Ryuohmaru (龍王丸) comes from the anime Heroic Legend of Demon Wataru (Mashin Eiyuuden Wataru 魔神英雄伝ワタル) which aired from 1988-1989 on NTV in Japan.

This version of Ryuohmaru is made by Kabaya, a maker of candy toys. This toy would have been sold in grocery stores near the checkout and would be packaged with candy. The toy is actually a model kit that requires assembly. There were two different kits for this set, each using the same box. A small hole is punched out of the side so you can see what color the kit is, thus denoting what toy you got.

Although it is a candy toy, it's hardly cheap. The plastic feels nice and solid and once constructed you have a fully articulated toy. Ryuohmaru Is transformable between 2 modes.

Special thanks go out to our own uplandmod for this toy! He got this toy as a child from an asian grocery store in the states, and it landed in my collection. Thanks!

I love toy finds like this one. The Nomura Message Capsule was a cheap, 45 yen counter toy back in 1978, filled with junk to amuse the kiddies. This toy comes from the series Space Battleship Yamato (or Starblazers in the US).

I love toy finds like this one. The Nomura Message Capsule was a cheap, 45 yen counter toy back in 1978, filled with junk to amuse the kiddies. It is like a little time capsule, buried and all but forgotten until I came across it.

From the series Space Battleship Yamato (known as StarBlazers in the US), this Message Capsule is a 1:1 scale replica of the capsule found on Mars that contained a message from Starsha of Iscandar. The message inside had instructions on how to make the Wave Motion engine that enabled the crew of the Yamato to make the long journey to retrieve the Cosmo Cleaner.

The clear plastic capsule separates in the middle to reveal an assortment of goodies relating to the show. I love the simplicity of the items included inside.

• Stickers – One sticker is of the Yamato, the other of the Analyzer
  
• Eraser – a square white eraser with Yamato graphics on the sleeve
  
• Pin – embossed plastic clip pin of the Yamato
  
• Charms – there are 4 charms depicting the crew of the Yamato, and 3 of starships. Included are small blue things that look like wrenches. What those are actually for is to clip all the charms together to make the bracelet.
  
  
  

All this fun for only $5 at Kimono My House!

Thanks to SteveH, who did not write too much.

When I first saw these Front Mission Trading Arts figures, I thought they were chunks of non-poseable gashapon. Much to my surprise, these are fully articulated action figures!

When I first saw these Front Mission Trading Arts figures, I thought they were chunks of non-poseable gashapon. Much to my surprise, these are fully articulated action figures!

Zenith comes from the video game series “Front Mission”. I’ve never played the game, but from what I can tell the mechs in this Trading Arts + line have appeared in various front mission games over the years, the latest being Front Mission 5.

Each figure is about 3 inches tall and features a full range of articulation. The detail at this size is astounding. Each little joint is fully moveable and you can achieve a wide variety of poses.

Despite the small size, each figure manages to come with interchangeable accessories. Zenith comes with a gun (with attached fist), shield, shoulder cannon and back assembly. The parts use a similar connection point, so you can mix and match parts from other mecha in the line. Each toy has a few different connection points, so you can choose where on the character you want the accessories attached.

The only flaw I found with this toy is that the connection on the knees is a bit loose on mine. Nothing show-stopping, but something to be aware of.

Front Mission Trading Arts + are available from select retailers, distributed by Diamond Comics Distributors.

Is that a Space Battleship in the tub or are you just happy to see me?

Andromeda (アンドロメダ) is more formally known as Earth Defense Force Flagship Andromeda (地球防衛軍旗艦 アンドロメダ / chikyuu boei gun kikan andoromeda). It hails from the Japanese show Space Cruiser Yamato, which was better known in the USA as Starblazers.

This toy is a prize toy, meaning it could only be won from a Game machine (UFO Catcher) or purchased in shops specailzing in Prize merchandise. It was released in 1999, alongside a Yamato toy.

This particular toy is a wind up bath toy. Wind it up, place it in the tub and it scoots around in the water. Just watch out for that propeller!

Your eyes are not deceiving you. It's a combining rubber Dairugger XV (aka voltron 1). Bandai released this series of capsule toys in 1982.

There were 8 sets released in all. 7 of the sets came with a small pilot, catalog and 2 or 3 vehicles. The 8th set was a miniature combining yellow Dairugger XV.

All the little erasers could combine to form the towering Dairugger XV, or each of its component Land, Sea and Air teams (Rickrugger, Kurugger and Kairugger).

It is interesting to note that this toy is different than the Voltron Assembler, the US released rubber combining Voltron.

Banpresto cranked out dozens of cheap toys from their Super Robot Wars video game series. Usually it's some kind of SD character or non-poseable gashapon, but this time they decided to put out a fairly articulated figure.

Raideen comes unassembled and blind boxed. What that means is if you are opening a brand new, sealed box, there is no way of knowing what version you are going to get. To complicate things, there were often several different color versions, in addition to the regular version. I know that for Raideen, there is a white, blue, grey, red and maybe even a black version, in addition to the regular color version. The regular color, the one everyone wants, is the hardest to find.

There seems to also have been a version that came with extra parts to transform into the Godbird. I'm not sure of this, but I get the impression that it was a mail away or something like that.

The toy goes together pretty easily, but pay attention ot the little joint connectors. There are actually 2 different sizes, so make sure you use the right size for the right part. The plastic is soft, and some parts, like the shield blade, are bent from storage.

He's only about 3.5 inches tall, but he is a pretty cool little figure.

Super Robot Complete Works Set 05: Brave Raideen is a gashapon (or capsule toy) set released in 1998. Each toy was sold individually through vending machines in Japan, although a complete set could be easily had in hobby and toy shops. Each toy is made out of PVC, and requires some assembly.

Included in this set are:

• Bluger
• Black Raideen
• Gold Raideen
• Godbird
• Raideen with bow
• Raideen with God Breaker

This is the "limited" black version, replicating the highly sought after GA-09B chogokin.
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One Eight comes from the show Daitetsujin 17, and is part of the Toei Robot Biography HG Gashapon Set 01. He's just a small gashapon, and part of a larger set of 6, but I included him on his own here because he is such a unique design, one rarely seen in toy form.

I have no idea how he fits into the story of Daitetsujin 17. he could be a bad guy, or a robot designed by a kid. If you have any backstory to One Eight, please let me know.

He's only about 2 inches tall, plastic, and made out of about 7 parts.