It's called Zokki Kaiju Series for a reason.

and FUCK YES! I've been waiting for WOLF MONKEY for a long time!

Yokai Attack is a fun book to read.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/4770030703/

what does zokki mean?

Bootleg.

ah, my favorite

Would it be unethical to bootleg a Gargamel bootleg?

seriously! how many times have we talked about wanting this figure to happen? at least a couple, im sure.

as for the ethics of bootlegging gargamel's figures, to me it would be all about timing and context. gargamel took crude, old, cheap children's toys and re-imagined them for a different time, market, style, etc, long after the original creators had stopped their productions. if somebody were to make figures based on retired gargamel sculpts sometime in the future, and do it in a way that 'made it their own', i would call it fair play.

if somebody where to make bootlegs of gargamel's figures for a current, toy collector market, i would call it weak sauce, although probably not illegal or anything like that.

I totally agree with Josh. Plus, the word bootleg is being used too liberally here. Bootlegging is re-creating content without license to do so. I am gonna go out on a limb and say that the guys at Gargamel (and M1, Marusan, et. al.) have authorized permission from the copyright-holder(s) to make the figure.

M1 and Marusan, yes. Gargamel, well, that has been the topic of much debate in the past. Mostly in the context of Hukkokudo's reissues of the original sculpts from which some of the Zokki Kaiju sculpts were derived.

http://www.skullbrain.org/bb/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=9465

It was mentioned in the Giant Robot article that the founders of Gargamel grew up playing with the cheap-o unlicensed kaiju toys because they were less expensive than the licensed articles. From that perspective, I think it was innocent enough to create toys styled after the toys that they remembered from childhood. Moreover, the original manufacturer of the Zagora and Mighty toys does not seem to have had permission to use their actual names (i.e., being that they were based on the artwork in the Sekai no Kaiju books). So those are kind of modern bootlegs of unlicensed vintage toys. I don't know what the exact situation is/was for the other original sculpts (Hedoran, Smogun, Beralgon, Tetran).

I appreciate the approach of Shikaruna Koubo and Target Earth in seemingly obtaining the rights, or at least the blessing of the original artists, in creating their take on the Sekai no Kaiju monsters. For me, it adds a little more substance to the toy when it ties back to the source material. A similar nod might be nice from G, although I could see that creating certain complications...

dang! How long has it been since a new addition to the Zokki family?... at least a year. Definitely will pick one up in some colorway down the line.

Holy crap, excellent catch. The illustration was done by Martin Ontiveros... it was a plant monster I believe? Will have to check when I get home from work.

does any have a pic?

From Martin's flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/martinhead/252708852/

I thought Eaton was based on a Japanese fable or something. It's supposed to be a fish or something eating a guys head.

Yeah, i mean i can see the similarities but it isn't really the same thing.

anyone have the japanese text for this guy?

i just realized i am now a mini boss

so i order you (yes YOU) to give me the japanese text!

congrats jefe

Yup, they're just similar. Never meant to imply Eaton was a rip-off of that illustration.

Careful 'Loaf...you know what they did to Peschi in GoodFellas...

Finally, another mini kaiju fig from gargamel! There other lines are good but this was my first love.

I find this an interesting comment on Gargamel in that companies like Bandai, Marusan and Bullmark aren't and were never known for coming up with original characters, but rather for making cool toys. I think Gargamel fits that bill, moreso than a lot of companies out there. I guess it is indeed their deal...but I never really thought about it since they make cool shit.

I would find it more offensive if they churned out completely original characters that were sucky toys. I love what they do, and every figure they have done def. looks like it belongs in the Gargamel family...even the Eaton.

i can always rely on akum6n to learn me a thing or to about the roots of some subjects. thanks for that bit!

Is this a mini about the size of Garg's Smogun or Hedorans, or a smaller "crouching" size toy? Looking forward to more of these!

i assume hes fit to face off against smogun and hedo