Recently revealed at Tamashii Nations 2014 one of the many Metal Heroes on display has some official images and release information!
S.H. Figuarts Juspion, the titular hero of Kyojuu Tokusou Juspion, is set for a May 2015 release! A Tamashii Web Exclusive release, Juspion looks to include 3 extra sets of hands, an alternate head with “glowing” eyes, his Beam Scanner Gun, and 2 versions of the Blazer Sword!
S.H. Figuarts Juspion will retail for 5184 yen!
It’s time for another episode of the Talkin Toku Podcast! After a brief, unplanned hiatus, Kickback/Chris, Den-O/Jordan, and Sentai Tamashii/Tom are back to discuss all things tokusatsu!
The boys start the show off by discussing the revelations of Shuriken Sentai Ninninger and quickly morph themselves in to a deep conversation about Ressha Sentai ToQGer and whether or not TeiOh (the final mech from the show and toy line) is the final culmination of everything wrong with the show and the toy line.
The boys then discuss the Tamashii Nations Event – the things they can’t wait for, the things they were surprised to see, their favorite toku and non-toku item of the show. Can you guess before you listen which item each host is eagerly anticipating? We bet you can’t!
Jordan and Tom discuss everything Kamen Rider Drive from the premiere to current while Chris disappears to eat dinner. Do they like the show? Dislike the show? Does it compare to Kamen Rider Gaim? Should it even be compared? Listen in and find out!
On to a serious topic – the revelation of the USA edition of the Tamashii Web Shop, meaning items only available from middlemen in the past may be ordered direct on the US side from the shop. If it comes to that, what does that mean for Bluefin Tamashii Nations? The guys get in to a very deep conversation about Bluefin Tamashii Nations, Bluefin Distro Group, Bandai Japan, Bandai of America, and even bring in the world of Transformers to make their case for the conversation. If you’ve ever had an interest in some of the inside workings of why certain toys are released or why their colors don’t match up to their source material, listen to this segment!
The show ends with the guys discussing what’s coming next for TokuNation.com as well as some Halloween moments as Chris and Tom dressed up as Power Rangers for the festivities. We also announce our annual Toku Toy Box giveaway – you don’t want to miss this year’s stuff!!
Click here to download the episode directly!
(.MP3 format, 94.8MB in size, 01:43:43 in length)
Be sure to follow all of the Talkin Toku social media outlets so you can keep up with the hosts and our upcoming contests and give-aways!
Follow the show @TalkinToku on Twitter, and the hosts: Kickback at @rankal on Twitter, Den-O at @DenO_Tokunation on Twitter, and Sentai Tamashii at @SoulInkChu on Twitter! There’s also a Talkin Toku Facebook page! Give us a ”Like” at Facebook.com/TalkinToku
A late reveal from Tamashii Natiosn 2014 but a reveal none the less! Originally reported to be on display at the show but under a photo ban, this pair of figures had yet to be seen by the larger public. Well no more! Thanks to the sleuthy picture ninjas at the show we have our first image of S.H. Figuarts Kabutack Super Mode & S.H. Figuarts Janperson!
Based on the reveals this past week, 2015 is shaping up to be the year of the Metal Hero! With the reveal of Robotack & Janperson we inch closer and closer. Kabutack is the titular hero of B-Robo kabutack & Janperson of course hails from Tokusou Robo Janperson. Granted these are just prototypes without release dates but as an avid Metal Hero fan this is exciting news.
The only Metal Hero shows that as of yet have not had protoypes displayed/revealed are Sekai Ninja Jiraiya, Mobile Cop Jiban, Special Rescue Police Winspector, Super Rescue Solbrain, Special Rescue Exceedraft, Blue SWAT, & Tetsuwan Tantei Robotack.
As is usual with these larger Tamashii events there’s a photo ban in place on a select group of items at Tamashii Nations 2014. For whatever reasons there’s always a selection of figures at these thing you just can’t take pictures of. Generally they’re off in their own areas of the show but eventually someone sneaks camera shots of what’s in there. For now at least there are no pictures or at least no decent ones of quite a few more things than we realized.
Before the show began Bandai aired a 30 minute livestream video in which a slideshow contained images of the Gaim & Drive displays. But thus far that’s all we had to go on. The list below confirms much of what could be made out in those images and includes several more we were unaware of. Here’s the full rundown of what IS at the show but can’t be photographed:
Updated with at least 1 image from the Kamen Rider Gaim display!
Kamen Rider
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Drive Type Speed
S.H. Figuarts Tridoron & Drive Tire Sets
S.H. Figuarts Machine Chaser
S.H. Figuarts Ride Chaser
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Marika
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Sigurd
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Knuckle
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Kurokage Shin
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Gaim Ichigo (strawberry) Arms
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Ryugen Kiwi Arms
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Ryugen Yomotsuheguri Arms
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Mars
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Kamuro
S.H. Figuarts Suika Arms Gaim Version
S.H. Figuarts Suika Arms Baron Version
S.H. Figuarts Overlord Baron
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Jam
Metal Heroes
S.H. Figuarts Janperson
S.H. Figuarts Kabutack Super Mode
That so far is all the yet to be pictured items that we know are physically at the show. That’s quite a lot of stuff. Frankly the grainy images we have seen show that the Gaim & Drive displays are huge and full of figures, really great set pieces. It would seem silly for the photo ban on those sets up to last through out the show. And the two additional Metal Heroes would be welcome among the numerous other fresh reveals yesterday. We’ll keep you posted if images for anything on this list turn up from the event.
The Bandai Tamashii Nations event may have only just started but the new reveals are coming in thick and fast! Many hobby magazines and stores are in attendance, and thanks to the likes of Amiami and Dengeki Hobby here are the figures you can look forward to coming in the near future! Get ready for a pretty long list.
In addition to the previously reported Gaim and Drive figures, seen at the event are:
Kamen Rider
S.H. Figuarts Rideron & remaining Showa era bikes!
SIC Kamen Rider Wizard Hurricane and Land Styles
SIC Kamen Rider Birth
SIC Kamen Rider OOO LaToraTah Combo
Super Sentai
The whole S.H. Figuarts Goranger team!
The whole S.H. Figuarts Sun Vulcan team!
Metal Heroes
S.H Figuarts Gavan (renewal)
S.H. Figuarts Metalder
S.H. Figuarts Juspion
S.H. Figuarts Mad Gallant
S.H. Figuarts Spielban
S.H. Figuarts G-Stag
S.H. Figuarts Reddle
Other heroes
S.H. Figuarts Kikaider REBOOT
The return of Garo S.H. Figuarts!
Ultraman
Ultra-Act Ultraman Manga version
Ultra-Act Hunter Knight Tsurugi
Ultra-Act Ultraman Mebius Burning Brave
Ultra-Act Yullian
Godzilla
S.H. Monster Arts 2014 Godzilla with spine/breath effect and “poster” variant
Which figures will be on your to buy list in 2015 and beyond? Be sure to check the huge amount of images we’ve gathered and discuss after the jump!
This is a HUGE announcement. Bandai of Japan and Tamashii Nations have just revealed their joint Tamashii Web Shop venture for western markets! A brand new website which will offer Web Exclusive figures and products to English speaking western markets!
We got an inside scoop about this piece of news on the ground at New York Comic-Con earlier this month. Sadly that news was not public at the time so we had to keep a tight lid on things. But today this new Tamashii Web Shop has not only been revealed to the world, but is in fact already active! Though only 1 item is currently up for pre-order you can be sure that more items will begin to be listed in the coming days and weeks.
This is a huge step forward for western fans importing figures from Japan. Though this new web shop is so far only limited to those residing in the US & Canada it’s a pretty significant step in the collector toy market. Time will tell how far this goes.
The official Tamashii Nations blog has just released some brand new images of the forthcoming web exclusive Blue Beet and Black Beet S.H. Figuarts figures, and along with them comes a shadowy picture of the remaining members of the Juukou B-Fighter team – G-Stag and Reddle! That’s right, the complete team will indeed be coming to the Figuarts line.
Western toku fans may better know these characters as the Green Hunter and Red Striker Beetleborgs from Big Bad Beetleborgs, the series which Saban adapted Juukou B-Fighter into.
No release date has been given for these two figures yet, but with the Tamashii Nations 2014 event coming at the end of the month more information could be coming soon. In the meantime, enjoy the teaser image along with the new images of Blue Beet (due for release in January) and Black Beet (due in March)!
With magazine scans out of the way for the month official images have begun to circulate for all the recently revealed figures. Today the Tamashii Web Shop has updated with official images and pricing for S.H. Figuarts Black Beet from Juuko B-Fighter!
Black Beet, or as western fans would know him Shadowborg/General Venjix, will be released as Tamashii Web Exclusive in March 2015 for 5184 yen. It appears as though there will be no western market distribution for the B-Fighter figuarts. So if you have some sentimental love for these designs because of Big Bad Beetleborgs, you may want to get with a Tamashii Web Middleman to secure orders for Black Beet and the previously revealed Blue Beet.
It’s time to take a moment out of your busy schedule to celebrate VR Troopers recent 20th Anniversary! Although this series may not be like the Power Rangers juggernaut of today, it’s still a classic! Spliced together from 3 Metal Heroes shows (Chojinki Metalder, Jikku Senshi Spielban, & Uchuu Keiji Shaider) VR Troopers was one unique product. The biggest reasons why the show still gets love is the very awesome actor who played Ryan Steele, Brad Hawkins, whom you may also know as the voice of the Zeo Gold Ranger! In honor of this momentous occasion TokuNation is proud to present the Action Works Chojinki Metalder gallery!
Released in Japan in September 2009, coincidentally then VR’s 15th anniversary, Action Works Metalder should appeal to any fan of VR Troopers or Metalder. Though not an S.H. Figuart, Action Works Metalder is more than on par with that line even by today’s standards. There’s no way of knowing when or if we’ll see S.H. Figuarts Metalder/Ryan Steele from Bandai so for now this figure is the perfect stand it for any collection. Though it’s 5 years old it faithfully recreates the incredible Metalder suit perfectly and includes a compliment of great accessories such as his signature Katana and his robotic partner/brother Springer!
VR Troopers turned 20 this year and despite not having much in the way of new merchandise to support it, love for the series is always growing. For now, throw your support behind an awesome guy and follow Brad Hawkins on Twitter @VRBradHawkins. And be sure check out 60 images of this amazing figure after the jump with more than a couple group shots to make Metal Heroes & Saban Heroes fans very happy.
Not long after the exciting unveiling of S.H. Figuarts figures from the Metal Heroes series Juukou B-Fighter (adapted as Big Bad Beetleborgs in the West), Bandai’s Tamashii Webstore has released official images of the first figure to be released – Blue Beet!
Coming as a web exclusive in January 2015, Blue Beet will come packaged with additional hands, Input Magnum sidearm and Stinger weapon with blade and drill parts. He will be made available from tomorrow (7th August) and can be yours for the price of 5184 yen!
Check out the full selection of images of this fantastic looking figure after the jump!