[ljacone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Baltan II

Good thing I haven't canceled my Hobby Search Ultraseven order yet...

How much you want for him?

[Lbsammills51]

My AmiAmi order arrived with Ace Killer and Father of Ultra in tow. Chalk up two more excellent releases for the Ultra-Act line.



Like Nexus Junis, I'm pleasantly surprised by how much I like Ace Killer. Though purchased under different circumstances (Nexus was something pretty I jumped at after seeing pics, Ace Killer was something I'd had an eye on but wanted to wait and add to an existing order), I'm very glad to have snagged one.

Plenty of accessories, including an extra effect part for Ace (I imagine part of the allure, a la sticking the extra effects part meant for Godzilla with Fire Rodan in the MonsterArts line).



I'm still digging into the history of the all the Ultra series (I grew up with Great) so Ace Killer was an unexpected departure from my previous purchases. Not quite a kaiju, not quite a robot, not quite an Ultra in appearance, he's an odd looking combo of all three (in a good way, for me). Gold instead of silver also helps set him apart a bit.



Solid posability; only "negative" is that his head can't really look up much. His skirt pieces are made of soft plastic, so they don't inhibit posing the legs at all. Pretty stable on his own and his hands are very easy to pop on and off. His shoulder pads are on a ball joint that attaches to the top of the arm.

Three different effects parts; the one that attaches to his head is a tight fit though the crustacean-like protusions on his face are also a bit of a softer plastic so you can just pry the two the piece slides between a bit with your fingers and lodge it in securely. The piece has some give to it, but it's not something I'd try to force by any means.





Father of Ultra is a big beefy fucker with his own Mantle.



Definitely the bulkiest of the Ultras. Posability's again solid; hands pop on and off fairly easily while the head & neck piece is a little harder to pop off but not difficult. He can look up though, unlike Ace Killer.



(Iron Man "ground pound" pose with dumbbell.)



As for the Mantle, this is my first experience with one (I have a Brothers Mantle as part of my June order). I didn't expect it to be made with hard plastic (I was expecting a softer plastic), but it's not bad. The actual cape pieces are in three sections and each is on a hinge or swivel joint of sorts; unfortunately that limits how the pieces can move (the center piece only back & forth/up & down and the side pieces can spread out side to side). I think I would've preferred ball joints, if that were possible. You do have to pop the head off to get the mantle on. Thankfully the piece on his upper back you need to pry off to slot the Mantle into came off easily enough on mine. He can stand on his own with the Mantle, but you'll need to adjust his legs a bit to get the right balance. It's probably ideal to have a Tamashii stage to help balance him to avoid falling, due to how back-heavy he is with the Mantle on.



(Here's a comparison shot with Kaiser Belial, whose cape is made of a softer plastic.)



All in all, two releases that are worth getting your hands on if you haven't yet and can swing it.

[ljacone]

Thanks for the great pictures Lbsam! Both of them look great. Ace-Killer really looks dynamic with the red and gold, almost like a comic book super villain more than a tokusatsu character. The skirt pieces look really nice.

Father of Ultra looks as badass as he should be. The mantle is a nice addition as well and really adds to the regal look. I really like the very beefy muscular legs he is sporting.

On an unrelated note, still no luck on the Ultra Seven v.2 front but do have a lead on a decent price for Ultra Seven v.1. Seven seems to always command high prices in the secondary market, so I imagine once v.2 is out he'll be as expensive or more expensive than v.1 is now. But I wonder if v.1 will drop somewhat after v.2 is released?

Not sure, so for now just keeping an eye out for a good (read: "decent") price.

[Poe Ghostal]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ljacone

Not sure, so for now just keeping an eye out for a good (read: "decent") price.

This isn't bad: http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-Ultra-A...item2a2d7b2819

Mandarake has a MIB one for $80 plus shipping as well.

[ljacone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Poe Ghostal

This isn't bad: http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-Ultra-A...item2a2d7b2819

Mandarake has a MIB one for $80 plus shipping as well.

That's the one I am looking at, yes. Will have to look at Mandarake and see what I can see.

[Lbsammills51]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ljacone

Thanks for the great pictures Lbsam! Both of them look great. Ace-Killer really looks dynamic with the red and gold, almost like a comic book super villain more than a tokusatsu character. The skirt pieces look really nice.

Father of Ultra looks as badass as he should be. The mantle is a nice addition as well and really adds to the regal look. I really like the very beefy muscular legs he is sporting.

Thanks, yeah I do get the comic character vibe from Ace Killer, same with Father when he's wearing his mantle (like a random Marvel Cosmic character).

Also, and take this with a major grain of salt, but BBTS has belatedly put up an Ultraseven preorder. I've no idea if they can fulfill it, or if they do, then whether they fulfill all of them, but I suppose it's a "What the hell, why not?" option for some while looking for another, more definitive, alternative to secure one.

http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/p...34&mode=retail

[ljacone]

Yeah, if Big Bad Backup Store doesn't fulfill the preorder, you don't get charged, so no loss. But I have no faith in it actually happening. Father is still listed as Preorder, for instance. I guess if he ever ships out, it could be taken as a sort of proof of concept for BBTS in this context.

[Poe Ghostal]

BBTS will never get in Ultraseven (or Ultraman Jack for that matter). They never received my Ultraman Zoffy or Jack orders, either. These are already limited figures and the fact that Bluefin can't import them makes them even more difficult for BBTS to obtain. Basically, if there's any real demand for the figure at all, BBTS ain't gettin' 'em. I advise people to try something else, like Plamoya perhaps. (They seem to have great prices but I don't know how reputable they are.)

[Baltan II]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ljacone

How much you want for him?

This is more of a PM conversation - otherwise I'm canceling my preorder before Hobby Search's window closes.

[ljacone]

PM sent!