I totally forgot the pre-order for Skull was going up....




Shit.

How does CSToys handle S.H. Figuarts preorders? I've gathered an idea of how they work based on how they operate their site but I'm still not sure.

Honestly, AmiAmi and HLJ both have their problems, but I've been pretty much been forced to switch over most of my preorders to HLJ because the EMS price hike plus AmiAmis tendency to over pack boxes was getting a bit out of hand and 6-9k shipping really is not fun. With that said, I can't think of another store thats fucked me over as many time as HLJ. Like ignoring the unfulfilled preorders, they've already somehow lost items in my private warehouse twice in the past year. Items I already PAID for.

They definitely ship out slower than AmiAmi, and as someone that also collects Macross, SOC, and Metal Builds, the randomly putting preorders up without a set time is one of the most annoying things. You think the fight for a preorder at 3am on amiami is bad? HLJ doesn't even front page most of the stuff until its sold out, and you just have to hope you somehow are able to find the listing before everyone else. And then lets talk about how terrible HLJs website actually is, they somehow don't know how to send you a email if an order gets unfulfilled so you pretty much have to contact them if you don't get a payment request to find out. Also seriously, who limits figure stands to one? Oh thats right, HLJ does.

As you can see, I might have some issues with HLJ and Mark Kutsugi is my nemesis.

They didn't used to be that bad with shipping but, somehow, even their FedEx Express packages take a week to get here. That doesn't even count the 2-3 days (not counting weekends) it seems to be taking to get the thing in the mail in the first place. Also, having to go out of your way as a customer to pin them down about whether they can actually provide something you ordered is kind of ridiculous. It's especially frustrating that when you finally get them to respond they say things like: I appreciate them as a last resort or when I need to go over AmiAmi's item limit and, to be honest, they do carry some things no one else seems to but, man, dealing with them can be an exercise in frustration. I tend to make my orders with AmiAmi -> HobbySearch -> HLJ for the most part these days. I've really never had a bad experience with HobbySearch that I can recall, but they seem to get a smaller stock of things than AmiAmi does so it can be harder to secure preorders.

Hopefully you're in the US so you can just buy it from Bluefin.

Ah good point. Probably saves me some time to save up the funds, too.

S.H.Figuarts Kamen Rider Ex-Aid Beginning Set (Ex-Aid, Brave, and Snipe) Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyMXWxVVUo0

Credit to ヒロクンチャンネル/ hirokun

When do the individual figures come out again?

Ex-Aid 4/22, Brave and Snipe 4/29

Awesome, thanks.

The Tamashii website updated with a special Ultraman Orb section! Aside from official pictures for our two Ultraman Orb figures we also get confirmation of the pre-order date: Orb Origin goes up on April 3rd. Nothing for Orb Origin The First yet, but I believe that one might pop up on Amazon around the same time.

http://tamashii.jp/special/shf_ultra/new_hero/

http://i.imgur.com/fZU95hx.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/PJIRjjU.jpg

Also there's something exciting on this page, a little lineup of the two announced Ultraman Orb figures with a third blank space which reads "Coming Soon".

http://i.imgur.com/D6p8iBP.jpg

So it looks like Ultraman Orb figures will continue! Which form could be next, what do you guys think? I bet it's Spacium Zeperion.

Spacium Zepperion seems likely.

Buuuut, they've already got two Orbs down, and the SHF Ultra line has put equal emphasis (or actually...more like greater, looking at sheer numbers) on the villain figures so far...wouldn't be too surprised if it was Juggler, to be honest.

I would love a Juggler figure, but for some reason I only see that happening after Orb's forms are done. But yeah, they have done a lot of bad guys recently, haven’t they?

Either way, whatever they do next I'm thrilled to see that they continue doing more Orb stuff.

Hyper Zetton Deathscythe please :D

Nah, if any villain deserves it it's Juggler.

Yeah, I could see them making Juggler considering the balance of Ultras to bad guys they've made so far. I'd buy him!

Both of those Orbs look great.

Those Orb pictures look really good. If I had to take a guess though, I'd say a Juggler figure is up next as well. It just seems so fitting, given that we have both Orb Origin and The First.

By the way, does anyone know when preorders usually go up on CSToys? Orb Origin might be my first time preordering from them.

I was about to say the same thing. I want that Zetton too. I also want one of these guys to come with a Don Nostra cape that I can put on Mefilas.

Man I hope you guys are right, a Jugglus Juggler SHF would be fantastic.

I was bummed about missing the Kamen Rider Skull pre-order until I realized that BBTS had put it up for... about what I'd've paid from Japanese e-tailers. (I realize this isn't helpful for those outside the USA, of course.)

Didn't even realize the pre-order was already up on BBTS....snagged me a preorder for him. August is gonna be a rough month for me....Dark Drive, Kickhopper and Skull all come out.

Hey, thanks for this info, I was really upset I missed Skull.

So yeah, after handling (and almost immediately returning) a movie Legacy figure today I'm even more wishful that Figuarts will do these suits justice.

Pity most of me can't see it happening :(

Orb secured

So hae there been any reviews yet of Ultra Seven? He came out last week but I can't seem to find anything on it.

Thanks, but god dammit, now it makes me want him right now ever more. Hopefully either Amazon or BBTS gets in my preorder sooner rather rather than later. Except for the incorrect placement of his eye holes, he looks awesome. Although, I wonder how fragile it is to get the Emerium Ray into the fingers.

There have already been pics of the Ex-Aid set out there, but just to help clarify some things people were worried about:

Brave's Gashacon Sword can rotate at the blade. It's a really satisfying feeling to do so since it soft-locks in place.

Snipe's Level 1 face plate actually /is/ tinted red. It's super-subtle and I had to look at it side by side with Ex-Aid with light directly on the visors, but you can see that Snipe's is very, very vaguely tinted and looks lighter than the black visors.

That's actually really good to know. Wish it was a little more obvious but I appreciate that they didn't just leave that detail out completely.

Only complaints:

- Snipe's cape is a nightmare to deal with.

- Would've preferred either two full swords or separate blades for the Gashacon Sword.

- Lack of detail on the Gashats.

All of that's understandable, but the first REALLY makes me wish they'd hurry up and switch over to soft goods last week.

I'm not gonna have the Figuarts in hand for a while but I'm already anticipating the first two will also bother me (that and the lack of paint on Brave's collar which I predict will either drive me insane, or drive me to try to pay someone to fix it).

The lack of detail on the Gashats doesn't bother me as much as the fact that apparently they have pegs rather than the clear parts. I mean, it makes perfect sense for functionality reasons, but it also means they're useless for displaying the Riders holding them (not that they really have hands to do that with anyway). Should've come with stumpy and full versions, imo.

Damn that sucks to hear how much can the arm move up and down and side to side?

Well the Gaim riders had some detail on their lockseeds so this is kinda normal now that the Gashats have no details on them.

You know the main rider show SHFiguarts are not always 100% with details these days and I guess Bandai can't please everyone sadly.

The only Figuarts that I believe are 100% are the Renewal line because they have to be exact like the rider suit.

Wow, I didn't even realise Skull preorders were up and sold out. I'm pissed. No news report about it anywhere. I had no idea it would go up for order so soon.

That sucks to hear, but for the future you can just check this thread every now and then because someone always makes sure to post the date of the next drop.

And of course, the Tamashii website itself posts the dates, so if you look there during the last week of each month you should always know when this stuff hits. You don’t need to understand Japanese for that, I can’t read it myself either.

But don’t give up hope on Skull yet, I frequently saw Accel open for orders even one month after the pre-orders went live, so set yourself a Figinstock alert or just check AmiAmi and HLJ frequently. You should be able to still get one, I hope you will :)

I just wasn't checking because I didn't think preorders would hit so soon after the reveal.

Skull has been confirmed for release by Bluefin, just FYI.

I wonder if I could get my "local" comic book shop to order one for me.

That'd be damn expensive, though. Maybe I should take a chance waiting for Mandarake?

I was able to preorder Skull on BBTS, so I'd check there. At the very least, it's a nice backup option in the event that you can't snag one on AmiAmi.

For me it normally equates to about MSRP plus EMS shipping, and I have it right then and there, so I don't mind shelling out. Plus it's incentive for said retailer to keep ordering.

It might be different for you, however.

Yeah, that's my experience with buying Blu Fin related stuff over here too. It's just better to support local and independently run businesses IMO