Shortly after I found out about Neclos / Necros Fortress keshi from Japan and took on collecting them, I started to think of them kind of like the Monster in My Pocket toys of the East. Despite some main differences between the two lines (most notably the fact that Neclos Fortress is also a role-playing game and includes figures of non-monster, human characters as well), the two lines are pretty comparable. The figures are similar in size, made of the same type of flexible soft plastic material and a variety of monochromatic colors, and both feature an army of monsters pulled from folklore and mythology. I think they were also both released around the same time (although from what I have been able to tell, Neclos began a bit earlier than MIMP, in the late-1980s).
Check out the image above, which compares interpretations of a few of the same monsters from both lines: Mummy, Hobgoblin, Medusa and Ghost. This is just a small sampling of monsters the two lines share. In fact, there's nearly 40 I've counted (check out a list below--let me know if you think of any I missed).
Personally, I find it nearly impossible to decide which line I like more. Monster in My Pocket is a classic that's hugely responsible for my love of these kinds of toys, but Neclos Fortress is also an amazing, incredibly diverse and comprehensive line that I went nuts over as soon as I found out about it within the past couple years. So...I refuse to choose!
How about you? Do you prefer MIMP over Neclos (or vice versa)? Are you interested in both lines?
List of monsters shared between Monster in My Pocket and Neclos Fortress:
Abominable Snowman (MIMP) / Yeti (Neclos)
Beast
Centaur
Cerberus
Chimera
Cockatrice
Cyclops
Dragon
Dryad (MIMP) / Wood-King (Neclos)
Gargoyle
Ghost
Ghoul
Goblin
Golem
Gorgon
Griffin
Harpy
Hobgoblin
Hydra
Imp
Kali
Kraken
Lamia
Leviathan (MIMP) / Serpent (Neclos)
Manticore
Medusa
Minotaur
Monster (MIMP) / Horanken (Neclos)
Mummy
Siren
Skeleton
Tengu
Tyrannosaurus Rex (MIMP) / Dinosaur (Neclos)
Vampire
Warlock (MIMP) / Wizard (Neclos)
Werewolf (MIMP) / Wolf-Man (Neclos)
Witch
Zombie
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