Neutron Jammer: Figuarts ZERO

Portgas D. Ace aka "Fire Fist Ace" of the Whitebeard pirates. My favorite character and the best of all my Figuarts ZERO as of today. This is my fourth Figuarts ZERO and second One Piece character on this product line. This guy has tons of display options which are not common on most Figuarts ZEROs.

Portgas D. Ace, the most popular non-strawhat character, a brother to Monkey D. Luffy and son of the late Pirate King, Gol D. Roger (more on that here, warning: spoiler alert for those who still haven't reached the Marine Ford arc.).

At first, I didn't plan to get this figure because what was hardly written on my mind is the SH Figuarts (a product line series with articulation, also from Bandai) version of Ace. Sorry for the fans of SH Figuarts but that one looks horrible!

How horrible? Look at this image below.

SH Figuarts - Portgas D. Ace

It looked like a scary toy with those joints sticking out and with an ugly proportion. It doesn't even look like Ace, he is supposed to be muscular and this one looks like it's trying to grab my lunch because of a week without eating. The flame effect parts look like some weird orange slime slapped on his arms and legs. But the price is almost the same as Figuarts ZERO's. It's nice to have some poseability for these figures to be able to be displayed however you like, but if that ruins the appearance, it isn't nice to be displayed at all.

But around end of January 2012, I saw the Figuarts ZERO version of Ace up close on a local hobby shop. It was still inside the box but I am totally amazed by the overall details of this figure. And without any second thoughts, I decided to pick it up.

This figure was released late August 2011 for 2,700 yen. But I payed more than that amount on that local hobby store because its already 5 months since its release. That's what happens if you missed the preorder window or the release date. Most stores are trying to make more money out of these hot items, if they happen to have some stock. I still consider myself lucky at that time because it seems that Bandai has no plan for a re-release of this figure until now.

Portgas D. Ace stands about 145 mm, just a bit taller than Luffy. See the size comparison below.

Figuarts ZERO - Luffy and Ace

Below are the box details.

Box Art and Contents

The box design is different from the boxes of the New World version series. It has this kind of frame pattern around the box windows. The name title has a metallic foil which looks nice and eye catching. You can easily see the optional parts on the front box window.

Since I got it on a local hobby shop. It bears the silver Toei sticker of authenticity which means that this is an international version. The back part shows some photos of different display options.

On the right side is a photo of Ace with the other Whitebeard Pirates Figuarts ZERO's namely Edward Newgate (aka Whitebeard), Jozu and Marco. Which means Ace should be displayed along with these figures. Too bad I can't find those characters in reasonable prices nowadays. I hope Bandai will re-release those Whitebeard pirates.

The bottom part has a Bandai Asia holographic sticker, another proof of authenticity.

As you can see, Ace has a lot of optional parts. An alternate head without the hat. Two alternate left arm, one with and one without the bracelet and log pose (both without flame effects). A pair of alternate legs with sneakers (non-boots). The flame effect parts and a base stand.

Personal Impressions

So how does Figuarts ZERO - Portgas D. Ace compared to the SH Figuarts counterpart?

I don't have to elaborate on the obvious details but I say the Figuarts ZERO completely blows it away.

The proportion and the overall sculpt is so amazing. I really can't believe that a small figure like this can pack lot of details.

The likeness of the face from the anime/manga is spot on. The face details are simply amazing. I am impressed on how they can still put the freckles given the size. I love the facial expression, giving a sense that he is cool but ready to fight anyone.

The red beads necklace is non-movable, it is glued to the neck. The torso is very well sculpted even at the underarm part and the paint shading is well done. No obvious sloppy painting.

The flame effect parts are really kick-ass. It is made of a clear non-painted orange plastic. Nicely sculpted in a way that it is moving upwards giving the appearance of a burning flame. These parts really gives life to a static figure.

The sculpt of the black knee-length shorts is also nicely detailed. Its painted with matte black and has some subtle dry brushed effect. The eyelet-studded orange belt and the short second belt with a large red "A" on the silver buckle looks realistic at a certain distance.

The belt of the small blue pouch has some issues though, but it isn't very obvious since it is so small to be noticed.

The base stand is round unlike the ones with New World version series which are rectangular. Printed on it are his name, some Japanese phrase that I cannot read, a "Dead or Alive" phrase which is common on most Figuarts ZERO’s, and the jolly roger of his former Pirate crew which was the Spade Pirates.

The boots really looks amazing (don't count the times I used the word "amazing" because there are really a lot of amazing details on this figure). These are painted shiny black that represents the material which its supposed to be made of.

The only problem is that when using these default legs with the boots, Ace cannot stand on its own without this base stand. But when using the ones with just the sneakers, he can stand properly by itself. I'm not sure if there are ways to fix that.

The other effect parts, also looking kick-ass. The right hands looks like it is forming a flipped-bird... not for kids. The sides of the black shorts have some seams.. well, pants supposed to have seams on the sides.

The details of the hat is really superb. I still can’t believe I'm looking at a small figure. The two happy-sad faces on the hat really looks good painted with metallic silver and coated with clear blue. But the bull's skull-like medallion (that joins the two side straps that hung down the sides of his hat) isn’t very much detailed, maybe due to it’s very small size, not a big issue.

And also, it seems that the finish of the beads on the hat is different than the beads of the necklace. This one is shiny and the necklace is matte, I'm not sure which one is the correct finish. They didn't bother to make it consistent, also not much of an issue.

The back of the hat and the hair is also well done, no paint issues. But this part of the red beads necklace has some white paint thingy that looks like a settled dust. I will try to fix this with some paint someday.\

The back parts of the pants and belt. The way that the second larger half belt is sticking outwards is really true to the anime/manga. They really put a lot of efforts to recreate Ace in 3D figure.

The right side angle of the boots. Again, amazing.

Another reason why I get this figure are Ace's Tattoo's. These are his personal distinctive marks and I love to see them in a 3D figure. It looks like as it is on the manga/anime. On the left shoulder is his name misspelled as ASCE, with S crossed out, this S is a tribute to Sabo. On the back is the jolly roger of the Whitebeard pirates. It looks like it is made of water slide decal like the ones that I use on my Gundams. It may look like a sticker because it does not have any fading effects to look more realistic, but it doesn't matter, I still looks nice to me and I love it. I am really fond of these decals, maybe because I love slapping stickers everywhere when I was just a kid. I guess I still am a kid collecting and admiring these anime's figures.

The details of the dagger, the blue belted pouch and the left side of the black pants. I like the worn out effect of the dagger's handle, there are some paint issues on the green sheath though. There are also some paint issues on the blue pouch. Very minimal issues and does not bother me, you may also take them as worn out effects.

Ace without the flame effect parts. Still looking kick-ass.

All the removable parts and the alternate options.

The optional left arm without the bracelet and log-pose. I don't know if this is necessary, who would want to display him with less details?

The optional left arm with the bracelet and log-pose. Figuarts ZERO - Nami (New World ver.) also has log-pose but the sphere is painted metallic green. For Ace, they did not bother to paint the sphere, maybe because it is just an alternate arm, but is it really that hard to add just a simple detail. Not that I'm complaining, its just that they already bothered to add this arm option, why not complete it.

Ace with all the alternate parts. It seems like they are trying to replicate his appearance on the battle of Marine Ford. That explains the optional bare wrist, but I don't remember him having a dagger at that time.

Back part of the alternate head. The hair details are looking fine.

The small details of the fingers are really impressive. Very nice sculpting indeed.

Overall, I am very well impressed with the amount of details Bandai has given this small figure. It really stands out on all my Figuarts ZERO collection. It is nice for Bandai to throw in all these optional parts, but I still preferred him displayed in his default appearance with all the flame effects. This is currently the best and my favorite Figuarts ZERO. Figuarts ZERO's like these makes me excited and continue collecting this product line.

There will be an upcoming Figuarts ZERO - Portgas D. Ace (Battle ver.) and the prototype images looks awesome. I hope the final retail product looks the same.

Enjoy the photo gallery below.