Vol. 8 Xenosaga KOS-MOS

Product Information/Specifications

Introduction

When I saw BOME's version of KOS-MOS from Xenosaga on the web, I really liked it.  It had amazing details & I said to myself that I must get it.  And I did from J-Hobby.  It looked more amazing when I saw the actual product.

Although it's sold out in Japan, there's an American version of KOS-MOS that's distributed by Diamond Comics.

This is a brief review since I still had KOS-MOS still in her packaging when I did this review.  Also, I sold her away.

The Review

KOS-MOS in blister card packaging

You probably have read this from my other reviews, but I hate those blister card packaging Kaiyodo uses.  Although it's nicely sealed, I hate opening them without damaging the card.  Even though I used the "opening from the bottom" technique, it's not a clean cut.  Not a bad packaging design by the way.  Good design of Zohar.

Included with KOS-MOS is a big very nicely done Zohar display base.  Aside from that, there's nothing else here.

Although it's just a plain standing pose, the details are what make KOS-MOS great.  The workmanship of the paint job is tight.  Just looking at it inside its packaging, there is barely any paint bleeds to be found.  Even down to the littlest, it's not noticeable.  Like KOS-MOS' gun & her stomach area for example.  But, there are some uneven lines, such as the gold lining on her chest.  The etching job is great.  Look at the letters on top of KOS-MOS' head.  It's really tiny, but very clean & readable. 

Even the molding job is awesome.  The sections of KOS-MOS' abs are clean all the way down to her leg area.  Plus her fingers are well done.  The molding of her hair is beautifully done.  The swaying of it looks natural & clean.  Plus the clear light blue-whitish is a pretty nice choice of colour to use on this figurine.  Now, let's talk about Zohar.

What makes this KOS-MOS figurine an excellent seller is the display base.  BOME took the effort on making a custom base that fits the Xenosaga series by using Zohar.  This is really a big base & most of the workmanship is really in the molding job.  The paint job doesn't do much here since it's mainly one colour.  Examining the molding job, it's really good.  Very detailed.  Although it's a mass produced product that probably used some sort of metal plate where the molding process was done more than thousands of times, you have to think how much effort & time it took to design that out.  It's not an easy process.

Although it has KOS-MOS' cold characteristics, the face isn't like the game designs.  First off, the eyes aren't correct.  Her eyes are a bit smaller & doesn't give off that robotic look.  It's more human really.  Even though the face isn't too bad & captures KOS-MOS coldness, true fans of the game may not like it too much if they want it to look very exact.

Overall Conclusion

I'm pretty happy on purchasing this KOS-MOS' figurine.  I felt I got my money's worth from it.  It's got nice workmanship on the figurine & very detailed base of Zohar.  Taking her out of the package would probably lose of Zohar's effect since you would have to look at from a bird's eye view & it would take up quite a bit of space.  Sadly though, I had KOS-MOS put away in my closet for some time before displaying her on my shelf; still in her packaging.  Main reason was due to the lack of space.  Now, I don't have her anymore as I sold her away.

KOS-MOS finishes with a 9/10 from me.  This is due to the excellent paint work & molding job; especially with Zohar.  The lost point is basically due to the unknown stability of the figurine since it was still in the packaging.  It's hard to tell how good it really is.  For example, is Zohar really a good base to use?  Is KOS-MOS' hair fragile than it looks?

If you are looking for KOS-MOS to be part of your collection, you may want to try the Diamond version.  The Diamond import is sold at a cheaper price of course & there doesn't seem to be a shortage of them.  However, you may know that I don't like American version due to their toy regulations.  Also, they tend to be made at a cheaper quality.  I would suggest hunting down the Japanese version instead, but that's my personal opinion.

Photos were taken using Sony DSC-F828 digital still camera.

Last updated on February 12, 2008