The State of Play

Robotman is intimidated by Gundam Astaroth

 In the last Swordcast, I mused on the nature of contemporary toys and suggested that lately new toys are not aimed at children, but at adult fans and collectors. There seems to be a gap after the early years market which would traditionally have been filled by the 6-10 year olds who would be playing with toy cars, soldiers, guns and other stuff, but who are now totally engrossed in video games. The vacuum has been filled by adults, especially since the resurgence in interest in Star Wars in the 90's and manufacturers have increasingly catered for this market by completely moving the focus from children to collectors keen for detail and fidelity.
For a collector like myself, this is a two edged sword, as although the products available now are amazingly detailed and contructed, the high street prices which would allow a child to buy toys with pocketmoney have long since gone and most toys command prices undreamed of in the sixties.

That said, the nature of the toys is now different in other ways, as a lot of the best toys originate in Japan from the big names such as TakaraTomy or Bandai. Blog supporter Ranalcus kindly provided Woodsy with some stunning examples of japanese plastic recently and knowing my love of japanese robots, Woodsy shared a couple of pieces with me.

Astaroth courtesy of the Mighty Ranalcus

At the head of the blog is a Bandai kit of the 1/144 Gundam Astaroth, a long running anime and comic series. The kit stands about 5" high and the level of detail on it is amazing. Beneath the heavy armour there is a fully articulated armature which has clearly been designed as part of the functioning suit, with realistic joints. The articulation of all joints is flawless, made even more surprising as no glue at all is needed, as each meticulously cast part meshes perfectly with its neighbour. In building the kit, I struggled and actually lost a faceplate, probably haf the size of a grain of rice, as my clumsy fingers couldn't manage to manoevre it into place - even with tweezers!

Perfect Effect Robotman

Next up we have an unusual toy from one of the thousands of small, independant makers. The Perfect Effect Robot echoes the classic Mego Biotron figure from the Micronauts line, but at a neat 4" fully poseable size. No assembly was required here and the tank tracks on hs back are removeable to make a small ground vehicle for the mini sized pilot in the chest. Although it doesn't appear in any film, tv or comic series, it is an immensley popular toy, again aimed at the collector market at a cool £35.

Lost Planet Armoured Suit

Micronauts and Transformers originated in the late seventies from a Takara toy line called Diaclone. This line has recently been upgraded and re-released by TakaraTomy with a 21st century look. The line features massive modular robots piloted by tiny 1" figures. Oddly though, the expensive line has spawned a range of seemingly legitimate knock offs, trading under the Lost Planet brand. Amongst the almost indistinguishable models are a line of small powered suits. Eachsuit carries a single pilot and bristles with accessories. Again, articulation and overall design are amazingly good and at just under 2.5" tall, the basic suit is a marvel of toy engineering.

Fly WeGo!

Hasegawa and Chubu WeGo's

 Next we have a strange line of mobile suits called Mechatro WeGo. The suit is designed for a future Japan in which school children ride to school inside a walking taxi. The suit encloses the child and runs along, dodging traffic and then waits patiently as the child pops open the belly and is elevated out. The suit then either nips back home or pops off to do some shopping! The larger yellow version is a Hasegawa kit, fully articulated with opening belly, elevator and moveable limbs. The small white one is diecast and equally detailed, with opening 'mouth', chest and rear access panels, full articulation on the limbs and comes with an interchaneable heli pack for inter city journeys.

Achilles Magneforce and Batman

 Stepping back a little to around 2005, Takara's Microman line issued some of my most favourite micro figures, in the form of the Magne Force. A powerful magnet in the torso attaches the hips and shouder joints, giving super smooth almost frictionless poseability. Around the same time, the Microman line produced a nice Batman figure, with super movement and a clutch of accessories such as a batarang and gasmask.

Bandai (?) Gashopon courtesy Ranalcus

 Tucked away in Ranalcus goody box were two small gashopon style toys, which I was unable to identify as the text was all japanese! Each came with a small wrapped bar of gum. Barely 2" high, they are interchangeable and feature some excellent details.

Phone Strap Alan and Founder Barefoot

 Next, a classic barefoot Micronaut Time Traveller figure, from the Founder series, cast in white plastic. He stand next to a phone charm Micronaut, at 2" high, but eminently poseable and detailed - definitely not one for children!

Lego Praetorian

 Lego's fortunes have seen them rise from near bankruptcy in 1999 to global domination today. Possibly helped along by the acquisition of some major franchises such as Star Wars. One of my favourite Lego designs are the constraction buildable figures, which though expensive again, starting at £20, are wonders of toy design. The First Order Praetorian from the Last Jedi borders on the edge of the sculptural rather than the toy with its vorticist lines and japanese influenced armour.

Black Series Flametrooper

Lastly, Star Wars figures have evolved completely from the static po-faced lumps of plastic issued in 1977 to a plethora of different figures today. The Star Wars Black Series of 7" high figures were recently found in discount stores at a princely £5.99, but were quickly cherry picked for the prettier figures by discerning collectors leaving shelves full of Kylo Ren Unmasked and Jen Urso. The Flametrooper is a wonderful figure with accurate detailing, let down by a rather soft vinyl flamethrower.

So from Golden Astronauts and Eagle Eyed Action Men, we have moved way beyond simple toys we could throw out of a window on a ragged parachute to collectors pieces which should be safely curated under glass for fear of ultraviolet rays. I wonder what the next 20 years with have in store for the common toy, or if we will in fact need toys at all ?