Kotobukiya's Mega Man X line continues to expand its character selection beyond just X and Zero. First, we got Axl, followed by Iris, two very popular characters that were long overdue for modern figures.
Now, Kotobukiya is tackling its most ambitious kit yet: Sigma, specifically his appearance from the original Mega Man X.
Was Sigma's first articulated figure worth the wait, or does it buckle under the weight of expectations? After the break, I'll go over everything this kit has to offer.
Review sample provided by BigBadToyStore
Sigma is far and away Kotobukiya's largest kit in any of their Mega Man lines, and rightfully so. This Reploid stands at a staggering 8.27" or 21cm, and this massive size is definitely warranted. In games and other material, Sigma is always shown to be considerably taller than our protagonists, so I'd say the scale is on-point.
However, this height does come at bit of a cost. Compared to the other kits in the line, I found that Sigma is a fair bit tougher to pose than the smaller characters. The pose pictured above, while admittedly not my best work, took a long time to achieve. It may just be a sense & skill issue on my part, but I found the legs a bit more hampering than I had expected.
But enough being negative for now. Sigma is an absolute beauty. The colors are super vibrant, and the face sculpts are all incredibly expressive. This is the kind of kit that absolutely dominates any shelf he is put on. Even with minimalistic poses, he is the center of attention at all times. But this isn't the only look for our evil friend. Sigma also includes his iconic cape...
Buuuut, the cape really is my biggest issue with the kit. The cape is a bit difficult to put on. To do so, you have to remove Sigma's shoulder pads and backpack, which is the easy part. Then you have to assemble the new pauldrons and cape onto the shoulders and back. Not an impossible task, but not exactly easy.
Once it is on, you'll notice that Sigma is quite a bit more limited in mobility than he was before, because this cape is just a few pieces of solid plastic. Thankfully, the cape is completely optional, so it definitely shouldn't be the end-all-be-all for whether or not this kit is for you. It still looks cool enough, but I'd rather do without. And you may notice by looking that the cape is missing a significant amount of color.
The cape is missing the gold and the purple that really made it pop and look regal. In fact, several parts of this kit are lacking color, most notably the hands. In most cases, the red parts of the hands remain unpainted. Those parts are significantly raised, so painting them shouldn't require too much effort, but the fact that the hands are missing color is really a bummer.
This kit will be a very fun project for anyone that is into painting and upgrading model kits. That might not be for everyone, or these issues just may not bother you in the first place. I'm just reporting what we see on the actual kit. And speaking of what we see...
Sigma includes three faces: stern, smiling (evilly!), and a maniacal laughing face.
Sigma includes four sets of hands: fists, fists for holding his Saber (not pictured, but mostly identical to the fists above), open hands, and gripping hands.
Lastly, we have Sigma's Saber. You have the option to have the Saber on Sigma's belt (with an optional piece), a pointy blade with erratic energy coming from the handle like in Maverick Hunter X, or a calm round blade as seen in the original Mega Man X (I forgot to remove the exploding energy from the hilt, but this blade isn't meant to have it, oops). If you're curious, Zero, or anyone else for that matter, can technically hold Sigma's Saber, but it is way too big for anyone else to properly wield.
Overall, even though this review had more negatives than usual, I'd still recommend this kit. To me, the pros outweigh the cons, making Sigma very shelf-worthy. I hope this is just the beginning for villain characters getting model kits. Bring on Vile, Berkana, that purple guy, other Sigma forms, Godkarmachine O Inary, the list in endless. Who would you like to see as a Kotobukiya kit?
Be sure to check out Sigma on BigBadToyStore. Use our special links so they know we sent ya!
I used this one as an excuse to get into painting model kits.
ReplyDeleteAlso that's a pretty sweet Fake Zero custom kit. Didja paint it yourself?
I painted it all except for the hair, that was done by RockmanHQ, and it's the highlight of the whole thing. It was made from a standard red Zero a long while ago, and the Maverick logo is a sticker I had made.
DeleteNice. My hand is a bit unsteady with the paints, so it's a bit challenging for me.
DeleteAlso making stickers seems like a pain in the ass but I might have to do it since I'm painting Sigma's chestplate. I need to fix all the seams and stuff, then cover that up, yadda yadda blah blah.
DeleteI highly recommend starting with spray paints. There are great tutorials out there, just practice and you've got this!
DeleteAh, I was about to say I'm hesitant about the airbrush thing because you've gotta thin it and unclog the device - it can be a pain in the booty. You're supposed to airbrush the pieces before you put them together, I take it? How would you do Sigma's red belt without the paint either being applied too thick or getting everywhere?
DeleteHonestly, I was really disappointed by the Kotobukiya kit. I know the magic of model kits lies in them being molded in a single color, but it really bothers me that the cape is just plain red—and made of plastic, though I get that all model kits are plastic. I would have liked them to do what they did with the new Batman figure, where the cape is actually made of fabric. Aside from that, it’s a good figure, but I’m glad I didn’t buy it; I’m hoping the Hiya version will be the definitive Sigma. Thanks for the review.
ReplyDeleteHis forehead gem doesn't have the silver ring around it, either. Kinda makes it look like he has a huge zit on his forehead, imo.
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