TCJ50: Tsubaraya Creative Jam 50 - Ultraman toy + merch extravaganza!

To mark the 50th anniversary of Tsubaraya, the company behind the Ultraman franchise, Tokyo's Tokyo is holding a two-week event at its shop in Harajuku.

 

TCJ50 doesn't so much celebrate Ultraman per se, yet rather its licensing muscle. There are a huge number of products for sale at the shop, including toys, clothing, stationery, jewelry, kitchenware, posters, original art, and even eyewear. The good news is there is something for every budget, though prices lean towards the higher end for most products. Even better, there's no admission fee.

So, let's take a look at the fairest of the fare, starting with toys:

Lots of releases from Medicom, in addition to figures from indie outfits like Sunguts, Uamou, T9G, PP Pudding, and more.

 More after the jump:

This figure has a massive number of moveable parts.

Paper toys!

 

Looks like these sold out very quickly.

 Other merchandise:

Really cool set of five A4 plastic holders with some of the show's art.

There's a very nice selection of shirts, but they range from 4,000-5,000 yen each.

 

Would you rock these Ultra shades?

This one is really out there! So it looks like a puzzle, but actually these are floor mats, like the kind you see in kindergartens. Cool design and nice reappropriation of an otherwise banal item. Warhol would be proud!

Super cool Dada pendant.

Original art by Mark Nagata. One of my favorite things at the show.

Some traditional Japanese art and themes, It's safe to say Ultraman is fairly deeply integrated into the culture.

Now that's some serious bling!

Check out this cool poster with illustrations added to a cityscape photograph.

Love these plastic holders. You'd be amazed at how prevalent they are in daily Japanese life!

Tons of affordable stationery.

Tsubaraya and Ultraman certainly aren't the only ones who have received the anniversary treatment. In recent years, we've seen lots of events planned around anniversaries for other big properties like Kamen Rider, which turned 40 in 2011. And here's a blast from the recent past (almost exactly one year ago) where Devilman and Mazinger's 40th were celebrated at the very same shop.