What IS the deal with Bakugan? Why is it the hottest toy this Christmas? NathanB and JustinB explain...

Ever year there is a “Must-have” toy for Christmas, and for boys, this year it appears to be Bakugan. Each time I am in a toy store I check the Bakugan section and they are cleared out of these little things.

As an adult collector, A lot of what the kids are into flies under my radar until my Son mentions it to me. He is 6, and Bakugan is currently the cool thing at school. I’ve heard about it before, but this was the incentive to get off of my ass and see what its all about.

Much like Pokemon, Digimon, Beyblade and Yu-Gi-Oh before it, Bakugan is a hybrid toy / game from Japan. It’s actually co-produced by Canadian toy maker Spin-Master and Japan’s SEGA toys.

Rather than let me explain, I turned it over to expert toy reviewers JustinB (4) and NathanB (6)

The idea of Bakugan is that you have these small spheres, maybe 1” around, that have a transformation feature. Each sphere comes with a card, and when the sphere is rolled over the card, the transformation is activated. The card has a metal plate in it and the action is triggered by a magnet. The idea is that you can roll this thing onto your card (or someone elses?) and then you can take or receive damage. At least I think that’s how it works. It doesn’t really matter, because I’ll bet none of you will ever play it.

The figures themselves are immediately recognizable as Japanese. Bakugan  means “Blast Ball” in Japanese, and each has a transforming gimmick we can all appreciate. There are over 100 regular Bakugan, each with a unique spring loaded action.

In addition to your standard size Bakugan, you have these larger Bakugan called Bakugan Deka. These feature the same spring loaded action, but on a larger scale. These are about 3.5 inches across and still retain the card and magnetic transformation.

Dragonoid comes in two colors, Red (Pyros) or Blue (Aquos) and their cards have different attributes on them. Rolling over the card activates a spring loaded action that springs open the wings and head. The legs must be folded out manually.

The plastic quality on these are good, and the toys seem very durable. The construction reminds me of a rubics cube. They each feature painted on detail, with no parts to remove or lose. Bakugan toys are aimed for the 6-11 range and they are definitely age appropriate.

Buy Bakugan Deka Pyrus Red Dragonoid Battle Brawlers

Adult collectors will find these designs too simple, and will be frustrated at attempts to find them. However, kids are going mental over them. We got them these larger ones, but he informed me that the big ones were not as “cool” as the small ones. Go figure.

So, if you need to buy a gift for a kid this year – you can’t go wrong with Bakugan. Strike while the iron is hot. Next year they will have moved on to something else…

The confident and buoyant 14 year-old pilot of the red & orange Evangelion Unit-02 has undergone a radical change from her original human form...

In 2015, Earth is under attack from mysterious, powerful beings called Angels. Their origins and goals are unknown, but the focus of their attacks are on the post-apocalyptic, high-tech metropolis of Tokyo-3- a city designed to be a hidden fortress for the secret headquarters of the United Nations special organization NERV. What makes the Angels such an imposing threat is their ability to project and manipulate AT Fields- natural, invisible, omni-directional defensive shields which cannot be penetrated by any physical attack or weapon, including the most powerful N2 bomb. Learning of the Angels’ existence years earlier, NERV constructed a small group of advanced biomechanical robots called Evangelions to fight the Angels. However, only 14 year old children are capable of merging their minds on a near-spiritual level with the 700’-tall armored humanoids. Shinji Ikari is only one of a select handful who has been able to accomplish this. ...But he does not care. He has been push aside and ignored ever since his father abandoned him when he was four years old. And he does not care if he dies or lives, or if humanity dies or lives. Together with two female pilots in their own EVA Units- the confident, confusing redhead Asuka Langley Souryu; and the curiously silent, red-eyed, blue-haired Rei Ayanami- the abandoned son of NERV’s Supreme-Commander must face his inner demons and find the courage to go on protecting humanity while fighting to preserve what little is left of his own!

Ten years after the controversial and popular anime series aired in Japan, questions still linger about the mysteries, philosophies, and meanings of the show. The two films (“Evangelion: Death and Rebirth” and “The End of Evangelion”) which followed the confusing end of the 26-episode series served only to add fuel to the fires in online debates. Where do the Angels really come from? Why are such monsters named after messengers from the Heavens? What do the Dead Sea Scrolls have to do with predicting the future? Why are there crucifix-shaped explosions? What is the actual height of an Evangelion Unit!?

To join in the celebration of the 10-year anniversary, Sega has contributed a new line of figures to the “Eva” saga.

No- not the Children in school clothes again. No- not the Children in their plug suits again. No- not a new sculpting of the Evangelion Units again. No- not a diorama again. No- not the characters dressed-up in incredibly-fantastic outfits again. And, no- none of the characters dressed-up in winter clothing. Again. (They don’t have winters anymore, after Second Impact, in 2015 C.E., remember?)

Nope, Sega took a different approach to two of anime’s most recognized characters. They turned two 14-year old girls...

...into mermaids.

“Hah--???”

The confident and buoyant 14 year-old pilot of the red & orange Evangelion Unit-02 has undergone a radical change from her original human form... Asuka Langley Souryu (back) has been transformed into a mermaid. Constructed completely of PVC, Asuka sits lightly & casually atop a pedestal of dark gray rock, accompanied by a lone clownfish. Her overall body shape matches that of herself and other female characters seen in the series: small pointed nose, large eyes, thin-yet-busty upper torso, wide hips, and long legs. Well- except for the fact that she has no legs here...

Well... maybe not that way!

The mysteriously quiet 14 year-old pilot of the blue & white Evangelion Unit-00’ has undergone a radical change from her original human form...

In 2015, Earth is under attack from mysterious, powerful beings called Angels. Their origins and goals are unknown, but the focus of their attacks are on the post-apocalyptic, high-tech metropolis of Tokyo-3- a city designed to be a hidden fortress for the secret headquarters of the United Nations special organization NERV. What makes the Angels such an imposing threat is their ability to project and manipulate AT Fields- natural, invisible, omni-directional defensive shields which cannot be penetrated by any physical attack or weapon, including the most powerful N2 bomb. Learning of the Angels’ existence years earlier, NERV constructed a small group of advanced biomechanical robots called Evangelions to fight the Angels. However, only 14 year old children are capable of merging their minds on a near-spiritual level with the 700’-tall armored humanoids. Shinji Ikari is only one of a select handful who has been able to accomplish this. ...But he does not care. He has been push aside and ignored ever since his father abandoned him when he was four years old. And he does not care if he dies or lives, or if humanity dies or lives. Together with two female pilots in their own EVA Units- the confident, confusing redhead Asuka Langley Souryu; and the curiously silent, red-eyed, blue-haired Rei Ayanami- the abandoned son of NERV’s Supreme-Commander must face his inner demons and find the courage to go on protecting humanity while fighting to preserve what little is left of his own!

Ten years after the controversial and popular anime series aired in Japan, questions still linger about the mysteries, philosophies, and meanings of the show. The two films (“Evangelion: Death and Rebirth” and “The End of Evangelion”) which followed the confusing end of the 26-episode series served only to add fuel to the fires in online debates. Where do the Angels really come from? Why are such monsters named after messengers from the Heavens? What do the Dead Sea Scrolls have to do with predicting the future? Why are there crucifix-shaped explosions? What is the actual height of an Evangelion Unit!?

To join in the celebration of the 10-year anniversary, Sega has contributed a new line of figures to the “Eva” saga.

No- not the Children in school clothes again. No- not the Children in their plug suits again. No- not a new sculpting of the Evangelion Units again. No- not a diorama again. No- not the characters dressed-up in incredibly-fantastic outfits again. And, no- none of the characters dressed-up in winter clothing. Again. (They don’t have winters anymore, after Second Impact, in 2015 C.E., remember?)

Nope, Sega took a different approach to two of anime’s most recognized characters. They turned two 14-year old girls...

...into mermaids.

“Hah--???”

The mysteriously quiet 14 year-old pilot of the blue & white Evangelion Unit-00’ has undergone a radical change from her original human form... Rei Ayanami (back) has been transformed into a mermaid. Constructed completely of PVC, Rei sits casually & comfortably atop a pedestal of light gray rock, accompanied by a sea turtle and a starfish. Her overall body shape matches that of herself and other female characters seen in the series: small pointed nose, large eyes, thin-yet-busty upper torso, wide hips, and long legs. Well- except for the fact that she has no legs here...

Her mermaid tail is painted a dark blue with softer light blue highlights. The tailfins are like those of a dolphin or whale. Continuing upwards, rather than having the tail be a completely original body part, a hint of distant parallel evolution is implied with a somewhat human knee halfway up her tail. There is an indent where her ‘thighs’ would be running from hip to knee, further suggesting that her legs had fused together rather than her simply loosing them and then growing a brand new tail. For modesty’s sake, Rei is wearing a light gray bikini-style metal girdle. The girdle run around to her backside as well, with a pair of flowing white, um- ‘scarves’ threaded through painted hoops. (One could think of them as dorsal fins if they wished, though looking closely you can see that they are indeed tied on.) Unlike your average mermaid, this one has no fish scales. So the ‘skin-to-scales’ transition is only a change from the blue tail paint to the plastic’s natural pale coloring just below her hips, and allows for a risqué view of her still quite-human backside which is protected somewhat by the girdle.

Wrapped around her thin upper body is some kind of white bikini top- held together around her busty chest in front by a painted metal ring, and tied in back with the two long flowing halves of the painted PVC cloth into a bow. Around her neck is a painted metal choker from which hangs a small emerald diamond. On both upper arms are metal ringlets, and she had a light gray bracelet tied over her right wrist. In “Evangelion”, the teenage pilots wear nerve headsets to connect them mentally to the Eva Units. These hide under the hair for the most part, but two little colored barrette-like bumps appear on either side of the head. What Sega did here was swap-out Rei’s normal white headset with a pair of similar-looking white seashells placed in the same locations. If you didn’t see the series, they look like an accessory that a mermaid might wear; but for fans it brings a knowing smile. Rei’s eyes, which have natural red irises, look more like pre-applied decals than having been painted on; it’s hard to say. Her eyebrows and hair share the same off-blue paint to match the pale, almost white, coloring in the series. Rarely seen, there is a very small hint of a smile on her face, though I would say that it is up to interpretation.

For accessories, Rei holds an irremovable white shell phone in her left hand. Why? Beats me; she didn’t have one in the series. The pedestal-like coral stand she is affixed to is molded in simple light tan PVC, and then highlighted in a pale gray paint. A small green PVC sea turtle and pink starfish permanently ornament the base of the pedestal.

Construction is fairly well done. All parts have been glued on tightly, and do not move. They are also seamlessly put together, and it is hard to spot the separation points. The PVC is solid except for the base of the pedestal (which is open from below). Mold lines are difficult to spot at first, and are perhaps most easily spotted on, again, the pedestal.

Rei is shipped in a mildly aqua blue-decorated cardboard window box with a retracting handle, sandwiched between solid and transparent plastic inside. Since there are only two mermaids in the series, each character appears on either side of the box.

For a first outing, the limited Extra Mermaid Figure series by Sega started out well. Both Rei Ayanami- and fellow EVA pilot-turned-mermaid, Asuka Langley Souryu- have different expressions, poses, accessories, and overall looks. There is little if any criticism I can offer, let alone suggestions for alterations. (Well... maybe one- the holes in the shell phone are a little out of place.) If you are a fan of immobile figures, this is a change. If you are a fan of Rei Ayanami and Asuka Langley Souryu, this is a change. If you like “Evangelion” in general, and are looking for a change, this is it. I got mermaid Rei-chan and mermaid Asuka-chan because they were different. Any model company can dress up a favored character in interesting-looking clothes from different era or environments... But change their species!? That’s different! I recommend getting Rei Ayanami from the Extra Mermaid Figure line, if you can find her anymore. She’s cheap, she looks good, and she seasons your figure collection up a bit.

Well... maybe not that way-!

RAGE OF GOD...!

...just in time for the Holidays! :)

When I was real little, I remember watching Creature Double Feature on tv with my dad every Saturday morning. He worked long hours, so it was a real nice treat to be able to share that experience with him! I remember watching AIP's English-dub of the Daiei classic daikaiju eiga, Majin, Monster of Terror (or "Daimajin", in Japanese). Despite having seen the complete Daimajin trilogy about a million times via bootlegs of the AIP dubs as a teen, and more recently via ADV's DVD releases, I still have one very specific memory from one of the films when my father and I first saw it back on Creature Double Feature.

The baddies end up desecrating the stone statue of the oppressed villagers' God, the Majin...by driving a 3-foot steel pike into its forehead! To make a long story short, the statue comes alive, runs amok--and here's the juicy part!--when he has the main villain cornered, he pulls out the pike, which he'd neglected to remove during his rampage, and impales the sumbitch!!

Divine retribution in the house!!

Needless to say, imagery like that'll stick with a 5-year-old! Lemme tell ya, I'm no theist, but I'd kick ass for this Lord! Yup, this was no kiddie-kaiju flick with a moral at the end like "Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster"!

Fast forward to today: avid Japanese robot/glowie monster toy collector and 80's nostalgia geek. Well, I got the dvds covered...now about those toys... There's been some Daimajin love here and there as of late, but nothing by way of standard-sized classic-sculpted glowies. There's one from Marusan of Daimajin as a statue, but nothing so far of him as a fully-awake, pissed-off God.

Time to take matters into my own hands. A thread started by sketcher on ToyboxDX first caught my eye: apparently, Sega had released a 14-inch figure of Daimajin in a very realistic and menacing sculpt. I knew right there that I had to have it. A trip to eBay and $20 later, I had one of the best Daimajin figures out there. While not the largest available, it was certainly the best compromise between size/sculpt, and price!

At the time of purchase, I was heavily into glow-experimentation (or was that drugs?). Well, either way, it didn't take very long for me to grow weary of the non-glowiness of this God. I mean, he IS a God, afterall! Shouldn't he at least glow in the dark!?

Menacing...but not quite there yet...

So, just as with my Garamon/Garadama glowie custom, I went to work...armed with a combination of glow hand- and spraypaints from ReadySetGlo. This was different, though. This time, I was trying something I'd never attempted before. Not only was I messing with a now hard-to-find toy of a childhood icon, but I was trying to create a full glow-in-the-dark toy from a completely non-glowie one.

At first, I just hand-painted the face in green glow paint and the eyes in aqua glow paint (about 3 coats). This resulted in a very craggy, chiselled rock look, which I like.

But with the recent advent of glow spraypaint, and bolstered by my experience with Garamon, I decided to push the envelope. I hand-painted the fists green and parts of the creepy Oni face on his armor aqua (I left the Oni's eyes and teeth unpainted to produce a more ghostly look while glowing...).

After some masking with trusty Parafilm-M, a couple cans of red glow spraypaint, and four coats of spray varnish, I think I can safely say that the gods would be pleased!

I used an interesting spraying technique somewhat similar to what I did with Garamon. I actually suspended the toy horizontally and sprayed in only one direction: from the top (his head), downward towards his feet. Obviously, this deposits a lot of glow paint on the top, raised surfaces, not as much on the flat, vertical surfaces, and very little on the downward-facing surfaces. The effect is that, from the top, he looks bright as a raging sun, while from below, he looks ancient--almost rusted--with malice!

The glow effect is pretty amazing. First of all, it's RED! Ya just don't see too many red glow-in-the-dark toys! Standing among other, traditional glowie toys, he stands out magnificently! Also, because of the uni-directional spraying, it always looks like there are shadowed parts of him while glowing. This faux-shading makes the glow seem more "realistic", as though there is some sort of light source right above him. As far as I know, this effect is pretty unique among glowies, which normally cast out light in every direction from every exposed surface.

Another effect that's clearly noticeable right off the bat is the intensity of the glow. None of these images are altered in any way--I just increased my camera's exposure time to about eight seconds. You can tell right away, though, that the red is far more understated--again, like rust--than the intense green or aqua. I dig this contrast a lot!

One last note about the glow is the duration. Interestingly enough, the red spray glows for about 50% longer than traditional glow vinyl toys. Also, it holds onto its intensity very well (i.e., it doesn't dim much over that time). Meanwhile, the green and aqua paints actually last maybe 5-10 times longer that traditional glowies...often throughout the night!

Light absorption differs as well: if I leave just a cheap desk lamp on in the room for a while, all normal glowies will at least charge a little, while these glow paints remain almost completely dim. These paints require exposure to more intense light to charge any appreciable amount. Direct light from a brighter lamp or, of course, blacklights work great in this regard. And once you get them charged...!

Finally, to help put Daimajin's glow effect into proper perspective, these last pics show Daimajin standing next to the recent Popy/B-Club glowie reissue of the Bullmark Giant-Sized Godzilla, and the two toys' comparative glow effects. Enjoy and Happy Holidays!

(Big up to sketcher for letting me use his unmodded Daimajin pics! I never took any pre-mod pics of my own!)

JJ is great little figure from the obscure Zillion line from Sega, a company that did not often manufacture action figures. I wish I could have acquired the entire Zillion line back in the 1980's.

Japan never really caught on to the 3¾ size type action figures like the USA. American makers such as Kenner, Hasbro, and Mego seemed to edge the worldwide market on this style of toys with such great toy lines as Star Wars and GI Joe. Of course there are exceptions, Takara's legendary Microman series and one of my personal favorites Sega's 1987 Zillion line.

Zillion was a Sega / Tatsunoko co-production based on the Sega video game of the same name. It has been said that many of Zillion's character and mecha designs were left over from the aborted Robotech: The Sentinels series by Harmony Gold.

The 3¾ Zillion line had six releases: White Knight JJ, White Knight Apple, White Knight Champ, a motorcycle with a side car, and an impressive motorcycle that transforms into armor.

These Zillion toys were rare in the USA. Pony Toy Go Round, Los Angeles' Little Tokyo anime haunt in the 1980's, never really seemed to stock the Zillion line except JJ and the transforming Motorcycle. As a teenager I even wrote to them about purchasing Apple and Champ but they kindly said that they were unavailable.

But I do have my White Knight JJ!

JJ comes packaged in a small colorful box with a display window that shows JJ figure's face. The package includes one JJ figure, headset, gun pistol, holster, 2x shoulder pads, a screw plug, a sheet of stickers and a full color instruction sheet that doubles as a poster. The only assembly is putting the screw plug on his back on and the shoulder pads on his shoulder.

Articulation includes the typical GI Joe movements but with swivel legs and feet added, most likely so JJ can sit on the motorcycles correctly. But keep in mind the JJ is a bit fragile and I wouldn't exert the figure to the rigors of a GI JOE or Star Wars figure.

I like the face sculpt and It is great to see an anime style face on this size of figure. The paint includes glossy painted face features with flat painted hair.

JJ's accessories fit well with a snap on the leg for his holster. His pistol can be put in either his hands or the holster, but the holes in his hands are much bigger than the pistol handle itself. In fact the worse feature on JJ are the hands which are badly molded with thin plastic and are fragile. His headset fits on his head with tension but doesn't completely go around his head. The shoulder pads I believe are meant to be glued on but they hold on well without glue for display.

JJ is great little figure from the obscure Zillion line from Sega, a company that did not often manufacture action figures. I wish I could have acquired the entire Zillion line back in the 1980's. What I really wanted was the crown jewel of the line., The transforming Motorcycle that is to this day one of few toys I regret not buying. There is something about the Zillion series I like, most likely it's the 3 ¾ sized action figures that is not normally seen in Japanese toys.

Here is an excellent vinyl toy that doesn't seem to get the credit it
deserves.

Here is an excellent vinyl toy that doesn't seem to get the credit it deserves. The head and tail both turn and the arms raise and lower. It's well sculpted with great painted detail, particularly in the mouth and on the teeth and claws. At 10.5" from head to toe and nearly 16" from head to tail, the toy has a commanding presence next to most standard size vinyls.

Best of all, it has a small price tag. It can be pretty easily had on eBay for between 15 and 20 dollars. This Gamera comes in a bag with a header card. A great addition to any kaiju fans collection.

Nuku Nuku comes from the anime OAV Bannou Bunka Nekomusume, otherwise known as All-purpose Culture Catgirl Nuku Nuku.

Nuku Nuku is depicted here in her school uniform. She's made out of soft plastic, about 8" tall and comes fully painted and assembled in resealable packaging. She's got no articulation.

Her base is a clear plastic piece that has a metal rod sticking out of it. You insert the rod into Nuku Nuku's foot to have her stand on the base. Be warned, the plastic of the base is fragile, and the weight of the figure will cause the base to crack and eventually cause the leaning seen in these pictures.

This figure can be had pretty cheap, about $10, but unless you are a diehard Nuku Nuku fan, skip it.