Arkvoodle
Member
Do you remember the first anime you ever saw?
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NF8maK9W84A[/ame]
I do. It was a Sunday in '95; I was randomly channel-surfing when I came to UPN of all places and found an amusing little show called TEKNOMAN. My impressionable young mind immediately latched upon it as the greatest thing evar. I watched it religiously each week until suddenly it was off the air for no apparent reason.
Many years later when I learned how to use the Internet, I found the show once more and after watching the entirety of it I still found the series to be pretty damn good. I regretted that there appeared to be no decent merchandise relating to this series (aside from a couple overpriced model kits).
Several years after that I found the Armor Plus line, and (after picking my jaw up off the floor) purchased one of their new Tekkaman figures.
The Armor Plus line works by having a simple "center" figure like this:
and then adding the rest of the parts around it. Generally the remaining Armor parts are metal while the center figure is plastic; this allows for a greater level of stability & detail than with typical figure releases.
The end result of the assembly process?
The hero I remember so well, Tekkaman/Teknoman Blade, aka "D-Boy," aka Slade in the early years for some stupid reason. An armored space hero taking on legions of vicious SpiderCrabs & other warriors with similar armament.
The Armor Plus system works perfectly here; Blade is heavy without being fragile or unstable. And the articulation is just tremendous; every joint possible rotates- arms, shoulders, wrists, head, waist, feet, knees...perfect assembly.
Blade comes with multiple fists to be used in certain circumstances. This configuration is my preferred setup- one closed fist on the left arm, one open (weapon-holding) fist on the right arm. These fists represent the biggest flaw in this figure: the ball-joint that connects them is quite small and as a result the fists don't always stay attached well. And because of the way the armor metal slides onto the arm frame, it can be frustrating to put the fists back in place.
This is Blade's trademark weapon, a pointy double-edged spear. In the series it can separate into two smaller spears but the Armor Plus weapons aren't quite that sophisticated; instead they give you one large staff and two smaller points which can be wielded separately.
Finally, there is the Teknoman's ultimate weapon:
The power of Voltekka (Tekno-Bolt) energy! Two cannons unfold from Blade's shoulders and obliterate enemies. The cannons are also remarkably stable; opening & closing with no restriction on the movement and no difficulty.
Armor Plus Teknoman (and I'm sticking to the US name here because that's the name that remains ingrained in my memory) may be the most amazing figure I have ever purchased. Its like having a Holy Grail brought right to my hands after 15 years. Amazing detail, fantastic amounts of play value and all-around brilliant construct. Highly Recommended!
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NF8maK9W84A[/ame]
I do. It was a Sunday in '95; I was randomly channel-surfing when I came to UPN of all places and found an amusing little show called TEKNOMAN. My impressionable young mind immediately latched upon it as the greatest thing evar. I watched it religiously each week until suddenly it was off the air for no apparent reason.
Many years later when I learned how to use the Internet, I found the show once more and after watching the entirety of it I still found the series to be pretty damn good. I regretted that there appeared to be no decent merchandise relating to this series (aside from a couple overpriced model kits).
Several years after that I found the Armor Plus line, and (after picking my jaw up off the floor) purchased one of their new Tekkaman figures.
The Armor Plus line works by having a simple "center" figure like this:
and then adding the rest of the parts around it. Generally the remaining Armor parts are metal while the center figure is plastic; this allows for a greater level of stability & detail than with typical figure releases.
The end result of the assembly process?
The hero I remember so well, Tekkaman/Teknoman Blade, aka "D-Boy," aka Slade in the early years for some stupid reason. An armored space hero taking on legions of vicious SpiderCrabs & other warriors with similar armament.
The Armor Plus system works perfectly here; Blade is heavy without being fragile or unstable. And the articulation is just tremendous; every joint possible rotates- arms, shoulders, wrists, head, waist, feet, knees...perfect assembly.
Blade comes with multiple fists to be used in certain circumstances. This configuration is my preferred setup- one closed fist on the left arm, one open (weapon-holding) fist on the right arm. These fists represent the biggest flaw in this figure: the ball-joint that connects them is quite small and as a result the fists don't always stay attached well. And because of the way the armor metal slides onto the arm frame, it can be frustrating to put the fists back in place.
This is Blade's trademark weapon, a pointy double-edged spear. In the series it can separate into two smaller spears but the Armor Plus weapons aren't quite that sophisticated; instead they give you one large staff and two smaller points which can be wielded separately.
Finally, there is the Teknoman's ultimate weapon:
The power of Voltekka (Tekno-Bolt) energy! Two cannons unfold from Blade's shoulders and obliterate enemies. The cannons are also remarkably stable; opening & closing with no restriction on the movement and no difficulty.
Armor Plus Teknoman (and I'm sticking to the US name here because that's the name that remains ingrained in my memory) may be the most amazing figure I have ever purchased. Its like having a Holy Grail brought right to my hands after 15 years. Amazing detail, fantastic amounts of play value and all-around brilliant construct. Highly Recommended!
