Archive by Author

My Top 10 Most Unattainable Toys

Remember a Christmas or birthday when you wanted that one special toy, but no one got it for you? Now you understand…it was ridiculously expensive, or impossible to locate. You were disappointed then, because there was no such thing as ebay or Amazon, and instead you got a sweater.

Continue Reading

Folding Paper, Part 2: Paper Airplanes

There are many things that can be done with a sheet of paper. While “Kick Me” signs and those ridiculous fortune-teller doohickeys have gone out of style, the act of turning paper into a flying machine is still cool, and it is still a mark of one’s intellect. Paper airplanes are cheap, easily replaceable toys [...]

Continue Reading

Forget-Them-Not: A Review of Toy Story 3

We don’t usually do movie reviews here at Toy-TMA, but the Toy Story series is different; these movies explain why a website like this one exists in the first place. We, as complicated beings, hold so much affection for our playthings, and these movies are big salutes to our reliable, inanimate friends.

Continue Reading

Folding Paper, Part One: Origami

I used to mess around with my dad’s work papers when I was little. I didn’t get in trouble, though, because my dad worked at a technology conglomerate that were concerned with putting everything on computers and the Internet. Now, paper is about half as important to the professional world as it was 30 years [...]

Continue Reading

Outlaws to the End: A Review of Red Dead Redemption

I rarely buy games until I’ve heard plenty of good buzz about them (namely from Chris Pranger). Not only did I buy Red Dead Redemption blindly, I picked it up on opening day. The word “juggernaut” is appropriate, as apparently 550,000 other folks put their cash down that same day. But this game has a [...]

Continue Reading

Antique and Vintage Tonka Trucks: A Look Back at the Big Yellow Trucks

In 1946, a small Minnesota company sought to manufacture gardening tools under the name Mound Metalcraft. This business model quickly evolved however, when their side project of crafting metal toys became a much more viable market. Business and life (and toys) can be unpredictable, and sometimes our crazy side projects take on a life of [...]

Continue Reading

Grade School Currency: Silly Bandz

Remember that useless collection of objects that decided your status in grade school? Tell Beanie Babies to slide down the bench, because the new generation is hooked on Silly Bandz.

Continue Reading

Forget-Me-Nots: My Daredevil Action Figure

I got into comics when I was about thirteen or fourteen. While perusing the video store, I found this extremely detailed figure packaged with a reprint of classic Daredevil issue #167.

Continue Reading

I Am Still Iron Man: Iron Man 2 Toys

Tony Stark’s technological marvel is back with plenty of articulation, tons of oversized weapon attachments, and each with a personality of its own. The figure series consists of a wide variety of Iron Man and War Machine suits, all lying out like a roll of schematics. It conjures a funny image of Tony Stark’s garage [...]

Continue Reading

Guide to Collectible Star Wars Action Figures

They were the coolest Star Wars figures. I spent the better part of my youth checking every single figure on every single peg, looking for light-sabers and brown robes. But how have these hardcore warrior-monks changed over the years? To be frank, they’ve gone from “okay” to absolutely thrilling playthings/collectibles. Recently, however, they’ve been released [...]

Continue Reading