KEN MASTERS - Storm Collectibles Street Fighter V action figure

It seems like everyone and their grandmother is reviewing Storm Collectibles' Street Fighter figures right now. The good news is that the reviews tend to be very positive, with most of the complaints I have seen occurring around QC issues having to do with breakage at the joints. To this point, Ken is my sixth opened Storm Collectibles action figure and, thankfully, I haven't had any breakage issues at all (knock wood). I've been very pleased with the figures I've gotten so far, and I'm still as excited about the line moving forward as I was before the first figure's initial release!

Ken is the third Street Fighter V figure to be released by SC (not counting re-paints). It's another solid figure, and might actually be my favorite of the three so far, despite my general ambivalence towards Ken's SFV character re-design.

Ken comes packaged in a fairly large window box with attractive graphics on each of the panels. SC has been releasing 2 package versions for each figure: Asian releases have all of the descriptive text in Japanese (I assume), while North American versions are translated into English. Since mine came directly from SC, I've no idea what the bio shares. I like the general design of the box, but there are a couple of things worth noting. First, there's a LOT crammed into this figure's package, which makes it feel like the thing is about to burst. In fact, my top panel was fairly popping out of the tape. It's easy enough to open, but a little trickier to keep mint for MIB collectors. My second and third notes have to do with MIB collectors, as well. The SF logo on the top panel is a cut-out, which means there's a V-shape of cardboard that doesn't like to sit flush against the top panel. As a result, that V tends to get caught on things and bend upwards, which can be an annoyance for MIBers. Finally, there's a sheet of thin plastic film wedged around the figure and between the clamshells that hold everything in place. I love that SC is keeping the figure and contents from paint mishaps, but it makes it very difficult to see the figure and its accessories in detail through the protective wrap. These are all minor quibbles to me, and do not in any way detract from my enjoyment of the product.

Storm Collectibles has included a ton of useful accessories with Ken. You'll get a total of: 8 hands, 3 face plates, 3 bang hair pieces (making for a total of 9 different looks for the head), a small flame effect for the foot, a dragon punch flame effect, a large dragon kick flame effect, a display stand and arm, a flaming Hadoken effect and a cardboard backdrop. The flame effects are beautifully crafted of translucent plastic with painted highlights at the edges. The hands include 2 fists, 2 open palms, 2 Hadoken gripping hands, another open left hand and a pointing right hand. The Hadoken hands clamp onto the fireball pretty well, but getting them attached to the arms is tricky.

Aesthetically, Ken is fantastic. I feel like Storm Collectibles begins with the sculpt, and works the articulation scheme from there. The result is that their figures look really accurate to the game and make creative use of a variety of materials (such as rubber or softer plastic) to enhance their articulation. Bandai's Figuarts figures, on the other hand, feel like they begin with the articulation and work towards the sculpt from there. The result is a figure that has a smoother articulation scheme and can achieve a wider variety of excellent poses, but doesn't quite match the thickness of the SFV game renders. I like both styles, personally, and am as excited as ever that we are finally getting outstanding SF figures - from TWO different lines, no less!

SC's figures are so well-sculpted that I'm perfectly content with them standing in a vanilla pose, fists at their sides, on my shelf. Ken is bulky but proportionate. There are wrinkles sculpted across the back of his tight undershirt, and his gi-top hangs folded down around his waist. The black stretch shirt has red piping that is sculpted on as raised elements, rather than just painted on, while the pants and lower torso elements are very similar to those we saw with Ryu (the exception being the straps molded onto the underside of Ken's feet). The default face comes with a stern, tight-lipped expression, creased at the forehead. The alternate faces feature two kids of yells, while the bangs either sweep to the side, or apart. Overall, this is an A-quality sculpt that matches the game renders nearly perfectly, while hiding the articulation fairly well.

The paint is excellent, especially on the face(s). The eyes and brows look great, and the hair looks blonde without being glaring. There's an uneven wash in places over the outfit to give it some grime, though it's not as heavy as it was on Ryu.

Once I started messing around with trying to pose this guy, I discovered some things that I really liked, and some that weren't quite as good. I'll start with the good, first. The head has an amazing amount of tilt, both forward and backwards. The rubber neck and the ball inside work much better than they did on Ryu, and he holds the tilts very well. The rubber upper torso can lean deeply, as well, though a gap opens in the front when he tilts too far backwards. The rubber inserts at the shoulders are great, working as well as they did on Ryu, while looking better. The "skirt" is rubber (it can be removed by pulling the torso apart), but it does restrict the ability of the legs to move out to the sides somewhat. It was inconvenient when I was trying to get high-kicking poses. The wrists have an amazing amount for movement to them, and the ball joint underneath is hidden well by the rubber wrist cuffs. All of that, combined with the excellent sculpt and paint work, really make this figure shine. That said, there were some negatives I encountered.

First and foremost, I do not care for the rubber bangs. The "sweeping to the side" and "sweeping outwards" bangs don't do much for me, and (more importantly) they did not peg into the head deep enough. Either the post is too long, or the rubber is too flexible. Either way, they stick out too far and just don't look good. I'd suggest small bits like that be done with regular plastic, rather than rubber (they really don't need to flex anyway). My biggest gripe (and biggest surprise, actually) are the translucent plastic effect parts. They are not easy to get on, at all. It was really frustrating to try to squeeze Ken's foot into the large dragon fire kicking effect, and once I got it on it was too heavy for the hip joint, so it kept pulling the leg down. Plus, it sits in a really awkward direction on the foot. I couldn't even get the smaller foot-fire effect attached at all. The place where these parts clamp in is just too tight, and they have no flex whatsoever to them. This is a case where I'd recommend a softer plastic for the effect parts. The dragon punch flame effect part worked great.

Overall, Ken is another home run for Storm Collectibles. The figure looks terrific, and the SF shelf is really starting to round out now (check out the pic below of all three figures released so far)! I think each release is improving in many ways. I did find the effects parts to be fairly difficult to work with, though they do end up looking pretty good in action shots. I'm sure someone with more posing skills than me will really enjoy this figure. For me, I super happy having him displayed on my shelf. Next up is Zangief!

IBUKI - Street Fighter Bishoujo Statue

Ibuki is the sixth figure (I believe) released in Kotobukiya's Bishoujo Street Fighter line of "pretty girl" statues. I've resisted diving into this line for nearly three years, but with 2017 shaping up to be an all-out Street Fighter merchandising blitz, I just couldn't hold out any longer.

Ibuki is a fixed-pose, PVC statue based on the artwork of Shunya Yamashita. She comes packaged very carefully in a window box (with 3 windows!) featuring the beautiful artwork that inspired the figure. Everything is protected very well, and the box is attractive enough to keep and even add to the display (I've got the box turned around to the full-artwork side as the backdrop behind the statue). The figure is advertised as 1/7 scale, and she stands about 9" tall atop her non-removable, clear plastic base.

The sculpt is excellent. The pose is interesting, and eye catching. Visually, there's a neat line created from the bend of her right elbow, following her forearm, across her throat and down her extended left arm to her hand. It's tilted slightly downwards, which I wish was a tiny bit different - raising her left arm and hand just a little would have added just a touch of aggression that the statue seems to lack. Along those lines, Ibuki's face is a tiny bit longer and thinner than the artwork of Yamashita. The result is a more "pixie-ish" look that I have a harder time taking seriously as a ninja warrior. It's not bad, by any means, just different enough from the illustration to be noticeable.

The outfit has plenty of detail in the form of creases and folds to suggest motion and depth. The lower portion is a separate piece, allowing for space between the body and "clothing" in places. The hair is fantastic, with the enormous tail whipping up over her head and back around to her waist, and three tremendous strands bowing down in front of her face. They are not pliable, and I'd suggest being careful with them. The same should be said about the blade she has in her right hand, as it is fairly pointy and made of pretty hard plastic.

The paint is the real highlight of this statue (and, from what I've seen, of the entire Bishoujo line). It really is exceptional, and really serves to enhance the sculpt. The base colors are all applied perfectly, with absolutely no bleed or blemishes. Granted, it's a pretty simple color scheme: flesh, brown, dark brown, light brown, off-white, beige and pink fingernails. That said, Kotobukiya applied some expert airbrush highlighting to make everything pop. The clothing and actual flesh both sport subtle shading in strategic locations, never feeling overdone or sloppy, while standing out when examined closely - it's artfully and tastefully done.

The face is clean and sharp, with a gloss applied to the eyes. As I mentioned before, I prefer the face of the illustration to the final product, but the statue certainly isn't bad. Ibuki is a terrific addition to my shelf, and (yes) I will be getting more Bishoujo Street Fighter statues. She's beautifully sculpted, painted perfectly and looks great on the shelf. A quality statue is one that draws you back to it time and again, while a powerful work of art encourages you to notice new things on each visit. I feel like this line of statues has the care and craftsmanship to make both of these things possible, and I certainly look forward to adding new releases (as well as old!) to my collection...

BRUCE LEE The Martial Artist Series No. 1 by Storm Collectibles

Storm Collectibles released the first in their line of Bruce Lee statues in June of 2016. Dubbed "The Martial Artist Series No. 1," it depicts Bruce Lee flexing his muscles in a pose taken directly from a scene in "Way of the Dragon." Storm's website lists this item in their "1/12 scale" category, but unfortunately this figure is absolutely not in 1/12 scale. Nevertheless, it's a terrific piece, and a fitting tribute to Bruce Lee. No. 2 is due out some time in Q2 of 2017, and I'll be picking that one up, as well.

Right off the bat, know that this is a plastic statue. There is no articulation, save what you may be able to achieve with the alternate heads. There are two included, each with a magnet inside, and they attach securely to the neck, which has another magnet embedded in its top. The standard head features a shaved face and eyes staring straight ahead, while the alternate has a bearded chin and eyes which are shifted off to the figure's right. Both are beautifully sculpted, but I prefer the clean-shaven look, which has a better paint application on mine. The paint is actually quite good. The skin his a lifelike texture, and the eyes have a slight glassy appearance. Fine details like the eyebrows and faint stubble are excellent and understated, though they do much to add to the realism. I feel like the eyes on my bearded head are a little askew, but the beard itself is great. Both feature a slight blush to the cheekbones and the excellent detailed sculpting of the hair complete the package.

The body is just as well-done. The muscles, textures and paint all work together seamlessly to create an illusion of realism, even coming complete with sculpted veins popping in strategic places. The sculpt captures Lee's physique very well, and looks just about exactly as it did in all of the prototype promo pictures. I will mention a couple of things that are bugging me about the sculpt, though. First, the promo pictures seemed to imply a sleeker, glossier skin tone - almost like sweat, which would be entirely appropriate for the scene the pose is taken from. I find the matte, dappled paint they used doesn't bring out the muscle sculpt as much as the glossier finish would have. That said, he's still incredibly life-like. My other quibbles have to do with the proportions of the sculpt itself. This statue has incredibly long forearms. Either that, or they are thin that they give the figure an almost bird-like appearance. The more significant issue has to do with his proportions at the lower torso and legs. The cloth pants (which are done nicely, and are glued into place - not adjustable) do a lot to hide this, but the figure's legs are ridiculously long in comparison to the upper torso. The distance from his belly button down to the base of the crotch is the same as the distance from the belly button up to the chin. Like I said, it's mostly hidden by the pants, but it's there.

The last thing to note is the size. I bought this because it was advertised as 1/12 scale, and I thought it would be awesome to have a Bruce Lee to display among my NECA Street Fighters and Storm Collectibles Street Fighters and Mortal Kombat participants. It's not 1/12 scale. The figure measures 7 & 5/8" tall (and there is no base). If my math is correct, that puts this figure at between 1/8 and 1/9 scale in comparison to the 5' 7" Bruce Lee. I don't have many figures on my shelves in a 1/8.6 scale, so he looks woefully out-of-place beside just about anything. That said, Bruce Lee probably deserves his own shelf. If Storm Collectibles manages to get No. 2 as right as this one is, and can continue the line through track-suit versions and more, I'll happily built a Bruce Lee 1/8.6 scale shelf all its own. In the mean time, I'm happy to have this one, and continue to be impressed by the level of quality Storm Collectibles exhibits.

Alongside Storm Collectibles MK 1/12 Scorpion

RYU VS SAGAT - SOTA Toys Street Fighter 2-Pack

 This 2-Pack, released by SOTA Toys in 2006, features Ryu with an alternate screaming head, 2 Hadoken hands, 2 fists and his traveling bag, and Sagat with alternate head, and 2 open hands and 2 fists. The figures are beautifully sculpted and superbly articulated. This set shows Sagat with his scar healed, and his imposing size and impressive sculpt make him my favorite figure from this line.

Ryu is a bit bland in comparison. His standard expression is pretty blank, and I feel like the chest sculpt is a little overdone, in the sense that there are a lot of lines (striations?) sculpted over the pectorals that aren't very convincing to me. That said, it's Ryu!

I'm hesitant to open the package for any of these SOTA Street Fighters because 1) they are so relatively expensive on the secondary market,  2) the couple that I do have out of package tend to loosen their joints pretty quickly and 3) Storm Collectibles and SH Figuarts have new Street Fighters on the way for my shelf. As a result, the SOTA figures are hanging on my wall for display.

SCORPION - Storm Collectibles Mortal Kombat action figure

I missed out on SOTA's Street Fighter figures. What I mean is that I completely overlooked them when they were available at retail. I have no idea what I was focused on at the time - probably Spawn or Star Wars, but I didn't realize what they were producing until it was too late. I have been able to pick up quite a few on the secondary market, but their prices have been so high that I've chosen to keep most in-package. I think it's maybe because I'm not much of a gamer, especially when it comes to fighting games, that I didn't bother with them originally. Tekken, Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter, Virtua Fighter and the rest are just properties I didn't pay much attention to. But something happened along the way: I got hooked on Udon's Street Fighter comics. I loved the characters, loved the story line, and discovered that I had missed out on what many collectors might consider to be one of the best, if not the best, action figure lines ever made. SOTA's Street Fighters had it all - scale, sculpt, articulation and accessories - and the line had depth! I've literally been waiting forever for someone else to pick up the mantle and tackle the line with as much respect and professional love for the property as SOTA had. I had high hopes for NECA when they released their SFIV line, but it was short-lived: only 6 characters were made.

And Mortal Kombat? Jazwares made some of the poorest quality figures I've ever seen, and they still command incredible prices on the secondary market. So that shows an interest for the property, right? Well, Storm Collectibles has finally decided to put in a play for both Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat in a rough 1/12 scale, and I couldn't be more thrilled. These look like exactly what I've been waiting for, for near on a decade. I've only gotten Scorpion in-hand so far, but he's so good that I went ahead and cancelled my Figuarts Ryu pre-order and pre-ordered a second one from Storm instead. I'm all-in for these guys, and I couldn't be happier. For this review, I'm taking a look at Storm's initial MK offering: Scorpion.

To begin with, the packaging is perfect. It accomplishes my 4 most important things: 1) it protects the contents, 2) it shows you exactly what you are getting, 3) it is completely collector-friendly and 4) it looks just as good on display for MIB collectors. Storm's packaging is attractive, features terrific artwork, and is visually appealing.

Scorpion comes with 7 additional hands, a coiled spear-tipped rope, a thrown spear-tipped rope, an alternate "cloth" mask (MKI version), a skull head with articulated jaw and a 2-piece Hellfire effect part. Everything is housed sandwiched between two plastic trays, safe and sound. It's a nice selection of accessories, and provides just about everything one could need to pose this figure in a wide variety of ways.

This figure itself is impressive in nearly all aspects. The articulation is plentiful, well-thought-out, practical and (with the exception of the elbow joints) nearly seamless. The joints are mostly tight (my ankles are a little loose, but he still holds poses fine), and nothing falls apart MAFEX-style. He's fun to play around with, and one can generally find satisfactory looks with this guy without too much difficulty.

The paint is at an equally high level of production. There's a faint airbrushing to highlight the arm muscles, and a silver dry-brush applied to the gloves and forearm armor. The shin guards and knee pads are also weathered impressively to add depth and realism. In all, the sculpt covers the articulation, which is excellent, and everything is complimented by the paint. It's exactly what anyone could desire from a high end collectible action figure.

In general, I am just as pleased as everyone else who gets this guy in-hand seems to be. I particularly love the plastic they chose to use. It's durable, weighty and looks amazing. The flesh-tone plastic is particularly striking visually, and feels great, as well. I personally prefer the MKII mask over the cloth-style version, which just seems too bulky to me on his face. My one issue with the figure (and it's a relatively minor one) has to do with the sculpt when the figure is viewed from the side.

From that angle, he appears somewhat flat. I think this may be an optical illusion brought on by the wide tapered V of his outfit, combined with the bulk of his arms, but the figure seems like it needs more of a chest sculpted in. It looks particularly odd when the flaps are pulled down out of the way and the figure is viewed from the front - there are no pectoral muscles. Maybe Storm figured that would be covered anyway, and additional bulk could impede the articulation? In any event, it's mostly evident in a vanilla pose, when viewed from the side. Otherwise, this guy is just about perfect in every way! I'm still eagerly awaiting the release of Ryu and Sub-Zero, and with the NY ToyFair reveals of Bearded Ryu and Reptile shown earlier this month, my excitement is still running high.

KOTAL KAHN - Mezco Mortal Kombat X action figure

It's Mortal Kombat season in my world. With Storm Collectibles debut offering of Scorpion due to be delivered tomorrow, and all of the early reviews I've seen proclaiming the figure to be stellar, my anticipation is high. I thought it a good opportunity to take a look at an MK figure I've had for a while, but never really took the time to examine closely...

"Kotal Kahn is a warrior from the realm of Osh-Tekk. After Shao Kahn was killed in the war with Earthrealm, Kotal served his heir, Mileena. However, her instability eventually led him to overthrow her and assume the emperorship."

Kotal Kahn was released in 2015 by Mezco Toyz as part of the second wave of their short-lived Mortal Kombat X line (which only lasted for 2 waves). The package shape replicates earlier Jazwares card-backs, and is done in a plain black and white, with a notable stress on this figure being appropriate only for adult collectors aged 17+. The card-stock is thick enough to resist bends and creases fairly well, especially considering the shape, but the bubble has a sculpted, raised Mortal Kombat logo atop it. As a result, it's pretty difficult to make out the details of the figure underneath, despite it's being visible. All of this combines to make this figure less eye catching on the wall than it might be on the shelf. Packaging verdict: B+...open it.

Kotal Kahn is an impressive looking figure in every sense of the word. His size is imposing (within the line itself), and the sculpt and paintwork are exceptional. The head is gorgeous, from the intricate bird-themed helmet to the bundle of softer rubbery feathers extending out back. The visible face is stern, has eyes painted to look like they are glowing with s blue fire, and sports a tiny, painted bone piercing its nose. The shoulder and chest armor are equally impressive, with shapes and paintwork to match the helmet. The skeletal loincloth is incredible. The skull is painted with tiny eyes in the sockets and there are three sets of lower jawbones descending down the length of the cloth. Overall, it's absolutely A+ quality sculptwork, and the paint compliments it perfectly. Kahn has sculpted tatoo details raised over his torso, arms and legs. Even the choice of blue frosted plastic for the body works really well, making this one of the most eye-catching figures on any shelf I have.

The figure includes one set of alternate hands, a jagged stone knife and an enormous spiked paddle, dubbed a "macauhuitl." The second pair of hands look like gripping hands, but I've not seen the need for them since Kotal Kahn holds both weapons just fine in his curled right hand, straight out of the package. The knife is wicked looking, and the macauhuitl is fantastic. The black spikes are glossy and look like obsidian. There's a wonderful two-headed snake sculpted on the flat surfaces, with the paint allowed to bleed through the matte red enough to give a sense of shading. Overall, it's big, heavy and really unique. Accessories: A-...functional and well-made.

The trade-off for this guy's amazing sculpt, paintwork, and reasonably low retail price (just about $20) is his limited articulation. He's got enough to enable him to get several good looks, but they won't work to give him deep stances or dynamic looks. There's no biceps swivel, and other joints like the hips and head don't get the range of motion they really need. That said, there's enough here to make Kotal Kahn look great. Articulation: B.

Overall, Kotal Kahn is an awesome-looking addition to the Mortal Kombat figure universe. It's probably my favorite figure of the second wave, and really serves to show just how incredible Mezco can make their figures look. I don't know MKX at all, and I have no attachment to the character at all, but I'm happy to have KK at home on my Mortal Kombat shelf.