Tomopop Review: Good Smile Company's Black Rock Shooter Black Blade Version

1:00 PM on 06.30.2010   |   Colette Bennett

Black Rock Shooter: a character based on an illustration based on a song sung by a computer program. A pretty bizarre origin story, but no matter how odd her creation, she has won over thousands of people. While some people quickly overcame the craze, others were drawn to the magic of master illustrator Huke's illustrations brought into 3D. The anime is not even out yet, and there are already 5 figures of this devastating loli.

Black Blade Version is a follow-up to the hugely successful original Black Rock Shooter, which was by far one of the best figures of last year. She quickly vanished from the market after her release, and her price skyrocketed even on sites like Yahoo! Japan. Good Smile Company decided to pacify the mighty consumer crowd by releasing a new Black Rock Shooter, a slimmed down, uncomplicated version of the original. Quickly dubbed the poor man's BRS, Black Blade Version presented a different take on the figure for a greatly reduced price. 

Many people chalked this release up to GSC milking the franchise, and while they may not be wrong it was hard to resist the lure of another BRS figure. She certainly did seem rather different, even though the pose was similar, so she was pretty much and instant buy for me. Was she worth it? Well hit the jump to find out! 

Blade Version's box is significantly smaller than her predecessor's, but there is still a bit of wasted space. I pretty much expect this from BRS releases now, but when you have a lot of figures and not a lot of space to store boxes, the extra inch or two that could have been shaved off become pretty important. The box style is very similar to the original's box, only this time the images are of Blade Version. It is an interesting enough box, the checkerboard pattern contrasts nicely with the blue and the silver accents really stand out.

You can see here how much extra space there is in her box. All of the pieces are spaced pretty far apart, and it is easy to imagine them packaging the coat closer to her body and simply sliding the blades into a compartment under the base. Other than that one complaint, it's pretty standard packaging.

And here she is, free at last! Some twist-ties made removing her a bit difficult, and assembling her takes some effort. Certainly not as much as the original's chains, but getting the blade in her hand and the base and then setting up her coat takes some patience. The overall effect from all the pieces is pretty great once she is put together, so it is definitely worth the bit of extra effort. 

Blade Version comes with two sets of bangs, one with the flame over her eye and one without it. Like the original, she has a wonderfully executed face. Her eyes in particular are stunning, so even though I prefer her with the flame, I can definitely see the appeal of displaying her without it. The spiraled, neon blue eyes definitely stand out against the typical anime design, and give her a great stylized energy.  

From the back, you get a nice view of her hair, which looks more like stiff wire or metal than actual hair. This is definitely not a complaint, as it looks fantastic and unique. However, her hair is very delicate and could break easily, so be careful when handling her. You can also see her signature black blade better from behind, since it is partially hidden by her torso and arms from the front. 

Here she is with the flame on. Definitely more dramatic! Her flame is actually much longer than the original's, and has more swirls and curves. This is one area where Blade Version is definitely an improvement over her predecessor. The quality control is also a bit better on this Black Rock Shooter. For example, my original one has a few small scratches in her hair, but this one is perfect. 

One problem people seemed to have with this figure before her release was with how thin she looked. The original managed to hide her small frame in a massive coat, but here there is nothing covering her torso. I am usually not a fan of rail-thin figures, and Blade Version definitely has a "starved loli" vibe, but I feel that it really works here. It adds to her stylized look, and is very true to the original artwork. 

Here you can really see how her hair looks like twisted metal. The stiff ridges, the wide curves, and the sharp edges really add to this sense. The shading here is fantastic, and fades effortlessly from black to a rich blue. The hair is actually what first drew me to this figure; it is just so different from the usual twintailed girl. Black Rock Shooter is not cute or sexy, she is dangerous.

The sword fits neatly into her hand, but her grip is a bit loose so it slides down a little. The blade itself is pretty plain, just a sleek black finish, but I think the rest of her is detailed enough to balance this out. It is also located for the most part behind her, so if it was really detailed they would be hidden anyway.

Blade Version's scars are slightly less red than the original's, so they lose a bit of the freshly-cut look that people found a bit unappealing. They are still a bit gruesome, but then again scars should be gruesome looking. They add to the whole warrior girl vibe. I like that they are sculpted and then painted, not just a slapped on decal. It adds to the overall quality of the figure.

The coat was one of the main aspects that was changed between the two figures. While the original had a huge, billowing cloak, Blade Version is stripped down and is simply holding her tattered coat as it floats in the breeze. The sculpting here is very nice, with lots of folds. Even though it is folded up on itself, it definitely has a battle-worn look, as if BRS is in the middle of a fight and just ripped it off. The glossy paint adds some nice contrast to her pale skin, although the star on the back has mysteriously vanished. It was on the original, but there is no trace of it on this version. Maybe she got a new coat?

The coat comes as a separate piece, and is held up by a peg on the bottom of the base and also a peg that slides into her hand. It is constructed of very flexible PVC, which is nice because there is no chance of it breaking. However, PVC is prone to bending over time, so hopefully it holds its shape.

Black Rock Shooter's boots are just as awesome as you would expect them to be. The combination of glossy black and white is fantastic, and the sculpting is great. The design here is just so awesome, especially the fold at the top and the white down the front. Can someone please make these in real life?

Blade Version's base was another big change from the original. Instead of a giant, cumbersome base, Blade Version has a slimmed down version. The original was pretty epic, but I also like the sleeker version. It still has a giant crack in the middle, which you can insert the broken blade pieces into. Only the one in the back is meant to go in the base, as the smaller one is meant to lie on the "floor", but she looks much cooler this way and it fits in pretty nicely. 

Here are the original and Blade Versions together. You can also see here how small Blade Version is compared to the original, and some of the smaller differences between them are only noticeable when they are together. Their skin tones are a bit different, the original had a bit more shading and Blade Version is slightly paler. Their bases are also different colors, with Blade Version having a more yellow base. 

Because they are so similar, you can swap their weapons. Here is Blade Version holding the canon! It actually fits onto the hand she uses to hold the sword quite nicely, though it winds up suspended above the base a bit. She looks pretty awesome like this! The blade is sleek and sexy and all that good stuff, but you just can't beat a giant cannon.

And just for the lulz, here they are with the bases switched. The original really needs that big base, as she barely fits on the smaller one! Some people complained about Blade Version's smaller base, but she does look a bit silly up there. I actually have no problem with her smaller base; it adds a nice bit of contrast. If they were both on big bases, they would be just too similar.

Black Rock Shooter is a figure with almost perfect execution, and although some of the magic might have worn off after the first release, she is still a beautiful addition to almost any collection. Sadly,  she is sold out at every Japanese retailer, but a few stateside stores have her in stock, including Kid Nemo for $74.99, Hobbyfan for $76.99, and Toyslogic for $82.99. This is a bit of a bump from her price at the discounted Japanese stores -- with AmiAmi's sale, she was barely $50! However, if you are a fan of BRS, this is a must-get figure. She is definitely worth the cost.

Thanks again to Stephen Donaldson for taking these pictures! Be sure to check out the rest in the gallery.