RARE! Second Edition Nitto Walking Gamera! レア！重版歩くガメラ！

Nitto Walking Gamera - 496-300

In my years of experience collecting Nitto Gamera series kits, there are some unlikely kits that are impossible to find. The following series will highlight those kits. No better place to start than the second edition waking Gamera.

While the first edition "long box" Nitto kits are rare and highly desirable, with patience and luck they can be found. I have purchased them in Japan, on Yahoo Japan and even in the US from other collectors. But the only place I have found the second edition kits is in Japan. And I have only seen them twice! And both times I did not walk away until they were mine! In fact, the only one I have seen featured in a magazine is the Gappa kit, which will be next as it is number 2 in this series.

The second edition kit boxes were illustrated by none other than Shigeru Komatsuzaki, the maestro of model kit box and sofubi header card art. These illustrations would continue to front the standard series for another two re-issues over a five year period.

This series of four kits featured the greatest "cheat" in all of Nitto Gamera history! One that would more or less dictate another complete reissue of the standard series three years later AND would bring Komatsuzaki sensei back to paint the kaiju he missed the first go around! What is it you ask? Keep checking back!

Nitto Walking Zigra - First Edition! - 日東歩く深海怪獣ジグラ - 初版!!

Nitto Walking Zigra (Art No. 346-200)

(Ed. note - This is the Zigra post from Feb. 1st. I changed the order of kits to be presented so I am reposting this to keep the proper order).

The Nitto Zigra and Jaiger model kits are some of the rarest, mainly because they were only reissued once in the 25 year span of Nitto Gamera series kits. Which is too bad, since both kits were definitely more exciting than the kits that proceeded them.The Zigra kit is the most accurate Nitto model representation of a Gamera foe. Its in what looks like the same silver-grey color most airplane model kits were molded in.
As you can see from the instructions, this was not a difficult kit to assemble.
日東歩く-深海怪獣ジグラ-プラモ

Nitto Walking Gyaos - First Edition - 日東歩くギヤオス - 初版!!

First Edition Walking Gyaos Art No. 78-200


Most Gamera fans vote Gyaos as their favorite Gamera foe. What's not to like? It flys and spews laser beams (from its tuning fork throat). Exhales (out of its chest) flame retardent and can regenerate parts of its body chomped off by Gamera!


Nitto's Gyaos is one of their better kits. It has an impressive wingspan and fairly decent detail. Like the other walking kits, it does a fairly good job of hiding the wind-up motor. The motor seems to strain under the weight of this kit...the heaviest and largest of all Nitto walking series kits.



ほとんどのガメラはガメラの好みの敵として投票ギヤオスにファンする。 何にのよ うにないか。 それは空飛ぶ、レーザ光線を吹き出し、(音さの喉から)。 (箱から ) 遅らす炎を吐き出し、噛み切るガメラによってボディの部分を再生できる! 日 東のギヤオスはよりよいキットの1つである。 それは印象的な翼面積およびかな り適当な細部を有する。 他の歩くキットのように、それは結末モーターを隠すこ とのかなりよい仕事をする。 モーターはこのキットの重みにすべての日東歩くシリーズキットの最も重くのそして最も大きいこすようである。

Nitto Walking Gamera - First Edition! - 日東歩くガメラ- 初版!

First Edition Walking Gamera
Art No. 63-200

Yep, its mine! I purchased this a few years ago in Japan. I really did not expect to find this (or some of the other models I purchased) when I was there. This is one of the pinnacles of my Nitto model kit collection. This and the Barugon kit started the Ultra Kaiju Series!

Like most model kits from this era in Japan, it was more of a "build it yourself" toy than a model kit. The aruku kits were wind-up motor powered. So you would wind up Gamera and Barugon, point them towards each other and let them go! If they started straying to the left or right, simply take the "hand control" stick and move the tail of your monster left or right and keep them locked in mortal combat! The instructions above say it all : The Gamera vs. Barugon duel game is possible with hand control.

The instructions illustrate how simple this kit was to assemble. Later walking Gamera kits used a new wind up motor that did not require a lot of space for the untightened spring. As you can see in the first edition, a slot is cut in the bottom of Gamera's shell to allow the untightened spring to poke out. Otherwise, the spring most likely would split the shell in two!

Nitto Gamera vs. Gyaos Postcard - 日東ガメラ対ギャオス ・ポストカード

Like the Barugon card before it, on the back are stats for Gamera and Gyaos, etc. I like the fact that this card has the Nitto logo on it.

The tag line on the bottom of the postcard changed to read: Nitto's popular plastic models on sale now!


日東ロゴを含むため, いいですよ. そうですね?

Nitto Gamera vs. Barugon Postcard - 日東ガメラ対バルゴン・ポストカード

I don't know any of the Nitto postcards were distributed. Maybe in the hobby shops? They were effective advertising though.

On the bottom line of the card it says (from left to right) Daiei Movie - Gamera vs. Barugon - Nitto's Walking Plastic Model on sale now!

Anyone familiar with Japanese trading cards (bromides) of the time can appreciate how vibrant the colors on this card are. The bromides from Gamera vs. Barugon, though rare and desirable, have bland, washed out color. On the back of the card, Gamera's and Barugon's individual statistics are listed (height, weight, speed, etc.)

当時は、日東の郵便はがきいかに配られるか？ ガメラおよびバルゴンの個々の統計量はリストされている(高さ、重量、速、等),絵はがきの背面が.

Nitto "Homework" Card - 日東の宿題カード

One of the main reasons I like to collect model kits are for the box art. The other is for promotional pieces like this one to the left.

This is a "Homework" card. So called because on the back is a schedule of six days divided by six hours each day. At the bottom it says "Now that homework is done, a Nitto plastic model please." The front proclaims "Nitto Ultra Kaiju Series on sale now!" and lists the stats of Gamaron and Wanigon.

So if a kid wanted a Wanigon kit, he would log his completed homework over a week, noting the actual time spent on study. Once completed, he would present to his parents for the payoff of a walking Wanigon or Gamaron. An ingenious method for scholastic motivation. It would have worked on me!

私は左にこのカードのような昇進の部分のと同様、箱の芸術のためである、モデルキットを集めるのを好む。 これは「宿題」カードである。 背部に毎日分けられる6日6時間のスケジュールがあるのでいわゆる。 底でそれは宿題は終ったので言う「、日東プラスチックモデル」。 そう子供はワニゴンのキットがほしいと思ったら、彼は調査に使われた実時間に注意する週にわたる彼の完了された宿題を記録する。 完了されて、彼は歩くワニゴンまたはガマロンの給料支払いのための彼の親に示す。 学校の刺激のための独創的な方法。 それは私で動作しよう!

日本の読者: あなたの青年のこれらのカードの1枚に記入したか。 どのモデルに得たか。

いらっしゃい nandemoplamo さん！

参上は、どもありがとうございました。またね！

Nitto Mini Barugon

Nitto Mini Barugon - (Art No. 331-50)

Box art from the first edition Nitto Mini Barugon. Like the preceding two kits shown here from the same series, the Barugon model mounts on a plastic rock that hides a tiny pull back motor.

The box art is downright amateurish. I think whoever painted the Nitto Mini Gappa box art did this one as well.

Note that this is the only Nitto Barugon kit where he is a quadraped. The two horns you glue on Barugon's head are practially microscopic!

Nitto Mini Gappa

Nitto Mini Gappa - (Art No. 330-50)

The Nitto Mini Gappa has probably the crudest box art of the entire Nitto Gamera/Gappa series, with the exception of the header cards for the vinyls (I'll post those later).


The mini Gappa model was available for 10 years (1970-1980). Like the mini Gamera kit featured below, it was released initially with a friction gear (pull back) motor, but later would be released sans the motor.


This mini kit was the only Nitto Gappa model that had its wings extended. All other versions had the wings folded down.

Mokei Mania - モケイ・マニア！ Nitto Mini Gamera

Nitto Mini Gamera
(Art No. 127-50)

This is the first mini Gamera kit that Nitto produced, back in 1967. This kit would be reborn numerous times with and without its friction gear (pull back) motor.

As you can see from the illustration below, the completed Gamera model stands on the rock with the friction gear in it. Pull it back and woo hoo, look at it go!

Around the mid-70s, Nitto stopped releasing these mini kits with the little friction gear motor. Inflation and the price of oil saw these models increase in price by 200% in a span of ten years.

You may think it is strange that on the front of the box is a picture from Gamera vs. Viras (1968), yet the back advertises Gamera vs. Gyaos (1967). So that puts this kits actual release somewhere towards the end of the fourth quarter in 1967. It was not uncommon for paste up publicity stills like the one on the box top to pop up prior to the release of a movie back then. The production on Gamera vs. Viras must have begun at least by November of 67.

Pachi Kaiju - パチ怪獣 - Part I

Its kind of funny that these are all the rage now in Japan. I have noticed a lot of interest in old Pachi-Kaiju (Pachi basically means a "cheap knockoff" or "imitation"). The Gamera and Gyaos to the left are good examples. They look like Gamera and Gyaos, but are not licensed by Daiei. They are just different enough that the argument could be made that they are not Gamera and Gyaos.

If you think about it, these are the distant ancestors of todays High Grade figure collections. Plastic Pachi Kaiju lasted through the 70s, only to be replaced by gomu (ゴム) or rubber figures. In the late eighties to early nineties, gomu figures really advanced in detail and were replaced by the HG, while gomu would be used primarily for super deformed figures.

But I digress...I look for every way possible to add to my Pachi Kaiju collection. Usually, the toys themselves are pretty cheap, since they don't have a copyright mark on them. The trick is to have someone see enough similarity with what they are supposed to be, to either end up on Yahoo Japan or at the stores.

Nitto Walking Zigra Model Kit

Nitto Walking Zigra (Art No. 346-200)

The Nitto Zigra and Jaiger model kits are some of the rarest, mainly because they were only reissued once in the 25 year span of Nitto Gamera series kits. Which is too bad, since both kits were definitely more exciting than the kits that proceeded them.

The Zigra kit is the most accurate Nitto model representation of a Gamera foe. Its in what looks like the same silver-grey color most airplane model kits were molded in.

As you can see from the instructions, this was not a difficult kit to assemble.

日東歩く-深海怪獣ジグラ-プラモ

Nitto Ultra Kaiju Series Jaiger - Monster X - 大魔獣ジャイガー

Of all the Nitto sofubi kaiju, the Ultra Kaiju Series Standard Jaiger is my clear favorite. Whoever sculpted it really got it right as far as Jaiger's expression and stance. I think the same artist probably did the Nitto Standard Zigra, Guiron and possibly Viras. These four out of the series feature the best detail and realisim.

If I were to pull on my statistical education and experience, I would postulate that there were more Jaigers produced than other kaijus in the Standard series. There are always some on Yahoo Japan, for at times half the cost of other similar vintage sofubi kaiju. Or it may just be that all the others are more popular. I have it on good authority that companies like Nitto and Bullmark did not keep records about production, so this will be nothing more than a theory.

Nitto's Ultra Kaiju Series had three sizes: Standard, Medium and Mini (also available as a Pendant...the same mini sofubi with an eyelet and a chain so that it could be worn). Unfortunately, Nitto did not make a middle size Jaiger, but the did make a mini (as seen above). I suspect the same sculptor that did the Standard Jaiger had his (or her) hand in this one as well.