This is the third in a series of articles dealing with toy collecting in
Japan. In the last one I wrote about robots because robots are an
important aspect of Japanese society. The Japanese accept robots better
then any other countries.
I recall shopping, one Saturday afternoon, in Umeda at Hep Navio and I happened to
see a small printed sign for a demonstration of Honda’s Asimo. Several folding
chairs were set up and I watched. Asimo is a humanoid robot that prefers tasks that
any human can perform. He also entertains by dancing and interacting with the
crowds. I was glad I stayed.
Also, robots are used in car manufacturing in several different Japanese
companies. I remember taking a tour of Toyota in Osaka and seeing all
the robots and how they were put to use on the assembly line.
Getting away from robots, before they attempt to unite and imprisons
humans, I would like to talk about another avenue of toy collecting.
I was fortunate to be living in Japan when Final Fantasy X was released
for Sony’s Playstation 2 in 2001. FFX swept over Japan and became such
a huge hit. One day at Lawson’s, a Japanese convenient store, I saw
16-ounce Coke bottles with tiny bags attached near the top. The bags
contained FFX figures. There were three sets of figures. The first set
was realistic and tried to closely resemble the characters from the
game. The second set had more of an anime look. The last set were the
realistic characters done all in red, for some reason. I’m not sure why
the red characters were
made. I started buying Cokes in record numbers to collect as many figures as I
could. My fellow English Teachers were also collecting and the race was on to be
the first to have a complete set of all three. I collected a lot of the anime
looking ones and a couple of the red ones.
A complete waste of time and money were all the UFO Catchers available.
The UFO Catchers were vending machines that used a claw to collect
various prizes. I had seen those machines around but didn’t really try
one until my first year in Japan was almost over. I happened to see a
Detective Conan, (released in the US as Case Closed) doll sitting in one
and I just took a shot. My hand/eye coordination is not really the best
but on that fateful day, luck was on my side and I successfully
maneuvered the claw to catch the cloth on the shirt he was wearing. A
couple of times it looked like the doll was going to slip away but the
claw managed to hold on until I positioned it near the drop slot.
After winning my doll, I put it in my friend’s bookbag to keep it safe
because a group of us from college all went out bowling for our last
night together. I forgot to get the doll back and he wound up in my
friend’s Tokyo apartment for several years. Through email, I finally
managed to convince my friend to mail Detective Conan back to me. He is
now safely sitting on my bookshelf at home.
Last, I went out with my friend to visit American Village in Osaka, and
while browsing through a toyshop, I found a flexible Bruce Lee figure
that I had to buy. The Bruce Lee figure has limbs that can be bent and
positioned however you want. I knew that was one toy that would be hard
to find in the US. Even though Bruce Lee’s popularity is probably
greater in the US then overseas in Asian countries, Asian countries
still pay respect by having toys and memorabilia for sale. DVD sales
and current martial arts magazines are still big business for Bruce Lee
in the states. In Asia, old Hong Kong magazines from the 70’s,
neckties, shirts, and collectible toys are more popular. The collector
and fan can find a wide assortment of Bruce Lee products that fall into
the rare and odd category. I never thought I would own a Bruce Lee tie
until I bought one at a Japanese Bruce Lee film retrospect.
I have a lot more toys from Japan; however, this concludes my series of
toy articles. I want to move on and discuss other aspects of Asian
popular culture. I will probably write another toy article sometime in
the near future.
"The Asian Aperture" is ©2010 by Jason Fetters. Webpage design and all graphics herein (except where otherwise noted) are creations of Nolan B. Canova. All contents of Nolan's Pop Culture Review are ©2010 by Nolan B. Canova.
