There’s really not much you can do to pose it, but really that’s not the point of a figure like this. Its meant to look good, and it does that well.

Marmit’s line 15” vinyl super robots is called Fierce Legend of Super Robots (FLOSR for short). The line covers classic robots from the 70s and 80s and includes all your favorites such as Gaiking, Mazinger Z and UFO Robo Grendizer.

These not-quite-jumbos have an imposing presence in any collection, and feature fantastic detail. Each comes in an identical window box.

UFO Robo Grendizer is 15 inches tall and made out of hard vinyl. The figure is solid – you can feel the quality when you pick it up. The familiar design of Grendizer is rendered perfectly in vinyl.

Articulation is limited – head, shoulders, and legs at the hips. There’s really not much you can do to pose it, but really that’s not the point of a figure like this. Its meant to look good, and it does that well.

The Marmit logo and copyright are embossed in the feet. On my specimen, the feet don’t sit exactly level, but this is a common thing with vinyl figures.

Also, Marmit typically runs FLOSR several times, with slight variations in paint, but as far as I can tell, there isn’t any sort of marking on the box to tell which version you are getting. Sanjeev tells me that this may be a second or third version, due to the tone of the red.

These are pretty common figures, but beware of bootlegs. The bootlegs can be spotted due to them being packaged in a blue window box.

So why don't i have more of these? The designs are awesome, and they look killer as a group. Maybe its time to look into the rest of them.

Not a flawless toy, but in my opinion, the Soul Of Chogokin Grendizer is about as good as it gets for this character. It's beautiful to look at, fun to play with and comes with some great accessories.

The GX-04 UFO Robo Grendizer (超合金魂 GX-04 UFOロボグレンダイザー) is a pretty important release in the line of popular diecast toys by Bandai. It's seems to be a toy that brought alot of collectors to the line, the hobby and to other collectors. And it's no surprise with the character being as popular as it is. For myself, it was the first Japanese collector toy I would buy as an adult. It was March of 2001 and I was in Tokyo visiting a friend. At the time, I was more into movies and I spent most of my free time there looking for a copy of Kenichi Iwamoto's film "Kikuchi" (still haven't found it!). But a friend of mine was into toys and he asked me to keep an eye out for a few things. I didn't have any idea where the vintage toy stores were at this time and the only toy store my friend knew about was Kiddyland in Harajuku. When we got there, I wandered the isles until I saw some boxes of diecast super robots. I saw Mazinger Z and Great Mazinger and while they looked vaguely familiar, I wasn't sure I'd seen them before. But the box for the Grendizer jumped right out at me and I couldn't believe what I was looking at. (I was actually more surprised to find this inside the store than I was to find Marilyn Manson just outside as he departed. I didn't see what he was buying there, but he being evil, I'm guessing it was Kubricks, which are clearly the work of the devil!)

After so many years, I held in my hands something I'd always wanted as a child. A diecast, realistic looking Grendizer with a ton of features and accessories. I didn't even look at the price tag and just brought it to the counter. There was no way I wasn't coming home with this thing.

Taking it out of the box was a surreal experience. I was a child all over again (albeit, a child who could afford a $130 toy!). The box measures 14.25" long by 8.75" tall and 4" deep and the toy and accessories rest in a styrofoam tray. First thing was to get some fists on this guy. There are two forearms that connect to the upper arms via magnets. The first is the standard pose set with removable fists and flares. 3 different sets of fists can be placed on this forearm. You have a regular closed fist, partially open fist for holding the double hariken accessory and a fully open set for flying or when using your imagination to fire the "hand beam" weapon.

The other set of forearms are a really cool addition. These also have magnetic connectors, but instead of interchangeable fists, they have the flares outstretched in "screw crusher punch" mode. Looks cool, right? Well, they do more than LOOK cool, they also launch at the press of a button! I love the Soul Of Chogokin line of toys, but the launching fist/missile gimmick is one that they have sadly gotten away from recently.

Previously, I mentioned the double hariken feature. Well, this was the sickle weapon that Grendizer usually employed to finish of his foes in the cartoon. The blades would launch out of his shoulders and he could combine them to form one double sided weapon. Two connecting shafts are included as well two cosmetic blades for in display in the shoulder. When you want him to hold the weapon in his hands, you can remove them from the shoulders for a more accurate look.

Grendizer is a really great looking robot. The feet, thighs, torso and upper arms are all diecast. The ankles, knees, hips, neck, shoulders, elbows and wrists are all articulated, but some much better than others. The lower half of the toy has movement, but isn't very poseable at all. The arms and head is where you'll get most of your dynamic poses, but herein also lies what is probably the biggest complaint about this toy. The flares on the arms are too long and bend when you bend the elbows. It's a very frustrating thing because otherwise the toy looks amazing.

The GX-04 comes with Grendizer's Spazer, the flying saucer he would dock with for flying purposes. The wings, cockpit and other details must be attached out of the box. The entire saucer is made of plastic and opens up to hold Grendizer. To fit Grendizer inside, you must first contract the legs by pushing them up towards the torso. This is a great feature but can be a bit of a pain. I find it somewhat difficult to get Grendizer to rest in there just how I like. You kind of have to fidget with the feet from the back and get the arms to be just right. I'm a nut for symmetry so if one of his arms isn't posed exactly like the other, I have to fight with it to make it right. I also wish there was a better way to blend the arms into the side of the Spazer, but I have no idea what would work better.

In addition to actually housing Grendizer, the Spazer does include a "spin saucer" on each wing. Each one has 6 triangular flaps that can be lifted to form the damage inducing blades, and furthermore, when they are open like this you can add a "spin drill" accessory that plugs into a hole in the center.

Wow, a diecast Grendizer with his own Spazer. You can't beat that can you?! Sure, you can! By throwing in a diecast "Double Spazer" that can connect to Grendizer's back! This cool little ship that was flown by Mazinger Z's old pilot "Koji Kabuto" is a great addition to this set. The main body is diecast and the rest is plastic. The wings and nose can be adjusted and the bottom of it can be openedto expose a tab that is inserted into the back of Grendizer and lift him into the air.

Previous to his flying the Double Spazer, Koji flew around in the utterly useless "TFO" saucer and a small plastic replica of this is also included in this set. With some many different parts included, naturally you need a place to store them all and there is a very simply, but effective display stand included for this purpose. Everything it comes with fits nice in or on it.

The GX-04 UFO Robo Grendizer is a fantastic toy and one that I'll always love. But I wouldn't be averse to Bandai doing a "revised" version, either. One that doesn't have those pesky bending flares or one that looks like one solid piece when it's docked with the Spazer (hey, toy technology has come a long way, so I can dream, can't I?). Maybe a tiny little figure of Grendizer's pilot, Duke Fleed, would have been nice. Bandai did re-release this in a set with two extra spazers, but the toy was not modified in any way. Perhaps some of the improvements made in chogokin toys in subsequent releases could be put to use to make an improved version of this toy. But as it stands, if you like Japanese robots, you should own this.

That's a WHOLE lotta metal!!

Like many young people growing up in the northeast of the US during the 80's, I was exposed to Jim Terry's Force Five series of cartoons. I remember so clearly the joy of getting up early before school to catch the latest adventures of these Super Robots, imported from Japan and dubbed (often miserably!) into English, defending the Earth from insidious invaders every weekday morning. Absolutely nothing could beat the thrill of your favorite hero piloting a huge robot, shouting out its weapons' names as he vanquished the baddies! Ah...those were the times!! I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said that the experience was like going to church everyday! You just did it...there was no question!

Of all the robots, Grandizer, was my favorite. Was it that the pilot, Orion Quest--or Duke Freed in Japanese--displayed a conflicted pacifist nature and his inner turmoil at having to resort to violence once again to protect his loved ones? Was it that this hero was actually an alien from a slaughtered world living among humans, constantly struggling to fit in, struggling with his violent past, and struggling with his secret identity?

Was it his nifty black costume?

Who knows? But I was definitely hooked!

Early in 2006, when Marmit announced that their awesome Daigokin line was continuing with a third mold, Grendizer (the original Japanese spelling of the character), needless to say, I was intrigued. This line, "Daigokin", consists of nearly completely solid diecast figures whose sculpts are based closely on Marmit's existing successful line of vinyl robot figures, "Fierce Legend of Super Robots" (Click here for an example of a FLOSR!).

While they appear nearly identical to their FLOSR counterparts, the Daigokin figures are often slightly taller and beefier in proportion and they usually offer improved articulation.

Waitaminute...did I just say "nearly completely solid diecast"? Yes. Yes, I did. Folks, take a minute to reflect on this. Say it with me now: "nearly completely solid diecast".

...

Ok...*phew*...

Well, first off, I gotta admit that I was hesitant about purchasing the Daigokin. I had the FLOSR, but I wasn't overly-thrilled with the sculpt. I love FLOSRs in general, but the Grendizer mold, in particular, has overly-beefy arms that also seem too long to me. Furthermore, the neck looks crooked at an odd angle if you look at it from the side. Yeah, I know: I'm picky...but, hey, if you're gonna make an "anime-accurate" sculpt of a character--especially my beloved Grandizer--ya gotta do it right!! Plus, the pricetag for the Daigokin is reasonably off-putting. Did I really want this sculpt I already had in the FLOSR...for that much money?

Well, y'know, in the end, the previous statement concerning diecast content in these toys won out in the end. I mean, really...for a hardcore Grandizer fan, is there actually a "choice" involved here? ;)

Aiight, so let's start with the box! I was pleasantly surprised to see that the cardboard Marmit used for the box is extremely thick--thicker than any cardboard I've ever seen used for a toy's box. The box finish is very glossy and the graphics are wonderfully vibrant.

Mmm...yummy colors...

Upon removing the lid, the figure can found between two huge, satisfying slabs of styrofoam. But before getting to the Daigokin, a repaint of the 4-inch Grendizer gokin Marmit released some years ago (also based loosely on the FLOSR sculpt) rests in a recess in the top half of this styro-coffin. It's dark silver with gold and yellow accents. Quite nice actually, but not a huge deal for me.

Small gokin repaint, along with the original.

The styrofoam halves open to reveal one helluva toy. Figure, in a thin, clear plastic bag (not shown below), is nestled in his custom-tailored bed...no instructions, no catalog--no accessories or paperwork of any kind.

This figure is 17 inches tall. It weighs somewhere in the neighborhood of 7.5 pounds--that's FAR and away the most massive toy I've even handled! But, y'know, it's not just the weight. Sure, when you pick it up, you risk straining a ligament or two in your wrist...but when you fly him around the room, the little mechanical bits in the joints and the separate metal plates on the bottom of its feet all clink and clatter lightly against one another, creating a melody of different metallic sounds. Oh...this is QUITE satisfying to the ears! You get the impression that this is an actual robot you're handling!

Grendizer, GO!!

The toy stands just over an inch taller than it's FLOSR counterpart:

FLOSR on the left, Daigokin on the right.

The camera is a bit forgiving with the colors: the red used on the FLOSR is quite drab, while the Daigokin is just right. The gloss black used on the Daigokin is simply excellent: very, very deep and lustrous--the photos with diffused ambient lighting don't do the finish justice. Under normal lighting, the reflections in the mirror-like polish are amazing. Also the chromy gold used on the Daigokin's horns is a great touch and complements the gloss black perfectly.

Also, as others have pointed out, there are interesting modifications to the existing FLOSR mold: notice above how the Daigokin's thighs are a bit thicker, while the waist seems to have shrunk. The upper torso on the Daigokin also seems to have been widened, adding to the more triangular physique.

Besides the visual changes, I was VERY pleased (and surprised!) to discover the articulation added to the Daigokin. Now, the head turns and actually tilts backwards--no more crooked neck! Also, the shoulders can splay outwards a bit, also minimizing my complaint about the gorilla-arms. And the real treat with the shoulders is the extremely loud clicking of the detents or "ratcheting" in the joints when they swing forwards or backwards! Finally, Marmit added elbow joints that can swing about twenty degrees back or forth. Not the greatest flexibility in the world, but it certainly beats the FLOSR and can at least make for some interesting poses. The other main FLOSR swivel joints are present: upper arms/biceps, wrists, hips, and knees (though, just as with the FLOSR, the toy's basically a brick from the waist down).

Not a whole lot else to say about this toy. No accessories or gimmicks--other than its sheer size and mass. Again, it's quite pricey and certainly not for everyone. Still, it's nice that Marmit is bold enough to make something as limited and niche-oriented as this in a time when megalithic toy companies like Taka-Tomy and Bandai are so concerned with focus groups, marketing due diligence, and their bottom lines.

For me, it's Grandizer. And in the final analysis, that's all I need to know. Marmit's Daigokin is not my favorite rendition of the character--the Popy Jumbo and DX Chogokin are simply timeless and easily among my favorite toys of all time--but I'm still quite pleased with it.

Remember, I'm picky! I certainly don't have every Grendy toy out there, but the Daigokin definitely gets my stamp of approval!

Part of the fam, the Daigokin fits right in!

Dizer Jump!

Late 2006 saw the appearance of a new Jumbo Machinder sized vinyl rendition of Ufo Robo Grendizer from the High Dream Corporation. The toy was a surprise and intriguing to me as a Jumbo collector. But since it wasn't really a TRUE Machinder, and it needed to be shipped from Europe, I hesitated to buy it. But finally, I broke down and decided I should get it if for no other reason than to review it.

Unlike some toys that attach the word Jumbo to themselves, this one does stand a legit 60cm (23.5") tall as it says on the box. The box is rather large at 27" tall and 13.5" across. It's only about 6.5" deep though. The front has a large drawing of Grendizer in the foreground with the science institute in the back. The upper half of the box is a clear cellophane window, through which you can see the head and shoulders of the toy as it rests in a styrofoam tray. The back and sides of the box repeat the artwork from the front. Strangely, the robots name is worded 3 different ways on the box. He is called Grendizer in English, UFO Robot Goldrake in English and also UFO Robo Grendizer in Japanese (UFOロボ グレンダイザー).

The toy itself is very eye catching. In addition to it's size, the sculpt is very nice and the paint job nice and glossy. So glossy in fact you can see reflections in it.

My specimen does have a small flaw on the left arm, but considering the quality of the rest of the paint job, I'm willing to bet it is an isolated incident.

I count 14 points of articulation on this one (neck, waist, shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees and ankles). It may be easy to overlook the ankle joints, but they are there. Turning the ankles causes the back of the legs to not line up. Please note that when I say articulion, I only mean that each of those joints can be turned. For instance, you cannot BEND the elbows or knees. The toy remains in a static pose. Furthermore, the waist does not move very far because the purple pointed up from the pelvis prohibits it.

Should you buy this? If you are a Grendizer fan, definitely. It's a great, big rendition of the character and will look great with your Marmit Daigokin or Fierce Legends of Super Robots version, etc. You should also get it if you just like larger robot toys. If you are a Machinder purist though, it's probably not for you. Though it has a static pose and the requisite size, it's sculpt and paint job are probably just too realistic for it to display well with your regular polyethylene jumbos.

Though this was released already in Europe, it will be released in Japan in April and can be pre-ordered via HobbyLink Japan.

This toy is so ugly, I feel I should apologize for making you look at it!

Carnival Machinder Overview

Back in the 1970s when super robots were at the peak of their popularity in Japan, many of the programs were exported to other countries around the globe. They really took root in Europe and many toys were made there. Some of the most simple yet interesting ones were never sold in stores, but were instead given away as game prizes at traveling carnivals. These toys were of very poor quality and only barely resembled the robots they were based on. There is no official name for these toys but since they are most closely related to the Jumbo Machinder family of toys, they have become known as "Carnival Machinders". In fact, many of these toys have a sticker on them that seems to resemble the missiles from classic Popy Jumbo Machinders.

UFO Robo Grendizer

Considering the IMMENSE popularity of Ufo Robo Grendizer throughout Europe, I'd always found it odd that of all the previously discovered Carnival Machinders, none were of this character. Well, one day I saw this thing on eBay. I wasn't even sure (and frankly, am still not 100% sure) that it even WAS a Carnival Machinder. All previous ones had stickers for details, while this one has paint only on the head. As poor a sculpt as it is, it's still probably more accurate to the anime than any others were. But upon holding it in my hands, it just seem too close in style and appearance to not be lumped into this category.

As you can probably tell, the body is all one solid piece of cheap red polyethylene with no sticker or paint details and no articulation. It actually does a pretty decent job of representing the character, but the head...Oh man, the head on this thing is FUGLY. It is a separate piece of blue poly with some silver and black paint for details. The head looks too big and until I received it, I was actually worried that it wasn't really supposed to be on this toy. But to see it in person, there is no doubt. Both the neck and the head slope in such a way that you know that are supposed to go together. The design of the head seems to combine elements of Grendizer with those of Groizer X.

Well, about the only thing else that I can say with any certainty is that this toy originated in Italy, and was probably referred to as Goldrake as such. I know an Italian collector who has this with a missing head, but the body on his is blue. It stands approximately 13" tall to the tip of the horns. If anyone out there has further info, I'd love to hear it.

Oh, did I mention that it's FUGLY?

Grendizer has just a sticker to depict the V on his chest and the
flares on
his arms. His name is also written in Japanese on a sticker on his
waist.

Each toy is sold in a bag with a colorful header card. The header cards may be the most interesting thing about them. The say made in China, by a company called "Boby" ("Popy? Never heard of 'em") which is written in Japanese on the lower right hand corner. The upper right hand corner says "Jumbo Machinder Power Punch Model" in English, even though no power punch feature is included. Below that it says "Jumbo Machinder" misspelled in Japanese. Lastly each card says "Grendizer" on the front, regardless of which robot you are actually buying.

As for the toys themselves, they all share the same generic body slightly modified to suit each robot. Grendizer has just a sticker to depict the V on his chest and the flares on his arms. His name is also written in Japanese on a sticker on his waist. The silver on the legs, arms and waist are also just stickers. He features the biggest difference among the three toys, that being the sickles in his shoulders. These are unfortunately way too big and if he were to launch them, they would rip his head right off by the horns. You can remove them if you turn his head sideways, but they do not have any handles to be held by nor is there any place you put them in his hands. On the plus side, Grendizer probably has the best head sculpt of the three and the paint job is again surprisingly good for a bootleg toy. Probably the worst part of the toys is the tops of the fists. The mold here is very flat, which is a shame because the fingers on it my be the best part of the body.

The toy is made of both hard plastic and polyethylene and stands at 18", not the 20" that it is often listed as. Still, these things cost less than $10 and are a great way to add some sizable toys to your collection for short money.
:

This is a great little Grendizer bootleg from the Korean toy company SEHO.

This is a common Korean bootleg robot that sells for 1,000KW (approx 80 cents American). It appears to be an original sculpt, and comes floating loose in the box with no styrofoam or tray.

Check out the cool bat-like wings, and the mirror decals.

This Grandizer bootleg was made by the Korean company "Boy Toy". It originaly sold for RRP of 3,000KW = approx $2.20 at the time.

The head and chest appear to be modeled after another Go Nagai creation called Govarian, with the addition of side horns that resemble Grandizer. Also included a small spacer that attaches to the back. The spacer is really the only thing that links this toy to Grandizer.

As if you weren't confused enough, the company decided to add a bootleg Petra Ranger (From Zyuranger, a.k.a. Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers) figure, molded in pink instead of red, in for added play value. The manufacturer also unloaded another older Korean robot character in place of the Power Ranger for some reason, so sometimes you see them with a dancing robot character when they appear for sale. They just wedged the dancing robot figure in the place where the Power Ranger should be, breaking the styrofoam in the process and sometimes breaking the transparent window also.

There is also another version released by the manufacturer with a black torso.

Thanks to Alex for additional photos and information.

The Grendizer GX-04B Soul of Chogokin by Bandai is the "Shaft" of the toy world. He is one bad mutha f**er.

Japanese toy companies have been pumping out black versions of toy since the late 1970's. Almost all of Bandai's SOC line have gotten the black treatment. The black versions of the toys are the same , except for the gold, black and silver paint job. As a bonus, black versions come with a bonus item, such as a small pewter pilot figure. This version comes with a miniature Duke Fleed, Grendizer's pilot.

He comes with all the accessories of the original SOC, including 3 spazers, rocket punch hands, double harrikens, a small TFO ship, drill missiles and a stand to hold it all.

I own both the Black and normal color version of this toy, and I have to say, the black version has so much more presence. I am not a fan of repaints in general, and i doubt I would have picked this up if it were not a gift, but now that I have gone black, I might never go back.