Gigantor, The Iron Giant, and Recent Robots

Top left. Machine Man, the leader of the Gang of Five, shown with the Masudaya box. An affordable version of the world's most desireable robot.

Top middle. The Gang of Five gained a sixth member with the addition of Shooting Giant robot to the line of wind-ups. The original prototype never saw production, but the design seems mostly influenced by Target robot.

Top right. Masudaya's popular 5 inch wind up Robby the Robot, another Kinoshita creation, from the 1956 movie, Forbidden Planet. Retailed at around $20.

Bottom left. Two Robbys. Trendmaster's walking, talking Robby said three phrases from the film while his bubble dome lit up. A great bargain at $30, here shown towering over Masudaya's wind up version.

Bottom middle. Trendmaster's Ultimate Iron Giant could usually only be found through the Warner Bros. studio store. The ultimate toy from the ultimate movie, this towering 20 inch giant spoke phrases from the movie as his eyes lit up and he ate the included tractor. He was activated when Hogarth stood in his hand or on his shoulder, or by light in the room guard mode. Incredibly, this excellent robot was not to be found at your local toy show, yet retailed for only $35.

Bottom left. Even as his black and white adventures found their way onto DVD, Tetsujin 28, Iron Man 28, aka Gigantor the Space Age Robot returned as a mighty presence. This posable 8 inch version from Medicom included his friend, Shotaro aka Jimmy Sparks, and his eyes lit up when you pressed a button in back. This model of Japan's greatest hero retailed at around $30.