I was thinking about this the other day and i've discovered that a few of the recent KR transplants don't collect Secret Base. I'm interested in learning why? 2 years ago....1 year ago, almost everyone still collected the Base. It was the gateway vinyl. Is RxH the new gateway drug? How much of this has to do with Skullbrain. Secret Base is not as popular on the board so less people are likely to pick it up? It's all about RxH? I think with SB prices down, it's a great time to collect the Base. I recently scored two of my Base Grails at more than fair prices.... so what's up newbs? not into the Base?
As a newbie, I had been struggling between the secret base or RxH And a few of my stores here had secret base in their display but there is definitely no store selling the RxH. Once I saw the RxH, I found they are cute, not a detail sculpted doll, but it sit somewhere between "detail" and "rough". And the outlook never make you bored, coz new mold is made to make you surprise always (different colorways on same doll will make one bored in the long run) They are generous to make some new try even making a mold is quite costly (my parent's partner who run a factory mentioned that making such a mold cost around 1500 - 2500 USD) RxH usually connect its doll either to some japanese anime character like the recent V3 Kamen rider... or some old japanese cultural stuff like the Daruma cat SECRETBASE is great but my money is limited
SB started my descent... and I still collect some here and there (neobake mostly) but most of my moneys has gone towards popsodas (is that truly considered realxhead?)
It really is a great time to collect SB. Even on ebay, there are older SB figs that you can score for close to retail. I got really lucky on one of them. I think it really is hype. Transplants come over, (hopefully) read through the different sections, see what's out there, and notice that RxH seems to be one of the more active sections. So they jump on the wagon and start buying RxH figures as well. Older SB figures are awesome and with the dropping prices, people should consider picking them up...but to some, it is all about the resale value. Personally, I've grown to like the new Obake. The last few releases are really nice, the 2 UBIQs and the Whiz. The new Skullbrain, which unfortunately comes with that CD, is probably one of the best SBrains to come out in a long time. You can look at figures all you want. Once you feel it in your hand, it's a totally different thing. There's really nothing like the old Skullbrains and Damaged Brains with squishy soft vinyl and I'm glad I have a few of them in my collection.
Maybe a fourth selection "Not many people like SB anymore" Maybe my opinions are biased but still lovin' Anraku, RxH, Bemons, T9G, and BxH. I have limited space to display my toys now, and SB is in a box somewhere. Should this topic extend to beyond newbies?
As a Fresh Meat, I just buy according to: 1-if I like it 2-if I can afford it I don't care who or what company makes a certain piece. (which is probably why I have such an unfocused collection)
currently there is no aftermarket value for sb. for RxH, there is. doesn't matter what the stuff looks like does it?
I actually got into vinyl through BanDai, then Marmit, then doing a web search and finding this forum (much to the dismay of my wallet). I guess I may be a little fickle, as I only really pick up stuff that I like, regardless of the brand. Some of the Secret Base stuff is fabulous, others are'nt so great, the same with RxH and so on. In my case, I know next to nothing about most of these brands, so i'm kinda learning and getting a feel for it, so I apologise in advance if I ever ask what seem to be stupid questions :p So far, Dream Rocket and Gargamel items are catching my eye mostly. The Balzac stuff too, is incredible... argh!
i'm with wthalo on this one, just not that into fight figs. plus blobpus is my first love, of course and in terms of sculpt, i'd say they are about as far apart as they can be. rxh and SB are one and the same in my book.
That was my last purchase. If they release more I will buy. But I always liked Usugrow and because of him redefined what Secret Base is. He is displayed with my Kaws and BxH, goes nice with them. I just hope SB release more interesting sculpts like that. The fourth selection is needed because I see people selling out their SB collection almost everyday on this forum.
Is every brand normally follow the same pattern ? young, grow up, dry up and people keep getting rid of their collections ? what is the normal lifespan of toy brand ?
I think it might be the platform nature of those fight toys. They never appealed to me at all and actually kept me away from kaiju in the beginning. Then I discovered all the monsters from Godzilla/Ultraman I watched in my childhood were being made quite nicely by M1go, Marmit etc. I could be a hypocrite and say SB etc make too many endless colorways, which would not be fair because M1 does put out different versions of the same figure also. I just think a company like M1 doesn't have 50 versions of the same figure (skullbee) and the paint jobs are much better. Also I'm a stickler with symmetry and proportions. Things with big heads and little bodies don't appeal to me. But to each their own.
Think there are alot of options there now and many of these figures are available in the US, unlike before where it seemed that secret base was the only thing that was most accessible. (This is a very US centric-comment) Maybe it is because it is easier to try to collect something that is new so you can attempt to maintain a complete collection. To try to collect sb now would be very difficult considering the amount of figures that is already out there. Good discussion question toybot.
i collect the vinyl in the family but hubby was sold at SDCC when he saw the usugrow proto in super 7's case. he's an usugrow fan and didn't know there was a figure coming out so yea, now he's a fan of secret base!
I am not here to defend or attack Secret Base. The question is why there has been a decline in interest for this brand and I am merely observing based on how many people get rid of their collection, price drop in rare SB, deflating hype and the brand stagnate in releases. And it's great for those looking out for Secret Base now.
Secret Base figs were my first choices when i started out last year--and i still buy SBase. Bottom line: There are SBase figs recently that i like, there are figs that i dont like, as a non completist. Same goes with RXH. I was consciously avoiding RXH for the longest time... but eventually, it sucked me in. It took some time before i appreciated Real Head and i also did some reading, research and a lot of observation on the boards (so many RXH experts spewing their wisdom every now and then, i hope RXH newbies like me would read their posts closely). When mook came out and read all the info regarding Mori and RXH, plus the Kaizine issue where RXH was featured---i guess these did me in. Now i collect RXH, side by side with Sbase. Informed collecting is more fun.
I think it has to do with a lot more options for new Japanese vinyl now. When I started collecting a lot of this stuff a couple years ago Secret Base and Gargamel were all you really saw for fight toys for awhile and I always liked more of the Secret Base stuff. I still like a lot of Secret Base and pick up SB toys from time to time, but I've also been selling bunch lately, there's so much out there it's tough to stick to one thing.
because once you buy the figure, it is "worth" 2x than what you bought it at. this sparks the interest of alot of the KR curious... as there is little risk to buy a few figures (because if you find out you don't like it, you can flip it for a nice gain) right now new secret base has little trade value. pushead and usugrow stuff shouldn't even be clumped into "collecting secret base" in general as they're more like collaborations and aren't released in the same manner. i think what turned people off to secret base is that it became too accessible. mori has been very clever in his release sizes... even his older figures (when the stuff wasn't so popular), there were limited runs when the runs weren't even that big before. whenever a newbie has the opportunity to get something that a relatively longtime collector wants and can't get, it makes it more interesting to them.
SB is what got me started especially the skullbrain i still buy SB but i have like most people been bit by the RxH bug but also pick up gargamel and blobpus just pick up what you like and im sure this whole RxH thing will slow down at some point didnt this happen with the bemon last year i mean im glad i can pick up BxH for good prices now
