King Joe Giant size - light blue

Bandai is a renowned Japanese toy and entertainment company, widely recognized for its contributions to the art toy and collectible figure industries. Founded in 1950, Bandai is one of the largest toy manufacturers in the world, and it has created some of the most iconic toys and franchises, including Gundam, Power Rangers, and Digimon. While Bandai is best known for its mass-market toys and figures, the company also plays a significant role in the designer toy and art toy market through its premium figure lines and collaborations with famous artists. Bandai’s focus on high-quality craftsmanship, intricate designs, and attention to detail has made it a key player in the collectible figure market. Bullmark (ブルマァク) is a Japanese toy company renowned for its significant contributions to the art toy and kaiju collectible scenes. Established on April 4, 1969, by former employees of the bankrupt Marusan company, Bullmark gained prominence for producing soft vinyl (sofubi) figures of iconic characters from tokusatsu and kaiju franchises, notably Godzilla and Ultraman.   The company’s products were easily identifiable by a distinctive bull insignia stamped on the underside of their figures, leading collectors to affectionately refer to the brand as “Bull.” Bullmark’s offerings spanned various sizes, including mini (3-4 inches), standard (8-9 inches), and giant (12 inches or more), catering to a diverse collector base. Eiji Tsuburaya (1901–1970) was a pioneering Japanese filmmaker and special effects director, best known as the co-creator of Godzilla and the founder of the Ultraman franchise. He played a crucial role in shaping the tokusatsu (live-action special effects) genre, developing innovative techniques in miniatures, suitmation, and optical effects. As the special effects director for Godzilla (1954), Tsuburaya crafted the iconic monster using rubber suits and detailed miniature city sets, influencing generations of filmmakers. In 1963, he founded Tsuburaya Productions, which launched Ultraman (1966), a landmark in Japanese superhero television. His work remains highly influential in global science fiction and special effects cinema.