DSC_6174
The second of two pieces I got on clearance from Bandai Namco during Black Friday 2022 was this Storm Collectibles Zangief, based on his Ultra Street Fighter 2 appearance.
Funny thing is that it is the Event Exclusive colour, which technically should be harder to get and cost more aftermarket, but here we are - I think it was like $50 USD?
My best guess? People really, really love their P1 colours and refuse anything else.
I actually own a SFV Zangief and generally wouldn't have bitten even at this price, but the Zangief I have cam with a really bad waist joint, to the point where it doesn't actually hold together properly.
I also just realized I was too lazy to fish it out of a cabinet to do some comparison photos.
The two are the same height and are actually much different aesthetically than you would think - they're actually two very different figures, though as youc an imagine the base body engineering is the same... which means that Zangief still has a functional neck joint.
Yes, that sound stupid, but keep in mind that I've not opened a male Storm collectibles figure for quite a while now, and they actually stopped putting working neck joints in their female figures as early on as SFV Cammy.
This is also the company that ditched their stands, so really such a cost cutting step shouldn't surprise any one.
Several head sculpts are included with the figure, including an Ultra SF2 line exclusive "You Lose" head sculpt. They look appropriately ugly because well quite frankly SF2 Zangief wasn't as pretty as he is now.
In addition to the heads, the figure has several hands, two dedicated Banishing Fist palms and one actual effect. There is one stand which I think is to support the effect, but I can't find a hole anywhere to mount it.
Zangief's articulation remains good, though the actual range of motion is limited, particularly in the legs, due to the sheer bulk of them. Also, as one would expect some poses don't quite look natural.
DSC_6174
The second of two pieces I got on clearance from Bandai Namco during Black Friday 2022 was this Storm Collectibles Zangief, based on his Ultra Street Fighter 2 appearance.
Funny thing is that it is the Event Exclusive colour, which technically should be harder to get and cost more aftermarket, but here we are - I think it was like $50 USD?
My best guess? People really, really love their P1 colours and refuse anything else.
I actually own a SFV Zangief and generally wouldn't have bitten even at this price, but the Zangief I have cam with a really bad waist joint, to the point where it doesn't actually hold together properly.
I also just realized I was too lazy to fish it out of a cabinet to do some comparison photos.
The two are the same height and are actually much different aesthetically than you would think - they're actually two very different figures, though as youc an imagine the base body engineering is the same... which means that Zangief still has a functional neck joint.
Yes, that sound stupid, but keep in mind that I've not opened a male Storm collectibles figure for quite a while now, and they actually stopped putting working neck joints in their female figures as early on as SFV Cammy.
This is also the company that ditched their stands, so really such a cost cutting step shouldn't surprise any one.
Several head sculpts are included with the figure, including an Ultra SF2 line exclusive "You Lose" head sculpt. They look appropriately ugly because well quite frankly SF2 Zangief wasn't as pretty as he is now.
In addition to the heads, the figure has several hands, two dedicated Banishing Fist palms and one actual effect. There is one stand which I think is to support the effect, but I can't find a hole anywhere to mount it.
Zangief's articulation remains good, though the actual range of motion is limited, particularly in the legs, due to the sheer bulk of them. Also, as one would expect some poses don't quite look natural.