Sentinel or Bandai Armorplus? Having both versions in my possession, I have an answer for you.
Unboxing / Assembly / Review
Figure Review
I bought it here
More info about the figure here
Otaku Sinh’s collection
¥11,890 (Figure) + ¥3,290 (DHL Shipping) = ¥15,180 or $112.36
Timeline
Shopping w/ Hobby-Genki.com
Check out my other blog posts where I go deeper into Hobby-Genki here and here.
Concerns?
I paid DHL shipping but Hobby-Genki accidentally shipped FedEx instead. As long as they didn’t ship to me using a slower shipping method, I don’t really view this as a concern. I’ve had a generally positive experience with Hobby-Genki. If I had any problems or issues, I’ve had most of it resolved. They are my go to for these Bandai Armorplus and Aniplex figures. When buying from Japan, I feel really safe buying it from their website. Also, they are myfigurecollection.net partners, which is another layer of trust to ease your nerves. Overall, I do recommend buying from Hobby-Genki.
Box & Parts
The shipping box came in really good shape. It came wrapped around a FedEx wrap over a cardboard box. The inside packaging was tightly and neatly packed. The figure box looks to be in mint condition.
Like the other Armorplus boxes, I really like this slimmer design more than the Sentinel ones. The gold foil kanji contrasts well with the rest of the design of the box. It’s just a really nice sleek design that doesn’t take up too much space to store. I’ve always liked that the box comes within it’s own brown Bandai box. A weirdo like myself like preserving the quality of the box as much as I can and the extra Bandai Cardboard box helps accomplish that.
Opening the box, it comes with 2 plastic containers that holds all the pieces into place. It comes with a manual to help put together the figure.
Assembly
All in all, this figure was the easiest time I had to put together the figure. Putting together another Ronin Warriors figure for like the 6th time and playing around with it, I’ve gotten a pretty good grasp on all the mistakes and the little details around what people generally have issues with. Again, this figure specifically was the easiest of all the builds I put together and that includes the Sentinel ones. The hip and waist armor that people generally have issues with, I’ve pretty much been able to put it together a lot more easily. I wouldn’t say it’s easy to execute but it can be done without as much fiddling as I was doing before. Who knew? Practice makes perfect.
Functionality
The mobility and flexibility of this figure is pretty smooth. A lot of the time when you lift up the arm of these figures with the armor on, the armor falls off. Playing around with this figure, it moves pretty well and I haven’t had an issue with pieces falling off. It was designed so the figure has more flexibility to move around without the shoulder or hip pieces falling off like the other Armorplus and Sentinel builds.
I couldn’t quite get the figure to look as natural as the Sentinel one with the bow and arrow in his hand. That’s my preferred look for these figures to have the armor and weapons on them. Overall, it still looks decent. You can pretty much put him in the same poses as it’s Sentinels counterpart. Where this figure shines the most against the other Armorplus and Sentinel builds is the armor not falling off when you adjust the pose.
Aesthetics
What really stuck out to me the most about this figure is that the armor was a lot more “glowy” than the Cye, Kento and the infernal armor ones. The paint looks very similar to the Sentinel ones and even the horns on his helmet shines more than the Sentinel version! This is my favorite one out of all the Armorplus figures I have so far. My biggest knock was always the dull looking paint. The aesthetic look is significantly improved on this one!
Face
If there was a let down, it would be the face plates. He just looks slightly off on both face plates. This is where I think Sentinel definitely has the upper hand.
Sentinel vs Bandai’s Armor Plus
When it comes down to it, I just like the feel of the Armorplus builds more. Maybe I just prefer the metal pieces because it makes it feel sturdier? It’s not as shaky and rocky as the Sentinel Rowen one as you’re re-configuring the pose. Although, I must admit the Sentinel Rowen looks slightly more cohesive for its overall look with a better face and looking a little more natural with the bow nd arrow in his hands. On the other hand, the Armorplus one looks pretty darn good in its own right.
Because of the older Bandai versions, people may not be giving these newer Bandai Armorplus figures a chance. They are still really aesthetically pleasing. This Rowen figure might be the “glowiest” one out of all of them, which is one of the main reasons I like the Sentinel versions a little more in the looks department. I wish I had a more intelligent way to describe the paint but “glossier” and “glowy” seem to be the best words to describe the aesethics.
Last Thoughts
All in all, I really like both versions. I don’t think people are going to be unhappy with either. If you’re buying from Japan, there’s a good chance you’re paying less for the Bandai versions. If you’re buying domestically, the Bandai ones tend to cost more. If you’re boiling it down to cost and have to only get one, I would just buy whichever one costs less.
I have the Sage Armorplus one coming in a September of 2022. The Sentinel Infernal Armor figure is coming later this year and the Bandai Wildfire Renewel Edition is coming later this year or early next year. I’ll definitely be doing more videos for that. It’s still available on Hobby-Genki. BBTS still has it available for pre-order.
Pictures
OTAKU SINH 