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It's hard to keep a good toy line down, especially when that toy line reaches across the globe and across cultures to thousands of fans who recognize a great concept. Zoids is just such a toy line. In the third quarter of 1999, the news broke on Jerry Dreiss' Zoids Page that Zoids were on their way back to toy shelves in Japan. Unlike most US toymakers, who apparently don't give a damn about reissuing older, difficult to find items, Tomy seemed to listen to the pleas of Zoiders around the world who had been begging to see many of the old classic Zoids kits reissued. At a time that I was growing more and more disillusioned with toy collecting, this was a much needed shot in the arm. Through the links on Jerry's page, and with the help of some new friends, I was soon (and still am) up to my armpits in Zoids. And that's a GOOD THANG! Thanks to the re-emergence of Zoids, I was finally able to build many of the cool Zoids I had seen in magazines and posted online, but never been able to acquire.
Tomy has done a stellar job with this latest incarnation of the Zoids line. Some of the more difficult to find older kits were reissued among the first waves. Since '99, there have been many re-releases, either through the main line or through chain specialty runs, along with a plethora of new design Zoids too! Despite the numerous reissues, Tomy is still holding out on reissuing a few of the original designs (Gunguyarados, Orudios). And too, some of the more anxiously awaited reissues have missed the mark, resulting in less-than-stellar sales (Gildragon). There have also been a slew of acessories this time, primarily in the form of the Customize Parts, and a number of limited edition kits (mostly low-run recolors of kits in current production).
Japanese Zoids Listing -- 1999-current To see the Zoid of your choice, please click on its name in the list below. If there is no link, or the link isn't active, well...that means either I haven't built that particular Zoid yet, or I'm still working to get the page posted. Please check back from time to time for more additions. PLEASE NOTE: These pages are best viewed by setting your web browser to the "Full Screen" mode.
Page content (including all photos), layout, and design is ©2000-2007 John Wakefield, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. |
There has always been a Zoids "back story" in Japan (commonly known as the Zoids Battle Story) that was told via the Zoids boxes and in Official Fan Books. To the best of my knowledge, it had never been turned into an animated series, save for the occasional commercial. In addition to their fine work in returning Zoids to the toy stores in 1999, Tomy also gave Zoiders an animated series to go with our beloved motorized monstrosities! The first season of the show follows the adventures of Ban and his pet Organoid ("organic Zoid") Zeek as they endure the ongoing war between the Guylos Empire and Helic Republic. Since that first season, there have been several other seasons of Zoids anime, each with a new slant on the mythos. But, there IS supposed to be some manner of continuity across all of the series. For a little more info on the first couple of Zoids anime seres, you can check out my own page dedicated to the anime series 
