My Bio Robo Mecha Super Minipla Review, A Pre-Power Rangers Megazord

I’ve been collecting Super Sentai and Power Rangers Deluxe (DX) toys for a year now, but I’m completely unfamiliar with the Super Minipla lines that Bandai released during that time. In my introductory piece, I indicated that I started out by collecting DX ToQ-Oh and various Ressha Sentai ToQger DXs. Like many people who saw Hikari Sentai Maskman and Choudenshi Bioman as a kid, I lusted after the Deluxe Super Sentai toys from the 1980s. As a result of its original market being adults who grew up watching Super Sentai or toy collectors, these items are now quite pricey. For this reason, Bandai has released the Shokugan Modeling Project, or SMP for short. SMP is essentially the rebranded version of Super Minipla. They provide Super Sentai model kits of the highest quality, marketed toward mature fans and collectors. If you’re on a limited budget like me and still want a piece of the oldies but goodies like Pre-Power Rangers Super Sentai mecha like Bio Robo, then this is probably your best bet, but not all of the older series have an SMP version just yet.

Information on Super Minipla is provided below (rebranded as Shokugan Modeling Project). Like the original Minipla, which debuted in 2016, SMP includes a number of boxes and candies. The style of the Super Minipla box was inspired by the DX versions of the same products, with a few key differences that make it clear that this is a model kit from the Super Minipla line. From ten different Super Sentai series, twenty-eight different Super Minipla sets are available, some of which are Premium Bandai Limited Editions.

Because it is less than the DX version, and because I’m still intrigued by Super Miniplas, I’ve decided to get a Bio Robo for myself instead. However, I did some reading and went out and purchased the necessary tools to build the model kit. I bought Bio Robo as my first Super Minipla and am quite pleased with it. Putting it together took me around four hours, but it was well worth the time spent. I messed up a few sticker placements, mostly on the wings of the Bio Jet 2, so I took them off. This doesn’t significantly alter the plane’s overall appearance, though. My first impressions are conflicting. It’s little, but more positions are possible than with the DX version. All in all, it’s a great buy because it allows for a wider variety of poses with Minipla, and it makes me nostalgic for my youth spent watching Choudenshi Bioman with my Filipino friends in the 1990s.

There are two different types of aircraft in Bio Robo, and they are called Bio Jet 1 and Bio Jet 2. Bio Jet 1 was flown by Red 1 and Pink 5, while Bio Jet 2 had Green 2 and Blue 3 and Yellow 4 as its pilots in the TV show. Super-Maser Sword, Bio Shield, Gas Neutralizer, and an extra set of hands are just some of the weaponry that come standard on the Bio Robo Super Minipla.

I spent a lot of time with my Bio Robo Super Minipla during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown, and I recently purchased a built Jet Icarus Super Minipla from someone selling their previously owned unit. I found that the stickers on Bio Robo SMP tend to come off more easily than those on Jet Icarus. Bandai should have painted more of it and used fewer stickers. Even with that caveat, I think Bio Robo is a fantastic upgrade on the classic robots we all adored as kids.

There are still many low-priced Bio Robo Super Minipla available online today. A well-known Philippine online shop sells them for between Php 2,500 (about $44) to Php 3,500. (USD 63). If you don’t feel like putting in the time to make a Bio Robo or are worried about breaking a part, you may buy one already put together, and some people even sell Bio Robo SMPs with personalized paint jobs.

You may take a look at some pictures of my Bio Robo Super Minipla below, and I truly hope you enjoy them.

Occasionally, I’ll pull out my Bio Robo Super Minipla and have some fun with it. It’s a poseable craft, so you can strike a wide variety of stances. Due to its plastic construction, special care must be exercised when handling it. I’ve already broken two of the smaller pieces, but it won’t affect how they work together.

To date, I have five Super Minipla collections and have pre-ordered the upcoming anniversary releases of Daizyujin of Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger (Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers in the English-speaking world) and Muteki Shogun of Ninja Sentai Kakuranger. Denshi Sentai Denziman’s DaiDenzin and other recent Super Sentai SMP lines were also among the ones I preordered. For less money, I’m looking for used primary mechs from older Super Minipla incarnations.

If you haven’t seen Choudenshi Bioman before, here’s a little information. Airing from February 4, 1984, to January 26, 1985, Bioman is the eighth series of the Super Sentai franchise. Originally intended to be a Power Rangers adaptation, the series was shelved until the nineties in favor of Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger. Bioman broadcast in the Philippines from the late ’80s to the early ’90s, and it did so in many other countries as well.