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ROBOTS IN DISGUISE Display Info Basic Figures Deluxe Figures Mega Figures Ultra Figures Super Figures Promotional Materials Brief Q&A RESCUE ROY Rescue Roy HASBRO Jurassic Park III Star Wars/Batman G.I. Joe/Planet of the Apes LEGO Bionicle Dinosaurs Jurassic Park III/Mindstorms Star Wars BANDAI Digimon/Final Fantasy Gundam TOYCOM Space Ghost A SkyJammer Enterprises Publication |
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TOY FAIR 2001: [Remember - every picture links to a larger size!] This was the last but the most exciting stop on our tour of Bandai -- even though we were not allowed to photograph much, we still were able to take in a lot of information. The presentation, the longest of any tour we had taken, was given by two actors dressed up as Amuro Rey and Sayla Mass. Bandai is going all out to promote Mobile Suit Gundam. With the original series, 08th MS Team, Gundam 0080 and Gundam 0083 airing on Cartoon Network this year, there is also a ton of accompanying product, much which is entirely new to the US market. I noticed an HG UC version of Char's Zaku II, a model that came totally out of the blue, surprising me. Also shown was a 1/144 version of the RX-78, which seems to be a new kit as well, but I was not able to get a close enough look to be sure. A good number of the HG UC models are being released in the United States with new packaging, and Bandai will also release the kits from the 0080 and 08th MS Team lines in the US in new packaging. All of these models are at the 1/144 scale, but many are excellent kits despite their size. Bandai is also going to be releasing a lot of Mobile Suits in Action. It seems all the ones based on the Mobile Suits from the original series are being released in the US at great price points. Yes, now you can get that Zeong you always wanted for only $10.00. The only MSiA not being released in the US is the Big Zam. However, there is more in the MSiA line coming our way, and this is new product to both Japan and the United States. I managed to get a peek at the MSiA Ez8 (in mock packaging), and I noticed it will come with a Jeep and removable limbs. Also coming are the Kampfer, GP-01 FB, GP-02, Gundam RX-78-NT-1 (Alex) and RX-79 (G) Gundam. There is still more. Bandai is also releasing transport vehicles and carriers. These are items that were only represented in some extremely old models in Japan -- twenty year old models -- if they were released at all. The last stuff shown were two giant toys based on designs from 0083. These huge toys are being called transforming toys, though it's difficult to say what they will transform into, since the original designs didn't transform at all. However, both toys look very cool and well designed, and for people who can't afford or build the Master Grade versions of these designs, they look to be excellent substitutes. Bandai is working out a special new strategy in regards to the model kits themselves. Models will now be rated from rank 1 to rank 5, in terms of number of pieces and complexity. If a person building the kit sends in the accompanying documentation, they will receive a medal. There are two series of medals: one for Gundam Wing, and the other from the Universal Century line, which is being released this year.
(Strangely enough, the stuff being released in the lower ranking categories I consider to be the more time-consuming kits, since they usually require paint to look good.) Unfortunately, the only 1/100 sized kits mentioned are the left overs from Gundam W: Endless Waltz. Perhaps Bandai is trying to keep the models more in line with Action Figure size. It also might be still too risky to try to market a Master Grade kit in the US right now. Here are the kit listings. An asterisk notes a new model for the US market. Remember, many of these are totally new kits, never even released in Japan!
From what I could tell, Bandai is trying to make the packaging be uniform, yet also differentiate for the various series. The boxes for The Original Series and 0080:War in the Pocket are in a "Landscape" format (wider than they are tall), while the models for "The 08th MS Team" and "0083:Stardust Memory" are in "Portrait" format (taller than they are wide).
Now here is the line up for the figures including character-based figures and the Mobile Suits in action:
Bandai is also releasing action figures of some of the famous characters from the first series! Amuro Ray (yes, this is how he is listed; my guess is that will be the English translation), Sayla Mass, Char Aznable, Garma Zabi, Matilda Ajan, Ramba Ral and Crowley Hamon. These will be sold as 4.5 inch figures. Lastly, Bandai displayed some transport vehicles like the Albion and some of the carrier vehicles! These items were so new, they did not even make the press kit! I'd like to just make a few side comments: I am a long time Gundam fan, and the entire Gundam presentation blew me away. Bandai is going all out to have good product once the show starts up in full swing. The US market is getting really treated well here, folks, and that's something that I am very happy about. The real surprise were the models, or, more specifically, that so many are scheduled to be released this year. While some are just repackaged 0080 kits (not necessarily a bad thing, mind you) we are also getting totally new designs. The models for Char's Zaku and RX-78 Gundam both look new, and I seriously doubt Bandai is bringing over the only 0083 GP-02 kit, since they are billing this design as the top of the line kit for 2001. Well, at least I hope so, since the old kit looked like a demonic snowman.... The MSiA line looks great too, and we are getting some really nice pieces in it, like a Kampfer. This is a favorite Mobile Suit of mine, and the fact it is coming has now just forced me to start buying MSiA's. The two giant 0083 MS toys looked great as well. I am betting Bandai decided to make them since there just are not many kits from 0083 that meet modern standards. Looks like a great year to be a Gundam fan. Altered States Magazine would especially like to thank the kind folks at Hasbro, LEGO, Bandai, Toycom, and the Toy Fair workers for their help.
Got feedback? Send us E-mail! All pictures and text are Copyright 2001 Philip N. Zeman, Altered States Magazine, and SkyJammer Enterprises. You may not use these pictures or text without the permission of Altered States Magazine and the author(s). Directly linking to these pictures is forbidden. Please link to http://www.alteredstatesmag.com/ |
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