Check out my other upload today, S.H.Figuarts Super Mario! • Super Mario S.H.Figuar...
Welcome to my review of S.H.Figuarts Michael Jackson [マイケル・ジャクソン]!
I'm quick to admit that I actually liked the movie Moonwalker. The scene that sticks out in my head from watching the movie as a kid was the infinitely cool Smooth Criminal sequence. If you haven't seen it, I recommend atleast checking out the long version of the Smooth Criminal video...but the rest of the movie is cool. Michael turns into a car, a giant robot and then a giant starship before closing the movie with the best version of the song "Come Together".
On top of this Michael Jackson also had his own video game for Moonwalker which followed the plot of the movie loosely. It was made for the Sega Master System, Sega Genesis/Megadrive, and Arcade. All three had slightly different gameplay, but they all featured Michael in his Club 40s/Smooth Criminal outfit throughout.
So yeah, Bandai though it would be cool to make a figure of Michael as he was in the Smooth Criminal video and Moonwalker game. I'm not sure why they decided to give this version of Michael the Figuarts treatment over say...Bad, Beat It, Thriller, Captain Eo (I would totally buy a Figuarts Captain Eo, Bandai--if you're reading this) but I'm certainly glad they did.
Smooth Criminal Michael Jackson comes with a hat, alternate head, alternate torso, leaning stand, and several hands. Several of the parts carry over between alternate parts such as the tie and the ponytail.
I have to say...I was worried about this figure when I saw early shots of the prototype. It looked pretty lousy, but I threw caution to the wind and preordered mine anyway. I have to say, I am more than happy with how this Figuart turned out. Hopefully this came across in my photos, but in case it didn't they nailed the likeness on his main face. I mean, it's damn near perfect. It even manages to avoid usual action figure pitfalls with accessories when it comes to the hat. It fits his head well and doesn't look ungainly. Speaking of accessories, this figure has plenty of them. The leaning stand is a very nice touch and the alternate torso really gives this figure a lot more life than it would have had otherwise.
The downside? There isn't too much to complain about with this figure. The alternate head looks pretty stupid with it's dopey smile, but atleast the dead-on likeness of the normal head makes up for this. I would have much rather have had a microphone, or hand gun, or even machine gun over the alternate head.
I really, really enjoy this Figuart of Michael Jackson. It is a Figuart that I'm pretty sure Bandai made with me in mind. I really hope that this figure found an audience outside of myself and the three people I know who own it. It's a very well made toy and it really shows that Bandai atleast has a sense of humor.
For real, though...I hope Bandai gets around to a Figuarts Captain Eo. That would be pretty badass.
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