From what I’ve heard the S.H. Figuarts Dragon Ball Z Broly is super expensive on the secondary market now. Thankfully Bandai just released the character in their Figure-rise Standard model kit line! Win-win!
Unless, of course, you don’t care to build your own toys, or prefer the solid feel of a traditional action figure. And I don’t blame you. Hell, if you watch the first 15 seconds of my video review you’ll hear a heart-wrenching crack that turned out to be two parts clicking past each other instead of pieces snapping. Which I’ve heard can happen. These aren’t solid plastic toys, they’re hollow and light.
But I love the process. I dig seeing and assembling the inner workings. I enjoy staring at a sprue and wondering what it will be when put together. There’s a magic there. Magic enough to make me want a character who isn’t the highest on my want-list. It also helps that the final product looks fantastic and in Broly’s case, a big mean looking mother of a figure.
My biggest thing here is it’s gappy. Broly’s design is a little tricky when using materials that don’t flex. The skirt piece has to break up in order to get out of the way of the legs. And then the bulk of the torso and legs have to be pieced out in such a way as to look segmented. But it’s a trade-off to get more range of movement and articulation so it works out in the long run.
Being a model kit brings it’s usual perks though. You built it so you know the limits of of the movement. You put each individual piece together so the bracers are their own element, and the belt, and the boots, and the hair, etc. No overlap or bleeding of paint. And getting to my favorite part: The gems. They contrast awesomely here.
Broly makes me want to finally get around to building the kits I haven’t had time for yet like Kid Buu and the androids, but now I feel the urge to get the kits I passed on like Super Saiyan 4 Vegeta and Goku. Just fun, cheap (relatively speaking) pieces for the shelf.
Box:
Contents:
Figure:
Hand options:
Alternate face:
Face options for Goku and Vegeta:
Comparisons:
Action:
