Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Sci-fi Revoltech War Machine Part 5 [Final]

More is less, less is more

More action poses featuring Sci-fi Revoltech War Machine after the previous posting. ^^


With support using Soul Stage Act 3 Action Support Clear Type.






















Comparison with its predecessor unit, Mark II from the same series:





Despite the story implication regarding the relationship between the two mecha designs from the movie, and the fact that both are Iron Man suits, these two Sci-fi Revoltech figures share very little in common. ^^


The head sculpt is totally different for the two; Mark II has LED lighting gimmick for its chest repulsor.


No Revoltech joint incorporated for Mark II's hip joints. Instead, large multi-joint hip swivels are used for the hips' movement, thus eliminating the need of having "flippers" to hide the gap between the movable parts. ^^
I prefer Mark II's hip design over War Machine's. The earlier is not only simpler to adjust, the joints are more natural-looking as well. ^^


Mark II's movable front ankle guard with its own little Revoltech joint is not available for War Machine. ^^;

I suppose the design of War Machine was an examination of how new articulation points and part separation can be incorporated for figures from the "Iron Man" series, as many of its notable features like the separated torso and having Revoltech hip joints are not present on Mark VI (March 2011 release) and Mark IV (July 2011 release), which were released before it. Mark II (February 2012 release) probably came off the drawing board before War Machine as well (my speculation), as its overall design followed the "template" set by Mark VI, especially its articulation. This applied to Mark III (March 2012 release) as well I think, since it only spotted cosmetic differences as compared to Mark II. As a result of this separation in design concept, War Machine seems to be standing alone as the real unique design among all the Iron Man figures from this series, ^^ until more than a year after its release when Mark V came out. Despite no connection whatsoever between the two suit design in the story of "Iron Man 2", they are extremely close in terms of their figure design in this Sci-fi Revoltech series, as they feature the exact same articulation design, for every joint. ^^

Interestingly, and perhaps confusingly (^^;), the latest release of Mark VII (February 2013 release) (re)used the design set by Mark VI - the first Iron Man figure in this series rather than its previous release, Mark V. ^^; Trying to figure out how the articulation design is been decided for the different release is starting to feel like throwing knives to a display board now. XD Perhaps the overall mechanical feel of the different suits is the deciding factor here, War Machine and Mark V have the most mechanical looks among the seven suits, so they were designed differently from the rest which placed more emphasis on humanoid look and proportion. Then again, that statement is entirely debatable I suppose. All Iron Man suits must emphasize on natural-looking humanoid proportion in their designs. ^^

Personally, I like a mixture of articulation features to be implemented instead of picking and strictly following one particular "template". I like War Machine's solid waist design, as it eliminates the ugly split between the chest and abdomen as seen on Mark II. On the other hand, as mentioned earlier on, I prefer the large multi-joint hip swivels over War Machine's "flippers". ^^;

I have Mark VI in my collection, and Mark V coming soon with another unrelated pre-ordered item. Looking at those two figures while comparing their articulation designs as elaborated above, it's going to be another case of Mark II versus War Machine. ^^

With Hot Toys' 1/6 scale version:







[Head]




[Arm]



[Weapons]



[Legs]



[Back]

As with the case of comparing Mari Illustrious Makinami in Figma format with her 30-cm tall RAH version, there's no comparison really. ^^ The sheer size, weight and feel of Hot Toys' 1/6 scale version place it on a totally different level when compared to the Sci-fi Revoltech version. I'm quite certain that this will be the conclusion I'll get when the S.H. Figuarts version is released. ^^

While comparison is not appropriate, it's very interesting to see the inclusion/omission of certain textual labels on the figures. The military emblem on the right upper arm is a delightful addition to this Sci-fi Revoltech figure's details, which is not available on the Hot Toys' version. That emblem will be available on Tamashii Nations' S.H. Figuarts version as well, which will also comes with a bit of its own detailing variations. ^^

All reviews on Sci-fi Revoltech War Machine:
Part 1: Another black Revoltech figure appears
Part 2: Simplified design, but with additional emblem details
Part 3: Joints that are designed to hide the joints
Part 4: I can(not) make salute
Part 5 [Final]: More is less, less is more

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Sci-fi Revoltech War Machine

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