This Week in Tokusatsu Fashion 1/29/2018-2/4/2018

This week, lots of Ultraman goodies, new Kamen Rider Ex-Aid merchandise, and new Kamen Rider Build merchandise dominate the round-up.

First, new Ultraman merchandise has popped up from a variety of sources. From Premium Bandai, there are different hoodies which are styled after several Ultraman suits. There are three different designs, made of fleece, and priced at 15,120¥. All are April 2018 release items. A new item from the official Ultraman store, a collaboration between Studio da Lutazan and Tsuburaya Productions, is a jeans design. A subtle nod to the franchise, the jeans are a simple dark wash with the Science Special Investigation Corps star on the back pocket, and a small Ultraman symbol embroidered peeking out of the front pocket. There is a patch denoting the jeans as a limited edition run, and they sell for 28,944¥.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, COSPA Corporation is releasing an official Ultra Guard Corps costume, from Ultra Seven. Coming out in July 2018, the costume includes a coat, belt with the holster built in, pants, an Ultra gun (made of paper), Ultra Eye (also made of paper), and a video shear bar (made of paper). The costume comes in three unisex sizes (Small, Medium, and Large), and retails for 13,200¥. Lastly, the Hardcore Chocolate shop has t-shirts that pay homage to Ultraman monsters. There are different designs for Alien Metron, Zetton, Kanegon, Eleking, and more. The shirts are all 3,800¥ each and available on the Hardcore Chocolate website.  

On the Kamen Rider side, more Kamen Rider Ex-Aid merchandise has been added to the Premium Bandai website, focusing on Kuroto and his Continue pipe. There is a hoodie, black with white accents, that includes Kuroto peeping out of a pocket, and a “Continue” stripe on the back. The hoodie sells for 9,720¥ and is shipping in May 2018. There are also pajamas, again with a continue pipe patch that Kuroto is peeking out of. Also a May item, the pajamas come with an eye mask and sell for 10,800¥.  Additionally, Kiriya gets a hoodie release of his own. The hoodie comes in two colors, black and red, like the coroner’s two jackets, both with a colorful lining of the hood like his bright shirts and an embroidered pair of sunglasses hanging from a pocket. Kiriya’s hoodie is also 9,720¥ and a May 2018 release.

In honor of the Ex-Aid movies coming out, TOEI’s online shop has added a number of new items for sale. One of the highlights is a set of rotund plushies of the Ex-Aid Riders, in the style of Tsum Tsum plushies. Ex-Aid, Brave, Snipe, Genm, Paradox, and Poppy all are represented by plush, selling for 1,220¥ each, but all are currently sold out. Genm’s Dangerous Zombie form gets an alarm clock release, selling for 8,000¥ and releasing in June 2018. There are also metal pin badge sets available, one set consisting of Brave and Snipe (their Rider symbols), the other Cronos and Ex-Aid’s Exceed form, with both sets retailing for 1,200¥ each.

Back to Premium Bandai, the current season is still getting the merchandise love. There is a nice black, red, and blue tie that echoes Kamen Rider Build’s RabbitTank form, with the series logo at the bottom. The tie is 4,860¥ and releases in April. Pair it with the coordinating tie clip, 4,536¥ (also an April release), for a subtle dressy fandom look.

Lastly, in honor of the Kamen Rider Heisei Generations FINAL movie, t-shirts for the returning Riders are listed for March 2018 release. Retailing for 3,240¥ each, there are designs for Kamen Riders OOO, Fourze, and Gaim. 

Source: LadyEve, TOEI Twitter, Tsuburaya Station, MonoMax Web, Hardcore Chocolate Shop, Premium Bandai