“Actually. I’m Ultraman.”
In a world where the giant of light Ultraman, left Earth years ago, the SSSP has found a new way to defend their world. Relying on individuals who possess the Ultraman Factor, and equipping them with suits of armor, the heroes of Earth fight back Kaiju! But in the case of Dan Moroboshi, he has no Ultraman Factor. Lucky for him, SSSP has developed a next generation Ultraman suit specifically for those who don’t possess these abilities. The Ultraman Suit Ver. 7 not bestows non-powered individuals with the ability to fight Kaiju, but it can be upgraded after repeated combat. Evolving and adapting to any situation, the Seven Suit is a force to be reckoned with!
The Ultraman Suit Ver 7 is a gorgeous entry in Tamashii Nations Ultraman line of S.H. Figuarts. Recreating the Seven Suit as it appears in the Netflix ULTRAMAN anime, this figure implements some dynamic and interesting new choices for articulation we don’t often see. That being said, it makes for a figure with tons of expressive personality. Armed with his Throwing Knife & Specium Sword and a sweeping fiery effect part for it, Dan Moroboshi is ready to defend the Earth!
Check out our full 60+ image gallery of the Seven Suit after the jump! Just click “Discuss on the TokuNation Forums” at the bottom of this post to see the full gallery & review. Next time we visit a hero of the Showa era with Ultraman Taro!
"Actually. I'm Ultraman."
In a world where the giant of light Ultraman, left Earth years ago, the SSSP has found a new way to defend their world. Relying on individuals who possess the Ultraman Factor, and equipping them with suits of armor, the heroes of Earth fight back Kaiju! But in the case of Dan Moroboshi, he has no Ultraman Factor. Lucky for him, SSSP has developed a next generation Ultraman suit specifically for those who don't possess these abilities. The Ultraman Suit Ver. 7 not bestows non-powered individuals with the ability to fight Kaiju, but it can be upgraded after repeated combat. Evolving and adapting to any situation, the Seven Suit is a force to be reckoned with!
This figure comes to us courtesy of our friends at Bluefin Brands and Team Rider. Check out their awesome selection of Kamen Rider items, Ultraman items, and more Tamashii Nations & Bandai Japan products!
Packaging
Like many figuarts of recent years, the Ultraman style packaging has undergone some drastic changes. And it's been quite a glow up for the figures based on the ULTRAMAN Manga which began in 2011. While Tamashii Nations initially produced figure based on the Manga designs, and they had some certainly unique packaging, the new line of Animation based figures steps it up even further. Ultraman Suit Ver. 7 comes in a gorgeous box with an outstanding piece of somewhat muted box art adorning the front. It stands in stark contrast to something like Ultraman Ginga's packaging, but in a very good way. It feels like it's part of the same toyline, but it's most certainly something all it's own as well. I also find it interesting that Ultraman is keeping in line with the older shape and size of Figuarts packaging that Kamen Rider began to shift away from in the Drive era, in favor of slimmer boxes. As characters of much larger stature, I think it helps set the line apart that Ultra Figuarts still come in larger packaging than their less titanic cousins.
Main Figure
Let's start with some background. The worlds of the ULTRAMAN Manga & Anime adaptation are a bit different from one another, so I want to zero in on the anime specifically. Shin Hayata was indeed the human host bonded to Ultraman, but after the final battle with Zetton Ultraman left Earth. For the last 10 years Shin has been fighting to protect the Earth using his Ultraman Factor based abilities, while donning a suit of armor that enhances them. Now, his son Shinjiro has taken up the fight as well, as the new Ultraman. The subject of our gallery however, is Dan Moroboshi. The name is of course familiar as in original Ultraman live action continuity, Dan was the host of Ultra Seven. In this world however, Dan has never bonded with an Ultraman, nor does he posses the Ultraman Factor. With no special abilities of his own, Dan uses the Ultraman Suit Ver. 7 to fight. A newer model of the Ultraman Suit, the 7 is designed for normal humans without the Factor. Because of this the Seven Suit is also designed to be regularly improved and upgraded after combat, to enhance it's abilities for specific situations.
Right out the gate, we've got to talk about the sculpt on this figure. Tamashii Nations has produced some wild figures over the last decade+. Toku heros abound. But The Ultraman Suit Ver. 7, which I'll just refer to as the Seven Suit from here on as the fiction does, is chock full of finely sculpted details. It is without a doubt the most impressively sculpted 1/12 scale action figure I have ever handled. It's like what we see in the S.I.C. line form Tamashii, only more compact. This figure truly looks like the Seven Suit come to life. Whether your experience with it comes from the ULTRAMAN Manga or it's anime adaptation which is streaming on Netflix, you're going to be pleased. It very much feels like a person wearing an intricately manufactured suit of armor, and that's perfect.
As intricate as the sculpt is, Tamashii has also implemented some new really clever articulation that I wasn't quite expecting. The feet kick things off (ha!) with the usual hinged ankles though they are much tighter than normal. The interesting bit here though is the bottom half of the shin guard, which is hinged to swing up, away from the foot, thus making it more flexible. I was literally about to complain about how limited the feet were until I discovered this flap and I was floored. That, and the entire ankle joint can be pulled down from inside the leg giving it even further range. The Seven Suit's feet are particularly long and flat as well, making them very stable in most positions. While the knees may not offer anything new, this double joint is surprisingly flexible given the armored nature of the figure. The back bend is strikingly good.
The hips opt for the drop down design that is often maligned, but in this instance they work very well. The hips are able to pull down about a half inch allowing you to angle the legs out very very far and dodge the waist armor in the process. The figure can basically do a split thanks to this design. The entire upper body is quite the marvel as well. The torso is separated into 3 components, beginning with the abdominal section attached to the waist. Here, the waist armor is fixed in place, while the ab section is on a free moving ball joint allowing you to rotate it within the waist as well as arch it back & forth. This is one of the best implementations of this I've seen. The mid section of the torso is a separate piece which at first glance it doesn't appear to be. It also has a ball joint with limited range at it's base, allowing you to subtly tweak how you align the upper body as you wish. While the chest armor is on yet another ball joint, allowing it to spin a full 360 degrees around the mid section. This figure is insanely well engineered, it was planned to be very dynamic. And I greatly appreciate whoever designed this section of the body.
In a really curious design choice, Tamashii has opted not to give the Seven Suit biceps swivels. Initially I was kind of aghast, but rest assured they've mostly made up for it with some very free moving shoulders. Embedded into the shoulder is something akin to what most would call a butterfly joint. A large red cup like part is inset, and the arm is plugged into it via ball joint. When you push the assembly forward, the entire structure moves out from the body and pushes the shoulders in closer to the chest. This is already fantastic, but because of the nature of the design the shoulders can also rotate up to be nearly perpendicular with the chest, AND rotate a full 360 degrees around the joint. It's just a really well implement design. Some fairly standard elbows and wrists follow this, but I've got to say the entire ensemble means you won't really miss the bicep swivels.
The Seven Suit's head is another cornucopia of sculpted detail as well, but more than that it's also well articulated. It's not just that the head sits on a ball joint and can turn entirely to one side or the other. It's also that the neck itself is a part independent of the chest and can subtly rotate in and out of it from side to side, giving the head some extra range that most figures simply don't have. I've reviewed hundreds of figures in the last nearly decade, most of them from Tamashii Nations, but this is one of the most interestingly designed of the lot. The Seven Suit is first and foremost, a work of art, covered with details. But it's also a highly functional figure that can pose with the greats.
Accessories
The Sevent Suit continues the trend of Ultraman releases having the perfect wealth of accessories:
1 - Specium Sword. The signature weapon of Dan Moroboshi's armor, the Specium Sword is of course based on the original Ultraman's Specium Ray, being powered by that energy as well. This techno-kitana is a straight blade that looks properly menacing against an enemy.
1 - Sword Scabbard & holster. The scabbard is roughly a half inch shorter than the sword itself, and can be pegged onto the Seven Suit's waist via a small included peg. It hangs around the mid-thigh when stored in this way. I don't really like to display it this way personally as it's quite the tight fit to even get the part in there in the first place.
3 - sets of additional hands. The Seven Suit includes one set of hands to hold the Specium Sword, another set to hold the scabbard, and a third set of relaxed open palms for expressive posing.
1 - Throwing Knife This diminutive dagger may pale in comparison to the sword, but it comes straight from the classic Ultra Seven. Though this one isn't stored on the Seven Suits' head like the original Slugger, it's every bit as effective as a weapon and can be held quite easily by the hands designed for the Sword.
1 - Slash effect & stand. This sweeping fire effect is one of my favorite effects in recent memory. If you know me then you know I like to buy effect parts on their own all the time. Well this one will be one of my new favorites for some time. It's perfect to use with the Specium Sword, but it has a variety of uses for other figures as well. And thanks to the small base included with it it can be used with practically anything.
Final Thoughts
Whether your familiar with the property in it's Manga or Anime forms, ULTRAMAN is receiving some top notch figures from Tamashii Nations. And lucky for fans and collectors in the US, Bluefin Brands is taking care of us by carrying them. The Ultraman Suit Ver 7 is a stellar release that fans of Ultraman old & new should be sure to pick up given the chance. Next time, we're back with a gallery of the classic Showa hero Ultraman Taro!
Part 2
Looks to be a good representation of the Seven suit.
Uh, why he is the chosen villain for the Gallery Groundain!?
Great sculpt
God, this suit is cool as shit, I need to either buy more of the manga or finally watch the Netflix show
Also Teruaki Ogawa (NinjaRed/BullBlack) provided motion capture for the show!
Keep reading: S.H. Figuarts Ultraman Suit Ver. 7 (The Animation) Gallery - Page 2
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