I picked up my GX-23 Zambot 3 from the post office a couple of days ago. Just perfect! Only a few days late from my birthday. Package was big, but surprisingly light. Upon opening the package, the image of Zambot 3 on the box was just staring at me, begging me to open it. A quick use of the knife and the Zambot 3 is free from it's cardboard coffin.

My first impression....WOW! Looking at the parts and accessories, from the styro trays alone left me in awe.

The Zambot vehicles were assembled first, and they are very nice. Shiny, very nice paint job, very nice weight/heft. Of the three, Zambot Ace was the clear favorite. He's like a semi-die cast metal MSiA, with a lot of posability, and accessories.

The Zambull was the bad boy of the lot, and the Zambase was the sleekest.

The "gattai" of the 3 vehicles to form Zambot 3, was very simple. The different parts, come together very smoothly, without risk of chipping. The locks are very solid and holds the pieces together very well. The completed Zambot 3 is very stable, and not wobbly at all.

While it cannot boast in terms of die cast metal content, Bandai made sure that it had enough metal where it counted. The Zambot 3 wasn't heavy, but it wasn't too light either. In my opinion, the heft and weight is "just right" for play.

Zambot 3 doesn't skimp on accessories. The variety of bladed weapons in his arsenal, plus that nasty looking Ion cannon, really complement the Samurai looking Zambot 3.

With what Zambot Ace has in terms of articulation, unfortunately goes missing in the completed Zambot 3. The arms on the completed toy move effortlessly, without being floppy in any way, and the articulated spare hands, complement that range of movement very well. However, the very minimal thigh articulation, greatly reduces any ability of the toy to do a dynamic, or even a simple, and fairly decent pose. I guess this can be called as a compromise for a perfectly combining toy.

ISSUES

1. Translucent Plastic Parts - Just about every yellow plastic piece on this toy is translucent, and brittle plastic. I can understand the concern that other reviewers have with this. The yellow plastic accessories on the Zambot 3, aren't even close to the quality of the plastics used on the first SOC's (e.g. Scrander plastics for 01 & 02).
   
2. Thigh Articulation - The knees have very good mobility, but the very minimal range that the thigh joints can move to, limits the toy's ability to do some decent poses.
   
3. Bad Fitting Zambot Buster - The Zambot Buster (at least on mine) don't fit the knee pegs at all. I was thinking it could simply be tight, so I pushed the Buster, and ended up with a small chip on the inner wall of the peg hole. Apparently the paint on that specific area was too thick. Temporary solution? Don't put the Zambot Buster on! Planning on sanding it a bit later.
   
4. Extra Hands - While the articulated fingers on one pair of the spare hands was a nice add on, it' doesn't do the job well. It may be able to hold on to the Zambot Buster nicely, but it does poorly with the others, particularly the Zambot Blow (Sai's attached to a metallic staff). A spare "grip" fist would have done nicely. At least, the Zambot Blow weapon will stay in a stable grip, without constanly sliding off.
   
5. Ankle - The Zambot 3 tends to lean forward. Found out the ankle did not have the proper resistance to handle the weight, so it leans. The ankles could have use a ratcheted section to give it some balance and a stable stance.

Overall, the Zambot 3 is an impressive toy. The metallic staff was a good change from the usual rubbery (read: crappy) ones used in older SOC's (GX-04's Double Harken). It gives the Zambot Blow a more solid feel, reminiscent of the Getter Tomahawk for Miracle House Shin Getter One.

Design and engineering is wonderful. The gattai is so great, you can't even tell that the Z3 splits into 3 separate vehicles.

Aside from the minor gripes above, the GX-23 is an awesome toy. The sheer presence of the toy in your display stand, is reason enough to get it.

Zanbot 3 was released in May of 2004 at a retail price of ¥18,690.

Hope you enjoyed my review!

Pictures by Russell Cox

Additional Pictures borrowed from unleasheD of GreatToys.Net BBS.