Hi all! The Japanese company Art Storm has announced that they will be releasing a set of high-end die cast toys of the Ninja Team vehicles from the first Gatchaman TV series this December. These vehicles will be released in two sets of three vehicles each. Set A will consist of the G-1, the G-2, and the Red Impulse. Set B will consist of the G-3 (With Jun), the G-4, and the God Phoenix. The vehicles will be between 10~15cm in length. Remember that I said these were "high-end die cast toys?" Well, that translates into "high-priced die cast toys." Each set of three vehicles will cost 24,800 yen (Roughly $255.00 at current exchange rates), so buying both sets will set you back 49,600 yen (Roughly $510.00). While you try to swallow that, here's a couple of photos I've found that show what these toys will look like: Set A Set B If you're feeling rich and decide that you'd like to order them, they will likely be available through places like Hobbylink Japan (http://www.hlj.com/), though they are not listed there yet. James

drooool *sigh*

These look really great. But honestly, I don't see paying that much when you can get similar vehicles (albeit with no turning wheels) with the Diamond Select action figures for about the same price, or less. And you get the actions figures to boot!

Hi all!

But honestly, I don't see paying that much when you can get similar vehicles (albeit with no turning wheels) with the Diamond Select action figures for about the same price, or less. And you get the actions figures to boot!

Similar in look, perhaps, but much smaller (Maybe about 5cm) and made of solid plastic, not metal. These will probably have other features that aren't obvious in these photos. Art Storm has a placeholder for them on their website, but no detailed pictures yet. But yes, these are expensive, and I certainly wouldn't blame anyone for balking at the price, not matter how nice these may be. James

What more do I need to say? HA! Nah. Once again they have come up with a toy that is just too stupidly expensive for what you actually get. Sure they're great, but come onnnnnn... $500 for the "full" set? That's just stupid. Kind of insulting, really... SJ

omgosh this is totally awesome! the price tho..... D: thnak you for sharing them tho!!!

Originally posted by Transmute Jun These look really great. But honestly, I don't see paying that much when you can get similar vehicles (albeit with no turning wheels) with the Diamond Select action figures for about the same price, or less. And you get the actions figures to boot!

Why are Gatchaman toys so expensive.... You can get similar with action figures? Is that on Diamond's website?

Originally posted by Condorfan You can get similar with action figures? Is that on Diamond's website?

Not anymore. But you can find them on EBay. http://cgi.ebay.com/Battle-of-the-Planets-MARK-GATCHAMAN-figure-G-FORCE_W0QQitemZ220381286819QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item220381286819&_trksid=p3286.m20.l1116 Jason is the most expensive, followed by Tiny and Mark. Zoltar, Keyop and Princess are generally pretty cheap.

Hi all! I do feel the need to again point out that, while these new toys are indeed similar in shape and color to the plastic toys that Diamond released (Which indeed they should be, considering that they are the of the same vehicles), the scale makes them quite different. To help emphasize exactly what the difference in scale means, let's do a comparison between the Diamond vehicles and a pair of Gatchaman die-cast toys that were released by Eidai during the original run of Gatchaman. Here's the G-1: And here's the G-4: Yes, I know, the vintage G-4 toy is the wrong color, but it's the size that we're concerned with here. The Diamond G-1 is 7cm long, while the Eidai G-1 is 15cm long. The Diamond G-4 is 5cm long, while the Eidai G-4 is 10cm long. According to the release information, the toys that Art Storm will be releasing will range between 10~15cm, so these vintage toys should be approximately the same size as their modern counterparts will be. While 5~10cm might not seem like that great a difference, as you can plainly see, it makes quite a difference when you're dealing with toys on that scale. The Art Storm die-cast toys will definitely be more substantial than the Diamond plastic ones. Does any of this mean that these toys are going to be worth $85.00 apiece, with a requirement that you buy three at a time? That's up to you, and I won't try to make that decision for you. Just don't try to confuse one toy with the other. James

ah man i need to convince my hubby that collecting Gatchaman stuff is totally worth it! LOL thanks for the comparison, tatsunokofan!! from a collector stand point, id say the size does make a difference.... plus plastic vs the diecast, or whatever..... ive got some model cars adn the plastic ones dont do the others justice! so for me personally, it would make a difference.... that price tho....yikes!

Those are some great comparisons, James. Thank you for posting!

I sooo want a set, maybe if it's the only thing I put on my Christmas/b-day wish list.... As much as I would like to think, I'll doubt that any of my family would get them.

Hi all! Felix Ip's blog, of all places, has put up scans of a Japanese magazine article that shows some close-up pictures of each of these new toys. The images were originally posted on a different Chinese website, hence the Chinese text supered over the images. Anyway, here's what they look like: James

Aren't they great!! I want them all...sigh if only I could just go out and buy them.

I agree, Ebony.... but to be fair, if I wanted to spend that much money on Gatchaman merchandise, I'm sure there's a lot more I could be spending it on!

Wow those are cool... thanks for sharing James!

Hi all! Art Storm has finally posted a selection of close-up pictures of these toys. Set A, with the G-1, G-2, and the Red Impulse, can be found here: Set A Set B, with the G-3, G-4, and the God Phoenix, can be found here: Set B If you would like to order either or both of these, Hobbylink Japan (http://www.hlj.com/) is now accepting preorders for them. If you order them by August 1st, you'll get a 5% discount off of the full retail price. James

I checked,,, with the current exchange rate, it's almost $250 a set... so tempted, but ouch! They look fantastic, though! Thanks for posting the pictures, James!

I WANT I WANT I WANT !!!! oh and I WANT

Hi all!

They look fantastic, though! Thanks for posting the pictures

Just make sure you follow the links if you want to see plenty of additional close-up pictures of each vehicle. James

Thank you for the pics and links James. I too would love to have, but at those prices I do not think I could manage to find the funds. I guess I will just have to look at the pictures and drool.

These are absolutely gorgeous but like everyone else the price *sigh*

Originally posted by tatsunokofan

Why is "Gatchaman" spelled differently/wrong on this one? SJ

Hi all!

Why is "Gatchaman" spelled differently/wrong on this one?

That would be "differently," not "wrong." Depending on how one wishes to transliterate the name from Japanese, it would be correct to use either "Gatchaman" or "Gacchaman." It all depends on how one wishes to spell out the sound created by the small "tsu" that comes between the "ga" and the "chi" in the "Gatchaman" name. As for why Eidai used "Gacchaman" over "Gatchaman," you have to remember that, when that toy was made, there was no standard romaji spelling for the series title. This changed around the time the second series was produced. But in the 1972~74 timeframe, Eidai went with whatever someone on their design team felt was the spelling to use. He wasn't wrong, he just chose the spelling that did not become the standard. And, just so you'll know, you'll find the "Gacchaman" spelling on other items released before 1978 as well. It's turned up a few times since then as well, but fairly infrequently. James

I've been seriously thinking about buying both sets of these but has anyone else noticed that the Godphoenix, instead of wheels on the landing gears has flat skids!!! For the price you would have thought they got that right!