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FISHER-PRICE CELEBRATES POP CULTURE’S MOST POWERFUL FRIENDSHIPS WITH ALL-NEW THOMAS & FRIENDS™ MINIS TRAIN MASH-UPS FEATURING SABAN’S MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS & DC SUPER FRIENDS
Thomas & Friends™ Characters Reimagined as Iconic Friendship Squads with Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and DC Super Friends; and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Collection to be Released in Summer 2017
EAST AURORA, NEW YORK— Friendship is taking center stage on the Island of Sodor in 2017, and to kick off the year-long celebration, Fisher-Price is debuting an all-new lineup of Thomas & Friends MINIS inspired by some of pop culture’s most powerful friend squads. Building on the successful Thomas & Friends MINIS collections in 2015 and 2016, the line will be expanded with the addition of all-new mash-up MINIS featuring Saban’s Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and brand-new MINIS of DC Super Friends. The line is part of Thomas & Friends yearlong “Set Friendship in Motion™” campaign that began this month.
Iconic 90s superheroes Saban’s Mighty Morphin Power Rangers venture to Sodor just in time for the March 2017 release of the new Saban’s Power Rangers live-action feature film. Thomas and his best pals will morph into 13 train mash-ups, including Thomas as Blue Ranger, Percy as Green Ranger, Rosie as Pink Ranger, Belle as Rita Repulsa, and more.
Additionally, this summer Thomas & Friends is taking on the pizza-loving and sewer-dwelling Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with 9 all-new MINIS inspired by Nickelodeon’s crime-fighting turtles, including Thomas as Leonardo, James as Raphael, Percy as Donatello, Gordon as Michelangelo, Rosie as April O’Neill, and others.
Finally, in partnership with Warner Bros. Consumer Products, on behalf of DC Entertainment, Thomas & Friends has also expanded its collection of DC Super Friends MINIS featuring Thomas & Friends characters taking on the personas of the world’s most powerful DC Super Heroes. The 24 new trains will find Hiro as Steel, Victor as Superboy, Rosie as Star Sapphire, Henry as Batman Beyond, and many more.
The Thomas & Friends™ mash-up MINIS are part of a line of small-scale, collectible Thomas & Friends engines. Since the line’s debut in 2015, more than 13 million Minis have been sold worldwide in over 20 countries. The new mash-up MINIS will be available as 4-packs retailing for $7.49 and 9-packs retailing for $15.99 in March 2017 in the U.S. and in select international markets.
“The new Thomas & Friends MINIS based on famous pop culture teams are a cool way of celebrating legendary, epic friendships,” said Mike Pisors, Director of Thomas & Friends Toy Global Brand Marketing. “We love that Thomas & Friends is a leader is showcasing positive friendship role models for young children, and we’re thrilled to combine the brand with other popular franchises such as the DC Super Friends and Power Rangers for kids to collect.”
The new train mash-ups join a lineup of existing DC Super Friends MINIS and a collection of SpongeBob SquarePants inspired trains. In addition to bringing MINIS to toy aisles, Fisher-Price is also planning to develop exciting online content around the lines.
The lineup of brand new mash-up MINIS hitting retail this month includes:
- Saban’s Mighty Morphin Power Rangers:
- Blue Ranger/Thomas
- Black Ranger/Hiro
- Pink Ranger/Rosie
- Goldar/Victor
- Red Ranger/James
- Green Ranger/Percy
- Yellow Ranger/Emily
- White Ranger/Stanley
- Alpha 5/Diesel
- Rita Repulsa/Belle
- Finster/Salty
- Putty Patroller/Gordon
- Lord Zedd/D-10
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- Nightwing/Toby
- Swamp Thing/Gator
- Superboy/ Victor
- Batman/ Thomas
- Black Lightning/ Dash
- Star Sapphire/Rosie
- Krypton Armor Superman/James
- Batman Beyond/Henry
- Booster Gold/Dash
- Red Tornado/ Percy
- Steel/Hiro
- Black Hand/Stanley
- Big Barda/Belle
- Azrael/Gordon
- Ice Batman/Edward
- Boomerang/Diesel
- D-Shot/D10
- Bumblebee/Millie
- Mr. Miracle/Sidney
- Vixen/Emily
- Mr. Freeze/Ferdinand
- Clark Kent Superman/Salty
- Armor Batman/Scruff
- Arsenal/Skarloey
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mash-Up MINIs will hit retail this summer.
About Thomas & Friends™
Thomas the Tank Engine™ was created over 70 years ago by a British clergyman, the Rev W Awdry, as a storybook for his son. That story quickly grew to become the award-winning global brand franchise it is today, enjoyed by families in more than 150 territories and in over 40 languages across multiple touch-points and formats, including: 400+ original TV shows; 12 feature-length films; 14 websites in nine languages; apps; toys; consumer products; publishing; live attractions and much more. Thomas & Friends has scooped prestigious accolades including a Parent’s Choice Award, a Webby and a Licensing Award for Best Classic Licensed Property. Based on NPD data, the property is currently ranked number 2 in the pre-school toys category in the US and number 3 worldwide. The famous and cheeky No.1 blue engine and his friends invite children to enter a world of imagination through the tracks of a train. Together, the children and engines embark on timeless adventures while experiencing valuable yet fun life lessons of discovery, friendship and cooperation. Thomas & Friends™ is viewable on more than 30 world-class broadcasters including PBS KIDS® in the US, Super RTL in Germany, CCTV in China and on Five’s Milkshake! and Nick Jr. in the UK. Downloadable episodes are available through iTunes, Amazon and Google Play. For more information about the wonderful world of Thomas & Friends please visit: www.thomasandfriends.com, www.facebook.com/thomasandfriends and for bonus material and exclusive content www.youtube.com/user/thomasandfriends.
About Fisher-Price
In 1931, Herman Fisher and Irving Price embarked on a journey to change the toy industry. Their goal: creating playthings that inspire a child’s development. More than 85 years later, Fisher-Price remains deeply rooted in the belief that play is the way children learn best. To this day, understanding the importance of play in building a child’s skills is the fundamental principle, as the company strives to enrich the lives of families with young children around the globe. United by the passion for a child’s safe care and development at each age and stage, the people of Fisher-Price work tirelessly to bring families the best toys and baby products in the world. Some of the company’s best-known brands include Laugh & Learn®, Little People®, Power Wheels®, and Imaginext®, and it’s also a leading developer of character-based toys for children’s programming such as Thomas & Friends™, Blaze and the Monster Machines™ and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Fisher-Price is a subsidiary of Mattel, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAT). For more information, visit www.fisher-price.com (U.S.) and www.fisher-price.ca (Canada) or connect with Fisher-Price on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest.
About Saban’s Power Rangers
Saban’s Power Rangers franchise is the brainchild of Haim Saban, creator and producer of the original “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” hit series that launched in 1993. Following its introduction, “Power Rangers” quickly became the most-watched children’s television program in the United States and remains one of the top-rated and longest running kids live-action series in television history. The series follows the adventures of a group of ordinary teens who morph into superheroes and save the world from evil. It is seen in more than 150 markets, translated into numerous languages and a favorite on many key international children’s programming blocks around the world. For more information, visit www.powerrangers.com.
About Warner Bros. Consumer Products
Warner Bros. Consumer Products, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, is one of the leading licensing and retail merchandising organizations in the world.
About DC Entertainment
DC Entertainment, home to iconic brands DC Comics (Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, The Flash), Vertigo (Sandman, Fables) and MAD, is the creative division charged with strategically integrating its content across Warner Bros. Entertainment and Time Warner. DC Entertainment works in concert with Warner Bros. divisions to unleash its stories and characters across all media, including but not limited to film, television, consumer products, home entertainment and interactive games. Publishing thousands of comic books, graphic novels and magazines each year, DC Entertainment is one of the largest English-language publishers of comics in the world.
DC SUPER FRIENDS and all related characters and elements © & ™ DC Comics. (s17)
About Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon, now in its 37th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books and feature films. Nickelodeon’s U.S. television network is seen in more than 90 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for 20 consecutive years. For more information or artwork, visit http://www.nickpress.com. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB).
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