War Machine: Iron Man 2 (S.H.Figuarts)

S.H.Figuarts War Machine: Iron Man 2

Nothing brings me awe and amazement better than this S.H.Figuarts War Machine. I could sit here all day just looking at the details and play with this figure along with its sheer amount of accessories. This is my first S.H.Figuarts post on this blog. This toyline as you might already know are known for their Kamen Rider, Sentai and Dragon Ball Z figures, and other Japanese anime-related figures that we've probably encountered. Now taking on Hollywood, this line surely does a good job on War Machine based from the movie. Released in last year's summer, I got it for like $72, a price which is a little on the higher end but it gave me more than what I paid for. Hopefully Bandai continues on with this Iron Man line.












The packaging is, I suppose should say, "collector-friendly". It answers the most common dilemma experienced by most collectors- to open or not to open. Unlike most packaging, you don't have to worry about twists and ties nor any irreversible damages with this type. This packaging is simply reusable and durable along with these nice artwork and designs that makes it great looking for both the figure and the box.

BRUBUDDA BUDDA BUDDA BUDDA BUDDA... That's the sound of this picture! Sometimes you gotta use your ears to imagine that it's alive and moving. Almost everything is painted in gunmetal with a few lighter gray colours that are even from part to part, and decals to make it movie-accurate. If we look very closely, we'll see a few dust-like glitters embedded within the plastic which I believe, gives it a metallic tone.

The texture and feel of the plastic material on this figure is different in a good way. Probably a higher end to Hasbro's Marvel Legends with edges that are smooth and free from factory leftovers. The proportions are well measured and balanced; no weird oversizing or undersizing of certain body parts. What totally impressed me are the joints and hinges that are almost non-visible, which makes this figure a good display piece. The eyes kinda glows when exposed to light as well as these blast effects which are one of the few of the accessories he comes with.

Speaking of accessories, collectors will have so much fun changing and placing these loads of weapons and interchangeable parts! War Machine's infamous shoulder gatling gun comes with this huge blast effect as well as an ammo belt that connects from the back, and it's very poseable and removable. Both his forearms are equipped with submachine guns which are also removable. To fully expose the jets behind his legs, you have to remove the flaps (though completely unnecessary) and replace it with these much opened flaps, ...then you can start installing these little jet boosts along with a couple of these bigger jet boosts that goes at the bottom of his feet.

That's not all! He comes with two missile turret and the one and only... ex-wife! Definitely, he is someone you don't wanna mess around with. Also, War Machine comes with two sets of interchangeable hands. To get a better view of the amount of accessories this guy has, here is a list:

Shoulder Gatling Gun x1

Ammo Belt x1

Submachine Guns x2

Missile Turrets x2

Ex-wife x1

Gun Blast Effects x3

Jet Boosting Effects x4

Jet Boosting Flaps x2

Pair of "Flying Pose" Hands x1

Pair of "Repulsor Blast" Hands x1

The articulation on War Machine is as ample as his accessories that brings some decent pose. His head can look up and down, and suppose to rotate 360 if it wasn't with these gears on his shoulders. The shoulder protectors are hinged to get some good shoulder movements as well as an armpit joint. He got swivel to the biceps, double-jointed elbows, ball-jointed wrists that rotates and bends. War Machine got this unique ab crunch that cuts across the mid-section of his abdomen as well as a diaphragm swivel. He got this T-jointed hip with hinges to its groin; letting his legs not only to raise forward but also hyper-extend kinda like the armpit joint. He also got upper-thigh swivel, double-jointed knees, ankle swivel and toe articulation. Unfortunately, he doesn't have ankle pivot which might have given him a perfect score.

The figure stands at exactly 6 inches tall. Compared to an average Marvel Legends figure, the S.H.Figuarts War Machine seem to be at a smaller scale thus apparently deemed incompatible with this toyline. But if you're into collecting Iron Man figures and/or starting to get into the Japanese imports, then check this one out! The fun factor on this figure is truly unmatched.