New PLAMAX "Strike Dog" Review! The masterpiece soft vinyl kit makes a great comeback as a movable plastic kit! Voice actor Yasuyuki Tai takes on the challenge of reviewing it!

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! The 89th issue of the series has begun!

Taiyuki's Weekend Plastic Model Weekend #89 PLAMAX SV-01 1/24 Scale X-ATH-02 Strike Dog

From Max Factory's PLAMAX series comes a 1/24th scale plastic kit of the armored trooper (AT) "Strike Dog" from "Armored Trooper Votoms"!

Moreover, this model is not just a plastic kit!　It is based on a soft vinyl kit released by the company in 1993!

The kit was a much talked-about item at the time of its release, as it was a highly detailed design with original details added to the anime setting drawings. This product is a fully movable plastic kit of the fixed model soft vinyl kit.

Naturally, the design concepts of the fixed model and the movable model, the soft vinyl kit and the plastic kit are completely different, but the particulars of these differences are explained in detail in the assembly manual, so please take a look at that as well.

PLAMAX SV-01 1/24 Scale X-ATH-02 Strike Dog

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This time, we would like to show you an example of the model in its unassembled state, as well as an example with some light work that can be done on weekends and weekends.

First, let's take a look at the unassembled state.

Even unassembled, the kit has a very impressive number of parts. Although the kit can be assembled without using any adhesives, there are some parts where adhesives are recommended. To touch it safely, you may glue the assembled parts except for the movable parts.

Even so, the quality of this assembly is very impressive. It is impressive.

On the back, there is a hook part with the mission pack removed. When installing the mission pack, you can remove this part and replace it.

Clear parts are used for the lens and camera. The procedure was to apply water transfer decals behind the clear parts, so some decals are already attached. Since the clear parts are colorless and transparent, there is an option to use clear paint for the clear parts themselves.

The shape of the head as well as the subtle lines on the chest are very AT-like and beautiful.

The camera on the back of the head has the same structure. No adhesive is required as the clearance is fixed without gluing. This prevents discoloration of the clear parts due to plastic deterioration caused by adhesives.

The head antenna is also in an arranged shape. This is unique to the model. It is a different approach from the antenna of the setting picture, and it is sharper. The rivet holes on the side of the head are really amazing. How is the mold?

The sensor-like parts on both shoulders are also reproduced with clear parts.

The shoulder armor is the only part of the main body that has seams. It is possible to assemble after gluing and removing the seams. Also see ......

Due to the convenience of the mold, some of the rivets have an unnatural shape. Even if you want to erase the seams, it is very troublesome to file the runner avoiding the rivets. Therefore, the runner comes with an extra to revive the rivets lost by filing and so on!　Of course, you can use it for another VOTOMS kit you have on hand.

There were no decals provided behind the lights on the abdomen, so I applied "GSI Creos Gundam Marker Plated Silver" to the back of the clear parts before fitting them in. The shape of the clear parts is also realistic, like the headlights of a motorcycle or four-wheel drive vehicle. The upper body also has panel lines and other details added in a very convincing balance and shape.

The front waist armor is reproduced in different shapes on the left and right sides.

All of the waist skirt armor is actually a two-layer part split, rather than a modeling ...... that looks like a two-layer structure. This avoids large sink marks, while still providing a sense of realism.

The shape of the knees also reproduces the differences between the left and right sides. The armor of the back of the legs is also two-layered, as is the armor of the waist. The same structure is also used for the split line portion of the toes.

Heel armor version is also two-layer structure. Moreover, each armor is movable.

The arms also have solid edges and look very hard. The armored back of the hand is also two-layered. The shape of the wrist also reproduces each expression without using a three-dimensional lie that would cause the thumb to be buried. It is indeed a nice shape.

Strike Dog's left arm is equipped with hooked claws. Each claw is independently movable. It can also be transformed into a state in which the machine gun is deployed.

The mission pack is attached to the back.

This is how Strike Dog looked when it first appeared. The mission pack has additional details such as handrails, which were not included in the set.

The pilot figure is also very well done. Not only is the style excellent, but the division of parts, especially for the helmet and head, has been done in consideration of painting.

His name is Epsilon. Sad PS.......

It is quite rare to see a face, especially the eyes, sculpted so well.

Epsilon "This is my ......

PLAMAX SV-01 1/24 Scale X-ATH-02 Strike Dog

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The inside of the cockpit, where Epsilon boards, has been well sculpted; I had heard that the inside of an AT was cramped!

Water transfer decals are applied to the console. Even the foot pedal has been sculpted.

The hatch side is also well detailed. The hatch is movable. It is a little tight, so if you want to enjoy opening and closing it frequently, you should make sure to adjust it well.

If you remove the head, you can just see the headrest.

The visor is also openable and closable, and the inside of the cockpit can be seen through the frame, but parts to hide the missing parts are included as shown here.

Pick up the movable parts that are the key points. The base of the shoulders can swing back and forth on the body side. The body is so narrow, but this gimmick is well done.

All of the waist skirt armor can be flipped up. The real dual construction is not half as convincing.

The hip joint attachment points can be slid up and down independently to the left and right. The sculpting of the joint parts is also well detailed with mechanical details.

The backs of the knees and heels are also movable. Although the landing pose gimmick has been omitted, if the armor can move this much, it may be possible to release a kit that allows landing poses at some point in the future.

The sole pattern is also well designed.

The four thrusters on the backpack are also movable.

The nozzles are also detailed to match the size of the figure.

Unlike figures that you can move around a lot, this is a plastic kit model that pursues realism, so it does not have an amazing range of movement, but that's just like the AT. It's a model! but that's what AT is all about, isn't it?

I replaced the right wrist with a flat hand with open fingers.

Even so, the range of motion is not so limited, and it is possible to stand on one knee. I replaced the right wrist with a flat hand with relaxed fingers.

The joints are well-structured, so the figure can stand on its own in a pose like this.

You can see the back of the hand. It would be great if they release parts to reproduce the arm punch someday.

The claws of the left hand, which can easily crush the armor of the AT, are independently movable.

The exposed form of the machine gun is also fully reproduced. The deployed interior is also detailed.

The solid shooter can be held with the weapon grip hand assembled.

The barrel of the solid shooter is a left-right split part, so if you are concerned about the alignment, you will need to file it after gluing. Although it is a large weapon, it can stand on its own without danger due to its solid joints.

The rear of the solid shooter has a heat exhaust port and a magazine (?). Two are mounted.

These parts are not used in this kit. It is a part for reproducing the damaged state of the forearm. ...... means! It is a part for reproducing the damaged state of the forearms.

PLAMAX SV-01 1/24 Scale X-ATH-02 Strike Dog

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Easy processing with weekend work in mind

Finally, here is a picture of the model that was assembled and decaled on Saturday, left to dry overnight, clear-coated on Sunday morning, and weathered after lunch using "Gaianotes Gilding Wax Silver" and "Tamiya Weathering Master (soot). Please take a look.

I tried to weather it as much as possible based on the world view of "Armored Trooper Votoms. The dry brush is a great opportunity to try it out.

The wrists have a really nice shape, so dry brushing looks great. The lower body, especially the legs, can be boldly weathered.

Considering the detail, it is likely that the markings will be scraped off during battle, so you may want to partially remove the decals once they are attached.

Incidentally, this is the state in which weathering is applied on top of the molded color. The color of the product is a little bright, so if you wash it with black paint, it will be a nice dark blue color. To achieve this "darkening" effect, I used the color of soot from Weathering Master.

If you are trying out so-called "bald choro silver" by dry brushing silver for the first time, please refer to this photo. There are times when you may think this is "too much" and other times when you may want to "make it dirtier," so please use this as a reference for your own needs.

The modeling of the wrists this time is still very good, so it is worthwhile to do the bald choro.

I gave up painting Epsilon this time, but it seemed to be easy to paint thanks to the part divisions and details here as well, so I think this is a good first attempt at painting a figure.

Today, I feel the public's "VOTOMS fever" rising more and more as we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the series in 2023. Each hobby maker has a different approach, so it's a great situation for modelers to have more choices.

This time, the "Strike Dog" from the PLAMAX series was made into a kit, but it is the nature of the "VOTOMS" to want to see another AT in this direction, isn't it? Especially, "Rabid Dog," the mass-produced successor of Strike Dog, is what everyone wants to see.

Let's wait for further news!

PLAMAX SV-01 1/24 Scale X-ATH-02 Strike Dog

View at Rakuten Ichiba View at Amazon.co.jp View at DMM Mail Order

See you soon!

Product Information

PLAMAX SV-01 1/24 Scale X-ATH-02 Strike Dog

Now on sale

Price: 8,800 yen (tax included)

1/24 Scale

Height: approx. 175mm

Sculptor: Strike Dog: Naoki Sato (Max Factory), Epsilon: Hiroshi Yuasa (Max Factory)

Design: Hinato Sagaku (Max Factory)

Cooperation: Hata

Distributed by: Max Factory

Distributor: Good Smile Company

Tai Yuuki

Born two days before the broadcast of "Invincible Superhero Zambot 3. He has loved toys (especially robots) since his childhood and started building plastic models in elementary school. Even after becoming a voice actor, his love for robot toys and plastic models has not changed, and he debuted as a writer at Akiba Research Institute.

©SUNRISE