First Impressions: Wingman

While the various franchises that make Japan's tokusatsu sphere rarely disappoint, it's always exciting when something new and/or difference comes along to add to the usual annual line-up. 2024 sees Masakazu Katsura's superhero fantasy manga Wing-Man celebrate its 40th anniversary, with the occasion marked by a brand new live-action adaptation. Wingman is co-produced by TV Tokyo, Toei Video and DMM TV, is directed by Koichi Sakamoto and stars Maito Fujioka (son of Kamen Rider legend Hiroshi Fujioka and the young Hongo Takeshi in Kamen Rider: Beyond Generations) in the lead role. An anime adaptation of Wing-Man was also previously released between 1984 and 1985.

Toybox REVIEW: S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider Gaim Orange Arms

Release Date: August 2024

RRP: 9900 yen

Between Kamen Rider Gaim and Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger, 2013-2014 was a very popular year for Super Hero Time. So much so that Bandai Tamashii Nations haven't forgotten either series' tenth anniversary, first releasing a brand new Kyoryu Red figure earlier and this year and now following it up with new renditions of the Armoured Riders. S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider Gaim Orange Arms is the first of what will hopefully be many Gaim characters in the "true bone carving" line, offering the usual high standard when it comes to sculpt while also throwing a working form change gimmick into the mix once again.

Toybox REVIEW: Transformers Legacy HasLab Victory Saber

Release Date: December 2022

RRP: $179.99/£179.99

The problem with toy collecting based on media franchises is that sometimes there’ll be something fans desperately want which just won’t realistically sell well at retail, whether its due to size or engineering costs. To that end, Hasbro introduced HasLab - a crowdfunding platform where they can make some of these things a reality…with the right number of backers of course. As far as the Transformers franchise is concerned Hasbro kicked off with an obvious one in 2021 - an enormous War for Cybertron Unicron figure that dwarfed any previous efforts of the character. But for their second campaign the following year, Hasbro turned to the world of Japanese-exclusive Generation One to bring fans Legacy Victory Saber. Based on the 1989 series Transformers: Victory, the set features Autobot Supreme Commander Star Saber and Victory Leo (alongside a whole host of extras), and originally needed 11,000 backers to be put into production. Strap yourselves in and “Let’s Say Go!”, because this review is a LONG one.

First Impressions: Dragon Ball DAIMA

Dragon Ball DAIMA is available to stream on Crunchyroll and Netflix

It's been five years since the Dragon Ball Super anime series ended and while fans haven't been completely starved of new Dragon Ball content since then, the times have certainly changed. The passing of creator Akira Toriyama earlier this year shocked the world, and although its a far sadder place without him we were fortunate enough to see him revisit the story onscreen one last time with Dragon Ball DAIMA. The sixth entry in the Dragon Ball franchise had Toriyama involved with the story "deeply beyond his usual capacity", in which Goku, Vegeta and the rest of Earth's fighters are transformed back into children by a brand new evil.

Toybox REVIEW: S.H. Figuarts Ultraman Arc

Release Date: September 2024

RRP: 4400 yen

The latest instalment in the Ultraman franchise is well underway (and available both subtitled and English dubbed on YouTube if you haven't checked it out already), and of course Bandai Tamashii Nations have kicked off a new range of S.H. Figuarts releases to cover the series. After briefly skipping over it with Ultraman Blazar, S.H. Figuarts Ultraman Arc returns to the "entry level" pricing Tamashii have adopted on many of their various franchise releases now - offering the main character of a specific series at a slightly lower price. Usually that also means that the figure itself has a little less to offer than your average release too, but does that hold true for Arc and his power of imagination?

Toybox REVIEW: S.H. Figuarts Father of Ultra

Release Date: August 2024

RRP: 8250 yen

The completion of the six main Ultra Brothers was a big milestone for the Ultraman S.H. Figuarts range, but there's still plenty of work for Bandai Tamashii Nations to do. What good are the Ultra Brothers without their leader, the top commander in the Inter Galactic Defence Force? To some he's known as Ultraman Ken, but these days he's better known as Father of Ultra. S.H. Figuarts Father of Ultra has been long overdue, and the fact he's also a retail release shows Bandai know the importance of this character to collectors as well. Despite Father of Ultra becoming a prominent figure in Ultraman franchise and making numerous reappearances over the years, this particular figure is based on his debut appearance in Ultraman Ace. 

Toybox REVIEW: Transformers Studio Series 86 Dinobot Swoop

Release Date: July 2024

RRP: £54.99/£55.99

When the Transformers Studio Series 86 line began back in 2021 one of the first things it promised fans was new renditions of the Dinobots at Leader class scale – kicking things off with Grimlock as one of the very first figures in the range. Now three years and four fantastic Dinobots later, Hasbro are finally completing the team with the release of Studio Series 86 Dinobot Swoop. Though far more prominent in Transformers: The Movie than poor old Snarl, Swoop is a rather fitting choice for the final one to come to the line – with both he and Snarl being the second wave of Dinobots to be created in the series.

Toybox REVIEW: Transformers Collaborative 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles x Transformers' Party Wallop

Release Date: July 2024

RRP: $49.99/£49.99

Featuring everything from the likes of Ghostbusters, Back to the Future and Jurassic Park to the Universal Monsters and Stranger Things, the Transformers Collaborative line has made quite the name for itself over the past few years. But amongst all the possibilities for where Hasbro could go next with the line, as much as it was probably on people's wish lists Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles probably didn't seem like the most likely candidate. However with both the Robots in Disguise and the Heroes in a Half Shell both currently celebrating their 40th anniversaries, the timing really couldn't be better for Transformers Collaborative 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles x Transformers' Party Wallop. This latest collaboration gives fans a Transformers take on the Turtles' iconic Party Wagon, with a few extra surprises thrown in as well.

Toybox REVIEW: S.H. Figuarts Ultraman & Emi [Ultraman: Rising]

Release Date: July 2024

RRP: 7700 yen

The Ultraman franchise's global expansion plan took a big step forward this year with the release of Ultraman: Rising - the long awaited Netflix animated feature film. Having largely been received positively by newcomers and Ultraman fans alike, only time will tell if the film did well enough to receive a sequel. But in the meantime, Bandai are on hand to make sure there's plenty of merch to look forward to. On top of various action figures aimed at younger fans, older collectors are also covered with the release of S.H. Figuarts Ultraman & Emi [Ultraman: Rising], the first of a number of characters from the film to join the line. In addition to this Japanese release, a more affordable bare-bones edition was released in US stores shortly after the film's release a month earlier in June.

Toybox REVIEW: S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider Saga

Release Date: June 2024

RRP: 11,000 yen

Tamashii Nations purgatory is a place well known to collectors of Bandai's various toy lines, where numerous figures are revealed at events only to never see the light of day. There have been countless examples over the years, but one of the oldest cases is that of Kamen Rider Saga. With Kamen Rider Kiva being one of the series that helped kickstart the S.H. Figuarts line, Saga's original prototype dates back to well over a decade ago. But while the wait has been a bit of a saga in itself, the Fangire ruler and half-brother of Wataru Kurenai has finally arrived in 2024. That original figure will never see the light of day, but its spirit lives on in S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider Saga – a newly tooled Tamashii Web exclusive figure that continues Kiva's strong place in the "true bone carving" line.