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IS S U E / N U M B E R 11 0 A R O M '1 / B A L Z A C
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Experience true-to-life swordplay and motion capture
executed by one of Japan's leading swordtight composers.
Journey through graphically stunning environments as
the historic tale unfolds.
www.genji-thegame.com
MATURE 17+
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Genji: Dawn of the Samurai is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. ©2005 Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. PlayStation and the "PS" Family logo are
registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. "Live In Your World, Play In Ours." is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc.
07 Editorial
09 Toy Exclusives
10 Toy News
17 TheToy Baroness Speaks by Nichole Lindsay
19 Garbage Digger byTake-shit
20 Barom-1 by Brian Flynn and Justin Kovalsky
28 All Hail the King by Joe Salamanca
34 Balzac: Punk Macabre by Chad Hensley
40 TheThree Faces of Glenn Danzig by Chad Hensley
42 Panda-Z:The Robonimation by Justin Kovalsky
46 The Art of Camille Rose Garcia by Super7 Staff
53 Art Gallery w ith Tara McPherson
55 Super Threads
57 Between the Pages
59 Toy Shopping in Tokyo by Brian Flynn
62 Super7 Life
03
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E D IT O R IA L
Super7 Magazine, Volume 3 Issue 3 - November 2005
Publisher
Super7 Media, Inc. / San Francisco, CA
brian@ super7m agazine.com
Editor
Justin Kovalsky / justin@ super7m agazine.com
Design
Brian Flynn / Geoff Allen
Hybrid Design, Inc, / w w w .hybrid-d esig n.com
Contributing Editor / Ad Sales
Chad Hensley / chad@ super7magazine.com
National Advertising Director and Sales
Jerem y Kove / m unsonindustries@ aol.com
Retail Director
Devon M orf / devon@ super7store.com
Gracious Contributers & Special Thanks
Bwana Spoons, Hiddy & Secret Base, Kashim oto-san & T oygraph, Kaminaga-san & Marusan, Kiyoka, Hiroaki & Yutaka
at Gargamel, Paul & Steve at Circus Punks, Shane Embury,
Koji Harmon, Duncan Jago, StrangeCo., Gaston at M eltdow n,
Nichole Lindsay, Pushead, Take-shit, T im Brisko, Joe Sala­
manca, Shigeo Kikuchi, Shannon O'Rourke, GOE o f Evilegend 13, Hirosuke Nishiyam a, C arlW orm ley, Glen E. Friedman,
Glenn Danzig, John Cafiero, Jerry Chu, Cam ille Rose Garcia,
Tara McPherson, Chris at Gama-Go, Derek Welch at UNKL
Brand, Jeff Soto, Mark M urphy, Seonna Hong, John Porcellino,Tom Devlin, Dennis & Y uriko, and everyone on page 62.
American Distribution
Tower Books, Diam ond Comics, Ingram s Periodicals
and Last Gasp.
Japanese Distribution
Presspop, Inc. / w w w .presspop.com
Other International Distribution
info@ super7m agazine.com
Printing
Transcontinental P rinting/ LGM Graphics
attn: Mike Bradley 1.800.661.0052 x24 Printed in Canada
Editorial / Submissions
justin@ super7m agazine.com
Contact / Goodie Boxes
Super7 Magazine
540 Delancey St. Suite 303, San Francisco, CA 94107
415.227.4700 / w w w .super7m agazine.com
Retail Location
Super7 Store
1630 Post Street, San Francisco, CA 94115
415.409.4700 / w w w .super7store.com
Legal
T h e a d v e rtis in g a n d a rtic le s a p p e a rin g w it h in th is p u b lic a tio n re fle c t th e
o p in io n s and a ttitu d e s o f th e ir re s p e c tiv e a u th o rs a n d n o t n e c e s s a rily
th o s e o f th e p u b lis h e r o r o th e r p e rs o n s a ffilia te d w ith th is p u b lic a tio n .
A ll rig h ts to th e p h o to g ra p h s , a rtw o rk a n d a rtic le s c o n ta in e d in th is p u b ­
lic a tio n a re c o p y r ig h t o w n e d b y th e ir re s p e c tiv e c re a to rs . A ll rig h ts to
a n y c h a ra c te r n a m e s a n d /o r like n e sse s a re c o p y rig h t o w n e d b y th e ir
re s p e c tiv e o w n e rs , and n o a s s u m p tio n o f o w n e r s h ip is m a d e b y th is
p u b lic a tio n . E v e ry th in g else c o n ta in e d h e re in is © 2 0 0 5 S u p e r7 m a g a ­
W elcome to Super7's Black issue.
When the staff sat down at a local pizzeria a few months back and decided
it was tim e for our first themed issue, our eyes all lit up like a Ronnie James
Dio concert circa 1981 when someone blurted out, "Let's make the theme
black m etal!" It was this tongue-in-cheek epiphany that brings us together
today. We've since trim m ed the issue's concept to a simple and more el­
egant, black. Now what you hold in your hands is an entire issue dedicated
to the darker aspects of toy culture. So, pour some red liquid into a chalice,
throw on your favorite metal record and dive headfirst into the abyss.
But first, a warning: You may find that some of the articles don't quite fit
your perception o f "dark." Fair enough, I suppose. But, what I w ill tell you
is that the roots of toy culture, horror, punk and heavy metal intertwine
in purely fascinating, often obscure, ways. W hether our historical piece
on the darkly influential King Waldar toys from 1972 captivates you, our
in-depth look at the horror-punks Balzac piques your interest, or the sub­
versive art of Camille Rose Garcia awakens your social awareness, there's
an underlying thread connecting all of this issue's subjects. I'll leave the
subtle subtext for you to discover— like listening fo r the message of a re­
cord spun in reverse.
zine , and m a y n o t be re p ro d u c e d in p a rt o r w h o le w it h o u t w ritte n p e r­
m is s io n fr o m S u p e r7 m a g a z in e as w e ll as a n y c o n tr ib u to r s if a p p lic a b le .
In th e e n d , it's a m a g a zin e a b o u t to y s - so re la x.
Justin Kovalsky
Editor
07
GET ALL THE GOODS THIS HOLIDAY SEASON
Volume 6 - Captured Souls (Also Available
In Stores November 15th
in Metal)
P rin t Your Merchandise W ishlist a t www.fullmetalalchemist.com
F U N i M A t IO N
it-
HIR OMU ARAKAW A SQUARE ENIX . M BS. ANX, BO NES, d e ntsu 2004. L ice nse d b y F U N im a lio n !1 P ro d u ctio n s, L td. A ll R ig h ts R eserved.
S U P E R 7 E X C L U S IV E S
TO YG R A PH CLEAR
5 0 % M E C H A G O D Z IL L A
R A IN Y D A Y G H O S T F IG H T E R
H U R R IC A N E K A T R IN A B E N E F IT
One o f our favorite vinyls from this year,
the transfo rm ing Mechagodzilia is available
fo r the first tim e stateside. Shown halfway
through battle w ith his mecha-head showing,
this 9" figu re is cast in clear vinyl and painted
w ith m etallic blue, red and gold spray. Lim ­
ited to 100 pieces and only available from
Super7, these w o n 't last long!
)
P aym ent o f S69.95 + S6.00 shipping
S U P E R 7 E X C L U S IV E S
Along w ith our friends at Secret Base, Super7 is hoping to help people out in facing some of
the rainiest days ever.The translucent blue G hostfighter is here to help rebuild. For each o f
the G hostfighters purchased, proceeds w ill go directly to charities w orking on Katrina clean
up and reconstruction. Only 100 pieces o f the Rainy Day G hostfighter are beig made, so act
quickly and help others w hile treating yourself.
Paym ent of S60.00 + $6.00 shipping
H E D O R A N & M IN I H E D O R A N S E T
This tw o piece vinyl figure set features a 9" translucent or­
ange Hedoran w ith blue, black, red and silver sprays as w ell
as a m ini 5" Fledoran cast in clear orange w ith the same
color scheme. Only 60 are being made, so be sure to pick up
this lim ited set from Gargamel and Super7!
Call the Super7 store at 415.409.4700 o r visit the
w e bsite at w w w .super7store.com to purchase our
exclusive toys. A ll prices are fo r the US only, and
are subject to change. M ajor credit cards accepted.
CA residents m ust add 8.5% sales tax. For
inte rna tiona l postage quotes, please e-m ail us at
in fo @ su p e r7 m a g a zin e .co m .
Please send check or m oney order
(do not send cash) to:
- 1.. J W h J
%
Super7 Magazine
Attn: Orders
540 Delancey Street, Suite 303
San Francisco, CA 94107
P aym ent of $89.95 + $8.00 shipping
V v i*
ass ■
-jm .
Be sure to stop by ou r websites fo r store updates,
event in fo and news on exclusive merch!
www.super7store.com
www.super7magazine.com
"
T O Y NEW S
BATS ARE PEEPLE TO O
On November 15th, artist Bwana Spoons and Super7 w ill unleash the new
Steven the Bat figures to vinyl toy fans across the globe. One o f many cre­
ations in Bwana Spoons' crazy universe o f characters called My Peeples,
Steven is a magical flying creature w ith an insatiable appetite fo r jamcovered bagels. W ith three designs available— Fig Belly, Black Metal is my
God and Purple Nights—adm irers of Bwana's artwork w ill fina lly be able
to own a 3D manifestation o f his mad im agination.The 5" vinyl toys w ill
retail at 25.00 and w ill be available at Super7, Grasshutcorps, Kidrobot
and other rad stores. Super7 recently chatted w ith Bwana to get the scoop
on Steven and the w onderfully surreal w o rld that he inhabits.
Please tell us about Steven.
Steven wakes up in the m orning, brushes his teeth, and flies out o f his
mountain cave door on the hunt fo r yum m y, yum m y je lly filled bagels.
10
A few nights a week he plays drum s in the metal band Soft Crusher with
his friends Franka and Franz, a couple of super swell pterosaur brothers.
W hat were your major inspirations in creating Steven and My Peeples?
I think Richard Scarry was a pretty m ajor influence.There was always some
sort of shenanigans happening in the background [in Scarry's books]—
mostly innocent, but almost always chaotic. I also take a lot from nature, and
wildlife, different worlds and environments that I have built in the past.
So, Steven is into black metal. W hat bands do you think he'd like if
he lived in our world?
I th in k Steven m ig h t really love old M etallica, English Dogs, Sepultura,
Neurosis, M astodon, tha t sort o f th in g .T h e Black Metal thin g is a bit of
a joke to Soft Crusher...they like a little m ore rhythm and som ething
you could dance to.
TH E CO LO R O F M U N N Y
The color of M unny is entirely up to you thanks to you r friends at K idrobot.This new ly
released customizable action figure from Kidrobot w ill make a nifty gift fo r the artm inded kid or talented to y freak in you r life this holiday season. Created by renowned
Dunny designer Tristan Eaton and Kidrobot founder Paul Budnitz, the 7" soft vinyl
M unny comes w ith fou r secret accessories, a hello-m y-nam e-is card and a Munny
coloring book. You d o n't have to pay fo r art school or paint fre ig h t trains to make an
art-toy anymore; just pick up the standard w h ite M unny at 24.95 or the black or g low
versions for 29.95 each and bust out the crayons.
BANDAI
entertainment"
No m atter how stro n g th e
the forces of i.
1 w ill
p re va il!
P ND -Z
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T H E R d B Q N IM
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PAN DA-Z
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Pan da-Z
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The Robonimal Edition
(Figure Included)
Pan-Taron takes flight in
Panda-Z, the undefeatable
robot built by his grandfather.
Available
on
Available at these and other Fine Retailers:
best
DVD
b u y
© S h u ic tf Oshida / Dynamic, M egaHouse
© 2 00 4-2005; M egaHouse, BANDAI VISUAL,KidsStation
s ipThecsoreo<oimowek>vars.
/is r amazon.com
All Rights Reserved
aec
ONE STOPGROUP
T O Y NEW S
Italian aritst Simone Legno of tokidoki is un­
leashing his oh-so-cute creations called The
Cactus Friends on the world this fall. Choose
from three cool characters based on Legno's
adorable Japan-influenced illustrations; there’s
Sandy (green), Sabochan and the pooch Bastardino. Legno tells us that Sandy and friends
"zip themselves into their cactus suits every
morning because they think the world is a cold
and scary place." Somehow, we think that San­
dy and crew w on't feel so tim id after the warm
welcome they're sure to receive from designer
toy collectors in the coming months. Distrib­
uted by Strangeco, each Cactus Friend is made
of vinyl, features an interchangeable spine and
stands at about 5" tall.
Photo courtesy o f Strangeco.
B A S E M A N M .O .D . D U N N Y
If you're fam iliar w ith UK-based Mr. Jago and
his wistful-but-powerful illustrative style, then
you know he's hit the money w ith this 10" Camobot figure. A collaboration between the artist
and UK clothing brand Addict, Camobot w ill be
produced in four different colorways and limited to 300 pieces each. Choose from the white
T H E K IT T Y F IR E C L U B
and black Protocol version; the black and pink
Sentinel; the olive-colored Frontline and finally,
the olive and khaki Scout (pictured). Pick these
up at www.addict.co.uk and other fine retailers
before they get scooped up and stealthily blend
into the serene surroundings of other smart toy
collector's shelves.
Consider the red Kittyfire that Super7 released
this summ er a warm up, because now we're
making three new colors of the cult-favorite Mirrorman villain. Choose from black vinyl w ith gold
spray paint, glow-in-the-dark w ith green spray
and orange w ith yellow spray. Available at the
Super7 store, Kidrobot and other designer toy
shops, the 15" Kittyfi re colorways w ill be limited
to 500 pieces each and w ill retail for $90.
Ah, the Kidrobot Dunny figures and the art
of Gary Baseman. W hether or not this clever
com bination sends fiery synapses through
your brain, you can bet that Dunny collectors
and Baseman devotees were champing at the
bit before this piece was released.
The M.O.D. Dunny sports Baseman's art from
Kidrobot's highly successful Dunny Show in
which various top-nam e artists customized
Dunny figures. This open-edition release is
apparently the first ever Dunny Show piece
to be transform ed into an 8-inch vinyl toy.
Now you can own a little piece of designer
vinyl history fo r just $29.95.
mmsmm
...
'•:> v. •>:
■
■
•
In finer designer toy stores worldwide: December 2005
Created by Jerry Frissen & Gobi,
Sculpted by MonsterS - Fully painted
rotocast vinyl TEQUILA figure with
rem ovable vinyl PONCHO - Dimensions:
8.8" X 6.6" X 4.7" t22cm X 17cm X 12cm)
www.muttpop.com - [email protected]
M UTTPOP
Purveyors of good taste!
•
■
• ...
. •' <
■
Tequila is © and TM H um anoids, Inc., USA 2005
DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT
CALLING HIM CUTIE!
T O Y NEW S
D O LL, D O LL, M Y D A R L IN G
Necessaries Toy Foundation is at it again bringing some
of the finest pop surrealist painters' creations to life in the
th ird dim ension. This tim e, the com pany has mined the
darkly satirical works o f Camille Rose Garcia for subject
matter.These demented designer dolls spring directly from
Garcia's series o f paintings deemed the Saddest Place on
Earth. Each figure stands a w hopping 14" tall depicting a
creepy cartoon-like character from Garcia's apocalyptic fa i­
rytale wasteland. (For more on Camille Rose Garcia, check
out our in-depth interview on page 36.)There's the gothy
Lula, the lovely one-eyed Patch, the feisty Cherry Girl, and
the grotesquely gorgeous, two-headed Katie and Sadie.
Available in tim e fo r the holidays at a sweet 60 bucks a
piece, these adorable-yet-nightm arish lasses w ill pepper
those visions o f sugarplum s w ith super scary thoughts.
BxH X S E C R E T BA SE
W hen Bounty Hunter teams up w ith anyone
to make a new to y there's bound to be a
feeding frenzy o f toy collectors in Japan,
but when the com pany collaborates w ith
the crew from the Secret Base boutique as
they've done fo r this Skull-kun toy... Well,
let's just say that you can forge t about fin d ­
ing one o f these 7" dollops of solid gold
unless you've got an inside track w ith an inthe-know to y dealer.This transparent Skullkun to y w ith exposed vinyl organs (a la the
early cyborg vinyls) has a slick crown that
pays hom age to the vintage Japanese King
W aldar Dokuro King toy. Skull-kun comes
in translucent green and translucent blue
vinyl colorways. Happy hunting!
SECR ET BASE HALLO W EEN SET
October 31st came and went and the highly anticipated
Super7 X Secret Base Halloween toy set seemed to
satiate the collective sweet tooth o f a growing group
of Secret Base collectors stateside. W ith a new figure
released ever Saturday this October past, the S7xSB
toys entirely sold out; sorry to those who missed them.
As promised, the determined and fortunate folks who
purchased all five figures—the Orange Madball Man­
tis, Black and Orange Pumpkin, Orange Obake, Black
and Orange Ghostfighter as well as the Black Madball
Mantis—got a special treat in the form of a free all-black
Ghostfighter made especially for this set!
1 8 th , 1 9 th
Collection
&
2 0 th ,
Nov.,
2 0 0 5
DONNA
KARAN
Qee» TM & © 2005 TOY2R (Holdings) Co Ltd. All rights reserved.
stepharsweiss
....T Q - 'a g g S S ;
;u s T o m
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d o - it - yourself custom fee
' -tO^R'NOR'-U
- f o'
Toy2r (Holdings) Company Limited
www.toy2r.com
2/F., Kin Sang Industrial Building, 147 Wai Yip St., Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
Tel: (852)2723 32 33 ,2 72 3 6833
Fax: (852)2172 7923
Em ail: [email protected]
w w w .c lu b 2 r .c o m w w w .q e e 2 r .c o m w w w .te e 2 r .c o m w w w .q e e la n d .c o m
TH E TO Y BARONESS SPEAKS
T H E D A R K S ID E O F D E S IG N E R T O Y S
B Y N IC H O L E L IN D S A Y
Rotting flesh, zombie children, m utated skel­
etons, and blood-covered corpses probably
aren't the firs t things that come to m ind when
thinking about toys. W hile some believe that
toys should be cute, warm , and fuzzy, there
are some artists out there ready to prove that
bloody bunnies are cute and chicks w ith rotting
flesh are indeed, dead sexy.
A handful o f artists have made the ir mark in
today's vinyl scene w ith the ir torm ented cre­
ations. Artists Damien Gloneck & Ed Long, Alex
Pardee, Gris G rimly, Roman Dirge, Voltaire, and
even Junko Mizuno are bringing the rig ht de­
gree of creepiness to the w o rld of vinyl by add­
ing their ow n gruesome twists. Their designs
go down the path less traveled by happy-golucky artists....and collectors are eating it up.
In addition to a handful o f hard-to-obtain-butm uch-sought-after Be@rbricks, Pushead has
made a sizeable list o f gruesom e toys like Jar
o f Pus, Butcher Boy, and even teamed up w ith
Secret Base fo r the S kullw ing series and a paint
variant o f the Skull Brain. But the infam ous MechaTerror Series which featured the characters
Birdcatcher, Devilman, Dororon Enmakun, and
Sanda Kuwait w ins the award fo r the m ost re­
v olting figures to ever hit to y shelves.
It's only a matter of tim e before MiQ's figures
w ill be seen on shelves right next to Pusheads'.
For now you can catch his paranormal creations
in exclusive custom shows around the coun­
try. MiQ's graveyard tactics are usually created
w ith his w ife Thuy3. Their collaborations have
THEIR D ESIG N S GO DOWN THE PATH LESS
TRAVELED BY HAPPY-GO-LUCKY ARTISTS...
AND COLLECTORS ARE EATING IT UP.
Tearing down that dark path at fu ll speed are
artists Pushead and MiQ W illm ott. These tw o
have based their entire careers on m aking dis­
turbing ly beautiful images and have mastered
the art of transform ing their sinister ideas into
vinyl figures. Pushead has dom inated the mar­
ket w ith his gory, yet exquisite, pieces; w hile
MiQ is killin' custom shows around the w orld
w ith his beyond-the-grave designs.
Pushead, however, is the ultim ate entrepre­
neur, so it's no surprise that he's been success­
ful in the toy market. He is m ost fam ous fo r his
work on album covers for Metallica, the M isfits,
Corrosion of Conform ity, and even rapper Dr.
Octogon. (Any M etallica shirt w orth having was
done by Pushead.) He has also interview ed the
heavy metal elite fo r magazines such asThrasher, M axim um rocknroll, and more. It's safe to
say this guy is heavy metal elite himself.
Right: Cococroc v inyl and Be@rbrick W orld W ide
Tour figure, both b y Pushead.
N ot o nly doe s this m ad cool Je rsey girl
have th e bangin'-est M e d usa tatto o, she
has a to y colle ction th a t fills to y geeks
e veryw he re w ith envy. In each in stallm e nt
o f th e Toy Baroness Speaks, Nichole w ill
be dropping the to y kn ow led g e as only
she can. W h e n she's n o t toilin g behind
th e scenes in her jo b at Kidrobot, you
m ig h t fin d Nichole o u t m o o nligh ting w ith
th e desig n er vinyl elite.
been seen in shows Tag the System, Board the
Train, Funny Club, Madl 2K5, Sneaker Pimps, and
more. (You'll know his work when you see a MiQ/
Thuy3 production, it is the best one on display.)
MiQ's career took off in 1983 after designing al­
bum covers, posters, and tou r shirts fo r M otley
Crue, AC/DC, Skinny Puppy, the Ramones, and
more. W orking w ith acts like these did nothing
but encourage his devious ways and since then
MiQ has continued to create the m ost demonic
custom s the art w o rld has seen.
Thanks to MiQ, Pushead, and the other artis­
tically disturbed artists of the vinyl scene, our
to y shelves w ill be laden w ith enough blood­
th irsty figures to make even the m ost hardcore
goth crack a smile.
Nine Lim ited edition 1 1 ” x 1 5 " giclee prints in an edition of 3 0 0 featuring all new original art by Gary Baseman,
Tim B is k u p , Seonna Hong, K a th y S ta ic o - S c h o r r and Todd S c h o rr in s p ire d by th e c h a ra c te rs each a r t is t
created fo r th e Neo-Kaiju Project. Each set of p rin ts comes in a cloth covered cla m sh e ll box w ith silver and
blue debossed fo il-s ta m p in g , m a tc h in g ribbon p u lls and fo il stam ped end sheets w ith acid free slipsheets.
All prints are individually numbered and hand signed by each artist on 100% acid-free archival paper. $ 4 5 0 per set.
B u y y ou rs no w a t: w w w .s u p e r7 s to re .c o m / w w w .s u p e r7 m a g a z in e .c o m
or a t th e S u p e r7 store: 1 6 3 0 Post St., San Francisco, C A . (4 1 5 ) 4 0 9 -4 7 0 0
S7 TALK
G A R B A G E DIGGER
They say good things come in small packages and the mini-Marusan bootleg
figures from the '70s make a convincing case for the triumph of the tiny over
the tall. In the early 1970s Marusan made plastic models of various Godzilla
and Ultraman monsters. Sometime later in the decade, a scaled down min­
iature version of the Godzilla and Gomes appeared. Made of polypropelene,
the small figures are only 1.5" tall, have moving arms and were sold in a toy
set driving a small boat along with a mini toy gun.These figures are extreme­
ly cute, and due to their small size they easily fit in the palm of your hand.
Made long before the current trend of candy toys and mini figures, these
are some of my favorite figures of all time. So far only Godzilla and Gomes
appear to have been made, but as with all bootlegs, you just never know if
more monsters w ill turn up one day!
BREAK ALL MONSTERS
Though a lot of adult collectors treat vintage vinyl toys like art objects, kaiju
vinyl figures are meant to be battered and brokenlThough many of you may
cringe at the thought, remember that the toys were made for elementary
school kids in Japan during the 60s and 70s. Back then, children would
roughly pit their favorite figures against one another in back yards, on side­
walks or in city parks—this sort of scene was actually very common. So, a
broken horn or lost tail on one of these monsters is a symbol of the toy's
duty completed; it means it's been played with and fully enjoyed.
In fact, it's a miracle that collectors sometimes find vintage vinyl dolls in per­
fect condition at all. I've been collecting these figures for quite sometime and
my broken vinyl toys have accumulated steadily over the years. Some people
try to fix the figures by repairing the horn and tail using clay. But I personally
prefer to keep the toys just as they are because I had lots of damaged vinyls
when I was young. I'd play with them outside until dark then drag them into
the bath with me. I'd wash them, taking all the parts out.That's undoubtedly
how I lost so many of the pieces to these toys...Those broken vinyls do bring
back nostalgic memories.
Top left: Rodan w ith p la y g ro u n d tested w in g damage.
Above: Peguira is m issing his hand. King Joe is m issin g an antennae.
Gorosaurus is m issing h a lf a tail. These toys served th e ir h ig h e st purpose.
Top rig h t: The m inia ture Red Godzilla an d b o a t w ith Godzilla an d Gomes.
19
B
R
R
D
I
M
THE TOP TOYS FROM THE CULT-CLASSIC
TV SHOW SHOWN TOGETHER FOR THE FIRST TIME
Much like classic 1950's Universal Monsters movies,
Barom-1's unique blend of traditional tokusatsu (hero)
style coupled with it's spookier, mood driven monster
appeal enthralled kids of all ages. As campy and
melodramatic as it may seem today, when Barom-1 hit
Japanese airwaves in 1972 it was received with open
arms by audiences. With booming voiceovers, nefarious
cat overlords, and monsters that were far more
grotesque and frightening than most, Barom-1 has
become a long-standing cult favorite among fans of
campy Japanese hero shows.
While original legendary creator Shotaro Ishinomori
crafted hundreds of characters for manga, anime and
live-action TV, Barom-1 's eerie underpinnings set it apart
from the pack. Although Ishinomori posessed a penchant
for creating sinister atmosphere even in the most benign
of children’s programs, Barom-1 represents the pinnacle
of his darker explorations in a mainstream work.
However, even with the extra-creepy ruminations, the
show kicks off in a way that’s typical of the tokusatsu
genre—an age-old battle between good versus evil.
When an evil lord from the far reaches of space named
Kopuu decides to invade the earth, a benevolent deity of
justice named Dolge intervenes. Dolge enlists the aid of
two earth boys whose bond of friendship is so strong that
together they can control the immense power of the
super-hero, Barom-1. Interestingly, the boys who are
chosen are polar opposites; Kentaro is a serious bookworm and Takeshi is a star athlete. (Ishinomori frequently
incorporated the idea of internal conflict in his character
designs. This time he actually imbued the hero with two
different personalities.) When the kids shout “Barom" and
lock arms, they become the invincible hero, Barom-1.
If all of this sounds to you like the sort of source material
that spawned some of the most fascinating Japanese
toy lines of the 70s, you're quite on point. In fact, certain
Barom-1 toys are some of the rarest and most soughta^ er items ln Japan today. In the following pages we ve
presented a complete showcase of some of the
hardest-to-find pieces in the world, including bizarre
bootlegs and modern reproductions.
TOY PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF GEOFF ALLEN
WORDS AND HYPHENATION CONSTRUCTED BY BRIAN FLYNN AND JUSTIN KOVALSKY
>
21
id giant size Bandai figure with removeable mask,
talking Barom-1 and slightly sm aller reproduction.
>se, and bagged (below). B ottom : B a ro m -1 soakie.
FOR THE LOVE OF CHEAP VINYL
Many collectors are divided on whether or not to collect bootleg figures
at all. For Barom-1, there are at least 8 different large size bootleg
figures. Four of these figures are relatively easy to track down, while the
other four are very difficult to find. The two easiest bootleg figures to find
are the 11" dark green figure with the white head (A) and the 10.75"
figure with the removable mask (B). Related vinyls, the figures share the
exact same body mold, with the 11" version made of a much higher
quality vinyl than it's thinner vinyl removable mask cousin. The 11.25“
green and black bootleg is also quite common (C), with the 10.75" figure
with the white head being slightly harder to find (D). (Most likely due to
Yuji Nishimura's positive review of the figure in his original soft vinyl
book.) The skinny 8.75" bootleg is a very color accurate, but stylistically
lacking figure that can be quite difficult to find (E), but the 10" rubbery
blue vinyl figure (F) is near impossible to track down. The two larger
plastic blow-molded figures, a 13" green and black figure with a Ninja
Arashi cape (G) and a 13.25“ blue figure (FI) are just as, if not more difficult
to track down. The examples shown here are the only two versions I
have ever seen any reference to.
'HECKING IN
2" pvc Barom-1 and 4 monster figures
5.5" bootleg, v1, bright green and black
(red, green, blue, yellow, silver, pink, white)
5.5" bootleg, v2, dark green
2.75" pvc Barom-1 and 4 monster figures
5.5" bootleg, v3, dark green, clear head
(red, green, blue, yellow, silver, pink, white)
6" bootleg, v1, dark green, red, white
3" new gashapon, posel
6" bootleg, v2, dark green, gold head
3" new gashapon, pose2
6" bootleg, v3, dark green, gold /red
3.25" bootleg pencil topper
6” flying figure, licensed
3.5" pencil sharpener, licensed
6.25" Bandai figure, original issue
3.5" Banpresto action figure
6.25" Bandai new figure, green version
4" silver train bootleg parachute figure
6.25" Bandai new figure, HH yellow version
4" silver train bootleg parachute figure -
8.75" skinny bootleg
silver with red highlights
4.5" flying pose, Popy, solid eyes
9” Popy tin wind-up with mask
9.25" soakie, licensed
4.5" flying pose, Popy, outlined eyes
10" Door chime figure, licensed
4.5" pendant by Popy (green and black)
10" blue rubbery-vinyl bootleg
4.5" pendant bootleg (black and grey)
10.75" bootleg with black, white, green
4.6" fighting pose figure, Takatoku
10.75" bootleg with removeable mask
4.75" train bootleg, silver
11" bootleg, dark green, white head
4.75" train bootleg, gold
11.25" bootleg, green and black
5.25" flying pose whistle, licensed
12" original Henshin Cyborg, regular
5.5" train bootleg, silver
12" original Henshin Cyborg, dx suit
5.5" train bootleg, gold
12" Medicom doll
5.5" Popy clear cyborg dx box, rock base
13" Bandai Giant size figure with mask
5.5" Popy clear cyborg in bag
13" plastic bootleg with red cape
5.75" fighting pose bootleg, white arms
13.25" blue plastic bootleg
5.75" Popy figure, bent arms (blue or green)
14" Masudaya talking figure re-issue
5.75" Popy figure, straight arms
14.5" Masudaya talking figure original
5.75" Popy kaiju, Frankeruge
5.75" Popy kaiju, Ikageruge
Standard size:
5.75" Popy kaiju, Okezeruge
10.25" Bandai Barom-1 with mask
5.75" Popy kaiju, Mogeruge
9.5" kaiju, Ikageruge
5.75" Popy kaiju, Angoruge
10" kaiju, Okezeruge, orange spray
5.75" Popy kaiju, Ebiberuge
10" kaiju, Okezeruge, red spray
5.75" Popy kaiju, Miraruge
10.25 kaiju, Frankeruge
5.75" Popy kaiju, Keregeruge
10.25" kaiju, Doruge
5.75" Popy kaiju, Antman
8.5" kaiju, Kuchibiruge, Rainbow/THN
5.75" Popy kaiju, Doruge (3 color versions)
9.5" kaiju, Udegeruge, Rainbow/THN
23
One of the most popular Barom-1 figures, the clear cyborg vinyl with
it's paper and glittery inserts are a fairly common and affordable
acquisition. For the completist collector though, there are actually
three versions of this figure. The regular bagged version came with
either a solid pale yellow insert in the bag, or a white insert with a
printed body schematic of Barom-1 on it. Even more elusive is the
rare DX boxed version of the figure which comes with an extra
sculpted rock base for the figure to stand on inside of the box.
Right: 5 .5 ” Popy clear cyborg figure loose. Far right: cyborg figure
in bag with yellow insert. Low er right: DX boxed version with rock
Easily the rarest of the licensed Barom-1 vinyl figures, this pint size
rendition of the hero in his fighting pose rarely turns up. Made by
Tokataku, and standing a mere 4.6" tall, this figure moves only at the
waist, but will pack quite a punch to your pocketbook.
Left to right: 4 .6 ” Takatoku fighting pose Barom-1, 3 .2 5 ” bootleg
pe n cil topper figure, 3 .5 ” licensed pe n cil shapener.
TARGET PRACTICE
During the run of Barom-1, Popy made several different gun and belt
sets for Barom-1. These play sets were offered in a variety of packag­
ing formats, many of them also coming with a set of 6 different mini
figures. These mini figures were produced in both a 2” and a 2.75’’
size, as well as a large variety of colors, (red, blue, yellow, silver, green,
pink and possibly white.) These figure sets included one Barom-1
figure and five different monsters: Frankeruge (shown in green),
Ikageruge, Okozeruge, Keregeruge and Doruge.
Far left: both poses o f the 3 “ gashapon figure flanking the 3 .5 ”
Banpresto action figure. Left: 2 ” green B a ro m -1 m ini in front o f both
a yellow and red Barom-1 m ini and a green Frankeruge mini.
THE LURE OF SILVER AND GOLD
These bright silver or gold blow-molded figures are a common sight
for many of the popular characters of the 1970's, and Barom-1 is no
exception. Commonly referred to as “train station" figures, these
figures were available in kiosks in Japanese train stations, bought by
commuting businessmen as cheap gifts for their children on their way
to and from work. Like most "train station” figures, they are very
simple unpainted, and usually unarticulated figures made as cheaply
as possible. The red face version pictured here was most likely
painted afterwards by one of it's previous owners, but we do not really
know for sure.
24
ARM WRESTLING
While many figure variations in this article are fairly obvious, arm mold
variations are not what collectors are usually looking for. The difference
is subtle here, but to make the arms of these figures hang at such
differing angles, the actual mold of the arm has to be completely
different. (More specifically at the shoulder joint of the arm.) On the
straight arm, the shoulder joint comes from the arm at a near 90°
angle, yet on the wide arms, the shoulder joint extends out at a smaller
angle closer to 45°. The figure is also found with a blue spray.
R ig h t: 5.5" Popy Barom-1 figure with staright and angled arms.
Far right: 5.75" fighting pose bootleg with white arms.
A QUICK CHANGE OF CLOTHES
Bandai introduced it's first 6.25" hero-sized Barom-1 in 1989. Boxed
in the traditional Bandai style, this figure was replaced in late 2004
with the more realistic "soul of soft vinyl" figure. Shortly after release,
Japanese magazine Hyper Hobby released a magazine exclusive
recolor of the figure with a yellow suit rather than a normal green suit.
This yellow suit was the "protoype" suit and was seen on a handful of
Barom-1 episodes where the prototype suit had to be used when the
"real" suit was not available.
Far left: 5 .5 ” licensed flying pose whistle figures. Left: 6.25" Bandai
figure, 6.25” Flyp e r H obby exclusive, 6.25” original Bandai figure.
A BOOTLEG FAMILY REUNION
While most bootleg figures were cheap, quickly produced figures,
Barom-1 has a whole group of bootlegs that family together. The smaller,
more detailed form, the 5.5” tall size figure came in a variety of colors,
the most elaborate being the bright green and black color scheme,
with a simpler version made in a dark green paint scheme. It has also
turned up with a clear head from the popy 5" cyborg vinyl, and it is un­
known if this was released in this manner, or if this was simply two loose
figures stuck together. A slightly larger Barom-1 figure was also released
with a different body, but the exact same head (note the lines inside the
eyes) in a couple variations. The larger version came in two body styles,
one with moving arms, and the second with it's arms fixed in place.
The moving arm version comes with a gold head, or gold with red eyes.
Popy made two different 4.5”
Barom-1 figures. In the center,
the pendant figure is commonly
found on a small chain. The
green being the original version,
and the silver is the bootleg.
To the right of them are the
“flying pose" figures. These
were sold with either solid or
outlined eyes.
Far left: licensed flying figure
25
Below: TH N /R ainbow ’s new Udegeruge (Hand) and Kuchibiruge (mouth) kaiju, 2004.
For the vast majority of Barom-1 collectors, the Bandai
large size monsters are the status symbol of a serious
collector. Incredibly difficult to locate, and abhorently
expensive, tracking down, much less paying for, these
four monsters can be too much for even the hardiest of
toy maniacs. The ring leader, and kaiju-king, is Doruge.
With his fragile horns, and his tattered cape full of pointed
ends, finding one of these figures, much less an unbroken
version, is left only to the most financially secure collectors,
Hot on Doruge's heels, and ugly as ever, Frankeruge,
with his similarly fragile horns is nearly impossible to find
unbroken as well. Ikageruge, With his surreal image,
26
tentacle arms and squid like appearance keep him
well out of reach also. Rounding out the group of
large size kaiju is Okozeruge. Showing up with a
variation of red spray combined with either the same
red or a lighter orange spray across the chest and
back fins, Okozeruge is the "easiest" of the four large
monsters to find. Keep in mind that these last
three monsters, also come with removable boots,
making the hunt for a monster that has not lost his
shoes even that much more difficult. Ultimately,
the strong presence of these four large monsters
makes sure that they are in constant demand.
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left to right: Mogeruge, Angoruge, Frankeruge, Ebibiruge and Keregeruge. (photos by Take-shit.)
le ft to right: Miraruge, Ikageruge, Antm an (generic soldier), Okozeruge and Doruge.
THE UGLIEST ARMY ON EARTH
TRAVELLING IN STYLE
While Popy made 5“ hero figures of nearly every show on the airwaves
during the 1970s and 80s, they never seemed to really flesh out the
villainous armies for those heroes to do battle with. Not so with
Barom-1. Popy produced 10 different monsters during the Barom-1
manufacturing run. Much like the Bandai 12" Monsters, Popy made
Doruge, Frankeruge, Ikageruge and Okozeruge, but also added in six
more fiendish foes. The main monster, Doruge, was even released in
three different colorways - black with gold, dark blue with black and
light blue with black. Unfortunately, much like their larger bretheren,
these small devils don't come cheap, packing a price tag that is even
bigger than their punch.
Not since Batman has one hero seemed to be so closely tied to their
car. There are no less than eight vintage iterations of the "Mach Rod”,
Barom-1 's faithful automotive accessory, and like real custom cars, the
versions everyone wants don’t come cheap. The most sought after,
but not the rarest, is the large 16” blow molded Bandai car complete
with a Barom-1 with poseable arms driving it. (shown at far left.) Much
harder to find are two middle size plastic cars and a tin buggy that are
smaller than the Bandai car, but larger than the 10” tin car made by
Popy shown second from left. The bagged plastic bootleg car, has the
head from the door chime figure attached, and is 12” long. Popy also
made a 4” vinyl car with moving wheels, a traditional die-cast car in
their regular die-cast series, as well as a harder to find wind-up tricycle.
27
A L L H A IL
KING
T E X T B Y JO E S A L A M A N C A
P H O T O S B Y T IM B R IS K O &
JO E S A L A M A N C A
Torg, a.k.a. K ing W aldar Dokuro
K ing b y Denys Fisher.
H E N S H IN C Y B O R G ’S A R C H
E N E M Y K IN G W A L D A R
WHEN IT COMES to the upper echelons o f darkly-them ed toys, King
W aldar is a cut above the pack. Though tod ay there are loads o f hor­
ror-inspired action figures on the m arket, w hen the 12" King W aldar
toys were released in Japan in 1972, no one had ever seen the like.
Created as villa in s forT akara's popular Henshin Cyborg figures, the
W aldars were translucent— th e ir inner organs exposed fo r the w o rld to
see in distu rb in g ly detailed fashion. W ith a surreal, sin ister aesthetic,
the W aldar toys captured the im a gin atio n o f a generation and sealed
th e ir place in history as true action fig u re royalty.
Today, the relevance of these terrib le toy tyrants continues; com panies
from Medicom to Secret Base and Bounty Hunter have been heavily
influenced by the early evil invaders and have created the ir ow n charac­
ters inspired by the King Waldars. However, because there are already
many resources available fo r the recent incarnations o f Waldar, w e 'll be
taking a brief look at the original releases from the 1970s hailing from
Japan and the United Kingdom.
WALDAR VERSUS JAPAN
AfterTakara found success in Japan im porting Hasbro's G.l. Joe line of
12-inch figures under the name Combat Joe, they follow e d up w ith the
Henshin Cyborg line and the King W aldar enem y figures in '72. Both the
Henshin Cyborg and W aldar toys came in standard body shapes w ith
rem ovable lim bs th a t could be turned into different characters by means
o f costum e changes.
The Waldar was originally available in three different color variants; purple,
yellow, and blue. However, the blue version of King Waldar was replaced
very early on by a green colorway; making the blue nearly impossible to
find. All three o f the variations had the same body m old as the Henshin
Cyborg w ith the exception of the head and internal organs. Waldar's chest
housed a vinyl, m ulticolored mass of organs and his clear vinyl outer head
could be removed to reveal a shrimp-like, inner head.
A g ro u p s h o t o f eve ry p o ssib le vinta ge K ing W aldar v aria tion.
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The three o rig in a l W aldars - Satan King, D okuro K in g an d P lant M onster.
These figures were sold in w in d o w boxes and were available w ith or
w ith o u t a pair o f vinyl hand weapon accessories.These vinyl accessory
hands were also sold on sm all blister cards in a set o f five weapons per
card w ith fo u r different sets available. A lthough sim ilar to the Cyborg's
vinyl robotic hand sets, Waldar's weapon sets are much harder to find,
especially carded.
Three different costum es were created fo r the W aldar toys: Satan King,
Dokuro King, and the Plant M onster.The m ost sinister o f these costumes
was Satan King. It was created specifically for the yellow W aldar body
and featured a classic style Devil Mask w ith hands and shoulders cov­
ered in horns and barbs.The costume's chest piece was also a Demon's
face. Next, the hideously m onstrous Plant M onster looked like a cross
between the Swam p Thing and som e sort o f intestinal parasite with
hands and feet covered in tube-like fingers and toes— like a 10th grade
science project gone ho rribly aw ry.This costum e was obviously created
for the green W aldar figure. The Dokuro costume, or "S keleton" King,
however, is the m ost popular am ong old school collectors and has in ­
spired the m ost remakes and homage toys over the years. Made fo r the
purple W aldar body, the Dokuro King o u tfit consisted of a helmeted skull
mask and ribcage-esque chest piece.
GOD SAVE THE KING
W hile W aldar mania took hold o f Japan in '72, just three years later the
W aldars invaded another country—the UK to be exact. W ith W aldar's
new home, he also found a new nam e...M uton.
In 1975, Strawberry Fayre (a division o f Denys FisherToys Lim ited) re­
leased their ow n version of the entireTakara Henshin Cyborg line in the
UK though these figures were considerably sm aller than th e ir Japanese
relatives. M uton stood at 8" in height com pared to King W aldar's 12"—
the M uton figure was exactly the same except fo r the packaging; he
came in a solid box w ith tw o guns that Denys Fisher renamed M utators.
(See Super7 issue #3 fo r the full Denys Fisher Cyborg article),
For the British release, M uton had new costumes, but on ly the Dokuro
King w ould make it into the M uton line-up, renamed asTorg.The other
tw o villains were called X-Akron and A m aluk.Interestingly, the X-Akron
and Amaluk were actually based on suits from the original Henshin Cy­
borg hero line in Japan. X-Akron was a character known as Red Baron in
Japan and Am aluk was the Henshin Cyborg called Fish Man.
W here theTorg construction is exactly the same as the Dokuro King, the
Am aluk costume came w ith a cloth bodysuit instead o f the Japanesestyle vinyl suit.The X-Akron o u tfit strayed the m ost fro m the Japanese
style figures w ith a cloth bodysuit, gloves, boots, belt, and a head and
chest piece.
By the late 1970s, King W aldar and the rest o f the Henshin Cyborg line
were pretty much gone from Japanese to y shelves, replaced by the
popular M icrom an to y line. However, because King W aldar perm anently
etched his image in the m inds o f today's talented crop o f to y makers,
Waldar's spirit lives on.The king is dead. Long live the King!
R ight: A loose 8 " M uton.
K IN G W A L D A R H A S E T C H E D H IS
IM A G E IN T H E M IN D S O F T O D A Y ’S
T A L E N T E D C R O P O F T O Y M A K ER S .
31
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01_ Original 12" King W aldar Dokuro King,
Fish M an and Red Baron com pared to the
8 " Denys FisherTorg, A m ulak and X-Akron
02_ A m u la k carded su it and loose fig ure
fo r th e M u to n b od y
03_ O riginal Henshin C yborg 12" vinyl
Red Baron s u it vs. 8 " cloth Denys Fisher
X-Akron su it
04_ O riginal H enshin C yborg 12"vinyl
Fish M an su it vs. 8 " cloth Denys Fisher
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06_ A va rie ty o f th e W aldar arm w eapons
07_ O riginal fo u r W aldar figures, blue,
p urple, ye llo w and green
08_ O riginal fo u r W aldar figures w ith
boxes
09_ Set o f orig ina l W aldar figures w ith a
carded set o f orig ina l w eapons
10_ 12" King W aldar Dokuro King vs. 8"
Denys Fisher M u to n inTorg costum e
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B A N D P H O T O B Y S H IG E O K IK U C H I
AFTER 13YEARS o f m aking m usic in the land o f the rising sun, Balzac is geared up fo r
a stateside in va sio n .T h e y've recently released th e ir second albu m in the US on M is­
fits Records, a CD/DVD title d O ut o f the Grave and in to the Dark offe rin g a spectacular
sam p lin g o f the band's m e lo d ic -b u t-b lis te rin g brand o f horror-punk (see sidebar).
W h ile it's lik e ly th a t th is album w ill w in over new fans fo r the Osaka-based quartet, a
pletho ra o f punks and to y co lle cto rs in the States are already fans o f Balzac and the
m yria d o f am azing Balzac-related toys th a t have been m ade over the years.
SECRET BASE
BALZAC SKULL BEE
SECRET BASE
BALZAC FIGHT SERIES
mm
f ie n d is h c l u b
At the core of the band's appeal is a carefully crafted image— cool and
macabre. Dealing in the darker dregs of pop culture for inspiration, from
American serial killers to vam pire lore and Japanese horror film s, Balzac
has created a parallel universe that's at once magnetic and unsettling. Lead
singer Hirosuke Nishiyama explains, "Balzac likes to take on a m ix o f influ­
ences and incorporate them in order to create a new stylistic interpretation."
Of course, Balzac's ghastly melange begins w ith one core ingredient—a
hearty dose o f sound and style from seminal punk pioneers, the Misfits.
Balzac first kicked off in 1991 under the m oniker Astro Zom bies in honor
of the M isfits song o f the same name. F ollow ing a m em ber change in
1992, the group changed th e ir name to Balzac. Even still, Nishiyam a
is quite happy to discuss the M isfits' profound influence on the band:
"The firs t tim e I heard the M isfits, it was a big impact... A ll in black, w ith
th e ir devil-lock hair, they had a taste o f h o rro r and they had originality...
The punk-pop chord progression and choruses, the clear m elody and
the hard phrases... I th o u g h t to m yself, th is is the ultim ate punk rock!"
W hile the M isfits influence on the band's is overt, Balzac has kept roots
in its homage w h ile developing a sound that's all the ir ow n. "The M isfits
have obviously been a great inspiration on me," begins Nishiyam a. "B ut
I also really like the Beatles' m usic—they have influenced me too. As far
as the other members, our bass player likes classical music, ou r dru m ­
m er likes industrial...This is where our individu al tastes differ. However,
the M isfits are tru ly a group we all like collectively."
W ith a handful o f Am erican to u rs already under th e ir belt, including
th e ir m ost recent East Coast stin t th is past Halloween w ith the M isfits,
it's very likely that Balzac w ill return in 2006 (though nothing is con­
firm ed yet). The good news is tha t in spring o f 2006, US fans o f the
band and designer toys w ill have som ething to celebrate when a new
Balzac vin yl to y w ill be released exclusively fo r the US m arket.
TOYTERROR
In March o f next year. M isfits Records and K id rob ot w ill team up to
release a brand-new set o f the ever-popular Dunny vin yl figures. So
far, the com panies have announced a M isfits Dunny, an Osaka Popstar Dunny, and, o f course, a Balzac Dunny w ith m ore figu res to be
revealed. The Balzac Dunny w ill feature graphics created by N ishi­
yama him self. W hile th is release w ill likely be m et w ith great fa n ­
fare, this is far from Balzac's firs t foray in to the designer to y w o rld .
Asked about his own extensive involvem ent in toys o ve rth e years, Nishi­
yama says "I've always liked toys. I've been a collector fo r a long time."
Indeed, the actual output o f Balzac toys has been staggering. Collectors
BELOW > FIENDISH GHOUL VINYL BY MEDICOM
UNMASKED PAPERBAGMAN RAH BY MEDICOM
SECRET BASE
SKULLMAN
SKULLMAN IS N ’T SO SCARY, HOWEVER, HIS
REALISTIC FACE AND CUTENESS IS EXACTLY
WHAT I WANTED TO CREATE.
can find the band's hallm ark im agery em bodied in toys from Medicom
from the m eticulously detailed Real Action Hero Paperbagman 12-inch
figures to the Balzac Be@rbricks, wind-ups, and, m ost recently, the
Fiendish Ghoul Balzac Vinyl. Other popular Balzac toys have included the
TWIM (vinyl bom bers) and the see-thru skull figures from Secret Base.
N ishiyam a recalls th a t he hooked up w ith Secret Base ow ner, Hiddy, th ro u g h a m utua l frie n d : "It was then th a t I heard he had his
ow n store and was p ro d u cin g toys. Since then, he has done many
designs fo r Balzac." C o llectors have been rab id ly scooping up these
co lla b o ra tio n s w ith Secret Base. A va rie ty of colors and shapes have
been released in clu d in g the W ater Balzac (made o f clear blue vinyl
and pictu red on page 37), a rem ovable mask Balzac, and an ultra-rare
version w ith a rem o vab le m egaphone (not show n). H iddy p u rp o rt­
edly hand-cast all o f the m egaphones fo r th is to y h im se lf and only
100 w ere made. "All o f the projects w ith Secret Base have been aw e­
some," in te rje cts N ishiyam a en thusiastica lly. "I look fo rw a rd to many
m ore co lla b o ra tio n s w ith th e m !"
As fo r N ishiyam a's ow n designs, he has a soft spot fo r Skullm an,
Balzac's mascot. A corpse-like character w ith the head o f a horned
hum an skull and a single eye bulging fro m a socket, Skullm an has
becom e Balzac's m ost iconic image. Nishiyam a chuckles softly and
says "S ku llm a n is n 't so scary, however, his realistic face and cute­
ness is exactly w h at I wanted to create." It's this same com bination
o f grotesque h o rro r and pop se n sib ility that defines Balzac's charm.
© M isfits
Records
LLC
un d e r exclu s iv e
license
from
Disk U n io n
38
THE SOUNDS OF VIOLENCE
Reminiscent of the m ysterious Zodiac Killer, a serial m urd ere r active
in California in the 1960s and 70 s, the Skullm an character som etim es
wears a bag over his head w ith a cut o u t eye hole. Nishiyam a has w orn
s im ila r 'm asks' when he's on-stage sin gin g w ith Balzac. "W ell...you
know, th a t case [of the Zodiac K iller] closed as is, unsolved/' begins
Nishiyam a. "I th o u g h t the mask, you know, the w earing o f the cloth
mask, the death/bereavem ent, th a t kind o f unsolved, m ysterious cir­
cumstance o f the Zodiac K iller was fascinating."
Out o f the Grave and in to the Dark to u ts tracks fro m Balzac's last tw o Japa­
nese releases Dark-lsm and Came O ut o f the Grave.The DVD portion of the
release includes an hour of m aterial including videos, live performance,
and a short ho rror film by the band. If you haven't experienced Balzac yet,
th is com es h igh ly recom m ended; it offers the perfect w in d o w into Balzac's
m ulti-faceted and alw ays fascinating approach to horror and punk rock.
I lf
%
IP
1
Further d rivin g hom e Balzac's m ultifaceted approach to h o rro r punk
culture, they opened th e ir ow n fashion boutique in Osaka called
Shocker on Halloween o f 2000. "A lth ou gh we were already extrem ely
busy w ith our band, not only did I w a nt to have a retail store fo r Balzac
merchandise, but all of the m em bers o f the band w anted to design
clothes and other products as well," says Nishiyam a.
The store's tough-as-nails slogan is For Soldiers, Prostitutes, and Hor­
ror Punks. W hile the retail outlet's focus is fashion, m a in ly carrying
Balzac's ow n Dementia 13 brand o f clothes, y o u 'll also find a series
o f q u ality Hawaiian style shirts designed by Pushead as w e ll as other
merchandise designed by the band in clud in g Balzac T-shirts, jackets,
and other products.
Of course, neither the Shocker store nor Balzac them selves w o u ld be
com plete w ith o u t a little extra reverence fo r the M isfits. N ishiyam a
sums it up kno w in gly w hen he says, "W e also have Jerry's (from the
M isfits) bass hanging on display in the store."
Q O T T i l l ' G f lA V E i w IN TO
H
RED PAPERBAGMAN RAH
HALLOWEEN EDITION:
RARE
BLACK PAPERBAGMAN RAH
STANDARD EDITION
T H i;
D m
M
WHITE PAPERBAGMAN RAH
BALZAC FIENDISH CLUB VARIANT:
ULTRA RARE
IN E S S
The next to y in M edicom 's set, the Samhain version of Danzig, takes us
out o f the black and into the red...the blood red. Samhain was Danzig's
heavy hitting follow -u p to the M isfits.T h is new band was much darker
and far m ore brooding than his previous project. Case in point: Danzig
frequently doused him self in anim al blood during live performances,
hence the toy's gory colorway. Though a firm release date hasn't been
set fo r the figure, Danzig says that "th e Samhain to y is already approved,
so fit] should be out rig ht after [the first figure]," Fie also mentions that
there's "a new Sam hain video scheduled fo r US release [docum enting!
a show at the now dem olished Stardust Ballroom on Sunset in Flollywood." The video is com prised solely o f raw footage o f a show that
Danzig can only describe as "pandem onium and insanity." "Flopefuily,
the video w ill com e out w hen the Samhain to y is out. It w o uld be cool if
they coincide," he opines.
T H E T H R E E FACES
O F G L E N N D A N Z IG
IT'S NO SECRET that Glenn Danzig has developed a m ysteriously maligned
persona over the years. Fle's a dark character to be sure; surly, grim-faced
and incessantly clad in black. But none o f that matters much to the masses
of people w ho respect his work.The bottom line is this: Danzig's contribu­
tions to punk, heavy metal and, to a much lesser extent, the Japanese toy
scene, are all his fans need to respect him after all this time.
Apparently, Japanese toy giant Medicom feels the same way.This fall the
company w ill begin releasing a Glenn Danzig toy set celebrating the 50year-old rock maven's career. A ptly titled theThree Faces o f Danzig, the set
w ill offer a trio of vinyl figures chronicling the distinctly different phases
of Danzig's artistic evolution.The first toy to be released w ill feature him
in his role as front man of the M isfits in the early '80s.The next figure w ill
com m em orate his stint w ith the overtly pagan and gothic-tinged Samhain. Finally, the third toy w ill show Danzig just as he is now— older, w iser
and deep into his explorations o f the darker side of rock music.
Danzig says that when theThree Faces o f Danzig line firs t came to his
attention, he thought that it sounded "cool." No surprise there; after all,
Danzig has long been a Japanese to y collector and was already fa m ilia r
w ith the high-quality toys th a t M edicom creates. "They fin a lly showed
one o f the toys off in San Diego this sum m er, the M isfits one.There w ill
be a regular one and a lim ited 666 version where the face is a painted
on M isfits skull," he says.
The M isfits Danzig toy is scheduled to hit by the end of this year and
proponents o f the legendary band are anticipating the piece. If yo u ’re not
fam iliar w ith the older M isfits catalog, the band brillian tly melded horror
and science fiction m otifs w ith hardcore punk riffs and rock and roll m elo­
dies from the 1950s.They ultim ately broke up in '83 only to receive critical
’.claim and comm ercial success after their demise. W hile an incarnation
the M isfits continues today w ith original guitarist Jerry Only, the early
__rdings w ith Glenn are still considered tim eless punk classics.
A fter Samhain's sp lit in 1987, Danzig started another band the next year
that he sim p ly named Danzig. Fie teamed up w ith Rick Rubin o f A m eri­
can Recordings for the ir self-titled debut and the resulting sound was an
alt metal seeped in soulful blues and satanic rom anticism . This Danzig
continues today, albeit stripped dow n and a bit bleaker. Check out the
release o f th e ir eighth album Circle o f Snakes fo r a taste o f the terror. As
fo r the third figure in the series, Danzig says "W e approved the final stuff
rig ht before San Diego. Flopefuily, I’ll see a prototype o f th a t and we can
move on that one too."
W H E N I W A S A K ID , I W A T C H E D T V
S H O W S L IK E A S T R O B O Y , 8 T H M A N ,
G IG A N T O R ...S O I W A S E X P O S E D
T O IT V E R Y E A R L Y O N .
Of course, this new Medicom set is far from Danzig's first flirtation w ith
Japanese character culture. In fact, Danzig has been a fan of anim e and
manga since childhood. Fie explains "W hen I was a kid, I watched TV
shows like Astroboy, 8 th Man, Gigantor...so I was exposed to it very early
on. We always had Japanese TV on a Puerto Rican station every Satur­
day and Sunday night fo r fou r or five hours. So I got to see everything
from Captain Harlock to Raideen to Galaxy Express to Cyborg 009... tons
o f stuff." Some o f this anim e influence undoubtedly inspired Danzig to
launch his very ow n com ic im p rin t titled Verotik in the '90s which has in
turn published several manga titles translated into English (including
Go Nagai's D evilm an). Fie even co-produced his own anim e based on
his very Go Nagai-inspired com ic book character, Satanika w ith studio
M adhouse in Japan—the very same anim ation house that crafted the
perennial m artial arts anime, N inja Scroll.
;h p}™'-::
A younger Glenn Danzig plays with The M isfits in 198
Naturally, Danzig's ow n com ic book characters have also manifested as
3D sculptures, toys and model kits. Verotik's m ain characters were cre­
ated early on as resin kits which Danzig says used to always "sell right
out." He continues, "Then we started doing cold cast stuff in China. We
did a Satanika bust, a big Satanika statue, a Dalkiel statue... And then, we
did tw o sets o f Super Ds in vinyl."
Asked about his current interests in comics and character culture, Danzig
replies, "I like early manga and anim e.There is a manga created by the
artist that did GeGeGe N o Kitaro, Mizuki Shigeru. it is this old guy and this
little kid, Akuma Kun. Another character I like is this cat-eyed boy, Nekino
Nogozo. It is this little kid w ith cat eyes and w eird hair.The anime for it is
really w eird because it is like paper cutouts that they make move."
T hroughout October, Danzig toured North Am erica w ith his Blackest of
the Black festival. This to u r includes Danzig, M ortiis, Behemoth, and a
M isfits set w ith Danzig on vocals and original M isfits guitarist Doyle Von
Frankenstein. Asked how he and Doyle reunited, Danzig explains. "We've
remained friends. W hen he left Jerry, we ended up talking about him pos­
sibly com ing out [on-stage w ith me] and doing some [M isfits] stuff."
"I tho ugh t it w o u ld be a cool idea. We d id n 't push it.T h is was about a
year and 1/2 ago. He had already left that new M isfits th in g ... Anyway,
we did a couple o f shows [last year] w here he came out and it was really
cool. We both enjoyed it. It was really pure."
“A bo ut 2/3 th ird s o f the w ay in to the Danzig set, Doyle com es out and
w e ju st blare in to a fu ll-o n M isfits set. It's crazy... Last tim e, some of
the songs we played were '138', '20 Eyes', 'Skulls', 'Hate Breeders', and
'Earth A.D.' A couple tim es we did 'Devil's W horehouse'. We did 'She'
once or tw ice...A ll stuff people w ant to hear."
Asked to speculate on the M isfits longevity, Danzig says "It struck a chord
w ith people. And it is ironic because everywhere I took early M isfits re­
cords to different labels to try and get a deal they told us it was awful.
That it was a wall of noise.They w o uld tell me 'you do n't have a career.
You should just give up right now.' I've been w ith Danzig for tw enty years
now plus the Samhain and M isfits stuff. And it just keeps going..."
WHEN SHUICHI OSHIDA created Panda-Z in Japan in 2003, he p ro b ­
ably d id n 't expect that his character w o u ld becom e a cult phenom enon
all over the w o rld. But, his adorable am algam ation o f rob ot and m am ­
mal has done just that. Starting out as a six-inch vin yl to y produced
by Megahouse (a subsidiary of Japanese en tertain m en t giant, Bandai),
the original Panda-Z robot is a creative hom age to Japanese super ro ­
bot anim e fro m the 1970s tha t has taken nostalgia nuts, urban vinyl
collectors and general to y enthusiasts by storm . W hile a steady flo w o f
Panda-Z related toys and knick-knacks have already flow ed in to im p o rt
shops stateside, the recent anim ated version o f Panda-Z has recently
come to the US courtesy o f Bandai E ntertainm ent.
Chronicling the crazy and painfully adorable exploits o f Pan-Taron, the pi­
lot of the giant mecha Panda-Z, Panda Z: the R obonim ation is eons away
thematically from m ost modern anime fare. However, it isn't just unique
in its quirky-cute characters and playful nods to retro robots; it's a virtual
anomaly in the w orld of anime. If you're already a collector o f the Panda-Z
merchandise, watching the anime is a bit like witnessing your collection
come to life.You'll chuckle out loud as Pantaron and his comrades the Robonimarus do battle w ith their nemeses the W animaru. You'd have to be a
hard-hearted person not to delight as they eat dinner plates full o f alkaline
batteries, kick each other in the nuts (and bolts) and cheat each other at
poker. But the most unusual thing about Panda-Z is that, just like your
toy collection, these animated characters never, ever say a w ord. That's
right; save for a very strangely juxtaposed '70s guitar rock soundtrack, the
Panda-Z anime is entirely silent— like Buster Keaton meets Hello Kitty.
W ith the firs t tw o volum es o f the Panda-Z hitting stateside and volum e
three on the way in December, Super7 recently sat dow n w ith original
character designer Shuichi Oshida to chat about his beloved designs, the
mass appeal o f mechanical m am m als and the meaning o f life.
OPPOSITE PAGE THE ORIGINAL 6 ” PANDA-Z VINYL TOY BY MEGAHOUSE.
S u p e r 7 H o w did you cook up the concept for Panda-Z?
Shuichi Oshida: A ctually, I d id n 't have the m ost th o u g h t-o u t idea for
the concept. I loved robots and mecha since I was young, and [before
M egahouse] I w o rked as a character designer at Fancy S tationary Com­
pany. It all started w ith a sim p le th o u g h t tha t it w o u ld be am using to
see a panda, such a cute and c o m m o n ly known anim al w ith impact,
rid in g in a panda-shaped rob ot to make him self look stronger.
THE ROBONIMARU ROBOTS
LIVE FREELY, THINK AND DEVELOP
AS EACH DAY PASSES...
The character is named after legendary manga artist Go Nagai's fa­
mous robot from the 1970s, Mazinger Z .W h at influence did Mr. Nagai
have on the creation of Panda-Z?
Not only Mr. Nagai, but my childh oo d appreciation o f super-robot an­
im e influenced me g re atly in my project. I always wanted to...have that
super-robot im age in m y ow n character, [so] I allow ed m yself to name
my character Panda-Z after the m ost representative o f the super-ro­
bots, Mr. Nagai's Mazinger-Z. A ll o f the super-robots I liked as a child
have influenced me greatly, so I w anted to use that inspiration to de­
velop a character w ith a shape th a t children aspire to.
The decision to make the anime silent was a very bold and interesting
one. How did this decision come about?
Actually, this was anime director Mr. Kanbe Mamoru's idea. If we had voices,
the image o f the characters becomes fixed. By having the characters silent,
we wanted viewers to conceptualize the image o f the characters themselves.
43
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W hat were the challenges and triumphs in making the anime silent?
I th in k one challenge was po rtra yin g the situation and context through
the characters' actions since we co u ld n 't explain anything through dia­
lect and speech. I believe I asked the director and producers to refer
to Tom and Jerry as an exam ple. W hat w e nt w e ll is that we were able
to create som ething tha t has m ore o f a cool feeling to it com pared to
o rd in a ry anim e. Of course, it som ehow feels cuter too.
Did you know that imported Panda-Z toys have already taken off with
fans of boutique and designer toys all over the world?
I've heard th in g s but there is n 't th a t much in fo rm atio n so I'm not re­
ally responsive to it.To be honest, it do esn 't hit me even when I'm told
Panda-Z is popular in Japan.
Still, the character appeals to a w ide range of people from teenage
girls to staunch retro robot collectors. Why do you think that is?
It's pro ba bly because, depending on the person, the show can be
grasped diffe re ntly. At least in Japan, olde r men can relate the show
to th e ir dear m em ories o f '70s rob ot anim e, w h ile the youth m ight
enjoy a sense of freshness they've never fe lt before. For the ladies, per­
haps the concept o f a cute panda rid ing a rob ot is new and som ething
th a t h o p e fu lly captures th e ir hearts. Maybe it's because the character
is open to m any diffe re nt kinds o f interpretations?
So, what's the underlying message buried beneath Panda-Z's cute-butambiguous exterior?
Maybe, it's the message that we've subtitled "Let's try to find our future?"
[As seen on all o f the toy packaging and in the anim e.[The Robonimaru
robots live freely, think and develop as each day passes. [The idea is that]
whether the future is good or bad, it is something we all must find out on
our own. M y statement is a bit overdone and stylish isn't it? [Laughs]
BLACK HAM GEAR
PILOTED BY DR. JANGARI
Let's talk about Panda-Z's pilot, Pan-Taron. W hat kind of hero is he?
Pan-Taron isn 't a hero.The oth er Robonim aru each have th e ir ow n spe­
cialties and skills that are reflected in th e ir body's characteristics.This is
norm al fo r all R obonim arus exceptTaron; he d o esn 't have th is feature
and, at first, is disturbed by that fact. However, he u ltim a te ly realizes
that he is the only one w ho can con tro l the Panda-Z mecha. So, he's
probably just happy th a t he is able to protect his frien ds fro m the bad
guys. In actuality, Pan-Taron is a lot like a seven-year-old hum an child.
This issue of Super7 is our "black issue." So, w e simply must ask, just
how evil are Panda-Z’s not-so-frightening enemies, theWanimaru?
Even though we cast an evil image, we are also careful to portray them as
characters that can't be blamed for their follies. Actually, I'd be really happy
if people would consider theW anim aru even cuter than the good guys.
Is there some sort of subtle social satire in there?
We try not to include satire too much. I'd be glad if w e could get people
to chuckle or giggle and leave a little bit of happiness in th e ir hearts
rather than in citing bursts o f laughter.
What's next for Panda-Z?
We haven't decided on anything in particular. However, I'd like to try
having [a Panda-Z anim e] w ith a tra d itio n a l sam urai sw ord fig h tin g
them e or a fu tu ristic setting in outer space.
Do you personally have any upcoming creations that w e should be on
the lookout for?
Not really. I th in k it is best and m ost enjoyable fo r people to discover
w hat they like on th e ir ow n.
TOYS FROM THE COLLECTION
01
EMMA BRISKO
AT A GLANCE, you may fin d a fa m ilia r sense o f w o nd er and w h im sy
in Cam ille Rose Garcia's blackly absurd paintings, which is keen by
her; she's g o t you rig h t w here she w ants you. A fte r m ere m om ents
of closer inspection y o u 'll be forced to realize that Garcia's sad­
eyed g irls cast against distorted Disneyland backgrounds are n't
offering escape from reality at all; rather, they're begging you to
take a good hard look at w hat's w ro n g w ith the w o rld around you
and do som ething about it.
A fter a host of gallery show s and the release of her new toys
throu gh Necessary's Toy fo u n d a tio n , Garcia is quickly becom ing
one o f the m ost relevant pop surrealists w o rking today w ith a
potent social message tha t never feels too preachy.The artist to o k
tim e out o f her busy schedule before her recent opening at M erry
Karnowski gallery in LA to share her th o u g h ts on over-consum p­
tion, bears in Los Angeles and the in te rm in g lin g o f art and toys.
m
*
When did you firs t realize th a t you w a nted to be an artist?
There wasn't really a tim e I d id n 't know that's w hat I wanted to be.
My m om was a painter and... I sort o f apprenticed w ith her doing
murals before I even w ent to college.
The w ide-eyed g irls in yo u r w o rks so m e tim e s lo o k in n o ce n t,
o th e r tim e s , w o rld weary. S o m e tim e s th e y seem c o m p ie te iy and
u tte rly d o w n tro d d e n . H ow do you see th e ir role in th e w o rld s
th a t you create?
Not really enough tim e to answer this, as I w ill have to go into some
deep personal history and psychological stuff involving someone
called "the Captain'.'Their roles are always as the reluctant heroes,
they didn't know they w ould have to try to fix such a shit storm but
they are doing the best they can.That's w hy they are always so tired.
I m a in m e s s a g e ...
.
*
..ft
is that the entire system that toe liaoc set up in
A m e ric a is completely rorong on so many len ds.
J P>~ W
Your p a in tings are often packed w ith social com m entary.
W hen did you becom e so p o litic a lly and socially aware?
This started w ith my G randparents.They m oved from Los Angeles
up to northern California where m y grandpa bu ilt a log cabin in the
redwood forest. M y m om grew up in that cabin w ith 7 brothers
and sisters and no electricity. As a little person, I got to go there
every sum m er and live am ongst real "n ature " but then we w ould
come back to the suburbs o f Orange County, which fe lt like living
on Mars. Then in high school I discovered punk rock, M ainly The
Clash, X, and The Dead Kennedys, and that made me realize it's
possible to entertain people and have som ething to say at the same
tim e. I just always feel like it's m y jo b to warn people about the
doom , but do it in a way audiences can tolerate. I com e from a long
line o f anarchists, pirates, ecohippies, and individualists, so it just
comes naturally I guess.
How much of you r in te n tio n is to create w o rld s th a t w ill
help people to th in k o u tsid e th e lines o f ou r in crea sing ly
escape-driven society?
Escapism is an underlying them e o f my work, because the topics
that I address are usually so dark tha t it's really hard fo r people to
think for any length o f tim e about overpopulation, extinction, the
collapse o f society as we know it.The irony is th a t m ost people like
" .................
•••
— ,-- -----------------
I,.
■„
,I.. .... . ..I,,-
Blue Sailor
to "escape" on the weekends and go visit nature, as if "n ature " is
just part o f some elaborate them e park put there to entertain them
before they have to go back to work. M y main message is that the
entire system th a t w e have set up in Am erica is com pletely wrong
on so m any levels. W hat w orked in the 1700's doesn't really w ork
in 2000, because o f the population difference. You can't have u n lim ­
ited grow th w ith the am ount of people on the planet today, w ith o u t
speeding up our ow n dem ise exponentially every year.
W h a t role does th e idea o f n o sta lg ia play in you r w ork? The darkw a she d vin ta g e lo o k o f som e o f y o u r p a in tin g s seem s to suggest
som e am bivalence.
I use nostalgia as really a tool to tap into m em ory,the subconscious,
tryin g to bring people in to a com fortable place before I tell them
w hat I w ant them to know. I have noticed a frig h te n in g trend lately.
I have seen a lot of deers, bunnies, pine trees, pinecones, and birds
being used in art as w ell as fashion. It's frigh te ning for me to think
tha t nature itself has becom e nostalgic, that we have come to ac­
cept that that is part o f the past and not the future, th a t we associ­
ate thin gs like forests and birds w ith our childhood memories. It's
like we are try in g to recreate th is thing we have destroyed, building
birds out o f styrofoam and tin fo il.
O p p o site P a g e : Serial F orces
■q < 3 » ■
One o f th e th in g s th a t's s trik in g a b o u t you r a rt is th e sense o f
social re s p o n s ib ility cou pled w ith a w o n d e rfu lly p itch -black
sense o f hum or.
I have to have a sense o f hum or o r I w o uld probably kill myself. I
think, I learned from the intellectual yet boring fe m in ist art o f the
70's, that if you are political but not funny, no one w ill be interested
in your message. It's much m ore subversive to entertain people
first, then sort o f seep your message into th e ir brains.
W hat role, if any, do you th in k a rtis ts sh o u ld play in shaping th e
vie w s o f to d a y 's yo u n g m inds?
Artists should definitely be shaping the views o f today's young
minds, but only if they actually have som ething to say.
How have you been processing th e chaos in N e w Orleans?
I could w rite pages in response to this question, so I w o n 't even talk
about the race and class issues which w e already know are real. I'll
just com m ent on one issue, and that is the precariousness o f soci­
etal order. It's like our w hole m odern society is bu ilt out o f graham
crackers and som eone just has to spill a giant glass o f m ilk on it for
it to fall apart. Look fo r m ore o f this exciting failure o f society in the
near future, especially in all big cities that have giant populations
dependent on electricity, gasoline, and bottled water.
Do you ever pa in t fu ll pieces in one sittin g , or do you prefer to lay
a ground w o rk the n com e back and add layers o f meaning and tex­
ture? How much o f your sym bolism is subconscious?
I w o rk on a lot of paintings at the same tim e, I d o n 't like to be self
conscious w h ile 1paint. If I only worked on one at a tim e I w o uld be
too precious about it. M y sym bolism is both conscious and subcon­
scious, I w ork out m eanings before hand, but then I always waver
from them w h ile I'm painting. It's like, if I already thought about it
and w ro te it down, the idea is already stale, or I m ight start thinking
it w a sn't a good idea o r som ething, so they are constantly evolving
and changing until I have to hand them over.
There's a very strong narrative thread and interconnectedness in your
paintings. Do you start o ut w ith an idea for a series or story and then
paint, or does the narrative reveal itself after the painting begins?
I always start w ith the w ritin g , and some pieces are m ore of a
straight narrative, like a story, and some are m ore of a broken nar­
rative, like a dream .The underlying themes are pretty constant, but
the level o f awfulness and hum or are always shifting. Some days it's
not possible to be funny because the w o rld is so wrecked.
O pposite
P a g e : i)T£ 3tntimc o s r a p e p la n
and they look really amazing! O ther than m y ow n w eird g u ilt about
vinyl, I am very happy w ith them.
You also ju s t announced your o w n to y com pany called Pitco. Can
you reveal som e o f your plans?
Pitco is my ow n toy company that w ill be making very small runs of
very high quality toys out o f wood, fabric and paper, using only re­
cycled or renewable resources. Everything w ill be made in the USA,
preferably in California since we have some o f the strictest environ­
mental regulations in the w orld. It just doesn't make any sense to
me to be talking about environm ental problems, global warm ing,
and resource depletion w ith o u t wanting to do something different
w ith my ow n "productsVW hen I do toys, books, whatever w ith other
companies, I usually have no control over those aspects of produc­
tion, so that is w hy I have decided to start my ow n toy company.
I
c o lle c t tons t h a t . . .
Iiauc been used a lot. L like that sense o f lustoru I guess,
th at this tou has lined some incredible, mustcviotis life.
W hat's your perception o f th e w h o le art to y m ovement?
I thin k it's really awesome fo r all these artists to make things that
non-art w o rld people are interested in that are affordable. But I do
thin k other m ethods of production should be explored other than
vinyl made in China, again fo r the environm ental concerns.
Sqindlcu's escape Plan
An extension of your paintings and narrative w o rld is your upcom ­
ing w ork in toys. How did your recent dolls w ith Necessary's Toy
Foundation come to be?
I have been friends w ith Long Gone John fo r a w h ile now, (he is
part ow ner of the NecessariesToy Foundation), and we were talking
when he firs t started the to y company, and we decided to do some
dolls. I always make handm ade dolls fo r m y show, so I tho u g h t it
w o uld be interesting to see how they were made by som eone else.
I am to ta lly happy w ith h o w th e y turned out, although, in hindsight,
I should have inquired about m aking them out of recycled plastic
rather than vinyl. M y policy now w ith toys is that they have to be
environm entally responsible in th e ir production, which rules out
vinyi and anything made in China. NTF said fo r fu tu re to y projects,
they w ill look into this fo r me, which makes me im m ensely happy.
W hat is the story behind the characters you are releasing first?
Are you pleased w ith th e final outcom e of the figures?
i did a bunch o f different draw ings fo r toys, but LGJ wanted to do
m ainly the girl dolls. I think my other ones were to o creepy and aw­
ful fo r anyone to actually buy. I ju s t saw the actual dolls yesterday,
Do you buy or collect any toys yourself? You're art seems to repre­
sent a distaste for consum er culture at large; are you a big collector
o f objects in general?
In answer to part one of this question, I collect toys but I am m ain­
ly interested in hand made cloth dolls, or carved wood, or older
messed up dolls. I like dolls made by grandm as, crazy people, or
w oodcarvers. I like sock dolls made by kids, things w ith button
eyes, old felt that's falling apart. I collect toys that have been used a
lot. I like that sense of history I guess, that this toy has lived some
incredible, m ysterious life. I find that utterly lacking in brand new
toys, but I bet all the toys made today w ill look awesome in 5o
years if anyone is around to see them.
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Part tw o is really the m illio n dollar question. I have a huge problem
w ith consum er culture in general, not because I d o n 't like stuff, but
because of w hat is lost when m ost new "th in g s " are made. Here is
a partial list o f w hat is lost:
That creek you used to play in w hen you were a kid. That forest
you camped in when you firs t saw a woodpecker.That w oodpeck­
er. Open spaces. Oceans that are living not dying. Bears in Los
Angeles. Frogs w ith tw o legs not five. W ater that you could drink
out o f the tap, dirt you could play in w ith o u t a protective suit. Un­
paved spaces. Clean air. Q uiet.The list can go on fo r pages really.
My point is, that all the "s tu ff” made fo r our consum ption is made
out o f other stuff, m ainly nature, and if you make more stuff, there
w ill be less nature. We w o n ’t be able to survive on this planet for
very much longer, so unless everyone is m oving to Mars in the next
few years the only alternative is to make less stuff, and make it in a
sustainable way w ith renewable resources and a respect for nature.
If you w e re n 't an a rtist, w h a t do you th in k you m ig h t be doing
professionally?
I guess I w o uld be a junkie, because I w o u ld have to escape reality
som ehow. Plus I d o n 't like office jobs.
W hen it comes to art, w h a t do you th in k is m ore im p ortan t, im a gi­
na tion or technical ability?
Well, which band is better. The Clash, or Rush? O bviously, you al­
ready know m y answer! I w o u ld rather look at som ething painted
by a schizophrenic person w ith no arms w ho has to paint w ith his
feet than look at som ething th a t has correct light source. I find per­
fection to ta lly boring, and I try to avoid it at all costs.
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TH E A R T OF TARA M CPHERSO N
TARA McPHERSOIM IS one of those L.A. scene art
stars that you are going to w ant to keep your eye on.
W ith projects ranging from paintings to com ic book
covers and rock posters, her subjects all seem to know
som ething that you don't. Behind the ir naive eyes and
child-like sm ooth faces lies a deeper story that we're
sim p ly too afraid to ask about. Her beautifully painted
characters subtly speak o f the indescribable insecuri­
ties that we all som etim es feel.This is the magic that
draws us into her work. On the heels ofTara's recent
move to NYC, Super7 chatted w ith Tara about her past
influences and future projects. To see more of her
work, be sure to check out www.taramcpherson.com.
Better inspiration... heartbreak or happiness?
Heartbreak, but I think it's the com bination of both that
makes the best inspiration.That's a complete life... One
w ith the good and the bad. It's that dynam ic and tension
in peoples' relationships that interests me heavily.
Do you draw inspiration from any Japanese artists?
Yes, definitely. Before I w e nt to college I managed a
Japanese anime store in L.A. fo r a few years (Banzai
Anim e). It was there I learned about artists like M i­
yazaki, Terada, Nara, M urakam i, Mizuno, Nirasawa,
Takano, and m any others. Of course I can't forget to
m ention the classics like Hokusai, Hiroshige, andYoshitoshi that I love too. I actually have a few Hokusai
draw ings tattooed on me and plans fo r more.
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Rumor has it that you have an upcoming toy project.
Can you give us any details?
Well I fin a lly have a few things going on in the toy
world, I'm happy to say. I have tw o Circus Punks com ­
ing out: The Lonely Heart Punk and the Vampire Ninja
Punk. After that comes m y Lonely Heart Ion which is an
L.A. A rtist series Dunny by Kid Robot; the War Wound
Qee series 2 by OX-OP andToy 2 R; and then my Vam­
pire Ninja Sqwert by Jam ungo comes out. I'm in talks
right now w ith a com pany to discuss doing larger fig ­
ures of my characters, which I'm super excited about.
A bove: D ull S ound
Above left: Shonen Knife to u r poster
Left Heft to righ t): Lonely Hearts Girl, Queens o f the Stone
Age to u r poster, Robot
53
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SUPER THREADS
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TO A TEE
So w hat if it's w inter time? T-shirts make the
best gifts for any occasion and all kinds of peo­
ple. In this installm ent ofThreads, we're show ­
casing ten t-shirt designs that you sho uldn't
pass up this holiday. (Plus one running jacket,
because we w o u ld n 't w ant you to get sick play­
ing in the cold.)
1)This Super7 design features a vector Light
Cycle from the cult-classic '80s film Tron— a
safe bet for the sm artly dressed sci-fi geek.
2) Can you identify all of the spaceships from
classic sci-fi film s on this new shirt designed
by Brian Flynn? 3) This forest green Godzilla
homage says "Yes, I'd like a ticket to Tokyo.
The kaiju there are to die for." 4) We like this
UNKL gas mask shirt, but w e do w onder w hat
the UNKL guys are preparing fo r in th a t "la b o ­
ra to ry" o f theirs. 5) This UNKL design gets a
gold star fo r asym m etry. 6) Kids w ith guns in
tige r pajamas are tops, especially when they're
featured on a nice running jacket by Gama-Go.
7) If you do run into a Deathbot at the bus stop
like the one featured on this Gama-Go shirt, we
suggest you ho of it a block to the next stop. 8)
Tara McPherson's SexyTree Lady design makes
a strong case fo r environm entalism . 9) It's a
decidedly emo w in te r inTara McPherson-land.
10) You sim p ly can't go w ro ng w ith the classic
blood splattered M isfits logo shirt. 11) Balzac
is the band to watch from Japan and this
Skullm an m ascot shirt designed by fro n t man
Hirosuke is the shirt to wear to show you know.
BU YERS G U ID E _
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BECAUSE r SAW THEN THAT LIFE IS LIKE A DREAM
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Road trips, drunken concerts, and late-night make-out
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novel by King-Cat cartoonist John Porcellino. Tackling
the pain and uncertainty o f the pivotal sum m er before
college, Porcellino's sad and beautiful story is drawn in
his sincere, m in im a list style. Deceptively and charm ingly
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The inside o f Gojira-Ya (3)
KO ENJI
BY BRIAN FLYNN
To get to Koenji, you have to take the Chuo local (yellow,
not orange) from Shibuya (or Nakano if you are already
shopping). Take the south exit from the station by turn­
ing right at the turnstiles (there is only one path to the
turnstiles, so it is easy). When you exit, cross the mini-bus
parking lot, and head down the main street. About one
block down there will be a general hobby store (1) on the
right hand side. It's nothing special as far as shops go, but
it's a nice stop for an actual legit neighborhood toy store,
and you might actually find a toy you're looking for.
If you keep going roughly tw o more blocks there w ill be
one or tw o normal buildings, and then a diagonal build­
ing. There w ill be a gashapon machine out front and a
banner that says "Thrash Out" in illegible heavy metal
type. This is Gargamel (2). Take the stairs to the second
floor. Gargamel is another ofTokyo's finest custom char­
acter toy companies. They also have a nice selection of
vintage kaiju for sale. Unfortunately, they speak almost
no English, but they carry Super? Say hello to Kiyoka
from Super?
If you go all the way back to the station, there is a small
alley road that runs along the train tracks. Follow it down
three or four blocks and Gojira-Ya (3) w ill be on your
right. You w ill probably miss it at first; if you get to the
bend in the road, you went about half a block too far.
Look for a small staircase to the second floor with color
copies of toys in the stairwell. At the top of the stairs,
the store is on the left hand side.They also have another
space on the right, but it's more of an office and home
to the occasional hyper-rare toy that you are not allowed
to see.
For the hardcore kids and crusty punks, as you head
back, look for Boy Records (4) on the opposite side of
the road. Boy is even trickier to see, look for a wood
plank building w ith a tiny A-board out front, and take the
narrowest stairs you have ever seen up to the second
floor. They specialize in crust and politico-punk—very
Discharge. Most everyone reading this list can avoid the
shop, but a few of you should check it out. If you are
looking for anything (and I mean anything) in the genre,
they w ill have it.
eg
SUPER7 GEAR
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ISSUE 06
$5.95
ISSUE 07
Booska / Gary Baseman
Alex Ross / Gatchaman
Godzilla 50th Art and Tc
Dougram / Akumaizer
Mirrorman / Angilas
Raideen / Transformers
O R D ER S U P E R 7 GEAR
Call the Super7 store at 415.409.4700 o r visit the
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Subscriptions to Super7 are ju st $28 per year (for
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M IR R O R M A N
ISSUE 08
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ISSUE 09
$5.95
Japanese Talkers / Tiger-7
Tim Biskup / Secret Base
ISSUE 10
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w ith new frie n d Brandi and her hom em ade
U gly Dolls cape. (2) Mr. Jose Parla in the
co lo rfu l w o rld o f plush. (3) Blythe fan w ith
her Elton John-esque custom ized d o ll. (4)
Blythe ph o to g ra p h e r Gina Garan. (5) Den­
nis Ham ann, and an u n id e n tifie d G argam el
spy represent Super7 w ith Spike Slawson
of Me First and the G im m e G im m es. (6)
Blythe fans by the droves w a it in anxious
a n ticip a tio n outside the Super7 Store. (7)
Kirkland Jue and M att A lt break do w n in ­
te rn a tio n a l to y geek barriers. (8)ToysTake
No Prisoners a rtist Dave H iggins up close
and personal. (9) M anisha Patel, Dora Drimalas o f H ybrid Design, and Pixar artist
Ronnie del Carmen sho w o ff th e ir dentist's
handiw ork. (10) A nita Pidgeon kickin' it
w ith tw o o f Pixar's finest, husband Je ff P id­
geon and Nate S tanton. (11) Joe M agnuson
gives S7 the th u m b s up after being firs t
in line fo r the M adball M antis. (12) These
tw o fine folks tra ve lle d all the w ay from
Chicao to get th e ir hands on the exclusive
Super7 Hallow een toys. (13) M att A lt and
Robert Duban w ith th e ir super #1 fan. (14)
Super? store m anager Devon M o rf flau nts
a sculpture o f h im se lf crafted by M ark
Nagata. (15) A rtis t C am ille Rose Garcia
signs one o f her new to ys fo r an ad m ir­
er at the M erry Karnow ski g a lle ry in Los
Angeles. (16) The loot... N u m be r one in a
series of five exclusive Super7 H allow een
toys by Secret Base. (17)The Super7 crew
e n jo yin g a fin e m eal and som e Chianti...
Q uite the lookers, huh? (18) Super7 o w n ­
er Brian Flynn w ith Alan Yen ofT oyB oxD X
pose fo r the paparazzi. (19) Pixar s to ry ­
board a rtist and C ollosus a u th o r M ark
A nd rew s is b rin g in g the rain w h ile Super7
store's Corey w a its fo r the fu ry to un fold .
M
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