Walyou

Posted: 15 Feb 2016 10:28 AM PST

There’s always an argument about Piñata that will probably never be settled. Should it be made to look like someone you can’t help yourself from bashing into pieces, or actually having a cute, lovable Piñata make it more fun?

It’s not hard to guess on which side of the fence we are when it comes to BB-8, the adorable and useful droid that was introduced to us in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. But his plumpy shape and colourfulness (yes, orange with white is colorful enough) make him a good enough target to use as a Piñata.

For those who can’t wait to get started on building this would-be droid and bash the heck out of it, just head on over for the complete tutorial and visit instructables.

But if you’re not from the Dark Side and want a little bit of history on the matter, to know why you’re even doing this, stick around a minute or two longer.

So, histroy. While the Piñata is mostly associated with Mexico, it actually originates from 14th century Europe, with the idea of breaking a container filled with treats dating back to there and then. The Spanish brought it over to Mexico, although there were already similar traditions in Mesoamerica.

According to local records, the Mexican piñata tradition began in the town of Acolman, just north of Mexico City, where piñatas were introduced for catechism purposes as well as to co-opt the Huitzilopochtli ceremony. Now that the history lesson is over, go build your piñata.

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter. For more awesome Star Wars Piñatas check out our The Death Star Piñata and the Darth Vader Piñata.

One:12 Collective Star Trek TOS Figures

Posted: 14 Feb 2016 02:15 PM PST

With so much Star Wars and Marvel merchandise around these days, it’s quite easy to forget that there are other franchises out there. Mezco Toyz, one of the exhibitors at Toy Fair 2016 in New York, decided to give Trekkies (especially the ones who love The Original Series) something to talk about, and even more, collect.

Along with movie accurate figures of characters from both DC Comics and Marvel, Mezco Toyz has unveiled something that should make the hearts of Trekkies skip a bit: Star Trek TOS figures of Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock and Lieutenant Sulu that have been modeled to resemble William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy and George Takei. The Original Series may not appeal to modern audiences because of the cheesy visual effects and forced acting, at times, but the show touched a lot of aspects of traveling through space, and the immense following of the series is owned in great part to Gene Roddenberry’s story-telling.

“The response has been great. I’m a huge TOS Trek fan, and have very fond memories of watching the show back in the day. The fact that we’re getting to make figures is already a treat to me. Having other fans of the show respond the way they have to them, is just icing on the cake,” explained Pierre Kalenzaga, Mezco Toyz’s Project Manager. “At the moment we are only focused on The Original Series. I can’t really say what the future holds, but I’ve been a fan of every Trek incarnation, so I would love to do more Star Trek from different eras. As for body construction on Kirk, there are almost ten bodies built out for the One:12 line – and that number is still growing. We wanted to be able to represent any character accurately. At the beginning of the design process we we came up with two "regular human" bodies. One that would be appropriate for Kirk, and one that would work for the thinner frame of Spock.”

The One:12 Collective line might sound peculiar at first, but given that we’re talking about figures here, the origin of the name becomes obvious immediately. If you still haven’t figured it out, it refers to the scale of the figures. According to the press release, these have 28 points of articulation, so they can pose anyway you can think of. On top of it all, each figure comes with accessories in the form of alternate heads and hands, along with a display post and display base with insignia. The One:12 Collective Star Trek TOS figures would’ve been collection-worthy even without these, but the accessories make them even more so.

You have until February 16 to visit Mezco Toyz’s booth (#4812) at the New York International Toy Fair. There you’ll find more than just Star Trek TOS figures, but if you happen to be a Trekkie and a collector, then these might peak your interest the most, especially since Mr. Spock silently wishes you to live long and prosper.

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories about Pulp Fiction explicit talking figures, or the Funko Star Wars Pop! Home mugs.