Subdued Figures: Nendoroid Eren Jaeger Review

As summer gets underway, figure releases are speeding up too! While I wait for another mountain of boxes in the mail, this month I'm covering the Nendoroid version of Eren Jaeger from Attack on Titan!

   
After being a bit underwhelmed by Nendoroid Mikasa's release, I set my expectations for Eren a bit lower as well. However, his Nendoroid turned out quite nice! There aren't any glaring paint issues, the decals are nicely applied, and the sculpt isn't just a complete retread of Mikasa's base body. The legs still have the round joints to accommodate action poses, and the stand is a bit longer and sturdier than usual so that it can hold up the entire figure along with the 3DMG, which I'll cover later.

 
However, while the figure is pretty solid right out of the box, Eren falls into some of the same pitfalls that Mikasa's Nendoroid version did with the exact same accessories. It's still very difficult to get the salute pose to look accurate, and even following the pictures on the box I still had to fake it a bit. It looks almost okay from the front, but from the side, the problems are obvious. The stand is still in the way, the arm can't get close to the body, there's a completely separate arm just for this pose but no specific hand, etc., etc.

 
The good news is that the 3DMG is still much more impressive. These pieces are also identical to what Mikasa came with--one solid piece that snaps into the Nendoroid's back, two swords, and some optional blood pieces if you like your Nendoroids to be gory. Even the smoke plume is the same as the one that came with Mikasa, which must have saved a lot of production time. However, unlike last time, the swords don't fall out from the lightest shake anymore, but one still has a tendency to get knocked out of place pretty easily. Your mileage may vary.


But what gets this Nendoroid out of the "average" tier is the character-specific accessories. The first of these is a bloody hand to re-create the moment before Eren's transforms into a Titan. Unlike the salute pose, it is very easy to set this up however you like. I wish that the Figma had come with something like this!

 
The other accessory is a bit more involved. Using a separate torso and the pole that's included, this Nendoroid can also recreate the courtroom scene. The pegs on the sides of the hands attach to the pole, and most of the weight is held up by the bent legs so this pose is a lot more stable than I'd expected. The legs were a bit of a hassle to switch out though, since the ones on mine refused to slide into place without force. But while this pose is relatively simple to set up, it doesn't work very well for display. I had to get a very low angle to get the first shot, and since I'm not fond of this scene from the series, I can't see myself using these pieces again. Points for creativity, though.


What I like a lot more is the highly exploitable shocked faceplate, which makes Eren look like he's having an existential crisis. It's slightly different than the one that the Figma has as well, which just makes it all the more fun!

Eren meets Eren

So while this figure has some problems, Eren still makes for a fun Nendoroid by being a little ball of personality. The accessories do fit the character and the series well, and the faceplates are particularly well done. It's one of those figures that goes a little bit beyond being just merchandise and becomes a fun representation of the character as well. He's a great addition to my growing Attack on Titan collection.

A quick look around the Internet shows that Eren is still available at AmiAmi if you're interested in grabbing him for a decent price. Next time, I'll have my pick of Levi figures to cover...

Images by me.