Bandai
released Masked Rider 1 & Cyclone set in April of 2002. This
was the 14th releases of the regular edition S.I.C. The set was the
third vehicle for S.I.C. line and the first to come from the Masked
Rider series. As with other S.I.C releases, both the Cyclone and
Kamen Rider 1 were sculpted based on reimagined versions of the classic
designs. S.I.C. Cyclone design was influenced by the
original artwork of Mr. Ishinomori with the bulky body look. The bike had
super detailing and even included a compartment to store extra Rider's helmet. The
bike was constructed mostly from PVC with some ABS plastic and
was nicely painted. Being part of Bandai "Chogokin" toy, the
bike had some die-cast parts but like other S.I.C. releases they
were mostly used as decorative ornaments. One of the
design I find rather nice was the die-cast part on the bike gas
tank that was designed as interface port for Masked Rider 1's Typhoon Henshin Belt. The bike came with clear plastic
stand so it can be display in dynamic "in-motion" pose. There was also
die-cast bike kickstand that can be used to display the bike in
park mode. Another nice added addition for the bike was die-cast
Masked Rider emblems which can be removed and replaced with Shocker
emblems so you can get Shocker version of Cyclone for Shocker
Rider.
While the main
attraction for this set was clearly the Cyclone bike, the figure
that came with the set however was not just fixed pose
afterthought Rider figure but actually a very nicely sculpt with
the detail you expected from S.I.C. series. Stared with the
release of Volume 11 (Sidecar & Kikaida) Bandai had added
more articulations to S.I.C. figures. Since the S.I.C series was originally conceived
as fixed pose "statue" figures to preserve the
artistic rendering so care was taken to hide most of the joints
on these later "full actions" style S.I.C. figures.
The sculpting was well done and typical of S.I.C. styling with more hard edge looks
for the character and new take on this classic character. The
design was similar to the previous Masked Riders released for
S.I.C. line but without the removable chest and with added
articulations. Vol. 14 Masked Rider 1 was based on Old Type Masked
Rider 1 and the design was clearly inspired again by Ishinomori's manga
drawing and his early conceptual design works of Masked Rider. The figure retained much of the designs from early
S.I.C. Masked Rider released such as movable mouth that reveal human face
under the helmet, clear lens for eyes with honeycomb underlying and
die-cast Henshin belt with clear part for the "fan" buckle.
The figure came with two additional pairs of hands that can be
interchanged with the grip hands. The figure overall was well
constructed but the joints seem to be a little loose and I don't
quite understand why Bandai decided to split the body in half which gave
the figure somewhat loose and rattle feeling when one pick up
the figure. The paint job overall was very well done with nice
highlight using dry brush and black washed to bring out the
subtle details.
This set is highly recommended for
any Masked Rider fans
who doesn't mind the "Imaginative" bits. Both Cyclone
and Rider 1 had the feel of the manga style so if you enjoy the manga
style figures then you probably will enjoy this set and unlike
the early releases of S.I.C. figures, Rider 1 & Cyclone set
has enough articulations that will make the set more than just a
static statue piece.
