Giant Robot Toys Views

Toys & Games

If you've ever read an issue of pop culture-heavy magazine Giant Robot, or stopped by one of the company's stores or art galleries, then you probably know that toys are an important part of their work. So, it's not surprising that they'll have some goodies from David Choe and David Horvath (Uglydolls) for sale at their Comic-Con booth. But, this year, Giant Robot will be bringing its own toy to San Diego too. G

This toy revolutionized the Japanese toy industry, spawning lots of toys for almost every Super Robot show that was aired on Japanese TV. Sometimes the case was the opposite: a TV anime giant robot show was created based on the toys produced. The Chogokin line of robots (the name given by Popy to the toyline), eventually lost its popularity in the early 80's after its rival company, Bandai, took the industry by storm with their Gundam franchise and their new plastic toy lines. The original die-cast Popy SR toys have become rare collector's items, with those in mint condition fetching thousands of dollars in the collector's market.

Ironically, it was Bandai itself that revived the Super Robot die-cast toys in recent times. Having acquired the Popy toys rights, and due to the renaissance in popularity of the giant robot of the past, Bandai began release a line of solid, highly detailed and quite expensive models made of die-cast metal. This line is called Soul of Chogokin, and is currently producing a fine line of toys that is aimed primarily at collectors. One of them, a super deluxe model of the Super Robot called Grendizer (complete with the die-cast robot, a flying saucer, four ships and other accessories), which currently is out of production, is known to reach over US$400 in specialized stores and auctions.

Hot Pink Fuzz, which runs until September 8, is a group art show featuring new works by Miss Muju, Monyomonyo, and Snaggs, three artists who have wild imaginations and artistic prowess to match. Miss Muju is UK-based sculptor who excels in symbolic figures, both palm-sized and gigantic. Seattle-based Snaggs is a felt artist who created psychedelic cereal boxes for the Giant Robot show, and sewing artist Monyomonyo, who works out of Tokyo, has made plush toys and masks for the exhibition, her first in America.