It’s a little known fact that the first Godzilla film was released on the screen in Japan. The collecting of Godzilla souvenirs however did not start until a decade after. The toys began to pop up in large numbers and, interestingly enough, even although the Japanese produced a wide range of beautiful monster toys, it was the Americans who set to the forefront. This is something that a lot of people don’t know. The first licensed toy is actually a firearm and target game released in 1955. It was released at the same time as the film Godzilla attacks again as well as Gigantis the Fire Monster which is the American dub version. It was the only licensed toy and the only other product to be released for eight years. It wasn’t until 1963 that the company Ideal was able to create an actual game based on Godzilla and their famous beast King Kong. There are now two separate games that are based on Godzilla as well as King Kong and this would begin what we know was the film which would be released in 1962. King Kong versus Godzilla.
The first King Kong that came out in 1933 was released again in 1956. It was the year in which the 1st Godzilla was released to the American beaches in the year 1956. It was due to these two films that the monster boom was in full swing. We now move to the second item which was actually made available through Aurora Models they released a Godzilla kit in 1964. It was perhaps the most well-known of released kits, and is the most known as well. Aurora Models had already leased an extremely popular line of “Human size” monster kits, and then decided to release kits of two of the most well-known “Giant sized” monsters, one of which was King Kong and yes the other being Godzilla.
Both models performed extremely well, even at the higher cost of just 29 dollars since the majority of Aurora kits cost USD.98 per unit. It’s funny to think of the prices have risen since then. I’m sure they are at minimum 10 times the cost. If there isn’t more. It is not widely known that the success and popularity of Godzilla was not unnoticed when it was in Japan. The Murasan Company Hua the makers of a variety of toys for children in Japan thought that if Godzilla was a success in Japan, then a Godzilla model was so successful on America, they could do the same in United States and that they could make even more of one in the world. They took the original Aurora model and added a simplified version, giving it a cartoon-like appearance which was very similar to those Japanese comics that were popular with youngsters at the time.
In the first two years of the Murasan Company releasing that Godzilla it actually had moderate success within the first two years following its release. It wasn’t until 1966 that one that monsters from science fiction generally began to gain in popularity that it was that the Murasan Company decided that perhaps they should consider creating a line of monster toys and models specifically for kids. At this point in 1966 that they launched the Ultra-Q Series which had spawned numerous types of monsters. This particular series would later begin the Ultraman series, as we are aware that Ultraman is able to fight a variety of monsters.
Around this time I would guess around 1965, which is the year they introduced Gamera for the first time as a massive flying Terrapin who is well recognized to this day. Godzilla was to become more established as a hero than a character and this would continue to be this throughout The Showa Series. It wasn’t till 1984 when Godzilla returned to his evil origins and will remain so until 2014. Godzilla would return to his evil roots until 2014. Murasan Company did in fact react by releasing a variety of new products for the first time that they were released with a vinyl model instead of the plastic versions. It was targeted at the market for children, since we all know that kids tend to put items in their mouths or they could scratch their eyes with it which is the reason they introduced their vinyl toys. The Godzilla line of toys , this includes Godzilla, Mothra, and Ebirah from the recently released film released in the year 1966. Godzilla against the sea monster, or its tentative title was Ebirah: Horror of the Deep. A variety of monsters were released on vinyl of the Ultra-Q Series.
There is also Gamera The flying Terrapin was also released on vinyl , as was Daimajin from the film with the same title. They have also launched Baragon from the cult film Frankenstein Conquers the World they were released in the year 1965. Other releases of the top-quality plastic toys, such as the wired control kit to Baragon and Ebirah and also get these in the toys of Baragon and Godzilla These particular toys will be uncommon as nobody makes items like this in a Tin. I would be a great thing to find similar to this. The toys I mentioned are made of metal or tin the cost has nearly quadrupled over the cost of vinyl toys, and were sold at a moderate price considering that they were disposed of for a number of years.
It was soon to be the year following, that I believe to be 1966. Minya, Gorosaurus, Mechani-Kong and King Kong (although titled giant gorilla on the packaging) There was also an King Kong that was a model kit with a wired control. Plamodel also had a Godzilla kit, which was released in this year. It was the final Godzilla toys UK that Murasan Company would produce. The reason behind this is that the company began to suffer through difficult times financially. Another reason to consider is that this particular toy was extremely expensive to make and, in the end, it was the most limited release of the Marusan range of toys.
In 1968, due to their financial problems, The Murasan Company neglected to add any new figures to the Godzilla line. In doing so, they missed out on a opportunity to release the King Ghidorah figure to go along with the film that had just released in the year 1968. The film was titled “Destroy all Monsters” which was released in the theaters that year. Another unnoticed fact is because of the growing the popularity of Gamera and, yes, it was the Ultraman line Ultra Seven and its characters the Murasan Company would not even have the opportunity to release the two figures that were left in the Godzilla line they had been working on . They included Gabara as well as Minya and this was before the decline in sales forced the company was forced to shut its doors in the year 1970. Another reason these figures are expensive is that the company is no longer in existence and if that you own any of these lines, they are extremely valuable for this very purpose.
We will now discuss another company that is entering the market. It is called Bullmark and this particular company will effectively preserve Godzilla. Godzilla toy line, if that is logical. The company actually bought up the molds of the default company that was the Murasan Company and the Bullmark company had the potential to be a success, and they set to work and added a number of new characters to the line, including Ultraman. Bullmark was focused on superheroes like Ultraman at the point at which the time when it was becoming the most talked about TV show since kids were eager to buy the most of these toys that they can. Despite the fact that the profits from the new Godzilla films were in a decline by the time they hit the 70s as we know, 1975, with the release of Terror of Mechagodzilla would be the final film that Toho would make until 1984. Toho Company would make until 1984.
At this point, the Toho Company was even starting to pack their older films, including cartoons and other children’s films and release the films in special “Festivals” to appeal to younger audience. Asahi Sonorama would start to publish children’s books and record sets with these new films, as well as when older films were repackaged for festivals. The books they released were extremely well and the kids were thrilled to hear the sounds and the songs from their favourite films. Do you remember when there were no soundtracks or VCRs but the technology of the time was basic, but today everything is accessible. In 1970, The Bullmark Company would rerelease several of the Murasan Company’s earlier characters, including Baragon, Mothra, Gorosaurus, Mechani-Kong , and Ebirah Horror of the Deep. In 1970, the Bullmark company would also add three Kaiju’s in addition to the existing lineup which were the most popular as Godzilla’s costars , which included Anguirus, Rodan, and King Ghidorah. In this way, the Bullmark company was able to follow the popularity of these characters by releasing a couple of additional Toho monsters that hadn’t been released prior to Varan the Unbelievable, and Moguera.
The Bullmark company has added an additional, but limited, release of larger-scale versions of their three top sellers. They include Godzilla and King Ghidorah and, believe it or it’s not Baragon. This will be the Godzilla toy you’d be able to see in the opening sequences of the next installment of the Godzilla series. The film is titled Godzilla against the smog monster that came out in the year 1971. In the future, they’ll add the smog monster into their collection as well.
In 1971, during the season of the holidays, the Bullmark company decided to capture a portion of the more disposable income by releasing the Murasan Company’s Tin Toy Series again. The company also introduced Jiraasu to the line-up. Jiraasu is one of the monsters that was part of the Ultraman series. The first Ultraman Series episode 10. is a real 1964 Godzilla suit. The original one was in such bad shape it was necessary to remove the head. They then substituted it with the 1966 Godzilla against the sea monster suit head. They also put the neck with a frill and also gave him different shades.
In 1972, it would be an official release date for the film Godzilla against Gigan and, of course, the vinyl figures would shortly be released and there were some changes made to the original tenant Godzilla mold to create the latest Godzilla. Due to some of the issues with the castings of the Tin Gigan mold, it wasn’t available beyond a a short periods in the stores and was one of the most difficult items to locate in the entire Godzilla toy line. The unfortunate thing was that the huge monster boom was now on its final legs, as kids’ interest in monsters was declining and they were shifting to other things as they became bored of their old toys , and shifting to more modern toys that seemed more appealing to them.
The following two Godzilla films had C the lowest attendance of the entire series. Bullmark produced final toys for the new monsters. The monsters were Megalon as well as Mechagodzilla. At this point, American collectors had also seen their patience be rewarded, and two new Japanese monsters hit the toy stores in the form of kits for model models from Aurora Company. Aurora Company. One of them was named Rodan while the second one was called King Ghidorah which was the most recent collection of toys from Aurora. The sales of these specific kits as well as the line in general didn’t meet Aurora’s expectations. The entire line was cancelled before it suggested that a prototype already made the new Godzilla kit to be launched.
Because of the lack of interest, it forced Bullmark to stop producing vinyl monsters in the year 1975. But they tried to light the flame under their license for Toho monsters once more in 1977. The most recent rival Popy’s Line created diecast robotic versions of the show gun warriors are extremely loved in Japan since most people realize that these robotic versions were the most popular trend at the time. Then Bullmark made the decision to create their own versions of the Toho monsters made of rubber and diecast metal. of the monsters released in diecast models. The figures included Godzilla, Baragon, King Ghidorah, Mechagodzilla, and Gigan These were released with rubber and diecast metal figures , all sporting firing missiles as well as various other weapons. But the sales for these specific items aren’t as strong as they hoped they will be. Therefore, for the next installment in the series , they created and Anguirus model that is designed as a robot rather instead of a monster, and very similar to the line of competition.
Although they had announced that they would be releasing Mothra and Moguera but they were not made or released. This was the last toy that they would ever Bullmark Company would manufacture before it went into bankruptcy. In 1978, Popy was able to acquire all the licenses of the bankrupt company , and began to launch its own range that consisted of Godzilla toys. To avoid making the same mistakes that Bullmark might have made, have made, they decided to launch more of a serious look at monsters, one of which is known as “Jumbo Source” This is a very massive Godzilla toy with an extremely real Godzilla roar. It is still among the top sought-after and sought-after toys. The appeal of this company is not limited to kids but also to the growing adult collector market.
Sadly, without new films to back them up or keep broadcasting on television, the tiny collection of collectors was not sufficient to support the entire toy line. At this point, the company stopped making Godzilla toys in order to concentrate on more profitable products. Then Mattel tried to replicate the success of Popy in other countries by launching Show Gun Warriors here in America and even though they had the rights to a few of their designs on vinyl were granted to attempt to capitalize on the new Godzilla cartoon that was shown on Saturdays in the morning and this show is dubbed “The Godzilla Power Hour” that features a 1970s-style Godzilla that doesn’t look like the other Godzilla we have today, but it is quite well-known today to the majority of Godzilla people.
Mattel was set to release what’s known as “Godzilla’s Gang” figurine, but it was a sloppy and unsuccessful effort, however because the cartoon did not have any other Toho monsters in it. Mattel chose not to buy the rights to any of the additional characters and monsters in the series. Instead, Mattel employs the molds of those characters in”Ultra” series “Ultra” series, which was much more well-known in Japan in the era of. Show gun warriors was hit with similar fate, as the toys were poorly manufactured and did not offer any value as they did in Japan. The line actually ended up being discontinued after a couple of years, but not without adding two additional figures to the pile of salt following Godzilla toys. They released the Godzilla figure that was is loosely based on the Jumbosaurus model, however there was something different about the new Godzilla figure that was different. It was missing the back fence, replaced with a few clumps of dirt and an roar, and also the flame top, so this figure was quite different and would be the last figure Mattel would release in this particular fashion. The last figure Mattel released would be a stunning Rodan piece that had an wing span of more than 3 feet. It is an amazing piece.
Mattel wisely decided to take the name of the show gun warriors off of the box and instead simply referred to it as Rodan under the title of “the world’s most terrifying monsters” the particular series, even though the series was just “world’s most terrifying creatures” that was ever made available. The toys that would be released in the coming years will see a significant absence from the limelight in the coming years. One particular company was called Beetland it was the sole active license that was able to release new products. Their most popular releases during the time included books of all kinds. The publication of “Asahi Sonorama Fantastic Collection Number 5: Godzilla” and “Kodansha’s entire collection of Godzilla” This is the place where the fans finally had access to some of the details behind the scenes and images and also based on films.
It was around 1982 that we began to see conventions that were held in the early days of Japan were also serving as proof for the value of collectibles for some earlier products and toys. It was during these exhibits that the company’s Bullmark vinyl figures first began to be displayed with and then the extravagant price that were USD100 and more. In 1983, the release of the first new Godzilla film in an entire decade was officially made public. At this point, Godzilla merchandise was beginning to show what was a huge leap forward , not just products produced, but also death an array of great details and variety. In 1983, Yamakatsu was set to develop a truly stunning Godzilla series that included seven extremely collectible figurines and that includes the brand new company that they called Bandai will go on to launch Brandon figures of their own.
The company Bandai will continue to launch more figures and a more dimensions than the other manufacturer. In 1989, we’d witness the release of the film Godzilla against Biollante 1989. At this point in time, we’d be returned to the Bandai version of Anguirus, Megalon, Rodan, Gigan, Mechagodzilla, King Ghidorah and the Mothra larva. There was also a reissue of the Godzilla character that was intended to resemble the screen version of him from 1964 . They also decided to release a new version of the huge-sized Godzilla that they launched in 1984, as part of their “Great Monster Series” however these versions are a bit smaller in size and also released a huge Mothra larva in the following year, and in similar to.
There was a lot of reluctance about what people’s opinions were about the new monster, Bandai decided not to create an Biollante at the time. The King Ghidorah figurine of The Great Monster Series would never be released again and this is due to the poor made wings that were almost certain to fall off when assembled for the first time. In 1991, a brand new Godzilla film would again be released , and this one was titled Godzilla against King Ghidorah 1991. It is not widely known that at this point, there will be an additional Godzilla film released each season for five years. This was not done until the middle of 1960s. As a matter of fact, as clockwork, every winter it was the Bandai Company would release toys from the latest film along with a few other classic monsters too. When the first release of this film, I decided to release an upgraded versions of Godzilla as well as King Ghidorah from the film. There’s a bigger version of the new King Ghidorah and Godzilla to accompany the King Ghidorah.
In 1992, following the release of the film Godzilla against Mothra Bandai would release vinyl figures from the original Mothra and a Biollante figure which would eventually be released. Also available at this time was a Minya, Baragon, and Mechani-Kong , which we have already seen. that Mechani-Kong is from the film King Kong escapes which came out in 1967. There was also a new upgraded version of Mothra and the new Monster Batra featuring its stage for larva and an adult version. It also happens to be the year in which Bandai will release a repainted collection of 10 Bullmark figures that introduce a younger generation to their childhood toys.
1993 was an amazing year, and saw the largest quantity of Bandai vinyl figures that were released . Also, figures were released to promote the new movie Godzilla against Mechagodzilla which came out in 1993. In addition to those releases, there was the brand new Kaiju that they named Godzillasaurus, Gorosaurus, Hedorah the Smog Monster, Kamacuras, King Caesar, King Kong, and then Jaguar. In the same year, they released the first of what could be the most impressive achievement of a Godzilla collection of figures. That is the first release of the first Tokyo Marui radio control Godzilla figure . It is an incredible feat of engineering.
In the next two years, he will slow down releases of the vinyl characters and there could be an increase in the availability of hire and battery operated figures and figures such as those from the Deluxe Series (Godzilla, Moguera, Space Godzilla, and Destroyah) at the time it appears that the imagination of Bandai seems to have at its peak in 1996. It also saw the release of new painted figure in the “Godzilla Forever Series” and , yes, there was the “Godzilla Memorial Box” an unreported fact about Bandai in the 90s. They did not release any new figures from the Godzilla line until 1996. For most collectors, it is a good thing that they will not be left to long without it since America finally has an official Godzilla line that is their own. In America, we have the trendmaster Corporation. United States we have the launch of the Trendmaster Corporation.
It can be described as an American manufacturer who will release toys such as Varan the Unbievable, Mothra, Gigan, Anguirus, Biollante, and the other new monsters that spell are yet to be released in the United States. An earlier example could include Destroyah, Space Godzilla, baby Godzilla Baby Godzilla and others from the Heisei Monsters from the series. In May 1998, with the debut of the first American-made Godzilla film, which the majority of people dislike for frivolous reasons, and was not surpassed by the American counterparts, there were a number of smaller Japanese companies who decided to take on the burden left by Bandai Marmit being one of the companies who would create toys. Another company to have joined the trend is am-1, another producer of fantastic Godzilla vinyl sets and is owned by a long-time Godzilla fan who has revealed plans to create an entire line of Godzilla vinyl figures , including a number of figures that are yet to be made into toys. I’ll leave you with this, the future of Godzilla collectibles is looking brighter as we entered 2015 and there are a lot of other companies that are producing Godzilla toys and statues and statues made of resin. They make are amazing the items I’ve seen . There are so many options for collectors who can’t even begin to imagine.
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