DX9 Hanzo - Sixshot

DX9 Hanzo - Sixshot

The idea of Sixshot is awesome - six toys in one. Unfortunately, I only enjoyed DX9 Hanzo in one mode.

The transformation process, while not overly difficult, can get quite fiddly at a few places. Some ports and pegs need to be forced together with a lot pressure. Some swivels are extremely tight, making it very difficult to flip over some parts.

Car mode is not that great looking. It's vaguely shaped like one I suppose. Depending on how well you align the arms, it may or may not roll well on its rubber tires. I couldn't find any more ports so all four swords and kunai can't be mounted simultaneously. I'm not sure the rifles are even meant to be mounted where I mounted them. None of the weapons mount securely and all are prone to falling off.

Jet mode looks a little better than car mode. I'm not sure I care for the tires on top. I didn't technically complete the transformation since the tires on his shoulders won't peg in where they are supposed to. To my kids' relief, I'm not inspired to fly him through the air while making wooshing sounds.

Tank mode is a hot mess. It just looks like a robot in a Yoga pose gone wrong. There are two more cannons in his feet, but I simply was not able to get them to flip out. The treads are merely decorative and there are no tiny wheels underneath so he doesn't roll at all.

Gun mode is laughable. It's just a robot laid out without a head. You can hold it by the upper grip, but holding it by the wings will cause it to flop over.

I'm not really sold on wolf mode either. The front paws required the use of a spludger to fold out. There is some inexplicable stray paint on the back of the neck and on one of the rear legs. The wolf head sculpt is alright. His jaw can open a fair amount. He has no neck swivel, but there is a hinge at the base of the head. It does affect how far his jaws can open though. The front legs have the same articulation as his arms. The rear legs swivel at the upper thigh and have double-jointed ratcheted knees. All four feet have tilts but no rockers. Not that it would have saved this mode, but there is no tail.

Except for the proportions of his lower legs, I actually like his robot mode. The head sculpt manages to look menacing. There is some line work on his chest. His coloration is more blue than green. One shoulder keeps sagging on its hinge. The panels on both forearms keep untabbing themselves. There isn't that much paint application on this figure.

His head is on a ball joint, but you don't get much in the way of vertical articulation. His shoulders are on double hinges with ratcheted swivels. He can't raise his arms out and upward to 90 degrees and he does not have any butterfly action. He swivels at the biceps, wrists, waist, thighs, and just above the knees. His thumbs are on ball jointed hinges while his fingers are single-pinned and articulate individually. They also hinge at the first and second knuckles. His double-jointed elbows can do a full curl. He has ratcheted, single-jointed knees that can only get to 90 degrees. His hips are on ratcheted universals. He can do a full side splits, but not a full front splits. You have to be mindful of his front and side hip skirts. His feet are on ratcheted, triple hinges for quite a bit of tilt action. They also have some rocking motion.

His accessories include two rifles, two swords, and two kunai. There are also shurikens hidden under the small tires on his arms. The rifles and swords are chrome with some line work. There is quite a bit of flashing on both sets of weapons. The rifles have a hinge to switch between mounting pegs or handles that mount onto tabs in his palms. I found them to be quite fiddly and his left hand keeps dropping the rifles. The kunai and shurikens are pretty plain black plastic. These weapons and the swords are simply gripped in his posable hands so your mileage may vary depending on your patience. They can also be mounted to pegs on his hip skirt and shins.

I'll be displaying Hanzo on my Toyworld/Unique Toys/DX9 shelf. The not-quite-Masterpiece styling of these figures sets them apart from my other Masterpiece shelves. I doubt I will ever bother with any of the other alternate modes ever again. Maybe it's a consequence of being a six-changer that a majority of the modes would be lackluster. At least the robot mode looks decent. Hopefully FansToys Hydra will do better.