My Shiny Toy Robots

My opinions of Kamen Rider Kabuto as a series may be pretty low, but if there's one thing I couldn't fault it on it's how fantastic the suit designs were - taking the core insect design of the franchise and taking it to the next level. However its been nearly six years since the original Kabuto S.H. Figuarts figures were released, so naturally Tendou and co. are really beginning to show their age when stacked up next to some of the newer releases in the line. But of course, the man who walks the path of heaven isn't going to settle for sub-par figure, and so Bandai Tamashii Nations have created a brand new renewal version of the show's titular Rider under the banner of ' Shinkocchou Seihou' . This isn't just a simple upgrade like Kamen Rider Black got though - Bandai have incorporated all new sculpting techniques and joint systems to make this higher-priced-than-usual Figuart something REALLY special...

Continuing my journey through the extensive history of the Kamen Rider franchise, my next stop is 2006-2007 with the Heisei era's seventh series (and 16th overall)  Kamen Rider Kabuto . It's also a landmark title for Kamen Rider  as a whole, celebrating its 35th anniversary as well as being the first instalment to be broadcast in high definition. More recently, the titular Rider also had a brand new renewal S.H. Figuarts release, which isn't part of my reason for choosing this now to watch at all...

Once upon S.H. Figuarts buyers felt confident that if one group of Super Sentai characters (other than the Reds of course) was safe from Tamashii web exclusive  status, it was the sixths. After the mass releases of Shinken Gold , Gokai Silver and Dragon Ranger , they seemed pretty safe. However that certainty has been dashed over the past few months, with not only Kiba Ranger getting the TWE treatment but also the sixth ranger of the latest Sentai show. The third Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger release in the line, Kyoryu Gold  follows on from the Blue/Green 2-pack and comes just before the Black/Pink set - making it (currently) the only single figure web exclusive release for the show.

With sadly no Akibaranger around this year to fill the void of Super Sentai parody in our lives, a new contender has stepped up to the plate in 2014! While   Kanpai Senshi After V (roughly translating as Cheers! Warriors After Five ) may not have the official Toei backing that Akibaranger had, that doesn't make its influences any less clear. In fact, looking at this picture alone you'd think that the Showa era of Sentai had risen again.

It's a brand new year (well, four months into), brand new Super Sentai series. And a brand new Sentai series naturally means a brand new selection of toys! So far Ressha Sentai ToQger 's toyline has proven to be rather divisive, with many not a fan of the seemingly back to basics approach of the costumes and the main mecha itself - ToQOh . Personally I've loved the simple design of rainbow robot from the very beginning, and after the disappointment of last year's Kyoryuger offerings I was excited to see what 2014's mini-pla candy toys would have to offer. And thankfully, it seems elbows are back in fashion.

Kicking off the year of GARO  is...a miniseries that doesn't actually feature Garo at all? That's right, the franchise's first 2014 entry is a story about everyone's favourite secondary Makai Knight  - Rei Suzumura , aka Zero the Silver Fanged Knight. The six-part miniseries, titled Zero: Black Blood was also released in Japanese cinemas as a film duology - with the two parts being named White Chapter and Black Chapter  respectively.

2014 is undoubtedly the year of Garo . This once small toku production has progressively grown into a full-blown franchise over the past few years, with this year giving us the widest variety of new productions yet. On top of the recently completed Zero spin-off (look forward to a review of that hitting the blog soon), we also still have a The One Who Shines in the Darkness movie to look forward to and even a Garo anime. But before then we have Garo: Makai no Hana (" The Makai Flower "), which sees original creator/writer/director Keita Amemiya return to the fold after a brief absence. And that's not the only exciting thing the show has up its sleeve either.