The Big Scale SOP Yamato is an interesting piece. As a display model it is excellent. Full of detail and grandeur. But as a toy, not so much.

Sometimes I think I spent my entire youth in front of the television set. My fondest memories as a kid were spent engrossed in the adventures of Starblazers, Voltron, and Battle of the Planets.

If I could live in 1978 forever...

The ultimate irony was that for all of these shows that kids were insane for, there were hardly any toys on the market. No Child World store had the Phoenix from Battle of the Planets.

Pretty much all of those shows have shaped what I collect today. Collectors now have their choice of the nice diecast Godphoenix from UniFive, the Masterpiece Voltron from Toynami and the toy I am talking about today, Bandai’s Big Scale Soul of Popynica Space Battleship Yamato. I’m spoiled now, for sure.

But back in the day, I had no Yamato (Or Argo, as it was called in Starblazers). I was teased every day by the images of Starblazers toys on the commercial for Mr. Bigs Toyland. I actually found a piece of wood in the forest behind our apartment that somewhat looked like the Argo. Yeah, I painted that and flew it around the yard. I was Ghetto.

When Bandai announced that they were making a SOP Yamato I went nuts. This was back in 2001, when I was really hesitant about spending top dollar on toys. The thought of a diecast Yamato, all tricked out, made me tremble with excitement.

And then the facts came out. Mostly plastic, ¥20,790 pricetag. Damn, out of my reach. They sold out quickly despite the warm reviews, and prices on the secondary market climbed through the roof. I remember seeing them for as much as $400 at one time.

On my trip to Tokyo in 2003, I didn’t find ONE for sale anywhere. Fortunately my good friend Dave offered to sell me his – it was missing a small part on the back, but it was cheaper than retail so I grabbed it. Of course, shortly after that Bandai re-released it and prices on the secondary market went down.

Years later, is it worth it?

The Big Scale SOP Yamato is an interesting piece. As a display model it is excellent. Full of detail and grandeur. But as a toy, not so much.

The Yamato is loaded with gimmicks and action features. At about 17 inches long, it is a lot of ship. Unfortunately, most of the ship is plastic, with diecast being reserved for a section around the bridge and the rear cone of the engine. The toy requires 2xAAA batteries which will give you about 40 minutes of play time.

Lights and Sound

The SOP Yamato features numerous light and sound gimmicks. By pressing the buttons on the right side of the ship, you can activate the features. Effects include:

• Artillery Firing Sound
• Gun Firing Sound
• Pulse Laser
• Alarm
• Engine Ignition
• Engine Start
• Sailing Alarm

Of course, some of these sounds accompany a light up action:

• Wave Motion Gun
• Bridge Lights
• Rear Engine Lights
• Hangar Lights

All of these sound and lights are demonstrated in our video review.

Action Features

Bandai really outdid itself with some of the action features. There really is a lot going on with this piece.

The turrets on the deck each have moveable barrels and by turning a dial on the side, all three cannons move together. The base parts of the cannons are metal.

On the right side of the bow of the Yamato is a door that opens to reveal the inner mechanisms of the Wave Motion Gun. This door pops open by pushing in a button on the other side. By sliding a part on the deck the bolt can slide in to engage the engine.

The rear of the Yamato features a similar action. Pull down on the long horizontal track on the left to open the door, pull down on the right one to activate a spinning gear in the engine.

Located midway on the ship is a set of spring-loaded wings. Press a button and out they pop. I found I really have to push mine back in to get them to stay locked in.

The chimney behind the bridge houses a secret set of missiles. Slide up the oval part on the right side to lift the missiles out of the chimney.

The small cone at the ships bow is removable to reveal the ships radar, as seen in Space Battleship Yamato 2.

Underneath the Yamato is the third bridge – this features an opening door for ground landings.

The anchor on the front of the Yamato can be replaced with the Rocket Anchor, which features a real metal chain.

The Yamato features a rear hatch that can open to accommodate the included fighters. The side door of the landing bay also opens to reveal the bay lights.

Other Goodies

In addition to the Yamato itself, the set also includes several support ships.

• The Cosmo Zero can be mounted on the catapult arm on the rear of the ship
• The Black Tigers can be stored in the hangar bay
• The Cosmo Tiger 2 can be stowed on a small platform that opens behind the small guns on the left side of the ship.

Cosmo Cleaner D

The whole reason the Yamato traveled to Iscandar was to go get the Cosmo Cleaner D – the machine that will clean the radiation from Earth. Yamato included the Cosmo Cleaner D as a model kit that you have to assemble. It’s pre painted, so all you have to do is put it together.

Stand

The Yamato features a black stand that can hold the Yamato, Cosmo Cleaner D and all support ships.

SO HERE IS THE DEAL

One would think that all of these things would add up to a great toy. I mean, If I had a toy that did all of these things when I was a kid, I would have been in heaven. Unfortunately I would have destroyed it in 2 seconds. This thing is FRAGILE. There are spiny bits all over the bridge that seem to flick off without warning, never to be seen again. The small spines on the captain’s quarters just seem to vanish into thin air. Some of the parts on the rear of the bridge aren’t secured properly, and the fins around the engine don’t secure tightly at all.

Also there are a few issues with the implementation of some of the gimmicks. Pushing the button on the side to pop out the panel on the front doesn’t really work, it just nudges it out a bit, and then you have to get something sharp to pry it open. The wings pop open easily, but you really have to push in past its opening to get them to lock closed.

And then there is the lack of metal. Granted, the toy does have some heft, but it feels so plasticky. At over $200, you would think the thing would be largely made out of metal.

Don’t get me wrong, I like it a lot – it’s a fantastic looking rendition of the Yamato, It is just not what I was looking for. I want something I can zoom around the room and hand to my kids. This is not that toy. This is something you have in an executive office that gets dusted by the “help” once a week. It may be big scale but it is hardly “Popynica”.

Your enjoyment will depend on what you want to get out of this thing. I like it as a display model, but I am still waiting for a great Yamato “Toy” that won’t hurt my wallet.

Looking for an original large size Bullmark Kaiju that won’t put you in the poor house? Good luck – Original Bullmark kaiju from the 60s and 70s will run you a small fortune.Fortunately for fans with a modest budget, B-Club reissued those giant sized Bullmarks for a fraction of the price of a vintage piece.

Looking for an original large size Bullmark Kaiju that won’t put you in the poor house? Good luck – Original Bullmark kaiju from the 60s and 70s will run you a small fortune.

Fortunately for fans with a modest budget, B-Club reissued those giant sized Bullmarks for a fraction of the price of a vintage piece.

In 2001 B-Club released this reissue of the 1970 Large Size Godzilla, using the original molds. One foot has the Bullmark stamp and the other the B-club info. The toy was originally sold bagged with a header card.

B-Club, a subsidiary of Bandai, released four different color variations of this toy. The one shown here is the first version. The first three versions are different paint sprays, but the last version is a Glow version that was a mail order exclusive from Hyper Hobby.

This toy has a really great shelf presence – He just towers over most of my other kaiju. One of the great things about this toy is the fact that I can just hand it to my kids to play with and I don’t have to worry about it. It’s sturdy and solid and more importantly a kick ass representation of the classic Godzilla design.

Special thanks to Club Tokyo.

"Throw the switch!" Dr. Frankenstein's assistant gets the 12" doll treatment.

Fritz is another sort of subsidiary character to be released by Sideshow Collectibles as a 12" figure. From the 1931 Frankenstein, Fritz was the hunchbacked assistant to Dr. Frankenstein and was ably portrayed by Dwight Frye. It was Fritz who was given the task of obtaining a brain for the monster and would bring back a criminal mind. This plot device was unique to the film adaption and was not in the original book or previous stage plays.

The doll is pretty good, but it lacks the distinctive hump on the back and the crouched over stance. You can probably place some crumpled up tissue under his shirt or something to help achieve this effect.

Fritz comes with a stone replica base, a walking stick, a plastic container with removable lid and a brain to store in the container. The container is labeled "Normal Brain". If it were up to me, I would have made it say "Abnormal Brain" since that is the one he actually takes in the movie. Perhaps you can display it fallen at his feet.

Besides adding a hump, maybe the only other way I could think to improve this figure would be to make the clothes look dirtier. I always think of Fritz as being filthy from digging up graves and what not. His clothes here look too new. Otherwise, this is a nice addition to the lineup and, unlike some of the other smaller characters released, he carried a nice price tag at only $20. Fritz was limited to 3,500 pieces.

This figure is nicely done, but I can't really recommend it to anyone but the most dedicated of monster collectors or Bela Lugosi fans.

In "The Wolf Man", Bela Lugosi portrayed a gypsy fortune-teller also named Bela. His role is small but significant, as it is he who infects Larry Talbot with the curse of the were-wolf.

The 12" figure by Sideshow Collectibles is nicely done, but may not really be a vital part of your monster collection. You wouldn't even know it was related to the monster genre without having seen the movie. In that way, it's similar to the Larry Talbot doll . Nice in and of itself, but still remaining somewhat outside of the realm of monster collectibles.

The doll looks great overall, but he wears something of a slight smile that belies the sense of dread and menace that the character in the movie exuded.

Bela comes with a pipe accessory as well as three sets of Tarot cards. Each set does feature cards with individually printed artwork on each!

The interior of the box has some nice imagery of the dark forest, which made me think it would have been cool if all the boxes has some nice sort of cutout displays that you could place behind the figures. Of course, most adult collectors probably wouldn't cut them out even if they did. I know I wouldn't.

95008

Superman is to Clark Kent as The Wolf Man is to......Larry Talbot.

The Wolf Man is a memorable monster character with classic, iconic makeup by Jack Pierce. But Lon Chaney's portrayal of the tormented Larry Talbot is what carries the film.

I'm not sure it's good enough to carry it's own toy though. Don't get me wrong. It's well made, but basically, it's just a guy in a suit.

He comes with a stone replica base, a removable hat and the famous silver-tipped wolf's head cane from the movie. The clothing is nice, but seems a little loose. That's not that big a deal. Where the real problem lies is that, again, they re-used hands from a previous figure so he can't actually grasp the cane and hold it properly.

Much like the Renfield doll, I can't help but imagine this one as a talker. Pull the string and hear Larry lamenting his plight. ["Don't try to make me believe that I killed a man when I know that I killed a wolf!"] But that's just a pipe dream, unfortunately. And as a result, overall this is a rather bland entry in the line. Fortunately, I managed to snag this guy for less than half the initial $40.00 price tag.

"Even a man who is pure in heart
and says his prayers by night
may become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms
and the autumn moon is bright."

The way this toy is packaged, for some reason, made me think I wouldn't like it. I have no idea why I thought that, but I'm happy to tell you that I was totally wrong. In doing these reviews, I've had to take many of these toys out of storage and most were put back when I was done. But not the Wolf Man!

I think part of the problem was that in looking at the toy before taking it out of the box, I had just assumed that the big log that was included was nothing more than a decorative accessory. In fact, it actually serves as a great stand. Place the figure's feet onto the pegs and he stands up pretty well. This is great too, because the toy is constructed in such a way that he is intended to hunch over, as though he were about to leap at you.

And overall, you can get some more dynamic action poses that most 12" figures cannot do.

The other accessory is a trap that can be connected to the log and that also opens and closes. Unfortunately, it doesn't actually have a realistic snapping action.

The quality of the sculpt, paint and clothing is excellent and although the interior torso is flesh colored, the lower arms and legs are brown or fur covered so it matches well. I guess the only bad part about this one is that the feet are designed so that he is always up on his toes, so you really can't stand him up without the base. But that's a very small price to pay to attain the poses you can make because of that design. The Wolf Man's a great entry in the line. A real keeper.

Many great villains have their famous henchman and for Dracula, Renfield is it..

One of the best things about the 12" dolls released by Sideshow Collectibles is that they produced characters that previously had little or no representation in toy form. One such character is Renfield, the maniacal servant of Dracula from the 1931 film classic. Portrayed by Dwight Frye, he was one of the best and most memorable things about the movie. While I still very much like the idea of using the vintage posters for the covers of the boxes, it would have been nice if the character you are buying was better represented. You do get a clear image on the back though.

Front cover

Back Cover

About the only features that are unique to this doll are the clothes, accessories and head, which was nicely sculpted by Mat Falls. The face nicely captures his countenance, right down to the crazy grin. I think the only thing that would be better if the doll was a talker and you could actually hear his demented laugh!

The clothes Renfield wears on this doll can look a little bit bland because it's basically the same style and color from head to toe, but you can remove the jacket and display it that way, which I think looks a bit better.

Accessories include the base and a nice lantern, as well as a large briefcase and the deed to Carfax Abbey. This deed is just a piece of paper and it is packaged in the plastic tray , stuck there with a little dab of adhesive. This seems wholly unnecessary to me. I tore a little bit off the back in removing it and I was careful. I hope no one ripped their's more significantly thinking you could just pull it out.

Overall, this is a pretty neat addition to the lineup, but I'm not sure how wise it was to charge $40 for a comparatively minor character. I mean, Dracula only cost $29.95 but Renfield is $40?!? Seems like a weird decision. Perhaps he was produced in smaller number. At either price, I'm guessing that this piece is mostly for diehard monster fans and completists.

A far, far better rendition of the world's most famous vampire than the toy I reviewed yesterday, this Sideshow doll still manages to just miss on being the perfect Dracula.

Sometimes these 12" monster dolls from Sideshow Collectibles can be the ultimate exercise in frustration. They do so much right, that it's extra annoying when they do things wrong. Because usually it's something so obvious that was overlooked. That one thing that could make the toy go from being "very good" to "absolutely perfect". This Dracula is a perfect example. The sculpt by Oluf W. Hartvigson is masterful, likely the greatest toy rendition of Bela Lugosi ever.

And the attire he is dressed in is meticously constructed to represent the elegance that the Count exuded in the movie. No complaints here. It's a beautiful representation overall. And there is plenty of articulation as usual, with just about every major joint being moveable. Except the fingers. And here is where disappointment sets in. I'd love nothing more than to display this figure with his arms raised high, holding his cape to suggest the form of a bat. It's one of the most iconic images of Dracula, but it's near impossible to achieve here because there is no way for him to actually hold the edges of his cape. I've done my best to make the pose below but it was an arduous task trying to get that cape to stay up. It's basically just resting in his hands and it still doesn't look quite right.

Another thing that just tends to leave you a bit disappointed is the accessories. You get two rats and one large bat (as well as that same useless base that doesn't even fit his foot). Now the detail on these things are fine but...well, the 8" version came with a clear pole so that you could show that one's bat flying. But nothing like that is included here. Sure, the bat looks great, but you might as well leave it in the box because there's no way to show it off.

I don't mean to sound too much like I'm complaining. Overall, this is a beautiful figure and if someone walked into my house tonight and stole it, I'd buy another one tomorrow. It's definitely worth having. It's just not perfect and it's frustrating because it probably could have been.

This doll was released in two versions. The regular full color version seen here, as well as a black and white "Silver Screen Edition". The SSE was limited to 3,500 pieces.

Below is the Castle Films 16mm condensed version of the movie!

Let’s face it – this toy is UGLY. I mean it is one of the ugliest toys I own. There is almost nothing to like about the design. The thing is though – as ugly as it is, it is a LOT of fun.

We are all familiar with the classic Rock'em Sock'em Robots game from the 60s where you have 2 robots in a yellow ring that fight each other. Each person controlled the fists of a robot, and when you hit the head, it would shoot up with a fast spring loaded action.

In 2001, Mattel tried to cash in on the brand name of Rock'em Sock'em Robots by creating a line of action figures. The only thing it had in common with the game was the name.

Each Rock'em Sock'em Robots toy was composed of multiple removable parts that you could re-assemble with the aid of a metal tool. The toys had a fairly simply internal skeleton that acts as a base for all the bits of armor.

Let’s face it – this toy is UGLY. I mean it is one of the ugliest toys I own. There is almost nothing to like about the design.

The thing is though – as ugly as it is, it is a LOT of fun. Each connector has a certain type of connection and you have to use the correct part of the tool to engage it. The parts are solid and the fit is awesome. If you had more than one figure, you can mix and match parts to create your own robot designs.

Unfortunately, I think the poor design killed the line. The play value just does not show through the packaging. If they had better designs for the robots, I think this could have been a killer toy line.

Sideshow wraps up their 12" releases from the classic Universal Monster Frankenstein movies with their rendition of Glenn Strange as the character. Similar to previous entries, but worth it for monster collectors...

Along with The Mummy, "House Of Frankenstein" was one of the movies I had on one of those old condensed 8mm films as a kid. I would forget about it for years but when I finally saw it again as an adult, it was practically a life changing experience. Though it would be several years until i started collecting toys again, I think watching this movie after all that time was what planted to seeds of my collecting. The joy I felt in reliving those scenes from my childhood was exhilarating and recapturing my old toys feels the same.

Of course, with a 2001 release, this toy doesn't exactly fall into that category but it's one I needed to have nonetheless. The head now features the likeness of Glenn Strange who took over the role of the monster following Bela Lugosi's portrayal in the previous film. This is one of the better ones in the series, but besides the head, everything else on the toy is exactly the same as the Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man toy.

The accessories included this time around are ok, but very similar to previous accessories. The standard base is included along with a large book, "Experiments on Life and Death" by Henry Frankenstein, and the brains of Strauss and Ullman. Each brain can be stored in a plastic jar with a removable lid.

Of course, the box features great artwork and this is worth getting just for that. Besides Glenn Strange as the Monster, it also features Boris Karloff as Dr. Niemann (the mad scientist), Lon Chaney as The Wolf Man, John Carradine as Dracula, and J. Carol Naish as Daniel (the Hunchback).

All six Sideshow Collectible 12" Frankensteins.....