Growing up in the 80s on Hong Kong martial arts movies, I was exposed to action stars that many of classmates didn't even know about. Yeah, Stallone was cool as Rambo, but that guy never beat the shit out of someone with a stool. Of course, when it came to Martial Arts movies, it always came back to the legend, Bruce Lee. Makes sense, as he effectively set the ground work for Martial Arts to be as prominent as it is today.
To that end, I've got a few Bruce Lee figures, one of the few exceptions I make regarding my female only collection. S.H. Figuarts and Figma have released a few over the years, with Bandai recently reissuing their version as a 50th Anniversary edition, adding a kind of snazzy new base. I say kind of because unlike other figure bases, this one doesn't even have a figure stand. I didn't follow it, but apparently aftermarket prices were also getting cray cray, so this was a welcome release.
From a packaging perspective, it's pretty much the same as the first release, but now has that "Legacy 50th Ver." splash of Red on it. As with all official Bruce Lee merchandise, this one is licensed by the family.
Contents of the set, along with the fancy Base:
1 x Main Figure
4 x Faces (Neutral, Focused, Eyes Right, Enraged)
11 x Posing/Gripping Hands
2 x Escrima Sticks
1 x Staff
1 x Nunchucks
1 x Base
Bruce is sculpted in one of his most iconic looks, with the Yellow jumpsuit probably being the most iconic. I feel they got his physique, though the amount of muscle definition would vary depending on what he was doing at the time. The hair was destined to be an issue, being a sculpted figure and all. I just wish they hadn't gone for the bowl cut.
I've already covered the hair. When it comes to the faces, I mean, they're off, especially the Enraged face. Looks more like Louis Koo rather than Bruce Lee. Having said that, they're very cleanly sculpted and there's no mistaking that this is a Chinese guy, as other faces haven't quite worked out that well. You might have worked out that for me, the Enraged face is the winner of this group, and I proudly use it as my day to day display item.
I have no idea how old the figure actually, but I was surprised at the fact that they didn't include any pull down hips, nor did it have the hips of the Dragonball figures. As a result, articulation in the hips isn't particularly inspiring. The single jointed knees don't help matters either. Otherwise you get a ball joint at the waist for some additional ab crunch/back arch action, typical chest and butterfly shoulder action, double jointed elbows and standard wrists. Bicep swivel, neck and head articulation round out the package.
Paint Application wise, most of the work is in the Digital Painting for the face, which turned out relatively good in that it is crisp and clean. Otherwise, the paint is pretty minimal - the White socks, and of course the Black hair. I'm pretty sure otherwise it's really just the base plastic with some top coat.
Finally, there's Build Quality. There's really nothing that can go wrong with this figure as there's nothing special to consider. Everything fits together nicely and joints do their job. I don't need to splay the fingers open to get the weapons in there. Even the Nunchuck chain is made of metal. All round solidly constructed figure.
There are better sculpted figures and more accurate looking ones, but at this size I don't think you're gonna do much better. Despite its shortcomings, the figure is still neat to have and to pose, putting it into very strange and unusual situations. I imagine because of its attractiveness to both hardcore and casual collectors, this one will probably sell out fairly quickly too, so might as well get one while its relatively easy.
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