The Toy Chest: Determination Rules!

Submitted by Mecha-Richie on November 3, 2009 - 6:54pm

The Toy Chest is the first of many specialized columns that we will be having here on NewWorlds.ph. We are glad to welcome Richie Ramos to the staff as our resident Toys and Gadgets geek. Richie is a member of Mechapinoy, and as you may deduce from this first offering, he is also an avid Gundam and Mecha collector. We will soon open our doors to contributions for different kinds of content, including those related to Toys and Gadgets, so stay tuned! -The Editors-in-Chief

Hello! I'm Richie, and I will be blogging here about toys, given that I just love drooling over them (figuratively speaking of course...I hope).

Most people ask me: How do you go about collecting toys, especially if you're an adult? I used to sidestep this issue by saying that my big collection of Gundam model kits are not toys. But who am I kidding? They're toys for the geeky boys, surely. Aside from money, it takes a certain amount of determination to collect toys when you're an adult. After all, it can be childish or childlike, depending on how you look at it.

With that, I awkwardly segue into a particular toy that some consider as a Holy Grail of sorts: The Soul of Chogokin GX-49 Shin Mazinger Z (Shin Mazinger Z + Big Bang Punch Ver.)!

Mazinger Z, the series, recently got a revision (not a reboot), called simply Shin Mazinger. In line with this, they made a new version of Mazinger Z. Remember MZ's Rocket Punch? Well, in the hot-blooded Mazinger world, the logical upgrade would be the Big Bang Punch.

Mazinger Z turns into a gigantic flying fist! I am so not kidding, and I would like to know what the heck the designers were smoking, because it must be really potent.

If you're interested in scoring a copy of this wonderfully ridiculous toy, check out the stores in Greenhills. This one has several incarnations ranging from the wing-less basic version, to a "night version" with Koji Kabuto's (Mazinger Z's pilot) face replacing a part of Mazinger's own (anime emphasis. again, not kidding), and the possibly story-spoiling Gold version of the Shin Mazinger Big Bang Punch.

*For those who are a bit more budget-conscious, there is also a model kit version that sells for much less - though you will have to assemble it, as well as paint it to make it look more like the Mazinger it should be.