Skip to main content

S.H. Figuarts Ultraman Orb Dark and S.H. Monsterarts Gamera 99


My most recent box day arrival was 2 figures: Tamashii Nations Ultraman Orb Dark and Gamera 99. It was nice to get 2 figures on the same day.


Orb Dark has really nice paint details. It’s basically the same figure as the first Ultraman Orb that was released, only this one sports the black and grey with red color scheme, with red eyes, color timer and forehead light.

 
 

The joints are really good, not too tight or loose. The accessories include his Orb Caliber with a black replacement plate, as well as a wide variety of hands which I liked (especially since Ultraman X only came with 3 pairs total).

 
 
 
As for Gamera 99, the figure is wonderfully sculpted. The details on his skin, shell (with battle damaged cuts and scrapes), and body are all great. The paint applications are all nice, EXCEPT for the lower jaw, which is basically white paint slathered over the teeth. It stands out because the upper row of teeth and his tusks have some nice shading to it. Also, the promo pics showed the bottom row of teeth better painted and shaded as well, so this just seemed like a lazy shortcut in an otherwise great figure.
 
 
Some people complained about the head/face sculpt when it was first announced, saying his “nose” seemed too big. The actual kaiju does have a more pointy/narrow end, but it’s not so bad that it distracts. I have no issues with that.
 
 
 
 

 
Gamera’s accessories include alternate arms, flippers and a tail piece to put him in the flying pose, as well as a stand to put him on in that pose. He also has a burning hand that you can swap for the right one. I think I recall it was referred to as banishing fist, but I’m not sure.
 
 
It’s very easy to swap out the parts, too. The arms have an extra floating piece inside, and the spot where you put the 2 small flippers are very small and might need some digging with fingernails or a sharp object to get them out. Be sure not to lose those pieces, as they are very small. One thing that I liked is that each one has a plug in hole that’s marked slightly different, so you know which one goes where. One has a T shape, the other has more of an “i” shape.
 
To replace the regular right hand with the burning one, it’s best to pull out the entire arm, then pull out the end of the hand and swap it out. I noticed that joint is a bit tough, so you may want to heat it up to get it to fit snuggly, otherwise it will easily pop off with movement.
 
 
Gamera’s articulation is his head and neck move up and down, side to side a bit, and mouth opens and closes. His arms move in and out a bit, and slightly move at the “elbow”. There is no waist or chest articulation, as the design won’t really allow it, and Gamera never did any crunches anyway. His legs move slightly at the hip, there’s knee joints that move in and out, and the feet can tilt forward and backward a bit, as well as side to side. The tail can move up and down and left and right as well.


 
 
Both of these figures are great. It’s nice to have another S.H. Monsterarts Gamera figure (the other one they released was the Legion Gamera with opening stomach). Hopefully they release some of the kaiju (I’d love to have a Heisei Gyaos or Irys).  Classic Showa Gamera would be nice, too (though I’m happy with my Revoltech). I’d also love an articulated Viras and Barugon.
 

Both of these figures are great. It’s nice to have another S.H. Monsterarts Gamera figure (the other one they released was the Legion Gamera with opening stomach). Hopefully they release some of the kaiju (I’d love to have a Heisei Gyaos or Irys).  Classic Showa Gamera would be nice, too (though I’m happy with my Revoltech). I’d also love an articulated Viras and Barugon.
With Godzilla King of the Monsters due next year, Monsterarts is busy doing those figures, so it might be a while until we get more Gamera stuff. For now, I’m happy with mine.

 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ultraman Omega finale

Episode 25, the series finale of Ultraman Omega aired this Friday. From the very first episode I was hooked, and the series continued to maintain a high quality until the surprisingly emotional end. Sorato (Omega) regained all his memories, learning that he was one of many Space Gazers, who's job is to watch a planet and not interfere with any wars between the species (in Earth's case, humans and kaiju). A space Gazer's job is to observe, study and take notes, to learn from a planet's successes and mistakes, in the hopes of finding the right formula to achieve universal peace. Having returned to his previous role as simply a watcher, Kosei, Ayumu and Sayuki were forced to rely on themselves and their team to defeat the powerful kaiju Zomera. As he continued to watch the battle, Sorato/Omega found himself wrestling with the inactive role he was meant to do and his memories of the friendships he had forged with the others, as well as the examples of human kindness he had ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Help Me… I’m Possessed (1974) / #Missingcouple (2024)

I've watched some weird, obscure horror movies throughout my life. I can now add this lurid 1974 schlockfest to that growing list. In a castle in the desert, Dr. Arthur Blackwood runs a sanitarium filled with mentally disturbed patients (as well as staff). He claims to be working on finding a way to cure people of any violent tendencies they have, and brags about his younger sister, innocent, child-like Melanie, as evidence that his treatment works. When she was a child, their parents had to keep her locked up and chained in the basement, to control her violent fits. Now that he's cured her, Arthur has his wife Diane come to the castle to meet Melanie, so that they can be one big, happy family. Diane begins to grow suspicious that something is amiss after a Sheriff shows up investigating the murder of 2 local teens, and sets about on her own investigation, hoping to uncover the sinister secrets that she feels her husband is hiding. Help Me... I'm Possessed is an outrageous,...
Post a Comment
Read more

S.H. Figuarts Father of Ultra

Last week I received the latest SHF Showa Ultra figure, the one and only Father of Ultra, who made his debut in the series Ultraman Ace. He’s the 1st of the two Ultra related August releases I had pre-ordered (the other being Ace Killer). Father of Ultra is easily recognized by the huge horns on his head. The rest of his body is the standard red and silver color scheme that the other original Ultra brothers have (different colors wouldn’t be introduced until Ultraman Tiga decades later). Bandai did a fine job in capturing his look, much more accurate than the highly stylized Ultra Act version, which made him quite muscular. For his accessories, he comes with 6 pairs of hands (fists, two sets of holding, 2 sets of flat/karate chop, and grappling). He has an extra right flat hand that shoots out his signature beam, called the Father Shot. What makes this different from other releases is that the beam and hand are 2 separate pieces, with a clear plastic peg on the side of the fingers that...
Post a Comment
Read more