Release Date: January 2025
RRP: 7700 yen
The packaging for S.H. Figuarts Sabo matches what we've previously seen across the revived One Piece line – a primarily white box with grey map detailing, along with a character-specific accent colour. In Sabo's case, Bandai have opted for blue to match his shirt (and along with the white, it matches his outfit really well). The front of the box is split between the window section and a large image of the figure in the bottom corner (along with the figure name and various brand logos), with more stock images of the figure found on the back. Whereas one side simply repeats the character name again with another image, the other features closeup shots of all the faceplates included with the release. Inside Sabo and all of his accessories are neatly stored on their tray, with all the instructions regarding parts-swapping printed on the inside flaps of the box.
Something immediately noticeable about these new post-time skip One Piece Figuarts is that Bandai are often going for their most recent look in the anime, rather than what could be considered their most iconic or recognisable outfits. As such this Sabo is based off of his appearance in the Egghead Arc, which changes up the colours a bit. Here Sabo is rocking a blue shirt, white waistcoat and cravat, dark blue trousers, light brown gloves and a light brown coat draped over his shoulders. While I'm sure many would prefer his Dressrosa look, I can see why Bandai are keeping things up to date (plus I have no doubt a Dressrosa version will turn up one day if the line continues). Ultimately the outfit isn’t all that different other than the colours anyway. The figure is nicely moulded, with plenty of folds moulded into the clothing to give it a billowing, slightly baggy look. The face sculpt is excellent too, prominently featuring the scar around Sabo's left eye. The coat however is a bit of a miss. It's made of three hard plastic segments connected together by joints, with the central piece plugging into Sabo's back as well as hooking over his shoulders. Some parts of the design, such as the empty sleeves, look really good. Overall though the visible gaps between the various parts kind of ruin the look. The inconsistency between soft and hard good clothing parts in the One Piece line is also a little frustrating – Sabo has to deal with this, but Shanks and Ace (the latter of whom didn't even necessarily need it as an accessory) both get soft goods parts. The answer is likely that Shanks and Ace are both web exclusive figures and a little more expensive, but the way Sabo's coat has been done here just feels so antiquated for Figuarts.
While the return of One Piece S.H. Figuarts has been widely celebrated, many will agree that the line got off to a bit of a rocky start due to some questionable articulation choices. These seem to have largely been resolved with the more recent releases (particularly the pre-time skip figures), but sadly Sabo is another one that displays some notable issues. Altogether the figure includes;
- Ball jointed head, neck, torso, waist and wrists
- Butterfly joint shoulders
- Swivel hinge shoulders, hips, hips, ankles and coat parts
- Single hinge elbows, knees and toe sections
- Cravat, bicep and thigh swivels
Once again let's begin with the elephant in the room – the coat really isn't that good. Looks have already been covered but even functionally it has issues, with the two sides able to raise and spread out comfortably but the centre section permanently pinned against Sabo's back. A simple hinge to allow it to lift outward from the body would have been perfect, making jumping/mid-air poses that little bit more dynamic. It would have also helped with balance, since the coat is pretty heavy leading it the figure to topple in more dynamic poses. But although the coat can be removed, the figure itself isn't without its issues either. Single joint elbows and knees is a disappointment, even if you can tell that Bandai did it to keep the clothing sculpts a little more seamless. The waist joint is hard to utilise because of the soft plastic waistcoat piece covering it, but that's something previous releases have wrestled with as well. Personally for me though it’s perhaps the ankles that bother me the most, lacking a good enough tilt to keep the figure flat-footed in specific poses. Combined with the heaviness of the coat, you can see why balancing can be an issue for this release if you don't have a display stand on hand. As tends to be the case with S.H. Figuarts, Sabo's articulation might not seem that bad when stacked up against similar lines, but compared with other figures within the line itself it falls just slightly short of Figuarts' usually high standard.
Even though Sabo isn't short of accessories, it's another area that some might feel he falls short in. Altogether the figure comes with three additional faceplates (smiling, grinning and angry), four additional sets of hands, an alternate headpiece with top hat, goggles and of course his signature iron pipe. The curved piece of the pipe can be removed so that it can not only slide into the designated gripping hands, but also clip on to the back of the coat. Meanwhile the goggles can be placed over the hat or around his neck depending on preference, however the strap isn't quite long enough for them to hang around his neck in a suitable fashion (particularly if you're using the coat as well). The hat on the other hand has been done brilliantly - fixing to the alternate head piece but also removable for face-swapping and to use as a loose accessory. Though small the hand selection is very good, most importantly including dragon claw hands for martial arts poses. Sadly however there are no flame effect parts included in this release, which is disappointing as Sabo had wielded the Flare-Flare Fruit (Mera Mera no Mi) for some time by this point. One consolation however is that he works quite well with the Tamashii flame effects set, and was announced to be compatible with the flame effects included with Ace (who released the same month).
And of course it wouldn't be a One Piece S.H. Figuarts release without an additional Luffy faceplate, and when it comes to Sabo there was only one option really. Included here is an appropriately over the top crying face, complete with streams of tears, a moulded drip of snot and a teeth-baring grimace. As always the face plate works with both the Romance Dawn and Raid on Onigashima Luffy, but given the character its included I'm sure many collectors will primarily reserve it for the latter. While it doesn't quite match up to the pair's tearful reunion in Dressrosa (Luffy being in disguise at the time), but for displays it's still a pretty great approximation. Not to mention the fact that Luffy isn't one to hold back his tears in general, so even among Luffy's now vast amount of alternate faces this is one that should get a lot of use.
In the absence of Bandai doing what everyone wants them to do and just release all of the Straw Hats, S.H. Figuarts Sabo -Revolutionary Army Chief of Staff- is a pretty great choice from the supporting cast. But while the character himself may be a welcome addition to collections, the release itself is a little more mixed. The articulation falls just short of Figuarts' usual standard, but it's the coat that really brings the release down. Some flame effects would really help spruce this figure up so it might fare better alongside Ace, but overall it's hard to rank this amongst the One Piece line's best.
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