Thundercat villain statues. Always advocating for MFT, I’m loving their Trailbreaker. Then to end on a down note, we’re in for another round of price increases. Star Wars is taking full advantage of this in the form of hundreds of Mandalorians.2022-01-313h 02Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 234After our shortest show in years follows one of the longest. For good reason. We cover the new 1099 rule that has gone into effect starting at the beginning of this year. Any Goods and Services transactions on payment platforms (PayPal, Venmo, etc.) totaling more than $600 will be reported to the IRS and you will have to claim it as income. Since almost all the major marketplaces (eBay, Mercari, etc.) use these platforms, the profitability of toy selling is going to take a nosedive. For the casual collector, this might be a good thing. It will hopefully mean less scalping. The...2022-01-103h 05Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 200It was 12 years and one day ago that Mrs. McFavorite and I announced we would start a podcast. 2 months later Open Your Toys Cast was born. I meant to have this out yesterday so I could say “12 years on this day”, but as the title implies, time certainly moves faster than we could ever imagine. I’m actually sneaking this post in on Mrs. McFavorite’s birthday. It was just under 20 years ago that she and I met. In just a few short months after that, we would never be away from each other for more than a few days. Another...2020-08-033h 15Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 189If there are two words Mrs. McFavorite hates to hear it's I'm sick. It basically means I'm going to be a whiney bitch for 3-5 days. Since this is like 5 days late, no introspective prose, no favorite news items from each franchise, just episode 189.2020-05-151h 49Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 169I never thought this day would happen. Of all the hosts we have had over the last 11 years. There have been many occasions where I was not able to record. I have always offered co-hosts the opportunity to run their own show. This even includes Mrs. McFavorite a couple of times. I thought what would be better than the wifey just going off on my collecting. Still no takers, until now! That’s right folks. After 11 years and 168 episodes, it’s the first one sans Slick. Do you know what that means? I finally get to listen to an episode of O...2019-08-121h 18Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 159I’m not going to write about my top news from each brand like I usually do. If you haven’t ever noticed, as Lil Ms. McFavorite likes to say, it’s a pattern. I’d rather end this with a plea. Quit being so oblivious. Pay close attention to the world around you and how you affect it, especially your loved ones.2019-03-072h 20Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 151Can you believe it? No, really, can you believe it? I can’t. Mrs. McFavorite and I started this after being married just under two years. We have since celebrated our 10th anniversary, had a beautiful daughter, seen her take her first steps, speak her first words, and now she’s in 1st grade. I had just started my last position as employee 13 and saw the company grow to 130. I went from the only designer to leading a team of 6 designers. Mrs. McFavorite has worked for two of the largest financial institutions in the world. My collection has grown from a fe...2018-10-233h 13Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 133You know what I love? That we are getting more Mega Construx Masters guys. I really enjoyed the He-Man and Skeletor courtesy of AliasAngelAlias and Lil’ Miss McFavorite. I also dig the Megatron Rules option on the upcoming G2 Megs. Not quite sure how I feel about a female Snake Eyes, but I do love that her premiere issue sold out. Something I have no doubt about loving is this ridiculously limited Echo Base collection from Columbia. The Han Paraka might be my favorite jacket ever.2017-12-262h 05Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 101StarFest has an incredibly rich history, a true family feel and it doesn’t hurt that it’s the first show of con season. This year was no different. The one thing that was different was the location. We really wanted to love it, but it just didn’t have that same je ne sais quoi. While it did take away from the magic just a little, not as much as I thought it would. I still very much enjoyed traditions like star-studded panels, pictures with cosplayers and of course the dealer room. Due to Mrs. McFavorite only being able to joi...2016-05-021h 49Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 090Mrs. McFavorite wanted to bring the cast back and I thought there would be no better time than one of the two largest yearly milestones for news in our community. That's right, they're doing that again. While this year was a little lackluster, there were still some amazing reveals across the board. First Matty revealed Rio Blast. Being from New Mexico, cowboy themed toys always have held a special place for me, especially ones armed to the teeth. Something a lot of people had doubts about was Joe, but as promised at SDCC, Hasbro came with the goods for the 50...2014-03-032h 22Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 084So what got us excited before what was one of the best Toy Fairs to date? The biggest news in years was the announcement of the Gentle Giant sculpted Star Wars Black Series 6 inch line. This has got me incredibly excited. Robot Kingdom once again teased us with a preorder outta left field for the Transformers brand. While not necessarily a preorder, a major retailer's computer system revealed yet another amazing item, this time for the G.I. Joe franchise. While not necessarily action figure related, Masters of the Universe had some great new items as well and it's finally...2013-02-192h 27Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 067While this is the Super Bowl weekend of toy news, we recap everything leading up to this weekend of weekends. We kick around the leaks from UK Toy Fair, Transformers Prime releases and G.I. Joe Retaliation toys. There are some great preorders if you like the small stuff. Robert Atkins put on one hell of a custom contest. After almost a year of the Hot Rod/Rodimus Prime retrospective, we're finally reviewing Fansproject TFX-04 Protector Armor. And if you think that was a lot of reviews, I still have two more we could have done, but Mrs. McFavorite would...2012-02-112h 16Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 050Have you ever looked into someone’s window and thought about what their life might be like? Well for this episode we let you peer into our window. In other words we indulge our egos and talk about ourselves the entire time. Have you ever wondered how Mrs. McFavorite and I got into collecting? Or maybe how we even met? If not, then go ahead and tune in next week when we’ll return with all the latest and greatest toy news. However, this episode will serve as a primer for any new listeners and hopefully as a means to let...2011-03-172h 04Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 027In the spirit of Thanksgiving we not only have guests on the show, but we have family. Mrs. McFavorite's parents join us for our discussion of the "big deals" happening during Black Friday 2009. Even with the lack of great deals and any other segments, we still come in at over an hour. Needless to say we had a few drinks in us which always helps with rants and tangents. If you prefer to just know the deals, check out our 100% ramble free show notes.2009-11-271h 08Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 018BOTCON says it all, literally. This entire episode is dedicated to our trip to Botcon 2009 in Pasadena, California. This was my second year and as you know, Mrs. McFavorite was a Botcon virgin. Would she enjoy herself? Would she wanna hurt herself? Would she wanna hurt me?2009-06-122h 15Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 015Botcon can’t seem to get here fast enough and Mrs. McFavorite finally has something to really look forward to. Biggest news, ROTF figures are hitting shelves, least surprising, it’s before the mandatory street date. Also, lots of pics of new Star Wars in package. And, are we already seeing repaints of ROC figures that have yet to come out. Thanks to Heath and Sabertron for your continued support. Finally, is Mrs. McFavorite more excited about the Rise of Cobra trailer than me? Really? Really?2009-05-072h 11Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 012Meanwhile, back at the Hall of McFavorite, we yap about the last Botcon ThunderClash, SW questions and answers, even more Animated, and is that ROC: Cobra Commander? Really? Really? The Masters of the Universe Classics are flying off the virtual pegs. Lastly I actually physically drool over another man's junk. That's right, I'm comfortable with toyuality.2009-04-021h 54Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 003This week we talk about MOTU Faker, the original repaint, complain about ROTF Devastator, and in general get drunk. Mrs. McFavorite gets some schooling. Clone Wars, The Motion Picture brings out the sales. Are we really that drunk at the end of cast? Listen for yourself.2008-11-141h 32Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 001Welcome to the first official episode of Open Your Toys Cast. Please visit this podcast at https://OpenYourToys.com.2008-10-211h 33Open Your Toys CastOpen Your Toys Cast - 000Welcome to the pilot episode of Open Your Toys Cast. Please visit this podcast at https://OpenYourToys.com.2008-10-071h 46