Category Archives: Faiz
Review: S.H.Figuarts Kamen Rider Faiz
5 . 5 . 5 [Enter]
“Standing Back”
「俺には夢が無い、でもな、夢を守る事はできる！変身！！」― 乾巧
“Compelete”
There is always a certain air Inui Takumi carries which makes him unique, whether he is in his human form or he transforms into either the Kamen Rider Faiz or the Wolf Orphnoch. Always in a constant dilemma and being the only person able to use and fully utilize the Faiz Gear, the character is probably the reason why Kamen Rider Faiz stays firm as my favourite of them all.
And it is also the very reason why I wanted a toy figurine of KR Faiz so badly and I so happened to stumble upon S.H.Figuarts and fell so deeply in love with the line. Bandai is finally making something reasonable after so many years (so many years of me not buying toys, I meant).
First Impression
Seriously, I was astounded, in both good and bad ways. The most important about first impression is what the figurine is trying to tell you. And in this case, it is trying to tell me that “I AM KAMEN RIDER FIAZ!”
You may go like “duh!?” but please notice that up till now, you will recognize the figurine as KR Faiz without noticing anything wrong about it. I personally find this part crucial. What do you think?
The Head
The head is probably the first thing you look at in order to recognize a character. And I believe that you will equally fall in love with how the head is being sculpted. The detail of the eyes is so clear cut! It is like an identity of any Kamen Riders and for KR Faiz, it is shaped in lines of golden semi-circles before being covered by another layer of clear material. This is definitely a beauty.
The level of detail is very visible if you take a close look at it. The lines running along the helm and the mouth piece, they are all well sculpted. And not forgetting the green paint in the middle.
The Body
You may call me a nitpicker. I find the body somewhat feminine. In the show, KR Faiz looks much bigger in the chest area because of the armour plates (naturally because of the “Accel Form” hiding beneath). However, in this case, it is as though the armour plates are trying to squeeze in and makes me wonder if there is space underneath.
*And if you are wondering, those chest plates cannot be opened like how they did in the shows to become Accel Form. Bandai is releasing KR Faiz Accel Form as an exclusive in times to come.
One thing to note is that the red lines are accurate and clear cut. I like it very much because of the red colour chosen. If you shine light at it, it is as though lit up!
I find the black a bit too glossy. It wasn’t like that in the show…
And the part between the chest and waist (which I believe is the stomach area) is a separate piece connecting together, thus, providing the figuring with two articulations in the body part.
The Belt (aka Faiz Gear)
If you may, it is another KR’s icon, something that makes them unique. And here you can see that the belt accessories are interchangeable to suit different poses (the Faiz Pointer on the left, Faiz Phone in the middle and the Faiz Shoot on the right). The level of detailing is high and clear cut, similar to that from the show itself! Impressive, it is!
Even the back is nicely sculpted closely to the show!
Nice butt! XD
And what’s with the butt line? Why is there a circle thingy? And what’s with the text printed there? Notice the back of the head, there is a blotch! But I am not alone…
Call me a nitpicker, whatever…
The Upper Limb
The upper limb is beautifully sculpted, as though it has belonged to a correct person all this while. It is connected to the body with ball joint located at the axilla which gives you more than just a simple 360 degrees turn. It is almost identical to a human’s upper limb. ALMOST, I said.
There is also a 360 degrees articulation located at the arm.
There is also a less than 180 degrees articulation located at the elbow.
And a ball joint articulation located at the wrists. It allows you to switch with different pairs of hands that come along with the accessories which will be covered later.
The design for the upper limbs along with all the articulations greatly increases the possibilities of the figurine’s posing which is somewhat similar, if not better, than real life.
And the best part is the shoulder pads are not in the way! Yippie!
The Leg
The right leg in particular is a little bit different from the left simply because you can mount the Extended Faiz Pointer onto it to perform the “Crimson Smash”. In this case, it is a signature move of KR Faiz where he squats down to while waiting for the “Exceed Charge” to take place before he performs his own version of Rider Kick!
And to prevent further spoilers, please look forward to the details of the foot! It is beautiful!!! *drool*
There is an articulation located at the hip to provide a 45 degrees turn for the entire leg.
There is also an articulation at the knee to provide a less than 180 degrees turn. The joint is being well covered (I did not say “hidden” since it still can be seen) by the knee pad, which is a good thing since knee joints are always ugly.
There is an articulation at the ankle which mimics real life ankles. There is also an articulation at the foot. These two articulations provides a wide range of poses possibilities for the figurines from standing to squatting and from doing nothing to performing different attacks!
The Accessories
Please know what to expect when you are considering on picking up a copy of KR Faiz. It comes with quite a number of accessories that will make you happy!
These includes:
1. Faiz Edge (Sword)
2. Faiz Phone in 3 modes.
3. Extended Faiz Pointer (currently mounted on KR Faiz right leg).
4. A pair of relaxed hands (currently on the figurine).
5. A weapon holding right hand.
6. Faiz Shot (mounted on a right hand).
7. Belt (with Faiz Phone).
8. Belt (without Faiz Phone).
9. An un-extended Faiz Pointer.
The weapons are like painted plastics suited for different uses (For example, the phone can’t be flipped to close or bent to form the Phone Blaster and you need to use the readily made pieces for different poses). But then again, it is something that one must deal with especially when it is a massed produced figurine.
I am disappointed with the hands accessories because the fingertips are not painted silver! WHY!?! It is like missing an identity! But then, it is a massed produced figurine, so…
Seal it away!!!
Conclusion
It is an impressive release, probably one that most are looking forward to. If you are a fan of KR Faiz then this is a must-get figurine but be prepared because KR Kaixa is going to be released soon and I am expecting KR Delta too.
And then there is the rides – Auto Vaji, Side Basshar… ARGGHH
If it is true, I am gonna collect them all from the season! *grin*
To finish things off! Here is a picture I got from Hobby Stock’s coverage of Tamashii Nation 2010. Awesome! I do hope the effects came with the figurine though…
Thank you for reading!
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