Yes
Only if...
Not worth it
I'm not even interested
Rank 8 - Deluxe Member
So I grabbed him today and while he does look pretty awesome, he does suffer from a few flaws. His transformation does feel dull and his overall appearance doesn't feel like the other MP figures. But other than that he has more play value than some of the other MP figures and is much better version of the G1 toy.
If you are able to find him at Toys R Us, I recommend getting him now as I doubt he's gonna get any cheaper.
I'll update this when I'm needing help finding particular figures
Rank 6 - Dedicated Member
I probably can get him cheaper.Originally Posted by Handsprime
For me, he is better than the G1 toy so I am quite please. But if I were to rate the transformation, is a simple or dull one as you stated.
Rank 8 - Deluxe Member
I got him for $175 from TRU. I think he's great value at this price point, and worth picking up eve if you have zero idea about who he is. It could be that I knew what to expect going in and didn't have a high expectation, but he actually is really nice figure, and I'd say, he measures up to the MP standards in every way.
He's bulky, hefty and has that heroic anime posture that make for an incredible displace piece. And he has surprisingly solid articulation and tons of accessories that offer a great range of display options. The transformation engineering is, at no fault on the designer's part, pretty G1. But, there're small bits that give you the modern engineering feel to it and showcase the designer's attention to detail (which is incredibly important to make a MP figure truly the definitive toy). The simplistic overall engineering actually plays well with the size of this thing, so that you can just pick it up and transform it with ease.
Combined jet mode looks imposing. Size does matter
My biggest complaint with the figure is in Saber mode, his leg articulation is hopeless. The hip joint set up reminds me of some of the later Toybiz Marvel Legends figures, where there's no actual side to side movement on the hips. It looks like there's tons articulation there but really you can't get any dynamic poses out of these hips. There's plenty of room there and I don't see any reason why a dedicated lateral hip joint could not have been engineered. To think Yuki actually defied the Transformer myth that is "wrist swivels do not exist on fold out fists" and actually put mushroom peg on the wrist to facilitate better sward welding poses, this oversight is quite bizarre. To make matter worse, the feet can not bend further forward than the normal stance and have no extra movement whatsoever, so even if you managed to bend the legs to look semi dynamic, it's really hard for him to balance. So Saber ends up pretty much only looking good when standing still.
Star Saber bot mode is where it really shines imo. Yuki said something about "working really hard" to get most of the different color pieces in their molded color without pain apps. This effect actually looks really good on Star Saber and the bot mode shows the most (it probably won't look nearly as good for anything else with a realistic vehicle mode), and the nicely painted face and that bit of chrome detailing on the chest is just enough to make it not look cheap.
I voted only if....it's cheap. At $175, he's a great buy and when I got him on the last day of 2015, Star Saber became my favorite MP figure of the year.
Rank 8 - Deluxe Member
The excellently written bio and text blurbs in the instructions tells you all the basic information that you need to know about this character.
P.S.: Great photos!
Rank 6 - Dedicated Member
except most Japanese retail went for under 14,000 yen I got mine like $165 delivered. Granted $10 more for your work is worth it.The excellently written bio and text blurbs in the instructions tells you all the basic information that you need to know about this character.
P.S.: Great photos!
This toy isn't fantastic but is good enough to entertain.
Rank 8 - Deluxe Member
Thank you and yes the English instruction booklet is fantastically done. It's a shame that the graphic person made a few typosThe excellently written bio and text blurbs in the instructions tells you all the basic information that you need to know about this character.
P.S.: Great photos!At one point they were trying to fix the American spelling of Saber to Sabre, but ended up with "Sabrer".
Rank 8 - Deluxe Member
Rank 8 - Deluxe Member
At first I didn't know why Saber's thighs slide into the legs at an angle versus collapse in straight. Then I watched the stock transformation. So this is to make Saber's knee caps pop up when you extend the leg just like in the show. Great attention to detail right there.
Rank 3 - Basic Member
so after having him in the super robot mode for most of the year, i'm now trying to separate Saber and man it's tough!! Pressing the little release catch on his back doesn't seem to release him much.
Any suggestions?
Rank 8 - Deluxe Member
Finally opened MP Star Saber. It is one of those toys that you will either like or won't depending on your Japanese G1 appreciation or for big imposing toys.
As we know the toy is divided into 3 figures - Brain (little bot), Star (Base ship and large body) and Saber (Mid size bot)
Engineering wise it looks to be a nearly straight adaptation of the G1 toy. If you have the Robot Masters release of the character, it is basically an upscale version with the inclusion of Brain. There is a bit of engineering on Saber, specially the legs but not a lot to differentiate. Basically, if you know the G1 and Robot Masters release, you know this.
The reason why the other takes on the toy have very much similar engineering despite size is because this is a very simplistic toy with a sci-fi mode. The original was also simplistic and the animation model transformation that is shown to us in detail reflects that. Adding any more engineering complexity would end up distancing the toy from its attempt to represent a Victory cartoon Star Saber, and as we know, cartoon accuracy is the main style focus of the MP line at present. Don't expect engineering innovation or anything of the sort here. This is a straight up animeish modular or 'Load-Bearer' super robot .
Having said that, this is just an alright toy at best and specially for the price point. Aesthetically, it does the job really well as it looks like Star Saber straight from the cartoon. The brain master gimmick on Saber is fun and Saber is also fun to transform if a bit simple. However the 'Star' part of the toy is kind of unwieldy and bulky in ship mode (but very cartoon accurate so displays well) and in super robot mode, Star Saber has loose elbow joints with poor weight tolerance, specially when holding his accessories due to less than adequate plastic than is not hard enough to apply the correct pressure on the ratcheting springs. This is specially noticeable when he wields the sword and and shield.
The accessories are alright, the shield works also as a stand for the Base ship which is pretty good. Both Star Saber and the Saber components get swords although unfortunately there is no where for the Saber sword hilt to go in Super robot mode but the blade stores fine. During transformation of Saber, Brain also pulls off the Brainmaster gimmick really well.
Overall: Worthwhile if you like the character and like the Victory cartoon. It is also a recreation of the original toy but with more modern looks and better aesthetics. Certainly a much cheaper alternative than tracking down the vintage G1 toy and it provides a similar experience. For people looking for innovation or a transformation challenge, look elsewhere. Also loose ratcheting joints on elbows is also disappointing.
Last edited by kup; 14th July 2016 at 12:11 PM.
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