Kit Review

Straight build + Stickers

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Various angles (1/6)

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Various angles (2/6)

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Various angles (3/6)

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Various angles (4/6)

Various angles

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Detail shots (1/4)

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Detail shots (2/4)

Detail shots

The weapons and accessories are pretty minimal.

Detail on the inside of the shield

Using the joint parts, you can mount the shield on the back.

Only 3 hands are included in total.

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - The grip between the weapons and hands is solid, so there are no issues holding th

The grip between the weapons and hands is solid, so there are no issues holding them.

The limb articulation looks impressive.

You can pull the hip joints down to get a wider range of motion.

The forward/backward range of motion at the shoulders is on the narrow side.

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Relatively flexible waist (1/3)

Relatively flexible waist

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Various action poses using the blade and shield (1/9)

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Various action poses using the blade and shield (2/9)

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Various action poses using the blade and shield (3/9)

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Various action poses using the blade and shield (4/9)

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Various action poses using the blade and shield (5/9)

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Various action poses using the blade and shield (6/9)

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier - Various action poses using the blade and shield (7/9)

Various action poses using the blade and shield

Together with the Figure-rise Standard The Legendary Exodia Incarnate.

This kit is the Chaos released as part of the Figure-rise Standard series. It's a character from Yu-Gi-Oh! and one of the highest-level monster cards in the game. The English name is Black Luster Soldier, which can cause some confusion, but it's generally known as Chaos Soldier in Japanese.

First off, it's impressive how nearly all of the gold patterns covering the entire body are achieved through color separation. On top of that, the deep blue base molded color has gloss injection applied, giving the whole figure a shiny, eye-catching look. There are some seals used as well, but they're only applied to part of the inner collar area to match the design colors. In the end, all those flashy gold patterns are handled entirely through parts separation, so you can get a pretty satisfying result even with just a straight build.

That said, while the limb articulation itself is above average, the joint structure isn't great for actually striking poses. The structure on the front of the thighs makes it hard to kick the legs straight up, and the forward/backward range of motion at the shoulders is limited too. The ankles aren't very flexible either, so the feet don't plant on the ground all that well. There's also no hole for a display stand, so you can barely pull off an aerial display using a clamp-type stand support.

On the plus side, the joint strength is fairly solid — nothing feels particularly loose anywhere on the body. But getting the legs into a cool angle is no easy task, so as an action figure model kit, the articulation feels below average. Looking at the review photos above, it might not seem like a big deal, but once you actually try posing it yourself, you'll understand what I mean. It's been a while since I've come across a Figure-rise kit this frustrating to pose.

On the other hand, the elaborate color separation and gloss injection really do stand out, making it a kit where the flashy looks and the not-so-great joint structure are quite the contrast. If you're planning to just display it standing or hold it in a single pose anyway, the appearance should be more than satisfying. But if articulation is important to you, this is definitely a kit to think carefully about before buying. :-)

Figurerise Standard Black Luster Soldier | 2024.1 | ¥4,200

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.