- AZ-01 Blade Liger
- Introduction
A 1/72 assembly kit. By switching on the motorized unit, you can recreate the realistic walk of an animal, while the eyes and chest light up with LEDs.
Each part, such as the mane's E-Shield Generator, leg Completion Refrigerators, and back boosters, which were characteristic of the anime, can be moved manually.
The Laser Blades, the Blade Liger's greatest weapon, can be deployed and by extending the base while firing the Pulse Laser Gun, it's possible to recreate the firing stance from the anime.
This product also comes with a 1/72 figure of Bang, the main character of the original anime, and Fine, the heroine, which can be seated in the cockpit (both unpainted.)
By placing it on the included pedestal, you can enjoy watching it walk in place.
Release Date: April 29th, 2023
Price: 11,000 Yen (Tax Included)
- Product Photos
- Instructions
Additional Media
- Preview Video
- Product Review
- Interview
- Interview
- Review
Blade Liger, the first of the Anniversary Line! This retool of the classic MPZ Shield Liger kicked off an ongoing series of high-detail model kits, which entered the world known as the Anniversary Zoids. When it became clear that TT planned to continue the series it was rebranded as "Advanced Zi", by which point Blade Liger had already received a rerun due to its popularity.
Visually I think the kit is pretty solid, though there are some interesting choices. I don't know how I feel about the caps going right through the upper leg armor, but by handling it this way, the armor tucks in tight behind the mane, leading to a more natural silhouette when viewed from the front. I also don't care for the teeth, which could've been accounted for when designing the head armor. Instead, the top (flat) surface sticks out from the side of the muzzle.
So what's new?
The anniversary kits changed a few things about the Shield Liger's functionality. Most important to you is that the breathing and roaring animations were removed, along with the pulsing of the LED and the sound board. When they made these changes they simplified the mechanics overall. Before, the Shield Liger had used two motors to achieve the variety of mechanical features. This meant that, during the testing phase, the neck and tail also stopped moving. They made some changes to how these features are configured internally to make sure they still moved in the AZ-01 Blade Liger. In addition, I feel like the tail isn't quite as fragile as the old MPZ kits.
Build Tip: If the front leg's cuff armor keeps falling off, make sure you have it on the right front leg!
- Overall Impression
The Anniversary / Advanced Zi / MPZ kits are, without a doubt, my favorite line of Zoids model kits to date. Without a doubt. Of the new ones, Blade Liger is perhaps the most underwhelming kit, but I wouldn't necessarily count that against it. It's a classic design that they did an excellent homage to, I just personally prefer the curved lines of the Blade Liger over the straightened version of the AZ, which happened to also follow on the heels of other impressive products like the Hagane Works Blade Liger.
If you like the look of the kit I couldn't recommend it more. The AZs are an excellent step up from the classic moto, and a great option for old fans, now adults, who don't have the time for HMMs. (Be honest, how big's your backlog?) You can knock one of these out in 2-3 hours.
A lot of people aren't happy to hear that they gutted features like the earlier roaring animations, but I didn't mind this as much as I thought I would. The roaring gimmick was finnicky at best, and at worst, it jammed up the whole motorization almost constantly in clicky gear grinding racket. There are some features that work better in theory than they do in practice, and while I absolutely loved seeing a Zoids model kit roar so dynamically, I don't think the AZs suffer much from removing this feature. They still kept the LEDs, which look awesome under the orange canopy, and the complex walking structure.
- Pros
- Many moving pieces throughout the body while walking
- LEDs in both the chest (to simulate the Zoid Core) and the canopy (lighting up the eyes!)
- Large, high detail, and enough pieces to make adult collectors happy
- Included stand allows you to enjoy the motorized features without taking it off the shelf
- Includes unpainted anime pilot figures
- More realistic silhouette with a longer body more natural to big cats in the real world
- Cons
- Removes features from the old MPZ kits (pulsing LED, roaring gimmick, breathing animation)
- Seems to include pieces on the bottom mane to make the jaws move, but mine doesn't
- Some people may not enjoy having to use the included wrench instead of just attaching the caps
- Gallery
- Gimmicks
- Mane
The sides of the mane fold in and extend outwards.
- E-Shield Generators
The E-Shield Generator on the top of the mane flips upwards, as in the show and other media. The bottom generator is fixed to a piece on the chest. Two pegs at the top of it seem to be intended to make the jaw move, but even with mine attached to the mane, there was no additional movement.
- Cockpit
The canopy raises up, revealing the two seater cockpit below with two orange eyes on either side. This is the first time, I think, that we've seen eyes on a Blade Liger, Gojulas style, and I quite like it! The cockpit was also reconfigured to function almost like the Murasame Liger's canopy, with an additional part between the glass and head. This allows the cockpit to rise up higher, and rotate backwards further.
- Control Stick
As a final detail the control stick flips forwards, which is something you typically see more in wolf-type Zoids than Liger types. I appreciate the anime detailing!
- 1/72 Pilot Figures
The AZ-01 Blade Liger comes with two unpainted pilot figures, Bang and Fine from the Chaotic Century anime. Both figures are seated style.
- Paws
The paws of the AZ kits are designed to fold as the Zoid walks. The two outer toes tuck further down than the center ones for a more natural pose. The two outer toes are also attached via a rotating hinge joint, which allows them to fold outwards to the side.
- Compression Refrigerators
The compression refrigerators fold out on all four legs. The hollow back takes away from it a bit, making it look busy and cluttered. I like the overall shape they chose for the outside, though.
- Rocket Boosters
- Blades
The blades are painted in a beautiful dark gold, and have some extra detailing along the sides that isn't standard of the Blade liger. As expected, they've got the Pulse Laser Rifles on the back as well. Interestingly, an extra gimmick has been added to the arms, which now telescope upwards. The purpose of this is to allow the blades to point forward over the head. If the Liger could crouch, like in the anime, this would aim them directly at the enemy. Without the telescoping joint, the blade arms would either need to sit higher than the back, or the blades wouldn't be able to point as far forward.
The blades can fold out to the sides, as usual. This is a minor detail, but I also appreciate that the gun barrel is hollowed out a bit. Sometimes you get kits where the end is just flat, and I never noticed how much a hollow barrel adds to the effect until now.
- Tail
I forgot to get full pictures, but the flimsey rubber attachment parts of the original MPZ Shield Liger have been replaced with plastic where it connects to the body. The tail still wobbles a bit but doesn't feel nearly as fragile as before. In addition, the different segments of the tail (about 3 total segments) can rotate ever-so-slightly up and down.
- Stand
A stand is included with almost all AZ kits, featuring a hangar-like frame aesthetic. The surface has a gloss finish, and on the front there's a little square where you can place included decals of the Zoid's name (I didn't do this because all of my kits are displayed facing forward.) The third picture shows the attachment point, which is a different color (black with bronze metallic). This slides in and out of the top, so if you put the stand on facing the wrong direction, you can just swap this piece around instead.
