[Dream Rocket / ドリームロケット] Monster File Chapter 7 - Kyumaras (キュマラス)

Composite Kaiju Kyumaras (or Qumaras) [合成怪獣　キュマラス] is an original kaiju by Dream Rocket and Chapter 7 in the Monster File Series. As of the date of this entry (12/26/09), this is the newest original character developed by Dream Rocket.

BIO: [Translated from Dream Rocket's website.] "Scream of the Composite Kaiju" Renowned genetic engineering expert, Professor Mikuriya began covert development of a biological weapon at the research facilities of a mysterious organization. However, upon threat of disclosure of this research, all of his work was publicly denounced in a preemptive move by the organization. 20 years later... Now living far from civilization, the professor's renewed research gave birth to the composite being, Kyumaras. At first, the professor used Kyumaras to assassinate the former chief of the research facility, as well as others involved in his downfall. As a pattern emerged in the serial murders, an investigative team born of a collaborative effort between the police and NJ Television traced the biological weapon incident involving Professor Mikuriya from 20 years earlier to his current residence. Operatives from the mysterious organization descended upon the professor's home in an effort to conceal the truth; however, upon their arrival, they discovered a partially destroyed house with the professor nowhere to be found. The earth shook as a scream blasted through the air, and a now-enormous Kyumaras appeared on the scene. The Japan Self-Defense Force and their tanks were helpless before the destructive power of Kyumaras' ultrasonic wave. However, the investigative team had been developing an "Ultrasonic Echo Reverser" at the direction of another researcher. Use of the Reverser was proposed to the commanding officer of the JSDF and an operation began to repel Kyumaras. However, Kyumaras- perhaps out of an instinctual sense of self-preservation- dodged around the Reverser to a position out of reach of its waves. But just as everything seemed hopeless, Professor Mikuriya appeared out of nowhere to stand between Kyumaras and the Reverser. To be continued...

STATS/ABILITIES: Height: 45 metres Weight: 13,000 tons - Initially roughly the size of a wolf, rapid cell growth transformed Kyumaras into an enormous monster. - Emits a destructive ultrasonic wave when it screams. - Tail and talons contain a lethal poison that dissolves flesh. - Brain and sensory organs can develop based on past experience (not sure if this translation is correct).

ARTIST COMMENTS: None.

RELEASE CATALOGUE: Releases are categorized by the base color of vinyl used in production. Dream Rocket also produced a significant number of artist customs (i.e., one-offs) of Kyumaras, and these have been listed separately at the bottom of the page.

--LIGHT BLUE VINYL--

1. 1st Release. (Patchi-Summit in Osaka / Sofubi Mania 01, March 2009) Note: Not many pieces sold. Additionally, this color of vinyl was not used again for Kyumaras (to my knowledge).

--ORANGE VINYL--

2. Kaiju Comrades Exclusive 1 - Orange vinyl + pink and purple spray (pink head) (Kaiju Comrades ltd., March 2009) Note: Reverse coloration of KC Exclusive 2.

3. Kaiju Comrades Exclusive 2 - Orange vinyl + pink and purple spray (purple head) (Kaiju Comrades ltd., March 2009) Note: Reverse coloration of KC Exclusive 1.

4. Kaiju Comrades Exclusive 3 - Orange vinyl + green and red spray (green head) (Kaiju Comrades ltd., March 2009) Note: Reverse coloration of KC Exclusive 4.

5. Kaiju Comrades Exclusive 4 - Orange vinyl + green and red spray (red head) (Kaiju Comrades ltd., March 2009) Note: Reverse coloration of KC Exclusive 3.

6. Orange vinyl + black, red and metallic blue spray (mail-order, April 2009) Note: My, my, this colorway is a great homage to a rare colorway of an old Bullmark toy... can you guess which one? As another interesting note, this color version is shown on Kyumaras' profile page on the Dream Rocket website. Perhaps this is the intended appearance of the character.

7. Orange vinyl + metallic purple, red and green (mail-order, June 2009) Note: Sold as a U.S. exclusive version.

8. Orange vinyl, unpainted (Beikokuten / Kaiju Invades S.F., December 2009) Photo credit to Kaiju Chronicle

--DARK BLUE VINYL--

9. Dark blue vinyl, unpainted (2009 Summer Patchi-Summit, lottery prize, June 2009)

--LIGHT GREY VINYL--

10. Grey + pink, gold, red highlights + green eye (Superfestival 50 ltd., Sept. 2009)

11. Green + red, silver, pink highlights w/ black wash + red lizard eye (Superfestival 50 ltd., Sept. 2009)

--CLEAR VINYL--

12. Colorless clear vinyl, unpainted (2009 Winter Patchi-Summit, lottery prize, Dec. 2009) Note: At least 3 of these were given away.

12-A. Colorless clear vinyl, chemically dyed light yellow (Sold via Rotofugi, July 2010) Note: This is probably an experiment by Dream Rocket in dyeing vinyl. Only one was available for sale at Rotofugi and this version has not been offered for sale elsewhere.

12-B. Colorless clear vinyl, chemically dyed orange (Sold via Rotofugi, July 2010) Note: This is probably an experiment by Dream Rocket in dyeing vinyl. Only one was available for sale at Rotofugi and this version has not been offered for sale elsewhere.

--BLACK VINYL--

13. Black vinyl, unpainted (Not publicly released)

--ARTIST CUSTOMS--

14. Art Shocker 1 (matte fluorescent colors) (Art Shocker Show Tokyo, March 2009)

15. Art Shocker 2 (metallic dark purple) (Art Shocker Show Tokyo, March 2009)

16. SF49 1 (orange + metallic green belly) (Superfestival 49, Apr. 2009)

17. SF49 2 (orange + metallic blue belly) (Superfestival 49, Apr. 2009)

18. TK2 (dark green) (Toy Karma 2, Sept. 2009)

19. Toyfes 1 (teal + yellow, pink highlights) (Tokyo Toyfestival, Nov. 2009)

20. Toyfes 2 (pink + yellow, teal, purple highlights) (Tokyo Toyfestival, Nov. 2009)

21. Beikokuten 1 (metal, silver and gold) (Beikokuten / Kaiju Invades S.F., Dec. 2009)

22. Beikokuten 2 (dark teal + pink, red highlights) (Beikokuten / Kaiju Invades S.F., Dec. 2009)

Kyumaras is one of the more intricate, realistic sculpts to date from Dream Rocket; this may be a turn-off for those that prefer the simple, clean lines of toys like Gazura and Gumoz. However, it is a very compact toy and fits in perfectly with the existing Dream Rocket lineup, offsetting the size of some of the larger toys. This may be a difficult toy to collect if you are just getting into Dream Rocket- and not just because of the multiple lottery prize test-shots and one-off customs. They do not turn up as often on the secondary market as some of the older toys (strange, but true). The Japan releases are particularly scarce stateside. In other words, if you do not buy a release on the first go-round, it may be a while before you see one for sale again.