BeastBox Sacredpower Robo

I like how much BeastBox has been diversifying with their releases. We've got 4cm, 5cm, and 6cm Boxes now, combining Boxes, modular Boxes, accessory quarter Boxes, tiny Boxes that combine with vehicles, and now Super Robot Boxes. This is definitely something I've wanted to see them try and attempt for a while, and I hope they do some more different configurations in the future. Heck, if they do the stereotypical black/gold repaint I might be tempted to get another Sacredpower Robo. But, the future of this particular subline remains the be seen.

The Good: I have to give credit for this one just having a solid Box. As the line has gotten more experimental, it feels like more and more often Boxes are a tight squeeze, or the door doesn't want to close when you put them in the container. This one? Slides in like a dream, and is very solid.

The separate animals are all very cute. They are each slightly posable, and going between each mode is simple, but usually has at least one neat trick to them.

The combined mode is great. It has a fair bit of posability, holds together pretty well, and just looks fantastic. For a first release from a new style, it does a good job.

The little rubber not-Sentai members are neat, but definitely skippable. Don't feel obligated to get the deluxe mode on this one.

The Bad: The heck is this? Like, I get it, it's trying to emulate typical Sentai/Brave boxes, but I feel like you could have done this on a much smaller scale. Shipping on these was so expensive.

As for the actual toy, it's kind of a bummer that you have to pull a piece off of each of the animals to make the Box, and they have no separate storage. Those pieces all have a place to go as a robot, but not a Box.

Overall, love this set, but try and get it from an in-region retailer. The big box makes shipping on these more than a typical BeastBox. Like, it was more expensive than the toys themselves for me. Do that and You'll have a great time.

DX Frost King and Blizzard King / Blizzard Frost King

Yes, they made more. Yes I bought them. Yes I'm hoping them make a giant translucent blue whale. I have a problem.

Nothing new here, these are just some cool redecos. Lot of translucent plastic being used here, such as the entirety of Cube Bluebird and Cube Ice Penguin. Cube Bone Rex has some wonderful decals.

A few notes. Cube Conder's 0 and Cube White Mammoth's O are different, which is neat. Also, this is the second release of Cube Silver Bear, with the first release being a pack-in bonus with the rerelease of Jyuoh King a few months back. They are different, though, with the pack-in being °c and the single release being "S". Can I also just point out that we now have 5 bears, 4 moles/birds , 3 bats/owls, but only 2 giraffes? Why have we still not getten another remold of Cube Giraffe? I am so sad, I like that one.

Look, if you like Cube Animals, you're probably already getting these. If you don't these probably aren't going to sell you on them. This is just me kinda going "my collection is still complete." Also, more pictures out there can always help someone who's on the fence.

BB-54 Ironblood and Loyalheart

This is a neat idea for a Box set. While 52Toys has done a few sets of 4-animal Boxes, this is their first 2-animal Box I'm aware of. It's a good level of complexity, it's a symmetrical build so if you have two you can make monochrome cubes, they have a nice level of posability, and having them only be half-Boxes gives them an interesting scale in the line-up. Very happy with this set.

BB-55 Sigma DX Set

This is a neat experiment; going back and redoing one of their older animals with their modern style. Delta was my second BeastBox, and it's neat I actually owned the original when they announced this one.

The Good: Apart from a much more involved, but fun transformation, Sigma is significantly more posable than Delta. The neck is a little weird, but has good range, and the longer tail and toes do help with expressabiltiy. It does lack the mouth, though.

Sigma also has a set of weapon attachment points on its back. The instructions tell you to always pull them out, but they easily fold away for a more streamlined appearance. The DX also comes with a railgun that folds up into a 1/4 size Box, and works well with other releases.

The Bad: The frill doesn't lock everywhere. Other than that, great release.

2023 in Retrospect

Yo, we done! This year was... not great for the world. It was ok for me until November when the proverbial universe decided it was time to crap all over me and my family. We fine now, but I still need to find a new car >_>

Anyway, it was an interesting year in terms of releases. Built some real neat stuff this year, got some toys I was really looking forward to, and built a lot of custom Gunpla. All of which were G-Witch kits.

I've got a few plans for '24. I've got some more customs planned, some more G-Witch, some not-Gundam. There's some cool toys I'm looking forward to. Also, I do want to change things up on the blog a little bit. I've stuck to the 5 reviews per month for a few years now, but I've been doing a lot of art, and I normally have to schedule series reviews for 4-Friday months, so I'm gonna start posting art on weekends and be a bit more loose with 5th Reviews as it frees me up to do more stuff.

BB-59A Orbital, BB-59B Halo, and BB-59C Unreal

Wow, this was such a surprise. I didn't know these were going to be smaller Boxes. And the way they added these folding storage cubes that stack themselves as well as make them the same size as normal Boxes is such an inspired idea. Plenty of nice things to say about these three. And yes, I bought all three. Couldn't resist.

The Good: As I said, these Boxes are slightly smaller than the other offerings from BeastBox. It's a fun novelty in and of itself, but the addition of the smaller storage cubes is what really makes the smaller Boxes work. They can stack, compress to the size of a quarter Box like many of the line's other accessories, and when expanded are the same size as a standard Box and allow them to store properly inside a standard storage cube. it's an excellently designed and use of an accessory.

As for the fishies, they're all fairly unique, each with a different head sculpt to look like a different fish. Unreal is the only one with every fin type, with halo lacking a dorsal fin and Orbital lacking tail streamers. And while they aren't the most posable (remember, they are fish), they have enough to help depict good swimming motions, and the display stand really helps to set a scene for them.

The Bad: While it is neat, the fact that the Box has to be filled out by the display stand is a little disappointing. It locks together well, and forms a solid Box, but it just encompasses so much of it. It would have been nice if it just formed a single side, or fit in the middle, or something. I understand this would completely alter the fish, but I'm just throwing it out these as what I'd like to see if they do an integrated display stand again.

And while I like that they made the display stand modular, it is fiddly to get it looking good. It's also not immediately apparent how to orientate it when making the Box.

Overall, the positives far outweigh the negatives for this release. The amount of novelty and new ideas here are fantastic, and I can't recommend them enough. I'd most likely recommend Unreal because it has more fins, but all three are great if a particular head strikes your fancy the most. Hopefully we'll see more mini-Boxes sooner rather than later.

BB-52 Downspiral DX Set

Haven't talked about a BeastBox in a while. A lot of more time-sensitive releases or theme months, etc. But I've got a few of these guys in the backlog, and I want to talk about them!

The Good: A fairly simple transformation at first glance with just the right level of minor complexities. It's got a good deal of posability, with six articulated legs, and a spinney drill head. It's also the first BeastBox I've handled with a second mode, this one being a rocket. It's very simple, but a nice inclusion, and the added base in the SP version does add a lot to it.

Speaking of the accessory, it's pretty neat. There're multiple ways to orient it, it folds and stacks neatly like most Beast Box accessories, and if you have more than one you can build quite a bit with it. Don't know how you'd get more than one without buying more than one Downspiral, but that's a different issue.

Fun Fact: Octopus and squids have legs, not tentacles. Squids do have two tentacles, but they're only the longer legs with tentacles at the ends. If a limb has tentacles running down its entire length, it's considered a leg.

The Bad: I'm a little worried about the very tip of the head. It's a bit thinner than the other parts, and it feels like it could flex easily.

Overall, a good release. It's a simpler BeastBox, but a fun one.