Despite what my collection habits may have you believe, the S.H. Figuarts line isn't just about tokusatsu toys. Other than the Kamen Rider  and Super Sentai franchises the toyline has also played host to a number of anime franchises including Dragonball Z, Pretty Cure, One Piece  and, more recently, Code Geass and Sailor Moon . This review is of a one-shot figure that was released back in 2011 to roughly coincide with the release of a Robot Damashii  figure from the same series. I give you the Galactic Pretty Boy himself, Takuto Tsunashi from Bones' underrated Star Driver . Takuto's packaging is pretty simplistic in terms of colours and layout, but certainly has the flare and elegance befitting of the Galactic Pretty Boy. The predominantly white front features a star shaped window, with the figure image all red save for his yellow hair section. The writing is in a very nice red foil, and the bottom has the series logo above a rainbow backdrop. The back how...

Just over a week after one of my new favourite animes finishes I manage to get my hands on its star robot. Star being the keyword here, as what we have here is Taubarn, the cybody piloted by protagonist and Galactic Pretty Boy Takuto Tsunashi in the anime Star Driver. The first thing that should be mentioned about Taubarn is its size - what it lacks in bulk, it certainly makes up for in height. The picture below illustrates it better, but most Robot Spirits/Revoltech/figures of similar scale only come up to around its waist. The sculpt lives up to Bandai standard - managing to accurately recreate the outlandish proportions of the Taubarn while retaining full posability. The colours are particularly vibrant - metallic red on top on white. The joints are gold The plume is moulded in clear plastic, and the propulsion parts that float freely on Taubarn's back in the series are held on via a clear connector to help carry out the illusion. Tauburn comes with a variety of al...

From acclaimed anime studio Bones (responsible for Eureka Seven, Soul Eater, Fullmetal Alchemist and much more) comes Star Driver, a story of super robots gone fabulous. Star Driver tells the tale of Takuto Tsunashi, a young boy who arrives on the remote Southern Cross Isle. The island has a dark secret though, as a group of masked individuals known as the Glittering Crux Brigade are attempting to release a hoard of mysterious mecha known as 'Cybodies' from an alternate dimension known as Zero Time. To do this they must first break the seals of the four maidens of the island. Takuto has a secret of his own though, as he soon reveals himself to be the 'Galactic Pretty Boy', a legendary fighter who defends the maidens with his own Cybody, Taubarn. Takuto not only becomes popular at school, but soon enters a complicated love triangle with his two best friends - South maiden Wako Agemaki and Sugata Shindō, Wako's fiancee and pilot to the most powerful Cybody of all, Sa...