Hi all! Well, it took the Japanese cosplay industry long enough, but they have finally gotten around to producing a series of licensed Tatsunoko character costumes. Along with characters like Yatterman and Casshan, they have included one of Ken from Gatchaman. Here's a picture of the ad showing what the suit looks like: The costume seems to be of the one-size-fits-all variety, and is designed for people who are up to 175 cm tall (5' 9") and weigh up to 70 kg (154 lbs). The set consists of a two-piece polyester bodysuit, a polyurethane and PVC helmet, a polyester belt, and a cotton/polyester blend cape. I haven't been able to find an official suggested retail price, but the various places I've seen offering it seem to have it for between 7,750 yen and 8,500 yen (Roughly $77.50 to $85.00 at current exchange rates). Before you ask, Ken is the only Gatchaman-related costume in the line, at least currently. Perhaps if it sells well, they'll expand the line to include a Joe or a Jun. We'll just have to wait and see on that count. In the meantime, at least there's an official Ken cosplay outfit for you to wear! James

Oh, that's awesome! And certainly a reasonable price for the full costume with helmet! Oh... we all need to buy them and show up at the San Diego Comic Con next year!!!! So... where are the buying links, James??? I want one!!!!

Okay, I found the selling link you posted on the BOTP list, James. I'm seriously interested in this, but it seems that I would have to go through a third party importer to buy it. Does anyone else want one too? I'd be happy to split costs with an order for multiple items.

Hi all! There are numerous places that have this for sale, too many to name them all (Which is why I didn't even try). From a quick look, these are the places that seem to have the cheapest prices for it: Partygoods.jp p-kaneko.co.jp You could also try watching some of the Japanese auction sites to see if anyone offers it at a lower price. With any of these, you should expect to have to have to use a proxy service to purchase it, since most Japanese sellers won't ship overseas. There are a number of proxy services out there that would be happy to help, including Celga ( http://www.celga.com ) and Rinkya ( http://www.rinkya.com ). James

Yes, I used Celga to purchase my Tatsunoko t-shirt and was very happy. So I'd probably go through them again.

Wow thats a great costume!!!

Interesting... nice costume... too bad they don't have the other members