Usagi Yojimbo Armors Up

Playmates releases two more Usagi Yojimbo variants as part of their Tales of the TMNT: The Samurai toy line.

The new Usagi Yojimbo figure released by Playmates as part of their TMNT collection was awesome, a perfect rendering of Stan Sakai’s classic rabbit samurai. But Playmates isn’t resting on laurels with the character, releasing two more versions of Usagi.

Both figures feature Usagi in different colorations of his samurai armor, complete with two swords and a removable helmet and face mask.  The first is a single-pack release, in a second wave of Samurai themed characters alongside Samurai Donnie.  The second, a deluxe horse and rider box set, which is available exclusively at Wal-Mart.

Aside from the deco (and the horse), each armored Usagi features an identical sculpt, but that’s okay since it’s such a nice one.  There’s a ton of detail sculpted and etched into the ornate armor, which gives the figure a good sense of bulk, while not impacting his solid range of motion.  Usagi looks great with his helmet on or off, thanks to the cleverly sculpted ears, which rest along the back of his head like a ponytail.

The rider figure includes an armored horse, which he can be posed to ride quite well. The horse shares the same sculpt as the horse and rider Raphael and Michelangelo figures, but Usagi’s smaller build makes him look more natural on top of his steed. The horse’s armor is well sculpted, with the same amount of detail as Usagi himself, but he lacks any articulation and is pre-posed in mid stride, which is a bit of a disappointment.

Which Usagi colorway you prefer will be entirely subjective… the copper colors and earth tones of the single pack are probably the more realistic, but the horse set variant’s silver accents make him rather eye catching.  I’m a big enough geek for Usagi that I had to add both versions to my collection.

One thing worth noting– while the single carded Usagi’s mask is a separate piece from his helmet, the rider’s mask is glued in place.  However, it IS still a separate piece, and can be removed easily enough to make this guy more comic accurate.

Want to add these awesome Usagi action figures to your collection? Head to your local Wal-Mart for the horse and rider set, and many major retailers if you want the single carded version.