Disney at Sweet Suite: Blogger Bash NYC

Posted on July 26, 2015 by Travis D.

It’s been about a week since I attended Blogger Bash NYC, and so far I have highlighted the Disney Infinity Breakfast and the Peanuts Luncheon. Today I would like to highlight some of the Disney items I saw at Sweet Suite, which is Blogger Bash’s annual toy party. Throughout the evening, attendees are invited to meet and network with a variety of toy and game companies who come out to showcase some of their items that will be available for the upcoming holiday season. Companies such as Lego, Activision, Hasbro, Madame Alexander, Playmates, and Just Play are only a few of the many great companies that are there at this ever growing event. I was also at the 2014 event, which was comparably smaller. This year, it was held in a much grander location (Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers in NYC), with a lot more room for these companies to showcase their stuff.

While there were a lot of great companies there, for this article I will highlight some of the fun Disney/ Marvel/ Star Wars items I came across… seeing as we are DisKingdom. However, all of the companies there that I visited with were awesome. Special shout out to the team at Activision, who put on a great display with Skylanders: Superchargers. I hope to be able to feature them separately… depends on if i can get everything done before heading down to Walt Disney World on Tuesday.

First stop of the day was to Uncle Milton, who had some great items from Ant-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Frozen on display.

First up, we have the Ant-Man Ant Farm, which I think is a great way to get kids back into the ant farm craze. I remember (unsuccessfully) having an ant farm when I was a kid, and I will admit I am seriously thinking about getting one of these and starting one at work on my desk.

What I have dubbed “Chia-Groot”, is actually a mini glow-in-the-dark Groot planter where you grow wheat grass and what looks like ivy.

A customizable “My Sign!” Kit, where kids can place their name (or anything else) on a light-up sign themed to Frozen. What I think is cool about this box is that my friend’s daughter is named Madison and, at least where I live, the name is not common.

Another Frozen item from the “in my room” line is the Snowball Light Projector, which glows and projects falling snow around a darkened room.

Lastly, here is the Frozen customizable “dream scenes”, where children can create their own scene from the movie, and have it light up.

All of these items from Uncle Milton are either out now, or coming this fall in time for the holiday season.

Now, I previously met with the Disney Movies Anywhere people a few weeks back at the Disney Holiday Showcase in NYC, but I wanted to highlight them again here, because I wanted to stress how I have enjoyed using the App on my iPad since downloading it a few weeks back. Having Disney movies, which are unlocked via codes you can get in a variety of ways, is great. On top of that, the exclusive materials that are only available on the App are great. I have already watched some of the exclusives for MacFarland USA and Toy Story 3, and I am looking forward to view some of the exclusives for The Empire Strikes Back, which I was given the code for while at Sweet Suite.

While you are at it, check out the variety of great Disney movies coming out leading up to the holiday season. There are really some great movies to give to others… or, in my can, yourself. 🙂

Lego was on hand to showcase some of their top items for 2015, most of which I saw back at their Toy Fair event. With them were the new Mickey and Minnie Birthday Parade Duplo, which I think is top notch, as well as a selection from their ever popular Star Wars line.

Hasbro had a bunch of fun kids things at Sweet Suite this year, but one of the highlights for me was their Frozen Operation game, where you have to remove Snowgies from the Olaf scene rather than body part from an operating table. It really is a cute rendition of this classic Hasbro game.

I met with the gang from TOMY back at Toy Fair this past February, but I was not able to show you anything from their Inside Out, Miles from Tomorrowland, and The Good Dinosaur… aside from a few stock images for the first two properties there. This time around, I can share a few of the items that are now out, and least for Inside Out and Miles.

Inside Out

On hand at Sweet Suite were the very popular “I Cry Candy” Bing Bong, who sings “The Bing Bong Song”, says phrases, “cries” candy tears, and smells like cotton candy, as well as the talking plush assortment of the emotions… Anger is my favorite. These are very popular right now, with some designs having a hard time being kept in stock in stores.

Miles from Tomorrowland

Already a hit on Disney Jr. (#1 rated show for boys 2-5), the products from the show are very popular. I am going to go out on a limb and state that I think it’s because of how interactive they are… because as an adult I still want to play with them. On display this go around were Maximum Miles, the Stellosphere, and the Superstellar Blastboard.

The Good Dinosaur

Unfortunately, there were no products out for The Good Dinosaur, coming out later this year from Disney and Pixar. However, with a more in depth trailer just being released this past week, I hope we see more and more from this toy line, which I am excited for.

Now, I will admit: being a grown man (at least age wise), Madame Alexander is not my cup of tea, so to speak. However, sometimes they put out products that I find awesome… and this year it’s their new line of Muppets plush and puppets. Featuring Kermit, Fozzie, Miss Piggy, and Animal in both forms, they are a really high quality (needed for puppets) and have a wonderful look to them.

When I stepped up to the Rubba Ducks booth, I was not necessarily expecting to be including them here in this story. Why? Because they thrive on doing their own original designs and characters, not necessarily taking already licensed material and making their versions of it. However, what I found out is this: Mark Boldt, creator of the Rubba Ducks line, is good friends with the creator of The Boathouse, the newest (and largest) restaurant in Walt Disney World, as well as The Rainforest Cafe and T-Rex, all of which are located in the newly dubbed Disney Springs (formerly Downtown Disney). To celebrate, The Boathouse is carrying Rubba Ducks exclusive to that location, and they feature ducks inside the popular Venezia Italian Water Taxi or Amphicar, which you can hire to take you on a ride around Disney Spring’s waterways.

Mr. and Mrs. Quack Craft are currently available at the gift shop.

Amphi Duck will be available starting in August, 2015.

Interested in dining at The Boathouse? Check out this awesome review from our friends over at WDW Magic. I doubt my trip this coming week will have time to include a stop there to eat, but i hope to be able to at least walk by and check it out.

Lastly, we come to Just Play, who has pulled out all the stops this year with their offerings from Minnie Mouse, Doc McStuffins, and Frozen. Let’s check it out.

Minnie Mouse

The Minnie Mouse Bows-A-Glow Plush is really fun. By pressing her tummy, you activate music, phrases, and dancing lights in her bow.

Doc McStuffins

Then we have the Doc McStuffins Pet Vet Magic Talking Doll & Clinic, featuring Doc, who talks and sings “Get Your Pet to the Vet” while giving Lambie and Findo their checkups. The vet center is interactive as well, and when the figure is placed on it, their corresponding X-ray shows up.

Of course, there is the life sized Pet Vet Checkup Center, where little ones can take care of Findo themselves, including dispensing him treats.

Lastly, there is the interactive Take Care of Me Lambie, which features over 50 interactive responses to the child’s care giving.

Frozen

With Frozen, we have the Ultimate Olaf… and this is something I might just have to pick up for myself. His eyes open, his head moves, he comes with a remote control where you can control his action AND where he can locate you… and walk to you. Yea… I am thinking this is a must have, and possibly something to bring down to Walt Disney World in the future for some fun.

Well, there it is. My Disney round-up from Sweet Suite. Did I miss some Disney stuff? Probably, but that was due to the fact that it got extremely busy, extremely quickly… which is awesome. It means that these companies are getting seen by a lot of different types of social media people, as this is geared to bloggers…. what was once termed as “mommy bloggers”, but has grown to include children, men, etc. as well as morphed into video blogging, Instagramming, and more. I think it’s a great thing what Blogger Bash, and others like them, are doing, and I thank them again for letting me be a part of it again this year.