SIC Volume 50 Kiva

At first thought, why was this thing so expensive in the first place when there aren't much accessories in this one compared to the previous SICs? That was the first question that came into my mind. At first, I really didn't expect much from this figure since the design was pretty show-accurate unlike the other SICs that I were choosing from at that time. I also didn't like Kamen Rider Kiva at all since the show was stupid and lame and one of my friends strongly advised me not to buy this one and choose another SIC. But then, this was the only available SIC at that time so no choice, I bought it. And hell...it was more worth it than the price I fuckin paid.

Anyway, on to my take on the SIC Kiva.

Forgive me because there's no pic of the box since I threw it away when I bought it because of storage reasons. I'll just be focusing on the figure itself and pics of the accessories that came with it.

There it is. First things I observes with this one is that it really is a stable figure and heavy because of many metal parts. Most of the time, it stands well and rarely falls. I guess we have the Den-o SICs to thank for for the innovation for the new SICs. There are a few paint bleeds, particularly in the small lines and crevices but not really noticeable unless you look at it very, very closely.

There are so many metal parts with this one. SIC Collectors had been complaining because they said that the new SICs have so few metal parts in them and the SIC line is kind of losing the "Chogokin" already. But I guess Bandai answered their pleas by releasing this one. lmao

The face. Really show-accurate. Eyes are translucent, yellow clear plastic.

The body. Really superb design right here.The figure can bend forward, backward and sideward for a little. The blood red color on it really looks good. BTW, mine came with a metal Kivat that you can place on the belt. The whole silver thing that you see on its body, shoulder pads, bracelets, shin guard on the right foot, ankle guards and knee pads are all die-cast metal. Hell, even the chains are die-cast metal! This thing is loaded with die-cast metal.

Articulation.

Articulation is pretty good for this model. Only nitpick I have is that the arms can't do much because the of the unmovable shoulder pads. Also, the skirts also hinder the legs so unfortunately, you can't pose the figure with it's right leg up high in the air if it prepares to do its rider kick.

As for accessories, this one only have a few. Two hands for posing it in its signature flashy pose, a set of hands for posing it with the violin, a hand that can hold the fuestle, and another that I forgot its purpose. :p

It also comes with the six fuestles that you can attach to the sides, two Kivats (in my case, three), the hell's gate wings that you can use to replace the metal parts in the right shin to pose it in its rider kick and the violin. IMO, though few, it already is good since Kiva really does not have much in the show. At least it was kind for Bandai to include the violin.

I only managed to take a pic of some accessories but me guess that will do...

The Kivats that are included in this one. The big one can open its mouth and can bite the fuestle.

These are all the metal parts on the shin. Yes folks, SIC Kiva has more chogokin on one shin compared to SIC Den-o Climax Form. And to swap the wings for the Hell's Gate.

The red on the wings are translucent red plastic.

Violin and bow. Nuff said. XD

Anyway, on to some poses.

LOL

And to end the performance...

As for my final thoughts, I really was satisfied with this one after I bought it and played with it. My favorite things about this one is the huge amount of metal parts, stability of joints, and...the violin.

Only minor nitpick with this one is that the arms and legs have a bit of limited articulation.

Articulation: 4/5

Design: 5/5 (stability is a really big plus and though show accurate, this is one of the show-accurate SICs that still look good despite not having the design re-imagined that much.)

Accessories: 4/5 (Though few, it is still a fair deal of accessories, IMO.)

Price: 5/5 (I tell you, this thing is worth the price.)

Verdict: 5/5 (The real deal about this figure? The metal parts, design, stability...and the violin. lol)

To buy or not to buy:

My decision is a little bit of both. For SIC collectors that still does not have this SIC, get one now. This thing is really worth it even if you like or don't like the design. For those that are still starting on the SIC line, I kinda do not recommend you to buy this because this thing will really set your standards for a good SIC too high that you may not get good satisfaction in other SICs.


Kamen Rider band!






You don't know how hard it was to pose Ibuki for those pics. XD

Anyway, that's it. Heh heh...

SIC Den-o Climax Form

Though many might not like Den-o Climax Form's look and the SIC Volume where it is in, I still bought it since Climax Form is my most favorite form of Den-o besides Sword Form. And again, I really hit lucky on this one too since the same with the SIC Vol. 34 Ibuki and Zanki, I got this thing for 1500, half of the usual mall price that I often see here in the Philippines! Anyway, for some info on the Climax Form, read below.

Climax Form (クライマックスフォーム Kuraimakkusu Fōmu^?) is Den-O's sixth and strongest form in the series. It is accessed when all of the Tarōs except Momotaros fade away and Ryotaro's desire not to lose them creates the K-Taros which restores the three Imagins' bond to Ryotaro. After entering the code 3-6-9-# and attaching it to the Den-O Belt, Den-O becomes Climax Form. Climax Form is basically a stronger version of Sword Form that incorporates the DenKamen of the other three Den-O forms onto various parts of the armor (Rod Form's mask is on the right shoulder with Urataros controlling the right arm, Ax Form's mask on the left shoulder with Kintaros controlling the left arm, and Gun Form's mask on the chest with Ryutaros control the legs). But due to the nature of Climax Form, the Tarōs need to work as one to fight, and their strengths are incorporated into Climax Form. The three masks can also travel along tracks on Climax Form's body to align with the leg or arm to enter Kick Mode (キックモードKikku Mōdo^?) or Punch Mode (パンチモード Panchi Mōdo^?), with the three Tarōs controlling that one limb while leaving Momotaros to control the rest of the body to perform "Charge and Up" attacks.

-wikipedia

So...yeah. that's pretty much it. Anyway, on to the pics.

BOX:

Pretty much, this is what you'll only get for this pack. Sad though that there's no densword included for the Climax Form. Bummer. =___=

Den-o Climax Form:

And this is how it looks like when stripped off of the other imagins:

Yeah, I know. Funny looking Sword Form, right? lol

As for accessories besides the cellphone of K-touch, these are the only accessories for DCF:

Really disappointing that it is almost zero-to-none accessories for DCF. I really can't figure out why they did not include the sword when DCF used it in some fights. 

Anyway, time for poses!

"Ore..."

"Sanjou!"

Punch Mode.

Kick Mode! I say that this form really has an awesome rider kick. lol

Anyway, that's much for it for the Den-o Climax Form. I didn't bother reviewing about Urataros since, like you, I don't like him. Though I don't like Ura, the figure itself is also good but the great downside: no chogokin (die-cast metal). As for my rating:

Design: 4/5 (Superb design. Really superb. I would've gave 5 but the lack of chogokin materials really knocked that point off. The only chogokin parts are on the shins and no more. That's just it. As for the good parts, all parts are really intact and almost-zero worry for any part that could mysteriously pop off.)

Articulation: 5/5 (The SIC Den-os are of the best I ever laid my hands on. Every joint is really stable and after playing this thing for hours, this thing is still in good condition.)
Accessories: 3/5 (Really fuckin few for a 2-in-1 SIC figure. Most of the accessories in this volume are for Ura, and the only ones that are for DCF are the K-Touch and the dengashers. Really lame.)
Price: 2/5 (I dunno...this thing really does not seem worth 3K+ philippine pesos. Too few accessories and chogokin material, you only get one rider. Good thing I bought one for a whoopin cheap 1500 philippine pesos. lol)


Verdict: 3/5 (Even though I really like DCF, this thing really does not seem worth it. Yes, playability value is good but for me, I got on the SIC line because I liked the chogokin parts and the shitload of accessories. This thing is pretty disappointing for me.)


To buy or not to buy:
Not to buy if you are just starting in the SIC line. Too few accessories compared to the other SICs that are in the same price range. For the hefty price, I say save up more and get Sword Form and Momotaros pack or maybe SIC Ixa and Dark Kiva. Or if you really are into the chogokin things, then SIC Kiva. Point is, this thing is not worth the price. And relax for whoever will be offended. This is my opinion.


That's it for Den-o Climax Form. Thanks for looking.

HMM Blade Liger Mirage

This is my first Zoid and my first HMM (High-end Master Model) and I say, I really, REALLY like this thing. Two things that I liked about this thing:

1. No stickers.

2. So many parts.

Sadly, as the price is really painful for my wallet (hey, I'm just a student) there is nothing special about this kit besides the great details. I got this thing for 3,600 philippine pesos (bought it from Coldfire Gundam in Facebook). I really am happy that I got this model because, IMO, this model is really good. The white parts are pearl white and the claws, teeth, and blade are gold color, making this piece rather lively when displayed.

Anyway, on to the pics.

Basically, this is the upper side of the box. Never mind the sheet of wet decals (those are for my MG Unicorn).

After popping off the lid of the box, this are what you will get:

Yes, gentlemen and ladies, it's a sea of plastic. I counted the runners (including the small ones) and I think the number of runners in this kit is about 50 runners. That's really a lot.

As for the manual, it is a 26 page manual full of ZOID stuff and whatnot.

Front:

Back:

Well, this thing took me 5 days to build (each part of the body took me about 4 to 6 hours to build). This thing is really complicated. Each part has so many parts that are needed to build it. But at least it was a fun snap building for me.

Fortunately, I took some pics of the parts before I put them on.

Head:

This part took me 6 hours to build. I dunno if I am really just a slow builder or this thing is really complicated. Still, this part of the liger is my favorite because the teeth are really sharp and a lot of movable parts for this part.

Upper torso and ZOID core

Body:

Weapons:

I tells you, the blades are really long and pointed at the end.

Tail:

Feet:

Claws are pointed and this part has the ugliest nub mark I ever seen in a plastic model.

Legs:

I did a little height comparison to NG 1/100 00-Raiser and I say, it is rather short. Well, that still does not change my opinion about HMM Blade Liger Mirage though.

And completed model plus height and size comparison again:

Though it is a bit short, it is still rather quite large if you compare the body sizes. And this thing is a real beauty after building this thing. Let the following pics justify my opinion:

Methinks BL Mirage does not like 00-Raiser.

Everything in this model is just perfect IMO except for the decals. Dunno if it is just me but the decals are rather more fragile than the ones intended for gunplas, thus, me ending up ruining many of em. Still, I at least managed to place do the decaling decently.

So anyway, that's it for my HMM Blade Liger Mirage. Hope you liked this post. :D