Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Revoltech Hokuto no Ken #05- Toki

Toys, toys, toys... who will ever get enough of them? For this post, I will write about Revoltech Toki from Hokuto no Ken.

Toki is the second of the four Hokuto brothers and is consider by Ryuken as the best candidate for the 64th succession to Hokuto Shinken. He relinquish his right as the successor after fallen terminally ill during the nuclear fallout when he sacrifice himself to save Kenshiro, Yuria and a group of children. After that, he dedicated his life and skill to heal the sick and dying. He was later captured by Raoh’s army and was replaced by an imposter named Amiba.

Unlike his brothers, Toki uses a fighting style which, resembles flowing water. The Hokuto Ujō Ken (North Star Humane Fist) that he prefer is capable of fatally injuring an opponent but sparing the opponent the pain of dying. Hence, it is called the “humane” fist.


Out-of-the-box. This figure comes with 2 pairs of extra hand, a head, a pair of chain and a standard stand.



Front view. Yup this looks like Toki alright.



Rear view. I love the hair. I wonder how they managed to sculpt that.


Kenshiro! Let me challenge the successor of Hokuto Shinken!


Toki's style is elegant and smooth.


The closest comparison would be Taichi.


I will defeat you! Ken Oh!!!


Hokuto Oju Ken! Anyone who play the PS2/arcade game will recognize this move.



Remember that extra head I mentioned earlier? You can change Toki's head with the extra and you will get Amiba! A good reason for anyone to go buy an extra figure just to have Toki and Amiba standing next to each other.

Once again, Kaiyodo has done a great job in capturing the image of this character. There is not much to complain about besides some minor problem with the paintjob and the lack of extra gimmick. The only real problem/complain for me is to find those extra money that I will need to fork out for this figure. :P

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Revoltech Hokuto no Ken #04- Jagi

Life is so busy and hectic lately so I will skip my usual lengthy but meaningless ranting.

Let me present to you Jagi from the Hokuto no Ken manga. Jagi is introduced as the third of the four adopted son of Ryuken. His background is a mystery and was never explained in the manga. Unlike his brothers, Jagi is both deceptive and evil. He viewed Hokuto Shin Ken as a tool that he can use to oppress the weak and will stop at nothing to be the successor. When Kenshiro was declared as the next successor, Jagi confronted him and tried to threaten him in forfeiting his succession. During that encounter, he was defeated by Kenshiro and was lucky to run away alive with a disfigured head as a reminder of that fateful day. He wears a helmet from there on to hide his hideous facial features.


I am a bit disappointed by the amount of parts that come with the release. Kaiyodo is really being stingy by giving us 2 extra pair of hands, a stand, and a saw-off shotgun.



Front view.


Close up on front view.


Rear view.


Close up on rear view.



What are you looking at punk!!!


I will not forgive this pain!


Look what you have done to me!!! I am going to repay you Kenshiro!!!


Close up on the head. I love those minute facial detail. Jagi is really an ugly bastard!



I will make a beehive out of you! That shotgun is a bit too short for my liking.


It does not matter as long as I win!!!


I am not the old Jagi! I know Nanto Shin Ken too!!!

The sculpting of this figure is based on the design from the Hokuto no Ken fighting game and it captures the character perfectly. The only complain I have for this figure is the less than perfect work on those shoulder spikes. On close inspection, you will find a thin line of plastic right at the center of each shoulder piece, which was not remove during the production of this figure. On top of that, Kaiyodo should not be too stingy with the goodies. Both Kenshiro and Rei came with extra gimmicks and parts while Jagi was only given a saw-off shotgun. All said and done, this is a great figure and a must have for those Hokuto fans out there. :D

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Resolution and New Year Chaos

Phew! Finally! I am back in action!!! There has been alot of reason for me being away for so long. First of all, January was all about spring cleaning and Lunar Year celebration. The spring cleaning took must of my time! I lost count how much trash I have managed to throw out from the house but it looks like a futile effort. On top of that! I ended up catching a cold during the first few days of Chinese New Year!

Fast forward to February, I was tied up with work most of the time. Have to complete the proposal for that, write in a report for this, make arrangement for those... To top that off, both my computer in the office AND at home acted up on me. And right when I was about to go attend a friend's wedding, I caught another nasty cold.

I am glad those are finally over. Now I will have the time to set some resolution for year 2009.

1. Complete 6 kits in 2009. I do not want to be too ambitious. I am going to be a very happy modeller if I can complete 6 model kits this year.

2. Advance my career. I found out that most of my friends back in my uni-years managed to advance quite far in their career and I thought I am a bit left behind. It is time for me to do something about that. :P

3. Stay healthy. I realized that I have been sick quite often lately. I wonder if my age is catching up on me. Will have to watch out on my diet and exercise more often this year.

4. Enjoy life. What is the point of gaining the world if you cant enjoy it? No matter how busy life is, I am going to enjoy every bit of it.

5. Lastly, I need to get myself more commited to life. =P

That is all for now. Now I need to get back to that phone of mine... See you all later and...

Happy Belated New Year 2009!!! :D