Review – Glyos Zoneye

Line: Glyos * Manufacturer: Onell Design * Year: 2010

Matt Doughty (Onell Design) has this awesome custom toy just laying on his workdesk. I swear this toy is exactly where I left it back in June (mentioned here) so since I’ve got the afternoon to play while Matt paints new Custom Corps toys I thought I’d snap some pics and put the Zoneye through its paces.

Kaiju Comrades 2

This custom was created way back in March of this year for Mark Nagata’s (website, Twitter) Kaiju Comrades 2 show. Inspired by Mark’s Eyezon toy (Neo Kaiju review here and Mini Kaiju Eyezon review here), the Glyos Zoneye shares some elements in common with the Eyezon design but it’s clearly been brought into the Glyos System. Check out my two Eyezon reviews and you’ll see just how different this guy looks from his distant vinyl cousins.

Information on the show, and the original shots of the Zoneye, were posted at the Glyos Transmission Web Log and the instant these went up I fell in love with the design. It’s thick, meaty, and got Matt’s edgy, line-filled aesthetic that is unlike anything I could ever pull off but really fun to play with.

A Custom Toy

There is only one Glyos Zoneye in existence; this is the original piece Matt sculpted and then assembled and painted. I can’t believe this toy went to Japan without being copied — if anything had gone wrong in shipping it would have been lost forever — but I’m happy that it found its way back to Matt’s house where I could come across it and get it into my hands. For a custom this is definitely playable; a lot of customized toys I encounter are display pieces that are sometimes tacky and unusable, but Zoneye here feels good in hand and actually feels quite durable. I wouldn’t ever want to drop him, but I’m not worried I’ll break him as I pose him and put him up against other toys in violent battles.

And the Zoneye feels weird. Not weird bad, but it’s just too damned light for its size. Every time I pick it up I expect some major weight behind the piece — it’s about as tall as an Armodoc (technically, smaller if you count the protrusions on the head) — but it’s lighter than I would ever expect from a solid piece. That’s the material Matt uses to sculpt at work — “Renshape” material — and it’s weird as hell. Solid, durable, and light. Sounds like a great combination for sculpting if you’re good with a Dremel and carving tools.

Articulation

Even though it’s a custom built for a show the Zoneye is fully articulated and ready for action. Post/hole articulation gives it swivels at the shoulders, elbows, waist, hips, and feet. It’s not insanely articulated, but it’s got enough articulation that I can pose it for shots. And everything stays together; nice and snug fits at each joint.

Professionally Sculpted

And even though it’s a one-off created for a show, everything about the Zoneye screams perfection and professionalism. The sculpt is tight — look at those eyes! — and inspires me to take another shot at sculpting. I should get my hands on some of that “Renshape” and try my hand at carving into it. But don’t worry about me; take a look at the detail shot above and the photo below and keep in mind that this is the painted master. All of the sanding and cleaning that went into this really shows in the toy.

Paint

Seems kinda bizarre to be writing about Matt’s paint work as he paints new Custom Corps figures less than five feet from me. But it’s fun to watch as Matt slams brushes into plastic and watching him makes me better understand how he handles the weathering on toys like this Zoneye. The paint, for being a custom, is of course more detailed than anything we get on most toys. Layer upon layer of colors, deep detail lines, with the only color really being the red of the eyes. And there’s nothing bad I can say about the detail work; that’s either because Matt’s a friend or the paint is tight. You’ll have to be the judge.

Closing Thoughts

At the moment this is the only Zoneye in the world. A one-off work of art, it seems kinda wrong to spend time reviewing a custom toy that no one out there but the creator owns, but as I played with this guy I realized that I couldn’t be the only person who would enjoy getting a closer look at the design. My fingers are crossed in hopes that this toy will someday be released — even if it’s only as a short-run resin toy — but for now the best I’ll be able to do is look back at this review and remember the afternoon that the Zoneye sat beside me.

Awesome custom toy. If this ever sees release then I suggest you do whatever you can to score one . . . but not until I’ve got mine.

Philip Reed took a couple of shots of the Zoneye with some of the customs he created. Philip’s customs look even worse when setup next to this fantastic custom Glyos toy.