Larkin's a friend. My other two friends picked this up as well and are working on videos. I missed the boat, but from our chat they really like the bot. The lack of ratchets is a little concerning and some minor paint issues.

 

I'm not worried about the joints right now, but I'm quite worried about what it will be like once their Victory Leo comes out down the line, and how well Star Saber can support the additional weight. Had the same problem with MP-24 and KFC Simba strapped onto him.

 

I was thinking on this and my guess is they might release a set of ratchets for Star Saber as a pack-in for Victory Leo. Wouldn't surprise me, and I get the impression part of the reason there's no ratchets is time constraints.

 

Personally don't mind that avenue, as I'm most likely buying their Victory Leo either way, but I think many collectors will have an absolute fit if they find out that was the intended outcome from a time-saving measure, as well as added fuel for those offended this even exists when they already have MP-24. Still, if friction joints and a little paint rub are about the only complaints from a first-time MP release, I'd say we're getting along pretty darn good.

 

I completely agree! I mean honestly, I'm genuinely interested to see how the joints hold up. Diecast non-friction joints might be the way of the future, who knows? Too many ratchets has ruined a figure for me before. (MP Lio, who is just no fun to actually handle because of how many goddang ratchets he has, and how stupidly tight they are.)

 

Thank you for your review! It is actually possible to get the ankles to tilt like the picture below?

 

Sadly you can’t get that range. It didn’t feel like the joint pulls down at all. You can tilt the upper foot down to fake it, but it doesn’t get too much of an extreme tilt naturally.

 

Damn, that's one of the areas the MP suffered the most, I was hoping Iron-Trans could remedy the lack of ankle tilt.

 

Well, I really hope it doesn't happen to you, but prepare yourself for a floopy heavy mess in the future!

 

My thoughts always go back and forth on this. One one hand, the friction joints seem to lose their tightness faster than ratchet joints, but you can add various nail/floor polish to add a varying level of friction back to them, whereas with ratchet joints, they do tend to hold stronger, but they also seem to have a higher rate of wear/breakage as opposed to just loosening, and not nearly as many repair options if/when that happens. Obviously, a YMMV scenario all around, but it's hard to consistently say one style is all that much better than the other over time.

 

If the joints are metal-to-metal then it will take a much longer time to become loose from just friction alone. That being said, i'm much more in favor of ratchets in general.

 

I'd like to see how it holds up. And again, I'm figuring we'll get a ratchet kit from them with their/as an optional purchase with their Victory Leo, which I will be buying. Whatever happens happens!

 

Ordered it from showzstore. Keep reloading the order info page in hopes it'll get shipped soon!

 

I ended up canceling my order from them and ordering from ToyDojo, it'll be here Monday.  
As far as I know ShowZ hasn't gotten their shipment of this guy yet, he's still marked [Incoming] on their site.

 

It's listed as being in stock on the product's page though? i'll look into toydojo though, thank you.

 

Really thorough reviews guys, thanks.

Any chance of posting a pic of this guy next to FH Powerbaser or combined Super God Ginrai?

If the aesthetic works, I might be in.

 

You’re welcome! Here you go! I personally think they look great together.

 

WOW!

Visually a perfect match in my opinion. Thanks Zero, I think you just cost me a buck60.

 

Looks like TCP put a pre-order for a 2nd batch of this guy. I hope the 2nd batch fixes some of the minor slop of the first batch, like the helmet attaching more snugly to the back of the space cruiser.

 

Okay so I've got my copy in. A few quick thoughts before I do a proper write-up in a few days:

Joints are great right now. Only time will tell otherwise. Proportions are great and the look is amazing. Paint feels pretty durable and good and I don't feel like it's going to chip. Weapons look good and the blaster isn't bad in hand, though it looks like a pistol when held by the combined Star Saber form. Haven't transformed the body into the V-Star yet but the transformation for Saber into his plane mode is good and smooth.

Now, a few questions: Has anyone got the swords into the combined mode's hands? I can't get him to hold the hilts no matter what I do. Second, how far down does the combined head go? I can't get it to sit all the way on the base Saber head, though you visually can't tell without looking at it closely.


Edit: And a picture for good measure from my Twitter.