Thank you to Forbidden Planet for selling me this kit...though without naming the particular branch, dear lord, you need to step up your model kit game, man cannot survive off of DBZ Figure Rise kits, HG Mazinkaisers and a single Ex-Standard SD kit alone. I'll admit the High Grade Magna Saurer looks nice, but not for the price you're charging for it, that's for sure!
It's been a good few months, hasn't it? Yeah, sorry for the lack of posts over the past few months. Life got crazy for me as is, and my usual plastic model haunts haven't really given me much joy until recently. But fret not, I do have a Gundam kit I've been after for a while on order as of me typing this. While I wait for that, it's time for me to delve into the occasionally-explored depths of Bandai's Figure Rise line, specifically their line of kits based on Dragon Ball Z. Would've preferred their Perfect Cell kit, but hey ho, Frieza's final form is the next best thing in my opinion.
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| "Build the ultimate warrior"? I don't think there's nearly enough rocket fuel in the world to reach THAT level of insanity! |
Only five runners in this kit. This one should be a nice simple breather after my last build diary.
Through a combination of subtly-different shades, the eyes are achieved without the use of a single foil sticker, and I am deeply grateful for that.
The mouth part is a little tiny, and required me manoeuvring it into position with my tweezers. But it's a very satisfying smirk.
There are black foil stickers used for the sides of the head, but they aren't difficult to attach nor do they seem out of place.
There's also a second option for the head to give Frieza a more gleefully-psychotic expression.
Frieza's teeth on this alternate head are a foil sticker this time round, and it's a little more finicky than the black stickers. It was around assembling this head that I grew rather annoyed at how easily the gate marks show up on the purple parts, and there's only so much that my cutters can get past.
Looking at all the muscle lines, I'd imagine someone with more patience than me could carefully panel line everything to give it a more anime-accurate look.
No polycaps in this kit. Everything clicks in fairly easily, and the head connection feels solid enough to work while feeling loose enough to seem easy to swap with the other expression.
I'm not all that confident on the stickers used for the toenails. It feels like attempting to secure them down pushes them out of alignment. If any of them fall off any time after I finish this kit, I won't be surprised.
That was a simple, yet fun build. The standing balance admittedly relies heavily on him being propped up by his tail, but it all still looks natural regardless of which way I rotate it. There's also a bunch of swappable hands and effect parts you can pose the kit with, including a Death Ball. Here he is, posed in a manner that implies the exact kind of casual planetary annihilation one would expect:
There's no left pointing hand included - it seems to me that Frieza is a devout rightie when it comes to lobbing Death Balls into planets.
There's also a really nice death beam effect as well. Bit annoyed that the feet don't quite stay flush with the ground, and those stickers can't be helping. But hey ho, that's why god gave us Action Bases. All in all, a simple kit that nonetheless captures the right details and makes for a kit that's fun to pose and fun to look at. I threw shade earlier at one of my usual model haunts dealing more in DBZ Figure Rise kits than Gunpla, but if they're as good as this, then I might consider doing more. Especially if they actually end up stocking the Perfect Cell kit.
Stay safe and keep clipping, folks!
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