Superheroes

Category: Superheroes

STEM, LEGOs, Jurassic World and more–Annual Toy of the Year Awards finalists revealed

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August 16, 2022

Every year industry group The Toy Foundation unveils its annual Toy of the Year Awards (see the 22nd annual award winners here) and this week it announced the finalists for the 23rd annual honors, this time representing the past two years in 17 categories, with the final awards coming in November. Altogether that’s 122 toys vying for top honors, selected from more than 600 nominees by a panel of judges comprising play experts, journalists, academics, retailers, and other toy authorities, and now it’s up to the voters to determine the winners. All are invited to visit ToyAwards.org to vote for their favorites in each category through September 2, 2022.

Links, links, and more links… check out the full slate of finalists:

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Tags: 100 Things That Go™ by LeapFrog, 3Doodler Start+ Maker Bundle by 3Doodler, 5 Surprise Disney Mini Brands Series 1 by ZURU, AirTitans™ Jurassic World Massive Attack T-Rex R/C by JAKKS Pacific, Ann Williams Craft-tastic Nature Scavenger Hunt Potions by PlayMonster Group LLC, Barbie – 60th Dreamhouse Anniversary by Mattel, Barbie Signature Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Doll by Mattel, Best Toys of 2022, Big Big Baby by Hunter Products, Bill Nye's VR Science Kit by Abacus Brands, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Fresh Fierce Collection by The Fresh Dolls by World of EPI Company, Bluey by BBC Studios, Build Box Subscription: Disc Launcher by CrunchLabs by Mark Rober, Cal Kestis Legacy Lightsaber Hilt by Disney Global Product Creation, Catch the Moon by Thames & Kosmos LLC, Celestial Star Explorer by The Manhattan Toy Company, Clean Sweep Learning Caddy™ by LeapFrog, CoComelon by Moonbug Entertainment, CoComelon Ultimate Learning Adventure Bus by Just Play, Cody Block by QUBS, Connect 4 Spin Game by Hasbro, CONNETIX Pastel Mega Pack 212pc by CONNETIX, Crayola Color & Erase Reusable Mat by Crayola, Crayola Happy 64th Birthday Crayons by Crayola, Creativity for Kids Build & Grow Tree House by Faber-Castell USA/Creativity for Kids, Cyberquad for Kids by Radio Flyer Inc., Dance & Play Bluey by Moose Toys LLC, DC Comics Batman 12" Wingsuit Action Figure by Spin Master, Disney Junior Alice's Wonderland Bakery Alice Doll & Magical Oven by Just Play, Disney Junior Mickey Mouse Funhouse Treasure Adventure Pirate Ship by Just Play, Disney Kingdomania: Series 1 – Game Ball by Funko Inc., DJ Beat Boxer™ by VTech, Explore & More Grow Along 4-In-1 Activity Walker by Skip Hop, Fisher-Price® Little People Collector™ Ted Lasso by Mattel, Flybar Bumper Car XL by Flybar, Flyer L885 Electric Bike by Radio Flyer Inc., FurReal Cinnamon the Pony by Hasbro, Gabby's Dollhouse by Universal Brand Development, Gigabots Energy Cores by Blip Toys, Global Kidizen Doll Collection by For Purpose Kids, GraviTrax PRO: Giant Set by Ravensburger, Harry Potter Playing Cards by theory11, Healthy Roots Dolls Curlfriends Club by Healthy Roots, Heroes of Goo Jit Zu Goo Shifters by Moose Toys LLC, Hugimals by Hugimals World, Imaginext® Jurassic World™ Mega Stomp & Rumble Giga Dino™ by Mattel, Inc., John Deere Johnny Tractor Ride-On by TOMY International, Jurassic World Dominion by Universal Brand Development, Jurassic World Dominion Super Colossal Giganotosaurs by Mattel, Jurassic World Real FX Baby Blue by WOW! Stuff, Jurassic World: The Legacy of Isla Nublar by Funko Inc., Klutz LEGO: Race Cars by Scholastic Inc., LEGO® Ideas The Office by LEGO Systems, LEGO® Minifigures The Muppets by LEGO Systems, LEGO® Technic™ McLaren Formula 1™ Race Car by LEGO Systems, Level Up Gaming Chair™ by VTech, Lite-Brite Wall Art Pop Wow! Edition by Basic Fun!, Little Live Pets Mama Surprise by Moose Toys LLC, Little Tikes Ice Cream Cozy Truck™ by MGA Entertainment, Little Tikes Learn & Play™ Look & Learn Window™ by MGA Entertainment, LLC, Magic Mixies Magic Mixlings by Moose Toys LLC, Magic Mixies Magical Crystal Ball by Moose Toys LLC, Magna-Tiles® Forest Animals 25-Piece Set by Magna-Tiles, Mantis by Exploding Kittens Inc., Mario Kart™ 24V Ride-On Racer by JAKKS Pacific, Mega Chomp R/C Shark by Skyrocket Toys, Miniland Baby Doll Caucasian Girl with Down Syndrome with Glasses by Miniland, My Avastars by WowWee, My Pal Scout Smarty Paws™ by LeapFrog, National Geographic Kids Chimp Care & Nurture Set by Just Play, Naturalistas Fashion Dolls by Purpose Toys, Peppa Pig Toniebox Starter Set by tonies® USA, Pokémon by The Pokémon Company International, Pokémon Trading Card Game: Pokémon GO Elite Trainer Box by The Pokémon Company International, Professor Maxwell's VR Dinosaurs by Abacus Brands, Rainbow Loom Loomi-Pals Mega Combo by Rainbow Loom, Replogle Globe 4 Kids by Replogle Globes Inc., Rollplay Nighthawk Storm by Rollplay, smART sketcher® GO! by FlyCatcher Inc, SmartMax My First Hide & Seek by Smart Toys and Games, Snap Circuits: Code Journey by ELENCO, Snap Circuits: Green Energy by ELENCO, Snap Circuits: Junior by ELENCO, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Sonic Speed R/C by JAKKS Pacific, Squishmallows by Jazwares, Star Wars L0-59 (Lola) Animatronic Droid by Hasbro, Star Wars Villainous by Ravensburger, STEM Explorers™ Brainometry™ by Learning Resources Inc., Super Cityscape Transport Bucket Set by Hape, Switcheroo Coding Crew™ by Learning Resources Inc., T.A.P.E.S. by Hog Wild, Tacto Doctor by PlayShifu, The Joker Dragon DC MULTIVERSE Vehicle by McFarlane Toys, The Play Kits by Lovevery, The Toy Association, Toy Industry Hall of Fame, Toy of the Year 2022, Toy of the Year 2023, Toy of the Year Awards, Toy of the Year Finalists, Transformers: Bumblebee Cyberverse Adventures Dinobots Unite Smash Changer Optimus Prime by Hasbro, Viro Rides™ Café Racer by MGA Entertainment, Where's Squeaky? by Blue Orange Games, WindBots: 6-in-1 Wind-Powered Machine Kit by Thames & Kosmos LLC, Wooden Shape Sorting Grocery Cart by Melissa & Doug, ZipLinx Triple Tower Blast by Blip Toys

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Crashing–Series takes the superhero genre into the E/R

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August 13, 2022

Review by C.J. Bunce

Just as the classic 1970s first responder television series Emergency! is celebrating its 50th anniversary today on COZI TV (with a new documentary and appearances by stars Randy Mantooth and Kevin Tighe), the medical/rescue genre is getting adapted to superheroes in a new comic book series.

It’s a time of conflict. One faction is open-minded and willing to take on anything that comes its way with arms wide open. The other is ready to shut the door on those who aren’t the same. It all happens in a world where some people have superpowers and some don’t. In the tradition of Dark Horse Comics’ The Ward, with the action of Hotel Artemis, and the secrecy of The Star Chamber, the new monthly medical thriller Crashing from IDW Publishing follows a doctor in triage addressing patients who are “different” in the emergency room.

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The DC Book of Lists–Indispensable fun for DC superhero fans

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August 10, 2022

Review by C.J. Bunce

While other kids were “making mine Marvel,” I couldn’t get enough of the 1970s Justice League of America, and spent many an hour memorizing Superman’s family ancestry back on Krypton. Tentpole icons Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, the Hall of Justice, and the exploits of battling thousands of villains produced more monthly books than a single person could ever read (although a few have claimed to do so). Writer Randall Lotowycz has amassed some of the basics but even more of the extremes, lists of “Who’s Who?” and “What’s What?” and the stranger side of DC Comics in the new book The DC Book of Lists: A Multiverse of Legacies, Histories, and Hierarchies. An indispensable sourcebook for DC fans, it’s also proof you can’t get through more than 80 years of continuously publishing content and not have some very quirky characters and situations.
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Tags: comic book artists, comic book characters, comic book trivia, DC Comics, history of DC Comics, Randall Lotowycz, Running Press, Running Press Kids, The DC Book of Lists, The DC Book of Lists book review, The DC Book of Lists: A Multiverse of Legacies Histories and Hierarchies

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In Memoriam–Nichelle Nichols (1932-2022)

Filed under: Backstage Pass, Con Culture, Fantasy Realms, Movies, Sci-Fi Café, Superheroes, TV — 1 Comment

July 31, 2022

Arguably no player of fictional roles did more to further science and the future than Nichelle Nichols. The actress who played Star Trek crew member Uhura for 54 years in the original series, six movies, and fan films passed away today at age 89. I first met her in San Francisco in the 1990s and later at other events, and she always was gracious, embraced fans, and was always laughing, smiling, and enjoying her time recounting her personal story. She probably has the most familiar story of any science fiction actor, as she became an icon of television, science fiction, and science fact.

Her greatest story was recounting how she had decided to leave the Star Trek series until she had a conversation with Martin Luther King, Jr., who informed her just how important it was that a black woman was being seen by an entire nation on television. She was an equal crew member serving in a prime-time network series, and would go on to help expand the boundaries of race relations, participating in the first on-screen inter-racial kiss, with co-star William Shatner’s Captain Kirk.

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Tags: Heroes, Heroes TV series, KCCC 2016 Nichelle Nichols, Martin Luther King Jr, Memoriam Nichelle Nichols, NASA, Nichelle Nichols, Smithsonian Institution, Space shuttle Enterprise, Star Trek, Star Trek original series, Wizard World 2018 Nichelle Nichols

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StarGirl–Joel McHale reclaims Star-mantle and supersuit for Season 3

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July 30, 2022

As we predicted last season, it appears Joel McHale’s Starman is going to find his way back to his family and superhero status in the third season of CW’s StarGirl. How will that fare for Brec Bassinger’s Courtney, her mom (played by Amy Smart), and her husband–and Starman’s former partner, Luke Wilson’s Pat Dugan aka the steel giant S.T.R.I.P.E.

Seems like the entire cast from last season is back. The second season wasn’t as powerful as the first, so hopefully Greg Berlanti & Co. and get some of the magic back with the original Seven Soldiers of Victory back in costume–along with another guest appearance (we hope) by John Wesley Shipp as The Flash. Here’s the new trailer for season three of StarGirl:

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Namor, the Sub-Mariner–Marvel sneaks long-awaited first mutant into the MCU in Comic-Con trailer

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July 27, 2022

He’s certainly the most overdue of 80 years of Marvel characters to make it into the live-action world of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner, created by writer-artist Bill Everett in 1939, was Marvel’s first mutant and the leader of the undersea world of Atlantis, frequently forgotten in recent years because of his DC Comics counterpart, Aquaman. That’s Namor and Everett above as depicted in a fantastic tribute by artist Alex Ross. Along with Captain America and Human Torch, the original Big 3 included Prince Namor. He’s also the first superhero anti-hero, so it probably makes sense Marvel is sneaking him into the MCU as they did Silver Surfer in the second Fantastic Four movie. Audiences internationally who have not followed the comics of eight decades past or only know of the character in spotty revisits over the years will now meet him this year in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, as what appears to be the villain.

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She-Hulk–Tatiana Maslany smashes fourth wall and more in new series trailer

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July 25, 2022

Leaning into the humor instead of giving audiences another heavy drama, the new Disney/Marvel series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, also reflects some improvements on its CGI, which wasn’t quite as convincing in the first trailer. In the pages of the comics, Tatiana Maslany’s title character is known by day as Jennifer Walters, Bruce Banner’s cousin, who gets a dose of Banner’s blood after an accident. This gives her slightly different, less overcharged reactions, but the big difference is she’s fully green–not turning back to her normal self like Banner usually did.

And Tim Roth is back as Emil Blonsky from that CGI-challenged Hulk movie everyone forgot about, 2008’s The Incredible Hulk.

Check out the San Diego Comic-Con trailer for She-Hulk: Attorney at Law:

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Tags: 2022 Marvel Cinematic Universe, Disney Plus, Mark Ruffalo, Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 4, Marvel Comics, Orphan Black, San Diego Comic-Con, SDCC 2022, She-Hulk, She-Hulk Attorney at Law, She-Hulk Attorney at Law Disney series, She-Hulk Attorney at Law trailer, She-Hulk series casting, superhero movie delays, Tatiana Maslany, Tatiana Maslany roles, The Incredible Hulk, Tim Roth

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Black Adam and Shazam!–DC Comics moves past the Snyderverse into fun territory

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July 24, 2022

At this weekend’s San Diego Comic-Con, DC Comics’ Jim Lee announced that there are no plans for Zack Snyder to return to the DC franchise movies or for the “SnyderVerse” Justice League to continue. This was followed up with two big trailers that open up the DC Comics universe to return to the fun of the comics. Zachary Levi’s spin on the original Captain Marvel opened the gates for a renaissance for DC at the movies with his new Shazam in 2019, back again this year in the sequel, Shazam! Fury of the Gods, and Dwayne Johnson is taking DC to the next level in his big fall release Black Adam.

And another show with a dragon! Seems like you can’t find a trailer this summer without one. Thanks, Shazam!

Neither of these movies could look better, and these trailers have a lot of promise. Can Shazam and Black Adam save the DCU? Check out the trailers for Black Adam and Shazam! Fury of the Gods: Continue reading →

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John Carter of Mars–111-year-old sci-fi fantasy classic is updated into a fun new adventure series

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July 17, 2022

Review by C.J. Bunce

Who knew Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars could feel like a blend of Doctor Who, Life on Mars, Quantum Leap, and the Skrulls and Black Order of Marvel Comics? Dynamite’s new comic books series John Carter of Mars is, of course, very different from the 1911 original and subsequent novels, but this modern update is all high adventure, all fun. Gone is the painted artwork of past graphic adaptations–this is clearly an effort to make the 111-year-old Civil War veteran accessible. It works. And where John Carter goes, Dejah Thoris is soon to follow.

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Tags: Captain Marvel, Chuck Brown, Dave Acosta, Dejah Thoris, Doctor Who, Dynamite Comics, George Kambadais, John Carter of Mars, John Carter of Mars 2022, Jonathan Case, Joseph Michael Linsner, Junggeun Yoon, Life on Mars, Quantum Leap

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Latest superhero edition of Mattel’s Barbie may be the best of all

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July 13, 2022

Back in 2017 we previewed a line of superheroines in Mattel’s longstanding, ongoing line of its famous Barbie dolls. The first featured Wonder Woman characters from DC Comics, and two years later from over at Marvel Mattel released a line of X-Men figures featuring Mystique, Storm, and Dark Phoenix (there has been a Tomb Raider Barbie, too). In 2018 Mattel rolled out the first 17 figures in an Inspiring Women role model series, but we think the latest Barbie celebrates the greatest superheroine of them all. Recognizing decades of dedication, ground-breaking research, and heroic achievements as a conservationist, Mattel has revealed its next Inspiring Women Barbie: Dr. Jane Goodall–and she’s the first Barbie ever to be made from recycled materials (75%).