I’m not sure why he has ended up in a bell jar, perhaps to protect the ramen in my home, but he has and he sits on my desk…
It’s been a while. I’m still totally into it. Bwana did a wonderful Booska toy (got it!), and Swimmy Design Lab has a Booska (got it!) and Chamegon (uh..don’t got it). Nothing much else new, but I took a pic with my wife’s new phone. 13ish years or so. So far, Booska has managed to creep out all kids (in the family) who have laid eyes on it—except for my daughter because she’s the coolest. I hope all is well.
swimmy design lab Booska. A strange take on the character that is pretty cool in person. i'm hoping for the characters on the header card to be realized in sofubi one day (and that i win each of them, haha)
i actually think i prefer this one too. can't go wrong with yellow with a gold bookan. this one is lemony. if they release a chocolatey Chamegon, they would look nice together. Random: i would flip if M1-go did a giant in pearl pastel yellow--in non-squishy vinyl.
A Kamosuke was finally made! it's been about 10 years since i crossed my fingers, so i'm happy to see it. It is made in China by an artist/company called Amakuma. i would love to see a made-in-Japan version in true sofubi fashion, but ...yoink! just the same.
By GUTSY TOY maybe around 5 inches. The effect is kind of like the bearmodel Chibira Kun figures in my opinion. Articulated, but not really "poseable" if you get what i mean. They are not in neutral positions and the joints are connected across slanted angles. Chamey is stable, but Booska likes to teeter. I think they don't seem to fit in anywhere in my booska collection. i'm still trying to figure out why. They feel almost too familiar and yet refreshing all at once. I'm not sure i know where they meet. They remind me of some disney painted soft plastic figurines i had growing up. They weren't my favorite toys, but i'm fond of them in memory, now that their time has passed. (not sure that makes sense). They're really curious sofubi, to me. But I like them for what they are.
HoooOOoOLy Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiittttttttttt ttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttbaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaassasaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllllls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hiruma Model Craft Booska. Has not aged well (the orange fabric feels a bit dry), but it's still solid. I'm currently looking into how to revitalize this fabric. a soft toothbrush is helping to fluff up the flat patches. There's a Steiff restorationist i'm thinking i can reach out to. They might have some tips. I've always imagined how it would look in my collection. Now that it's here, i have to imagine my collection since it's packed up. So it'll still be a while before the two meet. Not that i'm complaining--it's so nice to have it after all these years. Holy shitballs. It feels kind of nuts to have this guy here. The head of the company, Shinji Hiruma, used to work on some of the old Tokusatsu models and whatnot for movies and series from back in the day. So this Booska feels like a little slice of history.
Your Hiruma Model Craft Booska shows how well it can be done, as does Masataro Toys version. It is the quality of the little details (teeth, spikes, belly button, etc) that make the difference. Steiff also managed to mangle a UK classic (Bagpuss) - there have been decent stuffed Bagpuss toys for years and when Steiff released their version, it wasn't right. As the character was a 'stuffed toy' from the start, you have thought they'd nail it but no, it just didn't look right. Anyway, congrats on the recent acquisition - would enjoy hearing some of the background on it, if you have the time!
Not much info about it on the online, (there used to be a blog post from someone who grabbed one soon after its release years ago), but here's my vague and squirrelly awareness of it... It was made by a model company who's head honcho used to work in tokusatsu movies and series--but after Tsuburaya passed, and things changed, the company was started. They made model kits of sets, vehicles, and some characters, and did work for commercials and displays. Headed by Shinji Hiruma. The Booska was released at an event (maybe WonderFest?) in 2012-13--and limited to 50 according to the seller's listing description--but i'm not so sure about that number. i thought there were less. I don't remember reading about it being available anywhere else, and 50 seems like a lot to lug around. Could be dead wrong though. The Booska stands about 20-21 inches tall. it's screwed to the base. the head, mouth, and arms are articulated. The arms are soft--the rest very solid. I haven't seen one pop up since Mandarake had one at retail in 2013. Hiruma Model Craft called it quits in 2015, but i've seen something about an old-school mecha model offering that might've happened in 2017.
Thanks, Bwana. And it defenitely is looking and feeling great after some TLC with a soft toothbrush. it's my morning routine. Sometimes keeping stuff in its bag/box/package does more damage than just taking it out to live free in the open.
