RRP: 7700 yen
While certainly not covering everything in the film, Bandai Tamashii Nation's Shin Ultraman S.H Figuarts range still proved to be fairly extensive - something it's very easy to be when you can release multiple versions of the same mould with only slight variations. Just as well then the film featured Imit-Ultraman, a disguise used by Alien Zarab to try and discredit Ultraman as part of his plan to take control of the Earth. S.H. Figuarts Imit-Ultraman (Shin Ultraman) was the first Tamashii Web exclusive release from the film, the third release overall AND the third use of the Ultraman mould. Case in point really.
S.H. Figuarts Imit-Ultraman comes in windowless packaging that matches the other Shin Ultraman Figuarts releases, using a darker red colour scheme along with a near-black shade of silver/grey to give it a slightly more evil edge. On the front of the box is a fully body image of Imit-Ultraman along with the Shin Ultraman film logo front and centre together with the character name, while both sides feature identical images of the figure (one a full body shot, the other a faded close-up). On the back of the box are a further selection of images showing off the figure in various poses as well as its accessories, and then inside both Imit-Ultraman and said accessories are neatly stored on a moulded plastic tray.
If there's one thing you can say about the Shin Ultraman version of Zarab, it's that he was far better at making a convincing fake Ultraman than his TV counterpart. Imit-Ultraman is very nearly a straight re-release of the real Ultraman, with the only difference being the head sculpt. Said head sculpt also has very little difference to distinguish it from the original - the only key difference being that Imit-Ultraman's eyes are small and angular, whereas the real Ultraman has wider rounded eyes. Everything else is exactly the same though, right down to the shades of red and silver paint used. Despite the mould not being one of S.H. Figuarts' standout releases there's still a lot to love about this figure, especially how well they got the slender, more alien-like look of this Ultraman down. Other than the paintwork once again being nice and sharp, there isn't that much to say about the look of the figure that I haven't already said in previous Shin Ultraman reviews.
If new and casual fans thought telling the difference between Ultraman, Zoffy, Jack and Ribut was hard, don't ever show them the Shin versions of Ultraman and Imit-Ultraman side by side. Since on both versions the white eyes don't really stand out against the silver, you really have to look at the pair up close to fully appreciate that singular difference between the two. While the figure itself can't really be faulted because it's completely movie-accurate, it's a shame there wasn't a more significant difference between them. As unconvincing as the Imit-Ultraman from the original series may be, the design itself is fantastic - those sinister orange eyes and black additions to the body pattern really making it stand out as an evil Ultraman. Yet for some reason that version is yet to receive a figure in the S.H. Figuarts line, despite how iconic it is. While it would be great to see it happen on the Shinkocchou Seihou mould, at this point I'd take it on the standard one as well.
With head sculpt being the only difference between them, articulation remains exactly the same. It is worth noting that Imit-Ultraman uses a later version of the Ultraman mould that was tweaked so that the head could look up a little more in flight poses (this was also used for both Zōffy and the Ultraman First Contact Ver. release), but there's nothing unique about Imit-Ultraman himself. Altogether he features;
- Ball jointed head, neck, torso, waist and wrists
- Swivel hinge shoulders, hips and ankles
- Butterfly joint shoulders
- Double hinge elbows and knees
- Single hinge toe sections
- Elbow and thigh swivels
Again there isn't a whole lot left to say here that hasn't been said already, but it's a solid figure with no noticeably loose joints and nice fluid movement across the whole body. Even though you're probably less likely to put Imit-Ultraman into the Specium Ray pose, the fact it's able to pull it off without a hitch bodes well for anything else you might have in mind for the figure.
Accessories are where the figure does get to stand out a little more however, with far more to say here than there was with the initial bare-bones Ultraman release. Among the pieces included here are five additional pairs of hands, as well as a miniature figurine of SSSP member Hiroko Asami that can be held in its palm. This is to replicate the moments during the climactic battle between Ultraman and his doppelgänger where Imit-Ultraman holds her in his palm before throwing her in the air, only to be safely caught by the real Ultraman. The figurine is definitely recognisable as Asami due to the pose but very basically detailed and cast in black plastic without any additional paint detailing. While it fits comfortably into the designated hand, it doesn't lock in securely or anything like that so it's worth being extra careful as it would be very easy to lose. The hand selection is notable for being slightly bigger than Ultraman's three pairs, adding two pairs of open/grappling hands to the existing mix of close fists, open and knife strike hands. The knife strike hands are also slightly different to Ultraman's in that the fingers don't curve upwards, making them better for attack poses as opposed to flight. It's a nice little selection, and the fact they can be used with the real Ultraman to boost his hand count is definitely a bonus.
And of course as is basically mandatory for Ultraman releases now, Imit-Ultraman also features an accessory for the genuine article. In this case it's the ever-iconic "Ultra Slash" attack, realised here with a milky white buzzsaw effect part and dedicated pedestal piece to display it mid-throw. Design-wise it's nearly identical to the one included with S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Ultraman, which shouldn't be of any surprise given how little Shin Ultraman deviated from the original series in terms of visuals. It isn't quite as flashy as the Specium Ray parts included with the First Contact Ver. or the enormous Ultra Slash included with Zetton, but it's a nice part to have nonetheless and very fitting to include with Imit-Ultraman as its the attack that eventually finished off Zarab.
Overall S.H. Figuarts Imit-Ultraman (Shin Ultraman) is a pretty average figure, but strangely by no fault of its own. It ticks all the right boxes by being screen-accurate to how Imit-Ultraman appears in the film, but with so little difference from the genuine Ultraman it makes him a bit of an oddity that really only completists are going to appreciate. It's nice that Bandai gave Zarab some representation in the S.H. Figuarts line, but it doesn't really make up for his otherwise absence from the Shin Ultraman range (and Evolution Toy's MAF figure is too tall to be a viable alternative). The additional accessories are nice, but being mostly the usual things you find in an Ultraman release they don't really make it standout either. A competent release for sure, but also a rather forgettable one too.
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