If you follow my Facebook you may have seen my post about a lost Aoshima Neo Getter Black Version Anime Export Limited Exclusive. Well USPS finally got around to delivering it. Aside from that, the only issue I had was a broken arm blade tip. This is because this figure has elbow joints that are friction fit to the upper arm. Due to the weight of the diecast forearm and low friction of the joint, the forearms fall off easily. This was the case with mine. The arms came off and banged around inside the box causing the blade tip to break. It's suck a small break that its not noticeable but it still sucks.
Anyways, enough nitpicking. This is a $40 (currently 70% off!) figure released by Aoshima as an Anime-Export limited release of 1500 units. Apparently not as popular as expected. However the figure is beautiful and HEAVY. Its almost all diecast metal. Deserving of a spot in your display case or shelf.
Each box comes numbered. 1500 units made.
The box surface has a gridlike texture.
The back has some bold red font bearing the name of the set.
The tray is all styrofoam for safely securing the figure in the box. Unfortunately because of it loos elbows, the forearms fall all and bang about.
The figure has a beautiful glossy black finish all over its metal body. As you can see, the forearms will stay on. There is enough friction to keep them on during display but not so much during posing. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the extending elbow which allows more articulation of the elbows. It's a shame the elbows aren't very secure but if you deal with figures, you know tightening joints is a couple of drops of glue/nail polish/floor polish away.
The figure has a very basic but appealing design.
The doors on top of the pods on the back open up to reveal two holes where included missiles can be placed and shot out. The missiles are just like old school missiles so be careful. (not safe for kids)
Another neat feature is the glow-in-the-dark panels on the body and eyes.
I suggest snatching one of these up at Anime-Export.com while they are still available. This all for the price of a couple of cheap plastic transformers.
I had preordered this way in advance due to the fact that doing so would secure an exclusive clear figure to go along with this one. After that, I pretty much forgot about it until early samples started landing in reviewers' hands. I watched JoshB's review which made me a bit antsy to receive it. He mentioned that his came with a foil pouch and a single hand which he assumed was a bonus for early samples. He would be correct.
Now that I finally received mine, I couldn't help but shoot it. It is beautiful. But first, let's start with the packaging which deserves a bit of spotlight.
The figure comes in a beautiful glossy slipcover type box. The outside is colorful ans sports the sunburst grid pattern to give a G1 feel to the overall presentation. Off to the right, you will notice some chrome striping. This chrome striping is actually the inner box.
The chrome detail extends to the spine end of the innerbox. It shows Optimus Prime's name and Autobot faction logo.
The back shows exactly what you would expect it to. Notice the Hasbro logo on the lower left. Normally, it would be Hasbro who would make Transformers figures, but I suspect the non-transforming nature of this figure allows it to be licensed. Thank goodness for this because Hasbro could/would never make anything this good.
Removing the outer sleeve reveals the remainder of the inner box which is done in a flat black with a chrome Autobot logo.
The back features a rolling credits of sorts which seems to be the norm with high end figures.
Now on to the contents. Everything is laid out neatly in the center of the tray with some extra tray material surrounding it all which explains the size of the box.
The bottom tray holds the surprisingly nice tray. It features a brushed steel look which at first glance looks like real metal. When I looked underneath, it looked like chromed plastic. Hard to tell if the top has real metal. If not, it's very convincing. It also has an adjustable arm.
The figure itself is captivating. Upon opening the box, you are hit with a whiff of PVC followed by a feeling of opening something really special. The colors hit you hard when you first see them. Even my wife said wow as she walked by. Sadly the camera will never catch the amazing paint. It needs to be see in person. It seems to be painted in silver followed by a coat of candy red and blue.
Looking at the back reveals more detail and paneling. You will also notice the screw holes which in my opinion don't take away from the look of the figure. I am very used to this with all the other robot figures I collect which are mainly made up of diecast metal. Speaking of which, I am not even sure whether or not this has any diecast in it. It doesn't appear to, but the weight and screw holes would fool anyone.
While I don't go into articulation in this written review, he does have 22 articulated joints! Most of them are ratcheted, including his head and neck.
I dont think I need to say that the sculpting is awesome. I mean just look at it. You need to understand Super Deformed or Chibi styling to really understand why the proportions are the way they are. I dig this design and the proportions are exactly what I would expect them to look like. Nothing looks too "off" or exagerrated. Even his gigantic head looks right.
So yeah, this figure has 14 LEDs. Even the faction logo on his arm lights up by pressing it. There are a total of 18 batteries in this figure to create this look. It will be a costly replacement should you decide to leave these on for extended periods of time.
You can see two interior lights inside tha cab and four lights on top of the cab.
An excellent feature is the way the Matrix lights up in his chest. The Matrix is also removable.
Included in the set is a soft PVC Energon Axe which requires removal of his hand. notice the optional open hand I am using on his opposite hand.
Here is Prime holding his gun which houses 3 of those batteries for it's LED gimmick. Using this weapon requires an optional hand that grips the gun.
For some reason, his panels come off to reveal a skeleton of sorts. I am hoping this is what will be used to create other characters. Having removable panels should lessen the amount of tooling required to make other figures and also keep the price down.
As a matter of fact, here is a video that teases future releases!
Here is that stand. Followers and subscribers will know I am not a big fan of numerous weapons and figure stands. However if you are just displaying a figure on a non-cluttered shelf or on an office desk, this will provide just the right amount of "Hey, I am important and cool enough to have a nice stand".
Here is a look at the arm that comes with the stand. It is full adjustable.
While the stand is not an indication that Prime needs help standing, cause he doesn't, it sure does look nice. Like a piece of delicious candy served on a fancy dish.
So where is the exclusive clear figure? Stay tuned for it. meanwhile if you are looking for one of these, check out BigBadToyStore
Here is the Elites set of Seekers released as an Asia Exclusive. Of course these are done up in excellent paint deco and not official releases of the US. Very pricey but probably a cost effective alternative to buying these seekers individually. The payoff is arguably the best looking version and most definitely the best painted versions of these figures.
RAMJET Alternate Mode:
RAMJET Robot Mode:
DIRGE Alternate Mode:
RAMJET Robot Mode:
THRUST Alternate Mode:
THRUST Robot Mode:
Takara Tomy SEEKERS: ELITES
Price: $130
Available: Now
