Toybox REVIEW: S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Gridman

Release Date: January 2025

RRP: 11,000 yen

Although for the majority of its lifespan the S.H. Figuarts Shinkocchou Seihou line has remained fairly Kamen Rider-exclusive, the last couple of years particularly have seen it branch out into a number of other tokusatsu franchises. First there was a brief foray into GARO, eventually followed by the line expanding into both Ultraman and Super Sentai. 2025 is set to see the line expand even more – most surprisingly with Wingman later in the year, but first with something else Ultra-adjacent. S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Gridman sees the Hyper Agent make his long-awaited return to a Bandai Tamashii Nations line – his first since his Ultra-Act figure all the way back in 2012. The figure is a Tamashii web exclusive, adding to the renaissance of Gridman merchandise there's been since the release of the anime series SSSS.Gridman and its subsequent sequels/spin-offs. This figure is of course based on his appearance in the original 1993 series, later adapted in the West as Superhuman Samurai Syber Squad.

Toybox REVIEW: Figma Gridman (Universe Fighter)

Release Date: November 2024

RRP: 8900 yen

In 2023 Studio Trigger's continuation of the Gridman the Hyper Agent franchise came to a climax (at least for the time being anyway) with the aptly-titled Gridman Universe, crossing over the casts of SSSS.Gridman and SSSS.Dynazenon for an action-packed finale that naturally introduced a number of new forms and combos. Something that both Bandai and Good Smile Company have taken advantage of with their respective toylines, particularly the latter as they follow up their premium THE GATTAI releases with Max Factory's Figma Gridman (Universe Fighter). This figure is based on the form Gridman takes during the finale of the film as he merges with Yuta once more and breaks free of the confines of the universe itself.

Anime REVIEW: SSSS.Dynazenon

SSSS.Dynazenon is available in streaming form on Funimation

After lying dormant for decades, Gridman the Hyper Agent has come a long way in the past six years. When Trigger revealed their Denkou Chojin Gridman: "boys invent great hero" short at the Japan Animator Expo back in 2015, who would have thought that a collaboration between the animation studio and Tsuburaya Productions would eventually lead to the creation of a Gridman Universe. Following the success of SSSS.Gridman in 2018, this universe continued to expand in 2021 with the release of SSSS.Dynazenon. This second animated instalment ran for a total of 12 episodes, introducing a whole new cast of characters and story despite the familiar setting. After being revealed to mean "Special Signature to Save a Soul" at the end of the previous series, here the "SSSS"-prefix takes on a whole new meaning right from the very beginning - "Scarred Souls Shine like Stars".

First Impressions: SSSS.Dynazenon

SSSS.Dynazenon is available in streaming form on Funimation

When Tsuburaya Productions first announced that they would be teaming up with anime juggernauts studio Trigger on an animated adaption of Denkou Chojin Gridman, fans were expecting big things but perhaps weren't ready for quite how much of a rousing success SSSS.Gridman turned out to be. Offering up an incredible series that immediately won over both the tokusatsu and anime communities, it's no real surprise that three years later the two studios are collaborating once more for a second entry into the Gridman universe. This time around it's the support machines of the original 1994 seemingly taking centre stage, amalgamated and reimagined as SSSS.Dynazenon. As well as acting as a double reference to Gridman's American adaptation Superhuman Samurai Syber Squad, for this series the SSSS prefix also stands for "Scarred Souls Shine like Stars".

Toybox REVIEW: Figma Gridman (Primal Fighter)

Release Date: September 2019

RRP: 6296 yen

There seems to be plenty of options out there when it comes to SSSS.Gridman toys, but which one is the perfect choice isn’t as obvious as you may think. Megahouse kicked things off with a fully transforming, but small and somewhat overpriced release with their Acti-Builder version. Then Good Smile Company went bigger with their DX Full Power Gridman set, but their 90s style design came with a whole bunch of problems. Meanwhile Bandai got in on the action with the Super Mini-Pla line, but their similarly high price point also came with the condition of having to build the thing yourself. Finally there’s the Nendoroid - a perfectly well-made but super deformed style figure. But if that wasn’t enough choice, Good Smile are back with a third go with Figma Gridman (Primal Fighter). Produced by Max Factory, this version of the titular hero makes up for the lack of combining capabilities with superior articulation and poseability.

Toybox REVIEW: DX Full Power Gridman

Release Date: May 2019, July 2019 (reissue)

RRP: 15,278 yen

When the SSSS.Gridman anime was first announced, one of the biggest questions for collectors was just who would be handling the toys. Whilst the Denkou Chojin Gridman toys were produced by TakaraTomy, Bandai’s domination of the tokusatsu market (as well as their more recent releases in the Ultra-Act and Super Mini-Pla lines) made them feel like a certainty. However while Bandai and Megahouse have both developed their own version of the titular character, studio Trigger’s links with Good Smile Company undoubtedly had a hand in them arguably leading the way when it came to SSSS.Gridman toys. But on top of their various Figma, Nendoroid and scale statue releases, the crown jewel in their offerings is the DX Full Power Gridman – a fully transformable and combinable set that includes both Gridman and his four Assist Weapons.

Toybox REVIEW: Super Mini-Pla Thunder Gridman

Release Date: November 2018

RRP: 6480 yen

With the original series celebrating its 25th anniversary last year and returning to television screens in animated form with SSSS.Gridman, tokusatsu fans are currently experiencing a Gridman revival. But while Good Smile Company are off creating new merchandise for Trigger's anime series, Bandai are also capitalising on the hype as the original Denkou Chojin Gridman line-up joins the Super Mini-Pla range. The first big name Gridman toys to be produced since the Ultra-Act releases back in 2012, the Super Mini-Pla Thunder Gridman set offers a fairly comprehensive look into Tsuburaya Productions' 1993 classic. Included in this four piece set are Gridman himself, along with the three Assist Weapon vehicles – the Thunder Jet, Twin Driller and God Tank.

Anime REVIEW: SSSS.Gridman

SSSS.Gridman is available in streaming form on Crunchyroll

As completely different mediums the worlds of tokusatsu and animation rarely properly collide, but whenever they have in the past it's usually turned out to be something special. Whether it's the anime adaptation of Shotaro Ishinomori's original Kikaider manga, the recent expansion of the GARO mythos, the wonderfully weird Kamen Rider SD or even the various Ultraman animated attempts you're usually in for an interesting ride. 2018 saw Tsuburaya Productions announce a number of new animated projects, including an adaptation of the ongoing Ultraman manga due for release on Netflix later this year. But much bigger news was their plans with studio Trigger, as they prepared to bring back the Hyper Agent himself - Denkou Chojin Gridman. Directed by Akira Amemiya and written by tokusatsu veteran Keiichi Hasegawa (head writer on Ultraman Dyna and Ultraman Nexus, among many other works), SSSS.Gridman breathed new life in the 1993 hero as well as introducing him to a brand new audience.

Series REVIEW: Denkou Chojin Gridman

Tsuburaya Productions may be best known for the both Ultraman and the Ultra Series, but that isn't the only tokusatsu series they've given birth to in their 55 year history. There's also been the likes of Redman, Mirrorman, Jumborg Ace, Fireman and many, many more. But to the more casual Western fan around during the Power Rangers boom, there's one definitely more recognisable than the others – Gridman, alternatively its American-adaptation counterpart Superhuman Samurai Syber Squad. Denkou Chojin Gridman (also known as Gridman the Hyper Agent) is a 39-episode series produced between 1993 and 1994, and would be Tsuburaya's last non-Ultra giant series until 2006. The series has enjoyed something of a resurgence among fans lately, thanks to English subtitles being made available legally in the US through TOKU and of course more significantly Trigger's (currently airing) anime adaptation SSSS.Gridman.

First Impressions: SSSS.Gridman

SSSS.Gridman is available in streaming form on Crunchyroll

2018-2019 is proving to be a rather busy time for Studio Trigger. They collaborated earlier in the year with A-1 Pictures on Darling in the Franxx, hit the big screen the beginning of next year with Promare and even have a Kill la Kill video game in the works. But for tokusatsu fans, there's one particular Trigger project that stands out from them all. The studio have teamed up with Ultraman creators Tsuburaya Productions to create SSSS.Gridman - a brand new anime adaptation of the TsuPro's 1994 series Denkou Chojin Gridman (adapted in the US as Superhuman Samurai Syber Squad). This isn't the first time Trigger have dabbled with Gridman either, having previously brought its cancelled sequel hero Gridman Sigma to life in their Japan Animator Expo short boys invent great hero. Sandwiched between the GARO series and the forthcoming Ultraman manga Netflix series, it's a pretty great time for tokusatsu anime adaptations.