DSC_2902
So a little while back, I officially got bit by the Storm Collectibles bug by way of their SFV Chun Li figure. Taking a look at their line up, I immediately knew who I wanted to add next - the Red Cyclone himself, Zangief. As luck would have it, during a 15% off eBay event, I was able to snag one at a decent price, and being the Special Edition version, no less.
Unfortunately for me, the figure arrived with the nubs that hold the chest piece to the abdomen broken, so I had to do some home repair to get the figure to display, but I did get some more money back from the seller, and it's not like I'm terribly great at posing anyway, so.. yay?
Anyway, if you don't know who Zangief is, then you were either born yesterday, or.. well that's about it. Even my wife who doesn't know diddly about video games knows who Zangief is!
One of the biggest in the Street Fighter cast (I think only outdone by Hugo), Zangief is a wrestler that hails from Mother Russia, is a walking slab of muscle, has mastered the Spinning Pile Driver, and wrestles bears for fun.
In short, a fun guy to be around.
One of the key selling points of the Storm SFV stuff is accuracy to the in game models, and without going too much into detail yet, you'll notice that at the very least he's got the right build. You'd think that wouldn't be such a huge deal, but while the other characters have been off before, even at the Play Arts level, there has never been anything as bad as the toys for Zangief, which range from dis-proportioned to "I think he's been dieting too hard".
This is by far the closest we've ever gotten to actual game model accuracy.
Much like Chun Li, Zangief comes with some accessories and optional parts, though not as many as Chun Li does:
- backdrop
- three heads
- 5 pairs of hands
- spinning lariat effect
- dynamic stand
In case you're wondering, YES, the stand is exactly the same size as the one that came with Chun Li. If anything, this figure is a testament to how rigid that stand is, as it held up to Zangief with no issue or difficulty what so ever.
Diving in, due to the sheer size of Zangief, despite using the solid Storm Collectibles system of joints, while articulation is pretty damn good, the toy is not as flexible as the character himself which really is saying a lot as Zangief is not exactly known as a finesse character. You can still lots of fun things with him, just that the range of movement is somewhat limited due to his proportions.
But again, I have to stress that the trade off is he looks like his game model.
The face sculpts generally have the right idea, but aren't as accurate as those for Chun Li. With her, my only real complaint was the size of the eyes, but all other details were very good. With Zangief, detailing on the hair and mohawk aren't as fine as I would have liked, and his expression, particularly in the eyes, isn't as intense as I'd have liked. Generally speaking, Zangief is so pumped to be kicking eyes, his eyes are supposed to constantly look like their about to bulge out of his head. However, there is no mistaking it for anyone else, and I do genuinely get a kick out of his open mouth sculpt.
Musculature on the body is top notch, as are the paint apps that represent the various scars Zangief has obtained through years of training.
The chest and upper back are made of a soft rubber material and the paint generally matches the rest of the body. Why was it done like this? Beats me, though I suspect wear and tear might be a factor. His trunks are also of a soft rubber nature.
I think that overall, if you're a Street Fighter fan, Zangief is worth a purchase, even with his flaws. With the exception of the head, Storm has done a great job recreating this guy as an action figure, exaggerated proportions and all. I somehow don't think we're ever going to see another Zangief that is quite this good, though one can hope if there is a 2.0 in the future, that Storm thinks of ways to up the ante.
DSC_2902
So a little while back, I officially got bit by the Storm Collectibles bug by way of their SFV Chun Li figure. Taking a look at their line up, I immediately knew who I wanted to add next - the Red Cyclone himself, Zangief. As luck would have it, during a 15% off eBay event, I was able to snag one at a decent price, and being the Special Edition version, no less.
Unfortunately for me, the figure arrived with the nubs that hold the chest piece to the abdomen broken, so I had to do some home repair to get the figure to display, but I did get some more money back from the seller, and it's not like I'm terribly great at posing anyway, so.. yay?
Anyway, if you don't know who Zangief is, then you were either born yesterday, or.. well that's about it. Even my wife who doesn't know diddly about video games knows who Zangief is!
One of the biggest in the Street Fighter cast (I think only outdone by Hugo), Zangief is a wrestler that hails from Mother Russia, is a walking slab of muscle, has mastered the Spinning Pile Driver, and wrestles bears for fun.
In short, a fun guy to be around.
One of the key selling points of the Storm SFV stuff is accuracy to the in game models, and without going too much into detail yet, you'll notice that at the very least he's got the right build. You'd think that wouldn't be such a huge deal, but while the other characters have been off before, even at the Play Arts level, there has never been anything as bad as the toys for Zangief, which range from dis-proportioned to "I think he's been dieting too hard".
This is by far the closest we've ever gotten to actual game model accuracy.
Much like Chun Li, Zangief comes with some accessories and optional parts, though not as many as Chun Li does:
- backdrop
- three heads
- 5 pairs of hands
- spinning lariat effect
- dynamic stand
In case you're wondering, YES, the stand is exactly the same size as the one that came with Chun Li. If anything, this figure is a testament to how rigid that stand is, as it held up to Zangief with no issue or difficulty what so ever.
Diving in, due to the sheer size of Zangief, despite using the solid Storm Collectibles system of joints, while articulation is pretty damn good, the toy is not as flexible as the character himself which really is saying a lot as Zangief is not exactly known as a finesse character. You can still lots of fun things with him, just that the range of movement is somewhat limited due to his proportions.
But again, I have to stress that the trade off is he looks like his game model.
The face sculpts generally have the right idea, but aren't as accurate as those for Chun Li. With her, my only real complaint was the size of the eyes, but all other details were very good. With Zangief, detailing on the hair and mohawk aren't as fine as I would have liked, and his expression, particularly in the eyes, isn't as intense as I'd have liked. Generally speaking, Zangief is so pumped to be kicking eyes, his eyes are supposed to constantly look like their about to bulge out of his head. However, there is no mistaking it for anyone else, and I do genuinely get a kick out of his open mouth sculpt.
Musculature on the body is top notch, as are the paint apps that represent the various scars Zangief has obtained through years of training.
The chest and upper back are made of a soft rubber material and the paint generally matches the rest of the body. Why was it done like this? Beats me, though I suspect wear and tear might be a factor. His trunks are also of a soft rubber nature.
I think that overall, if you're a Street Fighter fan, Zangief is worth a purchase, even with his flaws. With the exception of the head, Storm has done a great job recreating this guy as an action figure, exaggerated proportions and all. I somehow don't think we're ever going to see another Zangief that is quite this good, though one can hope if there is a 2.0 in the future, that Storm thinks of ways to up the ante.