Top 5 Toys of 2015 (Older Releases) - Glenn Manders

Glenn Manders is an artist from Brisbane, Australia and is the creator of the Top 5 Toys blog. He produced his first vinyl toy, the Cheestroyer, with Double Haunt and Unbox Industries in 2013. You can see some of his artwork at Bad Teeth Comics.

"These are some of my favourite toys that I have stumbled upon in 2015. Some of them are grails that I have been hunting down for years and some of them are toys that I only discovered recently. They are all older releases so I feel extra lucky being able to grab them. It's always a matter of luck when you miss the initial release of any toy - you just have to hope that one pops up through a secondhand sale somewhere."

5) Garamon by Butanohana

"Garamon is one of those classic characters that deserves a spot in every sofubi collection. The only problem for me was deciding on which toy producer's version to purchase.. You can't go wrong with classic sculpts by Bullmark/M1, especially M1's giant Garamon with doll eyes. Although it's a fraction of the size of the M1, the Butanohana version of Garamon has always stayed in my mind. However, there has always been a problem with acquiring any Butanohana figure though - they are virtually impossible to purchase outside of Japan! Luckily this little guy popped up for a reasonable price on the secondhand market so I snapped it up within a heartbeat with no regrets at all. The crude yet detailed sculpt is full of charm and character with the OG colourway sprayed on top gives this figure a permanent spot on my always changing shelves."

4) Vinydum by Ilu Ilu

"What needs to be said about Vinydum?? Just look at this thing, packed full of texture and colour it is truly a weird/crazy toy! Produced by Ilu Ilu, you know that you are getting some of the finest quality toys in the scene. He may not make the largest toys but he puts just as much detail, time and effort into these little guys as others would put into a 10 inch monster figure. Also Ilu Ilu packaging is rivalled by no one. Most producers are happy to bag n tag their figures - which is totally fine and is beautifully done by many toymakers, creating memorable a hand-drawn or painted artwork for their header cards. However Ilu Ilu takes things to the next level with his custom-made packaging for his figures. Mostly utilizing boxes with display windows for a lot of his releases, Vinydum gets extra special treatment with these custom made "handbag" packaging."

3) Matango (Hawaii Version) by M1Go

"Like many M1 sculpts - this Matango figure has a timeless quality to it. Even though it was first produced in the late 90s, it would be easy to assume this figure was produced in the 50s. This particular version incorporates one of my favourite paint schemes - the "Hawaiian" paint application which was first used in the 70s on the Hawaiian Bullmark Hedorah release. I get the same feeling of nostalgia looking at this figure as I do when I look at some of the artwork in classic Little Golden Books or while watching early Disney animated features - it's almost a perfect toy!"

"This Hawaiian version is fairly uncommon to see for sale these days so I had to think quick when I stumbled across one listed online. I may have overlooked the description at the time because even thought the toy was still sealed in it's bag with header card it arrived in less than perfect condition. After opening the bag I noticed that the figure looked like it had dense spiderwebs in most of it's crevices and the colours were dull. After a few seconds I realized that not only was the character of Matango a fungus monster - my Matango vinyl toy was covered in some type of mould! I quickly hit the Skullbrain forums and did some research about the problem, which turned out to be fairly common with older toys that have been kept in storage. A quick and easy fix was to give the vinyl a bath in detergent and then scrub the harder to reach areas with a q-tip. After drying off, the toy was like brand new!"

2) Standing Hedorah by Hukkokudo (IKB Reissue)

"My first experience with any of the IKB Hedorah figures were through the Gargamel versions of these toys. Very similar to the IKB originals, the Gargamel versions are based on the same three "brothers" but are more cartoonish/smooth sculpts and to be honest were more appealing to me when I first started collecting sofubi. Like many vinyl toy collectors, I started out with western vinyl companies like StrangeCo in the early 2000s so a company like Gargamel was a good introduction to Japanese vinyl for me. A couple of years ago I wouldn't have bought a toy like this, but my tastes are moving more towards crude sculpts like this. The details on this toy can be overwhelming, but they aren't without purpose - for example the head has some of the deepest eye sockets I have ever seen on a toy which gives the silver disc eyes even more contrast in those deep black pits. The IKB sculpts were originally produced in the 70s and are just as good, if not better than any Bemon/Nag toy out on the shelves today."

1) Zanika by B-Club (Bullmark Reissue)

"This is probably my favourite Bullmark sculpt - the perfect example of how the company took kaiju designs from Godzilla/Ultraman/etc and sculpted cheap looking toys suitable for children. The costume worn in the Ultraman tv series was pretty horrific but Bullmark did a great job turning Zanika into a friendly, cute looking monster for children to play with. The bug eyes, simple sprays and expressive pincers make Zanika a total winner for me - so much so that I tracked down and bought both versions to display."

Top 5 Toys - Kirkland Jue

Kirkland Jue is based in San Francisco and runs Toybot Studios - a toy blog full of show reports and features and an online store for his custom pieces. He has been around the scene for a while however he chose to highlight some recent releases for his Top 5 Toys list. As collectors we all change our favourites constantly so this is a good solution for people who are struggling to pick a Top 5 - treat your Top 5 list as a little time capsule of what you're into at this particular time of the year! Here's some comments from Kirkland to kick off his selection of sofubi:

"Finally got around to busting out the DSLR and shooting these new toys. it felt good to get behind the camera and take these shots. It's been too long but it reminded me of what really got me into collecting vinyl toys in the first place, so thank you. I can't say these are my all-time top five toys, but these are my top five toys right now."

5) Camo Space Mode Man by Itokin Park (Vinyl Pulse 10th Anniversary edition)

"I was very fortunate and grateful to score this guy. I am a huge fan of Itokin Park and I have never been able to get my hands on these little space men until now. They are smaller than I thought they would be. Just over 3 inches tall which is the perfect size. The clean Play Mobil aesthetic with the futuristic design and camo paint job makes this little guy an instant classic."

4) Gobo King by Paul Kaiju

"The stars were aligned for this one as I won the recent raffle for the first edition Gobo King in black vinyl with metallic paints. Holy smokes is this thing a beast! 12 inches tall, 7 points of articulation and get this: a removable helmet. The details on this guy with the tank treads, chest gatling gun, disc blade, wooden back door and chain are amazing."

3) Skull Hevi by PUSHEAD x Secret Base

"It had been several years since PUSHEAD came out with a new toy. When he busted this guy out a couple of years ago completely taking San Diego Comic Con by surprise, I was floored and beyond excited. Both the Astro Zombies Skullwing and Kaws vs Pushead Companion were two of the original toys that got me into this hobby. This particular version is complete with the new Hevi arms in a marbled translucent orange with turquoise vinyl."

2) Domino Jack by Paul Kaiju

"This toy absolutely is one of my all-time favorite toys. For me, this toy has it all. It's a robot with a nod to 70's Popy design. I love the rocket fist and the Giant Robot-esque missile-tipped fingers. This particular version is from DCON 2014 and features clear vinyl painted in my favorite colors with plastic jacks and wires as guts and brains. It's perfection."

1) Doublethink by Takahiro Komuro x TAG (painted by Mutant Vinyl Hardcore)

"Several years ago, I saw this picture of this Doublethink character in fiberglass with white hair. I think it was 3 or 4 foot tall. It was amazing and aside from wanting the original sculpture, I longed for a smaller vinyl version. Luckily Gino from Toy Art Gallery helped make this possible produced the Doublethink vinyl toy. A custom toy show was held at TAG and I was lucky enough to score this version painted by a good friend and amazing artist and toy designer in his own right, Mutant Vinyl Hardcore."

Top 5 Toys - Yuck!!!

Yuck!!! is an Oregon native and lifelong toy collector mostly interested in glow in the dark (GID) Japanese soft vinyl. You can see more pictures of his collection on Flickr (https://www.flickr.com/photos/yucktoys) and Instagram (https://instagram.com/yucktoys)

“Starting with TMNT, Ghostbusters, Transformers and Star Wars as a child, I moved into vintage MOTU bootlegs and knockoffs, Remco, and other weirdo obscure American stuff as I aged into an adult collector. I received my first piece of Japanese vinyl in 2007, and knew from that moment it would become my primary focus as a collector, the acme of toys as art in my opinion. I have also always loved things that glow in the dark, with vivid memories of sitting in a dark closet with a flashlight, “charging up” cheapo GID toys and my GID sticker collection which was pasted on the back of my closet door. Considering GID vinyl is a relatively standard base on which a large portion of Japanese sculpts are released, it was only natural I would end up exclusively collecting GID Japanese vinyl figures.”

5) Sleeping Godzilla by Marmit / Sofvi Life

"This was one of my first big wants when I started collecting kaiju specifically. Obviously the “King of the Monsters” needed to be represented, and while there are hundreds of different Goji figures of all shapes and sizes, I’ve never seen another in such a cute pose, so it was a must have. He also functions to me like one of those motivational “Hang in There” posters of the cat, I look at him and it reminds me to stay cool."

4) Hayabusa by Butanohana

"Hayabusa (the kanji on the figure’s chest) translates to “Falcon”, and was the name of a model of vacuum cleaner by company National in Japan, because obviously a person wants all the qualities of a bird of prey in their vacuum. The character is taken from a 70’s commercial produced by Tsuburaya, where a housewife is transformed by her son into an Ultraman like warrior with wings and a vacuum arm who battles a dust kaiju, which is basically the coolest esoteric backstory for a toy ever. Maker Butanohana has a great style all it’s own, but has only done a small handful of GID figures making this mom warrior even more special."

3) Hedoran by Gargamel

"In 1971 company IKB released three differently posed Hedorah figures, which may or may not have been licensed. Flash forward 30 something years later, modern company Gargamel released their own interpretations of these sculpts which were very similar, but smoothed and refined compared to the very rough textures of the originals. They also renamed their versions Hedoran to avoid any licensing issues, and referred to the different sculpts as being brothers, this being the “Second Son”. While earlier versions referenced the colors of the IKB releases, this version from 2006 is an original color release, double poured vinyl, clear green over GID. Green is absolutely my favorite color and there is something very special about this particular shade. Even 9 years later, despite a huge volume of output, I still consider this to be among Gargamel’s very best releases."

2) Ecchi by Emupaiya

"This bazaar figure was one of the first to draw me to Japanese vinyl, the first time I saw a picture I was confused and delighted and knew I had to acquire one. I have always loved character design and never had seen anything quite like this strange beast. It turned out the character was from a deck of promotional playing cards from the ‘70s made by the Japanese Kewpie Mayonnaise company of all things, with each card featuring an original kaiju design in the vein of popular monsters of the time."

1) Giant Garamon by M1GO

"It’s a 15” tall, glow in the dark Garamon, hand painted by Yuji Nishimura of M1GO himself. Nothing more need be said."

Top 5 Toys - Martin Harris

Melbourne based fine artist Martin Harris sent in his Top 5 List this week featuring some classic vintage pieces.. You can definitely see how his collection of toys has influenced his paintings over the years - make sure you check out his artwork here.

5) Wolf soft vinyl toy with real cloth costume made by Bandai (circa early 1960s)

"The wolf is part of a set, which included three piglets, and is extremely rare even in Japan! He is a character from a children’s TV show called 'Boo Foo Woo' produced by NHK-TV (The title refers to the names of each of the three piglets). I don’t know much about the show because it was only screened in Japan. It fascinates me that they have basically taken the theme of the Three Little Pigs and set it in a Mexican styled town."

4) Dr.Seuss soft plastic toy (with attached rabbit fur?) made in Japan for the US market by Poynter toys.

"There were 6 different designs, each with two different colourways. I first bought this exact toy when I was a child, at my local toy store. It was very cheap! But of course at the time I did not realise that these toys were based on several Dr Seuss illustrations, which appeared in Liberty Magazine (1930s?) and were made without a license or approval from Dr Seuss resulting in legal action to have them withdrawn from the marketplace."

3) Okozeruge soft vinyl doll made by Bandai Japan (circa 1973)

"A fish like creature from a TV show, BAROM-1. I love everything about this toy! It was the first vintage toy I purchased. And the most expensive!"

2) Chibull (or Tiburu) by M1-Go

"I first saw this character in an old Ultraseven photo book which a friend of mine had in his collection. It stood out from all the other monsters (kaiju was not what I referred to them at the time as I did not have the knowledge!). I was completely mesmerised and fascinated with it’s visual appearance. Then I stumbled across a book titled SO CRAZY JAPANESE TOYS in 2003. Inside I found a photo of a soft vinyl Chibull! They had actually made a toy of this character. I had to have it! I searched and finally found it via agents in Japan. It was my very first soft vinyl kaiju toy! I was hooked from there on. It opened up a Pandora’s box for me and it felt like I was reliving my childhood with all these exciting new toys to discover. I also realized at this point on that M1-Go was a company I held the highest regard for. They are at the top of the Kaiju tree as toy makers in my opinion!"

1) Camel Train series (and Zoo Choo series) by R&L Australia

"These take me right back to my childhood and the thrill of finding a prized free toy in the cereal box! These were all designed, created and manufactured by R&L in my hometown Melbourne, Australia, and exported to other countries like the US and UK in the early 1970s. Each toy came in packets of Corn Flakes, Coco Pops and other cereals. These made a huge impression on me as a child and I’ve portrayed some of these characters in my paintings. At no more than 3cm in length they are micro size marvels of wonder!"

Top 5 Toys - John Black

Today's Top 5 Toys list comes from Portland artist John Black - you can check out his own toys & zines & goodies here!

"I'm an artist residing in Portland Oregon USA. My toy collecting started at a very young age. My first collections were MOTU and Transformers which I still own. Over the years it has grown into an eclectic mix of vintage sofubi, pop culture inspired vinyl to cheap bootleg plastic toys. I decided to show you my most recent toy inspiration. These are the toys that inspire me to make art, and have huge influence on the toy that I aspire to release in the near future."

5) Freaky Fritz Hateball by Frank Kozik

"I'm kinda obsessed with this toy. I know it's not the newest toy out there but the quality is amazing! I think Big shot studios produced it. The sculpt is crazy! It has a retro vinyl feel to it and the customizable aspect seems unlimited. I got my first set unfortunately though a flipper on eBay. I paid a ridiculous price but I had to have them. I had already missed on 2 opportunities to buy earlier editions because of internet glitches. I mentioned something on Instagram about getting screwed by a flipper and Sharon Kozik actually reached out to me and helped me secure my next set. Great lady! I would buy these in every color released! I'd really love to see a life size or a mask of this! Hint hint Mr. Kozik."

4) Morgogg by Skinner

"This toy makes me feel 12 again! It's a huge piece of finely sculpted vinyl! Designed by Skinner and sculpted by the amazing David Arshawsky. I was lucky enough to meet Mr. Arshawsky at D-con last year and had the opportunity to chat with him about his history and many cool projects that he was working on. Great knowledgeable guy who loves to share his wisdom if you have the chance to sit down with him. I got this toy from the man himself Mr. Skinner! I managed to nudge my way into partaking in some pre Dcon festivities with skinner and a group of other designers. Skinner took us all out to his Van out in some seedy parking garage and proceeded to modestly unveil this beast to the group. The whole lot of us dropped our jaws. I immediately went comatose and oblivious to anything being said. I was mesmerized by this massive piece of plastic. It was just by luck and chance that skinner offered the first one to me out of the back of his van like some crazy drug deal. If you have ever had the pleasure of meeting Skinner you will know what a righteous dude he is!"

3) Bronco Willis by Misty Fog

"I'm a huge fan and collector of anything Le Merde does. His characters are original, funny, and genius all at he same time. He uses pop culture references like no one I know. I feel like his art is extremely underrated and has influenced a lot of modern vinyl and art and resin work that is being released now. I got to pick this piece from his mixed color release. I'm a huge fan of blanks so I asked him if I could just pick one color. This magenta color looked cool to me."

2) Mexican Bootleg Blow mold Lucha Libre toy

"I found one of these at a thrift store in Portland and the other online. These two are my favorite because of there size. They are 12 inch and came with parachutes. I first was introduced to these years ago on a trip to Ixtapa Mexico. I purchase as many as I could fit in my backpack and suit case. I love the cheapness of the plastic and the imperfections in paint sprays. And the simple interpretation of popular culture is perfect! Definitely a huge influence on what I would like to produce."

1) Army of the Apes by Bullmark

"In my eyes this is the perfect toy. Simple design and color can't be beat. The header art is top notch. I'm a huge planet of the apes fan so when I got introduced to this series I was instantly hooked! I still have a few to add to my collection but I'm loving the hunt."

Top 5 Toys - Brandon Els

Gold Coast resident and 40/40 Creative artist Brandon Els sent in a slew of designer vinyl for his Top 5 list! Bonus points if you can guess who his favourite toy artist is..

5) Stay Puft 24” Vinyl Bank by Diamond Select

"I picked this guy up on the 2nd day into my USA trip over in NYC, and I was there for 3 weeks. Basically he was so big that I had to empty out my entire luggage bag, and put all my clothes in my girl friends suit case so that I could take him around the states with me. He’s probably travelled more than my parents have ha ha."

4) Ratfink 12” Coin Bank by Funko

"This was my first ever collectible toy that I got back in 2012 I think. Basically the whole reason I collect toys at all, so he had to get a mention."

3) Ron English Bart Grin by Made By Monsters

"Seriously, what’s better than mixing Bart Simpson with a Skull, and having it made by Ron English himself. Well… Not much."

2) Ron English McSupersize Xray by Secret Base / (MC Supersized China by Mindstyle)

"A Ron English classic. These are the only two McSupersize’s I’ve collected so far, but no doubt there will be a lot more soon to be added. Love these guys."

1) Ron English Barney Grins

"And my most precious and most recent pair - the Barney Grins. Only 50 ever made of the OG Colourway, and 100 of the stoner. And as you can gather, I’m a big Ron English fan haha. Took me about 4 months to find these two, and ended up finding them over in Beijing at an art gallery. So lucky!"