Aug 27, 2019
Marsham Toy Hour S4 Ep 21: BTS and Ko-Re Ko-Re
I recently had the pleasure of joining Blair Marshall (Ko-Re Ko-Re) as a guest (again!) on the Marsham Toy Hour podcast. For the first half or so, Blair and I talked with host Gary Ham and Theresa Hawkins about the Beijing Toy Show which Vinyl Pulse attended for the second time this year. If you're curious about what the show is like, it's definitely worth a listen. Doubly so if you're curious about art toy specialty retailer Ko-Re Ko-Re ('Wanted Wanted' in Japanese) which was the 2nd half focus of the episode. Props to Marsham Toy Hour for keeping the only weekly art toy podcast humming along.
Feb 27, 2019
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter S3E4: 'It's Not For Me'
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter is back with a brand-new episode (two weeks in a row, no less). The episode is available for streaming on Youtube and below for your convenience. Titled It's Not for Me, S3E4 features guest Carlos East as well as regular Geeks Sarah Jo Marks, George Gaspar, Ben Goretsky. It's all about the reviews this week with a look at two new drops from Kidrobot: the QUICCS x Hello Kitty vinyl and the Hello Sanrio Ice Cream Cone Keychain series. The geeks also reviewed several new movie toys including The Real Ghostbusters Animated Series Slimer figure (Diamond Select), the Ultimate Gremlins figure (NECA) and the Pan's Labyrinth: Pale Man figure (NECA).
Sep 28, 2018
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter: DKE NYCC Preview
What’s this?!? Two Toy Geeks Behind the Counter episodes in a week? You bet. And… Dov’s 3rd episode in a row no less. S2E25 is up and features Dov giving us a complete first-hand preview of DKE’s NYCC lineup that will be available at their booth[#575]. Stream the episode on Youtube or below to see the diverse selection of artful action figures headed to NYCC.
Sep 27, 2018
Toy Geeks Behind The Counter S2E24 : Reviews and Previews with Dov
Rejoice! Toy Geeks Behind the Counter S2E24 is up and ready for your streaming pleasure on Youtube or below. Return guest Dov Kelemer is joined by the geeks—George, Ben, and Sarah Jo—to review toys and preview new figures from Shag and Ron English.
Aug 14, 2018
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter: S2E20 With Funko Founder Mike Becker
The Toy Geeks are back with an all-new episode featuring special guest Mike Becker, the founder of Funko. Check out S2E20 over on Youtube or below. Mike dropped by to talk about Funko’s Saturday Morning concept featuring their FunkO’s cereal line featuring mini Pop prizes inside the box and fun art on the outside. He also gave us a preview of what to expect from the large Saturday Morning booth planed for this year’s DesignerCon.
Beyond talk of Cartoons and Cereal, George, Ben, Jack M. and Mike also reviewed a few toys including the glorious Cognition Enhancement Engine 8” Dunny from Doktor A and Kidrobot, the new Empire Strikes Back Mystery Minis from Funko, a pair of new toys from Vincent Scala, and Find Chaffy from Jamie Smart.
Apr 24, 2018
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter with Patrick Lam
Ahhh… The fresh smell of a brand-new, mint Toy Geeks Behind the Counter episode. S2 E11 features LA-based power player Patrick Lam of Munky King and is available to stream in glorious 1080p on Youtube or right below. I start things off with a quick recap of Shanghai Toy Show—more detailed recap here—and then we dive into looking at several of the sweet toys I scored at STS including Lazy by Benson Wong and Devil Toys, The Ink Monkey King by J.T Studio, the Nano TEQ63 from QUICCS and Devil Toys, the brand-new Kaiju Hunting mini series from Paradise and more. Sliding from Shanghai to MK, Patrick shows us the new 10th Anniversary Possessed which drops on May 4th, the extended lineup of ‘The Messenger’ designed by kaNO including the sexy incoming frosted edition.
Slow? Watch TGBTC S2E11 on Youtube
Apr 18, 2018
Toy Geeks Behind The Counter S2E10 With Arlen Escarpeta
Time to geek out again with a brand-new episode of Toy Geeks Behind the Counter available for streaming on Youtube or below. This week’s ‘Dewy, Crackle & Geek’, episode features a great guest, actor Arlen Escarpeta (‘Oath’ on Crackle), as well as Mitchell, Jack V. and Ben. The toys run through the review gauntlet include the Strangers Things action figures from McFarlane Toys, Dewy by Aaron McNaught ($75) which are each 3d-printed, Young MC from Ron English, Star Wars key chains by Phat Mojo, and the Poobaca pins from Spiritmade.
Mar 13, 2018
Toy Geeks Behind The Counter brings you Matt Gondek and the first Waffle!
Ready to geek out with a fresh episode of Toy Geeks Behind The Counter? Deconstructed Waffle (S2 E5) with guest artist Matt Gondek as well as a trio of geeks – Ben, Jack V. and Jack M. It’s available for streaming on Youtube or below for your convenience. Well-known for his exploded/deconstructed takes on pop culture including the Simpsons, Ricky and Morty to various super heroes, Matt showcased his first vinyl toy—Deconstructed Mouse produced by ToyQube—in both the sold-out OG version which you can win via TGBTC’s first waffle and the brand-new mono version which will drop at his Clean Break pop-up in HK (from 3.22) as well as online. Waffle, raffle, yep! Thanks to Matt, Toy Geeks is offering a chance to win the OG Deconstructed Mouse at a very reasonable $5 per chance/ticket. Ends this Friday (3.16).
As always, we turned a critical eye towards several toys including the Rick and Morty Vnyl set from Funko, the Warhol Polaroids from Kidrobot, and several of the super cute Fluffy House vinyls.
Feb 20, 2018
Toy Geeks Behind The Counter – S2E2 ‘Incredible Chamaco’
Rejoice! The latest and greatest episode of your favorite art toy web show is up and ready for your streaming pleasure over on YouTube or below. Episode 2 of Toy Geeks Behind the Counter’s brand-new second season features cool pup Chamaco as guest accompanied by his human, Carlos East. Geeks Ben, Jack V. and Jack M. round out the counter crew this time ‘round. Toys? Oh yeah! Showa TK Troopers, Mazinger Z: real vs. bootleg, Marvel Select Gladiator Hulk, Saturday Morning Collection Mystery Minis and more.
Jan 27, 2018
Marsham Toy Hour - S3 E2 - WAFFLES
The entire gang is back for the 2nd episode of Marsham Toy Hour! We get back into it with some leaks and sneak peaks, a nice little therapy session with Theresa and the discussion about Waffles (you gotta listen to find out). They also present the first ever Marshammie Awards, which we enjoyed a lot and hope they do it again next year! Need to let something off your chest, be sure to hit up Dear Marsham. Details on that available on their website.
Jan 23, 2018
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter S2 starts 2.13
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter is… officially… back! Season 2 will air every Tuesday beginning with the first episode on 2.13. Check out the lavishly produced trailer featuring Jack V., Ben, De Kevin, Sarah Jo, Jack M. (Me), and Mitch. More guests, more geeks, more bad puns, more awesomeness.
Jan 17, 2018
Marsham Toy Hour - S3 E1 - "Go Big or Go Home"
The Marsham Toy Hour is back with their first episode of the year! We've got Gary and Theresa holding things down with special guests Miranda O'Brien and Josh Kimberg of Clutter Magazine, Designer Toy Awardsand 5 Points Festival. They chat about the past year in toys, as well as get into the nitty gritty of Sofubi vs Soft Vinyl. Miranda and Josh also discuss big things happening in the near future! Be sure to hit the play button below to find out!
Nov 15, 2017
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter – EP44 : Finale at DesignerCon
Toys Geeks Behind the Counter’s latest episode is up—watch it below or on Youtube. EP 44: Finale at DesignerCon is well worth the watch with a fun look at last weekend’s DCon maddness in Pasadena—the last one with 2018 slated for Anaheim. Is this the rumored end of TGBTC? Who are the Toy Dames? Give it a watch.
Nov 07, 2017
Marsham Toy Hour - S2 E28
This is a fun mash-up episode of Marsham Toy Hour. This one combines both Designer Con chatter, as well as a special guest Scott Katler for the collector edition side of the episode. They have a good chat on the process of muling and why there should be rules when offering the service. They also ask Scott the "How did you get into collecting?" story, which we always love to hear. Give the episode a listen below and start getting excited for Designer Con!
kaNO on Adventures in Design Round 2!
kaNO once again joins Mark Brickey of Adventures in Design for another rousing episode! We play a little catch up from when they last spoke, as well as what the kid is up to today. They talk kicks, they talk toys, they talk design and they talk sneakers! Theres a little bit of something for everyone on this episode! Be sure to give it a listen HERE.
Oct 26, 2017
Marsham Toy Hour: S2 E26 - Special Guest Sad Salesman
This weeks episode of Marsham Toy Hour brings in a very special guest, that goes by the name Sad Salesman or Eric Althin if you ever meet him IRL. You may know him as the guy behind the self produced vinyl figure, The Wizard figure from 5 Points Festival, which we totally adore btw! Gary andGeorge chat with Eric about his coming into the vinyl toy scene, as well as some leaks and sneak peeks and lightning round! Be sure to give this episode a listen!
Oct 24, 2017
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter Episode 41: Old and Dumb
This week’s episode of Toy Geeks Behind the Counter is hot, fresh, and ready for streaming on Youtube or below. The Geeks—George, Ben, and Jack V.—are back cracking jokes, dropping wisdom and checking out new toys including the 20” Dragon King, Bruce Lee-Licensed vinyl, by kaNO and Toy Qube, Pulp Fiction: Jules Winnfield action figure + diorama from Diamond Select Toys, Night Riders minis from Nathan Jurevicius and Kidrobot, UDF Sesame Street series from Medicom Toy and a fun mail segment featuring Ric Strohmeyer’s custom Bertie container project for DCon.
Oct 20, 2017
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter Ep 40 with Les Schettkoe
Toy Geeks hits 40! Available now for your streaming pleasure, Episode 40 features guest artist/designer Les Schettkoe. There’s a pretty decent chance that you have some of Les’ toy designs sitting on your shelf including mini-fig versions of classic licenses including G.I. Joe and Transformers. Les, Ben, Jack V. and George talk shop and review several toys including one of Les’ recent designs, BAIT’s Mr. Pennybags Monopoly toy. The guys also bring us a nice look at 3DRetro’s exclusive The Astronaut Darkness Edition from Alex Pardee and ToyQube which drops on Saturday (10.21) at a signing/release party at 3DRetro in Glendale. Hmm, what else? My TGBTC adventure continues in #40 with another dose of Jack’s Spotlight featuring a first look at a brand-new, as-yet unreleased toy – Baphomaniac by Martin Ontiveros x Toy Art Gallery.
Oct 19, 2017
Marsham Toy Hour - S2 E25 with Sorbet Jungle and Datadub
Marsham Toy Hour is back with another great episode, which features special guest Deanne of Sorbet Jungle, returning guest Datadub and back from the dead, Carlos East! In this episode, these guys chat a lot about conventions! Western North America Conventions vs. Eastern Asia Conventions. The pros, the cons and what we can learn from them. We also get to learn a lot about Deanne and how she is a convention expert, as her company attends 3 conventions a month!
Oct 03, 2017
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter Ep 38 with Dov Kelemer
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter is back with the Dov! The co-founder of DKE shares with us some of his recent collected treasures from Mark Ryden to a Batman spectrum. Stream it now on Youtube or below. Oh, TGBTC also has launched it’s first IG contest to win a Slime He-Man from Chogrin.
Sep 26, 2017
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter Ep 37 – NYCC Preview with Sarah Jo Marks
It’s Tuesday! Which means there’s a brand new episode of Toy Geeks Behind the Counter for you to geek out to. Episode 37 features DKE’s awesome co-founder Sarah Jo Marks with a rapid-fire preview of what DKE has lined up for NYCC (10.5 – 10.8). If you love bootleg art action figures, this is must-see streaming. You can watch on Youtube or down below.
This episode also features news of a screening (9.30) of the finalists from the Dark Crystal Fan Film competition in Atlanta at the The Center for Pupperty Arts, including Toy Geek Jack Venturo’s Akasta: The Salvation of Time.
Finally, yours truly is back on the show with a new spotlight featuring the amazing Gorilla sofubi line from Japanese artist Hirota. Check out all of his amazing work.
Sep 19, 2017
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter Ep. 36 -- 100% Art Toys
Looking for something to watch on the ol’ Youtube? How about this week’s Toy Geeks Behind the Counter episode? #36 starts with art toys, is filled with art toys and ends with… art toys :) Ben, Jack V. and yours truly take a closer look at several figures including the Takashi Murakami x Complex Con x BAIT Mr. Dob vinyl, the new GID ‘13’ Dunnys from Brandt Peters and Kidrobot, the 20” Andy Warhol Plush Dunny from Kidrobot, Ron English’s Sugar Diabetic Bear and the new Wish figures—ceramics meets textiles—from Taylored Curiosities in our first mail segment.
Sep 13, 2017
Marsham Toy Hour S2 E20 & E22 with Spanky Stokes and Martian Toys
We bring you another couple weeks worth of great ear content coming from Marsham Toy Hour! Episode 20 features a very well known blogger in our toy community, senior John "Spanky" Stokes of Spankystokes.com! They get into the nitty gritty of how he got into to blogging and how far it has brought him today. With countless of customs, all sorts of strolls and quite a few blogger of the year awards under his belt. Give'r a listen down below!
For the latest installment of Marsham Toy Hour, the team brings back one of its OG's, Aaron of Martian Toys and The Mothership Gallery. They chat about the new brick and mortar store, as well as "The Next Great Blank Contest". The gang also talks about the the effect of pre-orders and a lot of shop talk that would be quite useful for both collectors and retailers.
Sep 12, 2017
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter EP 35 Asks Will the Porg Be A Hit?
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter EP 35 ("Spoiler Alert") is up and available for you to geek out to. If you love Star Wars, this is a must-see episode as Ben, Jack V. and I dive into a pile of Last Jedi toys from Force Friday II. Black Series? Yep. Pops? Yep. Sphero BB-9E? Yep. Porg? You betcha. Still seems like a penguin crossed with an Ewok. Watch the hard-hitting reviews below or on Youtube.
Sep 05, 2017
Toy Geeks Behind the Counter Ep 34 – Conflicted and Dumb
Another week, another wild and crazy (well…geeky and nerdy) Toy Geeks Behind the Counter episode. Conflicted and Dumb (Ep. 34) is out now for your watching pleasure below and on Youtube. George, Ben and Jack V. review and react to new toys including the life-size E.T. Stunt Puppet from Neca and the Batman x Kidrobot Dunny collection (hmmm…). And, my first Toy Spotlight segment features Eimi Takano’s Magic Donut Cat resin. Look for the second Spotlight in next week’s TGBTC episode.