MODEROID "DIOJA" Review Part 1] One cannot help but feel the love for the work in the balance between the combined gimmick and the separated form! Taiyuki gives an in-depth review!

When you are a working adult, you tend to have a lot of plastic models piled up in your busy life. ...... In this series, Yasuyuki Tai, a voice actor who loves robots and plastic models, takes on the challenge of building plastic models on your behalf!

The concept is "even busy working people can make it this far on their weekends off. There are only two rules: bare bones assembly and a production period of one to two days! If you read this series, you will surely find the plastic model you want to build.

So, "Weekend Plastic Model Making by Voice Actor Taiyuki! Let's start the 70th issue!

Tai Yuuki's Weekend Plastic Modeling Vol. 70 MODEROID "Dioja" Part 1

Then, see it with your own eyes!

The first broadcast began in 1981. The "Saikyou Robo Dioja," the famous robot anime that inspired the "Mito Koumon" series, has been made into a plastic kit by Good Smile Company's MODEROID over 40 years ago!

The gimmick of the three robots, Acereder, Aoider, and Kovalter, which combine to form Dioja, has been reproduced in a form unique to MODEROID.

Thinking back to that era, it was a time of robot animation wars. If you turned on the channel at certain times of the day, you would see a variety of robots defending the earth or defeating evil.

Strongest Robot Dioja" was a rare anime without a major boss throughout the series. A support mecha called "Cross Adder" appeared in the middle of the series, so let us introduce MODEROID DIOJA with high expectations for future developments.

The package depicts Dioja standing in front of a floating family crest, with the three models in the process of merging in the background.

On the back of the package, there is a picture of the "combined" Dioja, which strongly emphasizes the fact that it is a "combined" product.

The left and right sides have the same design. On the chests of the three separated models, a clover-shaped emblem shines brightly.

The lid and the bottom of the box are again designed in a store display-friendly manner, so that the "Dioja" can be recognized from all angles.

As expected, there are a lot of parts for three robots. However, since the parts are designed to be easy to assemble, it did not take long to complete the project, even though there are three robots to assemble.

This time, we will introduce 4 robots for convenience, so it will be a long time~!

■A Threader

First, let's take a look at the AceThreader, which is boarded by Prince Edward Mito, prince of the Edon nation.

Ace Redder with an ace saber strapped to his waist.

It is surprising that the color scheme can be reproduced so well with painted parts, color-coded stickers, and partitions. The chest part is also shared with the dioja form, so it must have been difficult to balance the size of the chest part, but it does not look too big, and it seems to be well put together.

The wing and Dioja's headdress are mounted on the back. If you want to recreate the anime image, you can also enjoy the figure with the headdress removed from the waist.

The color-coding of the wing parts is also well reproduced by partitioning the parts.

The head and chest parts are the same as when combined with Dioja. The parts on both sides of the head will become shoulder armor after merging, but in consideration of the movability of the head, these parts are replaceable.

The lower half of the figure has a simple structure. The legs, especially the thighs, are retracted into the shins when combined, but despite this structure, the thickness and length are very well balanced. The color scheme is also perfect.

Neither the wing nor the antennae are rounded at the tips, which is quite sharp for a movable plastic kit.

The joint holes on the waist allow for posing using "THE Simple Stand".

The head moves well, as expected. The head is movable with a ball joint connection.

The arms and the base of the shoulders are covered with red parts, making it difficult to pose the figure with the arms rotated as they are, but the arms can be lifted up by pulling them out at the shoulders. The red part also has a movable part that can be lifted.

In the horizontal direction, the arm can be lifted to the side as it is.

Roll rotation with the second arm. Elbow joint is about 90 degrees or less. Wrist is ball joint connection.

Since the waist armor is not divided, the front and rear legs can only be opened so far.

The left and right legs can also be opened up to this point. There is roll rotation at the upper part of the thigh.

The knees can be bent 90 degrees.

As you can see, the ankles are well grounded thanks to the deformation gimmick.

Although the mobility of each part is modest, it is possible to recreate this kind of fighting pose at least for the moment.

On the other hand, the quiet face of the figure is quite charming.

If you display it without worrying about ground contact, you can also enjoy this flashy pose. It is good that the ace saber can be pulled out of its sheath.

Aoider

Next is the Aoider of Duke Skeed, aka Ske-san, one of his traveling companions. It is blue. The color scheme is reproduced almost perfectly with painted parts, stickers, and partitions.

The Aoider has "shape-oriented parts" for the legs, so we will show you how they are attached to the Aoider from here on.

The thighs have been extended to give a better overall balance.

The right hip can be equipped with a holster that contains a beam gun. The wing parts have been slightly rearranged in shape to reproduce the combined body.

Ske's sharp impression is shown on his face.

When combining with Dioja, it takes charge of the torso and both arms. In fact, the chest part of this Aoider is upside down and becomes the waist when combining. Despite its simple shape, this is a surprising design that does not allow the viewer to imagine what the figure will look like after the combination!

I am a little impressed that the ankles are comfortably grounded in this shape. Incidentally, Aoider's legs become Dioja's arms.

The holster is rather large, as it holds a beam gun that can be held on the weapon-carrying wrist. However, I am glad that this is included in itself.

The head has a ball joint connection. Because of the small face and the lack of any interference around the head, it moves particularly well among the three models.

The arms can be rotated forward and backward to just above the ground, but not much horizontal movement is possible.

The elbows can be bent about 90°, and there is a roll rotation axis on the second arm. The wrists are exactly the same as those of Ace Threader, with ball joint connections.

The left side of the image shows the range of motion of the knees in their original completed state, but by rotating the knees so that they are inverted back and forth, the knees can be bent as deeply as on the right side of the image.

The ankles move quite well, even though they are the parts that expand and contract when the figure is combined.

However, due to the gimmick of the combined body, the hip joints cannot be moved back and forth, making it difficult to pose the figure as an action figure.

The beam gun can be held with the left hand. The right knee is in the reverse position, as shown in the previous section.

Spear Axe is also included. Of the hand-held weapons in the separated form, the one that can be docked to become a dioja javelin is included.

■Cobaltor

Continuing on, we have the Cobaltor, which is piloted by Baron Kirks, a.k.a. Kaku-san. Even if you are not familiar with the anime, it is obvious that this machine is a "powerful" machine. The simple appearance of this aircraft also conveys its character.

Although it is top-heavy compared to the anime and the setting drawing, this is due to the fact that the Cobaltor transforms into Dioja's two large legs, which inevitably results in this balance. However, because of this form, the Cobaltor looks more powerful than depicted in the anime.

As with the other two models, the color scheme of the Cobaltor has been perfectly reproduced with painted parts, stickers, and partitions. The joint holes on the heels of the legs play an important role when combining the two models!　That's where it's going to be! It is one of the points in this kit that will surprise you a little.

The stickers are mainly used for color-coding the head. It is a little difficult to apply stickers to curved surfaces, so it may be a good idea to boldly paint parts of the body.

Only on the wing of the Cobaltor, you can see the jet nozzle, which is reproduced by painting.

As with the Aoider, the design of the wing tips has been slightly rearranged for the convenience of combining them.

The neck section serves to hold the body, which is divided into left and right sections, so the neck is a bit less movable than the other two models, but it can still be tilted and rotated sideways.

The shoulder joints are also less movable, as the two arms are connected from directly below with ball joints.

Swing forward and backward is about this much.

The elbows can bend about 90 degrees, but as expected, the shoulders cannot rotate forward or backward, and can only be lifted horizontally to about 45 degrees. I think this is due to the fact that this is a plastic kit and that emphasis was placed on the fun of combining the two.

The chest of the Cobaltor is the ankle portion of the combined figure, so the chest can be slightly flexed back and forth to take advantage of its movability.

The knees bend 90°.

The ankle is also an important part of the load-bearing part of the body when it merges, so its movement is modest. The benefit of the deformation allows for toe extension and ankle twist.

Although the range of motion is limited among the three models, the figure has the strength to stand tall and strong.

The weapon is a hammer stick, a club with spikes.

I managed to get him to pose, but he ended up standing in a rather stylish way.

Skade: "Yeah, yeah!　Stand back, stand back!　Stand back!　Who do you think you are?

Kirkus: "This is the Prince Edward Mito, I fear!"

This kit reproduces the combined play and dioja form. And even if the mobility is somewhat restrained, it is still hot to be able to line up the three machines in this style!

Enemy: "You little child who deceives Prince Mito!　Prepare yourself!"

Mito: "Then!　See for yourself!

So, let's take a look at one of the fun parts of this kit, the combining!