Robot Loves Monster!

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] Pheyaos Man　(フェオスマン)

2012-01-29T01:28:00.000-08:00

Released in December 2011, this Pheyaos Man [フェオスマン] features a head cast in red glitter vinyl with its face painted a steely metallic blue. It's a really cool effect that suggests a corona of energy surrounding the hero's head, as seen with many fiery superheroes.

There were two additional eyes included with this figure (I suppose, in the event you want to swap them out)- one yellow-green cat eye and one standard red eye. A thoughtful addition that I'm sure many collectors will appreciate, but I think the standard yellow eye matches best. The wood-style business card has also been replaced with a white card, which I assume is a running change.

[Modern Toy / モダントーイ] Giant Gamera

2012-01-28T18:43:00.000-08:00

Modern Toy [モダントーイ] is a soft vinyl toy producer whose lineup over the past decade can only be described as an eclectic grouping of licensed properties. Beyond the Giant Gamera toys pictured below, they have produced and sold several variations of Paira Seijin (from Warning from Space) and an unpainted grey Robot Hack (from Captain Ultra, which may have been sold assembled or assembled and painted or as an unassembled kit). Modern Toy also shared a booth with upstart toy company, iluilu, upon the latter's debut at Superfestival.

Modern Toy's Giant Gamera was probably first produced in 1999, based on the imprint on its foot. Most sales seem to have occurred in the first half of the 2000s. Two versions cast in grass green and light blue vinyl, respectively, are the most commonly found and, I suspect, were sold through dealers or direct mail-order. There are a host of other versions, most of which turn up infrequently if at all: flesh vinyl w/ orange paint; flesh/pink vinyl w/ pink, red and blue paint (2 different versions); GID vinyl w/ blue paint; and orange vinyl w/ green paint. The majority of these were probably exclusive items from hobby shows, with the GID version distributed as a gift item.

This dark blue unpainted Giant Gamera bears a sticker on one foot reading "Sample T1" I don't believe there was a Giant Gamera produced in this color of vinyl, so it would probably be a production sample (i.e., a test shot). An unpainted red Tokyo Tower (otherwise identical to the painted version included with most production releases) was included when I purchased this figure- rather intriguing that they would bother to keep the accessory together with the main figure for a test shot.

I've come across MT's Giant Gamera in a pink and blue scheme a few times in the past. I thought the color combination was very eye-catching and unique for a Gamera toy; however, the very high prices always forestalled a purchase. Well this one came along at a reasonable price and I very quickly hopped on it. To my surprise when comparing it to older pictures, I realized that it featured a slightly different paint application than the past pink-and-blue versions (which only had blue paint on the rear 2/3 of the head and which may have used pink, rather than flesh vinyl). Accidentally, it appears, I bought a toy that I had never seen before. I can live with those kinds of accidents.

This version includes a painted red Tokyo Tower accessory, which is not pictured here. As a note, the tower can be gripped in Gamera's hand.

The stylized precision of this Giant Gamera seems to either draw people in or turn them off to the toy. You might say that it is the antithesis of the Bear Model school of sculpting. My only recommendation is that you find one and hold it in your hands before you say 'never'.

[Glyos] Mraedis

2012-01-17T23:15:00.000-08:00

This Friday, Glyos collectors old and new will see the doors open to the Experimental Mechanics Division of the United Glyan Forces. A familiar Glyanaut takes center stage, along with a mysterious new Traveler...

But the EMD wave will also excite many veteran collectors as it features the return of 'safety orange' Glyos parts. This shocking shade of orange was first seen back in May 2009 when Mraedis Buildman (seen above) and Spartek Buildman (lurking in the background) were released as Warp Zone items. I've recently reassembled this pair (they were sitting in the parts bin for quite some time) and have reached a new appreciation for the construction/tech feel of the orange. I think it looks smashing combined with the bright white pieces of these Buildmen- sadly, the upcoming wave does not appear to feature white parts, but I suspect enterprising collectors will be able to obtain them from past waves.

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] Gatchigon (ガチゴン)

2012-01-15T16:07:00.001-08:00

A strange alien from a ruined world! Fleeing the destruction of his homeworld, Gatchigon and his tiny offspring have sought refuge on Earth. Are these peaceful travelers or are they merely preparing for . . . THE ROAD TO HELL???

It is with some trepidation that I begin to pen this article in an attempt to do some justice to a figure that is, without question, my favorite character in the RealxHead stable. I have also been told that Mori himself holds no small amount of affection for the Gatchigon.

Gatchigon [ガチゴン] debuted in the last few days of 2006 at the subdivision of the World Hobby Festival known as Sofvi Matsuri. At the time, it was one of only a handful of characters developed outside of the main line Mutant Zone Series. The resulting eyeless design that resembled a number of overlapping armor plates in humanoid arrangement was admittedly more abstract than the Mutant Zone characters. Adding to the enigma, each Gatchigon included a tiny, two-part mini figure that sort of looked like the bigger figure. It was legendarily unpopular on this side of the Pacific, showing up several times in a thread on the Skullbrain forums tactfully titled, “toys you hate.” Possibly due to the lukewarm reception, Gatchigon has seen relatively limited production through the years.

Gatchigon is an original character by Mori Katsura and the first of only two characters from a side story in the RxH universe: Lord of the Beast-Men (Lord of the Jyujin) [ロード　オブ　ザ　獣人]. (The second character is Cyclo-magnon.) The purpose of this grouping has never been made clear, or even whether or how it connects to the Mutant Zone story. Hiro Hayashi (aka, LiLJapan) graciously incurred the phone bill to speak with Mori on Gatchigon’s personal background: he is a bamboo-like alien who fled his ruined homeworld and arrived on Earth. The mini-figure that is sold together with many of the Gatchigon versions is supposed to represent a baby Gatchigon. For this reason, the full name of this character is “Lone Beast and Cub / Gatchigon,” a reference to the famous ‘70s manga epic. (Note that the RxH article in the Super7 Mook (“Mook”) contains an error in that it classifies Gatchigon as the fourth villain in the Mutant Zone II Series.)

MG-01, Dec. 2006 (WHF 15, Sofvi Matsuri)

The first version of Gatchigon (MG-01) was cast in a smoky, clear-grey vinyl and filled with glow-in-the-dark shards of vinyl, before being sold at World Hobby Festival 15 in December 2006. I suspect that this Gatchigon used leftover vinyl material from the clear grey Ryuusei Ninja that also debuted at WHF 15 (but which figure provided the GID shards is anyone’s guess).

This figure was packaged with a mini-Gatchigon in unpainted dark green vinyl.

This figure has a nice heft in-hand, due to the weight of the vinyl shards. The clear grey material might seem a little lackluster, but this version really shines (literally) when given ample light and placed in a dark room. The glow produced by the shards accents the edges of the sculpt in a way that is not achieved by any of the other versions.

While there is no doubt in my mind that this Gatchigon was sold in extremely limited numbers at WHF, several have come up for sale in the past couple of years.

MG-02, Feb. 2007 (Phone Order)

The second version of Gatchigon was likely intended as the full-color version of the character’s toy. It is the first fully-painted version and is not a tribute to any existing character or toy. MG-02 was sold via phone order sales in March 2007 (although the Mook indicates sales at winter Wonderfestival in February 2007)*. Limited quantities were made available through North American distributors.

This figure was packaged with a mini-Gatchigon in a matching paint scheme.

In my humble opinion, this remains the most attractive of the Gatchigons produced to date. The paint scheme brings to mind the young bamboo shoot (take-no-ko), which is harvested and eaten in Japan and other Asian countries. In any event, the lush emerald green and cream white paints sprayed over a buttery yellow vinyl base are exceedingly pleasing to the eye; accents of metallic purple and black on Gatchigon’s kneecaps and spines provide necessary contrast. I might even count this among the top RxH releases of all time.

*I will note here that the Mook lists MG-03 (the unpainted beige-flesh color vinyl version) as having been sold at the same Wonderfestival. If there actually was an unpainted version sold at that show, it would have been an unpainted version of MG-02, the base vinyl color of which has more of a yellow hue than MG-03. The two are nearly impossible to distinguish without a side-by-side comparison, so the distinction is primarily academic.

MG-04, April 2007 (Spring Patchi-Summit)

MG-04? Did I miss one? Never fear, fair reader, MG-03 will be addressed immediately following this one in accurate chronological order.

This fourth version was sold exclusively at the spring Patchimon Summit event held in April 2007. In past years, RxH would regularly attend ‘Patchi-Summits’ which would be the source of some of the most fantastic and unobtainable RxH figures over time. Understandably, his attendance at such events has been sporadic since opening Shinto Gangu and its sister store, Real Heads. Limited quantities of MG-04 were made available through North American distributors.

This figure was packaged with a mini-Gatchigon in a matching paint scheme.

To be honest, I find this Gatchigon to be the weakest version of the entire lot in terms of color arrangement. The colors are intended to pay tribute to the Bullmark Ka__gon toy from which Gatchigon draws certain design cues. Even so, the paint scheme does not do enough to differentiate itself from MG-02. Emerald green and bright white paint are sprayed over a cerulean vinyl base; beyond appearing repetitive, the paint colors blend into the vinyl color and transgress into the realm of the unremarkable. The red accents on Gatchigon’s back spines are, unfortunately, entirely invisible when viewed straight-on.

Patchi-Summit releases are typically more challenging to find than other figures; however, it is not at all difficult to obtain this Gatchigon- even years after the initial release date- at deeply discounted prices.

MG-L01, May 2007 (WHF 16, Sofvi Matsuri)

The infamous “L” designation. L is for limited. In this case, VERY limited. MG-L01 is a cautionary tale and the nightmare of RxH collectors.

This Gatchigon was a secret release at the 16th World Hobby Festival. It has the notoriety of being the only normal production version of Gatchigon (i.e., not an intentional micro release sold at Shinto Gangu) that was produced in sufficiently limited numbers to be given the “L” designation in the Mook. Make no mistake: this figure is very, very rare. It is also packaged with a mini-Gatchigon in a matching paint scheme.

I’d like to pretend that there is a deep and involved tale behind my acquisition of this figure, but, like 90% of toy quests, waiting is the true game. I first saw this Gatchigon for sale on an auction site on the night of WHF. The BIN price was fairly high (about 9,900 yen) and I passed; [i]no biggie, I’m sure Super7 will have them for sale soon[/i]. Silly man. It would be years before I found another lead. Amazingly, I eventually found the collector that purchased the figure from the auction, and I had trade items of interest to him, but the MG-L01 was sadly long gone (in the possession of a major collector). I finally bought the above figure in a lot of Gatchigons sold by another longtime collector. If you missed it, the lesson is ‘buy it when you see it.’

Like MG-04, this figure uses a beautiful cerulean base vinyl for the figure. Hand-sprayed applications of dark gold, silver and black offset the bright blue and endow it with the aesthetic of antique metal ornamentation. While I have no doubt the rarity of this version is the primary driving factor behind its desirability, it is nonetheless a very handsome figure. As you may have noticed, the example in my collection features rather heavy paint wear for a modern designer toy (courtesy of the prior owner, no doubt). It pains me to see something of this caliber and rarity suffer damage that could have been easily prevented by an adult collector. Is it really that hard to put your figures in a ziploc bag when you store them?

MG-03, June 2007 (RealxHead Expo @ Ichibanboshi)

The actual MG-03 was not released until June 2007 when the RealxHead Expo was held at Ichibanboshi’s shop in Koenji. Perhaps responding to the demand from customizers for production blanks of RxH figures, unpainted, beige-flesh vinyl versions of Ryuusei Ninja, Pop Soda, Shinto-san and Gatchigon were sold at the Expo. Release numbers appear to have been substantial and these are still fairly common to find (although less common than the flesh blanks sold in sets of 3). This release was also available through North American distributors.

This figure was packaged with an unpainted mini-Gatchigon in the same color of vinyl.

MG-05, Aug. 2007 (Summer Wonderfestival)

The fifth normal production Gatchigon was painted in the “Gold Mist” colors. The Gold Mist set encompasses nine figures produced by RxH (including the collaborative characters Ryuusei Ninja and Mikazuki Joe) and represents the largest matching set of standard RxH figures. This Gatchigon was sold exclusively at the Summer Wonderfestival held in August 2007. Limited quantities were made available through North American distributors.

This figure was packaged with a mini-Gatchigon in a matching paint scheme.

“Gold Mist” is a simple paint technique that is has largely gone unappreciated. It uses either a black base vinyl or paint coat with a light coat of dark gold paint to create the metallic gunmetal finish. There is some variation among the gold coating used on finished pieces; collectors have also discovered that some of the earlier Gold Mist figures used different base vinyl colors for the same figure (Bigaro in particular). This is a paint technique that is unique to RxH and does a marvelous job of accenting the sculpted details in each figure.

Probably due to relatively high release numbers, a less flashy paint scheme and the successive sale of many ‘similar’ figures, the Gold Mist RxH are not popular among collectors. Ironically, the Gold Mist color has also been referred to as the “RealxHead” version when applied to collaborative releases.

Artist Custom, Sept. 2007 (Ichibanboshi)

On the release day of the first 3-pack unpainted beige-flesh set at Ichibanboshi in September 2007, Mori also gave one-off items as gifts to friends and regular customers. Mutant Head and Akrokaiser were among the gift items; there was at least one Gatchigon given away as well.

The one-off Gatchigon that has been shown in photographs is painted entirely black, with the exception of the tips of its hands, which are clear red. I suspect that the base vinyl is actually clear; the hands were painted clear red and then the rest of the body was painted black. Clear vinyl was used in another gift item Gatchigon from around the same time period, so it would make sense that there would be extra figures in clear vinyl. This figure included a mini-Gatchigon painted entirely black.

Normal Release, Nov. 2007 (Hobby Complex)

The first post-Mook release of this figure, the 6th normal production Gatchigon was sold exclusively at the Hobby Complex event held in November 2007. Limited quantities were made available through North American distributors.

This figure was packaged with a mini-Gatchigon in a matching paint scheme.

While prior versions had understated paint schemes featuring mostly natural tones, not so for this Gatchigon. From the screaming lemon-yellow vinyl to the bold metallic blue paint, this version immediately grabs your attention on any shelf of toys. The blue paint also blends with the yellow vinyl to create the impression that this figure has a bit of lime green, which is quite nice. Black and gold paint complete the scheme and create real visual impact by offsetting the brighter colors. All in all, a fantastic release that provided a boost for Gatchigon’s appeal after two fairly subdued versions.

Official Custom, Dec. 2007 (Art of the Rising Sons @ Super7)

Art of the Rising Sons took place at Super7’s store in San Francisco on December 8, 2007 and featured artwork and custom toys from Hiro Hayashi and an assortment of stunning one-offs and test shot RxH figures from Mori and Brian Flynn’s private collections. This Gatchigon was one of seven custom RxH figures that Hayashi produced for the show, each of which included a small 2 x 3 inch painting of the character. Hayashi’s customs were sold at the show and later via Super7’s webstore. These custom figures are significant in that they among the few third party customs that were produced for an official RxH event, and the only such figures outside of Japan.

This figure was sold together with a mini-Gatchigon in a matching paint scheme. As mentioned earlier, these customs also included a mini-canvas featuring Hayashi’s artwork of the character (not pictured).

I fell in love with this Gatchigon immediately upon seeing it previewed on the Skullbrain.org forums. Beyond his striking combination of red and black, Hayashi applied the paint in a checkerboard pattern on Gatchigon’s armor plates in a completely unique take on this figure. The paint scheme works with the sculpt and is just a lot of fun (always reminds me of the Batman villain, Harley Quinn). For the curious, MG-03 was used as the base for this piece. I think it would be amazing to see this figure made into a production item, perhaps on a clear red vinyl base. But that is just wishful thinking at this point.

Super7 Employee Gift, Jan. 2008

Mori produced a special Gatchigon as a gift for the employees of Super7 in January 2008. It is cast in unpainted clear vinyl and filled with multi-colored BBs, matching the earlier set of the four Mutant Zone I figures in this style. This item also included an unpainted clear mini-Gatchigon that is filled with multi-colored BBs.

Normal Release, Mar. 2008 (Shinto Gangu)

It seems like a lifetime ago, but in the early months of 2008, Mori was the proud owner of a new store in the sleepy district of Aoto, Tokyo. This Gatchigon, sold in March 2008, was among the bevy of new releases that seemed to come at a rapid-fire pace from the new location. Limited quantities were made available through North American distributors.

This figure was packaged with a mini-Gatchigon in a matching paint scheme.

Long overdue at this point, this is the first and only Gatchigon fully cast in glow-in-the-dark vinyl. Dark metallic paints are the perfect complement to the beautiful textures on this sculpt, so it is no surprise that we see a return of the one-two punch of black and gold here. I think they work particularly well in this case, as the gold plays off the slight yellow-green tint of the GID vinyl.

Normal Release, Aug. 2008 (Shinto Gangu)

After a few months’ respite, Gatchigon returned to Shinto Gangu in August 2008 with a killer new paint job. There would also be a Mutant Head and Evil released in a matching paint scheme around the same time. It is interesting to note that the matching Head was originally previewed as a not-for-sale item in the Shinto Gangu collection case on the opening day (however, the original featured glitter sprayed over the eyes). Limited quantities were made available through North American distributors.

This was figure was packaged with a mini-Gatchigon in a matching paint scheme.

I have to be careful of saying this too often, but this is one of my favorite versions of Gatchigon. The rainbow metallic paints over glossy black vinyl are like the rainbow sheen of an oil slick. (Man, that sounds a lot less poetic when you write it out.) Others have likened it to a jewel beetle. But I think the aspect of this figure that most impresses me is the attention to detail on the mini-Gatchigon. Usually the little guys are sort of an afterthought to the big guy, and sport only a few dabs of paint. Curiously, the mini in this case does not mimic the appearance of the adult Gatchigon, but has a rather artful and detailed rearrangement of the adult’s color scheme.

This marked the last Gatchigon that would be distributed in North America through multiple venues. RxH was on the path to the current system of in-store-only micro releases, and Lulubell Toys became virtually the sole overseas distributor of RxH figures during this transition period.

Secret Store Release, ?? 2009 (Shinto Gangu)

From here it became a lot more difficult to pin down release dates and other information. As 2008 wound to a close, Mori appeared to shift his focus to building and sustaining in-store sales. No longer would we have an overseas pipeline for all RxH releases. An increasing number of new releases would be unannounced on the RxH website and simply sold to whoever happened to stop by Shinto Gangu that day. Other items were reserved solely for regular customers and friends.

This Gatchigon was previewed in a store photo in January 2009, but its availability was not confirmed until October of that year. Judging from the limited number of these that I have seen, it may have been a friends-only item; at the very least, it was an unannounced (i.e., secret) release.

As was common to many RxH figures at the time, this Gatchigon features metallic red and gold paint with a black paint wash over the entire figure. Rumor had it that Mori’s normal painter was having vision problems and that these simpler paint schemes were utilized as they could be more easily reproduced from a paint master. Whether or not that was the case, this was our first time seeing the technique applied to Gatchigon, and the results are quite good.

Normal Store Release, Oct. 2009 (Shinto Gangu)

In 2009, release patterns generally continued to follow the two tracks of ‘normal’ and super-limited ‘secret’ release items- just that everything would be sold directly through the doors of Shinto Gangu. Luckily for us, Lulubell’s Luke came to our rescue by making pilgrimages to RxH’s shop several times each week to pick up new figures. This Gatchigon was a normal store release from October 2009. Limited quantities were made available in the U.S. via Lulubell Toys.

This figure was packaged with a mini-Gatchigon in a matching, er, texture.

I gather this was something of an experiment into the world of flocking vinyl. Secret Base did it, so why not? While I don’t think this figure turned out poorly, the whole concept of adding fuzz to a toy always struck me as a little odd. Furry toys kind of gross me out. They also attract dust and errant particles like a static-charged wool sweater (I’ve actually kept my figure in the bag for the entirety of my ownership, taking it out once for this photograph.). But anyhow, this is the one and only flocked RxH figure to have been officially produced, possibly for all time.

Secret Store Release, Nov. 2009 (Shinto Gangu)

Sold at around the same time as the flocked Gatchigon, this was a secret store release from November 2009. I would guess that this was the most limited Gatchigon release to date (except, perhaps, for MG-L01) and it was not sold publicly outside Japan.

This Gatchigon did not include a mini-Gatchigon.

Mori wheeled out his brand new super-glitter vinyl for this figure. Glitter vinyl is a double-edged sword; it can make a toy look shiny and fabulous, but if you don’t paint it just right, the glitter completely obscures any textural detail of the sculpt. Thankfully, Mori’s discerning eye and judicious application of paint created a sparkly pearl of a figure. The obliterating effect of the glitter is counteracted by a light wash of black paint over the entire toy, which pulls out the details from the sparkly blur. Sprays of metallic red and gold paint provide color and a visual surface. Paint is minimal, but here, less is more.

Gift Release, Nov. 2009

Much like this Gatchigon, many of the gift items that Mori would distribute to friends and regular customers during this time period were unpainted versions of painted production items. These are not unpainted test shots, just super-limited production items.

Like the painted version above, this Gatchigon did not include a mini-Gatchigon.

Although this is simply an unpainted version of a regular release, the lack of paint demonstrates that the base vinyl is clear vinyl with an internal suspension of glitter. The clear vinyl appears, at first glance, to have a slight bluish tint. But after examining this toy in-hand, it is now- clear- that the color is just light reflected from the suspended blue-green glitter.

Micro Store Release, Aug. 2010 (Shinto Gangu)

Beginning in the last few months of 2009, RxH switched gears yet again to a system of micro releases sold exclusively in-store. The production numbers for each micro release are less than ten in most cases; in some, as few as two to three. At the same time, we stopped receiving regular information about new RxH releases until Mori opened his Twitter account in mid-2010. This Gatchigon was among the first releases to be tweeted when it was sold in August 2010.

This Gatchigon was again packaged with a mini-Gatchigon in a (semi) matching paint scheme.

Painted over a pristine white base vinyl, this Gatchigon features an adaptation of a multi-color style paint technique recently developed by RxH. This figure, however, uses darker metallics- primarily blues and greens- which keeps it from feeling repetitive when viewed with other similarly-painted RxH figures. The choice to paint the mini-Gatchigon with a simple splash of silver across its front seems a little daring in its minimalism. But, side by side, with the adult, it works.

Each Gatchigon from this release turned out slightly different due to the paint technique. You can actually pick this one out of the lineup in Mori’s photo.

Micro Store Release, Nov. 2010 (Shinto Gangu)

The second micro release Gatchigon, this one adopts the paint scheme popularly known among overseas fans as the ‘cupcake’ colors. Mori tweeted this release in November 2010.

This figure was packaged with a mini-Gatchigon in a matching paint scheme.

So why are these the ‘cupcake’ colors? The nomenclature finds its origin in a Mutant Head painted in these colors (although on glow-in-the-dark vinyl) and sold through Skullbrain.org board member, stealthtank, in very limited quantities to commemorate his new cupcake business venture. The name stuck, and I can almost taste buttercream frosting when I see the light pink and yellow combination. Even so, this is not a particular favorite of mine. The pink, yellow and white are all too visually similar to give this paint scheme much impact.

Micro Store Release, Jul. 2011 (Shinto Gangu)

The last Gatchigon at present was sold from Shinto Gangu in July 2011. It appears to have been a collaborative release with dye-master Chaiiroi Brown (aka, Shef) given that it features his trademark rainbow dye application. While his results are very clean, I don’t find the prospect of a matching set of RxH figures in rainbow colors particularly exciting.

Before we break here, allow me to compare collecting Gatchigon to enjoyment of the Japanese food item known as nattou. At first glance, both appear strange and even slightly off-putting. However, as you continue to partake of these unusual dishes, you discover flavors that are deeper and richer than previously imagined. Much like the nutty musk of nattou, Gatchigon is permeated by its combined fight figure, kaiju and Showa-era pop culture heritage. I believe it is the creativity and cultural inspiration that underlie RealxHead figures that will allow them to transcend the limitations of the Japanese soft vinyl toy scene; of these, Gatchigon is certainly no exception to the rule.

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Numbering of RxH toys per standards of RealxHead Supplement, Super 7-The Book, vol. 5, issue 1 (2007).

- Credit and thanks to Super 7-The Book, vol. 5, issue 1 (2007) (for providing numbering standards and release information on RxH toys); and to Skullbrain.org board members BEYOND, stealthtank, lulubell and others for their work in furthering our collective knowledge of these toys.

- My sincerest thanks to the many blogs, image galleries and websites that have photographed and provided information regarding toy release and event dates: Toybot Studios' blog (http://toybotstudios.blogspot.com); Kadomiumtank's sofvi blog (http://pink.ap.teacup.com/kadomiumtank/) and (http://blog.goo.ne.jp/kadomiumtank/); datadub's flickr gallery (http://www.flickr.com/photos/datadub/sets/); and others.

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] x Mirock Toy

2011-10-16T10:55:00.000-07:00

A highlight of the San Diego Comic Convention in 2010 was the set of bizarrely gnarled and knobbled RxH figures revealed at the Global Figure Symposium booth. They looked more like table legs and Victorian era iron railings than the smooth, organic mutants to which we had become accustomed. Opinions were mixed (I love them) and some continue to hate the figures’ crouched, Gollum-esque stance, which has been compared to copping a poop in the bushes.

As would later be related to us, these were not new RxH characters, but rather reinterpretations of Mutant Head, Mutant Evil and Chaosman by artist Kaneko Yohei [金子ヨヲヘイ]. Kaneko brings a fresh look to soft vinyl toys due to his training in wood-carving and the traditional Buddhist artwork influences that inspire his work. As you may have now guessed, the original sculpts for these figures were created in wood, not clay. Kaneko produces his own line of soft vinyl figures under the company name “Mirock Toy” [ミロクトイ] and continues to work with RxH in developing new collaborative sculpts. Most recently, he created a large vinyl statue called the “Asura Trophy” [アスラトロフィー] and sculpted one version of it with a special cycloptic RxH head. (Mori then combined the Asura head with the Mutant Head body to create the new Asura Man [アスラーマン] figure.) You can read an interview with Kaneko at the sqdblstr blog here to see the unique perspective that he brings to the hobby.

Always a fan of experimentation, Mori continued to expand the RxH stable using Mirock’s Chaos head. First, the Chaos head was popped on to a mutant body to create a Mirock-style Chaosman. We’ll call it the Chaosman V2. Chaosman V2 was exclusive to the RxH show at the Kaiju Blue gallery in Shinjuku in October 2010. Like this Bigaro, very limited numbers were sold in blind bags. This is the only version of Chaosman V2 released to date. [EDIT on 10/16/11: RxH recently sold a second version with a clear blue head at Shinto Gangu.]

Mori scored a solid hit, however, when he merged the Mirock Chaos head with the body of Nextman, creating Chaos Next [カオスネクスト]! Nextman always cut an odd figure next to the other Mutant Zone characters because of its narrow torso and long, lanky arms- almost a step between the 1/8 RxH toys and the original Mutant Zone toys. But these proportions mesh well with the cylindrical Mirock Chaos head, as do the harder edges of the Nextman sculpt.

Chaos Next debuted in the first week of December 2010 with a distinctly vintage aesthetic: a green-heavy paint scheme sprayed over beige-flesh color vinyl. This version of Chaos Next (above) was exclusive to a show held at Shinto Gangu (featuring RxH, Cord Viper, Skull Toys and Atom A. Armwrestler) on the day after Christmas. The cold weather and post-holiday timing made this a show for the truly hardcore! I prefer this black version of Chaos Next to the first release because it re-uses the classic paint scheme from MC-03.

Chaos Next was taken one step further in July 2011 when RxH released Fighter Chaos Next [ファイターカオスネクスト]. This character adopts the Mutant Chaos arm and probe in place of Nextman’s arms. There have already been several versions of this popular new character, including a couple in hyper-glitter vinyl and one in MC-03 black. However, the above Fighter Chaos Next (also released in July 2011) instantly grabbed my attention (and pulled out my wallet) with its bright neon colors on glow-in-the-dark vinyl. The lighter paint scheme jumps out from the other recent RxH with darker coloration, much like the MC-07 ‘Jyarinco’ Chaos.

Mirock Toy and RxH is a team-up that caught us completely off-guard, but now seems like an obvious fit. Mirock’s approach with traditional motifs and wood-working techniques ties in to RxH’s combination of Japanese and pop culture in its toys. For both RxH and soft vinyl toy collectors, Mirock’s work carries my highest recommendations.

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド]　In Black

2011-10-08T00:29:00.000-07:00

Sometimes less is more. And as any aficionado of JP vinyl will tell you, this is particularly true when it comes to black vinyl. Unpainted black releases have been a long-standing favorite of JP vinyl companies. Oftentimes an unpainted black first release is referred to as the ‘prototype’ version. This is a misnomer as it is really a production piece. (I believe this practice began with Secret Base, who released the first Skull Bee as an unpainted black “Prototype Ver.”) As such, these two are not prototypes in the technical sense; they are very limited unpainted releases that were given out to friends and regular customers at Shinto Gangu (probably around the 4th quarter of 2010).

For the RxH collectors with an elephant memory (or, I suppose, the Mook near at hand), this is the second unpainted black Mutant Head [ミュータントヘッド] to see public release. The first was MH-L02, an unpainted version of the legendary Thrash-Out MH. (Yes, it is the ugly R word- reissue. There may now be more than 10 unpainted black MHs in circulation. The horror.) For Mutant Evil [ミュータントイビル], however, this is the first unpainted black version to be (un)officially released. I know there is at least one collector out there that is very happy to see this out there. He probably already has one.

I cannot deny the simple beauty of glossy, unpainted black vinyl. These are among the most photogenic toys that I own, and it is hard not to make them look absolutely amazing. Elegant. They are definitely elegant toys.

[Glyos] Edgeliner Balena

2011-10-07T23:34:00.000-07:00

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] Day Lights Bigaro

2011-10-01T01:36:00.000-07:00

This Bigaro [ミュータントビガロ] features a counterpart paint scheme to the ‘Night Lights’ Chaos seen in my last article. Instead of black vinyl, multi-color paints are sprayed over a white vinyl base in what I’ve termed the ‘Day Lights’ paint scheme. While I initially thought that the two paint applications were very similar, after seeing them side by side, there is much greater paint coverage on this figure and even a few splashes of gold paint. You can hardly see any of the white vinyl, except on the tips of the fingers and toes.

Bigaro was sold in very limited numbers (along with 11 other available figures) at RxH’s “Shinjuku Battle Royale” event, held at the Marui One / Kaiju Blue exhibition space in October 2010 (see coverage here from Kadomiumtank’s blog:　リアルヘッド真宿バトルロイヤル). I believe sales were conducted by giving attendees lottery tickets, by which they could win the ability to buy the blind-bagged figures. Not surprisingly, it is quite difficult to track down any of these releases.

Like the previous Chaos, there is a generous helping of clear coat on this figure. I think the ‘Day Lights’ paint scheme works perfectly with Bigaro’s sculpt by taking advantage of the large, flat areas on the outer shell piece.

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] Night Lights Fighter Chaos

2011-09-30T23:52:00.000-07:00

This Fighter Chaos [ファイターカオス] features a paint scheme by RealxHead used for several micro-run releases. It’s quite popular among collectors due to the eye-catching appearance of the multi-color paint on black vinyl. For lack of a better term, I call it the ‘night lights’ paint because it captures the look of out-of-focus city lights seen at night.

Most of the ‘night lights’ RxH have been very limited event exclusives sold at the several RxH shows held at Kaiju Blue (back when the shop/gallery had a physical location). Mutant Evil and Mutant Doku-Rocks have been released in this scheme. I don’t think this Fighter Chaos was sold at Kaiju Blue; in fact, I’m not even sure of the release date as this is the only one of this figure that I have seen.

One interesting note about this figure is that it features an extra-heavy coat of clear coat, which gives it a glossy, polished look in comparison to other RxH.

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] Hyper Glitter Chaos Man X

2011-09-27T23:21:00.000-07:00

RxH fans have finally caught a lucky break in the last few months- a handful of U.S. stores have begun to carry new RxH releases after a long hiatus in availability.

Rotofugi is one such store, and it was from there that I picked up this 1/8 RxH Chaos Man X [カオスマンX]. (Most people call these “adult RxH”, but whenever I hear that, I feel like I need to start putting little black bars over my photos.) Perhaps aptly named, Chaos Man X is something of an enigma. This is the fourth original head sculpt for the 1/8 Chaos Man body with a much more distinct ‘metal hero’ vibe than the other Chaos Men. Who is he/it? Who are any of them for that matter- No.2 looks like a bug for cripes sake. I like to imagine that X is a future evolution of Chaos Man 1 that travels back through time to change history. (My toys demand context.)

This Chaos Man X also features a really neat vinyl technique that Mori rolled out just recently. New hyper glitter vinyl! This may appear to be clear red vinyl, but it is really clear vinyl crammed with metallic red glitter. Crazy! Earlier ‘hyper glitter’ vinyls used rainbow glitter with different colors of clear vinyl to create this effect; the use of a single color of glitter here (rather than colored vinyl) is remarkably different and visually stunning. For some reason, the look of this vinyl reminds me of the ‘computing’ effect from 80s cartoons that would use flashing squares of lights to show intense processing action. You know what I mean.

Love the streamlined Chaos Man X head, the slick hyper glitter vinyl and the metallic silver, red and blue that harkens back to robotic heroes of the 70s. This one definitely hits the mark on all fronts.

[Grumble Toy] Custom Manmorah

2011-09-09T01:13:00.000-07:00

Today I have something shameful to admit: I have been remiss in my collecting duties. Long a fan of the original character offerings of Grumble Toy, I have not purchased a Manmorah toy until quite recently despite its availability for nearly 2 years.

What is a Manmorah? In the words of creator, Chris (of Grumble Toy), Manmorah answers the question of, “What if my pet lizard Baxter was a woolly mammoth?” Well Chris, I suspect you’d need a bigger tank. Thankfully, artist (and co-creator) Ainsley came up with a better response, and the resulting toy was sculpted and produced by Amapro [アマプロ] of Japan.

At roughly 9 inches in length and 5 inches at its highest point, Manmorah is Grumble Toy’s largest toy to date. As an interesting feature, Manmorah can be posed both on all fours or rearing up on its hind legs. This may be a nod to vintage vinyls that were sculpted in a standing pose, even where the original character typically appeared on all fours.

Manmorah was first cast in milky white vinyl, the first version of which was painted by Grumble Toy and sold via their online store in October 2009. Since then, Manmorah has been produced in both clear pink and black vinyl, and made available by Grumble Toy primarily as an exclusive item at art and toy shows. Amapro has also offered several Japan-exclusive versions of Manmorah on milky white and clear pink vinyl at various toy shows.

I was lucky enough to find this dazzling version of Manmorah on sale at a store in Japan. It is a one-off custom painted by Chris as a display piece for a comic convention in Winnipeg (the base is milky white vinyl). A collector in Japan purchased the custom, but it later came up for sale again when said collector sold off a large part of their collection. Having now landed in this collection, I can tell you that it is here to stay.

While Wormrah and Chou-cho tend to garner the most attention from soft vinyl fans, Manmorah is an overlooked gem in the Grumble Toy stable. Beefy and fun, I highly recommend it for standard-size vinyl enthusiasts. Wouldn’t you like to bring one home today?

[Mospeada] (Lan)Say What, Gakken?

2011-09-04T23:54:00.000-07:00

Let me take you back to the year 1993. Bill Clinton had begun his first term in the White House, the world acclimated itself to the shiny, new Windows 3.1 environment, “Bobbitt” entered into the national vernacular and Magic: The Gathering saw its first general release as 3rd Edition. (I’ll let you guess which of those facts was not entirely sourced from Wikipedia.) But more importantly for us, 1993 was the year that my friends and I discovered Robotech.

The local video rental store, which carried all three Robotech series and The Sentinels movie in VHS, provided my weekly fix. They also had edgier stuff like Clash of the Bionoids (aka, Macross: Do You Remember Love) and Macross 2, but the restricted content stickers (cartoon boobies) on the video boxes removed any hope I might have had of seeing them at the time. My friends and I also pored over The Sentinels art books- checked out from our library- and Palladium RPG (yes, a Robotech RPG) sourcebooks. Video rentals and libraries; these were different times, friends.

Unfortunately for us, it was nearly a decade since anything Robotech had actually aired in the U.S. and new merchandise was few and far between. Playmates Toys did us a solid when they released reproductions of the original Matchbox toys under the brilliant-but-doomed Exosquad line. But in Hawaii, we got something even better. Back in the 80s and 90s, a store in Honolulu called Jelly’s was THE place to get your comics, gaming and anime merchandise (they sell mostly used books and music these days), and around 1993, someone unearthed a bunch of dead stock Gakken Mospeada toys. These were the overseas versions made in Singapore with garish boxes ambiguously marked “Mospeada / The Henshin Robo.” I remember seeing both the DX and smaller transforming Cyclones; not sure if any of the Alpha/Legioss turned up. At $15 a pop, the smaller Cyclones satisfied my need for some transforming motorcycle hand candy; the $50 DX Cyclone was unfortunately beyond my means. It’s hard to imagine now, but these sat around in the Jelly’s stores for a year or more before completely selling out.

I didn’t know until fairly recently that these were international versions of the Gakken Mospeada toys (sold without reference to the Robotech name), and had believed them to be high-quality bootlegs. Even more strangely- these overseas versions were also distributed in France by a company called Lansay Toys. (Lansay is also the source of the mythical TLEAD toy.) So, in summary, you can find Mospeada toys from Japan, U.S. and France, with varying forms of packaging.

While I still lust after the DX Cyclone in my dreams (where it is still sub-$200 MIB), I had a nice stroke of luck recently when I found this unopened 1/35 Gakken/Lansay Legioss. This is more of a packaging variant than anything else, and is generally not highly sought after (most collectors prefer the version that was made and sold in Japan). However, it is something that I’ve wanted for a while and the price was right. (Can’t say that the tacky chrome-gradient lettering doesn’t make me wax a bit nostalgic as well.)

The 1/35 Gakken Legioss is the best rendition of the Alpha Veritech to date, in my view. Toynami and CM’s Corp. have both released updated toys of this mecha, but neither really captures the delicious blocky aesthetic of the Gakken- show-accuracy be damned. And man, this thing is even bigger than I thought! The Glyos figure next to it is about 2.5” tall and could almost stand in for the pilot.

So knock another one off ‘the list.’ If you’ve read through this wall of text, thank you for indulging my bout of collector’s nostalgia. Now how 'bout that DX Cyclone?

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] Chaos Trooper (Again)

2011-08-21T18:15:00.000-07:00

The unpainted beige vinyl version of the Chaos Trooper shown above was displayed at Superfestival 56 in April 2011 and sold via Shinto Gangu at the end of that month. Onell also received an allocation of the initial release Trooper, which they sold via their webstore at the end of May 2011.

By my count, this is the 16th release of the Chaos Trooper. Using a subtle grey vinyl base with embedded micro-glitter, this color scheme is evocative of classic sci-fi and aliens. Suprisingly, this release appears to have been painted entirely with wipe and wash techniques- no airbrush! The restrained black wash does wonders to bring out the hard technical lines of the body design.

This Trooper was initially a micro release from Shinto Gangu (or RealxHeads) in June 2011, with a few brought to SDCC the following month.

As always, these Chaos have been entered into the official rolls at the Mutant Chaos database: http://robotxmonster.blogspot.com/2009/10/realxhead-chaos-family.html

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] Chaos Trooper

2011-06-05T20:46:00.000-07:00

Future mutants from another universe! Since the tear in the space-time fabric caused by Pheyden’s exploration into the Mutant Zone, Phase-powered Chaos hybrids have streamed into the Glyos universe and back into the Mutant Zone. Are these peaceful brothers of Mutant Chaos or are they evil hybrid clones? And more importantly, who is behind the Chaos invasion???

The second crossover figure collaboration between RealxHead and Onell Design recently marched into the Mutant Zone- the Chaos Trooper [カオストルーパー]! Originally conceived as a Glyos-scale toy with custom urethane accessories, the Chaos Trooper has come full circle to be realized as a full-size RxH vinyl figure.

As fans of both Glyos and RxH will vividly recall, the Chaos Trooper originated in Glyos Custom Corps. 3.0 which merged RxH’s Mutant Chaos with Glyos-scale bodies. New Glyos-compatible parts were sculpted with the assistance of Lamour Supreme and resulted in two primary build types: the Chaos Soldier and Chaos Trooper. The Trooper features both a Chaos head and swivel-jointed probe arm on a Glyos body; the Soldier utilizes only the head.

The full-size Chaos Trooper recently debuted at Superfestival 56 in April of this year (2011) as a limited sale of unpainted beige-flesh vinyl versions (although this version would also see a release through Onell’s webstore in May 2011). This is the second version of the figure released, and the first painted version. Although it has only been around for a little more than a month, there are now at least 14 officially released versions of this figure!

The proportions of full-size RxH bodies are a perfect fit for the up-sized Trooper. While the details of the original Glyos figure are recognizable, they are also streamlined, which reminds me of adaptations made in the animation model for older cartoons. This toy uses nearly 100% new parts, which is very surprising given the cost of developing new molds. I believe even the head is a slightly resculpt from the original Chaos Man.

Chaos Trooper introduces so many possibilities with a new probe arm part and a nearly full set of Glyos-style armor- I can’t wait to see what those mad scientists at Onell Design and RxH come up with next!

Check out other Chaos variations at the Robot Loves Monster! database: http://robotxmonster.blogspot.com/2009/10/realxhead-chaos-family.html

[Glyapaedia] Dome Conversion Set

2011-04-02T20:24:00.000-07:00

One of the best releases in the Glyos system came together at the beginning of June 2010 when Onell Designs and Rawshark Studios collaborated to produce a epic crossover battle between the power-hungry General Phanost and mercenary-of-questionable-motivations, Callgrim. The story of this crossover event manifested itself in several Onell blog posts (here, here, here and here) and two Passcode mini-games (Glyaxia: Armor of Fate and Attack on Altervoth). Toys, of course, were involved.

The Dome Conversion Set (also known as the DSR Dome / Dome Runner / Morphisar Conversion Set) was one of several toys released during the General Phanost crossover. In this photo is everything that you receive in the set, which was packed to bursting in a double-wide zip bag. Here's the technical run-down of the contents:

1 x Caliber Dome (reconfiguration of Callgrim / Order figure)
1 x Hybrid Sarvos head and torso
2 x Phase Arm sets (Pheyden blue)
1 x Phanost head (Pheyden blue)
1 x Phanost head (grey)
1 x Callgrim head (grey)
4 x Beanbot Spoon Racer wheels (clear smoke)

In the official story, the DSR Domes, Dome Runners and Morphisar clones are the result of Phanost's merging of Phase and Dome technology following his takeover of the Order's moon base. The Morphisar clone, is a modified Echo Morph with shape-changing abilities, so I imagine the other forms to be transformations of this base form.

The Dome Conversion Set features the largest number of parts in any Glyos or Callgrim release to date. It also allowed newer collectors to buy the key parts for Hybrid Sarvos, originally sold and sold out in late 2009. All parts were cast in the lovely Mospeada-esque Pheyden Blue, further making the sets extremely versatile for builders.

While this set may be long gone, check out the Elite Sentry Sarvos set (available now @ Callgrim webstore), which contains nearly all of the same parts in 'combat ace red' PVC!

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] October 2010 Mutant Head

2011-03-27T14:03:00.001-07:00

Latest addition to the Mutant Head database:

Shinto Gangu micro store release, Oct. 2010

In mid-October 2010, Mori released the spiritual counterpart to the fabled ME-L03 Mutant Evil. Being an in-store micro release, it was perhaps, only a little easier to acquire than said Evil.

I didn't think much when I saw the first photo of this MH, as the photo was poorly lit on a dark background. Clear purple with minimalist paint applications. Ho hum. But a later, better photograph later revealed it to be an instant stunner. The metallic paint is sprayed over a cream-colored base color, which gives it additional definition against the clear purple vinyl. Spray is a little rougher than I care for, but a minor issue on a superb version.

As we close out the first year of micro-run store exclusive RxH, it is good to see a few of these gems make themselves available to foreign collectors.

[Secret Base / シークレットベース] Pump It Up

2011-03-06T20:50:00.000-08:00

Secret Base [シークレットベース] fight figures- love them or hate them- embody the essence of Japan's new soft vinyl toys. While simply constructed with minimal articulation, SB toys combine high-quality soft vinyl with multiple layers of nostalgia, toy history and pop culture to create a truly enjoyable product. Their universal themes (Halloween, music, sports, Henshin Cyborg, Astro-Mu 5) make the toys accessible to nearly all adult collectors. I still don't really get the whole fighting thing, but it's ok.

SB's Pumpkin Brain was the first JP vinyl toy that really caught my attention when I began collecting in 2006. As an aficionado of Halloween TV specials and consumer products since my formative years, the idea of limited-run Halloween boutique toys made in Japan proved irresistible to my toy collector instincts. I can only assume that owner of SB shares my affection for the holiday.

The above two Pumpkins are the original releases from Halloween 2003; the orange was available at Secret Base's shop and the GID at TWIM's shop. Both were sold as unassembled figures in the plastic pumpkin container. (New collectors take note- the bubble wrap in the pumpkin is part of the original packaging; don't throw it away!) These are among the older SB toys, predating the popularization of Japanese vinyl, causing them to be highly coveted, top shelf material a few years back.

And I guess patience paid off, as I was able to purchase these recently for around original retail. Not U.S. retail. JAPAN retail. Crazy rolling googly eyes. The GID Pumpkin had been on my list of wants since I first began my collection, but as mentioned above, it was virtually unavailable at the time.

I think this ranks among the best toys produced by SB; the clear head piece over a GID vinyl body is a nod to its SB predecessors and Henshin Cyborg lineage. The eyes and foot-wraps have just the right amount of subtle overspray from the airbrush. A surprise to me, the head piece is made of extremely rubbery vinyl, much like the old outer brains for the Skull Brain. Newer Pumpkins feature vinyl of the same consistency as the rest of the body (as do modern Skull Brains).

That is not to say that the orange Pumpkin is at all unremarkable by comparison. This is a solid classic SB release. Just the right amount of overspray is present here as well, which contrasts nicely with the clean lines of the trunks and chest. But key to the orange Pumpkin is its amazing clean, glossy orange vinyl. I truly believe that the uncompromising quality of their vinyl material is what sets apart companies like Bounty Hunter, Secret Base and Gargamel from their compatriots. It's like cooking with good ingredients.

I also picked up this black Pumpkin Brain, which was sold two years after the above pair, as part of Super7's first Halloween collaboration with SB in 2005. Interestingly, the S7 black Pumpkin is a color-swap of the orange Pumpkin. There is a second black Pumpkin as well (a SB Fan Club release in 2005) which has black trunks and gloves instead of orange.

While it may be true that the numbers of fight figure collectors are dwindling down to a dedicated handful, the Pumpkin Brain- and really any of Secret Base's lineup from the past 9 years- is definitely worth a purchase if you have an interest in JP vinyl.

-----

- Credit and thanks to Super 7-The Book, vol. 5, issue 1 (2007) for release dates and information.

[Microman / ミクロマン] Amazon Acroyear

2010-11-26T17:47:00.000-08:00

While this definitely deserves a thorough photo shoot, I am too jazzed about finding one of these to finagle with things like f-stops and QUALITY at the moment.

Micro-nuts will immediately recognize this jungle-dwelling duo as the blue Amazon Acroyear set from the 1979 lineup of Rescue Microman. (For those wondering, the popular Kamen Rider Amazon series was long gone by then, having aired nearly 4-5 years prior.) While I am not much of a Microman guy (only a few boxes of those), the Amazon Acroyear has pretty much everything you could want in a toy. Mechanical parts and chrome. Yep. Clear bits? Yes, and AMAZING head sculpt that makes me want to roll it on the table for a saving throw. There's even a little vinyl monster henchman in the set to satisfy the sofvi heads.

In the box... and all the parts on the table. When you find one, be certain that the little plug bit is in the box. It is very easy to miss and without it, the back fan will not attach to the Acroyear figure. Unfortunately, whether or not the plug is in the box is not visible from the outside (but if the seller shows the figure with the back fan attached, you're good).

Great manga-style box art.

One side of the box has the name and catalogue no. of each Amazon Acroyear and its henchman monster:

A371 Blue Amazon President [ブルーアマゾン総統] - Mushikeller [ムシケラー]

A372 Red Amazon President [レッドアマゾン総統] - Tokageras [トカゲラス]

A373 Green Amazon President [グリーンアマゾン総統] - Urokoman [ウロコマン]

Of interest is the President ('Soutou') designation- Amazon shares body parts with its forerunner, the President Acroyear. I don't know what the official relation is between the two.

Another side of the box has a neat cutaway drawing of Amazon with some specs:

Head --> Crystal Head [クリスタルヘッド]

Spear --> Mad Spear [マッドスピア]

Left chest --> Amazon Kaiser [アマゾンカイザー] (I will never understand the Japanese fascination with this word.)

Chest --> Some sort of condenser device (Shukoushi souchi)? [集光子装置] (Someone help me with the proper terminology.)

Back fan --> Cutter Wing [カッターウイング]

Crotch --> Deathmad Transmitter [デスマッド発信器]

Hand --> Punch Booster [パンチ倍力装置]

I didn't get any of the paperwork with this one.

Oh yeah, onoya!

2010-11-25T14:15:00.000-08:00

Searching the Japanese auctions isn't all about crafting the perfect search string and learning translations for your favorite toy brands and characters. Sometimes it's about typing in "kaiju" and rifling through the piles of B-Club reissues, bootleggy candy cards and eraser figures. Sometimes it's about having a few hours to blow on a rainy Sunday afternoon.

I almost passed over this vinyl when it blew by me on the auction lists (5,284 auctions don't exactly read themselves to you). The bag was so dirty, and at first glance I figured it was some cheap plastic/rubber knick-knack that you strapped to the top of an underwater motor for some o-furo fun. I was wrong about the plastic and rubber part. You know that feeling you get when you open up a trunk that you bought from the flea market and find the liner stuffed with $100s? Yeah, me neither. But I'm pretty sure it would be similar.

So blah blah blah, I won the auction (surprising number of bids), paid the ludicrous EMS fees and had my musty knick-knack shipped to me in the Rolls Royce of international shipping options.

I had to crop this photo to edit out all of the boxes and toy crap in the background. My house is like one of those scenes from Hoarders... 'cept my stuff is awesome. To find something this obscure and preserved in-bag, well, I felt a twinge of guilt opening it up (imagine the folks who open up Egyptian tombs must have similar sentiments). But the world must know.

This is the logo for the production company: onoya. Not a name familiar to most vinyl toy collectors. I suspect that onoya was either a very small company that disappeared years ago, or a spin-off from another (possibly, better-known) company.

I don't think a Japanese toy of the Loch Ness Monster (which, by the way, is what this toy represents) would be complete without a map explaining the location of the lake. The former U.S.S.R. is simply marked "Soviet." America (both North and South) is absent entirely. I love the quasi-scientific nature of the backer card in the bag; as with so many Japanese toys of yesteryear, there was just so much effort and detail put into every aspect of the product.

The text on the header reads "Ness-ko Kaiju" [ネス湖怪獣], or Loch Ness Kaiju. There is even furigana above the katakana... maybe so the kiddies could read it? A little blurb below says, "Is it really there? It's said that there are people who have seen it... Realistic and cool floating action!"

The little red and white doodad in the bag is a Mabuchi underwater motor that could be plugged into the vinyl toy, giving it a means of locomotion in the water. Mabuchi Motor is still around, incidentally, and I've seen this type of motor on a number of modern hobby products.

Ok, enough with the foreplay... on to the main event! Out of the bag for the first time in 30 years!!!

I'm going to come out and say that the sculptor took a lot of creative liberties with the Loch Ness Monster. The back fin, maybe. But I don't think I've ever seen a representation of the creature with a nose horn. Most depictions go for a giant sea serpent, a plesiosaur or some kind of sauropod. This is definitely more interesting than the traditional stuff, so I say that I like it.

As I mentioned, this was not a cheap blow-mold or rubber toy- full vinyl with airbrushed paint. The style of the sculpt reminds me a lot of my Marushin dino, particularly the texture and head and eye design. It's also a huge treat to see the vintage metallic paint in pristine condition- often the metallics will oxidize due to exposure to sunlight, air, etc. leading to a drastically changed matte appearance on many vintage vinyls. The arrangement of metallic red and blue over green vinyl is a bit like some of the Hawaii-export Bullmarks (Ikarus Seijin)... although perhaps a bit unfitting for a creature from the depths of the chilly Scottish Loch.

Finally, turning the toy over, the company logo is printed on the belly of the toy, along with a tab to hold the motor (placed appropriately where most dinosaurs are depicted to have their genital flaps). And why is the logo on the belly, and not the foot? Well, each foot has a little hole melted into it. Serving as a kind of rudimentary ballast mechanism, the holes would allow the water to enter the toy and partially submerge it. Otherwise, it would probably just turn on its side and float.

And so, for the sole purpose of your few minutes of amusement, I have defrocked a rare vintage toy. Happy Thanksgiving.

[Cronic / クロニック] Black Parade Maverasu

2010-11-24T21:41:00.000-08:00

Black Parade! Those words will play at the heartstrings of any Cronic collector.

What is Black Parade? Black Parade was a series of four shows showcasing Cronic's work that began in October 2007 and ended at the close of 2008. The first show was held at Super7, and the remaining three at One-Up in Nakano Broadway. Each show featured a large number of one-off customs from Cronic　[クロニック], with original artwork also present in the first show. Black Parade was a display of Cronic's talent in peak form; sadly, it would also effectively be his last hurrah before disappearing into the woods with his airbrush, paint and a large assortment of 1/12 scale fantasy weapons.

This Maverasu is from the 2nd Black Parade show (the first Japan show)- you can see it front and center in the display case in many photos of the event. The little slip of paper beneath the toy is sort of a certificate of authenticity included with all items sold at the Japan shows (One-Up also marked each certificate with a special rubber stamp).

Besides being my absolute favorite Cronic character, this Maverasu combines two great themes of Cronic toys: stuff inside and clear color fades. When you get down to it, no one really can blend colors quite like Cronic. Particularly on clear vinyl. His sense of color arrangement is unmatched in the sense that he can bring together dissimilar colors to create a surprising and balanced arrangement. The metallic lavender over clear aqua on this Maverasu is a perfect example of this.

The beads are also glow-in-the-dark. ...kind of.

The red seems rich and decadent against the pastels elsewhere on the toy.

After putting my Cronic collection on indefinite hiatus these past two years, I am thrilled to start it up again with this fantastic piece of soft vinyl history.

Check out more Black Parade coverage here:

Black Parade @ Super7 (via Toybot Studios)

Black Parade 1 @ One-Up (via Kaiju Korner)

Black Parade 1 @ One-Up (via kadomiumtank)

Black Parade 2 @ One-Up (via kadomiumtank)

Black Parade 3 @ One-Up (via kadomiumtank)

[Glyapaedia] Purple Space Rain

2010-11-23T23:43:00.000-08:00

There is something endearing about the first few waves of Glyos figures. Nothing against the polished presentation and character-driven lineup of current releases, but the first few figures really convey the feeling of something cooked up by a couple of friends in an attic full of toys. I don't know if it's the shameless re-use of the Pheyden and Exellis molds in all varieties of homage colors (which would, ironically, become independently iconic in the Glyos community), or the variation in paint application between versions (it was not yet a settled fact that Pheyden has pupils and Exellis does not).

Nebula Pheyden is one of these fellows from the formative days of Glyos. Still holding the distinction of being one of the few solid purple Glyos figures, what sets Nebula apart from his brethren is his 'reverse pupil.' He looks like he was ripped straight from an 80s-era Marvel newsprint comic where they didn't run the white ink for his eyes.

Most of the early figures don't have much of a back story either- the idea was that we were supposed to come up with our own Glyos universe, if you will. Clever in theory, but Matt Doughty probably didn't appreciate the woeful lack of coherent imagination possessed by most toy collectors (self included). Fortunately, some folks don't need to have every aspect of canon spelled out for them in a Wikipedia page... Folks like John K., aka Doctor Kent, who runs his rather entertaining toy blog, Fans of Pheyden. Nebula now has an an unofficial background story as a scientist and inventor forever changed by absorbing of the cosmic energies of a nebula. I like it, and hey, my army of multi-colored Pheydens needs a scientist, so that works.

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] MH-L01

2010-11-14T12:12:00.000-08:00

Check out the latest addition to the Mutant Head database (which, by the way, has been newly formatted!):

MH-L01, Feb. 2005

Getting closer to the beginning (MH-01), this is a pretty good consolation prize.

This Mutant Head was the very first 'limited' RxH toy to be produced. It was sold in July 2004 at a store called "Toybox Hoop," which has likely since gone out of business (no web address to be easily-found, at least).

Mutant Heads are peculiar in that there are a very large number of limited MH releases in comparison to the other figures. Many of them are very similar in appearance, and nearly all are virtually impossible to track down (in fact, this one was not even available to be photographed in the Super7 Mook!). I suspect that Mori was simply experimenting with various color arrangements on airbrushed toys (the Oni-Heads were primarily paint-masked, with the exception of one) without really intending to make a limited offering.

MH-L01 is simply a painted version of the unpainted MH-01- and the paint style is nearly identical to the blue MH-06. It's very cool as a historic piece, but I'm not sure if I would buy it as a normal release.

[Glyapaedia] A Classy Combination

2010-11-03T23:46:00.000-07:00

In nearly every major science fiction toy line or property, white and black variations are a recurring theme. Stormtroopers and (now) Shadow Troopers (I guess Darth Vader was really the obvious choice there). Ultra Magnus and Nemesis Prime. Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow.

Glyos continued this proud tradition in the late spring of 2008 by releasing the duo of Eclipse Pheyden and Empire Exellis. Eclipse Pheyden was sold through the Onell webstore in a mini release in March 2008.[1] (This is technically a version 2 of Eclipse Pheyden, as a very limited number of version 1s were created from off-white Standard Exellis parts and hand-cast urethane heads.)[2] Empire Exellis was exclusive to New York Comic Con 2008 in April 2008, but a number were sold through the webstore as well.[3] Nerd fact: Eclipse and Empire are two of the only three production Glyos to exchange Pheyden and Exellis torsos (the third is Andromeda Pheyden).

In their production configurations, Eclipse pulls off the swap a little better than does Empire. The slim white armor is very striking against the black head and extremities.

Exellis' head has a unique appearance due to the prominent pupil on its eyes. Very few, if any other, Exellis versions have this added paint detail. Hyper Exellis may have this detail as well, but I'm not certain without checking.

The detailing on Empire is pretty rough compared to current Glyos figures. Onell has certainly come a long way in terms of its production standards.

But ultimately, I think it was Onell's secret design to have the parts swapped between Eclipse and Empire:

Those names make a LOT more sense when seen this way. Recombined Eclipse also became our first (unofficial) Classified Glyos figure (an official Classified Pheyden would have to wait until the Soul of the Traveler release in September 2010).

Classified all-black figures are a neat 'gimmick' version that have made their way into the Glyos lineup. Nearly every major character has received the Classified treatment to-date.

Soul of the Traveler (SotT) introduced the first all-white counterpart to Classifieds- the Enforcer Sarvos. (I guess Empire Exellis kind of counts, but he had a lot of paint detailing.) Supposedly introduced in response to demand for DIY figures for customizers, Enforcer was also neatly shoehorned into the SotT story as one of the Glyaxian troops, along with Classified Pheyden and Sarvos (I was waiting for the MJ-style synchro dancing, which sadly never happened). My only complaint is that the new white PVC seems to pick up dirt and smudges much more easily than the old material (suppose that is the trade-off for parts that can be disassembled without breaking your hands).

Onell recently also released an all-white Pheyden torso and head w/ Scar Pheyden head set to complement the Enforcer Sarvos.

The classic colors of sci-fi live on in Glyos.

-----

[1] The Mystery Trio Arrives, Glyos Transmission Web Log, March 15, 2008, at http://onelldesign.blogspot.com/2008/03/mystery-trio-arrives.html

[2] October Toys forum/ Onell Design / Glyos/ Metran Times, thread titled "What is Glyos? + Official Checklist and helpful links," (page 1, post 1, dated April 7, 2009, 5:08 a.m.), at http://www.octobertoys.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=3118 (last visited November 6, 2010).

[3] New York Comic Con, Glyos Transmission Web Log, April 7, 2008, at http://onelldesign.blogspot.com/2008/04/new-york-comic-con.html.

Halloween Wheels

2010-10-17T22:33:00.000-07:00

Halloween... Hot Wheels?

Omg, how have I not heard about these before?? For the past 5 years, Mattel has been producing holiday themed Hot Wheels cars to celebrate the two most holy days of the years: October 31st and December 25th. Holiday. Themed. Toys. Maybe it's just my deprivation of decent holiday-themed sodas over the past couple of years that makes holiday object lust fill me to bursting. I was also a gigantic die-cast car freak as a kid (and frankly, I'm surprised that has not manifested itself before now). Anyway, these are awesome and I want them all.

Our Target has been relatively bare (or picked-over) in recent months, as far as Transformers and the Iron Man deluge of 2010 are concerned. As a result, I have picked up the bad habit of grazing in the other aisles of childrens' products. This has led to such questionable purchases as the 11" tall Batman Proto-Batbot and Battle Force 5 Hot Wheels cars.

Following my usual passes through the action figure aisle this past Saturday, I made my way over to the toy car section. I really don't understand how kids choose toys these days- every line is over-segmented to the point that I feel like I have to read the package to figure out what I am buying. But out of the morass, THIS jumped out and latched on to my eyeballs like a HL2 headcrab:

Nothing makes toy-buying choices clearer than a trio of jack-'o-lanterns staring at you from the side of a box. I've even bought My Little Ponies simply because they were Halloween themed. (No, really.) This 5-pack of store exclusive "Scary Cars" is still priced rather affordably at $4.29- heck, that seems worth it just to get cars in a box that cool. But maybe that's just me.

SCARY CAR RODZILLA

Seeing this in the Scary Cars box really hit me with a wave of nostalgia. Rodzilla is the old-timer of this set, hailing from way back in 1988. I can actually remember seeing this guy in KayBee Toys as a kid (and later with my younger brother).

Rodzilla translates well into a Halloween set, cast in a fierce hue of red with gold and orange chrome details. Very AD&D Red Dragon.

I don't think I owned the original, but the neck is pretty loose on this one. Not a surprising problem given the likely age of the molds.

SCARY CAR '59 FUNNY CAR CADILLLAC

This is a fairly new model of Hot Wheels car. I'm not a huge fan of the tampographed designs printed all over the car body. Maybe it appeals more to people in the custom car and hot rod culture- I don't know.

That aside, I do like the basic scheme of matte black and clear orange, which do have a certain look of class on the Cadillac body (minus all of the crazy patterns).

The car body can also be lifted up to expose the motor beneath. The placement seems a little improbable since I am pretty sure that the driver has to sit near the windshield to see out. ...unless it's a GHOST DRIVER.

SCARY CAR THE GOV'NER

This is the weakest piece in the set. The car design and orange plastic that comprises most of the upper body of the car are not bad on a bottom-line aesthetic consideration- it is the ugly printed patterns (again) and the opaque plastic windows that kill the appeal of this car.

The overall look is just really cheap; sub-par for the normal Hot Wheels offering. Bleh. BLAAAAHH.

SCARY CAR TORPEDO JONES

I would call Torpedo Jones the sleeper hit of the 2010 set. Most people will be attracted by either Rodzilla or Phantasm when they pick up the box, but the execution of this car is simply brilliant.

Torpedo Jones is an old-timey open top race car that premiered as Hot Wheel..s in 2002. There is quite a bit of metal in this car, and most of the non-metal is chrome plated, which does a lot to eliminate that 'cheap plastic' look. I don't think the car design is based on anything in particular, but I do dig the ample mechanical detail and shiny bits. Shiny. Pipey.

But this Torpedo Jones has a supernatural secret!- when you turn off the lights, the driver GLOWS IN THE DARK:

This brings to mind countless ghost stories of unfortunate drivers that were killed in a dangerous race, only to return to run the foggy roads on moonlit nights. Or something. Very clever use of the driver piece, in any case.

SCARY CAR PHANTASM

Ok, let's be honest. If you bought the set, it was probably for this car. Phantasm is a newer car model that was also some sort of Wal-Mart exclusive chase item a few Halloweens ago. Yeah, I'm sure it was a gigantic pain in the arse to obtain (I'll tell you how much harder it is to find years later when I get done finding one on eBay). So Mattel brought the ghostly Phantasm back this year- and in Hal-lelujah Jordan CLEAR GREEN.

The car design is fairly bland without the clear plastic thing going on. But maybe it was a good choice for this type of item, since the large curved planes on the car body surface show off the internal structure better than a more complex design might. What more can I say? It's clear green and it's beautiful. The car is also really lightweight compared to the others, since it is made entirely from plastic.

I also like the little ghost Hot Wheels logo on this one. As Garfield says, nice touch.

After buying this set, I found out that there is a corresponding set that is exclusive to Wal-Mart. So guess where I am going sometime this week.

And then I found that they make Christmas-themed cars...

I think I am in trouble.

I also found a black DeLorean DMC-12 on the same trip. Commence loud humming of the Back to the Future theme in the Target aisles... which were mostly empty! (Benefit of going to Target at 8:30 am on a Saturday.)

[Shirahama] Go Kumon!

2010-10-17T01:31:00.000-07:00

Like a diligent mother hen warming her eggs, I have been sitting on this review. Has it really been 3 months since last Wonderfestival?

Kumon [クモン] is the latest creature to be cast in Japanese soft vinyl. Emerging from the mind of newcomer Shirahama, designed by Yatsuashi and sculpted by Kiyoka Ikeda of Gargamel, Kumon has some serious lineage... but who knows how they were planning to fit all those names on its feet!

The first version of Kumon was sold in limited quantities at 2010 Summer Wonderfestival in July. The header is hand-printed by Shirahama on traditional Japanese paper in two different versions. Since then, Shirahama has also produced several one-offs and a new version for the recent Superfestival.

The name "Kumon" was probably chosen because of its dual meanings: 'kumo' is the Japanese word for spider; I've been told that a reading of 'kumon' can also mean 'agony.' Kumon additionally happens to be the name of a Japanese accelerated math after-school program (hopefully unintentional on the part of Shirahama- unless he's gifted with a sick sense of humor).

Although one might be inclined to pass Kumon off as yet another skull-faced patchi-kaiju, I think that would be a rather unfair statement. Owing to the tastes of its creator and masterful sculpting of Ikeda, Kumon has a level of polish on par with the best M1 and Gargamel vinyls. The skull is integrated into the sculpt and provides textural contrast with the surrounding spider-fur. Paint colors- dark silver and gold metallics- are also well chosen and given a balanced application to the glossy black vinyl. Kumon exudes a sense of planning and refinement that is rare among new vinyl toys.

I should mention that the toy is articulated at the arms and mid-section. Not at all obvious from my photos.

Overall, a very strong first showing from Shirahama and Kumon. Not typical vinyl fare, but a company to watch for collectors with tastes outside of the mainstream.

[Nitto / 日東] Pretty Neat-O

2010-09-24T23:11:00.000-07:00

Last time we dug into Daikyou, and before that, moseyed through Marushin.

Today we have a couple of obscure oddballs from an otherwise very well-known soft vinyl company: Nitto [日東]. Nitto is short for Nitto Kagakukyouzai [日東科学教材], or Japan Science Educational Materials. Reputedly an education company that also produced plastic models, Nitto acquired the rights to certain Daiei properties (e.g., Gamera and Yokai Wars) and produced them in soft vinyl form in the late 60s and early 70s.* Around the late 70s, Nitto developed the Kawada series of vinyls as a competing line for Popy's popy-lar Kingzaurus toys.

And it appears that Nitto dabbled a bit in dinos as well. I was aware of the Tyrannosaurus (identified as a Nitto toy from the personal knowledge of another collector), but not the Brontosaurus. The Brontosaurus was brought to my attention via a Japanese collector's website, but the site's author mistakenly believed the production company's name was "Kawada" (because of Nitto's later-era toy line). So it was entirely by accident that I turned up an auction for the Brontosaurus on a recent auction scouring. I placed my bid request with my agent and waited for a few days. On the morning that the auction ended, I checked my bid... but the agent forgot to bid! Worse yet- the auction went for well below my maximum bid. >:(

But that dark cloud had a silver lining that would not emerge for a few months. Two lots of dinosaur vinyls turned up at auction with rather low-key titles, each including one of the Nitto dinosaur vinyls (the other items in each lot were fairly low-value JP and CN dino toys). I was able to win both of them for barely anything. Disregarding the fact that I had to accept about 3 lbs. of random toys to get them, I was able to grab both Nitto dinos in one swoop!

So how do we know that both dino vinyls were made by Nitto? Well, the original Japanese website that identified them as made by 'Kawada' happened to have a photograph of a bagged example of the Brontosaurus. It was very blurry, but the header clearly displayed the Nitto logo: a half blue, half red circle. Upon further comparison of the Tyrannosaurus and Brontosaurus, the sculpting and printing style of the foot stamps show great similarity. Therefore, I feel comfortable in concluding that Nitto did indeed make both the Tyrannosaurus and Brontosaurus. Whether there are others in the line, who can say...?

The most distinctive characteristic of the Nitto dinosaurs is their incredibly textured sculpting. Typical vintage dinosaur or kaiju vinyls may vaguely gesture at natural texturing with lumpy limbs, rough fur or rocky horns and shells; however, the Nitto dinos are sculpted to reflect flaps in their hide and the underlying musculature. The detail is really quite amazing. The sculpted vein that runs down the belly of the Tyrannosaurus and the neck of the Brontosaurus is, in fact, the feature shared by the two toys that indicates a common maker.

While their product offerings were limited in the dinosaur realm, these two examples are some of the most realistic dinosaur vinyls that you will find. Yes, those are three fingers on that Tyrannosaurus hand.

*Thanks to Mark K of the Skullbrain forum for the history lesson on Nitto.

Saturday Night Updates

2010-09-18T23:44:00.000-07:00

Since I am such a fun and swinging kind of guy, I did a major update to my Glyos Custom Corps. article last night and tonight. Saving a spot for FORCE DELPHI!

[Onell Design] Glyos Custom Corps.

Check it out!

[Daikyou / 大協] Diggin' Daikyou Dinos

2010-09-11T19:25:00.000-07:00

Jumping right back where we left off, this entry is a decided Part II of a small set of articles digging into the ranks of vintage Japanese dinosaur vinyls. Part I would have been this article on the Marushin company.

Dinosaur vinyls are an obscure aisle of Japanese vinyl toy history. Most of them were made as low-end toys by small companies- the rationale was probably that dinosaurs are like kaiju... but without the licensing fees. The only dinosaur vinyls that could be considered 'mainstream' were produced by Marusan in connection with the 1 Million Years B.C. movie that debuted in the 1960s. (Incidentally, these are some of the most accessible of Marusan's older toys- with the exception of the Archelon from that line.) These vinylsaurs remain largely undocumented and collected only by those crusty old folks who have had their fill of Bullmarks and Marusans.

Daikyou [大協] is one such obscure little monster factory. They are best known for producing the original Zagora monster and Mighty toys (from Nakaoka's now-world-famous Sekai no Kaiju book). Unknown to many, Daikyou also produced quite a diversity of dinosaur toys in sizes ranging from around 15 to 50 centimeters long.

While I must admit that I don't care for all of Daikyou's designs, this Scolosaurus is an absolute hit on every level. I had a case of genuine, long-lived dino-envy after seeing a photograph of this toy in someone's collection. The pebbled ankylosaurian armor; the sheer size of the toy; the rough, old-style design of the sculpt; vibrant, yet natural paint colors- everything you could possibly want in a vintage vinyl and dinosaur toy.

The problem was finding one. Only about 3-4 of these will show up on auction sites each year and the prices can vary wildly. I wasn't kidding about the 'crusty, old collectors' part- not many people bid on these, but the people that want them, really want them (I don't always bid on vinyls, but when I do, I choose Daikyou.). Rarity also means that some dealers will price them to the sky (esteemed hole-in-the-wall vintage store, Cosmo Knight Alpha, had one in his case for about 40,000 yen on my last visit). Suffice to say, there was no way in hell that I was about to pay that much.

There had been a few Daikyou Scolos making their runs on Yahoo Japan Auctions earlier this year and ending at very modest prices, so I decided it was time for me to strike. Problem was that most of them were broken, covered in magic marker, or at the least, very, very dirty.

And then, as I spent a crisp spring morning hunched in front of my monitor in the gloom of our library, this beauty cropped up. The normal Daikyou Scolo features predominately dark green and light lavender paint over a duller yellow vinyl. This was, therefore, either an extremely rare paint variant or a custom job. Paint variants are not unheard of on Daikyou dinosaurs. But a custom would be essentially worthless to me. After closely inspecting the photographs, I decided to throw in my hat on the auction. What swayed my decision? If you look at the crown of the Scolo's head, the green paint parts in the middle when the red paint begins, whereas the original is completely painted green in this area. Granted there are some people with amazing skills when it comes to refurbishing old toys, but the paint looked otherwise original and it would have been extremely difficult to alter the original paint in that manner without removing ALL of the paint from the body of the toy (which would then create a problem with matching colors on the legs). The seller also did not say that it was a custom work. (Japanese sellers are notoriously honest about toy condition.) On consideration of these two points, the chances were good that this was a genuine article.

So I placed my bid with my favorite buying agent and waited patiently for the auction to end. And end it did... WITH NO BIDS. A polite e-mail went back to my agent to inquire as to what in the H-E-double hockey sticks happened. And astoundingly, I won the item on the second go-round, again with no opposing bids. I found the lack of opposition in no way suspicious.

Anyhow, I'm not sure what else there is to say about the toy that is not revealed by the photographs. The bright yellow vinyl painted with a deep grass green and a swath of floral red on belly and back is a classic color scheme. Many Bullmarks and other Japanese vinyls feature these colors.

The Scolo is itself in excellent condition, with no significant damage or deformation to the vinyl. Like other non-licensed vinyls, the vinyl is lightweight and cheap feeling, which explains why so many of them end up with broken spines or limbs or warped vinyl. Paint is still vibrant and glossy with only minor wear on edge parts; strangely, the red paint is slightly more matte than the green paint. The condition of the toy still raises personal suspicions. Ultimately, though, I can't see someone spending the immense amount of time it would take to restore and repaint this (obscure) toy into this condition, only to have it sold for virtually the same amount as the beat-up originals. Implausible, although not impossible. And I doubt we'll ever really know the truth. Such is the joy and heartache of buying obscure and weird toys.

There's your dip into Daikyou. Next up- Nitto!

[Glyapaedia] When Rigs Fly

2010-08-31T22:48:00.000-07:00

I suppose it's not much of a surprise anymore, but the piece that I bought at Toxic Catalyst was none other than the "Old Rig" contributed by Onell Design.

Matt Doughty perhaps explains best just how special this item is in his post on the Onell blog. In action figure lingo, this is essentially a hardcopy prototype of the Rig. Hardcopies and mock-ups are some of the most coveted items for vintage toy collectors since they provide key insight into the development process and are very rarely seen in public circulation (more commonly, you will pre-production test shots). When sold, these items can go for hundreds or thousands of dollars depending on production differences and condition. Granted the Old Rig is a prototype from a relatively new toy line, but it was pretty awesome to be able to just throw down some cash/plastic and buy it. Not something you would expect to see at an art show.

I have to say that the temptation to play with this thing is incredible, and I must remind myself over and over that I need to be a little careful with it. The resin joints are silky smooth, which enhances the Rubik's-Cube-like nature of the toy. I am a little curious as to how the limbs and waist are jointed, since they could not use the vinyl plugs. Post and hole perhaps?

At any rate, I am now very keen on getting my hands on the production Rig to do a comparison.

Up close, it is abundantly clear that this is an engineering model and not some shmancy art toy. Paint is rubbed off on the bottom of the feet, revealing whitish urethane beneath. I can even see bits of fuzz embedded in the paint (I have fuzz from Matt's house!!!). Paintbrush swipes are evident on the green eyes and details. All of this makes me extremely giddy.

To hold something that is the end result of untold hours of labor and artistic consideration is, to say the least, humbling. In the immortal words of Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar: We're not worthy, we're not worthy.

[Super7] Toxic Catalyst

2010-08-22T10:49:00.000-07:00

Last night, Super7 (still located at Post St., btw) held a 'resin invitational' show, Toxic Catalyst. The resin hater ventured back to San Francisco's Japantown to check out the show.

Unlike the high pressure coordination of the Gargamel show earlier this year, Toxic Catalyst was almost casual in its presentation. Visitors arriving early could walk in, grab a beer and peruse the pieces- comfortably placed on a low-slung side table- at their leisure. Although they had to deal with those two jerks who insisted on shooting every piece in the show. The nerve!

On the farthest left were the submissions from Godbeast. The lighting in that spot really did not do them any favors. My favorite was the Gloop robot... who doesn't love slime blobs with googly eyes?

Paul Kaiju sent in a few of his hand-cast Mockbats and a set of the Bad Trees. The Bad Trees seem like they would make a nice backdrop to a Halloween toy diorama.

I think these are made by Velocitron? They don't seem to have been for sale.

This set of 3 small mini-figures was a surprise find at the show. Detailing and sculpt are excellent, particularly given their small size. Made by Monstrehero? I feel like I have seen them somewhere before.

Rich aka LASH aka Mutant Vinyl Hardcore brought in a custom Doji-san for Toxic Catalyst. The paint really sparkles on this one.

A custom Baby Huey from Lamour Supreme made an appearance at the show. Again, great paint work and a very polished sculpt.

Japan toymaker, Nerd One, mailed some very special items to Super7 for Toxic Catalyst. The first was a custom version of their brand-new resin kit of the Soutou no Miira Youkai [双頭のミイラ妖怪] (Two-headed Mummy Creature), which I understand to be a Shigeru Mizuki creation. This item was previously sold as an unbuilt (?) kit at Wonderfestival earlier this summer. The custom Two-head Mummy at the show has a clever reference to Nerd One's Stereogon character built into its dual heads. Someone said it is also a Star Wars reference. Is it?

The second Nerd One submission was a custom version of the original resin of Stereogon　[ステレオゴン]. Some might not remember, but Stereogon was first conceptualized as this resin toy after Nerd One had produced several resin accessory kits for Cronic. Development of Stereogon took place over several years, and I was frankly shocked to see it emerge as a giant vinyl toy. I am not sure if this was one of the original casts for the Stereogon prototype (or a special cast for this show), but it is the first time that I have seen this item for sale. Whoever bought this has a fantastic piece of history in their collection.

Ilanena was another big surprise at Toxic Catalyst, as he sent over a bevy of his older resin figures (circa early 2000s). Most were for display only, but Vahine was for sale. Each was blister carded with appropriately eerie backing card art. It is hard to believe that the toymaker behind the popular and colorful Daikaiju 3-packs used to produce these delicate, grotesque resin works.

And finally, the primary objective of my trek into the city: paying tribute to an original urethane hand-cast, hand-painted version of Onell Design's Rig. Take a moment to drink in its painstakingly weathered splendor. Yes. As described on their blog, this is not so much a resin art toy, but one of two hardcopy prototypes and the only paint master for the Glyos Rig (which will be sold very soon in vinyl form).

It was interesting to see the split of items sold before me (I was 8th in line). Some of the resins by GUF (?) went first from the far right of the table. Those of the Skullbrain crowd bought more from the traditional Paul Kaiju, Uamou, etc. pool. And then there was me. What did I buy? You'll have to wait until next time...

And then we ate Korean food next door. Pretty good. Needs more red stuff.

[Glyapaedia] Voss up?

2010-08-21T00:44:00.000-07:00

In the Glyos universe, the Voss are an alien race that travel the cosmos in a living biovessel. Not to be confused with the tasty Earthen brand of bottled water.

A Voss color scheme- clear aqua and colorless clear- was adapted for production Glyos figures. Exellis, officially sold in October 2008, was the only normal release to receive Voss coloration. Voss Exellis was previously sold at SDCC in July 2008, packed with one or more production level Sarvos, Scar Pheyden and/or Phanost heads in 'Voss' aqua PVC (clear red PVC heads were also available). The set I picked up happened to have both a Sarvos and Scar head in the bag!

Who are these mysterious Sincroids and Travelers and why do they resemble the alien Voss? Could they be clones created from imprints stored by the shapeshifting biovessels?

[Glyapaedia] Pheyden Standard Mk. I

2010-07-09T00:47:00.000-07:00

Time to rewind.

I don't think any overview of the Glyos universe could be complete without an understanding of its (arguably) central character. Pheyden, as recently disclosed by Matt Doughty in an interview, is a composite of his childhood creation and the "mechanical ghost" of a character created by his wife.[1] Over time, Pheyden has emerged as the hero character of the Glyos universe and toy line.

So who or what is Pheyden? Not much has been established in official canon with regard to the identities of characters. This is what is generally known:

- Pheyden is capable of phasing through time (including, it appears, separate time streams) and the "Edge of Space." This has led to the interaction of alternate-universe versions of Pheyden (the blog says that he has "split" into many versions of himself, but I think this was probably worded as such to simplify the explanation, rather than imply that Pheyden is a multiversal singularity).[2]

- There are Pheydens and there is the first Pheyden. The opening sequence of Glyaxia shows a Pheyden among the members of Glyaxia Command without any recognition that he is the Pheyden (although it is possible that this is simply one of many Pheydens from another time/universe). Numerous references are also made to the "first" or "original" Pheyden throughout the official materials.[3] Therefore, it can probably be assumed that the different toys of Pheyden are not all meant to represent different versions of a single character- although this could theoretically be the case.

This also raises the question of whether Pheyden is a type of being or a proper name. Pheyden is commonly referred to as a "Traveler." His original toy box also designated him as a "Space Traveler."

- Pheyden is tasked with "keeping infinity in order."[4]

- Pheyden is roughly 6'6" to 7 feet in height (but can shift his size at will).[5]

- Pheyden is probably mechanical. He is not a Sincroid (i.e., artificial being).

- Several Glyos characters are, in reality, alternate or future versions of Pheyden.

We have been told that the background on these characters is kept deliberately vague to facilitate our own creativity in playing with Glyos toys (much like Microman/Micronauts and Diaclone). However, there is an internal 'official' story that Matt has developed and leaks from time to time.

Pheyden Standard was first sold[6] at the San Diego Comic Convention in 2007, the original wave of Glyos toys. Subsequently, a Mark II and Mark III version of Pheyden Std. were released via the Onell webstore in October 2008 and August 2009, respectively.[7] Mark I differs markedly from later versions as it is made from a very hard PVC and nearly grey in color (see comparison photo with new Phase Arm pack). Mark II and Mark III can be differentiated by eye color[8] and possibly a slightly different material color. Select items from the first 2007 wave (including Mark I) were 'reissued' in December 2009 under the Founders banner. Technically, these were not reissues, but 'seconds' that were not deemed to be of saleable quality initially.[9]

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[1] Interview > Matt Doughty of Onell Design (Part I: Onell), Poe Ghostal's Points of Articulation, June 17, 2010, at http://www.poeghostal.com/2010/06/interview-matt-doughty-of-onell-design-part-i-onell.html.

[2] Alternate Pheydens, Glyos Transmission Web Log, October 28, 2007, at http://onelldesign.blogspot.com/2007/10/alternate-pheydens.html [hereinafter Pheyden I].

[3] See, e.g., Pheyden I; Phanost, Glyos Transmission Web Log, December 19, 2007, at http://onelldesign.blogspot.com/2007/12/phanost.html.

[4] Pheyden I.

[5] October Toys forum/ Onell Design / Glyos/ Metran Times, thread titled "January '10 Custom Corp/March Glyos drop thread," (page 115, post 10, dated March 29, 2010, 10:55 p.m.), at http://www.octobertoys.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=4733&start=1710 (last visited July 10, 2010).

[6] See SDCC Press, Glyos Transmission Web Log, August 7, 2007, at http://onelldesign.blogspot.com/2007/08/comic-con-video.html.

[7] October Toys forum/ Onell Design / Glyos/ Metran Times, thread titled "What is Glyos? + Official Checklist and helpful links," (page 1, post 1, dated April 7, 2009, 4:08 a.m.) at http://www.octobertoys.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=3118 (last visited July 10, 2010).

[8] October Toys forum/ Onell Design / Glyos/ Issaris Trading Post, thread titled "WTB Armodocs!!!," (page 1, post 12, dated June 20, 2010, 6:07 p.m.) at http://www.octobertoys.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=5427 (last visited July 10, 2010).

[9] See Founding Figures and Glyoformations, Glyos Transmission Web Log, December 25, 2009, at http://onelldesign.blogspot.com/2009/12/founding-figures-and-glyoformations.html.

[Glyapaedia] Pulse Pheyden

2010-07-08T00:11:00.000-07:00

Pulse Pheyden was released by Onell Design at the New York Comic Con in April 2008 (although sales were also conducted via Onell's website). This was a fairly early mini-wave of Glyos (its release was paired with the Empire Exellis). A 'reverse color' Redlaw Exellis would be sold in the following month.

The Pulse/Redlaw colors were never ones that I had a particular interest in owning. They seemed rather saturated and gaudy in the official photos. So I was pleasantly surprised to find that the pink was of a much lighter tone than anticipated. To be honest, I fully intend to bash this into a custom- soon- but it is nice all on its own.

Toy No. 68

2010-07-06T00:28:00.000-07:00

No, the number doesn't have any particular significance. This is literally toy no. 68 in my collection spreadsheet. Yes, collecting toys really does bring me closer to my inner child- the one that obsessively photographs and catalogs each of his possessions.

Pulled from the depths of my vault today is the Real Type Guncannon, which is a Mobile Suit in Action (MSiA) figure produced and sold through Bandai America in 2002. Rather intriguingly, Bandai America chose to release U.S.-exclusive repaints of several One Year War MSiA in 'Real Type' color schemes (generally, the application of military-style coloration to a super robot toy).

From what I gather, the RT MSiA were given very limited distribution. They were and remain fairly difficult to find. This Guncannon was hitting around $60 for a MOSC (mint on sealed card) specimen in 2005/06 when I was heavily into collecting Gundam toys- shockingly expensive for the cheaper American MSiAs.

The Guncannon itself is a typical Gen 1 MSiA, meaning that its engineering is very simple by current standards. It is the Real Type color scheme that makes this toy a true gem in one's Gundam collection. The deep green and red accents of this RT scheme are highly reminiscent of Okawara Kunio's art style, with dark, yet dynamic, coloration- and radically different from the traditional Guncannon color scheme. While I cannot recommend this toy solely on its merits as an action figure, its status as a rare, U.S.-only release, and the nod to the Real Type tradition make it a worthwhile acquisition.

[Glyos] Phase Wars

2010-06-29T19:43:00.000-07:00

Maybe it's the recent Iron Man movie, but I've been going pretty crazy with phase armor builds recently.

I've tentatively christened this build the "Phase Crusher." Essentially, it is the 'what if' result when Phanost steals/copies a prototype Phase Armor Mk. II and bulks it up with additional weaponry. Of course, the increased weight of the armor necessitates additional boosters to help the user maneuver in combat. The clear orange bits are supposed to represent prototype/overheated booster units. (I cribbed the design of his jet pack from one that Matt posted on the Glyos blog. Shhhh.)

Rather fortuitously, the Phanost mini-wave came out at around the time that I was considering this build. Not only did it provide more 'Pheyden Blue' parts, but also the design for the modified Morphisar Cannon that comprises Phanost's right arm. In my mind, the story is that Phanost destroyed a Morphisar drone and incorporated its technology into the Phase Crusher. The light blue Callgrim pieces were unexpectedly quite useful in giving added bulk to Phanost's arm and leg joints.

This is not quite a finished product since the chest should actually be the same dark grey as the rest of the armor. I would then substitute the light blue Phanost head for contrast- and because the 'original' Phanost (and Scar Pheyden) are colored in this fashion.

Let the Phase Wars begin!

[Battlegrip.com] UMOs

2010-06-27T12:05:00.001-07:00

I received this resin figure from my Internet buddy, Phil Reed of Battlegrip.com, in a recent toy trade. Being more of a Transformers-at-Target kind of guy, resin toys are pretty far off my general radar. So let's see what a non-fan of resin thinks.

What is this toy? Battlegrip developed these figures over the earlier part of this year. From what I understand, it is a junkpile monster and the master model (fittingly) was a combination of action figure parts and original sculpting. Series 1 of the Unidentified Monstrous Organisms (UMO) (as they came to be called)- consisting of 12 unique toys- was sold in April 2010 through the Battlegrip.com webstore.

First off, here is the packaged figure. The ever-popular bag-with-header makes an appearance here. (Phil- my baggie was OPEN. It was not MISB. WTH. -RxM) Artwork is courtesy of BubbaShelby- nice and cartoonish as a contrast to the more gritty, encrusted appearance of the toy. My toy matches the header artwork (there were some variations), which is kind of neat.

And here's the toy.

I'll start off with some criticism.

- The toy is top-heavy. This is of particular concern because resin is not the most durable material. While the weight is fairly well distributed, the small feet and large torso make it easy to topple.

- The front is symmetrical, but shapeless; it needs to be more asymmetrical and wonky. When I think 'junkpile monster,' I think of odd ends and bits of machinery jutting out at random points. Zollmen (Japanese vinyl company) actually sculpted a screw thread on to the body of their mini junkpile monster, Dasumoga, which I thought to be a really nice touch. The front of this toy has an odd symmetry to it; I feel like I am looking for a face when there is none. Adding a point of focus on one side of the torso would improve the look (either that or give it a deliberately symmetrical face).

- Articulation. Chop them arms off and add a peg. Maybe this delves into design intent and cost concerns, but I feel like it would help the physical balance of the toy, as well as make it easier to display (smaller shelf footprint).

But there are definitely things that I like about the toy:

- The paint work is really well done. The layered colors, black wash and gloss coat make it look very nice in photographs. Use of a black wash gives the sculpt a lot of depth, where I could see this being lost on a simple paint-over job. Battlegrip Phil painted each one by hand, so I'm pretty impressed.

- There is a lot of texture on the sculpt. Despite my criticism above, the sculpted details on UMO are plentiful, with visible effort to balance it all out. It is hard to achieve a 'random' look, since the natural impulse is to work in patterns when doing something like this. Again, I think he could have gone to even greater extremes with the sculpt details- add a protrusion here and there.

- UMO is more or less in scale with Glyos figures. Whether or not this was intentional, UMO fits in rather well with Pheyden, Exellis and their compatriots. There is a decided lack of large alien figures in the Glyos toy universe (maybe we need to build them ourselves) and UMO certainly has a place in that niche.

As seen here, I have no doubt that UMO Series 2 will soon descend upon us (or is that rise up against us?). If you like what you see here, keep watch at Battlegrip.com. Heck, keep watch anyway. I read it every day.

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] RHND

2010-06-19T19:16:00.000-07:00

It is more than a little ironic that Mori Katsura's first toy- the Oni Head- is probably the least discussed RxH character. I was recently reminded of this fact by onwi of Skullbrain BBS, who took the time to craft this incredibly polished interview of Mr. Mori at his Aoto shop:

http://www.sqdblstr.com/interview/rxhinterview

By some divine coincidence, the no.1 OH came up for sale on a Japanese website at around the same time. This must have been fate. So I can now say that I own the very first RxH production toy.

The first thing that struck me upon receiving OH was that it looks just like the Hone-Borg. Well, not exactly. But the slimmer body type and Noh-mask facial features are clearly shared. And the two figures definitely have a historical connection being respectively the first RxH toy and first Shinto Gangu release (well, one of them). Could it be.... HENSHIN??

Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad, Part I

2010-06-12T00:51:00.000-07:00

So here's a post about something other than RxH. I realize I've been inundating you, good readers, with quite a bit of 真　頭　trivia and musings, so tonight we take a break. I will let you know now that I am running on fumes and only have an hour to crank this out, so this should get pretty wild.

Let me take you back... back to 1993 when Transformers turned into animals and when spandex was cool, as long as there were 5 people in different colors and 2 of them were girls. IT'S TIME TO SAMUUUUUURAAAAAAIZE.

Yes, Tsuburaya Productions, the famous studio behind the Ultraman franchise came up with a series that couldn't miss- a slight riff on Ultraman with a little bit of Transformers and sentai thrown in. They even brought in Takara to make the toys! And thus was born Denkou Choujin Gridman [電光超人グリッドマン]. Tsuburaya kaiju for the monster kids, Takara-made transforming mecha for the robot kids. Of course, since Power Rangers was an enormous hit at the time, Gridman was imported here by DIC Entertainment (you know you giggled at the kid that said "DEEEC" at the end of every show) and Playmates under the obnoxious-long title of "Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad."

I don't know about Japan, but Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad (SSSS) tanked over here. It's barely a blip on the cultural radar of most 90s kids. Heck, I bet more of you even remember the Masked Rider abomination that was on TV for a bit... or what about Big Bad Beetleborgs? *twitch* From what I can gather, the plot revolves around the main kid going into his computer and fighting virus monsters as Servo, assisted by the robot and dragon robots and his stoner band friends, Amp, Syd and Tanker. Something like that right? Who cares.

On to the toys. I got most of these in a 3-foot square box that I bought from an Internet friend in a parking lot. I can only imagine what people think when they see grown men exchanging wads of cash for boxes and bags of merchandise brought from the trunk of a car.

So here are the toys that you have probably seen:

Servo. This is the 9" DX version of the main hero from SSSS. Servo is a crucial toy because he combines with his companion robots to form larger... robots. I ended up with 4 separate Servos in various stages of packaging. Not crazy.

The original Japan version of this toy, DX Gridman, was a little more high-end. Servo still retains the battery casing on his back and the translucent plastic panels on his head and chest, although all electronics were removed when the toy was sold here. Servo also comes with a fair number of plastic accessories, which are attached to a plastic sprue in-package.

Zenon. The DX version of Zenon, known as God Zenon in Japan. This is an absolutely enormous toy, if you can get a sense of size based on the Glyos toy next to it (assuming you know how large Glyos figures are). Zenon can both disassemble into 3 vehicles, as well as become armor for Servo, forming "Synchro."

Pictured here is the ST (i.e., Standard) version of Synchro. ST Synchro simply consists of armor that can be clipped on to the 6" Servo toy. I believe they were sold separately, but am not certain how the Zenon parts were packaged.

Drago. DX Drago is gorgeous, gargantuan combination of plastic and metal that puts most toys of the same era to shame. Seen here in a combination of his Jamb and Torb jet components, Drago can also transform into a robotic dragon AND become armor for Servo, forming "Phormo."

And this is the ST Phormo set. Interestingly, Phormo does not use the standard 6" Servo toy that forms the base for ST Synchro, instead packaging the extra parts with a cheaper version of Servo.

More on the DX and ST mecha later.

Now on to the toys that you may have seen.

Amp, Syd and Tanker were the Servo kid's friends in the show. I suppose they were given some sort of pseudo-Servo power-up armor in SSSS, since these 3 are called "Samurizing Battle Uniforms." In reality, this was a clever way for Playmates and DIC to sell the same toy over and over again in different color variations.

The 9" Amp, Syd and Tanker are identical in sculpt to the 9" Servo, except that the head crest has been removed. These characters and toys were only seen in the U.S. TV show and toy line, and have no counterparts in Japan.

The American line also introduced 'mission' armors for 9" Servo, much like how Iron Man has armors for very, very specific situations (i.e., fighting Thor). The silver armor is "Digital Night Servo," gold is "Electro Grid Servo," and the half-assed red is "Neutron Armor Servo." I don't know if these were seen in the TV series. The gold and silver armors are quite nice, if not exceedingly flashy.

You probably have not seen these before. In fact, when my friend contacted me regarding these toys and told me that he had "most of the chrome ones," I had no idea what he was talking about. Taking a dog-eared page from the 90s toy playbook, Playmates apparently resorted to coating everything in chrome shortly before the line ended. This sub-line was known as "Metal Samurai."

Amp, Syd and Tanker were given "Supercharged" versions of their original uniforms. The slightly muted pink and olive chrome colors are really, well, interesting if nothing else. You may notice that they have helmet crests, unlike their non-chrome counterparts. The chrome has also held up extremely well over the years and has not flaked or bubbled (cross my fingers) like so many of Beast Wars toys. Unfortunately, my friend was missing the blue chrome Tanker. So I have something to look forward to.

Similarly, Servo's mission armors were expanded to include a silver chrome Ion Array armor and gold chrome Data Matrix armor. These are the true gems of the 9" line, in my view, as they take the classic hero colors of Servo and add matching chrome colors- these almost feel like they could have been Lucky Draw items in Japan. In any event very, very nice. I want to combine these with Zenon and Drago, but I am afraid of chipping the chrome. The plastic feels a little more brittle than normal on these chrome versions, so I would think twice before moving around stiff joints.

The Metal Samurai series also came with a new accessory, which was a spring-loaded launcher with a couple different missiles.

On the back of the box are listed the co-sells for this lineup. A Syber Sounds series was apparently intended to follow Metal Samurai, but the line was dropped before it could be released. Too bad, as these look to have been clear plastic versions of Amp, Tanker and Servo (and Syd?). Click on the photo to see the full-size version on my flickr page.

Aside from the 6" line and the 9" Metal Samurai Tanker (sob), these are essentially all of the larger toys from Playmates' Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad line. I had absolute no idea that about 75% of these existed until recently, and had never see the chrome versions until they came out of the box. So a big, big thanks to my friend that sold these to me. I hope this sheds a little more light on a fairly obscure- but worthwhile- toy line.

[RealxHead / リアルヘッド] Collaborations

2010-06-05T00:43:00.000-07:00

Reflecting the spirit of communication and business relationships that truly defines the formative years of new vinyl, RealxHead [リアルヘッド] ultimately expanded beyond the borders of Mutant Zone. Mori Katsura has lent his talents to a growing number of store owners and toy companies in creating collaborative figures. The list now includes Jyarinco, Ichibanboshi, Pop Soda, Superposition, Kaijuuken, Cord Viper and Onell Design. Each, of course, still possesses the unique RxH touch.

JYARINCO

Jyarinco [じゃりんこ] is a well-regarded vintage toy shop in the Machiya neighborhood of the Arakawa ward in Tokyo.

This store had one of the most fascinating collaborations with RxH, consisting of a set of two characters named Goro [五郎] and Saburo [三郎]. Given the moniker "Devil Dogs" by western collectors, Goro and Saburo actually represent a mythological creature known as the Jinmenken [仁面犬] (literally, 'human-faced dog'). Modern day sightings of Jinmenken are not unheard of in Japan- one company even made eraser toys of them. Granted, however, the traditional Jinmenken has a more human appearance than the demonic visages given to RxH's creations. Read more about the Jinmenken at Pink Tentacle.

Appearing contemporaneously with the giant Bigaroid (another collaboration), the Jinmenken were among the largest RxH toys to date. They continue to have the distinction of being the only quadrupedal sculpts from RxH.

Pictured above is Saburo (I don't have a Goro, although a matching version was produced). This was an in-store release at Shinto Gangu in January 2010. While I had previously avoided the Jinmenken since they are often quite pricey, this one really appealed to me because of its more natural, doggy coloration (prior versions ranged from black- ok- to the mescaline-induced coloration of the Pop Soda dogs). This version of Goro and Saburo can still be found fairly easily as of the date of this article.

ICHIBANBOSHI

Ichibanboshi [一番星] is another beloved vintage toy shop in the less off-the-path location of Koenji in Tokyo's Suginami ward. You may better know Koenji as the home of Gargamel's flagship store, Thrash-Out, or the Gojira-ya bar and toy shop. Unless it is open for business, Ichibanboshi is virtually indistinguishable from surrounding buildings.

Beginning at the end of 2006, Ichibanboshi was favored with not one, but three collaborative figures with RxH. In order of release, these are: (1) Ryuusei Ninja Ichibanboshi [流星忍者　一番星], (2) Gekkou Ninja Mikazuki Joe [月光忍者　ミカヅキジョー], and (3) Uchuu Ninjuu Vader Glow [宇宙忍獣　ベイダーグロー]. All characters feature the title "Ichibanboshi Ninja Retsuden" on their headers, which translates to something like 'Ichibanboshi's Ninja Biography Series.' I rather like the fact that the characters follow a thematic sequence in both nomenclature and dress (to an extent). They seem like members of a supernatural hit squad- the foot soldiers or crack assassins of Akrokaiser.

Ryuusei Ninja Ichibanboshi was the first RxH collaboration, debuting in late December 2006 at the Sofvi Matsuri sub-event of World Hobby Festival. Sadly, the last WHF was held in May 2008... so no more Sofvi Matsuri for us. Clear grey was followed by a striking full-color version at Winter Wonderfestival in February 2007. Although probably intended more as a 'prototype' release, the clear grey vinyl is fitting as the 'shadow form' of a ninja.

The first part of Ichibanboshi's name means 'shooting star ninja.' 'Ichibanboshi' is both the name of the store and a term referring to the first star of the evening.

Ichibanboshi has probably been produced in the greatest number of variations of the 3 collaborations, and arguably, is the most popular Ichibanboshi (store) character as well. While I think the design and sculpt are well done- particularly the patches, rivets and buckles sculpted on his uniform, something about the toy never sat right with me. Perhaps it is the star emblazoned on Ichibanboshi's forehead or the doll eye that stares out from beneath his eyepatch. I honestly cannot put my finger on it. It's a nice toy, but not an all-time favorite.

So maybe you are now wondering why Ichibanboshi's GOOD eye is covered by the patch. According to an official source, the eye contains his mysterious power. Once exposed, his power is released... but releasing this power also rapidly drains his vitality! He must therefore keep it covered during all but the most crucial moments.

In August 2007, Ichibanboshi was joined by a second teammate: Gekkou Ninja Mikazuki Joe. There were two figures initially sold at the summer Wonderfestival- a 'gold mist' paint version and an unpainted clear grey version (following the pattern set by Ichibanboshi). The full color version followed the month after at Superfestival 44.

Where Ichibanboshi's name referenced stars/meteors, Mikazuki Joe is lunar themed. 'Gekkou Ninja' means 'moonlight ninja.' Mikazuki is also the Japanese term for the crescent moon. Although this was never explicitly stated, I believe it is implied that Mikazuki Joe is a lycanthrope, given the furry animal arms busting out of his sleeves.

I was really excited to see a teammate for Ichibanboshi when this was released, especially in matching color schemes. The paint application quality for both full color versions of Ichibanboshi and Mikazuki Joe is on par with any of the old style RxH releases. Make no mistake: these are classics.

The third, and thus far, final, entry in Ichibanboshi's ninja series is Uchuu Ninjyuu Vader Glow. Vader Glow was shown first as a prototype in red vinyl at Hobby Complex in November 2007. This version was never publicly released; the first normal release was instead cast in pearlescent sea green vinyl and sold unpainted. This was sold at Winter Wonderfestival in February 2008. To date, only 4 different versions of Vader Glow have been released, making it one of the most underrepresented characters in the RxH universe.

I initially thought that Vader Glow's descriptor, 'Uchuu Ninjuu' was a thematic divergence from the other Ninja Retsuden characters. 'Uchuu' means 'space,' and 'Ninjuu' is probably a coined term derived from the first character for 'ninja' and the last character from 'kaijuu.' So you have star ninja, moon ninja... and space ninja monster. What's up with that?? But think about it. When you look up at the night sky, what do you see? Moon, stars and black, empty space. So perhaps space ninja monster beast ogre is the last piece in the formation. Or, more likely, I am just making this up.

Another thought I had while writing this is that Vader Glow looks a bit like a fusion of Ichibanboshi and Mikazuki Joe. One eye, giant horn sticking out of head. Tentacle arm is a bit of a mystery, I'll admit. I guess even ninja fusion monster ogre space beasts get lonely...

This is the first, unpainted version of Vader Glow that I mentioned earlier. The toy feels very substantial, owing to its thick limbs, and it is jam-packed with sculpted details, such as rough patches between armor plates and clothing folds and wrinkles. Offhand, I would say that Vader Glow is the most technical of RxH's works.

The second release of Vader Glow at Winter Wonderfestival in February 2008 would be the only Vader Glow to be painted without use of a wash/rub technique. Red and metallic gold over black vinyl give it a very traditional feeling.

Skipping the one version that I do not have, this is the most recent release of Vader Glow. It is a particularly difficult version to find because it was sold only in blind-bags at the Superfestival 50 event in September 2009 (or via the Lulubell scavenger hunt, over here). 'Heavy glitter' as it has been called is an iffy material in my view. We were all impressed when the first (RxH) toy was made out of it. But then it was used and used and used. And all of the toys started to look like tinfoil sculptures.

However- this Vader Glow does it right. The black wash over the glitter vinyl is light, but picks out all of the details of this intricate design. I'm not real keen on heavy glitter vinyl at this point, but I wouldn't mind seeing this style transferred to other figures.

ONELL DESIGN

See topic in Chaos Family article for discussion on RxH's collaborations with Onell Design.

RXH X ???

These are the fruits of RxH's collaborative efforts that do not fall into an easy grouping. Many are only 'paint collaborations,' in which RxH created a paint scheme for the toy of another company, or vice versa.

SINBAD TOY

Sinbad Toy [シンバッドトイ] is a company with a confusing history. Previous toys had been branded somewhat erratically as either "Sinbad" or "Sin+Wombat." Wombat Toys may now be directly affiliated with Marmit; we had thought Sinbad to be entirely out of the picture. Now it seems Sinbad Toy is back in business with a revamped Chicken Fever sculpt and a new mini Chicken Fever.

Sinbad's revival began at the Shinto After-School Club event in June 2009, at which special RxH versions of the Chicken Fever and Crazy Thunder (pictured below) made a surprise visit. These seem to have been released in very small numbers. My Crazy Thunder is numbered 003- I would be very surprised if they made it into the double-digits.

Crazy Thunder is among the most underappreciated of the new vinyl toys... and maybe its fans prefer it that way. This is the first one that I have owned and I find it fairly impressive. The character, of course, heavily references a famous monster from Mirrorman- with numerous intriguing adaptations, such as the lightning-bolt wings and scorpion sculpted on its back. Crazy Thunder's head is reversible, so you can display it with either the 'normal' face or an eerie, cycloptic face on front.

I don't know why I took the profile photo with the head reversed, but I did. This is the 'real' head (ha ha) of Crazy Thunder.

The RxH paint scheme is certainly nothing to ignore either, and is one that I wish we would see in more production releases. Being that these were sold in such small numbers, I wonder if they were painted by Goto or by Mori himself.

-----

- With respect to release and show dates, credit and thanks to Datadub's resources (http://fig-lab.com/blog/ and flickr site (http://www.flickr.com/photos/datadub/)), Kadomiumtank's Sofvi Blog (http://pink.ap.teacup.com/kadomiumtank/) and Super 7-The Book, vol. 5, issue 1 (2007), without the help of which I would never have been able to pin down release orders or dates.

- With respect to the background information for Ryuusei Ninja Ichibanboshi, credit and thanks to Skullbrain.org member, BEYOND (http://liljapansworld.blogspot.com/).

[Transformers] Quiet Riot: Prototypes at auction

2010-05-15T21:00:00.000-07:00

A complaint that I have heard about Transformer collecting is that it is a 'known quantity.' Everything has been exhaustively researched and cataloged and posted somewhere on the Internet. There is no uncharted territory. While I do not agree entirely with this sentiment, it is true enough that there are very few developments in our current knowledge of Transformer history.

Here, however, is evidence to the contrary.

Recently, 14 auctions were listed by a seller on Yahoo Japan Auctions (YJA) consisting of Transformer and Diaclone prototype toys in varying conditions. The bulk of the seller's other auctions seemed to be women's clothing, making the listings even more unusual. The item descriptions read, "These were about to be thrown away from a relative's factory that went out of business. I thought they were cute and took them home." (I guess she knew enough to put them on YJA and label them as Diaclone and Transformer items.)

While the small listing photos might have given the impression that these were merely a group of broken toys, a closer inspection would be sufficient to elicit goosebumps and sweaty palms from any informed collector. I do not think it would be out of line for me to say that this is probably one of the most significant prototype finds in the past few years for Transformer collectors. Although I did not have pockets sufficiently deep to carry away any of these treasures, hopefully I can share the seller's photos and my knowledge on the subject.

1. Hoist prototype.

This is the one piece that I nearly won, as it ended for a relatively low price. Based on my inspection of the auction photographs, this prototype appears to be in nearly finished form; likely, it is merely lacking paint on the head (which was sadly not shown).

However, there are two minor details that make this an unusual item. First, the stickers are obviously mismatched with this toy- this prototype uses Trailbreaker (Diaclone 4WD Hilux) stickers, rather than the black-and-yellow hazard stripe that typically decorates both Hoist and his Diaclone predecessor. The second anomaly is barely perceptible to the casual glance. If you look closely at the chrome front bumper, some of the chrome has rubbed away to reveal red plastic. The production version of Hoist uses an orange plastic base for this piece (the corresponding part for Trailbreaker, however, does use red plastic).

I can't really come up with an explanation for these deviations, aside from factory error. As far as I know, Hoist and Trailbreaker were generated from their respective pre-existing Diaclone toys. This seems to eliminate the possibility that these are 'halfway' products from the remold of one into the other. While the head is not shown, I am fairly confident that it is normal Hoist head (and not a 'Mexican Hoist' head).

Curious, but I didn't want to break the bank on this one.

2. Huffer prototype.

This was one of the few items in the group that was really obviously a prototype.

Although grey, this Huffer is probably not resin since the material appears shiny, whereas resin generally has a matte finish. Interestingly, the toy otherwise appears to be close to its final form. Even the arms are chromed.

3. Thrust prototype.

There were a few Seeker prototypes in the set of auctions. No accessories were included, and most were simply cast in a different color or lacking paint.

This one was significant for a couple of reasons. First, the die-cast portion was painted red and the nosecone is blue, which would be typical of a Starscream body (disregarding the black portions), not Thrust. Granted, it is possible that the Thrust wing pieces were simply mis-matched with this body. However, this prototype brings to mind an early model of Dirge from Takara advertising materials (seen here at Maz's comprehensive TF-1 article on Diaclone/TF jets). As you can see, it is nearly identical to the one in the photo, except that the toes of this prototype are not cast in blue plastic. Thrust was also present for that photo shoot. Very interesting indeed.

Second, the canopy is clear orange, not clear smoke plastic as would have been found on Starscream (or his Diaclone predecessor) and Thrust. So the combination of parts and paint does not really match any toy that existed under either Diaclone or TF lines!

4. Convoy (Optimus Prime) prototype.

Similar to many of the other prototypes being auctioned, Convoy features black plastic instead of the normal blue and red plastic. No metallization has been applied to the chrome parts, but the die-cast portions are painted in the correct colors.

5. "Microchange" Broadcast (Blaster) prototype.

For reasons I will explain shortly, I really, really wanted to take this one home from the auction. I bid an amount that I thought was absurdly high- but it still was not enough. Blaster (or Broadcast, as he is known to Japanese collectors) was a childhood favorite of mine. I can still remember playing with a rather beat-up example in my preschool class... on those days that I could beat the other kiddies to it, anyway. Owning something like this would be a dream come true for me, but photographs will have to suffice for now.

I nearly overlooked Blaster because of the rather mundane photograph used for the auction listing. Unless you have very sharp eyes, there are virtually no differences from the item pictured in this photograph relative to a production version. Perhaps you note that the right leg is misassembled.

But turn him around...

Amazing. This prototype is essentially in an intermediate stage of engineering where open portions of the original Microchange MC-21 Radicasse Robo toy were filled in to create the toy of Blaster that we know and love here in the U.S. (and elsewhere). Y'see, the Microchange toy (on which Blaster was based) is a real, working radio (unlike the non-working 'Soundwave' Cassette Man) with a bunch of moving parts and electronic components needed to enable this functionality. No wonder MC-21 and Blaster were enormous compared to the other Microchange and Transformer toys! When MC-21 was converted to the non-working Blaster toy, the electronics had to be gutted and the open spaces filled in.

Batteries were stored in the right leg of MC-21 and its back compartment was used to hold the transforming cassette robots (which could not fit in the tape deck). Here you can see that both spaces have been puttied over, as they are solid pieces in most Blasters (although some were left with an open back compartment). Returning to the front of the toy, the black dial to the left of the tape deck (your left) on MC-21 has been removed on this prototype. The robot head (not shown here) was also revealed to be unpainted in subsequent photographs.

So this is quite literally a "Microchange" Blaster, as the factory used MC-21 molds to cast a prototype in Blaster's colors, assumedly to reengineer the toy design. The historical value of this prototype is staggering given the massive overhaul of the design, and interesting as well, from the standpoint of seeing the Microchange toy in the classic Transformer colors. The Blaster in this auction is definitely the holy grail for prototype enthusiasts as it displays both non-production plastic colors and visible alteration to the design.

I am getting worked up on this again, and I certainly do not want to steal from the thunder of...

A broken wood car! Not quite.

Among the auctions listed were 3 similar items each called "Red Sports Car Robo," appearing to be bits and pieces from the Diaclone Corvette Stingray (which would later be known as the Transformer Tracks). Each of the 3 reflected one transformation mode of the toy: car, flying car and robot.

This was only a little strange, until I noticed that one of the auctions showed the underside of the car mode. And it was a BLOCK OF WOOD. That nearly required me to take my second shower of the day. Not only was one item wood-containing, all 3 appeared to be hand-painted wood and resin prototypes of the Diaclone toy upon further inspection. There are no internal parts apparent on any of them, except to the extent that such pieces are externally visible in the transformed mode. Very early toy prototypes are often made by hand-painting an approximated form or an existing toy (i.e., if it is a repaint).

In this photograph, you can see that the missiles are simply wooden pegs with triangular fins glued on to their sides. The backpack (to which the missiles connect) is also very noticeably altered from the final product. There is also a large grey piece included with the flying car mode auction. I am not sure what this represents. Perhaps it was a part from another toy or a discarded accessory that did not make it into the final production version.

Unfortunately, the robot mode was missing its head. It was in the worst shape of the 3 prototypes, probably because of the more fragile nature of its construction.

Now there was one thing that bugged me about this prototype: the yellow wings. While there were a few variations from the final product visible on this early prototype- as there should be- big yellow wings were a fairly significant deviation from the final product (which would have more streamlined blue wings). And I began to wonder if the prototype had been derived from pre-existing artwork or something of like nature. Turns out, it was.

The Corvette Stingray was one of the last Diaclone Car Robots to be produced in 1984 and was barely featured in product catalogs as a result. The one catalog scan that I could locate on the Internet is here at the extensive 1501bc.com website. And the tiny picture of the Corvette Stingray indeed reveals big yellow wings.

And so, this is:

6. Diaclone Corvette Stingray, wood and resin catalog prototype.

My conclusion is that this prototype is either (1) the actual model used for the catalog photo or (2) a model on which the catalog image was based. The catalog picture of the Corvette Stingray is indistinct to the point where I cannot make out whether it is a photograph or drawing. It also appears to have a red head, rather than a blue head (which makes the robot mode prototype's loss of its head a real shame). The backpack (to which the missile launchers attach) appears much larger in the catalog picture than the piece used on the production toy- perhaps this is the unidentified large grey piece in the flying car auction.

The odds of something of this nature surfacing after 25+ years are so unbelievably low, I am astonished that someone found this and had the presence of mind to put it up for auction instead of throwing it away. Equally astonishing was the ending bid on all 3 auctions, which hit 4 digits for 2 of the 3. A little crazy when you realize that people were essentially bidding on a broken bunch of wood, resin and screws.

A majority of the auctions appear to have sold to overseas buyers, judging from the numerous winning bids from Celga and Rinkya IDs. While a bit unfortunate for Japanese collectors, this gives me hope that the prototypes from these auctions will be accessible to a wider audience in the future.

-----

- All photographs used for this article are mirrored from the original auction images used in connection with each respective item.

- With respect to information regarding Thrust, credit and thanks to Maz at Tf-1.com, Early G1 Decepticon Jets - Prototypes, Pre-production and Early Release, Tf-1.com, at http://www.tf-1.com/articles/eurous_frame.php?art=earlyjets (last visited May 15, 2010).

- With respect to information regarding Blaster and Microchange MC-21 Radicasse Robo, credit and thanks to the 1501bc.com website (http://1501bc.com) and Blaster (G1), Transformers Wiki, at http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Blaster (last updated May 15, 2010).

- With respect to information regarding Diaclone Corvette Stingray, credit and thanks to the 1501bc.com website (http://1501bc.com) and Maz at Tf-1.com, E-Hobby Exclusive 94 "Road Rage", Tf-1.com, at http://www.tf-1.com/articles/reissue_frame.php?art=Roadrage (last visited May 15, 2010); Diaclone Black Corvette Stingray (Tracks) + Lucky Draw Reissue Black Tracks, Tf-1.com, at http://www.tf-1.com/articles/pretf_frame.php?art=blacktracks (last visited May 15, 2010; Diaclone Car Robot Product Numbers + Release Order, Tf-1.com, at http://www.tf-1.com/articles/pretf_frame.php?art=prod (last visited May 15, 2010).

[Hero, Jam & Wing] Original Mecha

2010-05-12T01:02:00.000-07:00

As if we needed another reason to be jealous of kids in Japan! While your parents may have kept you quiet with Zybots, Moto-bots and Convertors at the drug store, your counterparts in Japan received... well, extremely fancy versions of those cheap robot toys. The main producers of these unlicensed mecha were relatively unknown companies; Access, Hero, Jam and Wing were probably the most prolific.

More intricate toy designs were typically re-manufactured several times in varying colors and quality levels, often ending as cheap(er) grocery store candy toys. Some even still appear to be in production, although I have yet to see one for sale in modern-day Tokyo.

I have taken to using the moniker "train station toys" to refer to these original robots, since they were very likely bought at train platform kiosks and small toy shops by harried salarymen, to be used as gifts for their neglected children. So I imagine, anyhow. When I visited Japan in 1990 with my family, I was in awe of the fact that you could buy transforming robots (that I had never seen) from the grocery store. I wanted to take them all home! Their presence in grocery stores by the early 90s just goes to show how long these have been around.

This is an assortment of some of the more common train station robots.

From the top left, clockwise, there is (1) Three-Lancer by Wing, (2) Seed Goliath by Hero, and (3) Battle Speeder by Jam. Three-Lancer and Battle Speeder are likely older models since the packaging still uses a styrofoam insert (rather than vacuformed plastic). Probably higher quality as well, though I've yet to open them and find out.

Jumbo Skyhawk by Jam. This one might still be in production... somewhere out there. Tell me if you see a new one!

The artwork on some of these cheap toys is nothing short of astounding- this one being a particularly good example. Although it is obvious that it is a composite of separately produced illustrations, the quality rivals some of the best Transformer box art.

Last, the crown jewel of my tawdry collection: Saikyou Mecha 7 by Jam. This is a gift set featuring 3 combiner mecha (L to R): Road Rider, Road Boxer and Survival Monster. Given the cheap nature of these toys, a deluxe gift set is rather unusual... and a rarity.

Again, the box art is fantastic, although openly recycled- the contrast between the newer, 'anime' style art of Survival Monster and 70s-era art of Road Boxer is rather apparent. Although Jam produced the set, the designs were originated by Wing. Perhaps Jam acquired Wing or Wing became Jam. Who knows?

Because of their cheap construction and general disposable nature, train station mecha toys are a challenge to collect. I must give credit to the Triebflugel website, which is perhaps the only repository of information on this topic. Great place to lose a few hours browsing. The above items are just the tip of the chrome iceberg, and there are plenty that I have NEVER seen for sale. Maybe your best bet would be dead stock in a small country toy shop...

The results are in...

2010-05-08T23:51:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that it's been nearly a year since I wrote this post about these two suspected Gargamel test shot fight figures.

Last month, I finally had the opportunity to speak face-to-face with two people who have been with Gargamel from the beginning: Kiyoka Ikeda and Koji Harmon. We briefly met at the recent Super7 Dairakugaki Matsuri show. Neither could recall ever casting the Gargamess in these colors. They were both of the opinion that these were originally clear vinyls dyed pink and green, respectively.

While this is disappointing, confirmation is gratifying to a certain degree. I can't really fault the store that sold them to me because they probably had no idea as well. On the other hand, I think it is bad form to sell questionable items without confirming their authenticity. There have been other cases of customs being passed off as originals.

Consider this case closed.

Pheyaos Chaos

2010-04-10T01:09:00.000-07:00

Pheyaos Man has warped into the Chaos Family article!

Couldn't resist taking a few more photos for fun. It is just a really sharp toy and I can't wait to see more of Pheyaos and the RxH/Onell collaborations.

Friday Night Updates

2010-03-26T23:44:00.000-07:00

Total overhaul to the Chaos Family article.

- Changed the formatting so that it is hopefully easier to follow.
- Updated with several new sculpts/characters that were not previously mentioned.

Minor update to the Marusan Ultra Kaiju article.

- Updated with new Galapagos and header card information.

[Onell Design] Glyos Custom Corps

2010-03-20T22:27:00.000-07:00

For some reason, Glyos system toys have escaped scrutiny on this blog for quite some time. The main reason is that they are given ample coverage on other websites, not to mention Onell's official blog, and I hate writing redundant articles.

To provide a brief background: Glyos system is a toy line designed by Matt Doughty and sold through his company, Onell Design. Debuting at the 2007 San Diego Comic Convention to a mild, but warm, reception by toy collectors, Glyos began with a starting lineup of only 6 toys. The line centers on Space Traveler Pheyden, and a missing Sincroid leader, Exellis- but the real 'hook' of Glyos is the toys' ability to be disassembled and recombined, much like the old Magnemo toys from Takara or building bricks. Since 2007 the ranks of the line have swelled rapidly along with an ardent fan following. We have even seen Glyos (or Gu-rai-osu) make an appearance or two at Japan shows. You definitely need to be speedier with your clicking fingers these days since nothing sits around for long in the Onell webstore. Well, nothing except phase arms.

On a spring afternoon in 2009, Glyos creator Matt decided to give his fans an extra treat by selling dozens of unique, hand-painted Glyos figures in randomly drawn blind bags. To our surprise and delight, many of the figures featured resin-cast heads of obscure or marginal characters from the Glyos universe (often those deemed too difficult to mass produce). And thus the first Custom Corps. was born. It was a runaway hit with Glyos fans and spawned a series of subsequent CCs, both produced in-house and in collaboration with other artists.

The Custom Corps. waves thus far have been:

1.X - Produced in-house by Onell Design.

1.0 - The one and only and limited to 69 total figures (oh, stop snickering). Do you have one? Better make it your avatar on the Onell forum.

1.1 (Dimension Drifters) - Intended to represent an alternate reality universe with a focus on Phanost and Sarvos, CC 1.1 consists of over 102 figures. Each figure is hand-dyed and packaged with a "relic" part.

1.2 (General Phanost) - CC 1.2 was a limited production run of several blind-bagged figures. You would receive either General Phanost (standard or reverse Altervoth colors- and a few powered-up gradient versions), Phanost in gradient Phase Armor Mk. III, or Lost Phanost. CC 1.2 also corresponds to the two Glyaxia mini-passcodes.

1.3 (Force Delphi) - The long-awaited Delphi CC is finally here! Apparently playing a key role in Passcode 5: Soul of the Traveler, the mysterious Delphi are represented in all of their forms.

2.X - Produced in collaboration with Dead Presidents / Matt Walker.

2.0 - War Monger. Mostly Buildmen and Crayboth... with a splash of Sarvos.
2.5 - Nemica Gobon. Featured in Passcode 2: The Ghosts of Nemica.
2.6 - Ceberus Gobon & Hades Pheyden. Key characters in the Glyos universe...
2.7 - Armodocs. As the name implies.
2.8 - Granthan Gobon. Featured in Passcode 5: Soul of the Traveler.

3.X - Produced in collaboration with RealxHead / Mori Katsura.

3.1 (Chaos Invasion) - The largest Custom Corps. ever, CC 3.0 totaled 262 figures. The iconic Mutant Chaos head and arm were made available to the general public for the first time.

4.X - Produced in collaboration with Hellopike.

4.0 (Altered States) - Consider this a collection of characters from the side stories of the Glyos universe, some as of yet unwritten...

CUSTOM CORPS. 1.0

CC 1.0 was the formative experience for many of us in non-mass-produced Glyos. There were not many made relative to later CCs and we each were limited to buying 2 figures. So I think these tend to be the most cherished of the custom waves.

As an added bonus, each figure included unique artwork from Jesse Moore.

My CC1 figure is this Granthan Ops. Sincroid soldier. Granthan Ops. were created as a 5 figure team in CC1; 2 of these were Sincroid soldiers.

Sincroids are, for lack of a better term, advanced mechanoids in the Glyos universe. Exellis is a type of Sincroid, as is Noboto. These are the basic Sincroid grunt units. Granthan seems to be a planet, so I would guess these are Sincroids modified to operate in the Granthan area. Granthan Ops. Sincroids were featured in the first passcode game, so they can be considered official Glyos canon.

This color scheme did not appeal to me at first as I find the orange/yellow clash with the black to be a bit flashy. Nonetheless, it is one of the few Passcode characters that has not been sold as a production piece; the head is a resin-cast piece limited to custom waves.

CUSTOM CORPS. 1.1: DIMENSION DRIFTERS

CC 1.1, Dimension Drifters, introduced a new color palette into the Glyos world. Whereas most other Custom Corps. utilize bright, eye-catching paint schemes for a fresh action figure feeling, 1.1 figures were dyed in dull, dark or muted tones. These look like machinery that might be found in your parents' garage or toys that have spent years in a sandbox. The aesthetic reminds me very much of the dusty world of Issaris in Gear's Edge.

Through a trade, I acquired this CC 1.1 Pheyden. It is built from the clear green parts of Phase Pheyden dyed into the dark and murky tones of standing pond water; not sure where the green arm and leg connectors come from.

None of the CC 1.1 characters are from official canon, so you are free to create a story for them as you will. I've unofficially deemed this fellow Corrupted Bio Pheyden- after Bio Pheyden was infected in the Villser battle, this universe's version was able to contain the virus... but just barely. Although the virus grants him incredible strength and regenerative ability, each solar cycle is a struggle for Pheyden to maintain his mental control over the virus. Eventually, he fears, his mind will merge into the virus' directive and his power unleashed upon Glyos.

The relic included with my 1.1 figure is a clear dark cherry red Tracker Phase Arm.

CUSTOM CORPS. 1.2: GENERAL PHANOST

My General Phanost figure came in a black blind bag that was huge and bulgy, so I knew SOMETHING good must be inside. And it was! I pulled one of the Phase Armor Mk. III variants- Matt produced a rainbow series (Phanost gradient) of these armors, with a handful of each color made. Perhaps it reflects a surge of power that washes off of Phanost when he phases in the Mk. III armor for the first time.

The Mk. III Armor is an impressive hunk of Glyos toy. The toy is constructed from both clear and GID pieces, which were either painted or dyed to create an attractive color fade over the toy. Mk. III also features a couple of tweaks from the Mk. II Armor- the cylindrical arm cannons are replaced with Gobon-style arm blasters, and a v.2 power pack is attached to his back port.

Finally, the Mk. III figures were packed with an extra arm part, made out of clear and GID pieces dyed to match the main figure. An amazing deal for the continued $25 pricing of Custom Corps.

FAZOOM!

CUSTOM CORPS. 3.0: CHAOS INVASION

As the name might suggest CC 3.0 introduced Glyos-sized resin parts of RealxHead characters Mutant Chaos and Beast Chaos into the mix of custom parts. Don't quote me on this, but I believe Lamour Supreme was responsible for sculpting the Chaos parts. These had made appearances on blog posts and at a show prior, but nothing widely available to the public. I love RxH, so of course I had to throw in my hat on this one. Each figure also came with a second head.

And I originally pulled this purple and green Chaos soldier. According to the official CC3 chart, this is part of the 7-unit Wrecker Command team. But look closely at this one- he has a slightly different head. There was only one made of him. I figure him to be the grizzled veteran of the unit, telling war stories to the young pups. He is Kup.

We have our suspicions as to the origin of the Wrecker designation (curiously, there was also a Reverse Wrecker unit). It has been hinted that this name will have special ties to RxH. What this means remains to be seen.

The second head included with my CC3 was a forest green Sarvos head that matches the Wrecker green armor.

Later, I traded my Wrecker Chaos Soldier for a shiny new Chaos TROOPER. This Chaos Trooper is a part of the Metalluma Long Range Reconnaissance Unit; his comrades rather inexplicably include a Hermit and Sincroid.

The Chaos' probe arm is an amazingly miniaturized version of the larger toy.

The Trooper also came with an extra Sarvos head painted in the same metallic blue as the toy's armor.

CC 3.0 unseats RxH from the designer toy realm and pulls it closer to the world of action figures. This is a great thing. It makes the material more accessible to collectors who may be put off by the comparatively high prices of normal RxH. It is interesting to note that the collaboration moves in both directions as RxH is also working on larger (more expensive) vinyl versions of Glyos characters.

The appearance of the Chaos Soldier makes me think that Chaosman has been placed into a containment suit for outer-space combat. An empty back port presents a good spot for jump jets or an over-the-shoulder cannon, should you have a few spare bits laying around. Pheyden's dimension hopping tendencies come in handy here as an easy explanation for the presence of Mutant Chaos in the Glyos universe. So there must be more than one Chaos in Mutant Zone. I guess?

Japantown, San Jose

2010-03-14T22:56:00.000-07:00

For most of us today, the word Japantown brings to mind a small population of aging, family-run businesses on the edge of the less desirable parts of town. Sometimes, said parts are also called "Chinatown."

But there was once a point in history when Japantowns served an important function as the social epicenter of the newly immigrated population. Over the years, this function has become less crucial as the Japanese integrate into the general U.S. population. Now they are more like "the place with that new anime store." There are actually only 3 remaining official Japantowns in the U.S.: Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Jose. I have had the good fortune to live near all 3 during my time in California.

San Jose's Japantown (or Nihonmachi, (lit. 'Japan city') as it is sometimes called) may be the most unassuming of the 3 remaining. It does not have the Hollywood star power of Los Angeles' Little Tokyo (F&F: Tokyo Drift) or the upscale decor of San Francisco's J-town. Frankly, I was a little surprised that there even IS a Japantown in San Jose. But outward appearances belie its unique charm.

This past Saturday, I went down to take a closer look at the residents of San Jose's Nihonmachi.

KOGURA COMPANY

Kogura Company is the mom-and-pop store that stocked Japanese products when you were a kid- assuming that you grew up near such a store. I'm fairly sure that I saw Mom and Pop working the store while I was there.

The maroon-hued sign outside still reads "Oriental Arts" despite the general distaste shown for such term by the anti-oriental Asian population. But it is fairly accurate. Kogura Co. carries the 'fancy' products that you might need for home decoration and special occasions: Japanese dolls purchased to celebrate the birth of a child, doll display cases, vases for flower arrangement, and Zojirushi rice cookers and water heaters- staples in any Japanese home. I even saw a bagged giant Kewpie doll in one of the aisles.

If you're wondering why I was in there, I was scouting out prices for the doll display cases (which look very nice with vinyl toys inside of them).

NICHI BEI BUSSAN

Nichi Bei Bussan stands alone, away from the relative bustle of central Nihonmachi. Although it is a quiet stop for Japanese goods and martial arts equipment these days, the high ceilings and peculiar scent of wood and Japanese newsprint unmistakeably mark this store as a place where things happened back in the day. You can almost feel the Issei population milling around the counters, picking up new American products and Japanese necessities alike. Near the back of the store, a pair of small glass cases contain various memorabilia from NBB's history, including several customer registry books.

To my amazement, I discovered that this company has been in operation for over 100 years- the first store was opened by Shojiro Tatsuno in San Francisco in 1902. Surviving the 1906 earthquake, Great Depression and Japanese internment of World War II, this San Jose store (opened after WW2) is unfortunately all that remains of the family business. While it may not be the social center that it once was, the significance of Nichi Bei Bussan to the Bay Area Japanese community is undeniable.

Visit their website and read more on the history of the store here.

And, no, they didn't have any Bullmarks in the back. I checked.

Inbas Seijin [インバス星人]

2010-03-10T00:51:00.000-08:00

Today's article is kind of an odd one. I am going to talk about a packaging variant that only about 0.01% of toy collectors will even know or care about. If you fall into that category, by all means, read on.

At the end of 2006, Kaijuuken [怪獣軒] and Dream Rocket [ドリームロケット] collaborated to release a figure set of Inbas Seijin [インバス星人] and Chiguris Seijin [チグリス星人] from Silver Kamen [シルバー仮面]. I still don't know the details of the collaboration, but suspect that Dream Rocket was responsible for painting this particular version. The set was sold at the now-defunct World Hobby Festival's Sofvi Matsuri.

Anyway, so the point is that this toy was somehow sold with two different types of packaging. One (more common) version uses the normal Kaijuuken header.

The second (seen above) uses a Dream Rocket header AND encloses an unfolded Kaijuuken header in the bag. In addition, the Kaijuuken header has an interesting stamp in old-style characters. Until I bought this one, I had only seen this packaging variant in photos. Now we know it exists.

There do not seem to be any differences between the two figures other than the packaging. It is an odd little mystery as to why they were sold in this fashion- maybe some were packaged for sale at the show and some sold through mail-order? No matter which version you may find, however, it is undoubtedly a stunning and memorable piece.

War in Your Pocket

2010-02-27T22:21:00.000-08:00

MS in Pocket (MSiP) was the spiritual predecessor to Bandai's MS in Action line of Gundam figures. The difference is probably that you have heard of that last one.

Prior to 1993, Bandai had not experimented much with the action figure market with respect to the Gundam franchise. Most of their focus was in the field of plastic models. With one exception that comes to mind (1/100 RX-178 Gundam Mk. II), early Gundam action figures were really more like pre-built models than toys. Weapons and armor were often packaged separately from the figure or even still attached to plastic sprues.

Bandai unveiled MS in Pocket in 1993 in connection with the Victory Gundam animated series. They were arguably the only realistic Gundam action figures at the time. While weapons and accessories were still sprued, these were sold in affordable 1/144 scale (most prior figures were much larger and more expensive), pre-built and constructed from durable, glossy ABS plastic and diecast joints. Many U.S. hobby and comic stores also imported these, making them some of the first widely available Gundam toys at domestic retail. In Hawaii, Jelly's was our main source for import toys, including these MSiPs. I remember using my money to buy one or two each time that we flew to that island. They weren't exactly cheap over here- I think roughly $20 at retail (1,000 yen in Japan)- but if you wanted a Gundam figure and weren't good at building models, a God-send.

Sadly, they did not prove to be exceedingly popular. The line was prematurely terminated with several figures left unproduced. You can easily find specimens today in mint, unopened condition at the original price or even far below.

As you may have guessed by now, I have a certain affinity for these pocket-sized mobile suits. So much so that I have now purchased the line almost twice over... and disassembled and scanned one of the little catalogs that came packed with every figure. For historical preservation, of course.

So let's take a trip through one of the last great toy catalogs.

The text at the bottom of the cover says "Operation Handbook." These were still targeted toward kids, it seems, unlike the obviously collector-oriented MS in Action toy line.

A bit of background explaining the various factions involved in V Gundam.

The toy of our titular MS, the V Gundam. I don't know if I've ever owned this one, since I bought the V-Dash set the first time. Must check my boxes.

The left page lists a few selling points of the MS in Pocket line: inner die-cast frame, ball-joints (a new innovation!), accurate coloration and 1/144 scale size. The most interesting point is that they were specifically sized to fit in one's (child-sized) hands.

On the right page, we see the equipment/accessories for the V Gundam: beam rifle, beam shield, V Gundam beam saber (top) and Federation MS beam saber (bottom). These were largely standard among the Federation/League Militaire MSiPs (despite the V-specific saber), with changes only in plastic color for the GunEz.

Left: GunEz, the mass production MS of the League Militaire. I still wish they had made a toy of the space combat version of this MS, the Gunblaster.

Right: The Setter H926. A support vehicle always struck me as a weird choice. Eh. By the way, there is no way you could ever pose your toys like that.

Left: Zoloatt, the mass-production space combat MS of BESPA (the "bad guys"). There were weapons built into the shoulder pads in the show, which could lift up from the bottom portion. It's too bad they couldn't incorporate this into the toy.

This one used a lot of stickers, which had a tendency to peel off.

Right: Zolo, both general purpose and Chronicle Asher color schemes. These were the earthbound MS of BESPA. Equipped with the incredibly cool beam rotor shields, the actual MS was supposed to be able to separate at the waist and transform into a helicopter (using the beam rotor) and drone unit (the toy does not transform). The Zolos come with a beam rifle and bazooka.

Left: The one MSiP that I have never owned: the F91 Gundam. This one was not from V Gundam at all, but the immediately prior series. I suppose Bandai figured that kids might still want a toy of this MS. There are now much better figures of the F91 out there, so I continue to pass it over.

Right: Tomliatt- one of the best toys to come from MS in Pocket. The toy itself was actually on par with everything else, but you got a super cool folding beam bazooka with it. I cannot overstate the number of hours I spent transfixed with the beam bazooka. Best accessory ever. The beam axe also set it apart from the rest of the BESPA MS.

Tomliatt could also split into helicopter and drone units in the show. I used to remove its backpack and pretend that it was the helicopter.

The Abigor was the largest figure in the MSiP lineup, but came with no accessories whatsoever.

On the right, Bandai hinted at future MS that would be included in the line:

Orange: Shy-Tarn. Never made.

Blue: Javelin. One of the last MSiP toys produced and somewhat difficult to find.

Pink: Sandhoge. I think I would have literally killed to see this made. Probably deemed too difficult to engineer since it was so different from the rest.

Purple: Jamesgun. Who knows why they didn't just make this one since they already had the nearly-identical Javelin.

Yellow: Rig Contio. Also produced near the end of the line. I was surprised to find this one on a trip to Japan, along with the V2. Unfortunately, quality seemed to have gone down as the plastic was of a lighter weight and the joints were very loose on my specimen.

The only other toy not pictured in this catalog was the V2 Gundam. At least MS in Pocket went out with a bang in V2- it had a full assortment of beam weaponry, the 'Hikari no Tsubasa' effect parts, and a core fighter. The downside was that they used the same lower quality plastic as in the Rig Contio. In the V2, this plastic yellowed much more severely than any of the other toys. Finally, the V2 was sculpted a bit smaller than the other V Gundams- despite being slightly larger in the show. Oh well, it was the only toy we would ever see of the V2 for the next 15 years.

Left: The deluxe set for the V-Dash Gundam. Although the V Gundam MSiP was re-used, this set included a mega beam rifle and core fighter that could combine with the 'overhang pack' accessory to become the V-Dash core fighter. The V-Dash set was one of the best releases in the MSiP line with ample accessories and features. But you still had to build most of them yourself.

Right: V Gundam Hexa was an upgrade of the V Gundam, notably eliminating the trademark head antennae. This was otherwise identical to the V Gundam toy. The Hexa could combine with the V-Dash pack, adding even more play value to that set.

Hopefully this walk-through whets your appetite for photographs and reviews of the individual toys, which I intend to produce over the coming months. Hey- someone's got to do it, right?

Shaka Shaka Shark

2010-02-22T01:35:00.000-08:00

Sharkman. That name really just says it all. Without knowing anything about this toy, I knew I had to have it immediately upon finding it in some dead store stock. I need to check that impulse more often.

The Legend of Sharkman was a toy line produced by Beyond-Action Figures in the late 90s and inspired by the surfwear of Maui & Sons. I was a little surprised at how recent these were- you would have thought the toy industry learned its lesson about churning out half-cocked superhero toys by that time. The eponymous main character is based on the Sharkman mascot made famous by Maui & Sons. Per the backing card, he was created by the Goddess Hina to guard the islands of Polynesia from pollution and Green Manta, aided by his friends Maui and Iniki. Residents of Hawaii, avert your eyes. An animated series was in the works as well. Unsurprisingly, these action figures (the ones that were actually produced) went directly to clearance bins; I am pretty sure that Beyond-Action did not stick around for much long after.

Sharkman is a cool toy simply because he is a three-dimensional realization of the M&S logo. If you grew up in Hawaii during the 80s, Maui & Sons was pretty much everywhere. Sculpting is rather nice, if a bit overwrought. The figure does freak me out a bit though, because he really does look like an anthropomorphic shark- take off his surfer-dude shades and he stares back with beady little dead eyes (I've heard these were supposed to light up along with his chest logo, but the electronics were gutted to save costs). But he does own a surfboard, skateboard and snowboard (for that Hawaiian snow), so I'd wager him to be a pretty laid-back dude. You might have a problem when he gets the munchies after smoking out. There is also a variation with a yellow shirt (purple is his traditional color).

So how about those other characters?

Sharkman's right-hand man and best 'bra' is da kine local guy, Maui. Maui is the stereotypical fat local guy portrayed in nearly every series about Hawaii- but he gets a war helmet and club as accessories. Good thing none of the bad guys own guns. Maybe Maui is really the alter-ego of Sharkman (since the name of the company is, after all, Maui & Sons) but we'll never know. I can't tell if he's trying to fly the shaka or hitch a ride.

Iniki is the leading lady of this Faux-waiian freakshow. Perhaps the designers were not aware that she shares the name of the hurricane that devastated the island of Kauai just 5 years earlier. Although smitten with Sharkman, she cannot overcome her fear of him accidentally biting her head off during a moment of passion. We can only hope that she will have better luck with the cast of Baywatch.

Green Manta is the main villain. Why is he trying to pollute the islands of Polynesia? Undersea oil? Unobtanium? (Don't say spite. Don't say spite.) Spite?

If I were to peg a shelfwarmer from this line (beyond, you know, all of them) it would be Doc Toxic. No kid wants a toy with a robe. I feel pretty confident in saying that throughout action figure history, the robed characters are consistently the worst sellers. Hagar the Witch from Panosh's Voltron. The Robotech Master from Matchbox. You know the one. Eclipsed only by the unpopularity of the series itself.

"Hey guys, I don't know what to name this last guy. He's like a big lobster thing with a spiky paddle. I just can... OMG JUMBO PRAWNS AT RED LOBSTER! THE PRAWN. WE'LL CALL HIM THE PRAWN. Ok, let's go get beers."

And there were vehicles planned for this line. These all seem to have been canceled. Not unexpected, as the big ticket items would be first to go if the initial figures could not sell.

There are two spaceship toys, which I find kind of strange. The Sharkinator is probably the best designed- at least the only vehicle of the lineup that does not have an overwhelming generic toy feel. Oddly, it does not seem large enough to house any of the figures. The other ship is the Quazar Shark "The Quark." This looks like it could comfortably house one or two of the toys, so it has to be enormous. It also vibrates.

And the last vehicle is Iniki's ~~Baywatch Barbie Beach Cruiser~~ truck with the rather nondescript name of Free-wheeling Beach Patrol Vehicle. Ignore the irony of using a gas-guzzling monster truck to save the environment.

Sharkman was both a product and casualty of its time. Maybe a few years earlier it might have flown, however briefly. But kids were too much into their Tama-gatchas and Pokimans at that time to bat an eye at freaky action figures.

And I think you can safely say that Maui & Sons really... jumped the shark.

YEAAAAAAAAAAH.

[M1Go / M1号] Baltan Seijin 2 [2代目バルタン星人]

2010-02-21T16:06:00.000-08:00

Baltan Seijin 2 [2代目バルタン星人] is, by far, my favorite toy by M1Go [M1号]. This is an original sculpt from M1 that depicts the second form of Baltan Seijin.

Everything just feels right when you hold this guy in your hand. The vintage Marusan standard mold of Baltan 1 always seemed a bit off to me because of the weird, rounded head and gangly arms. M1Go's Baltan 2 captures the angular cicada-like head and torso of the character, while maintaining that bit of vintage chunk in the sculpt. I think it is the chunkier legs and arms that really draw me to this toy. They convey a sense of fun and durability. It is a toy that seems to say, "Pick me up!" Or maybe that's a telepathic command- it is Baltan after all.

Although probably the most common version of M1's Baltan 2, this is also the best one. It was sold as a mail-away figure for Hyper Hobby magazine a few years ago, packaged with an orange mini Baltan 2 (sadly, my figure was missing the mini). The surprisingly tropical colors are patterned after a vintage Bullmark Baltan sparker vinyl. Funnily enough, although the vintage toy was presumably intended to be Baltan 1, it ended up looking more like M1's Baltan 2 sculpt because of the modifications required to accommodate the sparking mechanic. It is an eye-catching color scheme tied into a fitting vintage toy homage.

This lottery prize from a 2005 Wonderfestival is another standout piece. It is essentially a painted version of the more common unpainted blue Baltan 2. M1 used metallic paints that give the toy a liquid, glossy look in some areas- very appropriate given the mechanical/insectile nature of the character. As you might guess, this one is tough to find- I have only seen one for sale in the past 2 years.

If you like Baltan 2, you will be happy to know that there is a low entry threshold for casual collecting; completing the lineup, however, will take massive amounts of patience. I recommend that you seek out the Hyper Hobby green sparker version (above) first. If it doesn't grab you immediately- consider yourself saved some time, money and mental anguish.

Tobe! Beetle!

2010-02-20T00:25:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I fear that my blog conveys the impression that I collect only stupid expensive vinyl toys. Unfortunately nothing could be further from the truth. The problem is that most of my plastic and die-cast toy collection is still in the box or heat-sealed to a cardback (vinyls are a lot easier to de-frock) I either haven't decided whether I want to crack it open, or haven't gotten around to doing so. I know, I know.

So I have a bunch of unopened toys that probably don't make for very exciting reviews. But I'm going to write about them anyway.

The Beetle, formerly known as Abner Jenkins, is an old villain from the Marvel universe that tangled frequently with such heroes as Spider-Man and the Avengers. Initially a petty criminal with a sort-of-cool suit, Jenkins has since become a hero in the Thunderbolts with his MACH armors, changed his race and dated a female wrestler supervillain. Times are good for the former airplane mechanic turned crook. (Yes, I just got that all off Wikipedia.)

Beetle was one of the first characters that I was exposed to when poring through the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe as a kid. So it's gratifying to see a few toys made from his armors- although I can understand why the toy companies weren't in a rush to make toys of a two-bit villain.

Spider-Force Beetle was a product of Toybiz in the late 90s. Marvel Legends had not been created yet, so they were still in the process of designing toys with increasingly over-the-top gimmicks. And thus we had Spider-Man Spider Force whereby Spiderman and select other insectile superbeings were given giant insects that transform into suits of armor. This was frankly not Toybiz' worst idea of the time. The toys themselves are even remarkably good- if you close your eyes to the fact that none of it makes any sense.

This toy represents the Mark II armor for Beetle. I still find this costume rather cool- sort of a mix between 80s-era Marvel and Kamen Rider- as dated as it has become. The toy reflects the character well, as Beetle is given the lean, muscled physique befitting a guy with no real super powers.

Beetle is packaged with his Spider Force companion, who seems to be a giant cockroach. (Don't worry, the missing wing is at the bottom of the card bubble.) The roach can be disassembled to create armor for the 'Dangerous Beetle.' It is pretty good for a random gimmick- this is true for all toys in the line, really- and you can tell the designers put in real effort to make an appealing armor design that also transforms into a believable insect.

I also took some photos of the "Exicting" co-sells on the cardback, since you don't see too many images of them out there.

Tarantula was another kind of crappy character who had his day with Spider-Force. His armor is one of the best in the line.

Swarm is a character with which I was not previously familiar. He is a Nazi scientist who was transformed into a swarm of hyper-intelligent bees. And his armor turns him into a bigger bee. Yeah.

Believe it or not, this is Wasp of the Avengers. I had to actually look this up because I thought it might be a different character. The orange skin and antennae are uh, a bit outside of canon, but really, WHAT is going on with her HAIR? At least it draws attention away from her enormous, muscular thighs. Erm, yes.

And here is the token Spider-Man figure. He turns into a cybernetic Spider-Man. I totally did not see that one coming.

Not the finest hour for superhero toys, but they are well-designed and still sell for around $10 a pop.

Toybiz produced several other toy lines during the Marvel Legends era that roughly matched Legends figures in scale, typically referred to as the "Classic" lines. Buzzing Beetle was included in Spider-Man Classics in 2005.

This Beetle reflects the Mark III armor design from Thunderbolts. It is an enormous toy and seems to be an excellent approximation of the armor design. Detailing is achieved through a black wash, as was done with many of the Legends figures, but it is not heavy-handed and the look is not bad overall. If I remember, the eyes light up and the wings attachments (hidden in back) flutter through an internal mechanism.

With the new Iron Man movies, there is an abundance of armored heroes in the toy aisles, but not so many armored villains (apologies to the 50 Iron Monger toys in the clearance section). Beetle is certainly a nice addition to their ranks.

[Yamazakura / 山桜] Grotesque Flower

2010-02-11T00:05:00.000-08:00

One of the most unique entrants to Japanese soft vinyl this year was an enigmatic company by the name "Yamazakura." A flowery name belies, however, their dark and complex toy designs, which are heavily influenced by religious and historical themes.

The one thing we do know about Yamazakura is that their toys are produced by Mori Katsura of RealxHead. His design influences are present to an extent in their toys, particularly as they have the same 'fight figure' proportions as RxH toys. I like to think of Yamazakura's designs as primitive RxH characters. Sort of like how historic paints and sculptures depict stylized renditions of humans.

Yamazakura's first toy premiered at the Shinto After-School Club event in 2009. Its name is either Niouhone or Nioubone [仁王骨]- I'm still not quite sure how the characters read in that combination. I see a lot of people calling it Nioubone, but I think that started because of the skeleton design reference. The "Niou" portion of the name refers to the guardians of Buddha, who are often represented as a pair of great statues that stand at either side of entrance gates for certain temples. Incorporated into the Niou reference is the dual nature of the sculpt; one half is humanoid and the other half skeletal. "Hone," of course, refers to bone. I think a reasonable translation of the name is "Bone Guardian."

Yamazakura has gained notoriety for his unexpectedly bold color combinations. That's unfortunate in a way, because it ignores the strength of his sculpt. Every part has an understated elegance that suggests layers of musculature or skeletal structure beneath the visible surface, enhanced by the pooling of light and shadow on its surface. Masterfully done. This is a refreshing change from the 'crude kaiju' trend that seems to overshadow new vinyl toys.

The unpainted black Nioubone was sold originally at the San Diego Comic Convention in 2009. He seemed to have quite a few of these as they were sold at later shows in Japan as well.

A clear unpainted Nioubone with GID vinyl shards in the body was sold at Design Festa 30 in October 2009. This was sold via a blind-pull method; the other possible items were unpainted GID, unpainted clear filled with multi-colored tubing, and empty unpainted clear

Orochi-Oni, Yamazakura's second toy, reuses the body of Nioubone with a new head sculpt. "Orochi" typically refers to an eight-headed serpent from Japanese mythology; however, the characters can also be read simply as 'giant serpent.' "Oni" means 'demon.' The likely meaning of the name is "Great Serpent Demon" or something similar. Orochi-Oni seems to be more favored among U.S. collectors than Nioubone. I attribute this to the popularization of the Hannya mask imagery.

I'm not sure how the half-skeleton body relates to Orochi-Oni, but Yamazakura continues the split sculpt into the new head as well. This one is interesting because the skeletal and fleshed portions of the head are split by a straight cut, almost as if it were slashed open with a sword. A matching body would have been nice, but at least the angular head sculpt does not clash too noticeably with the smoother body.

This Orochi-Oni was a lottery prize from Yamazakura's booth at Superfestival 51, which was held in January 2010. It is unique in that it has a chrome-painted eye. I wonder how he did that.

Much as we all want to see what Yamazakura will do next, the real question is... who is he??

Ooh, a Cupcake

2010-02-07T20:34:00.000-08:00

I must be dumb. Despite a rather poor outcome when I splurged on sofubi lucky bags in 2008 (see this post for an explanation on the LB practice), I again took the bait with Shikaruna Koubou [シカルナ工房] this year. Each LB contained 1 large size figure and 2-3 mini figures.

Fortunately, Shikaruna did not disappoint!

First pull out of the bag was this gorgeous clear vinyl Khappa [渇覇]. Khappa is an original design from Shikaruna's Genjuu [幻獣] (meaning 'illusion beast') line- of course, it is based heavily on the kappa water spirit from Japanese folklore. An interesting note is that the characters for "Khappa"- individually meaning "thirst" and "supremacy"- are different from those of the normal kappa [河童].　　People seem to like this version quite a bit.

Introduced in this year's LB was a mini version of their giant Chiwos [チヲス] toy. Unlike the normal version (seen below, in a similar paint scheme), which is nearly 14 inches tall, this one fits into my case quite easily.

Lastly, there were two mini figures of "Sekai no Kaiju" characters: a Bagun 1 [バグン１号] and Mighty [マイティー]. The Bagun is a special paint one-off; typically, each Shikaruna LB has a chance to contain one SP toy.

A great pull of figures overall and definitely worth the price of the bag.

[Marusan] Ultra Kaiju Kyodai

2010-01-21T00:29:00.000-08:00

Ready to delve into the deep depths of toy geekiness, kids?

Today, we talk Marusan [マルサン]. Wait. Didn't we just do an article about those? No, no. THAT one was about Marushin dinos, which is a different company entirely... probably maybe.

If you are familiar with the world of patchi-kaiju, you have probably heard the term "Marusan originals." Marusan originals refer to a group of kaiju sofubi (the overall line is the "Marusan Ultra Kaiju Series"　[マルサンウルトラ怪獣シリーズ]) that were produced by Marusan's 3rd incarnation around the early 1970s without featuring characters directly based on any childrens' show. Presumably, this was a way for Marusan to avoid licensing costs. In the late 90s, Marusan issued reproductions of a number of these toys.

Marusan originals have nowhere near the status of, say, Marusan's famous Ultra Q line, and I would venture that they are considered tantamount to bootlegs by most serious collectors. This sentiment is not entirely undeserved (King Godzilla, I'm looking at you). As a result, only a minor effort has been made to document the variety of sculpts and paint variations output by Marusan during that time. There was an article published by Hyper Hobby that provides a partial catalog of the original and reproduction Ultra Series kaiju toys, but their listing is by no means exhaustive.

Among this motley crew, a handful of Marusan originals were produced without any name or identifying manufacturer's mark on their feet. It is likely that some people do not realize that these were produced by Marusan at all. Most or all were seemingly produced in only 2 color variations: a tan or turquoise vinyl base with matching paint colors in either case. Both versions seem to turn up with equal frequency. They are also a bit more common than the other characters. The corespondence of the common color schemes to the sculpts that lack markings suggests to me that these could have been a production subset of the Ultra Series kaiju, perhaps produced toward the end of the line (the matching colors may have been a cost-cutting measure to standardize production). But that is just speculation at this point.

2010/3/19

I have found images of the header card from one of these unmarked characters (Ganburiya [ガンブリヤ]). The header is very different from the original Ultra Kaiju header used by Marusan for some of the other releases- it is bordered with a 'hazard sign' type red and yellow stripe with a primarily black-and-white illustration of Ultra Ace and several kaiju attacking a train. Very nicely drawn, but it has a cheaper feel overall than older kaiju toy headers.

More interesting is the series name written on the header. One side has the character name and "Ultra Kaiju Series." The other side (featuring the full illustration) has written "Bankoku Ultra Kaiju Bouken Series" [万国ウルトラ怪獣冒険シリーズ], loosely meaning "Worldwide Ultra Kaiju Adventure Series." This lends credence to the theory that these were produced under a slightly later, or different, line of Marusan originals.

Galapagos [ガラパゴス] (top) and Dorango [ドランゴ] (bottom) are two of the characters in this subset. I won Galapagos for a cheap price through a mislabeled auction some time ago. On a recent trip to Japan, I found a matching Dorango in a small toy shop (writing on the foot led the shopkeeper to give me a good price). I definitely appreciate the rugged texture of these sculpts and eventually plan to track down the corresponding tan versions. However, I don't find the tan version nearly as attractive as this turquoise scheme- brown and black over the deep turquoise vinyl brings to mind seaweed-covered rocks on a tropical shoreline. I cannot think of any other vinyl toy- vintage or modern- that uses such a rich turquoise, making the piece an instant eye-catcher on any shelf. Mentally, I have been using the term "Ultra Blue" to denote this color combination, much in the way of the famous "Godzilla Blue" used on the seminal Marusan toy. Tell your friends.

To add a further twist, I have seen a variant of Dorango in the Ultra Blue colors- with the addition of green paint. Initially, I passed it off as a custom paint, but a second specimen has since come up for sale from a well-known vintage dealer. The green paint also appears to replace some of the 'normal' Ultra Blue colors, rather than covering over (as would be expected if it were a custom). So perhaps it is genuine.

2010/3/19

Tan version of Galapagos.

I recently also came across a page where someone had generously summarized the text of an old Hyper Hobby article on the Marusan originals. This article provided some background and statistics on the characters (presumably from an official source). I have unfortunately not been able to acquire this publication myself.

Galapagos' height and weight are 20 meters and 22,000 tons, respectively. It was an iguana from the Galapagos Islands that was mutated by atomic bomb tests, resulting in gigantic size and a violent disposition.

Dorango's height and weight are 45 meters and 35,000 tons, respectively (significantly larger than Galapagos). It is an amphibious monster living in the sea near the Mariana Islands. The twin horns on its head can emit a heat ray that will burn through nearby objects instantaneously. Dorango appears to have once had the ability to fly, but has since lost it.

And as mentioned above, Marusan issued a number of Ultra Kaiju reproductions in the late 90s; among the chosen sculpts was Dorango. Sadly, the Ultra Blue colors were passed over in favor of a version similar to the original tan scheme. 50 pieces of an all-new red version (above) were produced as an exclusive version for the (now-defunct) Boston toy store, Day-Old Antiques. A simple way to distinguish the reproduction Dorango from the original is to look at its horns. Nearly all reproduction versions seem to have horns that bend inward, whereas they should project straight forward in the vintage piece (see below). This may be due to a mold or materials defect- no one really seems to know.

I am always hesitant to state facts when I get into the vintage murk, since I am just a collector and certainly not an expert. If you happen to be more knowledgeable than I and see mistakes in my articles, please feel free to let me know via e-mail or comment. I'd really appreciate it.

Delicious updates

2010-01-20T01:04:00.001-08:00

Several updates to the following articles:

- RealxHead Chaos Family, to add Armored Chaos test shot (MC-P09) and store release Chaos Man

- Dream Rocket Gumoz, to add Kaiju Invades SF / Beikokuten artist custom pieces and clean-up of formatting

- Dream Rocket Kyumaras, to add unpainted black test shot and translation of character bio on Dream Rocket webpage

In the bag

2010-01-06T02:32:00.000-08:00

As is yearly tradition, Gargamel released a New Year's Lucky Bag this year on January 3rd. Unlike the customary 'fukubukuro' used to get rid of excess store inventory in Japan, these lucky bags are filled with new sculpts and new versions of old toys... and sometimes rare prototypes and one-offs!

Unlike past years, I actually had the chance to drive into SF to see this event unfold first-hand at the Super7 store. But as it turned out- for the first time in history- the bags were only sold online! Usually there is a big turnout for this (everyone loves Gargamel) and I was really looking forward to seeing the excitement and hoopla as people ripped into their bags. So pretty much a bummer.

But a few of us did show up, and I was able to watch a lucky someone pull this beautiful Kiyoka Ikeda 1/1 Zagoran from his bag. The colors are intended to evoke the likeness of a vintage toy, which is an added level of significance that I appreciate.

On the way home, I bought a Sanrio fukubukuro for the woman. Cost me $20 and was probably the better choice. I think so, anyway.

[Blobpus / ブロッパス] Lovecraftian Lovechild

2009-12-30T02:08:00.000-08:00

Have you ever stared at the big Dokugan and big Last Kaiju from Blobpus... maybe clonked them together a bit and made kissy sounds? What? No? Well good, me neither. But I'll wager that a few of you have wondered why Blobpus' toys all use the same parts.

Blobpus [ブロッパス] built his initial following on only a handful of sculpts: Blobpus, Blobpi and the Last Kaiju. Blobpus is the mid-sized tentacled figure that we all know and miss just a little bit at this point. Blobpi [ブロッピ] is a baby Blobpus; Last Kaiju is Blobpus all growed up. Later, the torso from Last Kaiju would be given bat wings and a cyclopean mushroom head as the Dokugan. Swapping out the wings for the Last Kaiju tentacles made a Cyclopus [サイクロッパス]. I wrote a little about the Blobpus sculpt back here. Of course there are many more Blobpus toys these days, but back then, all the small vinyl toy companies made do with not much.

Dokupus is a small-run piece that Blobpus brought out at the Subcarism show held at the Stitch Tokyo store in May 2009. Only 5 pieces were available at the show- and all sold by lottery! Amazingly, out of the 5, 3 (including this one) were sold overseas to Skullbrain board members. Despite my hesitation to purchase artist customs, the mini-run justified the purchase in my mind (making it semi-production, as opposed to a one-off), as did the beautiful rainbow of colors sprayed over the flesh vinyl. I am such a sucker for bright colors on flesh vinyl... blame my time in Hawaii!

This is also a pretty cool tweak on the Blobpus sculpt, because it provides a key to the puzzle that I alluded to above. The building blocks of a Dokupus are a Dokugan DX head (clear outer shell with 'guts' piece) and a flesh color Blobpus body. So I think of it as a Cyclopus growing from a Blobpus body- the innards are the original Blobpus head with the shell beginning to form around it. Maybe Cyclopus/Dokugan is really a parasitic creature that takes over the bodies of Blobpuses.

Regardless of what you read into it, Dokupus ties the big one-eyed toys in to the original Blobpus toy in a neat way. It's just a shame that so few were made.

A little late for Halloween

2009-12-27T19:38:00.000-08:00

New Kyumaras datafile for your perusal! Still need to translate some of the website backstory, but here it is.

RxH articles are now collected on the sidebar for your ease of reference.

12/12/09: A Kaiju Kronicle, Chapter 2

2009-12-15T01:40:00.000-08:00

- Interlude -

Scene: Afternoon, apx. 3:30 p.m., somewhere in San Francisco

Returning back to Joe's place from a full set of meals, we're all collectively pooped. Speaking of poop, I proceed downstairs to defile the second bathroom with the remains of the day. Sweater-dog runs in from outside and promptly drops a log on the floor. Indoor pets are fun. I decide to keep my shoes on.

Gatchabert, plastichunter and I are propped on the extra-plush cushions of the couch. What we really need now is a nap. I close my eyes. Suddenly it's 5 minutes later. I am rapidly regretting my decision to wake up at 5 a.m. this morning (although I did get to pick up a cool toy from a Japanese web store as a result). But the show starts in a couple of hours and we need to get moving. Joe is still energetic, unlike the rest of us slugs. He had a Red Bull. I only had 4 cups of coffee- cups only in the measurement sense, not 4 'real' cups.

Scene: Evening, apx. 5:00 p.m., Double Punch

North Beach parking isn't as bad as they all say... maybe we just got super lucky and bagged a spot across from Double Punch. Of course, some old guy would later park 1" behind us, chat Joe up in a semi-creepy way, and crunch his bumper when releasing his brake. Welcome to parking in SF. Anyway, we were a bit early to see the gallery so Connell led the way to a coffee shop (that man never ceased to amaze me with his intricate knowledge of the city). Fancy hats on the way.

Waiting. Waiting. A little sign that says "Gallery Not Open" and my rule-abiding sensibilities are the only things holding me back from sweet, sweet toys that are about to knock me down and take my money upstairs. We mill around the tiny store floor in an anxious holding pattern. I don't buy these toys. Let me upstairs!

But all is not lost- this gives me the chance to meet another couple of Skullbrain board members: hamamaiku and jefftallica! Jefftallica made a 6 hour drive up from the southern regions of our state just to attend this show!! And I thought I really wanted to attend. I doff my hat to you sir.

Aha! Finally I see Mark Nagata and the others arrive through the front door, giant fiberglass Eyezon in arms, and make their way up to the gallery. Although I've never met Mark, I see pictures of him on the Internet so it's like we've met. For me. I always feel incredibly weird when meeting someone that I recognize from Internet photos- they, of course, have no idea what I look like because there are almost no photos of me out there. Hey there guy, I've seen you before but you haven't seen me.

Then we're given the ok, and the 4 of us that are downstairs (the gallery is small, so a quiet opening was a blessing in disguise) head up to the mezzanine level gallery of Double Punch.

The gallery is tight, but immaculate; every inch is put to use in this show. On the far left, Matt Walker is setting up for his 6 p.m. pinstriping demo, with the giant Eyezon standing above him. To his immediate left is Mark Nagata's section, with a number of customs and even some original artwork on the wall. To the right of Mark's space is the Dream Rocket table and display... oh we'll get to that in a bit. Sunguts is tucked away in the corner nook, which is perfect because his display incorporates a TV playing his original animations and a table covered in Suiko vinyls of varying hues and... positions. Finally, on the far right as you come up the stairs, you are greeted by Matt Walker's pieces.

Each and every display and piece must be photographed before the main crowd arrives. It is already a little crowded; photography will be impossible within an hour or so. The overhead spotlight setup is wreaking havoc with my pocket POS Canon (that point-and-shoot, not that other thing) which would not flash under threat of destruction, and I would later spend hours color-balancing the heck out of my photographs to make the walls not appear to be the color of old urine.

Then someone taps me on the shoulder, I turn around and HOLYCRAPIT'SYAJIMA-SAN. Omigod. The Dream Rocket guy is standing right in front of me. What do I do? My hand moves out to shake his in a long-automated gesture. I try to gibber out a little Japanese to tell him that I own a several boxes full of his toys and ask a billion very specific questions about them (fortunately Toybot had my back on that and asked for a few questions for his interview with Mr. Yajima earlier that weekend). The guys that stand in back and yell "Dream Rocket No. 1 Fan" are not helping the nerves.

More than anything else, I think he was surprised that this 'big fan' (yes, he was forewarned of my attendance) was about 20 years his junior, putting me well below the typical viewing age group for '70s tokusatsu films. In fact, he even asked me later whether I like "kaiju" or "sofubi ningyou," which confused me initially because, being only a toy collector, I consider the two nearly synonymous (like asking me if I like transforming toys or Transformers... uh, both?). I forget that there are those people that can enjoy the shows without little rubber representations of the actors. But later, I understood that he was asking whether I enjoy the kaiju genre or the sofubi toys only. "Anou...." and "Eh, to" were used liberally that night, to say that least. I always find meeting 'important' people in social settings mentally overwhelming so as long as I'm sober, with all of my clothes on afterward, I assume that it hasn't gone too badly. Only lost my socks that night.

Anyway, it is high time we talk about the toys there.

MARK NAGATA / MAX TOY CO.

The bulk of Mark Nagata's custom pieces were Max Toy original toys, such as Tripus, Eyezon, Alien Xam- but no Capt. Maxx this time.

Neo-Eyezon was present in large numbers. This is a new mini-size toy sculpted and produced by Dream Rocket and based on the Max Toy Eyezon character. I particularly like the custom done in dark green-black paint with just a bit of the red base color peeking through the cracks.

There was one Drazoran custom there- I was a bit disappointed not to see any of the production Drazorans for sale (should be some nice red Drazorans soon). Drazoran is another collaboration between Max Toy Co. and Dream Rocket- he was developed and produced by Dream Rocket based on a drawing by Mark Nagata. Very cool and easily one of my favorite newer toys.

And I would have seriously considered a purchase of either of these custom Balbagons, were it not for the artist custom Dream Rocket pieces right next door. Mark Nagata customized clear vinyl versions of this Dream Rocket toy with really subtle, yet visually-appealing paint arrangements. I believe the green one sold immediately upon opening- YOU can own the other one (right here)!

Finally met the (Ultra)man himself, too- Mark Nagata! Very unassuming and genial guy- hard to believe that he is behind amazing shows like Toy Karma, Kaiju Comrades, etc. I would have liked to talk story with him a bit more that night, but there were so many people there.

SUNGUTS

Mr. Ichimiya- whose given name I've recently learned is "Tadayoshi"- brought an amazing assortment of his Suiko character vinyls, as well as a brown Uraname. There were also larger versions of Suiko (don't know if these were vinyl), original artwork and even a small TV playing an animation featuring these characters. Suiko, I believe, is based on the kappa from Japanese mythology.

My photograph is not great, but 5 custom and 1 production XXX-La (actually pronounced "Me-me-me-La," as the 'me' katakana character looks like an 'X') adorned the back wall of Sunguts' display. These are not actually Sunguts toys, but produced by Mr. Ichimiya under another company name: Fetish Mode. XXX-La is known as the "Boob Monster" among American collectors- for reasons I'm sure you can guess. Uberboy bought one of the customs. His girlfriend has my condolences.

Wedged into the back corner, I feel, was one of the coolest toys of the night- Yulysis and the gigantic Queen Yulysis. Yulysis was originally released with Sunguts original character line, featuring a moveable inner part that could be rotated to reveal one of 3 faces. Queen Yulysis is a standard size version of the original.

These are customs made by Sunguts. They combine the heads of his "Dogs of Space" line with the Last Sunguts body.

For those of you who prefer more traditional soft vinyl toys, Sunguts brought 5 customs of Abare Kaiju Resura (Rampaging Kaiju 'Resura'/Wrestler). I have the original version, which was a collaboration with designer Ken M., and it is really fun in all senses of the word. Sunguts always has an appeal to me as one of the few soft vinyl toy companies that makes things that would be genuinely enjoyed by kids. Probably should keep them away from the Fetish Mode stuff, though.

MATT WALKER / DEAD PRESIDENTS

Matt Walker, the third (and second American) guest artist at the show, brought with him an assortment of customs from a very wide variety of artists. I was surprised to see the two custom Nakayoshi vinyls- these were immediately snapped up on opening night. Matt is developing a great sense of color arrangement and diversity on his pieces, and they continue to have a sense of polish and finesse that is very eye-catching.

I realize that I have not been the greatest supporter of the Dead Presidents releases- both here and on other Internet venues- so it was an interesting experience to meet the guy. But, and I realize I say this about everyone, he actually is a really decent guy. Matt greeted me on the stairs as I was running downstairs to fork over cash for my purchases that night. Later we got to talking about toys. To my surprise, he is actually a big Dream Rocket collector and has actually used my checklist as a resource. Damn. I hate when people tell me that. Then I feel like I need to update stuff. But it is kind of cool to have toys serve as common ground with someone that you have never met.

DREAM ROCKET

Well, where do I really begin with this? Basically the entire reason that I was at the show, I was told to expect 'really nice stuff' from Dream Rocket. And the offerings really went above and beyond even my high expectations (and possibly, my sense of fiscal responsibility).

At the show was a mix of unpainted toys, production toys (4 of 'em!) and a bevy of artist customs. The unpainted toys really brought a tear to my eye because I couldn't afford to buy any of them! These were a real treat for unpainted vinyl collectors and customizers alike; bargain priced at $50-60 a piece. All of these were never-before-sold versions as well: white Marnons (with 3 variant tongues), black Razor Pegimons, black Gumoz and orange Kyumaras. An unpainted black Gumoz was, however, given away as a lottery prize at a past Patchi-Summit.

Exclusive toys for the show were displayed front and center on the top shelf. Mr. Yajima chose a warm, vibrant palette of tropical colors for these pieces (perhaps to counteract the chilling SF winter outside) which remind me a bit of the fish, birds and insects found in Hawaii. Each was, of course, hand-painted by Mr. Yajima personally and he was at the top of his game in painting these (I suspect there were not many made of each). They are also dated and signed in English at the bottom (most Dream Rocket toys are not).

Production exclusives are as follows:

Pink and blue Doguma, in matte fluorescent colors. The light blue wash along the collar is a great use of the technique. Doguma is a kaiju from the '60s tokusatsu series "Kamen no Ninja Akakage" and one of my favorite toys from Dream Rocket.

Girozun, another Akakage kaiju, was my pick of the show exclusives. This is a newer sculpt which features an articulated mouthpiece to mimic its attack from the TV show. The blend of turquoise, pink, yellow and orange really make him look like a tropical wrasse (type of reef fish common in Hawaii).

Agon is done in gold and red metallics with a neon pink pattern sprayed on its back. We couldn't figure out how he did the pattern spray, as it does not have the clean edge of a masked spray. I think he does them freehand, which is amazing if true.

Finally, Ganda was painted in neon pastels, somehow reminiscent of an art piece from the late '80s. Both Ganda and Agon are Akakage kaiju, which come to think of it, was true for all 4 show exclusives. Although the sculpt is smooth, Mr. Yajima achieved a very light textured wash over its entire surface.

I really appreciate the common color theme that was applied to the show exclusives. As many of them have been repainted a number of times, you have to respect the artist that is able to continually reinvent his creations.

All of the artist customs brought by Dream Rocket were for sale. A few of them were featured in previous shows, but not offered for sale- imagine my delight to see them that night with a price tag!

Several Marnon customs were present. The grotesque detail of the sculpt seems to make it a favorite of Mr. Yajima for one-offs and show pieces... I imagine it to be a lot of fun to paint. Particularly striking was the rainbow Marnon on the new white base- the cheapest custom in the show to boot!

I was oh-so-tempted by this Razor Pegimon, done in a seamless blend of metallic colors.

This is the other piece that I ended up purchasing that night- a bit more than I intended to spend, but it would have been a lost night if I didn't go home with at least one custom from Mr. Yajima. This Gumoz caught my eye because it was earlier displayed at the "Kaiju Invade NYC" show back in April 2008! (Mr. Yajima confirmed that it was the same piece.) While the wild, multi-colored brush strokes may not be for everyone, it has a bit of crude charm to it- kind of like the cheap, traditional toys that are sold at tourist stops in Japan. I can hardly wait until the 30th, when these are sent out from the show!

Another beautiful Gumoz with glitter sprayed on its carapace.

Kyumaras (or Qumaras or Quemaras) is a chimera kaiju recently added to Dream Rocket's original character toy line.

Finally, two custom Balbagons rounded out the set of custom toys from Dream Rocket. Interesting to note that all customs were original characters, whereas the production pieces were Akakage kaiju. Maybe something to do with the licensing arrangement for the latter?

The grey Balbagon seems to be one that was displayed at Toy Karma in 2007, as I recall a grey wash Balbagon appearing in photos from that event.

This Balbagon was completely sprayed with glitter- beautiful, but the glitter does fall off a bit over time.

And that's a wrap for the toys. After saying my goodbyes to Mark, Mr. Dream Rocket, Mr. Sunguts and Matt, we headed for the car to drop a few pooped toy nerds off at their respective destinations. Right as we were about to go, Matt came running back with a toy that he pulled from the back: a custom Agon that he painted as a gift to Mr. Yajima! The clearcoat gloss and detailing on the toy (unfortunately not visible in my photo) really complement the shape of the toy. I'm frankly sort of touched that he would bring this out to show us... it was a nice personal connection on which to end the evening.

Scene: Night, apx. 10 p.m., Japantown S.F.

Eating a meal in Japantown with the crew is always the perfect end to a day. Sometimes I think I look forward to the eating more than I do the toy stuff. People move on to drink and karaoke the night away at a nearby watering hole, but I am totally spent and decide to begin the drive home. Crazy kids.

-RxM

12/12/2009: A Kaiju Kronicle, Chapter I

2009-12-13T23:42:00.000-08:00

The following is based upon a true story. Names and places have been changed to protect the identity of those involved. ...but not really.

CHAPTER 1 - White Elephant

Scene: Morning, apx. 9:30 a.m., somewhere in San Francisco.

I pull up to a street corner and carefully wrench my wheels sideways. With a torrential downpour just a few minutes behind me, I question my afternoon plan of parking myself on the sidewalk outside a certain North Beach store. I will at least require my trusty duck-handled umbrella from the trunk. Wait. Why would anyone do that? That would be the question asked by a reasonable person such as yourself, fair reader.

Let me explain.

Today is the opening day of a show produced by Mark Nagata of Max Toy Co., Beikokuten: Kaiju Invades San Francisco, and held at the gallery of Double Punch in North Beach, San Francisco. Attending this show will be the mastermind behind the company known as "Dream Rocket," Yajima Junichi- and his toys. Toys are good. Toys plus guys who make the toys, even better. There will be some other guys there as well.

Right now, I'm meeting Joe to drive down to Super 7 for a morning trade-fest with local and not-so-local toy freaks- the hors d'oeuvre before the main course. You, of course, know Joe.

Joe looks like he woke up about 10 minutes ago. A small dog in a sweater attempts to maul my lower half as he runs about throwing toys in a shopping bag for the trade-fest. I ogle his collection of shelves with random kitsch dumped on them- mostly rubber dinosaurs or some other such hipster trash. Nice shelves though.

Scene: Morning, apx. 10:00 a.m., Super 7 store.

Arriving at Super 7, there is already a crowd inside the store despite that it does not officially open for another hour. You can always be certain that no matter how early you show up on event days, there will always be someone that woke up earlier. The donuts and coffee are quickly being consumed in direct proportion to the growth of a sizeable mound of 'white elephant' gifts for the festivities later that day. Toybot and t0fu have preceded us, as has plastichunter (visiting from down south), and the customary morning-of greetings are exchanged.

The glass dome at the register is a rather celebrated fixture in the store. New or upcoming releases are always previewed through its protective shield. Everything looks classier on the mahogany surface of its base. I wish I were mahogany. For show this morning is the "Mele Kalikimaka" 3-piece set of RxH, commissioned by Scott "stealthtank" of S7 Florida, and painted to resemble the Hawaii exclusive Bullmark Angilas vintage toy. Also: the Astro-mu tribute Space Barbarian from Secret Base (with the gun which you may or may not get). They are quickly swarmed by camera toting nerds who fondle and pose them with donut-greased fingers (that will teach those Super 7 staffers to turn their backs). We all need to see 4 sets of pictures of the same toys on the same table at the same time. Ok, here is mine:

More people arrive- uberboy aka "Slim," il_muffino and female accomplice, Sokko and smaller Sokko, midnight26man, gatchabert and others who are omitted due to memory loss and not lack of significance. Bags are opened, more toys are fondled with donut-fingers. Tentative offers are made and quickly withdrawn. And at last, some people finally do make actual trades. I'm just here to watch this time.

uberboy had a bunch of his original resin toys for our fondling pleasure. You can probably go here if you want to know more about them.

Someone brought this unpainted Super 7 Mutant Chaos.

Custom by Toybot (?). I like the split motif and the glittery black bits poking through. I don't know if this is new or if it is old and I just forgot that I saw it. Either way, it was nice enough to get its own photograph.

But the real event that morning was a 'white elephant' gift exchange among the attendees. The basic idea of a white elephant is that each person brings a secret gift, which are piled together and redistributed randomly. The catch is that successive giftees may 'steal' the present chosen by a prior giftee, who will be left to choose another gift. You do not want to be the first person (unless the gift is shite).

And the first gifts out of the pile were a couple of Bandai Ultra kaiju figures, worth about $10 each. Not shite, but not really "a gift of around $30 value" either. Expectations were low. But the gifts increased substantially in value as the game progressed, with the best pull (in my humble opinion) being a set of Skull Toys test shots of the 3 Dokkun Rolls.

Another interesting pull was this vintage Tiger 7 mini, which was basically rolled up in a postal envelope (so no one chose it until the very end). My gift was one of the Super 7 Zombie things... wrapped in a Peet's Coffee bag. Part of me hoped for the lingering remnants of a scone or brownie inside. So who was the cheapo that brought $20 of toys and left with presumably over $100 worth? I guess we'll never know.

Right before we left for lunch, gatchabert whipped out these stunning customs. The photographs (isn't this always the case) do not show off the glistening clearcoat, which is glossy and slightly sparkly, and it looks perfect over the tight paint technique (look at the head spots). He says they are "just for practice." Modesty is thy name.

- Interlude -

Gatchabert, plastichunter and I pile into the back of Joe's import ride and we pull out of the Japantown parking garage to sound of the Goo Goo Dolls. Lunch is pho and other Vietnamese cuisine at a bustling restaurant, followed by dessert at Creation and a brief stop at the famed Heroes Club. I've never been there before, and the wall-to-wall display of 1/6th figures is very impressive. Unfortunately, no photos allowed! I really wanted to snap a shot of the Bruce Lee style SF3D suit in the back corner of the store.

TO BE CONTINUED.

Beikokuten this weekend!

2009-12-11T02:25:00.000-08:00

Ok, so maybe I didn't make it to the first show at Kaiju Blue last month, but damn it, I will make it to Beikokuten this weekend.

I was stupid and shrunk the card image down too much, but here are the relevant details:

BEIKOKUTEN by Max Toy Co.
feat. Dream Rocket, Max Toy Co., Sunguts and Dead Presidents
@ Double Punch, 1821 Powell St., San Francisco, CA 94133
Begins at 7 p.m., Saturday, 12/12 (runs until 12/30)
w/ 6 p.m. pre-show pinstriping demo by Dead Presidents and other stuff

Mark Nagata has been providing periodic updates via his blog. Looks like they are just about done setting up for the show! Just take a gander at all that Dream Rocket stuff.

So check it out this weekend if you are in the area. I will be the guy sitting on the sidewalk in front of the gallery at 2 p.m. Say hi, or shake me if I have gone unconscious from the cold.

The same, but different

2009-12-11T02:13:00.000-08:00

Amazing what a difference a bit of paint can make, eh? These are essentially the same toy- Armored Chaosman- except the one in back is the painted production piece, whereas the one in front is an unpainted test shot. The master painter had to match the color of the head and chest piece in painting over the hands and feet, since the main body was cast entirely in orange. That is some talent. The dark spray over the face totally changes the character of the toy as well.

And how cool is it to have a toy made from two colors of vinyl? They don't do this nearly often enough.

Darn, now I need to update the article.