That delicious Figuarts Zero Kotetsu T. Kaburagi I’ve been lusting for went up for preorder through Premium Bandai completely without warning. I think I’ve managed to secure myself one… Now I better get Barnaby, too, or I’ll be a very sad panda. I dunno if others suffer from the same problem, but when it comes to figures of Kotetsu and Barnaby, I just can’t think of having one without the other.
…meanwhile in a 20 mile radius of this event…
The funny thing with this figure release is that it’s made-to-order web shop exclusive. Now I’m not a figure collector and definitely not an expert, but one of the regulars on our chat channel is a collector and he told me some interesting stuff about the made-to-order figures. They’re usually ones that Bandai expects will not sell very well, so they don’t want to be left with extra stock collecting dust and taking up warehouse space. Usually these figures are available to preorder for about a month. The bonus to selling the figures like this is that there are no retailers taking their slice of the cake when Bandai is selling them directly.
(If their reasoning really was that this figure won’t sell, just ahahahaha oh wow…)
…webshops crashing…
However, the general opinion on the chat channel was that this may have backfired on Bandai. The web shop actually crashed, and our figure collecting friend told me he’s never seen that happen with made-to-order items. (Note, the web shop only ships within Japan, so it was only the Japanese fans overloading the site with orders.) It seems they didn’t take into account how well Wild Tiger Figuarts has been selling, nor the case with the Katsura art book + original coloring Wild Tiger set which was also made-to-order. The book and figure set was intended to be available for preorders for a month, but they closed the preorders after two days because they got a “flood of orders”. There’s a limit to how many their factory can produce, so that has to be taken into consideration too. On the other hand… this’ll give actual data of how sought after these figures are. The tweet from Premium Bandai actually said that people don’t have to worry about first come, first serve because the figure is made-to-order, but keeping in mind that art book thing, it’s best to order sooner rather than later…
…Bandai making more exclusives…
Then there’s Darkness Edition Bunny, which will be an exclusive at Tamashii Nation 2011 event at first. It’ll probably be available at the web shop in a few months for those who couldn’t go to the event. It’s not perfect – at least not the prototype – director Satou himself noted how the “ears” on the helmet are in the wrong angle. Still, it’s one sleek piece of plastic.
I’ve seen both figures are already available for preordering at resellers, but the prices are pretty steep. Especially with Darkness Edition Bunny – and no guarantee if there’ll be enough to fill the preorders.
TL;DR. Do not underestimate the desire that T&B fans have for spending money on merchandise of the series.
It was fabulous. THE END.
Well not quite the end yet because there are some…
Other updates:
This is a teeny bit odd, but there’ll be a NEXT PROJECT SET of BD Limited Edition vol. 1 packaging and extras. This is also made to order, and it seems it’ll basically be all the stuff that came with the first LE BD – only without the BD itself. So if you got the regular edition you can upgrade it to limited with this.
The release dates for Hero TV Fan vol. 2 and Official Hero Book 2 have changed, and instead of the original 10/25 release they should be coming out 11/16. It gives a small breather for my credit card, since October has been really expensive for me.
Oh and ANN are having a contest where you must design an own, original super hero card. Looks like fun, and although they’ll only ship the prizes within USA & Canada, the fine print says that you can get a friend to act as your proxy so in other words, everyone can take part!
Update: I wrote a small primer some time ago, when we got some questions about buying merchandise from Japan. If you’re not sure how to go about this business, look here.
This is Sternbild 
Never underestimate T&B fans xD
WOW the contest sounds really fun! I must do it! Sadly I don’t live in the US but I do have a friend there 😀
Dear lord that Kotetsu figure looks totally delicious. And i need a way to get it, since it’s for preorder. And…am i seing correctly? IT COMES WITH THE PINK BUNNY PLUSH!? I need it in my life.
This is me again. Is there a way to get this figure if i’m not from japan?
You’ll need to use a shopping service, since Bandai webshop doesn’t ship internationally.
Or, Tokyo Hunter still has a few for preorder.
Is it possible to buy it if you live in the US?? I can’t read Japanese so…
If you use a shopping service as proxy, then yes. See comment above, Tokyo Hunter has some still in stock, and BiJ has it too.
the yen will convert to dollars right?
You must pay in JPY and your bank or Paypal will convert the currency for you. I suggest you take a look here if you haven’t ordered from Japan before, it might be helpful.
Thank you!!!
Thanks for all the information!
BBTS is US based and it has both in available for preorder now, check the comments below.
for US buyers – i just got my Kotetsu ZERO from BBTS:
http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/product.aspx?product=BAN14025&mode=retail
also got Dark!Bunny here as well:
http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/product.aspx?product=BAN14026&mode=retail
i’m not sure how long those will stay up, but i don’t want to second guess and not have one on order. Dark!Bunny price is a bit steep… guess i’ll have to pull a few extra hours.
damn – just as i thought my wallet damage wouldn’t be so bad this month…
I’m giving a pass on Darkness Bunny and I’m getting Kotetsu Zero from Japan so my wallet – although groaning – isn’t dead yet. Thank heavens the 2nd set of source books got pushed to November, it’s another relief…
heh – i know what you mean. i was trying to space my purchases out but – anyway, who needs food. eating is overrated, right??
do we have a schedule for when the other figures are coming out? Sky High is going to be a tooth and nail fight…
Sky High isn’t in the Tamashii release schedule list yet. Your guess is as good as mine…
in other news, the plushie just got posted to BBTS:
http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/product.aspx?product=ALT10163&mode=retail
everything i’ve been seeing at the Central Market is quickly making it’s way here. too bad there isn’t a way to measure how big the Western fanbase is, although it’s certainly there and growing.
sorry the KOTETSU plushie (i should clarify)
I am not familiar with BBTS. Are they trustworthy? Have anyone buy from them before?
i got their name from other figure collectors whose main interest was in other shows. they had compared notes on retailers they had bought from and warned the rest of who to steer clear off. the unanimous vote was BBTS was good from a collector’s stance. my first order should be coming in next week so i’ll let you guys know.
if it makes you feel better, Better Business Bureau gives them a A+
http://www.bbb.org/wisconsin/business-reviews/toys-retail/big-bad-toy-store-inc-in-somerset-wi-44150085/
Thank you ^___^. I normally order my figures through Ami Ami, Hobby Search or HLJ. I did JList and Tokyo Hunter before too but never heard about BBTS.
I hope it all goes smoothly, LOL.
my Wild Tiger figure just arrived from BBTS today – and it’s beautiful… can’t wait for the rest of the items to come in.
BBTS is trustworthy and will get you the figures. I haven’t heard of anyone getting burned by them, BUT their prices ARE steep.
Thank you :). I put in my order for Kotetsu and the petit set just now. Black Tiger is soooo expensive ToT.
P/s: I thought their price is really good compare to other figure places I order from (JList, for example, marks up their price $20 over sometime).
Jlist can be really expensive. I’ve never ordered from there because I can find the same stuff for cheaper elsewhere.
I mean Darkness Bunny, not Black Tiger. Sorry *facepalm*
Oh god I’ve officially put a cap on my T&B spending after buying that kotetsu figure.
I’ve probably spent enough money on T&B to buy a small office at sunrise studios :C
// Oh god I’ve officially put a cap on my T&B spending /* FOR THIS MONTH */
there – fixed it for ya.
joking aside, we spend because we love. we’re all feeling the same pain, so i hear ya. i’ve had to limit the types of items i buy, so i’m mainly sticking to just the figures. but now w/ the Dark figures emerging, can we expect Lunatic?
Ahaha, that’s probably accurate, though. I promised I’d make it until christmas, but we’ll see what happe- oh my god they’re selling the dark bunny!? I thought that was event exclusive….aghh I’m already losing this battle XD
I don’t think I could resist a Lunatic figure though, I need less expensive hobbies XD
I’ve lost the battle multiple times already.
(I have seven parcels on the way right now and one more should ship on Friday when Katsura’s artbook comes out. I can’t win.)
At least you guys know my feel :C
All my friends are like “Peter that’s enough! you already have x, y and z” and I’m just like “BUT IT’S LIKE COCAINE, YOU DON’T GET IT.”
Hopefully after the dub comes out it’ll be easier to get stuff without the crazy shipping charges and so on :I.
Pretty sure it’s Satou’s NEXT power that he discovered, making people buy merchandise. We should be wary of what he’s directing in the future…
// I don’t think I could resist a Lunatic figure though, I need less expensive hobbies XD
cry of the Common Otaku (said with much affection). don’t worry, i’ll be right there with you – as long as i get my preorder in before the rest (ha!).
i recently explained to one of my girlfriends the significance of the Dark!Bunny release (limited run/edition, Tamashi event availability only, etc.) her response –
‘OH! you mean like a limited edition Chanel bag??’
yeah – only better (so, Peter – right there witcha!)
I ended up ordering him from Tokyo Hunter after staying up until almost 2am last night deciding how/where to get him from. I swear T&B is bad for both my wallet and my health. Totally worth it though! This figure looks wonderful~ and I don’t care what it takes, I’m going to get the Barnaby one too. I agree, you really can’t have one without the other! They’re partners, right? hehe
I think I’m going to have to pass on Dark Bunny though. I’m already getting his normal suit version and I really can’t afford such an expensive price. >_<
just wondering, if they’re shipping internationally, would the customs/tax be almost as much as the figure cost itself?
I think it depends on what country you live in. For me, I live in Australia and I’ve never once had to pay customs/tax on something I’ve ordered online from overseas. I’ve bought some pretty expensive figures and ball jointed dolls too!
I guess it also depends on whether they write the actual amount that the figure is worth on the box. I’m not sure about Tokyo Hunter because this will be the first time I’ve bought from them before but I know a lot of places do drastically lower the price.
I hope that helps at least a little! 🙂
thank you! i’ll consider them for the next figures!
from PJA’s Twitter feed. guess it’s just a matter of time before Dark!Tiger shows up. how come this is already out and we didn’t see it? did we miss this release? or is that a proto?
http://twitter.com/#!/Poor_Japan_Anon/media/slideshow?url=http%3A%2F%2Ftwitpic.com%2F73utlq
It’s a fanmade repaint of Wild Tiger. Though an official Black Tiger will probably pop up sooner or later.
wow – i’m impressed. the helmet detail is pretty good as well (says a lot about the fan dedication to this show)
i think my wallet just died…
Do you know when the Bunny figure will be out? Sorry if you already answer this somewhere else, I didn’t see any date.
Darkness Bunny? He’s released at Tamashii Nation event in the end of November. The regular Bunny Figuarts is hitting the shelves now on Saturday.
Oh, sorry I didn’t specify. There are so many figures now :D. I mean the Bunny Zero. There’s one, right? I saw picture of the demo with Kotetsu Zero and Bunny Zero in regular clothes on display a couple months back.
Bunny Zero should be available for preorder next month, with a similar deal as Kotetsu Zero.
Barnaby ZERO should be out next month.
btw, next month starts next week…
Arrghhhh why it came out on the day before my paycheckkkkk!! now I couldn’t resist to preorder it.
anyway in BiJ it’s 200 yen cheaper than TH. Even the shipping cost as well. Only it asked for the money first. not sure abt TH though
Oh my, Figuart Bunny is back for order at BBTS? I just snatched one but I feel like I am dreaming it.
May I know where to order the figures (mentioned in your post) in a non-US based store & also pay by Western Union? Shipping from the U.S is really expensive =/
I can’t remember seeing Western Union listed in any of the Japanese stores I frequent. If your only available payment method is Western Union, then looking for a shopping service that accepts it might be the only option – unless some commenter here has another solution. Shopping service fees might get considerably higher than ordering from USA, so I’m not sure if it’s worth the trouble in the end.
If you’ve never used a shopping service to buy from Japan, I’ve briefly gone over the proceedings here.
Thank you.
SHFiguarts Sky High will be released on February, and it’s a regular release like Wild Tiger, Barnaby, and Rock Bison.
Still no information about price tag, or promotion picture except the prototype shown on previous event.