Super Bastard

Super-bastard Box Art Characters created by Undoboy, consist of 16 unique toys in one set, with 4 unique characters on each face of the box. Each toy is individually placed in a sealed box (blind assortment). They are produced in a limited edition with only 1000 copies of each toy on the market. Made with good quality card stock plus matt lamination and stands 4” in height. Super

Each toy has 4 characters, each with a custom designed suit. Characters include Uncle Sam, George W. Bush, Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein, Queen Elizabeth II, Mother Teresa, a mummy, a Japanese wrestler, a cave man, dominatrix and so on. The toys are designed so that you can detach the head or the pants. Once removed, it reveals either a skull or underwear. What makes it exciting isn’t how cool or funny their underwear is, but that collectors can interchange their heads and pants with different bodies. Can a George W. Bush head go with a Saddam Hussein commander suit? How about president Mao wearing a super hot bikini?

Artist Bio

Originally from Malaysia, Undoboy now resides in New York. After graduating with a BFA in Graphic Design from the Ringling School of Art and Design in 2005, he spent time as an interactive designer at Crispin Porter + Bogusky, before becoming an art director at JWT New York.

Interview:

So how long did it take you to produce the Super Bastards was this an old idea; what inspired the SB characters?

The idea behind Super Bastard Box Art Characters (http://super-bastard.com) was inspired by early mix and match books and paper doll that you can switch around the cloths. Paper doll is flat, I think it could be really fun and cool to switch the form from 2d to 3d. SB is just a box with 4 characters on each side, simple and fun. I like the idea of mix and match because it enhances the playfulness and also create the possibility of the toy itself.

I had the idea in school, and it was always well received. Friends always pushed me to produce it. It took me a year to produce SB, since I have a 9-5 job.

There’s Michael Jackson, Saddam, Bill Clinton etc is there anyone not famous on your Super Bastards characters?

They are 16 toys on this series, but it includes 64 characters since each toy has 4 characters. They are 16 politicians and 16 celebrities. The rest of the characters are not famous people, but they are fun, like mummy, wrestler, cave man, ape, US army, policeman, cheerleader, Santa Claus, dominatrix, etc. It is funny when you attach the head of Saddam to caveman body.

Are these generally people you personally dislike and you want to satirize;

When I selected characters to be SB, I didn’t consider what I dislike. I consider it from a toys perspective and what characters can make this toy funnier. Of course, they are some ironic graphics to make the story more interesting. I would say it is a parody than to satirize.

Not many people have worked with paper what made you choose this format – any other format you would like to experiment on in the future?

Actually I have considered making them in vinyl or wood, but they didn’t look good. This is because SB is so boxy, and I think the form has to be curvier if I use vinyl or wood. It is fine to use paper for boxy form, because it similar to everyday packaging. I want to explore the idea of toy on other medium. Off course, I would love to produce vinyl toy or plush toy in the future.

What was/is your favorite cartoon hero/series?

Transformers, Smurfs, Thundercats t, Looney Tunes, Doraemon, Dragon Ball and Ultraman occupied my childhood.

Are you a toy collector yourself? If so would you like to talk about your collection?

I didn’t actually collect toys. I just bought some that I like, therefore, I don’t have crazy collection like other people have a whole series of Simpsons and so on. So far, I have Bearbricks, Qees James Jarvis’s toys, Fafi’s toys, Muttpop’s toys and Dehara’s toys.

Favorite toy?

Toys by Michael Lau, Eric So, James Jarvis, Devil Robots, Kaws, Dehara, and tin toys. Love Astro Boy. I like simple design toys that give you a strong impression.

Favorite artists – people or things that have inspired you?

My inspiration comes from everywhere, but I’m particularly influenced by Japanese design, an influence I attribute to growing up with manga and Japanese/Hong Kong pop culture. The Superflat movement has had a very strong impact on my beliefs. I also admire Andy Warhol and love the way he intertwined art and pop culture. Michael Lau is a person to refresh my perspective on toys. His works motivate me to design toy and do better works. Works by Yoshitomo Nara, Yugo Shimizu, Fiona Hewitt, Chris Ware, Sagmeister and Bauhaus are inspiring me too.

When should we expect the second series of the Super Bastards are you currently working on this or it’s too early for that?

I am planning to have a couple series for Super-Bastard. Hopefully, second series can come out next year. I already have some characters sketched out for second series. I also want to set up some shows for SBT by making them on large scale (around 4 feet).

Any other future projects/side projects you’d like to talk about?

For sure, I would like to produce more and even more toys in different medium. To own a fashion label is always my dream, since I was growing up with design scene. Other than that, it would be my pleasure to work with other artists on collaboration. Collaboration always creates a good energy and inspiration to explore the works within the artist.

Bastard is distributed worldwide by DKE and sells at a retail price of USD5.95 per toy.

FIN.