After picking up the Kisame statue and seeing the quality of statues that Surge Studio produce first-hand, I knew that I had to get their Itachi statue to display right next him when it was announced. Partially, because they are partners in the Akatsuki, but also because they are in the same scale and are both large statement pieces that highlight some of their most memorable abilities, Kisame’s Super Shark Bomb Jutsu and Itachi’s Susanoo.
As someone who collects anything and everything that has to do with Itachi, this Surge Studio statue is my favorite piece of him in the entire collection. Not only is the likeness on-point, but it shows him in a dynamic pose and its concept is unlike anything I’ve seen before. I’ll get into all of this and more below!
I’ll be reviewing the Surge Studio Itachi statue in the same areas that we reviewed the Surge Studio Kisame on: packaging and shipping, design and concept, and paint and sculpt. I’ve also taken some photos of my Itachi statue, so you can get a better look at the details I mention in this post. With that said, let’s get into the review.
Packaging and Shipping
I previously had a not-so-amazing experience with Surge Studio’s packaging and shipping with their Kisame statue, which you can read about more in our review. But, I am happy to say that they learned from their mistakes in regards to packaging with Itachi. Itachi came shipped in two boxes, which I really appreciated, particularly because this allowed a separation between the more delicate parts and the large, heavy pieces of the Susanoo.
They also chose not to ship the statue with batteries in the box like they did with Kisame, so customs didn’t open the box this time around. As a result, every piece that I personally received came intact and in amazing condition. Given that shipping cost upwards of 400 dollars from the site I purchased it from, I was happy that nothing went wrong during transit and everything arrived safe and sound.
Design and Concept
This statue is completely interpreted in terms of its subject matter, because it features pretty much everything and anything that Itachi is known for, including the Susanoo, Amaterasu, and the crows he summons. All of that imagery included in one statue may seem like a lot, but Surge Studio practiced restraint in how they included these elements. For me, nothing seems out of place or overdone and the concept is not just well thought-out, but executed as well.
Even though it’s not a scene from the anime or manga, the overall look, coloring, and feel of this statue is very true to that which we’ve seen. If there’s anything that will stop me from buying a statue, it’s if the studio took too much liberty on the character themselves. I really appreciate the fact that Surge Studio didn’t take any liberties with Itachi himself, and his likeness is the closest I’ve seen from any statue before.
The one thing I’m not particularly fond of on this statue is the broken stone tablet with the Uchiha symbol behind and to Itachi’s left side. Amongst all that beautifully scorched rock is this–aside from a few breaks–mostly pristine tablet. And because it’s so clean, it really stands out. But, this piece is needed because it supports the Susanoo’s arm. Overall, it serves a purpose, but I wish it had more of a weathered look to fit the rest of the statue.
Other than that, I have a similar gripe that I did with the Kisame statue. I have yet to get a statue from Surge Studio that has a working LED unit. It is my hope that others will have better luck with this. Design-wise, the one thing that I’m not particularly a fan of is that you can’t turn on the LED’s without the Pikachu Kisame that comes with the statue, because the button on it serves as the remote.
I’m not as upset with the Pikachu Kisame that came with Itachi, because it looks better than the Konan one that came with Kisame, but it’s just an added touch that I personally could have done without and is something I wouldn’t have included in my collection on my own. For those of you who are interested in these Pikachu statues, this may be an addition you enjoy, and as always, this is subjective from collector to collector.
All in all though, these are small issues that I am willing to overlook mainly due to the dynamic nature and grand scale of this statue. Itachi himself is flying in on the wing of a crow defying gravity in a combat-ready pose. His pose is one of the most dynamic things about this statue, but it’s also because of the way that the other elements flow around him. It’s the one in my collection, as dorky as it sounds, that I have to stop and stare at every time I pass it, and it’s mainly because of this statue’s amazing concept and design.
Paint and Sculpt
I touched on Itachi’s likeness in the paragraphs above, but the head sculpt in particular is one I’m really impressed by. Itachi, as a whole, is spot on and it’s the added details, like his slightly scorched robe, that really make his overall sculpt one of the best things about this statue. The crows that surround him are also sculpted really well, especially given that they have some of the smallest details on this piece.
The Susanoo is casted in a clear red resin, but there’s a lot of definition and details that can be seen throughout, especially in his head, Yata Mirror, and sword. It’s a massive piece, but it was sculpted and casted really well with no visible errors or cloudiness in the resin. The one thing I will mention is that there is a large seam-line that’s visible in the Susanoo’s right arm, but with this piece being so heavy it definitely needed to be divided into individual parts. I will mention that the magnets that hold pieces like these are extremely sturdy, so I haven’t had any worries here.
The painting of the base is one of my favorite parts about this entire statue. The scorched rock and Earth that rise up under the base of Itachi’s feet is done extremely well with layers of dark red and black that really help add some contrast. The contrast this statue has allows it to stand out and the colors are bold even though the overall statue features a lot of dark colors.
It would have been very easy for this statue’s details to get lost and for it to come across as muddy, but the way they painted it and the way they layered the colors prevented this from happening. And I have to say, the black flames look incredible with that maroon-ish color of the rocks. The paint on this statue is impeccably done, and while I wish they would have kept that same scorched feel on that pristine tablet I mentioned above, I have no issues with Surge Studio’s Itachi in these areas.
Final Thoughts
If there’s one last thing I would say, it’s that this statue is extremely large coming in at around 29 inches tall thanks to Itachi’s Susanoo. As of now, this is the tallest statue I have in my collection, but it only makes it that much more impressive to look at. And given the imagery, I wouldn’t want it to be any smaller.
I highly recommend Surge Studio’s Itachi statue to anyone who wants a large statement piece in their Naruto Collection, particularly if you are like me, and love to collect statues of the Akatsuki. As of now, this is my favorite piece and quite honestly, it would take a lot to knock it from first place. For a full look at the statue, you can check out the gallery below!
If you want to learn more about collecting anime resin statues, check out our Best Places to Buy Anime Statues From and a Few You Should Be Wary Of and Guide to Buying Unlicensed Anime Statues and subscribe to the Anime Collective YouTube channel for statue unboxings and more!
Surge Studio Itachi Uchiha ⅛ Scale Statue Gallery
As of now, all of the sites I personally trust buying from are currently sold out of Surge Studio’s Itachi statue. If you are looking to buy him, you can probably find him for sale either on a Facebook Group or Ebay for a mark-up.
If you are interested in checking out more of Surge Studio’s statues, here are more that are currently up for preorder!
