- threezero Shield Liger
Is it worth the price?
That's really hard to say. Because the figure is almost twice the size of a normal Liger Zoid I personally have no regrets with getting it! The paint scheme is surely selective taste but I feel like it's what makes up for most of the cost. If you would only repaint this Liger then I'm not sure the cost is so easily justified.
It is definitely heavy and carries weight to it but there are a lot of wobbly parts. For some I assume this is to help parts not get in the way of pose ability but I'm not sure that can really apply to all of them. It's a real shame that seam lines are so miserably visible when the kit is fully painted and detailed. Really, it would have been nice if they could have covered these up better and it's a huge point of frustration for me.
Aside from that the kit has decent pose ability. Some parts use locking joints to help support the weight, which is recognized by a 'clicking' into place. The only unrealistic detail on the entire kit (aside from seam lines) is the 'tomy' copyright on the under belly. It was really refreshing to see everything painted on. I've enjoyed this trend over the past while.
One thing to note is to be careful of rough surfaces. On the first image you can see where his toes got a little scraped up, and all I had him standing on at that point was a wooden porch and the recycling bin. I suspect it was from dragging him a bit while I was reposing him. That might be my mistake.
Since there is some confusion in the instructions about where the battery compartment is, let me show you! The pictures above will illustrate. The compartment is below the shield generator on the throat. See that part with 3 plates sticking out? Grab the plates and it should pop right off. Below that is the battery compartment. Once the batteries are in the circled square in the third image is the switch to turn the lights on and off.
I know people are very interested to see more about the lights. Unfortunately at this time I don't have the batteries -- they're not sold in stores here so I need to order them online.
Pros:
- Extremely detailed paint job
- Electronic features light up the cockpit!
- Good articulation
- Heavy, weighted feeling
Cons:
- Paint can scrap away relatively easily
- Batteries are uncommon and expensive
- Miserably visible seam lines really offset the detailed paint job
- Instructions
- Box Art
- Gimmicks
Jaws:
The jaws are movable but the range is very, very disappointing. They barely even wobble. I wish they had made some room on the mane for them to open up more. I'm also not entirely content with the aesthetic of them being so wide.
Cockpit:
Instead of orange the cockpit is a bright yellow. It looks pretty strange, but cool. It opens up at the back but as far as I can tell the pilot isn't removable because the part holding him in place isn't. I could be wrong on that, I just don't want to risk damaging anything trying to get it out. The pilot is a soft rubber.
Side Panels:
These new shield generators are extremely long. They can rotate backwards and often can come in contact with the front leg, which limits their movement just a little. Nonetheless they look pretty interesting, and form a huge triangle with the rest of the panels.
Top Panel:
The tip of the triangle is the top mane. This massive panel stretches over the upper part of the back and when it's extended into the air you can see an intricately detailed bottom panel.
Head:
Shield Liger's neck isn't articulated at all but the head appears to be attached to a ball joint or something that allows it to rotate left and right. The range of movement is decent but the lack of neck articulation is a little disappointed, since he can't raise his head to roar.
Body:
At the top of the back the body is slightly articulated for some left and right bending.
Laser Gun Cover:
The cover also flips up and down over the laser gun. Below the gun the compartment is also well detailed.
Laser Gun:
The laser gun on the back is about as maneuverable as normal Shield Liger guns. It has a pillar that extends up and down and the gun itself can rotate a full 360 degrees. Unlike most others, however, the two gun barrels can rotate up and down separately!
Cannons:
A three barreled cannon is attached to the chest. It's on a slight range of motion that allows it to swivel up or down.
Shoulder Guns (?):
The guns on the top of the shoulders, if they are guns (boosters maybe?) I like the design and they're one of the pieces that has a locking joint so that it clicks into place and stays there when you move it. That's a good thing.
Side Fins:
These are no longer guns or missiles like they used to be. There is no official name for the equipment that has taken its place but it appears to be some sort of cannister, so maybe a smoke discharger or something?
Leg Articulation:
Both legs can turn a full circle unless they're in the way of the mane panels or something. There is also a swivel on the body attachment that allows them to turn inwards towards the body or outwards. This is a lovely detail that you don't often see!
Front Leg Articulation:
The front legs can bend at the elbow. They extend quite a bit.
Rear Leg Articulation:
The back legs have the middle section and the bottom portion well articulated, able to stretch. You'll notice in some areas that silver pipes roll out of the legs when they are extended!
Paws:
One odd feature about the paws is that the overlaying black panel above them is highly maneuverable. This is excellent for posing since it always allows the paws to look well connected to the leg. The paws are also on a ball joint that allows them to tilt left, right, or up and down.
Tail:
The one loose point of articulation is the tail. Sometimes it'll stay up but sometimes the weight will drag it down. I find that rotating the tip to face up or down will help balance it in many cases. Either way each segment is seperately articulated on a ball joint which provides an amazing range of articulation, but sometimes makes it look a little disjointed.
