October 18, 2016

"Perfect Large Numbers" Rekindles Kinnikuman Volume 1!

Hey, welcome back, K-Droppers.  I've got some seriously huge news to share with you, but first I have to do some housekeeping for a quick sec.

Before I get into anything, I do want to express my serious thanks to UraHameshi for all the new pictures, graphics, and the new beautiful banner.  She's a young talented artist that I met on the LittleRubberGuys toy forum and she's been nothing but professional and total joy to work with.  I seriously suggest you to check out more of her work, whether that's more of her graphic design, her crafts, or her videos on Youtube, and show some support for independent artists doing there thing.

Dragoste Art
http://dragosteart.wixsite.com/store
Shendijiro & Ura
https://www.youtube.com/user/Shendijiro/videos

Also, speaking about the LittleRubberGuys toy forum, I do want to credit both NamaNiku and BrockenmanJr for blowing this story wide open, earlier this afternoon.  Without their help, I think a lot of us would be very excited to see some of these images, but be quite confused to what any of it meant.  I've said it before, but it's worth repeating, this is why being a part of a toy forum or some sort of community is so important to your hobby, and why, if you haven't already, you should consider finding one that fits your needs and join.

LittleRubberGuys Toy Forum
http://www.littlerubberguys.com/forums/

Alright, let's jump right into this!  Hot damn, this is some really exciting news, so much so I'm finding it a little harder to find the point of entry.  I'm not sure where to begin, so please excuse the whiplash from bouncing back and forth.

Kinnikuman is regarded, if not completely legitimate, the grandfather of keshi mini-figure brands.  At least in the view of the American keshi collector, which could be very different to the say Japanese one, Kinnikuman took their wrestling characters off of their manga pages and anime episodes, and began making small, single-molded, mini-figures in various colors of unpainted rubber in the 1980's.  As far as the keshi west is concerned, this was the genesis of the trend and beloved toy brands like Monster In My Pocket only rode on the popularity created by it's predecessor and expanded on the niche for collectible pocket-sized figures in the early 1990's for American children.  The rest is pretty much in the story books.  Kinnikuman had a good run with numerous sets, even an Ultimate Muscle one that wasn't so bad.  Monster In My Pocket did as well, as did many other companies, keeping the keshi torch bright, but when you think of classic, old-school, toy lines and series from days long gone, you really think something new and different will be coming up next.  You wouldn't suspect something like Kinnikuman to burst back to life like a phoenix, but maybe that's why the reveal was extra exciting.

I unfortunately don't read the books, but from sources, I am gathering the manga is in midst of a story arc called 'Perfect Large Numbers', and to celebrate, classic Kinnikuman mini-figures molds are being revisited and re-sculpted into a new set and possible series of sets.  But it's just not a new HD version on an old classic, but as classics are getting redone, there will be a handful of new characters as well, all done by the son of the original 80's Kinnikuman sculptor!





Preorders on this first series seems to be up or coming up very soon, and I have to say, I, for one, will be all over this.  Something as special as a new running Kinkeshi toy line is something I thought I'd never see.

Who else is completely hyped over this!?

Kinnikuman Kineshi Volume 1
http://p-bandai.jp/item/item-1000106367/

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