April 1999 | Ramble Index | February 1999

3/26/99: Blazer!

Oh man! I rewarded myself this week with a special treat from Day-Old Antiques : Bullmark's classic Blazer Robo diecast!

(Talk about "day-old!" I've been staring at this particular object for over 2 years now. Wednesday night was the first time I allowed myself to actually touch it. As soon as Mike opened the case, I could smell the sweet waft of lust billowing from its tiny bod. Yikes!)

Blazer is all Bullmark: solid and heavy, but intricate in design. Deadly toe missiles, hidden gut launcher and shooting robot claws are all part of his mighty arsenal. Then check it out: his head and torso pop off to make a detachable car! This is one of the coolest pieces in the universe. Worth the wait!

Matt Alt with a Bandai press report: "Bandai has announced that the Combattler V Soul of Chogokin will be released in mid-May. Sorry, kids, but you've got a few months to go. "They've also released shadowy test-shots of the prototype SOC Grandizer. This looks like it's going to be a winner...Check out the sharp detail on the Spacer! Apparently, it even closes up when Grandizer's not riding in it..." "Meanwhile: love it or hate it, the flaming nostalgia-fest that is 'Burn! Robocon' just can't be quenched. Up next are Bandai's newest additions to the 'Slotroid' series: Robo Boss, Robo Bin, Robo Kero, and Robo Mogu (note the similarities to the old Robocon characters.) Unfortunately, it seems as though these all-plastic Slotroids are the future of cute-robot toys. With the exception of the 1974 Robocon Reissue Chogokin, there's not a hint of metal in the bunch. At least they're cheap: at 2000 yen a piece (retail), you can't really go wrong...!" -- Matt "Finally, a newsflash from the 'I need a Coke' dept..." "Bandai has announced that they are releasing a super-huge vinyl toy of none other than the friend of all Japanese children, Gamera. The toy will undoubtedly be a portrayal of Gamera as seen in his latest film, 'Gamera 3,' and it's expected to be jumbo-machinder sized. UNBELIEVABLE! Is this great or what? "Sales of Bandai's new Gamera Memorial Box set, which contains seven Gamera monster vinyl figures, have been reported to be brisk as well. Although the seven figures are done in the same 'old fashioned' style of the early-1990s Bandai Gamera vinyls, they are NOT re-issues -- they're all new (and slightly smaller than the standard six-inch monster vinyl size. The box art is spectacular. Get 'em while ya can!"

Meanwhile: if you haven't been to the LEGO Purist's site, then you haven't seen Randall E. Barker's insane, articulated LEGO Gundam! (What are you waiting for? Go there!)

Tom the Greek gets an F91! "I received a Gundam F91 toy and had to do a Ramble. First, is it a toy or is it a model? Well, in my opinion it is the best of both worlds. The 1/60 Gundam F91 comes in a giant Godaikin-like box. Within the box is a styrofoam container and a parts box. The styrofoam contains 80% of the preassembled toy. All you have to do is attach the limbs to the torso. "It also comes with a big parts box. Within the parts box is a ton of accessories. I must add that the accessories are all pre-painted/colored. No glueing or painting required! The plastic used is very similar to toy plastic, not that real thin plastic used on HG models. The toy itself is pretty heavy for plastic. The level of detail is also very high. "To sum things up, in my opinion, it is a toy that requires some assembly like the Takara Scopedogs. All I can say is get one. They are available at HLJ, so grab one up if you can. You won't regret it!!!" -- Tom The Greek

3/21/99: Popy Hardcore Blitz!

Nimble-fingered Roger Seto spent an entire weekend digitizing the Popy toy commercials videocassette for us. Jump to the Info Library and check out the additional 25 AVI's just added to the Popy Hardcore Cinema!

New additions include Raydeen, God Lightan, Gatchaman, Starzingers, Combattra and a slew of others. Especially bizarre are the Voltes V spots which nimble-eared Matt Alt will be translating shortly. Thanks Rog!

Fanboy Matt Alt surfs the web: "I've just checked the Bandai Town site, and although they list the release dates of the re-issue Robocon toy (mid-March) and the newest DX Chogokin ('Victory Robo'), there's still no sign of the Soul of Chogokin Combattler. As it was originally stated to be for a 'spring release,' we may have a few weeks to wait yet..." "For those interested in checking out pics and info for themselves, Bandai Japan's new-toy release schedule is at www.bandai.co.jp/shohin/index.html. "It's all Japanese, of course, but Robocon is #30 and Victory Robo is #34. Look for 'em later this month!" -- Matt

Meanwhile, Lester (one of the nicest collectors I've had the pleasure of meeting) shared an all too-familiar sounding moment. (I spilled my coffee reading this): "On Thursday, I had to put some sales materials into a three ring binder. I asked everyone in the office if they knew where the three hole punch was. Nobody knew, so I kept looking. Ten minutes later, when I finally did find it, I was so excited, I raised the object of my search above my head and yelled 'THREE-HOLE-PUNCH!!!!!' in the super robot fashion of announcing the weapon you are about to unleash on some bad guy. The office was silent. Everyone was staring at me as though I had three heads. Oh well, such is my life." -- Lester

Tom the Greek checks in on one of my personal favorites: "I recently acquired this piece and just thought I would do a Ramble on it. "It is called Red Baron Full Metal Fighter or FMF for short. It was made by Bandai in 1994 and weighs a ton. It has to be at least two pounds. "It is entirely diecast except for his head and hands. It is very similar to the new Soul Of Chogokin pieces in that the poseability is fantastic. It also comes with a whole bunch of accessories to change him into 'hyper' type mode: see box cover see box back "A very nice piece. I reccomend him to everyone." -- Tom

Dont' forget: Cafe Chogokin chat tommorow night at 10 EST. Seeya there!
3/16/99: Jumbo Updates

Marvin sent in the pics of his tricked out UNI-Five Jumbo Machine and writes:

"Here is the pic I promised you of all the custom detailing I did to the Jumbo Mazinger Z pilder. I know this may be sacrilege to some but I LIKE IT and I guess in the end that's all that matters." -- Marvin

He also writes that "a little plug for ComicStripNetwork.com would be nice..." Marvin, thanks for the great pics; consider thy site plugged! And check back later this week for some of Marvin's cool models...

ToyboxDX Chief Press Agent Hiroko has used her feminine wiles and buttery voice to break the Uni-Five code of silence: "The ever-inscrutable folks at Uni-Five have reversed course and now inform us that they do plan to produce wings and accessory fists for their 'Jumbo Machine' Mazinger-Z repro. They state that they are 'in the planning stage' with no release date set." "We will post information as it comes...!" -- Hiroko Rejoice! My Mazinger DEMANDS his wings...! -- A.Y.

Finally, ToyboxDX Big Science Dr. Evil has completed his first pass of the BBS Overhaul! Help us test the new Usenet-style BBS forum. Try it out and let us know what you think!

3/13/99: BBS/Alt: Hosed/Unhosed

Getta tall bottle of hooch and a long straw: August Ragone checks in with a massive installment of his Super Robot Pantheon Report! [now LIVE in the Info Library.]

The esteemed publisher of Henshin! Online has finished meticulously digesting this month's harvest of Japanese periodicals. You'll want to print this out and grab yer hilighter: August has, like, compiled a book...!

On the webfront: Alt and I were checking out the japanese site Diaclone WWW. Here's Matt's "government-grade" translation: "This site features checklists, photos, background info, and even a BBS. It's 90% Japanese-language, but the author has some 'subtitles' here and there to help English readers out." "My favorite? The Oath of Diaclone (or The Three Vows of Diaclone if you prefer): Do what you believe is right with brave heart Don't forget peaceful heart Fight with WARUDER TROOP! "On some pages, rather than showing pictures of the toys, the author's done marker-rendered B&W watercolors of the pieces! They're REALLY cool! Check it out!" -- Matt

Finally: thanks to everyone who checked in about the BBS being hosed. The service should be unhosed from here-on in, and is slated for a major overhaul. More on this later and thanks for writing...!

3/08/99: Double Impact?

Well, I just finished working on the two figures from my Bandai Rockman X Double Impact Mega Armor Series. (You can tell I was excited by this X-Mas gift because it only took two months to pull out of the closet.)

And it was work. Not quite models, and not quite toys, I'm not sure what the hell they are. While the plastic parts were well-painted and molded, they had none of the intricate machinations of Bandai's Gundam kits. And since no glue was involved, I pocketed my sand paper, then shot the hobby knife back into my boot.

After an hour of squinting at the instructions, and nimbly pasting the teeny stickers, I had two decent looking, extremely poseable little dudes. In fact, they were almost as nice as any action figures I might have bought at Toys R Us. But then I wouldn't have had the fun of building them. Which was about as much fun as "building" the chopsticks you get with sushi.

Incidentally, the chopsticks not only have clearer instructions, they turn out to be sturdier and more poseable too. In fact, the wrapper notes that "now I can pick up anything!" I tested the action by picking up these little Rockmen and dropping them into the kitchen drawer. Viola! they've joined my collection of rubber bands, lint, and suspect batteries.

I love the Rockman character designs (really!) and hate to dis these toys, but I think I'll stick to diecast from now on...

Checking the press, Matt Alt reports: "Hyper Hobby has just published photographs of Bandai's new Robocon chogokin re-issue. Although the text says that the toy is merely a "faithful reproduction with a few modern features thrown in for good measure," it seems to be a DEAD RINGER for the first edition Popy Robocon -- and it's an unbelievable 3,500 yen! That's THIRTY BUCKS! Just as with the original, the toy will come complete with a set of wheels for Robocon's car-transformation, a few rubber cockroaches, and a sheet of heart stickers. Release date: mid-March 1999." "In other news, Marusan has released a vinyl of Ultra Earth from everyone's favorite psychedelic series, Astro-Mu Five. Although the toy features the traditional Nakajima clear-limbs-and-sparkly-pipe-cleaner gimmick, it is a totally updated (and kinda soul-less, if you ask me) resculpt. Your mileage may vary. It's on sale now for 4800 yen. "

Meanwhile, Louis, who's usually quite prolific, sent me a one-line email and some pics. He simply says: "i'm sooooo happy with that time meka boton."

And don't forget: it's chat tonight at the Cafe Chogokin at 10PM EDT! Seeya there...



3/05/99: Updates!

Jerome sent in the pic at left and sez:

"Since you did a feature of Robocon by Dragon in your last Ramble, here's a picture of the new Gantsu Sensei toy from the upcoming 'Burning Robocon' live action TV show."

Ouch. Another cool-looking, must-have to help break the bank. Thanks Jerome!

In this latest installment "Turtle Power", Alt deftly expounds on the virtues of Nakajima's fascinating but oft-neglected masterpiece Capsule Robo G. Much thanks to Roy Ng of Grace Oriental for the generous use of his spectacular images!

And speaking of Matt, he reports on the final results of the Dengeki Hobby's Readers' Poll. "Several months ago, Dengeki Hobby asked readers to fill out a survey regarding which robots they'd like to see next in the Soul of Chogokin line. Although these results don't guarantee anything, it's a pretty safe bet that they mirror the requests sent to Bandai. They are, in order: Grandizer, Getta Robo, and (somewhat unbelievably) a TIE between Gaiking and DANCOUGAR! "Most Americans wouldn't even think to put Dancougar in the same league as the classic hero robots that make up the Soul Of Chogokin line, but the show enjoyed (and still enjoys) a cult following in Japan despite being one of the most derivative, tedious shows ever to air in the history of robot anime. Perhaps a future SOC Dancougar will make up for the fact that the old DX piece was one of the lumpiest, plasticky, out-of-proportion robots in the entire chogokin line-up." -- Matt

3/01/99: Gazillions Served!

It's 12:54 AM, and I'm a little stunned. It's not the freaky little Robocon sitting on my monitor and glaring at me; it's these hefty numbers scrolling down the screen.

ToyboxDX roared into March, shattering our old monthly records. In the short 28 days of February, we not only met our anticipated target of 800,000 hits; we burst it with a record for the month:

(I just ran into the Collection Room to fire off the double nipple-blades on my Ark King Kong for a six-round, twin-edged, DX salut!)

So if you've been telling your friends, or passing the link around, thank you. This dinky site that we've all worked on together has really matured into a mighty Web Force for Good!

At first glance, it's discreet and plasticky-looking. On first fondle, however, your fingers perk up at the grenade like weighting: this thing is solid metal! On 2nd glance and closer inspection, the articulating chest and exposed machinations are meticulously engineered and detailed. This thing's another little treasure...and I don't even LIKE these dorky robots!

... and then Matt Alt grabs the mike: "As a proud survivor of many a late-night booze-soaked tape-watching session, I can unequivocally state that this is an EXACT portrayal of the live-action Robocon. At least, I THINK so, anyway - I was usually out of my mind on gin at the time. (How ELSE would I make it through sixteen episodes of the most demented live-action robot show of all time?) "I mean, it's kind of FRIGHTENING (the toy, I mean, not my penchant for self-destructive behavior.) Dragon's engineers actually managed to put a tiny articulated endoskeleton within those tiny, fleshy, vinyl-covered appendages, and the effect is Frankensteinian. Never in my wildest alcoholic fantasies could I ever have imagined the Warhol-esque box art, the heavy body, the weighted feet, the squeezably-soft arms and legs. And well under $100! Pinch me, I'm dreaming! "And by the way: no, your Robocon isn't incomplete. For some reason, Dragon made a decision to ship the toy without Robocon's helicopter blade accessory, even though they made an indentation for it in the styrofoam..." -- Matt

Meanwhile, Roger Harkavy sez: "They say bootleg toys are like cheap wines: sometimes they taste horrible, but you can still get some kind of buzz off of 'em. "Okay, I'll admit it, I've never heard anyone say that, but for me it's an apt metaphor. There's always going to be a special place in my heart (and on my shelf) for bootlegs, and when I saw this monstrosity in Matt Alt's Annals of the Unrespected [see Library] I knew I had to own one. "This behemoth is made by Academy, a Korean company well-known for their bootlegs of Gundam models. Until I encountered this item, I'd never heard of them making toys before. Apparently, they scaled Bandai's original 1/100 Gundam Mark 2 to 17 inches. The scale cited on the box is misleading, and after doing the math it's really more like 1/43 (yes, I am a nitpicker). "Unfortunately, the particular Gundam Mark 2 they chose to duplicate is the one that was included with the 'Musha' armor, so the eyesores (peg holes, slots for armor, etc.) that Bandai built into that one have been perfectly replicated here. Academy, exercising their creative license, has covered up a few of the nastier-looking areas with high-tech stickers. An additional sticker sheet (with thoughtful 'MADE IN KOREA' labels) is included to cover up the remaining holes. "The strangest thing about this bootleg is the fact that there are improvements. The sickly green base color of the original has been replaced by light grey (correctly representing the robot's color in the cartoon), and all ten fingers are articulated. On the flip side, the 'shock absorber' feature of the lower legs is gone, and the beam saber holders don't have the same poseability of the original. "One last thing that sticks out is Gundam Mark 2's, uh, 'endowment', but as Steve Chang shows on his Nostalgic Anime Toys Page, the toy was also sold with bootlegged Musha Armor, of which this is a remnant. "For more bootleg mayhem, check out The Island of Bootleg Toys..." -- Roger

Don't forget: it's Cafe Chogokin chat night. Check this week for a new Glossary Section and revised Link-o-rama layout. Seeya!

April 1999 | Ramble Index | February 1999