Club Tokyo

Collectible Reviews

Capsule and Candy Toys

Capsule toys are so named because they are sold packed in plastic capsules dispensed from vending machines in Japanese stores, much like the bubble gum machines found in American supermarkets. The toys usually measure two to three inches or so in height and often require some assembly. An especially popular capsule toy line among collectors is the intricately detailed High Grade series produced by Bandai.

Candy toys are sold in Japanese super markets too, but are usually packed in display boxes along with candy treats to make the products even more appealing to children. Popular lines include the Hyper Real figures, which measure about four inches in height, and SD, or "super deformed," finger puppets, two inch toys sculpted in a whimsical cartoon-like style. Theoretically, only products packaged with candy treats and sold in food retail stores technically count as candy toys, but collectors routinely include small figure sets in the category as well. For classification purposes, any product consisting of monster figures measuring under five inches or so in hieght will be considered a "candy toy" on this site.

Together, capsule and candy toys represent the lowest end of the kaiju collecting hobby in terms of size and price, but not necessarily in quality. Though most of these toys are scaled smaller than the average vinyl figure and priced more modestly, many of these miniature marvels are astonishingly well detailed for their size. Furthermore, because the toys are marketed as "disposable" products for impulse buying, older capsule and candy toys produced during the early '90s are often much harder to find than vinyl figures of similar vintage, making them coveted collector's items.