Toy Collecting in the Philippines

                               
                                 


-          In this post I’m trying to be a Representative of sorts, a personal tour guide of the what’s what of Toy Collecting in the Philippines.  And I’m writing this in a bullet type as it is easier to read.

-          Many collectors here  grew up on Tokusatsu shows of the 70’s-90’s.

                                                      

-           Tokusatsu means “Special Effects” and refers to any Japanese Live-Action TV series or Movies that live explosions, stunt work, wire-fu and many, many costumed actors.

-          There are a couple of categories of Toakusatsu shows. But without giving too much info, the popular ones are the Super Sentai shows.

-          Sentai means “task force” or “fighting squadron” and shares the qualities of a normal Tokusatsu show, but features at least 5 different-colored costumed heroes all fighting as one. The stories are pretty formulaic: the big boss baddie creates the baddie of the week, baddie of the week fights the 5 sentai heroes with the help of baddie’s henchman. Then baddie of the week gets an upgrade in the form of him growing to gigantic proportions, the senati heroes call their big robot and kill the baddie of the week. Rinse. Repeat.

-          Pretty formulaic, but it works. Kids (myself included) love the Tokusatsu series.

-          The famous ones are Ultraman, Godzilla, Gamera,  Bioman, Maskman, Fiveman, Shaider, Machineman and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.

                                    

-          Toys of these series fetch big bucks on the Collector Market. Biorobot is currently selling for 13,000php, Fiveman robot for 7,000php and a Vavilos (from Shaider) goes around 11,000php.

-          But I would say the Super-Duper Holy Grail of every Toy Collector in the Philippines is a certain Blue-Red Robot named Voltes V.

                                                   

-          Voltes V is an Anime released in the 70’s that also uses the Super Sentai formula but is an Animated series. It is one of the 3 Robot Drama series during the 70’s. The other 2 is Daimos and Combattler V. Another famous cartoon was also Mazinger Z.

-          Voltes V became part of the Philippine History of sorts as at the time it was shown here it was the Twilight of President Ferdinand Marcos’ dictator regime. He ordered the cartoon to be removed from Philippine airwaves as it showed physical violence and symbols of rebellion to an Authoritative figure. It was removed just when it was already 3-4 episodes shy from the series finale.

-          Because of this, Voltes V  gained a large fanbase here in the Philippines. In the U.S. or Japan, on the other hand, Combattler V is a lot popular.

-          A First release Popy Godaikin Voltes V robot that was released in the 70’s fetch at least 150,000php, depending on condition. The recent ones, like the Soul of Chogokin 40^th Anniversary Voltes V is now selling for at least 13,000php-15,000php. Even a Gashapon-sized Voltes V that is no taller than 5 inches tall sells for 5,000-8,000php.

                             

 *drool*

-          For some kids who grew up in the 90's  and their parents not having much of a budget, there are also cheap toys in the form of Bootleg toys or “Palengke Toys”.  “Palengke” means wet market here in the Philippines, where you buy fresh meat,  fish,  vegetables and other items,  toys included. These toys look like little plastic non-moving figures that is painted in one color or a rainbow of colors even. Upon checking some of these are actually rip-off of original designs from real toy manufacturers. Sometimes they are also called “Tau-tauhan.” These are usually included on corn snacks or sold on little stores that can be bought in pieces that are wrapped in clear plastic and stapled on a big cardboard. Normally kids would play “Tatsing” with these Palengke Toys, a game where you and other kids would place all their palengke toys inside a drawn circle (or a square) and a player would hit the toys from a distance using a Tau-tauhan and if all the toys has been removed from the circle then all the toys will be claimed by the player. Some kids would also wrap the toys with metal objects, like a nail or a bottle cap, to make it heavier and have a bigger chance of hitting many toys. These kind of toys are also collectible.

-          Starting a toy collection is pretty easy here. While the concept of a flea market is very rarely done here, there are online merchants that have physical stores here, like Great Toys Online or Big Boys Toy Store. Most Toy Collectors  go to Greenhills Shopping Center as there are lines and lines of Toy shops there. You can also join Facebook Toy Groups and buy or sell toys and either meet-up to get the item or have it shipped by local couriers like Xend, LBC or JRS Express and pay via the seller’s bank account or money transfer services like Palawan Express or Western Union.

-          There also “Toy Pickers” here as well, finding toys in Surplus shops and clean or fix them and sell them for a bigger price. Majority of toys that are sold in these Surplus shops came from Japan. Vinyl figures, blind-box little figure, Power Rangers robots and stuffed toys are the usual stuff “Picked” by these people in Surplus shops.

-          Since the Philippines is also close to China, bootleg toys are aplenty and come cheap. There are also instances where Toy Companies would reject some toys from the manufacturer, either by a bad paint job or excessive plastic on some body parts, request to have it be recycled instead, but get shipped to sellers here in the Philippines. These are called Overruns.

lol wot? 

-          There are also Swapmeets done by specific toy groups  that is done quarterly or every month, groups like PinoyLUG  (Pinoy Lego User Group)  or DCPH (Diecast Car Collectors of the Philippines) or RCH (Robot Collectors Haven). These groups  gather around to do trade, sell stuff, do giveaways, auction toys for charity and just hang out with like-minded collectors and compare collections  or tell stories.

M.A.T.C.H.Fest  2016

-           Toy Customizing, Toy Photography and Video Toy Reviews also abound here and gains a lot of potential clients and fans. 

                                         

-          There are also conventions organized by large and trusted  groups like Hobbiworx that is held on Shopping Malls, conventions  like TAGCOM (Toys and Hobbies Convention) , M.A.T.CH.  Fest (Manila Action-Figures Toys, Collectibles and Hobbies Festival, AsiaPOPComicon Manila and the longest and famous one named TOYCON that is held every June. TOYCON is the “Big Leagues” here. If you can set up your Collection Exhibit there or sell your custom toy, you got it made! (A friend that I am close to was able to showcase his custom President Duterte (our recent President) figure in TOYCON last year and he was featured in newspapers, websites radio programs and TV News stations a few months later. He was even able to meet President Duterte up close)

the place to be for Pinoy Toy Collectors

creator meets his creation

-          Just like any hobby, there are also negative aspects as well. There would be sellers who would hoard multiple figures of the same type and sell them for a large price, people who would set up preorder slots for a toy that is not released yet and demand a small deposit to ensure a preorder slot, and then the seller would vanish all of a sudden, taking along your money. There are also sellers that brand their toys as original whereas it is a bootleg also happens as well. But you just have to remember to be street-smart to avoid being scammed. Anyway, the Toy-Collecting Community are very vigilant with these things.

-        In closing, Toy Collecting here in the Philippines  is  a very friendly venue. If you want to get that suntanned body and also start a collection or hoping to find that piece that you consider as a "Holy Grail" of sorts, come visit us here.

yours truly

-    "the king" 

An Annual Congregation of Toy Connoisseurs and Popular Culture (A Toycon 2016 Day 2 Coverage)

Toycon was on it's 15th year. The Biggest Toy Convention in the Philippines started out small and gradually became bigger and bigger in terms of Exhibitors, dealers, sponsors and attendees. It became so big that the organizers behind Toycon announced last year that the 2016 Toycon would be held at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay on June 10-12 from its usual SM Megatrade Hall in Ortigas. Many became happy with the news while others became low-spirited due to its distance from some enthusiast's home and a potential spike in ticket price.

Fast forward to 2016. Toycon reported in early 2016 that they have teamed up with Pop Life Entertainment Ltd. to deliver a one-of-a-kind Convention experience. Dubbed Toycon Philippines 2016 + PopLife FanXperience, the organizers "aims to boost pop culture further in the Philippines" by providing a bigger venue, rare exhibits like an exhibit featuring collections from Legendary Comic Book writer Stan Lee, partnerships with large Toy Companies like Funko and Celebrity guests like Kristian Nairn as Hodor from Game Of Thrones and Dean Cain as Superman on the Adventures SupermanTV series. Woop!! That's some amazing news. But how much will the ticket be? The organizers have kept mum on the subject and rumors are circulating that the ticket price will be 500php from its usual 150php price. Basically a 250% increase. A few weeks after Toycon they announced that a One-Day pass for Toycon 2016 will be indeed 500php. Many were furious and expressed their distaste on social media. The organizers seemed to notice it and appeased the people by offering "Discount Packages". For 1000php you get 3 days, so you get 500php off. For a VIP pass worth 3000php you get a 3-day pass and a lot of freebies. For a whopping 10kphp Legendary Pass you get a ton of freebies, including a Limited Edition 22-inch tall Voltes V vinyl figure as well as an early access to the convention. So you're like a Toycon God, in a way. But when you look at it, 500php would be the lowest amount for a Toycon ticket.

Now complain as much as we would want, the organizers will not lower the price. We just have to accept it, it'll just be a hard pill to swallow. I bought the tickets and plan to attend the second day with my girlfriend. On the first day news came out on social media about the organizer's lack of coordination and late opening of the event. The line queued far from the entrance leaving some attendees tired and wet from the rain. One of the main attractions on Toycon is a 3-story tall statue of Voltes V, one of the granddaddy of Japanese Super Robots and one of the "Ultimate Trophy Toy" for Toy Collectors (due in part to being a slight contributor to Philippine History). Attendees on the first day who wanted to see the giant robot up close were disappointed, as only the feet and legs were assembled during that time. Truck ban and customs were believed to be the cause of the delay.

Nonetheless, many attendees were excited with the numerous photo-op sessions from the large statues and main celebrity Kristian Nairn and Dean Cain being courteous to the crowd. Thanks to social media, I have a clear mental picture of what to expect from Day 2 of Toycon.

My girlfriend and I went to SMX Convention Center at 12pm. There was no line so we were able to get inside quickly and bask in the air of the Toycon Experience. A large part of the floor was devoted to the dealers and merchants. There were a lot of Toys to choose from, ranging from Funko Pops to Die-Cast cars. There are also ones who are selling cosplay gear, geek-related t-shirts and the usual solicitors offering Credit Card applications and Charity work. Now, despite the large floor size of the dealers, it was not enough. Traffic of people would still form on the back of you when a guy in front of you would stop and check out what the dealers are selling. I joked to myself that previous Toycons you would collide with a person when checking out Toys. Now you would just get brushed on a body part when checking out Toys.
There were also numerous glass cabinets displayed as well on a specific floor, showcasing a specific Toyline from various Toy Groups or a Toy Collector. Honestly, I have never thought a Toyline with a Cult following, like say, Zoids, for instance would garner a Toy Group. But hey, that's what Toycon should be. A meeting of like-minded individuals celebrating their passion.

Now, a really, really REALLY large part of the floor was provided to the PopLife FanXperience. Large statues were there, like the 3-story tall Voltes V (now complete) Funko Pop versions of boxer Manny Pacquaio, UFC Fighter Conor Mcgregor, Minions and Groot were there to greet you and to take a selfie. You can run around there and not bump into anyone. The stage was there as well, offering live music from J-Pop group Electric Ribbon and DJ Kazu as well as Q&A from the celebrity guests. I was not really into the celebrity guests, but to each his own.

I got some good Toy hauls. I got a lot of Godzilla items ( I'm in a Kaiju fix now) a Marvel Legends figure and a hardcover comic book for a steal. I also got some freebies like posters and stickers as well. It was a good Toyhunt.

my toy hauls

Now, after personally experiencing Toycon 2016, I felt that the floor was not utilized well. The dealer's floor should have been a little bigger. Toys should have been given more spotlight. More well-known celebrities (Robert Downey, Jr. or Akira Toriyama, perhaps?) More lighting on some statues and exhibits. And for heaven's sake, the ticket price man!!! Call me a cheap bastard, but thinking about the Philippine Economy, with 500php I could buy a decent action figure or a full meal for 3. Toy Collectors like myself rely on haggling and prices of Toys not being too expensive so the money we save will be placed on more Toys or a cab home. And helping a fellow collector out, "Toy Karma" as they say.

There's always room for improvement, I guess, and the organizers just gotta remember, at the end of the day, you would remember your Toycon experience not from a selfie from a Large statue but when you finally got that toy that you've been looking for a very long time.

Toy Karma.

- "the king"