Dear Skullbrain members

Just thought I would say hello, I'm a long time lurker that works in the toy industry and has recently assembled a crew of like minded people to develop small run productions of not necessarily Kaiju style figures but other..erm...stuff..

Could i trouble you for some feedback if i posted a couple of images?

Thanks!

bring it...!!!

I think you picked the right place if you want direct, honest feedback on what you're doing.

*gulp*...erm..thanks..
We have just finished work on prototyping this chap;



He's called MAGIC MARK 1, stands around 23cm tall..roto vinyl body...
The trolley legs are made of steel and he has a working LED light bulb activated by pressing his yellow belly button.
He's not a great reading lamp but he throws out enough light to help you find your way to the can at night...

I like the rods coming out of the head on the sides and I like the light bulb.

i like the LED gimmick.

what's the backstory? What is he supposed to be? for some reason, he looks like a cyborg pirate that needs a pirate hat....

Thanks Slack, I appreciate the feedback.
The rods are some type of soft rubber so they can flex and not break.
As for the bulb, that's moulded in a clear resin.
We have kept the run tight at fifty units with no intention of making any more.

The guy who did the sculpt has worked for a few of the Japanese crews that get a mention on the board.

We are working with an artist that is one of the board favourites later this year, hopefully you will like the results.

Damn..Cyborg pirates..dope!!

No back story, it was originally an illustration by one of my close friends that we thought would look neat.
My theory was that I liked it and if there was no interest in a small production run I would be happy having it sat on my shelf.
It was also a way for the new production team to flex a few creative muscles, they turned this around in 10 days.

Thanks for the feedback.

If it craps candy I'm in.

Shoot, we overlooked that feature..we'll work it into Mark 2 for you..I promise!

Thanks man!

It's a great design and great execution.
I'm not crazy about the color pallet though, it makes it feel like a childrens toy. I'd love to see one just matte black (but I'm a sucker for black) just to show off the sculpt.

The led light is cool but the facial expression and lower lip are strange and I don't understand what it's going on there. It's kind of an odd expression and the pink part seems forced. The curved angular arms seem weird too.

The shot of it's back is great I just wish the arms and face were changed.

Thanks JoeMan, the knocked back colours have been a talking point, but the artist wanted something more muted..c'est la vie..
The factory we use is off the chain, here is another of their figures.
Apologies for the picture quality.


Thanks for the input bryce_r..much appreciated.

It's pushing allot of my -like it- buttons. I can live with the arms though if it was redesigned to look more functional it would be a home run. The pink part has me asking, is it a lip, maybe a bow tie? I love gear in the back of robots (i.e. rockets, wings, etc). The flex pipe on the back seems like it was put there for details sake. Perhaps if there was a small tank where the pipe feeds out of and into the bot. Again that's what makes it a home run for me. Overall it's a fun looking robot.

Thanks Mr DeCastro (great Bruce avatar) I asked Dan (the creator) what the pink bit is and he replied that it is a robot lip and was i stupid...

I retorted with your comments about the arms and pipe...he replied and i quote;
"Rockets are a great idea but Mark's a knackered wheezy old robot with wonky arms, and an ugly A.C. tube that stops him from overheating.."

Cheers!

it looks like a very well designed toddler toy. the juvenile aesthetic for robots only works for me sometimes. in this case it does not. #1 reason: robot eyebrows. no. at least not done like this.

also, shouldn't this be in custom toys and fan art? or is that too small scope for you? thanks for pimping your toy without being (as of yet) a contributing member of the board. pretty obviously trying to generate steam for your toy from a community that you "lurk" at. I guess we're only good enough to talk to when you have something to sell.
sweet.

Dear Uberboy

Thanks for your criticism.

I made my introduction and asked if there was an opportunity to present the design as I respect the opinions of the board.

Subsequently, I was invited to show and tell..and appreciate the opportunity.

I knew that the design did not fit into the general feel of what is discussed, but intelligent toy forums are thin on the ground and i value the opinions held here.

i too value free market research from a focused study group.

if you had really been a "lurker" you would know that becoming a new boardmember in order to promote yourself is bullshit around here. i was just letting you know.

while you are very polite, your goals are obvious and i implore you to post pics of your collection and get involved or kindly take your door-to-door bible salesman tactics down the road to the Peterson's place. they are lutherans and could most likely use a new bible or two, wearing them so thin from constant reading as they do.

Thanks for the insight, you are brilliant!

I respect your passion and I promise I will post some pics in the collection section when I get home from the Nuremberg toy fair.
This is the first time i have joined a forum and even posting pics proved taxing for an old oaf like me

In the absence of images, I'll quickly explain that I have been working in the toy and comic book industry since 1989 after getting kicked out of college for video piracy..
I sold my collection a few times over to keep the hustle alive & never gave up my passion.
Every waking hour is spent keeping my company on course (we produce licensed products) and the Unbox projects keep me sane and passionate about toys

Ultraman & Utimate Muscle were my original toys of choice in my youth and Stretch X-Ray is still on my list....

I hope this thread at least proves an entertaining read!

Thanks for the intro. To be honest I am surprised you are getting the fairly positive comments you are on this toy - it strikes me as something which would not appeal to the Skullbrain crowd at large - but times are changing.

With the excpetion of the head bulb and teh retro antenna ears - aesthetically this does not appeal to the fight figure loving collector I am. I especially do not like the spindly steel legs, arm shape and facial expression.

My collection crosses over into Western territory (Jled, Ron ENglish, Kaws, Bickup, Baseman) but this wouldn't.

Not trying to be an ass - just calling it like I see it. That being said, I am sure there is an army of folk out there who may love this - just not me.

Goddamn, shit got hostile all of a sudden, wtf. You'd think the guy was selling child porn or something. I can understand calling somebody out on something but that was a little much. Let's chill ya'll

so it's open invite to anybody with a product to sell?

i really think my rebuke wasn't harsh enough.

riiight,,got it.

How times have changed.
I think the mostly crickets have replaced the "get out vibe" that used to occur when those looking to sell their wares or test their products showed up.
I always enjoy seeing the kids yell at people for following the original rules of the board.

As for this toy, those legs look like they would break in about 15 minutes, and I don't care what factory it was made in, it looks like it belongs in walmart for about 15 bucks... but then so does a lot of this crap.

Yes, thanks for introducing us to more KR inspired crap!