011 Mekanda Robot ( 合身戦隊メカンダーロボ )

Mekanda Robot (or 合身戦隊メカンダーロボ , or Mechander Robo, or Mekander) was, after UFO Grendaizer, my favorite giant robot. I loved the shark missiles that would shoot out of his feet.

Other than those missiles, and the fact that the pilots has to shut down the robot at the end of almost every episode so that it didn't get hit by the Omega Missile, I remember very little of the actual show. After this show came on T.V. in the Philippines, I stopped drawing Voltes V and Mazinga Z in chalk on the road, and started drawing Mekanda as often as I could. I especially liked doing the boots...something about that tiered front, behind which lurked the shark missiles, I found very compelling. Also, love the spiked shields. Just a fantastic design. 

The poster is a little more beat up than the others, and I'm not a huge fan of this particular rendition of Mekanda...but it does show off the full design of the robot really well. 

 Sold for $100. 

008 Voltes V - ボルテスＶ

Another poster from The Philippines, circa 1978. This is Voltes V (or Super Electromagnetic Machine Voltes Five or 超電磁マシーン ボルテスＶ), and the first of two posters I have of this venerable mecha. 
 

This one is in good condition, but like the Aphrodite A poster, it's bothered me since day one.The "horizon" lines for the Z axis are all over the place. The vanishing points for the X and Y axis are also off, but...well...it's just a mess, really. The artist obviously used a straight edge of some sort in the creation of this art, so it's always bothered me that s/he didn't bother to work out the vanishing point. Other than that, I love the choice to go duotone, the display of tech, and the whole maintenance bay theme.

 The lattice work inside the chest piece was always a bit bothersome, too. It's a real challenge to the imagination to figure out how this internal structure could allow for the elongating sword. But the faults I've listed are just nagging annoyances in what is otherwise a joy to my eyes and heart. It brings back memories of drawing Voltes V in chalk on the street outside my family's house in Manilla.

Sold for $100.

003 The Uncanny X-Men #97 & #99 (Philippino Reprint)

These two issues of X-Men were purchased around '78 in The Philippines, two years after their U.S. publication dates. I suspect they'd actually been sitting on the shelf where I found them for at least a year, though it's possible they had a later publication date (though none is listed).
  

Covers for X-Men 97 and 99 - note the size disparity

 

X-Men 97 - Detail 1

X-Men 99 - Detail 2 (note the pink hyphen)

Only one issue has a price on it, but I assume both cost 1.75 piaster. The faded nature of the coloring is how they have looked since I spotted them on the shelf in what I remember to be a department store. These were the only two copies of the only two issues (if I recall correctly) of X-Men on the shelf, interleaved with a chaotic jumble of other comics and magazines (notably a couple of copies of Marvel Triple Action). 

Purchased many years before I knew anything about collecting (or the caring/storage of collectibles), they've held up remarkably well. One might reasonably assume the fading and wear on the covers is from years of handling, but this is how they've always been. It's especially evident in #97 where they tried to save money by not doing full-color black. I've always been curious as to whether they are legal reprints, or pirated anomalies.

Interior Front Cover

Other than the differences in the photos, the content of the interior pages are exactly the same as in the original U.S. print run. The covers (both interior and exterior), and an addition to the publication information are the only notable changes. Though the printing is of a lower quality (did I mention faded?), the color registration is typically decent. 

Interior Detail - Publication Informat

These may have been purchased as late as 1979, because I do recall X-Men #115 (a comic from Nov. '78, with yet another tedious history) being my introduction to the "All-New, All-Different" version of the super-team. Note the detail of the back cover, below, where a young artist tries his hand at drawing from memory the essentials of Iceman's costume: belt, shorts, and boots.

Interior Back Cover

Back Cover

Back Cover - Detail 1

Back Cover - Detail 2

002 Grendaizer - UFOロボ·グレンダイザー

Another poster most likely acquired in '79 while in the Philippines, this one of UFO Grendaizer (or UFO Grendizer or UFOロボ·グレンダイザー), who somewhere between then and now lost an "a" in his name. 

UFO Grendaizer- The most awesomely coolest giant robot there is or ever was.

"None can defeat my codpiece!"

This is in great shape, except for a couple of tape marks at the top, left over from a nine year old's lack of forethought. This was absolutely my favorite robot, yet I never knew that he was considered to be a part of the Mazinger family until more than 30 years later. From the superhero-ish costume of the pilot to Grendaizer's main weapon, a pole-arm between those two shoulder blades (I never realized the visual pun until just typing that) ...and, of course, hole saw drill fists.

This looks like he's running from the obligations of a hero.

And who couldn't love a series in which the main villains are the Vegans (well, other than maybe vegans).  The only thing in the show I wasn't completely in love with was the UFO, which I always forget is a part of the title, as well. The ship design always seemed a little uninspired when placed beside the robot and the costume. It would be like Kim Kardashian wearing a potato sack.

Another priceless object. I was offered $150 for this, but decided to keep it.

001 Aphrodite A - アフロダイA

 A poster of Aphrodite A (or アフロダイA),, from the show Mazinger Z (or Mazinga Z or マジンガーＺ). This poster was purchased in The Philippines sometime between 1977 and 1979, and is still in surprisingly good condition. 

Aphrodite A poster in frame, hanging just to the left of my bed.

Sayaka day dreams.

I've always disliked this poster, even as a child, yet it currently hangs over my bed. The artwork is competent at best, with an inconsistent and confusing use of thick and thin lines, questionable composition, and strokes of color that clearly display a talent yet to be developed. Though it was inspiring to know that I might eventually find paying work as an artist without fully developing my own skills. 

Balls of pizza dough.

 Also, I always wished this displayed the larger missile breasts, and although I've grown equally fond of all breast sizes as I've aged, my dissatisfaction with the poster continues, as the artist managed to misshape these metallic mammaries. They look like well-aimed balls of dough, sticky remnants of a giant robot food fight.



 
What's it worth? Who knows? To the best of my knowledge, this is a unique survivor of history for which there is no market.

UPDATE - 11/14/12: Sold for $100.