SOC Evangelion O1 and Garada K7

I was down in San Jose, CA. and I stopped by Far Out Toys to say hello to the owner Izzy. Far Out Toys is my kind of toy store because it's almost exclusively toys! Izzy and I share the same tastes for Mecha so there is always something cool there to trade for greenbacks. If you live in the Bay Area, it's definitely worth a trip down there. His website does not do the store justice in terms of the variety and volume of toys he has in stock. Since it's in San Jose's Japan town, also check out Nikaku Animart a few blocks away. Not only do they have a huge selection of anime, but lots of Japanese Hobby Magazines at very reasonable rates. This is the place where I found Hajime Katoki's Fix Figuration Book for $25, dusty old Kubrick's for $14 (you can't find them anywhere hardly), and the PSP Movie "Blood" (I don't recommend it).

After browsing Izzy's store for around an hour examining every single toy and figure trying to narrow down what I was going to purchase (after a stern warning from my wife not to buy anymore toys!), I glanced at the SOC Grendizer, but at over $200, this was not a purchase for today. I almost picked up the Mazin Kaiser die-cast perfection, but at $140, this too would have to wait. I finally decided to get a little bang for the buck and picked up two SOC figures I've had my eyes on for some time: SOC Evangelion 01 and the Garada K7.

There is a reason why Bandai's Soul of Chogokin series is so damn popular and consistently on the TOTY list. They reek of quality. Hefty die-cast toys the way all robot toys should be made. The joints click with assurance when you pose them. Every detail is thoughtfully and painstakingly reproduced from the hand knife in Eva 01's shoulder blade to Garada K7's eye rockets. I'm addicted to SOC all over again.