Short answers, pulled from the story.
A model figure is a scale model representing a human, monster or other creature. These objects exist as either kits for enthusiasts to construct and paint or as pre-built collectable figurines ready for display. Plastic usually takes the form of polystyrene while polyurethane resin and metal including white metal serve as alternative materials.
Military modeling figures were largely produced in 1:72 and 1:35 scales during the early 1980s and 1990s with other scales such as 1:48 and 1:32 holding a smaller market share. Tamiya Testor's Revell Monogram and others produced 1:35 scale miniatures covering World War I through Vietnam with the largest portion centering on World War II.
The global animation merchandising market from Japan is estimated to be worth around 663 billions Japanese yen. Model figures based on icons like Hello Kitty characters appearing in anime manga kaiju series science fiction fantasy films and video games form a major part of otaku fandom.
One of the largest producers of monster figures were the Aurora Plastics Corporation who produced many thousands figures from each mould. In the 1970s Aurora's figure molds had been sold to Monogram and by the mid-to late 1970s the models had been discontinued and were difficult to find in hobby stores.
Garage kit figures are produced by both amateurs and professionals usually cast out of polyurethane resin. In the mid- to late 1980s two model kit companies moved the monster model kit hobby toward the mainstream with Horizon Models in California and Screamin' Models in New York beginning to license vinyl model kits of movie monsters.