Posted By Dan Greenfield on Nov 29, 2024 | 3 comments

We kick off TOYHEM 2024 in grand style — with a visit to the Land of the Rising Sun…

—

Welcome to TOYHEM! For the sixth straight holiday season, we’re bringing you a series of features and columns celebrating the toys of our youth, which often made for the best memories this time of year. Click here to check out the complete index of stories — and have a Merry Christmas, a Happy Chanukah and Happy Holidays! — Dan

—

I went on the trip of a lifetime in August when my family and I traveled to Japan. It was an extraordinary visit and I was able to take in so much of the island nation’s beauty and culture.

That includes pop culture. Tokyo is unlike any city I’ve been in when it comes to comics and the comics-related: There are entire department stores, like Mandarake, dedicated to action figures, toys and other collectibles — and that’s just part of it. Akihabara, for example, is a hopping district jammed with places to shop for video games, anime, manga — pretty much anything that has to do with the things we love. There’s also Nakano Broadway in Nakano, a mall populated by dozens of shops, including many that sell rare and high-end collectibles.

It’s a feast.

But the highlight of my trip was meeting up with Yuji Ueda — aka Tokyo Toy Guy — who is one of the world’s foremost Batman collectors. (Star Wars too, for that matter.) I’d met Yuji online, thanks to 13th Dimension, but not in person, and there was no way I was going to make a trip all the way to Tokyo without getting a look at his Tokyo Toy Cafe, an adjunct to his house where he displays his incredible, museum-quality collection, while guests come in by appointment and have a drink.

So, after making arrangements, my son Sam and our friend Aki paid a call on Yuji. His collection was everything I’d hoped. He shows it off in YouTube videos and his documentaries Tokyo Toy Guy and Tokyo Toy Guy 2, but seeing it up close is an entirely different experience. (His next doc, Galactic Toy Story is about his love of the Stormtrooper design.)

His collection spans decades, primarily focusing on Japan’s 1960s Batmania and his beloved 1989 Batman movie, but goes all the way up to today. Megos, tin toys, Pez dispensers, cards, original art, food packages, Menko cards, manga and American comics, it’s all there.

I’m proud of my own hoard but it’s not even close to what Yuji has accumulated. The only thing that compares that I’ve witnessed is book designer Chip Kidd’s collection in New York.

Naturally, I had questions. And while I was eager to share all this over the last three months, I wanted to wait for our annual TOYHEM series. Because if you’re going to launch a popular, annual, monthlong celebration of the things we loved as kids — and maybe love even more today — there’s absolutely no better way to do it. (Plus, Yuji will be back to wrap up this year’s TOYHEM on Christmas, with his 13 fave Bat-collectibles.)

So, let’s get to it:

Dan: What made you fall in love with Batman at the start?

Yuji: It was the first U.S. superhero movie that I saw at the theater, with my parents in Maryland when I was 10 years old. Visual impact, story, music and Michael Keaton’s Batman gave me a huge shock that I had never experienced before! I fell in love with Batman.

Dan: What’s the first Batman collectible you got – and do you still have it?

Yuji: My first Batman collectible is a ToyBiz square-jaw Batman, which I bought it for around $65 when I was 16 years old. It’s still in the blister, in pretty good condition.

Dan: When did you realize you were in for the long haul – that this wasn’t some fleeting passion?

Yuji: I guess when I found out about 1966 Japanese franchises. When I found out that Jiro Kuwata did the original manga, and massive toy collections came out that year. I reached the point where I believed there was no chance of acquiring rare and expensive Batman toys and that the only way to enjoy them was to interview the owners of those rare Batman toys and make a documentary, Tokyo Toy Guy. After making the documentary, my knowledge and Batman friendships expanded worldwide and I wanted to continue this hobby throughout my life with the Tokyo Toy Cafe.

Dan: What was your first “big score”?

Yuji: Mego (Palitoy, actually) 1976 Fist Fighting Batman, which I got it by visiting a UK toy show when I interviewed Ed Kelly back in 2012. (Kelly is another of the world’s biggest Bat-collectors.)

Dan: How did you manage to amass such a big collection?

Yuji: Actually I’m trying to minimize and maintain the current volume, focusing only on items that can be connected to the current collection. I keep things in storage and rotate the display from time to time; that way I can look at them fresh all the time. There are many items I’m still searching for, though.

Dan: You have Batman items from all eras and areas (movies, TV, comics, etc). What’s your favorite version?

Yuji: My main focus is 1989 Michael Keaton-related items… (and) I always look for anything related to 1966 Japanese Batman items. Also, anything connected to the release of a new Batman film. For example, I collected almost all the food packaging and theater merchandise for 2022’s The Batman.

Dan: How do you keep the focus narrowed? Do you limit yourself by keeping away from certain types of items?

Yuji: I’m cautious with variants or super-accurate, high-end figures, statues and items that are mass produced that I can buy any time. I try to focus on items that can be difficult to obtain later on, like local exclusives and food packaging.

Dan: Tell me how the Toy Cafe operates and where you’d like to see it go.

Yuji: I only open it during weekends, for Batman and Star Wars fans. I want this cafe to be the hub for movie fans and toy collectors. Where people can connect their passion and love of their hobbies, and share to the world.

—

MORE

— The Complete TOYHEM INDEX of Stories and Features. Click here.

— The Pure Joy of JIRO KUWATA’s BATMAN. Click here.