Robotman reborn.

Though Microman birthed the transforming robot explosion of the eighties, it was also a casualty of that explosion. After a decade of innovation, Microman died a quiet death in 1984, never achieving the sort of international devotion enjoyed by the bowdlerized Transformers, Micronauts notwithstanding.

After lying fallow for another fifteen years, Takara resurrected and re-booted the property for the new millennium. Takara meant business, introducing three different toy lines (Replica, LED, and Magne Powers), a Manga series, an anime, and generous amounts of ancillary product. Takara typically excels at reinterpreting its older toys for a new audience. Would this massive gamble work? Ehhhhh.

Reaction to the re-boot was tepid. A new generation of kids with no recollection of the original collectively shrugged. Adult collectors were turned off by the dramatic deviations from classic Microman. The ambitious multi-media blitz limped along without generating any real enthusiasm. The millennial Microman quietly expired.

What about the toys? Exquisite, if sometimes flawed.

Robotman Dean was introduced at the tail end of the Magne Powers series. Magne Powers toys incorporated magnetic gimmicks, including magnets in the limbs of the figures as well as interchangeable parts for larger robot and monster building. These toys were like the older magnemo Micronauts on steroids, the magnetic ball construction technique was taken to wild heights.

Dean is packaged in one of my favorite boxes of all time, die-cut with an inner metallic gold sleeve. You can tell that Takara was going all out here.

On the inside: not so much. Dean’s components are twist-tied to cheap corrugated cardboard. There’s no way to store him after you’ve removed the pieces other than to just shove him in an empty box. The later Korean releases of the combiners use a white plastic tray.

The limbs and torso go together intuitively. Dean in his combined form:

In the tradition of the first Robotman, Dean has a cockpit in his chest.

You can see the pilot’s head through a clear window. Also notice that Dean’s chrome face is covered with a clear shield.

Circular metal plates provide connection points for microman figures.

In keeping with the interchangeable ethos of Microman, each limb can be reconfigured (not transformed), into a vehicle or weapon.

Further, each of these can be further broken down and reconfigured into anything you can imagine. The sheer quantity of parts is impressive. Everything breaks down into tiny, detailed pieces. Even parts which could be duplicated, like the feet, are different.

Many parts have metal balls and magnets. Furthermore, these parts are compatible with the rest of the Magne Powers toys, providing nearly endless possibilities.

As a building toy, Dean is very successful. As a figure, he’s a mixed bag. While the magnetic connections are detailed with detented sockets, the whole bot feels ramshackle.

There’s an awful lot going on. Pieces frequently fall off. But Dean is so ambitious, and so nearly great, that I forgive his short-comings and just appreciate the work that went into him.

Many of the Magne Powers combiners were later released by Sonokong and are easily obtained. Dean, for whatever reason, was not, which is a shame because he’s the coolest one.

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The saga of Saint Seiya continues and Bandai has new Saint Cloth Myth to show for it. I take a look at the first release from Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas. It's Pegasus Tenma.

Review sample provided by HobbyLink Japan.

Saint Seiya has a long and rich history and the main story is still not finished. While fans wait, for the stories of Heaven and Chronos to be told a prologue story was created under the supervision of the original creator Masami Kurumada and written and illustrated by Shiori Teshirogi.

The Lost Canvas takes place 250 years before the original Saint Seiya saga and tells the story of three orphans that grew up as children only to assume their roles in this cosmic battle of good and evil. It touches upon plot points and themes from the original series while chronicling the previous Holy War between Athena and Hades.

First up in Bandai's line of Saint Cloth Mythology line for The Lost Canvas is Pegasus Tenma, the series's main character and this generations Pegasus Saint. With the series being written and illustrated by a different artist the anime adapts this new look and Bandai took and ran with it. Creating a striking new look for the Saint Cloth Mythology line.

The packaging continues the look of previous Saint Cloth Myth, a book style package that opens to reveal the figure and all the armor parts and pieces neatly arranged.

The Tenma figure features an all new body type and a new “style” to the look of the head sculpt. I love how it captures the look of the new series yet fits in with previous SCM releases.

The body features over 40 points of articulation as well as interchangeable faces (for different expressions) as well as 8 interchangeable hands.

Also included is the flower bracelet Sasha (Athena) made for Tenma, Alone and her as children to signify their bond as children.

Each warrior wears an armor in the series. Athena's warriors wear “clothes” and are all named and designed after constellations in the night sky. So when the Cloth is not being worn be our heroes they form a statue or “Object” to be more accurate. Tenma's armor being the Pegasus saint turns into a Pegasus statue.

You may notice that the figures themselves are fairly spindly and thin but all that changes when you put the parts on for the armor. Everything sits and looks properly in proportion once on and looks stunning on the shelf.

Most of this release is die-cast metal with only the skirt plating and head-piece being made of plastic. There's not a lot for armor on the figure as this is how it appears early in the show before it's first repair/evolution.

Not a lot of surprises with this release. Saint Cloth Mythology has been a top quality line from Bandai for many years now and Pegasus Tenma is an excellent start to The Lost Canvas line of figures and a good place to start if you;ve ever wanted to check one of these sharp looking figures. You can get yours at HobbyLink Japan.

On a side note, I have finally had a chance to see the 6 first episodes of the series, fan subbed. It's really well done and a bit more mature in tone that early Saint Seiya. It is an excellent place to start if you have ever been interested in the Saint Seiya Mythology but have been overwhelmed at the rich and long history of the series. It's an excellent beginning point without knowing a thing about the history.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water....Dun, Dun....Dun, Dun....Dun, Dun......

From Wikipedia

The Brave of Gold Goldran is a Japanese anime television series series begun in 1995, created by Sunrise under the direction of Shinji Takamatsu, and was the sixth in the Yuusha meta-series funded by Takara and produced by Sunrise. Goldran follows the adventures of three young boys who are tasked with finding alien robot fighters, or Braves, that are sleeping in the form of crystals. Their major antagonist is the flamboyant and thoroughly incompetent Walter, and the villains that follow him are often similarly humorous. The entire show is extremely focused on comedy and silliness almost to the exclusion of much in the way of storytelling, although the series does develop some running plot lines towards its end. In terms of television ratings, Goldran was the peak of the Brave series' popularity.

Today I will be reviewing the Captain Shark DX re-issue, made by Sonokong/Takara. The sample for review can be purchased rather cheaply from our friends over at Big Bad Toy Store, Please check them out or just click on the Ebay links at the bottom of the page for links to help find any live auctions for the item reviewed today.

Captain Shark is hails from the anime The Brave of Gold Goldran. Captain Shark is basically a space pirate/battleship in the familiar shape of a shark, hence the name. He has an excitable demeanor with a keen mind and will often play the straight man. His right eye is hidden under an eye-patch until it is used as a targeting scope for the HYPER GALACTIC BURST MODE ATTACK.

Captain Shark is a very formidable adversary, his weapons include:

Shoulder Cannon
Captain Sword
Spiral Launcher
Spring Shot
Shark Cannon
Hook
Harpoon

To start off with, Captain Shark comes to you in the now familiar, beautifully illustrated, heavy corrugated cardboard box shown below.

I wanted to show you a close up of Captain Shark's head. Notice the pirate hat and eye-patch. Its an unusual design to say the least. Even though it is unique, who doesn't like pirates and giant robots? They go together like chocolate and peanut butter!

Captain Shark stands approximately 11.5 inches tall in robot mode and made of quality heavy plastic. He weighs in at a stout 1 1/4 lbs. Articulation is limited to the elbows and upper shoulders.

Heck, who needs articulation when you have some much firepower? This guy is heavily armed! His giant shoulder mounted cannon can fire 16 of the 48 included red missiles by a simple twist of the back of the cannon. But wait, the eye poking goodness doesn't end there! He is also equipped with a wrist mounted firing harpoon and hook. Also, lets not forget his 4 rotating cannons mounted on both shoulders and his swashbuckling sword.

Here is a feature that I really like about the Brave toy line so far, Every accessory has a place to hide. The sword attaches to a clip located on the Captains backside, hook, harpoon and extra missiles store in a shoulder compartments, even the cannon mount can be concealed away neatly. The designers really thought of everything.

If you don't wish to store the sword on the back of the figure, you can always put it clenched in the Shark's teeth.

I know this is showing my age, but you older Saturday Night Live fans might get a kick out of my "Land Shark" mode LOL!

OK, enough fooling around and lets get onto the Space Battleship mode of Captain Shark. In this mode he actually has two different configurations, Spaceship and what I would call a Shark Tank.

In Space Battleship mode, Captain Shark kinda reminds me of something you might see in a Captain Harlock anime. It really looks cool from all angles. I especially like all the guns mounted atop its Shark body.

Moving along to the land based, Shark tank mode. You can see that the cannon mounts atop the body and it now has caterpillar treads that fold out from underneath.

Here is a close up of the caterpillar treads, unfortunately they do not move. However, it does have wheels on the bottom. I really wish that they put rolling treads on this toy.

Here is a close up of the bridge area. I think this could have been alot cooler if they included stickers for the windows. I have been seriously considering doing some custom work to add these.

Finally we have the last few pictures. In these pictures you can see that the shoulder cannon can also be mounted underneath the shark body. You would think that the round shape of the cannon would make this very unstable. Surprisingly, it actually turns out to be very stable due to the fins on the sides of the cannon.

In conclusion, I really enjoy this toy for its design and play value. It is very sturdy and displays really well with my other Brave figures. Furthermore, I think the price of $29.99 at Big Bad Toy Store really makes this toy a steal, so pick one up already!

It is not a bad toy per se, but it doesn’t excel beyond merely bringing back an old-school animation technique.

Video review included!

This toy appears courtesy from HobbyLink Japan.

Thirteen generations ago, special ancient samurai warriors called the Shinkenger were authorized by the Japanese Emperor to defend their country against the Gedoushuu monsters from the mythical Sanzu River. The Shinkenger succeeded, and the Gedoushuu were defeated. Hundreds of years later in 2009, the Gedoushuu have slowly rebuilt themselves and they are slipping through all dark crevasses once more to collect human screams to flood the Sanzu River into the world for their return. Takeru Shiba, the current samurai lord of the Shiba Clan, now summons four vassal samurai from different clans, and arms them with the magical scripture power known as mojikara to become the new Samurai Sentai Shinkenger!

In Act 1- “The Gallant Appearance of the Five Samurai”, the newest generation of Shinkenger assemble together to fight the renewed threat of the demonic Gedoushuu. The Secret Playback-katana ShinkenMaru is the standard-use sidearm for the Shinkenger. While a resilient katana on its own, it is also designed to accept Secret Discs. When a Secret Disc is attached to it, and then infused with a Shinkenger’s mojikara, the associated Disc’s power will be unlocked. Most of the Secret Discs’ powers include special one-on-one attacks, and summoning & controlling busou Origami. Each Shinkenger can also morph their ShinkenMaru at will into their personal-style weapons- Rekka Daizantou, Water Arrow, Wood Spear, Land Slicer, & Heaven Fan- depending on the Secret Disc they each have.

The speaker and On/Off switch are on the right side. The front of the grip has a red trigger that, when depressed, activates one of two sword-swinging sounds. A red LED on the left side also blinks accordingly.

Ordinarily, the ShinkenMaru is utilized with a standard Common Disc (included with the Secret Disc Belt set, sold separately). However, the toy comes with Shinken Red’s personal Secret Disc- the Shishi Disc. When attached to the katana, it allows him to perform his Kaen no Mai (“Fiery Dance”) sword technique/attack. But it also gives Shinken Red authorization to control the giant-sized Shishi Origami when he is inside of it, and the Disc-equipped ShinkenMaru is place into the cockpit’s control pedestal.

. . .

The ShinkenMaru uses a very old motion picture technique for its special gimmick, called a praxinoscope. Used before film cameras were developed in the late-1800s, a series of similar images is placed around a collection of rotating mirrors. Then, when both the images and mirrors are spun at the same speed, it creates the illusion of movement because the human eye is unable to keep track of the movements of the original images (which naturally blur as they spin), but can register the specific angle of only the reflected images. (This is similar to how the centuries-older zoetrope worked, but does not depend on the images being hidden from view altogether. The praxinoscope is considered the direct successor to the zoetrope.)

The Secret Discs are designed around being used for the praxinoscope on the ShinkenMaru. A series of eight slightly-differing ‘cels’ of animation are placed on each Secret Disc, and there are eight corresponding reflective surfaces above the handle. When the Secret Disc is slipped over the handle, it at-first appears as nothing but a hand guard. But, when you spin the rim of the Secret Disc manually, the praxinoscope activates and the cels on the guard become animated on the chrome-plated plastic above!

In the case of the Shishi Disc, the left-reflected profile of the Shishi Origami is seen running & roaring alongside flames in the background.

The ShinkenMaru has an intentionally-hidden tab above the praxinoscope to register its movement. (You can easily hear it clicking loudly when it turns!) The toy can detect two different speeds- ‘normal’ and ‘fast’- and this is tied into how the Shinkenger inject mojikara into the Secret Disc(s).

• Spinning a Secret Disc at ‘normal’ speed, and then squeezing the trigger, activates an extended sword-swinging effect.
• Spinning a Secret Disc at the ‘fast’ speed, and then squeezing the trigger, produces five different sound effects, each coinciding with the Shinkenger’s personal Origami Disc. Each sound effect is pre-programmed into the toy rather than reading it off of the Secret Disc that is attached to it. So regardless of which Disc you have on it, they will each play once in random order.
  • Kaen no Mai / “Fiery Dance” (Shishi Disc, used by Shinken Red)
  • Suiryu no Mai / “Current’s Dance” (Ryuu Disc, used by Shinken Blue)
  • Tenku no Mai / “Heavenly Dance” (Kame Disc, used by Shinken Pink)
  • Kogarashi no Mai / “Winter Winds Dance” (Kuma Disc, used by Shinken Green)
  • Tsuchikemuri no Mai / “Dust Cloud Dance” (Saru Disc, used by Shinken Yellow)

The back of the ShinkenMaru can allow it to be stored into a holder provided on the separately-sold Secret Disc Belt (not shown).

I got this toy under a false pretense. I assumed that, like past card/chip/item-reading toys, this one would be able to read whatever Secret Disc was put onto it, and then provide unique sound effects only when that one Secret Disc was attached. I was wrong. And now I am frustrated because it should have easily been able to do so! Instead, when I put the Shishi Disc on it, I can just as likely get the sound of the Saru or Ryuu Origami screeching, which is wrong according to what is seen in the series. While use of the praxinoscope was cleaver and original (as well as how you activate it, by hand rather than a motor), the entire toy is built upon this one gimmick (as perhaps it should be). Additionally, I thought that having it being able to register a change in speeds was also good. (The clicking of the sensor is annoying and loud, and thus they increased the volume of the speaker to compensate… which makes my ears rattle and ring painfully at the same time!) Really, the only reason I got this toy so that I could plug other Secret Discs from other sets I bought into it to see the animation(s) of each, rather than because it was a role-playing weapon. (I usually don’t collect the weapons and devices used in Super Sentai for personal taste-reasons, so that was a strike against it in my book as well.) The Hiden Saiseitou ShinkenMaru is merely a toy sword with some average sound effects and a single LED (why even bother!?) built into it, and then has a gimmick that only meets your expectations half-way. It is not a bad toy per se, but it doesn’t excel beyond merely bringing back an old-school animation technique.

"I love GOLD!!!!!"

-Goldmember
from Austin Powers

From Wikipedia

The Brave of Gold Goldran is a Japanese anime television series series begun in 1995, created by Sunrise under the direction of Shinji Takamatsu, and was the sixth in the Yuusha meta-series funded by Takara and produced by Sunrise. Goldran follows the adventures of three young boys who are tasked with finding alien robot fighters, or Braves, that are sleeping in the form of crystals. Their major antagonist is the flamboyant and thoroughly incompetent Walter, and the villains that follow him are often similarly humorous. The entire show is extremely focused on comedy and silliness almost to the exclusion of much in the way of storytelling, although the series does develop some running plot lines towards its end. In terms of television ratings, Goldran was the peak of the Brave series' popularity.

Today I will be reviewing the Goldran DX re-issue, made by Sonokong/Takara. The sample for today's review was provided graciously by our friend Jeff Stein over at High End Transformers. Please check them out or just click on the Ebay links at the bottom of the page for a direct link to the item reviewed today.

Goldran is the main mecha character from the anime "The Brave of Gold Goldran" He is essentially a two component robot. One component being a robot that can turn into a car (Dran) that becomes the chest of Goldran. The other being a Mecha Godzilla like robot (Golgon) that turns into Goldran when combined with the first.

To start off with, Goldran comes to you in a beautifully illustrated, heavy corrugated cardboard box shown below.

In the photo below we have Golgon and Dran together in their alternate modes. These are the two mecha that I mentioned above that become Goldran

First up is Dran. Dran's robot mode stand about 5" tall is made out mostly gold chrome plated platic. The Gold Chrome plating looks really sharp and has no visible flaws that I could see. Articulation for Dran is limited to the elbows, so he is basically a "static pose" figure. Dran comes with a sword that can be held in either hand via a peg molded onto the sword. Drans robot mode is rather boring and is pretty underwhelming when compared with the other figure in this set.

Dran's alternate car mode isn't much better than the robot mode. As you can see below, The car has an elongated chassis, giving it awkward looking proportions. However, the car is very solid and its wheels roll freely.

Onto Golgon! Golgon is the Mecha Godzilla looking robot you see below. Golgon stands about 10" and sports a beautiful golden chrome finish like Dran above. This figure has articulation in its arms and jaw, that's about it. Golgon is a pretty impressive figure but sufferers from a few odd proportions due to its design. As you can see, the chest area is rather large, rendering his tiny arms useless. Also, his legs just look odd because of having no visible knee joint. These issues are only minor and I can live with them.

Here is where the real fun begins! Goldran!

Goldran is a truly stunning figure, standing at nearly 12" tall also makes him pretty large. As you can see in the photo below, Goldran includes a sword and sheath. the sheath holds securely to his side and gives Goldran that old Samurai look, very cool indeed!

After examining the five photos above, you can clearly see that Goldran looks great from any angle. Heck, he even looks menacing close up! Proportionally, Goldran is awesome in this mode. I would say he is one of the better looking mecha characters from all the Brave Series.

Goldran doesn't just have good looks.....He also has fire power and tons of it! He has 12 launching mechanisms for plenty of that "you'll shoot your eye out goodness"! Don't worry if you loose a few projectiles testing it out on the family pet or wife, because he includes a total of 48 red missiles!

Shoulder mounted Gatling style launchers that are activated by turning a knob on the backside of the shoulder.

Wrist cuff launchers, just in case the shoulders weren't enough to take out the enemy.

Finally, shin mounted launchers that are almost a concealed weapons at first glance.

Yup, Goldran is alot of fun, but let me show you a few more tricks he has. In the photo below, you can see that it is quite possible to play with Goldran without Dran figure mounted to his chest. I know that this is not in the anime, but its still a cool feature whether it was made this way intentionally or not

In the next photo below we have Goldran with his buddy Sorokage mounted to his back. Sorakage is used a a flight pack giving Goldran the ability to fly. Don't you just love wings on a giant robots? Below that pic we have Goldran's ultimate form, Great Goldran! By the way, don't despair, I will be reviewing Sorokage and the Great Goldran in future reviews

Even with the odd proportions of it's alternate mode, Goldran is a wonderful, quality made toy and should be part of your collection if you love giant transforming robots. And really, who doesn't?

Having already reviewed Fire Dagwon, Power Dagwon, Lian and Gunkid from Sonokong re-issue of Brave Command Dagwon series toys. I figured I would give you a short, mostly pictorial review of what all the figures together transform into..... Get ready for Super Fire Dagwon!

Having already reviewed all the figures in the picture below, Fire Dagwon, Power Dagwon, Lian and Gunkid from Sonokong re-issue of Brave Command Dagwon series toys. I figured I would give you a short, mostly pictorial review of what all the figures together transform into..... Get ready for Super Fire Dagwon!

Please check out the video below. The actual toy transformation is very close to the video.

Here is the impressively huge Super Fire Dagwon standing nearly 15" tall! Not only is the figure tall, it is very heavy, at a little over 3 lbs of quality plastic.

You may recognize Super Fire Dagwons headpiece as the chest piece from Power Dagwon. This is an example of what I really like about the design of Brave Series toys, almost all parts have a place and purpose when transforming.

Articulation of this figure is very good considering its blocky design. Articulation can be found in the shoulders, elbows and the hands can rotate, Oh and lets not forget the articulation in the massive crane arm. Even though this figure does have decent movement, for the most part it is what I would consider a "static pose" figure, due to its size and weight.

The final combination of Super Fire Dagwon with Lian and Gunkid is really "busy" as you can see below. I don't think that he would be able to battle too well in this mode...LOL. He is very overloaded in this mode and weighs in at a staggering 5.5 lbs!

I feel that Super Fire Dagwon is possibly one of the best of all the combined Brave Series Robots. Well, maybe the second best.... I really like Great Goldran but I'll cover that later. If you dig this figure as much as I do, please check out Big Bad Toy Store to get your own!

The Virtual On's Viper II makes its model kit debut from Kotobukiya. No need to insert coins to continue!

Sega’s Cyber Troopers: Virtual On -Oratorio Tangram arcade booth was set up in the same fashion as racing games only geared towards fighting robots. The set up was limited to a foot pedal and twin joysticks that functioned according to the game’s 3D movement and worked pretty well at the time. Despite its global popularity, the game was an obscurity in South Georgia, where this review was made. The premise of the game was the standard of fighting games; one on one combat against other machines in a tournament format where the player would progress until they faced off with a final boss with a two-player mode for arcade Versus Action. Since its creation, the Virtual On series has been ported (the game industry term for transitioning between formats) to the Sega brand game consoles: the Saturn and Dreamcast as well as the Sony Playstation. In recent years, Virtual On has been available to download through the Microsoft X-Box 360 Live Arcade.

Not to be compared with Mobile Suits, the machines of Virtual On are called “Virtualoids,” a menagerie of mecha in all shapes and sizes created by artist Hajime Katoki. The TRV-06k-H Viper II is one of the series more dynamic looking designs comprised of sharp edges along a streamlined frame. Its sharp look is coupled with a sharp color scheme of rich neon colors of cherry pink and purple with green detailing lights over a black and gray frame in its premiere form.

Taking up the task of recreating this design in plastic is Kotobukiya, infamous for their work on Super Robot Wars: Original Generation and Armored Core. Although Kotobukiya’s plastic quality lacks the refinement and polish seen with Bandai model kits, the craftsmanship in its recreation makes up for that in the quality of the detailing and part molding.

Following the alphanumeric method, the parts are molded in their individual colors, with duplicate runners to make up for the design’s use of repeated construction steps for the limbs. The parts are molded in their primary colors: neon (cherry) pink, purple, gray, white, and black with a runner of clear green parts for the Viper II’s running lights. Interestingly enough, these clear parts have a cross hatching pattern on the backside which can be exemplified by painting over the surface with a metallic paint. In addition, the Viper II also comes with a small runner of ball socket polycap pieces for the joints. Contrary to previous Kotobukiya models, the Viper II does not have any pre-painted parts. On the upside, much of the required painting is simply black outlining and gray trim to detail around subassemblies with some minor touch-up work around smaller parts. Builders taking the ‘Out of the box’ approach can have the model completed in no time, but the extra effort in painting the model can really show off the details of some areas and improve on the monochromatic build.

Adding an extra layer of detail and color to the model are a set of water-slide decals. The decals were a troublesome bane in this review, as most of them did not bond to the model, despite being prepared properly. The two that did survive the transfer are a hollow reminder of the model’s full potential for more experienced decal artists to bring out on their own.

Construction of the Viper II moves quickly, as parts are layered over each other in a given fashion.

Despite what one can assume from a lifetime of 1/100 scale Bandai models, the Viper II is not very tall, measuring at six inches from head to heel tip. This comes as a surprise at first, but looking over the remaining designs of the Virtual On series the surprise wears off and settles into a realization of scale that the Viper II is just one of many smaller designs in the Virtualoid roster. Its scale size does however make for some construction grievances with its smaller, easily lost, parts.

The Viper II as a plastic model is more dynamic than its once simplified digital model from the video games. Once painted exteriors on low resolution digital squares of polygons have now become finely detailed, mechanical assemblies in molded plastic. Each section of the body has more assembly to it than a first glance expectation with the entire body of the Viper II being built from within. The design has the model built with an interior mechanical structure that contains the joint couplings which are then covered by a layer of armor plating. The noticeable gaps and separations between the two layers are complimented with the clear green detail parts which fit into specific crevices in the underlying layers. Another good point to discuss is the hands. In the Bandai standards for Gundam models, hands are typically a two to three piece structure (except in Master Grade format) consisting of the fingers molded together and attached to the palm and backhand pieces. As this is not a Bandai model, the Viper II benefits from Kotobukiya’s extensive modeling practices and has its hands molded in four separate pieces; the fingers, thumb, palm, and backhand. The molding of each finger in the solid piece is distinguishable by the folding of the knuckles, and the separated thumb gives the hands a more natural look, rather than the toy-like blocks on some kits.

The Viper II has only the minimal amount of accessory parts to compliment its display value. Its arm mounted weapon, the “Revenant Version 1.666,” comes with a clear molded beam blade that can be detached. As for its “booster” gimmick, the wings on its backpack can articulate into a glider mode, and a detachable disk can be placed in the opening console on its backpack. Lastly, Kotobukiya included a bracket for the Viper II to fit onto a base stand not included with this model. The stand bracket is designed to attach with Kotobukiya’s ratcheting arm display stands for its aircraft models but cannot fit with the Bandai Action Base.

Not every kit is perfect though. Like many Kotobukiya kits before this one, the edged pieces of the Viper II are sharp enough to draw blood. However sadistic it might seem, the Viper II makes up for this in the sculpted detail. While it makes the final product more aesthetically pleasing, the sharpness adds to the model’s fragility. Sharper parts are generally thinner at their edges and are more prone to crumbling at the tips if it is worked with or adjusted too much. The most significant flaw with the Viper II is that it is delicate and stiff display model. Stemming from its eccentric knee design and compounded by the sharp heel design, the legs have limited mobility and a fragile distribution in its standing position.

Although the model kit follows the now-universal “Snap Construction” method, there are still quite a few points on this kit that benefit from using model glue. Parts that are sharply detailed have limited tensile strength to hold themselves in place such as the previously mentioned running lights. Some of the larger parts as well will see a dramatic improvement on the Viper II’s structure through glue in some areas as well.

Overall, it is good to see non-Gundam series receiving model kit treatment, but even more appealing to see Virtual On again in some form. After the series’ short lived and poorly executed toy line, the model kits are an excellent redemption and make up for the series absence from the scene. The Viper II benefits from Kotobukiya’s standards of design quality and makes for a great introductory build into the series despite its sharp shortcomings.

Shaider for the USA!

As far as I can tell, Star Searchers was Bandai’s attempt to market Toei’s Metal Heroes to an American audience. Zeric is clearly Space Sheriff Shaider, although I’m not sure of the original toy mold.

Zeric is larger than the standard Popy size, measuring 7.5 inches high. If the back of the box is to be believed, a similar model of Sharivan was also released in America.

Zeric is a great figure, mostly plastic but with a substantial heft provided by the diecast rear leg components. The rest of the toy is executed in sharply detailed chromium, in blue and silver.

Zeric’s primary gimmick is a light/sound feature, activated by a switch on his back. His eyes and chest pulse along with a throbbing laser noise.

For a light/sound figure, Zeric is surprisingly articulated, with movement at his neck, shoulders, elbows, hips, and knees.

The fit and finish is pure Popy. This is a quality toy.

Zeric comes with two accessories, a sword and a gun. The gun fits nicely in its holster.

Given the dearth of Metal Hero product in the US, I recommend picking up any Star Searchers product you can get ahold of.

Villainous Obstinate Tilting Overbearing Man-candy.

Even in the harsh jungles of Kumen, Votoms still has room for fanciful ideas such as an ace pilot with a custom paint scheme. The mysterious Ypsilon tears up the jungle in his custom ATH-14-WPC Snapping Turtle, which is distinguished from the regular grunts by its striking deep blue and white color scheme.

This Snapping Turtle is part of the same series of toys at the Diving Beetle I also reviewed. Toys from this line are made from a combination of ABS plastic and diecast metal.

Just like the Diving Beetle, the Snapping Turtle comes in a terrific looking box adorned with a illustration of the Snapping Turtle by artist Shin Ueda.

The back functions as a combination sticker and painting guide.

One side features a short bio on the mysterious (and pretty) Ypsilon and the crazy english Votoms logo.

The other side shows off two very different explanations of the "VOTOMS" acronym.

The toy itself is made primarily of blue plastic with a little diecast in the chest. It has far less diecast than the Diving Beetle.

The toy comes with a few stickers which help liven up the bare blue surface of the toy.

Unlike the Diving Beetle, the Snapping Turtle dares to have some useful articulation. A pair of knee joints let this old toy achieve a fairly convincing walking pose.

The recent smattering of 1:60 scale toys has made me into a bit of a scale nut. Together with the 1:60 Exia and a figure from the Destroid Defender I can make my Snapping Turtle stand tall at the feet of giants.

For a repaint, it’s not that great. No special or unique details beyond the original Jetfire mold. But, those same molds are still awesome.

Multi-video review included!

The distant planet of Cybertron was the home to a race of intelligent, feeling alien robots who could change shape at will- the Transformers. For reasons no longer remembered by anyone living, a war broke out between the two factions of robots- the Autobots and the Decepticons- which eventually drained Cybertron of all its power sources, including all-important Energon. In the quest to get more Energon to sustain their fight, the Autobots created the Ark and some of them left Cybertron. But the power-hungry Decepticons were waiting for them in their great flagship, the Nemesis, and boarded the Ark to stop them. A battle between the two ships eventually brought them both crashing down onto Earth. With their leaders and greatest warriors lost, the war on Cybertron continued on to a stalemate. For over four million years, the Ark rested hidden inside a volcano located in what would eventually become Oregon, its occupants unconscious and helpless in stasis lock. Then in 1984, the volcano harboring the Ark erupted, reawakening the on-board computer system Teletraan-1. The computer, realizing that the ship and its crew were in danger, awoke the Transformers aboard the Ark, and reformatted them to change into disguises matching those of modern day Earth vehicles so that the giant robots could move among the population in secret. The surviving Decepticons, having lost their great ship millions of years earlier, also gained new disguise forms and hid themselves on Earth until they could rebuild their forces and gather enough Energon to destroy the Autobots, subvert the intrusive and annoying humans, and renew the war on Cybertron in their quest for total galactic domination.

Tread Bolt is a member of the Autobots’ Air Patrol; one of the few of their numbers capable of sustained flight. As such, this means he usually operates alone far from support, and thus needs to eliminate any Decepticon threat quickly or risk being overwhelmed. But he isn’t concerned about being detected, since his entire chassis is covered in radar-refractive armor, making him invisible to all but the most advanced enemy sensors. And his speed & aerial prowess make him a formidable opponent as well. His fellow Air Patrol bots often team together high in orbit around Earth with their rocket engines for high-speed air drops & interception missions behind Decepticon front lines, taking them by surprise. Unfortunately, in his off-time, Tread Bolt likes to practice his stealth techniques on fellow Autobots much to their chagrin, making him an honored-yet-less-favored member.

. . .

This Transformers Universe (aka Classics 2.0) figure is a repaint of the original 2006 Voyager-class Autobot Jetfire set- itself based on a character that appeared in the classic Generation One cartoon series in 1984. The first (and, thus far, only) version of Tread Bolt appeared as a Micromaster-sized (1½ - 2” tall) robot during the debuting Generation 1 era (1984-86). He was not a part of the original cartoon- re-colored or otherwise- as the first toy was an original design made after the series ended in 1986.

Vehicle Mode

(unarmored)

Robot Mode

(unarmored)

Tread Bolt’s original vehicle mode was a “sub-orbital craft”, and his color scheme was metallic blue and basic yellow, and highlights of silver. The gold “Air Defense” label across the Classics 2.0 version is a carryover from the Micromaster toy which had it in an identical position (but said "Air Patrol" instead). Unlike earlier toys from the Transformers Classics line in 2007, Tread Bolt lacks the temperature-sensitive decal which shows his allegiance- a gold Autobot logo has been printed behind his cockpit, which eventually ends up in front of his head on top of his chest.

Accessory armor

(details)

Vehicle Mode

(armored)

Robot Mode

(armored)

I got this specific set because I missed my chance to get Jetfire the first time around, being that he was so popular with Trans-fans. While the toy itself is still fantastic (I didn’t like the arms not transforming at all and just hanging off the sides), the color scheme just doesn’t work for me. Blue and black, with highlights of orange and yellow would have been fine, but it’s the brown which throws that off. For example, if there was no blue or even yellow, the brown would have worked. Starting out as a supped-up F-14 Tomcat in a livery reminiscent of the United States Navy’s Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron is fine, but then to dump a lot of dark coloring on the robot mode spoils that.

For a repaint, it’s not that great. No special or unique details beyond the original Jetfire mold. But, those same molds are still awesome. So, if you can ignore the coloring (maybe repaint it yourself so you don’t have to damage your Jetfire), then the Voyager-class Autobot Tread Bolt set will satisfy your needs.

Be sure to read the more-detailed description of Voyager-class Autobot Jetfire, reviewed by CollectionDX’s own Atom.

And now, for some special bonus material!