Bandai Figuarts ZERO: Bartolomeo figure

 November 12, 2019  Toys

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CHARACTER DETAILS

If you’re an avid anime fan, you might have a hunch that the Straw Hat Pirates have already expanded within the span of years it’s on-air. At some point, it was bound to happen. How else do you think Luffy and the gang can manage the deadly seas?

The Straw Hat Grand Fleet swore allegiance to the Straw Hat Pirates for their efforts in giving purpose to these seven pirate crews. One of the captains of the Grand Fleet happen to be Bartolomeo who’s a perfect definition of a true pirate.

Bartolomeo likes taunting his opponents, although he can be hot-headed himself. For him, baiting his enemies into anger is the best strategy, and while he looks vicious, he’s one of the loyal members of the Grand Fleet. Some say that he’s one of the keys to making Luffy one of the emperors of the seas, but you have to watch the anime to find out.

Pirate crews and the like, there’s no other person who’ll be more savage than figure pirates who are relentlessly copying anime figure designs. Nevertheless, pirates like to steal treasures and they adore popular figures like the One Piece.

ORIGIN OF FAKE

Bought on: AliExpress
Origin: China
Vendor: Amelie
Distribution Area: Worldwide

Year after year, shopping websites have been taking advantage of the November 11 sale (aka 11.11 sale). Well, you benefit from this, of course, since you can get your desired items for a very low price. However, you still have to take into consideration that sales can be deceiving especially if it involves bootlegs.

AliExpress also participates in such event and online shoppers come raking in everything that they want from the website. Sadly, the fake Figuarts ZERO: Bartolomeo figure can be one of these items — and you could be one of the victims of cheap knock-offs.

DESCRIPTION OF FAKE

The fake Bartolomeo figure, surprisingly, has a box of its own. It’s more deceiving since this figure presents a proper packaging for a bootleg. Although if you look at it closely, you’ll realize that the box already sells out the true nature of the figure.

You can see that the fake has a standard Figuarts ZERO box as it’s bulky. To add to that, you can see that there’s a logo of the specific collection. Turning it around, you’ll see a variety of images of the figure as well as some labels that are in Japanese, especially at the back.

At first, you won’t even suspect it as bootleg if you didn’t know where it was bought. For Bandai figures, however, you should see their logo on the box — which you won’t be able to find on this one. Notably, the figure also belongs to a specific division of Bandai, Tamashii Nations. You’ll see some traces of that on the inner flaps of the box.

Now that we’ve settled that, you can tell that are a number of logos that are missing on this packaging. Aside from that, the images aren’t even in proper resolution as you can see some pixelated texts as well as some minor blur. Now wait till you see the bootleg!

From a fair distance, you can see that the figure looks exactly like the images from the box. It’s definitely Bartolomeo the Cannibal as the figure’s characteristics show. However, you have to notice that bootlegs are full of flaws regardless if they look like the character.

For a first, a Figuarts ZERO base will have the character’s name on it. An authentic’s base is also translucent.

The head, at close sight, looks cheap. Most probably, the material used on this figure was downgraded from the intended material. Well, it makes sense since it’s a low-cost item. Bootleggers were meant to profit from it even if it means lowering the standards.

The two heads both have the same defects. Both teeth are rugged and the details are rough while the hair have some glue stains on it, and that’s beside how awful the area looks.

Without the head, there are a few details that are worth dissing. Noticeably, the arms have a messy white paint particularly on the right arm, and the area also looks faded. The chest area has a tattoo as well but the paint somewhat overlaps.

There are a few more flaws that are worthy of pointing out in the coat area.

For one, you can see that the buttons are awfully detailed, and in the same area, you can see a droplet of glue stain on that particular side of the coat. Apparently, the back portion of the coat isn’t safe from the same defect as you’ll see a tiny drop of glue stain as well.

The logo at the back has a flaw too. You’ll notice that edges don’t match at all as the green hair paint of the logo overlaps the art’s boundary line. With a close up, the back neck area of the coat also has some bad fur details.

You’ll get a hint of what’s coming up next by looking at the inner back area of the figure. There’s no way you haven’t noticed the flawed details on the bootleg’s checkered pants.

As you can see, the lower body area has some faded paint, especially on the checkered area of the pants. Apart from that, there are a couple of inaccurate paint job that can be located as well.

The ruffled area or simply the white area that you can see in the lower body has a rough texture. It’s enough evidence that the paint used on the figure is low quality, and while that isn’t much of a big problem, you’ll realize from the images above that the bootleg cannot be attached on the base completely. For some reason, it was very hard to stick it to the base.

As for the real Figuarts ZERO: Bartolomeo figure, you can see a lot of difference from the bootleg. For a first, the details are on point and clear from top to bottom. You can see that the details are smooth even though the images above are only close to 3D pictures. Don’t believe us? You might want to check the photos of the real figure here.

Needless to say, a quality figure requires shelling out a bit more cash.

PRICE

Take note, the fake costs a whopping $8.39 USD on AliExpress. Imagine shelling out that amount of cash for a worthless bootleg. It isn’t even recognized and you wouldn’t even have bragging rights having such an item.

As a collector, you want something that’s worthy to be displayed and kept. Although you have to buy the real Figuarts ZERO: Bartolomeo figure for $44.75, you have to consider that it should meet your expectations as a figure collector. And while there are some collectors out there that are very picky, this is something that’s deserving to be displayed on glass cabinets — unlike a flawed bootleg.

WHERE TO GET THE REAL BANDAI FIGUARTS ZERO BARTOLOMEO FIGURE

As a figure that was released last 2016, there are only limited places where you can fine the Figuarts ZERO: Bartolomeo figure. In this case, however, it’s an exclusive we’re talking about, so whatever the price may be, it’s definitely a reasonable price.

You’ll be able to find the real Figuarts ZERO: Bartolomeo figure at Ninoma – The Japanese Market. And for a time-limited purchase, $44.75 isn’t that bad if you’re eyeing to collect figures from One Piece, especially characters from the Grand Fleet like Bartolomeo.

Another reason to consider shopping the figure from the website is that they’re highly regarded as a trusted website. And to add, they can ship any items worldwide — hassle-free and only in a matter of days.

Nevertheless, you should be showering yourselves with authentic items, may it be collectibles or any items. Do not tolerate bootlegs as these items will only seek to disappoint you, no matter what.

OUR VERDICT

The fake Figuarts ZERO: Bartolomeo figure is an awful lot of mess. You can see from the glue stains, inaccuracy on the paint job, and the materials used on the figure. It’s absolutely a down-sized Bartolomeo figure, and needless to say, it is made to deceive a lot of fans of the series.

You deserve a better figure, and that is why we are giving this one a 70% terrible rating.