Intro:
Last weekend, I was in one of those “hunting” trips in one of Malacca’s hobby shops and I have to say and I’ve come across something which I never thought I would see. For those avid Gundam collectors, you might be familiar with the term Assembler Kit – which literally means your figures will need some construction. You have no idea how many times I wished that Transformers could somehow go down that path and try giving it a go.
Well, apparently somebody up there has been listening and lo and behold, I have come across the Kabaya Transformers.
Well, I did a little bit of research of my own, Kabaya Food Corporation or Kabaya for short, is a Japanese confectionary company that tend to pack little goodies (read toys) in their packages for kids to play with. Well, apparently at some point Takara-Tomy actually gave Kabaya the license to market Transformers products.
However, there’s a difference. Kabaya decided to release these figures as Assembler Kits instead, which is very unique. So far, as far as my sources go, Kabaya has release 4 waves, each waves consisting of 3 figures so far. The first wave consisted of G1 Optimus Prime, Classic Optimus Prime and Victory’s Star Saber; Wave 2 – G1 Jetfire, G1 Prowl & Ultra Magnus; Wave 3 – Super Ginrai, Godbomber and G1 Starscream; and finally Wave 4 – G1 Hot Rod, Victory Leo & Universe/ Henkei version of G1 Inferno. Unfortunately, I’ve missed the 1st two waves, but I was lucky enough to grab the 3rd Wave.
Anyways, for this review, I will review Super Ginrai and Godbomber together because both of them have a combined mode as well, so to me, it made sense to review them together. The review for Starscream shall come later. So here it goes…
SUPER GINRAI
Super Ginrai or Powermaster Optimus Prime to the Western world and part of the Asian continent as well is undoubtedly one of my favorite variations of the G1 Optimus Prime. I’m guessing that all of you guys must’ve already known about the Japanese version of the character’s history and that of the American’s, so I am not about to delve into that.
So, as with all Kabaya Assembler Kits, the figure comes in a small box, with all the parts in 4 group panels and a piece of sticker sheet.
Assembling the kit is fairly easy and it would only take slightly over an hour to finish, and the end result is awesome.
Alternate Mode:
Super Ginrai naturally transforms into a truck, complete with a highly armed trailer, all ready to hit the road. Now first of all, being a little figure that he is, Super Ginrai doesn’t come with real tires – they only consist of notches with stickers on it – so he doesn’t really roll.
If you are wondering whether or not the cab disconnects from the trailer, well, they do. My one gripe with this mode is that the back portion of the trailer, which forms the legs in robot mode doesn’t lock together at all. All you can do is just align them together.
I kinda like how this mode looks and he looks very similar to his original depictions, albeit miniaturized.
Robot Mode:
Being such a small figure and also for such a price, the figure have neither a Powermaster figure nor does he transform into the normal robot mode and base mode – he transforms directly into his Super-mode.
Given the size and price, his articulations are quite decent: there is head articulation; the shoulders swivel up and down, and rotate; bendable elbows and swiveling wrists (the latter mainly due to transformations); the hips swivel side-wards and that’s practically it.
While the color red is as vibrant as a normal Optimus Prime would have, the blue portions can be a bit thinly blue for my liking, unlike the normal deep-blue that Optimus Prime is known for.
This version of Super Ginrai stands slightly over 3-inches tall – bigger than your average Legends-class figures but about the same to a Scout-class, as can be seen in the photo above.
Overall:
I like this little bot – he is heavily armed, and looks almost exactly like this original mould, albeit smaller in scale.
Verdict: 8/10
GOD BOMBER
God Bomber, or also known as Apex Bomber in the US, is a non-sentient robot drone, designed by Grand Maximus to be able to combine with Ginrai, both in truck and robot modes, and also to transport the Transectors of the 3 Junior Headmasters. The combined mode gave Ginrai the extra juice to beat Black Zarak and Overlord.
However, as according to the animated series, God Bomber would eventually display an unexpected ability, which is to transform into a robot on its own, and became somewhat semi-sentient, hence a robot mode that we shall now review.
Alternate Mode:
In this mode, he’s a somewhat strange-looking armored vehicle transport, I guess. I always thought of this mode as being somewhat funny, because I literally have no idea what he is supposed to be.
Again, as with Super Ginrai’s alternate mode, God Bomber doesn’t have real wheels either. So with no gimmicks at all except for the blaster on top, God Bomber is basically a block with wings sticking out.
Robot Mode:
Despite God Bomber is called a Transformers, just like his bigger version, I tend to call him a Puzzle-former instead. He doesn’t really transform! You would literally need to dismantle him into pieces and reassemble him into his robot mode. Having said that, his robot mode really stayed true to his original robot design and really looks the part.
Articulations-wise, God Bomber largely has the same set of articulations as his bigger version: no head articulation; shoulders rotate and that’s not just it. Unlike his bigger version, he has one more articulation – elbow joints – something which his bigger version lacked of.
Size-wise, he’s about the same size as Super Ginrai, and standing side-by-side, they really look like perfect partners.
Overall:
Again, I am really pleased with this one. To have better articulations compared to his bigger version is definitely a major plus point, although I still don’t like the fact that he is a Puzzle-former.
Verdict: 8/10
GOD GINRAI
When everything seems gloomy and hopeless, only the combined might of Ginrai and God Bomber could save the human race from the deadly clutches of Overlord and Black Zarak.
Yes, this is the main reason why I bought this set for – Super Ginrai. I have always liked this guy, especially the larger version. Yes, it may be blocky, but it’s God Ginrai for crying out loud.
Alternate Mode:
The combined alternate mode is kinda weak, in my opinion. It’s not just the set, but it’s the idea in general. To me, this mode doesn’t serve a purpose, other than they can do it, that’s all.
Robot Mode:
This is it – this is the main guy. The combination mode looks awesome! Standing close to 5-inches tall, he is still way smaller than your average Deluxe, but definitely way bigger than your average Scouts.
Articulation-wise, God Ginrai has the same set of articulations as Super Ginrai does – so that’s cool.
My only qualm with the figure is the shoulder gun, where it doesn’t really connect snugly. It seems that the slot on top of God Bomber’s cab seems to be made shallower thanks to Super Ginrai’s chest.
Other than that, he’s pretty awesome.
Overall:
I really do think that this two-set is particularly unique – in the sense that there are both Assembler Kits that can transform, and the two finished products are combinable – something which always appeals to me.
Plus with the rich back-story for this particular character, you might want to go get this figure – really worth the purchase.
Highly recommended.
Final verdict: 9/10.
