REVIEW: SDCC Exclusive D-Arts MEGAMAN X Metallic Version

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[QUOTE=JeffSaylor;56980]Bandai/Bluefin polish up popular Capcom hero...

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[HR][/HR]One of the more popular San Diego Comic-Con exclusives this year was the [B]D-Arts MEGAMAN X Metallic Version[/B]. Offered at the Bandai/Bluefin booth, the fan favorite Capcom video game hero featured new super shiny armor instead of the matte blue duds on the orginal figure. Priced at $45, he was only about $5 more than the standard version, making it a clear choice (at least to me) over which version to grab.

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Everything about this exclusive Megaman is shiny, shiny and more shiny! That includes the packaging, a highly reflective closed window box. Through the front pane our hero is clearly visible alongside his numerous accessories, all enhanced by a great "X" to hammer home this version of Megaman. In addition, this exclusive goes beyond a simple Comic-Con sticker to make it special, including actual printed text that reads "USA Exclusive" and "Megaman X Metallic Version". This is how all show exclusives should be offered - looking both amazing in pack and loose on display.

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Despite the great packaging presentation, I'm all about freeing my toys. Lucky for me, the box is collector friendly. Just slit a small piece of tape on the side and open the flap to slide out Megaman stowed on the small plastic tray inside. Standing about 5-inches tall, the D-Arts Megaman X isn't the largest action figure of the Capcom hero ever made, but nor is he the smallest (I'm looking at you Toybiz Marvel vs. Capcom). The wealth of accessories Bandai packs with this toy, however, more than makes up for that small shortcoming (pun intended).

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Included with the Megaman X Metallic Version is an alternative right arm for attaching normal hands, two sets of swappable hands - fisted and splayed open, X-Buster blast and rotating triple-shot effect parts and a piece to attach these to, and three interchangable portraits: a calm, closed mouth expression, a teeth-gnashing sneer and my favorite, Megaman screaming out in rage. Hey, it's a taxing job fighting the robotic forces of Dr. Wily!

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Also included is an instruction pamphlet, though figuring out what to do is pretty self-explanatory. For the alternate faces, simply pry Megaman's helmeted head apart at the sides (ouch!). Once in half, remove the closed mouth face that the toy comes with, and insert your expression of choice. Close her up and presto! Megaman's alternative arm works the same way: Just pop off the right arm and pop on the new one.

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Blast effects require you to pry off the closed cap on Megaman's right blaster arm (it's painted red so it looks good when not firing projectiles) and insert the new open-ended cap. The new cap acts as a peg and hole system for the blast effects, both which look killer on the figure. I found the X-Buster blast made Megaman a tad top heavy, but if you pose him just right, it'll display great. The triple-shot is by far my favorite. One piece is a "firing" effect that slides over Megaman's arm, while the other portion consists of three rockets that can actually swivel around at the mid-section for a more layered launching pattern. The translucent plastic used on both effects contrasts nicely with Megaman's uber chromed-out armor.

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Making Megaman look even more stunning on display is his extremely high articulation count. If you're familiar with the D-Arts series, or most any Bandai Japan action figure line for that matter, then you'll know that the company does not skimp on poseability. Megaman comes loaded with useful joints allowing him to move in about any possible way you can think of. Thanks to his large flat feet, I even got him to stand on one leg with no problems at all. One-legged triple-shot attack? No problemo.

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In closing, Megaman fans are going to eat this exclusive up... if you can find it. Select online retails and the secondary market are unfortunately your only options in obtaining this exclusive now and I'd expect you'll pay more than the $45 show rate. However, if you can live without the super shiny metallic armor (or you simply don't like it), then the standard D-Arts Megaman X in matte blue armor is readily available. In fact, he's in-stock now at [B][URL="http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/product.aspx?product=BAN13540&mode=retail"]BigBadToyStore.com[/URL][/B] priced at $40. For all its worth though, my money is on [I]shiny[/I].

[I]Review and Photos by [B]Jeff Salyor[/B][/I]

[I]Review Sample Courtesy of [B][URL="http://www.bluefincorp.com/catalog/"]Bluefin[/URL][/B][/I]

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