Latest Steve Jobs action figure remarkably detailed
Japan's Legend Toys is coming out with a Jobs figure that includes a sofa. Will Apple try to stop sales again?
You know the holidays are getting close when Steve Jobs action figures start to appear.
We've seen a few toy tributes to Jobs from Chinese companies. There was a kerfuffle in January of this year when Hong Kong toymaker In Icons bowed to pressure from Jobs' family and Apple and withdrew a 12-inch doll from the market.
That hasn't stopped a Japanese startup from trying to cash in on Jobs' popularity. Tokyo-based Legend Toys is releasing its own strikingly detailed 12-inch figure of Jobs. It was sculpted by Takao Kato, whose work includes 1:16 scale and 1:4 scale figures for the otaku market.
Renowned for their obsession with realism and detail, Japanese toymakers have turned out mountains of figurines ranging from sci-fi robots like Gundam to doe-eyed buxom manga babes.
Legend Toys' Jobs figure comes with a leather sofa, glasses, three pairs of hands, and a small apple to pose with. It's a markedly older, more wrinkled Jobs than the one released by In Icons.
Legend, however, is not concerned about possible pressure from Apple, which would likely try to stop sales by threatening legal action.
"We have heard that Apple tried to stop several companies from selling Steve Jobs figures," says the firm's Yuichi Kimura. "We do not have any permission from anyone and we don't think it is necessary to obtain permission from anyone.
"Just like millions of people around the world, I was moved by Jobs' passion and his creativity. He said that he loved to do the things he could do the best. So do I, and the best thing I can do is make a lifelike figure to remember him and I also wanted to share my passion with all his fans like he did with those i-products. This is my pure and simple intention."
The 1:6-scale Steve Mini starts shipping at the end of this month, for $199.99 to North America, and slightly less in Japan.
Check out more pics in the gallery above, including the insanely detailed Jobs jeans and sneakers. Would you buy one for your action figure collection?