S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Great Cross-Z Gallery

"Not yet. I'll stand up, as many times as I have to."

Faced with the inability to transform, Ryuga Banjou can only watch helplessly as Kazumi & Gentoku struggle against Kamen Rider Evol. Possessing the body of Sento has made the alien menace stronger than ever, but it's also pushed Ryuga beyond his limits! Stealing the Evol Dragon Bottle that was made from his own DNA, Banjou will unlock the power necessary to evolve even further. Reborn with even greater strength Ryuga has become Kamen Rider Great Cross-Z!

Packaging
As with the figure itself, the packaging here is also an easy pallet swap of the original release. There's nothing particularly new or striking about it, Build releases all look pretty solid overall though. It fits in quite nicely with the rest of them.

Main Figure
So Great Cross-Z is one of the easier repaints the line has given us in recent memory. Think GenM Level 2 & 0, those two are different in subtle ways, similar to Great and regular Cross-Z. As such, it's 100% identical in a functional sense to the original release.

The core body of this figure is largely identical to Build Rabbit/Tank Form. The legs are essentially just like Build. The only mold difference being the removal of the rabbit spring from the left leg. The two legs are now designed symmetrically, both in blue, with the right thigh band featuring Cross-Z's orange flames. The legs are totally unchanged when compared to original Cross-Z. The only issue this release has with the legs are tight knees. So tight that they squeak when posing some. The ankles as always could stand to have a better tilt.

At the waist is the now standard Build Driver. This is carried directly over from the previous Cross-Z so the driver itself is identical to that of Build's as well. The new addition here is of course the Great Cross-Z Dragon which is removable. The Great Dragon is of course red compared to the original but functions just the same. This one features the newly sculpted Great Dragon Evolbottle as well. As before it's compatible with both the Build Driver and Twin Breaker.

For the upper body, the big change is the new paint job on the shoulder and chest armor which comes down from the neck and shoulders and over the chest. This "Drago Live Razor" is now painted in sort of cosmic themed Kamen Rider Evol style designs which I really really like. As before be careful when bending the torso as the tips of this armor will impact the Driver & Dragon which could easily cause a break or chipping. Otherwise the articulation of the upper body isn't really impacted. The core chest is unchanged aside from the new emblem between the chest plates. Honestly the shade of gold used for the emblem and armor trim looks so much better to me than the blue outline of the old armor. The arms are practically identical to Ryuga's original form. The only difference is the addition of gold paint to the upper arm spikes in place of the white that was there previously. The rest of each arm is the same.

Now as with the first Cross-Z, that head is striking. The symmetrical look that Banjou got with most of his forms sits in stark contrast to most of Sento's forms. The matching visor components give the head a lot more unity with the rest of the suit. And in these new Evol style colors, Cross-Z has never looked better. The base blue is the only thing carried over. Where the mouth plate was white before, it's gold now. The dragon compound visors are a more rich shade of blue which I appreciate. And the orange parts set into the center of the head have been changed to the same blue as the helmet, while the panel behind them is red. Creating a small menacing dragon face peering through, which I love.

As far as easy repaints go, I love this one.

Accessories
Great Cross-Z comes with identical accessories as the original:

5 - additional hands. That's 2 for holding his sword, one for grabbing the lever on the Build Driver,
and 2 open palms for dynamic posing.

1 - Beat Crosser. Cross-Z's unique musical/rhythm based weapon that honestly didn't get a ton of play in the early part of the show. Especially after Banjou's transition to the Sclash Driver. Primarily unchanged from the first release, this one still features a Lock Full Bottle set in the handle. Though it is slightly darker than the first release.

1 - Grip End Starter. This is a replacement part for the bottom of the Beat Crosser grip. The regular grip can't pull out to simulate Banjou's finishing move, so this swap out part is included to do the job. It's a largely unnecessary inclusion, but I appreciate that it's there.

Can't complain about that. We get everything the original came with and there's nothing new that would be missing at all. Bravo on releasing a straight repaint and not capping the accessories Bandai.

Final Thoughts
Look if you like the original Cross-Z Figuart, I see no reason not to get Great Cross-Z as well. I know it's the same mold, but that just means it's great. If you love this character or this series, you owe it to yourself to pick up a release like this. It's one that many could easily pass on, but I see the merits of owning. With Cross-Z Magma on the way later this year, that means we're only one form away from a complete set of Ryuga Banjou's powers. Cross-Z Evol & Cross-Z Build are the two big omissions so far. Time will tell if we ever actually get them for him. Technically speaking when his body was possessed by Evolt, he also had access to Evil Cobra & Dragon as well. So bring them all on Bandai!

Part 2

Personally I wouldn't get recolours in my collection but this was a VERY tempting figure. Just demands Norio Wakamoto screaming "YAAAAAAAAY" and this gallery is perfect, as the comparison shots helped show the differences such as the overall darker colour scheme but the eyes looking lighter due to the lack of the orange 'crest'

I'm impressed that they included the beat crosser. It would be an easy thing for them to leave out, make it so the only way to get it was the original Cross-Z release. That aside, new deco looks pretty snazzy. Not enough to buy it, I already have the base Cross-Z, but still pretty cool looking

This, despite being a repaint, is ons of my favorite designs from build, the crimson red really contrasts well againsts ths metalic navy blue, and the touches of gold just perfect it.

I can only echo what everyone else is saying - this form looks stunning It's probably my favourite out of all of Build's designs, and that show has a lot of good stuff in it.

Great pictures.

Super slick. Really glad they kept the original dragon parts for the belt. Added play value never hurts.

Its such a simple redesign, but I love how it looks. Way better than Evolt Dragon or Rabbit in my opinion.

I finally managed to get mine, and while I can't make it look as good as your pictures; I'm so SO happy with it. Thank you for selling me on the design; I'm glad to have a representation of one of my favourite Riders ever