KR|Origin Review #17: Rabidriss

Wow. It’s been a month since I reviewed any KR|Origin prototypes! Thanks to a few work trips, this review is late... my job occasionally requires me to head to some fantastic places around the world, which I consider a huge piece of luck; but at the end of the day, travelling is time-consuming and tiring, which makes it a challenge to stay focused on my blog.

Rabidriss^TM occupies the hallowed spot of the 14^th action figure prototype to be reviewed in the Origin series. So, here he is, as part of August’s lineup (like I said, late). And just... who is he?

Details

Name: Rabidriss

Subtitle: symbiotic warrior

Classification: therapsid reptile

Sex: male

Home: Tahron

Era: 520 years before Masq-Lor's time (now renamed Foundation)

Affiliation: Reptonoid

Rank: major.

Background

First appearance: KR|Origin #2 - Battle for Tahron: Part I – The journey begins
Brief bio: a semi-aquatic reptilian creature from the eastern wetlands region, Rabidriss was cursed to live in symbiosis with a toxic plant, which was grown from a seed planted on his back at birth. Spending much of his time meandering in the swamps, he provided the plant with light, water and nutriment, and in return received protection and energy. Eventually, Rabidriss used his vegetal companion to serve Bi-Harr on his quest to vanquish the mammalian enemies. Whenever the Therioms tried to counterattack the Reptonoid's menace, he fought viciously by unfolding the bud on his back into a malodorous blossom, which, according to a legend, also had the power to subtract the colours from the surrounding vegetation. He then used his threatening cannon to shoot the deadly seeds produced by the plant, which could instantly transform into voracious crawling critters.

Articulation

Standard.

Description

Head: similar to a dicynodont (e.g., Placerias), characterised by a short U-shaped snout ending in a turtle-like dark horny beak, dark-grey fur with few orange blotches, evil light-blue eyes with beady red pupils and a pair of short, pointed ivory-coloured tusks sticking out from the upper jaw. Additionally, he wears a metallic dark-green removable helmet, which bears three purple keel-like crests and whose appearance recalls a Protoceratops neck frill

Body: thick dark-grey fur with orange blotches, claw hands and feet. I think this is the first case of a KR reptilian character whose skin is not protected by scales or osteoderms, but by a covering of fur, which gives him an interesting mammal-like reptile nature. He also has a short, thick tail emerging from under the loincloth

Wearables: a purple harness with dark-green details and lime vines coiled around its straps, two metallic purple bracelets with serrated leaf patterns, two lime scaly thigh pads, two purple leather boots with double-fringe tops (on the front, the shaft of each boot seems to be separate from the vamp, leaving the shin exposed partially), a purple leather belt with a three-bladed golden shuriken as a buckle and three dark-green leather tassets (the central one of which is shaped like a large leaf) with serrated leaf embossed patterns.

Rabidriss' stylised harness.

Action feature

In the comics, Rabidriss carries a tubular metallic dark-green backpack similar to a vase, which is actually a protection for a large plant that provides him with energy through photosynthesis, allowing him to survive for days without eating. This plant normally appears as a cabbage-like magenta bud, from which a massive flower pops out during combat. So, the figure comes with two interchangeable plug-in pieces that represent the two alternative forms of the plant: the closed bud and the open flower. The flower resembles that of Rafflesia arnoldii and has a few leafy green fronds surrounding its base, five fleshy maroon petals covered with whitish warts and poisonous spines, as well as a bowl-like central structure from which a number of short lime filaments emerge. Since the flower fictionally has a stink of rotting flesh that attracts nutrient-rich insects, the guys at PoliganToys added a scent to the plastic in order to make it smell unpleasantly.

Weapons and accessories

Apart from the plant attachments, Rabidriss comes with a massive metallic dark-green revolver cannon, whose bell-shaped muzzle slightly recalls the five-petalled design of his toxic flower.

The lower end of Rabidriss' backpack is connected to the butt of the revolving cylinder (containing five chambers) of the cannon via a lime tube that looks like an ivy-leaved vine. Thanks to this arrangement, the cannon can fictionally shoot the lethal seeds contained within the flower towards the enemies. The figure includes three roughened dark-brown seeds in three different forms: dormant, partially sprouted and completely sprouted. The dormant form is the completely closed, egg-shaped seed that plugs into the muzzle of the cannon. The sprouted form is the horrifying dog-sized, crab-like parasite that attacks the enemies; the top and lower jaws (between which a dark-green, seemingly muscular membrane stretches) of the creature's head end in serrated edges with trickles of resin-like drool and have two pairs of devilish red eyes each, while the rest of its body consists of a wooden crustacean-like carapace, five root-like legs and two pairs of branch-like spiny, clawed arms. The semi-sprouted form is a mid-transformation version of the previous two and resembles a wooden saw-blade with two of the creature's four arms emerging from the sides.

Overall, I really dig Rabidriss, he looks great with the Reptonoids despite a couple of non-traditional features, such as the hairy appearance and the botanical theme. Everything, from sculpt to paint, is pretty top notch, except for the flower piece being too dense and heavy for the figure to stand easily. I could nitpick a few other details like the inarticulate tail and the loincloth being a little too long, but the truth is that this is a pretty good figure and a nice addition to the line.