Revoltech Yamaguchi Rathalos (Subspecies) By Steven McCarthy
Introduction: Monster Hunter fans in the west have been clamoring for years now to get a new game… Unfortunately, Capcom have yet to answer our prayers. However, Kaiyodo took a stab at recreating the famous monster, Rathalos, in his Tri-G design, both in normal and subspecies (Azure) coloring. With Western MonHan fans getting a chance to have a small part of this game, is it worth it? Read on and find out!
Packaging (4/5): The box isn’t too special, but it does its job right to house the behemoth of a figure. Everything is secured in place, with extra plastic sheets included to prevent paint from rubbing off on the plastic. However, the included stand is in a little baggie that, upon opening, cannot be sealed, so once you open it, good luck putting it back in the box. A simple solution is to just put it behind the black tray in the box. Note that the packaging for both the normal and subspecies is IDENTIDCAL, except for the blue sticker on the window.
Paint(4.5/5): Wow. Simply amazing. Everything is beautiful and dirty looking, JUST like the King of the Skies in the game. The blues, greens, greys, and tans are marvelous! It could not be better. Why the point .5 reduction, though? Read the watch out section and find out why…
Sculpt (5/5): Once again, it’s great! Almost every little detail that Rathalos has is included here. There are a few things that look a little off, but given that the figure is base off of a 3D animated model that has a lot of chances to show everything perfectly at every angle, Kaiyodo gets an easy pass here.
Articulation (4/5): While almost every spot on the figure can move…. Mostly, only the legs and tail move. The neck moves a little bit, and the wings barely move at all. There are some balancing issues due to a number of reasons involving either sculpt or joint placement. If worked a bit, Rathalos can take some cool poses, but this reviewer has yet to get him out of a neutral standing pose without looking goofy.
Accessories (4/5): While Rathlos comes with EVERYTHING he could possibly come with… Everything feels a bit weak. His stand barely holds him up (if that can even be achieved), the hunter is about half the size he should be (making Rathalos appear to be a GIANT, though he really isn’t too huge), and his fireball doesn’t seem to be too scary compared to his in-game counterpart. However, considering that Kaiyodo had to sacrifice a few things to keep the price point just right, AND give collectors everything they could ask for, it isn’t too bad. The severed tail piece is spot-on, though!
***!!!WATCH OUT!!!*** There are two problems with Rathalos, one immediate and one that begs for future problems. First, the eyes have QC problems. Some figures have their eyes off centered, and this applies to both the normal and subspecies versions. Also, the wings are attached directly to the body, so avoid pulling the wings and make sure he doesn’t fall. The wings aren’t enclosed in a sheath like the Revoltech Rodan or just resting against the body like
Overall (4/5): This figure is really great! Kaiyodo did a fantastic job at their first shot at the Monster Hunter property. Knowing this is first in a (hopefully) large venture into the MonHan universe, only better things can follow this bad boy up! Counting down the days until the Rathalos Hunter is released!
If you like the way he looks, or you’re a MonHan fan, go ahead and pick this bad boy up. Remember, there are no differences between the normal and subspecies variant aside from paint.
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