Son Gokou: Dragon Ball (S.H.Figuarts)

S.H.Figuarts Son Gokou

It really took me awhile to decide whether to get these S.H.Figuarts Dragon Ball Z figures or not, mainly because I was still looking for a space in my room to accommodate this "family". Now I finally decided and got a lot of catching up to do. The first and coolest Saiyan-dude that I'd like to introduce from this family is Son Gokou, and since everyone knows this character then... why not start with him! He's notable for his colour and size changing hair, and his destructive kamehameha which can obliterate almost anything in its path. Gokou is the iconic superhero from Japan who always gets pitted against Superman that most DBZ fanatics believe he can bring the Man of Steel to his knees... and this is where I enter the debate and piss them off! Though inferior to Supes limitless strength, Gokou is an instant favourite of mine because of his characterization and his unique powers and abilities just can't be rivalled by any other superheroes.









S.H.Figuarts Kamen Riders, Sentai Rangers, Sailor Moon and Dragon Ball Z figures got one thing in common and that's the packaging. All these Japanese imports are the same with the entire figure showcased inside this windowed box. The only difference are the artwork and design in which in this box, you can see a screen-toned portrait of Gokou at the side of the box and a Dragon Ball Z label at the bottom.

Out from the package, you can see a clean cut accurate rendition of Gokou based off from the anime series. You probably all know that this is not the Super Saiyan version of Gokou with the golden yellow hair but the first Gokou we saw in DBZ Season 1. And this... is like coming straight from the cartoon show where it highlights all that bright solid colours on Gokou's classic suit. Also, there are a few noticeable colour shading that's shaping the muscles over his arms. Again, this is a show of how Bandai S.H.Figuarts is using simple paint applications effectively.

"...spirit bomb."

The figure is a spot-on representation of the character. All the wrinkles on his clothes, his hairstyle and the definition of his muscles are sculpted nicely and designed well to hide the joints a little bit. That being said, this action figure may give you that illusion of being a statue, and that's a good thing!

This Gokou is loaded with accessories; just by looking through the windowed box alone would tell you that. However, I really wish this figure has that kamehameha blast/shooting effect and not just this one (like in this photo) where it made him like he's about to throw his signature move. Still it is a decent accessory that create for those moments, and it's fun to use while you try to get him in that pose.

Surprisingly to me, Gokou's interchangeable parts are the ones I had fun with the most. He's got a total of five (5) different facial expressions also creating those moments with the most common one (of course)- the stern look. He has the angry face with readable lips ("kamehameha"), two (smiling faces), and a face which looks as though he's in trouble (Gokou in trouble? How??). Also, he got five (5) different pairs of hands- a pair of fisting hands, finger-spreaded hands, flying/saluting hands, the "kung fu-move" hands, and lastly, his gripping hands that can hold his maturing kamehameha. Plus, there's a bonus- he got the one hand that do his teleportation move! The amount of accessories is just mind blowing!

clear stand not included

Articulation-wise, the amount of joints is a lot and mirrors that to the amount of accessories this figure has. Gokou's neck is on a ball-joint which lets his head to rotate and pivot side to side. Sadly, his head can't look up very well. He's got another joint at the lower part of the neck that allows his head to move forward. His shoulders are on double ball-joints with an articulated shoulder pads for extensive movements. There are swivel at the biceps, double-jointed elbows and ball-jointed wrists on his arms.

Moving on to his torso, Gokou got this double ball-jointed waist made special for these S.H.Figuarts DBZ figures that allows him to lean at any angle and rotate 360 degrees. With his belt suspended around his waist, it doesn't hinder articulation. Just like the waist, his hips are on a double ball-joints. He has swivel at the upper thighs, double-jointed knees, rotation plus pivot around the ankles and hinged toes. The only articulation that I want this figure to have is a bootcut rotation which would have been useful.

To the tip of his hair, Son Gokou stands 6.3 inches tall and unfortunately not ideally in scale with some of the Marvel Legends figures. If there is one word I'd like to describe this Son Gokou action figure, that word would be AWESOME! Right now, this is the best Son Gokou figure out there that can't probably be beaten. If you're a fan of the anime and want to start your Dragon Ball collection, you may wanna include the S.H.Figuarts Son Gokou by Bandai for it's something you might wanna love.