S.H. Figuarts Lelouch Lamprouge

I’ve always catered exclusively to the Figma line-up instead of the S.H. Figuarts, so this is my first taste in what the latter can do. Given that Figma Lelouch is long out of production, this little palm-sized figurine is the last of its kind still available on the market.

I’ve been eyeing this figure for quite some time, since I have a distinct lack of Lelouch merch (barring his Knightmares) but never had the heart to throw down the cash for something so small. Thankfully, my lovely girlfriend made the choice for me, and got it for me for Christmas this past year.

Bare-bones outfit, without the mask or the cape. As can be seen, the molding is actually rather sharp and the colors very distinct, especially the lovely gold trims. I’m loving the figure proportions; so slender and sexy.

The joints are a bit of an eyesore, but what can you do. Molding on the outfit is 10/10, especially with the deliberate wrinkles in the fabric and whatnot.

He’s so damn fabulous.

One of my largest gripes with this figure (and the most frustrating point of the photoshoot) is that his feet are so tiny it’s extraordinarily difficult to get him to stand properly. And when I say properly I mean with his legs close together all fabulous-like. He doesn’t actually have much trouble standing in a medium-wide stance, but trying to put his legs together in a balanced fashion as shown above required me to tape his feet down. And even then he kept tilting over.

The joints are unfortunately rather loose, at least on mine. This impacts stability, though not too badly. I’m actually surprised that he doesn’t tilt and fall on the shelf all the time.

I should also mention that you do get a fairly wide selection of fabulous Lelouch hands that one can pop out and exchange pretty easily. They’re made of PVC too so there’s not too much risk of snapping his fingers.

We get a total of three different facial expressions – two of which can be considered normal and typical, and the third on the far left is just what. Why.

The face molds are in no way bad; they could’ve turned out a lot worse. But the Geass activated face kind of puts me off – his smirk/grin looks too much like a cat face to me.

And of course…the “WTF” face can be played in so many ways…

Most fitting in extreme situations, possibly involving other figurines of similar scale.

And now, of course – onto what this figure’s all about. The mask and cape that make Zero the messiah he is.

The figure actually includes two masks for what I think to be totally pointless reasons. As far as I understand, one is meant to be plugged into the head and another is meant to be held in the hand.

The difference is that one doesn’t have a peg hole and the other does…but given that there’s not even a specialized mask-holding hand included (you’ll have to use one of the fabulous hands) there’s really no difference. I guess you could have him hold a spare mask while he’s wearing another?

The mask pretty much stays in place via friction and improbable limb placement. The fabulous hands look a bit off holding it, but what can you do…

Now, the cape was both impressive and disappointing all in one package. Impressive because the thing is made of PVC, and actually has a fairly wide range of bend at the tips and collar. Disappointing because it’s not an actual cloth cape, and locked in one position.

I totally sympathize and understand though – this is a tiny figure at a fairly low price point, so a fixed cape is practical and makes sense. Just too bad you can’t have Zero all wrapped up in it in his signature stoic pose, or have him flinging it back with both arms out wide.

Cape on and one arm out. See how the design of the cape basically means Lelouch can only stretch his right arm out, or have both arms down and make it look like it’s blowing in the wind.

The cape actually stays on via gravity and friction. You pop the head off and just have the cape sit on the top of the body over the shoulders. As such, it does have a bit of wiggle room, but generally is pretty stable.

Either way, it’s a nice accessory, however limited it is. The painting is nice, though the gold trim is slightly sloppy in some areas. I should mention the collar is also like, really extreme in how it’s bent, hitting the head at some angles.

Something I’ll mention though that I do truly praise the cape for is its inherent sculpted form. The way it’s made, it really looks like it’s being thrown back or being blown in the wind.

Cape on, mask off. Zero at his finest – Geass activated and all. In this form, I really do think this figure does the on-screen anime counterpart justice. It captures the feel of Zero so damn well.

Playing around a little more. While the figure itself does have a large well of playability, the cape is rather restrictive in this case. Note how many of the poses revolve around, “right arm out being fabulous, left arm in reserve.”

Money shot. I think I’ve amassed a fair amount of Lelouch to dedicate a portion of my glass towers to. Yes, I know it’s not in scale, but it’s pretty badass nonetheless. Figuarts Lelouch is actually taller than his mid-show upgrade mech, Robot Tamashii Shinkiro.

All in all, for my first experience with S.H. Figuarts, I have to say – I am not disappointed. While not particularly impressive by any particular means, if this is what their usual stuff is like, it’s promising. I liken their craftsmanship to those of Figmas, albeit with slightly less stability, though they do fit right in with that particular line.