The third release of the S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Gaim line from Tamashii Nations is none other than the original melon warrior – Kamen Rider Zangetsu! A general release item, this figure retailed between 4,000 and 5,000 yen depending on where you ordered it from and at the time of this gallery and review is still readily available online as well as your favorite import shops (though prices will vary).
Kamen Rider Zangetsu, for those who do not follow the show Kamen Rider Gaim (you NEED to go watch it RIGHT NOW), is the prototype suit for Takatora, one of the heads of the Yggdrasill corporation. It is the first Armored Right suit to be made and was the test suit for all the others. The suit was only used in the show for the first 12 episodes or so of Kamen Rider Gaim before Takatora took up the Energy Rider suit known as Kamen Rider Zangetsu Shin (which has it’s S.H. Figuart release later this month!). The suit does appear again in the latter part of the 30’s in the show, but you’ll have to watch it for yourself as we do not believe in spoiling major story elements in our reviews!
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Kamen Rider Zangetsu comes with your standard accessory line-up – 4 sets of interchangeable hands, a different handle for the Melon Defender shield, the actual Melon Defender shield, a Musou Saber, a closed Melon Lock Seed, the open Melon Lock Seed attached to the Sengoku Driver, a removable clip to hold the Musou Saber on the belt, and of course the figure itself. The variety of hands allow for dramatic poses that match the show and allow the Musou Saber and Melon Defender to be held in either hand.
Now if you’re an unlucky guy like me you will be disappointed to know that Kamen Rider Zangetsu suffers from the same inert problem that Kamen Rider Gaim suffers from – the clip that holds the Musou Saber is fragile – it either won’t hold the Musou Saber very well, or if you’re like me and live in a dry climate, the clip’s glue will simply be too dry to hold the clip together and it falls apart. I am now the happy owner of two figures with broken clips. Sadly, the clip fell apart during the gallery so the early pictures will have the clip in place while other pictures later will not – some of them I was able to get it back on at least to take the picture, but other times it just wouldn’t stay. Sigh.
AccessoriesKamen Rider Zangetsu comes with a plethora of great accessories that really add to the figure. The fact you have two different handles for the Melon Defender is nice as the shield itself is bulky and a little heavy – the hands struggle to hold it firmly without the wrist joint dropping down. I fear that having the figure hold the Melon Defender for too long will result in bum wrist joints that won’t allow you to hold it later on.
Zangetsu also comes with his Musou Saber, giving you two total (if you purchased S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Gaim. The detailing on the sculpt for both the Musou Saber and the Melon Defender are perfect – especially the Melon Defender. Every little intricate detail from the show is nearly identical in the figure, from the texture of the melon themed armor to the face place on the Sengoku Driver. As with the other releases in the line, the sword on the Sengoku Driver is movable, allowing you to recreate various squash attacks like in the show.
The FigureI can’t stress how amazing the detail is in the actual armor – it’s so much that my camera gave me a headache as I took pictures because it kept wanting to focus on the details on any part of the figure that was sticking out slightly more than other pieces – not a bad thing in terms of a figure but a minor headache when trying to take high resolution galleries. You can see the detail for yourself in a lot of the pictures we’ve put up.
All the joints on my copy were tight – though swapping out the hands made me a little nervous. I don’t know what it is about white plastic but it always feels “cheap” compared to darker plastics (that comes down to plastic quality based on color, lighter colors tend to be more fragile). I found myself a little afraid to pull or push too hard when swapping out hands in fear that I would break the ball joint.
The body type and armor on the joints and legs is more or less the same on S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Gaim, but doesn’t pop off as easily as similar pieces did on S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Baron. Still, it’s pretty awesome to have that amount of detail and (if you’re in to customizing) available to you. The shoulder armor didn’t feel fragile at all and I never worried that they would pop off when I moved the character’s shoulders and arms.
The Good- Armor detailing
- Melon Defender
- Overall look and feel
- The clip for the Musou Saber
- White plastic scares me for fragile hands and ball joints
- Weight of the Melon Defender
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Zangetsu is my favorite S.H. Figuart to date. I think it looks better than S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Gaim and Baron, but that may be my personal preference as I love the sword and shield motif on figures. It’s a shame that this figure isn’t better represented on the show because it just looks bad ass. If you’re even a casual fan of Kamen Rider Gaim I cannot recommend this figure enough. Just be careful of that clip and the headaches of white plastic and you’ll be very happy with your purchase.
Melon!
The third release of the S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Gaim line from Tamashii Nations is none other than the original melon warrior - Kamen Rider Zangetsu! A general release item, this figure retailed between 4,000 and 5,000 yen depending on where you ordered it from and at the time of this gallery and review is still readily available online as well as your favorite import shops (though prices will vary).
Kamen Rider Zangetsu, for those who do not follow the show Kamen Rider Gaim (you NEED to go watch it RIGHT NOW), is the prototype suit for Takatora, one of the heads of the Yggdrasill corporation. It is the first Armored Right suit to be made and was the test suit for all the others. The suit was only used in the show for the first 12 episodes or so of Kamen Rider Gaim before Takatora took up the Energy Rider suit known as Kamen Rider Zangetsu Shin (which has it's S.H. Figuart release later this month!). The suit does appear again in the latter part of the 30's in the show, but you'll have to watch it for yourself as we do not believe in spoiling major story elements in our reviews!
Kamen Rider Zangetsu comes with your standard accessory line-up - 4 sets of interchangeable hands, a different handle for the Melon Defender shield, the actual Melon Defender shield, a Musou Saber, a closed Melon Lock Seed, the open Melon Lock Seed attached to the Sengoku Driver, a removable clip to hold the Musou Saber on the belt, and of course the figure itself. The variety of hands allow for dramatic poses that match the show and allow the Musou Saber and Melon Defender to be held in either hand.
Now if you're an unlucky guy like me you will be disappointed to know that Kamen Rider Zangetsu suffers from the same inert problem that Kamen Rider Gaim suffers from - the clip that holds the Musou Saber is fragile - it either won't hold the Musou Saber very well, or if you're like me and live in a dry climate, the clip's glue will simply be too dry to hold the clip together and it falls apart. I am now the happy owner of two figures with broken clips. Sadly, the clip fell apart during the gallery so the early pictures will have the clip in place while other pictures later will not - some of them I was able to get it back on at least to take the picture, but other times it just wouldn't stay. Sigh.
Accessories
Kamen Rider Zangetsu comes with a plethora of great accessories that really add to the figure. The fact you have two different handles for the Melon Defender is nice as the shield itself is bulky and a little heavy - the hands struggle to hold it firmly without the wrist joint dropping down. I fear that having the figure hold the Melon Defender for too long will result in bum wrist joints that won't allow you to hold it later on.
Zangetsu also comes with his Musou Saber, giving you two total (if you purchased S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Gaim. The detailing on the sculpt for both the Musou Saber and the Melon Defender are perfect - especially the Melon Defender. Every little intricate detail from the show is nearly identical in the figure, from the texture of the melon themed armor to the face place on the Sengoku Driver. As with the other releases in the line, the sword on the Sengoku Driver is movable, allowing you to recreate various squash attacks like in the show.
The Figure
I can't stress how amazing the detail is in the actual armor - it's so much that my camera gave me a headache as I took pictures because it kept wanting to focus on the details on any part of the figure that was sticking out slightly more than other pieces - not a bad thing in terms of a figure but a minor headache when trying to take high resolution galleries. You can see the detail for yourself in a lot of the pictures we've put up.
All the joints on my copy were tight - though swapping out the hands made me a little nervous. I don't know what it is about white plastic but it always feels "cheap" compared to darker plastics (that comes down to plastic quality based on color, lighter colors tend to be more fragile). I found myself a little afraid to pull or push too hard when swapping out hands in fear that I would break the ball joint.
The body type and armor on the joints and legs is more or less the same on S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Gaim, but doesn't pop off as easily as similar pieces did on S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Baron. Still, it's pretty awesome to have that amount of detail and (if you're in to customizing) available to you. The shoulder armor didn't feel fragile at all and I never worried that they would pop off when I moved the character's shoulders and arms.
The Good
The Bad
Overall
S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Zangetsu is my favorite S.H. Figuart to date. I think it looks better than S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Gaim and Baron, but that may be my personal preference as I love the sword and shield motif on figures. It's a shame that this figure isn't better represented on the show because it just looks bad ass. If you're even a casual fan of Kamen Rider Gaim I cannot recommend this figure enough. Just be careful of that clip and the headaches of white plastic and you'll be very happy with your purchase.
More pics! Including the "cute" ones.
Yours seems slightly whiter than mine, though I can't be sure if it's just the lighting.
White plastic scares me because it's so prone to discoloration. if I end up getting Takatora he might be staying in the box. Out of direct sunlight. Like one of those kids from The Others.
One word- Beautiful. No wonder Oren fell for him.
Cool
I hear many great things on the Gaim figuarts. Bluefin not releasing them makes it harder for me to buy them since most stores will sell them for higher prices due to import fees. I'm not using Ebay for them unless they show up used for a good deal. I see scalpers selling them for $80 on Ebay.
The photos are great as always.
I'm wondering if the Arms of the Figuarts Gaim figures are interchangeable with each other. I've seen photos where this might have been possible.
You have to customize them and even then it isn't perfect. Most of the people who've done it have simply taken the torso chunk from one figure and swapped it over to another, but there's almost no way to make the helmet appropriate with out proper tools and high customization skills.
Keep reading: S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Zangetsu Gallery and Review - Page 2
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