Mini Sharks (Diversity of Life on Earth by Bandai)

Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972

As previously mentioned, 2023 has been a great year for cartilaginous fish fans with, many figures from big and small companies alike. Today, we will be taking a look at the Bandai’s Mini Sharks collection which is part of their Diversity of Life on Earth series. The line started with arthropods, but has since branched out to reptiles, fish, amphibians, and mammals. For today’s set, we will be taking a look at 4 of 5 of the sharks Bandai has made to date in the Diversity line, which includes 2 well-known species and 2 more obscure species, which does give us an interesting mix.

Pic the gashapon machine they are sold in:

Great White Shark (Carcharodon carcharias)

• Size of figure: 10 cm
• Size of the animal: 150 cm-640 cm
• Scale: 1:15-1:64 (databasing as 1:25, for reasons stated below)
• Color: metallic grey with a hint of green body with an off white underbelly; black eyes with white glare in the middle; pink gums and interior of the mouth
• Species frequency of being made into toy form: Very common
• Base: generic rocky base

Notes: The quintessential figure in every shark set, akin to Pikachu, SpongeBob Squarepants, and Homer Simpson to their respective franchises. The figure is sculpted with its mouth wide open, likely attacking its prey from below. The figure comes in 3 parts, likely to accomodate for the size of the figure, the head is hollow. The 5 gill slits are accurate and are displayed opened. The teeth are relatively well done for the size. The only thing I can fault this figure is the lack of black tips on the pectoral fins. Despite being so commonly made, this figure is actually my favourite of the set, and has some stand-out features that sets it apart from the many white shark toys that have been made. Firstly, instead of the standard light grey that most companies paint theirs as, this one has a tiny hint of green under the grey (at least to my eyes). I feel this figure works well as a juvenile/sub-adult due to the relatively larger eyes in proportion to the body and the having the pelvic fins looking like they contain immature claspers, which means this could represent a younger male individual. Other well-done great whites include the 2013 and 2018 Schleich versions, Safari’s 2016 figure, Colorata’s hard to find Deluxe figure, and the recent Toymany figure.

Scalloped Hammerhead (Sphyrna lewini)

• Size of figure: 7.5 cm
• Size of the animal: 180 cm-360 cm for a mature male
• Scale: 1:24-1:48
• Color: Metallic dark grey top with white underbelly; pink mouth; white eye with black pupil
• Species frequency of being made into toy form: Uncommon
• Base: Reef rock

Notes: Probably the most iconic shark besides the great white and the whale shark. To be very honest, this is the weakest figure in the set, and I have very strong feelings about it which we will go through as civil as possible. First, the positives. The head shape is definitely a scalloped hammerhead, the dorsal fin matches well, correct number of gills, and the inclusion of claspers is a nice touch. Now onto the reasons why I do not like this addition. First of all, the proportions of the head and the gills are way off; they are set all the way back, which makes it look like some weird long-necked abomination. Secondly, the puny size this figure is; it is the smallest in the set when there are 2 other species that a many times smaller than it in life, and it doesn’t help that it has mature claspers so it’s not possible to use it as a juvenile. Last but not least, the lack of black tips to the pectoral fins. Also worth noting that although there are teeth sculpted, they’re so small and unpainted, it’s hard to notice them. This figure being so disappointing is such a tragedy, as Bandai advertised the figures having realistic details, and the fact that the rest of the figures are so good leaves even more to be desired. Ironically, I was more excited about the base, as I do like the coral detail. To add insult to injury, this was the hardest one to obtain out of the 4; out of 20 tries, I only got 2 hammerheads! If you’re after a scalloped hammerhead figure, there are many better alternatives, mainly the Papo one for a standard-sized figure while Kaiyodo, Colorata, For Corperation, and Ikimon have smaller replicas for space-conscious collectors.

Brownbanded Bamboo Shark (Chiloscyllium punctatum)

• Size of figure: 9 cm along the curve
• Size of the animal: 15 cm-30 cm for a juvenile
• Scale: 1:1.66-1:3.33
• Color: Cream main body with black stripes and white underbelly; gold eye with black pupil
• Species frequency of being made into toy form: Very rare
• Base: Sandy sea floor

Notes: The cutest figure in the set and the only one to not have a glossy/metallic finish, instead having more of a matte finish and denticle skin texture. All other figures of the species (Safari Ltd. and Toymany) are juveniles, and this one captures a younger juvenile better with the rounded dorsal fin, lighter main body, and bigger eyes. Juveniles are black and cream to mimic sea snakes to ward off potential predators, while mature adults are mostly a uniform brown. The figure is sculpted in a curled position and there’s a lot of accurate details: mouth and nose are sculpted on the underside, spiracle openings, and 5 gill slits, with the 4th and 5th being very close together (even though most carpet shark figures only have 4, but it’s a forgivable detail as they are so close together). Overall, I feel this is the best bamboo shark figure thus far, and one of the cutest shark figures overall!

With a 1:2 scale Patrick Star, as bamboo sharks are one of the few sharks that do not need to keep swimming, and they are nocturnal:

Viper Dogfish (Trigonognathus kabeyai)

• Size of figure: 8.5 cm
• Size of the animal: at least 56 cm
• Scale: 1:6.5
• Color: Black main body with translucent blue top jaw and bottom caudal, dorsal, pelvic, and anal fins; white teeth; transparent top caudal fin; white eye with blue pupils
• Species frequency of being made into toy form: Unique
• Base: Deep sea volcanic rock with lanternfish

Notes: Now for the only unique figure of the set. This is the first viper dogfish figure in model form, and it definitely is a scary one. Fun fact: while doing research, I was shocked at how small this species was! It’s smaller than the cookiecutter shark that it’s somewhat related to. This figure has a glossy finish and nice wrinkles on the bottom part of it, and it’s sculpted undulating with its mouth wide open, revealing its gnarly set of dentition, getting ready to strike on the lanternfish prey that’s on the base (which is certainly a great centerpiece of attention). I have 2 nitpicks with this figure, but they’re not dealbreakers, however, Firstly, this figure is too big for most standard-size collections. Secondly, the way it connects to the base leaves an ugly hole in the middle. But other than those, it’s a superb figure! We need more representatives of unique species like this in model form, maybe a kitefin or a roughshark perhaps?

Outside of the hammerhead, this set is a fantastic representation of shark figures of both recognizable and obscure species. This set is relatively new, so it does show up in online stores for quite affordable prices, or, if you’re lucky, you may go down to a Bandai gashapon store and try your luck (and believe me, it is very addictive, so much so that even after getting a whole set, I do not want to stop spinning the machine). Speaking to my pull rates, out of 20 tries, I have gotten 5 great whites, 2 hammerheads, 6 viper dogfish, and 7 bamboo sharks, which I’ve joked about in saying that the hammerhead is rarer due to its Critically Endangered status. If you’ve managed to get the great white, bamboo, and viper dogfish, and still missing the hammerhead, I do not recommend chasing for it and instead going with the frilled shark form the Ancient Fishes collection as an alternative, as it’s a way more striking figure. According to the item information on the Japanese site, it was mentioned that this is the first series of sharks they’re doing, so there’s a possibility they would do more in the future, which I would like to see a kitefin, sevengill, sawshark, and an epaulette shark being featured. And with this, the ancient fish and the upcoming whales sets, gives me hope that we’re returning to the glory days of gashapons with a more diverse lineup instead of popular species all the time!