News

After our latest MOTU episode and before we hurl ourselves into the preparations for our special SDCC episodes, we would like present to you a regular edition of 💫 NEUES AUS DEM FIGUREN UNIVERSUM 💫. Sven and Eva have picked a colorful mix of highlights from the new pre-order and in-stock items of the past few weeks. Among the themes are of course regulars like Marvel, DC and the Turtles. But we've also got collectibles of total cult figures like Lucky Luke, Elvira and Nosferatu as well as the latest Mythic Legions wave on top 🥳!

NADFU episode 17 is out on YouTube now:
https://youtu.be/g3e8gL2w32E
 

After a wait of a few months, Warner Bros. have just served us another trailer for the highly anticipated »Joker: Folie à Deux« on their YouTube channels. And this new appetizer is definitely making us crave more!

The compilation shows us some new images. It becomes clear that the film will, among other things, shed light on Arthur's trial and the role played by his admirers in Gotham, who make him a symbolic figure and do everything to free him. But they're not the only ones who have fallen for the Joker ...

This trailer once again impresses us with great images, amazing performances from Lady Gaga and especially Joaquin Phoenix, and atmospheric musical accompaniment - including first glimpses of musical performances by the two main actors. We can hardly wait until »Joker: Folie à Deux« finally opens in cinemas in early October. How about you?
https://youtu.be/_OKAwz2MsJs

The week's kick-off was - in a positive sense - turbulent, especially for the 1/6 collectors out there, because HOT TOYS made a big buzz again on their own social media channels and posted a flyer with 9 (!) new releases - WOW!!!

The biggest surprise surely (and finally!) is a »Joker« implementation for the movie of the same name with Joaquin Phoenix. The figure will be available in a regular version and as an Artisan Edition. In our opinion, this one is immediately followed by the Artisan Edition of the »Iron Man 2« Black Widow figure. Just stunning how good Scarlett Johansson is captured here. No less exciting will be the Artisan Edition of Tom Holland as Iron Spider from »Avengers: Endgame«. It seems that this one will also be available as a regular version.

Furthermore, we can look forward to an Iron Man Mark XLII (2.0), a battle-damaged Darth Vader and a General Grievous! And last but not least - if you look close enough - one announcement was still veiled: another Wolverine, probably from another time stamp from »Deadpool 3« ...

Folks, wasn't that a damn good starter to the 1/6 section of this year's San Diego Comic Con?! We are thrilled to see which prototypes from this line-up will be shown by Sideshow during their in-house online-con in the next couple of days. Stay tuned!

As of today, you can watch the sixth season of »Cobra Kai« on Netflix. The fans are looking forward to this event with mixed feelings: on the one hand, it's nice that the successful series is returning after almost two years. On the other hand, it means that we will soon have to say goodbye to Lawrence and LaRusso. Because season 6 will also be the last!

And apparently Netflix wants to make the farewell as unpleasant as possible for the fans: the 15 episodes of the final season will be broadcast in three parts with five episodes each. Episodes 1 to 5 are dropping today. On November 28th we'll get to see episodes 6 to 10 and the rest sometime in 2025. In what way this is supposed to contribute to the enjoyment of the series probably remains Netflix's secret. 

So maybe fans would be well advised to postpone watching the final season until next year. In the meantime you could enjoy the already released episodes again. Or you can surrender to the retro hype and dive into the origins of the franchise: 40 years ago in the summer, »Karate Kid« was released in cinemas - a piece of film history that aroused interest in martial arts and Japanese culture in the West.

Take a look at the trailer for »Cobra Kai Season 6: Part 1«:
https://youtu.be/m0aa_JaA-c8

Will you start watching season 6 of »Cobra Kai« right away or wait until all episodes are available?

»Twister« is a disaster film from 1996, with a prominent cast including Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton and Philip Seymour Hoffman. The movie received mixed reviews but did well at the box office and inspired many storm chasers and meteorologists.

Bill Paxton always wanted to make a sequel to the film. It was already planned in 2012 but the film failed due to budgeting concerns. Paxton sadly died in 2017. Right now, a sequel titled »Twisters« is hitting cinemas. However, it has nothing to do with the Paxton project.

Once again, the film tells the story of storm chasers, played by Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell, Anthony Ramos and Brandon Perea. Even though, according to first reviews, the emotional beats work and we can root for the characters, as in the original, the storms and the special effects are the real stars. Bill Paxton would probably be proud of such a film.

Sometimes it seems as if the writers of big studios are running out of ideas. The current film and series landscape is teeming with rehashed franchises that never seem to end and a flood of sequels and remakes. Of course, there are films that are a bit aged and could do with a facelift, but there are also timeless classics that the studios would be better off keeping their hands off.

One of these cult classics is »Time Bandits« by Terry Gilliam from 1981. Apple TV+ is now turning it into a 10-part series under the leadership of New Zealanders Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi. Last week, a trailer for the series dropped, which will premiere on the streaming service on July 24th.

But is it a good idea? As of this writing, the trailer has received 3,977 likes and 25,287 dislikes:
https://youtu.be/BCA9jpc4R74

What's immediately noticeable in the trailer is that, unlike in the original, the Time Bandits in the series are not dwarves. Of course, you don't want to step on anyone's toes and be accused of being insensitive. Replacing the dwarves with pre-emptive obedience (even though you can actually see some in the trailer at minute 1:41) unintentionally catapulted Apple and the showrunners into the eye of the storm of the current culture war.

The dwarf debate started with a comment from Peter Dinklage (»Game of Thrones«) in a podcast. He criticized the upcoming live-action adaptation of »Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs«: "You're progressive in one way but you're still making that f***ing backward story of seven dwarves living in the cave. What the f**k are you doing, man?"

Disney, always striving for moral superiority, reacted promptly and replaced the dwarves with seven magical beings, normal-sized and diverse. This triggered an unprecedented shitstorm and the dwarves returned in animated form.

But wrestler Dylan Postl shows that there is another perspective in a talk show on Sky News Australia. According to Postl, the casting of Snow White wasn't about stereotypes - "These are roles made for actors of my stature."

Terry Gilliam is also said to be not particularly enthusiastic about the new »Time Bandits« series. He visited the New Zealand set and was apparently massively disappointed with the entire production. "He wasn’t happy", said an insider. "He kept groaning and making remarks. Terry was supposed to be there for two weeks but he left after three days."

Taika Waititi's often infantile humor is not well received by everyone either. He didn't make many friends in the Marvel fandom with his two Thor adventures.

These are all indications that explain the massive backlash towards the series adaptation. But if we look at the trailer with some distance, we can also discover a few really nice gags. So let's see in a week or so whether the series is any good or whether it's going to be a disappointment.

»Despicable Me 4« is hitting cinemas right now and finally bringing you another load of Minions, crazy villains and … desperate fathers? Over time, Gru has turned his back on the side of the bad guys and, in addition to his three adoptive daughters, he now bears responsibility for the baby Gru Jr. After a class reunion, where he meets his greatest enemy, the baby disappears without a trace. With Gru's wife Lucy and five mutated Mega Minions, the team is complete and ready to ruin the kidnapper's plans.

The 2022 summer blockbuster »Minions: The Rise of Gru« earned almost $1 billion worldwide and has made the franchise one of the biggest in the history of animated movies. It's no wonder the fans can't wait for the next chapter of the main series. The trailer for »Despicable Me 4« already promises wild fun for viewers of any age:
https://youtu.be/LtNYaH61dXY

It's that time again! Two weeks from now, the preview night will kick off this year's SAN DIEGO COMIC CON.

The event of the year for world premieres of breathtaking collectibles, for film news, trailer premieres and exciting panels with the stars of popular films and series will take place again this year as usual. No pandemic, no writers' or actors' strike. San Diego will once again become the great Geekopolis!

For us, it has been a beloved tradition for years to scour the internet in search of hot news and new, amazing collectibles. As per tradition, our Mick will also make the journey to the S.P.A.C.E Headquarters. Together we will provide you with all the breaking news during the convention, which we will present to you this year in the form of some special episodes of our NEUES AUS DEM FIGUREN UNIVERSUM format on our YouTube channel. The wires to overseas will be running hot as well to get you some exclusives and, of course, we also hope that we will succeed in getting some exclusive booth tours for you.

Sideshow will once again not be there this year and will instead be streaming their own virtual con from their own home studio. Of course, we will also summarize the highlights from Sideshow for you. We are looking forward to a few exciting days and to your feedback!

We've seen more and more films recently getting a sequel after a long break. Sometimes they're definitely worth seeing, sometimes the result is rather dubious.

And so »Gladiator« is about to go into the second round after 24 years. The brand new trailer for »Gladiator II« uses a story of memories to link to the first part. And according to the motto "Everything has to be a bit bigger in the second part", there's a sea battle in the Colosseum and a wild gallop on a rhinoceros. The trailer already has a lot to offer:
https://youtu.be/4rgYUipGJNo

Paul Mescal (the now grown-up Lucius) and Pedro Pascal cut a fine figure as gladiators, Denzel Washington already has an incredible presence while pulling the strings and Connie Nielsen once again ensures continuity with the predecessor in the role of Lucilla.

We're excited to see whether Ridley Scott can build on the success of the first »Gladiator«. In any case, this is a film for the big screen. »Gladiator II« is expected to hit theaters in November 2024.

Have you already seen the teaser for »Agatha All Along«? It was dropped yesterday and gives us a first impression of the new series, which is part of phase 5 of the MCU.

In the spin-off to »WandaVision«, Kathryn Hahn once again takes on the role of the evil witch Agatha Harkness. After being trapped in the town of Westview at the end of that series, she manages to escape in »Agatha All Along« but loses her powers on the way. Together with a teenager (Joe Locke) she sets out on the "Witches' Road" to regain her magical powers. But she is also dependent on the help of a newly formed coven of witches (including Patti LuPone, among others).

After a significant postponement of the release, which was actually supposed to take place in 2023, we finally have certainty: the series will be released this September on Disney+. The true title of the series was also a mystery for a long time. With new names like »Agatha: House Of Harkness«, »Agatha: Coven Of Chaos«, »Agatha: Darkhold Diaries« or »Agatha: The Lying Witch With Great Wardrobe«, the series was a topic of conversation. Now the actual title has been revealed - »Agatha All Along«, based on the song of the same name with which the villain in »WandaVision« revealed her misdeeds.

You can watch the teaser here:
https://youtu.be/ARulRbzM7Jw

Are you looking forward to the series?

Given our anticipation of »Deadpool & Wolverine«, which opens in cinemas at the end of the month, it’s almost a given that the two of them will grace our postcard in July 😍.

Above all, of course, we hope for a good portion of action, which Pascal has already captured brilliantly for us in this picture - thank you very much for that! The motif shows the Deadpool S.H.Figuarts figure from the anti-hero's first film by Tamashii Nations and a Kitbash Wolverine Marvel Legends figure from Hasbro with custom head and claws after a proper bloodbath. Take a look at all the figures you can spot on the battlefield in the background 🤔!

Will »Deadpool & Wolverine« also be your cinema highlight of the summer? Then secure your free copy of this card! You will receive them with every package we send to you in July. And be sure to check out Pascal's account too 😄!

A few days ago, Bandai Namco has announced the game »BLEACH Rebirth of Souls«, in which you can play the original story of Ichigo Kurosaki from the manga/anime »Bleach«. It will be released on PS4/PS5, Xbox and PC. The first trailer shows the well-known characters and a little bit of the actual gameplay in animated cartoon-like graphic:
https://youtu.be/B0XoOx8kTEk

The story of the game follows the original one by mangaka Tite Kubo, who, with his manga »Bleach« in 2001, created a world in which parallel dimensions exist. The so-called Shinigami are a part of it as well. By meeting Rukia Kuchiki, the 15-year-old student Ichigo receives the powers of a Shinigami to fight against the hollows in her place. The music is composed by Takeharu Ishimoto, who's already known for his soundtracks to some »Final Fantasy« spin-offs.

Unfortunately, there is no specific release date yet. But you can soothe your anticipation as diehard »Bleach« fans with the "Ichigo Kurosaki My Ultimate Bust" by Tsume:
https://www.space-figuren.de/Animes-Mangas/Others/Ichigo-Kurosaki-My-Ultimate-Bust-Bleach::23225.html?language=en

Since »Metropolis« (1927), cinema has been dealing with the topic of artificial intelligence, sometimes more and sometimes less intensively. Thanks to applications such as Alexa, ChatGPT and Midjourney, AI has now also arrived in the mainstream and is accessible to ordinary citizens. Movies have already reflected this cultural change with works such as »M3GAN« or »The Creator« (both released in 2023). Since stories about AI are never complete without discussing potential dangers on top of all its merits, horror movies are an excellent way to deal with the topic and celebrate horror scenarios.

And it is precisely this goal that the new film by Blumhouse Productions titled »Afraid« seems to pursue: a family is chosen to test a new and revolutionary household appliance. AIA is a digital assistant that promises to improve the lives of its owners. She takes care, for example, of paying bills or reading stories to the children. Soon AIA begins to influence the behaviour of individual family members by awarding points (this concept is called gamification). But it doesn't stop there: if you mistreat the family you can expect deadly retaliation.

We are looking forward to the latest horror film from Blumhouse. In particular, the fact that AIA seems like a mixture of Alexa and M3GAN arouses our interest. In the trailer, a deviation from the expected AI horror genre conventions is also hinted at. It's quite possible that AIA is more than a mere artificial intelligence with murderous intent:
https://youtu.be/LE5QzD_qtxs

»Afraid« will be released in cinemas this August.

There's another film to celebrate! 30 years ago tomorrow, Forrest Gump came to US cinemas. The history of the United States from the 1950s to the 1970s is told from the perspective of a holy fool. The boy from Alabama with an IQ of just 75 takes part in major events in world history, meets celebrities and presidents and loves his girl Jenny ...

The film was nominated for 13 Oscars and won 6 Golden Boys. »Forrest Gump« was named "Best Film", Tom Hanks won "Best Actor" and Robert Zemeckis won the Oscar for "Best Director". It also received the award for "Best Adapted Screenplay", "Best Editing" and "Best Special Effects".

The film is a real stroke of genius that has lost none of its fascination even today, a film that makes us laugh and moves us to tears in equal measure. Always beautiful and heartwarming!

As a reminder, here is the trailer again:
https://youtu.be/bLvqoHBptjg

And if you're in the mood for the film now, you can find it on Netflix.

Hollywood is a haven of dreams. A place of longing that has produced so many world stars. If you want to make it in show business, you have to go to Hollywood. That's why porn actress Maxine Minx (Mia Goth) moves there in 1985. Behind her lies a nightmare, the so-called "Texas Pornhouse Massacre". She's the sole survivor and hopes that in Hollywood she will finally find the happiness that has been withheld from her for so long. But her dark past sticks to her like a curse: a private detective, who investigates the events in her past, pursues her at every turn. And then a serial killer named Night Stalker also declares the city his hunting ground ...

After »X« and »Pearl«, Ti West's trilogy concludes with »MaXXXine«. Since the predecessors were able to convince fans and critics, the question arises whether the third part will now succeed as well. Judging by the trailer, fans of the 80s aesthetic in particular will get their money's worth. With regards to music and optics, West leaves no doubt that staging this era apparently was great fun for him. It will also be interesting to see to what extent the Night Stalker refers to the historical serial killer Richard Ramirez. Did they only use the name or did they actually mix the real criminal case with the fictional events?

We are thrilled and looking forward to another stunning performance by Mia Goth, who built a monument for herself with »Pearl«. »MaXXXine« is hitting theaters right now. Here's the trailer:
https://youtu.be/Y4GMm2-44-4

What do you think about »MaXXXine«?

40 years after the first film's release, which is remembered as an absolute classic of 80s cinema, Eddie Murphy returns as Axel Foley in the 4th installment of »Beverly Hills Cop«.

After the first two hits and a lackluster third part, plans for a fourth film were announced in 2014. At first, the cinematic release was set for 2016, but those plans were dropped and the film was stuck in development hell for years. Now, we're finally getting »Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F.« on Netflix.

Axel Foley is still working as a cop in Detroit. A good friend warns him that his daughter is in danger and is murdered shortly after. The clues lead Foley back to Beverly Hills. His old friends Detective Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and John Taggart (John Ashton) help him investigate and they uncover a conspiracy which even reaches into the Beverly Hills Police Department ...

We are thrilled to see the Beverly Hills Cop's new action-comedy and hope that Eddie Murphy can reach new heights in his old role. Are you just as excited as we are? Then you can watch »Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F.« on Netflix:
https://youtu.be/KoxhkE_U3Ww

There are plenty of films that deal with the Vietnam War. All of them have one thing in common: they are always told from an American perspective. The Pulitzer Prize-winning novel »The Sympathizer« by Viet Thanh Nguyen is different, as it is told from a Vietnamese point of view.

Pay-TV broadcaster HBO and production studio A24, two celebrated big players in the film and series business that immediately make us sit up and take notice, have now adapted the novel into a seven-part series under the leadership of director Park Chan-wook, known for masterpieces such as »Oldboy« and »The Handmaiden«. But what is this mix of spy thriller and satire actually about?

A young man, called "The Captain" (Hoa Xuande), son of a Vietnamese mother and a French priest, born in Vietnam and educated at an American college, is an adjutant to a South Vietnamese intelligence general (Toan Le). In reality, he is a dedicated communist and works as a mole for the North Vietnamese army in South Vietnam in the last days of the war. In 1975, Saigon falls and the general flees into American exile. The captain accompanies him to continue spying there …

His American opponents are all played by Robert Downey Jr., who, as a CIA agent, university professor, politician and film producer, delivers four portraits of American arrogance.

The seven-part miniseries »The Sympathizer« is currently airing on Sky Atlantic and is also available on demand. To get you in the mood, here is the trailer: https://youtu.be/47dRkhiERpE

A few days ago, A24 released the first trailer for »Heretic«, a horror film starring British actor Hugh Grant, which is set to be released this fall. While he's mostly known for romantic comedies such as »Love Actually« or »Bridget Jones's Diary«, Grant already shows us how well his new role suits him in the trailer:
https://youtu.be/O9i2vmFhSSY

Two young Mormon missionaries (Sophie Thatcher & Chloe East) are desperately trying to convert people to their faith, when they unwittingly knock on the wrong door. After they've entered, the atmosphere darkens. Something is definitely wrong with Mr. Reed (Hugh Grant). But before the two religious sisters can save themselves from his secret, they become involved in a cat-and-mouse game which tests their faith.

In 2022, Matt Reeves steered the Batman universe into a new direction with his film »The Batman«. Actor Robert Pattinson interprets the Dark Knight as a mentally broken character, who threatens to fall apart as a result of his forced double-life. And when an apparent serial killer lunatic called The Riddler begins to terrorize the citizens of Gotham, the already dramatic situation escalates further.

Ever since his first appearance, Batman has been shown in various different interpretations. There were a lot of very comicesque, over-the-top and colorful versions. »The Batman« is the antithesis: It's dirty, dark and hopeless. There's neither room for cool one-liners nor for exuberant action scenes. Instead, we experience a grief-ridden Batman doing classic and strenuous detective work in a neo-noir setting.

Hot Toys excellently displays this exact atmosphere and character interpretation in this figure: You can present the Dark Knight with or without a cape and even with a wingsuit. Special praise needs to be given for the unmasked head sculpt: Robert Pattinson's likeness has been captured in detail. This makes the 1/6 Scale Batman in the Deluxe Version our very deserving 💥 Product of the Month 💥 in July 2024!