Highserk Senki: What do you of with those Murky Eyes?

 With Kadokawa have been teetering recently, perhaps we will see less Isekais in the future, but I still come across to a promising one on a random encounter of manga called Nigoru Hitomi de Nani wo Negau: Highserk Senki. Dark Fantasy rarely blends with Isekai but Highserk Senki is one of those few specimens. Just like typical Isekai series, the main protagonist died once and transported into a Fantasy Medieval settings that just happened to be bleak one where War is a common occurence. The main Protagonist is an Anti Hero who served a warlike medieval Kingdom called Highserk and slowly rise from the rank of Common Soldier with his special ability and Magical talent of Blue Flame which had a peculiar significance in the setting and spread terror upon his foes.

Highserk Senki is quite a fresh Isekai reading experience since the amount of the Grimdarkness of the setting hit the right amount o balance without being too edgy. The main Protagonist also is not really a wuss either like typical Japanese Isekai protagonist who tried his best to stay in a Neutral alignment despite going through a hellish experience while keeping himself grounded and do whatever necessary to stay alive. So far the Manga only had 19 Chapters but the Light Novel translation had been going quite far which the Manga only reached about 1/5th of the Novel translation. I probably will binge the Novel and keep track of this series if It can wrap up with Satifsying ending which many of Isekais failed to do.

Arcanadea Ermeda Plastic Model

 
 Amongst Intensive barrage of Mecha Musume model kits from Chinese Manufacturer, Kotobukiya still managed to put up a good resistance even if overwhelmed by quantity. So after the Firebird themed Charmed, Kotobukiya's Fantasy Mecha Musume lineup comes with a new one called Ermeda and this one does not disappoint! Scheduled for June 2025 Release, Arcanadea Ermeda will be sold for 8965 Yen.

Arcanadea Ermeda goes back to the Angelic Theme like Lumitea, the first of this particular Mecha Musume lineup. In terms of overall vibes, Ermeda gives off a Cleric Onee-san vibe who use a Bow as a weapon of Choice. Or she could pass of as Senior Angel who came down to assist the Hero Adventurers. While I am not too well versed with the Mecha Musume, the Sculpt of Arcanadea Ermeda is impressive as usual when it comes to expresiveness and the Wing parts is a sight to behold to. I think the next Arcanadea will come with more serious vibe after Ermeda.

N-Gage Warhammer 40K: Glory in Death Space Marines Campaign Complete

 Warhammer 40k is no doubt one of the biggest Sci-Fi Series in the west because it is still one of the best Male Power Fantasy out there. There were plenty of gateways to get into 40k series and I found mine 18 Years ago. I used to be quite a devoute Nokia N-Gage Fanboy when I was in Highschool and through this Gaming Mobile Phone, I stumble upon this particular Warhammer 40k Game called W40K: Glory in Death. Just like Rifts and Pocket Kingdom, this game influenced me deeply in my gaming journey but I never actually managed to finish the game at the time. Now when I am in my 30s, I somehow find my way to get back into N-Gage through EKAL21 and go straight into this Hidden Gem of Warhammer 40k Game.

Arknights 1/7 Amiya Solo Around the World ver

 
 Arknights is very quick on this one! Just right around before Christmas last month, Arknights released  a special L2D Skin for Amiya in her Medic Class called Solo Around the world concurrently on every Arknights server. This Elaborate L2D skin give this Doktah's beloved Bunny Daughter a cute Witch costume reclining with a Violin on her side. Then 2-3 Weeks after the Skin release on Arknights game, Goodsmile Shanghai announced this version of Amiya PVC figure to be sold as 1/7 Scale Figure. Scheduled for February 2026 release, 1/7 Amiya Solo around the World ver will be sold for 27000 Yen.

 While I never really utilize Amiya in my Arknights Squad, after seeing her struggle with Doctor in the main storyline for over 5 years. I do admit that this Donki Cautus daughter deserves her Main heroine position in Arknights. Being the best skin so far for Amiya, this Solo Around the World skin gives a rather melancholy vibe for Amiya. Given Amiya's fate in the future will appear to be a very tragic one especially if Doctor is not by her side, as shown in the latest Integrated Strategies mode where Amiya become the Super Secret boss.

This PVC Figure release also served as a slap in the face for Mihoyo who don't put their act together with Genshin IP. Because even Hypergryph who make less profit with Arknights can coordinate properly and use the momentum well to release a Product shortly after an In-game content. Personally I am highly interested with this Amiya's PVC Figure despite she is nowhere in my Arknights top waifu list. But the dealbreaker for this product would be how elaborate the Violin Case stand that the manufacturer's effort to put in. Once again shame on Mihoyo who can't get their internal politics sorted out to deliver a good experience for their fans.

Super Mecha Champions Mechatalk: Part 2

 10 More days before Super Mecha Champions officially closes down. Apologies that it took more than a month for the SMC Mechatalk to continue but I will assure that the Mecha part for SMC Mechatalk will be completed before the Server closedown. After covering the Starter mechs in SMC Mechatalk part 1, this time I will cover the Non-Starter Mechs that I managed to unlock before the server closedown. In my opinion, this is probably the best on for the Mecha Parts of SMC Mechatalk series since I unlocked some of the Mechas that struck my Fancy and some of them are given generous amount of skins by Netease. Without further ado, here is the Part 2 of SMC Mechatalk!

SRW OG CCS Toys 鉄魄 [MORTAL MIND] Alteisen

 
 CCS Toys truly come for the rescue! It is almost about 2 years since Flame Toys reveal their take on the Iconic SRW OG Mech Alteisen which were rather on expensive side. And now CCS Toys ready to unveil their take for this Old Iron which is very impressive and justify the reason why any SRW fans should pay attention with them. After Cybuster, CCS Toys released a Diecast version of Alteisen under the same Mortal Mind lineup. Scheduled for March 2025 release, CCS Mortal Mind Alteisen will be sold for 32000 Yen Price tag.

Just like Cybuster, the CCS version of Alteisen will likely stand 20+cm which correspond to 1/100 Scale. Compared to the Flame Toys version, CCS sports darker color scheme and even look more bulkier for already Alteisen's imposing stature. Despite being 20% cheaper compared to Flametoys, CCS Version of Alteisen's value is no slouch and In fact even better. While this one does not have Shishioh blade, CCS decide to go beyond the limit and make some impressive effect parts for Alteisen's Heavy Claymore which are probably never done for any previous Alteisen's physical product. Despite I already have Kotobukiya's 1/100 Alteisen, I will likely get this one to reunite the SRW OG Main protagonists once again. I will leave the parts contents of CCS and Flametoys Alteisen for people to decide which company make the better Diescast product for this beloved Old Iron.

Cangdao Degenerator Industry SV-001 Metal Slug Review

 First Review for this year! Since I just discussed about the BT'X product from Degenerator Industry, I might as well use the momentum to showcase their previous product which is SV-001 Metal Slug. Never expected somebody make a mecha from the iconic Tank from SNK's 90s Popular Run&Gun Sidescrolling video game series but this is a well made product.

Overall Degenerator Industry SV-001 Metal Slug is a solid homage product for the Classic series which just hit the perfect balance of Value and Price point. While there were other decent options for Metal Slug collectibles like the Pantasy Brick Model or Beast Kingdom Pullback Car, however in terms of Value-for-money, This transformable Metal Slug Tank mecha is still the best one so far.

 For a 400RMB Toy Product, you got yourself a large Metal Slug Tank that have neat transformation gimmick even if the mecha is not the best looking. On top of that It comes with some Diecast parts and LED Gimmick. These sort of quality are not exactly even easy to achieve by Japanese manufacturer for double the price tag. Considering Degenerator Industry Production run has been more than 2 years already, it is kinda difficult to find a reasonable price on internet for this guy. But you won't regret to obtain this definitive Metal Slug collectible if you can find one around 80-90 USD.

BT'X Degenerator Industry DI-BT-02a 1/12 Teppei Takamiya & X DX version

 
 There are plenty of Classic Japanese mecha series that never got the revival it deserved due to Japan's faltering economic situation and nowadays it is up to China to come for the rescue. This time, BT'X a mecha series made by Saint Seiya Mangaka is the one that got the turn and we got a promising 1/12 Scale Product! Created by a manufacturer called Degenerator Industry and released by Cangdao, Teppei and X will be sold as a DX Set for 790 RMB with June 2025 release schedule. Though both can be bought separately for 380 and 550 RMB.

I think this product will turn out well because Degenerator Industry did have decent track record with their previous products. Considering they are actually the one behind Cangdao's Metal Slug mecha which is a well made product since I had one. This BT'X Product do get my attention because I did get exposed to the series as a Kid. I did watch the anime but never in full but what I get from the series premise, BT'X is a story of pure hearted Boy set forth on a quest to rescue his elder brother against Evil Mecha Empire with the help of a Sentient Animal Mecha called X that looked like Pegasus but actually based on Chinese Qilin. 

While we still won't know if Degenerator's Industry BTX will come as a Diecast product or not, this one will fit with my collections of Cavalry action figure. In fact I did have Takara's Seiryu BT Toy back when I was a kid which is why I kept my interest on this product. Hopefully by getting this product by supporting the manufacturer, we can get to see at least Seiryu and Suzaku got physical release because the mechanical design are pretty good. I think I will revisit BT'X anime series in near future as part of anticipating this product release to keep myself hyped up.

Thermae Romae Redux

 Never expect this Great Historical Fiction Manga series to see some continuation, but Thermae Romae really do get a sequel! Simply Dubbed Thermae Romae Redux, this surprising sequel takes place 20 years after Thermae Romae ended where the Main protagonist, Lucius Modestus successfully finished his Great Roman Bathhouse Project for Emperor Hadrian and found the love of his life from Modern Japan. This time during the Reign Transition between Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurellius, after the mysterious disappearance of his wife, Lucius Modestus and his Son took yet another great adventure to create great Wonders for Roman Bathhouse Culture from their experience of being spirited away to Modern Japan.

As expected by Mari Yamazaki sensei who is probably one of the more well versed Mangaka with Ancient Rome History, Thermae Romae Redux is a great read just like the first series. As the balance between Drama and Humor remains great as usual and at the same time we will get another glimpse of Rome during the last stretch of Five Good Emperors period. Despite the theme used for Thermae Romae is rather narrow compared to typical Historical Manga, the Thermae Romae Redux experience is still fresh which is testament of the mangaka's storytelling capability. So far this Thermae Romae Sequel only made it around 1-2 Volumes considering the series started on early 2024, but I will believe the story quality can still remain consistent for 4-5 Volumes worth. While waiting for the Redux get its story continuation, I can still stick with Thermae Romae or Kentou Shitouden Cestus to get my Roman historical drama fix.

Nikke Hyper Body Red Hood

  Nikke is very quick on their Merchandising lately! Around the same time Rapi got her SSR version, one of the more popular Nikke who is closely related to the main heroine, Red Hood gets an action figure. Just like Modernia, She got a Hyper Body Treatment because GSC felt it is more suitable compared to Figma. Scheduled for December 2025 release, Hyperbody Red Hood will be sold for 15800 Yen.

 Red Hood is one of the legendary Nikke in the series being part of the Legendary Goddess Squad but at some point she fell in combat in the combat against Rapture. However Red Hood managed to live on somehow in a fateful encounter with Rapi when she still was a Mass produced Nikke and her soul lays dormant until Rapi needs her power. In Combat, Red Hood is armed with oversized Sniper Rifle and apparently she was a Meta S1&S3 Unit. When I still played Nikke, I managed to get her anniv Dress Costume which put her perfect body into good display even I never managed to get her by the time I quitted Nikke. Red Hood's caught my attention due to her close resemblance with Surtr from Arknights and would pass as her if the former decided to have goofier personality and picked oversized Rifle as her weapon. While Red Hood is still a skip for me, I would likely consider if D: Killer Wife ever gets an action figure.