Mazinger Z

Released in 1973, Popy’s Mazinger Z Jumbo Machinder was ground zero for one of the most beloved and influential toy lines in history. It’s significance cannot be overstated and it left an impact that is still being felt today, over 50 years later. Standing at a whopping 23.5 inches (60cm) tall, the toy was originally planned to be even bigger than that! How does 90cm sound? Well, it didn’t sound safe to Popy, who thought better of it and instead turned that toy into a store display. 

Although considered not fit for general sale, the original oversized jumbo was offered to the public as part of a magazine contest. Kids were encouraged to write in and choose which of the Mazinger Z villains were their favorite/most scary and prizes were given out, including jumbos, die-cast toys, mini-vinyls, helmets and for one lucky winner, the otherwise unavailable huge Mazinger Z. Here is Go Nagai himself holding it as part of the promotion. (As an aside, perhaps it was this contest that made Popy think that Garada K7 would be too scary for kids and should therefore be produced in fewer numbers, resulting it’s holy grail status today. In fact, it’s so rare today that part of me wonders if this was the only way to get it then.)

As for the officially released toy, it set the standard for what jumbo toys would be; large, made mostly of blow molded polyethylene with soft vinyl in parts (usually, but not always, the head), wheels on the feet and adorned with missiles. The name of the character was emblazoned in bold writing across the stomach of the toy. 

Another aspect of the toy that would be common is that the color is incorrect in relation to the source material. While Mazinger Z’s upper arms, legs and belly are white in the anime, here they are light blue. Copyright information is molded into the back of the toy. 

The toy features minimal articulation, with only swivels at the shoulders, hips and neck. It’s size was meant to be it’s most impressive feature. 

The Hover Pilder can be removed from the head and is minimally detailed via stickers. 

Mazinger Z has storage for 14 missiles, but no way to actually fire any of them. You would need to purchase the separately sold XX-3 rocket launching fist accessory to actually put them to use. 

The same would apply for his famous rocket punch feature. The fists from this toy could not fly off, but if you purchased the XX-1 Rocket Punch or XX-13 Iron Cutter fist, you could replicate more parts of the show. Many other accessories were sold, including the beautiful Jet Scrander wings seen in the cartoon and many other original weapons that were completely made up specifically for this toy (although they could also be used on subsequent Jumbo Machinders). 

Another aspect of the Jumbo Machinder Mazinger Z that must be touched upon is how many variations to the toy there are. It’s hard to keep track of all running changes, but I think there are at least 7 versions released. 

Based on what I’ve seen, read and been told about, here’s what I currently believe to be the main versions of the toy. (Note: I only own one version of the toy so the following images are mostly from old auctions that I saved years ago. Any accessories shown in the photos were only incuded by the sellers and were not included with the original toy release.)

Version 1

The box has “No. 2600” denoting the retail price at the top and does not say 1号 (“Person Number 1”, denoting the first in the series) in black along the right side like later releases. The toy itself has gold horns and eyes (later copied by the Unifive version) released in 2000 and has removable wheel housings under the feet. This version is far rarer than most later releases, but does turn up if you’re on the lookout for it. 

Version 2

The box is the same as version 1 but now the horns and eyes are painted yellow. 

Version 3

The box has “No. 2600” and does say “1号” in black along the side. It makes me wonder if Popy recognized the early success of the toy and decided to number future releases. (However, this would cease after the fifth in the series, Kamen Rider X, so who knows what the thinking was at the time.) The toy has yellow horns and eyes and still retains the removable wheel housings.

Version 4

This version is the same as Version 3, but now has the wheels attached directly to the feet. 

Version 5

The box for this version now says “No. 2850” at the bottom left instead of “No. 2600” at the top, suggesting a price increase. The toy is the same as Version 4.

Version 6

This version removes both “No. 2600” and “No. 2850”, showing no price at all. The toy remains the same as the previous version.

Version 7

This last version has the same box as the previous version but is rare and sought after because the Hover Pilder has been replaced with the sleeker Jet Pilder. It is believed that this was the last version released. I have heard that there is even a variation to the Jet Pilder but cannot confirm that at this time. 

Is that all confusing? Well, don’t worry, it gets worse! Remember that contest I mentioned earlier? Well, of course the jumbos that were prizes came with unique but easily identifiable boxes! Every instance I’ve seen of a contest box is a version 6 but they have special stickers on them. Most of the photos I have are too grainy to make out the text, but I can confirm that there are red and gold stickers. Fortunately, I do own a red sticker box and mine says… “73′” “4th Toy Contest” “Grand Prize” and “Winner”. Looking at the photo I have of a gold sticker, it appears that the text for “73′” and “Grand Prize” is missing. I have no idea how many total contests there were and how many of those featured this toy as a prize.  If anyone out there has images of contest stickers that are different from those shown here, I would love to see them. So with at least 9 different versions of this toy so far, I pity the Mazinger Z completist!

Of course 9 is already a lot but wouldn’t 10 be a nice round number? Would you believe that there is also a special version of this toy that was exhibited at toy shows and that not only does it have black fists instead of blue, but that the head is hollow and lights up? Well, set your faces to stunned because it’s true. 

As previously mentioned, the toy was incredibly influential and was re-released in basically the same form by Bandai subsidiary Unifive in the year 2000, with only slight changes in the mold. Now, Bandai themselves are bringing it back again this year with an updated version that will retain the classic look, but incorporate the rocket punch right into the toy as well as include the extra missile firing fist and extra missiles!