MAGNA-TILES launched its first animated series, Spin Master signed Paramount Pictures horror monsters for its Hellbreak trading card game, and Build-A-Bear announced a London store inside Hard Rock Cafe plus its first Pokémon Workshop in Orlando. KPop Demon Hunters kept spreading, from an American Girl doll-fashion line to a U.K. shop-in-shop. Plus KiwiCo's craft advent calendars, Elf on the Shelf's Netflix series, a licensing deal for adult building sets, a tariff-refund class action and an FTC playground-merger suit.
MAGNA-TILES Launches "MAGNA-TALES," Its First Animated Series, on YouTube; Character Figures Follow in January
MAGNA-TILES announced on Oct. 22 that MAGNA-TALES, its first-ever animated content series, premieres this month on YouTube. The show follows Tyler, Maggie and friends Sparky, Clyde and Mayor Rudy, a tribute to MAGNA-TILES founder Rudy Valenta, as they build their way through adventures in Builders Bay. Episodes feature real MAGNA-TILES sets, including the new Undersea Adventure set from the 2026 Ocean Collection. "With MAGNA-TALES, we are connecting the stories children love watching with the worlds they build themselves," said MAGNA-TILES President Michael Valenta.
Companion toys featuring Maggie, Tyler, Sparky and Clyde are due in January 2027, and a MAGNA-TALES Friends Pack of magnetic figures is already listed on Amazon at $19.99, with a release date of Jan. 1, 2027.
Pros: Magnetic figures from MAGNA-TILES itself tie the cartoon to sets kids may already own; $19.99.
Cons: Pre-order only until January, so it won't be under the tree this year; the series is new, so it's unclear how much kids will watch it.
Source: MAGNA-TILES via PR Newswire
Spin Master Adds Paramount's "A Quiet Place," "Sleepy Hollow" and "Smile" to Its Hellbreak Trading Card Game
Spin Master said on Oct. 22 that Paramount Pictures is joining Hellbreak, the horror trading card game it is developing with Ghost Galaxy. The deal brings the Death Angels from A Quiet Place, the Headless Horseman from Sleepy Hollow and the entity from Smile into the game, where legendary monsters battle head-to-head. The first set, more than 200 cards featuring seven properties including monsters and settings from Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures and Horror Inc., launches in January 2027 at game and hobby shops and on Amazon.
"We've set out to create an unprecedented lineup of horror IP for Hellbreak to deliver a trading card game experience like no other," said Doug Wadleigh, Spin Master's President, Toys. Later expansions will add characters from previously announced partners AMC Global Media, Blumhouse and Lionsgate, as well as Universal Pictures.
Source: Spin Master via PR Newswire
Build-A-Bear Opens Inside Hard Rock Cafe Piccadilly Circus on Oct. 26 and Readies Its First Pokémon Workshop for Orlando on Nov. 5
Build-A-Bear Workshop announced on Oct. 21 that it will open a store experience inside Hard Rock Cafe Piccadilly Circus in London beginning Oct. 26, which the companies call the first retail partnership of its kind for Hard Rock Cafe. Exclusives include bear-sized replicas of the Hard Rock Cafe London Classic Tee and Hoodie and a commemorative pin set pairing a collector pin with a bear-sized companion pin. "We're creating a one-of-a-kind destination in the heart of London," said CEO Chris Hurt.
A day earlier, the company previewed three themed shops inside its new multi-level Workshop at Orlando's ICON Park, opening Thursday, Nov. 5: the first-ever Build-A-Bear x Pokémon Workshop, its fourth Build-A-Bear x Hello Kitty and Friends Workshop, and the debut of Promise Pets, a new Build-A-Bear concept. Hurt called ICON Park "a defining moment for Build-A-Bear as we continue to evolve into a true destination brand."
Source: Build-A-Bear Workshop via PR Newswire (London)
Source: Build-A-Bear Workshop via PR Newswire (ICON Park)
American Girl Adds KPop Demon Hunters "Golden Tour" Outfits for 18-Inch Dolls and a Derpy Tiger Plush Set
American Girl has added an American Girl x Netflix KPop Demon Hunters collection on its website. It includes HUNTR/X-inspired "Golden Tour" outfits modeled after Rumi's, Mira's and Zoey's concert looks, each designed to fit 18-inch American Girl dolls and sold separately for $65, plus a $50 Derpy Plush & Accessories set with a plush inspired by Derpy Tiger, a Sussie Bird figurine, a flowerpot accessory and a note card.
Pros: Taps the year's biggest kids' movie franchise; each outfit comes with themed performance accessories.
Cons: $65 per outfit (doll not included); sold through American Girl, so it's harder to price-compare.
Source: American Girl
The Entertainer and Netflix Open a KPop Demon Hunters Pop-Up at Birmingham's Bullring for at Least Six Months
U.K. toy retailer The Entertainer is opening a KPop Demon Hunters pop-up experience, created with Netflix, at its Birmingham Bullring store on Monday, Oct. 26, running for a minimum of six months, the Express & Star reported. The space recreates settings and characters from the film, adds an immersive stage and photo spots, and stocks The Entertainer's full KPop Demon Hunters range of toys, games, accessories and scooters plus a new homeware range. The first 200 shoppers get a goody bag.
Source: Express & Star
KiwiCo's 2026 Advent Calendars Swap Candy for Daily Builds, From $49.95
KiwiCo is selling six holiday advent calendars as single purchases, no subscription required. The Snowy Sports Ornaments calendar ($49.95, ages 5+) has 12 wooden winter-athlete ornaments, such as a gingerbread figure skater and a ski-jumping reindeer, that spin, jump and slide using gears, rubber bands and pull strings. The Mechanical Ornaments calendar ($49.95, ages 5+) teaches levers, gears and linkages over 12 builds, and the Motorized Christmas Train ($74.95, ages 7+) builds a working electric train with 56 track pieces. The 24-day options are Winter Wonderland ($99.95), Christmas Village ($49.95) and Santa's Railroad ($49.95), all ages 5+.
Pros: Builds kids keep and hang year after year; clear age grades and prices.
Cons: Most are 12-day countdowns, not 24; more expensive than candy or small-toy calendars.
Source: KiwiCo
Elf on the Shelf Maker Lumistella Brings Preschool Series "Scout Elf Squad" to Netflix on Nov. 4
The Lumistella Company, creator of The Elf on the Shelf, has signed an output deal with Netflix for its new preschool series Scout Elf Squad, which premieres Nov. 4, The Hollywood Reporter reported. The show follows Scout Elves Frostina, Shiver, Snowdrop and Blizzard in stories about kindness, friendship, courage and teamwork. Episodes will later be available on The Elf on the Shelf's YouTube channel, where a sneak-peek Halloween episode is already live, giving one of the best-known seasonal toy brands a year-round content push.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Alpha Group's Wiseblock Hires Mix Licensing Group to Land U.S. Gaming Licenses for Adult Building Sets
Wiseblock, the building-block division of Alpha Group, has appointed Mix Licensing Group as its licensing agent to secure U.S. rights to more gaming and entertainment franchises with strong adult followings, Licensing International reported on Oct. 21. Wiseblock's first licensed line, Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed, is sold through Amazon and Wiseblock's own site in the U.S. Its adult collectible sets retail for about $20 to $299, and its buildable remote-control cars are preparing to enter major U.S. retail accounts. Citing Circana, the announcement says toy spending by consumers 15 and older has more than doubled since 2020, and building sets grew 18% across 12 major markets in 2025.
Source: Licensing International
Trade Court Certifies a Nationwide Importer Class Seeking IEEPA Tariff Refunds, Led by Baby-Products Company Freestyle World
In an Oct. 8 opinion and order, the U.S. Court of International Trade certified a class in Freestyle World, Inc. v. United States covering all importers of record who paid duties under the challenged IEEPA tariff orders between Feb. 1, 2025, and Feb. 19, 2026, excluding any company that has filed its own suit to recover those duties. Freestyle World, a baby-products company, is the class representative. Law firm Davis Wright Tremaine says the government's latest filing shows more than 75% of the roughly $166 billion in IEEPA duties collected had been refunded with interest as of Oct. 2, and that the class could eventually open refunds for older, finally liquidated entries that are now locked out of Customs' CAPE claims portal. For toy importers that paid IEEPA duties and have not sued, the class is the case to watch.
Source: U.S. Court of International Trade (opinion and order)
Source: Davis Wright Tremaine
FTC and 12 States Sue to Block PlayPower's Purchase of Playground Maker Burke
The Federal Trade Commission sued on Oct. 19 to block Platinum Equity-owned PlayPower from buying BCI Burke, alleging the deal would combine two of the largest U.S. makers of commercial outdoor playground equipment and raise prices for schools, parks and churches. PlayPower already owns Miracle Recreation, Little Tikes Commercial and Playworld. California's attorney general says five main competitors account for about 85% to 90% of U.S. sales. Attorneys general from Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin joined the suit, filed in federal court in Northern California. These are allegations; the court has not ruled.
Source: FTC et al. v. PlayPower et al. complaint (public version)
Source: California Attorney General
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