Ngee Khiong Ex: Figma Kenshin Uesugi Part 4

Legs are for decoration only?
An introduction of Figma Kenshin Uesugi's articulation design after focusing on her overall look and details in the previous posting. ^^

Slightly wider range of vertical tilt for the head as compared to most other Figmas.

Horizontal bend is not a problem at all for the head, thanks to the soft, easily bendable side hair pieces that don't obstruct that movement at all.

The head can be swiveled from side to side for a pretty flexible range as well, thanks to the way the neck joint is connected to the rear head part.

As a matter of fact, turning the head to all direction is very easy. ^^

(Left) The side hair pieces that are made of soft plastic as mentioned earlier on.
(Right) The edges of the hair part on the back of the head are just as soft, allowing for a wide range of movement to be adjusted for the two large hair pieces. ^^

(Left) The round, elevated edge beneath the rear head part that the Figma neck joint connects to provides enough room for the head's side-to-side swivel as shown earlier on. Also, you can also see that the two side hair pieces are actually separate parts (since they were made of different material) attached to the rear head part.
(Right) The curved edge behind the neck allows for the head's wide backward tilt.

Connected to the head via Figma joints, the two hair pieces can be lifted.

The straight pegs of the joints also allow the hair pieces to be swiveled around them.

You can of course combine the the hinge and swivel points to adjust the hair pieces to different positions according to your liking. ^^

Typical double ball-type joint design for the shoulders.

The base of her "blocky" upper arm/sleeve severely limits the arm's lift from the side of the body. ^^;

With the upper arm swiveled around so that the protruding base faces downward, the arm can now be bent upward for a wider range. ^^

Since the base of the shoulder joint is of ball-type, the arms can be tilted forward/backward for a slight degree.

The shoulder joint's straight peg allows the upper arm to be swiveled around that joint.
Unfortunately, the elbow joint's straight peg is embedded deep inside the sleeve, so the joint doesn't permit the forearm to be rotated independently. ^^;

Standard articulation range for the elbow.

The shoulder armor's ball-type joint allows it to be adjusted to different positions on the upper arm for a limited range.

The tiny ball-type joint on each armor as mentioned above.

Letters 'L' and 'R' can be seen molded near the base of the respective joints to help identify the armors' side when they have been detached, like now. ^^

Normal combination of swivel and hinge joints for the wrist.

The ball-type joint inside the figure's waist allows a flexible range of side-to-side but very limited backward/forward bends. ^^;

Very nicely painted belt details right beneath the waist area, which are kept hidden in normal view.

Enabled by Figma joints, the two side skirts can be retracted/expanded.

The "apron" (front dress piece) is made of soft plastic, allowing the hips and legs to be adjusted without much obstruction.

Kenshin's legs beneath her armor-clad dress. ^^

The rear skirt piece is made of the same soft plastic as the front one as well.

A peak at one of the Figma joints that connects the side skirt to Kenshin's waist.

Much like the two on the upper arms, the side skirt armors can be moved using their ball-type joints as well.

Despite having the large dress that almost covers them up completely, Kenshin's legs feature flexible articulation design, as shown in the forward bend above, which is quite typical of Figma figures. ^^

Normal forward-backward bends for the ankle joint.

Using its peg joint, the ankle can swivel from side to side as well.
The flexible adjustment for Kenshin's large rear hair pieces reminds me of KOS-MOS, but the large dress which conceals most of her legs links her to R. Dorothy Wayneright. ^^

All things considered, Kenshin's articulation design is rather standard for a Figma action figure in my opinion, with a couple of significant strengths and weak points. Its flexible neck joint is not only doing amazingly well in giving the head a great deal of poseability, I'm also very impressed with its strength in supporting the weight of the entire head. ^^ As compared to other Figmas, the neck joint is more poseable, but is more heavy-duty at the same time as it has to sustain greater weight. Then again, given that it's just a typical Figma joint, I'll definitely take care not to stress it too much.

It's a rather ironic realization I think: while the neck joint's flexibility does allow it to be moved more, I'll try not to use it too much to avoid damaging it. ^^;

The large solid sleeves which obstruct the shoulders' movement is a poor point of Kenshin's articulation. With one of the option parts being a sheathed katana with removable hilt, one would imagine that having Kenshin in a sword-drawing pose would look awesome, but with the collision between the sleeve and her body armor, that pose is not possible for Kenshin.

Due to the same limitation, I'm not able to find a way to pose Kenshin holding her sword with both hands. ^^;

Then again, just like her neck joint, I don't want to keep on trying while risking possible damage on the shoulder joints. ^^; As mentioned in the previous posting, the overall look of the figure is great, but in terms of articulation, some components aren't exactly action pose-friendly. ^^;

On the other hand, even though Kenshin has typical (but still lovely ^o^) leg design, and that's inclusive of their articulation, they are constantly hidden inside her long dress that they don't seem important at all. XD The hips are of ball-type joints and the knee can bend for over 90 degrees, so what? It's not like anything other than her stockings and shoes are going to be seen anyway. XD

Some action poses for Kenshin: