Anime Heroes: Denji & Pochita reviews

The Chainsaw Man reviewed today is not the only figure from the show in Bandai's Anime Heroes line: there's also a plain, "civilian" version of Denji.

"Denji was dead... to begin with." Even faster than Eren, in fact, because Denji dies halfway through the first episode. He fights a tomato, wins, and gets sent on another mission where he gets chopped into big chunks by some zombies. It's solely by the grace of his only friend, Pochita the Chainsaw Devil, that he came back to life.

The majority of this figure uses the same molds as the first figure, which just makes sense: no need to sculpt two nearly identical versions of his "white shirt, black tie, black pants" Public Safety uniform, or his sneakers. The only new parts are the arms (no chainsaws in them this time) and the head. Since he's wearing a shirt, we don't get to see the pull-cord on his chest that activates his powers.

Like so many shonen protagonists, Denji is just a teenager. Before bonding with Pochita, he was selling bodyparts to survive. Even without the uniform, you'd be able to tell this is the resurrected Denji, because he isn't wearing a big eyepatch. The hair looks a little flat, despite its shaggy sculpt, like the eyes are too high on the head. Thanks to having no saws in his arms, this figure gets wrist joints the previous one lacked; like the ankles, they're a hinge between two swivels - you know, like what McFarlane Toys does now, or what we call "Revoltech" style.

The big appeal of this release is that it includes Pochita. The cutest thing since Jeff the Land Shark, Pochita is an adorable chubby puppy with a mini-chainsaw sticking out of his face. Instead of ears, he has a handle going over his head, and another behind his butt. Like a real chainsaw! In fact, one of the odd jobs Denji worked to support himself saw him using a happy Pochita like a regular chainsaw to cut down trees. Completing the look, the dog's tail is a pull cord. This is an unarticulated piece, just a big round orange body with stumpy little legs, but it's wonderfully cute. Everyone loves you, Pochita!

Denji is a less interesting action figure than Chainsaw Man was, but coming with Pochita drives his desirability way up.