DX Robo

Maybe some day I will put the decals on Jetman DX Jet Icarus here. Looks pretty good without them though. This is so close to being a Godaikin I had to pick it up. Since so many Godaikins came from the Super Sentai series, it’s not a surprise that they have another solid piece like this one. I am sure there are a few more robots I have seen before that would be great to add to the collection.

This is the European release of the Tenkugattai Jet Icarus that came out in 1991. I can’t really see any differences from the Japanese release based on images I see on eBay. I really enjoyed the design on this one and the solid build. The legs and body are not too flat and blocky like Sun Vulcan or one of the Fiveman robos. The color scheme works pretty good too.

I am not a Super Sentai fan, but some of the robots from the series are pretty cool. I was not collecting robots when this came out, but it still tugs on the same heart strings I feel from DX Popy robots from the 80’s. Here is the commercial for the Jet Icarus toy.

Jetman DX Jet Icarus Bandai Europe

Jetman DX Jet Icarus Bandai Europe instructions

Jetman DX Jet Icarus Bandai Europe from tokusatsu Chōjin Sentai Jetman 1991-1992

Jetman DX Jet Icarus Bandai Europe decals/stickers from tokusatsu Chōjin Sentai Jetman 1991-1992

Jetman DX Jet Icarus Bandai Europe from tokusatsu Chojin Sentai Jetman 1991-1992

Jetman DX Jet Icarus Bandai from tokusatsu Choujin Sentai Jetman 1991-1992

So my Vavilos has never been taken out of the styrofoam. I can tell as I never took the twisty tie thing off. This is a robot from the Space Sheriff Shaider series which is very much like the Power Rangers(Is that show still running in Japan?). Godaikins were a bunch of robots from various anime series with no cartoon tie in to back it up here in the United States. This is likely the reason they were not that popular. I think if they had released some of these anime here, we would be remembering them as nostalgically as Voltron.

Design wise, Vavilos would look much better with a larger more defined head and arms that are proportionate with the rest of its body. It is the main reason this was not a must have robot for me. But it is nice to have. The rest of the robot looks ok. The legs are similar in design to Goggle V and Dyna Robo. The chest is a bit blocky like Sun Vulcan, like a cube with a triangle on top. Its decent in ship form, in fact I prefer it. That is likely why I have never pulled it out to transform Vavilos. Overall it is a decent robot, but it is on the lower end of what Bandai released in their Godaikin line. More yellowing white plastic from these old 80’s robots. Guess these toys discolor after a while.

Check out the first episode of Uchu Keiji Shaider tokusatsu show from 1984-1985. The cheesy 80’s tv music on this video was just killing me along with all the cheap special effects!

Vavilos GoDaiKin DX Bandai from Uchu Keiji Shaider tokusatsu tv show from 1984-1985

I have a post on the Vavilos ST as well. I should post a picture of them both the Vavilos Godaikin DX and Vavilos ST together later.

Vavilos GoDaiKin DX Bandai from Uchu Keiji Shaider tokusatsu tv show from 1984-1985

Vavilos GoDaiKin DX Bandai from Uchu Keiji Shaider tokusatsu tv show from 1984-1985

I don’t have any of the Takatoku Valkyries, but I cherish this Bandai VF-1A as it is my only Valkyrie from the 80’s. This is the Hikaru Ichijo Bandai VF-1A from the movie “Macross: Do You Remember Love?” in 1984. Bandai made this Valkyrie just after they bought the molds from the remains of Takatoku Toys. I love the big 80’s Chogokins with die cast metal. While it is not the 1/55 scale I covet, I like having both the ST and DX versions of a robot. Hopefully I will add the larger one soon. I consider the 1/100 scale ST’s and 1/55 scale as DX versions. It seems that the 1/100 scale Valkyries are harder to find than the 1/55 scale robots on the auction sites though, so I am glad to have any of them.

Bandai made some really solid Valkyries during that time in the 1980’s, like the Elintseeker or VT Trainer. The Valkyries themselves hold a special place in my heart. I only have two Toynami Masterpiece 1/55 Valkyries and one Bandai Valkyrie from 2002, but I really hope to add the original Takatoku and Bandai robots from the 80’s. They were the first robots that were amazing as jets and just as amazing as robots. Even 30 years later the quality, design and beauty of these pieces still shine. These are the must have robots of the 80’s.

Bandai Variable Fighter VF-1A Valkyrie 1984 from movie Macross: Do You Remember Love? 1984

Bandai Variable Fighter VF-1A Valkyrie 1984 from the movie Macross: Do You Remember Love? 1984

Bandai Variable Fighter VF-1A Valkyrie instructions and stickers from the movie 超時空要塞マクロス 愛・おぼえていますか 1984

Bandai Variable Fighter VF-1A Valkyrie 1984 from the movie Macross: Do You Remember Love? 1984

Computer Number 0302526

This is the Robotech Mac II Monster Destroid Cannon international release as the text on the box is in both English and French. Originally it came out  as the Destroid Monster. It is a really clunky robot, but I was really excited to add this to my collection. I can’t imagine this robot ever being used in combat. It looks like a sitting duck. Low mobility, can’t fly, I guess it is a moving anti-aircraft gun. I hardly even remember seeing it in the cartoon. I am still a huge fan of the Macross series and I was able to add this to my Macross robots at a nice discount to the Takatoku Toys version. I really don’t see much of difference between the robots except for the color.

The Matchbox version is a dark green whereas the Takatoku one is an olive green. This one barely moves at all, but it is a die cast monster. You can bend the arms and legs a little, emphasis on little. Kinda reminds me of my Srungle robot in functionality, but the design and color is so much better.

Matchbox Robotech Mac II Monster Destroid Cannon from Robotech: The Macross Saga 1985

Matchbox Robotech Mac II Monster Destroid Cannon from Robotech: The Macross Saga 1985

Matchbox Robotech Mac II Monster Destroid Cannon from Robotech: The Macross Saga 1985 超時空要塞マクロス

Matchbox Robotech Mac II Monster Destroid Cannon from Robotech: The Macross Saga 1985

Matchbox Robotech Mac II Monster Destroid Cannon from Robotech: The Macross Saga 1985

Unfortunately, I could not find a video of this robot in action.  Matchbox/Irwin

The DX Dancougar is a solid piece, but I can’t say I love this one. I got it without the box. I should have held out for a boxed copy(though maybe I never would have picked one up). I will have to change this into the large robot one day and redo some of these pictures as my old iPhone really does provide the detail I would like to see in these photos. I keep forgetting. This one is like Abegas, but the robots are a little better. The largest robot is a decent piece and they didn’t forget to make sure there was some diecast metal. Sorry, I hate cheap plastic robots. Probably should get around to the better pictures for each robot and as one large robot. ***

I plan to add the ST Dancougar to my collection, but I haven’t seen it for a while. I will have to keep an eye out for it.

Dancougar DX GoDaikin by Bandai 1985 aka Popy GC-30 from anime Dancougar Super Bestial Machine God

Here is the intro from the anime Chōjū Kishin Dancougar in 1985

Voltes V ST GoDaiKin aka Popy GA-80 1977 from anime Chōdenji Machine Voltes V(超電磁マシーン ボルテスV) 1977-1978

Voltes V is one of my favorite pieces. The ST version is a hefty piece of metal. It would be nice to have the DX counterpart but I don’t have the dough for that piece. My cousin has it, but it tilts a little bit from playful overuse. I am more picky about the pieces in my collection, but at least one of us have it. I picked up Voltes V on eBay. It comes with the sword and the chest piece becomes part of the sword.

Finally a robot based on anime. The anime was Super Electromagnetic Machine Voltes V. This cartoon was popular in the Philippines and translated to English. I definitely need to get around to seeing that version of the cartoon. When my cousin and I get together, we will need to do some binge tv watching.

I really enjoyed the anime for this robot, but I never finished it. The show was dark, mysterious, and much more serious than most of the anime. It felt like it was more aimed at adults than most robot anime I have watched. We got to the fourth season God Planet Quent and never got around to finishing it. It looks like they came up with a few follow series after that as well that never quite made it over.

Darn, moved my site to a brand new domain and broke all my images. Luckily, adding the images back is not as bad as I thought and I don’t have that many posts to fix. I didn’t really like these robots when they came out, but after watching the anime I came to appreciate them. I like the solid build and the detail is pretty good. Can’t say I love the pink. The cover art is a little redder, woulda been nice if the toy was too.

I just added some better images of the robot. I think I took the originals images in on my iPhone. That’s why they are so yellow. I’m thinking using a tripod will do wonders. I will probably come back and revisit these when I have more time. Looks like dusting may be needed. My cousin said Q-tips and water would do it.

The knees on these robots remind me of the  knees on the Clover’s Mobile Suit Gundam which is big and clunky as well. This is Fyana’s Brutishdog. If we ever did make combat suits, I really do think they would be more like these.

Here is the opening for the anime tv show Armored Trooper Votoms(装甲騎兵ボトムズ) from 1983-1984.

I watched these as rentals on VHS tapes and I enjoyed them. I saw them at the local library as DVDs as well, so you can purchase or borrow these. I have to see if they are on some of my Roku channels too. ***

Fyana’s Brutishdog ATM-09-GC booklet

Fyana’s Brutishdog ATM-09-GC

Fyana’s Brutishdog ATM-09-GC from anime tv show Armored Trooper Votoms(装甲騎兵ボトムズ) 1983-1984

Fyana’s Brutishdog ATM-09-GC

Fyana’s Brutishdog ATM-09-GC