Kit Review

Straight build + Panel lining

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Upper body

The head with its eye-catching clear cover

Border Break Shrike type-I - The slender arms (1/3)

The slender arms

Legs

Border Break Shrike type-I - The feet have two wheels. At first glance you might worry they'd slip around, but the feet are l

The feet with two wheels.
At first glance you might worry they'd slip around, but the feet are large enough that ground contact is actually solid.

Border Break Shrike type-I - The various weapons mounted on the back. (1/3)

The various weapons mounted on the back.

With the weapons removed

Border Break Shrike type-I - The weapon mount at the bottom of the backpack is also removable, but you'll need to cover the m

The weapon mount at the bottom of the backpack is also removable,
but you'll need to cover the mounting hole with a small cover piece in its place.

The Booster attached to the side of the hip joint.

The various weapons

The Rac Scout and Heavy Mine are not mounted on the body.

Hands come in the standard 3-piece set

The Smac Shotgun can also be mounted on the back.

Leftover parts. As expected, there are plenty of Frame Arms base skeleton parts remaining.

Articulation.

Border Break Shrike type-I - Hmm.. when the knee is bent, the hollow gaps in the armor are pretty noticeable.. not something

Hmm.. when the knee is bent, the hollow gaps in the armor are pretty noticeable..
Not something you'd expect from Kotobukiya.

Forward/backward shoulder articulation

Border Break Shrike type-I - Action poses. The articulation is good so it's fairly easy to get into poses. (1/4)

Border Break Shrike type-I - Action poses. The articulation is good so it's fairly easy to get into poses. (2/4)

Border Break Shrike type-I - Action poses. The articulation is good so it's fairly easy to get into poses. (3/4)

Border Break Shrike type-I - Action poses. The articulation is good so it's fairly easy to get into poses. (4/4)

Action pose.
The articulation is good so it's fairly easy to get into poses.

Border Break Shrike type-I - Kneeling pose + Heavy Mine deployment (1/4)

Border Break Shrike type-I - Kneeling pose + Heavy Mine deployment (2/4)

Kneeling pose + Heavy Mine deployment

Detaching the small weapon from the back.
The hold is a bit weak so it comes off pretty easily.

The Repair Unit mounted in the center of the back moves like this.

Border Break Shrike type-I - Firing pose (1/4)

Border Break Shrike type-I - Firing pose (2/4)

Firing pose

Border Break Shrike type-I - The Booster on the side of the hip joint can be displayed open by swapping out the inner parts.

The Booster on the side of the hip joint can be displayed open by swapping out the inner parts.

Border Break Shrike type-I - Action shots with the Booster open, using the Kotobukiya dedicated stand (1/5)

Border Break Shrike type-I - Action shots with the Booster open, using the Kotobukiya dedicated stand (2/5)

Border Break Shrike type-I - Action shots with the Booster open, using the Kotobukiya dedicated stand (3/5)

Action shots with the Booster open, using the Kotobukiya dedicated stand

Border Break Shrike type-I - At first glance it looks similar to the Cougar Type-I, but look closely and you'll find almost n

At first glance it looks similar to the Cougar Type-I,
but look closely and you'll find almost nothing in common — it's a completely different unit.

Border Break series lineup

The third entry in the Border Break series — and the highest quality kit in the Kotobukiya lineup — is the Shrike Type-I. It's a unit defined by its bright yellow color scheme, slim proportions, and that distinctive clear canopy head.

Like its predecessors, it makes heavy use of the Frame Arms skeleton, though here the recycled parts show up more in the torso than in the arms or legs. Overall articulation is good and the proportions are solid, so action poses look great, and just like the previous entries, the molding has a noticeably sharper, crisper feel compared to other series.

Joint strength is decent enough, but the snap-fit connections feel a bit weaker compared to the previous kit, so you'll probably need to use glue in quite a few spots. With the Cougar Type-I, gluing just a minimal number of areas was fine, but with the Shrike Type-I it feels like the durability suffers if you don't glue the key spots throughout. Also, similar to the previous kits, the weapon attachments on the backpack tend to be on the loose side. These weapon connection points are tricky to glue down too, so you just have to be careful when handling them.

I was also a bit skeptical about the two spinning wheels on the soles of the feet, but in practice the wheels are stiff and don't spin easily, and the feet themselves are quite large, so it doesn't seem to be much of an issue.

Overall, if you take the time to glue things properly, you'll end up with a kit that's durable with solid joint strength and articulation — the sharp edges and stylish design make it an easy recommendation if you like the look. :-)

Border Break Shrike type-I | 2010. 5 | ¥3,500

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.