Review – Mega Man Blind Box Figures

Manufacturer: Bandai * Year: 2010

When I was at Toy Tokyo earlier this month (photos here) one of the few things that I grabbed was a single box of the Mega Man Trading Figures*, blind packaged toys that are designed for collecting and display. And now that I’m home and have opened the box I realized that I should have grabbed three or four boxes; this is a pretty slick toy.

Proto Man

As you can see by the photos my box included Proto Man (see the Mega Man Wiki) and he looks great in this striding forward, ready-to-destroy pose. And at roughly 3-inches tall this guy’s big enough to be a great desk ornament without taking up so much room that he’s in the way. Of course that’s if you only buy one of the figures; if you go for the complete set of what looks to be eleven pieces you’re gonna need a bit more space to display them.

A Sharp Sculpt

Smooth and graceful, Proto Man here looks great and has the angular and smooth lines that we seen in the Mega Man character designs. The blowing scarf is a great touch that adds depth to the character and everything from the flawless feet to the visor looks fantastic. It’s not a hyper-detailed or realistic sculpt but it does match the source art wonderfully.

Nice Paint

Not spectacular, but definitely nice, the paint is minimalistic but appropriate to the character’s look. The painted details are minor, but even down to the yellow lights on the gun barrel Bandai has it covered. The gloss red boots, gauntlets, helmet, and shield contrast nicely with the matte finish bodysuit, scarf, and face. There’s no real errors in the detail work but there are a couple of minor splotchy spots here and there that keep this from being a perfect paint job.

Closing Thoughts

Detailed and fun! An excellent example of blind box toys done well, this Mega Man Trading Figures* series looks to me like something that even casual fans of the Mega Man series can enjoy. (At least I’m not a hardcore fan and I found it a nice toy.) I doubt I’ll order any of these online, but if I find them in-person again there’s a really good chance that I’ll buy a couple of boxes.

For more info on the series see the Tamashii Nations Facebook page.

Philip Reed enjoys blind packaging and wishes that Hasbro would take a lead from Japan and offer Transformers toys blind. That EZ Collection Legends series in Japan has Philip itching to order some blind box Transformers toys.