Saturday, May 27, 2023

Power Rangers Lightning Collection Blue Senturion review

The Blue Senturion is yet another extra hero in blue from the Zordon era, and the conclusion to the trio we previously had with Ninjor and Auric the Conquerer. As expected, Senty got chosen first due to his proportions being closer to a Ranger compared to the other guys' bulkier designs. But while figures in this price tag got vehicles that made them more interesting, especially with ones light on alternate display options like the Omega Ranger, this guy came on his own and did not come with his Cycle, probably because it'd make him similar to said SPD Ranger. So does coming on his own justify the price that he comes with?


Here is the Blue Senturion in-hand. This guy is a beautifully painted piece, with details picked out immaculately with nothing skimped out, from the buttons and lines scattered all over the figure to the badge that rests on his torso. There are translucent parts for the shoulder pads as well as the traffic lights on the figure's torso, representing the guy's Sentai counterpart's name (Signalman is probably a little too much like a generic arcade game name compared to Blue Senturion). While I can't really prove it, the weight and density of the toy feels a little heavier than on an average lightning figure. There's nothing missing in any way, shape, or form from this toy apart from a possible complaint stemming from how bland the gray parts look on the thighs and elbows compared to the rest of the toy. Those should probably have silver paint to complete their looks if I'm being honest. But this guy nails just about everything I'd want from a Blue Senturion figure and then some (apart from the right knee's slightly misaligned yellow dot).


His head sculpt is perfect to the character design, from the biker helmet silhouette to the pitch black visor combined with the sculpted lips, his antenna on the left side of the head and the POLICE print on the side further completes this guy if you ask me. The former could be a little more straight, though. His articulation consists of a ball-jointed neck, shoulders that move front and back as well as in and out (with the shoulders both swiveling in unison as well as the flexibility allowing outward motion), bicep swivels, double-jointed elbows, a diaphragm joint along with an ab crunch, hips that drop down in order to allow better movement front to back as well as in and out what with the sculptwork of the pelvis, thigh swivels, double-jointed knees, foot rotation as well as ankle hinges joined with pivots.


His accessories include his Senturion Synergizer in baton/sword as well as gun and badge/walkie-talkie modes, two alternate thigh holsters for the badge, two gripping hands, a blast effect, and a whistle, a majority of which come with various paint apps that further complete the set, though it is odd that the badge mode has the black paint missing on the handles of the gun and sword.


These display options being entirely character-exclusive is something I always value for the non-standard releases of figures in the Lightning Collection, but I'll be honest and say that I'm amazed I didn't get screwed over with getting missing or duplicate accessories like other people did. This is actually out of order from the Lightning Collection Wave 13 review so maybe they fixed up the newest batches rather than wait for their current copies to be put out with worse QC. That being said, going for the plastic window packaging would have made things easier, Hasbro. As for the accessories, he holds them generally well, but the whistle, while neat that it's included, can be easily lost and hard to insert into his hand.


Let's wrap it up with his sword baton in his hand for the last two shots, one on his own and another with the other Turbo guy we have so far, that being the Phantom Ranger. Yeah, they both look really good next to each other, and I wouldn't be surprised if Hasbro wanted to get these two out of the way since they're easier to make with unique designs rather than do the simpler Turbo team while their more popular In Space counterparts are still prioritizes. In any case, I recommend fans get a hold of the Blue Senturion if it is at a much cheaper price because while I didn't mind paying what it goes for, I still feel it isn't entirely worth the new Deluxe price that Hasbro put out of late. It is making me excited to continue the season with TJ joining the collection, with hopefully the rest of the members popping up to complete the first five years' worth of Power Rangers history on TV.


Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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