Even with all the modern gokin being released, this remains one of the best modern gokin in my collection. It just really captures the essence of the original toy without trying to replicate every stupid little gimmick of the show.

Hard to believe it was eleven years ago that this toy was released. It was in the second coming of gokin, the late 90s, that Bandai subsidiary UniFive threw their hat into the diecast ring with their first offering, the SG-01 Shingokin Mekabuton.

This lovable little beetle comes from the show Time Bokan which aired in 1975 and spun off a ton of shows like Yatterman and Ippatsuman. It's actually a large mecha driven by the protagonists of the series.

Until this point, if you wanted a Mekabuton, the only version you could get was a vintage Grip Mekabuton or a Takatoku Z-Gokin Mekabuton, and that would set you back a pretty penny.

The UniFive version brought modern (at the time) toy engineering with vintage funk. To this day it remains a classic, although, how it compares to the CM's version remains to be seen.

The toy is essential gokin. it's heavy as hell, its got zero consideration for anime accuracy. It's metallic blue.

Mekabuton resembles a Japanese Rhinoceros Beetle. As such, it has the trademark horn on the front. The horn is articulated at the tip and at the base. When you move it at the base there is the cool sound of a metal-on-metal click. The whole rest of the head is metal as well.

The shell on the back is solid heavy metal as well. The wings fold up and out, but be careful when putting them back, the paint where the wings meet the body can chip easily.

Underneath the wings reveals the chrome engine and ladybug drone. The drone is removable and is fastened with a magnet.

If you slide the center chrome panel you activate the wings - those unfortunately are plastic but they do pop out with some force.

The last major gimmick is in the undercarriage. Slide the small lever near the underside of the head and a trap door opens to reveal another small vehicle - this time a small submarine called Strider Machine.

Even with all the modern gokin being released, this remains one of the best modern gokin in my collection. It just really captures the essence of the original toy without trying to replicate every stupid little gimmick of the show.

Pick one up, you won't regret it.

Another release in the "Soul Of A Otoko" line.

I managed to acquire this vinyl a very similar way to how I got the Piguduron to... in a lot. As I recall, I got it and the horrible Marmit Sanda for like $15 on Ebay. I can't remember if I bought them together, but I think I got them from the same seller at the same time at least. Either way, two toys I bought for no other reason than because they were cheap.

But unlike the Sanda, I don't regret this one. It's a quality vinyl.

I'm pretty sure this guy is also from one of the Getter Robo shows, but I'm not gonna speak with any authority about that for fear of being wrong like last time. Let me know if you know and I'll stick just to the toy.

At 11" tall, Gil Gil Gan is a little shorter than Piguduron and is different in other ways, too. For instance, obviously there is no clear, or glow, or any other gimmicky vinyl, here. Just straight up good old fashioned sofubi. Furthermore, there is MUCH more articulation on this toy. There are 14 points of articulation here. That's huge for a vinyl. Swivel joints are located at the shoulders, elbows, knees, ankless and waist, as well as all three tails and the two "blades" on the hips.

The vinyl is thick and strong and while the paint apps aren't particularly flashy, it's more than competent where it needs to be, on the face.

The design of the character is really sort of interesting, with solid "metal" depicted on the lower half, with a more rock-like surface for the torso. Add the fleshy looking tails and it's a real neat combination of different styles.

Really, much like Piguduron, I'm growing to like this toy more now than before, looong after I actually purchased it. In taking it out and handling and examining it, I'm realizing how much it reminds me of the cartoons I used to love as a kid, perhaps even more-so than the hero robots I've owned.

Clearly, I hadn't been paying close enough attention to my own toys to miss how cool this one is.... but I've done an "about face"!

It's probably been said before, but one of the great side effects of this gig is when you take toy off your shelf to photograph it and examine it to review and your appreciation of it grows as a result.

Pigudoron (ピグドロン) is an enemy of Getter Robo G and as such, I am assuming it's the work of Go Nagai. Please correct me if I'm wrong. This clear yellow soft vinyl of it is one of the few examples of a toy of this character. The only other one that I know of offhand is a silly zenmai toy by Robin.

So, I've been with CDX for quite a few years now and I'm sure no one reading this now is surprised that I've got a clear vinyl villain in my collection. But when I got this thing about 5 years or so ago, it wasn't exactly something I was interested in. I wasn't buying vinyls at all at the time and I had no particular love, or even knowledge, of the character. But y'see, a collector buddy of mine had run into some money trouble and decided to sell of his toys. I was doing well at the time so mostly to help him out, I decided to buy a whole lot of stuff and this toy was included in it. I stuck it on my shelf and more or less forgot about it.

But lately I feel like I've been running out of stuff to review so I dug deep and decided it was time to post something about this guy. And in so doing have realized it's a pretty dang cool piece.

Pigudoron stands approximately 13" tall with 5 points of articulation (hips, shoulders and waist). As not above, it is cast in clear yellow vinyl with red, green and black painted highlights. The colors looks great against one another and look unique compared to many other vinyls. The clear yellow has a way of almost enhancing the light that shines through it without being distracting.

The sculpt of the face is really neat too. The big wide grin with it's sharp teeth is creepy and the black black around the eyes almost suggest a mask (hiding something even more hideous!).

But you know what the coolest thing is? Something I never realized until I was photographing it for this review.....

You can see the face pretty clearly, through the vinyl, from the back...!

I have other clear vinyls but I don't recall seeing this effect before and I think it's just groovy. Looking at it from behind looks extra creepy. It probably works best here because of the simple shape of the head as it's nearly the same from both sides. I wonder if whoever designed the toy planned for that or if it's just a happy accident? Regardless, I find it very appealing. But now, do I display it on my shelf facing forward or back? :)

Pigudoran is probably the most popular of Romando's "Soul Of A Otoko" line of vinyls, which had only 3 entries. Each came bagged with a header card.

Fine Molds released two of the most iconic aircraft from Porco Rosso in two different scales, 1/72 and 1/48. This review represents a special package that includes Porco’s Savoia S.21 in 1/72 scale that has the option to build both the Early type and the Late Fio Type but also includes the book “The Age of The Flying Boat.”

Fine Molds’ The Age of the Flying Boat / 1/72 Porco Rosso’s Savoia S.21 Early / Late Fio Type.

Japan based Fine Molds is currently one of the world’s premier model kit manufactures. After acquiring the licenses for Star Wars plastic model kits and then manufacturing studio accurate kits has resulted in Fine Molds as one of the leading model companies in the eyes of the international model community.

Although their kits are usually more expensive than other maker’s kits in the same scale, they are also some of the finest scale representations of the subject available. Another license Fine Molds has owned over the years is the rights to produce scale models of the aircraft from Hayao Miyazaki’s 1992 feature length film Porco Rosso.

Next to Kiki’s Delivery Service, Porco Rosso is one of my favorite Miyazaki films. Porco Rosso is the story of Macro Pagot a former seaplane pilot who flew for the Italian Navy in the Great War. Fifteen years later Marco is a pilot for hire in Adriatic Sea flying against seaplane pirates who terrorize the local citizens. Living on a deserted isle he only thinks of one person, himself and evolves into a pig, a visual metaphor for “All men are pigs”. Marco is known as Porco Rosso, the Crimson Pig, partly due to his trademark aircraft a heavily modified Savoia S.21 he calls “Folgore” that is painted bright red.

Later, Curtis, an upstart American pilot, is hired by the pirates to shoot Porco down. Porco is brought down and due to circumstance Porco is forced to have his plane rebuild in Italy by a young Italian-American teenager named Fio Piccolo. Porco’s uneasy friendship with Fio forces himself to deal with his many losses of the past including the greatest loss of all, himself.

Porco Rosso originated from a Hayao Miyazaki manga serialized for the monthly modeling magazine Model Graphix and was originally titled “The Age of the Flying Boat”. This story along with other Model Graphix “pig” stories were later collected into a compilation book called “Daydream Notes”. These manga stories we part fantasy but the details were based on real aircraft, ships and tanks and had a deep historical background associated with them that were well liked by modelers.

Fine Molds released two of the most iconic aircraft from Porco Rosso in two different scales, 1/72 and 1/48. This review represents a special package that includes Porco’s Savoia S.21 in 1/72 scale that has the option to build both the Early type and the Late Fio Type but also the book “The Age of The Flying Boat.” The book not only reprints the entire Hayao Miyazaki “The Age of the Flying Boat” manga but also has loads of info on the history of the real Savoia S.21, technical drawings, model tips, how the Porco Rosso models were manufactured, stills from the film, diorama ideas, pictures of a working scale model of the S.21 and more. Although the book is in Japanese it is a must own if you a fan of Porco Rosso and Hayao Miyazaki. This all comes packaged in a plain gatefold box with some basic information on the contents of the box and the Studio Ghibli approval stamp.

One item to note is about the history of the Porco’s S.21 itself. The Porco’s aircraft is in fact based on two aircraft, the Savoia S.21 and the Macchi M.33. Apparently Miyazaki remembered the look of an aircraft he liked from years ago but could not remember its name and largely drew Porco’s aircraft from memory. Later he realized that the aircraft he remembered was actually the Macchi M.33 not the Savoia S.21. Regardless if the story is true or not, Porco’s S.21 is a combination of both aircraft with Miyazaki’s touch thrown in for good measure.

The Age of the Flying Boat/ Savoia S.21 Early/Late Fio Type includes: 2X red sprue, 1X grey sprue, 1x Clear sprue, 1x poly cap sprue, 1x instructions, 2x decals, 1x Age of the Flying Boat book. All the panel lines of this kit are recessed. The kit comes with the option to build either the Early S.21 from the first half of the film or the Late Fio Type rebuild version as seen in later half of the film. The kit also comes with two types of stands, a beaching gear kit or the standard in flight stand. The modeler is not committed to the stand as the S.21 easily comes off either stand for display. It also comes with a seated Porco figure to put in the seat of the aircraft, although I did not use this option.

The cockpit goes together well, it is small but the details are sharp and detailed. You can use either a decal or a raised detailed part to represent the control panel. One huge let down is the fact the kit comes with a decal for the seatbelts. I purchased Eduards photoetched 1/72 scale WWI French Seatbelts set which did the trick. Why Fine Molds did not include the seatbelts as photoetched parts is beyond me as it would not raise the price of the kit by very much and the detail is so much better than a decal.

Originally Fine Molds released the Late S.21 and the Early S.21 as two separate kits in 1/72 scale. When putting this Flying Boat package together they simply put the two sprues for both engines into one box with the sprue for the fuselage. The gain of the book includes some losses. The losses include a small bonus figure but most importantly some modeling issues if you are to build the Late Fio type version.

For example Fio’s window on the nose of the aircraft is included but the nose hatch door that one attaches the clear window part to does not have a hole for the part. I actually had to drill out a hole and make the part fit with an X-Acto blade and polish out the window with plastic polishing compound. Fine Molds should know better than this and this was not a fun moment when I was building the kit. The hole should have been molded in the part or at least the entire nose hatch door part should have been molded in clear.

Because the propeller is smartly attached with a polycap, both engines can be built up using the same propeller. Unfortunately only one part is included to hold the polycap in the engine. One can easily be scratched build but here is another opportunity that Fine Molds missed to give the option for the modeler to build up both engines as opposed to having the modeler commit to one engine.

The scaling is beautiful with lots of finely detailed lines and shape that leaves the impression that the aircraft is fast and in flight even though its just sitting on your shelf. The only problem is the windscreen is too thick and out of scale, perhaps a new vacuform window should be made that could bring it to scale to the rest of the aircraft. Although the instructions do not suggest it there is rigging for the outboard floaters that need to be made by the modeler. This is easily done with stretched sprue or a guitar string. The holes should be drilled in an angle towards the floaters, something I forgot about when I build my kit.

One of the best features of the kit is that the seam lines are on panel lines. It gets a bit difficult in fitting the wing structure to the fuselage, but all in all the seams are great especially with the engine assembly. There is only one small seam that needs to be sanded with the Late Fio style engine and, after the weathering is applied, it looks beautiful. Extra care is needed in putting the tail rudder on, as it can be easily misaligned.

The major pieces need to be painted and decals applied before final assembly. Although Folgore is glossy red, I decided to paint the aircraft in Tamiya flat red which came out very nice.

I was not too happy with the decals. Like Bandai, Fine Molds make their kits easy enough for first time modelers but with enough detail to satisfy experienced modelers. This includes decals for the tan dope color at the bottom of the aircraft and Italian wing stripes so the modeler does not have to paint those details. I opted to paint the bottom with Tamiya paints but used the wing stripes. What was upsetting was the low quality of the decals. They were very thick and could not be fazed to set in the panel lines with either Mirco-Set or Mirco-Sol decal setting. The decals were very brittle as well and one decal refused to come off the backing paper.

The final assembly of the aircraft was great and after it was weathered with oil paint, the kit looks fantastic. The final fit was perfect and overall Fine Molds captured the delicate lines of Porco’s S.21 beautifully. The kit is small only measuring about 5.5 square inches but the details are crisp and the cockpit and engine are wonderfully detailed.

I judged Fine Molds a bit harsher than usual because of their current status at the moment with modelers and the premium cost of their kits. The issues I brought up are relevant but this kit is about 10 years old now generally it is still a smart model kit to build. Most of the issues are based on forcing two options into one box that leaves the Early Type of the S.21 being able to be build out of the box but the Late Fio type having to scratch build parts. But it does include a fantastic book that is worth more than the set by itself and I believe that it is a good trade off. If Fine Molds could include a properly scaled window, photoetched seatbelts and a better decal sheet you would have a nearly perfect model kit.

Fine Molds’ Savoia S.21 is one of the best looking finished models I own as it looks the way its suppose to. I am looking forward to building more Fine Mold kits from the Porco Rosso line as well as their Star Wars models and their Japanese Pearl Harbor Midget Submarine in 1/72. Tie-Interceptor here I come!

© 2008 photos and article Leonardo Flores Modcineaste & Collection DX.

Giga Phoenix Beast Air Combination is better known in the US as the Stratoforce Megazord. On the surface it seems to be everything I like in a toy, so why don't I like it?

Giga Phoenix Beast Air Combination comes from the sentai series Gingaman, from back in 1998. Geez, 10 years flies right by. In the US, it was from Power Rangers Lost Galaxy, and here it was called the Stratoforce Megazord.

The box is nice - has an old-school feel with a nice styrofoam tray.

Giga Phoenix is comprised of 5 separate vehicles that combine into a giant robot. Each unit is very odd looking in my book - not at all aesthetically pleasing.

Giga Wing 1

Giga Wing 1 forms the upper chest of the Giga Phoenix. It features a main body with two cylindrical engines on either side. Most of the body is plastic, with the wings being flexible rubber.

Giga Wing 2

This vehicle looks like some kind of skiff or shuttle. This small unit is mostly plastic with two metal bars connecting the parts. It becomes the chest / backpack of Giga Phoenix.

Giga Wing 3

The third vehicle resembles a dropship, escape pod, or helicopter without a rotor. This unit is mostly plastic, with diecast connecting bars onto the gray plastic portions.

Giga Wing 4

This sleek ship becomes the right leg of Giga Phoenix. This unit is mostly metal, with the front of the leg and the foot being solid diecast.

Giga Wing 5

Although it looks similar to Giga Wing 4, its actually an entirely different toy, although with similar metal content.

Combining the 5 vehicles together is pretty simple and self-explanatory. This is not brain surgery. One thing I don't like though is the addition of the rubbery helmet that goes over the face. The original face looks cool - something out of B-Fighter - but the mask is all misshapen and odd. It just doesn't work.

Armaments include firing fists and a giant wing weapon that can be stored in either hand.

Once combined, you are filled with an overwhelming feeling of... meh.

It just doesn't do it for me. I mean, its a giant diecast combining robot with shooting fists, but the design is so opposite what I look for in a toy. It's lanky, and unbalanced, and most of all its unattractive.

When it came over to the US, the metal in the lower legs was removed and the canopies of all the vehicles was changed from brown to silver. If you need metal, go with the JP version.

Here's a rarity, a soft vinyl toy of a Korean kaiju.

There may be no better example of my tendency to gravitate towards the unique and unusual than Marmit's Pulgasari toy. It's a fine toy unto itself, but it holds a real attraction for me simply because it is based on a Korean monster instead of a Japanese one. Therefore it's something different and exotic and even though I haven't actually seen* the movie it comes from, I just decided I had to have it.

The ornate design of the scales along with the gold coloring really lends a sort of royal look to the monster. Without seeing the movie, I get the impression that this is the sort of monster that would be feared and worshipped, instead of just being a target for the military. More of a god-like creature than a monster. I'm sure the film is nothing like that, though.

Part of the Vinyl Paradise line of toys, Pulgasari stands 9.5" tall and has 7 points of articulation, including at the elbows, which is pretty unusual for a vinyl kaiju toy. I certainly can't think of another one offhand that has this feature. I think it gives the toy a little more character than you usually see.

I think this is a really cool toy. The sculpt is nice and the vinyl is solid. The paint is just a little bit sloppy on the arms (notice how the gold from the outside of the forearms bleeds into the red in the picture above) but the overall look is quite eye-catching. Pulgasari was sold in a bag with a header card and was released in this color scheme as well as a black version and a gold exclusive version. Also look for a giant size version of the character that was sold in a box, as well as a baby Pulgasari that released in the Vinyl Para-Baby line.

*Hey, look. I just found out that the entire film is on Google Video. I guess I'll get to watch it now...

The last talker in my collection, the Kamen Rider 1 review has been delayed since I couldn't find it's box...

Kamen Rider 1 (仮面ライダー 1号) was included in both the vintage and modern run of talking vinyl figures produced by Masudaya. I picked this up in Japan at the same time as Mirrorman, at the Nakano Mandarake. I'd have to say that I like this one better than Kamen Rider V3, maybe because the character of V3 seems a little bit done to death.

Kamen Rider 1 stands 15" tall and is articulated at the hips, shoulders and neck. The sculpt and paint is pretty typical of the series, but the red scarf adds a neat touch. The real downside to this one is the quality of the talking feature. It broke right out of the box the first time I pulled the string. Now it may or may not retract in again, but it usually screeches and doesn't always talk right. Granted, the thing just sits on the shelf and adds to the general mosaic of my toys, but if you're gonna pay money for something, you'd sort of like it to work, even for a little while. Fortunately, I only paid about 3,000yen for it, if I remember correctly.

Nothing really else to add, actually. Other than the scarf and being a different character, this toy is the same as the rest in the series. If you're into hero vinyls, talkers are neat because they are a bit bigger and have a gimmick. Just cross your fingers and hope the gimmick actually works. It's been said that vintage talkers are much more reliable, but of course, they'll tend to be much more expensive, too. I guess as a modern collector you'll have to ask yourself what you want. Something that works but costs a lot, or something that just looks neat and is cheap? At this point in my collecting "career", I gotta go with cheap. ;)

A reissue of a classic Chogokin toy that is as good as the original.

The Yamato comes from the anime series Space Battleship Yamato (宇宙戦艦ヤマト). In the US, the show was known as Space Cruiser Yamato, or more commonly: Starblazers.

There have been many toys made of this epic battleship but I say there haven't been enough. I could have a whole fleet of these things if I had the room.

This toy is a reisuue of the 1/300 Nomura toy, originally sold in 1975. It's a faithful reproduction, right down to the stand and the small ships. This toy was reissued in 1998, likely for the 25th anniversary of the television series.

The box is a nice window box, on the back is a full color image of the Yamato's bridge. The side has a big message from Leiji Matsumoto.

The toy is largely diecast with plastic being reserved for the gun turrets and bridge. Each of the main turrets turn and there is a door on the underside that opens.

The wings spring out at the push of a button

The display stand has some statistics about the Yamato and has the units serial number. This was a limited edition run, but I do not know the full run for sure (I think it was 10,000 units).

This is a great solid peice that won't break the bank. Go get one.

"SEVEN! SEVEN! SEVEN!
SEVEN! SEVEN! SEVEN! ..."

Strangely, Ultra Seven is actually the second Ultraman.

The original line of Masudaya talking vinyls contained at least 4 different Ultraman characters, but when the line was resurrected in the late 1990s, only one, Ultra Seven, saw production. Evidently, Ultra Seven is considered the most popular of the Ultramen (at least, according to Wikipedia), so I suppose it would make sense in that context.

This figure is the tallest of the 6 talkers that I have, punching in at about 15.5" tall. This is just a hair too tall to stand on the shelf with the rest of the gang so I've had to have him standing ever so slightly hunched forward. Now that's the only way he'll stand at all. I supposed a little work with the hair dryer would probably fix that, but until I need to, I'm not gonna bother.

I like having this figure because otherwise I actually have surprisingly few Ultraman toys in my collection. Besides the Jumbo Ultraman Leo and the Ultraman Ace that came with M1's Hipporito-seijin, this is my only Japanese Ultraman toy. (I've also got some of those 20" Ultra bootlegs from Thailand, but those are in storage and never really seen.)

Otherwise, it's not that great a toy. The body is cast in red vinyl with white and silver paint application and the head seems to have been cast in silver with gold, blue and black highlights. The head seems too big to me and the arms too small. The talk box is in the back and you pull the string to make him speak.

Maybe I'm being a little hard on it though. I remember when I bought it, I placed the order almost entirely because I wanted to combine shipping with a few other things that were advertised as in stock, but really weren't. I ended up buying it anyway, but felt sort of annoyed.

I tend to think talkers look better in a group. If you like the Ultra characters or talkers and you see this at a great price, by all means grab it. But in and of itself, it's not too amazing.

Another super robot talker that doesn't quite fill me with joy, I think I just realized that the talker format works better for Tokusatsu heroes.

The Getter 1 talker is really the runt of the lineup, checking it at only 12" tall whereas most others in the series are closer to 15". He'd probably be even smaller if his head wasn't so huge. This guy is super deformed before there was such a thing as super deformed. It's a shame too because the sculpt of the head is good and the sculpt of the body is good but the sizes just don't match up. This could have been a really neat toy if the proportions were not so skewed.

Like most of the toys in this line, it's articulated at the hips, shoulders and neck and you pull a string from the back to make it talk. Even if I understood Japanese, I couldn't tell you what it says because the talk box on mine is broken. This has been a pretty common complaint with the re-issues of these toys. Evidently they are very prone to failure. I bought this one cheaply with full knowledge of it's condition, but I have another that I bought brand new in box that failed to work the very first time I pulled the string. I do not own any vintage talkers, but by all accounts, they were much higher quality.

Although it's not the best rendition of the character ever made, it's still a decent pickup for the Getter Robo fan. Unfortunately, Masudaya (nor any other company) ever made talkers of Getter 2 or Getter 3, though.