Toy Review: Flame Toys Star Saber (Kuro Kara Kuri 03)

Star Saber takes this line to a whole other level!

Producer: Flame Toys

Price: Approx. $400 USD

Release Date: Nov. 2019

Item Height: 8.25″

Item Weight: N/A

Batteries: 12x LR44 Cell batteries (2 batteries per compartment in 6 compartments total… an extra two are needed for the D4Toys exclusive head. Also dependant on where you purchase from these may not come with batteries as explained below.)

WHERE TO BUY: TFSource

Flame Toys has not only kept the ball rolling in their Kuro Kara Kuri non-transforming Transformers toy line but upped the game. The latest IDW comics homages comes in the form of Star Saber. With parts to showcase both the comics look as well as give a nod to his “Victory” cartoon series brainmaster form, this piece really steals the show. From top to bottom there truly isn’t an area where this thing falters and even a bit out from having received it it’s one that still draws my eyes when looking at the displays. Check out this article and leave your comments below letting me know what you think as well.

Presentation: The box is standard fare for the toyline and as always I love the magnetic book style to open vs the standard topside flap. The item and accessories are well packed inside of the clamshells. The D4Toys Exclusive parts are under the bottom clamshell is a plastic bag.

It should be noted that United States orders distributed by Amazon have alternating stories of how the batteries come packaged. My TFSource order did not come with batteries at all while others have said they came in a bag inside of the box (with the boxes coming sealed from Flame Toys I don’t see how anyone could manually take them out.) My D4Toys order however came with the batteries pre installed per usual.

Build: Per line standard Star Saber features a diecast frame with a plastic outer shell. It’s very well put together and between the bulky build and diecast parts it has a good amount of heft to it in both modes. The joints are very smooth while feeling title and it didn’t have anywhere in particular that just plain felt fragile (although obviously things like the combined mode head would need to be handled with care due to having those thin antennas by design.)

Accessories: Here’s a list of the accessories taken from the D4Toys product listing;

■ As the greatest swordsman in the universe, this time he will come with 2 small swords, a big sword and a shield as the new weapon parts.

■ 2 Interchangeable heads, Star Saber version and Mask off version, are available! Star Saber version head is installed with LED.
The accessories are ones that have been pretty standard on the Metal Build 00 variants for years but the Raiser on this piece really stands out more than the previous two standard-colored versions. Something about this particular deco really lets the detailing of it shine and I can honestly say I’ve gotten a much greater appreciation for the job that Bandai has done on this piece because of it.

Note: The D4Toys exclusive version comes with an unmasked head that has LED functions, a rifle, and hands to hold the rifle.

Between the base and full on modes and then the numerous weapons with multiple formations, this piece is absolutely loaded accessories-wise. In fact as of writing this I have two on display in both the brainmaster and fully combined modes because there’s such a significant difference in look and general feel (I actually prefer the brainmaster look!)

Articulation: The articulation is just as advanced as the rest of the line and the moving parts are really something to see. The video shows it in motion but for the sake of written confirmation this is an(other) area where this pieces just plain excels..

Overall Score: 10/10 – Flame Toys certainly upped the ante on an already high standard with Star Saber and that’s a great thing considering the amount of competition there is now in the non-transforming homages niche from a multitude of both licensed and unlicensed parties. This pieces doesn’t have a single bit on it that doesn’t feel premium and frankly it’s as “perfect” of a representation of the IDW Star Saber that I can imagine ever being done.