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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.
I came across this photograph tonight while doing a little spring cleaning. This is something that I acquired a while ago- a custom paint of the M1Go [M1号] Baltan Seijin 2 [バルタン星人 2代目] standard size figure.
The artist responsible for this fine work is Koji Harmon. Veteran new vinyl collectors will instantly recognize this name as he is not only affiliated with the Gargamel [ガーガメル] crew, but a successful toy designer in his own right. Mr. Harmon has been customizing all sorts of Japanese vinyl toys for years, ranging from classic M1Go kaiju to toys with more of a designer spin. I think this Baltan was one of his older customs.
The M1 Baltan 2 (the 1st Baltan has a rounder, less insectile face) is my absolute favorite toy by the M1Go company. Mr. Harmon took a flesh-colored blank vinyl of the Baltan 2 toy and customized it with light blue, fluorescent green and gold spray, allowing much of the flesh color to show through. This style draws the eye to the contours of the sculpt, making it feel like, well, a TOY. It definitely matches the best of the M1Go paint schemes
Check out more of Koji Harmon's customs in his flickr group.
He also sells customs through his website, Cometdebris.com.
Today was one of those magical days when the postal service decided to deliver everything at once- right along with a healthy serving of eyerolls from my co-workers. Yeah, that's right- go drink/snort your money away next weekend. Or whatever it is that male humans do with United States currency.
And there are a couple of rad little Cronic monsters in here. The Nougaki in front was a standard release from the "A" Type Lucky Bags from earlier this year. Pearl orange vinyl with mottled pinks, purples and golds- I can't decide if it reminds me of a tropical fish or a poisonous fruit. Next in line is the Dorome released last month at Rotofugi's booth at Wondercon 2008. This is the best Dorome yet- the subtle metallic paints and sage-green pearl base vinyl flow together beautifully.
To the left is the Rotofugi exclusive Marnon, also from Wondercon. Featuring a new forked tongue (following the normal tongue and rather penile 'eyeball' tongue), Marnon is made of clear candy apple green vinyl with chewy GID vinyl poured inside. Painted version here.
In back we have a big M1Go Baltan Seijin 2nd done up in crystal clear emerald green vinyl with a bit of silvery spray on top. I believe they were one of the larger prizes for M1Go's popular ring toss game from the last Wonderfestival.
I also finally bought one of those K-T Original tumblers. It's pretty sturdy and high-quality for only $10. And it's totally cool to drink from a plastic character cup.
And my quest to spend all of my money before tax time continues. If you don't have any money, they can't make you pay income tax, right? What? Jail? Crap.
I'm hitting a point where I have more toys coming in than I have time to write comprehensive pictorial reviews of each one. So rather than let these little gems languish unseen in my old display cabinet, I'm starting the first of (I hope) many quick posts called "One-shots."
1. Secret Base Carnival Victory paint Skull Bee (Cocobat Joe homage).
I think I have maybe 6 Secret Base toys, but there is only one that I would never trade away. The first Carnival Victory paint Skull Bee was among the earliest SB toys released, and painted in a fairly complex scheme to match the Medicom Cocobat Joe figure. Incidentally- or maybe intentionally- this scheme also looks somewhat like the original Kamen Rider uniforms. The Cocobat Bee is a beautiful piece with rich, dark sprays. If only all SB toys could be like this, eh?
2. Cool Zone Kid Octopus.
Kid Octopus is the second character in the "Cool Zone" series of toys produced by Ichibanboshi, released at the 2007 Summer Wonderfestival. The vinyl is a bit harder than I'd typically prefer, but the sculpt has a great simplistic retro feel, and the tentacles even have sucker detail.
3. Bwana Spoons x Gargamel Killers.
"Sleeping Killer" is the first collaborative figure conceived by artist Bwana Spoons and sculpted and produced by Gargamel. It's a bit bigger than the typical Japanese mini-figure, and has been released in several colorways- including an extremely limited set of 7 Killers cast in colored GID vinyl that was sold at 2007 SDCC. In this photo, we have the original Pacific Northwest Tiger Salamander Killer, Milk Chocolate Killer (handpainted by Bwana!), and the unpainted clear Pink Killer from the "Killer Dragons from the West" show at Gargamel's Thrash-Out store. To be honest, the first Killer (Tiger Salamander) is still my favorite of all of the releases.
4. M1Go Chibull Seijin (GID).
I fell in love with Chibull Seijin after seeing it featured in David Horvath's Super7 artwork. And it glows in the dark. No more words. Look at the picture.
5. Charactics King Walder Mini-Figure set.
Charactics released a full-color set of the King Walder characters at a Wonderfestival over a year ago, and it has been nearly impossible to find (along with those elusive clear glittery Invader minis). However, they did us all a favor (well, all except those owners of the original sets) by releasing another full color set of the King Walder minis at the 2007 Summer Wonderfestival. But this time, they cast them in clear vinyl and stuffed them with little organ inserts. Joy! Thank goodness Charactics waited to do this until I was finally around to buy them.
