Bandai Tamashii Nations - SH Figuarts DBZ Majin Buu Figure Review

Introduction - SH Figuarts Majin Buu Figure Review 
"Buu turn you into candy and eat you!"  The Majin Buu is the final villain in the Dragon Ball Z Manga. Honestly, I did not like the Dragon Ball Z Majin Buu Saga when I read the manga as a kid. I felt that the author should have ended the manga after the Cell Arc. All the different forms of the Majin Buu such as Kid Buu, Super Buu (Evil Buu) , Innocent Buu (Fat Buu or Zen Buu) as well as the other intermediate forms as Buu absorbed other characters really got me thinking that the author was  running out of ideas.

Nevertheless, the character design is pretty unique and the SH Figuarts Majin Buu (Fat Buu or Zen version) captured this very well. 

Packaging

I knew that the SH Figuarts Majin Buu was going to be a big figure but when I received the actual figure, I was pleasantly surprised that it was HUGE. The box itself is much larger than the SH Figuarts DBZ Nappa figure.

So how big is the box? It measures it measures 10 inches tall x 7 inches wide x 6.5 inches thick. The Majin Buu figure itself is around 7 inches tall.

The box art is nice and spells Majin-Boo, which is the Japanese name for the character.

Accessories

SH Figuarts DBZ figures usually do not come with a lot of accessories but I am quite satisfied with the interesting pieces that came with the SH Figuarts Majin Buu. 

In total, the SH Figuarts Majin Buu comes with 3 sets of inter-changeable heads. One head is for his normal look; another shows off his mischievous and childish side and the last one depicts the Majin Buu with his evil grin.  In the Dragon Ball Z manga and anime, Majin Buu is always seen with his eyes closed and seemingly smiling. He is shown opening his eyes only when he is angry and about to do some serious damage.

 

For hand accessories, there are the standard fists for punching, another two for posing with his mischievous face with tongue sticking out and another one for holding on to a slab of chocolate which is also included as one of the accessories.

 

The chocolate accessory is quite well done and you can see that the outer surface and the inner surface of the aluminum foil are of different color tones which is what you see in real life.

Majin Buu frequently changes his opponents into chocolates or other desserts and eats them using his “Transfiguration Beam” or “Change Beam”. It would have been good if an additional energy effect depicting this beam was included. But I guess I have gotten used to SH Figuarts figures not including these signature energy effects accessories.  

Then, as if Bandai Tamashii Nations heard such complaints, they decided to add in an additional interchangeable head with “Transfiguration Beam” effects together with the SH Figuarts Evil Buu which has a release data of April 2019. This is good news for collectors who already have the Majin Buu (Zen version) and a good marketing strategy by Bandai to get collectors to buy both forms of the Majin Buu.

 

Also included in the SH Figuarts Majin Buu are 3 cape pieces, which can be attached to his back. There is some articulation on the pegs so you can move the cape pieces up and down. They do not look fantastic as they are separate pieces and many collectors have pointed out that this is the biggest flaw on the figure.

I personally do not have much of an issue with this. By just leaving the capes down and not exposing any gaps, I find that they look totally fine for me. On my display shelf with my SH Figuarts Majin Buu facing the front all the time, I do not think it is a problem at all. 

Articulation

In terms of articulation, the SH Figuarts Majin Buu did a pretty good job with his legs. You get full articulation and he can even do splits without his big fat thighs getting in the way. His knees do not bend too much though as that is the maximum he can go before touching his own thigh.

The Majin Buu figure itself may face some stability issues when standing up. His body is fat and round and his legs are small so I find that I have to bend him forward a little bit at his torso joint in order to balance him properly.  However, this is not an issue at all.

Other than that, the arms and head get all the standard poseability that you would expect from an SH Figuarts figure.  

Play-ability and Fun Factor

The SH Figuarts Majin Buu is an interesting toy figure to add to your SH Figuarts DBZ figures collection. Popping the interchangeable heads and hand pieces on and off is very easy and you can feel that these are sturdy and not cheap plastics.  The vibrant colors on this character add contrast to your toy collection.  I find that my favorite pose of the Majin Buu toy figure is that of the sitting position and think about it – which other character can pull off the sitting pose as comfortably as the Majin Buu? He is totally at ease sitting in the background, watching other DBZ toy figures fighting it out while he munches happily on his chocolates.

Value for Money

Is the SH Figuarts Majin Buu worth the money? At a retail price of 8,424 JPY which works out to be around USD$75, I would say it is well worth it given its size and how iconic this character is. Miss out on him and you will always seem to be missing a companion for the SH Figuarts Majin Vegeta, Evil Buu and Mr Satan.

Where to Buy?

The SH Figuarts Majin Buu is Available for Order Now at Amazon.com.