Tiger Driver Collectibles' Japanese figure thread

[tigerdrivercollect]

For those of you who missed out on pre-ordering the 16d Collection Stan Hansen back in January, Goodsmile has finally gotten around to listing the figure for regular sale:




I'm guessing NOSAWA and Keiji Mutoh will be the next figures listed shortly.



From Australian Sofubi figure maker Junk Shop Dog's official instagram account: a recent photo preview of Tiger Mask and Aja Kong.



Both figures were supposed to go on sale last Saturday, but have been postponed due to the poor image quality of the attached blister cards.

This is the first time Aja or Tiger Mask (Satoru Sayama) have been featured in an official figure line outside of Japan.



A prototype of fellow masked legend The Great Sasuke, who will also be making an appearance in Junk Shop Dog's Sofubi line
in the months to come.

[raylancrowder]

I've been waiting for the FMW Terry Funk from JSD since it was first shown in Feb last year. I'm hoping the wait isn't too much longer!

[walter7paisley]

Sept 16, 2023 10:32:33 GMT -5 tigerdrivercollect said:

For those of you who missed out on pre-ordering the 16d Collection Stan Hansen back in January, Goodsmile has finally gotten around to listing the figure for regular sale:




I'm guessing NOSAWA and Keiji Mutoh will be the next figures listed shortly.



From Australian Sofubi figure maker Junk Shop Dog's official instagram account: a recent photo preview of Tiger Mask and Aja Kong.



Both figures were supposed to go on sale last Saturday, but have been postponed due to the poor image quality of the attached blister cards.

This is the first time Aja or Tiger Mask (Satoru Sayama) have been featured in an official figure line outside of Japan.



A prototype of fellow masked legend The Great Sasuke, who will also be making an appearance in Junk Shop Dog's Sofubi line
in the months to come.

I don't collect Sofubi, though I probably should, but that guy's been doing some great work. Kudos to him for keeping his line legitimate.

[tigerdrivercollect]

Two new Great Muta 16d Collection figures are now available for pre-order:




Both looks are based on Great Muta's two retirement shows in 2023. The variants feature different masks, with match-accurate ring attires.

There are now a total of seven different Muta figures to collect in the 16d line:

1. Great Muta - Red facepaint
2. Great Muta - White facepaint (Online exclusive)
3. Great Muta - Bye Bye Ver. - limited to 1000
4. Keiji Mutoh
5. Keiji MUtoh - Retirement packaging ver. - limited to 1000
6. Great Muta - Retirement ver. (black mask)
7. Great Muta - Retirement ver. (red mask)

[biggerbetterbadder]

Oct 26, 2023 8:44:59 GMT -5 tigerdrivercollect said:

Two new Great Muta 16d Collection figures are now available for pre-order:




Both looks are based on Great Muta's two retirement shows in 2023. The variants feature different masks, with match-accurate ring attires.

There are now a total of seven different Muta figures to collect in the 16d line:

1. Great Muta - Red facepaint
2. Great Muta - White facepaint (Online exclusive)
3. Great Muta - Bye Bye Ver. - limited to 1000
4. Keiji Mutoh
5. Keiji MUtoh - Retirement packaging ver. - limited to 1000
6. Great Muta - Retirement ver. (black mask)
7. Great Muta - Retirement ver. (red mask)

Oh wow. These look amazing. Still waiting for dynamite kids figure to come out. I’m surprised 16d haven’t gotten figs of Terry and Dory Funk made yet.

[biggerbetterbadder]

Oct 26, 2023 8:44:59 GMT -5 tigerdrivercollect said:

Two new Great Muta 16d Collection figures are now available for pre-order:




Both looks are based on Great Muta's two retirement shows in 2023. The variants feature different masks, with match-accurate ring attires.

There are now a total of seven different Muta figures to collect in the 16d line:

1. Great Muta - Red facepaint
2. Great Muta - White facepaint (Online exclusive)
3. Great Muta - Bye Bye Ver. - limited to 1000
4. Keiji Mutoh
5. Keiji MUtoh - Retirement packaging ver. - limited to 1000
6. Great Muta - Retirement ver. (black mask)
7. Great Muta - Retirement ver. (red mask)

Oh wow. These look amazing. Still waiting for dynamite kids figure to come out. I’m surprised 16d haven’t gotten figs of Terry and Dory Funk made yet.

[tigerdrivercollect]

The Funks and The Road Warriors are a major part of my 16d Wishlist.

One very obscure find that I just discovered is the special Antonio Inoki 60th birthday figure variant.



The figure was released for Antonio Inoki's 60th birthday in 2003. Included is an attached red base (which reads "60th birthday celebration") and an IWGP belt accessory.

The bottom of the base includes the Inoki Enterprise sticker, which was commonly found on officially-licensed Inoki figures during the era. Additionally, the acrylic
case did not come with the original figure.

As rare as this variant is, it's just a recycled Inoki figure, that was originally released by Toukon Shop back in the late 90's.

[@Chair.Shot]

Very neat piece!

[Papi Joker]

Feb 5, 2023 13:59:37 GMT -5 tigerdrivercollect said:

I have always wondered, can you pop the heads off these? would they fit 6 inch figs you think?

[tigerdrivercollect]

Nov 2, 2023 19:16:21 GMT -5 Papi Joker said:

Feb 5, 2023 13:59:37 GMT -5 tigerdrivercollect said:

I have always wondered, can you pop the heads off these? would they fit 6 inch figs you think?

I wouldn't recommend doing so. Many of the figures have heads that have no articulation whatsoever (such as Liger and Bruiser Brody).



To give you an example of scale between the older HAO figures (made by the same sculptor) and the standard 5 inch Japanese figures
from the era.

[tigerdrivercollect]

In my quest to find the most obscure Japanese Wrestling collectibles, I recently made (yet another) discovery:


The Giant Baba Nuki
Known in Japan as: ジャイアントババ抜き
Platform: Card game

Released by: Nomura Toy

Nuki is the Japanese name for the classic card game Old Maid. The Giant Baba Nuki card game includes a mini ring, ring bell and mallet.

Giant Baba's version of old maid decided to include fictional Wrestlers on the card fronts. In all my years of researching, I can safely say that
quite a few of these designs are some of the weirdest Wrestler depictions I have ever come across. There's just something about the art style
that makes me feel uncomfortable.

Let's take a look at the roster (left to right - top row):

1. Star Haws (an alien wearing The Destroyer's mask).
2. Rubber Claw (most-likely based on Fritz Von Erich, who used the Iron Claw as his finisher).
3. Abdullah Kasabudara (a mixture of Abdullah The Butcher and Tiger Jeet Singh).
4. Ganimata Yarimocha (this tribal warrior could be a very loose representation of Kamala).
5. Banku Brothers (The Funks).
6. Don Yasan (looks like Antonio Inoki, but his name is closer to former AJPW star Don Leo Jonathan).



Second row (left to right):

7. Chan Chanko (this Asian-inspired character's look and name bears a similar resemblance to Killer Khan).
8. Ukibara Hikaru (the token female Wrestler. Looks like Megumi Kudo or a younger Devil Masami from the 1980's).
9. Iitomo Dutcher (this Native warrior has a similar last name to Abdullah The Butcher, but his appearance looks closer to Chief Wahoo McDaniel or the Youngblood's).
10. Stone Broker (from his name and moustache, I'm guessing this Wrestler is based on Stan Hansen).
11. Shimokawa Kabanosuke (Japanese Hippopotamus - his name sounds close to AJPW legend Umanosuke Ueda).
12. Basher Suisan (his name sounds close to Rusher Kimura - but he looks nothing like the legend).
13. Stamina Daikonsky (this is another odd one. A vegetable-carrying combatant with a Russian name).

[tigerdrivercollect]

Those of you familiar with Japanese Wrestling figures may have come across this muscular Antonio Inoki statue in the past.




But ...did you know there exists an entire series of bronze figures made by the sculptor?




Pictured here with Hiroshi Tanahashi, Yoshinori Murata has been famously sculpting bronze statues of Pro-Wrestlers for decades.
Under the banner MANSPORT, Murata's sculpts have included Wrestlers such as:

 

Hiroshi Tanahashi                              Mr. Gannosuke                                 Hayabusa




Naomichi Marufuji and Kintaro from Kunnikuman have also been sculpted. The back of the statues include Murata's signature.



A bronze sculpture of Mitsuharu Misawa was also added.



Other figures that Murata has created.

Other than being a prolific sculptor, Mr. Murata is the proprietor of the Japanese beer hall MAN, for which many of Murata's
sculptures are on display.

Murata's favourite Wrestler is Antonio Inoki, who inspired Murata to begin sculpting from an early age. In his school years,
Murata was on the receiving end of bullying, yet it was Inoki's charismatic presence and fighting spirit which inspired Murata
to find confidence in himself, and strive to become stronger in the process.

The desire to become more manly formed the basis for MANSPORT, and the muscularly-defined sculpts which became synonymous
with Murata's bronze statues.

To date, Murata has created over 2000 sculptures of Antonio Inoki alone, and regularly gets requests from collectors in their

30's and 40's.

The MANSPORT official site:
ms-bronze.com/html/murata.html

An article (in Japanese) discussing Yoshinori Murata's backstory and formation of MANSPORT:
sports.yahoo.co.jp/column/detail/201506260001-spnavi

[@Chair.Shot]

Wow! That explains a little bit of that mystery to me. Several months ago I was in Minoru Suzuki’s Piledriver shop in Shibuya and he had one of those statues. Unfortunately that stopped me from taking photos so I only got a brief shot of it.



You can see it here in this IG photo too:

http://instagram.com/p/CkNogUspMHQ

[tigerdrivercollect]

I would imagine Wrestlers were given these statues as gifts from the sculptor. Far from your average collectible, each statue is said to have been made by hand
from the same craftsman. Since these figures are essentially made to order, it's hard to tell how many were actually created of each Wrestler.

I'd get a little defensive, too. =)

[tigerdrivercollect]

For fans of complete figure collections, up for grabs is a special figure set honouring All Japan Pro-Wrestling's greatest stars!

In late 2004, Japanese Coffee brand Georgia (owned by Coca-Cola) held a special promotion where select cans of Georgia
Coffee contained randomly inserted figure and ring sets.



Each figure came with a mini ring corner base with peg holes that would connect each figure and it's matching turnbuckle.
If you look closely, you can see the Coca -Cola logo written on the right turnbuckle post.



The two Japanese Wrestlers featured in the All Japan set are Giant Baba and Jumbo Tsuruta.

Baba is sculpted performing both a signature chop and 16mon Kick (Big Boot), while Jumbo is presented in
his iconic "OH" raised fist pose.



An example of how the minifigures connect to the ring via a peg.



As arguably two of Japan's most famous gaijin Wrestlers, Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk are also included in the set.

The Destroyer and Stan Hansen. Despite his legendary status among Japanese fans, the above figure is one of the

few examples that were created during Destroyer's lifetime.

Tiger Jeet Singh and The Original Sheik - complete with fireball and chair accessory.

Easily the most popular figures of the set are Road Warrior Hawk and Animal. Both are painted in their pre-WWF

1980's AJPW/WCW attires.



Last but not least, the 'secret' 11th figure of the set is Abdullah The Butcher. The odds of finding Abby were estimated at
1 in 300 cans, making him the rarest figure of the set. The design for Abdullah is based on the Madman's run as PWF

Champion in 1978.

Overall, the Georgia Coffee All Japan figures are a great throwback to the golden age of Professional Wrestling in Japan.
From their cartoonish charm to simplistic designs and mini-accessories: it's very easy to see why these figures were quite
popular when they were first released.

As promotional food items, these figures were never sold in stores. The only way collectors could have acquired them was

by purchasing select canisters of Georgia Blend coffee through Circle K Sunkus and LAWSON convenience stores in Japan
in 2004.

I just wish Georgia Coffee secured the rights to have included Bruiser Brody in this set as well. With legendary tag teams

such as The Funks, The Road Warriors, and even the early 80's combination of The Sheik/Abdullah, it just feels like a missed

opportunity.

[tigerdrivercollect]

Naomichi Marufuji has just been listed for pre-order as a 16d Collection soft vinyl figure:



The figure even includes the logos of Marufuji's sponsors.



I haven't seen this many sponsor logos on a Japanese Wrestling figure since Charapro creating one for Sanae Kikuta in the early 2000's.

[@Chair.Shot]

Any rare/weird/unique Andre items out there?

[tigerdrivercollect]

Nov 28, 2023 10:03:48 GMT -5 @Chair.Shot said:

Any rare/weird/unique Andre items out there?

After POPY made the first Andre The Giant figure, the bulk of Andre's Japanese figures were relegated to keshigomu treatment.

This Andre The Giant Keshigomu was officially released by POPY in 1982. It comes stamped with (C) - copyright (P) - Popy on the back, along with

the rest of the original Popy keshi figures. I believe K/1 is supposed to represent 'Keshi series 1'.

While most Wrestling collectors turn away from these little rubber figures, I consider them part of POPY's legacy - along with being a part of Japanese

Wrestling figure history.



A 'capsule' figure of Andre The Giant. These were apparently sold in gumball machines in the 1980's, and do not contain a

production logo.



Since these figures are erasers, the harder to find versions of the capsule figures are the pencil toppers versions. Twice as rare, but
only half a figure. Suffice to say, this trend never took off in the world of Puroresu keshi.



A smaller, unmarked keshi of Andre.

For collectors who opted to carry their keshi's from a keychain or wear them as a necklace, certain variants included
a ring at the top of the keshi's head. Pictured above is a younger Rusher Kimura and Andre The Giant.



Andre was part of a series called the 'international world series' of keshi figures.



The Pro-Wrestling finishing moves keshi sets included regular keshi figures, a ring playset, and special two-figure sets

sculpted to resemble certain Wrestler's iconic moves.

In the above photo to the left, Andre The Giant is applying an armbar to Andre The Giant.



Last but not least is the TAKARA board game keshi figures. Supposedly, these figures were apparently released in 1981, predating the POPY keshi figures

by one year.

For size comparison, I placed a Andre The Giant POPY figure side-by-side.

While Keshi aren't everyone's cup of tea, they remain some of the most inexpensive and common Japanese Wrestling figures to come across. For the avid

collector, they can also be the funnest to collect, as each figure has (at least) four colour variants to track down.

[@Chair.Shot]

Thank you! I’ve seen a handful of Keshi figures on eBay but never really paid much attention to them as I didn’t even know where to begin/what their history was.

I had no idea the TAKARA game piece was so large. I might have to pick that one up eventually.

[tigerdrivercollect]

The complete set of the TAKARA NJPW board game also includes Tiger Mask, Antonio Inoki and Tatsumi Fujinami.






I would also keep an eye out for TAKARA's All Japan Pro-Wrestling board game, which also came out in the early 80's. The figures include: Giant Baba,
Genichiro Tenryu, Jumbo Tsuruta, and one of the few figure examples of The Great Kabuki.



Like the NJPW set, TAKARA's AJPW board game keshi are quite bulky, too.