Daikyojin
There was once a time when it seemed that UniFive could do no wrong. In the late 90s they came out of nowhere with a series of high quality diecast toys. The licenses were a mix of the obscure and the beloved. Time Bokan, Gatchaman, Mach Go Go Go and even Goranger got the deluxe “Cho Shin Gokin” treatment. About half way through the line’s run they came out with what I think is the crown jewel of the series – Daikyojin.
For those of you not familiar with the character, Daikyojin comes from the TV show Yattodetaman, which was part of the Time Bokan series. Yattodetaman aired from 1981 to 1982 in japan and was also popular in Italy as Calendarman. I’ve never seen the show, or any Time Bokan show for that matter, but from what I gather the show is a mix of giant robots and really silly anime. Robot nerds would probably dig this show due to the mecha designs by Kunio Ohkawara (of Gundam fame).
The Box
The box may be one of the single greatest modern toy boxes ever made. It really is brilliant. First off you have the full color cover box showing the toy in all of its modes. Lifting the sturdy cover reveals a print of a sketch of the Daikyojin signed by Kunio Ohkawara himself.
Beneath that sketch is an amazing retro die-cut tray cover showing all of the glorious parts inside. Underneath that is a clear plastic tray, and then finally, the toy.
Daikyojin
The Daikyojin on its own is a remarkable toy. There is a lot of metal here – the toy is solid. It is big and blocky but still packs in a fair amount of articulation. There are FOUR joints in the shoulder assembly, double jointed elbows, and articulated fingers. Well, to be fair, the hands are broken up into a index finger and then the rest are one unit. The knees click and the lower legs are also heavy metal. In fact, the only glaring omission in terms of articulation is that there is no waist joint!
Daikyojin comes with a full arsenal at his disposal, including a metallic sword, a lance, a bow and arrow, and 2 shields with red metal centers.
The fit and finish on the Daikyojin is just a bit below SOC quality, but better than Aoshima quality. The paint is nice, but the gold plating they used is beginning to wear.
Daitenba
Included with the toy is the robotic horse Daitenba. This giant yellow horse is Daikyojin’s trusty steed. On its own, Daitenba is a fantastic toy, with diecast legs and a sturdy yellow plastic body.
Daikyojin and Daitenba can combine to form a number of different vehicles. First off, Daikyojin can be folded up and inserted into the front of the horse to form a centaur like form called Daibajin.
You can modify this form a bit and transform it into a sort of centaur tank called Daibajin Sensha. This mode requires additional parts such as a missile launcher assembly that actually fires missiles! Amazing!
Once separated the missile launcher assembly can go on the neck of the horse to become a tank mode called Daitenba Sensha.
Finally, the Daikyojin can be transformed into a spaceship with the help of some additional parts such as a control tower and landing gear. This spaceship form is called Kyojin-Go.
As a super bonus, included with the toy is a set of two pins. One a heart shaped lock, the other, a key.
The Daikyojin DX set is a remarkable toy, one that has modern engineering while maintaining the old school styling. I got lucky and got mine at a toy show for cheap back in the day, but I think even at today’s collectors prices this toy is worth it. I would be cautious though and pay attention to the gold plating on any specimen you are considering. This toy is also the perfect combination piece to the Time Bokan Brave Gokin robots that CM’s is putting out.
