Sunday, November 28, 2004

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

Kyumaras datafile

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.

Dream Rocket - Kyumaras

(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

Dream Rocket - Kyumaras

(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

Dream Rocket - Kyumaras (chemical dye test 8-10)

(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 San Francisco (12/12/09)

(Beikokuten / Kaiju Invades S.F., Dec. 2009)



22. Beikokuten 2 (dark teal + pink, red highlights)

Beikokuten / Kaiju Invades San Francisco (12/12/09)

(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.


Wednesday, November 24, 2004

[Dream Rocket / ドリームロケット] Monster File Chapter 3 - Gumoz (グモーズ)

datafile-gumoz-banner

Space Insect Kaiju Gumoz [宇虫怪獣 グモーズ] is an original kaiju by Dream Rocket, and is part of Chapter 3 in the Monster File Series. This was the first sculpt released by Dream Rocket.

"Gumoz" (or "Gumoze") is probably the most proper romanization of the name, although "Gumous," "Gumos" and "Gmohs" are also commonly seen.


BIO:

[Translated from Dream Rocket's website.]

"The Chrysalis of Gumoz"

On Mars, a fossil was discovered underground and brought to Earth. However, a frozen chrysalis of the Space Insect Gumoz was discovered within. The chrysalis was exposed to radiation at the Space Science Center, awakening the space insect from its slumber. Quickly growing to 40 metres, Gumoz began to destroy the city...


STATS / ABILITIES:

Height: 40 metres
Weight: 10,000 tons

- Gumoz captures prey with its six arms and tears them apart with its mandibles.

- Steel-like claws on each arm are perfect for shredding.

- Green poison can be discharged from the mouth.


ARTIST'S COMMENTS:

This is Dream Rocket's debut figure! My heart is overflowing with happiness. Anyhow, I think the outstanding aspect of this sculpt is the six moveable arms. Unfortunately, this increased production costs beyond original expectations. But I do not want to forget the enthusiasm and spirit of this time.

The original version of Gumoz was a creation in my notebook during 1st or 2nd year of elementary school. At that time, Gumoz was still a two-armed, wingless insect kaiju. After that, I kept drawing this figure in my middle school notebooks, on receipts at my part-time job and even in the margins of documents as a working adult, until it finally became the character seen here. Now that I think about it, this guy has been my companion for more than 30 years. I never dreamed that I would be able to make him into a soft vinyl toy.


RELEASE CATALOGUE:

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


--DARK BLUE VINYL--

1. Dark blue vinyl, unpainted


(WHF Sofubi Matsuri lottery prize, Dec. 2006)

Retail Price: Free / 5,000 yen.

Note: These were probably sold alongside the painted releases as well as being used as a lottery prize at the Dec. 2006 Sofvi Matsuri. I have a bagged version with a price written on the header.


2. Dark blue vinyl + metallic green and pink + red eye


(Release information unknown)


3. Dark blue vinyl + metallic green and pink + gold eye


(mail-order, ??/20??)

Retail Price: 5,000 yen.



4. Dark blue vinyl + metallic green and silver + blue eye


(Irisawa store excl., ??/20??)

Retail Price: 5,000 yen.


5. Dark blue vinyl + bright green spray on body + matte pink and yellow on wings


(Super7 exclusive, July 2004)

Retail Price: $55

Note: The paint scheme for this release was selected by Super7. Super7 logo stamped on foot in silver.


6. Dark blue vinyl + metallic green and maroon + yellow eye

Dream Rocket - Gumoz

(Release information unknown; most likely mail-order)

Retail Price: 5,000 yen.


7. Dark blue vinyl + matte purple, yellow and red

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (SF39 rel.)

(Superfestival 39 ltd., Apr. 2006)

Retail Price: 5,000 yen.

Note: The colors of this version are reminiscent of the vintage Aquarion Seijin vinyl by Ark. One of my favorite kaiju toys!



--GLOW IN THE DARK VINYL--

8. GID vinyl, unpainted


(Max Toy Co. excl., Mar. 2006 (6 ltd.) / WCC 22, June 2006)

Retail Price: [Information needed.]

Note: This one appears to have been released at two separate venues: the WCC release is bagged with a Dream Rocket header and the Max Toy version was sold bagged with a Max Toy Co. header and a point card tag.


8-A. GID vinyl + dark pink, light grey, yellow and green

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (Max Toy excl 3-06)

(Max Toy Co. excl., Mar. 2006 (30 ltd.))

Retail Price: [Information needed.]

Note: Header features original artwork by Mark Nagata. Each piece is also numbered in permanent marker on the header.


9. GID vinyl + aqua, lavender and yellow

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (GID 06 release)

(mail-order, ??/2006)

Retail Price: 5,000 yen.

My comments: One of my first purchases when I began collecting Japanese soft vinyl toys... check out an old, old review.


10. GID vinyl + light red, aqua and yellow


(mail order, ??/2006)

Retail Price: 5,000 yen.


11. GID vinyl + yellow, silver and green


(2006 Patchi-Summit, sales method unknown)

Retail Price: Unknown.



12. GID vinyl + dark brick red, gold and aqua


(artist custom, release information unknown)

Retail Price: Unknown.


--BRIGHT GREEN VINYL--

13. Bright green vinyl, unpainted


(Max Toy Co. "Capt. Maxx Battle Pack" release / 2008 Wonderfestival Summer ltd., Aug. 2008)

Retail Price: 7,500 yen.

Note: Bagged with an unpainted flesh Capt. Maxx.


14. Bright green vinyl + yellow and red

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (Max Toy ver. WF2008S ltd 8-08)

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (Max Toy ver. WF2008S ltd 8-08)

(Max Toy Co. "Capt. Maxx Battle Pack" release / 2008 Wonderfestival Summer ltd., Aug. 2008)

Retail Price: 9,500 yen.

Note: Bagged with a painted brown, gold and green Capt. Maxx.


15-A. Bright green vinyl + various metallic sprays


(Max Toy Co. "Capt. Maxx Battle Pack" release / 2008 Wonderfestival Summer ltd., August 2008)

Retail Price: 12,000 yen

Note: One-off sets of Captain Maxx and Gumoz could be purchased instead of the production version.


15-B. Bright green vinyl + various metallic sprays


(Max Toy Co. "Capt. Maxx Battle Pack" release / Tokyo 1-Week magazine excl.)

Retail Price: 14,500 yen.

Note: The Tokyo 1-week versions of the Battle Pack set were sold around the same time as the Wonderfestival sets. I believe these could be purchased only in Japan by mail-away order through the magazine. Although painted in the same style as the one-off Battle Pack sets, there seemed to have been multiple sets available with the buyer able to choose between two types of Gumoz and two types of Target Earth's Gameldon available, each of which would be packed with a special version red and green version of Capt. Maxx. I have never seen one of these sets outside of the magazine solicitation.


16. Bright green vinyl + light green, silver and red

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (PS Fall 2008 lottery prize)

(2008 Fall Patchi-Summit lottery prize, Nov. 2008)

Retail Price: Free (with purchase of drink).

Note: One-off given away by raffle at the Patchi-Summit event. From what I am told, you are given a raffle ticket whenever you buy a drink.


--BLACK VINYL--

17. Black vinyl, unpainted


(2009 Summer Patchi-Summit lottery prize, June 2009 / Kaiju Invades SF / Beikokuten ltd., Dec. 2009)

Retail Price: Free / $60.

Note: Some given away as raffle prizes at Patchi-Summit events, a handful were also sold at the Beikokuten event.


18. Black vinyl + silver and red

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (RM ver 8-09)

(Rumble Monsters mail-order, Aug. 2009)

Retail Price: 6,500 yen.

Notes: "It is a shape of destruction that he imagined in his childhood..."


19. Black vinyl + various metallic sprays

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (mail-order 9-09)

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (mail-order 9-09)

("Insect" version; mail-order, Sept. 2009)

Retail Price: 6,500 yen.


19-X. Black vinyl + silver and gold

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (SPS2005 ltd 4-05)

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (SPS2005 ltd 4-05)

(2005 Spring Patchi-Summit, Apr. 2005)

Retail Price: Unknown.

Note: This item was purchased from a Japan online auction posted by a well-known toy dealer in the process of closing down his online store operations. The listing indicated that it was released from the first Patchi-Summit event, held in April 2005.

At the time, however, Dream Rocket had not produced a Gumoz in black vinyl. There was a Gazura cast in black vinyl that was sold at the same event. As such, I suspect that this Gumoz was probably pulled from excess stock of black vinyl used for the Gazura run.


--OTHER--

20. Orange vinyl, unpainted

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (orange test)

(Release information unknown)

Retail Price: Unknown.

Note: This color of vinyl was never used for a production version Gumoz. I purchased it second-hand and without packaging.


21. Cronic x Dream Rocket One-off HP (Black vinyl + various metallic colors)

Cronic x Dream Rocket - Gumoz (one-off HP 7-09)

(Cronic DM sale, July 2009)

Retail Price: 18,000 yen.

Note: 4 pieces total sold through direct sales and lottery sales. Toy sold loose w/ bubble wrap in cardboard box with printed sticker.

These items are painted by Cronic.


--ARTIST CUSTOMS--

22. Beikokuten 1 (Black vinyl + metallic green and gold + hand-brushed details)

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (artist custom 12-09)

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (artist custom 12-09)

(Kaiju Invades SF / Beikokuten, Dec. 2009)

Retail Price: Let's talk about something else...

Note: Originally displayed at Kaiju Invades NYC in April 2008, this piece was made available for purchase at Kaiju Invades SF / Beikokuten in December 2009. The bottom of the right foot is signed in Japanese by Yajima Junichi; the bottom of the left foot appears to be dated "12/2009," but could also be 12/2007.


23. Beikokuten 2 (Black vinyl + metallic red and green + glitter on carapace)

Beikokuten / Kaiju Invades San Francisco (12/12/09)

(Kaiju Invades SF / Beikokuten, Dec. 2009)


24. One-Up Sale 2010-06-1 (Black vinyl + metallic red, green and gold)

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (artist custom 6-10)

Dream Rocket - Gumoz (artist custom 6-10)

(One-up.org excl. artist custom, June 2010)

Retail Price: 7,000 yen.

Note: Two customs were dropped off by Yajima at One-Up in June 2010 and sold for barely above normal Gumoz retail. In a time where people seem to triple prices for artist customs, it is good to see someone that still offers fair prices to collectors.


25. One-Up Sale 2010-06-2 (Black vinyl + metallic blue, gold, purple and pink)


(One-up.org excl. artist custom, June 2010)

Retail Price: 7,000 yen.

Note: See above for 2010-06-1 artist custom.


And that's the end of the story for now! Gumoz is perhaps the most interesting sculpt in the Dream Rocket arsenal because of its personal ties to the artist. I find it hard to believe that there have been only 3 (edit: or 4) colors of vinyl used in its production over a span of 3-4 years.