Recent Acquisitions - Other Toys and Figures

[stargatedalek]

went to fisheries museum today and bought a Wild Republic/K&M sharks toob, rather impressed with it actually, considering Wild Republic's track record. I'll hopefully get around to putting a walkaround of it on the AnimalToyForum, or at least of some of the nicer pieces from the set

[Patrx]

Titanus used to frighten me a bit as a kid...not sure why. Maybe it was the eerie looking fog? He's pretty cool though.

It did shoot fireballs at the unmorphed Rangers in its first appearance! Pretty intimidating.

[EmperorDinobot]

I've been thinking about selling my Black Megazord, my Titanus and my Dragonzord. The Megazord and Dragonzord are complete with box. titanus is missing the chains.

The idea is to upgrade to Legacy Megazord, Dragonzord and Titanus. Should I do it?

I have no firsthand experience with the Legacy Megazord, but it's based on the mold for the 2010 Megazord, which has some some distinct pros and cons. It's smaller and a little more dynamic-looking than the extremely boxy '93 mold, and the decals are pretty accurate to the show. On the other hand, the newer mold has a lot of odd hollowed places to cut down on material and some of the details are totally absent. In a bizarre move, the Triceratops no longer has wheels under its treads, but still has weird little ridges in the plastic where the wheels would be. Additionally, the new mold is designed to work with the unfathomably terrible idea that is the Zord-Builder system, so a few of the connections are different. Most notably, the Tyrannosaurus now has odd pegs on its knees in order to connect the Megazord legs.
If you don't mind the new mold, a die-cast Megazord toy is a pretty sweet idea. Value-wise, I have no idea how it compares to the Black Megazord. That black-and-gold color scheme sure looks neat, but that's not what the Megazord looks like - so why would I want it?
As for Legacy Titanus, it's pretty early to say, I've only seen a few early photos of the design.

The only clear-cut winner is the Legacy Dragonzord, which is a thing of magic and wonder and an improvement in every possible way over the original toy.

I'm a really big fan of die-cast. But I'm not sure I wanna get rid of my black Megazord. I really wish the Dragonzord had been an update but with the same connector ports... I'm not against the Zord Builder system, but... I really wish these things were compatible across time and space.

[Ridureyu]

I picked up a few unpainted Reaper minis.  Either I get better at painting again (it's been a while), or the photos will be difficult.  It works for this skeletal character, though.


I got the starter set of the new D&D minis.  It's all heroes and no monsters... but hey, this guy looks awesome.





I also have Scunner from Pacific Rim!

[tyrantqueen]

Itty bitty chibi Megazord

[Patrx]

Hah, that's excellent. Where did you find it?

Here's something I've had for awhile - but the base was missing when I bought it, so I've had to (rather crudely) assemble one for it.
VulEagle
Taiyō Sentai Sun Vulcan

[tyrantqueen]

Thanks, I got it from Yahoo Japan

[EmperorDinobot]

Can you believe this all cost me $35? NEVER EVER EVER end your auctions at 2am.

[Ridureyu]

Nice!

[EmperorDinobot]

Very nice. Have no idea where to put Croc, though. He's 10 in tall!

[Ridureyu]

Wow.  I'd been working out a deal for a while for pretty much all of the Yokai bottle cap figures I was missing. I ende dup with all but two (one fleeing human mother with child, and one ultra-rare pair of Tengu).  Since I got like twenty figures out of this, I will show off eight at a time and stagger 'em.  The ones that don't appear to be on black bottle cap bases are figures that fell off said bases.

Pretty much all of these are Tsukumogami - antique objects that have come to life.



Here is a pair of shoes.  Asagutsu is a porcupine with a shoe for a head (a clog, even), and Kutsusura is his rider... who has the other shoe for his head.


Biwa-Bokuboku is a Biwa (a type of lute) that has come to life because nobody plays him.  At his feet, though you can barely see it, is a Koto (a ground harp) that has also come to life.


Furuogi is an old fan that has gained a life of its own.


Gekima is a living spear.  See that spear he's carrying?  It's what he is.


Kumade is actually a metal rake - again, the object he carries is what he is.


This guy is two creatures!  Essentially, it is Gotokuyashi - see the triver on its head (metal pot holder)?  He is its personification, and blows flames around.  But he also has a cat's face and twin tails, identifying him as Gotokuneko - a type of cat demon that keeps fireplaces warm.


Although this looks a LOT like Aobozu (the blue/green cyclops monk), it is actually Mehitotsubozu - the one-eyed monk.  Actually, they might be the same thing.  It's hard to tell.


Now, here's a fun pair.  The dark creature with a hammer is named either Daichichi or Ooari - Ooari is a reference to his antlike appearance, though Daichichi seems to be the "correct" name.  The blobby dude he is about to pound is named Taiki.  Nobody has found any actual myths or legends connected to either creature, but the motif of Daichichi about to smash Taiki with a hammer is really, really common in Japanese art.  Like, you can find it in just bout any Yokai crowd scene.  It's like a meme.  A centuries-old meme.

More later! Just wait until you see the Buddha zombie with its eyes hanging out, or the crocodile with a gong for a head, or the human victim, or the Yokai ripped off from Alien!

[Ridureyu]

Time for eight more!


Sho-Oni is an Oni created from a Sho, a type of Japanese woodwind.  You can listen to it here: https://ccrma.stanford.edu/groups/gagaku/woodwinds/sho.html
So, here's the thing.  this is an Oni with a long-nosed Tengu face, bird wings, a monkey body, and a Shakujo staff.  And despite that, what it REALLY is... is a living whistle.


It's two for one!  Waniguchi and Mokugyo! 
Waniguchi is a gong that, upon gaining sentience, grows an alligator body.  Yes, indeed.  Andflying above him is a living Mokugyo, i.e. a Wooden Fish.  Wooden fish are fixtures in Buddhist temples - they used to look like fish, but nowadays most are round.  It is a type of drum made of hollowed-out wood that almost sounds like a bell.


This fellow here is named Kutsu. See those black and green things on the side of his head? Those are shoes.

Kutsu is a shoe ghost. He is the shoes.


Meet Straw and Stick!  Well, Bakezori and Umatokage.  A Bakezori is actually a pretty traditional ghost - a straw sandal come to life.  Most Bakezori look just like a sandal with little limbs, a single eye, and sometimes a tongue.  This guy is clearly economy size, as he's got a full body!  You can see the sandal's thong on his head, though.  Umatokage, despite its name meaning "lizard horse," is actually something we are all familair with - a stick horse.  You know, a stuffed horse head on a stick.  This one includes the front of the body, and has turned more lifelike, but make no mistake - you can see the stick in its back.  The straw sandal rides a stick horse.



This is Dobyoushi, a spirit created when a pair of cymbals is left unattended for too long.  As you can probably tell, it is a very noisy ghost.  Never abandon a musical instrument.




This next one is another twofer - I am going to take a picture showing both in the same frame soon.

The Buddha zombie with hanging eyes is Nuribotoke... and just what it sounds like. A grotesque undead abomination, Nuribotoke looks like a buddha, either pale or with blackened skin, and with eyes that dangle out from its sockets.  Sometimes they have catfish tails.  Usually they rise when a shrine has been poorly-maintained.  Nuribotoke attack people, but they have also been known to disguise themselves as the Buddha and lead worshippers astray with false prophecies.

The little bird is a Torikabuto - which literally means bird hat.  Its head is a type of fancy hat used for ceremonial dances, and the bird aspects are a pun!  There is actually another layer of pun here, as torikabuto is also the name of the Aconite flower (which is shaped like that hat).  Aconite is poisonous, so of course it's associated with a dangerous ghost!



it's another twofer, this one with a surprise.  The dancing thing is a living Hossu - see its head? A hossu is a horsehair (or tassle, or feather) fly swatter used by Buddhist priests.  So of course, it sprouts a body and dances.

But do you also see that other monster?  The worm-snake with Mick Jagger lips?  Well, that Yokai was adapted from a recent horror movie, Teito Monogatari (Anime fans might recognize one of its many adaptations as Doomed Megalopolis).  Shinto's aniist philosophy allows for spirits, monsters, ghosts, and demons to form from newer concepts - if something is scary enough in the zeitgeist, it can become a Yokai (see also the split-faced woman for a ghost based on modern surgical/dust masks).  So, what is this little worm?

A chest burster.

From Alien.

Turned into a ghost.

WELL!

[Ridureyu]

And the last!




Inugami, the holy dog spirit, paired with Hikigaeru, a toad!  Inugami can be extremely dangerous, as they are masters of black magic.  Hikigaeru is just a big ole' toad... and awesomely, this figure is fitted to work with Oboroguruma, the haunted ox cart!


Hoko-Kotsugi is The Pikeman.  Sadly, mine came with his pike broken.


Yaotome is a bird - I'm thinking a heron or crane  who dresses as a temple maiden.  She dances while ringing a bell, which is not pictured.


Saji-Oni is... a spoon!  See, that big horn-ish thing sticking out from his neck is actually a spoon on which his head rests.  There is a spoon.



This unlucky human is being besieged by a Hinotama - a ghostly spirit in the form of a glowing ball!




And finally, the human victim.  Of the two figures I am missing, one is another victim - a mother fleeing with her child - while the other is a pair of Tengu.

[Jetoar]

The last monday I bought some new figures of Transformers.



Spinosaurus is one of the best figures of the line  .

[stargatedalek]

scored the large size AAA "snapping turtle" (Chinese big headed turtle) for $1 at a flea market today

[EmperorDinobot]

I got Beast Machines Cheetor and Rattrap. I love Beast Machines. I used to have a large collection, but eventually turned them into Dinobots. These might be the few survivors from this Age of Extinction...

[Takama]

I got a Nice Replica of the Elusive Gojira.

[stargatedalek]

AAA 29" cast of a monitor specimen, just ordered, so its the sellers picture

[tyrantqueen]

Three coneheads, from left to right: Thrust, Ramjet and Dirge. They are about two and half inches tall, from the SCF line.

[EmperorDinobot]

They don't really transform, do they?