S.H.Figuarts Yusuke Urameshi & Kenshin Himura review

Two unexpected franchises that get representation this time are Yu Yu Hakusho and Rurouni Kenshin. The former revolves around a teenage delinquent who dies saving a child before being resurrected as an Underworld detective, investigating supernatural crimes alongside his friends. The latter depicts a former assassin who carries a reverse-blade sword and vows to never kill again, traveling the country to help those in need and atone for his past sins. While both franchises will probably be on the back burner somewhat, as I usually rewatch stuff like the Raimi Trilogy, for example, I am happy to delve into some new content so long as there are no one-note fan service tropes or loser protagonists who share the same templates. Basically, these two beat the average Isekai made today. So with all that said, let's review Yusuke Urameshi and Kenshin Himura!

Before we continue, I would like to discuss the mangaka of Rurouni Kenshin, Nobuhiro Watsuki. He was a man who not only created Rurouni Kenshin, but he also penned Gun Blaze West, Buso Renkin, and Embalming: The Another Tale of Frankenstein. In late 2017, he was caught possessing child pornography, which included nearly a hundred DVDs with those illegal images burned in them. Despite being fined 200k yen, which nearly equates $2,000 (yes, a much smaller amount than what American criminals are fined and presumably other law breakers in different countries), he was later let go in the middle of 2018. It's already bad enough to hear news regarding celebrities doing stupid shit or getting in legal trouble of late, but to hear that the man was released and continued having his manga serialization continue is downright embarrassing for Japan's government. Sure, it's easier to discuss the issues of US lawmakers or how the country's police sometimes fumble things, but the fact that a man was fined such a small amount of money, if you convert Japanese yen to US dollars, and is allowed to resume production of his series, is unheard of. Admittedly, it's often seen as similar to some cases in Hollywood where controversial figures tend to stay unaffected despite past actions (John Lasseter and James Gunn come to mind for many), and with how much Hollyweird people have each other's backs like the Epstein elite, it wouldn't surprise me if something similar was a thing for Japan. At this rate, new fans are better off pirating the series and buying merch second hand (I got my Kenshin Himaru Figuart from a friend of mine who knew me as a retro anime enthusiast), though I wouldn't blame them if they would rather not support the series while the creator is still alive. Tl;dr, I hope Nobuhiro Watsuki rots in hell on the day he dies, and that is something I rarely say.

Moving on from that rant, here we have Yusuke Urameshi, who is seen wearing a yellow shirt as faint as old wallpaper coloring from the later part of the 20th century and pants with the ankles rolled up to reveal his black loafers. Not exactly the most distinct outfit, though the way his shirt is tucked in and how much of his arms are exposed does at least showcase how he means business. That and his body frame has some musculature to show how well versed he is in martial arts. I think the sleeves do look unsightly with how much they break up the sculpt of the shirt, though I understand that is to help with articulation. Like with most Figuarts, the hips are sculpted in a way where the joints can move better than they normally would beneath the waist piece despite it looking less naturalistic than how a company like Hasbro sculpts hips. The aesthetics work mostly fine, but I would rather have seen Yusuke in his all green outfit. Not that Tamashii did a bad job with this, but it feels a little more generic apart from the head of the character.

Speaking of, his head sculpt does match the artsryle from the series, though I'm not sure if the metallic teal linework is supposed to match the lines sculpted on his hair or not. Maybe it is, but the result is like when the sculpter and deco artist made their works in isolation and then the assembly lines went with what was presented to them. His tray includes four alternate hands, 6 pairs of hands, a right thumbs up, a small ki energy effect, Pu, an alternate hairpiece, and a larger blast effects with a stand that comes in two pieces.

For articulation, he has a double ball neck, ball joints for moving front and back as well as wiggle around for pseudo butterfly joints, hinges for outward arm movement, bicep rotation, double jointed elbows, dual wrist joints, a double ball joint for the torso, ball joints for the hips, thigh swivels, double jointed knees, and ball joints for the ankles with toe-ticulation. I love the blast effects he comes with, especially with how easily they go well with some of his more battle ready expressions. 

The display options are always a treat, and the alternate haircut is another bonus. Funny how this pops up after I reviewed the McFarlane Collector Edition Guy Gardner. Also, yes, that little dude is named Pu. Not the most flattering name, but it is short for Pusuke, and it represents a spirit of the protagonist in question as a kind being in contrast to his master's bad boy personality.  

And up next, we have Kenshin Himura, whose noble Japanese swordsman aesthetics contrast the slacker outfit of the previous dude. While he wears Japanese robes, the sculptwork on this figure looks awfully dated despite being made recently. The gappy elbows combined with the unsightly legs, somehow making the thigh swivels and the knee joints even more obvious on him than on Yusuke. I get that they're trying to nail the look of the outfit he wore with how baggy it kind of is but it ends up looking worse than the outfits usually worn by Goku or some of his Z-Fighters. Maybe that's why we never got an official Inuyasha figure that was articulated if it would mess up the look of his outfit (especially near the ankles where the pants get puffy). Either way, this is too close to a 2007 figure, and it would have been more acceptable at that time. 

His head sculpt is decent, though it can be hard to see the eyes a bit with how the bangs of his hair cast a shadow over them. The X that marks the spot on his face is neat. His accessory count is the same for the hands and face plates as with Yusuke, though he comes with his katana either deployed or in a sheath as well as a belt without a peg. Whether or not you could say his accessory count is better or worse than Yusuke's is up to you.

His articulation is mostly the same, so we'll instead discuss his accessories. The katana feels been there, done that with the way it works if you remember how other Figuarts use alternate belts without the pegs, or how the swords don't actually go into the sheaths. The approach of using a handle as a separate accessory is still neat, regardless.

The alternate faces are the best part of the figure, with the humble smile and dizzy face being the best parts of the whole set. Sadly, they aren't enough to save a mediocre-looking figure. Yusuke Urameshi could have been in his all green outfit, but the character looks much better sculpted than Kenshin Himura wished he was. Sure, it's easy to blame the outfit the swordsman wears, but it's still no excuse for how it turned out. Idk if I will be able to finish Yu Yu Hakusho pretty quickly, but I might get an extra character or two if I end up liking the series. As for any other characters in Rurouni Kenshin, good luck convincing me while the mangaka is still alive.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Yusuke Urameshi)

⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Kenshin Himura)

McFarlane DC Multiverse Armored Green Lantern & Guy Gardner review

Last time we took a look at a few Green Lantern reviews, one was of the 2018 Justice League comic relaunch that focused on John Stewart in a modern costume that fits in well with the Snyder Cut figures, especially to add some green without a movie Martian Manhunter. Later on, we got a classic Green Lantern in the form of John Stewart, who was a McFarlane Digital figure that I thankfully got loose from a seller instead of paying twice the amount of retail at a FYE store when I spotted one. Now, we have two ring bearers to focus on, with one being another version of Hal as well as Guy Gardner joining him in the collection. There was apparently a version of him in the new Supermid movie, but he may as well feel like a Gunn/MCU quipperhero template. Anyways, review time!

Here we have Guy Gardner in hand. This Corps member has his distinct jacket design to give him an extra bit of identity than what we usually see from Hal or Jon's costumes. I think the name also helps with that, even if it kind of does the alliteration thing most Marvel and some DC characters do. The limbs appear to be new for his costume, and the torso is certainly made for him, the jacket, however, does bulk him up a bit, and it makes me wonder if he would have benefitted from having it be a new torso sculpt or not. On one hand, the way it's a separate piece at least keeps the logo from breaking up. On the other hand, he looks more like he has a life vest on.

The head sculpt also leaves me torn with its execution; I get he has a bit of a fade under his haircut, but the lack of a proper fade paint app or texture to simulate it makes the orange below the hair look as it if was made of Play-Doh. I also wish he had some shading to the hair since it looks like he painted it with actual orange paint like that one dude from TCAP who worked for Nickelodeon. His articulation is the same as all the other McFarlane figures, but the jacket does keep his arms from going all the way down somewhat.

He comes with his own lantern with a nice paint app in the center to make it appear as it were glowing, though neither accessory holding hand could grip it tightly, making it swing around loosely. He also has a left fist and a pointing right hand. All right hands at least have the ring detail sculpted and painted. The alternate faces include a smirking face that looks a bit average in its effort (almost like he's a bit peeved), and there is an open mouth face that makes him look like he is doing the soyjak happy face. His hair can be swapped to give him the bowl cut, which doesn't really hide the low effort fade on his hair.

Here is a creepy look at his head without a face nor hair. I think the gaping hole and the tongue molded on the head is already creepy enough. I wish the tongue was part of the open mouth face so there could be an extra peg for the faceplates to stay on better. His sole variant is a Red Lantern version of himself, corrupted with glowing eyes and blood running down his mouth. Honestly, the open mouth faceplate works better here than when he was a Green Lantern. 

As for Armored Green Lantern, this was a look he had in The Return of Superman story arc, which was something he briefly dawned in battle even after his leg was broken. While Eradicator and Steel were battling Cyborg Superman, Hal Jordan uses this upgraded design to stay in the fight. While the thighs, midriff, and upper arms appear to be reused, everything else is new. While most armor add ons for Green Lantern characters usually have them in translucent plastic, Hal Jordan's got his in opaque for the glow in the dark gimmick some other figures have utilized, which makes sense for a superhero like him. There is some comic shading applied on the thighs and midriff, which is likely an attempt to add some deco on this otherwise two-tone green toy beyond the face and logo. The armor appears to be slimmer on this figure than with what few images I could find. Seriously, unless it's the overly memed comic panels, you're less likely to find any images of the comic stories in better detail than you would every time the new Supermid movie gets 1¢ extra than the last second to boost up box office hype.

His head sculpt works fine for a helmeted Hal Jordan, and the face is thankfully not squished unnaturally to make the helmet proportions look good. His articulation is the same as always, though the joints move around with less of that soft ratchet click that McFarlane figures normally have. His sole accessory beyond the stand and collector cars is the hammer of Steel, an armored superhero inspired by Superman from the 90s. Be warned that the handle is as flexible as most Hasbro Marvel Legends, a contrast to the more rigid materials used in McFarlane figures.

Here they are with Silver Age Hal Jordan for an idea regarding how well they"s all look in a display. I always liked how the Green Lantern uniform isn't always the same between characters, seen here with Hal and Guy, but the logos don't really match. At least with armored Hal, it's meant to be three dimensional. Regardless, I have mild recommendations for both figures unless you can still get them on clearance. I mean I paid $30 for both, which is two for the price of a single Collector Edition. Go me.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (for both)

Figma Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Link review

The Legend of Zelda series got an overhaul of sorts that brings fans back into its world when it came to the release of Breath of the Wild. The new artstyle, the open world setting, and no doubt some interest in the outfit changes out characters received leading to a bit of fanservice when we see Link as more of a twink; it's definitely the equivalent to seeing how Mario Odyssey got a lot of attention for being a more expansive title like with 64 and Sunshine, especially with how plenty of Mario titles between SMS and SMO were the usual reach-the-goal formula. Back to Zelda, while I prefer the green on Link and pink on Zelda, I think seeing them in baby blue is a nice change of pace that still fits them pretty well. We now have a figure based on the Tears of the Kingdom game, so let's see if an import brand is able to do justice to this character after missing out on the World of Nintendo line.

Here we have Link in-hand. He ditches the classic elf-like outfit in favor of a more intricate outfit to help him in his then-new journeys. Certainly a lot more straps and break-up on his tunic, which can be a bit annoying that the Hyrulean pattern can be obscured, and there appears to be no real way to get those out of the way without damaging the figure. Many complained about stuff like how Rob Liefeld or many comic artists add details on fairly simple costumes, yet I'd argue that plenty of Japanese fantasy artists are just as guilty. That being said, I do appreciate the color break-up with the blues, browns, beige, and a bit of green where everything is at least placed in the right spots. While Shrek once had an arrow on his butt, Link has a quiver full of them behind his own, which is funny how it'd have to be taken into consideration if he does any cool stunts or has it flap on his ass a lot when he runs. It isn't removable, and without a bow to display him with, it's purely decoration. While the outfit is a huge contrast to what Link usually wears in the games, it is still translated pretty well in figure form, and the lack of cel-shading does help him fit better with a lot of other figures.

His head sculpt matches the artstyle of the BOTW series, even without the cel-shading that numerous games aping the success of the series mimicked. So in a way he looks more like how he appeared in Smash Bros. I like that the mouth has a bit of a paint app to make it look more complete while making sure it's aligned properly. His hair is certainly browner than what Link normally has, but it still fits the character. His accessories include the Master Sword, a scabbard, a few alternate hands, a Hylian shield, two alternate faces, and a Hylian hood.

His articulation consists of a double ball jointed neck, shoulder rotation, outward arm movement, slight wiggle to simulate bicep rotation, double jointed elbows, double wrist pegs with a hinge to have them move either up and down or in and out. The torso is on two ball joints, hips move front and back, in and out (with assist from a drop-down system), thighs rotate, knees bend at two points, the ankles hinge as well as pivot, and the toes can hinge. His weapons require disassembly, as the handle that will be held in his left hand needs to be removed before splitting it in two pieces for the accessory-holding hand to use it. The shield also needs the hand to be removed to slide in before attaching the handle and hand back in place. Thankfully, the sword just has you removed the handle, slide it in the weapon holding hand, and attach the blade.

His sheath can peg on the back, while the shield includes a clear adaptor so it can attach onto the sheath and make everything seamless without any huge clips or holes. Very intuitive approach towards storage. 

He can also be posed with his flight stand, though it is admittedly weak for him to do any flight poses unless you tighten the screws. The hood, which is more of a cape, thankfully has the details nice and crisp on him. Nothing is see through either, and while some could argue it should be articulated, it at least needs it less than some recent McFarlane DC Multiverse figures (cough New 52 Superman, cough No Man's Land Batman).

The smiling face is a nice touch for someone who is usually quiet and stoic, and it befits him in a soft side kind of way for a character like Link. Look closely and the paint for the mouth meant to separate the lips and give the face an added bit of depth does have a small gap in the middle; not sure if it's a defect or if it's meant to represent how some anime artstyles draw the mouths with a gap in the middle to resemble the center of the lips. For a size comparison, here we have him being almost as tall as two Marios. Of course, the scale of Nintendo characters is always going to be whack, especially with the Figuart version of Mario being fairly small on top of Tamashii manufacturing it instead of the Good Smile Company. Mario is 5'1" while Link is 5'2", so something's clearly wrong with the scale.

For anyone wondering, a deluxe version is out there that includes the Traveler's Shield, the Rock Hammer, King Rauru's right arm, a rocket with a blast effect, a paraglider, the Construct Bow, an arrow, and the Ascend effect parts. Even without those extra accessories, this is still a great figure to own if you're already a fan of the series or are hooked on the aesthetics overhaul associated with Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. Other than the tolerances of the stand, this is easily my favorite Figma all around, especially compared to how dated Lum and Kagome sort of are for current Figma standards. Sure, it's not dare since we're comparing apples to oranges, but they had fewer accessories and likely were priced for less before they skyrocketed in the aftermarket. Regardless, please pick this figure up before the tariff situation gets crazier. 

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐