Six-year-old Jericho Rodriguez sprinted into Toys R Us like a cheetah chasing its prey.
"Mommy, Skylanders! Skylanders!" he yelled as he ran through a crowd gathered around the biggest display in the store, larger even than ones for Legos and Marvel superheroes such as Iron Man.
Jericho and other young boys were gathered in Atwater Village early Sunday morning for the new video game "Skylanders: Giants" and dozens of action figures associated with it.
"Giants" is the hottest release of the fall for boys ages 6 to 12, as Jericho's father, Jess, can attest.
"He woke us up early to come here," the...