Marvelous.

I went to the MARVEL Age of Heroes exhibit yesterday and was swung back to my childhood with memories of the comics I once had or wished that I did.

Unfortunately, photos are a no-no so I couldn't capture the key issues that were on display, you'll just have to go see for yourself. It starts off with a video introduction by none other than Stan Lee himself and then showcases Marvel's history, its Cosmic heroes, its Global heroes and its Local heroes. Each section has several origin or #1 issues on display as well as storyboard art of splash pages by the original artists. Furthermore, there are busts and figures and models and mannequins and costumes of their most famous heroes and villains.

I scammed these two photos from the website (link above).

A few photos are permitted, such as...

You don't even need to pay admission to see the Hulk. He's on display in the lobby.

IronMen.

REVISION: I returned to the exhibition so I could act as a tour guide for a friend. I didn't snap this picture before.

The second floor features images and info on Cinematic Marvel

You have to look closely at this statue to notice the tiny Wasp near his shoulder.

I almost nabbed the Wasp for myself.

This is also in the lobby on the way out. A nice way to end the show.

I wandered through the 2nd floor gift shop and they took so long trying to confirm my credit card that I missed out on shopping on the 2st floor. Darn, there was so much more cool stuff down there!

There are also several pieces of artwork for sale but they're a tad out of my price range.

There are a ton of Funkos available though there are NO exclusives nor are there any bargains to be had here.

I may go back soon to see if their supplies have diminished. I may pick up an Ant-Man to go along with my Giant-Man.

These Gurihiru figures were new to me. I managed to get the series of Gatcha figures but at 1404 yen each, I wasn't about to try and get them all.

REVISION: I got Black Widow!

Although Black Widow and Hawkeye are new. I may have to try for them after all.

These buttons are pricey as well, they feature a classic comic cover and a little badger badge as well I got Rocket, I'm not disappointed.

Finally I tried my luck at grabbing one of the rarer Mystery Minis but unfortunately I go two helmeted Hulks!

They tossed a freebie in my bag and I was hoping for something unique and awesome. Unfortunately, all it is was a copy of the latest Hot Toys and Funko catalogs. More stuff that I can't afford and have no room for anyway.

When you do go (and I highly recommend you do), be sure to keep the ticket given to you on the second floor. They stamp it and if you go to the Marvel Pop Up store that will be opening in S-Pal on July 26th for a few weeks, they'll stamp it as well and you should be able to get a prize of some kind.

Surprise, Godzilla!

I trekked out to Fukushima City to do some nerdy shopping and upon arrival espied a Giant Godzilla atop a hotel. I snapped a pic from the car and did some cropping, this is what transpired.

Upon closer inspection, we discovered that the name of the hotel is Bikuri Gojira (Surprise Godzilla) and it is not affiliated with the Godzilla Hotel in Shibuya.

Cool, it lights up at night.

The other side of the hotel has a few lights burnt out.

Upon really close inspection, it is indeed a Love Hotel and I would have suggested we stay the night if my companion weren't named Dan. I like ya, just not in that way.

Across the street is a Mandai-clone called Mansai (NO idea why the name change) and it was pretty good yet not as good as others I've been to.

I did grab a full set of Arise: Ghost in the Shell A4-size clear files (3 for 200, so I got two sets. One for a pal in Toronto.)

I also picked up this on spec. I have no idea what it is but Universal Monsters stuff is hard to come by. It may just be a set of iron-ons, I'll have to open it up to see. (Hmm. Nothing on the web, I really will have to open it up.)

Check out that CAUTION. Lots of Jinglish (or Chinglish or Kinglish) there so it may be an Asian product.

That's fairly illegible so:
(1) It cannot be used for the cloth over which an iron is not covered. (2) What was printed at once cannot be removed. (3) Please do not cover an iron over the printed portion by any means. (4) Depending on wash frequency, there are discoloration and a case where it fades, a little. (5) If it is used for cloth other than white, a color will not be expressed correctly. (6) Please use a print sheet as early as possible.
That last one concerns me, they may be unprintable.

Well, what do you know. It's two pairs of socks with the Sindee logo on them and the transfer sheet is really tiny. I suppose you're supposed to cut up the little characters and iron them onto the socks. Cool! Though I may pick up some black socks without the logo.

I wanted to get either or both of these but I didn't have a spare 100-200$ on me. Besides, I have nowhere to put them, they are huge!

In other news, I picked up some Avengers Mountain Dews. Unlike the quartet from India, the same art is used and mashed up into only two different cans. Regardless, pretty damn cool!
 

 I'm drinking Captain America/Iron Man out of my Captain America cup right now!

In some Avengers-related news, we are still awaiting Ant-Man to be released (9/11) yet they sure are plugging it here. This is the coolest Eye Chart ever! (For those who've never had their eyes checked in Japan, rather than using random tiny alphabet letters, a circle is used with either the top, bottom, left, or right missing and you tell the Optician which one it is.)

(Be sure to click it to experience it in all its greatness and tininess.)