Kit Review: Figure-Rise Standard – Dukemon Amplified
The gallant Royal Knight with the Holy Lance and Holy Shield
Bandai is dropping some nostalgia bomb with a renewed passion as the release the Figure-Rise Standard Digimon series, but this time they are [Amplified]. In short, the Digimons in this line are much more “edgy” and detailed. Sorta like a “kai” version but still retaining the original features. And today we are taking a look at the Royal Knight that is itself an existential contradiction: a Virus-attribute Knight of Justice and Honor. The Figure-Rise Standard Dukemon/Gallantmon Amplified is Bandai’s new take on this iconic Digital Monster
+ Design: Imagine the original design getting hit by the Mechanizing beam. The difference between this and the original design is quite significant. While the original Dukemon possess lean armor that are quite curvy and flat in nature, the Amplified version is much sharper, has more rough edges and surface details that it’s not impossible to see it as a giant robot. The armor is also much sleeker and reduced to create a more thin but rugged appearance. The best feature would be the head, cape and shoulder pauldrons for me. As the more meaner head design looks really badass, but it still retain the same eyes as the original, which gives it a feeling of authenticity. The shoulder armor looks absolutely majestic along with the cape.
+ Build Quality: Bandai take their “easy to build” doctrine to another level. The 30MM and EG are famous for its simplicity and the ease of tools needed to build them. This kit is also the same. The gate are quite thin and easy to cut off, you can probably build it with a nail clipper and nothing would have been damaged. I wouldn’t recommend twisting the parts with your bare hands, but some pieces are just that easy to cut out. The Dukemon is an injection kit so the nubs might be a bit hard to take care of, but some sanding paper and Gundam Marker would solve your problem instantly. Snap-fit are great as always. The kit is really easy to put together (almost make the price tag too high). It’s really just a huge HG with uber details. The part that requires the most attention is definitely the cape, as it needs a bit of patience and dexterity to get it right. But the material is quite durable, so don’t be too afraid.
+ Build Quality: Bandai take their “easy to build” doctrine to another level. The 30MM and EG are famous for its simplicity and the ease of tools needed to build them. This kit is also the same. The gate are quite thin and easy to cut off, you can probably build it with a nail clipper and nothing would have been damaged. I wouldn’t recommend twisting the parts with your bare hands, but some pieces are just that easy to cut out. The Dukemon is an injection kit so the nubs might be a bit hard to take care of, but some sanding paper and Gundam Marker would solve your problem instantly. Snap-fit are great as always. The kit is really easy to put together (almost make the price tag too high). It’s really just a huge HG with uber details. The part that requires the most attention is definitely the cape, as it needs a bit of patience and dexterity to get it right. But the material is quite durable, so don’t be too afraid.
+ Articulation: Just like previous Digimon Figure-Rise Standard, the articulation is…standard. Due to the design, the legs are the most agile parts on the kit. However, the feet and shoulders are quite limiting so the Gallant Royal Knight won’t be doing a lot of acrobatics. The good part is the joint is super solid, it can even hold the shield without a support stand like the manual recommend. But I do advise using one anyway to balance the whole kit on its feet instead. It can still pull of some really royal-ish poses and its iconic poses as well. The cape however is surprisingly fun to play with. The 2 side pieces has quite a large range so you can have fun with it however.
+ Gimmicks: The main gimmicks of the kit lie in the Holy Lance “Gram” and Holy Shield “Aegis”. It’s pretty simple actually, they both open up to look even more badass. Gram basically turn into a Getter Drill and Aegis went full blazing Beyblade. Pretty simple but well done nonetheless.
+ Gimmicks: The main gimmicks of the kit lie in the Holy Lance “Gram” and Holy Shield “Aegis”. It’s pretty simple actually, they both open up to look even more badass. Gram basically turn into a Getter Drill and Aegis went full blazing Beyblade. Pretty simple but well done nonetheless.
+ Accessories: Quite a simple kit since there are virtually no extra stuff aside from the weapons and cape (if you count them as accessories). There are no extra hand parts, only a small stand to support the shield which is basically just a clear effect stand from Figure-Rise effect packs. The kit is extremely minimalistic for sure, which uses every single part from the runners. Bandai could have included some extra effect parts considering the price of the kit, but well, they didn’t.
+ Conclusion: The Figure-Rise Standard Dukemon/Gallantmon Amplified is a fun, simple and badass-looking kit. There’s some playability to the kit but not too much. However, its display value is huge since it’s quite big and looks absolutely majestic. If you’re a fan of Digimon and would like a more “mechanical” version of this Royal Knight then I suggest you get this kit. The original anime version is also coming out, so you got many choices to choose from.
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