Butanohana Database- a visual guide

Discussion in 'Japan Toys' started by Lixx, May 20, 2011.

  1. Mr. Humphreys

    Mr. Humphreys Mini Boss

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    A Buta history question for you please. This was sold on Mandarake...

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    It is described as a Pocket Staiin custom one-off, painted by Kioka Ikeda. Simple but oh so nice! Love the little knees detail. Does anyone know if this was painted for the 2009 Gargamel / Buta Thrashout show?
    https://www.flickr.com/photos/kaiju-taro/sets/72157620487411581/
     
    Last edited: Jan 9, 2020
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  2. akum6n

    akum6n Vintage

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  3. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    Excellent detective work, as usual @akum6n :thumbsup:
     
  4. Mr. Humphreys

    Mr. Humphreys Mini Boss

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    Goodness! :shock: Thank you Daniel, you're a genius! How do you manage to remember all of the details and lore?! :razz: Looks like it was a fun show, I wonder where all of the paper sculptures are now?
     
  5. Radin

    Radin Toy Prince

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    I've been through this thread many times and never actually clicked on those links until last night. My soul hurts. So many great figures.

    I have no idea about the production numbers but the small amount that make it on to the secondary market suggests they are extremely small. Super frustrating to try and find figures and then to see multiple painted G Series sets pop up on Mandarake. How could they possibly have 5-6 sets of those? Basically $800 for the full set. What are the retail on those? I don't mind paying a secondary price but I don;t like getting hit over the head with a brick..end of rant :)
     
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  6. gatiio

    gatiio Post Pimp

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    It’s buta No hana, it has always been like this.
    I’ve actually only owned secondary market buta and all bought here. During simpler times and less hype.

    It was nice and it was still expensive then
     
  7. evom

    evom Mini Boss

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    @Radin
    His run sizes are usually pretty large for regular shop releases.
    But he has an incredibly dedicated fanbase and then the people buying for hype on top of that.
     
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  8. Mr. Humphreys

    Mr. Humphreys Mini Boss

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    I remember in the early days, prices weren't so crazy and the demand wasn't frantic. I started collecting buta in 2008-ish, and dear old Super 7 (their original store in SF Japan town was filled with buta, vintage, and modern sofubi) had the whole line of dinos as well as what are now, some of the rarest figures. They even sold buta through their webstore and would stock subsequent releases. I adopted 80% of my dino herd in one day, after Tokyo Buyers forgot to place my bid on a vintage burgundy Nakajima magnetic head dino (3 interchangeable heads, each had a magnet at the base of the neck which would attach to the dino body with a receiving magnet at the neck) :x:x:x:x:x! I was so frustrated, I had to go to Super 7 for a therapy session! :oops: Dinos back then were $65 - $80 (i think), and you could buy as many as you wanted. Some of them sat on the shelves for more than a year, for sure. The beloved Kaiju Taro had a web store and sold them internationally, and figures sat for months and months with no buyers. Chris mentioned that when KT had their online blowout going out of business sale, he picked up a MIB set of naked cavemen for under $60, and I think they were originally listed for $125, "exorbitanty expensive" :lol:. KT prices were also similar to Super 7. Mr. Ohashisan sold them in his webstore, and quite a few would languish for 2-3 years unadopted. You could get a deputy service to make a purchase for you. Back in the "early days" people had no idea what Butanohana was. It took some time before they became interesting, then popular, then insanely crazy trophies. With the prices these days, it's definitely harder to collect them just for the sheer pleasure because you like them. I started off wanting just to collect one sculpt of each critter, but as you know, once you play with them, you really appreciate them as toys and something beyond -- there is a special whimsicality about them that is addictive and mesmerizing, so it's hard not being completist when new colorways have gorgeous colors lavished on them!

    Personally, I've drastically slowed down collecting all toys. Crazy prices and finding space to display them, makes me appreciate what I have :)

    p.s. @Radin I can genuinely sympathize with the frustration you feel, collecting buta now is much more difficult and daunting. Keep checking the For Sale section here, and don't forget to create your list (with photos!) in the Wants section. SB'ers are awesome folks! There have been MANY boardies who have helped me with my buta adoptions, for which I am deeply grateful! :razz: Patience and perseverance are also key to finding them as well.
     
    Last edited: Nov 23, 2020
  9. Mr. Humphreys

    Mr. Humphreys Mini Boss

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    A Buta help question please! I recently adopted this Staiin candy holder on JYA

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    The only description given in the auction, was in the title of the listing,
    "Butanohana Super Rare Gargamel Pocket Monster Series S Member Clear Molded Soft Vinyl"

    The odd thing about this toy, is that it is NOT soft vinyl, but it is hard plastic :shock: -- it's the same size as the "regular" Staiin Buta sofubi. I am guessing this is meant to be a candy holder. Does any one know what the "Pocket Monster Series S" is? When this was made? And, where was it originally sold? At a show? Toy Store? He's clear with a dusting of blue paint, and silver teeth highlights. Really nice toy! Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank you! :D

    p.s. calling our resident Buta and Gargamel experts @akum6n and @MonstaIslandCzar , perhaps our scholars would have an answer? :)
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2022
  10. poysntixels

    poysntixels Post Pimp

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    he really is quite a beauty.
     
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  11. akum6n

    akum6n Vintage

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    @Mr. Humphreys Hmm, hard plastic, eh? That's a surprise. I don't remember hearing about a hard plastic version of the mini S-Taiin.

    One thing that comes to mind, is that I would check the foot stamp against the stamp on the soft vinyl version. Are they equally sharp?

    The auction title is 'Pocket Kaiju Series S-[Taiin]', so I think the translation was just garbled.
     
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  12. Mr. Humphreys

    Mr. Humphreys Mini Boss

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    @akum6n Hi Daniel! Thanks for taking the time to reply. I have a regular-issue clear Staiin, and just did a side by side comparison. The "regular clear Staiin" is identical in every way to the candy holder, but the regular Staiin is softer to the touch (there is a slight give, when you press on him). Feet stamps between the two, are the same. Perhaps it's vinyl after all, but has just hardened over the years? Your suggestion of the comparison between a known sofubi and the newly adopted toy, is an excellent one, and also as @ultrakaiju Stevie pointed out, it would be highly unlikely to produce just one plastic toy, given considerations to the expense of tooling to make one plastic toy. Thank you for the correction on the auction title, makes sense now :oops::oops::oops:. Still, I wonder who issued it as a candy holder and painted it. I'm always nerdy about knowing the provenance. It must be a custom of sorts, but by who? Thank you for your help! :)
     
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  13. poysntixels

    poysntixels Post Pimp

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    Here is a vaguely database-like question. Just saw what looks like not one, but 2 beautifully produced books on Yukinari Dehara. Why is there nothing for Shigenobu Ohashi /Buta? He was an illustrator, many people haven't seen that he, like Dehara, did handmade stuff in his early days, so he knows production and design and could surely retain control of any such project. It's not like Japan, or Skullbrain is short of designers and so forth. I bet people would love it; big ol' coffee table book sitting on your mid-century modern table... so c'mon: Publish or Perish!
     
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  14. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    ^^ Heck, even just a mini catalogue of the toys he has produced, similar to what other sofubi makes have done, would more than get my backing. I would love to flip through a beautiful curated volume of the Buta toys [I will never have]. I could definitely see Ohashi-san being into a wonderfully colourful tribute version similar to the vintage Bullmark flyers.
     
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  15. Radin

    Radin Toy Prince

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    I'd be interested in a book but let's not pretend it would be a monumental amount of work. Getting all the toys and release years. Taking photographs. Dealing with copyright and legal. Paper binding printing...This would be a huge project. Also, any such project would be much much better with interviews/write ups and as well as copies of artwork/drawings...Quite an undertaking
     
  16. zindabad

    zindabad Line of Credit

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    Been a minute since our last Buta post. After many years, we have a new Garamon!

    Sold on Dec 11 by online lottery for ¥3960. I believe a new set of Rock-Paper-Scissors micros was also sold for ¥1430.

    Photo courtesy of @yudekaruru on Instagram. I find this new one absolutely beautiful, quite a different palette selection from previous releases. Sculpt looks the same as others without a zodiac symbol.

    [​IMG]
     
  17. gomora63

    gomora63 Comment King

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    Last edited: Dec 18, 2022
  18. gomora63

    gomora63 Comment King

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    Last edited: Dec 19, 2022
  19. zindabad

    zindabad Line of Credit

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    I will not be upset if M-World can't get me a Baltan
    I will not be upset if M-World can't get me a Baltan
     
  20. akakutsu

    akakutsu Fresh Meat

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    Damn, that Garamon is gorgeous.
     
  21. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    The new Gary - and the rock-paper-scissor micros - are so wonderful. Sadly I did not get an order in via anybody for either, and I am sure (based on historical as well as current pricing) these will remain unobtainable. Really sad to have missed out on this one, but just bad timing. How I long for the days of accessibly Butanohana. :(
     
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  22. old_seaweed

    old_seaweed Toy Prince

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    I'd gladly purchase that envelope/container from anyone willing to part with it. Beautiful/worth the price of admission
     
    Last edited: Dec 23, 2022
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  23. brobles

    brobles S7 Royalty

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    Gary looks very cool and different from what has been released before!
     
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  24. poysntixels

    poysntixels Post Pimp

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    Very nice little guys, as always. The RPS guys are very vibrant and the Gary is superb.
     
  25. JMRampage

    JMRampage Addicted

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    this is likely a custom by whoever bought the toy originally. And it might be hard either just because it is packed tightly with those plastic balls, or because those plastic balls are made of abs plastic, which reacts with sofubi to melt into it over time - thus creating a solid abs glob
     
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