RRP: 11,000 Yen
When Bandai Tamashii Nations revealed that they would be going back to the very beginning of the series with the One Piece S.H. Figuarts line, they really meant it. In addition to the first appearance “Romance Dawn” looks of the Straw Hat crew, we’re also going all the way back to when Luffy first dreamed of becoming King of the Pirates with the S.H. Figuarts Shanks & Monkey D Luffy -Childhood- set. This Tamashii Web exclusive release continues to expand the roster beyond that of just the Straw Hats, Red-Haired Shanks being a firm fan favourite and driving force behind the series despite his fleeting appearances overall.
Given that there’s quite a bit going on with the S.H. Figuarts Shanks & Monkey D Luffy -Childhood- set, it shouldn’t be any surprise to see that the box is slightly thicker than your average One Piece release. Nevertheless the overall design for the box remains the same, featuring a predominantly white background highlighted with release-specific deep red sections and backing card (he is “Red-haired Shanks” after all). Together with the transparent window showing the figures themselves off, the front of the box features two pride of place images – one fully coloured of Shanks passing his hat onto Luffy and then a more serious close-up of Shanks in the fully red section above. One side of the box shows off all the various faceplates that come with the release (including the extra Luffy face), and then on the back you can get a better look at the figure in various poses. Inside both Shanks and Luffy (along with the bulk of Shanks’ accessories) are stored on a moulded plastic tray, with Shanks’ cloak taped to the back of the tray in a clear plastic bag. Instructions on how to use and/or swap the various parts included in the set are printed on the inside flaps of the box.
This version of Shanks is based on the flashback appearances whilst Luffy was still a child in Foosha Village, most obviously because he (initially) comes with two arms. As far as character designs go Shanks doesn’t have the most elaborate wardrobe out there, but it does at least immediately scream “pirate”. Bandai have done a great job replicating his simple open shirt, pants and sandals combo – the shirt itself moulded in a softer (but still fairly rigid) plastic to still allow the torso to be moveable (although this doesn’t really end up the case). Another nice touch are the raised buttons running down his legs, which are even moulded onto the hip joints. The highlight of the figure however is of course the face sculpt, which perfectly captures how Shanks looks in the anime. All the details are there, right down to the scratches down his left eye and his scratchy beard. The set also gives you the option of displaying Shanks with his cloak, which as was the case with Ace is seemingly soft goods purely because this is a web exclusive release. Though credit where it’s due it’s a very nice cloak, sporting wired edges (that even run along the collar section) for posing and a simple peg to clip it onto his back. It makes it all the more painful that Sabo got lumped with a plastic coat, because that figure would have been significantly better if it had just been done the same way as this. Shanks is another fairly straightforward figure from the One Piece line in terms of looks, but it’s one that certainly gets everything right.
The One Piece line has felt like something of a testing ground when it comes to articulation, and while Shanks doesn’t feature any big innovations he still has some interesting choices nonetheless. Altogether the figure includes;
- Ball jointed head, neck, torso, waist and wrists
- Swivel hinge shoulders, hips and ankles
- Butterfly joint shoulders
- Single hinge elbows, knees and toe sections
- Bicep and thigh swivels
The shoulders are the same design as was previously featured on Zoro, where the ball joints that connect the arms to the torso fit in the ribcage area. The shoulder itself is then a (covered) ball hinge joint and the bicep swivel is provided by an additional ball joint at the end. The result is some interesting articulation that provides fantastic shoulder movement, however straight out of the box these joints are notoriously tight – you’ll know if this is the case from the squeaky noise they make when you try to move them. If this affects your copy then be sure to lubricate them up with shock oil (or something similar) to avoid breakage. Other strange choices on the figure include the use of single hinge elbows, which have a reasonably good bend but have been designed in a way that requires the overhang of the lower arm to be “tucked” into the top half. Without doing so, the arm won’t bend back straight. Single hinge knees are a bit more commonplace, and despite a slightly odd look to them from the back the provide good movement without breaking up the sculpt. One place that doesn’t have good movement however is the torso area, with the upper torso articulation almost completely nullified by the tight soft(er) plastic shirt. It’s also worth noting that the sandals aren’t sculpted the same way here as they are with Luffy (where the soles are only connected to the toe sections) and simply function like normal Figuarts feet. So overall the articulation is pretty good, and certainly enough to get Shanks into any pose we’ve seen him do onscreen. Whether it quite lives up to what his reputation suggests he’s capable of though is a different question entirely.
Shanks’ main accessories include four additional faceplates, five alternate hands, his sword, a sheathed version of the sword, straw hat, an alternate head to use with the hat, spoon, cloak and swappable missing left arm. That last accessory is undoubtedly the most important one of all, as though it might be nice to have the option of a two-armed Shanks this will most likely be how most people display him. The arm swaps at the bicep, and though it may be a simple case of popping one off the ball joint and replacing it with the other given the aforementioned joint tightness it’s a good idea to loosen it up with some warm water first. The real Shanks may have a damaged arm, but that doesn’t mean your figure has to as well.
This set isn’t just all about Shanks though, and a big portion of the accessories are taken up by a static figurine of child Luffy – his pose based on that iconic scene where he first receives his signature straw hat. The figurine is a really nice replica, getting all the details of how the teary-eyed Luffy looks in the scene near-perfectly, but it has one very significant flaw. The figurine has been designed so that it ONLY works with the hat attached, and without it Luffy is left with a rather unsightly plug-shaped forehead. No alternate head has been provided, so collectors are essentially left with two choices – display the Luffy and Shanks can’t wear the hat, or give the hat to Shanks and be left with a Luffy too ugly for display. Personally I have no objections to it being a static figure as a poseable child Luffy would have driven the price up considerably, but an alternate head so it has use beyond that one pose feels like it should have been the bare minimum.
Then of course finally to round things off we have the obligatory extra faceplate for S.H. Figuarts Luffy, which can now be used with the Romance Dawn, Raid on Onigashima AND Future Island Egghead versions. This faceplate is the 20th in the collection, and a particularly special one at that – a wide, teeth-bearing grin based on Luffy’s expression on his very first wanted poster. After so many releases you’d have thought Bandai would have run out of ideas by now, but between this and the ones coming with the other One Piece figures due later this year they’ve still got plenty of steam in the tank.
S.H. Figuarts Shanks & Monkey D. Luffy -Childhood- follows the usual pattern of One Piece figures – a great release with some “interesting” design choices. While the continued use of the new shoulder articulation is pleasing, the elbows and knees are a bit of a strange choice even if they do make for a cleaner sculpt. Bandai do however deliver a great range of accessories on top of it though, confirming once again that they need to ditch plastic cloaks/coats for all One Piece releases and just stick with soft goods. Shanks might not have been everyone’s first choice to come out before a good chunk of the Straw Hats, but as such an integral character to the mythos of One Piece he is more than welcome.
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