December 31, 2001 CURRENT RUMBLE has been a truly incredible year for Japanese toys, although most of the nominees to make the ballot were not truly 'toys' in the pure sense of the word. All were amazing works of art or astounding feats on engineering. There were many toys to make it the ballot and some very popular ones which did not, such as Web Diver and GaoRanger. The ones that did make the ballot showed the toy community something new, exciting or special, or proved there is a bigger better way to do things. This year for some added fun, we quizzed you to see who was a ToyboxDX resident and who was visiting. As always, everyone was welcome. The quiz weighted your votes only as a matter of interest, the winners reflected here won by actual, not weighted votes. 2001 Toy of the Year: Soul of Chogokin GX-06 Getter Robo This is perhaps the first SOC toy that you can really play with. Magnemo-style fun, three robots, three vehicles. Tons of fascinating and goofy combinations, a lot of toy for the money. The SOC line gets big points for quality and commitment. Second Place: YamatoVF-1A This has definatly been the most awaited and heavily reviewed toy of the year. Finally a new Macross toy, and oddly enough, NOT pumped out by Bandai. With some quality control problems, and lacking a truly fun and playful transformation, the Yamato VF-1A didnt quite make the cut (despite unprecedented support from Macrossworld.com) . Although second in absolute AND weighted numbers, the weighted count demonstrates that the votes didn't come from the ToyboxDX "core", as a relative measure. Yamato gets huge points for tackling a challenging toy line head first. With the VF-1S hot on the shelves, followed by fastpack versions to come, Yamato is likely to be a strong presence in the Japanese toy market for the foreseeable future. The remainder of the toys were WELL distanced from the first two, all getting an approximately equal spread of votes. The only clear information that can be gained this year was that 2001 had a LOT of great toys, but none seemed to particularly shine in the eyes of the public. Starting from 3rd place, and moving DOWN ... Third Place: Unifive Godphoenix A lovely, anticipated toy. But as much as it is loved by its vocal fan base, it didn't quite have the broad pedestrian appeal that the SOC line has captured. Unifive once again makes us smile by tackling beloved Tatsunoko characters with dignity and quality. Fourth Place: The MSiA RX-78G. For its size and pricepoint, simply the best bang for any ardent Gundam fan's buck. Fully articulated, tons of weapons, and a backpack to hold all the extra pieces. With the Gundam: The 08th MS Team on Cartoon Network, its no wonder this incredible little guy made the ballot. MSIA is powerful line in Japan and in the US, showing no signs of letting up until every character from the Gundam Universe, no matter how obscure or unloved, is brought to life in scale toy form. Give Bandai their due for biting off only what the fanatical Japanese could chew. KZ-02 Berserk Fuhrer? Where did this come from? The Zoids Metal Action toys are high quality, highly poseable toys with good diecast content, and a bounty of "sold separately" diecast personality armor. Give Tomy points of coming out of nowhere with high end diecast toys. SOC GX-05 Daikumaryu! How did an SOC toy end up so far down the list? People still can't get over the tiny Gaiking figure, which will forever be an albatross around the space dragon's neck. SOP Yamato was a highly anticipated item that drew a lot of scorn upon release. Perceived as plastic and fragile, it made more enemies than friends. Yamato Giant Robo. Any large, poseable, diecast robot toy that sells locally in the US for $40 is gonna attract attention. Yamato gets a special mention here for "most bang for the buck". Bandai Jumbo Grade Gundam. A Jumbo Machineder commercial renaissance? This item, like the Marmit Daigokin Mazinger, causes your jaw to hit the ground from its massive scale alone. It might've done better if it were more affordable, and if Keith didn't hate Gundam so much. Bandai Soul of Bullmark: Series 1 -- Bandai's "Soul Of" mania wouldn't abandon the vinyl kaiju fans! They are cheap, they look great, and they are endlessly fun. Give Bandai big points for affordable nostalgia. Unifive Tetsuwan Atom leaves a huge gap between itself and the peleton. Getting only a few votes, Atom seems to be the "Unifive Mach 5" of last year. A classic character with great execution, it simply had no traction amongst ToyboxDX readers. --Tim, Darren and The ToyboxDX Rumble Crew  RUMBLE INDEX  |  CURRENT RUMBLE