I know I said I was going to review my Marvel Bishoujo Invisible Woman figure next, but I just got Samus Aran in the mail today and when I saw her out of the box, I was convinced she had to go first. So here goes my review, and now with pictures!
TECH SPECS:
- Samus is 1/8th scale and approx. 22 cm (8.5 in) tall; the stand is about .5 cm/.1 in tall and approx. 12 cm (4.7 in) in diameter.
- The baby Metroid is about 3.5 cm tall (1.5 in) and when connected to the stand with the included arm, it sits at around 13.5 cm (5.5 in) in the air (from the base to the teeth)
-The box’s dimensions are 16x29x15.5 cm (6.2x11.5x6 in) and feature windows on four of its faces.
PACKAGING:
The box is pretty damn good, as most of GoodSmile’s packages are. It arrived in perfect condition, unopened and undamaged. There are 4 windows, so you can view Samus from the top, front and either side and the back features several pictures of the figure from different angles. The design of the box could be described as “space age-y” and complements the figure pretty well.
The inside packaging consist of two clear plastic parts to keep the figure from moving and do so really well; she barely wobbles around.
SCULPT:
Samus is beautifully sculpted. The lines on her suit are clean and even, the details on her hair and gun are really well done and her face is pretty much spot on. The seams, what little there are, are clean and fit together snuggly.
As for the Metroid, it could be better. The clear plastic used to simulate the jelly-like top of the alien is pretty damn foggy and has spots in it, although no bubbles are present. Also, the bottom half of the Metroid, where the teeth are, isn’t held in place properly and may break off from the peg that holds it there if you mess with it. Regardless, the detailing on the “inside” of has a ton of depth.
PAINTING:
As with most of Good Smile’s stuff, the painting is damn good. I have no problem with any of the colours selected and the differences in the paint use for her suit and her face/hair is consistent with the type of materials that would make up the real thing.
Her face is very well done. The lips and the line of depth in between them, were I feared I’d have an issue, are not a problem. Her eyes are very sharp and detailed, but slightly cross eyed when viewed from directly in front; she’s meant to be looking off to the right, but her right eye is too centered and makes her look odd. Not a major concern, however, since her best angle isn’t one that lets you see it.
The details on the symbols on her back, hand and left breast are sharp, but I’m not too keen on the “glowing” effect they did on the back and hand; it makes the symbols look like a bad sticker was applied after the main paint job was done. The breast’s symbol lacks it and looks the better for it, in my opinion, though the fact that it doesn’t have it breaks the consistency.
The Metroid’s paint job is slightly worse, in my opinion, because it lacks tonal differences on the “gums”; something similar to the inside of its head would have worked better. There are also several “veins” on the exterior jelly-head that aren’t too easy to see because they are the same red and the inside and are fairly thin.
Overall, the paint is done very well and I have no smudges, scratches or overlapping anywhere.
POSE:
The pose is… odd. From most angles, Samus looks fine; she’s cocking her hip out, hand on said hip, gun in her right hand, finger off the trigger (because she’s smart). Overall, it’s slightly sexy, which I knew and accepted going in, but from other angles, she suffers from what’s come to be known as Escher Girl Syndrome.
You can also see more examples on the symbol detail pics above
Her spine is extremely exaggerated and looks broken because of the sudden curve it takes as it reaches her waist. Anatomically wise, it’s not a comfortable pose to even attempt and, at least to me, it looks unnatural. It’s a personal point and since you won’t be displaying her from such an angle, it shouldn’t look off.
The Metroid bares no mentioning since it’s just floating… hovering there next to her. You can rotate the angle it can sit at, but I would have preferred something a little more.
BASE:
The base is nothing special really. It’s a plain, semi-transparent circle with the name of the game etched into it in both English and Japanese. The top side is smooth to the touch and while the bottom is where the etchings are.
The Metroid’s connector arm is plain transparent plastic with seams you can feel, but not really see. Again, nothing special.
ENJOYMENT:
The figure is pretty much exactly what I wanted, and despite my personal opinion on the pose, it suits me and my taste just fine. It’s accurate and represents the character well and is a welcome addition to my small collection.
So yeah, that’s my review on the Samus Aran 1/8th scale figure from GSC. I’d like to point out that when looking for opinions on it, several people mentioned that they had difficulty getting her feet into the base. While the pegs on the base sit farther apart than her legs reach naturally, it’s a very slight stretch to get them in and you should be in no danger or snapping off a leg or having a peg break under stress. The same goes for the connector arm for the Metroid; it’s a snug fit, but comfortable and your figure won’t fall over.
Thanks for reading! <3
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