ToyLanta 2026!

It’s time once again for ToyLanta!

I’ll be attending the convention all weekend and, as usual, doing a daily report right here! I’ll also be hosting the annual Transformers panel with Dusty — if you’re at the show, please come by and join in! The panel will be Sunday at 2pm!

Be sure to check out my Instagram for photos from the show, and don’t forget to check back here daily for updates as the weekend unfolds!

Friday – I got a late start heading to the show for the first day thanks to traffic (ug, driving through Atlanta) arriving just before 7pm. This left me a little time to check in (Hi Brett!) and and check out the Friday preview. ToyLanta has really grown to a HUGE show, so I hardly had time to check out around 1/4th of the lower show floor before it was time to leave. Fortunately I made the most of that time and enjoyed myself greatly.

There were many cool toy companies on hand and I found myself having some great conversations. While checking out things, I ran into Jerry. Jerry is a great guy and it's always good to see him. We chatted some about Transformers Cybertron before heading about to check out more of the show. I look forward to seeing him more later. I also made a new friend Garry who was setting up one really awesome booth. He had a ton of Transformers including a plentiful amount of Blokees and a great Unicron display. Speaking of Blokees, there was SO MANY! I was in heaven... will be buying so many.

One thing that absolutely floored me was the amount of people enjoying my stickers. The Mrs had gotten me a thermal printer at Christmas and I designed a new sticker to hand out for Zone Base. Well, I brought a little over 60 (in multiple colors) in my Shin-Chan pouch to hand out and... they were gone in minutes! I saw people sticking them on their bags, their phones, everywhere! Talk about flattering.

After roaming around after the dealer preview closed for a little bit I headed home for the night. I had stopped by Kroger to pick the Mrs up a few things before heading home and parked next to an SUV completely full of trash. Well, it looked like trash. Tons of crap.. and boxes of pho. Weird. After heading home I enjoyed some pizza and TV with the Mrs before printing out more stickers for Saturday.

I printed out 120-130 more (in various colors) while the Mrs cut them out. The Shin-Chan pouch is full again! Well, it's late as I'm writing this on my phone in bed with MXC on in the background. Time to get some sleep, there's a whole weekend of Toylanta ahead of me... and I'm excited.

My haul for Friday is was a Servo from Super Human Samurai Cyber Squad/Gridman and a purle keshi of the Last Seeker that comes with a mini-comic. It was originally a BotCon 2022 exclusive, so that's neat to own. The Last Seeker had a booth with the main toy available in multiple colors. I'm deciding which one to get as it's pretty tempting in each option. Also Warlords of Wor have an excellent booth (as usual) and I've got my work cut out for me picking what I want. Decisions, decisions.

Saturday – I got to the show around 12pm starting my day not terribly long after the show's start. I ran into Mike and Judy in the parking garage as we were taking pictures of our parking locations to remember for later. The day is actually something of a blurr, so I'll just give highlights.

David Faustino was a con guest for Saturday only, leading to Bud Bundy delivering many of the convention announcements. I stuck around to see his autograph session begin with a guy dressed as Al Bundy who brought a replica of the Bundy couch for the two to sit on for a picture. Later after I had went to put my hoodie in my car, I saw the guy carrying the couch out of the convention center. Dude just brought a couch with him.

Speaking of guests, Daniel Pesnia and Anthony Marquez who were in the original Mortal Kombat games were guests at the show (among other esteemed folks). By chance I was wearing a cool Mortal Kombat t-shirt the Mrs had given me. As I walked past them, Daniel Pesnia stepped to me to tell me he liked my shirt and introduce himself. We totally shook hands and exchanged pleasantries for a bit. Johnny Cage is a very nice guy. 

I ran into Jerry again who had friends in tow whoms names I can't currently remember (sorry guys, it was cool talking with you). I also ran into Matt whom I befriended at the 2024 show and never saw last year. I'm looking forward to catching up with him tomorrow! I also chatted some with 2M3D Prints whom I had bought some cool dragons for the Mrs from in 2023.

I also met Team No Sleep 3D and bought some cute stuff for the Mrs. That was a real treat as they work in special effects for movies and TV. It was cool talking with them, especially as that was something I wanted to do as a kid. Speaking of new friends, I met Rise of the Nexus a husband and wife duo whom were showcasing their new action figure/table top game system. Really cool people whom I enjoyed speaking with.

Of course I made time to chat with Gary some more whom I met Friday. Seriously cool dude. I also enjoyed chatting with others whom were working with him at their booth, an all around great group of people. Of course I made a point to say hi to Brett, the organizer of Toylanta whenever I saw him. He's doing an excellent job with the show and has taken it to all new heights. It's really impressive just how big this convention has gotten.

As for toys I bought today, first I picked up one of the full Last Seeker in Euro G2 colors. It looks fabulous and had a hard time not getting the black version... but me and G2, it's a vibe. I also picked up a great Zombie Sci Fi guy set from Warlords of Wor with plans on getting a few more kits from him before the end of the show. Skeletron had a booth and I picked up the new Red Shadows figure that they debuted at the show.

I picked up a Blokees Shining Edition  blind box from Gary's table. I opened it with some of the cool people at the table and got a Ratchet! I'll definitely pick up a few more from him tomorrow (and open them with my new friends). Speaking of Blokees, there was SO MANY at the show.

Some dealers even selling loose assembled figures, in which I picked up a Bombshell whom I've been looking to get. That completes the Insecticons, leading to a post Ive been wanting to write here for the site. Please look forward to that soon. I also picked up a Gobots Psycho for $15 in decent shape. I've been wanting a Psycho for sometime, so this was exciting. 

I headed home shortly after the dealer room closed for the evening very, very tired. According to my Galaxy Watch I've walked almost 8,000 steps today (cons are WORK). The Mrs had a sandwich from Subway waiting for me as well as a birthday cake and presents! Monday is my birthday and she made a point to celebrate with me today as a way of making the con even more special.

I won't go every gift, but there was Transformers and He-Man toys. A new pair of ramen noodle sandals, a new pair of Hey Dudes (my favorite shoes), a case for my Atari Gamestation Go, a Godzilla sticker, some awesome Jada Godzilla figures, Zoids, and another box of color sticker paper for my sticker printer.

Those stickers were just as popular today and people were proudly representing Zone Base. That's so flattering and amazing for me personally. I don't have the biggest social media presence, but I take notice of the sites views. Several thousands of you come out each week and read my site and it's so flattering and awesome. However actually seeing people happily taking my stickers and proudly displaying them is something I never imagined. Seriously, thank you everyone. Your support means so much to me.

We've got just one more day of Toylanta 2026 left and I'm both excited for another day and sad there's just one day left. This has definitely been one for the history books. I've actually been extremely overwhelmed latley and this weekend being pure exhilaration has been amazing. Just a heads up, the Sunday report may not be published until Monday morning. The Mrs and my Mom will be having my birthday dinner Sunday evening for me when I get home from the show. Seriously, best weekend ever.

There's a guy who looks like Adam the Woo (RIP) whom I keep seeing, I'm probably creeping him out.

Sunday – coming soon

Cliffjumper [AMK Mini Series 2]

There's one more Transformers AMK Mini from the Series 2 case I ordered that hasn't been talked about here yet — Cliffjumper, the brash Minibot who'll run headfirst into any situation ready to kick whoever's ass he needs to... no matter how much bigger they might be... which is usually 3/4 of the time.

Cliffjumper's original toy shares a skeleton with the original Bumblebee, making for two very similar-looking characters. In more recent years, Cliffjumper toys are generally direct repaints of Bumblebee toys. Funnily enough, this kit is completely original and doesn't reuse parts from the Mini Bumblebee from Series 1. All things considered, it would have been fair for them to do so... but that's how committed Yolopark seems to be to the improved articulation in Series 2.

Despite the two being so similar, efforts have been made over the years to differentiate their shape in some media. This Cliffjumper has a slightly different torso, for example. The improved articulation really shows here thanks to his admittedly simpler design (compared to the others in the series). He almost feels like an articulation demo, really putting it on display.

I've always liked Cliffjumper's red colors and can't help but enjoy this one quite a bit. He's got his big-ass bazooka that was introduced in the first episode of the original Transformers series — the one he seemingly just pulls out of his ass. All jokes aside, this is a great representation of Cliffjumper from Yolopark's extremely solid line of models.

Ralph X Rodan [TMNT X Godzilla]

So, if anything, the slightly random nature of the TMNT X Godzilla toys is part of the magic. Clearly there was going to be a Rodan, and since Raphael wears red, they’re a match. However, as a fan, I can’t just let it be that simple. See, Raphael (cool, but rude) has that infamous fiery temper. The Rodans not only died in a volcano in their debut movie, but Fire Rodan was introduced in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II, complete with the Uranium Heat Beam ability. The MonsterVerse Rodan was discovered in a volcano as well. See? Spiciness is implied… it works.

The merging of Rodan and Raphael also looks absolutely awesome. Admittedly, combining monsters and mutants is already a winning combination, but all of these designs have been great so far. I didn’t mention it in Mikey X King Ghidorah, but these figures have an excellent amount of articulation in addition to the detailed sculpting and strong coloring. Playmates makes awesome toys, and that’s on full display here.

I’ve always had a soft spot for Rodan thanks to that Shogun Warriors version I played with until it literally fell apart. And even though Michelangelo is my favorite turtle, there have been times when Raphael has taken that spot. Sometimes, when life gets hard and you’re mad at the world, you can relate.

I love how the wings are incorporated, and I really enjoy his trademark sai being enhanced with that fiery Uranium Heat Beam energy. This one really nails the concept and is sitting somewhere special in my heart.

Build Saga- Zoids Command Wolf RMZ-003 pt 1 [Realize Model]

I normally talk about models that come together pretty quickly here on the site. Even if it takes a few hours, it's pretty much done in a single session. However, I can't help but think about the Furai Model Rodimus Prime I posted about in November of last year. My normal build time is Sunday evening... and I find it a pretty great way to end the weekend. However, that Rodimus Prime took a few Sundays. I'd mention it in the Monday 'Weekly Updates', but didn't outright talk about it until I had finished the kit.

Which got me thinking — I'd like to talk more about the more intricate kits here as well... and, well, they take time to build, something I enjoy, believe it or not. It's very therapeutic. It also occurred to me, with the shift to more and more model talk on the site over the past few years (seriously, I've built them my entire life, why don't I focus more on them on a blog of all things?), that if I talk about the building process so much on a model post... why don't I make these long builds a multi-part so we can talk about the journey to the finished product? After all, each Sunday is its own story. So that's basically what we're starting here with our first Build Saga post — a look at those more intricate kits as they come along, with a goofy name... because obviously.

I've talked about Zoids here in the past, but this is going to be the first of their model kits I've covered. That's pretty exciting for me, as I've got a long history with Zoids going back to early childhood, assembling Robo Strux (what they called Zoids at the time here in the states) at the kitchen table with my older brother. I've never outgrown those memories, and it's obviously something that's shaped my life going forward. Countless times putting together things all stemming from those Robo Strux, or oddball models and toys that required assembly. Considering I program CNC machines for a living... clearly watching something come together is really fascinating to me. The last Zoids I built were some smaller Zoids Wild kits a few years ago, today's kit is much different. The newer Realize Model kits from Takara Tomy are a very neat line of models, more in line with something Bandai or Flame Toys would release. Starting with Zoids is a great idea, as they have always been models to begin with (for the most part), so it's a nice way to establish the series. It's also part of the T-Spark line, so I'm excited for whatever else finds its way into Realize Model.

Command Wolf is not the largest or most extensive kit. I'd like to think that I completed half, if not more than half of it, my first night working on it. However, there are a lot of parts on the sprues left, so I'm assuming the legs are going to be very time-consuming. Considering how heavily articulated the finished product will be, I'm anticipating spending a lot of time on them. Fortunately, the instructions are pleasantly large and nicely printed in a booklet, not the little slip of paper they sometimes can be. They're almost completely in Japanese, but clear enough that language isn't a barrier whatsoever. Mine came with two copies, and I'm not sure why, as they seem to be identical. Either it had an extra by accident, or they knew it was nice enough that you might want a pristine copy.

Command Wolf's primary colors are grey robot parts, with white making up the bulk of the wolf parts, while black and orange are sprinkled in. It's really sharp looking. However, an early challenge raised its head. Not only did I buy a new hobby knife, but I also found my long-missing one, and some other cutting tools have been acquired, meaning I've been a little extra when shaving down the excess plastic the sprues leave behind after using nippers. The hobby knives are basically little razor blades, so they make short work of removing the excess... but also... I poked my thumb with the tip of the blade while trimming. Nothing major, other than some cussing, but now I'm bleeding while handling white plastic. I really should have put some liquid skin on the wound and stopped it in its tracks, but now that we're entering spring, my skin is finally not splitting open from the cold, and I've liquid-skinned my hands all winter... I just don't want to do it anymore. Also, I didn't want to worry the Mrs., who's reasonably nervous around things like a razor blade... I mean... some idiot could just cut himself.

It wasn't serious, either. However, I didn't want to stain any of that white plastic, so extra care while handling was needed. Talk about making things difficult for yourself. It's worth noting that awesome amount of articulation the finished product will have, because the parts I got assembled were already showing a bit of that off. What was assembled was the wolf's head and neck, the torso, as well as the gun pod, some exhaust pipes, and the tail. It was pretty neat putting that head and neck together, as it can bend all over the place. Pretty impressive to notice the articulation in what's essentially a severed head. Something tells me Realize Model is going to be something really special.

The plastic quality is pretty good, on par with its contemporaries, though there are a few parts I found interesting. The polycaps that are pretty standard on Zoids seem to be a completely different material and not the pleasant rubbery little bits I associate with the brand. However, there are a few parts on one sprue made from a more rubbery material that serve various functions. For example, some balls that worked as connectors, but oddly also as a gasket. Very interesting. There also doesn't seem to be any pilot figures that I've noticed yet. The cockpits are smaller than traditional Zoids, so it's understandable, but the absence is impossible to ignore. I can't tell you how many of those Robo Strux pilots got behind the wheels of my G1 Autobots. That being said, I did have a little trouble putting the cockpit's control mechanism in place — it is especially tiny.

*I totally discovered the pilots after writing this.*

Next Sunday I plan to assemble the legs and whatever else. I want to assume that will finish the kit, but there were several more steps left in the instructions, so we'll just have to see.