Bootleg Shinkenoh

Hello! Shinkenger might have ended in 2010, but Samurai only just ended. And to celebrate the end of this okay scene-by-scene adaptation I am going to end my year with my very own Shinkenoh! :D

First off, some sheer brilliance by the bootleggers here. This is not the Joint-Gattai Shinkenoh. Nope! As you can see from the size of the Ranger key down there. It is actually a HUGE copy of the box which they actually put effort in to to make it look different from the official Japanese packaging. And I love it! On the back you can see the Kabuto, Tora, Kajiki and Iga Origami's. They where available on Bhiner, and cheaply at 1.48pp. But sadly I couldn't add them to the collection. I might find them again, or just go for the DX ones because this is such a good knock-off it won't really matter.

The instructions is just a huge cardboard sheet you can find in the box. Its nice they put it in. and again its a 100% copy of the original. :D

Moving on the zords themselves and starting with the lion. Its an almost 100% match with the original DX version from Japan. The knobs on front and the middle of the fire kanji where unpainted, so I decided to do that myself. And it looks great. Also I had to fix some of the black paint next to the emblem and it looks for the better. The chrome is pretty good. at least when I first bought it. It kinda feels rough now. lol

The dragon had lots of problems. Straight out of the box I noticed they placed it on the wrong leg knob and it was stuck. So I had to take a screwdriver and take it apart before I could properly display him. When I did however it was just awesome. So glad I did not pay like €50 for the Samurai version lol. But that's just going to fast on my judgement. No, it had and still has paint problems. The water Kanji symbol has been tainted by some silver paint. and I have yet to find the correct paint to fix this problem. I did however by now fix the black parts up. Speaking of black I also had to paint all of the lower head black as they did not do so. And if I must say so myself I did a pretty decent job.

Now we're getting special in terms of comparison with the Japanese and Samurai versions! Because even though it does not look like it, this bear has diecast on each leg, not chrome but diecast! Non of the other five have that, Sure its missing the emblem on the front leg but its not that much of a problem IMO. And as you can see the legs on the right where unpainted. I had to do this myself. But sadly due to the type of paint and the plastic rubbing against each other its began to chip. I'll just leave it be. It doesn't need to be perfect. I should probably do something about that mouth though.

And then we get this...Chrome turtle! Silver Kami! This is so cool, I always found that the girls got the short end of the stick with the colors in both Shinkenger and PR: Samurai. So yeah improvement, If only they made the chrome a bit thicker. It could be just reflecting to much, but it seems that there's dark patches on some places. And that makes me doubt that its going to last long. But this is just nitpicking, I am still happy with this change :)

GOLD MONKEY!! Sure it got the boot with the Samurai release but apparently this bootleg company really liked the two female Shinkengers (like I still do) So I guess yellow was not good enough. Also its face is actually painted so it doesn't look dull! It still looks evil though lol!

And surprise surprise! They can all do the emblem mode. Which is only natural since they where bootlegged around 2010, and Samurai didn't exist by then. So these all work how they should. The plastic is sturdy enough so I won't be afraid of breakage any time soon. Though some do have problems. Dragon's helmet compartment is just a tad bit to small so Its really scary to storage the thing. I just don't want to scrape that chrome!. The monkey is a bit hard to transform back. Probably due to the chrome being to thick. Or me being incredibly careful not to scrape gold chrome lol. And lastly is that the head of the lion is a bit smaller but yet bigger. Smaller in the way that its a bitch to take it out and bigger as in its a bitch to pop back. The hole that it is placed in, is so annoying that I actually screw the toy open a bit to loosen up the head in order to get it in/out.

Combining it is just perfect! Provided one actually places the limbs in the correct places :P Its good as long as one actually knows the faults of the mech. Like the folding thing of the Dragon being a little bit annoying to work with, never press on the lion's head... Other then that I cannot fault this thing for much. Though I never really liked how it kinda slouched forward. But this is a fault of the original toy. It being a copy means it has to follow the same designs. At least for this toy.

It also comes its normal accessories. Well aside from the ranger key, but I did get it from the same haul lol. Its got the disk that acts as a shield, the katana and a fake Dice-oh card. Proving it was made in 2010. But its from very thick cardboard so keep it away from those morphers.The sword is just awesome. Unlike the original its chromed and much like that one they decided to keep them kanji on there. They could have cheapened out on it like they did with so many other KO Megazords I know. But no, we got this awesome thing. Thanks dudes!

The sword and shield slide comfortably in place like they should and it can wield them. so this is 100% awesome!

I like this thing. Its not as good as the original but better and cheaper then the Samurai version. I am glad that I found this middle ground. And I do hope to one day own a Samurai Ha-oh, So I might just get the rest of the Origami's be it bootlegs or Chinese versions or used ones from Mandarake. And to end the bootleg topic. this second time of buying from Bhiner was a financial disaster and everyone of them will be, All I can hope is that I plan the next ones good enough to get the stuff I really, really, really want with minimal damage to my years budget. One of these things is more of these KO robots. I saw a Gosei Great from the same company on there and I would like to give it a try. If only 2013 wasn't the tidal wave year of awesome shit! :D

Video by TheIchipai ©Toei LTD

Man lots of shit happened this year too, Both horrible and good. any way this is my last toy blog of the year. (and the world didn't end!) Now all I want to do is lay back and enjoy the HOLIDAY CLUSTERFUCK! Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New year folks!

The Depressing Dream

 Hello and happy Sinterklaas to you all! The Saint has left Holland to go to spain. His replacement is that nice chubby guy the Americans replaced him with. And what did Nicolas leave me as a gift? diabetes? No he's not that of an ass. But I did receive and horrid dream or rather a nightmare that I had for several time when I was young. I blocked it out, and my o my is it DEPRESSING!! let me count the ways before we move on to a gift less depressing lol

The Dream:
First off all as in some dreams I have, I get an info dump kinda like Neo had in the Matrix. So suddenly it feels like that is the life I lived and that this is how I feel about it. This can happen at any time in my dream, almost always when I actually need to remember something. Any way my dream starts with a kid who's in an apartment. The few memories I still got of it is that he's in America and that the flat is akin in its state of decay as my old house was. Only we don't get sick of killer mold. The kid had some problems I would later have at school. Everybody is picking on him. Except for one girl, of course it being my dream the girl is japanese and her dad barely speaks English. The boy is there because he was invited, to this stay-over of like 7 teen girls who do nothing but blablablabla. But the party is going well, and the girls seem to accept the boy. After they leave he decides to help with dinner and after the dad notices that there's not much good to eat in the fridge and tries to explain it, He leaves for take-out I guess. The girl and boy are alone and decide to watch some telly on a brick of a tv, then someone knocks on the door and the girl says her dad has a key so they should not open the door. As she says that the door gets kicked in, and there's these 2 gang members who are so 80's they make Bebop and Rocksteady look dignified. And the only reason they bust in is... To shoot the girl. Nothing else, they leave the building with these douchebag smiles and let the kid watch her dying on the couch with her blood covering half the floor quickly. Suddenly we pass a few months and it turns out she had indeed died, and the crooks though familiar got away scott-free to party and slaughter, that's where my dream ends.

Emotions: 
The feeling I got from this where so clear with every passing second, of this dream that you might as well call it a dream on itself. First the sadness of being picked on again, Then the mixed feelings of being with a friend but also with people I don't particularly trust. Hunger when wanting to make dinner. Impatience when the dad leaves. Joy and calmness when watching the tv. angst when when there's some one at the door in a shady neighbourhood. Shock when the door gets knocked down and the shots are fired. Sadness and helplessness as the girl slips away and blood covers the floor. And anger and loss when the ones who did it got away.


My Say:
This is my dream and I had it like 3 times now, Ever since I was 6. I always get depressed when I have it. But it doesn't feel like my story, But it the feels are there. And even though this time it was a lucid dream and I got the gun before it fired, I still feel unsatisfied when I woke up. Its just a depressing dream that is the total opposite of the one where I actually meet a cute girl at a congress building. That dream felt good, And I am using the memories of that dream to block out the suck of the dream I just had, With little result really. The loss is the worse, I really can't deal with it at any time of the day, I hope not to have this dream again. Either way the real gift is actually not blocking it out right away but to write about it and get it of my chest. Best Sinterklaas gift ever.

KyoRyuger                         

Yay! They are here!! This cheers me up a little! They look AWESOME!! And no yellow this time. Its been a while... Kaku if I am correct. But even better no White or Orange either. The team looks good, I hope to buy the Figuarts and mini-pla next year. :)

KO Magiking

O goody I get to this on now! This has been a long time coming. And its been a while since my last bootleg Megazord :D

First of all the box was HUGE!! The bootleggers got the bright idea to pack Magi dragon and Magi Phoenix separately instead of forming Magiking.... Fail! Also despite the horrible waste of cardboard this box is still a blisters... So as soon as I opened it I could throw it away. It did protect my keys from disappearing though. So that was a +.

First off Magi Phoenix. Its does look allot like the DX version. Though it has its faults. The plastic is cheaper and the paint is on the verge of flaking off on some parts. Also there's allot of untrimmed edges so when transforming I have to check that I don't get caught on these edges because using to much force with that might easily break it. Also this thing keeps falling down due to the tabs used on in his legs.

 Magidragon is great and so huge. Though it initially fell apart when I took it out of the box, I did piece it together again. Again the plastic is cheap. the grey parts almost have this green glow to them in the right lighting. I just how the thing doesn't literally rot away on it shelf xD. The mouth kept falling open and the tail kept failing off. This is due to the black plastic being allot heavier then the green stuff. Though still as fragile.

It took me allot of tries but I finally got the phoenix to stick to the dragon. But it took so much space I didn't bother with it for longer then 5 minutes. This was an annoyance.

Magi Garuda is my favourite of the 5. It is the most balanced. Well painted and it actually looks cool!

Especially when you stretch out his wings. Man these are so epic. They also look sharp too. And even with these this thing is keeping itself up pretty neatly. 10+

What would seem like the best zord to many is actually quite a disappointment. It can pose sure but the joints are shit. And the parts on the back keep coming loose as they are only held in place with friction. I consider this the brick for now... It is painted well though.

Magi Fairy, Not to much to say about her. She has decent paint that doesn't chip off. But I do want to say that the wings are annoying. they where bend when I took them out and it only got worse with time. I wonder if the actual DX version has better ones?

Magi Mermaid is a bitch to make her keep standing and the fin gimmick doesn't work. Like at all. And it got this ugly split in the middle I tried to fix it but nothing works.

Moving on to the combined mecha... Man this thing is fat! is the DX version also this fat? Its like two Megazords back to back! And the wings aren't helping either! I know I positioned the legs wrong but this is to save space on my shelves.... Its still fat.

In from its decent though. The paint is 90% accurate to the already badly painted DX version. Sure you have the red part breaking up the ''M'' emblem but that will be fixed in due time. The hat is annoying. It just keeps wanting to split apart. Speaking of splitting apart the sword is just as annoying. The parts have nothing to keep them in place. I constantly try to fix this to no avail.

  MV made by TheIchipai  ©Toei LTD

All and all this is a good bootleg. But one I should have know the faults off. It was cheap but it does take allot of space on my shelf. I hope the next DX mecha I buy will be either DaiKaiOh or GorZyuJin. Or an Super Robot Chogokin maybe :)

Korean Mobirates to Mobilates Switch-Around

I never got the chance to buy an actual Mobirates, but I did get to buy the Legends Mobirates.  But even though I got it I still wanted a show accurate one. So I bought a Korean Mobirates and decided to switch the contents.

The First off I had to decide If what front I wanted to keep. The Captain Force front or the Mobilate from. I decided to go for the silver one because I wanted a Gokaiger Mobirates and to be nowhere near the Captain Force label... They should have called it Pirate Force or Super Megaforce or Buccaneer Force. Anything is better then Captain Force...

Any way I did some preparation before hand on my Legends Mobirates so it will be a few steps further. I also made sure I got everything I needed. Though I kinda wish that I had thinner scissors. The first thing I removed where the fronts.

When totally opening it you can see a trend. Every chip made by Bandai Japan is green, Everything made by Bandai Korea is brown/beige.

The first thing I removed are the springs that cause the ''X'' to open whenever a key is insterted

I am always very distrustfulness of these things. So damn easy to lose!

With that done you'll have to look to the left of the Mobirates. The thing you'll have to remove is the spring that keeps the Mobirates up and the piece that holds it down. If you done right it should looks like the Mobirates on the right.

Next up is to take the top of and remove the spring engine that make that awesome click when you open it. But carefully though. For some reason the Korean fell apart and I had to fix it.

Now to remove the backs of the ''X'' parts. You need to do this because you'll need to get in the spring parts in order to safely remove the light chip installed in to the middle of it. Be sure to cut the plastic rim keeping the wire down though. I wish I could have done it better. But sadly the scissors where to thick and now it just looks ugly. Not that it totally matters though. Its on the inside lol

Now with the Light chips out of the way and the engines back in place its time to switch around the chips in the main body. This was ironically the easiest part lol. Just look out for the audio pat on the side. Its highly magnetic so you'll be better off if you keep the screws away.

Now that the main chip is removed from both the mobirates you put the two outer parts back together.

And do the switch

From there its just repeating the same steps but backwards. And provided that you haven't screwed up the spring parts that makes the ''X'' emblem open it should work:

 And with that I got my new Mobirates! And the best thing is that it can read the Gobusters and Aka Red keys now!! :D

Dino Stegazord AKA DX Dino Killeroh

Another mecha I got in the box is the Dino Stegozord

I like the Stegazord. Even though its bulky due to the battery case and the ratchet mechanisms in the chest.

Despite those this thing looks almost as natural as the other Dinozords. Though I do not care for the fin gimmick on the back. Its really annoying when the button in the neck gets pressed out and the fins moves.

 Sadly I am missing the vital middle piece of the Drago Zord. Which forms the main body in zord mode and the spear in the Megazord mode.

One thing I am annoyed at with this Megazord are those legs. Like the new megazords it spread its legsto take in space

But that isn't the worst offender on this thing, Nope its the feet! which are long on both the back and front. combined with the fins on its back and the black parts on what are supposed to form the wings on the Drago Zord make this thing really fat. Normally I have space left on my shelf's but this thing takes up all that.

As for the combo. I can really form the Valkasaurus Megazord. I am missing the part that actually forms the wings on this thing. So it feels really incomplete.
Arm Switching!!                                     

Though arm swapping is fine. Not surprising since it was the gimmick of the show.

 But I do like it when it just looks wrong lol

 Finally! Abare Gokaioh!!

Though these keep popping off they do look funny xD

Okay this filler is done. Hope everything arrives so I can finally move on!

Dino Thunder Megazord aka DX AbarenOh(Ji)

With my Power Morpher I got two megazords, one of them is my Dino Thunder Megazord. Buying this box was a good choice. Seeing how I got an original morpher and a bunch off goodies for €30 from France within 4 days.

So Tyranno is pretty much complete. First I was worried that the batteries where rusted. Like the ones from the morpher where. But thankfully its not the case. 

I like this zord. Its one of the most poseable Zords ever. And though I usually keep it in Megazord mode, I do like to toy with it a little once in a while. The drill gimmick though. Not really a fan of it, Same reason why I did not run to the online stores to get a GoZyuJin. Also I keep hitting the button on the side. So I keep the batteries out.

Ptera is sadly incomplete. Because I am missing the helmet. So I am holding her in a kind of normal Ptera crawl mode. I do love this design.

But I am missing the helmet in this picture. So I am going to try and buy a new one sooner or later. Not much else to say about it.

Tricera is so awesome! I love that Bandai America kept the diecast horns and gripping effect. Even though it sometimes causes the head to pop-off for no reason. 

Overall though I do love the Triceratops Zord but I think this is an real improvement over that old tank lol.

The Dino Thunder megazord is cool. Though the tail part of tricera keeps getting in the way on the shelf. Either was I do love that I keeps some of its posing abilities. And the drill arm looks awesome. Then again It just doesn't fit on my shelf!

  And as I said. Its missing its helmet. So this should not be the completed mecha!

Instead I usually take Ptera off and make this dude which was only formed once if I recall correctly.

 AbarenOhJi 

Which is the formation of just Tyranno and Tricera. I can't even recall if it was in Dino Thunder. But then again all I remember from DT is Tommy being awesome. lol Any way this thing improves so much for me. For one thing the Tricera tail is out of the way. And this is a complete formation. Also it makes room for more mecha because the drill is out of the way on the right.

 MV made by TheIchipai  ©Toei LTD

That's pretty much all I got to say. Sad that I don't have a box for it. But then again this megazord is designed so be split up in tiny little pieces and that's pretty much how I got it. Its pretty handy. Any way next time I'll post some S.H.Figuarts or something Chinese whatever.