Continuing with my recent Dragonball haul, we have Kid Era Chi Chi.
Chi Chi is... an interesting character. Well, at least she started off as one, being the daughter of the almighty Ox King, whom Goku eventually won over and eventually started a family that seemed to attract universe destroyers at every possible step. I believe it as mentioned that even the creator of Dragonball, Akira Toriyama, isn't particularly fond of the character.
As far as I know, there's been no Housewife Chi Chi figure, just this one of her as a Child, specifically of her in Bikini Battle Armour, as is tradition. Part of the reason I ended up getting one is because as far as I can tell, people don't seem to like this figure either due to the subject matter or the character. There also aren't that many female DB Figuarts, which in a way makes sense seeing how many have been featured on screen.
Retaining for 5,200 Yen, contents of set include the following:
- 1 X Main Figure
- 4 X Face Plates (Neutral, Happy, Shouting, Screaming)
- 7 X Posing Hands, including one for holding the 2 Star Dragonball
- 1 X 2 Star Dragonball (scale meant for use with Shenron Figuart)
- 1 X Helmet Crest Projectile
and.....
.. a stand. Yes, of all the figures to come with a stand, Bandai decided that Kid Chi Chi deserved one, though it isn't meant to hold the figure up. It's meant to hold the projectile up. Go figure.
Kid Chi Chi is cute - no ands, ifs, or buts about it. Proportions seem a bit more accurate compared to the Kid Gohan figure, but that could also be an age thing as well, which allowed for the body used to actually be in line with expectations. Unlike Piccolo, her mantle, helmet, and cape are not removable. They did, however, give Chi Chi a flexible vinyl cape which admittedly looks plainer but isn't as bulky or cause top heaviness..
My biggest quirk about this figure is the sculpting of the open mouths, particularly the two with the largest openings. For whatever reason, the pink innards of the mouth cavity bubble outward, and it just looks odd. Making it flatter would have resolved that issue.
The underlying body effectively is what you get with Kid Gohan, which means while you do have the limits imposed by single jointed knees and elbows, you still have the upgraded shoulders which feature a butterfly like joint for the crossing of the arms. coupled with jointed pauldrons that allow them to move out of the way. Range of motion for the head is limited due to the use of a single jointed neck, though really, why bother using that when the long hair at the back of the head screws with movement anyway.
Due to the lack of baggy pants, Chi Chi does not have the hips joints with the built in clearance/cavity like the males do. However, as you can see, she really doesn't need it.
Overall, with the exception of the head, you should be able to pull off typical poses for Chi Chi, with the added bonus of actually having a stand to support the more dynamic poses.
Paint app wise, as expected the actual paint applications are good - smooth, little overspray, the usual stuff. The trick is of course figuring out what actually is painted, and to my eyes it appears its the mouth, non white parts of the helmet, all the blue, the green wrist band and calf band, and the white of her shoes.
Build Quality wise, the figure itself is well assembled, and handles its job of holding poses quite well. Parts have no issue fitting together. Finishes on some of the body parts are admittedly rougher than I'd like to see, such as sanding of the seamlines overall, and general finishing on some parts, such as the rotating shoulder joints.
That was Kid Chi Chi. I liked it from an overall perspective as the faces are expressive and the body allows for some creative posing. Having said that, some people can't get over the fact she's a kid dressed in a bikini themed superhero costume, regardless of canonical accuracy. I personally say for a series that has been censored for having multiple instances of the Kakarot family jewels on display, this is pretty tame.
OK... four more Dragonball figures to go.
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