I spoke to Marty Abrams from Mego a couple of weeks back, he told me that when he was getting Microman from Takara, he visited Bandai and was also offered what would become Shogun Warriors but he turned it down. When he saw the Mattel line on the shelves, he told me he really regretted it.

I just realized that by dying when they did, the shogun warriors dodged a major bullet, the toy line discontinued about the time the empire strikes back toyline came out, along with the infamous boba fett figure controversy, considering how many small projectiles those figure launched, if the changing of toy fads hadn’t killed them, the parent groups and controversy of that frenzy certainly would have

I'm 52yrs old ,and you had me mouth open in awe for the entire video. Thank you for turning me into an 8yr old full of wonder again.

This video brought a tear to this 46 year old fans eye. Great video!

There was one major detail you left out of your retrospective of this toyline, one that was also a major factor in its downfall. Kids were hurting eachother with the toy's projectiles, and it stirred the ire of parents all across America. This was during the hight of the child safety scare that saw old toylines like this one get heavily nudderd to meet the new safety regulations. So not only was it facing stiff competition from other toylines, but it also became a pariah among parents because of previous incidents with kids shooting at eachother with the toy's missiles.

What makes me sick to my stomach is knowing that as a kid I owned those classic Shogun Warrior characters I had mazinger Z and the great mazinger I remember casually losing the rocket punch fist and breaking off one of the diecast legs on my mazinger Z you see as an adult one of my past times is collecting soul of chogokin figures both modern and classic so it hurts me deep down in my gut to know that as a stupid little kid I was so reckless and careless with a figure that as an adult I would pay a small fortune for sometimes I think about wanting to build a time machine and going back in time and kicking my younger self right in the ass.

RAIDEEN was my favorite. I'm 49 years old and this really brings back some very fond memories. I had the five inch chogokin figure of RAIDEEN. Thank you for the nostalgia.

I was born in 73. I can remember the craze in the late 70s. I was so happy anime caught on in America. In Chinatown at NYC I would always see model kits of various mech robots and knew that world still existed. Great video.

I remember having a Godzilla figure as a child and after I saw Godzilla vs. The cosmic monster I covered my Godzilla figure in aluminum foil to make my own Mechagodzilla.

I had Great Mazinga and Godzilla...and some of the Shogun Warriors Marvel Comics.

The Marvel Micronauts comic was one of the better efforts of its era, went far beyond just being a toy commercial. It was admittedly rather obvious about borrowing from Star Wars in spots, but it executed it well and a young Michael Golden's artwork gave it a distinctive look. The similarly toy-inspired Rom: Spaceknight book lasted longer and was (at times) a better read, but the original arc in Micronauts was top notch.

These images were truly everything to my seventh grade heart and mind. I really believe this was my first taste of what it's like to have your soul crushed. Seeing the TV guide listing on our local station for the afternoon Shogun cartoon at 5pm in Sept 1980 and it never aired. They continued showing Battle of the Planets reruns and I went ahead and just grew up. Thanks for showing me the reality of the situation. It was wonderful playing with those fantastical toys.

This is the best Shogun Warriors historical video on KZfaq. All the other ones fall short of this one. Even the video produced by Toy Galaxy was lackluster. I loved how you tied in the history and aftermath of Japanese toys as a whole surrounding the legacy of Shogun Warriors. This is the quintessential video to show others who don't know what Shogun Warriors was about. Thank you for your time and effort in producing this video!!

excellent video dude --- really brought back some memories!

"Invincible Guardians of World Freedom" is such an incredible tagline.

Good stuff! The early/mid 80s TRU “robot aisle” was magical; Dougram, Votoms, Xabungle, Dunbine, Prares Sanshiro, etc. Gold, Jerry, gold!

Remind me of a very obscure but awesome toy line from Takara: Armored Police Metal Jack

I also didn't realize how much a moving force Kiku Honolulu was in the tokusatsu/toy/ licensing development. I was born a little too late in 1981, but I remember watching a little bit of diamond eye on it when I was really small and they re-aired kikaida in 1993 for a short bit. But to me kiku was just the channel my Grandparents watched Abarembo Shogun and other Japanese mystery and samurai dramas on. My dad still watches their new samurai shows even now. Amazing to think that they contributed so much. Wow.

I was so envious of the neighborhood kids who had these toys...

Great video! I was born in 74 and have distinct memories of finding Shogun toys at rummage sales. I was also strangely given a brand new Bandai Godaikin Godsigma at Rahway Penitentiary in the mid 80's, I'm still not sure that wasn't a fever dream.

OMG!! I had that Godzilla toy. I was way too young to know where it even came from. I completely forgot about it until now.

Also the fact Bandai made Tamashii Nations which involves anime robots and got American releases defeats the purpose of a Shogun Warriors and Godaikin revival as well.

I remember Mazinger as Tranzor Z in the early 80's.

As a child of this era, I can say that the lack of any TV series for the Shogun Warriors or Godaikin had no serious impact on whether or not I wanted them. It was the price point. I had a number of the smaller vehicles from the Shogun Warriors line. The Shigcon Jet was one of my favorite toys, despite it not fitting in with my Star Wars toys. The giant robots were simply not in my price range. I was practically drooling the first time I saw Godaikin mecha at Toys R Us, but they were outrageously expensive. It would have taken me half a years worth of allowance to buy Golion. That doesn't seem so long as an adult, but it's an eternity when you're a kid.

Hi , I'm from Mexico and i want to share a similar story with the Shogun warriors and even Kamen rider here in my country . Jugarama was a brand in 1976 who brought to Mexico 3 jumbo mazingers and 1 Kamen rider, and yes 3 of them where renamed except geta 1 . They have some weird names Goro Goro was geta 3 , Aquaman was Kamen rider X and Ultraman was the name for Raideen Fun fact , the return of ultraman was broadcast in Mexico in 1975 before this toy line was brought in here . Even the original ultraman and ultraseven were broadcast in the late 60's and they were very popular among kids , and some people suggest that was the reason for renaming raideen .

Have we forgotten "ROM:Space Knight."

Really well done video. I remember the Jim Terry Productions Force Five series when it was out. A lot of us in New England, North Eastern states watched that way back in the day. Good times back then.

We still have a marukai in Hawaii. But now it's just a small section of capsule toys and blind boxes. I'm really loving your videos!

"Sometimes, well, he's not a very straight shooter." You just know the copy editor of that news network was having himself a giggle at that line making air.

Aw, man, I loved these as a kid. I had Raydeen and Daimos. Always wanted Gaiking, but never managed to get them. Got a bit of nostalgia high by watching the Gaiking 2005 revival anime with my son. :)

This video displayed my childhood. These toys, especially the Micronauts were my world. I can't believe this video showed so many things I had as a child.

I was in a used book store up in Cincinnati when I ran across an entire collection of Shogun warriors done by Marvel comics. I was floored because I knew all these robots because earlier I had lived in Japan right there at the end of the '70s in the beginning of the early '80s.

I so loved this video, I remember watching the cartoon in early 80s in Dominican Republic. Could never remember the name until now. Great video.

I'm 47 and i still have that huge Godzilla figure!!!! My 10 year old plays with it now! Thank you for this video, brought back a lot of memories from the Shogun toy line. I had the initial three robots, Rodan and Godzilla!

Yes, we need more rocket fists, we always need more rocket fists.

I had mazinga,radeen, and getter robo when I was a kid. knew nothing about them but they were my prized possessions.😀

アメリカでも日本のロボット玩具を販売してたとは、全然知らなかった。日本の玩具メーカーもアメリカの玩具メーカーと提携して頑張ってた事を知りました。 ジャンボマシンダーの登場は、当時の子供には驚きだった。でも欲しくても、価格が高くて買ってもらえなかった。懐かしい昭和の玩具を思い出させてくれてありがとう。最後の「owari」には笑ってしまいました。 I never knew that Japanese robot toys were also sold in the United States. I learned that Japanese toy makers also worked hard in partnership with American toy makers. The appearance of Jumbo Machinedar was a surprise to children at the time. But even if I wanted it, it was too expensive to buy. Thank you for reminding me of the nostalgic Showa toys. I laughed at the last "owari".

Thanks a lot! I think I shed a tear at the end, damn it! ~Mazinga , Christmas '76 or '77

What a great trip down memory lane! As a kid growing up in the 70's, I had a lot of those toys! Sadly, as a kid of the 70's, I also had no clue about collectables. LOL! All of those toys either broke or lost. However, one thing I won't regret is the countless hours I spent playing with them and how they fueled my imagination as a kid.

I used to have a bunch of those - can't imagine how much they'd be worth now even in used condition. Nice video though as a walk down memory lane.

Shogun Warriors was basically a prototype to the Super Robot Wars video games.

Imagine a Shogun Warrior Pacific Rim toy line Like the one shown in the actual film

Subscribed! Equal amounts info, expert narration, and humor.

FANTASTIC video!!!

Great video! I lived in Guam '79-'82, and there was plenty of Japanese influence. Not all of that neat stuff had its full impact stateside, and Shogun Warriors just kind of faded away. With each new wave of Japanese pop culture, I'm always reminded of Speed Racer, Johnny Sokko, Ultraman, and the Shogun Warriors.

What a great decade to be a kid. Before video games took over and later the internet. When you were a kid in the 70’s kids were riding bikes and playing non stop. The Mego Super hero line was one of my fav along with Hot Wheels, The Six Million Dollar Man,Comic books and the Shogun Warriors. I wasn’t into Star Wars as much as most kids. The Shogun Warriors were amazing. Still have mine today in the attic protecting my house👍

I want to make one statement, Jim Terry in no way was in a buisness agreement with Mattel. Jim purchased the licensing for the five shows, The Great Mazinger fell through and The Spacekateers, which, had no Giant Robot was used in the line up. Jim Terry was the one who used The Shogun Warriors when all five Force Five shows was Dubbed into a 1 hour and 41 minute movie on Showtime, Mattel was unaware of it.

An excellent video with an excellent, insightful, mature and thoughtful conclusion. Could not agree with you more. Finding the vintage, smaller-sized Great Mazinger and Voltes V on a trip to Japan gave me more joy than any modern re-release could hope to match, and new ideas are sorely lacking in these IP-obsessed times. Here's to any Shogun Warriors future bringing with it something we've never seen before.

Nice touch having the themes from Mazinger Z & Combattler V and other series in the background.

Watched Svengoolie recently, didnt even know it was a "son of"! Great stuff though, loving these videos. THE KNOWLEDGEEEEEE

Excellent, brought a tear in my eye.

Thanks for putting this together. Brought back a lot of memories for me and to know the history of the toy line. I remember wanting to get the raydeen shogun warrior at Fedco and my older brother talked me into getting mazinga instead.

Technically they were "Saturday Afternoons", not mornings where I saw them.

Absolutely great video I grew up in japan in the early 70’s I loved the Giant robots there was not one I didn’t have. My collection to this day looks like a small toy store. I now reside in japan I decided to Go to the big mandrake in Nakano. Good God the toys start at $800 the jumbo figures $3000. My prize possession is jumbo UFO Daiapolon. I actually picked that up in queens NYC. Everything I have is complete and still in the boxes but I can’t give them up. As for my comic and toy collection I’m gonna need a bigger boat. I still have this plastic toy of Daiapolon it was going for $2000. It came in a pack of candies when I was 6 cost ¥360 yen I couldn’t believe I saw the current price. When I arrived back in the states we had Japanese TV programs in Manhattan on Saturday’s from 7pm until 2am to see the old cyborg 009 brought back some memories. Raideen, Grendizer and Daiapolon were my favorites growing up in japan, 1975 was a great year.

So glad this showed up in my feed! I was so young during this time I all but forgot about a lot of the details. I even remember having a Godzilla and Mazinger Z. Thanks for the walk down memory lane

I have all the US Jumbo Shogun Warriors, the Canadian Goldorak/Grendizer, Godzilla, Rodan, the Popy Godzilla, Combattler V, as well as all three Getter Robo G jumbos! I also collected the Jumbo LJN Voltron from the 80s and the Jumbo Shogun line from Toynami released a few years ago! I'm obsessed and love them all! Fantastic video!

I had the Great Mazinga as a kid, later having quite a micronauts collection, sadly almost all got destroyed in a house fire. I still have some of comic books. Also had ROM the space Knight and its comics, ahh good times.

Great job!

The SW's went hand-in-hand with my 1970's youth! So many fond memories of pitting Mazinga against Godzilla! I also had a few issues of the comic book line as well. Those toys took a beating and wound up missing a few parts here and there, but most kids of my era played rough with their toys, and we didn't think twice about it. Of course, hindsight is always 20/20, and as a 50-something toy collector now, I kind of wish we had taken better care of them.

Damn, love the video and you really did your research knowing "Goldorak" and all! Grandaizer in up till now one of the biggest anime ever in France on the same level as DBZ.

Glad I found your channel. As a kid I always wanted the Shogun warriors. I got the play with them because my friend had them. I had some Micronaunts, but he had several of the Shogun warriors. He also had a couple of the Godakin toys which funny enough he refused to play with because they were expensive and hard to find. In Atlanta back in those days there was only one toy shop that carried that stuff and I can only remember going to it maybe twice. Usually we went to Lionel which mostly stuck to the main lines of the day. We did watch all those shows though. I remember Force 5, and loved all of those robots. We had Grandizer to as a dubbed series that was broadcast by itself weekdays, Force 5 was on Saturday mornings. Japanese shows were so much a part of growing up in the 70's and 80's and I loved those shows far more than US cartoons.

The production value of your videos is really high! You deserve way more subs!

Yet another amazing video from you! So much amazing detailed history. I always learn something new from your videos. That 2013 Shogun Warriors line seemed awesome. I very much wish to own them and hope they somehow get made!

Yes yes yes! You validate my entire childhood! I used to watch these and G-Force on Showtime in the 80s and be in heaven!! Nobody else knew what shows I was talking about! We were on of the only families with cable in my hood.

The guy who was the host of Son of Svenghoulie is the current Svenghoulie and is still going strong on METV.

I had the giant Shogun Gaiking featured right in the middle of the thumbnail pic as a little kid in the late '70s, but I didn't know any of the backstory, so my parents just told me to call him Shogun Warrior. That toy was passed down to my brothers later. They lost the flying fist and 2 of the missiles, and broke off 1 of the rolling feet. My dad glued it back on, and glued a trident onto the arm to replace the missing fist. I always wanted to pull the head off and just imagine it as a spaceship, but I never could manage to pop it out of the body, because that part was built like a tank!

Best times of our lives in the 70's . I still have my shogun warrior comic books. Raiden was the best one to me.

I really like your video, and I still own several of the Shogun Warriors and Soul of Chogokin. But i disagreed that they should be lost in the past. Many cartoons from the 80's shows have seem newer beginnings in recent years, some less than interesting stories have seen movies in the big screen. I hope that one day I get to see them in the big screen too. PS. I did enjoy Mazinger Infinity in the big screen as much as I enjoyed Shin Gojira.

Trip down memory lane to think I still have some of these toys

I had the Raideen Shogun Warrior as a kid and I loved it! Unfortunately I lost it in a house fire in 1981. But it was one of my favorite toys growing up.

Omg I managed to score Godaiken Godsigma, Daltanias and Daidenjin with a $500 shopping spree at J. Cort Toys when I was like 10 years old! Still have them in box in storage even.

Dude, my dad has had a giant box of these guys in the garage for years. I used to play with them as a kid but had no idea what they were from until now. Considering we've always been a kaiju film family it's not surprising but cool to know a bit more about them now. Great video man!

My brother and I wanted a Shogun Warrior SO much when we were kids!

Best video about Shogun Warriors. Great job!

This is why I enjoy KZfaq. Amazing content. Subscribed.

The Shogun Warriors were an iconic part of my youth in the 70's. I had the Mazinga and Godzilla jumbo machinders plus a few issues of the Marvel comic. Hours and hours of fun!

There’s a local family owned food joint that’s been in my town since the 80s and still going, and as long as I can remember they HAVE a Shogun Warriors Godzilla by their soda machine. I don’t know the story on it but it’s been there for years even when they relocated shop.

I never knew that Super Shogun Optimus Prime existed. What an awesome looking toy. Never realized that there was an Optimus Prime toy, prior to Master Piece, that bore so close a likeness to the comic and cartoon.

Thank you so much for this video! Brings back a lot of great memories and was super informative!!!

I’m turning 50 in a few weeks and you just made me feel like a kid. Great video! 💪😎👍

49才になるけど子供の頃は超合金ほしかった。 買ってもらえるとボロボロになっても離さなかった。 今は超合金魂として再販されてる。子供時代に好きだった大人が喜んで買ってしまう。 良い動画をありがとう。日本語で書き込んでごめんなさい。

Very well done. I never knew these toys even existed when I was a child in the 1970s. WOW!!

Love it, from head to toe. I wish that Mattel would bring back the Shogun Warriors in their 24 inch glory. They were awesome and truly captured my imagination back in the day. Keep up the excellent work. Take care and thank you very much. Brought back happy memories.

As a Diaclone Reboot owner I can say that Diaclone is fantastic pricey but damn good

This video gave me goosebumps throughout. I miss this era. Great work!

Wow. Don't even know this video exists. I love it. Brought back my childhood memory. Thank you.

Great video ! I loved it 👍

Another great video! Love my Takara Microman and Henshin Cyborg figures... and while I think the Shogun Warriors are amazing, they are waaay out of my price range these days. Love a bunch of Popy's other figures. Hope to see more toy-centric videos from ya!

I remember when these came out. I lost my 8 year old mind.

Born in 73 and growing up I had three of them. Godzilla was my favorite

DUUUDE. My brother and I had all the Shogun Warriors and Micronauts in the late 70s and early 80s. Loved to have them in battles against our Transformers and GI Joe toys in battlefields made from Erector sets while watching Saturday morning cartoons until noon. THAT'S when being a kid was awesome!

I still have my 5" die cast Mazinga figure from the late 70's, but over the years I've lost the swords and two of the four rocket fists.

Great Video !!!

Been a fan of your channel since, i really enjoy your contents especially the Ultra Rewind, being a fan of Ultraman myself. And this new video that came out today on my birthday is just as great! Many thanks from the Philippines! 👍 🇵🇭

I can still smell that vinyl smell the big Shogun Warriors had.

I'm from the Philippines! What a superb video! Well-researched and visually-superb with lots of archival footages! A true haven for super robot fans. As a mecha collector and fan, thank you for this a-la Netflix docu on Shogun Warriors! Hope you'll do more videos on the super robot genre. Voltes V is really popular here in the Philippines! Hoping for more videos on topics like: Voltes V in America, Super Robots fandom in America (more on Combattler V, Mazinger Z, etc.), Is Super Robots popular in America? How about lesser known toys like Mekanda Robot? English dubbed Super robots ( Force Five, "Shadow World (Daiapolon), Shout Factory's dub, Discotek releases), and more about mecha fandom! More power to your channel!

1:35,THAT WAS MACHINE ROBO BATTLEHACKERS OST!! NICE! 11:42,Combattra...now viewable on KZfaq thanks to Toei Tokusatsu World official. 13:07,ok..am I starting to realize we're missing out on something spectacular here? Bandai!! Where are our monsters to fight KR,Sentai and Metal Heroes?! 18:35,good one using the Juspion soundtrack for Godaikin. 19:03,SHIT!! That's some articulation! 0.0 21:25,GODDAMN!! 0.0 23:50,perfect end.

Excellent video! I was there when these were new! I was awe struck! Popy Bullmark , shogun warriors and Godaikens were my toy of choice! And to this day I still collect them.

Thank you so much for this!! I had a Mazinga and of course, the Godzilla!! We had a show and tell at school and the subject was our favorite toy and I actually got to take my Godzilla to school with me!! I was pretty popular that day. Loved this video.

Magnificently done. 100% accurate I was a child in the Bay Area mid 70’s.