Exposure to the past
In my book, part of being a good parent is taking the initiative to expose your children to the things that you grew up with. There are quite a few, starting with: Values, Customs, Interests, etc.
Did I say interests?
Back in the Betamax days and when I was still in single digits, I remember watching a cartoon called Grendizer[i]. It was awesome![ii] It featured a flying UFO saucer (called Spazer) that spit out a single-pilot robot. Much like other earth protector robots before him, Grendizer would cut up his enemies by the end of each episode. UFO Grendizer also had cool weapons like Double Sickle, Screw Crusher Punch, and Space Thunder! Lastly, the show even had Mazinger Z’s Koji Kabuto serve as a sidekick of sorts.
As I dial back my thoughts to those moments, we really had the best cartoons…with all due respect to Adventure Time, Rick and Morty, Clarence and whatever else the kids are watching these days on Cartoon Network.
Anyway, I decided to dig up those old Grendizer tapes and show them to my son. So far, we’ve gone through 1 1/2 episodes so the jury is still out if he is going to like it as much as say The Real Ghostbusters.
Review: Takara Tomy Arts Super Figure Collection Grendizer UFO Gashapons
In a completely unrelated event, the very same day that I unearthed the Grendizer tapes, my friend Mark and I stumbled upon a Gashapon machine featuring Takara Tommy Arts’ Super Figure Collection of Grendizer UFO, the Grendizer Spazer, and Mazinger Z‘s head.
Normally, I abhor taking needless risks[iii] like this as I’ve gotten older and would much rather pay for the item of interest. But there was no way around it this time and I had to pop tokens into the machine and hope that lady luck would shine upon me. [Do catch the video of this endeavour on Instagram if you have time.]
And she did.
Twice actually as I came away with the coveted Grendizer UFO and saucer gashapons.
The verdict
After putting them together[iv], I feel that–despite both gashapons being of different scales[v]–the Grendizer and Spazer serve as great representations of the show.
In closing, I leave you with some advice:
The cartoons of our youth remain awesome to this day as we watched them from the lens of a child and not an adult. It is a perception that will likely change if one were to go through the same cartoons today.
So if you are ever in doubt. Don’t don’t watch it again. Rely on your memories as not all cartoons can stand the test of time.
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[i] Up until I did some research for this post, I always thought the name of the show (for whatever reason) was GRAN-DIZER! Sounds cooler right?
[ii] Largely in part to the fact that we only had five channels on television in those days.
[iii] (e.g., opening a pack of cards, blind boxes, etc.)
[iv] You may have to glue on the wings of the Spazer as they do not lock on.
[v] Just look at the disparity between the size of Grendizer and the double sickle that he is wielding! Did they grow in size when they came out of his shoulders?
Tedi31.com 