S.H.Figuarts Kamen Rider Double CycloneJoker Review: Count Up Your Sins! (Part One...?)

Comic Books aren't my only hobby; I also collect figures, though I don't buy them as often mostly because comics are an expensive hobby as it is. Still, I've always wanted to post reviews of the figures I've bought. Well now I have my own blogamajig to do whatever I want whenever I want, so today I'm going to do my first toy review ever; Kamen Rider Double CyclonJoker from Bandai's S.H.Figuarts line!

The first thing to talk about here is the packaging; I'm not too crazy about it. It's not bad packaging, but it's just kind of bland. You get the name of the product and the Figuarts branding and an image of Double himself that isn't even in color. The back has the standard images of the figure in the character's iconic poses and some japanese text. There's just nothing here that really catches my eye or wows me outside of the figure inside itself. Luckily for me, I'm not a MISB type guy. I take my figures out of the packaging and fiddle with them.

For me the main draw here is the figure itself and this is one awesome figure. Aesthetically this little guy is awesome; he's accurate to the character in the show, his joints are for the most part well hidden (I'll get back to this in a bit.) and his paint job is just fantastic. Even the belt buckle morphamajig is painted well. Perhaps my favorite little detail is the eyes, which have little flashy bits in them, reflecting the light and just looking awesome. In fact, when I look at the photo to the left I can almost here Shoutaro reciting his catch phrase "Count up your sins!".

My one gripe with the figure's aesthetic features are the unpainted joints on the elbows. on the green side really sticks out and keeps it from being a perfect figure visually. It's a shame, too because he's so close.

Another gripe I have with the figure is the wrist joint and the removable hands. The hands themselves aren't hard to work with, but swapping is a bit of a pain because you've got these nubs that you've got to work with and they just don't want to stay still. I almost wish these were more like the Revoltech joints, which are by comparison much more easy to work with. These aren't deal breakers by any means, but they're just tiny tidbits that I wouldn't feel right with leaving out.



This figure's best feature is it's articulation. I can't think of any pose this figure can't pull off, though you'll need a stand to pull off some more of the dynamic poses (I had been planning to put him in the crane pose, but he just doesn't want to do it). This guy isn't exactly a master of balance on on foot. Still, his joints are fantastic and allow the figure a great deal of movement and flexibility. The only limits to this guy are your imagination. Well, that and a stand, which will cost you a bit extra. Still, you should be able to find a stand on just about any of the websites you'd have to go through to get this guy and he's going to cost you around $40 after shipping, so keep all of that in mind when considering this purchase.

Overall, this guy get's my full recommendation; if you're an avid collector you probably already know this line well enough that you don't need my word to convince you. If you're a newbie with the cash to put out for him go for it; you won't regret it. The character comes in 10 other flavors and two other Riders to choose from here. I got mine from Amiami, but Hobby Link Japan, Amazon Japan, and eBay are all worth checking out while you're at it. Just watch out for Bootlegs on eBay and do your homework on the seller!

(I'm thinking about posting a part two which will mostly be images of the figure's different hands, the joints, and maybe some more poses for fun! Tell me what you think and leave any feedback you have at all. I want this thing to get as good as possible and some opinions and critiques would go a long way.)