CM's Gakeen

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Originally posted by TheMazingerZ over at Robot Japan.





Hehe, CM's is cranking up the old school mecha. I'm not too familiar with this series but those magnet joints a la Jeeg look cool.





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Well.. looks like here's another CMs Gokin toy stuck in development limbo. It's been a while since we got any updates about this one but here's a colored image. Thanks to Diabolos of Aoshima.It forums.






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Well, it's out.


Images courtesy of Roboto over at Robot Japan.













According to Roboto's review, there doesn't seem to be any ratchet joints on the toy and the diecast parts are mostly in the legs of Gakeen and this core block:




Gakeen also has problems lifting up his arms to shoulder level due to the Magnetmen being heavy and Gakeen without ratchet joints.







CMs also released 3 versions. The normal one (up top) and the Japan Limited one (limited to 300 units only):

Non-chromed parts (more toon accurate)









And the Hong Kong Limited version.



Features a mix and match, chromed head and torso, but yellow painted arms and legs.



Plus the Magnetmen have chromed legs and blue forearms (vintage toy styled)





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Hi all, here's the review for the CM's Corp. Brave Gokin 17 Ga-Keen. Originally released in September 2008.


Opening Credits
Please click on image to begin video playback.





Please click on the thumbnails to view larger images.

Box



Tray





The two Magnetmen robots are piloted by Doctor Kazuki's Daughter Mai ("Mighty"), and Takeshi Hojo ("Puraiza"), together with Ga-keen, they fight the Izaru empire.


Magnetmen Launch Sequence.
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Puraiza



Mighty





Comparison with a GiJoe.




Cm's Corp. also included the Magnetmen weapons (be careful not to lose them, they are very small!)

Counter Cross.



Hand Drill.



Magnetman Plus and Magnetman Minus.





Ga-Keen combination sequence
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"Ga-Keen parts shoot!"
"Build out!"
"Twin Cross!"
"Magnetmen into one!"[/size]






Ga-Keen![/size]


Interestingly, Ga-Keen's name apparently means "Gathering Keen" according to Wikipedia anyway.

What is a Keen?
www.answers.com/topic/keen

(Yeah.. no real meaning to the name, eh?)




Ga-Keen's attacks - somewhat similar to the Original Jeeg, Ga-Keen also employs occasional wrestling moves along with his weapons.


Please click on image to begin video playback.




"Counter Knife!"



"Ga-Keen Punch!"


A great gimmick here is when you close the fists, the Counter knives pop up.



The forearm is spring loaded so the fists can shoot.

"Foot Shark!"


(the fingerprint smudge cannot be wiped off)





"Shoulder Crush"




"Ga-Keen Nunchaku!"










(Plain) Soushireikan no Ken (Supreme Commander Sword)






"Daisharin Attack"
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Converting Mighty and Puraiza into weapon mode




Please click on image to begin playback.


"Puraiza, Mighty Go!"








Change Combination!






"Plasma energy shoot!"






"Ga-Keen Full power!"






"Cutter Flag!"









"Mach Wing"








"Valiant Anchor!"





Flight mode



Ga-Keen fits snuggly inside the Valiant Anchor, I recommend inserting the legs first and then connecting Ga-Keen via the magnets after.





Comparison with the GX-42 Koutetsushin Jeeg.







Fortunately, the magnet charges are a match so the parts can be interchanged between Ga-Keen and Shin Jeeg.








I think this works better for Ga-Keen, I didn't really like the short barrel-chested torso design.










The Good
-Diecast parts include:
--torso core
--thighs
--lower legs and feet
--shoulders

-REALLY STRONG magnets!! Pulling them off is no easy thing. The same goes for the magnets on Mighty and Puraiza.

-A lot more stable than the SOC Jeeg, given the slender lower legs and all.

-Lots of accessories.

-Spring-loaded, firing fists!

-I really love that Counter-knife pop-up gimmick.

-The toy has a lot more presence than what I expected, the promotional pictures don't do it justice IMHO.

-Comes with everything that appeared in the show.

-Personally I prefer the regular color rather than the limited color (the yellow on that one just looks too bright)






The Bad
- I can't seem to bend the knees, I see a possible moveable joint there but whenever I try to flex it, the knee connection ball joint pops out.

-Even though there is diecast, Ga-Keen is a bit light, around 220 grams or so only. SOC Shin Jeeg is roughly 280 Grams.

-Fingerprint smudge on the Foot Shark.

-No diecast parts on the Valiant Anchor.

-A display base would've been nice.

-No ratchet joints.



The Ugly
No real major qualms about the toy per se, as eveything clicks and locks in place and no real quality issues abound (except for that fingerprint smudge).

I guess the biggest issue would have to be the price. For roughly $200, that's a hard price to swallow, given that larger, more complex and diecast-heavy toys like SOC Godmars, Gunbuster cost about the same price when they first came out.


In conclusion, Ga-Keen is a great Gokin toy to have, it compliments the SOC Shin Jeeg and has lots of playbility and tons and tons of accessories. It just suffers from too high a price tag. If you can find one on sale, I strongly recommend getting it, especially if you're a fan of the show (it was a big hit in Italy I think).





Funfact: If you've watched the clips I posted then some of you might've noticed something familiar about the characters, this is because they were designed by the late Kazuo Komatsubara, the same guy who designed the characters from Getter Robo and Grendizer, and many others.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kazuo_Komatsubara



Closing credits
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Ok, without a doubt, that is one of the loooongest Anime closing credits for a TV show I have ever watched. Talk about air time filler. Then again, the same can be said of the show's opening credits.





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