There was quite a bit of controversy with the MP-51 Arcee release, specifically around a certain part of her anatomy. It was all pretty ridculous to me, but it was surprising when Takara announced an Arcee mold variant for this MP-55 Nightbird!
It's rare in this Masterpiece series when a variant figure is actually better than the original figure. But this Nightbird release is just that, with some retools that really enhance the overall design in its favour. Click the link below to watch my full review over on the Kool Kollectibles YouTube channel, or read on further below for more thoughts!
This set comes with a slew of accessories to suit her ninja origins. The black glossy guns are repaints of the original figure, but it is a shame the long rifle is not included. Instead, we get a slew of transluscent weapon attachments that can be attached in either car or bot mode.
The yellow blade and lightsaber styled swords are a little clunky for me, and I won't be using them. But the sais fit nicely on the forearms in bot mode, which also gives a throw back to the G1 cartoon episode too.
The car mode and paint app is very nice. The glossy black is as gorgeous as ever, and the slightly metallic gun metal grey makes for a nice contrast. What does annoy me a little is the use of the transluscent yellow for the windshield. In keeping with other black Decepticon repaints, it would've looked so much better if they had used a transluscent purple instead.
But for me, it's the bot mode where this one shines. I love the retooling to change the design of the torso and forearm detail, as well as that chest piece. The biggest factor changing the illusion of too low a chest is the new chin guard on the head sculpt. That chin guard fills the awkward slope of the neck to chest piece, and filling that gap makes all the difference in the world.
Add to that the ability to remove the mouth cover to reveal the sex doll face, you pretty much get all the pose options that juvenile Japanese collectors love! 😂 I have to say, that face, and the general excellent poseability of the figure, really does make it stand out amongst the Decepticon figures in the series!
Compared to the origninal Arcee figure, I think the overall design just suits this character more. I never had any issue with the design of the Arcee figure myself, and still think it's the best looking Arcee in this scale for that cartoon aesthetic.
But the paint app and style of the Nightbird repaint brings out the details in the mold. The joints are even more sturdy on mine, except for the torso joint that is a little loose. But she can get into all sorts of awesome ninja styled poses, and looks nice with the accessories based on other video reviews I've watched.
Together with the other black Decepticon repaints, the new Nightbird fits in beautifully! As I said earlier, I do wish it had a splash more purple. If it had the same purple windshield like the others, it would've been pretty much perfect! But either way, it's still a great repaint release by Takara, and I'm glad they were able to find a good use for the mold.
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