I became interested in the Gundam franchise around the age of ten when I was introduced to it by a friend, though neither of us had any idea what it was at the time. He had discovered these toys at Yaohan (later Mitsuwa), the huge Japanese mega-mart in Edgewater NJ, near where we grew up. The product boxes and instructions were mostly in Japanese, but we eventually figured out that these things were called "Gundams".
They were a kids' version of the kits we build in gunpla today - designed to be played with, but still requiring some simple assembly. All of the toys were labeled "SD" - we didn't know what this was either, and had no idea that Gundams existed beyond this specific version.
Something about the figures' unique looks and buildability really appealed to me, and they quickly became my favorite toys. When I re-discovered them some twenty five years later while helping to clean out my parents' attic, they brought back a ton of memories. This is what sparked my interest in gunpla as an adult, and ultimately influenced the creation of this blog.
Here are some shots of the old toys - some were beyond salvaging, but I managed to clean up four of my favorites and added them back into my collection.
SD Command Chronicles - GBG-090 Green Beret
This was my very first Gundam! I instantly fell in love with its look, as well as all its cool accessories and features, like its night vision goggles, knife, and light-up sensor "beret". I remember this model was part of a trio of land/air/sea Gundams from the SD Command Chronicles franchise - the Green Beret was land, and then there was a Black Beret for air and a Red Beret for sea. One of my other friends had the others, which came as a two-pack, though they didn't have the electronic features of the Green Beret.
The figure has been ravaged by time - the v-fin and some other parts are missing, the seams are all showing, and the electronic feature no longer works. But it was really great to see this little guy again.
SD Gundam Gaiden - Warrior ZZ
My second Gundam figure. Totally different from the Green Beret, with lots of its own cool gimmicks, like a spring-loaded forehead blaster, extendable mace, and various other weapons in the backpack.
Looking at more recent Gundam figures, I see there's an incredible high-quality version of this character released in 2012 as part of the SDX product line. Check it out!
Gouf
No idea what this figure's actual name was, but it's clearly some version of a Gouf, one of the classic Zeon mobile suits from the original 1979 Mobile Suit Gundam series. Really cool feature with the retractable claw on the right arm, which could be pulled out and wound back in with a crank on its back.
SD Command Chronicles - ZAFU-13 Fuhrer Zatarion
I didn't know it at the time, but this beast was the lead villain in the SD Command Chronicles series. It was an amazing toy but I broke the peg on its right arm while building. My friend's dad helped me rig a workaround solution, but the years spent in storage were not kind to it as you can see.
SD Gundam Command Chronicles - SDV-04ORG V Command Gundam
This might have been my favorite figure. It had such an amazing look and was just overflowing with cool weaponry. The fists were spring-loaded and could launch off the arms (though unfortunately years later they're now extremely loose). The huge jet pack which the figure attached to had fun electronic features - when active it made a soaring jet sound which changed in pitch depending on how you tilted the figure. There were two sound FX buttons, one with a machine gun effect and the other a missile. Lastly, the jet pack had a wire which attached to the figure up front, powering flashing lights on its chest. Cool weapons, loud noises, and flashing lights - everything a kid could want!
SD Command Chronicles - GSG 001V General
For my eleventh birthday, a very dear relative gave me this giant-sized motorized figure, which could transform into a mobile fortress. I was so excited that day because I saw the wrapped box and knew it was something big. My family was out on a picnic and I remember my parents had to scold me to stop sitting in the car next to the present all morning.
The last three Gundam toys I got, another three-pack. These were mini-figures, each with their own gimmick - the left had pieces which could combine into a sort of vehicle, the middle could transform into a lion, and the right had removable armor that could be displayed on a rack.
Some additional shots I took later on in my photo booth of the four figures I ultimately cleaned up and kept:
I think your memories of getting and playing with these are the best part of this blog. I can just picture you in the car staring at the gift in its box.
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