READER REVIEW: Masked Rider Rides Again

SIC new action figure from Bandai Japan: BLADE.

It was a surprise move by Bandai when they announced Masked Rider Hibiki as Volume 32 in their Super Imaginative Chogokins (SIC) line after the Masked Rider Faiz lineup. Everyone was expecting Masked Rider Blade to be next in line but it never happened until late December 2006. Joy to the SIC fans as they can finally complete the new millennium riders: Kuuga, Agito, Ryuki, Faiz, Blade and Hibiki.

Packaging: At first glance, I did’t think the color of the packaging matched the theme of Masked Rider Blade. But after thinking about it, the gold color on the box is clearly the theme of Masked Rider Blade King Form.

This is the normal packaging that Bandai applies on their SIC lines.

You can see the content clearly without opening the box. This type of packaging suits both the MIB and opener in that you can always pack your toys back in the box without much difficulty. There are some illustrations of the product on the back that can be used as reference when collectors want to pose their toys. What I really didn't like in the packaging was the use of too many twisties. In this box, there’s more than 20... have a cutter ready.

Paint: Bandai did an outstanding paint job on this volume, with the exception of one thing: The body of Blade is painted BLACK! At first I thought it was a dark blue, but when I took Blade out I notice black was applied as the base color. This is the only complaint I have because Masked Rider Blade should be blue in color. Well, I guess this is SIC... you can’t expect what you get because you’ll always get the unexpected.

Other than the base color, the paint job is flawless. Everything is painted with the right color according to the prototype. Man it looks nice, especially the gold color of King Form. Bandai really did a great job in implementing the SIC looks on this screen accurate Masked Rider.

Sculpt: Ando did a superb job in the sculpting department. There is a more "bio" feel on this volume compared to previous releases. Before this figure hit stores, we saw numerous collectors customize their own SIC Masked Rider Blade. All pale in comparison to this sculpt. Ando did his homework well.

A translucent head piece is attached to the head of Blade. When you remove the head piece you’ll get a Blade head sculpt which is close to the original Blade. An additional face mask (in translucent red color) is also included. A spade symbol is engraved on the armor along with many detail lines applied through out the figure. King Form (Gold - pictured with sword) is where this figure truly shines. The sculpted insects in the armor is amazing.

Articulation: This has to be one of the most articulated SIC figures released: Blade features more than 20 articulation points. The neck and head is ball jointed and double ball joints are applied on the shoulders. The joints are tight and don't get loose as previous releases like SIC volume 27.

I replicated some of the poses shown in the box art and the actual product can strike almost all of them without difficulties except for one pose: The striking pose of Blade where the sword/blade is nailed into the ground. To pose the figure exactly like the picture shown is quite hard. You need to bend the figure very low and the leg armor make things difficult. Other than that pose, every other pose is smooth.

Accessories: Looking back at the trend of previous SIC figures, I expected Bandai to include a lot of gadgets in this volume. But sadly that’s not the case. Only two swords (one for each form), one translucent red head piece, a sword holster and a deck of cards are included as accessories.

The sword of Blade is the most impressive accessory included this time around and the deck of cards can be rolled out to form a circle. Unfortunately, the cards cannot be pulled out individually. How I wish Bandai had include some SIC sized cards (like those included in Souchaku Henshin series) along in this volume as accessories. Since Blade and Ryuki both implement the card system in battle, I hope Bandai will release some SIC sized cards for a future release.

Overall: No doubt, this is one volume of SIC you don't want to miss. The waiting was worth it as Bandai has produced a SIC masterpiece. I recommend every Masked Rider fan and non-fan alike to own this figure. You’ll fast forget about the shortage of accessories as soon as you see the sculpt and paint job.

The recommended retail price is 3250 yen (approximately $27US). I pre-ordered Blade at a local toy store here in Malaysia. For those in the US, you can buy this figure through select online toy importers (such as hlj.com).

Get it before you regret it.

Follow the link below for a slew of images of this latest SIC figure.

Review and Images by: Chen F

SIC V.35: Blade Image Gallery