A hit or a miss? Let’s examine whether Charanko.. I mean Saitama is worth the $139.99 price tag.

Looking at the market place for Saitama figures, you can find any range of quality from prizes figures to resins to even Tsume`s bust. No matter your budget, there’s something for yoh. This blog post will cover ThreeZero’s “One Punch Man” Saitama 1/6 scale doll/action figure.

Unboxing / Assembly / Review

Issues

The Bad

Two things popped out the, out in terms of visual appeal,, it’s the dirty messy look and the rubber cape. I’m not that big of a fan of a dirty battle damaged Saitama. This is a personal preference, but if anyone likes this look, let me know.. I noticed when I touched his cape, it was king of a filmy, foil-like material. I would exercise some caution and be gentle if you are removing or putting back on the cape. I prefer a more mesh-like fabric, but not sure how they would nicely implement the dirtier look. Also, I don’t think I’ll ever be a fan of a figure that shows it’s joints. I don’t know about you guys, but it cheapens the look. It makes you feel like you’re getting a cheap kids action figure. There should always be a way to cover the joints.

Lord.. the joints gave me such a hard time. From the feet, to the hands and most definitely the head, it was a bit of a struggle to remove and insert parts together. I’m starting to believe most of these doll figures are not going to be a seamless, non-frustrating experience. It’s very deterring, especially if you want to occasionally switch out parts. The amount of force you need to change the parts leaves you susceptible to some accidents; which if you have been following my blog — what I’m scared most is something breaking.. Hundreds of dollars can vanish with a simple mishap for whatever reason, whether that’s you, the shipping or the manufacturer.

The Good

Now, that we got to the good part, let’s recognize that none of the parts and pieces came broken or glaringly off. The thing with a battle damaged, dirt looking version of a figure, is that it would all blend in anyways. The highlight of this figure is most definitely the different ways you can modify the Charanko poses.

I love the fact, that they added the Charanko outfit. It’s one of the highlighted funny bits of season 2. Also, it’s one of the few figures you can get of Saitama with this ‘Charanko’ look, which is very valuable from a supply/ demand and resell value standpoint. For some reason, I see this figure regularly listed on eBay above $200+ easy. It’s nice to know you own something that can hold the value you paid for it and even more

Let me reiterate that there are multiple poses you can create from the good amount of accessories they give you. You can go with the classic cape look with fun looking Saitama or the more serious jaw defined one. Either of these looks gives Saitama an accurate depiction of the character. Oh yeah.. It actually came with an instruction manual.

Price

I pre-ordered this figure back on September of 2021 at Entertainment Earth. It shipped November 11th. I still see it listed as ‘pre-ordered’ with a release date this January. Entertainment Earth likes to give out $15 off coupons for $100+ in purchases, which lowered my cost down to $124.99 from $139.99. It came with free shipping and no tax. With the right deal, prices can be pretty competitive versus buying overseas. Entertainment Earth has a long track record at being a good company, so I do recommend buying figures here.

I bought Saitama here

Comparing Archer (Real Action Heroes) vs Saitama, (ThreeZero)

If you take shipping out of the equation, you can pull Archer for a little above $200 and Saitama is $140. To me, Archer is hands down still worth it because of the smoother joint movements and the cleaner overall look. When you move the joints on Saitama, you can hear the crunch and the clicks; not so much on Archer. I’m not sure about the specifics of the manufacturing, but on the inside of the parts, it can seem kind of flaky looking around where the joints fit.

Archer does have some parts that are fragile like the bow, but his major body parts felt firm and sturdy for basic body part removing. Saitama does feel firm and sturdy—probably because you need a lot of strength to move pieces in and out..

After all that said, Is this Saitama figure still worth getting? Probably. At that scale, and for one of the funniest bits in Season 2 of One Punch Man, this Deluxe version makes it hard to pass up.

First ThreeZero Figure, Good or Bad?

It’s definitely what I would assume to be mid-tier in terms of quality, size and with the amount of accessories they give you. At the price of $140, a lot of Kotobukiya ARTFX statue figures are priced in that range. Another action figure line with a lot of accessories ‘Figma’ by Max Factory are also starting to trend towards this price. Judging by what you can get in this price range, I would categorize this Saitama figure as a “great value buy.”

Saitama Pictures

Last Thoughts

Honestly, I make it sound like the bad is REALLY bad, but that’s not true. When you nitpick and prefer something that you know you’re not going to get, it’s not really the figure’s fault. Overall, especially with the price and ability to Charanko-ize Saitama, the “Season 2 Deluxe Version” istotally worth it. I’m also getting the “Shibuya Scramble” version of Saitama by eStream. There is plenty of rightful criticism of eStream, but they make such good looking prototypes, that I will keep giving them a shot. Anyways, ThreeZero is a solid brand with decent quality with prices that fits what the market is offering, if not better. Get him while you can because it looks like most stores are sold out of pre-orders.

Saitama info

Otakusinh’s collection here