The legendary super robot is now back in action thanks to the overwhelming love of The Philippines!
Let me first preface this by saying that, while I’m not the most devout supporter of my home country, I am still proud that our love for Voltes V through Voltes V: Legacy is very much recognized in Japan and we are getting this totally awesome Tamashii Nations figure.
Tamashii Nations is introducing something new to The Robot Spirits brand, and let me say another preface before going further. If you remember around the late 2000s, they have the wonderful Super Robot Chogokin line. In a nutshell, this is a smaller die-cast figure line stripped of any transformation gimmicks, and focuses on proportions and articulation. It actually had a good run when Tamashii Nations suddenly decided to cut it off for reasons beyond me.
Then, they came up with the Soul of Chogokin F.A. (or Full Action) line, which is basically just a larger, Soul of Chogokin-scaled version of a Super Robot Chogokin figure. Following a few releases, it also went silent and is probably cancelled. Now, they are introducing super robots in The Robot Spirits line with the <Side SUPER> sub-line, and they announced the first two releases, starting with this figure.
To those unfamiliar, 2023 saw the release of Voltes V: Legacy, a Philippine-produced live action adaptation of Super Electromagnetic Machine Voltes V. It featured a much more realistic version of the titular super robot while still maintaining the same design elements from the original. The first several episodes of Voltes V: Legacy will also be shown in Japan this October as a compilation movie, and this figure would be a perfect way to commemorate this theatrical release.
First and foremost, this can’t separate into the individual Volt Machines, which is totally fine since you are getting this figure for the articulation and proportions, to which the photos above can clearly demonstrate. It also includes several of Voltes V’s weapons, not all, but the most notable ones. Shown here are the Voltes Bazooka, a pair of Super Electromagnetic String and Super Electromagnetic Top.
And of course, any Voltes V set wouldn’t be complete without the Tenkuu Ken, or as we call it locally, the “Laser Sword.” It’s meant to extend upon removal of the “V” symbol on its chest and you can remove the red “V” on the figure, though the sword itself will likely be a separate piece.
I know super robot toys and die-cast construction usually go hand-in-hand, but I do think that there is a market for desktop-sized figures that forego transformation and combination gimmmicks for the sake of poseability and simple display. And this is the reason why I’m totally onboard with this move by Tamashii Nations. If we’ll see a whole slew of super robots under the <Side SUPER> umbrella, then it would feel like a good extension of my Super Robot Chogokin collection.
That said, I believe they are also making a Soul of Chogokin version of this design so if you want the full experience, you can always get that set. In the meantime, you can check out the figure on display here.
As well as the Soul of Chogokin version.
The Robot Spirits ⟨Side SUPER⟩ Voles V (Voltes V: Legacy)
February 2025 / ¥10,000
