Dinosaur Exhibit 2023 is starting on March 14th, running until June 18th! During this time, tons of dinosaur-related exhibits will be on display in Japan. This year, the key graphic for the exhibition is Zuul Vs. Gorgosaurus. To celebrate the exhibit this year, TakaraTomy will be releasing Gilraptor Rare Bone Ver. 2023 and Ankyrox Rare Bone Ver. 2023! These are the closest kits within the same series to mirror the main graphic, and they both look excellent in the bone scheme. Although the Gilraptor has already seen a Rare Bone release, this one will be brand new colors. We've thus far seen the package design and stock photo for each of these kits.

 We've got several new machine-translated HMM segments available over in the Model Kits section! By sheer coincidence, this is Command Wolf week, with the stories and lore for the HMM Command Wolf, Command Wolf LC (Empire Spec.), Command Wolf AC, and Command Wolf Barad now available on their respective pages. These stories were interesting, taking on an actual story format instead of strictly reviewing their military history.

- HMM Section Updates

 There's also some general updates to the HMM section. For starters, we've added bookmarks (seen left) beside Zoid names for pages that include lore information, making it easier to find these pages at a glance. Gold for full lore (instruction story + concept art) and silver if it only has one of these.

 In addition, the HMM page as a whole has received another universal update to expand the information on each page. This includes a new section on the base kit page to include any Marking Plus or Repackage versions and the differences of. You'll also find box art discussion, a notes section for random facts that've surfaced through books, social media, and blogs, and a detailed explanation of "pre-order" / Koto Direct bonus parts that came with that Zoid. You may enjoy these sections if you've ever wondered what a particular box art is referencing!

 As a final note, the main HMM page includes a F.A.Q. section at the bottom and an Extra Details section discussing details about the series that aren't specific to one kit.

 The Yuji Kaida Model Kit section has been updated to include the basic stats and box lore from each of the various Zoids, as well as their artwork.

 A new section has been added to Model Kits for the Masterpiece Zoids series, including their stock photos and lore. The Anniversary Zoids will be lumped into this page as a sub-category for lack of a better efficient place to put them. It's worth noting however that these ARE separate series, even if they use the same base Zoid. The AZ line will get its own section if it goes beyond 5-6 kits.

 Thanks to Zoids Official we got to see our first product photos of the AZ-01 Blade Liger! This is certainly a cool development on the original Shield Liger. The kit was also on display at Takara Tomy's Hobby Expo, where people could stop by and take a look at some of their upcoming products. At this exhibit, the AZ Blade Liger was on display next to the original Tomy Blade Liger. Hobby Watch took a variety of photos of this exhibit.

 Kotobukiya has posted the final product pages for the HMM Redler "Zenebas Empire Ver." (February 2023, 5800 Yen), the HMM Redler "Guylos Empire Ver." (March 2023, 5800 Yen), and the HMM Zoids Customize Part "Booster Cannon Set" (March 2023, 2200 Yen) ! Scheduled for early next year, they're already available for pre-order in most stores.

 On top of the product pages, Kotobukiya also live streamed a first look at the two Redler types, exhibiting their articulation. It was quite impressive to see how many points of articulation there are, as well as how well hidden the joints are. There's so much to these kits that doesn't quite get noticed in still photos, so I highly recommend checking it out!

 As a final note, Kotobukiya has announced a reissue of the HMM Shadow Fox Marking Plus Ver.! It's scheduled for April 2023, at a price of 5400 yen.

- HMM Redler Video

 Zoids Official has tweeted their first News Bulletin regarding the 40th Anniversary Project. To our incredible surprise, the announcement is the revival of the MPZ series! At least, of the frames and concept. These new kits, labeled under the "40th AZ-01 ~ 03" registration number are planned to begin in Autumn of this year (October, specifically.) The first video down below is the teaser posted on their account, which will begin the celebrations for the Zoids franchise's 40th anniversary!

 The last MPZ kit released was the Saber Tiger, which was released in March 2016 for 14,040 yen retail. We can expect a moderate price increase due to the global situation. However, these "more realistic" kits are a unique reimagining of the original Tomy motorized series. A lot of insight went into their design, and I highly recommend looking at one of the videos for the series, which was posted in April 2015. It will be the second video below.

- 40th Anniversary Project 1st Preview!

- Original 2015 MPZ Design Interview!

 The first of the 40th Anniversary Zoids is the Blade Liger! Staying true to the video's announcement "The culmination of 40 years of Zoids - Evolved ligers are here now!!", the first of these kits will evolve the former Shield Liger design into this iconic Zoid. The Blade Liger looks robust on the Masterpiece frame, and is scheduled for October 2022. This will be the first kit using the MPZ frame to be released in years!
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 The second anniversary kit is, of course, the Liger Zero! With an all new design, this kit is scheduled for 2023. So far we've only got the wire frame look, but at first glance it appears to be using a highly modified version of the MPZ Shield Liger frame while remaining quite true to the original Liger Zero. Especially by MPZ standards. The MPZ-style caps will be a distinctive feature on this kit.

 After well over a decade, the third kit will be the first-ever full size reimagining of the Murasame Liger! AZ-03 is scheduled for 2013, and sports an interesting aesthetic. With a much stronger MPZ influence the Murasame Liger will become even tankier than its initial 2000s release, which can be attributed to applying the Murasame Liger design over the MPZ Shield Liger frame. A detail I appreciate is being able to see the rotating caps through the ventilation gaps in the front of the Shoulder Armor.

 This is just the start of the 40th Anniversary of Zoids. With the way the teaser video is set up, we have to wonder, will Wild Liger also get an MPZ treatment? Will we receive a rerelease of the MPZ Shield Liger as part of the celebrations? So far we have kits set up into 2023. There's a lot to ponder, and we're excited to move forward and see what Zoids has to offer!

 Kotobukiya has announced a reissue of the HMM Storm Sworder! This iconic air combat Zoid will be rereleased in March for 9,680 yen retail (tax included). A pre-order link has been included down in our preorders table.

 The Zoids Model Kit section has some new images at the top, to better represent model kit instructions. However, there's also a new section! For those who aren't aware, the color charts we do for the Zoids Index mostly use the images from the instruction manuals. Those PSDs have now been released for people to use for their own coloring purposes! They're a great way to build concepts of how you want your custom-painted model kits to look, and include numerous color layers to make things easier. These files are PSDs, intended for use in Photoshop.

 A new model kit review has been uploaded to the NJR Section for the RZ-075 Rayse Tiger! This is quite an interesting kit, with some new gimmicks and unusual build conventions. That's not just counting the glow in the dark or LED-tube based features, either. A highly recommended kit, and cheap to pick up on Yahoo Japan.

 In the continued effort to expand the model kit info on the site, a new section has been added dedicated to the OJR (Original Japanese Release), a fan-coined term for the 80s kits. For now this includes a (not 100% complete) thumbnail list, but in the future will be expanded to include the box lore from these Zoids as well.

 Kotobukiya recently posted a look at the prototype for the HMM König Wolf, as well as the Redlers. The articulation on this kit looks superb, especially regarding cheek armor that now folds out to prevent obstructing neck movement and rotating ears.

 A recent LABO Article went into greater detail about these prototypes, and discussed some of their core features. In the mean time, the wolves, their associated CPs, and the Redler products have been on display in Japan for visitors to come and check them out. Details include:
 - Movable Ears
 - Rubber belts are used for the head and chest belts
 - The tail is articulated at the base as well as in the middle
 - The Dual Sniper Rifle has telescoping barrels
 - The Dual Sniper Rifle comes with several adapters, allowing it to be equipped to 3mm joints, and even to the old Tomy version.
 - The 5-Shot Missile Pods also include multiple port sizes, so they can be connected to standard 3mm hard points.
 - For the Heavy Arms, you must choose which had you want to build with it, since the belts run through the parts and it will be difficult to swap later.
 - The blog teases for us to look forward to other Zoids that have ranked high in the questionnaires!

 First, let's get to older news. As mentioned in an earlier post, Kotobukiya has had the HMM König Wolf and Redler on display recently, along with their associated Customize Parts. An article by Hobby Watch gives a good view of this display. An older couple of twitter posts also showed off a look of the out-of-the-box Shield Liger Marking Plus Ver., which comes in a box closer to Liger Zero size than the classic Shield Liger box.

 Other recent rereleases included the Command Wolf Repackage (February 2022), the Iguan Marking Plus (March 2022), the Gun Sniper Wild Weasel Spec. (April 2022), the Dark Horn (June 2022), the Berserk Furher Repackage Ver. (July 2022), Great Sabre Marking Plus Ver (July 2022), and the Pteras Bomber Marking Plus Ver. (July 2022).

 The HMM Liger Zero Marking Plus Ver. is scheduled to be rereleased in October, for 6,930 (tax included).

 The HMM Gojulas the Ogre is scheduled to be rereleased in November, for 32,780 Yen (tax included).

 The HMM Iron Kong Marking Plus Ver. is scheduled to be released in December, for 15,400 Yen (tax included).

 The HMM Geno Breaker Repackage Ver. is scheduled to be rereleased in Jan of 2023 for 11,220 Yen (tax incl).

 There was also a long-overdue LABO article introducing the Death Stinger ZS. This is such an interesting kit, color wise, and I highly recommend it. If you're concerned about the degree of green, it may help to know that this kit includes multiple colors for some of the sprues, allowing you to choose between green and red!

 Soon after, a second LABO Article was posted for the HMM Rev Raptor, which also included early concept sketches for the box art. The other concept shown featured the Empire's landing on Ergyle Beach, shortly after the Rev Raptors had taken care of the defense forces and, ultimately, their Gojulas.

 February saw pre-orders open for the Xenorex Storm XA, the final installment thus far in the Zoids Wild Biographies line. It also included the end of the Zoids Wild Senki storyline, which after the last episode, was transitioned into a web-story format and published on TakaraTomy's website. The kit was first teased in January, with a clear nod towards the Storm Sworder from Tomy's old Zoids line. Afterwards, the kit was posted to the TakaraTomy Mall for 4,400 yen (tax included), with a release date of July 2022. The story was published on its site page.

 Some tweets also showed off various combinations of the Storm parts with other Zoids. one showed a combo between the Storm XA, Scissors XA, and Buster XA. The wings can also evidently be used on the Burning Liger.

- Xenorex Storm XA Promotional Video

 Earlier in the year a collaboration was announced between Zoids Wild and Duel Masters! Duel Masters was releasing a Duel Masters Super Complete Works 20th Perfect Box. While this box contained mostly Duel Masters goods (3 a4 size books containing card catalogs and illustration collections, limited cards, autographed illustrations, a poster, and assorted gifts) the box also contained the Bolmeteus White Dragon model kit, which was a variation of the Xenorex with completely new (and limited) parts! The box was released on July 29th, for 28,600 yen.

 A dedicated page showed off most of the box contents as well as the gorgeous limited edition art for the Bolmeteus White Dragon. Zoids Official also showed off the special promotional page featured in CoroCoro.

- Bolmeteus White Dragon Promo Video

 A new custom has been added to the bottom of the model kits page, the König Wolf Silver Fang! This is a page I've been excited about adding for a long time. Though this kit was finished in 2020, 2021 was such a chaotic year for me that it took forever to finish the photo taking and page setup. Silver Fang is a 3D printed conversion kit for the Tomy (motorized) König Wolf, developed, 3D modeled, and printed by the amazing Torrigan, who put countless hours into making sure that every single detail was perfect. Before starting work on this project, I never imagined I'd get my hands on a Silver Fang, and I'm eternally grateful!

 As this has been such a long-standing holy grail for me (over a decade!) I've made the files available for visitors of the website, so you can download and print your own version! The custom page goes into more detail about what you need to watch out for. My only request is that the files not be used for commercial purposes, either directly or indirectly. I'd love for this conversion kit to remain free above the cost of materials, so that everyone can enjoy it~

 A second new custom, the Bio Tricera Pyrite, has also been added to the model kits page. This is a straight repaint, utilizing a used Bio Tricera sold to me by another fan. It was a good test in dealing with silvers, as I've wanted to see how to best paint Bio Zoid armor for a while. All in all pleased with the results!