60th Anniversary Vinyl Astro Figure

To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Astro Boy manga, ZC World has released this new collectable figure in Japan.

This figure retails for about ¥12,000 ($147) and comes with a wooden box. Astro is depicted looking very young here and sure displays a lot of personality!

Check out more great pictures of this great collectable on Crunchyroll.

Continue reading "60th Anniversary Vinyl Astro Figure"...

Melmo Figures

Officially licensed by Tezuka Productions, these two Marvelous Melmo figures stand 3.5 and 5.5 inches tall and are made of PVC plastic.

Older Melmo is a little risque, but they're out there if you're into that stuff!

Continue reading "Melmo Figures"...

Limited Edition Astro Boy Casio Exilim

Check out this special limited edition of the Casio Exilim digital camera featuring Astro Boy imagery and made to celebrate the famous character's manga debut.

Among what makes this limited edition unique are these frames featuring Astro Boy characters that add a fun graphic element around your photos.

A special pouch is also included.

This price for this camera is approximately $440 US, but good luck if you want one. Naturally this is only being sold in Japan and is limited to only 300 units. Check out the camera's specs and more information on Crunch Gear.

Continue reading "Limited Edition Astro Boy Casio Exilim"...

Astro Key Chains

Found these Astro Boy key chains awhile back, but I don't remember where. They seem to come from China. Your guess is as good as mine as to whether they are officially licensed merchandise or not.

Astro's face is... unique, to say the least. His eyes look kind of funny. But that makes these kind of interesting. The variety of available figures based on Astro's different appearances in the movie is pretty cool.

Continue reading "Astro Key Chains"...

Any Hats Out There?

I got an e-mail recently from a reader named Jen who has a young son that is a big Astro Boy fan. Great to know that a new generation of fans is growing out there. Jen is looking to get an Astro Boy hat for her son, specifically requesting the red "Ministry of Science" hat that Toby wears in the movie.

I haven't had any luck in finding such a hat. The only Astro hat I was able to find is this freaky looking one shown below, and that doesn't seem to be available anymore.

 So I'm putting out the call for help with the hopes that somebody else out there will know something or be able to find an Astro Boy hat. It can be any hat at all as long as it's related to Astro Boy. I'm sure that Jen and her son will appreciate the help, but I'm also interested in seeing what might be out there just for curiosity's sake. If anyone finds anything, please post it here in the comments section.

Continue reading "Any Hats Out There?"...

Anime Jazz Fights Cancer

From Anime News Network:

Japanese jazz singer Reiko Oshibuchi, who suffers from breast cancer, has released a CD of jazz covers of classic anime songs. Each CD costs 2,800 yen (about US$33), of which 800 yen (US$10) is donated to the Childhood Cancer Association of Japan. The CD includes songs from Gegege no Kitarō, Astro Boy (Mighty Atom), Space Battleship Yamato, and Science Ninja Team Gatchaman.

Oshibuchi first arranged the themes into jazz form for a 2006 concert event titled "Anime Jazz." The following year, Oshibuchi was diagnosed with cancer and underwent a mastectomy. She resumed her live performances in 2008, and the second Anime Jazz event was a success. Oshibuchi had decided to release a CD before her third live performance when she discovered that she had relapsed with cancer in October. She decided to continue singing despite the infirmity.

The CD is on sale in Japan right now. I'm really interested in hearing it!

Continue reading "Anime Jazz Fights Cancer"...

Roly Poly Astro

Found these interesting looking early toys for very young kids featuring Astro Boy. These kinds of "Roly-Poly" toys always stay upright, and these seem to make a jingling sound.

It looks movie inspired with Astro's face and various appearances from throughout the film, but Uran is there too, surprisingly.

Not sure about the validity of these toys, which raises not only legal issues but safety concerns as well. At any rate, I found them, and a bunch more Astro stuff, here on Dino-Direct.

Continue reading "Roly Poly Astro"...

Mighty Gun

Let's dig into the archives and take a look at this classic Astro Boy oddity, the Mighty Gun!

Yeah, basically it's just a standard sci-fi-esque plastic suction cup dart gun with an Astro Boy sticker on it. Real original. But what is quite interesting is the young Atlas target it comes with. Because we all remember the time when Astro shot Atlas with a gun, right?

Continue reading "Mighty Gun"...

Four Funny Fella Figures

Found these awesome guys on eBay awhile back and had to save a picture to share here. Figures of Ham Egg, Ban Shunsaku, Lamp, and Dr. Ochanomizu, each sharply dressed in their suits. Pretty rare to find much of any sort of merchandise based on the Astro Boy/Tezuka supporting cast, let alone in a group like this. I don't have any other information about where they are from or what they are made of. One has to wonder if there are any more figures in this range!

Continue reading "Four Funny Fella Figures"...

Astro Boy iPhone Case

Geek Stuff 4 U has these new Astro Boy themed protective cover cases for iPhone 3G/3GS. Very interesting graphic style for the artwork. There's a black one and a white one. They're expensive but they're limited editions so if you want one, don't delay!

Perfect for reading Astro Boy Magazine!

Continue reading "Astro Boy iPhone Case"...

Astro Notebooks

Nervous about the new year? Do you know what you need to make 2010 the best it can be?

Clearly, you need Astro Boy Notebooks and binder covers!


This will obviously solve all of your problems!

See more at Japanistic.

Astro says not to forget any appointment no matter what happens. I suggest you listen to him!

Continue reading "Astro Notebooks"...

Tezuka Chess

Saw this interesting piece of Tezuka Merchandise today on Helen McCarthy's Blog. It's a Tezuka Themed Chess Set!


Osamu Tezuka's famous characters take the place of the different chess pieces. Clearly some thought went into the character selection here.


I did a little digging and discovered that not only is this set available internationally, it's quite reasonably priced at under $40 US. See for yourself at Gifts Bazaar. This would certainly make a great holiday present for the chess playing anime fan in your life!

Continue reading "Tezuka Chess"...

Astro Netbook Spotted on Video

Hey, remember that limited edition Astro Boy themed netbook computer from Taiwan? Here's a video of it, along with a good look at the included accessories from a recent computing expo.



The price is set at a rather high the equivalent of $900 US. Ouch! For that much money it had better be powered with real working blue core! Still, the unit and all the stuff that goes with it sure is cool, especially the tin case!

Source: Netbook News

Continue reading "Astro Netbook Spotted on Video"...

Astro Netbook

Check out this Astro Boy themed Netbook Computer, available in Taiwan for about $616. It's got a 10.1 inch screen (1024 x 600), 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 CPU, 1GB of RAM, 160GB hard drive, 802.11b/g WiFi and Windows XP Home.

Several accessories are also available, including a portable hard drive, mp3 player, DVD burner, USB drive, and more. Check out the whole works here.

Source: liliputing.com

Continue reading "Astro Netbook"...

New Stuff!

It's one day before the release of the Astro Boy movie. And it's a decent enough day, too. The wait has become slightly more bearable. Look what I found waiting for me on my doorstep.

Expect reviews sometime in the next week or so, right here on ABW!

Continue reading "New Stuff!"...

Astro Happy Meal Toys

Here's a preview of the Astro Boy Happy Meal toys. These will be released through McDonald's in the US sometime soon if they haven't been already. Not sure about other countries but it's possible.


You can see more detail on HappyMeal.com, including the action features of each of these individual toys.

Looks like fun for the whole family. That Blasting Astro should be perfect for shooting little sisters. I can only imagine the war zone that will result with these things.

Continue reading "Astro Happy Meal Toys"...

Astro Boy Books

Now here's a cool example of Astro Boy getting coverage from all sorts of sources.

School Library Journal has a features called "Watch and Read: Spotlight on Media Tie-ins", and their latest entry is an article focusing on Astro Boy books, including the children's publications, IDW comics, and the original manga. This article comes from the perspective of school librarians and educators, so it's quite interesting to see such a thing.

You can read "Rocketing Back to Fame: Astro Boy" on School Library Journal Most, if not all, of these books featured in this article should be released by now, so check 'em out at your local book stores or on the AstroBoy World Store.

Continue reading "Astro Boy Books"...

The Wind-Up

Take a look at these Astro Boy Tin wind-up toys.

They certainly look retro, but make no mistake, these are brand new! Just check out this variation based on Astro's appearance in the 2009 animated movie.



Source: Museum of Shanghai Toys

Continue reading "The Wind-Up"...

Toys are Out!

Thanks to the main man himself, director David Bowers, take a look at this shelf shot from Toys R Us, stocked with Astro Boy movie action figures by Jazwares.


These should be hitting mass retail any day now if they haven't already. Keep an eye open, and if you happen to buy any, let me know how you like 'em!

Continue reading "Toys are Out!"...

Hot Toys' Astro Vinyl + Collectible Figures

A good detailed look at non-final versions of the exciting products from Hot Toys based on the Astro Boy CG movie can be found here.

Shown at the right, we now know that the diorama figure is 12.5 inches tall, has some limited articulation, and is made of vinyl. This figure is looking like a real winner.

And here are the specs for the other product, the fully articulated Astro Boy collectible figure.

- Approximately 9 inches tall
- Over 22 points of articulation
- 2 sets of interchangeable posing hands
- Open chest with positive "blue" energy inside
- Battery-operated illuminated eyes for X-ray vision mode
- Interchangeable arm cannons
- Interchangeable rocket boots
- Figure display base featured with Astro Boy movie logo.

The final products are subject to change, but these shots really show off that they are on the right track and set to do some great things with the Astro Boy movie license.

Continue reading "Hot Toys' Astro Vinyl + Collectible Figures"...