The Konami Great Impact Model Gurren Lagann is Konami’s first (that I know of) foray into the world of high-end diecast toys. It was only a matter of time really, seeing the success of similar lines by Bandai, Takara, Yamato and CM’s. I’m happy to report that this thing is awesome.

The Konami Great Impact Model Gurren Lagann is Konami’s first (that I know of) foray into the world of high-end diecast toys. It was only a matter of time really, seeing the success of similar lines by Bandai, Takara, Yamato and CM’s. I’m happy to report that this thing is awesome. Gurren Lagann WAS available from HobbyLink Japan, but as of writing this article, is sold out.

Gurren Lagann comes from the anime series Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann (天元突破グレンラガン,). The series was created by legendary animation studio GAINAX (aka the people behind Evangelion) and ran on TV Tokyo for 27 episodes in 2007.

The series is very good, and I suggest you check it out. Wikipedia gives a good description of the series, but what I will tell you is this – Gurren Lagann is actually two separate robots that combine into one.

Lagann is a small Gunman (robot) that becomes the head of Gurren Lagann. He is found buried deep in the earth by Simon, a digger from Giha Village. Gurren is a Gunman that was originally owned by the enemy Beastmen. Simon’s “Brother” Kamina steals the Gunman and takes it for his own. The two combine in battle in order to overcome the enemy Gunmen, and make the combined form, Gurren Lagann, their own.

I know what you are thinking here, but no, Gurren Lagann does not transform.

Skip to the video review

Gurren Lagann comes packaged in a huge heavy-duty cardboard box with a flip-up lid. Inside the lid is a nice Styrofoam tray with each part neatly displayed. Gurren Lagann comes ready to go right out of the box.

The toy is heavy, and features lots of metal parts. Articulation on this thing is insane, with double-jointed elbows and knees, and possibly the most poseable feet ever. Check out the video to see what we are talking about, but its really great. The legs use a neat system of collapsible panels on the backs of the knees to allow for greater movement, and the elbows feature a neat pull out joint system.

At the hips there are 4 pieces of moveable skirt armor – the front and pack pivot out, while the sides move in all directions. These skirt parts are probably the only poor thing about this toy. Extreme poses can cause the skirts to pop out, but the good news is that they pop back in. Still, a stronger connection would have made this unnecessary.

Gurren Lagann’s torso has a huge range of motion. There is of course a waist joint, but in addition there is a joint in the upper chest that can move any which way. The chest is a giant face, and the joint takes advantage of the jaw placement. The jaw too is moveable. This whole chest unit is metal. It’s breathtaking. Gurren Lagann’s sunglasses can clip on to the chest and are made out of translucent plastic.

Gurren Lagann uses the sunglasses as a weapon, so Konami included not one but two additional sets to be used as weapons. These cannot be attached to the chest, and are a little bigger.

The head has a few ball joints that allow it to shift forward and back as well as the usual range of motion.

Another place where this toy really excels is the arms. The whole shoulder assembly is diecast with a section that moves forward and backward near the chest. Then there is the diecast ball joint at the shoulder and the previously mentioned elbows. Several sets of hands are included and they are easily swapped.

Included with the figure is a large Gurren Wing that can be attached to the back of the figure. This gives an impressive wingspan to an already impressive figure. The wings are all plastic and are actually collapsible. To attach the wings, you simply remove a metal panel on the back of the figure and connect the wings.

If you have watched the show, you will notice that drills play a prominent role in the series, in both the literal and metaphoric sense. I’m not sure what role these accessories play in the show, but included are what seems like dozens of small plastic drill bits that attach all over the figure. There are four different size bits, and each has a specific place, so make sure you read the manual for placement. These things are SHARP, and are made out of hard plastic. Most drill bits just plug in, but there are a few exceptions. The long drills on the arms require an additional cover piece that goes over the holes in the arms, and the drill that goes into the forehead requires some “modification” (at least on mine it did). It looks like paint filled the hole on mine, so I just had to clear it out with a thumbtack. The great thing is, that even with all the drill bits attached, Gurren Lagann is still fully poseable.

Another place where the drill metaphor comes into place is in an included accessory. A 1:1 scale key to operate Gurren is included, and is in the shape of a translucent gold drill. The handle to this key is solid metal, and it includes a holder.

An accessory called the Gurren House is included that is used to hold all the small drill bits when not in use. It has a removable cover, and requires a small amount of assembly.

Finally, included is a stand. This stand comes with two different display arms – one for standing and one for flying. The stand attaches to a hole in the rear of the figure, under the armor. It’s a solid, tight fit. There is also a small part that can clip onto either stand that can hold the wings. The back of the stand has a compartment that can hold the remainder of the accessories.

I really really love this toy. The build quality, engineering, and accessories are top notch. So where did Konami get this ability to produce high-end gokin? My theory is that they didn’t.  I think Konami subcontracted this toy out to Max Factory. Everything about this reminds me of their Max Gokin Godannar toy. The build, the finish, the stand, hell even the packaging is identical! The two just seem too similar to not be related somehow. Not that that’s bad though, it is a quality piece, regardless of who made it.

 As you can probably tell, I can’t recommend this toy enough. It is just so cool on so many levels, and is one of the rare toys that I think is worth the high price tag. Unfortunately, these things are selling like crazy and are already sold out at places like HobbyLink Japan (where I got mine). Be diligent in your search, and hopefully you will find one.

Video Review (now in HD!)

Gurren Lagann OP

Today’s I am reviewing Dragon Shiryu from the Saint Cloth Myth line. Saint Cloth Myth is Bandai’s premium line of collectible figures based on the Manga and animated series called Saint Seiya.

This figure came courtesy from Angolz.com who have been nice enough to provide us with all of our Saint Cloth Myth figures for review.

If you are just joining us and want to know all about what is going on with Saint Seiya I suggest heading over to wikipedia and checking things out.

Now on to the actual toy - Bandai has consistently banged out some quality collectibles with the Saint Cloth Myth line the figures are always well produced and loaded with ton’s of accessories. Figures are made of plastic, stand about 6 inches tall and feature lot’s of poseability. The armor the figures wear are always made of a high amount of die-cast metal and honestly I am running out of nice things to say about this line.

This time around I am reviewing Dragon Shiryu, one of our main heroes and a Silver Saint of Athena. Shiryu is the oldest and wisest of our band of heroes. Shiryu wears the Dragon Cloth (armor for those not in the know.)

From Wikipedia:
“The Dragon Cloth represents the constellation Draco, which is associated to Ladon, the hundred eyed dragon who guarded the golden apples of the Hesperides, in Greek mythology.”

“The Bronze Cloth of Dragon is legendary for its large shield on the left arm guard. Its reputation is unmatched by any other cloth among Athena's saints, and only very few have ever shattered it. The Dragon Cloth itself is noted for its ultimate durability, as it had spent the last 200 years bathed under the mineral-rich waterfall of the Rozan mountains, which made it harder than diamonds.”

This is Dragon Shiryu as his Cloth appears later in the series and Hades OVA’s. The armor is almost all die-cast metal with only the waist skirt and head piece being made of plastic. Paint detail is nice with no chipping or flaking.

The figure itself is made of plastic with over 40 points of articulation with the feet being made of die-cast metal. Included in the package is an alternate head which sports Shiryu with his eyes closed (Shiryu goes blind in the later part of the series and tends to have his eyes closed.)

Lastly the armor pieces do assemble into a statue when our heroes aren’t wearing them. In the series the armor shrinks a bit to make the statues small, because these are made from the armor the figure wears the statue stand about as tall as the figure.

As you can see from the pictures, Dragon Shiryu looks good and as always Bandai has made a fantastic collectible. Fans of the series should run, not walk to add Shiryu to their collection and if you don’t watch or read the series it may still be a sharp enough design to pick up. The Saint Cloth Myth line always delivers a quality product and it is well worth finding a design you like and giving one a try.

I have included a video review below and as always you can get your Saint Cloth Myth figures at Angolz.com.

Heck if I know what "GN-U" stands for, but let me tell ya, as someone who's not particularly fond of modern gokin "collectibles" of classic Japanese super robots, Yamato's "The 'GN-U' Hagane" Groizer-X is a pleasant surprise.

Groizer X is a super robot cartoon that aired in Japan before I was born. It featured your classic 70's alien invasion story involving a kidnapped scientist forced to build them the ultimate super weapon. His daughter manages to steal this "weapon" and escape with it to Japan, where she and her hero pal battle the monster of the week for the next 36 episodes.

The show was never brought to the States, yet from the first time I laid eyes on the Nakajima diecast toys of the robot, I was in love with Groizer. The design is part of robot maestro, Nagai Go's official pantheon. Much like Nagai's Getter robots, Groizer features an "impossible" transformation involving a gigantic bomber aircraft with a robot head metamorphing into a robot. What's impossible about it, of course, is that it's nothing like your typical modern Transformer. Transformers features moving parts that retain their dimensions and just rearrange themselves realistically to make a different overall shape. Nope. Groizer's bomber wings "morph" into the robot's arms, while the aft fuselage splits into the legs. Yeah. Well, if you're a fan of any of these shows, you're no stranger to suspension of disbelief; I haven't seen whole episodes of the cartoon, but I'm guessing that the transformation's one of the easiest parts of the show to swallow!

So why am I in love with this robot? Well, he's blue, he's weird-looking, and he's got a pretty groovy head with antennae. Yep, that's pretty much all I need!

Sure, the transformation is...different...but I can dig it. Besides, unlike actual Transformers, Groizer's transformation isn't really a major concern in any of the previous toys (except for Nakajima's elusive magnetic Groizer, which, as it turns out, is quite similar in spirit to the toy we're reviewing today!). The other popular Nakajima diecasts simply come static in either mode: Groizer X, the bomber, and Groizer Robo, the robot. And they're gorgeous. Their proportions are chunky, their colors are striking. Shooty missiles and fists. The toys are rugged and simple. Everything you love about old-school diecast, they have.

Now, along comes Yamato with their new GN-U line. Like I said, I have no idea what GN-U stands for, but making sense of all their offerings is stroke-inducing. Okay, so the "GN-U Hagane" line is high-end, semi-parts-swapping super robots, including this Groizer and the upcoming Danguard Ace(!). Now, this line is NOT to be confused with the "GN-U Gou" line, which is all-plastic, high-end, and heavily-parts-swapping...like Braiger. Lastly, there's the "GN-U Dou" line, which is all-PVC, non-transforming action figures, including the upcoming Braiger and Dancougar.

Anyway, those who know me know that I'm not particularly fond of modern gokin. I categorize most modern high-end super robot offerings as "collectibles", rather than as actual toys. They often come with scads of tiny, delicate accessories to recreate any scene from the cartoon, and they usually favor cartoon-accurate looks and super-poseability over imaginative play value. For the most part, they are fragile collectors' items for adults to put on shelves...and certainly not meant for children's sandboxes.

Somehow, by design or dumb luck, Yamato has crossed back over to the fun side of things with their "Groizer-X" (note the hyphen). With this toy, they've managed to create something that's simple, durable, and imaginative...and yet, satisfying to collectors, with anime-accurate sculpting, absurd poseability, and lots of detailed accessories.

But let's start from the top: the packaging:

The box is big. Probably quite a bit bigger than it really needs to be...but there's a reason for it that we'll get to later. As you can see above, the front flap of the box lifts up to reveal a window showing Groizer-X (bomber mode). When you pull everything out of the box, you get two flimsy, clear plastic trays containing the surprisingly simple toy, the instruction booklet, and full-color papercraft materials(!).

The first tray includes the main wings for Groizer's bomber mode, the aft fuselage (that you need to plug the stabilizers into), and the accessories baggies (containing, among other things, the G-Jet, G-Shark, and G-Tank). The second tray has parts for robot mode--arms, abdomen/legs, extra hands, and the stand and landing gear for bomber mode.

There's actually not a whole lot to say about the toy, itself...and I consider that a good thing. On one hand, I don't have as much time to spend playing with toys these days, but on the other, I just simply appreciate a toy that doesn't require a lot of book-keeping and busy-work to entertain me. With this toy, I can just let my imagination go with a genuinely cool, solid toy.

So, let's get started with Groizer-X, the bomber:

First off, it's worth mentioning the stand. It's a very simple affair requiring the arm to be plugged into the base. Near the top of the arm, where it connects to Groizer, there is a pivot joint that allows the bomber to be displayed at different angles. Very basic, but I like it because it's secure, it's stable, and it gets the job done.

Now...the good stuff. As you can see, the bomber looks pretty damn good:

The main wings are each one solid piece of plastic. They're well painted with a nice glossy sheen, but they're pretty light. Add to that the aft fuselage being almost all-plastic, you actually have a very lightweight toy. Initial reports of this toy clocked the diecast at only 30%. Well, that's probably true...for bomber mode. But really--what does this thing do? Is a lot of heft an actual requirement for this mode?

The stand is somewhat light ABS plastic and the pivot joint where it plugs into Groizer-X would really suffer if it were any heavier. Sure, Yamato could beef it up, but I just don't see the need...

The bomber doesn't feature too many gimmicks. One nice touch is removable landing gear. A panel pops out of the chest for the nose gear to fit into. Two panels in the aft section recess to allow the aft gear to plug into. The chassis the wheels are attached to are ball-jointed, which is a nice touch I guess. While the wheels don't actually roll, you can at least display the gear in different positions...plus, they can conform to uneven surfaces. Yeah, not a lot to write home about.

The one feature I kinda dig is the "Flying Torpedo" accessories. Yeah, I know it's been compared to sperm and other funny biological entities I can't really talk about here...but it's pretty cool. Basically, that big door on Groizer's chest opens and has an attachment rail. You get the Torpedo warhead, the whole Flying Torpedo, and an exhaust trail to which the Torpedo can attach. All of these can attach to the rail to simulate different stages of firing:

Okay, yeah, I guess it's a bit of superfluous accessory, like the ones I mentioned that normally annoy me about most modern gokin. Truth is, as fun as it was to photograph, stuff like the landing gear and Flying Torpedo bits are going right back in the box. The bomber and the stand are all I care about.

Before we leave the bomber and move onto the robot, let's just take a comparison of Yamato's Groizer-X bomber and Nakajima's bomber:

Not too shabby, but Yamato's version could definitely have benefitted from missiles or some other kind of spring-loaded shooty gimmick.

Now, on to the robot...

The "transformation" is pretty simple. There's a quick, intuitive rearranging of the chest piece that places the head properly atop the shoulders instead of severely tilted back for bomber mode. Then, you just pull out the wings and the aft fuselage and replace them with the robot arms and legs. Done.

Remember that report of 30% diecast? Forget about it. Besides the chest piece being nearly all diecast, now you have the shoulders and upper arms, and the lower legs and feet...all diecast. This is a substantial toy that really does benefit from the added heft. Unlike the bomber, Groizer Robo is all finger-candy. Sturdy, ridiculously-articulated with strong detents in most of the joints, simple...fun.

Simply gorgeous. It's tall (at just under 8 inches) and has just the right amount of weight and distribution of it. This figure is stable and isn't going to fall off your shelf, let alone disappoint your diecast addiction!

One thing I found really nice is the antennae. They're made of some sort of super-flexible, but super-tough plastic. No matter how you bend them, they're not going to snap off. Great stuff...durability is appreciated.

Gimmicks? What you see is what you get. Accessories? Well...he's got open hands. I love it!

Again, sure, I wouldn't have minded seeing shooting fists or some neat features like that. So how does the Yamato stack up against the Nakajima?

The last major thing about this toy I want to talk about is something I alluded to earlier: the box the toy comes in actually combines with the included papercraft bits to form the landing strip from Groizer's Akane-Jima island base!!

This is cool beyond words...and the irony of it all is that I haven't even assembled it! :P

Honestly, I'm probably not going to get around to it either. This is one of those things where putting together the base is half the fun. Papercraft projects, clearly reminiscent of Japan's tradition of origami, are fun and while not particularly challenging in their modern full-color, pre-printed, perforated form, still take some time to do right.

That's time I don't really have. And more to the point...where am I gonna put this thing!?

This is one huge beast! Now, back when I was a kid, I would have gone ape crap over this thing. Back in those days, I didn't get many toys, so I simply had a lot of time to appreciate the few I had. As such, something like this woulda been perfect. I would have lovingly put together the base and staged all sorts of cool sorties and and invasions!

Then again, when I was a kid, there was pretty much no way in hell my mother would've sprung for a $158 toy!!

Well, such is life. The good news is that our man, Pony has come through with his typical curmudgeon-style review (if you can read it)...complete with gorgeous pics. Please check it out here.

So that pretty much wraps it up. Good, solid toy. Simple and enjoyable. Unfortunately, at a pricetag of over $150 (though you should be able to find them closer to $140 right now in the aftermarket), it'll ultimately come down to folks' love for the character/design as the deciding factor. If it had retailed for around $100, this toy would be an absolute no-brainer.

I'll leave you with my 3-minute teaser review on Youtube:

Thanks for reading! Play hard!

The latest big Soul of Chogokin has arrived ! Godmars is here, and he is fantastic.

The latest big Soul of Chogokin has arrived ! Godmars is here, and he is fantastic.

The program "Rokushin Gattai God Marz" (aka Six Gods Combination God Mars or 六神合体ゴッドマーズ) debuted on the NTV network on October 2nd, 1981 and ran for 64 episodes until December 24, 1982. The Titular Robot was named Godmars – a giant robot made up of six smaller robots. Other than that, I got ‘nuthin.

Godmars was never broadcast in the west, so American audiences wouldn’t know of this character’s existence if it weren’t for it being part of the Godaikin line of toys in the 80s. Godaikin toys were repackaged Bandai toys that were assembled from a wide variety of sources. The GB-68 Popy DX Chogokin Godmars was sold under the line in mainstream outlets such as Child World and Toys R Us without any frame of reference.

The series wasn’t hugely popular and it is remembered more for the fantastic toys spawned from the show than the actual show itself. As Bandai’s Soul of Chogokin line progresses, it has to dig into the second tier characters. But this allows the designers to do a little more I think, because people are less concerned about the character and the accuracy than they are about if it is a cool, well-engineered toy.

I’m happy to say that Godmars is a great toy on many levels. Where the original Chogokin had a great transformation there was a lot to be said about what happened to the extra bits, or “kibble” that hung off the back. Bandai took this opportunity to right the wrongs made so long ago. This toy is a great homage to the classic Chogokin and is available at BetaToys.com

The box is very different from your average SOC. The big, bold title of the robot is spelled out in giant chrome letters, with all the characters flying in from space. Open the box and you get a styrofoam tray with an old-school insert, identifying each of the robots. Even more, lift off that tray to find that the Styrofoam has been embossed with the name and logo of the toy. That is awesome.

Each part of Godmars comes wrapped in plastic, and each unit is self-contained. No assembly is needed, and Godmars is ready to go right out of the box.

Godmars is made up of six robots.

Gaia is the core of the robot, and it hides inside the chest of Sphinx. It is microman sized, and is fantastically poseable. He comes with no accessories other than a set of variant hands. The lower legs and feet are metal.

Sphinx makes up the torso of Godmars. As a stand-alone robot, he is blocky and inarticulate. The head can turn, the arms have a decent range of motion, and the legs can swivel at the calf. The front and rear panels are metal. Sphinx also has a set of variant hands.

Uranus is the white arm of Godmars. This robot is really nicely done, with good articulation and metal content. Bandai did some great things with this toy in regards to hiding the arms so that it looked smooth from all sides.

Titan is the green arm of Godmars, and although he looks different, he transforms exactly the same as Uranus.

Shin is the black robot and makes up the right foot of Godmars. This is one heavy bot, with feet of solid metal. In robot mode his articulation is limited, but he is light years ahead of what was done with the old Chogokin version.

Ra is the blue robot and becomes the left foot of Godmars. This toy has the same transformation as Shin.

Assembling Godmars is as easy as it gets. Each robot folds up neatly with little fuss and no parts swapping. The arms of the smaller robots are hidden in a mechanism similar to Gold Lightan – each arm is collapsed and folded in to the torso, hidden inside. Once assembled, you’ve got a solid, fun toy that feels like it could have been made in 1982. The only thing that spoils the sense of nostalgia is the lack of firing fists.

Godmars has one weapon – the gigantic “Mars Flash” sword. The sword can be held in the existing articulated hands, or in the variant “sword holding” hand. Also included are two larger closed fists. Honestly, the hands that come stored inside the arms are good enough – the other fists are just clutter to be lost.

But wait, there is more. What SOC toy would be complete without all kinds of other accessories that are easily lost?

First off there are three small jets that can combine into one larger jet.

Cosmo Crusher 1 is a long slim gray jet.

Cosmo Crusher 2 is a stubby jet

Cosmo Crusher 3 is a microscopic ship that hides in the underside of Cosmo Crusher 1.

The two larger ships can combine to form the Cosmo Crusher. The toy is all plastic and has a cool transformation mechanism, but it doesn’t feel like it goes with the toy, and will probably remain in the box.

Godmars also comes with what looks like a large stone sarcophagus. You can place part of the display stand inside to pose the Gaia robot. Each of the Godmars robots rests in a hidden place, such as inside a statue or under the sea. It would have been cool if a container for each robot was provided as was shown at Tamashii Nation.

Lastly, A small stand is included, with pegs on the base for holding the hands. The stand has two parts that can be used for various displays. You can attach both parts to create a cradle for the sword, or you can attach the stand to the back of Gaia to replicate a flying mode.

As far as quality control goes, Godmars is mostly perfect. The door on top of Uranus (the white robot) does not like to stay flush with the body, and there are a few small paint issues in the inside of the arms of Shin (the black robot). Design-wise, the toy is great, although I find the legs a little long.

I would recommend Godmars, and you can get him at Betatoys.com. I think he is worth the money, and I feel that you get what you paid for with this one, bucking the trend with similarly priced “gokin” toys.

Next up for review in my Saint Cloth Myth series is another Gold Saint, Libra Dohko.

From Wikipedia:

Libra Dohko is a fictional character in the manga Saint Seiya, authored by mangaka Masami Kurumada, that was later adapted to anime. He is one of the oldest characters in the manga next to Aries Shion, as they both appear in the previous Holy War, and is most known by his role as Dragon Shiryu's mentor. He is also referred to as Old Master (Rohshi) by all of the Saints of Athena as a sign of respect, even though his only true student is Shiryu.

Why “Old Master”? You see for the first 120 episodes of the series (he looks like a little blue Yoda. His legacy as the Gold Saint Libra is shrouded in mystery for the first half of the TV series. So for all of the TV series the Libra Cloth (armor for those just joining us) like the Gemini Cloth has no known wearer. That doesn’t mean we don’t see the Cloth in action, because we do.

The Libra Cloth is the only Cloth that incorporates weapons into the suit. Athena has banned the use of weapons feeling it is dishonorable for Saint’s to use them. Despite this she has charged Dohko with keeping the Libra Cloth and its weapons for the very rare instance they are needed.

In the series the weapons are given to our band of heroes (the Bronze Saints - Seiya, Shiryu, Hyoga and Shun) at several points when they need the extra help, so needless to say when the Libra Cloth’s weapons show up it tends to be during very dramatic moments of the series.

Much like most of the Libra Cloth, all of the weapons included are diecast metal with the chain for the shield and the very ends of the Tridents being plastic. Twelve weapons come with the Libra Cloth, 2 Swords, 2 Tong-Fas, 2 Lances, 2 Nunchakus, 2 Three-section staves and 2 Shields attached with chains.

So it’s not until the later OVA series Hades – Inferno that Dohko is restored to his former glory and dons the suit. Dohko was granted the gift of long life by Athena to watch for the return of Hades Specters who had been defeated in the last great Holy War, 243 years earlier) the trade off for this long life was he had to remain in one spot near the 5 peaks in China. Leaving this spot to confront the resurrected Aries Sion in Sanctuary removes the spell and Dohko dons the Cloth.

The figure looks very nice in the suit, with the head sculpt looking very much like Dohko in the series. The suit is almost completely diecast metal with only the helmet, belt and shields being plastic. This release comes with a Generation 1 type body so the figure has limited articulation in the waist, which is fine as the design of the cloth while worn limits the characters flexibility.

While the completed figure looks very sharp, getting all the parts and pieces where they belong was much more fidgety than previous Saint Cloth Myth figures. All of the Libra Cloth’s weapons come in their full size mode and in their shrunk down mode.The shrunk down weapons go into slots on the suit and these kept popping out while trying to slide the armor pieces on, swapping hands and generally posing the figure.

Also included is a Dragon Shiryu (Dohko’s student and Bronze Saint) head so you can display him in the Libra Cloth (the Bronze Saint’s don some of the various Gold Cloth in the TV series finale.)

With that said the final figure looks very nice and the statue mode of the Cloth looks wicked. Because of the place the cloth itself has in the mythology of the show I will be most likely just displaying it in statue mode.

I really like the Libra Cloth and the Dohko figure and recommend it for any Saint Seiya fan. Non fans probably won’t be swayed to try it just based on its design, but your mileage may vary.

Saint Cloth Myth figures are always top notch, with lots of shiny diecast and great character designs I whole-heartedly encourage our readers to find a design you like and give one a try, you won’t be disappointed. You can get all of your Saint Cloth Myth figures at Angolz.com just like I do.

Better than the original? Can the Legend top the Icon?

• Monday was Dangard Ace (Planet Robo Dangard Ace)
• Tuesday was Starvengers (Getter Robo G)
• Wednesday was Spaceketeers (Starzinger)
• Thursday was Grandizer (UFO Robo Grendizer)
• Friday was Gaiking (Great Sky Demon Dragon Gaiking)

Muteking? Saizance? Doesn’t ring any bells??? Well, me too… It’s a shame though, because the anime gave Popy license to produce one of the coolest and uniquely designed toys…

Muteking? Saizance? Doesn’t ring any bells??? Well, me too… It’s a shame though, because the anime gave Popy license to produce one of the coolest and uniquely designed toys…

I had this toy from 1984. From the moment I had this toy until 2008, I don’t know what this toy was all about… until with the magic of the internet, I found the origin of this toy.

This toy came from an anime called Tondemosenshi Muteking (High Roller Muteking). It is an old anime that aired from September 1980 through September 1981 for 56 Episodes. The anime has the same spirit as the Time Gokan series - it’s a gag anime. The story itself is about Rin, who can transform into a roller skate wearing super hero, fighting the Crodacow Blazers to protect Earth. Muteking is aided by various animal-based robots. One of the robots is Saizance, a rhino that can transform into a plane. The person who is responsible for the mecha design is none other than Kunio Ohkawara of Gundam fame.

The Toy is made of plastic, diecast and rubber. The body is diecast mayhem, with plastic for the head, feet, wings (in plane mode) and some parts to cover the body. The landing gear is made of plastic with plastic wheels and rubber tires. (Note: I removed the landing gears because it’s in bad condition and the rubber is completely worn off). I say it’s about 45% diecast, 50% plastic and 5% rubber. The toy is well made and can take serious beatings.

The length is about 15 cm in rhino mode and 18 cm in plane mode. The sculpt of this toy is dead on with the anime counterpart; crisp with detail and lining with sculpted cockpit. The paint is very good. There is little use of decals, most details being painted. And there’s the must have of 80’s toys, it’s name on the toy. Saizance is painted on the left side while Muteking is painted on the right side.

The transformation process is fairly simple. Just flip the legs inward and press the tail. With the magic of mechanical springs, the shell will flip and become the wings while the head moves inside to reveal its cockpit, just like in the anime. Simple and very shape changing at the same time. And fun thing to do, watching it flip open.

Besides the transformation, Saizance is also able to shoot missiles from the missile compartment that is located in the wings section. Unfortunately, my missiles are long gone.

Articulation only exists in the jaw and cockpit. The jaw can open and close, while the cockpit hatch can be opened. Originally, there’s a pilot (Muteking himself) in the cockpit. But the 7 year old me removed Muteking and now it’s long gone.

The bottom line, it’s a great toy with good play value. Doesn’t shame the Chogokin name and had a great and unique design. Now, if I can find the other robot in the series, the squid one… I would happy as a chimp.

While the rest of the USA is watching the Super Bowl, here I am reviewing Gold Lightan.

I never "got" Gold Lightan. He was one of the many curiosities that I discovered on my journey through the world of Japanese Toys. Only in Japan would they make a toy out of a lighter.

Gold Lightan comes from the show Gold Fighter Gold Lightan (Ougon Senshi Gorudo Raitan - 黄金戦士ゴールドライタン), which aired from 1981 to 1982. The story revolves around Hiro, a young boy who fights evil with his robot buddy from another dimension, Gold Lightan.

This is a reissue of the classic Gold Lightan Chogokin originally released by Popy in 1981. This new version faithfully reproduces the crystal cut chogokin and comes courtesy of Angolz.com.

The packaging has been updated for 2007. Inside the box is a replica of the original box, as well as a velvet lined tray. The toy comes packaged in lighter form.

Transforming from lighter to robot is an exceptionally simple affair. Pull down the feet, flip down the top, fold out the arms, flip up the head. That's pretty much it.

Gimmicks include firing fists and firing missiles. The missile launchers are hidden under the front skirt of Gold Lightan.

If you think Gold Lightan looks like a brick then you are right. In terms or articulation it IS a brick. Sure the legs bend at the knees and ankles, it has elbows, but thats about it. The head doesn't move at all. But if you are buying this piece that is not what you are looking for. This is a big block of vintage toy design. If you dig this aesthetic than this is an affordable way to get a great 80s chogokin.

Gold Lightan is available at Angolz.com.