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Toyetica (collected editions) #1
Toyetica Volume 1
In a world where the hottest kid's toys are based on real people, a ragtag class of students must prove they're the best toys for the job, competing against friends and enemies at Dollington Academy to achieve action figure fame... all while being just 6 inches tall.
When a new student named Minky arrives at Dollington Academy, Trixie Tangle is determined to make her feel welcome. But when Minky turns out to be a mermaid, Trixie's not so sure she can help this fish out of water feel at home on land.
Collects issues #1-4.
When a new student named Minky arrives at Dollington Academy, Trixie Tangle is determined to make her feel welcome. But when Minky turns out to be a mermaid, Trixie's not so sure she can help this fish out of water feel at home on land.
Collects issues #1-4.
- GenresGraphic Novels
128 pages, Paperback
First published December 13, 2017
About the author
M. Alice LeGrow
34 books147 followersM. Alice LeGrow is a female manga-influenced alternate comic book artist best known for her original English-language manga series Bizenghast. From the Savannah College of Art and Design, she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sequential Art.
As a young girl, Mary Alice LeGrow was not interested in comics since she grew up in Weisbaden, Germany where comics were not readily available. In her freshman year of high school, she discovered comics and anime. She enjoyed manga because it was not "the regular colorful spandex superhero fare". She heard about Tokyopop's Rising Stars of Manga competition from a friend at the 2003 Otakon, an anime convention in Baltimore, Maryland. On the drive from the convention and with eleven days before the deadline, she chose a short story she had written named "Nikolai", because of its "simple but engaging plot that had a definite start and finish." She renamed the main character, Sally Notch, after a road sign called "Notch Road" and based her character design on a model in a Gothic & Lolita Bible. Because the story was ten pages longer than the twenty-page limit, she rewrote it and also altered Sally's hair and clothes "to make her more interesting". "Nikolai" won a runner-up place in the competition and was published in the 2003 Rising Stars of Manga anthology. Along with a monetary prize, LeGrow won a chance to potientally have a manga series published by Tokyopop. The editors liked the series she proposed, Bizenghast, and she became the second Rising Stars of Manga winner to have a manga series published by Tokyopop.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
As a young girl, Mary Alice LeGrow was not interested in comics since she grew up in Weisbaden, Germany where comics were not readily available. In her freshman year of high school, she discovered comics and anime. She enjoyed manga because it was not "the regular colorful spandex superhero fare". She heard about Tokyopop's Rising Stars of Manga competition from a friend at the 2003 Otakon, an anime convention in Baltimore, Maryland. On the drive from the convention and with eleven days before the deadline, she chose a short story she had written named "Nikolai", because of its "simple but engaging plot that had a definite start and finish." She renamed the main character, Sally Notch, after a road sign called "Notch Road" and based her character design on a model in a Gothic & Lolita Bible. Because the story was ten pages longer than the twenty-page limit, she rewrote it and also altered Sally's hair and clothes "to make her more interesting". "Nikolai" won a runner-up place in the competition and was published in the 2003 Rising Stars of Manga anthology. Along with a monetary prize, LeGrow won a chance to potientally have a manga series published by Tokyopop. The editors liked the series she proposed, Bizenghast, and she became the second Rising Stars of Manga winner to have a manga series published by Tokyopop.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
December 30, 2017
I LOVE LOVE LOVE THESE CHARACTERS!
Not only are the characters cute, they are complex. They are kids in school learning and growing as people...er...bittles. The characters are varied in their looks and personalities. Because these characters are related to already established famous 'toys' some of them feel like they have to be like the ones before them yet they want to shine their own way. I can't wait to see the characters develop and how they really become Themselves! Will Minky become what she really wants to be? Will Trixie step outside of her sister's shadow? Will Bunnard...stop being so darn Cute??? I need Answers People!!! But I guess I will have to be patient and wait for the next issues to find my answers.
I highly recommend this series to anyone. The language isn't dumbed down for younger kids and it isn't too intellectual for them either. The writer, in my opinion, got the right language balance so that anyone could enjoy it.
While reading the series and looking at the art I can totally see this as a cartoon series on tv. A bit of that MLP type of vibe that will jive well with the young and old alike. My 13 year old child enjoys this series and so do I, the 30 something year old mom.
Not only are the characters cute, they are complex. They are kids in school learning and growing as people...er...bittles. The characters are varied in their looks and personalities. Because these characters are related to already established famous 'toys' some of them feel like they have to be like the ones before them yet they want to shine their own way. I can't wait to see the characters develop and how they really become Themselves! Will Minky become what she really wants to be? Will Trixie step outside of her sister's shadow? Will Bunnard...stop being so darn Cute??? I need Answers People!!! But I guess I will have to be patient and wait for the next issues to find my answers.
I highly recommend this series to anyone. The language isn't dumbed down for younger kids and it isn't too intellectual for them either. The writer, in my opinion, got the right language balance so that anyone could enjoy it.
While reading the series and looking at the art I can totally see this as a cartoon series on tv. A bit of that MLP type of vibe that will jive well with the young and old alike. My 13 year old child enjoys this series and so do I, the 30 something year old mom.
December 28, 2017
This new comic series by Marty LeGrow is very fun and cute. There are so many great, different characters it's hard to pick a favorite! The story revolves around a group of students trying to make friends and discover themselves and who they want to be when they graduate. A fun story for all ages, and as always the artwork is amazing! I can't wait for the next volume to come out so I can continue the story!
April 28, 2018
Charming and complex
Cute with surprisingly deep world building. Great style and seamless panel flow. Would recommend to any fun fantasy fan. Bunnard is life.
Cute with surprisingly deep world building. Great style and seamless panel flow. Would recommend to any fun fantasy fan. Bunnard is life.
November 14, 2023
This was sort of a meta retelling of the fairy-tale princesses trapped by their story narratives or doll toys attending school together that was trending for a while. In this version, the setting (covered by the exposition) is one in which toys are based off of a real race of tiny fairy creatures that exist and were kept as pets/toys later replaced with less ethically conflicted dolls. After a civil rights agreement forged during the late 50s (the human civil rights movement goes unmentioned) an agreement is made where all toys are based off of a little fairy person (I don't think they're ever given a race name). It's best not to focus on the world building too much and treat it as a children's story dealing with expectations put upon characters by others.
Overall it was cute without the characters feeling entirely one-note and flat that often happens with such tales. I gave it three stars, but it's probably a little bit higher. My complaints were mainly that the world building left me with a lot of unanswered questions as to how livelihoods work for toy-people and if they exist solely as pseudo-celebrity/influencers living only by merchandising, which was more of a "me problem."
Edit: They're called "bittles."
Overall it was cute without the characters feeling entirely one-note and flat that often happens with such tales. I gave it three stars, but it's probably a little bit higher. My complaints were mainly that the world building left me with a lot of unanswered questions as to how livelihoods work for toy-people and if they exist solely as pseudo-celebrity/influencers living only by merchandising, which was more of a "me problem."
Edit: They're called "bittles."
August 3, 2019
So I've been a fan of LeGrow's for a long time and while I do like her new series, it wasn't as great as I'd hoped. The plot is intriguing and I look forward to her fleshing out the world, but I think the historical world-building is problematic and it's not helped by the fact that we don't see anything of this world outside of the school. And though the art fits the story well, I'm just sad we don't get to see the amazing artwork we saw in Bizenghast. However, I do understand that these issues come out monthly and the art style from Bizenghast must be very time consuming.
September 9, 2018
4.5 stars
November 29, 2018
A very cute story about small beings that grow up to model for human dolls. The artwork is incredible! Youth/Middle-grade age
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews