"I love GOLD!!!!!"

-Goldmember
from Austin Powers

From Wikipedia

The Brave of Gold Goldran is a Japanese anime television series series begun in 1995, created by Sunrise under the direction of Shinji Takamatsu, and was the sixth in the Yuusha meta-series funded by Takara and produced by Sunrise. Goldran follows the adventures of three young boys who are tasked with finding alien robot fighters, or Braves, that are sleeping in the form of crystals. Their major antagonist is the flamboyant and thoroughly incompetent Walter, and the villains that follow him are often similarly humorous. The entire show is extremely focused on comedy and silliness almost to the exclusion of much in the way of storytelling, although the series does develop some running plot lines towards its end. In terms of television ratings, Goldran was the peak of the Brave series' popularity.

Today I will be reviewing the Goldran DX re-issue, made by Sonokong/Takara. The sample for today's review was provided graciously by our friend Jeff Stein over at High End Transformers. Please check them out or just click on the Ebay links at the bottom of the page for a direct link to the item reviewed today.

Goldran is the main mecha character from the anime "The Brave of Gold Goldran" He is essentially a two component robot. One component being a robot that can turn into a car (Dran) that becomes the chest of Goldran. The other being a Mecha Godzilla like robot (Golgon) that turns into Goldran when combined with the first.

To start off with, Goldran comes to you in a beautifully illustrated, heavy corrugated cardboard box shown below.

In the photo below we have Golgon and Dran together in their alternate modes. These are the two mecha that I mentioned above that become Goldran

First up is Dran. Dran's robot mode stand about 5" tall is made out mostly gold chrome plated platic. The Gold Chrome plating looks really sharp and has no visible flaws that I could see. Articulation for Dran is limited to the elbows, so he is basically a "static pose" figure. Dran comes with a sword that can be held in either hand via a peg molded onto the sword. Drans robot mode is rather boring and is pretty underwhelming when compared with the other figure in this set.

Dran's alternate car mode isn't much better than the robot mode. As you can see below, The car has an elongated chassis, giving it awkward looking proportions. However, the car is very solid and its wheels roll freely.

Onto Golgon! Golgon is the Mecha Godzilla looking robot you see below. Golgon stands about 10" and sports a beautiful golden chrome finish like Dran above. This figure has articulation in its arms and jaw, that's about it. Golgon is a pretty impressive figure but sufferers from a few odd proportions due to its design. As you can see, the chest area is rather large, rendering his tiny arms useless. Also, his legs just look odd because of having no visible knee joint. These issues are only minor and I can live with them.

Here is where the real fun begins! Goldran!

Goldran is a truly stunning figure, standing at nearly 12" tall also makes him pretty large. As you can see in the photo below, Goldran includes a sword and sheath. the sheath holds securely to his side and gives Goldran that old Samurai look, very cool indeed!

After examining the five photos above, you can clearly see that Goldran looks great from any angle. Heck, he even looks menacing close up! Proportionally, Goldran is awesome in this mode. I would say he is one of the better looking mecha characters from all the Brave Series.

Goldran doesn't just have good looks.....He also has fire power and tons of it! He has 12 launching mechanisms for plenty of that "you'll shoot your eye out goodness"! Don't worry if you loose a few projectiles testing it out on the family pet or wife, because he includes a total of 48 red missiles!

Shoulder mounted Gatling style launchers that are activated by turning a knob on the backside of the shoulder.

Wrist cuff launchers, just in case the shoulders weren't enough to take out the enemy.

Finally, shin mounted launchers that are almost a concealed weapons at first glance.

Yup, Goldran is alot of fun, but let me show you a few more tricks he has. In the photo below, you can see that it is quite possible to play with Goldran without Dran figure mounted to his chest. I know that this is not in the anime, but its still a cool feature whether it was made this way intentionally or not

In the next photo below we have Goldran with his buddy Sorokage mounted to his back. Sorakage is used a a flight pack giving Goldran the ability to fly. Don't you just love wings on a giant robots? Below that pic we have Goldran's ultimate form, Great Goldran! By the way, don't despair, I will be reviewing Sorokage and the Great Goldran in future reviews

Even with the odd proportions of it's alternate mode, Goldran is a wonderful, quality made toy and should be part of your collection if you love giant transforming robots. And really, who doesn't?

For a repaint, it’s not that great. No special or unique details beyond the original Jetfire mold. But, those same molds are still awesome.

Multi-video review included!

The distant planet of Cybertron was the home to a race of intelligent, feeling alien robots who could change shape at will- the Transformers. For reasons no longer remembered by anyone living, a war broke out between the two factions of robots- the Autobots and the Decepticons- which eventually drained Cybertron of all its power sources, including all-important Energon. In the quest to get more Energon to sustain their fight, the Autobots created the Ark and some of them left Cybertron. But the power-hungry Decepticons were waiting for them in their great flagship, the Nemesis, and boarded the Ark to stop them. A battle between the two ships eventually brought them both crashing down onto Earth. With their leaders and greatest warriors lost, the war on Cybertron continued on to a stalemate. For over four million years, the Ark rested hidden inside a volcano located in what would eventually become Oregon, its occupants unconscious and helpless in stasis lock. Then in 1984, the volcano harboring the Ark erupted, reawakening the on-board computer system Teletraan-1. The computer, realizing that the ship and its crew were in danger, awoke the Transformers aboard the Ark, and reformatted them to change into disguises matching those of modern day Earth vehicles so that the giant robots could move among the population in secret. The surviving Decepticons, having lost their great ship millions of years earlier, also gained new disguise forms and hid themselves on Earth until they could rebuild their forces and gather enough Energon to destroy the Autobots, subvert the intrusive and annoying humans, and renew the war on Cybertron in their quest for total galactic domination.

Tread Bolt is a member of the Autobots’ Air Patrol; one of the few of their numbers capable of sustained flight. As such, this means he usually operates alone far from support, and thus needs to eliminate any Decepticon threat quickly or risk being overwhelmed. But he isn’t concerned about being detected, since his entire chassis is covered in radar-refractive armor, making him invisible to all but the most advanced enemy sensors. And his speed & aerial prowess make him a formidable opponent as well. His fellow Air Patrol bots often team together high in orbit around Earth with their rocket engines for high-speed air drops & interception missions behind Decepticon front lines, taking them by surprise. Unfortunately, in his off-time, Tread Bolt likes to practice his stealth techniques on fellow Autobots much to their chagrin, making him an honored-yet-less-favored member.

. . .

This Transformers Universe (aka Classics 2.0) figure is a repaint of the original 2006 Voyager-class Autobot Jetfire set- itself based on a character that appeared in the classic Generation One cartoon series in 1984. The first (and, thus far, only) version of Tread Bolt appeared as a Micromaster-sized (1½ - 2” tall) robot during the debuting Generation 1 era (1984-86). He was not a part of the original cartoon- re-colored or otherwise- as the first toy was an original design made after the series ended in 1986.

Vehicle Mode

(unarmored)

Robot Mode

(unarmored)

Tread Bolt’s original vehicle mode was a “sub-orbital craft”, and his color scheme was metallic blue and basic yellow, and highlights of silver. The gold “Air Defense” label across the Classics 2.0 version is a carryover from the Micromaster toy which had it in an identical position (but said "Air Patrol" instead). Unlike earlier toys from the Transformers Classics line in 2007, Tread Bolt lacks the temperature-sensitive decal which shows his allegiance- a gold Autobot logo has been printed behind his cockpit, which eventually ends up in front of his head on top of his chest.

Accessory armor

(details)

Vehicle Mode

(armored)

Robot Mode

(armored)

I got this specific set because I missed my chance to get Jetfire the first time around, being that he was so popular with Trans-fans. While the toy itself is still fantastic (I didn’t like the arms not transforming at all and just hanging off the sides), the color scheme just doesn’t work for me. Blue and black, with highlights of orange and yellow would have been fine, but it’s the brown which throws that off. For example, if there was no blue or even yellow, the brown would have worked. Starting out as a supped-up F-14 Tomcat in a livery reminiscent of the United States Navy’s Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron is fine, but then to dump a lot of dark coloring on the robot mode spoils that.

For a repaint, it’s not that great. No special or unique details beyond the original Jetfire mold. But, those same molds are still awesome. So, if you can ignore the coloring (maybe repaint it yourself so you don’t have to damage your Jetfire), then the Voyager-class Autobot Tread Bolt set will satisfy your needs.

Be sure to read the more-detailed description of Voyager-class Autobot Jetfire, reviewed by CollectionDX’s own Atom.

And now, for some special bonus material!

Israfel comes in both it's Alpha and Beta (Kou and Outsu) forms.

I remember first watching Evangelion back in the day, and aside from the Eva Units, the thing I looked forward to the most were the Angels.

The Angels were the main enemies of NERV, or so we thought. No one knows where they come from, or what they want, but they are bent on attacking NERV headquarters at every opportunity.

Each Angel is unique looking and has an unique style of attack.

Israfel is the seventh angel, and features the ability to split iself into two units - Alpha and Beta (Kou and Outsu in Japanese). The pair of angels use coordinated and synchronized attacks egainst the Eva units.

Due to this attack style, Eva Unit 01 and 02 lead a synchronized assault on Israfel, set to music.

In the context of the series, it's really quite a remarkable scene.

Bandai released a few Angels in it's Soul of Sofubi line - Sachiel, Shamshel and Israfel. For Israfel they released both Kou and Outsu versions. Other than the color, they are exactly the same.

Each is 23 cm tall and made out of soft vinyl. Articulation is limited to the arms and waist. These are in-scale with Tamashii Spec Evangelion units.

Due to the flimsy feet and the top heavy construction, neither likes to stand up well.

Each has a clear red "core" in its chest.

These were sold on hang tags with cards, and as such, it is common to see them with scuffs and blemishes.

Of course, when we are talking about Neon Genesis Evangelion, the term Angel takes on new connotations.

Shamsel is an angel. Not just any angel, but a giant, super-powered monster angel.

Of course, when we are talking about Neon Genesis Evangelion, the term Angel takes on new connotations.

The Angels are the bad guys of the series, sent to the earth to steal panties from Japanese school girls. No, wait.. that's not right. But it would make more sense if it was.

Shamshel is the Fourth Angel (Fifth if we are talking Rebuild of Evangelion) and is one of many Angels that attack earth, more specifically, NerV headquarters.

Shamsel attacks Eva Unit 01, and the battle is fierce. Unit 01's power supply is severed in the attack and manages to kill Shamsel seconds before his power runs out.

If you haven't seen NGE, then this may be lost on you. Shame on you.

While there have been tons of toys of the EVA units, there have been very few of the Angels, and mostly we get Satchiel or something. But with Bandai's Soul of Sofubi line, they started to make vinyl toys of the Angels. Unfortunately, they stopped after only a few releases.

Shamshel is the last release in the line.

As a vinyl toy, it's not bad, but doesn't do much. Shamshel stands 22cm tall, and features two clear energy whips and a clear core. There's no articulation.

Shamshel comes loose on a hang tag with a card, and the energy whips are packaged in a plastic case. You need to attach the whips, and they are keyed to go in a specific way.

Because Shamshel is not bagged or anything, he's often found scuffed or damaged.

There you go - Shamshel. It exists.

The shadow warrior. Calm, mysterious and a puzzle even to his team members. He's the only one to have "subordinates", animal robots stored in the form of cards.

A very brief description of Shadow Dagwon from Wikipedia:

The shadow warrior. Calm, mysterious and a puzzle even to his team members. He's the only one to have "subordinates", animal robots stored in the form of cards.

Today's review will be centered around the re-issue of Shadow Dagwon manufactured by Sonokong/Takara. This toy can be purchased from ebay using the links provided below the review.

Shadow Dagwon DX comes to you in a beautifully illustrated, heavy corrugated cardboard box shown below. Once again, I have to say that I am a fan of the packaging used on these Sonokong re-issues so far.

I decided to do this review in the order of Robot mode, Beast mode then finally the combined mode. The first photo is the group shot so that you can see all the players on the Shadow Dagwon team in Robot mode. As you can see, the team is made up of Shadow Dag (Purple robot), Guard Hawk (Blue Robot), Guard Wolf (Green Robot), and finally Guard Lion (Yellow Robot).

Lets start off with the big guy, known as Shadow Dag. Shadow Dag comes with a sword, sheath that becomes a ninja star launcher and 6 yellow ninja stars (shown below). The figure stands approximately 6" tall and is mainly comprised of quality plastics. Articulation is limited to the shoulders and elbows. Shadow Dag is the main robot that becomes the chest of Shadow Dagwon.

Shadow Dag in robot mode

Shadow Dag is the only figure in the bunch that actually can transform into 3 modes. This second mode is called Shadow Jet.

Shadow Dag in Shadow Jet mode

Shadow Dags final mode is Shadow Dragon. Shadow Dragon it the fierce looking robotic Dragon shown below. Articulation can be found it Shadow Dragons front legs and the wings.

Shadow Dag in Shadow Dragon Beast mode

Now on to the 3 Shadow Guards, Wolf and Lion are up first in robot mode. Wolf and Lion are basically the same robot with slightly different molds as well as the obvious green and yellow color difference. Both figure include a hand gun as well as a back mounted cannon that can fire one of the 12 included missiles (6 yellow and 6 green). Both figures are able to transform from robot into beast forms. In robot form articulation is very limited. Only the elbows are really movable. You can move the shoulders but this will make the backpack cannon fall of easily. When in Beast mode, both figure can move all four legs and the cannon can be raised or lowered. Also note that the hand guns from robot mode can be attached to the side of the cannon mount, Guard Wolf and Guard Lion become the arms as well as the feet of Shadow Dagwon

Guard Wolf and Tiger in robot mode.

Guard Wolf in Beast mode

Guard Lion in Beast mode

Now, the last part of the puzzle is Guard Hawk. Guard Hawk utilizes a three bladed star like weapon that also becomes its tail feathers when in Beast mode. Guard Hawks wings can be opened or closed as well as move up and down. Articulation is limited to the shoulders in robot mode and wings in Beast mode. Guard Hawk becomes the head and winged backpack of Shadow Dagwon.

Guard Hawk in Robot mode

Guard Hawk in Beast Mode

Here is the whole team together in Beast mode.

Now on to Shadow Dagwon! Below in a picture of Shadow Dagwon from the anime and the transformation sequence from the TV show.

Shadow Dagwon is very impressive at nearly 10" tall. When all the figures are combined into Shadow Dagwon, they are extremely sturdy. Articulation is limited to the shoulders, elbows and wings. In this mode all of the weapons can be utilized or stored. Note the Sword sheath mounted to Shadow Dagwon's back and the hand guns mounted to the top of what was Guard Hawks talon's. Very cool looking indeed! The back almost reminds me of the Soul of Chogokin GX-13 Dancouga.

To sum it up, I really like this toy. It is a quality item that has a ton of play value. I love all the firing gimmicks and the fact that it is relatively easy to transform into the different modes. I also like the way the weapons all seem to have a place in all modes. In my opinion it is a very well thought out toy.

From what I can gather, over the years, Getter Robo has had many re-incarnations. So many that I get quite lost wondering how everything may connect or even if the stories do connect. With all that being said, I will just talk about the toy I am reviewing today and not its background......

Growing up in the US makes my knowledge of the Getter Robo franchise limited. My only real knowledge of Getter Robo is Getter Robo G which was brought to us in the USA as Starvengers, Part of Jim Terry's Force Five TV series.

From what I can gather, over the years, Getter Robo has had many re-incarnations. So many that I get quite lost wondering how everything may connect or even if the stories do connect. With all that being said, I will just talk about the toy I am reviewing today and not its background.

So, sparing you any further verbal diarrhea, I present to you Aoshima's New Getter Robo (weathered version) which incidentally was provided by Aoshima's website, Hobby World Japan

Lets start off with the packaging. Aoshima always seems to hit the mark with the way they present their toys. I don't care which figure you buy from them, you can always expect great artwork or illustration of the figure within the box in a cool dynamic pose. As you can see below, New Getter Robo is not exception.

Upon opening the box, you are greeted with every chogokin collectors dream... A big chunk of metal entombed in Styrofoam. Aoshima was even kind enough to include tissue wrapping the figure. I guess the tissue paper is for those of us who may get to excited opening the box.

So, enough with the jokes, what's inside the box already!

• New Getter Robo
• One pair of weapon holding fists
• Open right hand (detailed backhand)
• Open right hand (detailed palm)
• Three pairs of back wings (1 set of small/closed, 1 set of open/down, 1 set open/extended
• Two axes

You can clearly see in the photo below, all that is mentioned above. This version of New Getter Robo is called a weathered version. This basically means that the paint has shading added to give it a more realistic appearance. Let me just say that the paint job is stunning. The figure stands approximately 7.5" tall and is comprised of almost 90% die-cast metal as well as other quality materials. The large die-cast content really gives the figure nice heft and quality feel when you hold it. Something about a toy that weighs over 1 pound (1 lb. 3 oz. to be exact) really makes you feel like your money was well spent.

You can see below that this figure has great articulation allowing it to do some cool poses with the 2 axes that are included. Clicking ratchet joints are used in combination with tight friction joints. The combination of the 2 mentioned joints enable you to pose the figure as you choose.

Here is where the toy kinda fails for me. I really wish that some caps were included for the screw holes. I think the exposed screw holes really take away from the realistic look of the figure.

Enough about the exposed screw hole shortcoming. Heck, just turn the figure around and look at it from the front. You have to admit, this New Getter Robo looks quite fierce wielding his spiked battle ax. Also note the added shading on the axes adding to the weathered look.

The detailing on this figure is really nice, look at the translucent green chest panels that reveal the mechanics underneath. Note how well the green on the face matches up with the translucent chest pieces.

Be careful, those forearm spikes are kinda sharp! You don't want to let the young-ins to get a hold of this one folks!

Moving right along, yes I am turning the figure around again. I am doing this to show the 3 sets of wings that I mentioned earlier in the review. The pictures go like this, 1 set of small/closed, 1 set of open/down, 1 set open/extended. The open extended wings are my personal favorite.

Here is something that kinda bothers me a little. Look at how odd the elbow joints appear when the arms are bent. Most Aoshima figures have this style elbow joint. I really wish Aoshima would come up with a more aesthetically pleasing joint.

Joint aesthetics aside, New Getter Robo is very well balanced figure. Just check out the photo below of him unleashing an ass whipping on CollectionDX's Nor-Easter Vegitius. No tricks, New Getter Robo is actually holding that pose!

So in conclusion, I love this toy. It is a big sturdy hunk of die-cast Chogokin goodness! Aoshima has once again produced a quality modern chogokin. The formula is simple, great materials and craftsmanship in conjunction with a uncomplicated design is always going to be a winner in my book. You can grab one of these metal beauties at Aoshima's website, Hobby World Japan.

Even though this toy has the articulation of a brick it still has a ton of play value, making this a must have for Brave Series or Transformers collectors alike......

Today I will be reviewing the Death Garry Gun DX re-issue, made by Sonokong/Takara. The sample for today's review was provided graciously by our friend Jeff Stein over at High End Transformers. Please check them out or just click on the Ebay link at the bottom of the page for a direct link to the item reviewed today.

Death Garry Gun is from the anime "The Brave of Gold Goldran" and is the personal flagship of the main antagonist Zack Walther. Death Garry Gun or DGG for short is the successor to Zack's old flagship, Zazorigun. In robot mode it DGG is armed with chest beams and rocket punches. DGG's alternate form is that of a gigantic battleship. Death Garry Gun was so strong that only "The Great Goldran" himself could defeat it. Because of this fact DGG was mass produced with a total of five units made. Note* The original toy was the Autobot Sky Garry from the Japanese "Transformers: Return of Convoy" toy line.

To start off with, Death Garry Gun comes to you in a beautifully illustrated, heavy corrugated cardboard box shown below. I know I have said this before, here goes the broken record......I am a fan of the packaging used on these Sonokong re-issues and the quality continues with DGG.

Upon opening the box you will find a very sturdy, well made figure that should handle years of hard play due to the quality plastics used in manufacturing.

Space Battleship Mode

Space Battleship mode is one of 3 modes that DGG is capable of transforming into. In this mode DGG is over 14" long when carrying its full payload of transport van/containers.

The 3 containers have opening door that allow you to carry the included mini figures inside them.

The 3 included mini figures are:

1 red Missile Gear (MISAIRUGIA) transforming figure
accompanied by
2 light blue Custom Gear (KASUTAMUGIA) static posed figures.

DGG's Containers can be deployed by simply pressing the yellow button shown in the picture below.

DGG's mid-section can be lengthened or shortened depending on the amount of containers you may want it to carry into battle.

Here is a few photo's the included Missile Gear (MISAIRUGIA) transforming figure with DGG and transport containers.

Battle Platform Base Mode

The next mode of Death Garry Gun is the Battle Platform Base mode. As you can see in the photo's below, it is a very simple mode that basically has DGG in a handstand with the mini figure manning strategic battle posts.

Robot Mode

Robot mode is DGG's final mode of transformation and is my most favorite. You can check out the transformation of Death Garry Gun in the video below.

In robot mode DGG stands 9.5 inches tall and has limited articulation found in the shoulders and elbows. The legs are just a solid mass making the figure almost a brick. DGG can be equipped with 2 laser rifles that are shown below.

Death Garry Gun's head looks strikingly like Transformers G1 Ultra Magnus. Long lost brother maybe?

In conclusion, even though this toy has the articulation of a brick it still has a ton of play value, making this a must have for Brave Series or Transformers collectors alike.

My eyes! They Burn!

I got this bootleg on the same shopping trip that yeilded the Spider Man Adventure hero. However, while the Spider Man was out in the open on a street corner, this one was harder to find.

Bored and looking to score (a bootleg), I wandered in and out of shops in chinatown. Some stores had toys hanging from pegs outside, others just had festive paper lanterns dangling from fading awnings. In between a fish market and a bag shop, a small shop caught my eye. Did I just see what I thought I saw?

Dan and I went in and my bootleg sense was tingling. I was led around by a strange force until we saw them hanging on pegs.

Bootleg Soul of Chogokin Dancouga toys, labeled "Wild Force Chariot".

I wanted one, and Dan wanted one, so we began haggling with the old Chinese lady working there. $25 each she said.... too much. How about if we bought both? Anything?

I think we knocked a few bucks off the total but it took a while - she drove a hard bargain. Were these worth $25 each? Hell, the discovery alone was worth it.

Dan tore his open back at the hotel, but I must resist. I must open mine in a controlled environment, somewhere where I can document it in all of its bootleg craziness.

So I waited. And waited. Eight months later I finally get the chance to open it.

The verdict? It's terrible. But in a wonderful kind of way.

Packaging

If the idea of a bootleg is to make a cheap knock off of the original item, why make the cards so damn big? This card is easily 20 inches tall, twice the size of the figure? Cut that in half and bootleggers can save a ton of trees.

But I digress - back to the package. Wild Force Chariot comes blister-carded on a HUGE backing card. The card features images of the real SOC Dancougar, but the differences are immediately obvious. I like how the bootleggers photoshopped in the bootleg labels onto images of the real toy.

The back of the card features the barely discernible instructions. The warnings are all in Chinese, but a sticker has been placed over a block that has an age warning in Spanish.

Big Moth

Out of the package the toy is already in humanoid mode without the feet animals attached. The toy has been radically simplified, but the transformation is essentially the same. The Big Moth can be transformed into all of his versions - humanoid, tank and animal.

Land Liger and Land Cougar

The two tiger robots are here, and those too are simplified with some awesome decals. Both can also transform from humanoid to vehicle to animal, as well as becoming the feet for Dancougar.

Eagle Fighter

The Eagle fighter, in this case, is totally different. Here it is just a hollow shell, only able to form Dancouga's head, and a crappy bird mode. Oddly, two Eagle Fighters are included with the bootleg.

Combined!

All the parts combine alright, but the final form is sloppy and unrefined - in other words - typical bootleg quality. The plastic feels like brittle styrene, and the paint applications are messy.

The only included weapon is a gun, and parts of the gun aren't included. Also omitted is the giant wing that attaches to the back.

No sword either.

So yeah, it's a pretty horrible toy. But someone had to cover it, to document it, and we are those people.

It was very awesome to see a sword being used that didn’t have the typically-seen long thin katana-like blade or a more Western design- a kris fit very well with the series' themes.

Video review included!

In 1986, the Shima Foundation secretly funds individuals to seek out and destroy stained-glass monsters called Fangire which feed on humans’ Life Force to survive. Though the Fangire Hunters are skilled in hand-to-hand combat, they are usually no match for the cleaver Fangire who can also disguise themselves as humans. That is, until Kamen Rider Kiva appeared…

Over twenty years later, in 2008, the Fangire are still a threat, and the next generation of Hunters is tracking them down. A strange young man, Wataru Kurenai, is allergic to, and fears the world around him. And he lives to one day create the ultimate violin like his arrogant womanizing deceased father did. But Wataru must fulfill his destiny as the new Kamen Rider Kiva to protect humanity from the Fangire. And the Shima Foundation fears what the appearance of Kiva could mean, since he almost destroyed the world the last time.

Of the 13 Demon Races that inhabit the Earth, the Fangire have become the dominant one after beating the others into extinction centuries earlier. There are three that survived, each from a different race- Garulu of the Wolfen Clan, Basshaa of the Mermen Clan, and Dogga of the Franken Clan. They wandered the planet, the last of their kinds, quietly feeding on Life Energy from humans as well, but ever fearful of the Fangire. When Kamen Rider Kiva first appeared in 1986, they were ordered to kill him by the Fangire King, but they instead pledged their support to him for his protection. As punishment for siding with Kiva, each was banished into separate statues inside of Castle Doran. But rather than face complete extinction, they swore to help Kiva’s descendant when summoned. Garulu, Basshaa, and Dogga now live in solitude inside Castle Doran, and they are called the Arms Monsters.

When Kamen Rider Kiva uses the Garulu Fuestle on his belt, it calls forth Castle Doran, which appears from out of its hiding place in a skyscraper. Once airborne, Castle Doran shoots the Garulu Saber in its Statue Mode towards Kiva. When he holds the statue in his left hand, he is transformed into Kamen Rider Kiva Garulu Form- whereas the Wolfen Clan monster impresses his personality and personal fighting style onto Kiva’s body, and his chest, left arm & visor all turn blue- the Garulu Fever

The Majuuken Garulu Saber was introduced in Episode 4- “Reverie: Wild Blue”.

Garulu’s voice, and human form Jiro, are performed by actor Kenji Matsuda. (He previously appeared in “Kamen Rider Hibiki” in 2005.)

--Statue Mode--

Transformation is simple: fold up the muzzle and jaw to form the guard, press the blue release button on the right side to swing up the crescent moon-shaped blade, and then manually twist the two sections of the blade 180-degrees. The changes to the blade and guard are manually achieved, and may be changed in any order you wish.

To restore the muzzle to the lowered position for Statue Mode, first push the jaw down, and then press the small blue button along the back of the guard; it will swing down via gravity.

--Sword Mode--

This particular style of sword is known as a kris, which is notable for having an asymmetrical design to both the blade and hilt.

The Garulu Saber has a built-in sound feature. The speaker is located on the bottom left side of the grip, while the red On/Off switch is on the right.

On the front of the base is a circular black button. When pressed, you will hear Garulu howl one time, two times, or three times in a row.

On the upper-back side of the grip is a trigger. When you grab on with your hand (Garulu Form is left-handed, BTW) you will be squeezing the trigger. This will create a different single howling sound.

Once in Sword Mode, pressing this same trigger will raise the muzzle so that the toy can emit the Howling Shock sound-wave attack. (The jaw will not move unless you manually change it during the transformations.)

Directly below the jaw in front is a black trigger. When depressed once, you will hear one of two different sword-clanging sound effects.

. . .

While I cannot demonstrate it, the blade of the Garulu Saber can be placed in the mouth of the DX Kivat Belt set, though neither toy will react to such, and it cannot be fastened there; this is done to initiate the Garulu Howling Slash finisher (though I would strongly advise not putting the handle in your mouth as Kiva does for this…)

Despite not watching very far into “Kamen Rider Kiva” (the frequent switching back-and-forth between 1986 and 2008 was too confusing for me), I was impressed by the gothic, mysterious, and monstrous styling of the protagonist and his arsenal. However, this one was, I felt, the most cohesive of the three beginning alt modes at Kiva’s disposal (the others being the Makaijuu Basshaa Magnum and Matettsui Dogga Hammer). It was very awesome to see a sword being used that didn’t have the typically-seen long thin katana-like blade or a more Western design- a kris fit very well with the themes. I also enjoyed the collapsed form since it features Garulu’s crossed arms chained down; a sign of his binding oath to Kiva. And really, I just felt it looked better in statue form that the other two did. My only problem with it lies in sword form- the muzzle and jaw to cover up the werewolf monster’s torso and head, which the prop in the series does. The transformation is a little stop-and-go, but otherwise not a problem. Nor were the sound effects lacking. (It would have been cool to have the monster’s eyes shine red through the guard’s own, but I don’t miss any lights here.) This is a very solid toy both aesthetically and manufacturing-wise. So I strongly recommend getting the Majuuken Garulu Saber.

Winning!!!

Sometimes things are so out there and hideous that you have to get them, else no one would believe you when you told them about them.

Such is the case with Spider-Man Adventure Hero.

It was a chilly February, and Dan, Adam and I were in New York City, doing some toy shopping in Chinatown between meetings at Toy fair.

We were just coming out of a disappointing tour of Elizabeth St when I came across this vendor. he had the usual tourist crap, and out front of his store he had a bunch of toys. Most were your garden variety bootlegs - disney toys, power rangers, etc.. But this one caught my eye. I started to take pictures of it, when the owner comes out to yell at me like I had just disgraced his family.

So, having stolen the toys soul with my magical camera, and not wanting a curse upon my family, I offered to buy it. I paid too much, but in retrospect, it was worth it.

So where to begin with this one.

Judging by the packaging there is a whole assortment of "Adventure Hero" versions of Spider-man. He plays Baseball, basketball, Soccer, he even boxes.

Of course, I got the Golf one. The juxtaposition with Golf Clubs, baseball cap, and then the sleveless shirt with tie is too awesome for words.

It's clearly a case of a Spider-Man head stuck to someone else's body. The only thing I could think of is maybe this is the body for the WWE wrestler Mankind, who wore a similar outfit.

The plastic is really cheap - a thick hard rubber. But it is very solid, with decent articulation. If it werent for the fear of poisoned paint, I might have given this to the kids.

The real treat here is the packaging. Each variant is displayed proudly on the back and someone clearly spent a lot of time on the graphics.

My favorite is the golfer Spider-Man declaring "Winning!!!"