Barbie vs Bratz: Mattel sues MGA, claiming the Bratz designs were created by a Mattel employee and smuggled to its rival.
posted on May 5, 2008 - View this thread

Superstar Scottish comics writer Grant Morrison is about to tear the DC Universe apart again with Final Crisis, the latest in a series of apocalypses and world ending events he's inflicted on various comics worlds over the years. But there was a time before fame when he wrote the tie-in comic for ZOIDS, the robot dinosaur children's toy. So what did he do? Ushered in the apocalypse, in the form of THE BLACK ZOID.
posted on Apr 17, 2008 - View this thread

Cool. Cooler. Awesome! Using Lego bricks as a medium to design chess sets seems absolutely logical to anybody that grew up playing with them. Fans have gone low-tech, the inevitable Star Wars, and a few more. Lego offers a virtual cowboys-and-indians version as well.
posted on Apr 14, 2008 - View this thread

New Security Blanket, Stat! What do you do if you're a parent and your darling child's favorite toy has been worn down to nothing? Or perhaps you're thinking ahead and want a "backup binky?" You start a "Lost Lovies" thread, of course. Think of it as a hive mind for real desperate housewives looking for something better than a creative explanation as to why Sprinkles the Cow is suddenly MIA.
posted on Apr 14, 2008 - View this thread

Toys - 59,237 of them. This group is about collecting photographic evidence that toys get up to things when people are not around. Well, not just that - It is also simply a space to collect good images of toys for everyone to enjoy. (via dorian)
posted on Apr 2, 2008 - View this thread

Bantha slippers. Han Solo in Carbonite Mini-Fridge. And the Death Star Grill. ("Use the awesome power of the galaxy's most fearsome battlestation to send burning fear into rebel scum burgers and franks!") Just a few rejected designs for Star Wars merchandise. [Via].
posted on Mar 12, 2008 - View this thread

Ready, kids! Unsatisfied with your kids slow adoption of very important homeland security adjustments? Buy them the Playmobil Security Check Point! How does this stack up against increased TSA checks of toys?
posted on Feb 27, 2008 - View this thread

Floor Games. H.G. Wells and miniature gaming.
posted on Feb 10, 2008 - View this thread

I come to praise Wham-O, not bury it. Despite the recent death of Wham-O cofounder Richard Knerr, coming a half-decade after the death of hos partner Arthur "Spud" Melin, let us not mourn. Instead, let us remember what Wham-O gave the world.
posted on Jan 17, 2008 - View this thread

You probably thought all those wooden toys and Nutcrackers from your local version of the KrisKindlMarkt were made in Bavaria. But wooden toys from Germany were an economic engine that supported a large percentage of the population of the Deutsche Democratische Repulic. In fact, people in the DDR were not allowed to own these toys, they were all made for export to the west. You can still find "Unter dem Tisch" (secret, illegal) collections in towns like Dippoldiswalde in the Erzgebirge mountains on the Czech border.
posted on Jan 11, 2008 - View this thread

DDR-Modell Autos.info meticulously catalogs radio controlled and flywheel powered cars made by East German (DDR) toy makers such as Presu, Elmes, MSW, Anker, Piko, Gevo, Plasticart and Sommermeyer.
posted on Jan 7, 2008 - View this thread

Presstube.com has lots of curious and attractive projects, but none as mind-bendingly awesome (and crotchful) as CROTCHY. (NSFW? NSF Anyone?) Previously.
posted on Nov 20, 2007 - View this thread

The 25 Most Baffling Toys From Around the World
posted on Nov 18, 2007 - View this thread

Straight from China, new for this Christmas shopping season! Tire of hearing noisy children? Wish there was a way to quite them down, but chloroforming isn't your style? Buy them AQUA DOTS! (Bindeez Beans if Australian) The only (hopefully) play toy that comes covered in GHB. Another fine product from Outsourcing!
posted on Nov 8, 2007 - View this thread

We'll Fight for Freedom, Wherever there's Trouble... CNN pundit Glenn Beck (as well as Canada's National Post] criticizes G.I. Joe, or more appropriately, the in-production live-action movie [IMDB] of the same name, and the manufacturer of the multi-generational toy-line, Hasbro. Beck cited the IMDB page, which stated that GIJOE was a "European-based military unit known as Global Integrated Joint Operating Entity (G.I.J.O.E.), a hi-tech, international force of special operatives, takes on an evil organization led by a notorious arms dealer." He further added that the change amounted to JOE being ineffectual pansies, like the UN, and that "[He believes] some are trying to indoctrinate our kids into hating their own country, turning us into some one-world-government nightmare; hating America, turning it into a dirty word."
posted on Nov 1, 2007 - View this thread

Junior General is intended to promote the use of historical simulations as a tool for teaching history by providing free resources that anyone can use. To go with their teaching scenarios they make available thousands of paper solders for download and printing. Everything from stone age primatives thru Myceneans, Confederate gunboats to US Iraq infantry and futuristic Cyber Assault Droids. Also available are accessories like castles, houses, trenches, battering rams and hangers.
posted on Oct 31, 2007 - View this thread

25 Photos from a Toy Factory in China.
posted on Oct 4, 2007 - View this thread

Before there were videogames, growing up in England in the late 1960s though the 70's we had Action Transfers. The Letraset company branched off its division of hand set rub-on transfer fonts into full blown action scenes, with Cowboys & Indians, famous historical battles, Vikings, natural disasters & more. This collector has dozens of sets, scanned in high resolution & never used.
posted on Sep 30, 2007 - View this thread

If you're itching to spend your hard-earned money on a Little Mermaid lollipop (or paddle ball), a Gene Simmons Plasma Light, an Emo Girls doll, a Caddy Shack gopher, Barbie's pooping dog, South Park's Mr. Hankey, an Insultinator, or other strange and silly products, check out Mike Mozart's collection of fun reviews first. [YouTube videos, approx. 2 to 3 mins. each]
posted on Sep 12, 2007 - View this thread

Toy art: tribal scooters, spider car, little animal robots out of broken electrical parts, a color changing house designed by a 14 year old boy, of wood, wind-up, MunkyKing, Ugly Dolls, out of beer cans, with balloons, Cute Things, artoyz, toys from trash, tiny knitted dolls clothes and accessories, vintage and retro at Tick Tock Toys.
posted on Jul 7, 2007 - View this thread

Many Mefi members have wondered about how they should get from their private island to friends' private islands. Finally, SeaFalcon provides an answer. They have a built a wonderful vehicle that exploits ground effects to provide a rapid, efficient way to island hop. via
posted on Jun 14, 2007 - View this thread

Tiny Ninja Theatre does Macbeth at the National Center for the Performing Arts to raves.
posted on Jun 12, 2007 - View this thread

A Gallery of Rubik's Cube Mosaics. Here's the index as well. (via)
posted on Jun 6, 2007 - View this thread

It's perhaps in the nature of humanity — or at the very least, modern-day culture — to marvel at, and share news about, our more hateful aspects. It's nice to know that there are moments out there that you can accidentally stumble across that prove to you that mankind has perhaps some innate goodness in it, as well. (Sorry for the unicorn fluffiness; we now return you to your regularly scheduled Metafilter programming, already in progress.)
posted on Apr 13, 2007 - View this thread

An Open Letter to Devs: "Minigame compilations. How many of these games can we possibly be expected to buy? On my Wii alone, I've already gone through Rayman Raving Rabbids, Super Monkey Ball, Warioware and Sonic, with Mario Party and who knows what else on the horizon. As for the DS, just about every other game I own has some kind of mini-game compilation."
posted on Apr 6, 2007 - View this thread

What was in YOUR childhood toybox? Mr. Potato Head? Colorforms? Viewmaster? Magic 8 Ball? Weebles? G.I. Joe? Betsy Wetsy? Polly Pocket? No matter what generation you're from, The Vintage Toy Encyclopedia and The Big Red Toybox have facts and history on (almost) all of your playthings.
posted on Apr 5, 2007 - View this thread

Sex Toys are Just Like Prostitution
posted on Feb 20, 2007 - View this thread

Gobler Toys: The Fun We Can't Remember. A fictional toy company with an online collection of toys, dolls and games that only exist in the inventors' imaginations. Don't miss the hilarious Star Wars Toys That Never Were. (flash animation)
posted on Jan 14, 2007 - View this thread

The most dangerous toys of all time. Lawn darts? Check. Cabbage Patch Dolls that chewed off your fingers? Check. Working radioactive U-238 Atomic Energy Lab? Check. To spark more memories of holidays past, peruse the 10 weirdest toy ads of all time, and don't forget the Cheap Toy Roundup if you don't have enough cash. Or you could always get a Talking Jesus from Toys for Tots.
posted on Dec 13, 2006 - View this thread

Oh, you never would believe where those LEGO bricks come from. Well, you might. It turns out it's a pretty awesome process. BuisnessWeek gives us the behind the scenes info on LEGO bricks. Did you know LEGO is the world's largest tire manufacturer?
posted on Nov 29, 2006 - View this thread

Tesla coil music system (YouTube alert) and five other musical gadgets you didn't know about.
posted on Oct 21, 2006 - View this thread

GOBOTS! Remember Cy-Kill, Turbo, BuggyMan, the unfortunately named Dumper, the much-maligned Scooter, and the rest of the original GoBots? How about the Super Gobots? The commercials (1, 2)? The Challenge of the GoBots? And whatever this is? The last four links are videos, FYI.
posted on Oct 6, 2006 - View this thread

Do you want a titty blow mastrubator? Comedian mericilessly mocks bad sex toy packaging. The question is- does she use them?
posted on Oct 5, 2006 - View this thread

This year has been a good one for those who like little things that fly: you can get ultra-tiny remote controlled planes (video), helicopters, (or a cheaper one), and ornithopters. Also, the HydroFoam, a boat/plane/hovercraft that caused quite a controversy in the RC world after its inventor posted a famous video of the vehicle in action, and others tried to copy the design while he worked to commercialize it. There are smaller RC aircraft still, but you can't have them yet.
posted on Sep 22, 2006 - View this thread

1970s toy commercials. From an era when things were more fun, cool, and fresh. Whether you were a hipster or a genius type, there was some creative and smart toy to be had. Many toys were educational and prepared you for the vicissitudes of adulthood. (YouTube alert!)
posted on Sep 10, 2006 - View this thread

Yury Gitman and his students make electronic toys: Pululus; Mr. Spoon Man; even a Katamari! Learn how they make them, inside and out. More about Yury at we make money not art and his own website.
posted on Aug 13, 2006 - View this thread

If you've always wanted to build your own computer why not do it with some tinker toys? This ought to give future archaeologists many years of discussion.
posted on Jul 25, 2006 - View this thread

The Toymaker offers over 40 free paper toys and pretties you can print out (PDFs) and make yourself, as well as "Stories to be Told by Firelight" - online versions of author/illustrator Marilyn Scott Waters' children's stories and lots of other fun goodies. For people who have kids, people who know kids, people who are kids, and people who love papercraft, illustration, toys, and tales. [more...]
posted on Jul 24, 2006 - View this thread

Have you ever seen a synth and said "Man, what this needs is cartoon eyes?" A bit similar to the Buchla Box or theremin in that they don't have a keyboard to control the sounds -- it's probably closest to the Booper, invented by The Weatherman from Negativland (or, well, Circuit Bending), the Thingamagoop is a photosynthesizer... which means it basically uses light sensors to generate sounds. The signal's run through a couple oscillators and, well, it comes out as somethin' that's pretty dang awesome. I'm on the fence on pickin' this one up. On one hand, it's a really neat toy that makes noise... on the other hand, um.... um.... I dunno. It's not made of candy?
posted on Jul 8, 2006 - View this thread

Comprehensive, high quality archive of box art from Transformers toys. Searchable and organized by year and faction. Tell me this isn't awesome.
posted on Jun 19, 2006 - View this thread

The appeal of Gothic Lolita fashion continues to grow and evolve. Originally seen in Japan, it has spread worldwide and into the toy shops. Potentially NSFW
posted on Jun 19, 2006 - View this thread

Megayacht ... ing
posted on May 30, 2006 - View this thread

the questionable super soaker. How did this get past the marketing department? A gun that shoots shots of white slime? The product review on the Anazon site has been deleted and locked after a flood of joke reviews of the toy which exploited its pornographic similarities.
posted on May 12, 2006 - View this thread

"In 1953, while working a hotel switchboard, a college graduate named Shea Zellweger began a journey of wonder and obsession that would eventually lead to the invention of a radically new notation for logic. From a basement in Ohio, guided literally by his dreams and his innate love of pattern, Zellweger developed an extraordinary visual system - called the “Logic Alphabet” - in which a group of specially designed letter-shapes can be manipulated like puzzles to reveal the geometrical patterns underpinning logic."
posted on Apr 17, 2006 - View this thread

"If ever a company needed a marketing department, it's New Choice, whose Original Flavor Round Crackers take the cake for stating the obvious. Points should be awarded for attempts to woo health-conscious consumers with facts about added DHA ("prevents heart attack, enhances eye sight"), but there's no two ways to look at Round Crackers: It's a badly executed Ritz rip-off." So sayeth the wits at the Onion A.V. Club, who scour the nation's dollar stores for food products to evaluate in their sporadic feature "Dining for a Dollar." Round crackers too boring? You might prefer Freakin' Nuts (tagline: Is it a chip? Is it a nut? Yes!), Thick Mints, or maybe just a handful of Balls. Their annual Cheap Toy Roundup is just as good; last year's featured products such as Preeminent Car ($1), Stretchy Body Bits ($1.19), and a DVD titled Clothes That Went to a Party ($2). Perhaps the all-time best, though, is the Mini Wooden Furniture: Table: a "plain, unadorned wooden table." ($1)
posted on Mar 4, 2006 - View this thread

The LEGO Suicides. A series of tragic deaths, built block by block. (flickr slideshow; non-slideshow link here)
posted on Feb 13, 2006 - View this thread

Apparently Gus & Pam enjoy the Star Wars films.
posted on Feb 6, 2006 - View this thread

How far will an online company go to make sure you're a good American? Some companies will test you like in a cheesy WWII movie drama. (screenshotted for posterity, but you can get there by clicking on "Unregistered?" on their website)
posted on Dec 17, 2005 - View this thread

Some 25 million years ago, humans and vervet monkeys diverged from a common ancestor. In very rough terms, perhaps one and a quarter million human generations, or five million vervet generations, have been brought forth upon the Earth since that common ancestor lived. Of course, many differences have evolved between humans and vervets in those 25 million years: among other things, human parents choose toys for their children; vervet parents do not.

But after all that time and genetic change, and despite studies attributing human children's toy preferences to adult stereotypes, a new study by Dr. Gerianne Alexander finds that vervet males, like human boys, prefer toy trucks and balls, while vervet females and human girls prefer dolls and toy cooking pots. What's more, the vervets play with the toys much as human children do: males roll trucks on the ground, females inspect dolls (apparently) for genitalia. Previously on MetaFilter: Pinker vs. Spelke, Gender and Brain morphology, Harvard president Larry Summers and his daughter's "baby truck".
posted on Dec 8, 2005 - View this thread

Baby Bush: toys for the resoundingly average child. Also new from plinko design: Fancy Parking.
posted on Dec 6, 2005 - View this thread