This is one of those toys I had a hazy memory of as a child.

This is one of those toys I had a hazy memory of as a child. I remember watching TV when I was a kid and I remember a commercial – it was for some kind of cereal. There were two kids on the front porch of a house, a boy and a girl. The boy was playing with a transformer, but it was a transformer that I had never seen before. It was all purple and green and looked like some kind of bug. That toy HAUNTED me. For years, I swore it existed, but no robot nerd I knew could identify it.

Once again, the internet came to the rescue and I found the toy on a forum somewhere. Turns out that it is a bootleg of the Aura Battler Billbine. It appears to be based off of the Tomy DX Billbine, but I can’t be sure. I think this one is a bit bigger, being about 12” tall.

I’m not quite sure who made it, but I have heard that a Hong Kong manufacturer called Zima made it, under license, for sale through American retail channels such as Sears. There were at least 2 versions made – this one, and one that has a teal/yellow/black color scheme.

This Billbine bootleg is fully transformable between robot mode and Bug mode. I removed and reversed the wings on this one – I just thought it looked better. The Macross stickers on this were applied before I got it but DID NOT come with the toy. Some kid must have thought they look neat, and I agree.

A neat bootleg, but only for the hard-core. The quality is kind of crap, and the color scheme is odd. The thing for me is that it was a mystery solved. Sometimes that is the biggest fun of this hobby.

A nice but strangely unpopular Jumbo from Clover. Probably more for Dunbine fans than Jumbo fans.

Aura Battler Dunbine (聖戦士ダンバイン)aired for 49 episodes between 1983 and 1984 and Clover would release a Jumbo sized "Big Machine" in 1983. Although Clover did release at least two other Jumbos (Tryder G7 and the elusive Daiozya), Dunbine is the only confirmed release in the Big Machine line (though rumors of a Big Machine Gundam still surface from time to time, however these have never been verified). This is one of the less popular toys among Jumbo collectors on average. The design of the character just doesn't lend itself to a typical looking Jumbo and it's distinctiveness is a turn off for some fans.

Something about the character has always appealed to me though. It's just such a unique looking design, quite unlike the vast majority of other Japanese robots. The Jumbo really stands out among it's peers. It's a couple inches shorter than most, standing at approximately 21" tall and had a wider base with the feet spread out at an angle. The feet themselves are quite interesting, with three hooked claws.

The back has an interesting dual set of wings. The main wings for liftoff are a large cumbersome piece of polyethylene which rests on a hinge. These can be lifted up to reveal a thin yellow tinted piece of plastic resembling insect wings. These are attached via stickers and it's been said that these are the most common part of the toy to be found broken/missing. But I must say that among the vast majority of specimens I've seen, it's usually very much intact. So just because it's the most likely part to suffer damage doesn't automatically mean to suggest that it WILL. This piece certainly adds a lot of character to the toy. Certainly no other Jumbo that I'm aware of has something like it.

One other great feature having to do with the back wings is that you can store the accessory sword on it! Many other Jumbos have swords, but on most if they are not holding it in the hand, there is nowhere to put it. Here, the sword has a small tab that is simply inserted into a hole on the edge of the wing canopy for easy, and cool looking, storage. It can also be held in the right hand only.

Dunbine also has an opening cockpit in the chest into which you can rest it's pilot, Show Zama. A small (approximately 4.5") articulated figure of him is included. You can bend his knees and hips (to put him in a sitting position), as well as raise and lower the arms and turn the head. It's a decent enough little addition, but I would have preferred for it to have a little color detail. As it is, it is cast entirely in green plastic.

Two white claws protrude from both forearms adding a very cool looking touch. But be cautious with these. One time, I'm not even sure how or when, one of mine actually came loose and receded into the hollow arm. I was very lucky to be able to gently shake the toy and get the claws to stick back out where I grabbed it with a pair of tweezers and pulled it back into position.

Like most Jumbos, there's not too much articulation on the toy (wrists, hips, shoulders and neck can all be turned). The head and hands are soft vinyl (with the head being a particularly beautiful sculpt) and the cockpit door is green, translucent hard plastic. All other parts are polyethylene. The stickers inside the cockpit come pre-applied, but the rest are included on a small sticker sheet.

The box for Dunbine is one of the more boring vintage Jumbo boxes. Plain white cardboard with two color artwork, including simple directions on the back, doesn't make for a particularly great display piece.

The Aura Battler Dunbine Big Machine is one of the easier Japanese Jumbos to get, but it appears with much greater regularity on Yahoo!Japan auctions or in toy shops in Japan than it does on Ebay. Price-wise you are probably looking at something like $300-500 for a mint in box specimen. As always, some sellers may try to charge more or you might find one pretty cheap. It's just a matter of timing and waiting for a price you can live with. This is definitely not a "must get it because you'll never see it again" -type of toy. Worth having, but not worth breaking the bank over.

The Virunvee is aesthetically pleasing to say the least. It is made entirely of translucent, purple PVC.

This is a review for the Aura Battler Virunvee figure from the Lord Of Byston Well (LOB) toy line by Bandai.

Background Story

Set on Earth and the trans-dimensional world of Byston Well, Aura Battler Dunbine follows the exploits of a group of young men plucked from their earthly existence and trained (often against their will) into becoming pilot/conscripts for despotic DRAKE LUFT'S army of unique "mind-powered" robot weapons-the Aura Battlers. One of these new recruits, SHO ZAMA, does not surrender to the indoctrination from Drake Luft's persuasive instructors, and escapes to join the opposition forces in order to save the Earth.

Mind you, I am not all that familiar with the anime, but I do love the mecha designs from Dunbine. You can imagine my anticipation when news broke out that Bandai will be coming out with a new line of toys for this show.

The Box

The box is similar to the Super Imaginative Chogokin (SIC) box. Stadard sized window-type box that allows a view of the toy from the front, top, and sides. It measures 31.0 x 28.0 x 13.0 cm, and the package itself weighs about 1010grams. Compared to the SIC boxes though, the material used for the LOB boxes feel more sturdy.

Box Contents

The box contains a large 3 layer plastic tray. The top one holds the Virunvee, and it's weapons, the second tray holds the wing attachments, and booster, and the third holds the display base and support 'spine.' It also contains an orange-red colored cardboard insert, and of course, the user manual. The manual I got had very dark pictures though. Slightly difficult to discern what it's trying to show. Luckily, the toy is not complicated. It took me about 5 minutes to assemble everything.

The Accessories

The Virunvee comes with the following weapons and accessories:

• 1 X Diecast Sword
• 1 X Battle Axe
• 1 X Shield
• 1 X Beam Cannon
• 1 X Sword Sheath
• 1 X Back Panel/Booster
• 2 X Head Replacements (1 whole head, 1 replacement top)
• 4 X Wing Attachments (2 Large, 2 Small)
• 1 X Display Base
• 1 X Support Spine

The Virunvee

The Virunvee is aesthetically pleasing to say the least. It is made entirely of translucent, purple PVC. Absolutely no die-cast content on the toy itself. It stands approximately 9 inches tall from the base to the top of it's 'mohawk.'

The color is injected into the plastic, with some 'chocolate brown' paint to highlight the markings on it's body. The details on this figure are very crisp. From the alien bug-like head sculpt, to the imbedded markings on the body, the wings, to the wrinkles on the feet.

The figure also boasts of very intricate detail work in the waist area, the neck, and head. Note, that the replacement head can be 'split' in half (top and bottom), and this is where you'll see the details.

Although it's made of PVC, the Virunvee is fairly heavy, especially when it's assembled.

The Wing attachments come in two pairs- small and large. The larger pieces are the outer wings, and the smaller ones are the inner wings. All four pieces attach via a ball and socket system at the back of the toy.

The back panel/booster attaches via a male and female plug near the shoulders of the toy. Other accessories like the shield and beam cannon attach via a clip that you can slide onto the Virunvee's left forearm.

The Virunvee has several points of articulation, most of which use the ball & socket system. Double joints for the elbow and knees. This allows the figure to pull off a lot of dynamic poses, and with the wide coverage of it's feet, the toy can hold these dynamic poses very well. The weapon hand (right only) can hold on to the axe, and sword very well, while pulling off some dynamic poses.

Features

Aside from the very impressive articulation of the toy, it also has some features that make it a worthy purchase. The cockpit area that covers the chest and belly can open and close.The pilot figure fits snugly into this detailed cockpit, and is kept in place by a movable pilot stick that can move up and down. In the up position, it keeps the pilot seated. On the down position, it allows you to take the pilot figure out of the cockpit.

The display stand with the support 'spine' is also a good feature of the set. The spine is made up of the same translucent plastic, but it can hold the figure up very well, in spite of it's weight. You can put the Virunvee in any pose where it's feet isn't touching the base, and the support spine will hold it up without buckling or breaking.

The other feature of the toy (which I like very much) is the fact that it's made up entirely of semi-translucent purple PVC plastic.

Why you may ask?

Well, I believe the purpose of the sculptor to use translucent plastic was to give the toy a certain look when placed near a light source. When placed near a good light source (usually behind the figure), the translucent material allows some light through the figure. This gives the toy a glowing effect like it was emitting it's 'battle aura' (for lack of a better term) to freak out it's enemy.

The eyes on this figure are made of translucent amber colored plastic, and when given the same light source, it makes the eyes look like they are burning amid the contrasting purple glow. It's a very nice effect in my option, although I have read some comments that say otherwise.

The Beef

While I had a lot of nice things to say about this toy, it is not without it's flaws, but mind you, the flaws range from the 'I can live with that' kind to the 'It's so bad I want to burn Bandai down' kind.

1. Agony of "de-Feet" - Out of the box, the right foot falls off. I figure it was a factory thing, and popping it back in should fix it. Wrong! The fool thing keeps popping off whenever I try to move the toy, without touching the foot itself. The fix? I went through my Mom's manicure set, and pulled out the magic NAIL POLISH bottle and poof! The foot fits like a glove! No more falling off.
2. A Shoulder To Cry About - Just when I thought that no more limbs will be falling off, down goes the entire right arm! The right shoulder socket apparently doesn't like being plugged by the ball. The fool thing just keeps popping off every time I touch the arm. If I arm the right hand with the axe, the shoulder pops off and falls to the floor. How much more if I put the die cast sword in? The Fix? The same NAIL POLISH trick that's worked for me since my 1/72 Macross Plus toy days!
3. Oh My Aching Back!!! - Okay, this has got to be the biggest gripe I have about the toy. This is the kind of issue that makes me want to buy a plane ticket, go to Japan and burn Bandai down. I mentioned early in this review that the Back Panel/Booster attaches via a male/female plug system. It sounds really nice, but the problem is, the male plug is smaller that the female slot on the back of the figure. This just makes it impossible for the Booster to stay on the figure. I mean, sure, you can put it on with a lot (and I mean A LOT) of patience, but all that patience goes to waste because as soon as you look at it funny, the booster pack falls off!

Fix?

Nothing yet. As of this review, I am still contemplating if I'll just super-glue it into place, or modify it by using some model putty to thicken up the male peg to make it fit.

And I Say

The LOB Vol.02 Virunvee is a mixed bag.

Aesthetically, it is very pleasing to look at, and is a commanding presence on your display shelf because of it's bulk, and impressive sculpt.

Unfortunately, the issues on this figure is a real let down. Having to contend to limbs that keep falling off, and parts that don't fit right is just too much for a toy that uses very simple engineering mechanics.

If you like looks, get it. If you like to play, this might not be the toy for you.

The Virunvee figure from Bandai's Lord Of Bystonwell line gets a 2.5 out of 5.

To be fair, these toys aren't all that great. The detail is lacking, and the articulation almost non-existent. But it is a diecast representation of a pretty cool character, and if it has anything, it has the FUNK.

I don't know why, but these Clover Dunbine diecasts get absolutely no love in Japan. Each time I have gone, I have picked up a few from the series at dirt cheap prices. I'm talking like 1,500 yen. That's insane.

To be fair, these toys aren't all that great. The detail is lacking, and the articulation almost non-existent. But it is a diecast representation of a pretty cool character, and if it has anything, it has the FUNK. I mean, the thing has teeth in its CROTCH.

The Aura Battler Virunvee 1:58 SF Fantasy Figure (オーラ・バトラ バトラ ビランビー 1:58 SF Fantasy Figure) is largely diecast, with plastic arms, lower legs, backpack and head. The 'œwings' are made of a translucent orange flexible sheet of plastic. The only accessory included is a chrome sword. The sword can fit into either hand, or be positioned on the back section for storage.

A sticker sheet is included. The toy shown here has stickers unapplied.

These toys were some of the last toys that Clover ever produced. They folded in 1983. If only Clover had given the attention to these toys that they did to their earlier Gundam line, who knows what could have happened. But at the end, these toys were just kind of shoddy. If you like the Dunbine designs, you might like these. Casual collectors should look elsewhere for their diecast fix.

This piece has been a real exercise in frustration for me. For awhile I'd wanted a nice Aura Battler Dunbine toy but wasn't a big fan of the vintage diecast designs.

This piece has been a real exercise in frustration for me. For awhile I'd wanted a nice Aura Battler Dunbine toy but wasn't a big fan of the vintage diecast designs. I'd seen Bandai's MG kit in pictures but didn't want to risk spending the money on it since I was not experienced in model building. Well, after successfully completing 3 or 4 MG Gundam kits and being given a gift card that I needed to spend, I figured I'd take the plunge and pick this up.

Probably the biggest problem with the constuction of it for me was that a few of the pieces that needed to be screwed together were very small so that it was difficult to keep a good firm grip on them with one hand while applying the needed pressure to sink the screw in all the way with the other. I've always hated screw drivers anyway so this really started to annoy me and I really should have stopped rather than work in that mood. I didn't and ended up breaking a couple of integral pieces. But I really wanted to finish it so I bought another one, this time out of my own pocket, and set about completing it. The second time around I made sure to work in small, anger-free sessions and really take my time with it. I was able to complete it without further incident.

The completed model is extremely nice looking but not without it's flaws. The biggest problem, literallly, is the back. It's too heavy for the rest of the model and makes it extremely difficult to pose. The side of the box shows an "action pose" which as far as I can tell is completely impossible.

I like the internal detail and had no problem with the rubber parts, but the hand which is designed to hold the sword is just awful. Rather than have a fist that can actually grip the sword like the Gundam kits do, this hand is in two pieces and would really need to be glued together. Otherwise it comes apart at the slightest touch. I haven't glued mine so I really don't know how easily the sword could be added or removed once that is done, but frankly it seems like just an awful idea from the start. Furthermore, the index finger on the hand the holds the sword is pointing for some reason. Doesn't make any sense to me.

Dunbine stands 8" tall. The cockpit opens to reveal the pilot, Show Zama and the sword can be stored in it's sheath on the back. Most of the pieces are molded in the appropriate color (though it has a more lavender-ish hue than the blue in the anime). You simply have to add two stickers for the markings on the head. Overall, it's a nice looking model and I suppose I'm happy to have it, but in the end it really just leaves you wanting more.

Drumlo comes from the anime "Aura Battle Dunbine", created by Yoshiyuki Tomino. The Drumlo mecha itself was designed by Yutaka Izubuchi.

This toy was one of the last toys produced by the ill-fated Japanese toy company "Clover" in the late 80s. Drumlo comes from the anime "Aura Battle Dunbine", created by Yoshiyuki Tomino. The Drumlo mecha itself was designed by Yutaka Izubuchi.

Drumlo comes nicely packaged with instructions, Decals, and 2 small missiles. the missiles fit in the launchers at the end of the arms and fire with a press of a button.

This toy is a brick. This is the kind of toy that if you hit someone in the head with it, you would send them to the emergency room. It is made almost entirely of die cast metal.

Articulation is limited. You have little movement in the shoulders, legs and feet. Also the back plate lifts up to reveal a set of translucent plastic wings.

It's a cool toy, but not something that can be compared to todays hyper articulated action figures. Consider it a testament to the way they used to make toys.

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