Kit Review

Straight build

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Anubis Z.O.E. Dolores - Detail shots (1/4)

Anubis Z.O.E. Dolores - Detail shots (2/4)

Detail shots

Anubis Z.O.E. Dolores - The cockpit even comes with a pilot figure. The cockpit figure is only included in the first-run limi

The cockpit even comes with a pilot figure.
The cockpit figure is only included in the first-run limited edition.
It's supposed to be a feminine mech, but that... thing is way too prominent down there.. -_-;;

A variety of weapon accessories are included.

The massive Vas-Arans are attached by swapping out the left and right body armor panels.

Three different hand types are included in total.

The small wings on the forearms can be swapped out for small shields.

The limb articulation folds up nice and crisp~ @_@

The small horns on the head and both side/rear head sections are also articulated.

Anubis Z.O.E. Dolores - The landing gear at the tips of the feet is reproduced as a working mechanism, but... without a stand

The landing gear at the tips of the feet is reproduced as a working mechanism, but...
Without a stand, standing upright is practically impossible.

Anubis Z.O.E. Dolores - Feminine po~ses... but what do you do about that crotch area... (1/3)

Feminine po~ses...
But what do you do about that crotch area...

Together with the first-run limited figure included in the box.

Hand transformed into blade form.

Anubis Z.O.E. Dolores - Blade action (1/3)

Blade action

Anubis Z.O.E. Dolores - Poses using the hand transformed into rifle form (1/3)

Poses using the hand transformed into rifle form

Anubis Z.O.E. Dolores - Vas-Arans action! (1/3)

Vas-Arans action!

Anubis Z.O.E. Dolores - Together with Jehuty. You can immediately tell they're meant to contrast with masculine and feminine

Together with Jehuty.
You can immediately tell they're meant to contrast with masculine and feminine colors and designs..
But they appear to be the same gender..

The Z.O.E. series releases one kit a year, and this time around we've got Dolores with her feminine design and color scheme. True to form, the precise color separation means it comes out as a colorful kit even with just a straight build.

That said, there's one visual gripe I have — the green stripe running across the body and legs has absolutely no color separation at all, which looks a bit off. It's puzzling why Kotobukiya, who usually does such a nice job with paint applications on the runners, put it out like this. Sure, hand-painting that area isn't particularly difficult, but still — this is Kotobukiya... they have a habit of leaving these odd little disappointments here and there. Even just throwing in a sticker like Bandai would've been fine.

The basic skeletal structure feels similar to Jehuty — it goes together pretty easily and the snap-fit works well enough that you can build it without glue without too much trouble. That said, some of the main parts still have iffy connections, so it's probably safer to apply a bit of glue here and there.

The limb articulation is top-notch — everything folds up nice and crisp~ But the joint strength is a bit shaky in places, so actually getting poses to hold is no easy task. The hip joints in particular tend to pop out during posing, and the wrists, rear skirts, and knee sections have weak connections that keep coming apart T_T That said, it's only a problem while you're actively posing it — once you get a pose set and locked in, the stability isn't actually that bad, which is a relief.

Dolores has a number of in-setting gimmicks, and they're all faithfully represented through the various accessory parts. You've got the massive Vas-Arans, plus blade/rifle-form arms, deployed wing parts, and energy shield parts — all swappable, letting you recreate a wide range of scenes. The hands can be swapped between three different forms, though the wrist joints tend to pop out easily, so be careful when switching them out.

There are a few things to nitpick, but overall it's a pretty fun kit to build, with a colorful and attractive design and excellent articulation. The cockpit design does make you question the mech designer's personal tastes a little (-_-), but given that the ZOE lineup as a whole seems to have a certain prominent... feature (;;) as part of its concept, I suppose that's why even a feminine unit ended up with such a peculiar setup.

Anyway, there are probably plenty of ZOE fans who've been waiting for a Dolores plastic model, and since it turned out fairly well-done overall, I'd say it's definitely worth recommending. :-)

Anubis Z.O.E. Dolores | 2014 8 | ¥6,800

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.