If Toy Fair has a name, it must be Indiana Jones.
The toy industry's annual confab in New York City swung into action over the weekend, and based on the exhibits of Hasbro and Lego, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is the Hollywood plaything of choice this year.
With the sequel set to unspool May 22, Hasbro is readying 30 action figures based on key heroes and villains from the original trilogy, replete with accessories and top-secret relics, as well as play sets from the new movie—including the Lost Temple of Akator, where the fedora-wearing fortune hunter makes some of his most daring escapes with his new sidekick, Mutt Williams, played by Shia LaBeouf.
And Indy fans who've been scouring every frame of the first teaser trailer, released last week, for clues to the film's plot might have better luck looking at Hasbro's loot.
[Avert your eyes—possible spoilers ahead!]
A cursory glance at the Akator play set reveals a devious obelisk puzzle Dr. Jones and company must solve to gain entrance to the kingdom. There's also a deadly quicksand trap and boulder blasts reminiscent of Raiders' legendary opening sequence. Throw in a bunch of Ugha warriors for good measure, and Crystal Skull is shaping up to be quite an adventure.
Hasbro also showed off a talking 12-inch Indiana Jones that plays the classic Raiders march and comes with a whip (with motion-activated cracking sounds) that can be coiled and slipped onto a kid's belt. There's also Mutt Williams' sound-effects sword, a two-foot extendable plastic blade and two additional knives, one of which is hidden in the handle (the other is a projectile). All feature sword-clashing sounds.
Finally, the company unearthed a new Mr. Potato Head, the "Taters of the Lost Ark" edition, featuring the spud decked out in Indy's leather jacket, fedora and whip. He also plays the Raiders march.
Separately, Lego rang in 50 years of brick laying with the debut of its own Indy stash. Aside from a series of sets based on the first three movies, the Lego folks are introducing four Crystal Skull-specific items: Jungle Duel, featuring a scary-looking jungle-cutting vehicle, sort of a giant mechanical weed wacker; River Chase, which presumably re-creates the cliffside chase in the trailer; and Jungle Critter and Temple of the Crystal Skull. There's also an assortment of Lego minifigures, including skeletons and aliens.
And for gamers, the toy company is teaming with LucasArts to roll out a Lego-ized Indiana Jones-based videogame.
Hasbro also will update its Star Wars line, unleashing toys from Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated movie, unspooling in August. Apart from new figures based on usual suspects like Obi-Wan, Padme Amidala, Count Dookoo and the Emperor, one new hero making her debut will be Anakin's padawan learner, Ahsoka.
There's also a Clone Trooper Helmet, which allows its wearer to amplify and disguise his/her voice and also contains a number of signature phrases; new vehicles such as the Star Wars At-Te; a customizable Clone Wars Ultimate light saber; and an assortment of new droids and Star Wars Transformers.
The toy maker also drafted a host of new G.I. Joe vs. Cobra action figures for to mark the line's 25th anniversary line and ahead of Paramount's G.I. Joe flick, currently in production with Dennis Quaid, Sienna Miller and Joseph Gordon-Levitt for August 2009.
Finally, Hasbro will have a slew of toys based on two new Marvel-based superhero flicks, Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk.
Chief among them is the Iron Man Mask and Repulsor Gauntlet, styled after the armored suit worn by Robert Downey Jr. in the movie, due out May 2. There's also the usual action figures; a Nerf blaster that shoots 10 rapid-fire repulsor darts; and Air Strike Iron Man, which launches the comic-book hero into the sky with a jet.
For the Edward Norton-starring Hulk, set for release June 13, the toy maker is issuing Hulk Smash Hands (oversize plush fists you can bash your sibling with); a Hulk Power Glow Electronic Mask; action figures; and the Hulkey Pokey Hulk, a 14-inch Hulk plush that sings the "Hokey Pokey" and spins around while dancing.
Rival Mattel also played up its Hollywood connection.
The toy maker commemorated the 40th anniversary of its Hot Wheels line with singer and car enthusiast Nick Lachey unveiling a special custom-jeweled car, valued at $140,000 and weighing nearly 23 carats. The expensive auto will be auctioned off with the proceeds to benefit Lachey's favorite charity, Big Brothers Big Sisters.
Lost star Matthew Fox was also on hand to plug his role in the Wachowski brothers' adaptation of the Speed Racer cartoon for Warner Bros.
There's a Hot Wheels-branded Speed Racer Sky Jump Track set, where kids can catapult cars high in the air and perform huge jumps and stunts; a Hot Wheels Speed Racer Track Set Assortment, allowing wannabe speed demons to relive their favorite races from the movie; and a variety of cool cars that perform daredevil maneuvers.
Speaking of kickass rides, timed for the release of Warners' new Batman movie, The Dark Knight, there's the Caped Crusader's bitchin' Batpod, a souped-up cycle.
Would-be crimefighters can also try out the Rapid Fire Utility Belt with Cape that blasts foam projectiles and the Wayne Tech Mega Cape Accessory, which allows the wearer to expand the cape into a five-foot wingspan. There's also the Dark Knight Flying Bat with glowing eyes and bat noises, as well as a Battle of Gotham City playset. And for the first time ever, Mattel has created an action figure of Lieutenant Gordon and various Gotham police officers.
To keep the young'uns occupied, Mattle has a line of electronic plush toys themed around the upcoming DreamWorks' CG comedy Kung Fu Panda, out in June and featuring the voices of Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman and Angelina Jolie among others.
It's not just about the boys. Girls are also represented, courtesy of dolls for Disney's Magic Fairy Lights Sleeping Beauty line, as well as for High School Musical 2.
Meanwhile, Bindi Irwin, the nine-year-old daughter of late Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin, was in the Big Apple over the weekend to promote her new Bindi doll at Toy Fair. But, according to the New York Post, because of strict rules barring children from entering the trade convention at the Javitz Center, she had trouble getting in.
Bindi's mom, Terri, told the newspaper that organizers were willing to make an exception for the youngster, but since Irwin didn't want her daughter to receive any special favors, Terri took her place.
"They said they would make an exception for Bindi," Terri said. "I said, 'No, thank you.' I don't want Bindi to grow up being the exception."
The child star subsequently appeared at an event down the street at FAO Schwartz.