Manufacturer: Unknown
Type: Derived from the 1984 Tsukuda Hobby ALIEN, Jumbo Figure No.2.
Released: Unknown
Product No.: A034
Height: 16 inches
Glow in the Dark Feature:  None.
Packaging: Plastic bag with 3 staples.
Inclusions: A pair of small leaflets comprising of one single-sided instruction sheet and one general paint application guide.

This bootleg vinyl kit of the Alien is a genuine oddity. While recasts and garage kits of this nature are nothing unusual what marks this item as a notable curiosity is its strange heritage. This figure can trace its origin back to Kenner’s 1979 ALIEN action figure.

While not a direct recasting of that nefarious old toy, this kit is nonetheless an unlicenced reproduction of the similar Tsukuda Hobby ALIEN figure released in Japan in 1984. The Tsukuda Hobby item itself was the first in a long line of derivative and tribute figures based on the original 1979 Kenner toy. It shares an indisputable relationship with the bootleg vinyl kit and a number of features confirm this figure to be the kit’s origin. Notable features of the head appearing solely on the Tsukuda Hobby version of the figure are present in the kit. 

The licenced 1984 Tsukuda Hobby ALIEN with it’s trigger under the back of the head (1) removed and filled in. Also note the rear of the head has also become a separate piece (2) distinctly different from the Kenner toy it was derived from. These two features are unique to this pressing of the figure.

Much like other Kenner derived figures that appeared throughout the 1990s, gone are all of the original trigger activated jaw components present in the original Kenner item. All mouth parts here are fused into a single immovable position with the tongue fixed fully extended. Nonetheless, this isn’t the only suggestion determining the actual origin of the candidate.

In particular, evidence proving this vinyl kit is conclusively a recasting of the 1984 figure can be found at the back of the head. Here, where the trigger mechanism has been removed, it has been coarsely filled in leaving a bulge at the underside of the head. The head also terminates in an unsightly severance at the back. This ugly foreshortening is capped with an odd domed piece which is a unique feature only found on the 1984 Tsukuda Hobby figure. The bootleg kit also includes this cap as a separate piece to be fitted in place by the modeler and positively without doubt identifies the Tsukuda Hobby ALIEN as the original parent of this recast kit.

In this regard, while the bootleg kit may share an abundance of other details common across an entire range of officially licenced ALIEN action figures (ranging from 1979 to 1997), it is this unique feature present at the back of the head that identifies the 1984 Tsukuda Hobby Jumbo Figure No.2 as the source from which this bootleg vinyl recast kit was generated

There are other curious features of note abundantly scattered throughout the bootleg kit and it’s worthy to investigate some of those, too.

The signature clear head carapace often associated with the Alien is missing from this kit with the upper details of the head made bare to the world. It is most likely the dome was never made available as part of the kit by the manufacturer. The lack of the dome may lead one to believe this kit is intended to be an ALIENS model but the designs of the face, hands, elbow spurs and feet preclude any such notion. This is definitely an ALIEN kit and as the parent Tsukuda Hobby item was release prior to ALIENS (in 1986), this definitely the case.

Other liberties have been taken with features throughout the kit by the manufacturer.  While the figure’s arms are cast in such a way it would be possible to attach them to the torso and retain rotation to match the movement found on the Tsukuda Hobby item without gluing them in place, the same cannot be said for the legs. The thighs are permanently molded onto the hips and no articulation is possible. They will need to be fitted to the lower legs at the knees to complete the construction of these limbs.

All of the finer details of the tail are missing from the bootleg kit. Instead of a prehensile biomechanoid limb, all individual segments along the entire length of the tail have been filled in with a modelling compound prior to generating the molds. This finish erases much of the rich segmented detail normally associated with the limb and leaves a largely smoothed out appearance.

Furthermore, the tail has been cut in to multiple pieces and cast in 3 separate lengths making it necessary to rejoin the entire limb into a single piece.

As for documentation included with this kit, it’s rudimentary at best and that is par for the course with these recast garage items. A pair of paper inclusions are included in the vinyl kit. The first is an almost useful set of instructions while the second item is a completely useless painting guide. The instructions themselves are written in translated English with various typographical errors, my favourite line being “Airbrush will give you better result on lager sections of the it.”

As noted, the paint sample provided is completely useless. Here are both items.

This bootleg oddity possesses no manufacturer’s details. There is no country of origin or date of production. There are no licencing details and these leaflets are the only documentation included with the kit. The only identifying production information is the kit’s product number, ‘A034’. I purchased this item from a vendor in Thailand but it is unknown whether this is the country of origin of manufacture for this kit or not. It is presumed this kit was actually made in Turkey.

This is a mysterious and curious item I’ve added to my collection. It can trace its origin back to the 1979 Kenner ALIEN action figure. As such, it adds yet another curious dimension to the history of that disreputable vintage toy. Since this appraisal was written a few years ago, I have since been able to assemble this vinyl bootleg kit. Here it is below, complete albeit unpainted. The final image in the gallery below also compares the fully assembled bootleg kit to the original 1979 Kenner ALIEN toy.

If you want to know more about the immediate precursors of this strange bootleg vinyl kit, here are some links:
1979 Kenner ALIEN action figure.
1984 Tsukuda Hobby ALIEN, Jumbo Figure No.2

-Windebieste.