This is a tag team review, done by myself, Chris Mirjahangir, and Andrew Nguyen for this S.H. MonsterArts figure. The toy review is broken into two parts, with each of our takes below.
Chris Mirjahangir
Kiryu returns to the S.H. MonsterArts line as 2003 Heavy Arms Kiryu. While it's MOSTLY the same sculpt, there are differences. That said, the differences make up one awesome looking figure that fits its 2003 appearance.
Details
Like the S.H. MonsterArts MFS-3 Type 3 Kiryu, the figure is light yet has a bit of a grounded weight to him. This is thanks to his die cast feet and chest area which houses the Hyper Maser feature.
Also just like this figure's predecessor, the amount of detail that went into this release is staggering. Even on the side of his head and hips are plastic hoses that bend with each movement. Inside his mouth is the Maser canon which is really detailed.
Kiryu also comes with a tail spike this time around which snaps on to the end of the tail. It's not something I noticed in the film but it really looks cool here. The shoulders are a little different as well with the addition of an extended piece on the right shoulder. The hand which turns into a drill (included) is bigger and looks like a separate hand altogether when compared with the left hand. There's also the difference of the "hydraulic motor" on the right forearm which looks pretty neat.
Accessories
For accessories, Kiryu comes with a rocket pack, two replacement heads, two arm cannons, and two wires for attachments and a drill hand. It's a wealth of extras that gives a lot of replay value to the figure.
As mentioned, there are two heads with yellow eyes and one with the eye with a "damage effect" which looks pretty cool. For those who haven't seen the movie in awhile, the damage occurs after Godzilla scores a direct heat with his atomic ray on Kiryu's face. The wires attach to holes behind the elbows which you have to remove pegs to get to. Be careful with those pegs since they're really small. Keep them in a plastic baggie when not in use.
When you attach the canons, you're required to remove the back plate at the back of Kiryu's neck. This is a small piece which can get lost so keep it in the same bag as you would those pegs. This time rather than taking the head off by removing the top portion of the head, you are now required to remove the head at the neck. It can be a little bit of a pain since you have to line up the hoses on either side of the neck when attaching either head but it's possible obviously. It just takes a little while depending on how steady your hands are.
Articulation
In terms of articulation, Kiryu does pretty well but one should be mindful of moving his feet too much. His feet are anchored by a metal hinge which was really loose on the right foot out of the box (it also had some weird paint scuff on it) The figure that I got has a left foot that is looser than it should be (and for some reason has a scuff in the paint on the same foot) That aside, Kiryu has some nice points of articulation included. On either side of his thighs, are rockets that can flip out. On his back, you can move around the little jets. His arms can move outward and rotate 360 degrees and so can his hands and drill hand.
Kiryu's mouth and open and closes, although his head in general can't move around as much as I'd like (and as much as it did in the films) due to one of the reasons being that there are tiny plastic hoses holding the head in place. These plastic hoses are also on Kiryu's thighs and they move with the thighs when they are moved. Kiryu also has the Hyper Maser Canon in his chest and it's covered by three die cast pieces that fold out. I had hope at the announcement of this figure, that there would be a beam effect included but, nope. Like the previous Kiryu release, the If there's one part of the figure that is something "different", it's the mid section piece of the figure which is free floating. The piece of shoulder armor on his right arm can move slightly as well. I don't know what that's good for but hey, it can move a little!
Paint
For the paint job, Kiryu's body is now silver with gunmetal black mixed in. It looks really cool, but the gunmetal black doesn't extend to the tail. The eyes and the dragon tears are really well done with no missed paint. Even the teeth are perfectly painted with no errors on the damaged head but on the undamaged head, there are a couple of paint nicks here and there. I do like how the teeth are white and they look better than the yellow teeth in the previous version.
The eyes are perfectly painted on both heads-along with the dragon tears- and I really like how well the damaged eye was painted. No paint smears or anything. The "hydraulic motor" on Kiryu's right forearm is painted pretty nicely too for something with so many small sections where the perfect amount of paint is required. No blemishes there which is awesome.
Overall
Like the previous version, Kiryu 2003 is a work of art. The new mix of gunmetal black along with the black/grey cannons make the figure seem heavier and just cooler than the 2002 figure. It's too bad that my figure had a loose foot which I am quite cautious of and a scuff which mars the overall wonderful paint job. At the end of the day, I found it to be a very worthy addition to the line and it looks just awesome in photos. Recommended!
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Andrew Nguyen
In 2013, S.H. MonsterArts began to branch away from the Heisei series to the Showa and Millennium series. In the case of the Millennium series, Tamashii Nations kicked it off with the release of the S.H. MonsterArts MFS-3 Type 3 Kiryu from the movie Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla (2002).
Not surprisingly, Bandai/Tamashii Nations followed up the release with a new version of Kiryu as he appeared in Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (2003). While some may consider this online release of Kiryu as a reissue of the figure, he does have some differences. Designated by the odd name Kiryu Heavy Arms, I will focus a bit more on the differences between the two before diving into reviewing this newer release.
Release Differences
For those that already have the S.H. MonsterArts MFS-3 Type 3 Kiryu, they will be familiar with the capabilities of Kiryu Heavy Arms.
The most obvious difference is the coloring of this newer release. Whereas Kiryu 2002 was a light shiny grey, Kiryu Heavy Arms is in a dark grey color. Considering most of the mold is the same, the change in color actually goes a long way to make the two look starkly difference.
Another primary difference to its predecessor are the weapons that Kiryu Heavy Arms contains. While the chest of the original Kiryu has the absolute zero cannon, the chest for the Kiryu contains the hyper maser. The rocket pack is also appropriately themed, losing the purple coloring for the metallic version seen in the film.
For mold changes, there aren't many. I already mentioned the chest weapon was replaced, and along with that are the chest plates. They now feature the ridged look of the 2003 version. The character's right arm was also replaced, allowing Tamashii Nations to add the protruding shoulder area.
Articulation
Tamashii Nations maintains the impressive standard that the other figures have set before with Kiryu Heavy Arms. In this case, the focus for the figure is on the arms, wrist, tail, legs and in the waist. The figure's upper legs can also extend to reveal rockets to allow it additional quick propulsion and movement. It also boasts some capabilities of movement in the head and neck.
Thankfully, it is a very sturdy and stable figure that is easy to stand, particularly compared to the S.H. MonsterArts Heisei Mechagodzilla. Inevitably, though, some figures will have parts such as the tail or the lower waist of the toy being somewhat loose.
To note, the tail of the figure needs to be attached. It comes separately inside the package and you will need to configure it.
Paint
The figure is almost a perfect match with its movie counterpart. For the coloring, the figure comes painted in silver grey with darker aspects on some areas of the body while other sections are a bit lighter on the silver grey. Virtually all of the decals and marking that were present on the cyborg monster are on the figure as well.
Accessories
S.H. MonsterArts Kiryu Heavy Arms comes with a wide variety of detachable weapons and additional parts.
In terms of weapons, it offers detachable arm laser cannons (minus the arm swords) and a rocket pack. The rocket pack itself has detachable missile pods for use as well, which is a nice touch.
As for the interchangeable extras, the figure offers an extra damaged head and a rocket pack along with an interchangeable drill for the figure's right hand.
Unfortunately, there are no extras available to demonstrate the use of the weapons, like blasts or rays. A maser bolt for the mouth would have been nice to have had, for example.
Overall
Kiryu Heavy Arms is an exceptional figure. It matches well with its movie counterpart in design while having impressive articulation. However, for the price it is advised if you look around to find the best deals. It is preferably for those that have missed the first attempt to get Kiryu. Unless one is a very heavy collector of S.H. MonsterArts or likes both of Kiryu's forms, then this is somewhat of a pass if one has the original Kiryu due to this figure being an online release and therefore going at a high price.
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