Kamakura w/ Ninja Lightning - Adventure Pack
Toy
name: Kamakura w/ Ninja Lightning
Assortment: N/A
Price: MSRP $6.99
Availability: March, 2005
A
completely unexplored character until Devil's Due came along, Kamakura is now
pretty much a mainstay in the G.I. Joe mythos. The son of an ex-Crimson Guard,
Sean Collins is now Snake Eyes' apprentice and a full member of the Joe team,
ninja mask, sword and all. His appearance in the Valor Vs. Venom movie pretty
much cemented him in this role, and considering this is the fourth version of
this character, it seems clear that he maintains a close focus from the Hasbro
team.
It's not a bad thing, necessarily, although this version of the figure isn't terrific, it's still a pretty neat repaint and not too bad.
Figure Mold
While still heads and shoulders above the original action attack version of this figure, the thick rubber skirting still manages to severely restrict his movement. His legs can barely lift or spread, which is still better than he was, but not quite perfect, and definitely not well-suited to riding a motorcycle. Using some force, I was able to crease/tear the rubber skirting on him, though, and now he seems to sit okay.
Beyond this issue, the figure is pretty neat. His skin tight ninja mask looks good, and his would-be somewhat blah martial arts uniform is somewhat spiced up by the cool armored sash over his shoulder. Additional details are provided by some awesome layered armor on his forearms and shins, which really bring some life to the figure and make him look pretty neat.
All in all, the mold is nicely ninja-like, but still pretty restricted. Had Hasbro used a slitted uniform, or thinner rubber, it might have been considerably more successful, but as it is, the figure is tough to use for anything but standing there or moving his upper body.
Paint Applications/Color Choices
This figure carries along much the same way as the previous versions, with a green base and dark trim, but the green is a somewhat different hue, which actually looks pretty neat. It’s not as stark as the original, somewhat more “aqua” but still neat and still effective without being too bright.
His mask is now black, which is also great, instead of the normal gray (or yellow as it was originally). This black matches the sash on his chest great and brings the figure together pretty well. They also changed the colors on his arm and leg armor to a nice polished gold color instead of the previous silver, which is also a nice, effective alteration.
All in all, the figure has no major cosmetic changes, and isn’t necessarily colored better than previous versions, but he is somewhat different, and the changes that were made are pretty effective.
Accessories
I’ve said it several times already, and I’ll say it again…I really LOVE these bikes! Sure, they don’t look completely realistic, but they’re really fun to play with! With the large, fat tires and sporty look, they don’t exactly fit in with a military style, but as nice little speed bikes, they rock.
I like the color
of this one, too…it’s kind of a funky light green, but looks very
cool and fits Kamakura well.
Besides the bike, the figure comes with a sword and sheath, and a pair of nunchuks.
A nice little accessory compliment, I think.
Final Comments
Groundbreaking? No. But neat enough and comes with a cool motorcycle…re-visit the incredibly fun motorcycle chase scene from Valor Vs. Venom or just have Kamakura cruising around on his lime green bike. I don’t know if there’s anything amazing here to warrant a purchase if you’ve already got a Kamakura figure…but I enjoy the pack, and the neat new design schemes might impress you, too.
Ratings (out of 10)
Character: 6.5
Mold : 6
Paint Apps: 6.5
Value: 7
Overall score (not an average): 6.25
