Observations & Critique: Space Ghost Coast-to-Coast
As a Tamashii exclusive item, the Super Ghost Set comes in a brown shipper box. Inside the shipper, there’s a retail ready box (37.5 x 24.5 x 5.5 cm). The retail box contains two trays. The top tray holds:
1) 2x Ghost bodies
2) Super parts consisting of 4x Top Boosters (2 for each), 4x Wing Boosters (2 for each), 2x Front Armor (1 for each)
3) Hand for VF-31AX Toys meant to hold… (spoilers!)
4) Siren System Container
The second tray adds:
5) 2x Display Stand Bases and Arms
6) 2x Display Stand Adapters
7) 2x Display Stand Claws
Behind it all you’ll find:
8) Instructions
The display stand claws are meant to bear some of the weight when you attach the ghosts directly to a VF-31AX toy. One could argue that the accessory is missing the big cannons from the armor accessory. In the film, Hayate jettisons his armor except the top mounted guns before attaching to super ghosts in fighter mode. To get the whole screen accurate look, you’ll need to also purchase the separate armor parts accessories and then leave 90% of those parts in the box.
These parts were available for preorder in November 2022 and released in May 2023 for the eyewatering price of 11,000¥ (inclusive of domestic tax). If you want to recreate the final scene from Absolute Live!!!!!! you’ll need to also purchase the armor accessory which retailed for 17,600¥ (tax included). Don’t forget to buy the VF-31AX which cost 25,300¥. This isn’t a cheap hobby! The ghosts are 21 cm long from the tip of the front gun to the back of the rear spike, 23 cm from the tip of the bottom protrusion to the back spike when the super parts are attached. Though I don’t know the official measurement of the ghosts, they appear to comport with the 1/60 scale of the 31AX. Given the nature of these accessories and how they attach to 31AX, you would hope they would be light and they are at 54 grams in standard form or 90 grams with the super parts.
If you’re a fan of how the Super Ghost looks in the show, this toy will not let you down. The paint applications are gorgeous. The toy looks stunning with or without the super parts. I could come up with only two of the smallest nitpicks:
A) The attachment point on the bottom is a bit obvious. As a deluxe toy, there should be a gimmick that hides the attachment point until needed.
2) There aren’t any translucent accents, though I’m not sure there should be. Maybe the painted green accents on the front would be better as translucent bits?
The included Siren System accessory is a nice touch but it could have used more detail. It would have been nicer if the interior circle was translucent plastic and the exterior could have used a wash or something to make the molded details pop a little more.
On the toy the parts continue to look fabulous. Everything angles as it should for whatever mode and the package looks exactly as it did in the show… except for that sad fact that we don’t get the guns from the armor accessory.
I’m very happy with both how simple the super parts are to attach and how securely they stay on the Ghost. You can woosh the toy around your room without concern of anything popping off. The rear stabilizer recesses nicely. It may have been nicer if it locked in the extended position but I didn’t knock it frequently during handling so it’s not a sore point. Given the size, the toy should landing gear or maybe landing feet. Instead, you’ll be relegated to either attaching the ghost to the VF-31AX or using the included display stands.
The hinge on the Siren System is a nice sliding mechanism that keeps the looks clean and functions nicely. The hand peg does a fine job of holding it.
The ghosts attach very firmly to the 31AX and everything looks the part… but that’s about those are the only positive things I have to say about the combined mode. The 90 gram heft the ghosts add at the end of each wing is too much for the 31AX in every mode. Fighter was the least problematic, GERWALK was the worst, and battroid was the unpleasant middle ground. You must use a display stand in every mode when the ghosts are attached. You should also use the ghost display stands to support the ghosts in every mode. Gerwalk mode was so unruly that I could barely keep the toy together even when using the display stand.
From a durability standpoint, I really didn’t like the strain the toy seemed to be under in GERWALK mode. If you really want to recreate Hayate returning to Freyja, you’re going to have to work to get the Ghosts stands supporting their weight on the exterior. In fighter, the hinges feel like they’re better supported, in battroid, the weight is on the stronger axis.
From a “playing with my toy” perspective, this accessory is awful. The dynamic and fun VF-31AX is reduced to “find a pose, support it as best you can, and then don’t touch it”. The accessory itself doesn’t really encumber the toy in any way, it doesn’t impede the range of movement of the joints, but the toy just isn’t up to the challenge of hefting those lumbering ghosts.
Did you absolutely love Absolute Live!!!!!!? Was the highlight of the movie when Hayate attached to the super ghosts to make his heroic solo effort to confront Heimdall? Have you been itching to replicate those scenes in your display cabinet and don’t mind if the combined toy and accessories are difficult to handle because you’re just trying to achieve that look? Did you also purchase the armored parts accessory that was sold separately? If the answer to all those questions is “YES!” then this accessory is for you! If the answer to any of those questions was a “nah” then this is an easy pass. The one exception there would be those folks who just adore the look of the ghosts and want to display them separately with their 31AX toys because they look and handle great on their own.