May 6, 2001 CURRENT RUMBLE Daiku-Disappointment? Matt Alt pictures by Warren Schwartz 5.6.01 [updated 5.7.01] I'd begin this review by saying that this is the Daikumaryu toy I've been waiting for ever since I was a kid, but that's not actually the case. Having spent the majority of my formative years in the post-Shogun Warrior netherworld of Godaikin toys and "Robotech," I didn't even realize that Gaiking HAD a giant robot space-dragon to dock with when he wasn't out kicking ass. And to top it off, the boxes for the few Shoguns I did have were long-gone, meaning I didn't have a clue as to what I might have been missing from the catalogs printed on the packaging. Ignorance is bliss. When I DID eventually encounter the Popy Daikumaryu, or "Kargosaur," as it was called here in the 'States, I was blown away. Its distinctive (dare I say odd?) silhouette is a true masterpiece of Japanese toy design. Unfortunately, by the time I was "in the game" with some cash to drop, the price of the Kargosaur had already gone through the roof, and out of my reach. So it goes. Now, thanks to Bandai, I have the chance to sink my teeth into a juicy Daiku for a fraction of what it'd cost for a vintage version. For better or for worse, the hype surrounding this particular Soul of Chogokin release has been thick enough to cut with a knife. Thick enough that even I, a vintage snob who generally turns up his nose at anything produced later than 1984, was swept away. First off, a word to the wise. It's big, much bigger than the old Kargosaur, but it ain't THAT big (With all the hype, I was practically expecting a diecast the size of a Volkswagen Beetle.) Next, visualize the mantra that "this is a Daikumaryu Soul of Chogokin, not a Gaiking Soul of Chogokin." Repeat as necessary as you open the actual package and assemble the toy. You need to put yourself in the right frame of mind here, because in this particular incarnation, the Gaiking robot plays a totally secondary role to the Daikumaryu. And what a Daikumaryu it is: a fist-sized metal testament to the skill of Japanese toy-engineers. I'll save you another run-down of the specific gimmicks; suffice it to say that they're obsessively faithful to the television series. I don't have any problems getting mine to stand up properly, but I do have a problem with the paint job. It's very nearly too thick in several places (notably the spare dragon head), while the flat surface on the front of the body was painted roughly enough to leave primer visible underneath. A relatively minor point, I suppose, when you consider the big picture: with piercing spikes sharp enough to break skin, fully functional rubber treads, and full poseability, this is one impressive beast. As ambitious as the Daikumaryu may be, however, the diminutive Gaiking is anything but. At less than two inches high, it feels more like a diecast gumball-machine toy than an honest-to-god Chogokin. The real issue isn't the size. It's that it took me nearly twenty-four hours to figure out how to get mine to stay in one piece. Literally. No matter what I did, I couldn't get Gaiking's skull-chest to stay attached until I bit the bullet and jammed the thing in with a frightening amount of force. I purchased this SOC mainly for the chance to get my hands on the Space Dragon itself, but no matter how Bandai may try to justify it, including a Gaiking this shoddy just isn't acceptable for a $100 toy. What makes the situation even worse is that I, and I'm suspecting quite a few other collectors, would have happily paid extra for the chance to own a more substantially engineered Gaiking. C'est la vie. In the final analysis, the really amazing thing is just how well the overall design holds up in this new format. Even for those who complain that the Soul of Chogokin series is actually anything but, the Daikumaryu is an exception. Would I prefer an antique Popy? You betcha. But it's a testament to the classic lines of the Space Dragon that it loses very little in the transition from '70s classic to ultra-slick twenty-first century portrayal. It's a must-buy if you're already an SOC fanatic, while remaining a satisfying stand-in for the vintage version for old-school fans. Let's just hope that the quality issues are only an aberration and not a sign of things to come. 5.5.01 Daiku-Porn 5.2.01 Sanadamushi to Neko  RUMBLE INDEX  |  CURRENT RUMBLE