Play Arts Kai Raiden MGRR - Comparative Review of the 5 Variants

And so it has come to pass that by good grace i was able to complete the 5 variants of Play Arts Kai Raiden. It's not really an easy thing to accomplish, at least for me, and i certainly had to rely on lots of luck (3x to be exact) to acquire some of the pieces you see below. I'm just glad that i'll be able to move on to other constructive things; just one more review, one more damn round-up and i'm done with the Revengeance Jack...well, until the best PAKs of 2013 article...

 

Fondly called the "Raiden Rangers," the MGRR Jack Custom Body variants definitely made perennial variant god Sora proud. Oh, they are better than the Soras by the way but don't expect me to pose them ala Power Rangers. No way man! If, however, you do not have that insane amount of patience to complete these 5 (overpriced, some of them at least) variants let me do the honor of ranking them from the least interesting to the most impressive. I based this wholly on my opinion (and some of my fellow members @ PAKPTG) so you're FREE to do your own ranking. Ahem! Let's get this over with, shall we?
#5 Raiden - Custom Body Yellow As i deem fit, the last piece i acquired is rightfully the last piece on the list. The difference in the designs of the default Black and the Yellow Custom Body Raiden are quite minimal in my opinion. The inner body armor of the Yellow Jack is lighter grey in color and his, ummm...well...that's about it for me. it's a good thing i was able to score one for almost the same current going price of the Default Raiden. Many thanks to Warren of WrenHobby Toy Store by the way. My least favorite piece though the hardest one to hunt in my case. Irony is indeed a spice of life.

#4 Raiden Custom Body Red - I love this color to be honest, perfect Ripper mode color in my opinion, however, i would pick the Inferno armor over this one any day but, sadly, that only exists in the game. Additionally, the Custom Body Red is perhaps the most common armor, well, besides the Default Black, hence the easiest to acquire right now.

#3 Raiden Default Black - i feel it's fair to rank the default color in the middle of the standings, after all, he's the benchmark for all the variants. If you need just 1 version of Raiden you won't go wrong with the basic version. Ok then...

 #2 Raiden Custom Body Blue - i'll be honest with you, i ranked the Blue Jack higher since he's basically the hardest Raiden variant to acquire. Luck played a big role on this particular acquisition, i must admit. I sure do wish the other Raiden collectors to have similar luck to get theirs - This variant is really good and i hope you don't miss it. Surprisingly, the gleaming blue shade stands out prominently among the other darker variants making him an eye-catching addition to your line-up. Hey, speaking of prominent...

 #1 Raiden Custom Body White - Here it is guys, the best Raiden armor variant in the humble opinion of yours truly. The White/Medic armor is the most prominent,or, to put it simply, the one which will easily catch your attention while on display, not just beside the other variants but also among MGS PAK figures in general. The light color creates a distinct contrast to the generally dark or drab costumes of MGS characters essentially making White Jack stand out like a beacon. To round it all up, he's still pretty easy to find and the price is quite reasonable enough. If you are going to get just 1 variant, make sure it's the White one.  

So there you have it. The 5 United Colors of Jack or, if you prefer, the 5 Raiden Rangers (if you haven't moved on from the 90s as well as i did, lol). I guess now we can all go on with our normal PAK collecting and look forward to the other upcoming releases for Metal Gear which includes the much awaited Liquid Snake and...Raiden AGAIN? goddamn...

All for one, and all for love...

Oh well, can't be helped, consider the human Jack the 5th Variant. Cue in the Power Rangers theme, or that cheesy Three Musketeers song...eh, whatever...