SH Figuarts Dragonball Super Android 18 (Universe Survival Saga) review

The average person unaware of the lore behind Dragon Ball would probably think that only the males get the focus when it comes to them only getting in the fights. Of course, what else were you going to expect for a series aimed primarily at boys and teens? I'm sure this complaint is brought up by those who care more about 80s Dragon Ball for those mood screencaps or quirky "rebellious" t-shirts, but Android 18 shows that even girls can get dirty in some of the most aggressive anime fights out there. She was once fully human before receiving cybernetic implementations that later led to the Android Saga, where they aimed to rid of Goku and his allies before they all went berserk. All this would later reach the end as she would slowly develop feelings for Krillin, and while she can't be fully human as mentioned by Shenron, she can at least be free from a ticking time bomb after her redemption. Now we shall review the girl who fights harder than Chi Chi and is as helpful to the Z Fighters as Bulma!

Here we have Android 18 in-hand. The outfit she has on currently is based on her appearance in the Universe Survival Saga from Dragon Ball Super; it revolved around our heroes entering the Tournament of Power where they, along with 11 other universes, compete for their own survival. Ultimately, Universe 7 wins, and all the other entries are restored. While Android 18 normally wears the more iconic tomboy-esque outfit in the past, she currently wears a magenta jumpsuit that kind of compliments her pretty well. That being said, the sculptwork on this is pretty minimal compared to how some figures would normally have linework or raised surface areas. The zipper and the stripes are painted on, and while the slight bit of detailing representing her pockets and the uneven collar are able to distinguish this as her jumpsuit, it's almost comparable to how Hasbro normally used blank bodies for their comic characters in contrast to the higher budgets used on the MCU characters. Admittedly, there isn't much to work with for an outfit like this, but the vibes are kind of similar with the minimal sculptwork. That being said, the feminine proportions are done accurately to.the character while not making her petite, though I'm positive her butt isn't that small (probably moreso than Chi Chi's booty and especially Bulma's Bubble Butt). And while the stripes and zipper are purely deco, they are at least applied properly as one would hope for a more expensive item. So not the most impressive sculpt (at least compared to her classic outfit), but it works fine enough with matching how she appeared in the show.

Her head sculpt is unique amongst the females in the series due to the nature of her haircut and her eyeshape being a reminder of her former life as an antagonist. She is softer as a heroine, but not that soft. Her tray of alternate accessories feature faceplates that go from stern glare to gritted teeth to yelling, 5 pairs of alternate hands, an alternate hair piece that is messier somewhat, a blast effects, and her arms crossed as seen with Piccolo and the two Outer Senshi, Sailors Uranus and Neptune.

The display options are already appreciative for a figure like this, especially when most Figuarts you'd find characters who have just faceplates and slightly fewer hands compared to Android 18. Granted, most cheaper Figuarts are for casual collectors tend to have the bare minimum, but this is always appreciative for anyone wanting to go beyond the usual Goku and Vegeta.

As expected, her articulation consists of three points at the neck (head-tilting, rotation, and hinging for looking up and down), ball joints at the shoulders with outward hinging for the arms, bicep rotation, hinged elbows, wrists that can either move in and out or up and down, a double ball-peg torso, ball joints at the hips, slight thigh rotation, hinged knees, and ankles that can swivel, hinge, and pivot.

For a look at her with her beloved husband and a figure that would better fit the version of Krillin we see the most, here we have the couple together and a stock photo of regular Android 18 with a more saturated shade of yellow for her hair. The original version of the character would go well with the Krillin we have here, but it should be worth mentioning how getting her at a cheaper price is outright impossible. The same goes for Android 17. That being said, if you're already a fan of the character and don't want to be too upset over not getting the original version, this jumpsuit-wearimg version should work fine enough. After all, you're more likely going to complete the Tournament of Power cast than you would the complete roster of good guys.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐