Asia Exclusive Forest and Night Fight Blade Liger

I'd told myself I didn't need one of these. I already had Blade Ligers, it didn't have metal feet, it had minty green parts...oh, yeah, like that was going to last. Finally deciding I wanted one after all, I picked one up on eBay from a US seller rather than from in Asia, and waited my usual odd combination of patiently and impatiently. Scarce few days later...why, it's Minty Kitty, along with several other unrelated packages.

I've already reviewed Blade Liger twice. I won't bother again-I'll just focus on other stuff. Like how this time I had the sense to widen the hole for the head so it went together more smoothly-for once, a Blade Liger with shield fins that aren't a pain to lift. The cockpit still won't close perfectly, and Ban and Fine (cast in very nice plastic-I think they look sharper than my other figures, although I should probably compare them side to side) STILL fall over. They're getting replaced by a spare Republican pilot, since it's not the blue Blade Liger anyway.

I can say one thing about the colors for sure-they look a lot better in person. The inner body parts and caps are this odd bluish color, from which Minty Liger gets that nickname. Depending on the lighting, said parts can look anything from wedgewood to mint green. It usually hovers somewhere in between with a greyish toothpaste-like aqua that looks better than it sounds. The parts often called brown (and looking it in photos) are actually a cross between that and graphite or gunmetal-if I had to pick one word, it'd be sepia. The legs and tail are an appropriate forest green, and the trim a bright neon green, giving the Liger a vaguely Dark Zoid look. Vague, mind you. It's NOT the same thing. The paws, teeth, and blades are beige.

Speaking of the paws and teeth, they're plastic. Argh. This detracts a bit from Blade Liger's Blade Liger-ness, although mainly when in motion. Instead of stomping along with a steady CLUNK CLUNK CLUNK on the wooden floors, poor Minty Liger scrambles for traction, like a Shield Liger trying to move too quickly. To be honest, the teeth don't suffer much, but Blade Ligers should have metal feet. Are you listening, Hasbro and Tomy UK?

I wasn't entirely sure about the colors on this thing, but the more I look at them, the more I like them. There aren't many green or brown Zoids (other than the oft-forgotten Bear Fighter), and certainly not ones managing such a bright green along with these other colors without looking silly. It's one of the most unique colors schemes I've seen on a Zoid, and I mean that in a good way. Whether you'll like it or not is up to you, but it's worth giving a chance with the relatively cheap prices these things are currently going for.