S.I.C. Vol. 16 Kamen Rider Black RX & Kamen Rider Black Part 8 [Final]

Old and new releases from old and new series
A mixture of action poses from Kamen Rider Black and Black RX from S.I.C. Vol. 16 to kick off this final part of the entire review series. ^^







Supported using Soul Stage Act 4 for Humanoid Clear.























Comparison with the newest and oldest S.I.C. sets (in terms of release dates) that I reviewed on my blog thus far:

With the newest, Kamen Rider Ixa from S.I.C. Vol. 54 Kamen Rider Ixa and Dark Kiva, which came out in May 2010:






Most of Kamen Rider Ixa's joints are of hinge-swivel combinational type, which gives the movable component much greater range of articulation as compared to the same parts on Kamen Rider Black/Black RX, which use all ball-type joints.




Besides kneeling, even that over 90-degree elbow bend is not possible with Kamen Rider Black/Black RX
With the oldest, Kamen Rider Blade King Form from S.I.C. Vol. 54 Kamen Rider Blade, which was released in December 2006:






Even though it came out four years before S.I.C. Vol. 54 Kamen Rider Ixa and Dark Kiva, even Kamen Rider Blade uses many hinge-swivel combinational joints for its movable components, which work perfectly fine even in armor clad King Form.




As bulky as it is, Kamen Rider Blade King Form is still more articulated and posable then Kamen Rider Black/Black RX. ^^
As the series moves on since its debut in 1998, the articulation of S.I.C. figures has been greatly improved upon. ^^ It represents a shift in the design emphasis of the figure I believe. Older releases like Kamen Rider Black and Black RX compromises greatly on the figure's articulation, making the joints as less visible as possible to show off the artistic image of the design as though they are meant to be appreciated as a figurine. ^^ As seen with this S.I.C. set, the articulation is not a standard feature, but a gimmick almost - it's an artistically designed near-fixed figurine with two different forms and some posability with its limited articulation

In contrast, posability is an important element of newer S.I.C. releases that has become an essential standard feature. They are action figures of Kamen Riders with unique artistic design. As a result of that change in design focus, joints you can find on mecha-type action figures start to appear on S.I.C. figures, and there's no real attention in concealing them from plain view too. Furthermore, some design points, like the flaps on the waist of Kamen Rider Ixa from S.I.C. Vol. 54 Kamen Rider Ixa and Dark Kiva that have splits between them and uses soft plastic are examples of parts that compromise design for articulation, a big difference with some of the parts as seen on Kamen Rider Black and Black RX.

The order between "artistic design" and "articulation" is reversed between new and old S.I.C. releases. ^^

While I do like the smooth design of this S.I.C. rendition of the two Kamen Riders, Black RX especially, I would really like to see what it can do with a much improved articulation system. The series already did it with the 2014 release of Vol. 68 Kamen Rider 1 being a complete remake of the original version that came out 14 years earlier. Even the pilot release of Kikaider just got a super shiny albeit Tamashii Web Shop limited remake, so I do hope to see a renewed version of Kamen Rider Black, Black RX and Shadow Moon in S.I.C. format with much better articulation and more weapons and option parts coming in the future. The price is definitely going to be higher than 3,500 Yen (exclusive of tax) price tag for Vol. 16 or Vol. 17 (Shadow Moon), but as they are all catering to folks who can't seem to take off their nostalgia glasses for the TV series where the characters originate from, Tamashii Nations shouldn't stop with just renewing the S.H. Figuarts version of the characters and go full on with the S.I.C. series too. ^^

All reviews on S.I.C. Vol. 16 Kamen Rider Black RX & Kamen Rider Black:
Part 1: Vintage S.I.C.
Part 2: Guessing your way in completing the part-swapping
Part 3: My name is Radical
Part 4: Sturdy, not-very helpful joints
Part 5: Forget your nostalgia
Part 6: Improved humanoid look
Part 7: As limited as it is, Kamen Rider Black is actually more articulated
Part 8 [Final]: Old and new releases from old and new series

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S.I.C. Vol. 16 Kamen Rider Black RX & Kamen Rider Black