Long time readers, like maybe as far back as a year and a half ago, may remember... ...Hold up, let me rephrase this. Okay, so no sensible human being on this planet but me remembers this little tidbit of detail. In fact, maybe I never actually spoke about it publicly on da' K-Drop (quickly Googling K-Drop for possible offensive meanings... looks like the coast is clear.) There is a good possibility this dreaded sit-down about all things Glyos was just a mental bookmark and never expressed itself in it's ugly glory in blog mention. Let's rephrase this once more...
I've always had some unpopular opinions about Glyos, but maybe I've never really spoke on them. I've always wanted to have one big nasty update and cast as much shade and cause as much beef as humanly possible for one jerk blogger. I've certainly had all the opportunity to, but for a couple reasons I've never prioritized it very high. If at all possible, I'd rather speak about something I enjoy or something that interests me more. That's not a whack at Glyos particularly, but I think it's not really my thing, and maybe another reason I don't spit thy venom about it is that I don't think too many K-Droppers (quickly Googling again...) are interested as well. I don't have the largest reading base in the world, but I like to think the numbers I do get to see behind the curtain are those reflected of people who like the oddball stuff I do.
I understand the appeal, its's just not me. As a member of this bizarre community, I think it's pretty common to see adults recapture and collect nostalgia from their youths. Personally, although I vaguely remember having some, Legos were never that big for me. I never customized or had the desire. I do distinctly remember packing my pockets full of Monsters In My Pocket for any family excursion and having them fight along the edge of the cup holder in the car door. It was the portability and secretive nature of pocket-able monsters that I loved. I had no care if I could never remove The Phantom's mask and put it on a Bishopfish. They were all interesting and fun characters on their own, and being solid chunks of rubber and plastic made them durable for over-and-over in-and-out of pocket adventures. I never had the patience to worry about pieces and parts.
But I do see the appeal. I am at an age where all my friends have young children that are playing with toys. I visit my nearest friend and his son has his Marvel hero action figures disassembled and remade into new heroes and villains. There's a Spider-man head on a Captain America body, with one leg Incredible Hulk and the other one Batman. Batman isn't even Marvel, but for him, that's how it works, and without a doubt in my mind, when this kid grows old enough, something like Glyos will be his jam. I even have a few Glyos figures in my collection that I am sure will be dropping on his doorstep before too long, so it'll be a start.
Future fans aside, Glyos has tons of fans right now. I think when you're speaking of niche toy communities, Glyos is up there. I would argue, at least in America, it's even eclipsing keshi fandom. This could be because it's an American company and keshi's birthplace is quite a bit further, but Glyos' roots are also entwined with keshi styling. Keshi are, in purest form, single cast, solid material, and donezo. Glyos components are single cast, solid material, but then assembled however you see fit. It's as if Glyos is Voltron, made of all sorts of keshi robot lions, but maybe some are just more fans of the feet.
For their loads of loyal fans, Glyos makes some good stuff. They've even inspired other independent toy manufacturers to consider action figure variants to their keshis as an expansion to their brands. October Toys created Skeleton Warriors, LittleRubberGuys created Rise of the Beasts, Spy Monkey Creations made Battle Tribes and others. Even Mystical Warriors of the Ring made Evolution, and as far as I know, all to success. Tons of people love this stuff, so much so my hopes of creating an angry, unreasonable, mob were dashed and I reluctantly put the pitchfork back in the shed. One day, baby girl. One day.
However... Have you heard of Glyos' Bit Figs yet?
In form I can only best describe as a Dr. Frankenstein mad scientist, laughing and mocking the moon, I manically giggled as I read the release information about Glyos' new adventure and toy line. Inspired by the classic gumball machine ninjas that stole many of quarter and were partially digested by many of family pet, these little things look to be taking on new lives through a pixelized video game lens. The truest joy came as description of their Glyos compatibility came almost nonexistent. Saved by a Glyos hole in their bottoms, these are otherwise pure keshi goodness...
Ahahahahahaha! Hahahaha! Haaaaahaaaaa!
I finally got you Glyos! I held out my pennies and I got you to buckle to make toys the way I demand. No pieces! No stinking parts! Arms and legs moving absolutely nowhere! Just like the great Keshi Gods in the sky intended! It's a slug, of course! Finally, I have you Glyos! Keshi Drop has held out and we finally won the war! We reign strong and supreme over the weak articulated joints of those other crap toys! Sweet, sweet, victory!
But one thing, who do I write this check out to? Mr. Glyos, okay?
http://onelldesign.com/
Welcome to the club. I picked up some of these guys and they're fabulous - I can't believe how cheap they are! Especially after Spider Pods and Fighter Pods.
ReplyDeleteSpiderEarth, do you plan to pick some of these up? They look super neat! It's strange to see a bunch of square edges for a single slug, but that's what makes it interesting for me. I may have to get some of these :o
ReplyDeleteYeah! I think they will soon be (if not already) hitting vending machines, so the hunt begins.
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