Takara Tomy Wolf Walkarounds

The Takara Tomy wolves are small figures (slightly bigger than Kaiyodo or Colorata) which are sold paired with a little boy in a hoodie. The arctic wolf is a special edition holiday variation, and the boy sold alongside him features a red coat in place of the standard blue one. Both are still relatively easy to find on Ebay, so long as you're searching sellers from Japan or China. I really enjoy the simple yet dignified pose on these figures, and I particularly appreciate the variation of color on the arctic wolf, as they're so often just painted a solid, snow-white which looks really unnatural.

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While I hate the seam on the neck, I absolutely LOVE those eyes!!!!

Nice wolves

very beautiful wolves, legs not too thick, good proportions and very wolfy face.. the scale is interesting for me.. the only default: the cut line at the neck which is a little too visible..

Thank you for sharing!

Pardofelis wrote:

While I hate the seam on the neck, I absolutely LOVE those eyes!!!!

Yes, I think the faces on both of these are particularly nice. The seam around the neck is actually because the head can move side to side and up and down, but only slightly.

widukind wrote:

Nice wolves

Thank you!

Caracal wrote:

very beautiful wolves, legs not to thick, good proportions and very wolfy face.. the scale is interesting for me.. the only default: the cut line at the neck which is a little too visible..

Thank you for sharing!

I'm glad you enjoyed them! The line is actually because the neck can move up and down and side to side, but only slightly. I'm just glad that they don't have the points of articulation around the legs and hinge on the jaw, like my Takara lion does.

Nice wolf figures. As more we know about Japanese figures, more impressive is the variety of their kinds, not only species. Will we ever find someday a Japanese brand that produces figures similar in size and manufacturing to the major companies but with the superior finish of the Japanese models?

Roger wrote:

Nice wolf figures. As more we know about Japanese figures, more impressive is the variety of their kinds, not only species. Will we ever find someday a Japanese brand that produces figures similar in size and manufacturing to the major companies but with the superior finish of the Japanese models?

That's an interesting question. I think a lot of the size difference comes down to both choking hazard restrictions (of course that's just a guess on my part) and the fact that a lot of Japanese figures are made more for collecting than for playing with. Though I've seen Takara widely marketed as toys, unlike Kaiyodo or Colorata. It would be so nice to have a Schleich or Safari sized model with the level of detail present in the Japanese figures.

VexVamp wrote:

Roger wrote:

Nice wolf figures. As more we know about Japanese figures, more impressive is the variety of their kinds, not only species. Will we ever find someday a Japanese brand that produces figures similar in size and manufacturing to the major companies but with the superior finish of the Japanese models?

That's an interesting question. I think a lot of the size difference comes down to both choking hazard restrictions (of course that's just a guess on my part) and the fact that a lot of Japanese figures are made more for collecting than for playing with. Though I've seen Takara widely marketed as toys, unlike Kaiyodo or Colorata. It would be so nice to have a Schleich or Safari sized model with the level of detail present in the Japanese figures.

Japanese figures share often the same size because of their tradition of making gashapon type figures. Most are obtained through vending machines and they have to fit a certain size. The fever around this kind of figures is almost contagious and other lines often follow the same size even if the figures are not really to be sold in vending machines. Japanese collecting mania favours a lot this concept of figures at the same size contrarily to European standards of making them at a certain scale or relative scale.
The Japanese market is self-sufficient and they rarely need to adapt to European or North American tastes but I still have the hope of seeing someday a Papo like company from Japan.

The Papo-like Japanese company is probably Takara Tomy (= Ania) . But because they are made for children to play with, they are less detailed than figures by other Japanese companies. I know what you mean though: You would like to see a Japanese company that makes larger figures with the same level of detail and realism as Kaiyodo. But perhaps the market is too small: The company would lose their Japanese customer base, because they want small figures, while the Western collectors' market is probably not large enough. They could market their figures for children, but then the figures would have to become less realistic (e.g., thicker legs and horns) and they would probably need to change their production methods (less fragile plastic, single mould rather than several pieces that are put together).

Hazard restrictions may be a reason why Western companies don't make smaller figures, but I don't know whether this is the main reason. After all, Britains still make some very small figures and Safari's Good Luck Minis are also very small (and to make it worse, they have the texture of jelly babies). It appears to be OK for them to do this (as long as they are marketed for the right age). I think it's more that buyers in the West expect large figures. Just check the reviews for smaller figures on Amazon: They often get negative comments because of their size. But one day, a company will get the ingenious idea that they can differentiate themselves from other companies by making figures to scale and they will realise that this is both more realistic and more educational, so they will start producing both large and small figures  

But more on topic (sorry): I am usually not so keen on Takara Tomy, but these wolves actually look quite alright. Can the head just rotate or can it also go up and down?

rogerpgvg wrote:

The Papo-like Japanese company is probably Takara Tomy (= Ania) . But because they are made for children to play with, they are less detailed than figures by other Japanese companies. I know what you mean though: You would like to see a Japanese company that makes larger figures with the same level of detail and realism as Kaiyodo. But perhaps the market is too small: The company would lose their Japanese customer base, because they want small figures, while the Western collectors' market is probably not large enough. They could market their figures for children, but then the figures would have to become less realistic (e.g., thicker legs and horns) and they would probably need to change their production methods (less fragile plastic, single mould rather than several pieces that are put together).

Hazard restrictions may be a reason why Western companies don't make smaller figures, but I don't know whether this is the main reason. After all, Britains still make some very small figures and Safari's Good Luck Minis are also very small (and to make it worse, they have the texture of jelly babies). It appears to be OK for them to do this (as long as they are marketed for the right age). I think it's more that buyers in the West expect large figures. Just check the reviews for smaller figures on Amazon: They often get negative comments because of their size. But one day, a company will get the ingenious idea that they can differentiate themselves from other companies by making figures to scale and they will realise that this is both more realistic and more educational, so they will start producing both large and small figures  

But more on topic (sorry): I am usually not so keen on Takara Tomy, but these wolves actually look quite alright. Can the head just rotate or can it also go up and down?

Yes, the heads on the wolves can rotate back and forth. They actually do that more easily than going up and down, though that may be because I'm so afraid to break them.

I just put some of your photos on TAW, hope that's OK. Do you perhaps have a photo of the wolf with the boy?