| Astro Boy |
| What Anime collection would be complete without some Astro Boy pieces? Astro Boy (Tetsuwan Atom) was the first anime (Japanese Animation) to hit the United States way back in 1963. In the early versions (and still prevalent today) of anime, the eyes are drawn really big and round, with small noses and big feet, or at least big shoes on the feet. You will definitely want to check out the links page to learn more about anime. |
| Astro Boy | Click here for image | My only Astro Boy piece is a Swing Mascot. It hangs on a piece of wire attached to a suction cup. It's on my computer monitor right now, getting ready to swing into action! Astro Boy can fly, using rockets that produce flames from the bottom of his feet. He's got pointy hair locks that protrude out of his head. He's a really common anime figure, and you've probable seen him before. The artist is considered to be the 'father of Japanese Animation,' and Astro Boy pretty much set the standard for what anime looked like. He came in a plastic box and I purchased him through mail order direct from a Japanese company. I apologize, but I have not taken enough Japanese courses yet to be able to read what the manufacturer information is. 8-) Astro Boy's message to everyone includes: Love all creatures, love everything that has life, preserve nature, bless like, be careful of a civilization that puts too much stock in science, and do not wage war. Now those are some Words to Live By! |
| DragonBall & DragonBallZ |
| 1995, 1997 Bandai |
| This is a cute cartoon. Actually, I never got to watch it because it comes on at like 6:00am?! But I have read some of the comic books, and the toys are pretty cool. DragonBall is about Son Goku, who is a little boy with a monkey's tale. He is loosely based on the Monkey King of Chinese legend, but I don't know much more than that. I do encourage you to check him out sometime. DragonBallZ is about Goku who is all grown up. He lost the tale somehow, and he is much more violent! They both have really big eyes, and hair that goes in all sorts of directions. |
| Staff Slashing Goku | Click here for image | This is Goku as a little kid. He comes with a staff and a monkey's tale. He's articulated in many places, including the ankle and waste. He can hold his staff in a diagonal position, and if you twist him at his waste, he will "slash" his staff by moving his arms up and down. He's got a big head, and his hair was attached after the head was molded, as opposed to being molded with the head, which makes for a really nice affect. |
| Goku PVC figure | Click here for image | This is a 1 inch PVC figure of Goku from DragonBallZ. I got him free when I purchased a comic book at a local comic book store. It was a cool promotion I think. But anyway, he's really tiny because he's only 1" tall! I can't see much detail on him, but I'm not into anime that much anyway, I just wanted to have both versions of Goku for my collection. 8-) |
| Speed Racer |
| 1997 Playing Mantis |
| Now this is at least one cartoon that I remember watching a LOT when I was younger. It's about an 18 year old car driver in the international auto racing circuit. Speed (Go Mifune) and his girl friend Trixie (Michi Shimura) go up against Racer X (Kenichi Mifune), who is actually Speed's older brother, in every race. Speed drives the Mach 5, the most sophisticated piece of machinery ever created, and it is taken care of by Speed's father, Pops. Spirdle (Kuryo Mifune) is the young tot who gets into all sorts of trouble with his monkey friend. I haven't found any action figures of Speed Racer here in the United States yet, but I have found all of the vehicles. I only have the Mach 5, but cars do not really make sense in an Action Figure collection. |
| Mach_5 | images coming soon | This is Speed Racer's awesome car. It does almost everything. I'm beginning to ask myself why I have a car in my action figure collection? |
| Speed Racer |
| 1999 ReSaurus |
| Thanks to ReSaurus Company, Inc, the aforementioned action figures (see above) are now present! ReSaurus, who have blossomed as a major player in the action figure market with their depictions of popular video game and classic cartoon series characters, have done a wonderful job with Speed Racer. They introduced four primary characters in Series One, and some repaints and a couple new figures have been released in Series Two. Keep an eye out for future releases, including the illustrious and gadget-filled Mach 5 (which will be way cooler than the one I wrote about above). |
| Speed | Click here for image | I have to admit, the packaging alone on these figures is so cool, I haven't removed them from their bubble cards! One thing I especially liked is the inclusion of Speed's original Japanese name in Kanji --- Go Mifune (roughly translated as three ships on a hill). As for the actual figure, well, it's simply awesome. It has no particular features in articulation, but it stands in such unique poses that are action-oriented and true-to-the-show. What stands out is the amount of accessories that come with these figures. Speed has his trademark Helmet with a visor and the letter "M" on it, two (count 'em 2) trophies for all the races Speed wins (which is about 99.7 percent of the races he ever raced in), a sport duffel bag, and a pistol! Growing up near the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (where the Indy 500 takes place every May) has taught me at least one thing --- having a pistol during a race could come in handy. In fact, having a shotgun would help me face the traffic during the month of May. Can't y'all picture me with my shotgun rack in tow? Am I in Indiana or Kentucky?! |
| Trixie | Click here for image | Trixie doesn't degrade much in quality from Speed. Her poses are even more pronounced, and you can definitely notice the characteristic big-blue-eyes that are prevalent in so many Japanese Animations. Her accessories include two racing flags, a weird map, and a cool backpack in which the map actually fits. The paint job is bright and colorful, and of course her packaging has written on it (in Kanji and Katakana) Shimura Michi. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think her surname translates into "The Will of the Village." |
| Beidoshengquan |
| 19?? Yongda Toy Corp. (Guangzhou, China) |
| This is the Chinese version of Fist of the North Star. All the text on the card is in Mandarin, and I left my ci-dian back at da-xue. 8-) I'll get this traslated sometime soon, but in the mean time, keep your eyes out for brand new Fist of the North Star figures in your local comic shops and Anime stores. |
| Batt | images coming soon | In the process of translating the text |
| Lynn | images coming soon | In the process of translating the text |
| Yuria | images coming soon | In the process of translating the text |
____________________________________________________________________________________________
All images and text have been created by Peter J. Chen...
Copyright © 1998
for the Asian American Action Figure Homepage. All rights reserved.
All action figure names, biographical information, and company names are copyrighted ©
from their respective creators.
If you find any part of this homepage to be used unlawfully, then please, by all means,
contact me at:
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Revised: February 6, 2000
