Character Product Masakatsu Funaki figure review

As Toukon Shop re-branded themselves as Character Product in 1999, Character
Product set out to create figures for Wrestlers outside of the New Japan Pro-Wrestling
promotion.

One of the earliest licenses came in the form of "the golden boy" shoot fighting legend
Masakatsu Funaki.

Blog #172 gets Hybrid Conscious with Character Product's Masakatsu Funaki figure.

This particular variant features a younger Masakatsu Funaki from his early 1990's career
competing for the PANCRASE promotion.

The packaging contains the PANCRASE cross logo on the top right corner and middle
of the packaging.

As a throwback figure, Funaki is also sporting his longer hair from the era.

Funaki's stoic facial expression looks ready to start dropping palm strikes and
high kicks.

Funaki's stats and in-ring accomplishments are listed on the back of the packaging.

Though, no date is given, I suspect the figure (based on the blister card packaging
and Character Product's third logo being used) was released around 2001. The
bio section also mentions Funaki's accolades up until the year 2000.


Closing thoughts:

A great throwback to the early days of PANCRASE and a solid likeness of Funaki's
younger years. Collectors should keep an eye out for the rarer, alternate red colour
variant of this figure, too.

Technically, the rarest Funaki figures you can find are:

1) Masakatsu Funaki vs Minoru Suzuki two pack with Pancrase belt.

2) Masakatsu Funaki vs Rickson Gracie two pack with special Funaki colour variant.

3) Masakatsu Funaki Real Figure with Pancrase belt

HAO Collection #DS-004 Quinton "Rampage" Jackson figure review

Starting the new year off with a pre-fight penalty, today's figure review "breaks
the ice" with blog #80: HAO Collection's Quinton "Rampage" Jackson!

                               


Being one of the earliest HAO Collection figures, Rampage Jackson was released
in 2003 as "#DS-004" (the "DS" represents the Japanese "Dream Stage Entertain
-ment" promotion - while Rampage was the 4th figure released of the set).


                                 

A close-up of Rampage's grimacing face sculpt shows off a sizeable gap in
Rampage's mouth as well as Rampage's stylized left eyebrow.


                             

The HAO Rampage Jackson figure comes sculpted with an attached MMA
"Yellow Card" in Rampage's left hand.

                        

The pose of the Rampage figure was inspired by Rampage's victory against Mikhail
Ilyukhin at Pride 26: Bad to the Bone which began with Rampage humorously
issuing the referee a "Yellow Card" (in MMA, a yellow card is considered a
"foul". Each time a fighter is issued a yellow card during a match, the fighter
loses 10% of their fight money. If a fighter receives three yellow cards, the
fighter is instantly disqualified).

Rampage's reason for issuing the referee a yellow card? The ref's breath
stunk.



                            


Rampage's left arm contains a tattoo decal of a black panther.



                              

A step down from from HAO's previous figure (#DS-003 Fedor Emelianenko),
there are no logos or designs on Rampage's trunks.

                              


One of the highlights of the HAO Rampage Jackson figure is Rampage's
removable walkout chain accessory!


                          

The bottom of the Rampage Jackson figure includes HAO's copyright
stamp from 2003.


                             

Rampage stands about 6 and a half inches tall and features a surprising
amount of articulation at the arms, wrists, neck, waist AND legs which
can be rotated!

Truly, very few HAO figures have this many poseable joints!

HAO Collection #DS-003 Fedor Emelianenko figure review

Just this week, I was finally able to get my hands on another coveted
figure from the Japanese HAO Collection line.

For blog #73, we'll be squaring off against the master of the Armbar,
Mixed Martial Arts champion: Fedor "The Last Emperor" Emeliane
-nko!

Released in 2003 as part of HAO Collection's line of large-scale soft
-vinyl figures.

As usual, the cardboard backing slips off easily revealing awesome, full
-colour graphics of Fedor and his fight gloves.

Fedor's name is displayed in both English and Japanese Katakana along
with the serial "#DS-003" ("DS" is short for the Dream Stage Entertain
-ment promotion while Fedor was the third figure from the set).

The back of the slip-case packaging. I love the scratched metal design.

The Fedor figure's packaging contains the standard item description
found on early HAO Collection releases. The description reads:

"FIGHTERS FIGURE LIMITED MODEL

This figure is the selected superstar from world sports entertainment.
Learn the spirit behind a figure shows you a new perspective on your
passion for the fight."
The back of the packaging also features the Dream Stage promotion
logo as the official licensee and Fedor's name once again in Japanese.

Let's take a look at the Fedor figure out of the package:

Sculpted in fighting pose, Fedor Emelianenko is one of the very few
HAO Collection figures to come packaged with a Championship belt.


                               

The included belt accessory (exclusive to the HAO Collection Fedor
figure) is the PRIDE Heavyweight Championship.


                             

The PRIDE belt has a lightweight fabric strap with durable plates and
buckle designs on the sides and back of the belt.

Each plate contains plenty of detail and has a 3-dimensional, textured
look.

                        

The back of the Pride Heavyweight belt contains four buckles and is
fastened with Velcro.


                                  


The only other mixed martial artist to contain a championship belt in
the HAO Collection is Wanderlei Silva (#D2-002 and repackaged as
an alternate variant as #DS-005 with white shorts). Both of which
contain the Pride Middle Weight Championship.

Fedor comes in his PRIDE-era "ADRENALINE" attire.

The design continues on the back of Fedor's trunks.

For display purposes, the Pride Heavyweight Championship can also
be slung over Fedor's shoulders.

At just under 7 inches (17cm) The HAO Collection Fedor soft-vinyl
figure is the largest figure ever made of the Emperor.

If you look closely, you'll even see Fedor's right cheek scar!

                               


Articulation-wise, Fedor features artciulation at the arms, wrists,
neck and waist.

What's even cooler is that Fedor's head tilts direction when rotated;
adding to the figure's intimidation factor!



In our next figure review, we'll be looking at another "giant" in the
HAO Collection!

Rickson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Gi figure review

To celebrate today's 60th blog post, we'll be drawing from the figure
archive to cover another special Puroresu collectible from Japan: the
Rickson Gracie (Gi ver.) Character Product figure.

Following the 2000 release of Character Product's first figure of Rick
-son Gracie (the Colosseum 2000 and Bushido Spirit variants), Chara
-cter Product followed up with a second figure of the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu
legend in 2002.

                                   

Drawing from Rickson's previous figure, the updated 2002 version
features Rickson's in his Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Gi and red belt.


                           


The Gracie Jiu-Jitsu logo patch (with Rickson's name) are printed on
the front of Rickson's Gi.


                                 


The left sleeve of the Rickson figure contains a decal which reads
"FIRST INSTRUCTOR" (a reference to Rickson Gracie being a
noted trainer of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu).
                            

This Gracie figure also features an updated head sculpt with Rick
-son's more recognizable buzzcut hairstyle.

The back of Rickson's Gi once again contains a patch of the Gracie
Jiu-Jitsu logo along with Rickson's name and text that reads "INTER
-NATIONAL JIU-JITSU ASSOCIATION".

In typical Character Product fashion, the back of the Rickson figure
contains the text "(C) RICKSON" as this figure was officially licens
-ed by the man himself.

Rickson Gracie Character Product Figure review

Our next figure for sale from the Japanese Character Product line

is of mixed martial arts legend and 9th degree Gracie Jiu-Jitsu

black belt: Rickson Gracie!

                       

Released in 2000, the first version of the Japanese Rickson Gracie
figure's packaging contains the "コロシアム 2000" (COLOSS
-EUM 2000) logo.

Colosseum 2000 was a martial arts event held at the Tokyo,
Dome on May 26th, 2000 which saw Rickson Gracie take on
PANCRASE legend Masakatsu Funaki.


                                 

The back of the Colosseum version's packaging contains Rickson's
stats and a brief bio leading up to his match against Funaki.

Rickson's stats reads:

"From: BRAZIL
D.O.B.: 1959.11.21. (November 21st,1959)
Height: 178cm (5ft. 9in.)
Weight: 84kg (185 lbs)"As an early Character Product figure, the packaging of the
Rickson Gracie figure features Character Product's original
logo.

                         

A limited-edition, two-figure set was also released to commemorate
the Colosseum 2000 match-up. What makes this set extra special
is the exclusive Masakatsu Funaki figure with silver trunks.


                            

In an attempt not to seem outdated after the conclusion of
Colosseum 2000, Character Product decided to repackage
their Rickson Gracie figure.

This time around, the packaging contains the words "Bushido
Spirit" in English and simply "武士道" (Bushido) in Japanese.

The Bushido reference goes back to Rickson's infamous dojo
fight against UWFI star Yoji Anjo (who boasted that he was
"200% sure" he could defeat Rickson).

            

After a quick (and brutal) beat-down, Rickson emerged the
victor while Anjo laid in a bloody mess; leading the latter
to present Rickson with a Samurai helmet as a gift for the
fight.

As news broke out of Anjo's defeat in Japan, Rickson's
next major challenge came in the form of Masakatsu Funaki
who (seeking to avenge Anjo's loss) wore a Samurai kimono
and carried a Katana to the ring for their Colosseum 2000 fight.

                                          

The back of the re-released Bushido Spirits version is a massive
improvement with two images, a black backdrop and Character
Product's modern logo.


                                

Character Product would also release an alternate variant of
the Rickson Gracie Bushido Spirit figure that features exclusive
white kneepads.

Let's take a closer look at a loose example:

                                  

Rickson comes dressed in white trunks, kneepads, and foot &
wrist tape with black MMA gloves.

A decal of the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu logo is printed on the right side
of  Rickson's trunks.


                               

Rickson would be the only member of the Gracie family to
receive his own Japanese figure to date. The Colosseum 2000
Character Product figure would also be the very first figure made
of the legend in any country.

When it comes to rarity, the variants packaged with the "Colosseum
2000" logo are considered the most collectible since Character
Product discontinued (and repackaged) them after Rickson's
Colosseum fight against Funaki.

K-1 Bob Sapp DX figure review

From the deluxe K-1 figure line is a mixed martial artist that needs no introduction: Bob "The Beast"
Sapp!

Released in 2003 as part of Character Product's K-1 Fighters DX
line.

The official K-1 Corporation logo is visible in the top left corner.

Like the Ernesto Hoost and Jerome LaBanner figures from the

DX K-1 figure line, the product numbers "020" are once again
used (all three figures contain the same numbers).

The back of the Bob Sapp DX figure contains Sapp's stats and
a bio in Japanese.

While most bios simply state the Wrestler's stats and accolades,
Sapp's Japanese bio included on the back of the package goes
the extra mile in terms of getting to know The Beast.

A rough translation of the package is as follows:

"PROFILE

D.O.B.: 1974.9.22. (September 22nd, 1974)
From: AMERICA, COLARADO
Height: 200cm (6ft 5")
Weight: 171kg (376 lbs)
Education: University of Seattle, Washington,
                  Major in Sociology and Pharmacy
Likes: Cats, The Internet
Favorite dishes: Japanese dishes, Steak
Favorite fruits: Watermelon, Apples"
The included bio mentions Sapp's start in American Football
playing for the Chicago Bears, his short WCW run, as well as
Sapp's participating in the PRIDE promotion as well as his K-1
fight against Ernesto Hoost.

Let's take the K-1 Bob Sapp DX figure out of the package
for a closer look.




                         

The DX Bob Sapp figure comes dressed in his standard white
trunks and matching foot tape.


                              

Sapp's famous bug-eyed stare and fine goatee is captured with great
accuracy.

Also included are two boxing gloves accessories.

The alternate variant of this DX figure includes blue coloured
boxing gloves.


                   

With boxing gloves removed, Sapp is also ready to take on
shoot fighters and Pro-Wrestlers alike!

Scale-wise,  the Bob Sapp DX figure stands about 5 1/2"
inches, towering over other Japanese figures in the line.

Sapp's nickname "THE BEAST" is written in bold lettering
on the back of the Bob Sapp DX figure's trunks.

                               

The bottom left of Sapp's trunks is stamped with "(C) K-1 2003".



                               

Character Product would also create two miniature figures of Sapp
as part of their Mini Big Heads - Vol. 2. K-1 Fighters series.