WDWNT Reporter Robert Ashburn visited the MAgic Kingdom on Wednesday and has a number of newsworthy photos to share with us, so let’s take a look:
Winnie-the-Pooh movie poster at the TTC
Read More about Robert Ashburn’s 4/6/11 Magic Kingdom Photo Report
Update: 4/11/11 First, Disney announced Doug Strayer (Nerds Rock!) will also be attending this event. Also, a pirate vinylmation has appeared. It’s by Casey Jones. This is interesting timing, if this is the pirate that Art of Disney says will be released one May 21st. Interesting…..
While Californians are waiting to talk to Monty about his new Muppets 2 set, Florida will get a chance to meet several artists as part of the one year anniversary of D-Street Florida! From 10 AM to 12 Noon Vinylmation™ artists Maria Clapsis, Casey Jones, and Eric Caszatt will be at D-Street Florida to sign Vinylmation from the Cutesters Too, Tron, Urban #6 and Park #6 collections.
As always there are rules: Each Guest is limited to four pieces signed per artist.
“So get out your party hats and horns for a celebrational, Muppetational, Vinylmational (new word!), anniversary” -Disney Vinylmation.com
All these artists have been wonderful and design great figures, so go, take some figures to get signed, and let us know how things went. We’ll be setting up a post to display all the pictures our readers send in, so take a picture or two!
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As part of the news today about the new form of Vinylmation, Disney released this figure. He is the Dirt Foot Pirate from the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. This pirate has stuck in my head since I was a little kid. I am always afraid to look up at him when passing under the bridge for fear some of the grim on his foot will drip off onto me. This iconic Pirate was designed by Casey Jones for an upcoming series.
For more on the changes to the Vinylmation shape, check out our posts: Mickey’s Modified Mold and Best Foot Forward. We know there will be a May 21st Release of a 9″ Pirate as referenced by the Art of Disney blog. Is this figure involved in that Pirates release? |
Apparently the newly shaped mold isn’t the only change we will see to the vinylmation form when the Sea Creatures swim into D-Street on April 22nd. Much like the current arms and head, the feet will now also be removable. Besides the obvious DV Combo Contest possibilities, what does this feature do for Vinylmation? Disney’s Steven Miller says the removable feet will now allow artists to have their designs fully wrap around the feet leading to a more clean, crisp look.
Artist Thmoas Scott spoke about why the feet needed to be removable, “One challenging area (to paint on vinylmation) was the space where the underside of the belly and top of the feet meet. The feet are now removable which leaves the door open for improved artwork and future accessory opportunities.”
The indentation between the feet will also be more shallow, allowing for easier wrapping and more visible design details. Hats (or shoes) off to Disney for continuing to innovate the design process and giving fans sharper looking figures and a higher quality final product.
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Original Feet Indentation |
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New Feet Indentation |
“I also really like the idea that the vinylmation might have accessories that directly connect to their feet. Like Max’s skateboard might have been one of those if the process had been in use.”
– M.C..
“If it helps the final product have a more polished look to it, I’m all for it. It will probably make footwear look better, like the bubble gum kid’s sneakers. And I’m a huge fan of getting rid of that big indentation between the feet. That will greatly improve the design especially on more artistic figures.” – Nick
Also thanks to DV reporter Ryan who helped with this article.
For a more in-depth look at the Vinylmation mold changes, check out “Mickey’s Modified Mold”. For more on the Sea Creatures series, visit Sea Creatures Explained.
What do you think of the change? (Make sure to address whether you are talking about the “removableness” of the feet, or the design change itself.)
On the Disney Parks Blog today, Steven Miller talked about the release of Muppets 2. Most of the information was not new to frequent readers of DV, however the images he included were! Confirmation of all 4 of the 9″ Muppets, 3-D Kermit, Animal, Gonzo (with Camilla), and Sam the Eagle. No word on edition sizes (but DV thinks they will be pretty big, think Toy Story 9″, unless they feel there are too many Toy Story 9″ left) and the release date is only known to be NOT April 15th. The artist is Monty Maldovan.
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Kermit 3-D 9″
Originally the chaser for series 1, until they put a tux on him to celebrate the 55th anniversary, this design was kept over and blown up to be a 9″ figure for series 2. I really like the Muppets 3-D logo shirt, the Mickey Ears, and the 3-D glasses (which look so good I can’t tell if they are part of the paint or an accessory!) The second vinylmation to have 3-D glasses, it’s nice to see Kermit has upgraded to Polorized technology from 3-D Mickey’s red and blue anaglyph tech. |
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Animal 9″
Animal looks really good. I miss not having actual hair, but I do have to say the design is better then I expected (after having Celeste set the bar so high). The have all the details, from the drum stick, to the silver bracelets (it would have been cool to make them studded), to the rope belt. Very cool. As an ex-drummer I think I’m gonna have to buy this one. |
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Sam the Eagle 9″
Released June 24th Check out his parioticness! The American flag in the background (the ears). Sam’s beak also looks really good from this angle. Using the (not for long) Mickey nose it really does almost look like a beak in this shot! Perfect eyebrow, and I also like the talons on the front, with one on the back. |
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The back of Sam gets it’s own row because of the special accessory. The tail! It’s been added and looks cool! I can’t wait to see it in person!
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Gonzo 9″
Sold with: Camilla 3″ Well there wasn’t much they could do about Gonzo’s nose. But once you’re past that, the rest of this figure is pretty cool. I love his suit with the flower. I’ll miss not having a 3″ Gonzo for the moment, but I think this pairing is a great idea. |
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Camilla 3″
Sold with: Gonzo 9″ Gonzo’s love interest has followed him all the way to the vinylmation box. I really think this 3″ works, and would buy several if she came alone. Great job with this figure Monty! |
I think this series will have me bending my “No 9” rule just a little. Ok, a lot. I want them all! What do you think? Forgetting the desire to have these chracters as 3″s (which I hope comes later) do these figures work for you? Let us know…
Update: 4/11/11 Disney acknowledged the change in mold design today on their blog. Donald Ferro, vinylmation developer, said, “We are always striving to make the best possible figures. The first form was introduced in November 2008. As the artwork has become more complex, there were elements of the first form which made it challenging from a manufacturing perspective.”
Artist Thomas Scott said, “We have learned much since the introduction of Vinylmation. We can draw anything, but the art has to translate into printing pads and spray masks, so there are limitations. And since we are not present at the manufacturing facilities, we can’t always predict how they will choose to execute our designs. This revised form addresses a few of those more challenging areas to apply artwork. One challenging area was the space where the underside of the belly and top of the feet meet. The feet are now removable which leaves the door open for improved artwork and future accessory opportunities.”
Artist Eric Caszatt explained, “Continuous improvements are part of our Disney philosophy,” explained Eric Caszatt. “We are excited to use this form as it combines the root of Vinylmation – the Mickey Mouse shaped canvas – with design enhancements that will make future figures look even better than today.”
It looks like Disney is already into the change, but we did notice that most of the quotes were about the new removable feet, and less about the changes to the bigness of the body and the loss of details lines on the face.
Update: DV Reporter Ryan also pointed out that Casey Jones’ Winnie the Pooh from The Florida Project will be using the new mold. After looking at the other pieces, it seems that the Hula girl (which used to be part of the event) was also the new mold, but Thomas Scott’s Dumbo (which replaced the Hula girl) seems to be the old design!
Thanks to a comment on Sea Creatures Explained by Jay Knight and a note by DV reporter Ryan, a few changes in Mickey’s Vinylmation mold have been brought to our attention. These changes, outlined below, will premier in the Sea Creatures series coming out April 22nd.
Shape
 Old Shape
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 New Shape
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First, is the general shape of the figure. You will notice the new shape is rounder and smoother. The body is a little fatter. Also, look at the space between the ears… it is shorter and rounder and the ears themselves seem more circular. The cheeks do not bubble out. And there doesn’t appear to be a large indention between the feet anymore, meaning a smoother canvas for the artist. the general shape of the feet has also been altered.
Profile
 Old Nose
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 New Nose
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In this side by side profile shot, you can see the new nose is rounded and stubby. As opposed to the protruding nose we have come used to. You can also notice in this profile, more about the new shape. Noticeably rounder in both the head and body. The ears are also attached a little differently.
Contour Lines
 Old Face
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 New Face
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Disney must have applied some anti-aging cream to Mikey, because his lines are gone. No more outlines of Mickey’s facial features in the face. Also gone…
 Old Somach
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…are the buttons on the stomach.
Hand
 Old Hand
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 New Hand
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The right hand will take on a more cupped shape and both arms look a bit slimmer as well. In this picture, you can also notice some changes to the contour of the side of the feet near the ankles.
“Overall, I think these changes are positive. Anything to help the artists provide a more true-to-concept design, I’m all for it. I do not like the nose shape change. That takes away one of Mickey’s identifiable features. I also feel the same way about the contour lines on the face and especially the buttons. Look, I know the ears are a pretty big giveaway, but in the end, these are artistic designs on Mickey and I think those changes take a small piece of that away.” – Nick
Are these changes for this series or here to stay? What do you think about these changes?
The bakery series. A group of us were talking at D-Street yesterday, while we waiting for the Duck Tales release, and the topic of the bakery series came up. We discussed the frosting and how much larger it seemed then the actual vinylmation. We projected that this frosting might be an additional piece, similar to Buzz Lightyear’s helmet.
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What do you think? Do you think the frosting will be plastic? Removable? Scratch and sniff? Let us know.
If you missed your chance at the very limited edition of Noah’s 9″ custom TRON figures, then here’s another chance at a similar product. Originally sold in the Pop Up Shop in Culver City, these 3″ versions are $150 each and of very limited quantity. Each was only available for a week last year, but right now at D-Street (Florida) you can buy all three flavors at once! It will just cost you $450 bucks.
Regardless of price, this set is pretty cool. here’s a first look at our Duck Tales set out of the box (Although the design on the back of the box is very cool, just like with Tail Spin)
Check out the removable top hat (the third top hat in vinylmation). I also really like that the ears on Launchpad are clear in the middle. And Scrooge’s glasses are perfect!
Check out Launchpad’s scarf. Pretty cool if you ask me.
What do you think? Did you stand in line this morning to get these?
Update: 4/9/11 Wow, I just looked at the price tag on a box a friend who was in line behind me bought. His box is priced at $26.95, but they only charged him $24.95. Once again I have to say thank you to D-Street for being very cool about this situation. It seems now that after I mentioned the price problem (I was the first one out of the store) that they quickly changed the price tags on the box. But, and this is the awesome part, it seems like they kept charging the $24.95 price for everyone who was in line that morning. I heard the price went back to actually being $26.95, but it seems only after the wait line had ended. Very cool Disney, very cool.
Update: Noon. We are hearing rumors that the price might be back up to $26.95, I guess they have a price gun at D-Street.
Nick and I both waited in line outside D-Street Florida today to get the Duck Tales set. We got to meet with a lot of people, including oft-commenter Claudia!, and talk some vinyl. Once inside the store we picked up our Duck Tales set and noticed something interesting.
The price tag read $24.95. I was excited, because I was expecting to pay more, until I noticed they had rung me up for $26.95. Unlike the Tail Spin problem, D-Street graciously offered to refund my money. When I went back a little later, they did mention that the price when scanned had been changed back to the $24.95. Thank you Disney for staying true to the price tag! As of this post, the Art of Disney site still has this:
I appreciate the speed and easy of this solution, but it does bring to mind, why (after a month) are these sets still being released with the wrong price tags? And why, if they were already priced, did Disney go and change the price?
