Stuff I Consider Bullshit: How I Feel About Toy Karma

It's a word I hear thrown around a lot, toy karma. I don't think it really hit it's stride till the popularity of the Toy Hunter show. I don't care for the Toy Hunter show and I'll go into greater detail in the near future. In fact, I'll go so far as to say I hadn't really heard of the term till it's repeated use on the show. Now I hear everyone talk about it, throwing it around but I'm fairly sure they don't know what they are talking about. I have to say that when I hear it, I wince and close whatever tab on my browser it came from. I hear it and I'm almost feel like it's some kind of open-ended threat like, "Oh yeah, send me something good and I'll get around to sending you something junky that you'll just have to accept because it's a trade in good faith." Seriously, it's shit like that I've dealt with personally and it makes me sick. Almost to the point of just not dealing online.

Firstly, I need to get something clear, I am nowhere near stingy. I have random giveaways and I always pack the boxes with extras. Everytime I pack a box for a sale or a trade, it gets filled with extra goodies. Every transaction that leaves my house gets a little something extra packed it. I don't think of this as toy karma, I think of this as being a decent person. Early in my toy dealing career I would do business with some friends I made overseas. I'd get whatever Godzilla or Ultraman figure I was buying but I'd also get like an old magazine (sometimes a month old or a few years old), some candy, another smaller toy....just whatever. I came to find out it's a very Eastern way of doing business. Later on I'd see KidRobot adhere to the same cultural ideal when doing business with them. Which I have to say the Dunny Swatch we got from them was the coolest thing in the box and we didn't even order it. It's a way of life I adhered to a while back and I don't expect anything in return, I think I'd feel bad for expecting someone to reciprocate when it wasn't part of the agreed deal in the first place.

Now, this last year I had gotten sucked into five open-ended trades. Two panned out and to be honest I felt like it was a little one sided when you give six vintage Star Wars figures and get modern Happy Meal toys from the last couple of years or incomplete 90s Toy Biz Marvel figures. And somehow I feel like a poor sport complaining but I'd rather had held onto my vintage extras and I sent the pile of Croods Happy Meal toys back to the sender and terminated communication with them. The other three never came to fruition and it's probably for the best. I'm not going to hound someone to come through on their end of a deal, I'm just going to remember it down the line when something else comes up. Everything I've given away (and that's how I pretty much consider it because I donated those toys when it comes down to it) I'm not going to miss, I've got plenty of stuff to burn through but I do have to say I'm personally insulted.

I have to say the personal insult I've endured is what makes the phrase a turn off for me. And I know people who don't mean it in the way my brain has misconstrued it and I know I can't be the only person that has gotten seriously jipped in one of these transactions.

Prepare for the coming of 8-Ball, a Raging Nerdgasm inside look

(join the fun www.facebook.com/ragingnerdgasm)

Those of you that have followed me for any length of time know I'm particularly partial to Kickstarter campaigns. It's a great way to not only get something funded but also get something in return for donating towards someone's cause. I've done a bunch of them in the last 12 months, everything from Renny's Oki Doki food truck and the many OMFG minifigure series to the Uncle Rukus movie and tons more media projects. Some have gone through, some have not but all have gotten not only my monetary support but also my personal vote of confidence and usually some kind of write up on www.ragingnerdgasm.com . As luck would have it, when the project is about a toy it gets a little more attention from me. I've gotten very active when it comes time to support the OMFG minifigure series, so much so we entered a design and won a spot in the upcoming series 4. While cruising Facebook posts a couple of months ago I saw a post for a 4 inch tall creature strongly resembling a Madball figure. I read the tag line;

(I can't tell you how much I like this mini poster.)

"Coming to Kickstarter in July comes your chance to own the first of Radioactive Uppercut's newest line up; Radioactive Rumblers."


What is Radioactive Uppercut? What is a Radioactive Rumbler? Good questions one and all, they will be answered shortly.

(Background card art not final.)

Radioactive Uppercut is the working name of Johnny Santagada, a man who's professionally been a part of the toy industry working for the greats such as DC Direct, Mezco and Gemmy (known for making everything from animatronic Santa Claus to Freddy Krueger and beyond). Designed by Johnny Santagada and sculpted by ERA Sculptures, 8-Ball is a detail packed 4 inches tall vinyl figure with 3 points of monster mashing articulation. The project encompassing 8-Ball and the Radioactive Rumblers have been an ongoing project for Johnny for the last 6 years, a labor of love waiting for the right opportunity to spring it on the collecting world. If you ask me the time is certainly right. Art toys, vinyl toys and independent toys are three of the hottest commodities in the market, especially when you consider the ever rising cost of figures at retail and the value you get for your money is laughable.

(Dat ass @_@)

The inspiration for 8-Ball comes from 50's and 60's sci-fi / horror movies and comics along with 80's gross out toys like Madballs, Monster in my Pocket and Garbage Pail Kids. All of those 80's toy lines are hot commodities on the secondary market right now with even figures in poor condition commanding big money. The verison you see in the photos will be the exclusive Kickstarter color scheme, anything sold outside of the Kickstarter campaign will have a different decoration. $55 gets you 8-Ball in all his classic sofubi glory packaged in a poly bag with header card and a trading card featuring original art on one side and character statistics on the other. Of course there will be other donation tiers featuring everything from custom painted 8-Balls (by the likes of George Gaspar, Spanky Stokes, Ed Long, Damien Glonek, Monsterforge, Tom Connors, Butcher Brand, Motorbot, D-Lux and Topheroy), "Radioactive" green and blank white 8-Balls for you to test your painting skills with. Also putting your money where your mouth is will get you exclusive rights to vote on upcoming Radioactive Rumblers (provided that funding is acquired through the first campaign) and color variants of existing figures in the line. Keeping with the time honored tradition, 8-Ball with be manufactured in Japan in true sofubi fashion.

(join them on facebook at www.facebook.com/radioactiveuppercut)

Stay tuned to both Raging Nerdgasm and Radioactive Uppercut for more news regarding the Kickstarter campaign and hopefully more Radioactive Rumblers coming soon!

(A sign of what may be in the future....)

Ultraman's Jamila from Bandai

Jamila originally was a human astronaut who got lost in space while piloting a manned satellite. And believe it or not, Jamila is a woman! Crash landing on a distant alien world without water or air, she somehow not only survived but actually adapted. Pissed off to no end because her superiors hid the accident from the public and counted her as missing in action, Jamila returned to Earth in an invisible spaceship ( just hang with me on this, it's invisible because it's just moving way too fast. I'll avoid making obligatory female driver jokes.) to get her revenge by attacking a peace conference in Tokyo. Ultraman and his crew show up and engage the monster with common weapons (guns, flamethrowers, bombs) but they prove to be useless. I mean the monster looks like a walking herpes scab, I'd shoot some lotion on it.

(for your viewing pleasure)

Ultraman and Jamila do battle in front of the World Peace Conference and it's a fairly decent battle, both opponents are skilled fighters. It wasn't till the end of the episode when Ultraman was able to weaken Jamila enough that he could use his ultimate weapon, the Ultra-Shower (yes, I laughed uncontrollably for 5 minutes after reading that subtitle.). Anyways, Jamila falls to the ground but unlike other monsters that Ultraman fights, the team chooses not to obliterate her but give her a proper funeral and a plaque. A real honor to her memory (happy now, yeesh!).

Jamilla is one strange looking figure, but it captures everything the monster was in the show. Its a giant white monster that's body looks like the bottom of a fat person's cracked callused foot, no neck and low shoulders. Deep sunken eyeballs hiding in the sockets stare out at you glazed over without the hint of a pupil. When it comes to paint, sculpt and scale, Bandai doesn't disappoint. Honestly, Jamilla was the only Ultraman monster that scared me as a child. I'm not sure why, maybe it's because it looks like a circus sideshow freak and that if it had a voice it would probably sound like Billy Bob Thornton from Sling Blade.

Kilazee from Ultraman: Towards the Future by Bandai

(for lack on actual show footage, I must rely on the SNES to give us some visuals)

A monster from Earth's past destined to destroy it, the winged monster Kilazee made his appearance in the final episode of Ultraman: Towards the Future. The final battle in any Ultraman series is usually something to stop and take notice of and this is no exception. This red dragon of death and destruction was nearly impervious to all human weapons, it even sustained a direct hit from a nuclear weapon and did nothing more than shrug it's shoulders and flapped it's wings in response. Looking like the end was certainly near, Ultraman Great took on his final opponent atop of the the great mountains in the secluded outback of Australia. Even though Kilazee seemed indestructible, Ultraman Great triumphed by using his last Great Slicer and Star Beam to kill the beast before picking it up and carrying it into space. Neither was ever seen again.

The Bandai Kilazee figure is leaps and bounds better than the Dreamworks American release. Granted the Bandai figure is smaller and the paint application isn't as good, but the textures and details sculpted into all 7 inches of this figure makes it a feast for your eyes. This version is much more show accurate in detail and fits in with the rest of the Ultraman saga figures from Bandai. The only thing I feel is lacking from the figure is the lack of paint applications. Take into account, the Dreamworks figure has a more colorful paint application but is still far from show accurate. On a personal note, all of the monsters from the Towards the Future line are really hard to find. I've been collecting for years and I'm still 5 characters short of a complete set of this line, Bandai never really went into any great degree of repaints/ re-issues of characters from the Towards the Future line making the figures very collectible and commanding higher prices on a secondary market.

Ultraman's Pestar from Bandai

Pestar has appeared in 2 episodes of the Ultraman saga, this figure represents his debut in Ultraman: the Ultimate Hero or as it's referred to Ultraman Powered. The stories are fairly similar with only a few barely noticeable changes. In Ultraman Powered Pestar is an aquatic monster that's staked out a prime oil tanker shipping route as his home and has become very territorial and hungry for the sweet Texas Tea carried on those vessels. The WINR at first tried to pursue and the monster using a high tech submarine called the "Barricuda" but they didn't take into account how huge Pestar was and after a decent undersea battle, it escapes. The WINR warns the shipping companies of the dangers of that particular route, which is brilliant if they planned on luring the beast out of the ocean for round two.

(do forgive the awful song in the background. Feel free to leave hate messages on that person's youtube page, it's deplorable.)

The very next night Pestar shows up again and goes straight for an oil refinery to satisfy it's thirst for oil, but sure wasn't expecting Ultraman Powered to show up. Caught off guard, Ultraman Powered makes short work out of Pestar by tossing that big boy in the air and firing his Mega Spectrum Ray at the monster. Destroyed in true Ultraman fashion (e.i lots of cheesy sparkles and stock explosion noises) the ocean is safe again.

(Patrick's big brother heard you talkin' shit. Oh, you're awfully quiet now.)

Some of the main differences between the first introduction to Pestar and the Ultraman Powered version is the whole body has been redesigned. The edges of the body are covered in suckers and Pestar's head looks even more menacing, like a bat mixed with the Predator. Also the end fight is slightly better, as in the fight lasts a whole 90 seconds longer and Pestar actually gets a few good hits in.

(here at Raging Nerdgasm, we like big butts and we cannot lie.)

Pestar, to me at least, turned out really cool in figure form. Leaps and bounds better than the Marusan edition, Bandai really did an amazing job capturing how cool the character's design is. He's a big, bulky bastard and while he may not offer any articulation whatsoever, he makes up for it with sheer attention to detail and texturing. The paint job is spot on, even the light metallic flake on Pestar's backside does a great job at highlighting his bumpy exterior. Displaying a figure as wide as Pestar is becomes the only peeve, just because there isn't much room left on a shelf when he takes up residence. Originally, the figure was more expensive that other basic Ultraman figures upon it's initial release in Japan which has translated to an often higher price on the secondary market.

(I'm gonna eat your face!)

Ultraman's Gerukadon from Bandai

As seen in Ultraman: Towards the Future, one night an abandoned carnival was reactivated by mysterious circumstances (yep, it's already creepy beyond belief). When the local police arrived to check it out, the legendary monster Gerukadon affected the officer's minds. Completely overcome by fear, the officers fled the scene while Gerukadon gained power from the Gudis device hidden in the abandoned carnival. One thing leads to another, like in the case of all Ultraman episodes, and the monster finally arrives to stomp the crap out of buildings and bring about the appearance of Ultraman. The fight is quick and to the point, Ultraman blasts Gerukadon with his power beam and the day is saved by our silver and red friend.

(This show was the reason I became an insomniac at an early age. It wasn't very popular in my market which won it a 5am time slot on Sunday mornings.)

All in all, I'm not a fan of this episode. The story is weak, it's fairly boring and with this episode being Gerukadon's only appearance in the Ultraman saga makes him one of the more forgettable characters. Unfortunate since I rather liked the monster's design; giant lizard with a beak, four arms and bat wings. But so was the case with most of the characters from Towards the Future, great designs and poor stories.

(I am vengeance, I am the night.......I AM BAT-LIZARD)

I'm rather fond of this version of Gerukadon, I prefer him to the larger American release from Dreamworks (not the Steven Spielburg special effects company, but a short lived toy manufacturer). The colors are much more vibrant and the sculpt is more like the monster from the show. The only detracting point is the silver accents, I think they could be duller and do more to compliment the color scheme in my opinion. Articulation on this particular figure is rather plentiful; at 2 of the shoulders, hips, waist, neck and mid tail. In the end, he's one of my favorite one episode wonders.

Bootleg Larva Mothra by unknown maker

Mothra has been one of Godzilla's most prolific “friend-emies” over the last 4 decades. Appearing in over 15 movies, we've been bombarded with several incarnations of Mothra over the years. We've had Mothra in her egg, larva stage, cocooned and the ever important final stage (hint, it looks like a moth). Always by her side are the twin tiny high priestesses, called the shōbijin (or small beauties), that translate and interpret the monster's every thought. When Mothra appears it's usually to be the savior of Earth; often doing battle with Godzilla, Battra, King Ghidorah, Death Ghidorah, Gigan, Dagahra, Monster X and the Sea Monster.

(who is Mothra? Why are we playing such suspenseful music? You'll have to watch this 3 minute trailer to find out!)

(sing little ladies, sing!)

This piece was acquired through Planet Retro Gallery out of St Pete, Florida. I was nothing but impressed with the selection and prices at the store, as well as the owner's knowledge. He admitted it was a bootleg he picked up in Chinatown in the late 90's and had sold all but this one and couldn't guarantee that it worked or not. I love a restoration challenge, and even if it never works it's still a heck of a shelf piece for a portion of the price of the original. You just rarely get that sort of honesty from a collectibles shop. It's a factor that keeps me coming back for his monthly sales.

(adult toy or sofubi?)

(ribbed for your pleasure)

The rubber used for the skin of Larva Mothra is very similar to the original release from Bandai, the only different thing is the color. The bootleg is a very light green with white slopped across to bring out the texture while the original is a light bronze with silver and black accents along the body. After some slight tinkering and cleaning, I was able to restore the mechanical crawling function. From a restoration point of view, the components I worked on were of a lower quality than I would expect to be in the Bandai version. With two AA batteries, the bug “crawls” along with the aide of a wheel underneath while rearing his head back and lighting up it's red eyes. A real achievement for my collection and my restoration skills.

(lookin' up Mothra's skirt)

Kaiju Lagoon- mini jumbo sized King Joe by Bandai

King Joe was sent by the Pedan aliens as their main weapon to conquer Earth. Arriving on Earth in the form of 4 ships, the Pedan's ultimate weapon laid siege to a naval fleet until they garnered the attention of the Ultraseven crew. By the time they arrived to provide a counter-attack, King Joe was long gone and on to it's next target. As the four ships arrived at a U.N. Embassy they combined to reveal King Joe's full form, a giant frickin' robot with some strange protrusions (ie- giant electrode tits on his head, a rainbow window chest and what I can only describe as bongos on his ass and hips.) Even with the countermeasures hidden at the embassy, King Joe seemed near indestructible.

(pretty decent scenes)

Ultraseven soon showed up to save the day but couldn't seem to breach King Joe's Pedantic Armor. Soon after exhausting a good deal of his energy, Ultraseven found himself pinned to the ground and became the recipient of some absolutely viscious bitch slaps, courtesy of King Joe. At this point Ultraseven decides the best thing to do is pass the fuck out and hope this alien quits pummeling him.

As King Joe turns his back to Ultraseven, the hero lunges forward and knocks King Joe on his glorious golden ass. Incapable of getting back up again(most likely due to his bongo ass), King Joe splits into the four ships and flees with Ultraseven in pursuit.

It was then revealed that the reason for King Joe's attack on the Embassy was due to a scientist who had found a chemical that is highly reactive with Pedantic Armor, which also explained why the Pedan Aliens have come to Earth as well. King Joe returns, arriving in Tokyo Bay where it trashes a few oil tankers till Ultraseven shows back up. King Joe once again totally owns Ultraseven in a pretty decent fight, even though his weakness is getting knocked on his ass. But Ultraseven has a WMD full of that Pedantic reactive chemical which he shoots at King Joe, short-circuiting and destroying the robot once and for all.

King Joe is in my top 5 favorite Ultraman bad guys (in no particular order Baltan, King Joe, Dada, Pestar and Red King). As the Ultraman story evolves, so do his villains but this version of King Joe is my favorite. No techno cannon, no monotone paint scheme, just very true to the original design. Simple and slick looking with the perfect shade of gold on his suit and a rainbow effect through the “honeycomb” on his chest. The main thing I like about the figure is it's huge! Over 12 inches tall and with some serious weight to him, I've been impressed and desired this figure for years and was finally lucky enough to acquire one through Planet Retro Gallery care of my wife for Valentines day.

Ultraman's Satan Beetle from Bandai

Satan Beetle is the monster "pet" of Alien Clean, who was sent to our planet seeking vengeance on Earth for the missile testing that decimated her home world. Satan Beetle's task was to wipe out humanity and all the pollution they had caused to presumably allow Alien Clean to colonize Earth. Upon it's arrival to Earth, Satan Beetle doesn't waste any time and proceeds to destroy everything in it's path. Soon enough, Ultraman Leo decides to battle the gigantic insectoid kaiju in order to save humanity once again. To be honest, it's a fairly quick fight where Ultraman Leo stomps the crap out of Satan Beetle and even tears one of it's wings off with a lazer finger blast. The brutal fight ends with a mighty Leo Kick and Satan Beetle sparks up like a firecracker and explodes in true Japanese TV fashion.

(dig that crazy 70's synth beat)

The figure is fairly basic, it looks like a friggin' bug covered in horns. The paint scheme is dull but so was the character design in the show. Basic sofubi articulation at the shoulders, neck and hips; really nothing exciting here. Overall, Satan Beetle isn't one of my favorite characters from the Ultraman Saga and I've yet to find any hardcore fans of him either. I think it's just the overbearing tones of the character's model, a creation sent to Earth to destroy us for being dirty and inadvertently destroying a planet that 99.999% of us didn't know was even out there. Even the episode, with the exception of Ultraman beating the everloving shit out of the monster, feels like a 30 minute Greenpeace commercial.

(toy porn, because you deserve it)