The new Tokidoki Kaiju tread made me wonder how many people here feel about their Kaiju. The poll basically asks what your preference in Kaiju lies.

Traditional=Bullmark, Marmit, Marusan, Dream Rocket etc

Non Traditional= Touma. Tokidoki, Slugonadon (ducking) etc.

Neutral = It's all kaiju to you

Tell the board how you feel

Traditional, provided that Gargamel falls in there.

sorry, but the way you framed this question makes it impossible for me to answer. Maybe you should have just asked "does calling something Kaiju make it kaiju?"

I can't afford vintage stuff, but things in that vein are cooler to me. The Gargamel Zags/Hedolans (based on older stuff) things of that nature are just more charming. Not like I can sit here and talk about the history, jjust based on looking at the things. Even Usagi-Gon is cool, you really see the connection to Gamera and Godzilla.

moi aussie

Well lets just suppose that Kaiju is what the example states and have fun with it. It's not a rocket science kind of thing savy?

I'm pretty much a traditional kaiju collector, but I agree with this. Usagi-Gon really has a strong Godzilla/Gamera connection which is why I picked one up. I also like the Dream Rocket figs which have a very "traditional kaiju" look even if they aren't.

Man, I tend to agree with pogue ! For me traditional Kaiju includes SB-Gargamel-and others. However some of the toy releases comming out now walk a very fine line. I guess for my tastes I don't really consider Touma. Tokidoki, Slugonadon and the like included in (my own) perception of Kaiju .

for me usagi-gon seems like a combination of usagi yojimbo and gon, turned into a monster. not sure if that was frank's intent, but i like my interpretation nonetheless.

i don't particularly care what things are called if i like them. names are just names.

they should rename the Kaiju for Grown Ups line to Kaiju for People Who Don't Know What Kaiju Is

edit: I think the usagi gon is the one exception. he's a mad ass mofo

Agreed 100% on both assertions, but woe be unto the person who questions the misuse of the word at a certain other toy board! LOL ... only proving your point.

I love Kaiju, but I must admit I'm not that familiar with the older/traditional stuff. I'm more hip to the Gargamel/SB/RXH. I LOVE TOYS in general!!!!

sorry your question is like asking "so when did you stop beating your wife?"

the only thing to do is not answer

Well there are evidently two definitions of "traditional" here as I see it:

1) Monster and hero toys based on characters in Japanese movies and TV shows. The "duh" defnition.

2) Neo Kaiju that partially relates to the prior definition (e.g. Gargamel, Dream Rocket) and Japanese monster and hero toys that are more about the entirely original "story universes" of the creators (e.g. RxH, Cronic) ... examples are debatable, I know.

The KFGU series doesn't fit comfortably into either bucket, as most of the toys seem to just exist on their own with little or no relation to existing kaiju traditions or conventions. Their main raisons d'etre seem to be a showcase for the designer's identity ... something that is not the case with vintage/traditional kaiju. Obviously Horvath's Mothmen and Flatwoods are an exception, as Kozik's two creations might also be said to be, given their similarity to exsting monster toys. They "relate" to kaiju and mythological conventions, whereas, say, Biskup's KFGU, while clever, are more about the Biskup look. What we've seen of the new Tokidoki proto looks to me like it's all about trying to look like Touma with a little Bryan Flynn thrown in.

Jet Jaguar, please fetch Gojira from Monster Island to defeat evil bugs from outer space and hostile Seatopia! That's what I say.

No prob. Everybody seems to be getting it tho

I'll take a stab at it:

Kaiju - A giant monstrous beast.

Traditional kaiju toys - Toys based on giant monsters like Godzilla and Ultraman characters, and toys that try to imitate their style, such as Daikyo and IKB's Zagora and Hedoro (and their subsequent Gargamel incarnations), Dream Rocket monsters, TEDEROS, Max Toy Co., characters.

Non-traditional kaiju - Toys of giant monsters that are more about showcasing the artist's individual style rather than trying to create a giant monster that would fit in with traditional kaiju. Examples would be Usagi Gon, Gamagon, Killer, etc.

Fight figures like vintage Kinnikuman or Secret Base Skullbees don't fall into either of the toy categories above. They're not kaiju. Since they're small enough to wrestle in a ring, they're kaijin (people-sized monsters).

Thank you

To add to that

I guess I'll say that the Poll was more on Traditional or Non Traditional sculpting styles of Kaiju since this tread was spawned from the Tokidoki KFGU tread. More realistic vs "cartoony" sculpts. Maybe that's what I should've done.

THANK YOU!

I get so frustrated when folks call any blob of vinyl Kaiju, like it's a catch all phrase.

p.s. character based toys 4 life!

I think Usagi Gon means "Monster Rabbit" .

I really gravitatae to the old style monsters, and when I look at stuff like sluggadon, it seems aesthetically "new" to me, vs. aesthetically "old". The style of abstraction Sluggadon uses did not really exist in the monster world back then (advertising yes, monsters no), whereas even though SB and Gargamle definitely are "cuter" they still hold a little menace to them, they still have an edge. They feel aesthetically "old". Slugadon + Tokidoki just doesn't have that edge in my mind. That said, the new minis I made are pretty cute, and so is the Widowmaker robot that gargamel reinterpreted (the original drawimg was mean as heck, but they redid them in their cuter mini style). Then again, the new fight figures we have coming out are straight up kaiju, monster central. I think I am trying to find a balance, but if it doesn't have that little bit of teeth to grab you, it is just too much syrup for me.

that would perhaps make more sense :p

JEEZZ that guy looks exactly like my high school science teacher

I don't like cutesy monsters unless they are super deformed versions of old school kaiju.

but I don't particularly care for companies making these new artisty, happy smily kaiju.