strange or rare yahoo auctions post here (after theyre over)

Yeah Brian, although it can be difficult to tell, both of the 1st version Ultraman shared this same heal sculpt (with the noticeable different 'capsule' ears on the side of the mask, as opposed to the 2nd version's tapered rectangles). The first release was a standard Ultraman factory painted from Marusan, and the second came as a grey vinyl blank in a 'paint yourself' kit. It is not always clear to tell of course, if the paint was professionally applied (e.g. not kiddie-style), between the two. The colours tend to be a little different though, and the very early releases are often much more worn due to a typically thinner paint application used. Another giveaway is if the eyes are painted, as this was not the case on any of the vintage Marusan versions. But, as I said, it is not super defined; and certainly with aging and poor auction photos, you can't always know. My impression in judging this one from the paint (colour, amount, and way it was applied) was that it was one of the kit figures. Certain his power indicator crystal was a bit off, but there are always variants; another factor which makes any hard and set rules based on painting alone difficult (there were different people painting these, loads were made, and over an extended period of production). But if anyone knows any different, or has other things they have noted to be able to differentiate between them, I would love to hear more.

 

A couple of talkers from the same seller today. I was bidding on the Ultraman, and was aiming for the Mazinger Z as a potential fall back, until the bidding on it exploded towards the end. Gave me reign to focus on my prime target, but alas I walked away empty handed this time. Hoping to find one of these some day, but maybe another will come along in a little better shape.

Vintage Ansonii Ozen Ultraman talker (no disc) 31cm, ended at 22,800円






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Vintage Masudaya Mazinger-Z talker (working, but w/ damage) 38cm, ended at 44,000円

 

Thanks for checking, Roger, appreciate that.

But, now I of course curse you for tipping me to another toy I need to hunt! I have seen a lot of these 'kaiju/hero' boats, and they are so fun - but never that Gorilla!!! Must. Find. So, so cool.

 

I unfortunately got blown out of the water on this one, was really hoping it would end a little lower. Quite a nice example of a Marusan Godzilla, and of course there are innumerable variants on these. I always held a soft spot for the 'shirted' ones, which have nice heavy silver sprays, but have the neck and head largely unpainted. It makes quite a nice compliment to all-over paintjobs. And this one has such lovely, more royal blue shade of vinyl (at least in these pics). Touched off by some really clean paint on the eyes and mouth (which isn't always the case), makes this a great one, even for vintage Godzilla. Damn fine gorgeous toy, but there was a might of competition fighting it out for him, too. I sort of figure the marker on the tail would have kept him a bit lower; it will usually take particular collectors out of it. But anyways, clean and nice example of one my favourite vintage toys; this is classic for a reason. Guess I'll have to keep chasing the variants (or wait for Mark to let some of them out of the cage ).

Marusan single [left-foot] stamp Godzilla, ended at 35,500円

 

Yep, if you've kept close attention, you may have even seen some lucky Skullbrainers post one of these extreme gems (in my eyes) in the mail thread.

The giant gorilla remains a collecting grail for me, and as much as I am in love with that classic header too, a loose one would do me [more than] just fine.

 

@brobles I actually saw a full set of those come up for sale once, but didn't have the ability to pull the trigger at the time. It is one of those misses I still think about frequently. That is to say, totally with you there. Goofy and fun, such a great use of these kaiju heads.

 

Pretty decent Marusan double-stamp Goji ended today. I wasn't in the bidding war, but one of those variants I am trying to add to my collection, and I do so love seeing all of these Marusans and Bullmark Gojis anytime they pop up. I got to be careful to not try and fill a whole cabinet of them, with all the variation you can see, but thankfully my wallet wouldn't allow me. Anyways, decent silvering, in more of the all-over style, quite dark looking vinyl base, some discolouration, not much fin colour at all, and looks like maybe had indulged on an island mushroom or two in his hunt for Mothra. [He did have some bubbling on this thumb, but don't think bidders were too concerned there]

Marusan double-stamp Godzilla, ended at 38,500円








I am so glad that the seller treated us - quite surprising for YJA - to some really clear shots of both feet. These photos are definitely going in the archive. Some of the OCD of us who like to examine the minutiae of stamp detailing and toe sculpts, what can I say, it's a fetish.

 

I was surprised at the ending price for this one. Not sure who was doing the bidding, but this actually has the wrong mask for the figure. It seemed kind of obvious to me, as the size, design, and colour is wrong (and a giveaway is that the photos never show him wearing it), so I assume the buyer knows as well, but still.... pricey then. Looks to me to be the Takara HC mask (also nice, but not matching). These do go for a lot, but I would not have thought a mask-less hero would have gone so high. Auction prices have been all over lately though, so maybe it just fits the trend.

Popy (Bandai-style) removable mask Inazuman, ended at 32,500円

Spoiler: For reference:

This auction shows the proper mask (ended at 59k)


Versus above,

 

It just said "the mask is a bonus" but did not make it clear that it was not the one from this figure. I don't think it was necessarily dishonest by the seller, though I think they should have made it clear if they knew this was from the HC figure, but in any case it got a lot of attention. The last one I shared there with mask and scarf was 59k, so this was 'cheaper' than other complete examples, but too much in my books. Which are, admittedly, 'thrifty.'

 

Okay, time for a little series.

the first, 06.14
Bullmark green base Garamon, ended at 81,503円



Quite a few pics in a long single shot (something which is sort of annoying) so I'll keep 'em wrapped in a spoiler tag, with just the one here w/ stamp inset. But do check out the full series if you're interested. Condition is really quite nice on this toy. There is some obvious paint wear which you almost always see on these guys, but all in alll I think it looks really nice though, with good paint remaining across the different areas and colours. Maybe a little warping to the arms, but otherwise the vinyl looks in good shape too. A beauty. Some day Gary, I hope you'll visit my place.

Spoiler: Pic series