There was originally a single thread for all three of these, but the mods have requested that it be split into three threads. Because of the origin of the review, though, there will be a fair amount of overlap in the reviews. I suggest you read them in order (G01, G02, G03) for full effect! The reviews for the other two can be found here: http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-feedback/940888-transformers-go-g01-kenzan.html http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-feedback/940937-transformers-go-g02-jinbu.html The review: I know other people will have better pictures up, and there are already some good video reviews up showing the transformations (albeit in Japanese), so I'll focus just on my impressions and thoughts (with a few pictures added later for emphasis on certain points). The video reviews for Ganoh are here: http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-video-reviews/934332-transformers-go-ganoh.html Thanks to http://photozou.jp/user/top/1220396 for some help with the phrases! Without further ado, my review of Ganoh of the Swordbot Samurai Team! G03 Ganoh Ganoh transforms from a fire truck (looks kind of like a cross between an Airport Crash Tender (like DOTM Sentinel Prime) and a military fire truck) to a samurai-inspired robot form (though, his robot mode looks more similar to the Edo period brawler archetype than the more refined swordsman archetype that Kenzan and Jinbu adhere to - fitting, since he's the "power" team member). He comes with a two-pronged spear and his kabuto. He does not have lights or sounds. Vehicle Mode Ganoh is the biggest and heaviest of the three Samurai Team Swordbots. He actually feels appropriate for his size-point, though you'll still notice a little of that effect that Beast Hunters Optimus has - he feels hollow. Without his weapons attached, he doesn't have a nozzle so he looks more like an armored personnel carrier (with a lightbar formed by his robot mode arms) than a fire truck. He rolls well, though sadly his wheels aren't painted. The main complaints I have for this mode are that his combined-mode fists hang rather obviously off the back, and that you can see straight through this mode if you look at it from the side. Overall, though, one of my favorites. His spear can be folded in half and attached to the roof of this mode, where it actually serves as his water cannon - much better integration here than we see with Kenzan or Jinbu. Unlike the other two, his kabuto is officially stored on the front of his vehicle mode, where it replaces his spear as a kind of water nozzle/gun turret thing. Some fans have already discovered that you CAN plug it into the rear of his vehicle mode as a gun turret similar to Kenzan's if you turn his spear around (leaving the spear looking like an additional double-pronged cannon up front). Transformation For specifics, I suggest you watch the videos above. Ganoh's transformation is somewhere between Kenzan's and Jinbu's. Not complicated, but not TOO simple. Usual caveat about the simplicity being the fault of all the modes he needs to have. Robot Mode Ganoh's robot mode is actually the best of the three in my opinion. He has the same gestalt feet hanging off his shins as Jinbu, but they manage to be somewhat unobtrusive on him. Apart from that, he has good proportions and really vibes "solid" and "bruiser". He has almost the standard amount of articulation you'd expect from a modern toy: - Head is on a swivel - Shoulders are on a ball-joint, somewhat hampered from moving upwards by the design of the arms - Biceps are on a swivel - Elbows are hinged - Legs are on ratcheted joints and can bend forward and backwards as well as rotate - Knees are on ratcheted joints and can rotate and flex - No ankle, wrist, or waist articulation Ganoh's articulation is pretty similar to Kenzan's and Jinbu's as far as feeling very similar to an Energon Voyager. With him, though, you really feel the lack of wrist swivels - it makes it difficult for him to hold his weapon in a way that doesn't look ridiculous. His head sculpt really fits his character, though, and he has lots of other nice design touches that help solidify him as my favorite out of the trio. Ganoh can store his spear on his back by folding it almost in half and attaching it to two posts on his back. This leaves him with a "V" poking up from his back that actually looks pretty cool. His kabuto also folds up to form a "shield" or "gun" or something (it's by far the clumsiest of the three figures' attempts at storing their kabutos in robot mode), which can also be stored on his back. If you're storing his shield on his back, you can attach his spear to it in a similar manner to Jinbu's sword. Overall Thoughts Ganoh is definitely my favorite of the trio. He's solid, and his sculpt oozes character. I do wish he had wrist articulation or a better-designed weapon, but that's a small price to pay for him not suffering from the combiner-limb woes that Jinbu and Kenzan suffer from. His kabuto... Looks ridiculous in every mode except combined mode, but if I'm honest I'm not really going to be leaving it attached anyways. Combined Mode: GouGanoh Transformation GouGanoh is formed with Ganoh as the head, upper torso, and arms; Kenzan as the lower torso; and Jinbu as the legs. GouGanoh is the "Power-focused" combination. More detail on the transformation in the videos above. Briefly, though, I'll say that GouGanoh's combination is potentially even smoother than GouJinbu's. As with GouKenzan and GouJinbu, if you've activated Kenzan's "combination mode", connecting Ganoh's kabuto after combining the three robots ends the music and causes Kenzan to yell out a similar phrase (in Ganoh's voice!): "Kabuto souchaku! Sanjou Gattai! GouGANOH!" ("Kabuto equipped! Sanjou Combination! GouGANOH!") Combined Mode and Overall Thoughts GouGanoh's proportions aren't perfect, but they're the best out of the three combined modes. Ganoh's transformation employs a clever trick to fold most of his mass into a smaller package, allowing him and Kenzan to form a torso that doesn't seem overly long or thick. Jinbu looks great as the legs, and Ganoh's kabuto really fits the combined mode's theme of "power". GouGanoh has the typical Energon combiner level of articulation: - Arms rotate and extend - Biceps swivel, and elbows flex - Wrists can move back and forth - Legs are on swiveling ratchets, providing the full range of motion - Calves swivel - Knees flex and swivel - Ankles can tilt forward to a limited degree - There is no head or waist articulation. You can equip GouGanoh with the same long, spear-like weapon as GouKenzan and GouJinbu use, and you can combine the two unused kabutos into an arm cannon - again, the best implementation of this gimmick out of the three combined modes. Pressing Kenzan's Autobot sigil in this mode causes Kenzan to yell an attack phrase in Japanese (first phrase below), and pressing and HOLDING it causes him to yell GouGanoh's finisher move attack phrase (second phrase): "Sanjou ougi! Gan, gan, ganen bakuha!" ("Sanjou secret technique! Gan, gan, powerful blaze blast!") "Yossha, chou hisatsu! Sanjou Ougi! Gan, gan ganen bakuha!" ("Alright, super finisher! Sanjou secret technique! Gan, gan, powerful blaze blast!") Final Thoughts Even at Japanese retail prices (~3,400Y each for Jinbu and Ganoh, and ~5,000Y for Kenzan) this trio is relatively expensive. Given how simple they are, and the issues inherent in their design... It's hard to recommend that anyone rush out and buy them. That being said, they are FUN. There's a LOT of play value in the trio, and their shared lights and sounds gimmick is seriously the best we've seen in a long time. I'm especially happy that they went through the trouble of having three different voice actors record lines for the toys! Aesthetically, the designs for the three characters also have the great molding and character we've come to expect from Prime molds, with articulation and transformations more appropriate to toys from the AEC era. They're a definite curiosity, and I can understand why fans seem to be divided in their opinions of them. Personally, they're a quirky and unique addition to my collection. Things have been stagnating for a while with all the movie and Prime merchandise, and these are a welcome change of pace. Hopefully the Anime will add some depth of character too.
Thanks for the review. Japanese Mecha really suffers from as many flaws as the Western equivalents. They can't resist having super finishers or another secret attack.
Ganoh must come from Giant Planet as he has two robot modes one tall and one shorter mode. Personally I'm using the shorter one it makes all 3 team members about the same size then. It's nice that you are given so many options for weapon storage with Ganoh but he would have benefited (as would the other two) from the wrist being a separate part it would help enormously in allowing them to hold their weapons in useful ways. I notice on the TV show parts of his weapon are accented in red almost like little streamers or flags. I like playing with Ganoh so much it stops me from using the combined modes as much I like his bulkheadishness and I like that he looks a lot like the Autobot Headmaster Hosehead or that red Beast Wars 2nd Autoroller. And he has a look about him that does not really scream Transformers Prime so he could fit in with what ever you like really. He has a few 5mm ports too allowing him to use modern Arms Microns too. There is a slight downside though in that as his fist don't bore all the way through he can't hold staffs very well (aside from his own). I was looking for some guns to use with him for a laugh and it looks like Transformers Prime Kup's might be ideal. It's just a shame he can't hold the carbot-V axe as a fire axe (the other two can though). Good size ; Chunky and fun to play with - so I'd suggest if you have an interest pick up the boxed set that is out later in 2013 and get his team mates too.
For more pics, click on the image above Robot Mode: The first thing I thought upon seeing the Samurai Swordbots, especially Ganoh here, was: wow, Armada is making a comeback. The aesthetic of the robot is heavily Japanese and it does somewhat remind me of the Armada toys, though one must say that Ganoh is far better articulated than most Armada figures. Still, the style is quite far away from either the Movie- or Classics-look that most recent figures adhere to. This is clearly a Japanese robot and it’s not a big stretch to figure out that he combines with someone, too. How can you tell? Ganoh is about two-thirds legs, it feels. He has a very stocky chest and no real lower torso to speak of (though more of one than his two teammates), while both his arms and head are rather tiny in comparison. The resultant robot still looks pretty good and powerful, mind you, but the proportions are far from realistic. Still, I like the look of this guy and he has the image of the strong, tough guy with the heart of gold down pat. He’s about Voyager-sized and could easily serve as a sparring partner for the likes of Bulkhead. Ganoh comes with a folding lance as a weapon. When folded together he can plug it into his fist, but unfolded to full length… the handle now sticks out sideways and he can hold it, just not in any position that actually looks good, I think. He can also store the lance on his back. Additionally Ganoh has a … well, a helmet and shoulder pads for the combiner mode (see below) that folds together into a really crappy looking gun. I mean it’s nice that they tried to find a second use for it apart from a combiner helmet, but I’ve seen G1 Targetmasters that looked more realistic as a gun than this thing. Anyway, the gun can be stored on his back, too, but it gives him an enormous backpack. What else to say? Ganoh is my favorite of the Samurai Swordbot team in robot mode. He’s big, he looks tough, he works well even without going into the whole combiner thing. Okay, he’s got the big combiner fists as heels on his feet, but they do give him a solid stance. So bottom line: a decent Voyager-class robot mode. I like this guy. Alternate Mode: Ganoh transforms into a red fire truck, somewhat reminiscent of the alternate mode of DOTM Sentinel Prime, but quite a bit less detailed, naturally. The folded lance goes on top as a kind of water cannon and there are no robot bits visible. Okay, the robot’s forearms are on the roof, but unless you look closely you don’t recognize them as such, so no problem here. Not really that much more I can write here. Ganoh’s vehicle mode is perfectly fine and you can mount his incredibly stupid-looking helmet-gun here, too, though I’d advise you not to. So bottom line: a nice vehicle mode. No complaints. Combiner: The three members of the Samurai Swordbot Team can combine into a larger robot in three different combinations. Each combination is named for the bot that forms the top with an added ‘Go’-prefix, so this particular combination here with Ganoh on top is called GoGanoh. Ganoh becomes the upper body and arms, Kenzan becomes the belly and rucksack, while Jinbo provides the hip and legs. GoGanoh is the stockiest of the three possible combiners, given that Ganoh is the bulkiest upper body and Jinbo the skinniest lower body. I’ve found that leaving Jinbo’s legs fully extended makes for a very wobbly combiner, so I’ve utilized the multiple joints to give him bird legs instead. Makes the combiner somewhat smaller, but more stable and it looks better in my opinion. His “gun” becomes a red chest plate with a black kabuto helmet with golden horns. GoGanoh can combine all three weapons of the Swordbots into once very long lance/spear thing, but it’s rather ungainly and I think it looks better if he makes it two weapons. Additionally the two helmet-guns that come with Kenzan and Jinbo can combine into... well, an even stranger-looking gun-thing. GoGanoh can at least attach the thing to his arm as a kind of shield, where it looks slightly better than as a gun. Articulation is as good as the general bulkiness of the combined robot allows and everything clicks together pretty solidly, so no complaints on that front. The look, once again, is very Japanese, whether or not you like that is up to you, of course. Personally I do like it and I am actually still uncertain whether GoGanoh or GoKenzan is my favorite combination here (sorry GoJinbo, you are third either way). GoKenzan looks more streamlined and wholesome, but GoGanoh has the better upper body and the stockier build. Let’s call it a toss-up. Either way, a very nice combiner mode and probably the main reason for getting this toy (and this two teammates, naturally). Side Note: not mentioned in the instructions but possible nevertheless, you can combine the Samurai Swordbots just two at a time in the old Energon Powerlinx style. In GoGanoh's case he'd simply use Kenzan as a lower body and leave Jinbo aside. Which... yeah, now the upper body is realy a tad big. The other two two-bot combos look better, but it's still a fun alternative. Remarks: Transformers Go! is the Japanese version of the Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters series, but includes quite a few figures exclusive to Japan and with its own cartoon series that has nothing to do with the Prime TV series. I’ve only seen the first episode of said series, but it featured the Samurai Swordbots who were awakened by a small child and got to face off against Abominus, who dutifully reassembled himself time and time again so the Swordbots could show off all their combinations and special moves. I first thought about reviewing the entire team in a single review, but ultimately decided to give each their own, especially as we have three different combiner versions, too, so each review gets one. Let’s be honest, you either buy all three of these guys or none at all, so discussing the merits of Ganoh as a single figure is somewhat redundant. Still, he is definitely my favorite of the three Swordbots and while I wouldn’t go quite so far as to call him a great stand-alone figure, he does work pretty well. Whether or not you will like him depends heavily on your opinion on Combiners and Japanese-style robots. You like them? Great. If not, don’t go near these bots. Rating: B
