The first thing we noticed about the box is that it's beautifully illustrated on the front and has various views of the Thunderbird 2 model on the back. Aoshima are obviously very proud of this Thunderbirds toy - and so they should be. The second thing we noticed about the box is that it is heavy due to this model being metal. Since the model is made for the Japanese market, the weight does add quite a bit to the shipping costs. Opening the box it's evident that the Thunderbird 2 DX is intended to reach the customer in excellent condition. Lots of polystyrene packaging for safe transit and storage when Thunderbird 2 is not involved in a rescue. No wire tags!!!!
After admiring the box and the excellent design of the interior packaging, we turned our attention to the model itself. Lifting Thunderbird 2 from the box, it's surprisingly heavy. The model is mostly metal but has a plastic pod and tail section. The four support legs are metal. The finish on the model is beautiful as I hope you'll see from our photographs.
We decided to mount a rescue mission to give our Thunderbird 2 a 'road test'.
Any Thunderbirds rescue has to start with the selection of the most appropriate pod for the mission. Whilst there's only one pod with this model, Aoshima very kindly supply all six pod numbers as separate labels.
The Mole had obviously got to be loaded into the pod if our rescue was going to be successful.
Removing the pod was a little tricky. It's a tight fit. Mind you, that's preferable to having buttons and levers marring the appearance of the model.
The pod did eventually come out. The pod turned out to be already numbered as '5'.
The pod is very detailed front and back. There's no cutout in the door to spoil the appearance. The door opens very easily without one.
The interior of the pod is also well detailed with girders and bracing.
The Mole was then trundled into the pod. It actually trundles very nicely with its moving wheels and tracks.
So now we were ready for our first rescue - out on location somewhere in our garden. The following photographs illustrate our Aoshima Thunderbird 2 DX in action.
Yup - we are *serious* toy collectors. We have some fun with our toys and don't squirrel them away in the loft waiting for the 'right price'.
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Here's the Aoshima Thunderbird 2 along with it's box and the rest of the contents. Nothing to assemble or paint. With the Mole included as a thoughtful extra you can start your rescues right away. The sheet of labels provides alternative pod numbers. There is also a leaflet with information about the model and the 'real' Thunderbird 2, mostly in Japanese. |
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So, off we go to our first rescue. Although this model does not actually fly, it looks like it should. Here we go, Tracy Island is left far behind as our Thunderbird 2 climbs into the sky. Well, it's actually 'flying' just above my head, but we used a little artistic licence to enable TB2 to hang in the sky all by itself. Aside from taking my hands out of the picture, what you see is an unedited photo. This is how the model looks straight from the box. |
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As Thunderbird 2 zooms away towards the Danger Zone in our back garden, take a look at the superb engine and tail section detail. |
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Here we are arriving over the rescue site. Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No it's Thunderbird 2! Help has arrived!
We've taken the liberty of removing the ITC logo from the underside of the pod. Note the pod incorporates a 'roller' style undercarriage. With the pod attached, Thunderbird 2 can be moved along very nicely - all it needs is a few palm trees to make it feel at home. |
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Touch down!
Here's what Scott would see from Thunderbird 1 as he overflies Thunderbird 2's landing site. |
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Time for Virgil to get the Mole out of the pod. The four metal legs are attached to the model and the pod is lowered. |
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The Aoshima Mole leaves the pod and makes it's way towards whatever it is that it's going to be rescuing. |
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The Aoshima Thunderbird 2 DX is one of the best Thunderbird models we have seen so far. Although this toy was expensive, we think the high quality and attention to detail justifies the price tag. We would like to see more Anderson related, large diecast models produced to this high standard. |
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