An action figure is a poseable character model figure made most commonly of plastic, and often based upon characters from a film, comic book, military, video game or television program; fictional or historical. These figures are usually marketed toward boys and adult collectors. The term was coined by Hasbro in 1964 to market G.I. Joe to boys.
A model figure is a scale model representing a human, monster or other creature. Human figures may be either a generic figure of a type, a historical personage, or a fictional character.
The Modern Age of Comic Books is a period in the history of American superhero comic books which began in the mid-1980s and continues through the present day. During approximately the first 15 years of this period, many comic book characters were redesigned, creators gained prominence in the industry, independent comics flourished, and larger publishing houses became more commercialized.
Gunbuster, known in Japan as Top o Nerae!, is a Japanese OVA anime series produced by Bandai Visual, Victor, and Gainax and released from 1988 to 1989. It was the directorial debut of Hideaki Anno, best known as the creator and director of Neon Genesis Evangelion. The title is a combination of the titles of classic tennis manga and anime Aim for the Ace! and hit action drama film Top Gun, whose plot inspired Gunbuster's. To celebrate Gainax's 20th anniversary in 2004, a sequel to Gunbuster, Diebuster, was released as an OVA. The sequel features new characters and mecha, but retains the format and many of the concepts of the original series.
McFarlane Toys is an American company founded by comic book creator Todd McFarlane which makes highly detailed model action figures of characters from films, comics, popular music, video games and various sporting genres. The company, a subsidiary of Todd McFarlane Productions, Inc., is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.
The Super Powers Collection was a line of action figures based on DC Comics superheroes and supervillains that was created by Kenner Products in the 1980s.
Batman action figures have been produced since the 1940s. These action figures, inspired by the character's appearance in comics and serials, were created by DC Comics and manufactured by various toy companies. These figures were made of various materials such as wood, tin, and plastic. They were typically between 6 and 8 inches in height and featured movable joints that allowed them to be posed in various positions.
Mezco Toyz is an American company that makes action figures and other collectibles based on original and licensed properties. One of the popular products is the cult hit toy line Living Dead Dolls. The more popular line is its One:12 line, which has licenses to popular brands such as Marvel, DC, and Godzilla. Other popular licensed properties include Family Guy, South Park and Hellboy. Outside of action figures and doll releases, Mezco is also known for their original block-style figures line Mez-Itz.
Bome is the pseudonym of a Japanese sculptor, primarily sculpting anime-styled women for mass commercial release. The name is a contraction of Baseball Cap and Eyeglasses, both of which he wears regularly. He started making garage kits and now works for Kaiyodo, a Japanese company that specialises in anime-related figurines. Bome's work has proved sufficiently popular and successful for Kaiyodo to release a Monsieur Bome Collection, including figures from such popular anime and video games as GunBuster, Full Metal Panic, Dead or Alive, Kiddy Grade, Xenosaga and Jingai Makyō. Bome has, amongst others, also sculpted characters from Neon Genesis Evangelion and Sailor Moon.
Go Nagai's Mazinger related mechas and characters have many different toy lines, developed since Mazinger first appeared in the 1970s. Some of the most well known ones are described here.
Superhero fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction examining the adventures, personalities and ethics of costumed crime fighters known as superheroes, who often possess superhuman powers and battle similarly powered criminals known as supervillains. The genre primarily falls between hard fantasy and soft science fiction in the spectrum of scientific realism. It is most commonly associated with American comic books, though it has expanded into other media through adaptations and original works.
DC Universe: Justice League Unlimited Fan Collection is an action figure line based on the highly popular Justice League and Justice League Unlimited animated series. Though it was based on the show(s), the line has continued well beyond it, and has been re-branded in 2008, as a Target exclusive. Mattel announced in February 2011 that the line would come to an end later in the year with the final figures being released on the Mattel website including the final two three-packs, a seven-pack as well as the three exclusive Con three-packs being made available to the public.
Hot Toys Limited is a Hong Kong production house for designing, developing, and manufacturing highly detailed collectible merchandise to worldwide markets. They are known for their high end 1/6th scale figurines of licensed properties, like Marvel and Star Wars, which must be preordered. Hot Toys collectibles are primarily available to purchase from secondary retailers, like Sideshow.
DC Universe is a toy brand manufactured by Mattel. It has five sub-lines – Classics, Fighting Figures, Giants of Justice, Infinite Heroes, and the reintegrated Justice League Unlimited line.
Edward McGuinness is an American comic book artist and penciller, who has worked on books such as Superman, Superman/Batman, Deadpool, and Hulk. His pencil work is frequently inked by Dexter Vines, and as such, their cover work carries the stylized signature "EdEx". McGuinness frequent collaborator, writer Jeph Loeb, had characterized McGuinness' art style as incorporating elements of artists Jack Kirby and Arthur Adams.
Batman Ninja is a 2018 American-Japanese animated superhero film directed by Junpei Mizusaki, produced by Warner Bros., and animated by Kamikaze Douga and YamatoWorks, which features the DC Comics character Batman. Takashi Okazaki, the creator of Afro Samurai, is the character designer for the film. The first poster was revealed on October 5, 2017, and the trailers were released later on December 1, 2017.
The Batman Who Laughs is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Scott Snyder and artist Greg Capullo, he is an evil counterpart and alternate version of Batman within the Dark Multiverse.
