With the final Rebuild of Evangelion movie out in a few years, it seems that Neon Genesis Evangelion fans will have a lot to look forward to. The first of which is an amazing new Metal Build toy out next year.
If you are not familiar with the Metal Build toys by Bandai Spirits, these are very high-end figures that use a great deal of diecast metal in their construction. Much like the chogokin toys of old, the Metal Build toys differentiate themselves by having a more stylized and athletic appearance.
For those that have followed my previous Metal Build toy reviews, you will know that they tend to fall into two categories; stylized beasts and anything by Kanetake Ebikawa. While I am a big fan of Ebikawa’s designs, especially those from Gundam 00, it’s the former stylized beast that is applicable here.
In short, Bandai Spirits is going all out with this Metal Build Evangelion toy and it looks incredible. This should come as no real surprise as Ikuto Yamashita has worked on the updated designs for it (shown below).
Yamashita was one of the main mecha designers on Neon Genesis Evangelion, so to have him come back to redesign this Metal Build toy is fantastic to see.
Like with other Metal Build releases, you get all manner of accessories and a stand but the most important part is the figure itself.
On previous Metal Build toys, the articulation is very thorough and reinforced with diecast, making these toys very sturdy. Considering how lithe Eva-01 is, it makes sense that Bandai Spirits has gone down the Metal Build route here.
It should come as no surprise though that this is not the first Eva-01 diecast toy we have had over the years, as we had a Soul of Chogokin release back in 2003 followed by a Soul of Chogokin Spec version in 2007 and again in 2008.
The truth is though, this Metal Build version may be the first toy that captures the kineticism of Eva-01 and that is very nice to see.
In any case, this Metal Build Evangelion toy is released in February for 23,760 yen (or around $214) and you will be able to pre-order it from online retailers such as HobbyLink Japan.
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