Summary of Zi-O SG Watcher: Vol.45

From the archive of Bandai’s candy toy blog series for Kamen Rider Zi-O, with reveals for SO-DO Kamen Rider Zi-O: RIDE PLUS 2, various apologies, and a look at the future of SO-DO.

The man currently in charge of candy toy development goes by G, and in honor of Zi-O, he is now going by the name Gi-O.

First on the blog is Kamen Rider Diend, for SO-DO Kamen Rider Zi-O: RIDE PLUS 2! This is a companion piece for the Kamen Rider Decade included with RIDE PLUS.

Like with the aforementioned Decade, the set gives you the DienDriver as well as the Neo DienDriver introduced in Zi-O. Diend also receives open hands.

Several images of Diend, recreating scenes from Decade and Zi-O, and just some fun in general.

The Option Parts Set for this wave has had two mysterious items for a while, and it’s time to reveal them. The bulk of these accessories are the Memory Droids! Zi-O’s WArmor form features shoulder armor pieces which can transform into droids and fight, but are mainly involved with the Rider Kick finisher.

When WArmor was included with RIDE 6, there were more people than expected who filled out the questionnaire requesting that they add the Memory Droids, so it eventually happened once they had room for it. They make use of balljoints at the shoulders and hips, as well as bending knees, so they’re pretty well articulated. They also have a peghole for display stand use.

An unexpected addition to this wave is Kasshine, the robotic servant to Ohma Zi-O from the December episodes of the show. The figure only comes with the default fists with pegholes, but you will be able to make use of Diend’s hands just fine.

As is typical of Gi-O, he makes a point of focusing on something you might not think about: The “Kamen” symbol written on Kasshine’s forehead. He remarks that you might’ve not even noticed it on the physical suit, which is one of the benefits to making figures of these designs. More importantly though, this part seemed to be pretty difficult to get across since it’s such a small detail. They ultimately went with making it a part of the mold instead of a sticker.

The last item on the Option Parts Set is Kasshine’s spear, which comes in two parts. The bottom tip is removed so that the pole can be inserted into the fist.

Images of (many) Kasshine in action. Would it be appropriate to call a group of them “a murder of Kasshine”?

And here is where the blog takes an odd turn. Now that all of RIDE PLUS 2 has been revealed, Gi-O takes a moment to… apologize for some speculation that fans may have had. He remarks that fans have looked at the previously mysterious items in this wave and questioned “Is it a new Rider? Is it a new form?” – he feels that he accidentally fueled our expectations by taking this long to reveal them.

At the time, the first announcement of the wave was in their focus on Kikai. Gi-O then goes on to say:

“Since [RIDE PLUS 2’s] announcement was much earlier than planned… aside from the Diend that was shown off in advance, Ginga whose inclusion was obvious, I thought that [Kasshine and the Memory Droids] would have been revealed for the first time at the sample review stage.

As a result of them being prolonged until today, expectations were raised, and for that I am deeply sorry – that is, sorry for the disappointment. However, although it is certainly NOT a new Rider or new form, since both Kasshine and the Memory Droids can be assembled without removing their hands, I hope you’ll play with them.”

I don’t quite know what the hands comment means, apart from I guess swappable hands. More importantly, there is some speculation to be had about what Gi-O means about the expectations, apart from general assumptions. I know that I, as well as fellow SO-DO collectors, was assuming that it had to be something we haven’t seen yet, though admittedly it’s an easier answer to assume it’s something that just hasn’t been finished yet.

Further speculation comes into play when you consider when this blog post first went up – it was the day that Kamen Rider Aqua returned to the franchise in Zi-O‘s latest episode. Once again, me and my SO-DO buddies were convincing ourselves that Aqua would be included since he’s technically a future Rider, and a notable returning character. It’d also be the first action figure Aqua would ever receive, so it’s no surprise this is what we would’ve wanted.

Anyway, that’s not the end of the blog! Although he doesn’t consider it to be an apology, Gi-O explains that there are two big pieces of news to reveal.

Woz: “As it is written in this book, the first character of this 11th wave is…”

… Another Zi-O! Right away, Gi-O is showing us what to expect for RIDE 11!

It was previously reported that the “ANOTHER” waves would contain Another Riders at 850 yen per figure, but in order to make Another Zi-O more accessible to fans, they have included him with the main waves.

In addition to that… Kamen Rider Zi-O, Mirror World Version! Gi-O felt that the character from the Ryuga arc left a strong impression, and he’s finally been added to the lineup. It makes sense for this to exist at some point since they really only needed to make a mirrored helmet, belt and weapons – the rest of the suit is symmetrical. Though it was one that I speculated would be in a Premium Bandai set.

Related, Kamen Rider Zi-O’s DecadeArmor: RyukiForm! This form was featured in Kamen Rider Zi-O Spin-Off: RIDER TIME Ryuki. In my case, this was another one I expected to be in some special set since it’s not from the show or a movie.

White Woz: “The DecadeArmor series will become fully complete.”

And finally, Kamen Rider Zi-O’s DecadeArmor: FaizForm! If you don’t know where this appeared, I don’t blame you. This was a form exclusively seen in the Buttobasoul arcade game, with its own collectible medal. This is not only an unusual inclusion for SO-DO, it also gives us every established DecadeArmor form.

As you may have noticed, the wave will also include Woz’s Ohma Advent History book, and White Woz’s tablet device. Although these hand options are in the wave, Woz is not.

The full lineup is as follows. The armor set for Mirror World Zi-O features White Woz’s tablet, while DecadeArmor features Woz’s book. As has been the case for most of the DecadeArmor forms, there is but one armor set with stickers for both forms.

As a personal bit of advice for those collecting to display both forms… you can easily just get a DecadeArmor set from a previous wave. The stickers that are exclusive to either form are provided by the sticker sheet. Or you could get two of this armor and end up with two books, and find some goofy label to put on that. Your choice.

Yet another important statement comes from Gi-O when it comes to this wave’s contents:

“Now, if you’re wondering ‘What about the movie Riders?’ then rest assured…

Zi-O in OhmaForm, Barlckxs, Zonjis, Zamonas

The above four characters will also be produced.

I originally aimed for a RIDE 11 inclusion, but progress could not be made to the degree needed to meet this deadline… For this, I am also very sorry for people who had this expectations.

As was stated in February, there is no lie to our ‘Completion Proclamation’! I’d be happy if you can wait because it will surely be produced.”

The “Completion Proclamation” refers to a promotional video in which the tagline was “I will make it part of SO-DO,” a statement declaring that no matter what, every new Rider/form appearing in Zi-O would make it into SO-DO, even if it takes a while.

It is not surprising that this movie Rider/form expectation would come up though, as this was the pattern. SO-DO’s previous lines for Ex-Aid and Build ended with the summer movie content worked into its final waves, and yet again, this is something I would have predicted to be the case for Zi-O since 4 characters fill out a wave nicely.

But… the news doesn’t stop there! The blog switches over to Mr. D of SO-DO Chronicle, with a big topic to discuss. Because of the fans who supported SO-DO Chronicle, they’re now moving into their third series in this line.

“Taka-Tora-Batta! Ta-To-Ba! TaToBa, Ta-To-Ba!”

Kamen Rider OOO, which boasts tremendous popularity, becomes a part of SO-DO! The Combo Change system, which involves the body being split into 3 swappable portions, is a perfect fit for SO-DO, so they have decided to adopt this as the next series.

“Magnificent! It is the birth of new SO-DO! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!”

It’s a bit early and still in the development stage, but Mr. D provides the images that he is able to share. He explains that this line will (understandably) feature a new form swapping system that’s different from the conventional SO-DO releases, but the articulation is comparable. The Medajalibur is included in the lineup.

This won’t be happening for several months, so the blog will publish information about this in the future when they can.

Source: Bandai Candy Staff Blog