The butterfly effect of Bandai’s premium & popular Shinkocchou Seihou sub-line of Figuarts has finally reached Rider Machines! While not officially labeled as an S.S. release, the brand new S.H. Figuarts Hardboilder is undoubtedly a renewal meant to replace the original release of this bike.
Hardboilder is of course the faithful ride of Kamen Rider W, and a perfect companion piece to the Shinkocchou Seihou W Figuart released last year. While this renewal definitely won’t be as significantly different from the original as many others have been in recent years, it is on the whole a more accurate and well proportioned update.
We’ve attached a selection of images to this post, but you can see the full 40 image gallery after the jump. Just click “Discuss on the TokuNation Forums” at the bottom of this post. We’ll be back soon with a brand new gallery from Space Sheriff Gavan!
"Kamen Riders are this city's symbol of hope!"
It's been a while since we visited the city of Fuuto. Last time around we took a look at the impressive Shinkocchou Seihou Kamen Rider W A long overdue renewal of the ancient figuarts W. Now it's his Rider Machines' turn. By most modern standards the original Hardboilder is still a great release. But to pair up with the Seihou W, Bandai decided to go back to the drawing board with a brand new mold for S.H. Figuarts Hardboilder.
Packaging
Hardboilder comes in about one of the most typical boxes you'll see. Rider Machines aren't usually in anything extravagant, Web Exclusives even more so because of the closed box style. There are some great gray scale photos on the black edges of the box that I really like, but everything else is pretty standard. So don't look for much different here.
Main Figure
Once again this will probably be a pretty brief review of a Rider Machine. These vehicles generally don't offer a ton of functionality. These are just glorified accessories for Riders themselves very often. And unfortunately that's more true for this release than the original Hardboilder.
Although the original Hardboilder had a transformation gimmick, this new release does not. And aside from this, the physical differences are minimal. Essentially this newly designed Hardboilder is just a bit different size wise to scale with Seihou W. There just are not a ton of differences. The differences you can point out, are the more vibrant greens on the renewal, as well as more well defined details, such as the really intricate speedometer on the dash.
As I mentioned the transformation gimmick has been totally removed this go around. The original Hardboilder could remove it's front axel, and split diagonally in half to equip the Dashboost & Turbuler units. Although the 3rd, the Hardsplasher, was never produced. But this functionality isn't present in the new bike. Which is smart because despite the fandom love for W the show, the other units never sold very well originally. It's sad to lose that, but I don't miss it quite that much either.
Honestly that's about all you can say about a release like this. Photos of it speak for themselves. With W on board, the Hardboilder looks better than ever.
Accessories
Just the standard single accessory that most Rider Machines come with these days, the Wheel Base. That isn't unexpected but it's always disappointing to see a release with little to no accessories. Even just another scarf for W would have been nice to see. But oh well.
Final Thoughts
As is often the case with a Rider Machine, I'm not incredibly impressed with this figure on it's own. But you can't really take it in properly without the Rider that's meant to accompany it. S.H. Figuarts Hardboilder is a great if somewhat unnecessary update to the original release which came out so long ago. If you feel like you need to upgrade to this release then go for it, but I don't know that you'll be unhappy keeping the original either.
Yeah... even though bikes are what puts the "rider" in "Kamen Rider", I haven't been very attracted to the Figuarts releases. The only one I would probably get is Battle Hopper just because it counts as a character for me.
But otherwise? I prefer just buying the Riders themselves.
Having said that, Shinkocchou Seihou Double looks amazing on his bike. Really cool. Thanks for the pictures Den-O!
But otherwise? I prefer just buying the Riders themselves.
Having said that, Shinkocchou Seihou Double looks amazing on his bike. Really cool. Thanks for the pictures Den-O!
There's always a special exception for the Ride Chaser though, which looks amazing.
Really wish they did a bundle with the other parts
Hardboilder's very nostalgic, being the first bike I saw in the franchise. Very nice to see
There are very few Rider machines that tempt me, but this is one. If it were compatible with alternate back-halves of the bike, I might've broken down and gotten it. I don't know where I'd put it, but W was among those relatively-rare Rider shows in which the bike make a fairly regular appearance.
Nice looking bike
While the two-tone colours give this one some interest, it's still a kinda-generic bike. At least it looks powerful.
I'm glad they remade the boilder, especially after how boring the original looked.
Aside from the front moustache I love this design. I like that it's a ninja bike instead of a motorcross style, the two-tone look is almost something you'd see on a real bike and the "W" on the side is understated.
Keep reading: S.H. Figuarts Hardboilder (Renewal) Gallery - Page 2
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