Toybox REVIEW: S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider Birth

Release Date: June 2023

RRP: 8800 yen

Since the S.H. Figuarts Shinkocchou Seihou line first ventured into the world of Kamen Rider OOO back in 2019 with Kamen Rider OOO TaToBa Combo, Bandai Tamashii Nations have done a great job at getting through the myriad of (interchangeable) forms the titular Rider has. That said one key figure from the series has been notably absent from the range for the past four years, and with the release of S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider Birth we can finally welcome OOO's secondary Rider into the fold. Used by a number of people over the course of the series but primarily Akira Date and later Shintaro Goto, the Birth System was designed by Dr Maki as part of the Kougami Foundation's Medal System. Following the fate of most secondary Riders these days, Birth was released as a Tamashii web exclusive item.

Kamen Rider Birth comes packaged in the usual (but nonetheless stylish) Shinkocchou Seihou two-piece box, with the top half featuring a close-up profile image of the figure whilst the sides sport "Kamen Rider Birth" in silver foil lettering against a black background. On the back of the box you'll find more images of Birth in various poses, one of which shows the figure wielding the (sold separately) Birth CLAWs accessory set - more on that further down in the review. Inside the contents are spread across two moulded plastic trays – one for the figure itself and then a shallower one underneath for all its accessories. 

A man-made Rider system, Kamen Rider Birth's use of the Cell Medals is modelled on a Gashapon machine. This is visible in all the Gashapon-like balls covering his body, as well as the Birth Driver with its turnable crank. It's a very well done design in that if you know the influence then you can spot all of these little design flourishes instantly, but if you don't know it still manages to pull off the look of a badass technology-based Rider. The Shinkocchou Seihou line is always the cream of the crop when it comes to moulding and sculpting, but it's the little touches with Kamen Rider Birth which really make it stand out. The gold chrome on the Driver's crank immediately springs to mind, but the way the light catches the clear plastic on those spheres really makes the figure shine. But overall everything on this figure looks great, particularly the silver and metallic green paint against that bold black under-suit with moulded wires running down it. Though the head sculpt might not have big bold compound eyes like so many Kamen Riders have, you're still drawn into those big glossy black visor-like eyes.

Kamen Rider Birth features similar articulation that has been seen across the Shinkocchou Seihou line, including;

- Ball jointed head, neck, torso, waist and wrists

- Swivel hinge shoulders, hips and ankles

- Double hinge elbows and knees

- Single hinge toe sections

- Bicep and thigh swivels

An S.H. Figuarts staple, the shoulder pads are also attached to hinged ball joints for additional clearance and movement from the arms. Curiously, Birth lacks the additional elbow and knee joint swivels seen on the various OOO Combos - not that he really needs them anyway. The extra swivel doesn't add that much movement and makes joints that little bit more fragile. Overall though Kamen Rider Birth keeps up with the excellent human-like poseablity the line has become known for, with only the shoulder pads offering any sort of restriction (and even then it's probably only as much as the actual suit would have). Even with that chunky Birth Driver around his waist the figure can pull off a fairly decent ab crunch for crouching and more action-orientated poses. The figure isn't really breaking any new ground for the Shinkocchou Seihou line, but when it's already this good it doesn't really need to either.

Kamen Rider Birth's accessories include four additional pairs of hands, an alternate head with illuminated eyes, the Birth Buster and three Cell Medals. As has been the case with Core and Cell Medals released previously with these figures, they are fixed to a plastic runner and need to be removed for use. Unfortunately the Cell Medals don't fit into the Birth Buster, but they can be held in figure's hands or slotted into the Birth Driver. The Birth Buster is very impressive though - not just because of its great paintwork and clear plastic parts but also the removable Cellbullet Pod. This can be taken off the bottom of the gun and either slotted onto the front for "Cell Burst" mode or onto the top for reloading. It's a nice little interactive feature that adds to the figure's display and posing possibilities. That just leaves the alternate head and hands, both of which were expected but still appreciated. The illuminated eyes on the alternate head really bring the design to life, while the hand selection include pointing and thumbs up hands in addition to the usual accessory holding pairs.

If you're looking for more accessories for your Kamen Rider Birth figure, then you'll have to pick up the Birth CLAWs set that was released in July. Not only does this include the Breast Cannon, Drill Arm, Caterpillar Leg, Shovel Arm and Cutter Wing units for the figure (which can be combined together for Birth's "Birth Day" mode), but also the Cell Medal canister. The downside is that this set also cost 8800 yen - the same price as the figure itself. So while it's understandable that those parts are all too hefty to have been included with the main figure, basically paying just as much again to get a "complete" Birth figure might be a lot for some to swallow.

S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider Birth is another great entry into the line and a much-needed addition to the Kamen Rider OOO range, but without the CLAWs set to go alongside it I definitely feel like it isn't meeting its full potential. That certainly isn't to say that the CLAWs set is a necessary purchase because Birth is more than capable of functioning on its own, but other than just being a really good figure it doesn't have that big "wow" factor in the same way so many Seihous do - and maybe that wow factor is the interactivity with the CLAWs set? That said, I would happily buy it all over again should Bandai want to release a Birth Prototype to go with it.